Tokyo: The evil god doesn't want to be the top star

Inside the house, Xia Fan, holding a mop, turned around expressionlessly.

"They cleaned so quickly and so thoroughly...are all those work-study experiences on my resume real?"

"It's over, it's all over. Old man Kishimoto hates it most when others touch his things, but he always forgets to lock the door..."

Gazing at the room with shiny mahogany tables and chairs, and materials, books, and musical instruments all sorted and organized, Yamazaki Hiroshi and Tsuchiouchi were horrified and began to feel their minds become blurred.

The owner of this studio is Yoshihiro Kishimoto, a national treasure-level music producer who has produced classic songs such as "Romantic Bridge", "The Sun", and "Mimosa". He is still very productive at the age of 70 and is known as the "pillar of Company B".

With the retirement age in District 11 being extended indefinitely and the trend evolving from "craftsman spirit" to "immortal culture", it is no exaggeration for Yoshihiro Kishimoto to be called the "music immortal".

Since reaching the retirement age of 70 last year, Yoshihiro Kishimoto has been coming to the company on a monthly basis.

However, he strictly forbade anyone to clean this studio that had been used for decades, claiming that doing so would affect his creative inspiration.

There was once a new cleaner who accidentally moved a money tree from the room, which caused him to become furious and he didn't produce a new song for a whole year.

Yamazaki often complained in private that Kishimoto was old and had amnesia, and that was why he didn't let people touch the things because he was afraid he couldn't find them.

"It's okay. I have the original video of the last studio interview saved there. I should be able to restore it roughly the same as before."

With a flash of inspiration, Hiroshi Yamazaki came up with a solution to the problem.

"Teacher Kishimoto injured his waist while 'going out to collect materials' a few days ago. He probably won't be here in the near future. We still have enough time to recover..."

At the same time, a figure suddenly appeared at the end of the corridor, causing his chin to stretch, his cheeks to concave, and an expression of seeing a ghost.

"Teacher…Kishimoto?!!!!"

Yoshihiro Kishimoto, wearing a brown kimono, cloth shoes, and with white hair and beard, was walking towards his studio carefully holding a pot of blooming cherry blossoms.

"Mr. Kishimoto, how come you have time to come here today? This pot of flowers looks heavy. Let me help you carry it."

Driven by the desire to survive, Yamazaki Hiroshi trotted forward, pretending to be flattering, secretly blocking Master Kishimoto's path.

"My back has gotten better recently, and I happened to hear a rare good song, which gave me some creative inspiration, so I came to the studio to sit down."

"Take your hands off me. This is a weeping Fuji cherry bonsai that I paid a lot of money for. You can't afford to pay for it if you damage it."

Master Kishimoto protected the bonsai like a treasure and pushed Yamazaki Yamazaki away with a look of disgust.

"Um, Xia Jun... I wanted to have a good chat with you today, but I suddenly remembered that I have something else to do. I look forward to your new song!"

Taking this opportunity, Tongkou Jinao put two fingers together and made a heart shape with them, greeted Xia Fan with a cold expression, and quickly disappeared to the other end of the corridor.

"Okay, thank you...By the way, who is this person?"

Only Xia Fan, with a confused look on his face, was left in the room.

"Teacher Kishimoto, you haven't been here for a long time. Why don't you come to my office and have a cup of tea? The director of communication is here too... bullshit!"

"Minister of Communications, where is that person? He was here just now? Damn it, he actually took advantage of the chaos and ran away!"

Until this moment, Hiroshi Yamazaki, who was still trying hard to slow down Master Kishimoto's pace, finally realized the fact that he was abandoned, and his voice broke with despair.

"What's the point of going to your crappy office? Don't get in the way here."

"Wait, who opened my room? Didn't I tell the cleaner not to go in?"

Yoshihiro Kishimoto walked to the door, his eyes passed over a certain "cleaner" and fell into the brand new room...

Chapter 27: Parting and Reunion

2024-07-13

"This room... my patinated tea set... my random inspiration notes... my unfinished books... my tea leaves sorted by their best-ever dates... it's a mess, everything is a mess..."

Scanning the neatly organized yet extremely unfamiliar rooms one by one, Yoshihiro Kishimoto's pupils trembled, and he muttered to himself, petrified on the spot.

"Well, I'm very sorry. I didn't know that this room couldn't be cleaned. I saw that the door was not locked, so I just..."

Seeing the clue, Xia Fan scratched his head apologetically and reflected honestly.

He has been working as a helper in his family's restaurant since he was young, and later he often worked part-time. In his spare time, he also likes to watch "speed bumps for men" videos such as cleaning dirt and refurbishing old things. Cleaning is one of his "little hobbies" to relieve stress.

I joined the composition department today and started cleaning from my own workstation, but I didn't expect to get too immersed in it and ended up cleaning all the way to the studio area.

When he found this unlocked studio full of dust and mess, he felt like he had found a treasure and did a "deep clean" with excessive force. Only then did he realize that this was impolite.

"Asshole, apologies are useful, what do we need the police for..."

“What you cleaned away was not the dust in the room, but my precious inspiration and memories!”

Yoshihiro Kishimoto's body was shaking, and his hair and beard were moving without wind, like a human bomb that could explode at any time.

"Master Kishimoto, it's all because of Xia Fan. He acted on his own initiative on his first day at work!"

"Although I did ask him to clean up, it was just a casual remark and I didn't take it seriously. Most importantly, I blame him for not mentioning that he was the 'descended person' who wrote 'Sakura'..."

The truth was revealed, the boss ran away, and Yamazaki Hiroshi's mind was in a mess.

He explained in a nonsensical manner, just wanting to throw the blame away based on his "survival instinct in the workplace".

"Wait, that's..."

The angry Yoshihiro Kishimoto suddenly noticed that after the clutter on the desk was tidied away, a white vertical photo frame was put back in place.

The clean photo shows a woman wearing a kimono, with a dignified face and a smiling expression.

"Aiko."

The world in front of Yoshihiro Kishimoto's eyes suddenly became hazy with tears, and his hands trembled weakly...

The blooming Fuji Weeping Cherry tree just fell to the ground.

"I still remember the approximate location of the things. If possible, let me restore them and forgive my sins, okay?"

Xia Fan reacted very quickly, snatched the precious bonsai in mid-air and handed it back to Yoshihiro Kishimoto.

"Aiko... Sakura... I'm sorry, I lost my composure earlier."

Gazing at the cherry blossoms that had been lost and found again, Yoshihiro Kishimoto took a deep breath and calmed down.

"You are... By the way, Yamazaki just said that you are the one who wrote "Sakura", the one who 'descended to the earth'?"

Ignoring Section Chief Yamazaki's noisy accusations, he looked up and faced the young man in front of him.

"Although it has nothing to do with cleaning, it is true that I wrote Sakura."

Xia Fan nodded respectfully.

"Is this God's will?"

His eyes, as deep as the sea of ​​stars, made Yoshihiro Kishimoto subconsciously feel close to him.

"You two, sit down and have a cup of tea first."

Yoshihiro Kishimoto took the bonsai and walked into the room.

……

The kettle on the tea table was gurgling and emitting white smoke, adding a touch of warm homely atmosphere to the cold studio.

"In fact, as early as ten years ago, I had been planning to write a final work and then announce my retirement."

"But, ever since my beloved son passed away five years ago, I have lost all my inspiration due to excessive grief, and can only hang out in the fireworks place every day to numb the pain and loneliness in my heart. In the past few years, although I have written a lot of songs, they are only mediocre works, far from the standard of "final works". "

"My whole life, Aizi has taken care of my life, including cleaning up the studio. So after she passed away, I never had the courage to tidy up this room, and I didn't want anyone else to touch it."

Put the matcha powder into a bowl, add boiling water, pick up the tea whisk, and stir slowly and forcefully.

"Yesterday, my old friend Keizo Horie recommended a new song to me called "Sakura". When I first listened to it, I suddenly clearly recalled the scene when I said goodbye to my son under the cherry tree before going abroad to study when I was young..."

“The enthusiastic market response to Sakura was a wake-up call. I have been so high and mighty for so long that I have forgotten my original intention when I composed my first song, and have also strayed away from those simple, rustic and beautiful things.”

Xia Fan and Yamazaki sat on both sides, watching the green tea foam up little by little and listening quietly.

"Later, I asked around and found out that this song, 'Sakura', was actually written by a newcomer named 'Xia Fan', and it just happened to fill in the gap of the song that Dong Ye kid asked me to write. And today, it just so happened that you accidentally tidied up the studio that I had been afraid to start."

"I think this must be the spirit of my beloved son in heaven, reminding me through you not to indulge myself in the grief of separation and fail her expectations of me."

"I am old, and next is the era of young people. I am very optimistic about your talent."

Yoshihiro Kishimoto smiled and handed the first bowl of brewed tea to Xia Fan.

"Thank you... If your wife were still alive, she would be very happy to know that Master Kishimoto had figured out all this."

Xia Fan took the tea bowl with both hands, turned it 90 degrees clockwise, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Yes, I have decided. I must cheer up! After separation, we will meet again. No matter how many years are left in my life, I will continue to move forward seriously."

"Until the last day, I will meet her in the underworld with my head held high, carrying that 'final work'. Just like what you sang in your song 'Sakura'..."

Yoshihiro Kishimoto picked up a guitar from the side and strummed the chords.

"I have been waiting for the day when I can meet you again."

"On the road where the cherry blossoms are dancing, I wave to you and call out your name."

Yoshihiro Kishimoto's weathered and deep voice echoed in the studio, giving "Sakura" a different flavor.

"Because no matter how painful it was, you always smiled like that."

"It makes me feel that no matter what setbacks I encounter, I can continue to work hard..."

The breeze, carrying the sound of song, caresses the weeping cherry trees of Fuji, scattering pink petals onto the white photo frame nearby, highlighting the smile of the person in the painting.

……

"Although Mr. Kishimoto was so busy singing that he forgot to make tea for me, it's great that the knot he had been holding for so many years has finally been untied."

After leaving Yoshihiro Kishimoto's studio, Section Chief Yamazaki sighed.

"Music really has the power to transcend language, transcend national boundaries and age, and touch people's hearts with emotion..."

“Maybe one day, I can write a song like this on my own?”

Xia Fan, who was standing next to him, also had a look of emotion on his face.

When he was diagnosed with brain cancer, he still insisted on studying and chose to enter the Department of Music of Tokyo University of the Arts. Naturally, he had a great passion for music creation and dreamed that one day he would be able to create beautiful works.

"You kid..."

Remembering something, Yamazaki looked at Xia Fan with complicated eyes.

Chapter 28: Cursed Blade Animation Theme Song

2024-07-13

"Why didn't you tell me earlier that you were the one who wrote "Sakura" and came to earth?"

Although Master Kishimoto has been in the company for so many years, he has never shown the same respect for other producers as he does for Xia Fan.

But when he thought about how this kid's careless cleaning almost angered Master Kishimoto and brought trouble upon himself, Yamazaki became furious again.

“You didn’t ask me during the interview.”

Xia Fan answered as a matter of course.

"Sakura" originated from the earth and was bestowed by the evil god, so he has no subconscious awareness of being the "author" and will not mention this work all the time.

"Don't think you can be complacent just because you wrote a hit song. For a music producer, the most important thing is to continuously produce high-quality works."

"The trend of music changes rapidly. If you don't produce better works in the future, the market will soon forget you. Many years later, "Sakura" will only become the 'tears of the times'."

Yamazaki Hiroshi started preaching as usual, just like the school dean.

"Well, I will study hard and try to write good works. I am very interested in animation music recently. If there is any related work, please let me participate in the study."

Xia Fan nodded calmly, thinking of the matter of "Red Lotus", and made another request.

"Animation... young people nowadays really like these two-dimensional things... No wonder they say that the sharp 'samurai sword' has turned into a limp 'light stick'."

"It just so happens that I'm going to call an impromptu department meeting about animation music. I'll ask you to come and sit in."

Yamazaki Hiroshi looked at Xia Fan suspiciously and sent an agenda to Xia Fan from LINE.

……

Company B, Music Department, Meeting Room.

"Ahem, I'm calling you all here for this meeting today. The topic is about the theme song customization business for the animated film Cursed Blade that our department has undertaken."

"More than ten songs were sent to the production team a month ago for selection..."