The Demon King, reborn in Japan as a monk

"So, you're not going to give us old folks any face?" one of the elders said, his face darkening with intense displeasure.

"So what if I don't give it to you?" Keiko Yamada looked directly into the elder's eyes and sneered.

"Insolence!" the elder roared. "Do you intend to commit insubordination?"

"So what if it is?" Keiko Yamada went all out, propping herself up on one knee and responding in a half-kneeling position.

"Hmph, they really don't know their own limitations and are overestimating themselves. Men, take down all the Yamada Group members!" the elders roared.

Instantly, the man and woman guarding behind Yamada Keiko also jumped up from the ground, reaching into their pockets. One pulled out a wakizashi that he had brought with him, and the other pulled out a pistol that he had obtained from who-knows-where.

At the same time, a dagger also appeared faintly in the palm of Yamada Keiko's hand, which was hanging down.

Then, the paper sliding doors around the office opened, and a dozen or so burly men dressed like yakuza thugs came out, carrying sticks, knives, and pistols, staring menacingly at Yamada Keiko and her three companions.

"Ah Zhang," Keiko Yamada whispered.

"Don't worry, they won't do anything," Ishihara Akira said with a smile.

The instant Yamada Keiko spoke, he had already used his ability to control their consciousness, freezing them in place.

"Amao, go and take away their weapons." Upon hearing this, Keiko Yamada felt reassured and immediately ordered the man behind her.

"Yes." Without hesitation, the man put away his gun and walked straight to the underlings called out by the elders of the Hongdao Society. Just like an adult confiscating a child's toys, he took all the knives, guns, clubs and the like from the underlings' hands.

"You, you all!" the elders exclaimed in shock and anger upon seeing this.

"Don't waste your energy, they can't hear what you're saying anymore." Yamada Keiko stood up and looked down at the elders present with a cold smile.

"What do you want to do?" one of the elders shouted.

"Now I am the butcher and you are the fish on the chopping block. Can't you guess what I'm going to do?" Yamada Keiko walked up to one of the elders, kicked him to the ground, squatted down, and sneered as she slapped his cheek with the dagger in her hand.

"You will not succeed!" the elder said angrily.

"Really?" Keiko Yamada laughed. "Ah Zhang!"

Ishihara Shō shook his head, stood up, looked at the few Hongdao Association elders who were still conscious, and subdued them.

"Alright, do whatever you want." Ishihara Akira said to Yamada Keiko after finishing everything.

"As expected, bringing you here was the right decision," Keiko Yamada said with satisfaction.

Then comes the normal handover—things that can be obtained immediately, such as accounts, industry data, and funds, as well as personnel exchanges.

Naturally, to ensure these guys wouldn't cause any more trouble afterward, Keiko Yamada also had Akira Ishihara help control their minds when meeting with people like finance, accounting, and project managers, making them obedient and cooperative in taking over the Kodokai's assets.

Whether it's from Tokyo or Nagoya.

Then, personnel from the Yamada group were reassigned, and key positions were replaced.

There was little need for Ishihara Akira to get involved in these matters, so he took the female employee from a film production company under the Kodokai organization that Yamada Keiko had invited—the kind of woman like Mikami Yua—and started causing a complete ruckus in the Tokyo hotel.

Chapter 235 Business Dinner

However, after only two days of playing, Ishihara Akane was called out again by a phone call.

It was a call from Kumi Yamanaka, asking him to meet in Tokyo.

"Why are you in Tokyo?" Yamanaka Kumi, dressed in a black evening gown, asked Ishihara Akira, who had changed into a suit and arrived as agreed, with some curiosity.

"I came here to take care of something," Ishihara Akira replied. "And you?"

“Me? Same as you.” Yamanaka Kumi straddled Ishihara Akira’s arm and walked toward a hotel not far away.

"I am here on behalf of my family's brand to attend a business dinner organized by the Sports Bureau."

"The sports hall?" Ishihara Akira asked in surprise.

He could understand the name "Sports Hall," since the name clearly indicated that it was a functional department responsible for managing sports affairs. However, he had never heard of it before and was not clear about any memorable achievements it had made in the past.

"The Sports Agency was proposed and established by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology after the Tokyo Olympics. It is an external department specifically responsible for the promotion, dissemination and development of sports affairs. It has only been established for about a year. In addition, you are not a person in the sports field, so it is normal that you have not heard of it," Kumi Yamanaka explained.

"And what is tonight's banquet...?" Ishihara Akira asked again.

"It's almost summer vacation, which is also the time for various national competitions. The sports department probably wants to do something, but they don't have the funds, so they want to get some sponsorships to boost their image, hence tonight's banquet. To put it bluntly, they're here to raise money."

"So, do you want to invest?"

“I don’t even know what they want to do, so why should I invest? My family’s money didn’t grow on trees.”

While investments in sports don't typically yield high returns, often resulting in losses for publicity or being used purely as advertising, it doesn't mean I'll sponsor a sporting event to ease your burden.

As Kumi Yamanaka said, nobody's money comes from thin air.

"Alright, let's talk about it once we're inside. Let's speed things up now."

The two then quickened their pace and arrived at the hotel shortly after. They entered the lobby, took the elevator to the banquet hall where the dinner was to be held, handed the doorman the invitation from the sports hall, and at the latter's invitation, led Ishihara Akira into the banquet hall filled with celebrities and various sports stars.

Yes, it's still a Western-style buffet banquet.

This means that the food and other dishes are placed directly on the long tables on the left and right sides of the banquet hall, and everyone can move around freely in the banquet hall. It is very free, but also very tiring.

Since there are only a few chairs in the venue, and they are all in the corners, it's better to stand in the crowd and chat if you don't want to stand out too much.

"But then again, shouldn't you bring people you trust to a banquet like this? Why did you call me here? I can't help you with anything." Ishihara Akira whispered in Yamanaka Kumi's ear as he casually picked up a drink from a tray held by a waiter wandering around the room.

“You’re right. In general, people only bring close friends and family members they approve of to these kinds of occasions. And given our relationship, I have no reason to bring you in, but is it wrong for me to want to?” Yamanaka Kumi, who had also picked up a glass of red wine, asked smugly.

She would never tell Ishihara Akira that the reason she invited him to a place like this was to show him the luxury of high society and the benefits of rising status—

For example, when he meets sports stars or social celebrities, she can take the opportunity to temper his arrogance and mold him in the direction she expects.

As for wasting opportunities for this...

Does she care?

It's not like her family went bankrupt and collapsed just because they missed this banquet.

It's certainly a waste.

"You're ruthless," Ishihara Sho said, a slight smirk playing on his lips.

Kumi Yamanaka smiled and then looked around.

Ishihara Akira was the same, admiring the beautiful women at the banquet...

After all, this is a high society banquet, and the women there, even the housewives, are all above average in appearance. Moreover, the wealthy have undergone at least three generations of genetic improvement, so even if they were originally of poor quality, they have all become presentable by now.

Not to mention, because of their athleticism, some athletes have incredibly great physiques...

For example, the athlete named Mie Konno gives people a very good impression.

Oh, and Ishihara Akane also saw Ai-chan here, who had by then divorced and returned to live in Japan.

And then there's Mima Ito, who got arrogant because she beat the national team, and then got taught a lesson by the national team.

Ishihara Shou wouldn't recognize any of the other athletes. After all, he didn't pay much attention to sports in his previous life. The only reason he remembered Ai-chan was because she was so popular on the Chinese internet that it was hard not to remember her.

And then there's Mima Ito, who was also incredibly popular back then.

As for Konno Mie, who was mentioned at the beginning, it was simply because Ishihara Akira had seen live recordings of Japanese sports events posted by ACFun while browsing ACFun, and then casually remembered her name.

I don't know any more than that.

So after identifying his target, Ishihara Akira walked directly toward Fukuhara Ai.

"Hello, Ai-chan, my name is Ishihara Sho, I'm your fan, could you please sign an autograph for me?" With that, Ishihara Sho took out the notebook and pen he had asked the waiter for when he came over and handed them to Fukuhara Ai.

"Oh, really? Of course! Your Chinese is very good. Did you study in China?" Ai Fukuhara was surprised when she heard this. She immediately put down her wine glass, took Ishihara Akira's notebook and pen, and said with a smile.

Yes, because he knew that Ai Fukuhara could speak Chinese, Shou Ishihara came up and greeted her in Chinese.

This was both to attract her attention and to pique her interest.

After all, Ai Fukuhara is very patriotic.

“I never studied abroad, but I lived in Northeast China for quite a while,” Ishihara Akira laughed. “Speaking of which, I miss the barbecue and stew in an iron pot in Northeast China. It’s a pity that I can’t eat them here in Japan. It’s such a shame.”

"Yes, the chicken frames in Shengjing are so delicious, as are the grilled cold noodles, jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes), and grilled squid..."

As she finished speaking, Ai Fukuhara herself couldn't help but swallow hard.

"How about we exchange contact information? That way, if I find a place that suits our tastes, I'll let you know. Or, if there's a chance, we can go to Northeast China for a meal together," Ishihara Akira suggested, taking back the notebook that Fukuhara Ai had signed.

"Okay. But you can't give my contact information to anyone else, okay?" Ai Fukuhara thought for a moment and then agreed.

"Don't worry, I know what's important," Ishihara Akira said with a smile.

Then she took out her phone and exchanged contact information and WeChat with Ai Fukuhara...

Chapter 236 Test

Afterwards, officials from the sports hall arrived, and the banquet officially began.

The content was no different from a typical official dinner: first, the leader gave a speech, then came the eating, drinking, and socializing, with various purposes being achieved during these interactions.

For example, negotiating the sponsorship project, including the specific sponsorship fee and the form of presentation, etc.

Ishihara wasn't very interested, so aside from eavesdropping curiously at the beginning, he spent the rest of the time watching the female athletes around him...

Ishihara Sho got the contact information of all the celebrities, including Ai Fukuhara, Mima Ito, and Mie Konno.

As for whether the other party will delete it later, or what kind of relationship it might develop into, that depends on Ishihara Akira's specific actions.

However, besides that, Ishihara Akira also met quite a few new people—

For example, Reiko Shiota, a former badminton player who is now a guest commentator on television broadcasts.

And Sayaka Takahashi, who is still an active athlete.

Saori Kimura, captain of the Japanese volleyball team.

Team members, including Megumi Kurihara.

They were all athletes from land-based sports, or rather, summer Olympic sports. As for winter sports athletes, they were probably not invited to attend because they were not related to the theme of this banquet, so I had no way to get to know them or even get their contact information.

"How are you feeling?" At this moment, Yamanaka Kumi, who had finished talking with the officials of the sports hall and was able to get away, returned to Ishihara Akira's side and asked softly with a smile on her face.

"How does it feel?" Ishihara Akira asked, somewhat puzzled.