Ninomiya Kazunari's "It" (More, February 2009)
I have something of a public love affair with this series of interviews, and there are some gaps in the translations, so I thought I'd fill them in. I'm by no means a master of Japanese or of translating from it, so if there are any phrases that are confusing or awkward or just plain wrong, please let me know.
第２回：秘密
02: Secrets
窓辺に座ってはだしを投げ出す。それだけで、表情や佇まいが何かを憂い儚んでいるように見える。そこに秘められたものを知りたい―。
He sits at the window with his bare feet stretched out. And just by doing so, his expression and appearance makes it seem as if he's feeling hopeless about something. We want to know what he's keeping to himself.
「無意義でいる時ほど、何かあったの？ってよく聞かれるけど、何もないよ・・・・・・。今も頭の中には、マジックやりたいなって、それだけ（笑）」
"When I'm not thinking of anything, I'm often asked, 'What's the matter?' But there's nothing really... Even now, in my head all I'm thinking is, 'I want to do magic.' (laugh)"
本当に？だいたい、マジック好きなところから怪しい。人を騙して驚かせるのが得意だなんて。
Really? That's suspicious because he likes magic. He's good at tricking people and surprising them.
「たしかにマジックで騙すのは得意だけど（笑）、それが楽しいというより、ただ、難しいワザができるようになることがうれしいだけ。別に秘密主義でもない。教えてって言われれば、なんでも答えるよ！きのうの夜は錦戸とふたりで夜中３時まで飲んで４時までゲーム。朝は二度寝してからココに来て、それから・・・・・・」
"It's true that I'm good at tricking people with magic. (laugh) More than it's being fun, I'm just happy to have become able to pull off difficult tricks. I'm not really trying to make a secret of it. If you ask me to explain it, I'll answer you! Last night I was with Nishikido, and we drank till 3am and played video games till 4am. In the morning, I fell asleep again after waking up, and after that I came here, and so..."
知りたいのはそういうことではなくて、たぶん、もっと彼の心の奥。
What we want to know isn't that, though, but maybe something deeper in his heart instead.
「何かを秘密にしているつもりはないけど、自分について聞かれても、うまく答えられないことは多い。たぶん、根っから自分に興味がないからだろうね。どういう人間ですか？って聞かれても、こっちが教えてほしいよって（笑）。自分のことを全然教えないから、オレはこう！みたいな自我もないの。たとえば、嵐の中にいる時も自分の意見を言わないんですよ。言わないから、もはや聞かれることもない（笑）。言わないことが秘密主義なら、そうなのかもね。でも絶対にこれがしたいっていうこともないのに意見を言う必要もないでしょ。リーダー（大野智）も近いのかな。オレとリーダーは、嵐の活動についてあまり意見を言わないの。（松本）潤くんとか本当にやりたいことがある人がブレーンをやったほうがいいものができると思うし、自分のやりたいことは自分の世界で表現できれば十分だと思ってるから。５人分なんて責任負えないよ（笑）。もちろん、やってくれと頼まれれば、ベストを尽くそうとはするけど。
"I don't intend to keep things a secret, but even when I'm asked about myself, there are a lot of times when I can't answer well. It's probably because by nature I'm not really interested in myself. Even when I'm asked, 'What kind of person are you?' It's like, 'Why don't you tell me!' (laugh) Since I don't tell people about myself, there isn't a me that says, 'This is what I'm like!' For example, even when I'm with Arashi, I don't voice my own opinions. Since I didn't say anything, soon enough no one asked me. (laugh) It might be that my not saying anything is a way that I keep secrets. But even so, that's not something I set out to do. Though it's not like it's really important for me to voice my opinions anyway. Riida (Ohno Satoshi) is the same way, I think. The two of us don't really voice our opinions about what Arashi does. I think it's good that people like (Matsumoto) Jun-kun, who really has things that he wants to do, can do things as the brains of the group. As long as I can express in my own world the things that I want to do, that's enough for me. We can't all be the responsible ones. (laugh) But of course, if I'm asked to do something, I do my very best."
それでも、最近、事務所の人に今後の仕事について意見を求められるようにもなった。『何、やりたい？』、『どう思う？』とか、オレのことだけじゃなく、後輩のことを聞かれることもある。でもオレは相変わらず、『いいんじゃないっすかねぇ』って（笑）。別にそれで何かが決まったりするわけじゃないだろうから」
"Even so, lately people from the jimusho have asked for my opinion on my work from now on. Things like 'What do you want to do?' and 'How do you feel about this?' And it's not just me they're asking about, but my senpai as well. But like always, I say, 'Well, isn't that fine?' (laugh) It isn't like things are decided based on just that anyway."
さめているのか、ヒネているのか。徹底的に自我を捨てている、捨てようとしているのは、どうして？
Is he being cold? Is he being uncooperative? He's completely casting himself aside. But why is it that he's trying to do so?
「ヒネてはいるかもね（笑）。アイドルとか俳優でこんなに自分に興味がないヤツは珍しいかも。でも、アイドルも俳優も、それほど自分に興味がなくてもやっていけるんじゃないの？それに自分に興味がない分、他人には興味があるし、子供の頃から、騒ぎまくって遊ぶ子供じゃなかったから。なんか自然と、人のことを感覚的に見ている習性はあるだろうね」
"Maybe I am being uncooperative. (laugh) It's probably rare for an idol or actor to be so disinterested in himself. But I can still be an idol and an actor even when I'm this disinterested in myself, right? Because as disinterested I am in myself, I'm interested in other people. From the time I was a child, I wasn't the kind of kid who romped around loudly. Somewhat naturally, there's something in me that makes me conscious of other people."
だからこそ、人には、〝知られたくない秘密〟や〝知る必要がない秘密〟があることもわかっている。
For that reason, he understands that there are secrets he doesn't want known and secrets that he doesn't need to know.
「人に興味はあっても、秘密を暴こうとは思わない。あれだけ一緒にいる嵐のメンバーのことだって、知らないっちゃ知らないしね。今、どんな友達がいて、恋をしているのかも知らないし、聞かない。秘密があるからといって、愛情が薄いわけでも、距離があるわけでもないしさ。
"Even though I'm interested in people, I don't think they need to divulge their secrets. That's just it for the members of Arashi -- I don't know what I don't know. I don't know what kinds of friends they have or if they're in relationships, and I don't ask. Just because there are secrets, it doesn't mean that affection runs thin or that there's some kind of distance between us."
オレ、ドラマの台本もすべては読まないんですよ。自分の出る場面だけ。だって現実の世界でも、今、自分のおふくろが何をやっているかなんて知らないでしょ。最初から、すべての秘密を知っていることはリアルじゃないから。知らなくてもいいことは知らないほうが、演じるうえでは自然にリアクションできるんです」
"You know, I don't read the entire script for dramas, just the parts in which I appear. I mean, even in the real world, I don't know things like what my mom is doing right now. Knowing every little secret to begin with isn't realistic. In acting, not knowing things that you don't need to know is what makes reacting naturally possible."
明日死んでしまうなら誰にも言わないでおく
If he's going to die tomorrow, he won't tell anyone.
「今どき、アイドルだからって言えない秘密があるわけじゃない。恋愛だって、究極のところ、秘密にする必要もないよね。事務所の先輩だって結婚しているわけだしさ。人それぞれ、秘密にしたければ秘密にすればいい。オレはどうだろう？やっぱり、秘密にするかな(笑）。だって、極端な話、オレが明日死んでしまうという運命にあったとして、それを打ち明けたところで誰が幸せになるの？秘密やウソが人を救うこともあると思うよ。でも、最終的にウソは誰も救わない・・・・・・？う～ん、難しいなぁ。はぐらかしているつもりはないのに、矛盾してるね(笑）」
"It's not as if I have secrets I can't say because I'm an idol. For relationships, ultimately it's not important to keep it a secret, because there are even some senpai who are married. If each person wants to keep his own relationship a secret, he should. As for me? I think I keep it a secret after all. (laugh) In an extreme example, if I were fated to die tomorrow, who would be happy to have that made known to him? Secrets and lies can protect people, too. But in the end lies don't help anyone...? Mm, this is hard. I'm not trying to dodge the question, but I'm contradicting myself, huh? (laugh)"
その胸の内には、やはり大切な秘密がいくつもあるのだろう。だけど、自分の中にそんな聖域があることにすら、彼はきっと気ついていない。
In his heart, there's a number of important secrets after all. But even though there's that kind of sanctuary within him, he surely doesn't realize it himself.
「オレが本気で話そうとすると、こういう感じになっちゃうんだよ。だって、口に出してしゃべってる時点でもう何かウソじゃん。饒舌にしゃべっている時ほど、実は、どこかで読んだだけの借りものの言葉かもしれないと思う。だから、やっぱり、自分のことはうまく話せない（笑）」
"When I talk seriously, it ends up being this kind of thing. Whenever I open my mouth and speak, something ends up being a lie. When I'm being really talkative, I think it might actually just be words that I'm borrowing from something that I read somewhere. After all, I can't talk about myself well. (laugh)"
March 2009, September 2009, and December 2009 translations to come.
An index of scans and translations from the entire series can be found on my main journal, here.
And of course, if you have any comments, corrections, or suggestions, please let me know.
第２回：秘密
02: Secrets
窓辺に座ってはだしを投げ出す。それだけで、表情や佇まいが何かを憂い儚んでいるように見える。そこに秘められたものを知りたい―。
He sits at the window with his bare feet stretched out. And just by doing so, his expression and appearance makes it seem as if he's feeling hopeless about something. We want to know what he's keeping to himself.
「無意義でいる時ほど、何かあったの？ってよく聞かれるけど、何もないよ・・・・・・。今も頭の中には、マジックやりたいなって、それだけ（笑）」
"When I'm not thinking of anything, I'm often asked, 'What's the matter?' But there's nothing really... Even now, in my head all I'm thinking is, 'I want to do magic.' (laugh)"
本当に？だいたい、マジック好きなところから怪しい。人を騙して驚かせるのが得意だなんて。
Really? That's suspicious because he likes magic. He's good at tricking people and surprising them.
「たしかにマジックで騙すのは得意だけど（笑）、それが楽しいというより、ただ、難しいワザができるようになることがうれしいだけ。別に秘密主義でもない。教えてって言われれば、なんでも答えるよ！きのうの夜は錦戸とふたりで夜中３時まで飲んで４時までゲーム。朝は二度寝してからココに来て、それから・・・・・・」
"It's true that I'm good at tricking people with magic. (laugh) More than it's being fun, I'm just happy to have become able to pull off difficult tricks. I'm not really trying to make a secret of it. If you ask me to explain it, I'll answer you! Last night I was with Nishikido, and we drank till 3am and played video games till 4am. In the morning, I fell asleep again after waking up, and after that I came here, and so..."
知りたいのはそういうことではなくて、たぶん、もっと彼の心の奥。
What we want to know isn't that, though, but maybe something deeper in his heart instead.
「何かを秘密にしているつもりはないけど、自分について聞かれても、うまく答えられないことは多い。たぶん、根っから自分に興味がないからだろうね。どういう人間ですか？って聞かれても、こっちが教えてほしいよって（笑）。自分のことを全然教えないから、オレはこう！みたいな自我もないの。たとえば、嵐の中にいる時も自分の意見を言わないんですよ。言わないから、もはや聞かれることもない（笑）。言わないことが秘密主義なら、そうなのかもね。でも絶対にこれがしたいっていうこともないのに意見を言う必要もないでしょ。リーダー（大野智）も近いのかな。オレとリーダーは、嵐の活動についてあまり意見を言わないの。（松本）潤くんとか本当にやりたいことがある人がブレーンをやったほうがいいものができると思うし、自分のやりたいことは自分の世界で表現できれば十分だと思ってるから。５人分なんて責任負えないよ（笑）。もちろん、やってくれと頼まれれば、ベストを尽くそうとはするけど。
"I don't intend to keep things a secret, but even when I'm asked about myself, there are a lot of times when I can't answer well. It's probably because by nature I'm not really interested in myself. Even when I'm asked, 'What kind of person are you?' It's like, 'Why don't you tell me!' (laugh) Since I don't tell people about myself, there isn't a me that says, 'This is what I'm like!' For example, even when I'm with Arashi, I don't voice my own opinions. Since I didn't say anything, soon enough no one asked me. (laugh) It might be that my not saying anything is a way that I keep secrets. But even so, that's not something I set out to do. Though it's not like it's really important for me to voice my opinions anyway. Riida (Ohno Satoshi) is the same way, I think. The two of us don't really voice our opinions about what Arashi does. I think it's good that people like (Matsumoto) Jun-kun, who really has things that he wants to do, can do things as the brains of the group. As long as I can express in my own world the things that I want to do, that's enough for me. We can't all be the responsible ones. (laugh) But of course, if I'm asked to do something, I do my very best."
それでも、最近、事務所の人に今後の仕事について意見を求められるようにもなった。『何、やりたい？』、『どう思う？』とか、オレのことだけじゃなく、後輩のことを聞かれることもある。でもオレは相変わらず、『いいんじゃないっすかねぇ』って（笑）。別にそれで何かが決まったりするわけじゃないだろうから」
"Even so, lately people from the jimusho have asked for my opinion on my work from now on. Things like 'What do you want to do?' and 'How do you feel about this?' And it's not just me they're asking about, but my senpai as well. But like always, I say, 'Well, isn't that fine?' (laugh) It isn't like things are decided based on just that anyway."
さめているのか、ヒネているのか。徹底的に自我を捨てている、捨てようとしているのは、どうして？
Is he being cold? Is he being uncooperative? He's completely casting himself aside. But why is it that he's trying to do so?
「ヒネてはいるかもね（笑）。アイドルとか俳優でこんなに自分に興味がないヤツは珍しいかも。でも、アイドルも俳優も、それほど自分に興味がなくてもやっていけるんじゃないの？それに自分に興味がない分、他人には興味があるし、子供の頃から、騒ぎまくって遊ぶ子供じゃなかったから。なんか自然と、人のことを感覚的に見ている習性はあるだろうね」
"Maybe I am being uncooperative. (laugh) It's probably rare for an idol or actor to be so disinterested in himself. But I can still be an idol and an actor even when I'm this disinterested in myself, right? Because as disinterested I am in myself, I'm interested in other people. From the time I was a child, I wasn't the kind of kid who romped around loudly. Somewhat naturally, there's something in me that makes me conscious of other people."
だからこそ、人には、〝知られたくない秘密〟や〝知る必要がない秘密〟があることもわかっている。
For that reason, he understands that there are secrets he doesn't want known and secrets that he doesn't need to know.
「人に興味はあっても、秘密を暴こうとは思わない。あれだけ一緒にいる嵐のメンバーのことだって、知らないっちゃ知らないしね。今、どんな友達がいて、恋をしているのかも知らないし、聞かない。秘密があるからといって、愛情が薄いわけでも、距離があるわけでもないしさ。
"Even though I'm interested in people, I don't think they need to divulge their secrets. That's just it for the members of Arashi -- I don't know what I don't know. I don't know what kinds of friends they have or if they're in relationships, and I don't ask. Just because there are secrets, it doesn't mean that affection runs thin or that there's some kind of distance between us."
オレ、ドラマの台本もすべては読まないんですよ。自分の出る場面だけ。だって現実の世界でも、今、自分のおふくろが何をやっているかなんて知らないでしょ。最初から、すべての秘密を知っていることはリアルじゃないから。知らなくてもいいことは知らないほうが、演じるうえでは自然にリアクションできるんです」
"You know, I don't read the entire script for dramas, just the parts in which I appear. I mean, even in the real world, I don't know things like what my mom is doing right now. Knowing every little secret to begin with isn't realistic. In acting, not knowing things that you don't need to know is what makes reacting naturally possible."
明日死んでしまうなら誰にも言わないでおく
If he's going to die tomorrow, he won't tell anyone.
「今どき、アイドルだからって言えない秘密があるわけじゃない。恋愛だって、究極のところ、秘密にする必要もないよね。事務所の先輩だって結婚しているわけだしさ。人それぞれ、秘密にしたければ秘密にすればいい。オレはどうだろう？やっぱり、秘密にするかな(笑）。だって、極端な話、オレが明日死んでしまうという運命にあったとして、それを打ち明けたところで誰が幸せになるの？秘密やウソが人を救うこともあると思うよ。でも、最終的にウソは誰も救わない・・・・・・？う～ん、難しいなぁ。はぐらかしているつもりはないのに、矛盾してるね(笑）」
"It's not as if I have secrets I can't say because I'm an idol. For relationships, ultimately it's not important to keep it a secret, because there are even some senpai who are married. If each person wants to keep his own relationship a secret, he should. As for me? I think I keep it a secret after all. (laugh) In an extreme example, if I were fated to die tomorrow, who would be happy to have that made known to him? Secrets and lies can protect people, too. But in the end lies don't help anyone...? Mm, this is hard. I'm not trying to dodge the question, but I'm contradicting myself, huh? (laugh)"
その胸の内には、やはり大切な秘密がいくつもあるのだろう。だけど、自分の中にそんな聖域があることにすら、彼はきっと気ついていない。
In his heart, there's a number of important secrets after all. But even though there's that kind of sanctuary within him, he surely doesn't realize it himself.
「オレが本気で話そうとすると、こういう感じになっちゃうんだよ。だって、口に出してしゃべってる時点でもう何かウソじゃん。饒舌にしゃべっている時ほど、実は、どこかで読んだだけの借りものの言葉かもしれないと思う。だから、やっぱり、自分のことはうまく話せない（笑）」
"When I talk seriously, it ends up being this kind of thing. Whenever I open my mouth and speak, something ends up being a lie. When I'm being really talkative, I think it might actually just be words that I'm borrowing from something that I read somewhere. After all, I can't talk about myself well. (laugh)"
March 2009, September 2009, and December 2009 translations to come.
An index of scans and translations from the entire series can be found on my main journal, here.
And of course, if you have any comments, corrections, or suggestions, please let me know.