Sore o gendouryoku ni shite, kyou mo Kouhei wa sesse to o-aisouwarai o furimaite iru.
Using that as the source of his energy, Kouhei was spreading around
friendly smiles today as well.
- aisouwarai = the kind of smile (used for politeness) that's only on the surface
Though he was aiming to be popular, being the kind of brainless moron who, when asked to name a four-kanji compound, could only come up with "grilled beef set dinner," was completely out of the question.
- shimojijukugo = four-kanji compound word; such four-kanji compounds are considered to be the height of culture and education, sort of like we would say "that's a ten dollar word" when someone uses impressive vocabulary
He was aiming to gain popularity for being smart, which was why he went to all the trouble of picking this less-than-top-ranked high school.
Mochiron supootsu nanka tenuki de ii.
Of course, he wouldn't have to try too hard at sports.
Hana takadaka de tokuige na yatsu-ra ni, chotto oshiete yarou ka'tte
omowaseru teido de juubun.
It was enough just to make those acting proud think he could show them up.
Yuiitsu hitsuyou na no wa, kiki ni saishite iryoku o hakki suru
nigeashi-nomi.
The only thing he needed was a pair of powerful legs for running away when in danger.
Sore-dake wa, tayumazu kitaete kita.
He had worked on that one aspect.
- kitaeru = training, in the sense of exercising/body building, often associated with people who do martial arts or sports
However, the absolute most important issue was the improvement of his
looks!
- to ni mo kaku ni mo = a streteched out version of tonikaku
Never forgetting to care for his skin.
Kamigata ya fukusou chekku wa, sude ni shuukan.
Checking his hairstyle and attire was already a daily affair.
Kagami o miru tabi, "hana ga hokorobu you na egao" no kunren mo kakasanai.
Every time he looked in the mirror, he always practiced his "smile that
would put a flower to shame."
Translator's note: Kouhei...you're so gay. How could you have been shocked that you liked kissing a guy? Just give up now.
Sou yatte, honrai nara "konamaiki na yatsu" no shougou o moratte
shikaru-beki seikaku o kakusu tame ni, shirarenai tame ni, kizukarenai
tame ni...
In that way, to hide his true personality that would otherwise have him
branded as an "arrogant upstart," so that no one would know, no one would notice...
Motto hakkiri ieba, tsura no kawa ichimai no utsukushisa ni koro'tto
madowasareru baka-domo o damasu tame ni, soshitsu mo saru koto nagara
fudan no doryoku de sotozura o migakiagete kita no da.
To put it more plainly, he had put a constant effort into polishing his
mask to fool those who were stupid enough to be deceived by a beauty that was only skin deep.
Kou yuu no o seken de wa "neko'kkaburi" to iu.
This is what is known as "wearing a cat."
- neko-kaburi = lit. "wearing a cat," used to describe someone who pretends to be sweet and innocent though he is really different inside
This is to follow up on the Neko-kaburi no Kimi title of the series about Kouhei's father and Kaoru--thus, if the adult version is a cat, then Kouhei is a koneko, or kitten.
That's right. Kouhei-chan, who was known all around as a cute, polite,
good boy, was wearing a catsuit that covered him from the top of his head to the tips of his toes.