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Chapter 209: Akina the big sister? Hahaha~

~12 min read 2,373 words

The filming location for "Hachiko Monogatari" was set in an old house in Ueno, Tokyo.

Different from the prosperous Tokyo with high-rise buildings, in the downtown area, there are many old streets and low houses, and only in such places can you find old houses from decades ago.

Otomo Yoshimura found a well-maintained detached house, rented it after negotiating with the landlord, and even did a little renovation to make it convenient for filming.

Besides that, other scenes such as stations and streets were also found in similar old neighborhoods.

When Naoki Nagayama arrived, the members of the film crew had already arrived. Everyone was very familiar with how to film a movie:

Ito Shuichi Ido and several leads were discussing the filming schedule of the movie, Otomo Yoshimura was communicating with agents about schedules, extras, etc., while Masataka and Masaaki, one was arranging camera positions, and the other was handling various chores.

Everyone had a clear division of labor and performed their own duties, except for Naoki Nagayama, who arrived late.

"Sumimasen, Ito Shuichi-san, Otomo-san, I'm late."

Ito Shuichi Ido, who was discussing with the leads, turned around: "Daijoubu, it hasn't started yet anyway."

If it were an ordinary actor or employee, they might have to bow and apologize at this time, but who told the latecomer to be the company's big boss and movie producer?

Otomo Yoshimura said from the side: "The shaman will be here soon, and the opening ceremony can be held immediately."

"Hai, I know."

Then he nodded to the several actors next to him: "Shinichi-san, Kanako-san, you are all here~"

"Hai, good morning." "Good morning, Naoki-san~"

Both of them had changed into the traditional kimono attire of that era. Shinichi Chiba hid his strong body in the loose kimono, looking gentle and elegant, while Kanako Higuchi wore a pale blue kimono, dignified and intellectual.

The little girl in a kimono next to her was naturally the new actor who was famous but never seen.

"And this must be Miss Nana Okada. Nice to meet you, I am Naoki Nagayama, the screenwriter of this movie."

Naoki Nagayama had no impression of Nana Okada from his previous life at all. This was his first time seeing Nana Okada.

The former idol with a baby face, despite being about the same age as Kanako Higuchi, looked like two generations apart. Even if she was put together with Akina Nakamori, it seemed to be about the same.

"Hai, nice to meet you, I am Nana Okada, please take care of me."

Her voice sounded very mature and steady, not like a young girl, but Showa idols were almost all good at falsetto, so it was hard to say what it would be like when filming.

Just met, didn't chat too much. Naoki Nagayama chatted with Kanako Higuchi about the movie she was filming recently and the recent situation of their mutual friend, Yuko Tanaka.

"Yuko-chan is very busy right now. I wanted to call her out for shopping but didn't have time." Kanako Higuchi's tone had a bit of anger at being stood up by her best friend.

"I remember she is filming 'Oshin', right?" Naoki Nagayama recalled, but he didn't have the impression of having watched this TV series, only vaguely remembering it was a morning drama. "I heard it's a very long morning drama."

"Hai, it is said to have more than 200 episodes, and Yuko-chan is also participating in 'Amagi Goe' at the same time, so she basically runs around the set every day."

Haha, this movie is the origin of Yuko Tanaka's famous line "Anisan~". Naoki Nagayama thought of a certain segment in advance and almost laughed out loud.

"Naoki-san, what's so funny?" Kanako Higuchi looked puzzled. "What's wrong with Yuko-chan's movie?"

"Ah, nothing, it has nothing to do with Yuko-san, just thought of something funny."

Being honored as the "ceiling of pure desire" by later generations because of one line, only Yuko Tanaka could do it.

Before Kanako Higuchi could continue to ask, Otomo Yoshimura shouted from not far away: "Minasan, come over, the ceremony is about to start."

Ah, the shaman is here.

After a year, this shaman in her fifties had a rosy complexion and good energy. It seemed that the last big red envelope was very generous.

This time, leaving the familiar environment and coming to Ueno to pray for blessings, it was estimated that Otomo Yoshimura's sincerity was also very sufficient.

After placing the offerings on the table, it was a routine dance of the gods, then chanting some spells that no one could understand. After a few rounds of magic tools dancing, the shaman said slightly weakly: "The gods have accepted your offerings."

Then the shaman was done. Ito Shuichi Ido, Otomo Yoshimura, and Naoki Nagayama led all the film crew members to offer incense, and this opening ceremony was completed.

Finally about to start filming!

Akina's promotion department was holding a meeting. Employees like Akira Terabayashi, Nobuo Tomioka, Yuzo Shimada, and Ken-On staff were all in the conference room.

The president of Ken-On, Hiroshi Hanami, was the one who intercepted Akina Nakamori, determined that she had the talent to become a top idol.

He said in the conference room: "Akina-chan's debut song effect is not good. Does Section Chief Terabayashi have anything to say?"

Akira Terabayashi nodded: "Akina-chan's promotion was too aggressive, especially buying magazine space, which was a counterproductive practice. Regarding this point, I will reflect."

"However, I still think Akina-chan's promotion route is not wrong. At a time when other idols are competing on TV stations, starting from small and medium-sized cities offline and accumulating popularity step by step is not wrong."

Hiroshi Hanami was noncommittal about this. After all, this promotion model still needed time to be tested: "Then has Akina-san's next song been decided? What style are you preparing to take?"

In fact, what he wanted to ask was whether Akina Nakamori's positioning needed to be adjusted. A slightly sexy milky-white girl—was such an image suitable for Akina's future development?

"Hai, we have already discussed this. There will be some adjustments for the next song." Akira Terabayashi said, "Regarding her own image, Akina-chan's own wishes cannot be ignored."

Hiroshi Hanami was a bit puzzled: "Akina-chan herself? Did she put forward any opinions?"

"Yes, she has actually been dissatisfied with this image."

"I see."

At this time, Akira Terabayashi suddenly cued Yuzo Shimada: "Shimada-kun, don't you have any ideas to say?"

"Ah, yes." Yuzo Shimada took out the novel "Akutaro" from his hand. "Gentlemen, regarding delinquent culture, campus violence, biker gangs, etc., they have already taken root among teenagers in Japan."

"This year's super popular 'Sailor Suit and Machine Gun' shows even more that young people are unwilling to accept the status quo and their hearts are full of rebellious thoughts."

"So I think, if you want to change the image and style, maybe you can consider the direction of a rebellious girl."

Hearing this, Hiroshi Hanami smiled: "Akina the big sister? Hahaha~"

"Sounds quite interesting, but will there really be a market? And, will it conflict with the concept of an idol?"

Akira Terabayashi said at this time: "Actually, Akina-chan is very popular among young people. This can be seen from the offline fans' scene, and record sales are also slowly recovering."

"In the eyes of media people who are all adults, perhaps Akina-chan is not the perfect idol in their hearts, but in the hearts of young people, Akina-chan is their idol! So perhaps we should stand more from the perspective of young people to see what they really like."

This old fox! Hiroshi Hanami complained in his heart. He clearly supported the rebellious girl style, but said such high-sounding words.

"Since that's the case, let's give it a try."

In the end, Hiroshi Hanami agreed.

No one expected that the first scene filmed was the scene in the mourning hall. Although the name on the memorial tablet was not Shinichi Chiba's, this guy still ran to the corner of the set to smoke to avoid suspicion.

The half-grown Akita dog, under the guidance of the dog trainer, ran into the mourning hall and then barked at the memorial tablet.

Other actors around showed surprise and disbelief, and the wife played by Kanako Higuchi had tears flowing from her eyes.

After filming the previous movie, Ito Shuichi Ido's filming technique became more and more proficient, coupled with the efficient cooperation of his apprentice Masataka Komori, the entire filming rhythm proceeded very quickly.

Several leads were experienced actors, and it often took only two or three takes to complete a scene. During the entire filming process, the most troublesome thing was indeed the three Hachikos. Even with professional dog trainers assisting on the side, the number of NGs was constantly increasing.

Naoki Nagayama and Ito Shuichi Ido watched the filmed clips behind the camera together.

"Naoki-san, it seems the biggest problem with this movie will be with the Hachikos."

"Haha, Ito Shuichi-san, what can we do? After all, they are the protagonists." Naoki Nagayama saw that the emotions of the dogs seemed a bit irritable. "Ito Shuichi-san, dogs are different from people. They haven't received specialized training and won't suppress their own emotions. I see the three Hachikos are a bit impatient. Is it time to take a break?"

Ito Shuichi Ido also looked at the state of the Akita dogs and nodded: "Alright, then everyone take a break!"

When the film crew dispersed to rest, Naoki Nagayama took Eitaro's dog biscuits to visit the three Hachikos. After all, snacks were the things that could best soothe the soul.

Taking advantage of the break, Nana Okada chatted with Kanako Higuchi: "Kanako-san, I remember that Mr. Naoki Nagayama should be an actor, right? Why does he seem to be like a director?"

"Naoki-san," Kanako Higuchi looked at the figure who was soothing the three Hachikos. "Naoki-san is an actor, a screenwriter, a director, and a producer. In short, he is one of the biggest bosses on this set. If he speaks, even Director Ido will listen."

"Eh, is he such a powerful person?" Nana Okada, who had tried to participate in a few movies in the years when her popularity declined, knew the majesty of the director on the set. "Kanako-san, did you know each other before?"

"Hai, we collaborated twice. At that time, Naoki-san had just entered the industry." Kanako Higuchi recalled the scene of their first meeting. "When filming a beverage commercial, I found Naoki-san very talented."

Kanako Higuchi introduced Naoki Nagayama to Nana Okada as if she were introducing her own treasure, making the former idol with a baby face exclaim from time to time.

"He already has 3 hit songs? Each one is a big seller?!"

Returning to the record industry, Nana Okada felt even more deeply. Composers who could enter the top of the Oricon chart were considered famous creators, not to mention having 3 songs on the chart in a row.

"Does Naoki-san accept creative commissions?" This has-been idol really wanted to ask Naoki Nagayama for a song.

"Never heard of it. He shouldn't accept it."

Kanako Higuchi thought for a while. "It seems he only writes songs for singers he likes."

"I see." The girl looked disappointed.

At this time, Naoki Nagayama, who had finished petting the three dogs, walked in front of the two: "Kanako-san, Okada-san, what are you chatting about?"

The two answered in a panic:

"Ah, just some things about the script." "Acting techniques and so on."

"Eh? Strange." But Naoki Nagayama didn't think much. "After a while, we'll film a few more interactions between Kanako-san, Okada-san, and little Hachiko, and the morning's filming task will be almost finished."

"Hai~"

These two people looked at Naoki Nagayama but didn't say anything, which made him confused. After a few words of nonsense, he walked away.

"See, Naoki-san is really handsome!" Kanako Higuchi gossiped with Nana Okada after he left.

Nana Okada also had a slightly red face and nodded gently.

The two let out a light laugh.

Returning to the side of the camera, Ito Shuichi Ido asked Naoki Nagayama casually: "Did you tell them about the filming situation? Why do they feel so depressed? Is there any problem?"

"No problem, just a bit strange. Ito Shuichi-san, can girls become good friends so quickly?" Naoki Nagayama looked at the two again. They were whispering and laughing happily.

Ito Shuichi Ido shrugged: "I don't understand either. I can't understand my wife's psychology at all. Sometimes I don't even know how she got angry."

"But it is said that if two girls have a common topic they are curious about, they will quickly become best friends."

"So that's how it is."

Toyota car dealership,

Sales Manager Akihiro Hirayama, who was about to get off work, was chatting with the store manager.

"Akihiro-san, how is the signing situation recently?"

"Hai, there are indeed 3 customers who bought the latest car models and will come to pick up the cars tomorrow."

"They are all the latest models, right? Fortunately, it's this kind of car. It is said that after improving the production line, the output has increased greatly, so there are ready-made cars so quickly."

"Output increased greatly?" Akihiro Hirayama remembered the words of the young customer before, which had kept him from sleeping for a long time. "Has the output of luxury cars like the Toyota Century also increased?"

"How is that possible? Some parts of this car model need to be polished by hand, so the output cannot increase." The store manager curled his lips. "There is still a large queue waiting for cars!"

Akihiro Hirayama probed quietly: "Isn't there a way to cut in line?"

"That kind of indicator, either political officials or entrepreneurs, how could it be easily obtained." The store manager said casually while looking at the receipts. "Unless someone suddenly has something to do and doesn't want it."

Akihiro Hirayama's eyes lit up. Is it possible to create such an indicator?

"Manager-san, the performance target for this month has been completed, right? Do you want to go out for a drink after work?"

"Eh? Akihiro-san is so interested? That would be great!" ===== CHAPTER 216 =====

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End of Chapter

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