The more time you spend with someone, the more you invariably learn about them.
Her soul is in the early teens at most.
Most of her knowledge's from the internet, with very little first-hand experience.
She's usually stupidly bright and cheerful,
but at times,
she has a look of total resignation on her face.
Perhaps her previous life wasn't one she could look back fondly upon.
Still...
Aqua, Ruby, dinner's ready.
Coming!
Now that we've been reincarnated,
as long as we're both living our best lives now, none of that matters.
m 0 0 l 0 102 32 102 b 3 75 3 32 32 0
OSHI NO KO
m 0 0 l 0 102 32 102 b 3 75 3 32 32 0
The curry here is great!
Check this out! The marrow-less bones can be used as straws!
You can even drink your lassi with them!
Wow!
It's true! This is great!
Right?
Where should we go next?
Everyone here is expecting to drink.
Hmm, places nearby where we could drink in peace?
How about Pater?
Oh, I like it.
A friend of mine runs that bar. I'll shoot them a LINE message.
Aqua Hoshino
Excuse me a second.
Hey. What's up?
Where are you?
You haven't checked any of the items due today.
Uh, I'm out drinking with the marketing rep.
Marketing rep?
So they brought a bunch of "friends" who are models and actresses,
and you're drinking at a hideaway bar?
I mean, networking is part of their job.
And we always need good actors.
I'm not against it,
but these things tend to be full of tough customers.
Don't get eaten alive.
Of course. How many years do you think I've spent in this business?
There's a lot about work that comes down to human feeling.
Some things you can only see with alcohol in your system, too.
This world runs on communication, and I'm a pro here.
And pros never lose themselves in booze.
Huh? My phone's gone!
Where'd it go?
Your phone's right here, Director Gotanda.
Aqua-kun.
Could you drag that thing home?
Sure. I'll make sure the skunk gets home.
Oh, hey, kid.
Are you Aqua Hoshino-kun?
I've heard all about you. You're the director's best student?
Woohoo!
No. I don't know this man.
Now, now. It's raining outside, so join us.
We'll call a taxi for you right away.
Are you hungry?
The Napolitan here is amazing. Eat that before you go, at least.
No, thank you.
You're always pestering the young ones.
Give it a rest, Tendouji-san.
Don't go giving me a bad name, now.
Tendouji... Marina Tendouji?
Why, yes.
Did I give you my name?
Here you are. Club soda.
Let's go drinking as soon as you're old enough.
But I guess you wouldn't want to go with an old lady like me.
Don't worry. I'll bring some cute friends with me.
You must love drinking.
It's part of my job, in a way.
Is that really okay?
Doesn't your family worry?
Hey, I'm in my mid-fifties.
And I've been doing this forever, so none of them worry about me.
May I get to go to a B-Komachi concert
May I get permission to go outside
May Mom and Dad stay healthy and never get sick
You know somebody out there does.
I suppose.
I'm married.
See, this is my family!
How is this even possible?
Are there really parents like her?
Sarina-chan...
Happy 54th, Mom! Don't drink too much
Your life must've been a living hell.
When you have kids,
all that matters is that they stay healthy.
Mom... That's why Mom won't come...
No.
You're stuck on this bit again.
Listen, in this scene,
you're a child who starts to understand her mother who ran away from her.
You admit that you're abnormal, and that your mother doesn't love you.
You let her go, and you set yourself free in the process, too.
You need to look relieved, not desperate.
But that's all wrong.
Admitting your mother doesn't love you? That can't be right.
It's probably just a misunderstanding.
The 15-Year Lie
This makes no sense to me.
I mean, after all...
Deep down,
parents always love their kids.
Ibaraki.
Perform at a joint concert on an outdoor stage starting 6 PM.
Get in the car at 9 PM.
Back home at 11 PM.
Go to school at 8:30 AM.
Leave early at 10:30 AM.
Dig Deep! Chase the Impawsible!!
Esperanto Lesson
Dig Deep! Chase the Impawsible! prep meeting at 11:30 AM.
Film a report at 12 PM.
Get in the car at 3 PM, have lunch,
approve interview text, and study for finals.
Yamada Tanaka Hoshino Sasaki Inoue
And at 4 PM,
attend taping for a late-night variety show. Film three episodes.
Practice choreo for a new song at 9:30 PM.
And at the same time, discuss YouTube video ideas.
One-on-one acting lessons at 11 PM.
Go to bed at 3 AM.
Mom did all this without breaking a sweat.
I need to do better.
It's okay. I know I can do this.
There's very little time before we start filming.
I'd like you to pack Ruby-san's schedule with acting lessons.
Ruby's doing all she can.
Her schedule's already packed. She barely gets enough sleep.
Even yesterday...
Reduce the amount of work she takes on.
Especially for the duration of filming and rehearsals.
The 15-Year Lie will be a real test of acting chops.
It might be cruel to say this about an actor as inexperienced as Ruby-san,
but even I can see that she's lacking in ability.
Where does he get off saying that when he produced that Sweet Today live-action?
But he's not wrong.
Ruby doesn't have the skill to lead a cast that good.
Hoist the sails, mateys!
Onward ho! To a brand new world!
Not so fast!
Only one of us can get her hands on that singular, legendary treasure!
And I'll make sure it won't be you!
Hah! Try me!
It's so hot!
When summer blazes hot, make sweat walk the plank...
Body Wipes
Soap Scented
Spectaclean Body Wipes
Smooth skin in a jiffy!
...with Spectaclean Body Wipes!
Cut! That's perfect!
Keep going!
I offered you the ad 'cause a big sponsor has a Tokyo Blade fan for a daughter,
and you two did great!
I'm honored!
Wow, you're in perfect sync. Your bad blood's all kayfabe, then?
Haha! Of course it is!
A rival? Who, her?
Not a chance. She's nowhere near good enough.
Wha? You got into it too, Kana-chan.
Don't call me that!
So, what'd you think? Did it help?
You two really are amazing.
You showed me how far I still have to go.
How can I act like you?
Know yourself.
You need to have a good grasp of who you are on the inside.
Who I am on the inside?
For example, you take your likes and dislikes,
and you either exaggerate or play them down as needed.
Right.
That way, you can form new rules and associations within your emotions.
That's how you establish a character—
the thing you're having trouble with right now.
I place more emphasis on the character than myself, though.
That much is obvious. You're a method actor.
Know myself?
What kind of person am I?
Am I Ruby?
Am I Sarina Tendouji?
Who am I?
Ichigo: Do you never think about meeting your mom? Ai: Well, my mother hates me. Ai: So I probably shouldn't. That's what's better for her, too.
Mother doesn't love me.
No. That can't be true.
I mean...
Mother!
You came to see me! How long will you be staying?
After I stop by your grandma's place, I have to head back to Tokyo.
Oh. You must be busy with work.
I'm sorry.
I need to go speak to your doctor.
Oh, okay...
Hey, Mother?
Do you love me?
I mean...
There's no way those words were a lie.
Of course I love you.
Tendouji
Many times, I found myself standing here when I was feeling down.
My home still stood at the address I remembered it at.
If I rang the bell, Mother would answer.
So many times, I thought about pressing that button and saying...
Tendouji
Mother, it's me.
But no.
Once upon a time, there was a perfectly ordinary family.
As much affection as the mother showered the daughter with,
she was found to have a serious illness when she was four.
After learning her daughter had less than a 10% chance of living another 10 years,
the mother treated her with love and care for a while,
but in time, it broke her down mentally.
The father separated the two and focused on helping the mother recover.
They came from a respected family in the countryside,
so they put the daughter in the care of the biggest hospital in their hometown.
The parents threw themselves into work as if to run from their sorrows,
and soon they would refuse to see reality for what it was.
Eventually, they started to avert their eyes from their daughter, too.
My mother used to be a figure skater!
She says she'll teach me how to skate once I'm discharged!
I want to make the Olympics and put a smile on her face!
The daughter's condition only grew worse with time.
She battled chronic headaches and nausea,
and she lost her sense of balance, which left her unable to walk.
It affected her memory and situational awareness, too.
During those days of suffering, she found solace in one special girl.
The daughter came to live vicariously through her.
As her condition became terminal, the mother stopped showing up at all.
She must not have wanted to see her daughter in pain.
But the girl continued to wait for her mother.
She continued to wait for her mother, believing that she still loved her.
Oh, it's just you, Sensei.
Too bad it's just me.
Hmm? That's, uh, B-Komachi?
They released a new single?
Yep!
The young man had a habit of going to see patients who didn't get visitors
and making small talk with them.
It's impossible to quantify just how much that helped the daughter.
She had found two rays of hope.
Though she would come to lose them both in time.
Ai's Fan for All Eternity!!!
Even as she spent most of her short life in a small room,
fought through the pain,
B-Komachi
and had her dreams shattered,
she still continued to wait for her mother, day after day.
She continued to believe that she was loved.
But even on the day it all ended,
in her final hours,
the mother did not appear before her.
As she heard the news in silence in their Tokyo home,
what must've gone through the mother's mind?
As a mother who ran and ran from her daughter,
what exactly did she even mean to her?
Soon after the girl died,
the mother gave birth to a son and daughter.
And now, they all live happily ever after.
All's well that ends well.
I've never seen Mother smile like that before.
I knew it. I knew it somewhere deep down.
I wanted her to love me.
But she didn't love me!
That's why I saw Mom as a replacement.
I pushed my disgusting wishes onto her.
What the hell am I?!
Everyone in my life ends up suffering!
All I bring is misfortune!
To Mother, Mom, and Sensei...
Tell me, gods. Why did you reincarnate a plague like me?
Sensei, have you ever been to, like, Shibuya or Harajuku?
Yeah. I did go to college in Tokyo.
That's so cool!
Those places are full of life, right?
Filled with lots of people, and even talent scouts.
Ai said she got scouted in Shibuya, too!
Yeah?
I'll show you around the place when you're better.
Really?!
You're really cute,
so I'm sure you'll get approached by scouts.
But I'll send scouts from underground idol groups and other shady places packing.
But I'd love to be an idol, underground or not.
I want to be like Ai and wear stylish outfits,
sing cute songs, have the crowds do calls for me,
take the stage in huge venues,
and put smiles on lots of people's faces!
That's so dreamy!
Not a chance.
Show business is a scary place.
I won't allow it unless you have a good agency repping and looking out for you.
Jeez, you're too overprotective!
Why did I even become an idol?!
Take it easy.
Take a deep, long breath.
You need to lie down. Can you stand?
The script...
Where's my script?
I need to rehearse.
You're in no state for that.
Come on, grab on to me.
I don't want your help, Aqua!
That's right. The reason I'm an idol
is so I can make it to the top and find the guy who killed Mom and Sensei.
To avenge Mom and Sensei!
I'll find him if it's the last thing I do.
And I'll make him regret ever coming into this world!
Stop that.
Living for revenge will bring you nothing but pain and suffering.
There's no need for you to do that.
Please.
Forget about revenge and live your own life.
Don't tell me what to do.
Quit trying to act like my big bro now.
I don't see you as real family.
We're total strangers. We just happened to be reborn in the same place.
Fine. You're free to think that.
I'm not about to call us brother and sister now.
I know I have no right to.
And I'm fully aware that I'm being a hypocrite.
But...
I'm not asking as Aqua Hoshino.
Please listen to me,
Sarina-chan.
I know this isn't why you wanted to be an idol.
You got out of that hospital room.
You're finally free to live the life you want.
Didn't you want to be like Ai and wear stylish outfits,
sing cute songs, have the crowds do calls for you,
take the stage in huge venues, and put smiles on lots of people's faces?!
Didn't you become an idol to make those dreams come true?!
A singular thought, "What if?" has crossed my mind time and time again.
Every time I felt I saw traces of Sarina-chan in you,
I turned around and beat myself up.
I hated myself for ever having such self-serving fantasies.
After being powerless to do anything to help Sarina-chan,
there was no way I'd ever get a second chance.
But all these years,
I've treated you just like I would have treated her.
Forget about revenge.
I'm begging you, Ruby.
Why?
Why are you crying?
Why did you just call me Sarina?
How do you know about that time in the hospital?
Tell me...
Could it be...?
Are you Sensei?
I've been looking for this.
You held onto it for me, huh,
Sarina-chan?
Sensei!
You've always been this close?
Why?
Why did you never tell me?
Uh, I wasn't sure until just now.
You dummy!
I worked so hard!
I thought you'd find me if I called myself a B-Komachi idol.
I always looked for you among the crowd at every event.
I thought you might be somewhere out there watching,
so I gave my all each time!
I was worried you'd forgotten all about Mom and B-Komachi,
and that maybe you'd never find me.
I called the hospital and they said you were missing.
And then what?
I find you dead in a cave?
I'm sorry. I put you through a lot.
I trusted you, Aqua, but then you went and sold Mom out.
It made me feel like I couldn't trust anybody in the world.
I didn't forget.
I told the world about Ai's secret and spurred the director to make this movie
all to get revenge for Ai.
I thought I had to avenge Mom and you,
Dig Deep! Chase the Impawsible!!
Special Episode Pitch
so I did lots of awful things.
I told lots of lies.
Every time I did, a pain shot through my chest,
and I felt a knot in my stomach.
The more I lied, the more I felt I was drifting away from what I wanted to be.
Ruby, that stuff is not you.
But...
Mom always said idols were made up of lies.
You and Ai are different people.
Stop chasing after her shadow.
Live your own life.
You don't have to lie about anything.
You know, the truth is...
It hurt.
I thought I had to tell believable lies and be all smiles all the time like Mom.
I thought I had to be like her.
Being an idol wasn't all rainbows and sunshine at all.
So many times, I thought it'd be so much easier if I could just forget about her.
When I looked at the fans, sometimes I'd think back to her killer's face.
I had all these nasty, disgusting thoughts,
but I hid them all because I wanted to be loved.
I hadn't changed at all from the time I spent hating the world in the hospital.
How can that be good enough?
Am I really good enough like that?
I told you I'd be your number one fan, remember?
I said that because,
even as you suffered in pain in that hospital room,
you still looked straight ahead with stars in your eyes and continued to dream.
Back then, you shone far brighter than Ai ever did!
Good for you.
Now Ruby will bounce back,
and you'll get to make your movie just like you wanted.
This might just inspire her to even greater heights.
If so, that would make me very happy, too.
But...
Are you really sure about this?
It might've been easier for you if she'd continued to hate you.
I'll trust you, Onii-chan.
I'll trust that the girl you said you'd be a fan of can shine brighter than Mom.
Also...
I haven't forgotten those words.
You said you'd marry me once I turned sixteen, remember?
Sensei? I'm sixteen now.
I'm wiped!
Onii-chan, gimme some of your juice.
No. Get your own.
Too late. You snooze, you lose juice.
Ah, I'm coming back to life!
Get off of me.
You're damp with sweat.
Hey, let me have this.
What the hell happened?!
Whoa, you startled me. Why'd you start yelling out of nowhere?
We're the ones startled here!
Ever heard of personal space?
You two are stuck together like glue!
Oh, you know how Onii-chan and I had been fighting lately?
Well, we made up the other day,
and now we're making up for lost time.
More like overcompensating!
You're part of the problem, Aqua! Tell your sister off!
I could do that, or I could just let her do whatever she wants.
Right. I forgot he was obsessed with his sister.
We've always been thick as thieves!
Get off of him already!
Hold it!
They're two hot twins that look hot together!
Lemme take pics for Insta!
Ugh, you engagement junkie.
I can't. That was so friggin' weird.
I could smell the degeneracy in the air.
Well, Ruby's got a lot on her plate.
I bet she just wanted somebody to lean on.
She's using him as a crutch, basically.
If it's only as bad as needing an emotional support, that's fine.
But the only way to really fix it is to do something about her packed schedule.
The 15-Year Lie
Heck, she's actually hit a wall with her acting.
She desperately needs more rehearsal time.
I'm glad she seems to be feeling better,
but motivation and high spirits won't be enough to get her through this movie.
If anything, she's at even more risk now with this mental doping.
If she goes too hard and breaks down, it'll have all been for naught.
Right you are.
But this is Ruby's best chance to make a move at superstardom.
Sure, she has to juggle TV appearances, events, concerts, and acting lessons...
And her studies, too.
Studies!
Right, those exist!
Mine were so long ago that I forgot all about the concept!
I'm amazed you managed to keep up your high school girl gimmick like that.
Either way, it'll be hard to strike the right balance.
All we can do is hope the president takes care of it.
Even if Strawberry Pro has experienced this before with Ai,
it was the previous president at the helm at the time.
This is probably a real test of President Miyako's ability, as well.
Right. We're very grateful.
I'll take a good look at Ruby's schedule and get back to you.
Covering a charity event for 28-Hour TV? That's a huge gig.
I can make room in her schedule.
But do I really want to give Ruby even more work?
Reduce the amount of work she takes on.
Especially for the duration of filming and rehearsals.
There's so much to think about.
Keep this marketing rep named Tendouji as far away from Ruby as possible.
Did something happen?
She's kind of like a relative we have history with.
Interacting with her could make Ruby unstable.
A relative?
I guess that does happen. Tokyo's a small world.
Got it. I'll keep an eye out.
Thanks.
I have to secure time for rehearsals.
But I need to think about her health, too.
And Kana graduates at the end of the year.
How do we replace her in B-Komachi?
As a business owner, I should push her as hard as I can.
But what about as her mother?
Congratulations Entrance Ceremony Youtou High School
Showbiz is in a constant state of churn.
Most entertainers end up as a flash in the pan.
Even if you gain a little fame, it can all fade away in just a year's time.
Congratulations Entrance Ceremony Youtou High School
There's no doubt that her efforts now
will decide the next ten years of Ruby's life and career.
I believe more than anybody else that she's capable of reaching the very top.
Listen, Mom!
Yeah?
I'm slowly getting the hang of dancing!
All right!
Soon, we hit the Tokyo Dome! The stage of our dreams!
Wow!
Right?
You're a natural!
Ichigo, what would you have done?
Samidare
Barkeep, get me the usual.
Yeah, yeah. The meat'n'veggies set with a small rice.
And some mixed veggie juice,
extra kale.
Could you order some damn booze for a change?
We're not a diner.
This is the only place I can get a proper meal this late at night.
Jeez. Take better care of yourself, or you'll die from overwork.
I'd much rather that than let one of our talent die from overwork.
Are your kids eating right? They're really busy now, yeah?
Mhm. Their manager should be taking care of that.
You left it all to someone else?
If you don't look them in the eye and keep your arms wide open,
you'll miss the crucial signs.
I get that, but they never wear their hearts on their sleeve.
My son's always deadpan, my daughter's always all smiles,
and they never complain.
I have no way to tell what they're thinking deep down.
I'm not their real mother, after all.
I wanna watch them up close all the time too, you know!
I'm not built for all this brainy work!
How I'd love to go back to being just a manager if I could!
But this company needs me to do this!
We don't have anybody else to rely on!
Barkeep.
Long time no—
Ichigo...?
Get back here!
I'll be back later!
Yeah, yeah.
Tokyo's a small world, all right.
Hold it, you dolt!
I finally found you.
M-Miyako...
Calm down a se—
Do you have any goddamn idea how I've felt all these years?
You abandoned the promise you made me to run off and do what, you asshole?!
[Express] Shinjuku Station
The first time I saw Tokyo, it was covered in bright lights from top to bottom.
It instantly stole my heart away.
I felt that this city was where I was meant to live my life.
The nightlife was like a video game.
I took out the fodder, built up XP and gold,
leveled up,
bought more powerful weapons,
spent increasingly more time around stupidly loaded people,
started seeing the guys in college as snot-nosed brats,
m 0 0 l 100 0 100 100 0 100
A wild Self-Proclaimed Tech CEO appeared! A wild Self-Proclaimed Investor appeared!
defeated stronger foes, built up lots more XP,
Miyako used Blow Kiss!
The Self-Proclaimed Tech CEO was defeated! The Self-Proclaimed Investor was defeated!
Miyako leveled up!
leveled up even more,
Miyako evolved from cabaret club girl to lounge girl!
Cabaret Club
switched classes, and grew stronger.
Lounge
Hostess Club
Tokyo's good to strong people like that,
and it affirmed my way of life.
I played the game smart and followed this city's unspoken rules,
and I was sure I'd keep climbing to ever greater heights.
The hottest, "biggest" new face
Dynamite College Girl!!
But it would all come crashing to an end.
Tokyo was full of attractive girls,
and I didn't have that special something to make it in showbiz.
I got more chances to interact with big shots due to being an entertainer,
but that didn't last long either.
Checking Inbox
Checking...
By the time I graduated college,
No New Mail
I'd stopped getting invited to parties by business owners.
Not that I cared.
Those guys cheated at the drop of a hat.
I would've never found happiness in life going out with them.
A Minato-ku trophy girl who was no longer in demand
could only stick around by becoming an intermediary who summoned younger girls.
And I hung on pathetically by doing just that.
More and more men started asking me to be their mistress.
Those scumbags are very good at sniffing out women at risk of losing their spot,
and they try to exploit them for all they're worth.
They use the starry-eyed girls until they get tired of them.
Hup.
Heya.
Listen, are you gonna keep working the night life forever?
If you don't have a goal in mind, wanna come work for me?
I was a girl who longed for the bright lights but couldn't cut it in showbiz.
Strawberry Productions
How ironic was it that I'd now be working to help others pursue their dreams?
But...
Seeing the lights from backstage didn't feel as bad as I'd thought.
Miyako.
Will you stay by my side and support me?
I'll work my butt off.
And if you'll be my pillar—my wife—
I'll show you the most dazzling sight in the world.
The most dazzling sight...?
Wow!
I bet it'd feel so good if we performed here.
You mean when we perform here.
Right.
It's so huge.
Sure is.
Do you actually think that?
I do, I do.
Really, now?
Really! I mean it!
One day, we'll light up Tokyo Dome with glow sticks.
That's our dream.
You said you'd show me!
How could you just throw in the towel and run away from it all?!
When I... I still haven't given up on it!
You said it was our dream!
So, Strawberry Productions will undergo a major organizational restructuring.
Before that, I guess I should introduce you.
That's Ichigo Saitou-kun, our new errand boy.
Hello, I'm Saitou.
First, for your new assignments...
Take a look at the handout.
Hayashi will handle the cross-media talent.
Streamer Group A goes to Sasami,
and Group B to Terabayashi.
Yoshizumi will manage MEM and Arima of B-Komachi.
And I'll take over as Ruby and Aqua's manager.
Everything else remains the same.
Huh?
But then, who runs the agency?
Beats me.
Maybe that errand boy over there will take care of it.
Who is that?
The president's husband. The one who founded this agency.
What?!
That's all from me. Back to work.
Good for you! You got to talk things out with Miyako-san!
I can't believe you can say that after seeing this face.
I was half coerced into it.
She threatened to sue me,
and when I tried to argue, she literally threw hands.
But you came back anyway.
I'm happy for you. You wanted to all along, didn't you?
You got me so much work, even though you weren't an agent here.
Easier to do that when you're officially part of the agency, right?
That's not it. I was set up.
By whom?
Aqua, who else?
m 0 0 l 100 0 100 100 0 100
< Aqua Hoshino
We need to talk about Ruby
Can you come to Samidare at 2 AM tonight?
Talk about sudden
Should a high schooler really be in the night-life district that late at night?
Won't be a problem
Fine I might be a little late, though
Thanks
Don't let Miyako catch you
I'm here
Samidare
He was the one who summoned me to Miyako's favorite bar that night.
And what do I find...
Aqua did that?
Oh, so that's what it was.
I understand now.
I knew it.
Onii-chan loves me way too much!
He dragged Ichigo-san back to the agency for my sake!
His methods are always so roundabout and so damn cute!
He was like this even as a doctor.
He'd set up surprises without talking to anyone about it.
He's always been nice to a fault. No changing it now.
And he still tries to pretend to be the bad guy.
But don't worry! I get all that about you and more!
Okay, there's just too much on her schedule.
But this is Ruby's chance to become a household name.
What if work dries up for her later?
Then I'll just go out and get more.
Don't lose sight of the big picture.
Don't be afraid of her booming popularity ending.
It's a matter of when, not if.
Relax. Ruby's no flash in the pan.
And it's my job to make sure she stays that way.
What we should be doing now is making Ruby seem exclusive.
The showrunners need to see her as a premium talent.
Give them the runaround and secure better-quality gigs for her.
And if possible, focus on the gigs that are far in the future.
Don't just accept any work that comes her way.
Just being on screen doesn't make one a household name.
Only take on shows that are built to highlight Ruby's character.
It was the same with Ai, too.
You can turn down all of these.
Also, use her as a bargaining chip to barter deals for other talents.
Kana Arima would be a big hit on variety shows.
Spread the work across everyone in the agency.
Also, you should move to a bigger office.
You gotta make 'em believe we're a major joint.
I'm just not good enough.
If you'd run the agency all along, it would be so much bigger now.
Nah, you've done amazing.
You built respectful working relationships with clients,
brought in work without stepping on any toes,
and developed better talent in the meantime.
Frankly, Strawberry Pro has a stellar reputation within the industry right now.
Never would've happened with me in charge.
It was only possible because of you.
You're not going to win me over with obvious sucking up like that.
Once you're done here, you're cleaning the sinks and bathrooms.
That wasn't what I was going for, really.
Also, keep a close eye on that kid.
I know.
It's a difficult time for Ruby, but I—
Not her.
It's Aqua we need to keep an eye on.
He's gonna break down soon.
Hell, he might already have.
The 15-Year Lie
I don't know why, but this feels lacking somehow.
Aqua-kun, will this really help you complete your revenge?
Filming for The 15-Year Lie starts next week.
It's a massive project for Strawberry Pro as a whole.
The day after tomorrow, we have the full read-through and costume checks.
At dawn in four days, we visit the shrine to pray for a hit.
And filming starts in seven days.
We're scheduled to wrap in the third week of August.
The last week is reserved as insurance.
I smell a holiday incoming!
But don't you forget.
We have Kana-chan's graduation concert at the end of August.
We'll be using the reserved days to practice for that.
Uh, about that...
We set up a B-Komachi live tour at the end of the year.
That's where Kana Arima will be graduating.
The heck?
We were all ready to say goodbye!
We got Arima's okay.
I mean, it's not like I have to leave in August.
And we'll all be busy,
so I'd feel bad asking you to make time for my graduation concert.
How was I supposed to refuse when they insisted?
Here stands the most accommodating entertainer of all time.
Pushover doesn't begin to describe her!
Treat yourself better, girl!
Hey, plans never go according to plan.
Hey, Director.
What brings you here today?
Nothing special.
The 15-Year Lie
Final Version
I just brought the final script.
Whoa!
You brought these personally?
Well, our workplaces are nearby.
And paying for a courier would be a waste.
I don't wanna hear about the financial realities of a single man in his 40s.
My name's really on here!
Can I really do this?
Don't worry. You'll do just fine.
Kana-chan!
You've been playing the role of a high schooler all these years, after all.
Those are two very different things!
m 0 0 l 100 0 100 100 0 100
Ai (B-Komachi) Takamiy (B-Komachi) Nino (B-Komachi) Mei-Mei (B-Komachi) Boy A Seijuurou Uehara Airi Himekawa Taiki Himekawa Young Aqua Young Ruby Ichigo Saitou Miyako Saitou Doctor Nurse
Ruby Hoshino Akane Kurokawa Kana Arima MEMcho Aqua Hoshino Taiki Himekawa Frill Shiranui \h \h \h Norio Mita Jan Tomato Melt Narushima Mei Adashino
Huh? There are still some empty spaces in the cast list.
Oh, you're right.
Yeah, those are the kid roles.
We just haven't been able to pencil those in.
It's so hard to find good child actors.
I've been screening them all over the country, but no dice.
They stick out like a sore thumb when you give them lines in a serious movie.
Child actors who can handle long lines with ease are worth their weight in gold.
I know what you mean.
Quality films need child actors as good as me born in the same time frame!
Must suck so hard for this era to have nobody on my level!
Look at her cling to her past glories.
I gotta go looking right after this, too.
Good luck!
You look like you've steeled yourself.
To hurt people, and to be hurt in turn.
Do you have nothing better to do?
You keep showing up to grind my gears.
I'm merely trying to guide you onto the right path toward your fate.
Fate, eh? What are you, a god or something?
Now, that depends on how you people define a "god."
Different question.
Do you have parents? A government ID?
Of course.
This vessel was born of a mother, much like you two.
Do you want to check?
It's just another child's body you'd find anywhere.
Huh.
What?
Listen...
Wanna be a child actor?
Wha?
Episode 35 The Beginning
Translation Sriram Gurunathan Editing & Typesetting Geoff Mazzolini Subtitle Timing Krzysztof Kunc Quality Check Gabriella Alabanza Translation Check Michelle Tymon
Open this when you're 15
...watch this together over drinks.
Surely I won't still be an idol at that age.
Oh, but you two might be.
You're my kids, so it could totally happen.
All that aside,
please grow up healthy, okay?
As your mom, that's my one and only wish.
Whew, that was nerve-racking.
I've always wanted to try out something like this.
Oh, there's that, too.
To Ruby.
I have something to say to you, now that you're all grown up.