My daily life with the original diva

After finishing the song, when he returned to his seat, he saw Seiko Matsuda and Naoko Kawai seemingly discussing something. When they saw him return, they chuckled, leaving Hiroshi Kimura completely bewildered.

Soon, Kimura Hiroshi found out what the two women were discussing. Near the end of the program, the two hosts talked about the wedding of the sumo family. Then, the three of them walked out amidst a shower of flowers and a wedding atmosphere and began to sing wedding celebration songs.

But as he sang, Kimura Hiroshi felt something was wrong. The two female idols standing on either side of him were getting closer and closer to him, almost sandwiching him in the middle. Then he felt his arms being linked, one on each side, and the three of them were singing passionately like a couple.

At this moment, Hiroshi Kimura felt a mix of panic and excitement. He was panicked because he had been ambushed by two female idols, and if his girlfriend saw this, he would probably be in for a real beating.

Chapter 208 The Scent of Conspiracy

Over the next few days, Hiroshi Kimura continued his promotional tour for his new single with a mix of trepidation and excitement. He was always a little nervous when he called Akina Nakamori every day, fearing that she might be angry and hold a grudge if she saw the episode of Night HIT. In the end, Akina Nakamori didn't react at all.

Because she simply didn't have time to watch this episode of Night HIT, she was currently busy participating in a variety show called All-Star Games, which required intense exercise every day, as well as recording her new album, which was scheduled for release in October around the same time as Hiro Kimura's. This left her with no desire to stay up late to watch TV; she would almost always go back to call Hiro Kimura, then take a shower and fall asleep immediately.

It was truly a stroke of luck that Kimura Hirota breathed a sigh of relief. In this era, if a program wasn't rebroadcast, it wouldn't be easy to see that episode again. Unlike in later years, program clips would spread all over the internet, making it extremely difficult to avoid seeing them. He had successfully escaped a disaster.

Even if he is discovered, it doesn't matter. After all, he is the victim in this matter. Although he felt a little bit of enjoyment at the time, he was the one who was attacked. Even if he is discovered, he is the one who has a reason to be in the wrong.

Having escaped unscathed, Hiroshi Kimura began to focus entirely on promoting his new song, making the most of newspapers, magazines, radio, and television programs. After several days of hype, his new single, "Love Will Conquer All," topped the cable music charts, gaining immense popularity and receiving positive feedback from listeners. It seemed that everyone had gotten used to his constant changes in style.

Given how popular Hiroshi Kimura is this year, he has a chance to top the cable music charts as soon as he releases a single, as long as the songs aren't unbearably bad. After all, his fan base is definitely the largest among all idol singers, and their song requests can propel him to the top.

And unusually, the media outlets that usually don't have a good relationship with him didn't say anything bad about him this time. Most of them just briefly mentioned that he was going to release a new single. Only a few media outlets made a few sarcastic remarks, which made Kimura Hiroshi feel very happy.

"It's really rare. These media outlets have finally learned their lesson. I thought they would all jump out and say something this time, like how the melody of my song is so simple, and whether I've run out of ideas. But they didn't say anything at all." Kimura Hiroshi said happily as he flipped through the media reports from the past few days.

Yukio Tomioka, who was summarizing the latest promotional information, was not so optimistic. He said, "The previous reports have greatly reduced readers' trust in them. Now they dare not do it anymore, but it is impossible to expect the media to learn their lesson. Perhaps they are all waiting for Kimura-san to really fail once, and then they will definitely swarm in."

"That's true. Given the arrogance of the media, having suffered so many losses at my hands before, they certainly won't give up so easily. But if they want to wait for me to fail, then let them wait and see," Kimura Hiroshi said confidently.

As he spoke, Kimura Hiroshi continued to browse through the reports. Soon, his good mood vanished because he discovered that many media outlets were reporting on Kondo Masahiko's new single, and many of these reports seemed to be press releases, filled with unanimous praise, saying how well he sang his new single "Taishō" and how charming it was.

At first, he thought it was just some press releases bought by Johnny's and didn't take it seriously. But the more he looked, the more he found, and he realized that something was wrong because there were just too many of them.

"Mr. Tomioka, has Masahiko Kondo been quite active lately?" Hiroshi Kimura asked, pretending not to care.

"Ah, yes, Johnny's seems to have used a lot of resources recently. He's been appearing on various shows frequently, and the offline media promotion hasn't stopped. It seems that Johnny's still unwilling to give up on this former top idol. However, once his popularity fades, no matter how much they invest, it's probably useless. Johnny's is probably just wasting their time," Yukio Tomioka said nonchalantly.

Putting down the entertainment newspaper in his hand, Kimura Hiroshi replied thoughtfully, "Is that so?"

He had a feeling that something was off. It was possible that Mary didn't want to give up on Kondo Masahiko, but since Kondo Masahiko was also releasing a single when he was releasing his own, and Kimura Hiro was very confident in his popularity, Johnny's was going to go head-to-head with him. No matter how many resources they invested, it would probably be less effective.

After all, his single releases attract the most attention, while others receive far less attention. Releasing a single at the same time as him is counterproductive and could result in a huge waste of resources. If the goal is simply to revive his popularity, there's no need to do this unless there's another motive.

"If someone releases their album at the same time as me, and can surpass me, then they can step on me to get ahead, right? The first male idol to beat me? And then use the media to create hype, making it seem like they're super popular, the first male idol to beat me, that's a huge topic, but how can that guy's sales compare to mine?"

At this moment, Hiroshi Kimura had a rough idea of ​​Johnny's plan: to defeat him. This would indeed make Masahiko Kondo popular for a while, but was that all? He felt that after several failures, this attack by Mary might not be so simple, and he didn't know how Masahiko Kondo's record sales could compare to his.

He sensed a conspiracy, but he had no idea what the conspiracy was really like. After all, he wasn't Masahiko Kondo, who was always glued to Mary's body.

"Mr. Tomioka, could you please ask your friends in the media to help keep an eye on the recent sales of Masahiko Kondo's records, especially those stores that import large quantities of his records?" Hiroshi Kimura suddenly said to Yukio Tomioka.

Tomioka Yukio was a little confused by this request and asked curiously, "Hey, Kimura-san, why are you keeping an eye on him? A year ago, he might have been able to compete with you, but now, no matter how much publicity he does, he's probably no match for you."

"Yes, he's definitely no match for me, but I'm afraid someone might use some means to let him surpass me, like sending someone out to buy a bunch of his records?" Kimura Hiroshi felt that there was only one way to surpass him in record sales, and that was to buy them himself.

"Sigh, how could that be, Kimura-san? Doing this won't do any good. It can only maintain sales temporarily. People who won't buy it afterward still won't buy it. This won't help you become famous at all." Tomioka Yukio was even more confused. It's not that no one has done this kind of hype before, but the investment is too big and the return is pitifully small. If you're not famous, you're still not famous.

Standing up, Kimura Hiroshi said, "Perhaps the other party doesn't want him to continue to be popular, but has other purposes, such as suppressing me. As long as this first wave is successful, there will probably be many more to follow. Let's not worry about that. Mr. Tomioka, please ask someone to do it."

Confused, Yukio Tomioka knew that there was a big conflict of interest between Hiroshi Kimura and Johnny's Entertainment, after all, the other party was famous for male idols. Hiroshi Kimura's appearance had shaken up the male idol market. But was it a case of paying such a high price for him to lose?

He didn't say much, replying, "Okay, Kimura-san, I'll immediately inform my friends in the media and have them keep an eye on stores that stock large quantities of Kondo Masahiko's records when they're released."

"Yes, thank you for your trouble, Mr. Tomioka." Kimura Hiroshi finally felt a little relieved, but he still couldn't be sure what would happen.

He disliked this feeling; he was always on the defensive and in a passive position. But if he wanted to take the initiative to attack, he could only use the same method as last time: to buy information from those middlemen. But that was too dangerous, and he couldn't make up his mind.

"Kimura-san, Mr. Fukada is calling and would like you to come and answer the phone." Just as he was pondering this, his young assistant, Ms. Miko, walked into the office and said.

"Okay, I'm coming, thank you, Ms. Miko." Kimura Hiroshi snapped out of his thoughts and quickly went outside to answer the phone.

After answering the phone, he had barely said hello when Fukada Yuya's excited voice came from the other end, "Kimura-san, do you know? Your movie is a huge hit in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia! Haha, we did it! After more than a decade of decline, Japanese films have finally made a comeback! You are truly amazing, Kimura-san."

"Really? That's really good news! It seems Fukada-san's position is even more secure now." Kimura Hiroshi was also very happy to hear this news.

Across from him, Yuya Fukada laughed heartily and said, "Haha, that's for sure. I look forward to Kimura-san having even better movies. I definitely won't let Kimura-san suffer then. By the way, this matter will be on the news of various TV stations. I will make them emphasize Kimura-san. Kimura-san will definitely make all Japanese people proud."

Kimura Hiroshi didn't care much about this, but it would certainly boost his fame and greatly help his future development. He was about to thank him when a thought flashed through his mind, and he said to Fukada Yuya, "I am very grateful to Fukada-san, but I would like to ask Fukada-san for a favor. Could the news be broadcast five days later?"

"Sigh, why do this? Wouldn't it have been better to broadcast it sooner?" Yuya Fukada asked curiously.

"Hehe, there are some people I need to deal with, but it's not convenient for Fukada-san to say. However, please do help me out," Kimura Hiroshi requested.

This was a small matter, and Fukada Yuya naturally had no reason to refuse. He said, "Alright, I'm happy to be able to help Kimura-san. Let's delay the news by five days. I wish Kimura-san a great victory."

"Well, thank you Fukada-san. We'll have an even more pleasant collaboration in the future." Since the other party was willing to help, Kimura Hiroshi naturally wanted to give him a little something in return, and the collaboration would continue.

Chapter 209 Another Crisis

After days of intensive promotion, on September 15th, Hiroshi Kimura's latest single, "Love Will Conquer All," was released and went on sale on time. As expected of the hottest male idol right now, the new single immediately became a bestseller upon release.

Although the rhythm and lyrics of this song are very simple, those who have heard it, whether they are young people who are Kimura Hiroshi's main fans or older people, all think it is very good. In particular, Kimura Hiroshi's clear pronunciation and powerful singing style made them feel the power that the song wanted to convey: the power of love will overcome everything.

On its first day of release, sales exceeded 60,000 copies, reaching 67,000. This sales figure is only average among all of Hiroshi Kimura's singles. However, both Ken-On and Warner Music expressed their satisfaction, because based on this sales volume, the album should be able to sell over a million copies.

As Hiroshi Kimura said, the record market is shrinking, and they can clearly feel it. So, selling 67,000 copies on the first day is already a very good sales figure. It is impossible to expect Hiroshi Kimura to maintain the kind of super sales that used to break 100,000 copies a day.

However, things don't always go smoothly. Just one day after Hiroshi Kimura's new single was released, Masahiko Kondo's new single "Taishō" was also released. It was obvious to everyone that this was a challenge to Hiroshi Kimura.

However, most people feel that the two are not comparable, because Hiroshi Kimura is now extremely popular. Whether it is his records or the movies he starred in, he is in a class of his own. In contrast, since the scandal broke last year, Masahiko Kondo has been steadily declining in popularity. Whether it is his singles or movies, they have all faded away completely.

However, the record sales figures for that day surprised everyone. Johnny & Associates announced that "Taishō" sold 82,000 copies that day, while Ken-On did not disclose the sales figures for Kimura Hiroshi's new single. However, information obtained by reporters from various sources indicated that the sales figures were likely around 62,000 copies.

Seemingly sensing something amiss, the next day, numerous entertainment newspapers and magazines featured headlines using almost the same rhetoric.

"Completely crushed, popular male idol Hiroshi Kimura is no match for washed-up male idol Masahiko Kondo?"

"Masahiko Kondo has made a comeback, surpassing the most popular male idol, Hiroshi Kimura."

"Hiro Kimura's dominance is waning, and he is about to fall from grace."

The media's reaction was so quick, and they followed up immediately. Anyone with a brain can see that someone is behind this. As for who it is, industry insiders can tell it's Johnny's Entertainment.

It seems the media really seized the opportunity this time. On the third day, Masahiko Kondo's record sales exceeded 70,000, while Hiroshi Kimura's record sales had fallen below 60,000, reaching only 58,000 copies. It seems that Masahiko Kondo has really become a big hit and is about to completely suppress Hiroshi Kimura.

The media, which already disliked Hiroshi Kimura, suddenly went into a frenzy. As if they had finally seized an opportunity, they began to analyze why Masahiko Kondo's "Taishō" could surpass Hiroshi Kimura's "Aijō Tōsen" (Love Will Conquer All), basically belittling the new single as if it were the worst single in the world.

At Johnny's, Mary looked at the media reports, very satisfied with her masterpiece. Looking at Kondo Masahiko next to her, who had an almost ferocious smile and was flushed with excitement, she said in a slightly contemptuous tone, "How about it, Masahiko, do you feel my power? I can easily make you popular again, and I can easily suppress a popular idol. That's my power."

Kondo Masahiko clutched the newspaper praising him tightly in his hand, overjoyed. He hadn't felt such praise from the media in a long time, and he almost fanatically loved the feeling.

After becoming famous immediately upon his debut, he was surrounded by praise. Almost all his peers would fawn over him and flatter him. He felt like he was floating on air. He loved the feeling of being flattered by everyone. He was infatuated with that feeling. He hadn't enjoyed it since last summer, but now it seemed like that feeling was about to return.

"Mom, you're amazing! I'll always be your son." Kondo Masahiko, having witnessed Mary's prowess, excitedly grabbed her arm and said.

Having suffered repeated setbacks at Kimura Hiroshi's hands, Mary was now finally able to suppress him for the first time, and she was extremely excited. Although she had actually paid a lot of price to achieve this situation, she didn't care. Now she just wanted to defeat Kimura Hiroshi and let the entire entertainment industry know that she still had influence.

With a smile still on her face, Mary reached out and touched Kondo Masahiko's chest, pretending it was a trivial matter, and said, "This is just the beginning. Right now, we're just belittling his new single. Next, we'll talk about his songwriting ability, then his character, and finally, we'll fabricate some scandals about him, preferably about his relationships with women. People are always like that; once they've confirmed that the earlier things are true, they easily believe that the later things are also true. By then, it will be too late for him to clarify, and his fans will all leave him."

Hearing Mary's plan, Kondo Masahiko was overjoyed and grabbed Mary's hand, asking, "Really, Mom? This time, will we definitely be able to completely shut that Kimura kid down?"

"Of course it's true, but I paid a heavy price for doing this. My son, how do you plan to repay me?" Mary was also very excited at the thought of killing an enemy. This pleasure aroused her desires, and she began to think about some exciting activities.

This time she really put in a lot of effort, including media resources and a lot of money. After all, Masahiko Kondo didn't really become popular. Although the extremely high-intensity promotion boosted record sales, most of the records were bought by people she had asked to buy. Masahiko Kondo is really finished. Without representative works, it's impossible to become popular again just by promotion.

On the fourth day, Masahiko Kondo's new single sales continued to outsell Hiroshi Kimura's, with 68,000 copies to 54,000, marking the fourth consecutive day of dominance.

The media was even more delighted. They started talking not only about the problems with Hiroshi Kimura's songs, but also about his declining talent. Some even questioned whether he had been busy interacting with many female idols, which led to a decrease in his creative energy.

They even released photos of him intimately embracing Seiko Matsuda and Naoko Kawai while singing a wedding blessing song on the night HIT program that day, as evidence.

Kenon and Hanami Kaku noticed the shift in public opinion after reading recent media reports, so they quickly called Terahina Akira, Kimura Hiroshi, and Tomioka Yukio together for a meeting.

He said with a very serious expression, "It seems like Johnny's is targeting you, Kimura-san. Right now, Kondo Masahiko's record sales are consistently behind yours. Shouldn't you step up your promotions?"

However, Kimura Hiroshi did not receive an answer to his question. Turning his head, he saw Kimura Hiroshi looking at the entertainment newspaper in his hand with a panicked expression. Hanami Kagami had never seen such an expression on Kimura Hiroshi's face before, not even during the last ghostwriting incident. Was he really scared this time?

"Kimura-san, don't be afraid. You strengthen the publicity efforts, and I will use all my strength to fight this crisis." Hanami Kaku expressed his support for Kimura Hiroshi and said he would do his part.

Hiroshi Kimura suddenly stood up, pointing at the large photos on the newspaper and demanding, "What's going on? Why did these media outlets get hold of the photos from the program?"

Everyone present looked at the photos. In the photos were three people: Hiroshi Kimura in the middle, Naoko Kawai on the left, and Seiko Matsuda on the right. The three of them were singing intimately, and the atmosphere was ambiguous. This was one of the pieces of evidence that the media had cited as evidence that Hiroshi Kimura had been busy interacting with various female idols recently, resulting in a decline in his talent.

Why is Kimura Hiroshi so nervous about this photo? These are minor issues, right? Terabayashi Akira said with a serious expression, "Kimura-san, these photos are easy for the media to obtain from the program staff if they have any connections. These are minor matters. What we need to focus on is the current crisis."

"Damn it, is this even possible? This is outrageous!" Kimura Hiroshi exclaimed in his native language. He had thought he could escape this mess, but it still came out in the end. With so many media reports, Nakamori Akina would definitely see it. Should he take the initiative to admit his mistake now?

But it doesn't seem to be his fault, so why should he admit it?

Those present had no idea what Kimura Hiroshi had said, and they looked at each other in confusion, thinking that he was just talking nonsense because he was angry.

"Kimura-san, are you alright?" Yukio Tomioka asked with some concern.

"It's alright. Those program crew members are just so unprofessional. Okay, let's not talk about this anymore. By the way, don't worry about the media reports. Everything will be over by tomorrow. Oh, and this afternoon, NHK, Fuji TV, TBS TV, and TV Asahi are sending reporters to interview me. I'll give the interviews in the conference room." Kimura Hiroshi said casually.

Now everyone present was even more confused. Hanami asked, "Interview? Why are these TV stations interviewing Kimura-san?"

"Hehe, I've recently gained some international fame, so they're coming to interview me. You'll see on NHK's news tonight. Okay, I'm going out now. I need to think about how to appease my girlfriend." With that, Kimura Hiroshi left the meeting room with a worried look on his face.

The people still in the meeting room were dumbfounded. What the hell? Such a serious crisis was less important than coaxing their girlfriends?

Chapter 210 A Frenzied Slap in the Face

The excessive media attention has led to the recent sales battle between Hiroshi Kimura and Masahiko Kondo's new singles becoming the most talked-about and hottest topic in the entertainment industry. Many entertainment media outlets are making headlines about this, but most of them are belittling Hiroshi Kimura and praising Masahiko Kondo.

Ordinary onlookers have become accustomed to this, and these media outlets have never said a good word about Kimura Hiroshi. The only time they praised him before was when they tried to encourage him to develop his career on the other side of the Pacific Ocean, but Kimura Hiroshi directly refused. After that, they went back to their original ways, continuing to be sarcastic or directly belittle him.

After watching the spectacle for a few days, many ordinary onlookers lost interest, because newspapers and magazines were full of articles praising Masahiko Kondo and criticizing Hiroshi Kimura. Neither Ken-On nor Hiroshi Kimura seemed to be able to retaliate, and even the major media outlets that usually spoke well of Hiroshi Kimura did not offer any support for him.

That's a bit boring. What everyone wants to see is a back-and-forth battle, like the sales war between Akina Nakamori and Seiko Matsuda. If your previous album sold more than mine, then my next album might surpass yours. This makes people very eager to see the outcome of the next battle, and the anticipation is at its peak.

Instead of the current situation where one side seems to be relentlessly attacking with high intensity, while the other side seems completely unaware of the situation, showing no reaction or any sign of retaliation, it would be very boring. Many people are speculating that Ken-On is afraid of Johnny's, so he chooses to do nothing.

Faced with the current situation, the most anxious people are not the general public who are ready to enjoy the gossip, nor the Ken-On agency and Hiroshi Kimura who are at a complete disadvantage, but Hiroshi Kimura's fans. It's like some celebrities in later years competing for rankings. The most anxious people are not the celebrities themselves, but their fans. Once they fall behind, they are really anxious.

As a super fan who had met with Hiro Kimura alone, Yumi Maeda paid close attention to the sales battle hyped up in the media these days. Seeing that Hiro Kimura was lagging behind for four consecutive days, she was extremely anxious. She not only mobilized the fans and music lovers around her to buy Hiro Kimura's singles, but also spent most of her pocket money to buy ten copies of Hiro Kimura's new single.

However, their small efforts were clearly insufficient, and despite their hard work, they saw that Ken-On, where Kimura Hiroshi worked, was completely inactive in this matter, which infuriated her.

They organized numerous fans to write autographed letters and call Ken-On, demanding that they immediately produce items to support their idol, Hiroshi Kimura. Unfortunately, all their efforts were in vain, and there was no large-scale media coverage of Hiroshi Kimura.

Feeling depressed, Maeda Yumi returned home and shut herself in her room. She considered asking her best friend, Kamachi Sachiko, for that private phone number and calling to find out what was going on. However, she knew that the number was extremely important to Kamachi Sachiko and couldn't be called casually, so she couldn't make up her mind to call and see.