Otaku Translation: Absolute Number One C66

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Chapter 66: Invitation to Negotiate

With a phone call awaiting , Michiko and Konoe Hitomi took their leave. Young and with limited resources, they couldn’t offer practical solutions but had come primarily to express support and solidarity. Seeing Chihara seemed preoccupied, they decided not to overstay.

Chihara didn’t press them to stay—he was indeed eager to secure new employment and had much to prepare. Escorting them downstairs, he promptly answered the call.

Having guessed wrong twice, this third time proved accurate: the caller worked for . How they obtained his number remained unclear, but their tone was courteous yet direct, expressing admiration and inviting him to meet with a senior managing director. Chihara accepted without appearing overly eager, politely inquiring about convenient timing. After some mutual pleasantries, they scheduled the meeting for the following morning.

Hanging up, Chihara reflected momentarily, surprised Fuji TV reached out first. He’d expected , given its urgent need to bolster strength—no wonder it lagged behind the ; even intelligence operations faltered, reacting slower than competitors.

His thoughts shifted to Fuji TV’s performance during the winter season. Currently, five networks dominated the top ten rankings, none overwhelmingly dominant. Fuji TV held two spots—an average showing. Perhaps they sought fresh talent to advance further?

Uncertain, he shrugged it off, returning to his apartment to prepare tailored pitches for Fuji TV. Two-pronged preparation: one set focused on romance and family dramas (Fuji’s forte), while another anticipated potential genre expansion, including other types as backup.

Preparation was key—better safe than sorry. Yet before he began, the phone rang again. Unsure who called, he answered casually, “Hello, who’s this?”

Reciprocating the apartment manager’s earlier assistance felt fair.

“I’m looking for…” The voice paused, recognizing him. “Chihara, is that you?”

Familiar with the voice, Chihara chuckled. “Fujii-kun, sobered up?”

“Had to,” Fujii Arima sighed deeply. At the celebration banquet, he’d gotten thoroughly drunk, then shared a taxi home with Yoshizaki Shingo (they lived nearby). Upon arrival, after vomiting together, they inexplicably regained energy, heading to a late-night izakaya to drink and reminisce. Feeling years of hard work finally paying off, they became maudlin, eventually passing out at a familiar bar, failing to return home.

The next afternoon, waking late with no pressing matters, Fujii hurried to Tokyo Eizo Broadcasting (TEB) with Yoshizaki. There, thunderstruck, he learned the entire production team’s situation had changed overnight—a senior producer forcibly took over, the original producer resisted unsuccessfully and faced punishment, and the lead writer stormed off in protest. Of the original triumvirate, only Fujii remained.

Stunned, Fujii endured a consoling talk with Kurata Shin before calling Murakami Iori, then Chihara.

After venting frustrations, Fujii fell silent, overwhelmed. Chihara empathized, apologizing, “Sorry, Fujii-kun. I couldn’t notify you earlier. I paged you later, but…”

“No worries, Chihara. It’s the programming committee’s fault, allowing others to snatch programs—it’s madness, setting such a terrible precedent. Everyone will live in fear, unable to focus. Those newspaper faction folks are despicable amateurs!” Though bitter, Fujii, being older, curbed his anger. Sighing, he added, “Kurata-san asked me to talk you into coming back. If this is just youthful impulsiveness, then an apology is enough—things can go back to normal. And if you have demands, even unreasonable ones, we can handle those through private negotiations.”

“So you’re here as a mediator…”

Interrupting, Fujii clarified, “No, I’m only informing you. If anyone asks, just say I tried to persuade you. Honestly, if I were ten years younger, I’d feel the same outrage—I wouldn’t put up with either!”

Chihara pondered, sensing implications. “Fujii-kun, have you decided to stay with the team?”

Fujii sounded apologetic, lowering his voice. “Forgive me, Chihara. Unlike you, I have a family. Fifteen years of effort are tied to TEB—I can’t defy the programming committee. I can’t stand by Murakami-san despite her grievances.” His tone was heavy, conflicted. “I apologized to her; she accepted, even consoled me. But inside, I’m… Ishii Jiro’s despicable. We were doing fine until his failure prompted seizing our show—it’s outrageous!”

Fujii’s frustration resonated clearly, veering into expletives. Likely wanting to throw Ishii down a well, familial responsibilities restrained him. Chihara understood—Fujii’s wife was a homemaker; risking everything meant jeopardizing his family’s livelihood, unlike single individuals. Stability outweighed indignation.

Such decisions weren’t forced lightly. Chihara smiled wistfully, “Then we’ll stay in touch.”

“Yes, if there’s anything I can assist with, call my home. Here’s the number…” Providing it, Fujii sighed, ending the call—a farewell to former colleagues, now destined to labor under Ishii’s odious leadership.

Chihara preferred independence over subservience. Likely, Fujii did too, but unable to flee like Chihara, he endured. Middle-aged men mirrored younger counterparts emotionally but bore heavier burdens, making them appear more pliable.

Post-call, Chihara regretted Fujii’s inability to join forces. Imagining a trio launching anew elsewhere appealed, but reality dictated otherwise.

Subsequently, two more calls arrived.

One was from a talent agent he had only met a few times before. The agent first expressed concern and offered kind words, then cautiously probed about his next move. Upon learning that nothing had been decided yet, the agent quickly mentioned that people from wanted to speak with him, asking if he had time. He even took the opportunity to put in a few good words for Asahi Television, praising their professionalism, saying they always put the program first, and insisting they would never cause the kind of mess that TEB had.

Realizing the agent leaned toward Asahi, Chihara appreciated the subtlety, accepting the invitation, scheduling for the afternoon.

Another call came from a minor actor who had appeared in the first season of . He followed the same script—first expressing his regret, voicing some sympathy on his behalf, though without daring to badmouth TEB or even mention the even more unfortunate Murakami Iori. Then he went on to say that people at wanted to talk with him, and asked him to make time to drop by their headquarters. The arrangement felt a little less dignified—whereas the first two stations had invited him to meet at coffee shops, this one wanted him to come to the TV station in person, and probably wouldn’t even cover his travel expenses.

But Chihara didn’t mind. Nippon TV was already showing signs of a rise, and its production bureau was strong to begin with—so it wasn’t exactly eager to bring in new blood. A bit of arrogance was only to be expected. He agreed to go nonetheless, but scheduled the meeting for the morning two days later.

The actor, uneasy, urged immediate action, emphasizing opportunity value. Politely declining, Chihara cited precedence—Nippon TV’s promising future didn’t deter him from joining the other two stations and competing against them. There was no reason to push himself or ingratiate himself unnecessarily.

Returning to his apartment, Chihara delved into program proposals, incorporating past notes to intrigue potential employers while strategizing negotiation terms—flexible versus non-negotiable conditions.

Time flew; night turned to dawn. Besides additional sympathetic calls (some forgotten immediately—mere acquaintances investing minimal effort via phone), three major networks extended invitations.

This meant all four major commercial TV stations had reacted quickly: whenever a competitor made even the slightest move, they responded without delay. Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), by contrast, either reacted too slowly or never intended to intervene at all.

Perhaps they considered Chihara too insignificant to recruit. Kanto United TV likely saw competition with Asahi, Nippon TV, and Fuji as futile and abstained. Predictably underwhelming, it had started in television’s golden age but ended up a laughingstock of the industry.

Lost in thought, Chihara labored through the night, crafting proposals and preparing for his second round of job-hunting.

Hopefully, it would be smoother this time!

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