Afterword

(TL note: This was the hardest part to translate, some parts might feel weird, forgive me)

Evening, I'm Watari Wataru.

I never thought that there would be a day when I would write another one of these …

Who could have imagined such things to happen …? Of course, I did! Rather, I really wished to 

write another one of these, but the reason we're even here in the afterword is because of 

everyone's support, thank you.

So that's the gist of it, now it's time for OreGairu's afterword.

No matter what, whether it is the afterword or not, after writing these so many times, I feel like 

there's nothing left for me to write, but miraculously, after finishing the main story, there's 

actually more that I still want to write.

Before writing this, I was still thinking "Noo, I don't have anything left to write … just writing the 

main story was hard enough …" But after steeling my resolution and starting to write, it went 

pretty smooth, sometimes I would even write too many unrelated things and have to delete

them all. It could be because I was writing in the middle of the night, and my brain was bugging

out …

When the original series was publishing, I also wrote afterwords for most of them, so this is 

probably a custom by now.

But reading the things that I wrote before, I find that my writing style and content had changed, 

which made me feel the weight of time, and realize its impermanence.

Even if I thought there was no change, a detailed look would show that there was definitely 

change.

Rather, it could be that there was no change, so a little discrepancy made it feel like a huge 

change.

I'm not just talking about afterwords, it's the same for other things in life.

In the waves of society, I was able to float bitterly for over ten years with just a dinky boat. My 

schedule had always been full as well, being chased by the rabbit with a pocket watch (a gentler 

metaphor used for editors), urging me to "Hurry up, hurry up!", and barely surviving until now. I 

often wanted to tell him "You dead rabbit", but after calming down and thinking about it, it was 

usually all my fault, so I'd always only complain in my heart "In my mind you're not a rabbit 

anymore, you're just some wild delicacy" to relieve myself. (TL note: There are multiple 

references to "Alice in Wonderland" here)

Living life like this on the daily, gradually, there's nothing left that's worth being touched by. 

Even in April, the situation hadn't improved, all that was left in my heart was a "…Ah, so that's 

how it was (despair)" feeling, then I have to work hard towards the next account. It would be 

fresh if new gears (gentler metaphor for new employees) were to enter, but due to the 

seasonal change of personnel, slowly, it no longer piqued my interest. 

When you gradually get used to it like this, the culprit of the crime is buried, this intentional 

neglect and omission would then cause a great loss in profit. 

At times like these, if the rabbit unintentionally spoke a few good words to me, I would feel 

touched and think "Hey, this rabbit is so nice to people" Will I? No? Probably not, no, how could 

that be possible?!

It feels like I'm making a "This is way too realistic" type of joke, few will probably understand, I 

guess? For real, the rabbits are unforgiveable, but let's not talk about that!

Precisely because life is plain without ups and downs, sometimes a slight discrepancy feels like 

a huge change, inversely, if you were to notice the small violations in daily life, one day you 

might feel welcome for a colossal change.

Even if the change is slight in actuality, if I feel like there was change, my feelings would be 

affected, and new perspectives would be discovered, updating my values as well.

In that case, there must be change in his and her daily lives.

Along with new environments, new relationships, and new sentiments, "OreGairu Shin" has 

begun.

Because it had supposedly ended, I've felt hesitant to pick up my pen again, but I felt that I still 

hadn't written enough, so under the pretense of "It's ok if it's just a special volume …" I decided 

to continue with an all new sequel.

I'll continue to write about his and her surroundings and people around them in their third year

of high school, so I hope everyone can stay with me for a while longer, and continue to protect 

his and her present and future.

By the way, similar to OreGairu Shin, I've also written afterwords for my other novels.

The ones published now are "OreGairu Yukino Side", "OreGairu All Stars", "OreGairu Yui Side", 

and "OreGairu On Parade". In these four novels, I've written in each an afterword, you can read 

them together. These four novels are like short story collections, and they are all easy to read. 

They're very wholesome! 

But whether or not OreGairu Shin will be the same I can't be certain … but I think I will be able 

to write something wholesome and filled with content, so look forward to it! The reason I can 

be writing OreGairu Shin is also because of the TV anime "OreGairu Kan"!

Has everyone seen it yet? You've seen it right? After all, this is the special volume for the first 

two episodes! (TL note: Sorry Watari)

If you haven't seen it yet please watch it later, I'll just pretend that everyone in the world has 

watched it already, so let's continue.

… Say, don't you think it was made very well? It was made super well … I loved it, so can I speak 

about it for a bit? Can I suddenly begin my interpretations for episode one?

In the special volumes for the first and second season, I'd also written these so-called 

explanations, to be direct, it's just me running my mouth, so please listen to me this time as 

well. Don't forget, the content can't be suddenly changed. 

Those things that I wrote before can be called explanations, but they really are just my personal 

opinions on the anime, I'm not denying anyone's interpretation! You can have your own 

opinions and interpretations as you like. Rather, I hope everyone does. Then let us all follow the 

"For every thousand readers, there are a thousand OreGairus" spirit and casually read on.

Episode 1: "In Due Time, the Seasons Change and the Snow Melts."

The setting is just after the last episode of season 2, it really is a beginning for breaking the long 

silence. 

What a long silence it was … a full five years … Hachiman's monologue unwittingly makes us 

make an exclamation like such, but it isn't about his feelings alone, it is about the feelings of all 

three of them. I feel that if someone else said that, there wouldn't be any violation.

This actually is expressed as well during their conversation on the bench. They're trying hard to 

act like usual, but from their conversation you can tell that they want to believe that this 

relationship would never change. They all know they have to get to the core of it, but they can't 

find a way to get to it. Which is why Hachiman says "Can we hear about you?" Because he knew 

this situation was caused by himself.

And then it was Yukino's wish, looking from the words alone, it sounds like it's about her family. 

But this is just the face of it, this can be seen from her gradually saddening expression. The one 

most sensitive to this, of course, is Yui. The image of holding Yukino's hand is very memorable. 

In "OreGairu Kan," "hands" are very symbolic things, even more so than the dialogue, I hope 

everyone notices the "hands" going forward.

Coming back to Yukino "… Even if my wish can't come true. I'm probably too afraid to get a

clear answer, so I never confirmed it." These types of regretful words are her true feelings, her 

conclusion focusing on "wanting to give up" and "wanting to start over" means something has 

to end first. In other words, what she said early is at most the means, but the goal itself was to 

give up. It is precisely because of noticing this point that Yui would confirm again "Is this really 

Yukinon's wish?".

Everyone in the story are controlled by their missing fragments of feelings, in another sense, 

"OreGairu Kan" is talking about how they face those feelings and reach a compromise.

In the second part, we reach the morning of the second day of entrance exams for the world's 

best sister, Hikigaya Komachi. Considering Komachi's feelings, Hachiman asks her in a nonpressured way "How are you feeling?" From this we can tell Hachiman's loving side as a 

brother, and Komachi noticing that and expressing her happiness is way too cute, I really liked

that.

After that, Hachiman meets the cute Kawasaki sisters in the café. The cuteness of Keika on the 

other side of the glass goes without saying, and Kawasaki's half-stop nod and shy wave were

also super cute. Kawasaki's lines "Can you not spoil her so much?" and "You aren't aware at all" 

without a doubt point out Hachiman's nature. Hachiman wouldn't notice that yet, and this 

would cause huge conflict down the line. My god, doesn't Kawasaki understand Hachiman too 

much …? It's no wonder that Hachiman would say "Love you!" These flashbacks are really 

amazing. Because "OreGairu Kan" casually adds in previously cut content, you can watch it 

along with the original!

And then came meeting up with Komachi, the lines "I'm lying, I love you so much" and "Are you 

a disgusting fruit user?" really show Yuuki-san's outstanding performance. There's no need to 

mention how touched I was when hearing the character voice recording sessions.

And then came an even more touching scene, isn't that impressive?

I'm talking about the scene when Hachiman and Komachi were preparing dinner after their fun 

outing and shopping trip. Having a relaxing conversation by the kotatsu has a very sibling feel to 

it, hearing it made me feel cozy. During this happy conversation, the sister unwittingly reveals a 

lonely face, showing her coming of age.

Just as Hachiman said, Komachi's thanks sounded like the type of greeting before being 

married, and because of that, Hachiman's tears started to flow. Especially when Komachi said in 

the beginning "If I fail to get in, I wouldn't be in the mood," this way of speaking unwittingly 

shows her realistic side, and we can also see that she understands that point about herself. And 

then Komachi's thanks him and talks about their childhood memories and stories of the past, 

towards Hachiman who has been with her for her whole life, it was no doubt a huge surprise 

attack. He definitely instantly pictured in his mind the look of Komachi in the past, present, and 

future. Because they can't cry honestly, the two speak casually, saying "Are these tears?" and 

"Like a robot realizing what feelings are for the first time," these types of ways to cover up their 

embarrassment really suits the style of these siblings. Following that, the words "Why am I 

stuttering?" and the shaky voice in the end is really great. That voice on the verge of crying 

when the view switches also goes without saying, the scene after saying that and the angle 

avoiding their gaze, that wonderful transition made me gasp unwittingly.

That series of scenes depicting a sister's independence also prompted a huge change for 

Hachiman's mode of thinking for interpersonal relationships, I really appreciate the wonderful 

acting skills of the two voice actors. 

Going on a tangent, similar to "OreGairu Zoku", the trailer for "OreGairu Kan" was also written 

by me. You could say I was putting in an extra word, or I ran out of space to write and had to 

add that in, or even that I want to hype it up, or also just purely out of interest that I wrote it ♪, 

anyways, I wrote a few different flavors of it, if you can also see them to the end like the main 

series, I would be very happy☆!

Episode 2: "That Key Was Never Handled Until Today."

Before the OP started, the episode began with Hachiman and Hayama's conversation, the 

distance between them and their stinging words made me feel very comfortable. Hachiman 

chose MAX Coffee, while Hayama chose black coffee, from this you could see the difference in 

their stance, and it was visually pleasing as well. From their dialogue "Why would I? But I your 

concern makes me happy, thanks" and "I never thought that I would be thanked by you 

because of something like this," you could really feel the time that they had together up until 

now, making you laugh unwittingly. But later, Hayama's words conveyed a bitter memory that 

even Hachiman's MAX Coffee couldn't compensate for.

Let's turn back time to the past. (TL note: Reference to the classic catchphrase of Japanese 

comedic group PEKOPA)

Going back to the beginning part of episode one, when Yukino and Haruno met in the 

apartment. 

The most memorable thing here, is the part after hearing Yukino say "I have something to talk 

to you about," and Haruno replies back "So that's how it is?" with a smile. Haruno usually gives 

people the impression of being an evil liar, yet her smile also gives people a strong sense of 

warmth. Even though it is easy to miss it, sometimes Haruno does show a soft side to her, as 

with when? You'll need to pay attention in the future. But the problem at hand is, she then sees 

that Hachiman and Yui's eyes have gone back to their look from before, though it's hard to 

notice.

After entering Yukino's home, the biggest problem there is of course Yukinoshita Haruno. 

Firstly, her home clothes are erotic and cute. God, that's wat too cute, I liked it very much … 

just as I thought that, Yukino added in the words "about us." Haruno's happy reaction there 

could be classified as the softness I mentioned before, right? The people hard to deal with in 

this work can be counted by a handful, with Haruno being one of them, just looking at her 

behavior, she's quite a non-trustworthy character. So, when you want to understand her true 

intentions, you've got to look elsewhere from her words. Especially in this scene, after Yukino 

says "Because this concerns me, you, and mother," that expression she had was probably the 

thing closest to reality. Even so, she throws the question to Yui, that behavior also has a distinct 

Haruno style to it, so her true form always shakes things up. 

Yukino is the same, if she were to focus on the surface of her words, she would also see truth in 

a wrong way. Her line after that "There's only one thing that I want to say properly to make 

myself feel at ease," this earnest line could be referred to as an example of such. "There's only 

one thing," inversely, there are many other things that can't be said out loud. After she said 

that, she showed a relieved smile, and on the surface looked happy, as to why she felt relieved? 

That's a point worth thinking about.

Even if Yukinoshita had only said a couple of sentences, as a sister, Haruno probably could still 

understand what she was trying to express. The one who could give the most correct response 

to Yukinoshita's answer was most likely Haruno. Maybe Yui understood that, which was why 

she stayed over the night to help pack Yukinoshita's bags. 

Then what about Hachiman? Even in his monologue he deliberately does not mention that, as 

the explainer in the series, he deliberately creates misunderstandings, making it hard for people 

to trust him, if you were looking from his perspective, you naturally wouldn't be able to 

understand it. The characters in this series, such as Haruno, also see Hachiman that way. In 

"OreGairu Zoku" she also calls his placing as "interesting." And so, she would risk an ambush to 

talk to Hachiman.

Say, that "um" sound that Hachiman made when she was taking a whiff of her sleeves was way 

too cute, I really liked that … going on a tangent, there aren't many people that smoke in this 

series, plus having to drink and talk for a long time, I think you're getting what I'm saying, right? 

That's just the case! Say, that part when Haruno said "Hm? What's with the surprise?" and 

twirled around, that was so cute …

But the cute Haruno is also thorned. That type of thing is an established fact in the OreGairu 

fandom, and of course, this is shown substantially in the plot.

You can also see those thorns, albeit covertly, in the scene after the two of them crossed the 

road, of course, here I'm not talking about the kind that hurts people. Here we see her mention 

again "giving up," from that we can know that "OreGairu Kan" is also a story about her. 

A big hint also lies in the words "sister" and "brother." The two of them are the eldest children

of their families, yet they have a clear difference in their stances, the line "that type of brother"

may have come from the deepest reaches of her heart. On the other hand, the sentence 

"You've always been the brother" touches on Hachiman's nature. This was also mentioned 

briefly in the first episode, and I hope you can all pay attention to that going forward. 

"You can't be drunk," this monologue from Haruno is also an example of her nature, you can 

also interpret it as the source of her fun. Her prophecy for Hachiman nears that of some kind of 

curse, making the progression of the story look pessimistic. On another note, the series of face 

changes by Haruno were amazing, I felt like I was falling for her … I also want to be toyed by a 

pretty Onee-san …

The second half finally brings the spotlight to their school life. On the way to the club room, at 

the same time that Hachiman and Yui's conversation make us feel nostalgic, it also makes us 

notice that the time for it all to end was nearing, the locked club room can be considered as a 

symbol to that. Until now the club room had always been open, but now it was firmly locked, 

although it was just a small difference, it was still a change. Hachiman's urge to go get the key is 

the also the same logic. 

And then, when he enters the faculty office, he sees that Hiratsuka-sensei's desk has been 

cleaned. That is also a small change. 

Let's put this aside for now, as we finally see Iroha in the club room!

The sudden movie-watching session felt ominous, like something bad was to occur … the

headstrong attitude of Iroha here is really great, Iroha really is so cute. Her world's-cutest-scum 

act is really awesome. And that look as she adorably asked for a favor … up until then she was 

still the same as ever, but she easily gave up after that, there we can see her change. 

That change also affects him and her. Hachiman becomes lonely after losing his solace, while 

Yukino becomes too emotional in her willful attempt for change. 

And that's why Yukino speaks up. Say, Yukinon, is your opinion of Iroha really that high? 

Thinking she can definitely become the prom queen … not bad. But happiness is fleeting, from 

Iroha's emotional moment we can see her earnestness and growth. As for her real intention for 

holding the prom, we'll talk about it a bit later, here we're mainly focusing on her conversation 

with Yukino.

Even when facing their interrogative questions, Iroha bluntly answered all of them. Yukino saw

in her an overlap of herself. That's what the thought "There must be change" is all about. But 

different form Iroha, Yukino has a more forceful perspective on this matter. As I commented in 

the first episode, her motivation culminates on the idea of "giving up," this for her, was just the 

means to achieve that. That point also shows up in later in the words "I want do it on with my 

own strength."

Even if those words sound positive on their own, they carry some feelings of loneliness. 

The only one that noticed the meaning behind those words was probably only Yui. Rather, it 

seemed like Iroha, the one seeing the relationship of the three from the closest proximity, 

noticed something, which is why she said "So that's it."

It was precisely because Yui understood that her expression appeared down. This is because

she too is a person struggling with her thoughts. 

Yui goes back to her room, looks at the three of them in the picture, and remembers the events 

from a few days back. She notices, no, she faces that secret yearning again, those feelings 

cherished like treasures in her heart, and she begins to find her own "answer."

That's all the OreGairu talk for now. I'll see you in the next volume!

Below are my thanks.

Ponkan⑧-sama. You worked hard for the original series! It's anime season again! I'll leave the 

work for the BD, DVD, and CD covers to you. I'm so happy to have been able to work with you

on the work for "OreGairu Kan"! Thank you so much, Next, let's work hard on "OreGairu Kami!"

(TL note: Kami = god)

My responsible editor Hoshino-sama. Hahaha! The original series is finished, I'll have a lot of 

free time now, hahaha! —Said someone once, but that wasn't the reality. The reality wasn't like 

that at all, hahaha. So, let's end the conversation here … there's still a distance left for OreGairu 

to go, I'll be in your care! Thank you very much.

To director Oikawa and all other staff. After "OreGairu Zoku," "OreGairu Kan" has also been in 

your care. In the tough times now, I'm really grateful for your hard work at production. Thank 

you for putting up with the troublesome original work and author. Every time I see you guys 

creating the best anime for the best ending, I'm always touched. Please allow me to express my 

deepest gratitude to you guys once again. I look forward to working with you all in the future. 

Thank you very much.

To Hikigaya Hachiman's CV Takuya Eguchi and all the other character voicers. Unknowingly, 

we've worked with each other for quite a long time. It was only because of your talented acting 

that those characters could sparkle. You have all made me learn how important a character is in 

writing. I'm sorry for causing trouble with my hard characters and troublesome plot. Being able 

to work with you all is the best experience I've had as a writer. Thank you all very much.

Lastly, to the fellow readers and audience. Thank you for waiting for "OreGairu Kan." Over the

past few years, I can relate more and more to the idea that "OreGairu only exists because of 

you!" It's because of everyone's support that this series was able to continue, and approach to 

the ending step by step. Whether it's the anime, "OreGairu Shin," or any other "OreGairu," I'll 

work hard until the last moment. If you can all accompany me to the end, I would feel infinitely

happy.

OreGairu only exists because of you!

Then I'll put down my pen here.

Next up is probably the second volume of the BD and DVD! Although I'm not too sure myself, 

see you again!

One day in July, sipping MAX coffee while doing a live text commentary of the anime.

Watari Wataru