Crossover anime, Hachiman's childhood friend's growth diary

After doing all this, he shut down his computer and left the student council office.

The next morning, Hachiman made up an excuse to come to the student council. Just like yesterday, the students in the office immediately showed disgust when he entered. They left the room as if they had seen something they hated.

"farewell."

Hachiman greeted him quietly. He didn't care what others thought; rather, these guys' spontaneous actions had cleared out a undisturbed area for him.

Once most of the people had left, Hikigaya turned on his computer, opened his email, and checked if he had received any new emails.

"coming."

Hikigaya was slightly nervous when he saw two new emails pop up in his unread inbox.

He patiently read the information following the emails. According to the senders listed there, one email was from Strawberry Production, and the other was from Strawberry Studio.

After hesitating for a moment, Hachiman first opened the email from Ichigo Production.

Thank you for your submission. We have added you to our talent pool and hope to have the opportunity to collaborate again in the future.

"Failed?"

Hachiman browsed through the content, his face showing no sign of disappointment.

Although the email didn't explicitly state this and included many complimentary words, anyone with work experience knows that this is a standard rejection reply.

This is understandable, though. Hachiman only posted a hastily edited dance video, which not only lacked a clear view of the characters' faces, but also, most importantly, presented an unacceptable dance performance.

If this passes, it only means that Ichigo Production's talent scouts are somewhat shrewd.

Dragging the mouse to click the button in the upper right corner, Hachiman continued to open the next email, which immediately aroused his high alert.

Thank you for your submission. Although your dancing is... we see great potential in you. If possible, we would like to have a face-to-face meeting. Here is my phone number...

"...It actually passed?"

After reading the email, Hachiman couldn't hold back and burst out laughing in front of his computer screen.

Fortunately, the other members of the student council had already left, otherwise they might have called for an ambulance if they had seen it.

Gradually, Hachiman stopped smiling and turned his attention back to the email that was both funny and frustrating.

Although he had long suspected that the fake Strawberry Agency was problematic, it was still hard to believe that a video he had casually edited could be used.

Could it be that they're accepting anyone just to make money?

No, probably not.

Recalling the conversation between Koenji and Iji Tomoka last time, Hikigaya understood that the company also had certain criteria when selecting artists, otherwise wouldn't they be able to earn more training fees by signing the entire band?

Hachiman hasn't figured out what the other party is thinking yet, but that doesn't stop him from taking further action.

Since he didn't have a cell phone, Hachiman had to continue contacting the other party via email. In the email, he expressed his desire to debut and inquired in detail about the contract-related compensation.

I thought it would take another day to get a reply, but to my surprise, I received a reply shortly after sending the email.

"If it's convenient, could we arrange a time to meet this Saturday?"

Saturday?

Koenji gave Iji Chisaka a deadline of next Monday, so there's plenty of time.

Thinking about what to reply to, Hachiman continued reading.

In addition to the reply above, the email also included a document at the end, which contained the exact same contract that Ijichi Hoshika had received last time.

To Hikigaya's dismay, the contract still contained information about the previous signatory that hadn't been cleared.

132 A plan that kills two birds with one stone

"If Miss Xingge goes to such a bizarre company, she'll definitely drift further and further away from her dream, right?"

While pondering how to deal with this fake company, Hachiman's first thought was whether he should just call the police.

No, not yet.

Based on the evidence collected so far, at most the actions of Strawberry Productions could be considered as counterfeiting Strawberry Productions, and even if the police are notified, they will not be severely punished.

Ugh, this is such a headache...

Hachiman rubbed his temples and immediately dismissed his previous idea. Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure out how to uncover all the evidence against the Strawberry Agency, he suddenly realized something was wrong.

Wait a minute, was there a problem with my thinking from the very beginning?

Why did he want to punish the other party when all he needed to do was persuade Ijichi Seika not to go to Tokyo?

No, it is not.

If that were all, Ijichi wouldn't have been so conflicted back then. In fact, that child could understand his sister's deepest thoughts, which is why he made the request to her.

In other words, what Hachiman needs to do now is not simply to stop Ijichi Hoshika, but to help her make the right choice while respecting her wishes.

How should I put it? This responsibility is truly heavy...

I really want to give up.

Now that things had come to this, Hikigaya had no room for regret. Realizing that he had to come up with a feasible solution as soon as possible, he took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

Think carefully about what methods can perfectly resolve this situation. Anything that can be used is acceptable, even if it costs me my own life.

After reorganizing his thoughts, a seemingly feasible plan gradually took shape in Hachiman's mind.

However, in order to complete this plan, he must find someone's help and also take another trip to Tokyo.

With these thoughts in mind, Hachiman found the only contact information in his email, then edited a text message and sent it.

...

Saturday, noon, Saizeriya Restaurant.

As it approached lunchtime, the number of customers in the restaurant gradually increased.

Ijichi Hoshika, who had only ordered a matcha coffee, sat in her seat, her mood gradually becoming irritable. Beside her, Nijika, wearing a short dress, poked at her second scoop of ice cream that day with a spoon.

"Hey, won't your stomach feel uncomfortable after eating so much?"

"Ugh?"

After being reminded, Hongxia realized that she had consumed far more cold food than recommended today.

She stared at the ice cream scoop that had only been partially eaten, and somewhat reluctantly pushed it towards Ichichi Seika.

"Then you eat, sister."

"I don't want to eat anything you've eaten."

"cut!"

Hongxia gave a light snort of annoyance, and then, under immense pressure, forced the entire scoop of ice cream into her mouth.

"If you don't eat, then... ouch!"

Her entire chin was so cold it was almost cramping, and Hongxia kept breathing on it, trying to slowly melt the ice cream ball with the warmth of her mouth.

Seeing her younger sister's strange behavior, Ijichi Hoshika sighed and then said:

"Hey Hongxia, if there's nothing else, I'll head back now."

She was dragged out of bed early this morning by her younger sister, who then took her to the family restaurant without saying a word. She thought they had something important to discuss, but nothing unusual happened after half an hour.

"Wait...wait!"

It took Hongxia a lot of effort to swallow that scoop of ice cream:

"Wait a minute, sister. Hachiman said he absolutely had to keep you here this morning."

"So it was that kid's doing?" Ichiji Hoshika frowned deeply. "Are you misunderstanding something? And it's been so long, why hasn't he shown up yet?"

"Will not!"

Hongxia spoke very seriously.

"Anyway, wait here for a moment, sister. Hachiman is probably still making some necessary preparations."

"That's not my concern. I have other things to take care of, so I'll leave now..."

Just as Ichika was about to ignore Nijika's thoughts and leave the restaurant, a familiar figure suddenly walked in from the doorway.

Ah, isn't this Mr. Koenji?

Why is he here?

Didn't I say I'd reply to him next Monday?

Upon encountering the unexpected person, Ijichi Seika's body stiffened, and at that moment, a sudden pressure came from her head.

"Sister, quickly lower your head!"

"what!"

Despite uttering a complaint, Ijichi Hoshika offered no resistance. The two leaned against the edge of the low wall, and perhaps by accident, this position happened to be in Koenji's blind spot.

"Hongxia, what's going on? Did you bring Mr. Koenji here?"

"Ichishika asked in a low voice."

"Ah, that's the talent scout. He doesn't look like a good person at all!"

Hongxia bit her plastic spoon, believing that this bad uncle had bewitched her older sister.

"Don't talk nonsense. Mr. Koenji has never done anything wrong."

"Humph!"

During their conversation, Koenji happened to sit in the seat next to them. Five minutes later, Hikigaya walked into the restaurant with another girl.

Looking up slightly ahead, Ijichi Hoshika froze on the spot.

What's going on? What's happening now?

Hikigaya and the pink-haired girl seemed to be looking for Koenji, and the two sat side by side in the seats in front of Koenji.

"Hello, I am Honami Ichinose."

The pink-haired girl introduced herself and then affectionately placed her hand on Hachiman's shoulder, causing him to wriggle slightly in embarrassment.

"This is my younger brother. He just got out of school, so I brought him along. Is that alright?"

"No no."

Koenji waved and then took a business card out of his jacket pocket.

"Let me introduce myself again. I am Koenji from Strawberry Studio. This is my business card."

He neatly handed over his business card. Ichinose Honami glanced at Hachiman imperceptibly, then pretended to examine the contents of the card, before letting out a surprised sound after a moment:

"Sigh, this company... Mr. Koenji, are you really the president of the famous Strawberry Agency?"

"Of course."

Koenji straightened his suit, as if to show the other person the composure and maturity unique to adults.

but.

For some reason, Koenji felt a strange sense of unease, as if there was something wrong with what Ichinose Honami had said.

By the way, the other party was the one who proactively sent the video to my email. Logically, I should have known my identity. Why am I only lamenting this now...?

133 The real idol

Before he could think further, his thoughts were interrupted by a cold voice from the side:

"Mr. Koenji, Ichinose... My older sister has always longed for idol activities since she was a child. After learning about your company, she secretly sent you a video without telling our parents."

Upon hearing this, Koenji raised an eyebrow, seemingly gleaning some crucial information from the brat's words.

...Are you hiding it from your parents?

If the family doesn't agree, how can this child afford the tuition fees?

Their company isn't a real talent agency, so there's no way they'd take in homeless kids like that. Thinking about this, Koenji's smile turned somewhat bitter.

"Hachiman!"

Noticing the change in the other person's expression, Ichinose Honami quickly covered Hikigaya's mouth, then gave a slightly apologetic smile: