Tokyo Bubble Life

Chapter 782 Chapter 790, The snow in Showa 59 came a little early~
The last month of Showa 59 feels very rushed, as if everyone is looking forward to the new year, as if the new year will be twice as good as this year.
Everyone is full of confidence in the future. Perhaps they also feel that Neon is about to enter its golden age!
Shinjuku's shopping streets are constantly changing with all kinds of new products, from the latest BP machines, color TVs, and VCRs to exotic dresses, jewelry, and cosmetics.
It seems like you can buy everything in the world here.
Even though the sky was filled with dark clouds and the cold wind was blowing, Shinjuku's commercial streets were full of pedestrians, walking back and forth looking for their favorite products.

Naoki Nagayama also found some free time and came to Shinjuku to hang out. No, there's no need to find any, he actually has a lot of free time~
"A new game for the Famicom~"

Naoki Nagayama naturally bought an FC console at home, and is now looking for the latest game cartridges at the Nintendo counter. After more than a year of development, Nintendo's games finally look a bit like what he remembered.

"Naoki-san, are you looking for a new game?"

The store manager Zenko Taguchi was already very familiar with Naoki Nagayama. Last year, he recommended new games to him, such as "Donkey Kong Jr" and "Duck Hunt". Knowing that this was a wealthy customer, he also recommended some newly produced game cartridges that were only available for trial play.

"Hi~" Naoki Nagayama nodded, "But it seems that there are no new games at the end of the year~"

"It's the end of the year after all," Taguchi Zenko nodded in agreement, then revealed a cunning smile, "But Naoki-san, I still have some beta versions of new games that I got from the factory in advance."

Generally speaking, these beta game cartridges will be given to veteran players for internal testing, just like the testing or stress testing that later online games will undergo before they are released.

However, Taguchi Zenko chose to reveal it to Naoki Nagayama because
"Okay, okay, I'll pay more!"

Naoki Nagayama shook his head. Although it would take about a month or two to wait for the release, he didn't think it would be a good idea to experience it in advance. After all, he made so much money just to do this kind of thing!

"Hi!"

A smile appeared on Taguchi Zenko's face. People who play games are always short of money, so with this extra money, he could naturally give himself a year-end bonus!
"Naoki-san, this Ice Knocker is a two-player game, and there's also Balloon Wars. It should be on the market at the beginning of the year." Taguchi Zenko took out a few packaged game cartridges from behind the counter and began to introduce them to Naoki Nagayama, "There's also Phoenix Fighter."

After the introduction, he said mysteriously: "I heard that the game that the company boss is very interested in has already achieved initial results and should be released next year."

"what game?"

"It seems to be called "Super Mario", which is an advanced version of "Pipeline Mario."

Ah. This. Naoki Nagayama seemed to be pulled back to his youthful memories. Super Mario is a classic among classics. He was also obsessed with this game once.
"When will Super Mario be released?"

“It’s estimated to be in the second half of the year.”

"Manager Taguchi~" Naoki Nagayama was nostalgic when he heard about this game, so he said, "If you can get it in advance, I won't treat you unfairly!"

"I'm not the kind of person who wants to benefit from this! I asked Naoki-san to test our new game because we hit it off right away and he loves games!" Taguchi Zenyuki said righteously, and then he said with his chest shrugged, "Don't worry, I'll save a copy for Naoki-san as soon as the game comes out!"

"Haha, thank you very much, Manager Taguchi~"

Naoki Nagayama stayed in the store for quite a long time before leaving with a bag of new game cartridges.

Taguchi Zenko, who was inside the store, counted Prince Shotoku and exclaimed, "He is indeed a big fat sheep and a big customer!"

Naoki Nagayama, who got on the train, didn't take the money he spent seriously. The box office share of "Kikujiro's Summer" had already been paid, and Shuyou Capital had also received the first payment from Kadokawa Group.
By the end of the year, he already had tens of billions of dollars in liquid funds! And next year there will be even more
After continuing to stroll around the shopping street for a while and picking out some year-end gifts for his friends, Naoki Nagayama returned home with a very satisfied look on his face.

People who spend money always feel satisfied.
"Yingtaro, you can't miss out either!" Naoki Nagayama took out a rubber bone toy and handed it to the dog jumping around, letting it hold it and play with it.

Miaotaro was speechless looking at the ball of yarn in front of him. This orange cat was no longer old enough to play with this kind of kitten toy!

So he came to Yingtaro with the ball of yarn in his mouth, put it down, and then pushed it with his paw. The ball of yarn rolled past the dog, instantly arousing the silly dog's interest, and he chased it, wagging his tail.

There are two newspapers on the coffee table in the living room.
Above is the list of winners of the Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards and the All Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards.

However, in this era, both of these awards in Japan are biased towards enka, so even though Akina Nakamori's pop songs were a huge success, even a highly sung song like "Snow Flower" did not win the final grand prize.

In fact, the most intense competition this year is "Continuous Flow" by Hibari Misora ​​and "Repayment" by Theresa Dun. One expresses the passing of time, and the other is filled with the sorrows and joys of love, both of which touch the hearts of Japanese people.

In addition, one is a well-established Kansai singer, and the other is a well-known international singer.
So it's only natural that the "All Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards", known as the "Osaka Limited Grand Prize", chose "The Flowing River" by Hibari Misora, while the "Japan Cable Broadcasting Awards", known as the "Tokyo Cable Grand Prize", chose "Repayment" by Theresa Dunn.
Naoki Nagayama's fame as a composer has naturally risen a little bit.

It's just a pity for Akina, who obviously had the influence of the record, but still missed it~
"It seems like I'll have to try harder next year~" Naoki Nagayama shook his head and folded the newspaper.

This kind of selection, which is controlled by the older generation of judges, definitely doesn't like pop songs. This is because of the times.
Turning on the TV, plugging in the Famicom, Naoki Nagayama started playing the new game he had just bought!
Inside the NHK Broadcasting Center, the Red and White Songs Contest is in its final rehearsal. The performance at this time needs to be recorded. If an accident occurs during the live broadcast of the day, then the footage will be activated.
Naturally, Akina Nakamori also arrived at the backstage of the NHK Broadcasting Center early and began to make preparations.

However, this time, because of the presence of so many experienced seniors in the entertainment industry, even the popular Akina Nakamori no longer has the privilege of having her own lounge, and has to share a large lounge with idols of similar status.

Akina looked at the large mirror in front of her, putting on makeup while humming the song "Water Color" that Naoki Nagayama had just composed. The lyrics of this song are simple and casual, like poetry, and are catchy even without musical accompaniment.

"

The scattered petals are like a prank.
It's a letter to a distant cloud.
"

Ishikawa Hidemi, who had been listening for a while, asked curiously, "Akina-chan, what song is this? Why haven't I heard it before?"

"The name of this song is 'Water Color'~" Akina replied with a smile, "It hasn't been released yet!"

"Eh?" Ishikawa Hidemi asked in surprise, "Is this Akina's new song?"

"I haven't decided yet~"

Nakamori Akina shook her head. After the new contract, Akina had more decision-making power over her own albums. The album to be released at the end of the year was "Tears Are Not Decorations". She still wanted a more trendy style for the next albums.
This song "Water Color" is somewhat of a traditional lyrical song. It sounds nice to sing, but it may not be in line with her current style.

"I see~" Ishikawa Hidemi nodded, but she really liked the style of this song, so she asked, "Who is the author of this song?"

Akina smiled, her face full of pride and happiness, "It's Naoki-san~"

"."

Why, why can I still eat dog food here!!
Looking at her friend's smile, Ishikawa Hidemi covered her forehead helplessly: "Sure enough, I shouldn't have asked anyone other than Akina's dear Naoki-san!"

".Himei-chan!"

Akina Nakamori pulled Ishikawa Hidemi's arm and told her not to be so exaggerated, as they were still in the public lounge after all.

"Akina, please sing it again for me." After adjusting her mentality, Ishikawa Hidemi said to Akina. She really liked this song.

".Okay~"

Mingcai didn't hesitate either. She was not teaching the song, but sharing the happiness in her heart!
The public lounge is neither big nor small. In addition to Akina Nakamori, there are also members of the "Flower 82 Group" such as Hori Chiemi, Hayami Yuu, and Koizumi Kyoko.

After hearing the singing here, they paid a little attention, and even the more powerful Matsuda Seiko looked over~
“Another new song.”

Seiko Matsuda is very concerned about this emerging rival, and the agency is also very concerned about the movements of Akina Nakamori. The music circle is so small, it is easy to find out who Ken-On Agency has invited songs from.

So there is only one possibility for a song that suddenly pops up.
"It must be Naoki Nagayama," Matsuda Seiko said with her lips tightly shut, feeling the jealousy welling up in her heart again. "It was obviously me who did it first.
"How come it was snatched away by that fat girl Mingcai at that time?!"

Seiko Matsuda could never understand this point. The past two years were when she was the most youthful and young. Whether in terms of figure or appearance, she was much better than the little fat girl!

Now, this little girl, Akina Nakamori, has grown up to be so pitiful that she is comparable to me~
"Hey~~~"

Matsuda Seiko sighed silently, and thought about her relationship with Go Hiromi. They had quarreled many times recently and almost stopped talking to each other.
We had planned to visit Xiang Guangmei's family during the New Year this year, but I feel like it's unlikely to happen. There's always next year.
Just when Matsuda Seiko was feeling sad about the passing of time, Nakamori Akina had already handed the simple lyrics to Ishikawa Hidemi, and the two of them began to hum softly together.

For a moment, the lounge fell silent as everyone listened to the two humming.

Water Color?

Seiko Matsuda sighed, it seems to be just in line with her current relationship status~
In the afternoon, the weather became increasingly cloudy, even the sunlight was completely blocked out, leaving only scattered light to let people know that it was daytime.

Yingtaro chased the ball of yarn around the courtyard. When he saw that it stopped moving, he took the ball of yarn to the side of Miaotaro and waited for the cat to push the ball of yarn under the eaves again.
Suddenly, the dog holding the ball of yarn stood still in the yard, but raised its head and looked towards the sky.

Suddenly, a piece of snow like cotton wool fell on the tip of the black nose, which felt cold to the touch and then quickly melted under the dog's body temperature.
With an itchy nose, Yingtaro sneezed, and then he realized that more and more white snowflakes were falling from the sky~
"Wow~"

Looking at the dog running to the side, Naoki Nagayama, who was playing games, smiled and said,

"What's wrong? Nyanotaro doesn't want to play with you anymore?"

I just played the game for such a long time, and my body felt a little tired. Naoki Nagayama stretched his body:
"Okay, let your master play with you for a while!"

However, after walking out of the glass partition, Naoki Nagayama discovered the snowflakes that kept falling.
"Snowing!!!"

Naoki Nagayama felt an inexplicable joy and ran to the middle of the courtyard with his dog. He opened his hands to catch the falling snow and watched it melt in his palms.
"Yingtaro, we can make snowmen and have snowball fights tomorrow!"

Naoki Nagayama happily petted the dog and also petted the orange cat next to him. His face was full of smiles.

Seeing the first snowfall, men, women, young and old in Tokyo were all more or less surprised and happy, but in Shuyou's studio, things suddenly became tense.

Sugiyama Toshihiko from the Distribution Department saw the snowflakes from the window, and immediately called Watanabe Eiichiro and started making phone calls.

Watanabe Eiichiro called Dentsu's advertisers, while Sugiyama Toshihiko quickly notified movie theaters in Tokyo.
"It's snowing already! Please put out the posters/advertisements for Love Letter!"

Under the strong organization, the posters of the cinema, the advertisements of the station, and the billboards on the road have all become stills of Akina Nakamori looking up to welcome the falling snow~
With the fall of the first snow, the movie "Love Letter" began its re-screening this year!
At the same time, on the streets of Tokyo, the songs on loop in record stores began to change, and "Snow Flower" began to spread throughout the streets and alleys of Tokyo.

"

Dancing snowflakes
It's raining outside the window

I know it's going downhill (there's no sign of stopping)
Dye our streets white
"

The warm melody and Akina's deep and warm voice appeared in various record stores. Even the recommended records in the stores were changed to "Snow Flower"~
The winter love song will once again echo in the ears of Tokyo residents along with the first snow!

(End of this chapter)