#thank you nakamura san

[sun-sandwich]

Madara from NARUTO THE STAGE is the moe Madara no one has ever thought of yet everyone deep down needed

More pics from @miso_jiro aka his actor Nakamura san on twt/X

#uchiha madara #NARUTO #Naruto stage #stage play #butai #uzumaki naruto #namikaze minato #senju tobirama #nara shikamaru #this madare is moe I love him in any shape it does not matter to me #thank you nakamura san

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Guide & TV Station Magazine (Kansai Editions) ft. King-Ohger Cast Interviews for Adventure Heaven (translation below, spoilers)

TV Guide: Half movie talk (beginning), half fun free talk (second half)

TV Station: All movie talk . . . _

TV Guide (page 38-39)

Sakai: The film has wonderful guests such as Shido Nakamura-san and voice actress Ayane Sakura-san. The interaction with them left a deep impression on me.

Watanabe: There's a scene where Gira (Sakai) fights with Reiniol, who is played by Shido-san.

Sakai: There's also a scene where it looked like they were performing tsubazeriai (crossing swords and getting in each others faces).

🕷️Ikeda: Was it really intense when you faced each other?

Sakai: It was too intense! The atmosphere created the moment the cameras started rolling was beyond overwhelming, and it almost felt like I was being "swallowed up." I thought I was going all out, but I guess I wasn't. When we decided to do one more take, Shido-san said, "Come on!" He was very enthusiastic.

All: Whoa~!

Sakai: It feels like I'm only half joking, but he created an atmosphere that said, "Come at me again," I was able to give it everything I had.

Murakami: During the filming of Gira's coronation, I had an opportunity to talk with Sakura-san, who played Devonica. We all had the chance to talk with her and noticed she has a really nice voice.

Hirakawa: It almost resonates.

Murakami: We learned a lot about voices. She performed various voice patterns in front of me, such as low, high, resonant, straight, and a voice with an emotional range. It's an experience that only you can only see in this film.

🐝Kaku: Like the TV series, the CG in this film is amazing. We were surprised to see such original backgrounds, which are even more beautiful and fantastic than those in the TV series. As we watched it on the monitor we were amazed while going, "Oooh." I hope everyone can experience the scale of this film at the theater.

Hirakawa: I think the story is enjoyable, and contains a strong message.

🕷️Ikeda: I would like to encourage you all to see it on the big screen, as I'm sure you'll be impressed by how it evolves from the TV series in so many ways.

Sakai: It's been about half a year since the TV series started filming, and everyone in the cast is naturally getting closer to each other.

🐝Kaku: (to Murakami) You've been making alot of funny faces recently, right?

Murakami: Eeeh? you noticed?!

🕷️Ikeda: When you're tired right? (laughs).

Murakami: Mainly when I start my "engine," or when I'm sleepwalking. Sometimes it seems as if I'm not listening to what others are saying. The other day, Aoto-kun was holding a bottle of water and saying something weird like, "If you want this water, you have to pay 1,000 yen."

Watanabe: If you cut that just that part out, it sounds like a totally unfunny joke! (laughs)

Hirakawa: I'll start from the very beginning (laughs). Aoto-kun walked along a muddy road in the heat to get water for the film site.

🐝Kaku: It took about 20 minuets.

Hirakawa: That's why he jokingly said, "1 bottle is 1,000 yen."

Murakami: But I had just woken up from sleeping and was still feeling abit fuzzy, so I accepted what he said with as normal with a, "Thank you," while making no comments (laughs). If I were my normal self, I would've been more careful and said something. But in this worksite, you can be relaxed without worrying about anything.

Sakai: Lately, you've even started to make yourself laugh (laughs).

Murakami: I was able to train myself, since everyone is so good at boke-tsukkomi (double act)

🐝Kaku: My arms, are up (banzai) (laughs).

Hirakawa: It's about relationship trust. You can go big, because I think everyone will pick up on it.

Sakai: That's right. If you say something, someone will surely pick up on it.

Murakami: Thank you.

Sakai: Finally, which of the 5 countries in the story would you rather live in?

Murakami: I'd want to live in the country of Toufu, where Kaguragi (Kaku) is a Lord. I think it'd be really fun being one of the his citizens, because it's full of hospitality and delicious foods.

🐝Kaku: If there's filming in Toufu, rice is always served.

Hirakawa: Their rice is very tasty. I'd like to live in the country of N'Kosopa, where Yanma (Watanabe) is King, and I'd enjoy my life relying on technology. I want to leave everything to the machines and say, "Take care of me."

Watanabe: Although it's not depicted, I've always thought that there's a sauna in the country of Gokkan, where Rita (Hirakawa) is the King. That's why I want to go to Gokkan, for the sauna.

Hirakawa: If I ordered it, they might make one, but it's too cold to bathe in the open air of Gokkan (laughs).

Watanabe: I see (laughs).

🐝Kaku: For me it's Queen Hymeno's (Murakami) country of Ishabana. If I have an injury on my knee or shoulder and I want it to be healed, it'd be easy to do so.

Sakai: I think I could become macho.

🐝Kaku: Yes, yes. I'm sure you're doing a lot of health research on that.

Sakai: I'm not…

🐝Kaku: Say Toufu.

Sakai: Maybe Ishabana…

🐝Kaku: Why not?! (laughs)

Sakai: Maybe it is Toufu. I like the country side feel of the place! It's like there's nothing there…

🐝Kaku: "Nothing." That's a bit harsh, isn't it? (laughs)

Sakai: I'm joking, I'm joking (laughs)

🕷️Ikeda: For me it's N'Kosopa. I want to play games with Yanma and win.

Watanabe: Oooh~ sounds good!

Hirakawa: Well, It's a tie (laughs).

🕷️Ikeda: Shugoddam isn't popular, huh…(laughs).

Murakami: Shugoddam is a country full of small happiness, but many forms of it.

Watanabe: But, if I were to bring my camera, I would take it to Shugoddam. The architecture there is beautiful.

🕷️Ikeda: It's a European-styled town…and what do you mean "if you bring a camera?" (laughs)

Sakai: The question was "if you want to live there." (laughs)

_

TV Station Magazine (page 96-97)

"Bonds of the Young Kings"

Sakai: The first film for Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger will be released, and when I first read its script, I was very excited to see how the coronation of Gira would turn out, and thought alot about how I would act out his responsibility as king.

Watanabe: When I read the script for the confrontation scene in the film's climax between Gira and Reiniol (Shido Nakamura), the first King of the Kingdom of Death, It made me remember my audition. At that time, I was asked to watch a confrontation scene between Gira and Racules (Masato Yano), and Gira truly looked as though he was shining. As for myself, between the two of them, I was more influenced by Reiniol's way of thinking this time, but even still, I want the children to see Gira succeed.

Murakami: There were multiple scenes in the film where I thought I saw a new side out of all six of us. I wasn't sure how the scene where Hymeno meets her parents in the Kingdom of Death would be executed, so I prepared myself alittle for that part before we started filming.

Hirakawa: I was curious how we would film Gira's coronation and, on a personal level, how we would express a side of Rita that they had not shown before in the TV series. I was looking forward to it, but was also a little worried about possibly ruining what I had established so far.

🐝Kaku: I was very excited about the whole story, including the development of Gira's determination to become king despite hesitating. There are scenes where Kaguragi touches on his past mistakes, and It makes me understand what kind of mindset he had when he became king, so I can't wait to see how it plays out in the film.

🕷️Ikeda: I was honestly impressed by Gira's words. Going to the Kingdom of Death made me think a lot about the meaning of my life and, "what does happiness mean?" I think you'll be able to realize it, that even the smallest of happiness is such a wonderful thing.

Murakami: Between takes, I had a chance to talk with Ayane Sakura-san (Devonica), and she showed me how she does her voice in various patterns while right in front of me. It was a unique experience that can only be seen in this film.

🐝Kaku: The whole film was shot with green screen, but the backgrounds of the world were more magical than those found in the TV series. I was truly impressed by how beautiful the CG was.

Sakai: I think it was the scene where Shido-san and I are fighting. I wanted to go all out, but I guess I was alittle nervous, and the scene lacked some impact. When they decided to shoot the scene one more time, Shido-san said, "Come on!" he was very encouraging and created an atmosphere of excitement. Thanks to him, I was able to give it my all.

🕷️Ikeda: The cost of Gira's coronation has become a hot topic for some time. It's really cool, isn't it? It seems to be one of the main points this time.

Sakai: I also thought it was cool.

🐝Kaku: Also, the fight scene at the end is cool. Saying famous quotes before battle.

🕷️Ikeda: I think the film shows off everyone's good sides, such as how a king is supposed to act.

Watanabe: The part where each king confronts their past, Hymeno's scene had additional dialogue at the end, didn't it?

Murakami: I added the lines.

Watanabe: That part was really well done. I personally thought it was cool.

Murakami: I didn't know how it was going to turn out, and I was also worried about it, so…thank you (laughs).

Hirakawa: Gira, Yamma, and Rita perform actions in their pre-transformation stage. We worked hard on it, and I think it came out looking cool.

Murakami: I also really like the way in which Kaguragi confronts the past Queen.

🐝Kaku: Thank you. The scene with Yanma and Shiokara (Chiwata Yuhei) is also interesting.

Watanabe: Gira is both very straightforward and cool, so I hope that children will think, "I want to be like Gira too." With that, I hope you'll come to the movie theater with your family to see it.

Murakami: Each line has its own message, and feels like it has weight to it, so I would be happy if you could feel them as well.

Hirakawa: I think the message is very strong as the kings face their past. The story is also connected to the TV series, so I hope that you;ll enjoy.

🐝Kaku: The production of the film is different from that of TV series, so I'm sure that when people see the film, they'll think, "King-Ohger looks very interesting."

🕷️Ikeda: The world view of King-Ohger will evolve further and will definitely impress you when you see it on the big screen, so please come and see it.

Sakai: I would like you to see the determination of each king on the big screen. I'd be very happy if you could come to the theater to see this film, which we put alot of effort into. We look forward to seeing you!

#the boys are hugging and hymerita real again 😳 #ohsama sentai king ohger #kingohger #super sentai #my scans #gira husty #yanma gast #hymeno ran #rita kaniska #kaguragi dybowski #jeramie brasieri #himeno ran #ohsama sentai kingohger #king ohger #toku cast #tokusatsu #various tv japan #movie spoilers #my translation #note: I accidently put “bonds of the kings” in the wrong article

[a-student-out-of-time]

OH, that's where you left it. Thank God for conversations since sometimes talking it out helps you remember stuff. Funny how that works, huh?

Thankfully not, but I need my ID card for this mission.

I'll stop by later. For now, we've still got a mission to plan.

Yes, of course.

__________________________________________________

*A little bit later*

Why wasn't the first place you checked?

I don't go to her lab that frequently, so I thought I dropped it somewhere else, alright?

Yomiuri, lay off him. At least we're good there.

What about you, Nakamura? Are you joining us?

I have to. It's my ID.

But for the record, I'd prefer to stay out of the whole "execution" situation.

I'm pragmatic enough to agree that Shirogane's too dangerous to leave alive, but...

I understand. Trust me, Deguchi-san's staying out for the same reason.

Yeah. You can at least count on me to get you in there.

I did want to ask as well. Who among the group do you think would be the best at combat, should we need to fight? Never hurts to be prepared.

Hmm...Makunouchi-san is the obvious choice. Taira-san as well, but she's staying back. Tanaka-san is pretty adept, Sora-san is good with hacking so that could be useful...

But personally, I'd say Hibiki-san is one of our better fighters.

Really now?

You oughta see her with a sword. It's pretty impressive.

A sword, huh? Alright, but would she be willing to come with us?

After today, I would've thought she'd be sticking close to Hinata.

I guess it depends on what she decides to do. With this in mind, it wouldn't surprise me either way.

#dangaronpa #nwpm #neo world program monitor #sdra2 #super danganronpa another 2 #kyoji nakamura #masa esumi #nikei yomiuri #a student out of time #DR #Dianthus Memory arc

[ikezuyawa]

“Truly, thank you to those who are coming despite the bad weather, and please be careful...!

Here are some print samples from before the die cutting process. Sajou-san is saying “I’m taking it home!” and troubling his parents. Kusakabe-san was absent-minded in his early childhood. - [Nakamura]”

-@asmk_gengaten

#doukyuusei #sensei's twitter

[cozyaliensuperstar7]

Beautiful People 👑

realwardlow:

 🐺 #bts

kilprity:

Glamour!!! 💄 @JanelleMonae for #SoultrainAwards carpet! & #ItsServed🍽️ #LetTheSpiritofLoveUseYou @mandelkorn @nikkinelms @shespolished 📸 @mr_dadams

gqfrance:

est la dernière personnalité en couverture de notre numéro GQ Men of the Year 2023. Sa confiance en elle se propage chez toutes les femmes. Symbole de la réussite, de la force légitime, porte-parole libre, Aya Nakamura, autrice-compositrice-interprète est devenue en quelques années une icône, un modèle et une voix pour toute une génération. Pour ce numéro des Hommes de l’année, GQ est fier de pouvoir honorer une femme au pouvoir artistique et au parcours sans faille. Cliquez sur le lien dans la bio pour lire l’interview et voir plus de photos. Retrouvez ce numéro en kiosque dès aujourd’hui. —- Presenting GQ France’s final MOTY cover star : Aya Nakamura Her self-confidence spreads to all women. A symbol of success, of legitimate strength, a free spokeswoman, Aya Nakamura, singer-songwriter, has become in just a few years an icon, a role model and a voice for an entire generation. For GQ’s Men of the Year issue, GQ is proud to honor a woman with artistic power and an impeccable track record. Hit the link in bio to read the interview and see more photographs. Issue out today! Interview par Photographe & réalisateur : représenté par Stylisme : Chef décorateur : Movement Director : représenté par Maquillage : Coiffeur : @ __candybrown Manucure : Assistants photo : Assistant styliste : Production : Directrice de Production : Opérateur Digital : Post Production : Remerciements :

is the latest personality on the cover of our GQ Men of the Year 2023 issue. Her self-confidence spreads among all women. A symbol of success, legitimate strength, a free spokesperson, Aya Nakamura, singer-songwriter, has become in just a few years an icon, a model and a voice for an entire generation. For this issue of Men of the Year, GQ is proud to be able to honor a woman with artistic power and a flawless career. Click the link in the bio to read the interview and see more photos. Find this issue on newsstands today. —- Presenting GQ France’s final MOTY cover star: Aya Nakamura Her self-confidence spreads to all women. A symbol of success, of legitimate strength, a free spokeswoman, Aya Nakamura, singer-songwriter, has become in just a few years an icon, a role model and a voice for an entire generation. For GQ’s Men of the Year issue, GQ is proud to honor a woman with artistic power and an impeccable track record. Hit the link in bio to read the interview and see more photographs. Issue out today! Interview par Photographe & réalisateur : représenté par Stylisme : Chef décorateur : Movement Director : représenté par Maquillage : Coiffeur : @ __candybrown Manucure : Assistants photo : Assistant styliste : Production : Directrice de Production : Opérateur Digital : Post Production : Remerciements :

iamjhud:

Kicking off the holiday season in Boston this weekend ! ✨ Happy Friday yal! Lil holiday fun!

daniebb3:

It should cost a billion to look this good.

jorjasupport:

Jorja Smith é capa da Elle México! Confira a entrevista completa em Espanhol no site da revista. 📸: @rosalineshahnavaz #jorjasmith

Jorja Smith is the cape of Elle México! Check out the full interview in Spanish on the magazine's site. 📸: @rosalineshahnavaz #jorjasmith

variety:

“When people leak my songs, they ruin them,” SZA says. “Then it’s not mine anymore; it’s actually yours. It’s something unfinished that you decided was ready to be shared. And it’s like, ‘F--- you. Now I’m not releasing it.’ Play your leak, but you’re not gonna bully me into dropping music. I’m now embarrassed by this less-than-correct version that you put out. You’ve sent me into a weird space creatively when you could have just waited for me, but you’re selfish.”⁠ Read the full cover story on Variety's Hitmaker of the Year at the link in bio.⁠

(📸 @mason.poole)

sussinasimone:

Thank you @gqfrance @montblanc for having me. It was a wonderful night.

Outfit @dolcegabbana

Credit: @matthieujehanno

#Montblanc

#InspireWriting

#Advertising

#wardlow #megan thee stallion #janelle monae #aya nakamura #jennifer hudson #danielle brooks #jorja smith #sza #simone sussina #beautiful people

[dreamsfulblues]

ok, so in a post you jokingly mentioned your art is ugly, but I am here to say: NO!!!! IT IS NOT!!!!!!

You’re literally my favorite artist. the way you depict Bruno (and everyone else from JJBA too) is so perfect—I’m DROOLING over ur sexy art of him. You’re able to capture his beauty so well. I absolutely adore your art style. AND you’re a Rohan fan!! I saw that you got V3 and I also wanted to say that specific version of him is my favorite figure from the SAS line. And your art of him too!! UGH!!!!

Also, I love that the two characters you’re obsessed with are voiced by the same actors. I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST YUICHI NAKAMURA WHO SHARED KARAMATSU AND BRUNO BUT HOLY SHIT, RAY CHASE TOO??? I’ve never watched Mr. Osomatsu, but I think I’ll have to check it out now.

(I Had to make this shitpost when I found out they shared both VAs)

(apparently Yuichi Nakamura and Ray Chase also share Professor Cerise from Pokémon??? Oh well, I only included Bruno and Karamatsu because it seemed more relevant to your blog.)

Anyways, thought I’d finally reach out. I eagerly await your next masterpieces. Keep up the awesome work ! 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙🤐

OMGOMGOMG AAAAAAA THANK YOU SO MUCH, I FEEL SO FLATTERED THANK YOUUUUUU 😭💖💖💖

I’m trying my best to bring out the sex appeal of our favorite capo because damnit it’s so unfair how beautiful he is it’s almost criminal 🙈💦

I have to do my capo justice 😩

And yes the V3 version of the Rohan figure is so well made I absolutely love the coloring and the accessories he came with (i couldn’t believe they included the part where Rohan cut off his pinky I was laughing so hard) the attention to detail is great with this one 💕

From all the SAS I own he’s definitely my 1# favorite (I’m sorry Bruno)

If I’m really honest here the only part that motivated me to start watching part 5 is because they share the same voice and god damnit I’m really grateful for it because it became one of my favorite parts and gave me a new addition to my fictional husbands list pffff

If you ever wanna try Osomatsu-San i recommend having your brain somewhat on standby mode and let it happen because sometimes it gets crazy with its comedy (in a good way) but it does have its serious emotional moments too so if this sounds interesting to you go check it out, you won’t regret it :3

Also recommend watching it in Japanese because the characters feel like they are written for their VA and you can hear they all are having so much fun. And since you are a Rohan fan…he plays one of the main characters there too😏 And Jotaro is there too and it’s so cursed because he plays a character that’s so opposite to him and I love it hdjcksocbxi

Thank you so much for coming by it made me really happy.

Keep it up being absolutely amazing ❤️❤️❤️❤️

#bruno buccellati #bruno bucciarati #karamatsu #karamatsu matsuno

[ichigopanhpff]

Sonata Ch. 1: Da Capo

[Masterlist] -- [Next Chapter]

Gauging interest for this since I'm editing future chapters at the moment. This is the first time in a while I've written this kind of mature content. Personally, I'm excited to be posting this, but not sure if it'll get traction.

Warnings: Sexually suggestive actions, crude and derogatory language, alcohol and drug consumption.

Note: If you see any notes messages being responded with ‘amaeichigo’, that’s my primary account name.

(/dɑːˈkɑːpoʊ/) Italian musical term meaning "from the beginning."

Lonely and empty souls all over Tokyo flock to the flashing lights of nightlife for some form of temporary comfort to numb the harshness of life. Wage slaves and the monetary elite gather to where women with painted faces pay lip service and superficial smiles, dressed to the nines listening to their complaints while pouring them expensive alcohol they know not how to fully appreciate and only caring about the brand name. The price of having their ears talked off by the clientele in hopes of hooking them a whale to profit off of and to elevate the their work status for the elusive number one spot.

This is one of the many aspects behind the thin veil of Tokyo’s nightspots in Kabuki-cho.

The cabaret hostess club.

Men and women attracted to the glitz and glamour with hopes of making a ton of fast money to buy themselves luxury goods, drink well and party. Though that may be the case for some, other unfortunate souls work in this field as a means of survival; some even willingly sell their bodies to their clients should they offer the right amount, even though it’s taboo and illegal for their business relationship.

But the club doesn’t have to know.

“You’re needed at table seven,” one of the front of house staff called.

“I’ll be right out.”

Making final adjustments to her lipstick, she smoothed out her burgundy sequined A-line strapless knee length dress before making her way out to the floor. The number one rule of a hostess was to always upkeep their appearances. Her tan coloured pleather stiletto heels clacked across the terracotta and ebony marble floor to her designated table.

“Good evening,” she serenely greeted like a songbird with a bow. “Thank you for requesting me. My name is Saori.”

Saori. That was her identity in La Reverie. It wasn’t uncommon for girls in this industry to take on an alias or two out of fear of stalker clients amongst other things.

“Aren’t you a thing of beauty then?” her client complimented as she situated herself beside him. “It’s nice to meet you, Saori-chan. I’m Nakamura.”

“Do you say this to every woman you meet, Nakamura-san?” she mused with a coy smile and playfully batted her false lashes. “Would you like to start off with a light cocktail?”

It’s the same sequence every night.

Hostess meets client, chats them up while pouring drinks to get to build a superficial relationship and to open up their wallets. In short, these girls had to be therapists and entertainers at the same time.

Some sharpen their wit to perfect the art of playful banter and conversation; others use their girlish and sexual charm to woo men to spend more. The night goes by in a drunken blur of champagne bottles with names no one can pronounce, airy laughter and underlying sexual tension. The more emotionally attached the clients get to the hostesses, the more frequent they'll return. Some would go as far to say they were in love with the hostess, even though they knew in their heart of hearts it was their money they loved.

Just as the last client left, the girls gathered back in the dressing room talking amongst themselves and greeting one another after a long shift.

“Is that the new Hermes purse from the Spring collection that just launched?!” one girl chirped up with excitement.

“Satoshi-san got it for me as a gift after I told him about it last time,” the other showed off. “Isn’t it so cute?”

“You totes got a whale with that one, Mayumi!” another hostess pointed out. “You’re, like, pretty much set. He’s been comin’ to see you every night.”

“He is pretty handsome, I’ll admit,” Mayumi remarked and admired her acrylic nails decorated with rhinestones. “Maybe I’ll even fall for him…” she giggled. “But I’ll have to see his size first. And I don’t just mean his wallet.”

The group of girls loudly guffawed while (Y/N) quietly sat at her vanity and removed her war paint before unclipping her hair extensions. The dressing room door swung open, revealing the manager with three men behind him. One had platinum white hair swiped to the side with sharp, black eyes adorning a red and yellow Chinese-style draped top and ankle length pants; the other two had dyed purple streaked hair, each respectively wearing a light green and purple dress suit. The taller one had short, side swept hair, the other a long mullet style. The one thing they had in common were the obscured tattoo etched on their necks.

“Endo-san! Is it pay day?!” one hostess happily beamed, noticing the stack of white envelopes in his hand. A hoard of hostesses quickly ran toward the other two men.

“Ran-kun~ You haven’t come by to see me lately,” one pouted in a faux cutesy voice. “Do you not love me anymore?”

“Things have been busy, my lovelies,” the man they called Ran replied with an almost mocking saccharine tone. “I promise I’ll come by soon.”

“Rin-Rin~” another called in a whiny tone and hung onto his arm. “Stop leaving me on read~”

“Get off. You’re annoying,” the man called “Rin-Rin” touted with a grimace.

“Rindou, be nice,” Ran kindly scolded. “You should be glad girls actually pay you attention with that personality of yours.”

Just as the commotion died down, each of the girls got their paycheck on top of the bonuses they raked in with their clientele. Quietly thanking the manager when he placed her envelope down, she already knew how much was in there and didn’t bother checking.

It was the same amount every two weeks.

Just as the hostesses filed out one by one for the early morning to unwind and go home, she found herself alone with the white haired man; the other two suits left with a girl on each of their arms.

“How much more do I have, Kokonoi-san?”

“Always straight to business with you, huh,” the man chuckled and crossed his arms. “N’ didn’t I tell you to just call me Koko?”

It’d been two years since (Y/N) started working at La Reverie, but her relationship with Kokonoi Hajime spanned longer thanks to her mother. Having worked several dead end jobs, her mother piled on debt through pachinko parlors, visiting host clubs, borrowing money from loan sharks and running high tabs in bars all over Kabukicho.

When it came time to collect, Kokonoi Hajime paid a visit to her place in Shinjuku with some Bonten grunts, only to find nothing. She came home to see her place ransacked with them waiting for her in the dark, one-room rundown apartment. She was unaware of her mother’s spending habits.

And honestly? She wasn’t surprised at all.

The moment she asked the amount her mother owed, all the blood drained from her face. 50 million yen. And that was with the interest already added in.

Out of all the people she could’ve borrowed and fucked with, it had to be Bonten, the most vicious and cold-blooded crime syndicate in Japan. And now here she was, working in a cabaret club owned by the very organization she was practically sold to the moment her mother disappeared without a trace.

Her very own daughter left holding the bag.

“How much more, Kokonoi-san?” she repeated with a flat tone of voice.

The silver haired man stared and huffed a breath, immediately sensing her mood. “You’re down close to half,” he finally divulged. “Depending on how much you earn here, you should be debt free in another three to four years. Unless…”

She glanced up with an arched brow at Bonten’s finance admin. Kokonoi placed a firm hand on her vanity and leaned in close to her face, his dark gaze leering deep into hers.

“Be my woman and I’ll make that debt disappear immediately,” he proposed with a slight bass in his voice through his smirk. Her expression remained dead and unresponsive.

“As I’ve said the last nine times you suggested this: no.”

“And I’ve given you this offer as an easy way out,” he reasoned back with a dry chuckle. “Why continue to work a job you hate when you can just be mine? We both benefit.”

“As your side piece, you mean,” she corrected and packed up her belongings. “Who is it tonight? Yuko? Sakura? One of the girls from the other clubs you own, I presume?”

“No one, actually,” he revealed. “Contrary of what you think of me, I have other business to attend to tonight.”

“Don’t let me keep you then,” she coldly noted with a bitter smile and grabbed her purse and phone.

Politely bowing to Kokonoi, she left the dressing room to head home for the day. What she needed right now was a can of ice cold beer, a soak in her tub, a light meal and sleep. As the finance admin left the establishment, he got into the car where the Haitanis were waiting; the girls draped around their arms were no where to be found.

"So she's the one?" Ran asked Kokonoi and took a Davidoff cigarette out from his silver case, dangling it between his lips. "Rare of you to not make any progress."

"She's been... rather difficult, I admit," he sighed and rubbed his temple. "A game of patience is needed here. This one has a brain n' her guard's up pretty high."

"Mikey and Takeomi's not gonna be happy to hear that," Rindou blurted out.

"Just say the word and we can speed things up, Koko," Ran calmly remarked and exhaled a puff of smoke, flicking some ash outside the half-opened window.

"I'll figure something out. I always do."

–

Another night.

Another round of men wanting the accompaniment of dolled up women to stroke their ego while they throw yen around like they’re false kings. From the corner of Saori’s eye, she spotted Kokonoi’s head of silver white with a short, white haired man wearing a baggy black shirt and white slacks; another with bright pink hair wearing a pinstripe purple suit on the second floor. A few girls got ushered in behind them a short beat later.

Work ended in the blink of an eye. She returned to the dressing room to pack up, only to find her mobile phone missing.

“Hey Ami-chan,” she called one of the other girls getting ready to head out. “Did you see where my phone went?”

“Who else would play these childish pranks with you?” the girl stated the obvious with a quirked brow.

“Mayumi,” they both said simultaneously and exchanged tired sighs.

“Seriously, what is up her ass?” (Y/N) rubbed the back of her neck and sighed. “It’s not like I’m gunning after her precious number one spot.”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” her co-worker shrugged. “How’s it out there for you tonight?”

“Pretty busy. Eko was in bad shape though. She was so hungover today.”

“That girl’s one drink away from cirrhosis, I swear…” Ami grumbled and rolled her eyes.

“You see where Mayumi went during her shift, by the way?”

“VIP.” The girl pointed up to the ceiling. “Dunno which room though.”

Thanking her, she made her way out and went upstairs to look for her phone. There were five VIP rooms on the second floor, each with their own theme. If she remembered correctly, there were only three parties who used the second floor tonight: Two were business moguls and Kokonoi’s group. She decided to search the biggest room first; the cleaning crew always saved it for last since it was a pain in the ass to detail.

During her tenure at La Reverie, she’s only been in the smaller VIP rooms. Slowly sliding the heavy oak door open, her eyes widened and marveled at the glitzy interior. Bright, luminescent silver filigree patterned wallpapers slathered the room with an over the top crystal chandelier dangling above her. The snow grey leather couch and dark oak table accented the parlor with its high end elegance. At the far end of the room, a baby grand piano in bone white with gold accents sat in its silent majestic presence. (Y/N) stared with nostalgia.

Slowly making her way to it, she opened the lid and found her phone sitting on top of the ebony and ivory keys. Just as she grabbed her device and turned her heels to leave, she hesitated for some reason. Reluctantly turning back to the piano, she walked up and lightly traced the keys on her fingertips.

“Probably not even tuned right,” she muttered.

Her right index finger hit middle A and to her surprise, it was the correct pitch. Seeing how those left were the front of house staff, it couldn’t hurt to play a little… right?

Setting her phone down on the lid, she adjusted herself on the bench before hovering her hands on top of the keyboard and locked in the muffler pedal to soften the notes so no one would hear. She steadied her breath and went through her mental catalogue of pieces.

What did she want to play? How was her mood right now?

Her hands started moving on its own, playing a somber melody for the intro before leading to the main one and closed her eyes, her heart feeling in the moment. Of all the bitter times in her life these past few years thanks to her mother, she felt this piece reflected her inner turmoil the best.

Her desperate ache for freedom, her murmured screams at the unfairness of life… Why was she the one paying for the actions of other people? What did she do wrong in her life? She tried her best to be a good person in a society that rewards bad behaviour…

Yet here she was.

The arpeggios of emotion to the swelling crescendos of the melody, she let all of her frustrations out on each note while keeping the delicate balance of grace and ennui. A lone, loud and slow clap roused her from a brief reprieve of reality, making her immediately turn her head to the source like a deer caught in the headlights.

Kokonoi continued to applaud her solo performance with the people she saw with him before; the other two men stared with interest. A foul sense of panic and bile bubbled in the pit of her stomach, making her swallow hard.

“You’re not supposed to be here,” Koko remarked with a smirk and crossed his arms over his chest.

“I found my phone here,” she revealed, trying to stay calm. “One of the girls likes playing little pranks with my stuff every now and then.”

“So bullying then?” the pink haired man spoke up. His piercing blue eyes glared down at her behind his beautiful, thick lashes.

“Something like that.” (Y/N) abruptly stood from the piano and grabbed her phone. “Please pardon the intrusion.” She politely bowed and excused herself.

“That song you played…” the short white haired man softly spoke with a deep monotone bass, stopping her in her tracks. “What is it?”

“… “Moonlight Sonata” by Ludwig van Beethoven.”

“I see…”

Bowing once more, she hurriedly made her way out of the VIP room and down the stairs. Her heart was hammering a mile a minute against her breast bone. Feeling herself hyperventilate, she made her way back into the dressing room and closed the door with a soft slam, dragging her back down on the solid frame behind her, trying her best to calm down from that suffocating aura of death.

–

Transparent beads of liquid fell from the sky, staining the windows of Bonten’s headquarters that sat high above Shibuya. Blurred, flickering neon lights below attributed to the visual noise in attracting the masses to Tokyo’s nightlife like a moth to a flame.

“Boss?” Kokonoi called, drawing Manjiro’s onyx gaze from the darkened skyline and back into the obscenely large conference room.

It’d been a few weeks since they last stepped foot in La Reverie. Koko wanted him to see how the business was doing and if the girls were being treated well by his standards. The lithe man walked back to the couch where his admin was sitting.

His thoughts wandered back to the night he met that hostess, playing that deep, haunting melody that shook his very core. What was it about that piece she played gripped him so? His heart remembered bits and pieces of the melody, but he couldn’t piece them together; they were like fragments of misaligned jigsaw puzzles lingering in the dark trying to find their place.

Koko continued on with his reporting: their earnings are steady, which was nothing new and he found a possible new business venture for Bonten to dip into: the entertainment industry. Rumors of yakuza running teen idol groups behind the scenes was nothing new, but with the surge of Korean pop artists making the rounds into the Japanese market, he saw this as an opportunity to get into the good graces of struggling talent agencies and provide them monetary firepower to compete against their overseas rivals.

“As a matter of entertainment for the meeting with StarsLive…” his financial admin trailed off.

“Wanna hear it again…” Manjiro blurted out all of a sudden, drawing Koko’s head up from his paperwork with a questionable look. Bonten’s leader sat down on the dark leather couch and drew his head up to the tall ceiling, lost in his thoughts.

–

Lively chatter and soft music played in the vast room of La Reverie. It was another busy night at the club. (Y/N)’s clientele list steadily grew, several of them enjoying her company for her dependable aura and willingness to listen without judgment. As much as she despised this job of lies, she pitied the people who walked through these doors. They were lonely and had no one to talk to.

In some ways, she saw parts of herself in them; maybe that was why she was good at this job. While her client was in mid-conversation, one of the wait staffs gently tapped her shoulder.

“Kokonoi-san would like to speak with you,” he whispered in her ear. “He’s upstairs in the main VIP suite.”

“I’ll be with him after I finish up here,” she tersely replied. The man bowed and walked away as (Y/N) turned back with an apologetic gaze. “I’m so sorry about that. Please continue on about what your subordinate did with the new account.”

“You’re getting quite popular, Saori-chan,” her client playfully noted with a sad tone and sipped his whiskey on the rocks. “Next thing y’know, you’re gonna forget all ‘bout me.”

“I would never. You’re one of my first clients, Toho-san,” she reassured with a gentle smile. “If I’m to be honest, I rather enjoy talking with you.”

“Is that so?” he belly laughed. “I’m glad an old man like me make for good company for someone young n’ beautiful like you.”

“You’re nearing 45. You’re still young… ish,” she teased playfully with a matching grin.

Just as she finished up, (Y/N) slowly made her way upstairs to Kokonoi. She steadied her breath by placing her hand over her diaphragm, feeling her anxiety rising like the bile churning in her stomach. Was it about what happened yesterday? Gently rapping her knuckle on the door, she announced herself before sliding the heavy oak doors open and closed it. Her breath hitched in her throat the moment she saw a bunch of suited men with matching tattoos adorned on their respective bodies. The air felt heavy with menacing darkness, like heavy chains weighing her down.

“Do you always keep your clients waiting like this?” Kokonoi scolded with a glare.

“I… wasn’t aware you had company,” she finally found her voice and swallowed thickly before entering the den of lions. She bowed deeply. “I apologize for my tardiness. The client I was with—”

“One of your firsts, right?” the financial executive finished her sentence. “N’ you didn’t wanna leave him.”

“Yes.” She remained bowing, not wanting to meet the eyes of any of these predators. “It would not be good manners to abandon those who supported you from the beginning and would reflect poorly on La Reverie’s reputation.”

“She’s a good one,” one remarked and heard the flicker of a lighter go off. “Where’d you find this pedigree, Koko?”

“You can stop bowing now, princess,” another spoke with a silky voice; she recognized it as Ran’s from when he last came with Kokonoi. “And let us get a good look at you.”

Steadying her shaky, clasped hands, she took a shallow breath before standing up straight to face the executives again and rolled her shoulder back. Her hesitant gaze briefly raked across the room before looking down at the dark oak table in front. She could practically feel their eyes drink and disrobe her from her deep purple cocktail dress in their minds just as one wolf whistled.

It was sickening. She wanted to vomit from their perverse leering and immense weight building inside her guts.

“W-Was there something you need from me, Kokonoi-san?” (Y/N) finally choked out with a small stutter, not wanting to stay here another second longer.

“The boss requests your skill sets.”

“Skill sets…?” she asked in confusion. “Surely, Mayumi would be a better fit for—”

“The song you played last time…” The short white haired man cut in and lazily glanced up at her. “I wanna hear it again.”

Song? She took a beat to figure out what he was talking about and remembered.

“O-Oh… If that’s what you wish…”

Lightly bowing, she cautiously made her way to the baby grand piano. Sweeping the small train of her dress to the side of the bench, she opened the lid and steadied her trembling hands before going through her pre-playing ritual. Making sure the muffler pedal was set, (Y/N) took a soft breath and started playing “Moonlight Sonata.”

“Stop,” the man suddenly spoke. “This isn’t it.”

She turned her head, confused. “… Pardon?”

“This isn’t what you played last time,” he repeated with clear irritation growing on his face.

“Please excuse my poor playing,” she bowed apologetically. “I-It’s been a while… since I performed in front of people,” she meekly confessed.

“That ain’t it…” a man with hetero-chromatic eyes said. “He meant you’re not putting your heart into it.”

“Hard to do that when you’re all practically oozing out murderous intent,” she muttered to herself.

“Trust us, sweetheart. If we wanted you dead, you would be already,” the pink haired man said loudly with a chuckle, having heard her and flashed the gun on his holster with a toothy grin.

“Cool it, Sanzu,” Kokonoi interjected and turned back to (Y/N). “Can you try again?”

She was a human being, not a piece of machinery that can play on demand! she angrily thought.

All she wanted to do was keep her head down, do her job, pay the debt off and get the fuck out of Tokyo. And now, here she was, playing musician to entertain the very bane of her existence right now. Were they making a mockery of her?!

She couldn’t take it. This frustration to cater to their whims simply because they felt like it. Her fight or flight senses triggered, feeling her kneecaps begin to shake from the fear of her insides being painted on the walls of this room and no one would bat an eyelash to mourn for her. Her hands moved on their own, the soft tune filling in the room. The familiarity swell of the somber melody resonated inside Sano Manjiro.

Yes. This was it. This was what he felt then. This beautiful auditory declaration of suppression and resentment. Each struck chord with her hands strangled his heart, as if he was trying to find something to make him feel alive again.

And just like that, this fleeting emotion escaped the palm of his hand just as she finished the piece with the soft, muffled minor chord. She looked back up and locked eyes with the head of Bonten for a beat. His deep, charcoal gaze bore deep into hers, as if she was seeing his thoughts before she averted his stare down.

“Was it to your liking, boss?” Koko asked, with the man giving a slight nod. “(Y/N)-chan, you will perform at a Bonten function for us three days from now.”

Just as she was about to speak, the finance admin elaborated as if he read her mind. “The clientele is from the entertainment industry. You will be given a 30 minute window for your performance. The song list will be left to your discretion. A car will come pick you up at 5pm sharp. Wardrobe and makeup will be provided for you. Should you need anything else, call me and I’ll have it arranged.”

“You should be honored, girl. It’s not everyday we pick sluts like you to accompany us to events like these,” Ran sneered with a shit-eating grin.

“Is that how I look like to you?” (Y/N) calmly replied and stood from the piano, doing her best to maintain her dignity. The legs of the bench softly scraped against the lacquered wooden floor. “Contrary to what you think, not all of us sleep with their clientele.”

“Oh, this one’s got a mouth on her.” The tall man stood and towered over her frame upon approaching the small stage where she stood. His large hands roughly gripped her chin, making her look into his cold, violet orbs with quiet defiance. She bit back a yelp in her throat, not wanting to give him the satisfaction in having him hear how much his nails were digging into her flesh.

“Do you always go around with this condescending attitude of yours, whore?” he acidly spat out. “And what’s got you working here, hm? Fucked around too much with hosts? Drank more than your own paycheck’s worth at our bars? Looking for a sugar daddy to pay for that overused pussy?”

“Ran,” Manjiro spoke with a dark, warning tone.

The lanky man leaned in so she was face to face with his half-lidded glare under a calm demeanor. "Dirty little cunts like you just need to keep quiet, look pretty and be used as cocksleeves."

Shooting her another asinine glare, he roughly pushed his hand off her face and walked back to the couch. (Y/N) softly massaged her jawline from the man’s vice grip, gritting her teeth from the sting of his touch, her orbs fighting back crocodile tears. Manjiro's eyes followed his admin's movement as he rejoined his brother's side while adjusting his Alex Streeter double demon signet ring adorned on his right middle finger.

“Any questions?” Koko finally asked.

“What’s my compensation?”

“Always ‘bout the money eh?” the executive chuckled. “I’ll discuss that with the boss. 'Til then, practice when you can.”

—

Three days went by in the blink of an eye. Nerves slowly took over as she found herself keeling over her toilet, heaving bile into it. Anything she tried to keep down came back up moments later.

It was always like this.

In a past life, (Y/FN) was an aspiring pianist who dreamed of conquering all musical genres, from music to jazz to rock. Her instructors and teachers all praised the talent she worked hard on, putting her all into each performance.

All that came to a screeching halt the day she met Kokonoi Hajime.

Abruptly quitting her training lessons, she made herself disappear. Her pride couldn’t stand seeing those who supported her become disappointed with how she was now: a broken adult who only cared about money and survival.

Groaning and panting, she prayed to whichever God would help settle her stomach as her nose whiffed the vile acid in the toilet that came from her mouth. Gingerly lifting herself up with a soft grunt, she turned the faucet on to rinse her face and mouth after flushing, spitting out the remnants of her stomach fluids into the sink. Taking a swig of mouthwash, she gargled to rid her mouth of its rancid aftertaste and spat it out before splashing her face to wash away the cold sweat forming around the crown of her head. Just as she exited the bathroom, her mobile phone came to life with its melodious ringtone, making her audibly groan with exhaustion.

It was from an unknown number.

“H-Hello?” she hoarsely greeted and massaged her throat from the rawness of the acid burning her esophagus.

“This is Kakucho,” the voice spoke from the line. “We’re here to pick you up for the evening.”

“I-I’ll be right down.”

(Y/N) lazily grabbed her belongings before making her way downstairs to see a black, unmarked car. She saw a man with the heterochromatic eyes and scar running across the left side of his face waiting outside, looking up at her at the base of the staircase.

“Are you unwell?” he asked, making note of her pale complexion, dilated pupils and dry lips.

“Performance jitters,” she rasped out after coming down and entered the vehicle without another word.

Kakucho glanced over at (Y/N) every now and then from his phone, making note of her physical status with every turn the car made. She squeezed her eyes close and immediately clasped her mouth with her hand with a smack, feeling the nausea come and go with a muffled retch from her throat. Her light labored breathing could be heard between the pregnant stillness. The scarred man leaned forward and knocked on the privacy glass twice, feeling the car slow. Leaving without a word, she pushed a button to crack the window open for some fresh air. The humidity from outside stained her forehead followed with a cool breeze; the sensation gave her a small reprieve from the aches of her body.

The car door on the opposite end opened five minutes later; Kakucho entered, took out a cold beverage from a plastic bag and handed it to her. She lazily opened her eyes and found a can of seltzer placed in her palm.

“It’ll help with your stomach,” he suggested.

Using what strength she had to pop the tab open, she brought the cool aluminum vessel to her lips and sipped the carbonated liquid, feeling her body’s fluids being replenished. It was the first thing she had all day her body didn’t violently eject. The car started moving again.

“I also got some onigiri for—”

“No. No food,” she hastily answered weakly and pushed the bag away while taking another sip from the can. “It’ll just come back up.” Huffing a light sigh from the seltzer slowly settling her stomach, she spoke again. “Thank you… for the drink.”

Just as she finished it, the vehicle pulled up to the Park Hyatt Hotel’s entrance. The door on her side was opened by the bellhop outside and escorted her out. Kakucho placed a hand in the small of her back, moving her at his pace as they walked past the concierge desk. The color on her skin was slowly coming back. Swiftly entering the elevator, he pressed the button for the highest floor of the building. Feeling her ears pop from the sudden change in elevation, the lift dinged at their destination. Chaperoning (Y/N) out, he reached into his breast pocket and swiped a key card to enter the suite. Through the dark entrance of the room, the two were greeted with a sweeping night time view of the city skyline with glittering diamond-like street lights.

The living room was occupied with the two purple haired men, the pink haired man bent over the table, snorting a line of freshly cut cocaine and Kokonoi tapping away on his laptop.

“Took you long enough,” the purple shoulder length haired man sneered with his usual glare. “You two fucking?”

Her escort frowned with distaste at the choice of his constituent’s words.

“I got carsick,” she tersely fibbed, unconsciously holding her stomach.

“Guest room’s that way. Everything you need will be in there,” Kokonoi pointed to her.

Curtly thanking the scarred man, she made her way into the spare room and saw a wardrobe and hair and makeup artist already on standby. The two greeted her and settled her into the seat in front of the vanity. She wasn’t used to being waited on hand and foot like this since she did everything herself at the club. The small talk they made with her helped curb her anxiety and even made her chuckle with some of their stories.

Just as they wrapped up, the artists wished her good luck with the performance and made their way out of the suite. (Y/N) closed her eyes and placed her hands on her diaphragm, steadying her breath. Doubts started running through her mind.

What if she messed up? What if the performance was just a ruse to get her to do other despicable things? Just as her mind was racing, a soft knock on the door drew her back to reality.

Kokonoi peeked in and froze. His black eyes drank her in like the finest wine he’s ever tasted. Her hair was done up halfway with soft curls framing her slender neck; wardrobe decided on the draped silver fil coupe corseted dress from Vivienne Westwood paired with the Vince Camuto strappy black heels. Her makeup was light with a pop of soft red painted on her lips, compared to the harsh black eyeliner and gaudy fake lashes she always wore while working. The help he hired did a great job enhancing her natural beauty.

“You look… ravishing.”

(Y/N) stayed quiet and looked out the window, taking in the nightscape. The silver haired man approached her and softly ran his fingertip lightly across her shoulders. He then leaned into her ear as if they were lovers whispering naughty things to each other.

“Kakucho told me you were sick before,” he said with a tone of concern.

“I’m fine,” she stiffly replied and swallowed hard as Kokonoi continued with his feather-light touches on her exposed arms, wishing he would stop. “Stomach always gets like this before a performance.”

“When was the last time you performed?” His lips ghosted on the nape of her neck, inhaling the faint traces of perfume on her skin. He had always flirted with her only with words; this was the first time he was this forward with his carnal desires. She clenched her teeth in discomfort at the contact.

“… Four years ago.”

His hand landed on her wrist and languidly massaged the underside of her forearm with his index and middle finger as if he was giving a preview of what else he could do with his digits.

“Think you’ll be okay?”

She turned to him with an annoyed expression. “You’re asking me this now? After you practically cornered me to do this?”

Kokonoi held his hands up in a neutral manner.

“Fair,” he admitted. “Even if you mess up tonight, you’d still be pretty to look at, so it’s a win-win for us either way.”

(Y/N) shot him a venomous glare for that statement and was reminded women like her were just objects for these bastards to ogle, fondle and fuck. They were disposable pieces of meat like everything else in their empty lives.

“Let’s get this over with.”

Making her way out of the guest room, she stood in the hallway to collect herself. Steadying her breath, she put one foot in front of the other and made her way to the living room. Even without announcing her presence, the entire room’s attention trained on her. She politely bowed and bid everyone a good evening with a demure facade, introducing herself with her hostess name. If there’s one thing she learned about a crowd of men who think with their egos and the head between their legs, it’s that they love seeing anyone weaker than them present themselves as such.

“So you’re the entertainment tonight eh,” one of the music producers commented, eyeing her up and down salaciously. Kokonoi introduced him as Mizunori Daisuke.

“I’ll be performing some songs for you all tonight. I do hope you enjoy the selections.”

Making her way to the grand piano, (Y/N) situated herself on the bench. As much as she hated doing this, she had to suck it up and get through this; she hoped it didn’t show in her playing.

She started her set off with her rendition of Debussy’s “Clair de Lune” to set the mood. Her hands glided across the keys like a skater on ice, her nimble fingers lightly grazing each key with grace and precision. For a brief moment, every Bonten admin was entranced by her presence as she boasted her elegant and silent allure. After playing one more classical piece, her audience applauded as she made a transition into some jazz songs. She mashed up “Summertime” and “Blue Monk” together.

Changing things up, she played the intro to “Lullaby of Birdland” and started singing to the audience’s surprise. Her voice was soft and husky compared to her usual one, still feeling the burn in her throat from anxiety vomiting. As she struck the last note, she was greeted with cheers in the intimate space.

“For the last song,” she spoke softly. “I would like our esteemed guests to pick it.”

“Interesting…” Mizunori marveled her power move. “Did you run out of songs to play?”

“I like getting my listeners involved with the selection of music,” she explained with a thin smile. “Keeps everyone engaged like a conversation.”

“Kokonoi-san, are all the girls at your clubs this accommodating?” Bonten’s client complimented.

“We like to cater to a wide array of our clients,” the silver haired man easily replied.

The producer ended up requesting the classic “Plastic Love” by Mariya Takeuchi. While a popular song, (Y/N) felt he was testing her and wanted to see what she was truly capable of. In short, he was playing to her ego. Catching onto his game, the right corner of her lip quirked up ever so slightly and decided to tease him a little. Starting off with the song’s standard melody to catch him off guard, his eyes began drooping from boredom before she hit him with her improvisation at the hook into the second verse. She knew which parts to keep simple and which to embellish a little just to keep the guests engaged enough.

The song ended with a soft chord, followed with loud clapping from Bonten’s guests. She gracefully stood and bowed, wishing them a good evening and hoped they enjoyed her performance. Just as she made her way back to the guest room to change and leave, she felt a set of hands wrap around her waist, lightly jolting her shoulders.

“Stay,” a deep voice spoke in her right ear. She glanced over to see the long haired purple man hovering over her frame. “It’ll keep the producers talking and distracted.”

“… I didn’t get your name.”

“Haitani Rindou.”

“Ah…” she put two and two together. “You’re ‘Rin-Rin.’ Eko and Yumi talk about you non-stop.”

“I swear…” the man huffed an exhausted sigh. “I’m ghosting those two girls.”

“That’s not nice,” she tutted with a small smirk playing on her lips and crossed her arms. “Tell them directly if you’re not interested. They’re quite strong-willed and I know this first hand.”

“I only texted them ‘cus my brother didn’t wanna deal with ‘em,” he explained. “Now I can’t get ‘em off my dick.”

“Not my concern,” (Y/N) curtly responded and made her way back to the living room area. The younger Haitani called her.

“The songs you played before…” Rindou continued. “They were good.”

She lightly bowed her head as a way to thank the younger Haitani for his compliment. As the meeting went on, (Y/N) switched her brain to hostess mode and listened intently to Kokonoi’s clients drawl on about their up and coming idol group to rival AKB48 and TWICE as a sales pitch for Bonten to fund their promotional assets, recording and costumes. The Haitanis sat idly, bored out of their minds. Akashi left an hour prior with Mochizuki, claiming he had another meeting to get to. Mikey and Sanzu remained quiet, the latter standing behind the couch like a bodyguard with dilated pupils; he looked like he was still riding out his cocaine high. Kakucho stood behind (Y/N), noticing how uncomfortable she became as Mizunori snaked his arm behind to grope her butt.

She abruptly stood and flashed a polite smile to the group when her movement caught their attention.

“Please excuse me for a moment. I’m in need of some fresh air.”

“Kakucho,” the head of Bonten called. “Go with her.”

With a light bow of his head, the scarred man accompanied her out of the suite and took the elevator up to the rooftop. Walking alongside the indoor pool, the two made their way out to the patio, feeling the gust of wind blow in their face the moment the door slid open. (Y/N) took a deep inhale and closed her eyes before leaning on the awning. Slowly opening her eyes, she took in the silver glow of Tokyo’s skyline high above Nishi-shinjuku. His dual-colored eyes observed the curves and dips of her side to back profile, her skin illuminated by the cool glowing lights of the city as strands of her locks were caught in the wind from being so high up.

“You can go back if you want, Kakucho-san,” she spoke. “I’m not gonna do something crazy like jump from here.”

“I need a break from those assholes,” he confessed. “Especially from those producers.”

Observing her body language, he immediately saw her shoulders tense up the moment he mentioned them and hugged herself. Taking his suit jacket off, he draped it over her frame and stood beside her.

“You must be cold wearing only that.”

Quietly accepting his gesture, she adjusted the oversized blazer for her shoulder to snuggle into and felt the warmth of the material from his body heat.

“So why a hostess?” the scarred man suddenly asked. His dual coloured eyes scanned the scenery.

“What do you mean?”

“You clearly have the talent to be a professional musician. So why are you here?”

“A series of unfortunate events,” she vaguely answered with a bitter smile.

“I heard from Koko…”

“I take it you all know then?” (Y/N) sharply inquired and scoffed.

“Mikey asked him to look into your background,” Kakucho explained.

“Mikey?”

“The head of Bonten, Sano Manjiro. The one who asked me to accompany you,” he clarified. “Mikey is… a nickname. He wanted to see whether or not you were trustworthy for tonight.”

“You mean to say whether or not Bonten has a hook on me in the event I decide to try to pull a fast one.” She glanced up at her companion. The scarred man’s adam’s apple bobbed up and down when he swallowed before looking away with a hint of regret. “Am I wrong?”

“If it’s worth anything, you seem like a level-headed person to me.”

She let out a light breath from her nose and turned her attention back to the view.

“So, Kakucho-san. If I may ask…” she paused for a beat and tilted her head up to him with mild interest. “What brought you into the criminal underworld then?”

“A series of unfortunate events,” he parroted her answer with a small smirk. She huffed a small chuckle. “You finally smiled.”

“Not much to smile about in that suite, between you and me.”

Her stomach immediately growled loudly, making her put her hand over it with embarrassment. That’s right: she’s been on an empty stomach all day because of her anxiety puking.

“Wanna grab a bite?” the man asked.

“I could go for a giant platter of curry rice right now.”

“You’re in one of the most expensive hotels in Tokyo with world-class cuisine at your fingertips and you want… curry rice?” Kakucho stated in disbelief.

“Do I look like a girl who splurges or care about fancy dining?” she shot back with disinterest. “Besides, it’s all poop in the end no matter what we eat.”

“You don’t have to say it like that,” he grimaced with disdain at the sudden imagery.

“I’m not wrong though.”

Before he could respond, his mobile phone buzzed in his trouser pocket. He took it out and saw a message from Koko.

“We should head back,” he said with his eyes not leaving the screen.

“I guess ‘no’ isn’t an answer that’s accepted here.”

Making their way back to the suite without incident, the group slowly wrapped up their transaction and the producers said they’d be in touch with Kokonoi. As they made their way out, Mizunori wrapped his arm around (Y/N)’s waist and pulled her close to him, much to her discomfort.

“So, Saori-chan. What are you doing after this?” he asked with his eyes leering down her cleavage unapologetically.

Before she could make an excuse, she felt her body being yanked the opposite direction and turned to see Kokonoi to her left; she felt his arms firmly draped around her shoulder.

“Actually, I have some personal business to discuss with her,” he interjected with a slight glare, heavily emphasizing the word ‘personal.’ “Perhaps another time.”

“Another time it is, then,” the producer stiffly replied with a forced smile before leaning into her ear. “We’ll be seeing each other real soon, lovely.”

The moment the suite door slammed shut, (Y/N) pushed herself off and violently wiped her right ear with an audible shudder.

“God damn gross ass, hairy ass, lecherous walrus,” she uttered out. “If I had something on me, I would’ve stabbed his face.”

“Such vulgar language for a girl,” Rindou lightly teased.

“Should’ve said something sooner,” Ran perked up with a lazy grin. “I had a knife on me.”

“If you didn’t stab him, I would’ve,” his baby brother chimed in and pinched his nose bridge. “God, this dragged on a lot longer than it needed to.”

“Are we done here?” she turned to the long platinum haired man and asked with a quick shrug of her shoulders. “Or would you like to ogle me like a piece of meat a bit more?”

“You’re actually hotter when you’re not talking,” Ran commented.

“Too bad the same can’t be said about you,” she snapped irritably just as her stomach let out another audible growl, making her grimace and squeezed her eyes close in mortification at her body betraying her.

“Someone’s hangry,” the older Haitani sibling called in a teasing sing-songy tone. “Let’s get room service!”

Kokonoi grabbed the menu from the coffee table and scanned the list. While the majority of the group ordered the steak, (Y/N) ordered the nabeyaki udon, beef curry and their signature cheesecake; she needed comfort food right now and could care less about the company. A soft knock at the door 30 minutes later and sustenance was delivered right at their door. While the Haitanis and Sanzu were fighting over which steak serving was the bigger one, Kokonoi handed her a flute glass with champagne in it.

“To celebrate your performance.” He clinked the mouth of his glass with hers.

“Think they were more interested in seeing me naked than hear me play,” she noted and took a small sip before setting the glass down on the table.

“Possible. But for what it’s worth…” The platinum haired man sat next to her on the couch. “I watched you the entire time. And you did very well. You didn’t throw up.”

Rolling her eyes at him, she reached for her food and tucked in. For someone of her stature, the admins were amazed at how much she was able to eat.

“You’d be the same after being unable to eat for over 26 hours without having it come back up,” she pointed out before taking another big bite of her beef curry.

“I would’ve given you somethin’ for that if you asked,” Sanzu spoke up before scarfing down a piece of his steak.

“No offense, but I prefer to be lucid.”

“Your loss, angel,” the scarred pink haired man said with his mouth full. “Think it’d enhance your playing.”

“What did you think, boss?” Kokonoi asked before sipping his red wine.

“It was fine,” he flatly replied and took a small bite of his food, not making eye contact with anyone. “The clients seemed satisfied, so that’s good enough for me.”

As they wrapped up their late dinner, (Y/N) grabbed her things to change and get ready leave; she was suddenly stopped by the finance admin with a gentle hand wrapped around her wrist in the hallway.

“The boss requests your company tonight,” he leaned in and spoke in her ear.

She blinked stupidly.

“So I could’ve sworn you just said I’m staying the night.”

“I did.”

“This wasn’t the agreement,” she argued with a hushed voice.

“Well, we’re making a slight change to that, okay?” Kokonoi hastily replied with a tone of annoyance. “He wants to speak with you in private.”

“What’s he gotta say he can’t in front of his inner circle?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.”

He huffed a light sigh through his nose and traced his finger on the curve of her neck, making her flinch back and clasp the area with her hand with a defensive look.

“Shame… I wanted to take you out around Roppongi and show you off.”

“Oh, what a tragedy,” she deadpanned and crossed her arms over her chest before leaning on the door frame to the guest bedroom.

Watching the remaining admins leave the suite, she hesitantly walked back out into the living room area to see Sano Manjiro sitting on the couch alone, looking out of sorts. (Y/N) sat down a few seats from him and tensely clasped her hands together.

What did the head of Bonten want with her?

Taglist: @xngelsau

#tokyo revengers #tokyo rev x y/n #bonten #bonten mikey #bonten kokonoi hajime #kokonoi hajime #haitani ran #haitani rindou #sanzu haruchiyo #bonten x you #mano sanjiro #sano mikey manjiro #bonten x y/n #bonten x reader #haitani brothers #kakucho hitto #akashi takeomi #mochizuki kanji #ran haitani #rindou haitani #tokyo revengers x reader #tokrev x reader #series: sonata #bonten sonata

[bluewindfall]

— 11/4 8:02 a.m. KYOTO —

“OK Automotive. That’s a boring name. Shouldn’t it be great automotive or super automotive?” Rin squints at the sign. “Why’d they name it okay?”

Yukio tilts his notepad at the plaque on the wall. “The founder was Otsuka Kenji. That could be why.” 

“Huh.”  

The guy with green hair they talked to earlier comes jogging back with another guy. “Hey, sorry to keep you waiting. This here’s Kobayashi. Here’s some phone numbers of guys you might want to ask too,” he says, casually passing Rin a bunch of chicken scratch on a paper towel. “They’re not working today. If you all want to chat over here, that’s great. Just don’t block the entrance.” He gives Kobayashi’s back a firm pat and flounces back off to wherever. 

“Morning,” Kobayashi booms. “I’m Kobayashi Satoru. Daisuke-san was my close friend.” 

Yukio blinks in that startled, rabbit-like manner he does every once in a while, when he runs into a rare human that’s way taller than him. “Thank you. I’m Okumura Yukio, and this is my colleague, Okumura Rin. We’d like to ask you some questions about Tamura-san. Please, have a seat,” he says motioning smoothly at the bench. 

He doesn’t sit down next to Kobayashi though, so Rin doesn’t either. Maybe it’s just so they don’t have to crane up at the guy. 

Kobayashi is huge and buff, with a kink in his nose probably from being punched. It looks pretty cool. He’s kind of old, but not that old. Rin can’t really tell with all the facial hair. 

Yukio goes through some of the same questions as with that Ishida lady from yesterday. Kobayashi tells them a lot about Tamura’s hobbies—fishing, collecting stamps, and drinking—but in the end, he doesn’t mention anything interesting. He doesn’t know the handwriting in the notebook, and he doesn’t know Nakamura or Matsumoto. 

It puts Yukio in a foul mood. They head back to their hotel and make calls to all of Tamura’s coworkers on the paper towel. After that, Yukio spends some time inspecting the meager information they gathered while Rin eats snacks. Matsumoto’s notebook sits open on the table between them, basking in Kyoto’s morning sunshine.

The weird thing about Matsumoto’s notebook is that the first half of the notes are in her handwriting. The latter half is a scribbly cursive list of materials, written in thin black pen. That summoning circle was drawn too. Only Matsumoto’s fingerprints were found on the notebook. 

“Wait.” Rin sets both hands on the table. “What if whoever wrote this wore gloves? Then, they wouldn’t leave fingerprints.” 

Yukio doesn’t look up. “Yes. They would have worn gloves.” 

Rin frowns, slouching back in his chair. “Well, maybe we can check Nakamura and Tamura’s belongings. We might find something like this.” 

“That could be good.” Yukio runs his fingers over his watch, but he’s still staring at the wall. 

Rin busies himself by checking his emails. Shura hasn’t sent him any updates on the… incident in Athens. It’s probably not going well either. 

He scrolls through some news headlines on his phone. A celebrity Renzou likes was fined for tax evasion. There will be a lunar eclipse visible in a few days. A new drug to treat colon cancer has been approved. 

“What if,” Yukio begins, “we need to be faster than this?” 

To keep reading on AO3 :)

#ao no exorcist #blue exorcist #fanfic #rin okumura #yukio okumura #okumura rin #okumura yukio #in case you don't know this is chapter 2 :) #thank you so much to everyone who left me such nice comments in the tags last time!!! *O * #you guys are so sweet T^ T #i hope you'll like this chapter #but also if you're busy there's no rush to read it or comment!! ^^ #bluewindfall writes stuff

[exrankluck]

URADOL Stage/opening - Drama Track TRANSLATION

The strongest unconventional idol development drama CD series begins!

Their secret is that they are fraudulent idols, covered in lies. A new idol group called "SPYAIM" is set to debut from the entertainment agency "evol."

<Cast>

Keisho Isumi: KENN

Ranma Fujisaki: Tomoaki Maeno

Lui Usami: Wataru Hatano

Yuiji Natsuhara: Shugo Nakamura

Hajime Kirigaya: Shun Horie

Kaede Ijuin: Nobuhiko Okamoto

☆

Character Design: Shiro Yamada (Ikemen Sengoku, Ikemen Vampire)

Director & Scenario: Azuma Ryo

Design: Haruka Takahashi

©URADOL

<Uradol>

kei: There are things in the world that can't be measured by common sense.

One day, those things unexpectedly changed our lives.

This is a story of how those who lived in separate worlds came together as one through idols.

A story of fulfilling a promise made 10 years ago.

ranma: This is bad. This is really bad!

ranma: (My name is Ranma Fujisaki, and I work as the head of the accounting department at the Evol Talent Agency.

Although we call it an agency, the management is in the worst possible state due to a change in leadership two years ago. The former president's beloved son, no... It's all because of that damn son of his!)

ranma: President!

ijuin: Oh, Ran-chan! Yahoo~

ranma: I have something to tell you.

ijuin: What?

ranma: It's an important matter, so please listen seriously. Stop playing games and put your phone away!

ijuin: Geh, I was at a good part too~ It's probably just about money again.

ranma: That's right. Please take a look at this.

ijuin: Yes, yes, this is our sales figures. What about it?

ranma: At the moment, it’s showing a significant loss compared to last year.

ijuin: Waah, really?

ranma: Do you understand how serious this situation is?! We're on the brink of bankruptcy!

ijuin: That's true, yeah. But once it's happened, there's nothing we can do about it, right? Time can’t turn back.

ranma: Who do you think is responsible for this? It's the result of you spending the company's money as you please! At this rate, we'll definitely go under.

ijuin: Don't worry, don’t worry, it'll be fine~

ranma: ("We can still make it," says this idiot, the CEO of evol, Kaede Ijuin. He took over the reins of management from Sendai and as soon as he took charge, the company went belly up due to his reckless spending.)

ranma: How many employees do you think we have? Do you know how much we need every month just for personnel expenses? We have to take action quickly-

ijuin: Hey, we still have our top-sellers.

lui: Excuse me~

ranma: U... Usami-san...

lui: Fujisaki, good job.

ranma: Thank you for your hard work.

ranma: (This person is Usami Lui-san, a manager in the management department. He’s only 33 years old, but he’s a talented manager who is good at his job. He handles two of our company’s popular actors.)

ijuin: Usa-chan, hello. What's up?

lui: Something big happened, I need to report it.

ijuin: Hmm?

lui: Aoyagi Haruto and Hanamori Asuka want to quit the agency.

ijuin: Eh?

ranma: Wait a minute!! Aoyagi-san and Hanamori-san are our top two! It would be a problem if they quit!

ijuin: Hey, Usa-chan, you're their manager, right? Pay closer attention.

ranma: What’s the reason?

lui: They want to start their own agency because they don’t see a future here.

ranma: Gkh- How many does that make now?

lui: Like the eighth person?

ijuin: Geez, everyone is so cold! Who do they think made those amateurs into stars?

lui: It wasn't Kaede-san, it was Sendai who did everything.

ranma: That's right, you haven't done anything.

ijuin: Eh, really?

ranma: This idiot…

lui: Well, even if I stop those two from quitting, it’ll just cause trouble later on. I think we should respect their wishes.

ijuin: Yeah, that's true.

ranma: But if this continues, our agency…!

lui: Mm, honestly, it’ll be hard without Aoyagi and Hanamori. We've been living off their earnings lately.

ranma: What are we going to do, president? If things continue like this, we'll really be finished!

ijuin: Don't worry about that~ Who do you all think I am? I’m Kaede Ijuin-sama, you know. I've succeeded in plenty of businesses so far.

lui: Well, it's true that Kaede-san is a talented manager.

ranma: (As Usami-san said, this ridiculous man not only manages our office, but also many other companies. All of them have good performance, no, they are actually very successful.)

ranma: Then why are we the only ones in a deficit?!

lui: That's true. Why did this happen?

ijuin: Ehh? My dad said he wants me to try running an office too. When I became the president, I was like, “What's up with this company? We have so much money~!!”

ijuin: Entertainment is a game, right? It's like a fantasy, right?! So I thought I would try doing what I wanted!

ranma: As a result, we poured money into new ideas one after another, and this is the current situation.

lui: Kaede~san, this isn’t a game. It's a company.

ijuin: I know, I know. But I have a plan in case of an emergency, so it's okay… Well, I was thinking it's about time too.

ranma: A plan? Do you really have something like that?

ijuin: Nfufu. Want to hear it? Hey, wanna hear it?!

ranma: He's always so annoying.

lui: Come on, calm down, Fujisaki. So, what's the plan?

ijuin: Actually, I've been thinking about it for a while now. A major project to revive Evol.

lui: A major project?

ranma: What do you mean?

ijuin: Hehe, well, you see...this year, we’re going to debut a idol group from our company! Yay, applause!!

ranma: …I-Idol?

lui: From our company...?

ijuin: Yeah. What? No good?

ranma: Haa, wait a minute. If they're going to be idols, they'll definitely need singing and dance lessons. We'll have to hire a trainer, and one manager won't be enough. It will take money, time, and energy.

lui: And we’ll also need to hold auditions to choose the members.

ranma: Do you think our company has that kind of luxury right now?

ijuin: Hmm, then let’s make a idol group that doesn't cost any money.

ranma: Huh?

ijuin: We can just use what we already have.

lui: And what do we have?

ijuin: The members can be our employees. We won't hold auditions. I'll get a cheap singing and dance teacher from some people I know! Then we can start right away~

ranma: Our employees...? Employees!? Huh?! What are you talking about!? Being an idol requires not only good looks but also singing and dancing skills! Where do we have employees who can become idols!?

ijuin: Here! I have two right here~

both: Hm? Huh? Hah?! Us?!

ijuin: That's right!

lui: No, no, no, no.

ranma: That's obviously impossible! Are you insane?

ijuin: Haha, why not? First of all, Usa-chan has a cute idol-like look, so the age difference won't be a problem. And Ran-chan is the most handsome guy in our company, you know? I heard the female employees are forming a fan club behind the scenes.

ijuin: This is definitely going to sell. Yeah, it'll sell! Actually, I’m sorry I didn't realize it until now!

both: Ugh…

lui: Shit. Kaede-san is going too fast, I can't keep up.

ranma: How can someone like him be at the top? Someone... Someone tell me this is a dream.

ijuin: It's not a dream. It's reality. By the way, this is a order from work. So, don't choose to not do it, okay? Let’s work together!

lui: Um... I'll ask just in case, but are you serious?

ijuin: Yeah, I’m serious. Super serious.

ranma: Wait a minute! There's no way the two of us can handle this physically! Absolutely not!

ijuin: That’s true. We could use one more person actually~?

ranma: No, it's not a issue of numbers!

*knock knock*

kei: Excuse me! It's Goda Delivery! Ijuin-san! I brought what you asked for!

ijuin: Ah, thanks for your hard work! Just leave it there as usual.

kei: You got it!

ijuin: Sorry about that as always.

kei: Haha, nah, not at all! I'm happy to have you as a regular customer! *twinkle sfx*

ijuin: Haa… wait a minute. Got it.

both: Eh?

ijuin: Got it, got it, got it! An amazing talent is here!

kei: Eh? Huh? What's up? Me?

ijuin: Yes! It's you, it's you! I never noticed before, but when I look at you closely, you're incredibly cool! And your style is great! Mhm, mmm, with a cute face like that girls will like you! Hey, have you joined a agency?!

kei: Nah, I'm just a part-timer.

ijuin: Great! That's awesome! What's your name?

kei: Keisho Isumi.

ijuin: Keisho-kun! Do you have any interest in becoming an idol?

kei: Huh? Idol?

ranma: Hey, wait a minute, president! What are you thinking?!

lui: No, wait, Fujisaki! That kid really is unbelievably handsome.

ranma: A-Ah, yeah, that's true, but... But!

ijuin: How much do you make with this part-time job? If you become an idol with us, you can earn 10 times, no, 100 times more than that!

kei: 100!? Are you serious!?

ijuin: Yeah, yeah, let's make a promise! You're a once-in-a-millennium, no, once-in-a-ten-thousand-years talent. Those carefully chiseled facial features, that slender figure, perfect!

kei: Perfect... Me? Well, my looks get complimented a lot but, ha…

ijuin: I'm sorry for not noticing this raw talent before! Now, come with me on a new journey together! You're not meant to be just an ordinary person.

kei: I-I don't really get it but… if I can get that much money, I'll try it. It'll motivate me more than my part-time delivery job. Idols are popular with girls, right?!

ijuin: It's not just about being popular. You can get everything you want~

kei: Woah, seriously?! Making money and being popular, that's the best! Isn’t it awesome?! I'll do it!! I'll become an idol!

#josei muke #drama cd #drama cd translation #uradol #maeno tomoaki #kenn #hatano wataru #shugo nakamura #shun horie #okamoto nobuhiko #joseimuke #Keisho Isumi #Ranma Fujisaki #Lui Usami #Yuiji Natsuhara #Hajime Kirigaya #Kaede Ijuin #idols #for self use #*** #shiro yamada #spyaim #evol

[kierrasreads]

2023 Reads!

Thank you to everyone for joining me on my book journey! I'm looking forward to another year of good reads! If you have any recommendations, please let me know.

Without further ado, here are my reads for this year!:

Howl's Moving Castle, Castle in the Air, and The House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones

California Plants: A Guide to Our Iconic Flora by Matt Ritter

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

Look Alive Twenty-Five by Janet Evanovich

It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey

I Am a Cat Barista (Volume 1) by Hiro Maijima

Koe no Katachi/A Silent Voice (Volumes 2-6) by Yoshitoki Oima

Karakuri Odette (Volumes 1-5) by Julietta Suzuki

Komi-san wa Komyushou Desu/Komi Can't Communicate (Volumes 23-26) by Tomohito Oda

Cannery Row by John Steinbeck

Horimiya (Volume 1) by Hero

Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku (Volume 5) by Fujita

Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits (Volume 1) by Waco Ioka

Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono

Skip & Loafer (Volumes 1-3) by Misaki Takamatsu

Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san (Volumes 2-4) by Honda

Toshokan no Daimajutsushi/Magus of the Library (Volumes 3-5) by Mitsu Izumi

Blasphemy: New and Selected Stories by Sherman Alexie

Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami

Saint Young Men Omnibus (Volume 1) by Hikaru Nakamura

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

Insomniacs After School (Volume 1) by Makoto Ojiro

Kubo Won't Let Me Be Invisible (Volume 1) by Nene Yukimori

The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert

Twisted Love (Twisted #1) by Ana Huang

Wind/Pinball: Hear the Wind Sing and Pinball by Haruki Murakami

Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future by Elizabeth Kolbert

Killing Floor (Jack Reacher #1) by Lee Child

Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas by Megan Shepherd

Muffin but the Truth (Bakeshop Mystery #16) & Catch Me If You Candy (Bakeshop Mystery #17) by Ellie Alexander

A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of Four, A Scandal in Bohemia, The Red-Headed League, A Case of Identity, The Boscombe Mystery, The Five Orange Pips, The Man with the Twisted Lip, The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle, The Adventure of the Speckled Band, The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb, The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor, The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet, The Adventure of the Copper Beeches, Silver Blaze, The Yellow Face, The Stock-Broker's Clerk, The Gloria Scott, The Musgrave Ritual, The Reigate Puzzle, The Crooked Man, The Resident Patient, The Greek Interpreter, The Naval Treaty, and The Final Adventure by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks (audiobook)

Gokushufudō/The Way of the House Husband (Volumes 1-3) by Kousuke Oono

Grand total: 90

#kierra's reads #bookblr #admin kierra #admin k #manga #fiction #nonfiction #2023 reads

[ciaossu-imagines]

Hello there! For the mini event may you please do gintama with the au avatar the last airbender, thank you!

Hello there, my lovely anon! I definitely can do that - I really couldn't come up with solid ideas, so I admit to taking the lazy way out, so have a pretty comprehensive list on what type of Benders everyone would be in this AU! And guys, there are so many characters in Gintama so I swear it wasn't as easy and lazy as it looks! Thanks for sending in a request and I hope you'll enjoy!

Okay, so we're going into this AU with there being the four major bending types - Earth, Air, Fire and Water. Each bending type is as it is portrayed in Avatar: The Last Airbender, with people possessing different degrees of bending and different skills being present within each bending type.

So, when considering which type of Bender each character would be, I kind of broke it down into personality types and traits and qualities to look for, based on what I figure the 'stereotypical' Bender is for each of the four.

Earth Benders are a little rough around the edges, slow to anger, slow to decide on things, but stubborn once their mind is made up. They can be sensitive and they are often very patient.

Air Benders are gentle souls, respectful and adaptable, changeable. They're fast, both in their movements and in their thoughts.

Water Benders are typically calm and easy-going, flexible enough to adapt to their companions or situations. They're often quite easy to talk to and rather content with their lives.

Fire Benders are often prideful and confident individuals who are loyal, determined and ambitious. They can be very playful and fun but they often also have very short fuses on their tempers, which can be very volatile and explosive.

Keeping that in mind, this is what I figure the characters would be for Benders.

Earth Benders

Shimura Shinpachi

Shimura Tae

Shimura Ken

Chin Pirako/Doromizu Pirako

Kanemaru

Otose

Hanako

Saigou Tokumori

Saigou Teruhiko

Doromizu Jirochou

Hiraga Gengai

Hiraga Saburou

Haji

Terada Tatsugorou

Otaki

Jigsaw

Ofusa

Kirara

Urara

Rokkaku Kirie

Hongou Hisashi

Terakado Tsuu

Terakado Ichi

Hachibei Takaya/Takachin

Takatin

Rotten Maizou

Hijikata Toushirou

Sasaki Tetsunosuke

Kumanaku Seizou

Saitou Shimaru

Sasaki Isaburo

Oboro

Katsura Kotarou

Dragon Leader

Fat Dragon

Nakamura Kyoujirou

Shachi

Kameyama Duuke

Onijishi

Hijikata Tamegorou

Tsukuyo

Mutsu

Daraku

Abuto

Shijaku

Blu-Rayko

Prince Dai

Princess Bubbles

Otakai Sayaka

Water Benders

Sataka Gintoki

Kanemaru

Hasegawa Taizou

Hachirou

Tatsumi

Obi Hajime

Ketsuno Crystel

Ketsuno Seimei

Kuzunoha

Uchino

Hashida Kantarou

Hashida Kanschichirou

Hashida Kahei

Daigo

Kitaooji Daigorou

Izumi

Kawakami Bansai

Yamazaki Sagaru

Kamiyama

Harada Unosuke

16th Ikeda Yaemon

Hattori Zenzou

Wakikaoru

Momochi Rappa

Kurokono Tasuke

Takechi Henpeita

Kidomaru

Ebina

Seita

Suzuran

Hinowa

Kamenashi

Neptune Shokaku

Umibouzu

Shiramizu Pinko

Anigasaki Momo

Air Benders

Ikesawa

Tama

Oryou

Azumi Agonoske

Musashi

Kozenigata Heiji

Honjou Kyoushirou

Juurouta

Murata Tetsuko

Murata Tetsuya

Murata Jintetsu

Hedoro

Nishiki Ikumatsu

Hasegawa Hatsu

Hayashi Ryuuzan

Hayashi Fuyou

Sakurajima Chiharu

Okuni

Isao Kondou

Tokugawa Shige Shige

Tokugawa Soyo

Tokugawa Mori Mori

Tokugawa Sada Sada

Sarutobi Ayame

Elizabeth

Sakamoto Tatsuma

Yoshida Shouyou

Chougorou

Urashima

Oiwa

Rei

Enshou

Daishikyou

Mahha Noriko

Fumiko

Megami

Sorachi Hideaki

Fire Benders

Kagura

Kamui

Sakata Kintoki

Catherine

Ane

Kurogama Katsuo

Kujaku Hime Kada

Madame Yagami

Kanbei

Yagyuu Kyuubei

Yagyuu Binbokusai

Yagyuu Koshinori

Toujou Ayumu

Kitaooji Itsuki

Nishino Tsukamu

Minamito Sui

Shirino Douman

Gedoumaru

Antenmaru

Mone

Professor Meguro

No.305

No.502

Death Cancer

Ochi-san

Ben

Haga Kenji

Yocchan

Kimiko

Matsudaira Katakuriko

Matsudaira Kuriko

Hanano Saki

Goemon

Bichie

Sougo Okita

Hitotsubashi Nobu Nobu

Itou Kamotarou

Shinohara Shinnoshin

Imai Nobume

Ikeda Asaemon

18th Ikeda Yaemon

Utsuro

Jiraia

Banzou

Takasugi Shinsuke

Kajima Matako

Okada Nizou

Tendou Soutatsu

Mashiroi Kaguzou

Mashiroi Utsuzou

Inoue

Tasuke

Kuraba Touma

Eromes

Kurikan

Okita Mitsuba

Housen

Otohime

Admiral Abou

Ougai

Soutatsu

Kouka

Suitsu

Prince Hata

Jii

#replies #gintama #headcanons #avatar au

[a-student-out-of-time]

Could someone keep an eye on Kyoji? It's just that I have a bad feeling about that "missing wallet", because, with how we stopped her from carrying that assassination attempt on Ryoko, and Juu and Mizuta's deaths, I believe that Shirogane would get more desperate with stopping you, and try to bodysnatch any of you while everyone is distracted with the mission preparations.

Just, we don't want to lose any of you to her brainwashing and having to waste another one of Hajime's resets.

Speaking of, I found him for you all.

Thanks, Estu.

Nakamura, any luck?

With my wallet? No. I looked all over my apartment and I couldn't find it, and that's pretty much the only place I've had it. I know I had it on me on Valentine's Day.

Then I started thinking maybe I accidentally left it at Hope's Peak...

Oh, great.

It's not that bad! I don't have anything critical on there, just my basic info and some money. Nothing someone could use, I promise.

The important thing is, I'm sure it's there and I'll go look for it later. I was going to check before I ran into Estu.

I'd offer to help, but I need to stay away from the school. Mayumi-chan and Esumi-san can help you, though.

In any event, though, will it be a problem here?

Nope. We've got everything we need and we're ready to go whenever.

All we really need is the info from the future.

#danganronpa #sdr2 #super danganronpa 2 #nwpm #neo world program monitor #estu deguchi #kyoji nakamura #hajime hinata #a student out of time #DR #Dianthus Memory arc

[uknowyato]

Hatori Yoshiyuki no baai volume 1: chapter 4

This is a repost from my old blog. Old chapters will be coming every Thursday until I catch up. Please enjoy.

Disclaimer:‌‌ ‌‌I‌ ‌do‌ ‌not‌ ‌own‌ ‌Sekaiichi‌ ‌Hatsukoi,‌ Hatori Yoshiyuki no baai ‌and the characters within the stories. Please support Shungiku Nakamura by purchasing the official emerald releases. Thank you!

Raw cre‌dits go to the lovely Vera and Froggy!

Masterlist: {01 | 02 | 03 | 04}

Looking down at his watch, Hatori confirmed that he still had plenty of time to spare.

He was going to meet Nakahara at a café near a large terminal station. Instead of arriving in time, he was a little early.

They were not going to have such a detailed meeting today.

Hatori’s goal was to ease her nervousness with a face-to-face discussion. When it came to the issues of the mind, there was only so much one could say.

He was hoping that today’s discussion would make her feel more confident.

He hadn’t been able to contact Yoshino, who had run out yesterday. Hatori had tried to call him several times since this morning, but it took him all afternoon to get through to him.

Should I go to Yoshino’s house after this?

After all, if they were going to discuss such important matters it would be better to be face-to-face with him. Yoshino, who wasn’t good at keeping secrets, could convey how he felt over the phone, but Hatori wasn’t confident Yoshino would be able to fully express his feelings.

Hatori began to realize Nakahara might be feeling the exact same way. Perhaps she felt the need to raise attention to her concerns that could not be conveyed through email or over the phone.

He wanted his writers to feel comfortable with their works. Psychological factors played a large role, especially when it came to creative works. It was better to have as few negative factors as possible.

"Well, I’m looking forward to the rest of the story, so please do your best.”

“Yes, I will do my best!”

The discussion with Nakahara went smoother than he had expected, and Hatori was relieved to see that things weren’t at a standstill.

Once he got used to the situation, Hatori wouldn’t be as confused as he had been. 

They talked about the specific plot revisions, but he thought there was more small talk. They talked about what kind of works she wanted to draw and what kind of manga artist she wanted to be, and so on.

Yoshino used to talk a lot about this, too.

Back then, Hatori would listen to Yoshino talk passionately about manga and his favorite works through the night. Hatori himself wasn’t the type to actively pick up manga, so he only read whatever Yoshino would recommend to him.

Perhaps because of that, Hatori theorized, his creativity became heavily influenced by Yoshino.

“It was a pleasure talking with you, Hatori-san.”

“It was a pleasure talking with you too.”

"Oh, um, can I email you during your day off?”

Nakahara’s timid question reminded him of Takano and Kisa’s concerns.

He was honored to be in charge of the project, but it would be troublesome if he were to start feeling the way they had mentioned.

She was a college student, just shy of 20 years old, just like when Yoshino made his debut. Hatori had wanted to be treated as someone who could be trusted with authority, but not viewed as an object of romantic interest.*

“I’m sorry, but I will be going back to my parent’s house for the New Year, so even if you send me your storyboard, I won’t be able to see it until after the New Year.”

Hatori decided it would be more understanding for her if he told her that his parents lived in Tokyo and that he wouldn’t be spending all of his time there.

“I understand…”

When Hatori told Nakahara he was going on vacation, she looked slightly disappointed. While he understood she wanted to finish her work as soon as possible, Hatori would have liked to forget about work during the New Year.

I’m sure Yoshino’s schedule will never be as flexible as it is now.

He wanted to spend as much time alone with Yoshino as possible during his vacation. Even though they would spend a day cleaning, they would still be spending time together.

“Um, I probably forced you out at such an unreasonable time. I’m sorry, I know it’s your day off and I’m being selfish…” 

“I hope you don’t mind. After all, today is special.”

If one wanted to, there was plenty of work to be done. Hatori led a life that would have him labeled as a workaholic. He didn’t want to take his holidays for granted, since it was normal for him to work on his off days.

“Special-”

Hatori tried to tell her that this kind of response was unusual, but he regretted his choice of words when he saw the look on Nakahara's face.

“Ah, I’ll get the storyboard done before the company opens!”

“I’m looking forward to it. Well, shall we go?” 

“What? Ah, yes.”

Drinking his cool coffee, Hatori picked up the check. Since the meeting was over, there was no point in taking it easy now.

Hatori felt sorry for Nakahara, but he was distracted. All Hatori could think about was Yoshino. If he were to go to his home, they could be having dinner together.

“Thank you for the meal.”

After paying the bill at the cash register, Nakahara politely bowed at him.

“It’s getting late, so I’ll walk you to the ticket gate…Nakahara-san?”

As Hatori tried to walk away, there was no sign of Nakahara following him. Turning around, he found her standing in the same spot, head hung low.

“What’s wrong?”

There were many people in the café, and the air was stuffy from the heating. Perhaps she had gotten sick.

He wished he had noticed it earlier. When he walked up to her in concern, Nakahara looked up vigorously.

“Um, Hatori-san!”

“Yes?”

“I don’t know if these sorts of things bother you, but if you like these, then please eat them…!”

Hatori took it instinctively, but an alarm went off inside him.

Oh shoot! Was the one word that instantly popped into his head.

Nakahara presented Hatori with an adorable paper bag. Peeking inside, he found cookies wrapped in festive red and green Christmas colors.

“I enjoy baking. It’s a little past Christmas, but I baked some gingerbread cookies for you. Do you not like sweets?”

Hatori's eyebrows slightly furrowed at her words, which made Nakahara tremble with nervousness.

Nakahara's cheeks were slightly tinted pink as he gazed upward into her moist eyes. The sight made Kisa's advice come back to Hatori’s mind. The bad premonition had already turned into conviction.

I guess Takano-san and the others' concerns were right on target…  

Hatori sighed inwardly. He had hoped that his fears would end up being groundless, but it seemed that Nakahara was aware of Hatori as a prospective love interest.

At this rate, if Hatori were to continue to speak clearly, he wouldn’t be able to continue to be in charge of her. It would be fine if she was the type of person who could separate work even if they were romantically involved, but it must be difficult for the young Nakahara.

"No, I don't mind sweets.”

“Great! I’m so grateful for all of your help, Hatori-san, and I worked very hard on these! I hope it suits your taste…” 

“Does this mean these are specifically for me?”

Hoping she would deny, Hatori checked to be sure. If it were a commercial pastry, he could accept it on behalf of the editorial office, but if it were personal and handmade, it would be far too personal.

“Of course!”

“I’m sorry, but I'm not allowed to personally accept this gift. If you want to send it to the editorial office, I can accept it.”

“Oh, I see…”

Nakahara’s blatant excitement deflated.

The best approach was to speak nonchalantly. Subtly distracting her would help avoid the growing awkward atmosphere.

If he could tell there was no hope, he would not try and convey his feelings. Hatori pondered what he should say back to her.

It would be hard for Hatori, who had been in the middle of a long unrequited love, to say something so arrogant, but he did not want a momentary hesitation to interfere with the future of a promising young writer.

He didn’t want to be too harsh. But, as it turned out, that was an error of judgment.

“Um…I’ve fallen for you, Hatori-san!"

Footnotes:

(Translator note): This sentence is kind of hard to put it in a way that isn’t awkward in English without losing its original meaning. Here’s a small explanation. Shoutout to Paphnutius and others from the lame sihjr server for helping me out with this!

The sentence: 担当として頼りにはして欲しいけれど、異性とし���見て欲しいわけではない。

It basically translates to: Hatori had wanted to be treated as someone who could be trusted with authority, but not viewed as an object of romantic interest

But 異性 means “opposite sex” or “hetrosexual love” so basically Hatori doesn’t want to be seen as a romantic interest. Doesn’t sound that special or anything, but I just thought about this for a while haha.

#sekaiichi hatsukoi #sekai ichi hatsukoi #sih #sih domestica #torichia #hatori yoshiyuki #yoshino chiaki #hatori yoshiyuki no baai #it's the queue shot #lilly's translations

[lebomboniere06]

🏆 The 113th Japanese Drama Academy Award for Supporting Actor

🎊 Akaso Eiji won the award for his healing charm!

＼ -Award winner Interview-

Q. Please tell us your thoughts on winning the Best Supporting Actor Award for "Shiko and Haneo".

Frankly speaking I'm very happy. This is the first time I have participated in a TV series by Producer Arai and Director Tsukahara. The main actors are Arimura Kasumi and Nakamura Tomoya, who are also excellent. Of course, the story is also very interesting. Again, it's great to be part of something like this. I am also very happy to win the award together with Arimura San and Nakamura san.

Q. The person who voted said: "Oba was an unreliable young man in the beginning. After he confessed to Ishiko (Arimura Kasumi), he became a boyfriend, but he was arrested on suspicion of murder in the second half. Some people think that he is a bad guy, let the audience see all kinds of faces."

Oba is too upright and kind. In episode 1, it was found that his company cheated on him and in episode 9, it was found that the company that lent the name was doing real estate fraud. I was like "Have you been cheated again?", even I was desperate. You can't lend your name to an unfamiliar company... Although Nakamura and the others say that I am a natural character, I myself would not do such a stupid thing.

However, for Oba, the meeting with Ishiko and Haneo is very important, if there is no two of them, he will be mentally damaged due to the harassment of power, and even if he change jobs, he will still be deceived. Although I don't know what will happen after the ending, but from the past experience, there will be anxiety like "he will definitely be...". I want to tell him "don't be fooled".

Q. Wouldn't be better if Oba works at Ushio Law Firm like this?

A. Yes. Maybe that can be reassuring. If there is a sequel, I wonder if Oba has entered a new company, so there will be no chance to appear. Then I was deceived again, so I could only bring the incident to the office to discuss? or something like that (laugh).

Q. When filming started, did you know that this character would become Ishiko's boyfriend?

A. Yes, I heard that. However, there are many people who predict that Ishiko will end up with Haneo. In fact, I myself feel that I will be dumped in Chapter 9. Thanks to Ishiko's broad-mindedness, I can keep the boyfriend status. In episode 5, there is a scene of carrying Ishiko on my back. Although Arimura is very light, but because the steps are a little steep, I was worried about "in case she falls backward and hurts her", so I focused on the front and climbs the steps.

Q. How do you feel about co-starring with Kasumi Arimura for the first time?

A. I have seen Arimura's work before. She is an actress who can capture people's hearts with her lines and charm. I respect her very much, so I was very happy when I decided to work together. Treat each scene with care.

In the third episode, the two watched a movie together for the first time. Oba was a fan of the director, but at the same time, the studio was defending the film stealing. When he was worried about how to face the director, Arimura came over to say hello to me & Think together about the process of acting.

Because I was helped by her advice, when I'm became the lead role, if there were co-stars who were troubled, I wanted to help them like Arimura San. At times like this, the sense of distance from Arimura san is inadvertently just right. The approach of sitting next to me and taking the initiative saying, "What a nice weather," makes me think she's a great person.

Q. How do you feel about co-starring with Nakamura?

A. Nakamura is a trustworthy older brother. Grasping the whole of the work objectively, as soon as I have troubles, he immediately points me in the direction. Because of the unwavering Nakamura, there are many scenes of being relied upon. In episode 5, Oba, who confessed to Ishiko, rubbed his nose to give a hint, and the scene where Nakamura rubbed his nose with each other. The action in that scene was more intense than expected (laughs).

Q. Are there any other scenes that impressed you on the set?

A. In the 9th episode, the oba was detained by the police. When he said "sorry", Haneo said, "It is wrong to lend a name and lie about the murderer, but you are too self-blame." Nakamura suggested: "In this case, If it’s not right, it’s not right, but it’s better to say it clearly.” As Oba, I think this can also clarify what should and shouldn’t reflect on and be saved.

Q. In the 9th episode, Ishiko and Haneo were running around for Oba, and the scene where Oba was released without incident was impressive. Oba hugged Haneo before his girlfriend...

A. It's interesting. At that moment, I could see the emotions that Ishiko and Haneo had accumulated. Because of these two outstanding people, I could feel the mood of working hard again. It was a great scene. As for Oba, Ishiko and Haneo is about the same. The relationship between the three of them feels very good. Ishiko and Haneo are good partners.

Q. In that scene, Oba was detained, so he grew a beard. Not by makeup, but by yourself?

A. Yes (laughs). Accidentally grows very quickly, so only did not shave the day before the shoot. After discussing with Director Tsukahara, I wanted to show a feeling of exhaustion at the moment of the relase, so the shirt I was wearing was also wrinkled.

Q. How is the guidance of Director Tsukahara who won the Director Award?

A. Benefit a lot. Up until now, I have been abstained from no overlapping lines with the co stars & not adding improvisations in inappropriate places, but it is okay to say lines at the same time in this group. Director Tsukahara said, "I hope you can cherish the feeling of acting."

How to convey the character's impulse and how to respond to the opponent's acting skills. While acting while being conscious, I was told, "The scene just now was with this expression. That's what happened." Although it was a feeling, I could understand it... I learned that acting is "alive".

Q. For you, what was your experience with this work?

A. I feel like I have taken a special course. If you ask me, do you understand 100% what "live" acting is? Although it is still unclear, the barrier that I should cross has become clear. I think from now on, I will continue to do it while worrying about it. Then, it would be happy to be able to join the team again after improving a little bit

🔸Mention

Acceptance award interview from Tomoya & Kasumi

There's an anecdote that involves Eiji & bugs🐛😂

Source: Eiji's interview, Tomoya's Interview, Kasumi's interview

#ishiko to haneo #ishihane #arimura kasumi #kasumi arimura #nakamura tomoya #tomoya nakamura #jdrama #seems all of them want a sequel #tomoya wants Ishihane The Hawaii edition 😬 #maybe an sp in Hawaii??

[ryqoshay]

Unstable World: Temporary Respite

Flagship: YohaRiko Vanguard Ships: none that are important Words: ~2.4k Rating: T? Fandom: Love Live Sunshine, Love Live, Love Live Nijigasaki AU: A dimension other than ours Time Frame: ??? Event: step! zero to one! Event Source: Idol Fanfic Heaven channel on Discord Content Warnings: Depictions of War, Fantasy Violence

---------

Author’s Note: First chapter of two that I’m posting today, so please be sure to read both in the correct order to avoid confusion.

Summary: The aftermath of a devastating battle

---------

Riko opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.

She was in her room, in her bed. Yet she shifted uncomfortably.

It was not all that uncommon for her clingy wife to pull her into an awkward position in the middle of the night with her nearly endless desire for the comfort of contact. Usually, Riko would wake up just enough to adjust her position, but when she didn’t, it sometimes resulted with her waking up to a pinched nerve or sore spot or whatever.

Of course, Riko couldn’t really blame her wife, as she herself very much enjoyed cuddling as well. Behind closed doors. In the privacy of their room. Not out and about where they were supposed to be the highest leaders in the Empire. And certainly not places like on the bridge in the middle of battle.

…

Battle. Bridge. Empire… Memories flooded Riko’s mind.

“Yocchan!” she cried, twisting to the side where her wife usually slept.

But Yoshiko wasn’t there.

In all of the time they had been together, Yoshiko had never awakened before Riko, regularly whining about wanting to sleep in later and cuddle more. Occasionally, Yoshiko had awakened in the middle of the night after a nightmare about her time in Paragon captivity, but that was different.

A knock at the door startled Riko out of her panic. Was that Yoshiko? Wait, no, why would her wife knock?

“Sakurauchi-san?” Riko recognized the voice of their chief medical officer. “It seems you are awake, so I am coming in.”

“Yes, come in.”

The door opened and the medical alchemist stepped in. “It is good to see you awake, Ma’am.” She said with a bow.

Riko decided to eschew her own formalities as there were more pressing issues. “Have you seen my wife? Where is Yocchan?”

Nakamura took an uneasy breath. “Emperor Tsushima is… under surveillance.”

“What?”

Nakamura shook her head. “I’m sorry, that was a poor word choice. We are monitoring her condition.”

“Is she alright?”

“We… we’re not sure, to be honest.”

“What do you mean? Let me see her.” Riko started to get out of bed.

“There will be time for that later.” Nakamura placed a hand on Riko’s shoulder. “Right now, I need to make sure you’re alright.”

“I’m fine.” Riko insisted.

“You’ve been asleep for almost two days.”

“What… I… I don’t care, I need to see Yocchan.”

“Sakurauchi-san, please.” Nakamura looked like she was aiming to place her other hand on Riko’s other shoulder, but instead, diverted down to her waist.

For some reason, the movement struck Riko as strange, and she followed Nakamura’s hand with her gaze.

Wait… Where was her arm? Her arm was… gone? Was that why she had been unable to reach out to Yoshiko as she fell? Had that kraken thing tried to attack her? Or had it been aiming at Yoshiko?

“Riko-chan, you’re alright!” a relieved voice came from the doorway.

Riko looked past Nakamura. “Hanamaru-chan? What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to ask your permission to give you this, zura.” The Master Alchemist held up what looked like a metal arm.

“What?”

“First of its kind.” Hanamaru stated proudly. “The URS has been making stuff like this for a little while, but with reverse engineered Paragon tech. Instead, Maru and her team built on our battle mech tech to make a more compact, less weaponized, utilitarian version. Also, it is able to be controlled directly, zura!” She pointed to what looked like wires protruding from within the shoulder section.

Riko looked again to where her arm should have been. “Alright.” She said after a moment of consideration. “Thank you, Hanamaru-chan.”

“Great.” Hanamaru smiled. “Then, let’s…”

“But I need to see Yocchan first.”

“Alright.”

“Kunikida-san.” Nakamura protested.

“I’m going.” Riko stated.

Nakamura sighed. “Fine, but at least take this.” She produced a small vial from her coat and removed the cork.

Riko accepted and downed the rejuvenating liquid. “Thank you.”

“Let’s get you changed. You’re not going out to sea like that.”

“Out to sea?” Riko repeated. “Why is Yocchan out at sea?”

“I’ll explain on the way.” Hanamaru offered. “We’ll take my rotorblade.”

Not more than fifteen minutes later, Riko was accepting Hanamaru’s help climbing into the passenger seat of the artificer’s aircraft.

“So,” Riko said, after turning on her communication device “please explain to me why our empire’s leader is being monitored out at sea.”

“Basically, it’s because of what she did at the end of the battle.” Hanamaru said as they took off. “Or rather, what she did to end the battle, zura.”

“And that is?”

“She got big. Like really big. Bigger than the Datenshi big.”

“What? How?”

“We don’t know, zura.”

“Can the Paragon do that?”

“We’ve never seen such abilities from them before.” Hanamaru shrugged. “I mean that squid thing was gigantic, but preliminary findings from the arm we recovered suggest it was already that size when the Paragon afflicted it.”

“Strange.”

“Zura.”

“But that doesn’t explain why she’s being kept out at sea…”

“Oh, you can see for yourself here, zura.” Hanamaru pulled a small device out of her pocket and handed it to Riko. “Miyashita-san recorded most of it.”

Riko examined the device for a moment before turning it on. A projection like those of the maps on the Datenshi was emitted, except much smaller and in realistic shapes and colors, not inked outlines.

“You figured that out fast, zura. I’m still amazed at what Rina-chan has been able to build without the need for magic or alchemy.”

Riko hummed neutrally as she focused on the projection. It seemed Ai started recording immediately upon arriving in the engagement zone. Riko fussed with the device a bit and was able to skip forward.

The tentacle appeared. Yoshiko saved Setsuna. Closer. The beak attacked once. Twice. There.

Riko winced as she saw Yoshiko and herself caught in the nigh invisible blast. Yoshiko caught Riko and hauled her back up by Prelude’s cockpit frame. She then timed a teleport to dodge another blast from the kraken, leaving no doubt that she or Riko were now its target. Or both.

Next, Phobetor returned and grabbed Prelude’s remaining arm in his jaws before flying back towards a listing Datenshi. Yoshiko turned her wrath on the behemoth. She probably wanted to attack at close range, but she had just ordered a barrage on her target, so it was being actively shelled. Thus, she resigned to adding as many daggers as she could manage to summon at once and adding them to the barrage.

“Yocchan, look out.” Riko couldn’t help murmuring, as though her wife could hear her.

From her vantage point, Yoshiko either could not see or hear the beak preparing its next attack or was too angry to be paying proper attention. And Riko watched helplessly as Yoshiko took the full brunt of the next blast.

Riko held her breath.

Wait… what was that?

Riko moved the device closer. Was that… an eye?

Where Yoshiko had been a moment ago, there was now a giant floating eye. And it was getting bigger. And bigger. And…

The kraken attacked again.

The eye did not dodge, nor even blink. But when the blast passed, shimmering gold began to form around the eye, extending vertically in both directions. Then two more eyes appeared, set in the expanding gold.

The chaos of battle began to subside as all combatants, enemy and ally alike, turned and stared in wonder as the gold curved to form a colossal ring, with eyes all along its rim.

As soon as the ring was complete, it duplicated. Then again. The trio of rings slowly begin to turn around a common center, where an even larger eye appeared. Finally, seven huge, white wings sprung forth from the strange entity. The entity that was… Yoshiko?

The central eye turned its gaze on the kraken beak for a long moment. The beak looked like it was about to prepare another attack when it suddenly burst into flames.

“Wha…?” Riko uttered. Did she miss the attack?

The flames grew in intensity, forming a massive pillar that engulfed one of the carriers and two accompanying destroyers.

The eye’s gaze shifted, and the third carrier ignited. The eye shifted again and…

The recording ended.

“Wait, what?” Riko nearly dropped the device. “Did Yocchan attack Ai-chan?”

“I think a ship or enemy behind her, zura.” Hanamaru proposed. “Miyashita-san said something about accidentally ending the recording as she was scared she had been attacked. But she’s fine.

“Yoshiko-chan destroyed the entire rest of the Paragon fleet without hurting any of our troops, even those engaged in close combat. Mari-chan said it was as though the flames refused to burn her, though I’m not sure if that meant she tried to touch them or something, zura.”

“Is that why Yocchan is way out here?” Riko asked. “Because she’s like… that?”

Hanamaru shook her head. “You’ll see in a moment.”

With that, Hanamaru took her rotorblade down to one of the Empire’s mobile sea bases. The floating platforms were most often used by fleets to resupply, refuel and relax between patrols, and thus were usually bustling with activity. But only the Charon was docked and Riko could see the rest of the fleet dispersed through the area surrounding the base.

“This way, zura.” Hanamaru beckoned Riko follow.

The two women made their way to the open area in the middle of the base, where a sizable tent had been set up.

“Ri… Grand Admiral.” You called as they neared. “You’re alright.”

“More or less.” Riko replied.

You cast a concerned glance toward Hanamaru, though Riko did not see what expression was returned.

“I’m here to see her.” Riko stated.

“Y-yes, of course.” You nodded. “Right this way.” She held open one of the door flaps.

Riko stepped through… And stopped.

“Yocchan?”

The tent was empty, save a bed in the middle. On it was a woman that could have possibly been Yoshiko, except her hair was white. Stark white. Whiter than the gown she was wearing, the sheets on which she lay, or the cat sleeping beside her. Nearly shimmering white.

“Uhm, be careful if you’re going to approach.” You’s voice came from outside the tent. “It… gets a little warm.”

Riko steeled her resolve and strode toward her wife. The warmth You mentioned was noticeable, but tolerable, right up to the last meter, when it increased sharply, causing Riko to pause again. But she clenched her jaw and took the final steps.

“Yocchan.” She called softly as she arrived at the side of the bed.

No response.

Well, the cat looked up at her.

“Phobetor? Is that you?”

“So it would seem.” Came the response.

“You look… different.”

“Indeed. But pay it no mind. You are here to see my master, are you not?”

“Right.” Riko nodded. “Yocchan.” She called again, this time leaning over so she could place a hand on her wife’s cheek.

Still no response.

A scene from story Riko loved flashed through her mind. No, that was a silly, overused romance trope. There was no way it would actually work… right? Besides, You and Hanamaru were watching. So was Phobetor, but she had long since become used to that.

…

…

Geez…

Riko leaned down even more and gently pressed her lips against Yoshiko’s.

As she was about to stand back up, arms suddenly wrapped around her, pulling her back down.

“Riri?” A meek voice asked.

“Yes, Yocchan, I’m here.”

Yoshiko’s words were muffled against Riko’s shoulder as she tightened her embrace. A moment later, Riko felt moisture seeping into her shirt.

“I was so scared.” Riko could barely understand Yoshiko. “I thought I had lost everyone. I thought I had lost… you… I thought…”

“No, you saved everyone.” Riko replied gently.

“… your arm…”

“I’m fine.” I think… “Hanamaru-chan invented a replacement for me.”

Riko wasn’t sure how long the two of them stayed like that, but eventually, Yoshiko let her arms relax. However, she whined when Riko decided to stand back up, staring at her with pleading golden eyes.

Wait, golden eyes?

“Yoshiko-chan, you’re finally awake!” Hanamaru’s voice interrupted Riko’s confusion.

Yoshiko quickly wiped her eyes on her sleeve, then sneered at it. “Why’d you guys dress me in white?”

“I thought it would suit your new look.” You offered, stepping up beside Hanamaru.

“New look?”

Hanamaru produced a mirror from her coat that by all rights should not have fit in it, except that those gathered knew she had lined its pockets with pocket dimensions.

“Wha…?” Yoshiko grabbed the mirror and stared into it. She continued to gape silently for a few more seconds, before pulling some of her hair to inspect closer as if to confirm the mirror wasn’t lying. Finally, she looked up at Riko.

Riko smiled. “You’re still my Yocchan, no matter how your appearance may have changed.”

That seemed to relieve Yoshiko significantly.

“Admiral Watanabe!” a voice called from the entry.

“Yes, Lieutenant?” You turned to address her subordinate.

“Admiral Matsuura just surfaced. The scavenger fleet she was guarding found something that she wants you to see.” He turned. “Ah, Kunikida-san, you’re here. You will definitely want to see this as well.”

“I’m coming too.” Yoshiko stated, swinging her bare legs off the side of the bed and hopping off, not seeming to be bothered by her bare feet on the deck.

Riko found herself wondering if the heat being given off by Yoshiko was the reason she didn’t mind being underdressed for the weather outside the tent.

“Riko-chan, Yoshiko-chan!” Kanan greeted from across the deck. “Good to see you both back on your feet. Hanamaru-chan, here.” She held out a strange contraption.

Hanamaru retrieved a lens from her coat, one Riko knew had dozens more settings than the one installed in Prelude, but were tuned for careful analysis rather than battlefield assistance.

“Zura…” Hanamaru murmured.

“What is it?” Yoshiko pressed.

“My initial readings identify this as the thing the Paragon used to open the rifts to our world.”

“Oh? Didn’t Rina get her hands on something similar and use it to make their RDD packs?”

Hanamaru shook her head. “This is different. This contains the dimensional coordinates of the location from which they attacked. And the ability to open a rift back.”

Yoshiko breathed sharply. “You’re saying this could allow us to take the fight to the Paragon?”

“I think so.”

The emperor’s eyes hardened. “Then that is exactly what we’re going to do.”

---------

Author’s Note Continued: I ended up going a bit over the hard cap for the event’s allowed word count, at least for my chosen tier. As such, I reviewed this chapter and the next to see what I could cut out to reduce count. Wow, I really have a habit of using two or three words when one will do. Que zura, zura, I guess that’s just my style.

#YohaRiko #Sakurauchi Riko #Tsushima Yohane #Unstable World #step! zero to one! #Love Live Sunshine #fanfic #YoshiRiko #YohaRiri #Tsushima Yoshiko

[mikumanogi-blog]

2023-03-14 “Let’s ride this big wave!” Tereblog 24 [ENG]

Good Morning 🌊‎🤍

I’m Nogizaka46’s 5th generation member Ikeda Teresa! Please remember how to spell it (●︎´▽︎`●︎)

 Everyone, did you watch yesterday’s Nogizaka 46 minute TV? I watched it all the way through!!!!! 😆

I’m so glad that I got to see the MV for ‘Saza nami ha modorenai’!

The outfit for the MV is really cute! I really like it 🥰🫶🏻

Together with Hayashi-san😎

“Saza nami wa modoranai’ is a Ito Riria-san and Hayashi Runa-san Double center song! The formation has already been announced hasn’t it, this time I was placed in the middle of the second row along side Aruno. Right in front of me is Hayashi-san, and beside me is Aruno and Aya. I’m so glad that I was given such a wonderful position ✧٩(ˊωˋ*)و✧

 It’s currently available on Nogizaka’s Official YouTube channel!

https://youtu.be/liK2ux3hemc

Please check it out 🌊‎🤍

Iroha and a playful me, yay

We all took pictures of each other.

When I asked the others if I could upload the pictures on my blog Miku said ‘Aya is in the picture so ask her permission first’ is what she said!!!

The 5th generation members are working well again today ( -  - `)

 Announcements - ̗̀📣

“kotoge Eiji no nante Bi da!”

On TOKYO MX, today March 14th at midnight📺

The theme for this episode is ‘African Art’

The guests on todays episode are Nakamura Yuko-san and SHOGEN-san ✨

Let’s enjoy the journey through the history of African art and it’s charm together 〜((φ))＞ω＜((φ))

“Nogizaka46 32nd SG Under Live’

It’s been announced that the will be Under Lives for the 32nd single. This time the 5th generations will be joining the concert. One year ago, I was able to witness the wild enthusiasm during the Under Live that was held during the 29th single. I still remember it even now, and those emotions are still hitting us now, we’re going to do our best (ง •̀_•́)ง❤️‍🔥

Schedule ⤵

“Tokyo”

TOKYO DOME CITY HALL

Wednesday April 5th: Doors open at 17:00 / Live starts at 18:30

Thursday April 6th: Doors open at 17:00 / Live stars at 18:30  

 “Osaka”

Grand Cube Osaka

Saturday April 8th: Doors open at 16:30 / Live stars at 17:30  

Sunday April 9th : Doors open at 16:30 / Live stars at 17:30

 “Aichi””

Nagoya Congress Center Century Hall

Tuesday April 11th: Doors open at 17:00 / Live stars at 18:30  

Wednesday April 12th: Doors open at 17:00 / Live stars at 18:30  

 “Tokyo”

Tokyo Garden Theater”

Wednesday April 26th: Doors open at 17:00 / Live stars at 18:30  

Thursday April 27th : Doors open at 17:00 / Live stars at 18:30  

 Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and then Tokyo again, we’re going to be holding a lot of concerts. Please come see us ⸜(◜࿁◝)⸝︎︎

 I hope to work hard in my activities to make everyone remember this single!

In order to bloom where I’ve been placed now, and to aim for even bigger hights I’m going to put my heart and soul into doing my very best! IF you like please come see us m(_ _)m

 Thank you for reading until the very end 🌊‎🤍

See you soon

#Tereblog #24 (Recently I’ve been waking up at dawn… after saying this I was asked ‘Are you an old woman?’)

https://www.nogizaka46.com/s/n46/diary/detail/101275?ima=2612&cd=MEMBER