I guess you could describe the place that the hundred or so troop members visited in Beijing as something along the lines of Japan’s Takarazuka Music School or a conservatoire as they’re called in French. It was a school where girls learn to dance from primary right through to high school.

The day began with my greeting to the assembly in the auditorium. On numerous occasions I’ve had the opportunity to give lectures to Chinese high school students on visit to Japan and had already witnessed just how popular “Detective Conan” is in China, so I suddenly decided to open dialogue with these school girls in Beijing by re-confirming Conan’s said popularity.

“You all like Conan, right?”

(In Chinese) “Yes!”

The Japanese group members were taken back a little as the entire assembly all answer in unison.

“So I guess you can all quote Conan’s catch phrase too then?”

(In Chinese) “There is only one truth!”

The mouths of the Japanese members fell agape in surprise.

Following this we all decided to recite the catch phrase together, the Chinese speaking Chinese and the Japanese in Japanese, all in unison.



The school girls gather in an instant for a photo with An Cafe’s Teruki.

It seemed at first as though the An Cafe members, who are usually surrounded by girls no matter where they go in the world, had not established much of a name for themselves amongst this type of crowd…Alas, it was like the girls suddenly picked up on their aura and they were swarmed in an instant. “Can I get your number?” Were the words from one particularly forward primary school girl.

I sensed the day that these girls become “Cafekko” was not too far away.

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