Chapter 23: No! You Are a Good Person!

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Chapter 23: No! You’re a Good Person!

Izakayas were enormously popular in Tokyo.

For many office workers, they were where their entire day’s leisure and entertainment took place. Especially in this era of bubble prosperity, they indulged themselves extravagantly and spent money with abandon.

They probably would never have believed that after the bubble burst, there would be many times when all they could afford was a single beer and a plate of edamame, over which they would chat for two or three hours.

But in this era, office workers were not the only ones spending lavishly.

“Boss! I absolutely have to toast you!”

“Oh? All right.”

“Wait a minute, Qing. Why are you toasting him?”

“Of course it’s because, under the boss’s wise leadership, we managed to finish the film!”

“That was certainly thanks to the boss’s wise leadership! But why are you toasting him? You ought to be giving him a congratulatory gift!”

“I really can’t afford a gift right now. All I have is this drink.”

“You idiot! The boss is paying for this meal. Doesn’t that make the drink his as well? Why don’t you just pay for the drinks yourself?”

“How could I pay? Wouldn’t that make the boss lose face?”

“Haha… You really are something!”

“Fine! I’ll drink it. But remember this, Qing: don’t spend all your money in places like Red Romance.”

“Boss, when have I ever been that kind of person?”

After being jabbed like that, Qing’s face flushed, but he still grinned and drained his glass. Takeshi Iwata naturally did the same.

Everyone burst out laughing.

The Violent Man had finished production. Although it did not yet have a musical score, the dialogue had been recorded on location during filming, and with the editing completed, it could already be considered a finished film.

As for subtitles… Japanese domestic films did not usually have subtitles, and the cast and crew credits could be omitted for now.

Tomorrow, the film would be delivered to Iwanami Bookstore, where a panel would view it and decide its fate.

And so, Takeshi Iwata had generously invited everyone out for drinks.

Those present, besides the Iwata group’s Cat, Fish, and Qing, along with the two old men, were Yutaka Matsushige, Kenichi Endo, and Teruyuki Kagawa.

Matsushige Yutaka was somewhat bashful. Endo Kenichi had died rather early in the film and felt a little embarrassed about it. Only Kagawa was especially enthusiastic. After all, as Ryosuke’s assistant, he had quite a few scenes—and there was even a major twist at the end.

He was delighted, and kept pouring drinks for Boss Takeshi Iwata.

The atmosphere grew warmer and warmer. The more they drank, the fewer restraints remained on their tongues.

“Um… What exactly is this Iwanami Bookstore?”

“Yeah. I’ve never heard of it before.”

“Seriously? You don’t even know a place that famous?”

The trio of Cat, Fish, and Qing had started up again, and the topic they had raised was genuinely interesting.

What exactly was Iwanami Bookstore?

To this gang of yakuza, it seemed exceedingly mysterious—at the very least, it belonged to an entirely different world from their own.

But one cat suddenly came alive.

Like an old hand from Iwanami itself, he began describing the literary atmosphere there, even mentioning one of his friends.

That friend had fallen in love with a female clerk at the bookstore, but had always been too embarrassed to confess. The bookstore was simply too refined, and the clerk was simply too beautiful… to look at.

The story left everyone dumbfounded. The gang of yakuza even forgot to drink.

The most unusual reaction came from Takeshi Iwata. Although he held a glass in his hand, he now looked as though he were wearing a white lab coat and a pair of spectacles. The next thing on the tip of his tongue was:

“Are you sure this friend of yours isn’t you?”

Still, as the boss, he decided to spare Cat a little dignity.

But after that, their discussion of Iwanami Bookstore wandered farther and farther afield.

It was as though Iwanami Bookstore had become a star in the heavens, while this gang of good-for-nothing yakuza could only gaze up at it.

In the end, they all looked toward their boss, Takeshi Iwata.

They wanted to hear what he had to say.

Regarding Iwanami Bookstore…

Takeshi Iwata drained his glass in one gulp, then grandly uttered two words.

“Hope!”

The moment he said it, a silence lasting several seconds descended over the room.

Then—

“Incredible!”

“As expected of the boss!”

“That’s right! Hope!”

Some were deeply shaken. Others genuinely had no idea what he meant. But saying “Incredible!” was never the wrong response.

The Goyu Association was a gathering of bold and loyal friends, and everyone was having a splendid time.

…

After finishing their drinks, their entire bodies felt warm.

But Yutaka Matsushige did not choose to go home and rest. Instead, he went straight to a small theater.

They were already in Shinjuku, after all, and performances at small theaters ran late. He could not perform in anything himself, but there was no harm in watching.

More importantly, he was far too excited to sleep.

The next day’s plans had already been arranged. He would go directly to Iwanami Bookstore, while the rest of the film crew—Cat, Fish, Qing, and Boss Iwata—would take the print there.

The arrangement was perfectly normal. That print was crucial. The film had cost ten million yen in total, which meant that the print itself was worth ten million yen.

As one of the principal creators, just thinking about it made him even more excited.

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Yutaka Matsushige was certain he would suffer from insomnia that night, so he decided to stay until the small theater closed.

Unexpectedly, he ran into a friend.

“You look very happy. And you’ve been drinking.”

“Yes. Mitani, I’m simply too happy.”

“It’s about that film, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.”

The Mitani in Matsushige Yutaka’s mouth was a young man with glasses. He had a scholarly air, but was not rigid or pedantic. He was also a great lover of theater.

The two had been friends for some time. Matsushige knew that he could not compare with Mitani. This man had already completed a genuine television drama.

He was a screenwriter.

His name was Koki Mitani.

Mitani had already heard about the film in which Matsushige was appearing. Of course, that was because Matsushige had been telling everyone he met about it.

But now…

“I have some very interesting news. Would you like to hear it?”

“Oh? Please, go ahead.”

“I’m one of the judges at tomorrow’s screening.”

“What? You mean for The Violent Man?”

“That’s the one.”

“Oh, wonderful! What a coincidence! Ha ha…”

“Yes, what a coincidence. Ha ha…”

They had been friends to begin with, and now this extraordinary coincidence had brought them together again. Naturally, they were both delighted.

In fact, one could call it a coincidence—or one could say it was not.

As a new screenwriter who had recently attracted considerable attention, it was perfectly reasonable for Mitani to be invited to judge an unreleased film like The Violent Man. But he had originally intended to refuse.

Later, he heard that Matsushige Yutaka was in the cast. Matsushige had also told him all sorts of things about the film… That little mushroom had a remarkably big mouth.

Mitani had therefore become interested. What he was thinking to himself was:

Could a bunch of yakuza really make a good film?

Naturally, he did not say any of this to Matsushige. The young screenwriter was looking forward to the new film as well.

…

Early the next morning, a luxurious car stopped on a street somewhere in Shinjuku.

Kazuko Takenaka, dressed in a cherry-pink kimono, got out of the car and, escorted by several men in black, entered a room.

Suo had spoken with her on the telephone earlier.

“I’d like Big Sister to watch a good show.”

She understood roughly what he meant.

A sofa had been placed directly beside the room’s window.

Kazuko Takenaka sat down. It was indeed very comfortable. But what, exactly, would be unfolding outside the window?

A faint smile appeared on the face of this formidable woman.

…

The Iwata group.

“Is everything ready?”

“Can your car really do the job?”

“Absolutely! It runs beautifully. In the past…”

“In the past, it was used to sell fish, wasn’t it?”

“What’s wrong with selling fish? It doesn’t smell anymore!”

The film print, worth ten million yen, was currently the Iwata group’s most important possession.

One Fish had thumped his chest and declared that he could take care of the vehicle. And so, what now stood before them was a small van.

To Takeshi Iwata, Japanese mini-vans looked like the tiny taxis that had once been popular around Beijing and Tianjin.

But at that moment—

“Enough talking! Get in!”

The vehicle was small, but it could still hold several adults.

The entire Iwata group planned to go: Cat, Fish, Qing, and the two old men. But then—

“Uncle!”

“Huh? What are you doing here?”

“What? You don’t want me here?”

Shinobu had unexpectedly appeared, leaving Takeshi Iwata extremely surprised.

According to the plan, Shinobu was supposed to go directly to Iwanami Bookstore and meet them there. But the girl had wanted to surprise her uncle.

Her older sister had come along as well.

So, was Takeshi Iwata surprised?

“You…”

“Why don’t you look happy?”

“All right, all right. Since you’re here, get in.”

On Takeshi Iwata’s fierce face, a smile emerged with considerable difficulty.

That day, Shinobu wore a white dress with a little white vest over it, and a white beret on her head.

She looked truly beautiful. And incredibly adorable.

Her sister wore a short black skirt and looked exceptionally alluring.

With these two sisters climbing into the van, Takeshi Iwata…

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Was he driving a big vehicle through Tokyo?

No, no. It was a small vehicle, and the driver was a fish—not Demon Takeshi.

In that case, there was still enough room. They only needed to send one of the old men out.

Unexpectedly, another person showed up.

“Boss!”

It was Teruyuki Kagawa.

“Today’s screening has nothing to do with you.”

“But I want to escort you, Boss!”

Escort him?

In fact, Takeshi Iwata had said the word “hope” the previous day. He had also mentioned that their trip to Iwanami Bookstore would probably not be a peaceful one.

But now, with the two sisters present, what more could he say?

“Get in!”

At Takeshi Iwata’s command, Cat, Fish, Qing, Kagawa, and the Nakayama sisters squeezed themselves into the little van until it was packed tight.

The two old men stood on the ground, grinning as they waved at the van’s taillights. Not one of their hands had five fingers.

…

“Uncle, did I do something wrong?”

“Um… No. It wasn’t your fault.”

“But it seems like…”

“It’s all right.”

The moment Shinobu got into the van, she realized that something was off. Takeshi Iwata in particular wore a grave expression.

But her uncle did not blame her.

What was going on?

Suddenly, Takeshi Iwata gave an order.

“Take another route!”

Everyone froze for a moment, but Fish immediately turned the steering wheel.

Unexpectedly—

“Boss! This is bad. There’s a traffic jam ahead!”

Damn it!

Takeshi Iwata cursed inwardly, but by then there was no other choice.

“Go back to the original route.”

The van returned to its original course, but everyone could already feel the oppressive atmosphere.

At first, everything went smoothly. But just as they were about to leave Shinjuku—

Suddenly, a much larger van cut in front of them.

“Boss!”

“It’s up to you!”

“Yes, sir!”

Fish displayed his superb driving skills. Small cars were popular in Japan, especially in Tokyo, precisely because so many of the roads there were narrow.

Before the larger van could stop, the little vehicle turned directly into a narrow alley.

The yakuza who jumped out of the larger van were left standing there in bewilderment, clubs and swords in their hands.

But then—

“Shinobu, I’m sorry. Your uncle isn’t a good person.”

The moment the little van entered the alley, it turned sideways and blocked the entire passage.

Miho Nakayama was utterly stunned. But when she saw Takeshi Iwata lift Shinobu out of the vehicle and heard him say those words, her emotions became a tangled mess.

Shinobu was naturally confused as well. But at the far end of the alley, a large number of people had already appeared, carrying…

“Kagawa!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Take them away! And take the film with you!”

“Yes, sir!”

A heavy metal case was shoved into Kagawa’s arms. At that moment, he understood everything.

This was hope!

Shinobu was pulled out of the alley by her sister and an ugly man. She kept turning back to look at her uncle, Cat, Fish, Qing, and the others.

Their figures, along with the van blocking the alley, seemed to her…

Suddenly, she wrenched herself free of their hands, turned around, and shouted:

“No! You’re a good person!”

Hearing this, Takeshi Iwata did not turn around. He merely raised his right hand and gave her a thumbs-up.

At that moment, even Kagawa, who had come back to drag everyone away, thought the boss looked unbelievably cool.

This chapter was a little longer than usual, which is why the update was late. Please forgive me. I also hope everyone will continue to support the novel and vote generously. Thank you, thank you.

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