The premise of breaking up in Tokyo

Around noon.

Tanaka Yutaka returned on his bicycle, carrying a backpack full of secondhand game cartridges.

Exhausted and drenched in sweat, his white shirt was almost completely soaked.

As soon as he saw Katsuhiko, he pulled him to the corner and said with a stern face, "Katsuhiko-kun, I have to give you some advice. Although this game card business is indeed profitable, it's a waste of talent to have more than twenty of our brothers running around flea markets and doing second-hand goods recycling. Back in the day, I was the assistant to the head of a company with more than five hundred people..."

As the former assistant to the head of a group of five or six hundred people, he was a person of status and fame.

He had a really bad day. He got into a heated argument with a nerdy guy at the secondhand market over a 200 yen game cartridge, and then got recognized by the people from the Kansai Federation next door. How embarrassing!

Tanaka Yuichi launched into a long, brazen complaint, implying that he wanted to pull off something big.

Katsuhiko asked, "Are you very familiar with the Kansai Federation?"

"We're not exactly close!" Tanaka Yutaka sneered. "Their boss is an old geezer who's practically dead and spends all his time indulging in women..."

They rose to prominence around the same time as Group 21, and they used to frequently fight over territory, with back-and-forth battles going back and forth.

Now their boss is running a successful financial business, enjoying immense prestige, with over a dozen mistresses and illegitimate children, while their own boss has just completed a year in prison and has nine more years of compulsory education left. His only two daughters are also incredibly heartless, disowning their father and never visiting him.

"So you have a grudge?"

"Ha! If I had money, they wouldn't be worthy to be my opponents."

"After the holiday, let's register a video production company together..."

Katsuhiko briefly explained the type of video production company, the kind that everyone knows.

Tanaka Yutaka glanced at Katsuhiko with an expression as if he were looking at an idiot, pointed to the convenience store sign, and said:

"Do you think your convenience store and the newly acquired secondhand goods recycling shop are very profitable? Do you know how much it costs to invest in film production? How are we supposed to compete with those established companies? They've already monopolized the market. I'm only helping out here because I trust you. Don't take me for a fool. Even if you know the young lady, it won't help."

Tanaka Yutaka's doubts are indeed reasonable. The videotape film industry has been around for over a decade and is already mature. Major manufacturers have established a business model dominated by the "rental" system.

The main source of profit is selling the works to tens of thousands of video rental stores across the country, meaning that a single film can be watched by countless individuals in turn...

However, this year is a year of great change.

Bankruptcies and a job market downturn have led many production and distribution companies to declare bankruptcy due to financial problems, resulting in a major reshuffle of the entire industry. However, this current period of economic recession is also a golden age for affordable entertainment, as a large number of unemployed people at the bottom of society are in dire need of inexpensive sensory consumption.

The key turning point came this year: with the emergence of Video Anmaiwang chain stores, videotapes could be purchased directly by individuals, and the censorship by ethics associations was eliminated, resulting in more explicit content and more independent production.

In other words, the old "leasing" business model that had been in place for more than a decade has been transformed into a "distribution" model, resulting in a diversified explosion of retail channels.

If you like a movie, you can just buy it and keep it for yourself...

Katsuhiko, after processing his fragmented memories of the industry, explained them to Tanaka Yutaka, concluding, "You have down-on-your-luck yakuza brothers by your side, and you still have a lot of debt resources at your disposal. I can also provide you with inspiration. It's like the perfect combination of timing, location, and people. There are probably hundreds of thousands of unemployed people now, right? The demand is huge, and the few manufacturers that are still alive are simply not keeping up."

"How can you say I'm down on my luck? It's just a temporary hardship. We'll see in the future..." Tanaka Yutaka's face flushed red as he muttered a few words. Then he looked up and said, "I heard that producing a film requires at least 100 million yen, plus equipment rental and a camera crew. Where do we find those? It all costs money."

"Money is not a problem, I'll figure it out," Katsuhiko said with a wave of his hand. He continued, "These next few days, select a few of the best students and have them cram in some photography skills. Also, thoroughly investigate the clients you have who are indebted. Bring those who really want to come, and don't force those who don't. If that bastard Hiroji Sato finds out, he'll definitely cause trouble, since he's also eyeing the property rights of my convenience store."

In the end, Katsuhiko casually brought up Hiroji Sato, portraying him as a common enemy.

"He dares! He cuts off my livelihood, I'll kill him!" Tanaka Yutaka roared, adding, "Even if he's a good brother to the former team leader."

"He's also a close friend of your young lady's father?"

"I guess so. In order to reduce the group leader's sentence, he made the two young ladies take over the group leader's 600 million yen debt."

"That's a true brother..."

Katsuhiko nodded in agreement, then changed the subject and sent Tanaka Yutaka away.

Katsuhiko originally planned to drive Tanaka Yutaka to Ota Ward to move house and ask him about the Kansai Federation.

However, judging from what he just said, there's no need for that anymore. As long as he has money, his four or five hundred brothers will come back, and he can go and overturn it himself.

As for Hiroji Sato, he probably wouldn't dare to offend a group of desperate, down-on-their-luck yakuza.

Katsuhiko drove Mikoto's silver-gray Mazda alone to the guesthouse where Eiyo and Kotoha were staying.

The rather dilapidated wooden house had been covered with a thin layer of dust after just one day of not being there.

Previously, Kenta, Kotoha, and Eiyo lived in the same house, separated only by a thin sliding paper fan door.

Katsuhiko didn't waste much time. He moved all the factory documents into the car and packed up some of Eiyo and Mikoto's clothes and personal belongings.

He then drove directly back to Mikoto's house, didn't ring the doorbell, and opened the door with his key.

When they got home at three o'clock, Yingdai and Qinye were sitting on the sofa in the living room, staring blankly at the TV.

The TV is playing "Tokyo Love Story"...

When Sheng Yan opened the door, the two of them turned around as if in shock, looking somewhat flustered.

"Did you think I was here to collect a debt?" Katsuhiko tossed their clothes and bundles onto the sofa, then went out to continue moving documents. "Go change your clothes first, we'll be busy later."

The two seemed to have fallen into a depressed mood. They didn't speak, each picked up their clothes, and went into the bedroom.

By the time Shengyan brought in box after box of factory documents, the two of them were already sitting on the living room floor, flipping through the pages of documents with calculators.

Qin Ye didn't change her clothes; she was still wearing the same plain white dress with blue floral print short sleeves, and her hair was still piled up on top of her head.

Yingdai changed out of her light green factory uniform and put on a beige dress. Her long hair was still tied back casually with a black hair tie.

They were both dressed plainly, but Qinye still looked haggard, and Yingdai's eyes were bloodshot, probably because she hadn't slept well.

Sheng Yan went into the kitchen and filled two glasses with warm water, then poured the remaining two-fifths of the [Recovery Potion] from last night into the glasses.

"You two have worked hard, please have a glass of water each." Katsuhiko said, placing the water glasses in front of each of them. He continued, "I have to go back to my apartment tonight to be with Sayuri. You two can stay here without worry. If you need anything, just tell Mikoto. Don't be shy, she'll be very happy to have you. Of course, I can't stay here forever, I'll come over anytime."

Qin Ye remained silent, her head bowed and her hands trembling as she pressed the calculator buttons.

"Hmph~ You're quite good at managing your time," Eiyo glanced at Katsuhiko, her cheeks flushed slightly with anger, and her lips trembled. "You beast..."

"Even the most beastly act is worthwhile when it comes to responsibility."

As Katsuhiko spoke, he shifted his position and sat down next to Kotoha. The closer they were, the faster they could collect coins.

There's also the issue of gold coins. You need to interact with the Qinye skin for an hour to obtain a complete gold coin.

Currently, the gold coins you earn can only be exchanged for "Naruto," and one complete gold coin can only be exchanged for one complete volume of artwork, which is still ongoing.

The Naruto manga has a total of 72 volumes.

That would take 72 hours. Kotoha's lock time is less than 5 days, so it's probably impossible to get the whole series. After all, Kenta's body is barely cold, how could she keep holding her hand?

We could produce a few volumes, as standalone editions.

Although it won't be serialized until 99, it's a phenomenal work on par with "Dragon Ball." Even if it were released earlier, it would definitely be a huge hit. If you can't remember what to do afterward, you can find the original author, ask him to continue the series, and collect licensing fees from him...

Who exactly is the author of Naruto?

Katsuhiko racked his brains, but couldn't remember anything. He felt that even a single word as a hint would make it instantly clear. He turned to Kotoha and asked, "Kotoha-chan, who is the author of Naruto again?"

Qin Ye's face stiffened, and she hurriedly lowered her head.

The two faces were about fifteen centimeters apart...

"I...I don't know..."

"Come here!" Eiya grabbed Katsuhiko's hair and pulled him toward her.

"Hey, no!"

Katsuhiko was pulled back, his head tilted back. He wanted to grab Kotoha's arm to collect some coins, but he pulled back halfway, then fell backward onto the floor. He then rolled over and got up, saying, "What's wrong with you, woman? Do you think you can just grab a man's head like that?"

Yingdai's face flushed red, and she angrily slammed her fist on the floor, turning her head to say, "Then kick me out! I've had enough."

"Stop it," Katsuhiko sat down next to Eiyo, took her clenched fist, rubbed it in his palm, and said, "I know you feel wronged, and I'm not an unreasonable person. After we send Sato Hiroji to prison and settle your debts, you can go wherever you want. You can get a divorce anytime you're married. What does being boyfriend and girlfriend matter? You can break up anytime you want, as long as you're happy."

Eiyo froze, shoved Katsuhiko to the ground, then turned her back and said, "You're so annoying, don't disturb my work..."

"Then get back to work!" Katsuhiko sat down against the wall. "Watching you work like this is quite satisfying."

Yingdai trembled as she picked up the paper, then pursed her lips and remained silent.

Katsuhiko continued, "The funeral is this week, and you haven't put on mourning clothes yet, have you? Tell me your height and measurements!"

Kenta's death certificate should be ready in about three days. After that, we'll collect the body and contact the funeral home. I expect there will be some debt collectors causing trouble on the day of the funeral...

Katsuhiko squatted in the living room until 5:30 p.m., accumulating more than 30 coins, which he then deposited into Mikoto's lucky cat piggy bank.

Mikoto called to tell Eiyo and Kotoha that she would be back at 10 p.m., and that if Eiyo and Kotoha were hungry, they could cook for them, and if they were sleepy, they could sleep in the bedroom...

Katsuhiko answered the phone and told her not to worry about anything. He then asked her to tell Sayuri that she should go straight to her apartment to sleep after get off work.

Yingdai and Qinye remained kneeling amidst the pile of papers, taking inventory of the factory's assets.

Katsuhiko then went into the kitchen by himself.

After Katsuhiko got busy in the kitchen, Kotoha cautiously peeked inside, then moved next to Eiya and whispered, "Eiya-neechan, don't provoke him like that anymore. Pulling his hair is really rude. Look at Katsuhiko-kun, he's even cooking for us himself, isn't that nice?"

Qinye had already looked for a job several times, but as soon as she heard that she was looking for a job herself, she would either hang up the phone or refuse outright.

Even the cleaning jobs for toilets are already full.

At this time, even men couldn't find jobs, let alone women.

My bank card is frozen now, and I don't have a single penny left... I'll die if I leave here...

"I can't tell if he's being sincere or not," Eiyo suddenly seemed dejected, clutching the paper, her face flushed. "This morning, he was in the next room with Mikoto, and...and they were doing that kind of thing..."

"He...he admitted it, she's his girlfriend..." Qinye's face flushed red as she stammered softly, "And you, you two slept under the same blanket in the tatami room, but you didn't do anything. He...he must have been going through a lot of pain to become like that. It's...it's understandable, right? After all, with your figure like that, you...you didn't even help him..."

Yingdai was stunned for a long time before saying, "I was so sleepy back then, how could I be in the mood to help him? You... he's about to come out, don't say anything more."

Katsuhiko cooked three bowls of udon noodles, each with a poached egg. He placed the bowls on the table and said, "Ladies, come and try my cooking. I've only ever made this for Sayuri once; even Mikoto has never received this kind of treatment."

Yingdai remained kneeling, her eyes twitching slightly, but she did not get up.

Kotoha stood up, lightly kicked Eiyo's leg, then bowed ninety degrees to Katsuhiko and said, "Katsuhiko-kun, I haven't formally thanked you yet, thank you!"

"Why are you starting to act so distant?" Katsuhiko took a pair of chopsticks, shoved them into Kotoha's hands, and then pulled Eiyo up, asking, "Do you want me to carry you over?"

"I...I don't know you," Eiyo said, shaking off Katsuhiko's arm and walking into the restaurant, her face flushed. "Go hug someone else!"

The meal was eaten quietly, and both of them finished their soup.

Katsuhiko stared intently at their faces.

Kotoha lowered her eyelids, quietly nudged Eiyo, and bowed to Katsuhiko, saying, "Katsuhiko-kun, your cooking was delicious, thank you."

Yingdai pursed her lips and said, "I'll make it for you next time too, thank you."

Katsuhiko fiddled with the three coins in his hand, a satisfied smile creeping onto his face.

After the meal, Qinye and Yingdai continued to inventory the factory's assets. Qinye found Kenta's insurance policy in the folder.

Katsuhiko took the insurance policy and looked at it carefully. Kenta had purchased full coverage insurance, with a compensation of up to 5000 million yen.

The insurance premium had a one-year grace period, and the purchase date was April 30th of last year. The person committed suicide on May 3rd of this year.

Only four days after their marriage, they designated Qin Ye as the legal heir in the beneficiary section.

Could this kid have planned this all along? It's been a year and a few days; if he had committed suicide a few days earlier, he wouldn't have received the insurance money.

The fifty million yen would fall perfectly into Kotoha's pocket.

"Once Kenta's death certificate is issued, I'll go with you to the insurance company to apply for his compensation."

We have the start-up capital to start an AV company...

"good……"