Although Ibuse enjoyed the Western influences of his education, his grandfather arranged for a private tutorial in Chinese literature, however, this training came to a stop when Ibuse's tutor died. At his school, Ibuse had to often deal with rules that forbade students to read fictional literature; this prevented Ibuse from reading popular works during this period. However Ibuse managed to read works from Shimazaki Toson and Mori Ogai. In 1916, Ibuse even wrote a letter to Ogai with the pseudonym Kuchiki Sansuke. Ogai believed Sansuke was a famous scholar and sent a reply to Sansuke expressing his gratitude. While in middle school, Ibuse's brother Fumio submitted a poem to the Tokyo journal "Shusai Bundan" using Ibuse's name. Ibuse was reprimanded by the principal of Fukuyama Middle School but he was also praised by receiving two fan letters. The reprimand Ibuse received influenced him to express an interest in the visual arts.