Tokyo: My obsession with China led me to become the king of Japanese entertainment.

"You've been blacklisted by Johnny's too? What did you do to offend those guys?" Taka glared at him.

"It's nothing much, I guess I passed the interview but didn't sign the contract," Jun Sakurada said casually.

"You passed the interview, why didn't you sign the contract?" Minami Hamabe asked curiously.

Jun Sakurada shrugged: "Because it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing to do, I didn't really intend to get into the entertainment industry."

For him, betraying Johnny's Entertainment to gain attention was not a secret that needed to be kept.

After all, the confidence he had in doing this was never based on the idea that "it was done secretly so Johnny's wouldn't find out," but rather on the belief that "even if they did find out, Johnny's wouldn't be able to do anything about it."

However, revealing this would seem a bit too calculating and doesn't quite fit his current public image, so he still needs to conceal it a little.

"You're a tough one too," Maluo couldn't help but remark.

"Don't you feel it's a pity to give up such a good opportunity so easily?" Minami Hamabe interjected.

A Johnny's Jr. spot is still very valuable, and Jun Sakurada's talent is visibly outstanding. If he can really make it to the point of debuting at Johnny's, he'll start as a top star and has the potential to become a top idol.

However, Jun Sakurada refused.

"What a pity? What's there to pity? My freedom is worth far more than that little bit of salary." Jun Sakurada said dismissively.

"I'm currently doing live streaming and gaming, and my income is decent. Plus, there are far fewer restrictions. Isn't that much better than being an idol with strict limitations on personal freedom?"

"And what if I go there and get targeted by Kitagawa or some psychopathic executive—"

He was only halfway through his sentence when he saw the faces of the people in front of him all change in unison: "Alright, alright! We understand! Stop talking!"

Kitagawa's private affairs are an open secret in the Japanese entertainment industry; everyone basically knows about them, but no one dares to point them out.

After all, if the industry's top giant goes crazy, it can really throw the entire industry into chaos.

"You've got guts, kid." Taka wiped the cold sweat from his brow, his gaze softening and becoming much more affectionate towards Sakurada Jun, clearly showing some empathy.

This person has firsthand experience of Johnny's petty and restrictive bans.

Because he himself is the only major traitor in the 21st century who managed to rise to prominence despite being completely blacklisted by Johnny's Entertainment.

Taka's biological father is Shinichi Mori, a legendary figure in the Japanese enka world who holds the record of appearing on the Kohaku Uta Gassen for fifty consecutive years. Her mother is Masako Mori, who debuted in the same group as Momoe Yamaguchi and holds the record of appearing on the Kohaku Uta Gassen fifteen times.

He is undoubtedly one of the most powerful second-generation stars with a strong Japanese background. When he was born, even Akina Nakamura had to wait in line to hold him.

Because of his wealthy family background, Monkey was thrown into Johnny's Entertainment as a trainee at the age of thirteen by his father. At fifteen, he formed the boy group NEWS with superstars such as Yamashita Tomohisa and Nishikido Ryo, preparing for his debut.

As a result, the fifteen-year-old boy was very rebellious and felt that being a good idol was meaningless and did not fit his pursuit of music.

Coincidentally, his parents were going through a divorce around that time, so he simply broke up with Johnny's Entertainment, left the band and the company, and went off to play rock music.

The price he paid was that he and ONE OK ROCK, which he joined, would have no opportunity for exposure in traditional media for the next ten years.

No TV dramas asked them to sing theme songs, no music shows invited them to participate, and newspapers and news outlets avoided mentioning any of their major activities...

This forced the monkey to try to open up overseas markets.

If any of these little devils were even slightly lacking in ability, circumstances, or temperament, they might have been suffocated in their infancy by Johnny's.

Now, seeing Jun Sakurada reject Johnny's Entertainment in pursuit of his own path, I feel a sense of familiarity, as if I'm seeing a younger version of myself.

"Actually, you don't need to worry too much. After all, you haven't signed a contract yet, so it's not necessarily the case that Johnny's executives will be eyeing you—"

He was interrupted halfway through his words of comfort by Minami Hamabe, who stuck out her tongue and pointed at Jun Sakurada's cheek with a grin:

"With a face like Xiaorun's that could bring ruin to a country, it would be strange if she wasn't coveted, right? I can just imagine Johnny's blushing faces when they saw that the talent they had their hands on actually rejected her."

Ignoring the change in address from Hamabe, Taka patted Sakurada Jun on the shoulder again, his gaze becoming slightly more serious:

"After all this commotion today, we can consider ourselves friends now."

"If you ever encounter any problems in the entertainment industry, please remember to contact me in the future."

"We're here too," Sato Takeru and Kamiki Ryunosuke added with smiles.

They admired Jun Sakurada's free-spirited personality, and coupled with the fact that he had saved their lives, they were willing to take this young man as their friend.

As for the difference in status... instinctively, the group felt that no matter what this kid did in the future, his achievements would not be low.

Jun Sakurada's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile.

This network of connections has been initially established. Although I am not in the entertainment industry, in the future, especially during the pandemic lockdowns, they may all be powerful allies who can help my game expand its territory in Japan.

"Let's not talk about that! Anyway, the bear's gone, let's get back to playing! Run-kun, want to join us?" Sato Takeru invited.

The young and inexperienced Ryotaro Nogami in Den-O is actually a notorious playboy with a constant stream of scandals and gossip. The better his acting skills, the more chaotic his private life.

Now that the bear was gone and they had gotten to know the man, they started eyeing the pot in his camp again.

"Okay, then I'll go move my things." Jun Sakurada nodded noncommittally.

Playing together is fine too. In her previous life, Minami Hamabe didn't cause any scandals with this womanizing radish, and these people weren't reserved when they saw her. Today should be a normal picnic and outing.

Then we can be together.

"By the way, Jun, how old are you this year? Have you thought about going to high school?" Minami Hamabe's eyes sparkled.

Although Jun Sakurada has a clear height advantage, standing out among the six dwarfs, his youthful appearance and slender build still reveal his young age.

"I just graduated and have already passed the entrance exam for the local high school."

"I see... I was planning to recommend our school to you. Schools in Tokyo should have much better prospects, right?" Hamabe said with some regret.

Just as Sakurada Jun was about to explain that he had applied to the best public high school in Akita Prefecture and had no intention of going to Tokyo for school, Taka's phone suddenly rang.

He casually clicked on it and glanced at it, then suddenly paused, startled: "Takizawa-nii?"

Those three words successfully attracted the attention of everyone, including Jun Sakurada, and their gazes suddenly turned somewhat surprised.

The only person with the surname Takizawa who could make this incredibly arrogant monkey call him "brother" is probably Hideaki Takizawa, the king of kids who helped him a lot during his Johnny's era.

We were just talking about Johnny's Entertainment, and now the vice president of Johnny's Entertainment has already come looking for us?

Even Jun Sakurada's pupils contracted slightly.

"It should be about Jun... Matsumoto Jun, something work-related," Monkey Head explained.

Although he was a traitor, he had done exceptionally well in recent years, even achieving success overseas.

So even if Johnny's Entertainment was very unhappy, they had to hold their noses and rely on the personal relationship between Arashi members and Matsumoto Jun, a superstar who shares the same name as Sakurada Jun, to ask Taka to return as Arashi's advisor for their American adventure.

"Moshi moshi! Takizawa-ge, what's up?" He answered the phone while taking steps to find a secluded place to talk.

However, Takizawa Hideaki's next words left him stunned.

"Um... Moriuchi..." Takizawa Hideaki's tone was surprisingly hesitant.

"What do you think you should do to get someone with an even worse temper than you to change their mind?"