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

Chapter 98 The Little Things About Enrolling (Part 2)

"Why did I join Snowman? It was all arranged by Mr. Takizawa, of course."

"Mr. Takizawa thought my dance skills and image were decent enough to add some strength to Snowman, so he transferred me in."

"I see... Are you having any trouble adjusting to being in a group with a bunch of seniors who are mostly about ten years older than you?"

"There will definitely be some initial discomfort, but things will gradually get better with time and adjustment."

Along the way, Jun Sakurada and Raulu chatted idly.

Both parties have a basic understanding of each other, but not much, and are happy to use casual conversation to explore some information about the other.

"Has Mr. Takizawa talked to Jun about the team? If so, which team is Jun planning to join?" Raulu asked curiously.

Logically speaking, a junior like Jun Sakurada should immediately find a good group to join as soon as he joins the company.

"Well... because my situation is rather special, and I don't really rely on team resources, he told me to just stay put for now, and we'll talk about it when something more suitable comes along."

Jun Sakurada casually shifted the blame for not being accepted into the group to Hideaki Takizawa. Considering that they were at school, Jun Sakurada didn't really want to establish a troublesome image so early on.

So let's just pin the blame on Hideaki Takizawa for some of the more outrageous things.

"I see..." Raulu nodded slightly, though he was a little surprised.

He didn't hear a trace of respect for Hideaki Takizawa in Sakurada Jun's tone; the latter's attitude towards Takizawa was quite casual, and... equal.

This is almost a unique case among all the Johnny's Jr. members.

Most trainees treat Hideaki Takizawa with the same respect they would show to a father or older brother.

There are only two possibilities for Sakurada Jun to be able to adopt such a casual attitude: either he is a complete idiot who doesn't understand etiquette at all, but such an idiot would never be promoted.

Or... he genuinely possesses a certain "confidence" that allows him to interact with Hideaki Takizawa on an equal footing.

What a terrifying person.

As Raulu thought this through, he became even more determined.

No matter what, I can't afford to fall out with this ruthless person who's two months younger than me. If we can be friends, then we should be friends; if not, then we should at least be colleagues or classmates with a decent relationship.

When Daisuke Sakuma encouraged him to test Jun Sakurada, he had his doubts. Jun Sakurada's resume before joining the company was so impressive that it was practically unparalleled in Johnny's.

Is such a ruthless person someone a mere trainee like him capable of provoking?

He secretly did the math: the sales revenue of Jun Sakurada's game alone was already several hundred million yen, and was even approaching one billion yen. Moreover, it had accumulated a terrifying number of overseas users and a great reputation for him.

Looking at myself, if I can earn 1 billion yen within three years of my debut, I'd consider myself very lucky.

But after meeting him in person today, my suspicions immediately became a reality: Jun Sakurada is definitely a ruthless person, the kind you can't easily mess with.

This enemy must not be made an enemy.

Fortunately, Jun Sakurada is, after all, a direct descendant of Hideaki Takizawa, and is currently on the same side as Raul and Snowman.

So as long as you get on good terms with Jun Sakurada before your seniors cause trouble, there shouldn't be anything to worry about.

As a result, their attitude during casual conversations became increasingly enthusiastic.

During casual conversation, he would bring up topics related to tokusatsu (special effects films) and games, clearly trying to curry favor with Jun Sakurada.

Especially regarding the game part, Jun Sakurada could tell that he had actually bought Yokai Survivor and played it seriously.

It seems she did a lot of research before taking the initiative to contact me.

"Hey, this kid's not stupid." Sakurada Jun chuckled to himself as he watched Raulu's enthusiastic performance.

Sure enough, anyone who can get close to debuting at Johnny's is a shrewd person. Even someone like Raul, who likes to be straightforward, is actually quite calculating behind the scenes.

However, considering that this kid's past life was indeed clean, and the only scandal was the controversy he faced along with the entire Snowman team, he can still be considered a person you can make friends with.

Chatting along the way, the two finally arrived at the school gate, which was also the only intersection of the six routes besides the starting point.

At various intersections, many students emerged one after another. Some of them had fancy hairstyles or dyed hair in various colors, and some had traces of makeup on their faces.

They must be contracted artists who, like Jun Sakurada, took entertainment courses.

"It does look somewhat similar to the private Shujin Academy," Jun Sakurada thought to himself.

"Get ready, Sakurada-kun," Raulu whispered from the side.

"Ready?"

"We'll probably be in the spotlight soon," Raoul said, shrugging.

"I heard from my seniors that, apart from some child stars who became famous at a young age, the Johnny's Jr.s are probably the most watched and sought-after student group in school."

"And you and I are among the more outstanding members of JR, so there will likely be both those who admire us and those who are hostile to us."

Jun Sakurada raised an eyebrow: "Doesn't the school handle this kind of thing?"

Raulu shook his head helplessly: "We can't control it even if we want to. In a sense, being able to manage one's popularity and reputation at school is one of the compulsory courses for artists."

"Just like twenty years ago, there was another senior with the same name as you who made a name for himself as the 'King' here and was the undisputed student leader of that year."

"You mean, Matsumoto Jun-senpai?"

Sakurada Jun quickly realized who he was talking about: Matsumoto Jun, one of Arashi's ace players and a graduate of Horikoshi High School.

"Yes, I wonder if you, Run-kun, can replicate the popularity Matsumoto-senpai had at school back then." Raulu nodded.

"Then you might be disappointed," Jun Sakurada said with a smile.

"I'm not the kind of kind-hearted person who also has leadership skills."

Without further hesitation, he strode into the academy, and Raulu quickly followed.

The moment they stepped into the school, dozens or even hundreds of gazes, some direct and some subtle, focused on the two of them.

One was nearly 1.9 meters tall, and the other was 1.8 meters tall with shoes on. Coupled with their outstanding appearance, even people who didn't recognize them would subconsciously take a second look.

Those who recognized them were probably already whispering among themselves.

Raulu subtly observed his surroundings, trying to gauge Sakurada Jun's reaction to being the center of attention.

According to his investigation, although Jun Sakurada is a celebrity, almost all of his activities take place online, and he has almost no record of participating in large-scale offline events.

With so many eyes on him, would he feel nervous, helpless, proud, or complacent?

How could it be contempt?

Raulu was somewhat shocked to find that Sakurada Jun's gaze at that moment carried a hint of disdain, as if to say, "Is that all?"

"It's much better than when I was in junior high school. It seems that Horikoshi's classmates are quite friendly." He chuckled and, without lingering, strode towards the classroom.

Raulu, standing behind him, couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his mouth.

No, what kind of junior high school did you attend? And you call this friendly?

Meanwhile, Sakurada Jun was already thinking that if Horikoshi's classmates could control themselves and not be as hostile or infatuated as the guys in his middle school class, then he wouldn't be in such a hurry to establish his authority.

After all, harmony brings wealth.

This thought persisted until the moment Sakurada Jun stepped into the classroom, when it was immediately replaced by astonishment.

"...Where are they?"

……

"So, Takizawa-kun, aren't you going to add Sakurada-kun to the JR group yet?"

"Jun's development path is very unique. Currently, there are no JRs or groups in the agency that can match his style well. So my opinion is to put it on hold for now and let him develop independently for a while."

During Johnny's routine high-level meeting, Hideaki Takizawa answered Keiko Fujishima's questions while harboring his own suspicions.

Why is this old woman so idle, always worrying about Sakurada Jun's whereabouts?

After the successful conclusion of Ultraman Tiga's live stream, it was arguably the most triumphant period for Hideaki Takizawa and the neutral faction.

The popularity and revenue generated by the live stream have created a legend, with major Chinese brands receiving so many offers to have Hiroshi Nagano as their spokesperson that the table is practically overflowing.

Hideaki Takizawa calculated that, if all goes well, Hiroto Nagano's annual income this year might be more than his entire idol career over the past ten years.

It's worth noting that because he had previously focused on dance and dance drama, Hiroshi Nagano didn't have many GG endorsement contracts, and his income was relatively low among the V6 members.

But now, the number of offers he's received in less than a month is equivalent to the number of endorsements Nagano Hiroshi received in several months or even several years in the past.

Even so, brands from China continued to flock to them, even if they couldn't get Hiroshi Nagano to specifically photograph GG, they still tried their best to buy commercial licenses for Daigo's portrait.

All I can say is that their money-making efficiency and popularity are terrifying.

With higher profits come more say, and the neutral faction has been quite influential this month. Staff members have become noticeably more assertive during work meetings.

Hideaki Takizawa himself is a prime example; he now dares to publicly reject some of Keiko Fujishima's unreasonable proposals and questions in meetings.

It's worth noting that not long ago, even when Fujishima Keiko openly schemed against him, Takizawa Hideaki would usually have no choice but to swallow his anger and suffer in silence.

There's no way around it; we're too weak and have no power.

But now that he has achieved tangible results, especially in pioneering new fields, Hideaki Takizawa is able to hold his ground and occasionally retaliate when facing Keiko Fujishima and Mary Kitagawa.

In stark contrast to the boisterous celebrations of the neutral faction, the members of the Empress's faction were not exactly listless, but they were noticeably more subdued.

Although the groups under its management continue to make money and cultivate their fan base, the management, from Fujishima Keiko down to some junior executives, have toned down their unbridled behavior to some extent.

In particular, those underhanded tactics that caused trouble for neutral parties have basically disappeared recently.

Hideaki Takizawa initially thought that the Empress's faction would quiet down and lie low for a while, but not long after, Keiko Fujishima started to cause trouble again.

It seems that the old woman still harbors some resentment about the last defeat.

The focus of her attention is a bit strange. Why is she so fixated on which group Sakurada Jun is going to join?

Given Hideaki Takizawa's current control over the Johnny's Jr. community and his personal prestige, Jun Sakurada would have loyal teammates who are Takizawa's staunch supporters no matter which Jr. group he joins.

If that's the case, then it's somewhat pointless for Fujishima Keiko to be so concerned about this.

For a moment, Hideaki Takizawa was a little confused.

"Vice President Takizawa, we can't let the group arrangements be delayed," Fujishima Keiko said, still bringing it up with a serious expression.

"Sakurada-kun is an outstanding rising star, and he has a rather independent personality. If we don't let him become part of a group soon, it might be difficult for him to integrate with his teammates later on..."

"What you said makes a lot of sense, but currently, there isn't anyone in our Jr. group who is particularly suitable for Jun—"

"Then let's try them all!" Fujishima Keiko interrupted Takizawa Hideaki, her tone remaining ambiguous and her intentions unclear.

"Since there isn't one that's particularly suitable, let's have Sakurada-kun try out each group for a while. What if he turns out to have great chemistry with a particular group?"

Hopefully, it's not the kind of high compatibility that comes from beating up everyone else in the group.

Hideaki Takizawa mentally muttered a complaint about a certain troublemaker, then tried to deflect the question: "That's true, but wouldn't this affect the normal activities of the corresponding group?"

"It's just a matter of having more people try to work out together, it's not like it's some long-term project or recruitment drive! I think it's worth a try!" Fujishima Keiko said firmly.

"If I remember correctly, Sakurada-kun and Raul from Snowman should be enrolling at Horikoshi High School today, right?"

"Then let Raul take Sakurada to Snowman first to discuss things and see how it goes!"

Seeing how seriously Fujishima Keiko was taking this small matter, Takizawa Hideaki, who was full of questions, couldn't just turn on her, so he could only nod and say, "I'll let him give it a try."

Although Jun Sakurada was quite disdainful of Snowman in his words, he was not the kind of person who liked to take the initiative to attack or provoke.

As long as the members of Snowman are a little more enthusiastic and friendly when they are with Jun Sakurada, then there shouldn't be any trouble in exchanging ideas...

……Bar?