Tokyo: Rabbit Police and Her Evil Partner

Chapter 555 Action!

"Isn't this wrong? Didn't you say that variety shows are also art? Didn't you say that art cannot be defiled? Where is your integrity as an independent creator?"

The director, holding a megaphone, stood behind the camera, watching Fushimi Shika, spitting as he relentlessly criticized the script written by him and the editor.

He thought to himself, "These days, making money is tough and getting by is incredibly difficult. There are always outsiders pointing fingers and giving unsolicited advice. Everyone wants to be on TV and in the spotlight, so who will play the supporting role? Who will complement the big stars?"
Even if we take a step back and say that playing a villain is a skill, with Gen Tamako's appearance, she's so soft when she's cursing, how could she possibly portray the ruthlessness of a villain?
"There's nothing we can do about it. We can't risk filming being taken off the air, can we?" The director tried to reason with Fushimi Shika: "Besides, Inspector Gen isn't suited to playing villains..."

"So you mean I'm suitable?" Fushimi Shika pointed to his nose, feeling that he should use some traditional Japanese entertainment to make the production team obey.

How could a detective in the Metropolitan Police Department not know how to click his tongue?

Before the director could reply, Fushimi Shika grabbed the director's collar and snapped a few times, saying things like "Temayaru," "Are you looking down on me?" and "Where is your villainous demeanor?"... In short, his attitude was very tough.

Of course, Fushimi Shika wasn't just good at scolding; he'd also offer a little something sweet afterward. He put his arm around the director's shoulder and continued, "Don't worry, I'll put in a good word for you with the Superintendent General. We didn't agree to act in this just for filming; we're doing it to investigate a case. If we catch the culprit later, your TV station will benefit too."

The director had a goatee, and when he glanced at people sideways, his expression seemed somewhat speechless.

Just a few days ago, Shika Fushimi was trying every means to squeeze into the program crew, but now he says he only agreed to appear in order to investigate a case...

Who believes?

Fushimi Shika was telling the truth. He was indeed working hard to set a trap for 50 million yen. To ensure the plan would go perfectly, he insisted on having Minamoto Tamako play the villain... It had nothing to do with vanity, at least that's what he thought.

He used a combination of carrot and stick tactics, employing both threats and inducements, until the director finally reluctantly agreed.
"Okay, let's change the script first and see how it goes. If it doesn't work..."

Fushimi Shika interrupted, "The effect will definitely be great, don't worry, trust my acting skills... no, I'm just being myself, in real life I'm that kind of upright detective."

After struggling for a while, the director finally managed to utter an "Oh".

He turned and called over the assistant director, whispered a few instructions, and then loudly called out to the crew, telling everyone to get into position and prepare to start filming.

The first scene is indoors, where two special guests are sitting on a sofa in the studio, being interviewed by the host, and chatting about some interesting things. Just be casual.

Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako didn't need to memorize their lines; there was a teleprompter behind the camera. The two sat down on the sofa, and the host tidied up the script and tested the microphone.

Yuan Yuzi was extremely nervous, her heart pounding. She was surrounded by cameras, and everyone was staring at her. She was terrified of making a fool of herself and ruining the shoot.

Watching TV dramas and acting in TV dramas are definitely two different things. The pressure of performing on set is really immense...

The director questioned each of the key technical departments one by one. The lighting department confirmed the angles of the main light, fill light, and background light, responding, "Lighting OK"; the sound recording department checked the microphone signal and volume, responding, "Recording ready, level normal"; the cinematography department confirmed the lens focal length, composition, and camera stability, responding, "Cinematography ready, focus correct"...

Finally, the director picked up a megaphone and casually shouted, "Actors, get ready to get into character!" Then he waved his hand.

"Action!"

The host immediately smiled and read the opening remarks to the camera: "Welcome to 'Truth Chase Special Episode'! Tonight, we will confront the most authentic darkness of the Metropolitan Police Department—"

The lights flickered and changed, white mist sprayed out around the filming location, and the camera immediately turned to give Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako a close-up of their faces.

With its familiar formula and tone, Japanese variety shows always have that unique blend of childish chuunibyou (adolescent delusions of grandeur) and exaggerated comedic style.

Yuan Yuzi was both nervous and embarrassed. She didn't know what expression to make, so she could only keep a straight face, sit up straight, and use the 'ladylike sitting posture' of a noble lady to protect herself.

Fushimi Shika, however, was not shy at all. He waved at the camera and showed a sunny, boyish smile.

He is a trial lawyer, which means he has to talk nonsense and argue in front of a lot of people. How can a lawyer who is afraid of the stage be a good lawyer?

The host asked them to introduce themselves. Fushimi Shika looked at the teleprompter and spoke first: "Hello everyone, I am Inspector Fushimi Shika of the First Investigation Division of the Metropolitan Police Department."

When you're out in the world, you define your own identity. Since media isn't as developed and there are no search engines, it's not a big problem for him to slightly embellish his job title.

Minamoto Tamako was quite surprised. She secretly glanced at Fushimi Shika. This guy was clearly a serving detective at the Sugamo Police Station, right? When did he become an elite detective in the First Investigation Division's professional team?

That wasn't all. Fushimi Shika crossed his fingers, put his legs up, and adopted the standard old-fashioned sitting posture, just like a business capitalist being interviewed by the media: "In the past ten years, I have personally sent 327 criminals to prison..." As he spoke, he held up three fingers.

Minamoto no Tamako's eyes widened. She turned her head completely, looking as if she wanted to say something but couldn't, staring at Fushimi Shika's profile as he spoke eloquently.

"Among them, 11 were serial killers. They were extremely vicious and never hesitated to kill. During the pursuit, my colleagues and I were seriously injured..."

Fushimi Shika suddenly clenched his fist: "Some people ask me why I'm so obsessed with the most dangerous cases?" He suddenly looked directly at the camera, his tone stern: "Because as a detective, you must be prepared to uncover the truth at all costs!"

Yuan Yuzi's mouth opened wide as she thought to herself, "Isn't this my line? I said it myself when I went back to Hokkaido to investigate a case a while ago, and I remember it perfectly well... How did it suddenly become this guy's motto?"

This is outrageous! Plagiarism monster!
Before Minamoto no Tamako could react, the host interrupted, claiming that Inspector Fushimi had come to the program to expose the chaos within the Metropolitan Police Department.

Without even taking a breath, he turned the topic to Minamoto no Tamako, and the camera followed suit, with the fill light focusing on her face.

Yuan Yuzi was under immense pressure. The flashing lights made it hard for her to keep her eyes open, and the teleprompter's lines kept moving, like an electronic advertising banner in a supermarket being played at double speed.

Everyone was waiting, and without thinking, she subconsciously followed the teleprompter: "Hello everyone, I am Gen Tamako, a serving detective at the Sugamo Police Station. I am 23 years old. I like to drive my luxury car out to play golf every day. My biggest hobby is going to the streets of Shinjuku to spend money. I hire twenty male models to accompany me for drinks every day..."

By the time Genji realized what she was saying, it was already too late.

"..."

The studio was silent for about ten seconds, everyone seemed frozen in place. The host maintained his professional smile, and as long as the director didn't call a timer, filming would continue.

During Gentamako's silence, the teleprompter reached its end. She omitted a large section about bad habits and conduct, and the teleprompter concluded with:
"Improvisation, unintentionally revealing bad habits from daily life."

Gen Tamako steadied herself, repeatedly reassuring herself: 'It's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's all for the sake of solving the case, it's all for catching the culprit…'

She brainwashed herself, deciding to go all out. Gritting her teeth, she forced a "gangster face," pulled a pipe without any tobacco from her pocket, and said to the camera, "See? I'm going to smoke in a non-smoking room right now!" After saying that, Yuan Yuzi took a puff of her pipe and exhaled a faint breath. Feeling a little uneasy, she couldn't help but glance at the director, wondering if they could add smoke effects in post-production for this scene.
Otherwise, her on-screen image would change from an evil detective to a stupid one.

Seeing that Minamoto no Tamako looked uneasy, the director gave her a thumbs up to encourage her to continue acting.

Yuan Yuzi thought the director understood her idea, and the thumbs-up meant 'they'd do smoke effects in post-production,' so she confidently put on her pipe, gradually getting into character, and said, 'Do you know why I can sit here and smoke?'

She grinned smugly at the camera: "Because rules can't bind the strong! Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha—"

"Cut!" The director couldn't stand it anymore.

The crew wrapped up work at the same time, and the host breathed a sigh of relief, gulping down a beverage to rehydrate.

Yuan Yuzi's face turned bright red. After overcoming her embarrassment, she became excited instead. She couldn't help but stand up, move closer to the director who was checking the filming, and whisper, "Director, Director, how was my performance?"

The director glanced at the still frame. It couldn't be said that Minamoto no Tamako on the screen was completely without a sense of ferocity. She was probably as cute and innocent as a third-grade elementary school girl when she was angry. Even her ahoge (cowlick) was twitching, but she didn't seem very aggressive.

"Excellent acting!" The director gave another thumbs up: "Keep this style, keep up the good work, and the final film will definitely be fantastic!"

Gen Tamako happily went to share the news with Fushimi Shika. After she had gone some distance, the director turned to his assistant and whispered a few words of advice.

Next, we filmed the second scene. Since it's a variety show, it needs to be highly entertaining. The production team prepared a carport in advance and took Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako to film the location, which was to 'reveal the unknown inside story of the Metropolitan Police Department'. The whole process was done undercover.

Fushimi Shika wanted to take the crew to the Metropolitan Police Department or a police station for a tour, but the chief and the department head refused. The group couldn't even get to the parking barrier before being stopped by security guards.

The director, holding the microphone, asked Fushimi Shika, "Didn't you say the Metropolitan Police Department agreed to be interviewed on the show?"

Fushimi Shika had promised everything to get into the show. Now that it was time to deliver, the promises had to be discounted. He made an excuse, saying, "There's been a big case recently, and the police are investigating, so the interview with the show is temporarily on hold..."

Before he could finish speaking, the director immediately signaled the cameraman to start filming, and the three of them squeezed into the filming compartment to begin the second scene.

The director asked, "What specific case is it? Would you mind revealing a bit?"

Fushimi Shika doesn't want to lose his job yet: "Sorry, the investigation process is confidential and cannot be disclosed..."

"You're really professional," the director praised first, then asked, "Is it about the recent serial murder case? I heard that Representative Takahashi was hanged from a street lamp by the killer. Is that true?"

Fushimi Shika put on a serious face and adopted the attitude of a professional detective: "I'm sorry, as a responsible detective, I can't reveal too much to you."

The director nodded, then pretended not to hear and continued, "So, what have you been busy with lately? What case are you investigating? I will censor and mute any information that is inconvenient to disclose in post-production. We just want to interview you about your daily work routine."

After saying that, the production assistant held up a sign that read: "Scene 3 - Daily Work".

Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako suddenly realized that they were going to skip the second scene, which was filming at the Metropolitan Police Department, and go directly to the third scene, which was filming everyday life.

They immediately went into performance mode, which meant acting cool and bad.

Two photographers got out of the car and followed, one filming Minamoto no Tamako, and the other filming Fushimi no Shika. Following the script, they split up and chatted fluently in front of the cameras.

"To investigate the case, I have to go out and visit people every day, looking into the deceased's social circle and screening out suspicious suspects..."

"I just stay at home watching TV every day, and occasionally play video games with my seven or eight-year-old sister. All I do is eat, drink, and play..."

"As everyone knows, I have always regarded being a famous detective and police inspector as my lifelong goal, and the pursuit of justice is my life's creed..."

"Everyone knows I'm the detective in the police station who takes the most absenteeism and leave; my life motto is to procrastinate as long as I can..."

"I am Shika Fushimi, a detective who has no interest in money or power. My life is filled with work every day. To be honest, I feel restless if I don't investigate a case for a day."

"I am Gen Tamako, a wealthy second-generation heiress who enjoys soaking her feet in red wine. My daily life consists of being a parasite in the Metropolitan Police Department. To be honest, I feel like I'm living a life worse than death every day I work."

……

The cameraman and the carport crew followed them for a day, capturing a lot of valuable footage.

Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako were very satisfied; they both felt that their acting skills were excellent.

I won't comment on Minamoto no Tamako's self-esteem for now; but Fushimi Shika's performance was quite convincing and deceptive. Just looking at the footage, he really seemed like a simple, honest, and serious detective.

After filming ended, the director gave him a token amount of payment for his performance.

With the money, the two of them took Hirako to an izakaya for a nice meal, their faces beaming with joy. Minamoto Tamako fantasized about catching the culprit, receiving a commendation from the Metropolitan Police Department, while Fushimi Shika fantasized about reaping both money and fame…

The next morning, the production team called to inform them that several shots needed to be re-recorded. Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako went to the studio after get off work and re-recorded their scenes.

Before they left, the director said with a meaningful expression, "The variety show review process is very fast. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be broadcast on time at 11 pm tomorrow night."

Fushimi Shika and Minamoto Tamako were very excited, both wanting to see their screen debut.

The next day, the two returned to their Sugamo apartment, prepared snacks and cola early, and invited Hirako to sit on the sofa in front of the TV, waiting for the program to air. Their new home did not yet have cable TV, they had bought a lot of large kitchen utensils that were not yet moved, and their lease on the Sugamo apartment had not yet expired, so they would occasionally stay there for a few days to save themselves trouble.

After a series of commercials, Fuji Television broadcast a variety show as scheduled, but it wasn't called "Truth Chase Special"...

The subtitles appearing on the screen read: "Amateur Pranks Reveal Their Lives! ~ A Dramatic Reversal Between the Daily Lives and Filming Footage of Two Detectives!"

Fushimi Shika: "..."

He had a bad feeling.

(End of this chapter)