Chapter 963

The wedding of a famous person doesn't end so easily. After returning to Tokyo, Naoki Nagayama and Akina still had to hold a thank-you banquet.

To thank those friends in the industry, partners, acquaintances from various TV stations, advertising companies, distributors, and so on, who couldn't attend the wedding but sent gifts and blessings...

This was purely a large-scale social occasion. With Naoki Nagayama and Akina as the link, people from all aspects of the entertainment industry were gathered together. Perhaps after a few drinks and a few words, a new collaboration could be reached.

Akina, wearing a gown and a ring, appeared at a thank-you banquet for the first time as Akina Nagayama alongside Naoki Nagayama, saying things like "Thank you for taking care of my husband," letting everyone know that the two were now a family.

"Thank you... please continue to take care of my husband in the future..."

Akina Nagayama tried hard to recall the words and actions of female elders on such occasions, raising her glass to toast people she knew or didn't know, speaking polite phrases, determined to maintain the posture of a hostess.

Of course, there was only sparkling beverage in her glass...

And Naoki Nagayama also smiled and joined Akina, exchanging pleasantries with everyone he met... Actually, this kind of high-society social occasion was similar to small business owners gathering to drink, just with much more refined wording...

"What project are you busy with lately? (Where are you making money lately?)"

"Maybe we can collaborate. (Take me with you to make money.)"

"The current international financial situation is a bit risky. (The macro environment is bad~)"

"Then we must be cautious in our investments... (There's a chance for collaboration~)"

"..."

Of course, most people here were seeking collaboration with Naoki Nagayama... he was the one who knew how to make money best in the entire circle, and he was the core of the social scene.

After finally finding a gap, Naoki Nagayama and Akina took a short break at the bar... Akina finished the sparkling water in her glass in one gulp, looking at Naoki Nagayama's glass with longing...

"That won't do!" Naoki Nagayama quickly finished his champagne, "Akina, you can't drink alcohol right now!"

"But... the pressure is so high... I really want to drink to relieve it!" Akina leaned close to Naoki Nagayama with a bitter expression, her slightly furrowed brows enough to sing "Nanpa Sen"...

Everyone in the entertainment industry is under a lot of pressure, and many people like to drink, smoke, and go clubbing to relieve it. Under Naoki Nagayama's influence, Akina hadn't learned the bad habit of smoking, and even now, she only drank a little alcohol~

"Eat something sweet to relieve it~"

Naoki Nagayama got Akina a strawberry cream cake. Eating sweets releases dopamine, making people feel better.

"Just endure it a little longer, this counts as the last social gathering of the year!"

"Mm..."

Actually, Naoki Nagayama didn't like this kind of social behavior either, but living in this society, one still has to follow some rules... after all, humans are social animals.

Just as the two were stealing a moment of leisure, Yasushi Akimoto, whom they hadn't seen in a long time, walked over. His chubby face, having had quite a bit to drink, was already flushed, clearly showing signs of intoxication...

"Naoki-san... happy wedding..."

"Akimoto-san... thank you~" Naoki Nagayama clinked glasses with him, "I didn't see you just now~"

"About that... I just ran into an old colleague from TBS and chatted for a bit..." Yasushi Akimoto explained a bit unnaturally, then changed the subject, "Naoki-san, at the end of the year, besides that movie, do you have any other plans?"

"Hm? I really don't have any at the moment... movie editing is busy enough... after it's released early next year, I want to take a good rest for a while..."

Naoki Nagayama smiled.

"What's wrong, Akimoto-san, do you have any ideas?"

"Haha, I do have some..." Yasushi Akimoto leaned in a bit closer. Seeing that Akina was next to him eating cake, there was no need to avoid her, "Didn't Naoki-san tell us about a game before?... I've chatted with the TBS department head and people from Yoshimoto Kogyo a few times..."

"Of course?" Naoki Nagayama asked in surprise, "Is it related to that game?"

"Mm... we tried it in a few variety shows on Fuji TV before, and the results were quite good... so I proposed a plan to produce a separate program based on this game..."

Yasushi Akimoto's tone was a bit helpless.

"But the higher-ups felt that this game was good enough as a part of a variety show... and rejected the plan..."

Speaking of this, Yasushi Akimoto seemed a bit excited:

"However, I want to build a resident team focused on comedy around this game, inviting famous guests from the entertainment industry to play games together... to produce a long-running comedy variety show... so I looked for people from Yoshimoto Kogyo and TBS..."

Naoki Nagayama looked at this chattering little chubby guy and was truly impressed... he had already figured out the format of "Running Man". If he kept experimenting like this, he might really be able to create a Japanese "Running Man".

If Fuji TV didn't agree, he'd just look for the next one. With Yasushi Akimoto's strong execution, no wonder he would be successful in the future!

But... if he really focused on variety show production, would Nogizaka46 and AKB48 not appear in the future!

How about... letting Tree Friend Entertainment build it?!

"Akimoto-san's idea has a lot of potential..." Naoki Nagayama encouraged the confident little chubby guy, "I believe you will definitely be able to produce this program!"

"Hahaha, it's still thanks to the inspiration Naoki-san gave me..." Yasushi Akimoto said with a smile, "Doesn't Naoki-san want to participate together?"

"I'll pass... I have too many other things to do..."

"That's a real pity~"

After dismissing the somewhat drunk Yasushi Akimoto, Akina next to him asked curiously:

"Naoki-san... what inspiration did you give him?"

"It's just a game..." Naoki Nagayama explained the rules of the "Of Course" game~

"Ah... it's the game I often see in variety shows in the second half of the year..." Akina was also someone who liked watching TV and immediately reacted, "Was it actually Naoki-san's idea?"

"Actually, it's a game that circulated abroad..."

"Oh?" Akina clearly didn't believe it... her husband was good at everything, but sometimes he always attributed the credit to others.

"What kind of look is that!"

Naoki Nagayama flicked Akina's upturned nose, making her a bit shy... this was in public!

"Let's go... let's continue socializing!"

"Hmph~"

The Nagayama couple's thank-you banquet was naturally no secret, and reports came out the next day... after all, everyone who came was a well-known person in the entertainment industry.

Although it was an occasion that didn't invite outsiders, a few photos taken from outside the window were leaked, and people saw Naoki Nagayama and Akina entertaining guests together.

Even the titles of the articles were things like "Nagayama Couple's First Appearance," "Husband Sings, Wife Follows..."

In the morning, Akina arrived at the TBS headquarters. This was her first appearance in front of the media after the wedding, which naturally made the reporters waiting outside excited.

From the moment the car stopped, the flashes and shutter sounds never stopped!

"Akina-chan... how do you feel after getting married?"

"Akina-chan... is that a wedding ring on your hand? Can you lift it up for a moment?"

"Akina... are you still going to work after getting married? Shouldn't you go on vacation?"

"What are your plans for the future?" "What is marriage like?" "I heard your husband's family is from the Yamaguchi-gumi..."

For the first time in a long time, Akina felt the excitement and noise of the reporters again... but she didn't answer a single one of these questions! She just walked quickly toward the inside of TBS under the cover of Fusunori Akisachi.

If she had opened her mouth, she definitely wouldn't have been able to enter the main entrance today without half an hour passing~

After the reporters were blocked outside the door, Akina finally breathed a sigh of relief and began to smile and greet the curious employees inside TBS and the artists who came to record programs... sometimes when she saw someone she recognized, she would take some wedding candies out of her bag and hand them over.

After all, the entertainment industry is too big, and it's impossible to send wedding candies to everyone, so she had kept some in her bag during this time.

Today, Akina came for the final recording of the Japan Record Awards. Although the award ceremony wouldn't take place until the 30th, the winners were basically already decided by this time.

The selection rules for the Japan Record Awards themselves weren't that transparent, and it wasn't difficult for agencies to know the results in advance...

After changing into her singing outfit backstage, fortunately, they were all loose-fitting styles, so covering her slightly protruding belly was no problem at all!

"Akina-chan!"

This energetic voice must be Kyoko Koizumi. Sure enough, after turning around, she saw her good friend running over... holding a magazine in her hand.

"Akina-chan, your wedding has been exposed!"

"???" Akina was a bit confused, "What has been exposed?"

"The wedding! The wedding ceremony!"

Kyoko Koizumi was holding a magazine, and the name on it was "Shukan Bunshun". The cover was exactly a photo of Naoki Nagayama and Akina Nakamori holding their wedding ceremony in a temple!

"This issue of 'Shukan Bunshun' just went on sale, and I bought a copy immediately after seeing it!" Kyoko Koizumi sat next to Akina and flipped through the magazine that still smelled of ink with her, "I saw the wedding I didn't even attend in a magazine!"

"..."

Akina flipped through the magazine in shock. Inside, it was indeed real-life footage of the family temple wedding, including scenes of them receiving prayer beads and exchanging rings... The report also detailed the steps of the Buddhist ceremony, as well as the wedding banquet afterward...

After Akina finished reading, her first thought was that someone from the wedding company had leaked the photos!!!

But upon closer inspection, although these photos were taken from very close, they were all from the side or behind... this must have been taken secretly!

Having experienced many secret photos, Akina was certain that this was a paparazzi's secret photo...

However, she didn't know which paparazzi had such supernatural powers; that was a strictly protected family temple!

During the wedding, there were more than fifty yakuza underlings surrounding the temple! If they had been caught taking secret photos, they might have been thrown into the sea!

In this era, there hadn't been a name-gun Abe incident yet, and even when the Prime Minister traveled, there wasn't such security!

"... There are even photos of the wedding banquet?"

Akina silently flipped through it for a while, knowing that the magazine would definitely sell out after it was released and couldn't be recalled. Then she went outside the door and called Fusunori Akisachi over.

"Akisachi-san... help me contact the agency. We must make 'Shukan Bunshun' pay the price for this!"

"Yes!" Fusunori Akisachi had also just found out and felt that he had failed in his duty as a manager, "I will contact the legal department!"

"Also..." Akina said, "Help me find a phone. I want to communicate with Naoki-san... he should be at Tree Friend now..."

"Yes!"

Without a mobile phone, finding someone in real-time is really too troublesome!!!

Outside~

The sudden exposure by "Shukan Bunshun" made the entire entertainment industry boil over.

"Akina-chan in a white kimono!" "So this is what Akina's bridal kimono looks like! It's truly gorgeous!" "Ah!!! My Akina-chan is truly invincible! But the one standing next to her isn't me!" "I'm going to treasure this magazine for the rest of my life!" "..."

The fans who saw this issue of "Shukan Bunshun" were naturally extremely precious, after all, it was the only magazine on the market that could expose this, which could already be considered an exclusive publication!!!

And this frenzy was constantly spreading and fermenting...

The headquarters of various newspapers and magazines in the media circle, besides being shocked by the suddenly exposed news, were actually more envious and jealous... Why did others have such supernatural paparazzi?!

The entire media circle couldn't find the marriage information of the Nagayama couple, and then you tell me that someone actually snuck into the wedding scene and filmed the entire process?!

Whose subordinate is this person? What's their monthly salary? We'll triple it!!!

At this very moment, in the editorial department of "Shukan Bunshun", a bald guy looked at the magazine on the table and couldn't help but let out a long sigh...

Finally, finally exposed the report!!

This exposure should stir up a frenzy in the entertainment industry!!!

At this moment, Kotaro Obara already had a premonition that this was the peak of his career as a media person! There was no possibility of surpassing this report in the future!

His life was already fulfilled!

"Kotaro-san!" Editor-in-chief Kota Sakata called him in the office, "Please come over..."

Upon hearing this, Kotaro Obara stood up and walked to the office side. After pushing the door open, he subconsciously put his hands together and a phrase "Amitabha... benefactor..." came out of his mouth.

This made both himself and the people in the office stunned...

"Hahaha~" After Editor-in-chief Kota Sakata reacted, he laughed loudly, "Kotaro-san... has it become a habit? You wouldn't really want to be a monk, would you!"

"..." Kotaro Obara slowly loosened his hands and said unnaturally, "After practicing hard in the temple for so long, I didn't expect the habit to have already been formed~"

"There is research showing that it only takes two weeks to form a habit..." Kota Sakata comforted, "But it only takes one night to learn something bad!"

"Tonight we'll go out to celebrate your success!!! Let's go to a club in Shinjuku... and drink flower wine!"

Kota Sakata said generously.

"Kotaro-san has made a great contribution to the magazine this time! The year-end bonus will definitely not be small!!"

"Then thank you very much!"

Kotaro Obara agreed with a smile on his face, but for some reason, he didn't feel much joy in his heart... After exchanging pleasantries with the editor-in-chief for a while, he asked:

"Sakata-san... now that this report has been released, Tree Friend and Being should come to cause trouble, right..."

"Definitely!" Kota Sakata nodded, "After all, it's something they wanted to keep secret..."

"But it doesn't matter... at most we'll pay a symbolic amount of money..."

Kota Sakata didn't really care about these things. "Shukan Bunshun" could have its current fame because it had backing behind it!

Otherwise, how could it continue to operate after exposing the dark materials of those politicians and stars!

"Symbolic?"

"Yeah... there are no commercial advertisements, no defamation, and no damage to their reputations... Akina Nakamori and Naoki Nagayama are both public figures, and they should have a certain tolerance for media photography..."

"I see..."

For some reason, Kotaro Obara felt that this time might not be solved so easily...