I live my life in Tokyo

"Well, although I really want to start playing together right away, I have to introduce two people to you today--"

Yuma Miura opened the door and said, "Excuse me."

Sakakibara Kaede followed Miura Yuma into the ensemble room, and watched those pairs of eyes gradually turn from unfamiliarity and confusion to surprise and unexpectedness. He nodded and smiled friendly.

"You two should be familiar with each other. They are both members of the popular band World Shining. Miura-san is a graduate of Tokyo College of Music and a professional percussionist. Sakakibara-kun is a student at the University of Tokyo and a guitarist and lead singer. I asked them to come and guide everyone during the summer vacation."

There was a moment of silence in the ensemble room, then it exploded.

"Eh?!"

Chapter 3 Workers Gathering

"Eh eh eh——"

The ensemble room was filled with excited students. Some were whispering to each other excitedly, while others stood up and wanted to see Sakakibara Kaede's face up close.

Sakakibara Kaede has become immune to such gazes. He has been greeted with such looks when he was holding concerts, singing in livehouses, and shooting commercials at school.

A fiery gaze that makes people feel excited.

"Hello everyone, my name is Yuuma Miura. Please give me your guidance. Just call me Miura. When I first entered Tokyo College of Music, Taki-san was my senior and took good care of me in school. If you want to know about Taki-san's trivial matters in college, you can ask me directly. You're welcome."

Yuuma Miura sensed the expressionless gaze of Senior Taki, and he quickly coughed twice, "Just like Senior Taki said, I specialize in percussion, and I will be very strict with the percussion part."

The natural and somewhat humorous self-introduction immediately brought Yuuma Miura closer to the high school students in the wind orchestra. Strictly speaking, he is a sunny and humorous golden-haired handsome guy, and it is most appropriate to compare him to a docile golden retriever.

Kaede Sakakibara's self-introduction was rather ordinary. Seeing that the high school students holding musical instruments had calmed down, he nodded slightly.

"My name is Sakakibara Kaede. Please give me your guidance in the coming days. Just call me Sakakibara. I will be responsible for making the performances of the various parts more harmonious and making everyone work together more like a team."

His eyes moved from the faces of the wind band members who all had determined expressions on their faces, and he noticed that one student was daydreaming. He did not say anything, as some people would probably find this kind of speech like that of a principal boring.

His introduction was brief, and considering the time he'd been here helping out with the wind ensemble, it was a good thing that it didn't leave a deep impression.

"Then, let's start playing."

Long Sheng nodded to the two of them, thanking them for their straightforward self-introductions. After nodding and motioning them to sit aside, he turned to the students who were whispering and coughed lightly.

The sound of communication gradually became smaller and then disappeared. Takisho raised his hand and waved slowly towards the front row.

Before the performance officially begins, there is a tuning and sound test to check whether there are any out-of-pitch sounds in the instrument. This is a basic operation for the orchestra before the performance.

Kaede Sakakibara also heard about it from Mai Sakurajima.

You can tell that they really put in a lot of effort. Sakakibara Kaede slowly taps the rhythm and drum beats on his legs with his fingers. Miura Yuuma is more professional than him and listens very attentively, sometimes frowning, sometimes nodding... But most of the time he keeps his brows slightly frowned.

Sakakibara Kaede knew that Yuuma Miura was influenced by the musicians around him every day at the Tokyo University of Music, and he probably also listened to a lot of formal bands. The difference was obvious when they compared them.

After the performance, it was time for each part to practice separately. Yuma Miura naturally walked towards the percussion section. It was obvious that he had a lot to say to them.

This is the first time that young people have come into contact with this kind of work model. The rules are clear and each part can practice independently and then be coordinated, which is very efficient.

Kaede Sakakibara had no work on the first day. After listening to the performance of the wind orchestra, the students went into different classrooms according to their respective parts to practice independently, and there was no need for his help for the time being.

Of course he could hear the disharmony, but since this was a band composed of high school students, it would be a bit harsh to point out their mistakes.

He leaned against the corridor outside the ensemble room, listening to the performance of each part, slowly closed his eyes, strings of notes floated before his eyes in his mind, the breeze blew on his face, and he seemed to have a little feeling of youth.

Kaede Sakakibara put herself in the shoes of an ordinary member of the wind band and found that such a busy life seemed acceptable.

Although the time spent practicing each day is long, they are also enjoying it... right?

After glancing at the curious gazes coming from the classroom next to him, Sakakibara Kaede stood up and walked towards the classroom. A girl's low exclamation of "Oh no, I've been discovered" came from behind the door. The young man smiled and opened the classroom door.

"what..."

The movements of several figures practicing in the room seemed to pause for a moment. The girl who was peeping at the window just now was now shyly holding the double bass that was almost as tall as her. She felt a little embarrassed and didn't know where to put her eyes.

"I hope I didn't disturb you."

Sakakibara Kaede didn't want to cause any resentment among them. After all, being interrupted during practice time was quite annoying - but judging from their appearance, it seemed that they had not started practicing yet.

With four girls and one boy, is the gender ratio in the wind orchestra so unbalanced?

He remembered the glance he took at the flute section during the ensemble - it was all girls.

I'm so angry, what did the boy do wrong!

“Ah…”

"Hmm?" Sakakibara Kaede looked at the girl who tried to talk to him. Like the other four people, she looked at him curiously.

"Why did Sakakibara-senpai come to Kitauji, a common high school with a low reputation?"

"Because a friend asked me to do it." Sakakibara shrugged. "Miura is my friend. He originally decided to come to help during the summer vacation. As for me... I happen to have a job in Kyoto, so I came to help. You don't have to worry, I won't tell you how to play. I will always encourage you."

The girl asked, "So what do you think of our ensemble performance, Sakakibara-senpai?"

“There is room for improvement, progress and effort.”

"Doesn't this mean no?"

The girl shrugged her shoulders. Sakakibara smiled and said, "You know my name, but I don't know yours. We still have to get along with each other in the future. Before I listen to and appreciate your practice, can you please give a brief introduction of yourselves?"

The smiling Sakakibara Kaede did not cause any dislike to anyone.

He is a senior and a well-known star in the entertainment industry. There are students in the wind band who have watched his concerts in person - such as Asuka Tanaka, a senior girl who smiled at him and held a silver euphonium.

"Hey, you must be kidding. When did Asuka-senpai go to the concert?"

"Hehe, this is a woman's secret."

The freshman who sat next to the girl, who had been daydreaming in class just now, and who also asked him why he came to this high school, was called Kumiko Huangqian.

Continuing with the previous topic, he is a singer and an actor, and is considered a member of the younger generation with a high level of traffic in the entertainment industry. High school students treat him with a mixture of respect and fanaticism.

Huang Qian Kumiko looked at Sakakibara Kaede's little face and thought to herself, "He does have a pretty handsome smile."

"Thank you, Huang Qian. Can we continue practicing?" Sakakibara Kaede answered very naturally.

The girl opened her mouth, but she didn't expect that what she had just said to herself would come out loud. Senior Asuka beside her immediately laughed.

Sakakibara Feng knocked his head. He thought that this was the unnatural part about him taking this job. Others respected and feared him, and were even a little fanatical about him, which made him feel a little uneasy.

Being with idols all the time can really drive ordinary people crazy.

After listening to the euphonium performance, Sakakibara Kaede gave some pointers to the girl who had just peeped at him. She was the only double bass in the orchestra, so her task was particularly difficult.

The young man hadn't played the violin for a long time, and he just repeated the instructions his mother had given him.

After leaving this classroom, Sakakibara Kaede walked towards the next classroom.

The classroom was full of girls holding trumpets, and their unanimous gazes made Sakakibara Kaede feel a little overwhelmed. This was too much of a yin-dominated society.

There are too many students and it is difficult to remember all their names at once. Unlike Yuuma Miura who is only responsible for percussion, it may be the entire orchestra who needs psychological counseling in the future.

What a lively atmosphere.

Sakakibara Kaede finished his so-called inspection. He did make suggestions, but the point he made was not that there were problems with their playing methods, but more that they were not coherent enough, and that the pitch was too high and they should coordinate with each other.

"Do you need help?"

"Ah, Sakakibara-san, no need. I can handle it myself."

The young man looked at the girl who was tidying up the classroom and moving chairs. He didn't say anything, but walked forward and leaned over to help.

Such trivial tasks as cleaning duty reminded him of his high school life which he could never go back to.

The sun was setting outside the window, and Asakura Toru and the others should have finished their work. Sakakibara Kaede stretched lazily, feeling a little excited in the afternoon, but this excitement made him a little tired now.

High school students are at their most energetic and active at this time. The baseball club members on the playground are still running and shouting loudly in the sunset. Compared with them, Sakakibara Kaede feels a little old, in his mentality.

"Thank you, Sakakibara-san. Um... can you give me an autograph?"

Sakakibara Kaede was attracted by the clear voice and turned around. It was the female student who had just declined his help. I remember her name was...

"Of course you can, Zhong Shigu." The young man took out a marker from his collar as usual, took the notebook from the girl, wrote his name in a flamboyant style, and smiled as he handed the notebook back to the girl, "You play the trumpet very well."

"I'm very happy to receive praise from Sakakibara-san."

The girl smiled softly and whispered, "Um, can Sakakibara-san sign the CD I bought tomorrow?"

"Naturally."

Faced with such a small request, Sakakibara Kaede naturally didn't care much.

The high school girl, who looked very gentle, bowed to him, then carried her bag and left the classroom. What was waiting for her was the interrogation of Asuka Tanaka.

"——How does it feel to be alone in a room with your favorite singer or actor? Tell me the truth~"

"Really, nothing happened."

Listening to the teasing voices of the two girls gradually fading away, Sakakibara Kaede smiled. He felt his cell phone vibrate and found out it was a message from Chizuru Ichinose.

There is an address above. It seems that they have found a place to have dinner tonight.

Sakakibara Kaede responded with an expression, then walked towards the classroom office. After saying goodbye to Teacher Takisho, the young man left the campus at a leisurely pace.

Although he was a little tired after the day, he still felt that he had gained a lot. It was a compensation for something he had never had in his life.

The restaurant is located very close to the school, and it is just an ordinary family restaurant. Sakakibara Feng is not a picky person. After he entered the door, he saw two people sitting in the back. One of them was lying on the table listlessly with one eye open and one eye closed, and it seemed that he was about to faint, and the other was smiling and waving at him.

"Toru-san, Chizuru-san, good evening... What on earth did Toru-san go through?"

Asakura Toru groaned, and Ichinose Chizuru said with a wry smile, "The course content is very large, and there is extra work in the afternoon. Toru-san and I had a lot of daily conversations at the beginning of the movie, and we often had to re-record every sentence, so it took a lot of time."

Sakakibara Kaede noticed something strange about her legs, lowered her head, and found that Asakura Toru's sockless legs were hooked around her calves, wrapping around them like an octopus.

Asakura Toru seemed to notice his gaze and playfully twisted her toes.

"I don't want to work tomorrow..."

Chizuru Ichinose was also a little tired, and when she heard Asakura Toru's weak voice, she also laughed.

"Well... to reward Tou-san, how about I treat you to ice cream tonight?"

"Ice cream—"

Asakura Toru raised her head, looking at the plum to quench her thirst. It seemed that these words started the switch of her engine. There was a certain light flashing in her clear eyes. She licked her lips and looked at Sakakibara Kaede.

"Ah, I want to eat n——"

"Tou-san!"

Chizuru Ichinose's face turned red and she kept coughing. Kaede Sakakibara was a little puzzled when she saw this. Are you two here to perform? Are you still immersed in your work, one speaking and the other complaining? Seeing Chizuru Ichinose coughing non-stop, he quickly tapped the girl's back gently.

When the waiter arrived, Kaede Sakakibara ordered a steak set meal, and the other two also ordered a large set meal to reward themselves, and also ordered the ice cream that Kaede Sakakibara had promised them before.

"How was your work today, Feng-san?"

Sakakibara Kaede was unable to break free of Asakura Toru's leg chains for a while, so he had to give up. Hearing Chizuru Ichinose's concerned inquiry, a smile appeared on his face, "It's OK, I cooperated well with Shimazaki-san and Ishikawa-san. Although the course was a bit difficult, I mastered it very quickly. It was an easy thing to do."

"What about the afternoon? What is Feng-san's work in the afternoon?"

Chizuru Ichinose asked, perhaps what she wanted to ask at first was about the afternoon's work.

She could sense the tiredness on Sakakibara Kaede's body and the faint smile on his lips... Could it be that Senior Feng had gone out to be a gigolo to woo rich and beautiful girls this afternoon? No, no, no, it was obvious that she was too tired to think, Senior Feng would never do such a thing!

The young man naturally didn't know about Chizuru Ichinose's imagination. If he knew, he would only praise her for being a galgame scriptwriter. What a rich and beautiful girl, right? She's from the second dimension, right?

Chapter 4: The air conditioner is too cold, so you need to huddle together for warmth

While eating, the three of them began to decide on the next task.

Like most young people who share a house, they need to be responsible for different tasks every day, such as cleaning, sanitation, and grocery shopping. This reminds Chizuru Ichinose and Kaede Sakakibara of the happy time they had last summer vacation when the six of them lived under the same roof.

The aroma of steak filled the air. Sakakibara Kaede didn't have any big requirements for food, as long as he was full. Besides, everyone was tired on the first day, so it was better to keep it simple and go home to rest early.

"what..."

A familiar exclamation came from the next table. Sakakibara Kaede looked over there, unable to control his overeating expression, and for a moment he couldn't hold it together.

"What's wrong, Feng, is it someone you know?" Chizuru Ichinose asked in a low voice.

Kaede Sakakibara nodded. He turned to Nakasago Kaori and Tanaka Asuka, with whom he had talked before at school. Seeing the surprised expressions on their faces, he swallowed the food in his mouth in two or three bites.

"Nakasago-san, Tanaka-san, good evening."

"Good evening... Mr. Sakakibara." Nakasiko Kaori couldn't help but glance at Asakura Toru who was sitting opposite her, with a hint of admiration in her eyes.

"Isn't this the actress Ichinose and idol Asakura-san?" exclaimed Tanaka Asuka.

Sakakibara Kaede raised his index finger in front of his mouth and made a shushing gesture, "Can you please keep quiet?"