novelraw Chapter 4: The Rivalry
Chapter 4: The Rivalry
Naturally, for Suzuki Kiyoto, having someone barge into his office while trampling over his subordinates was an egregiously rude act.
In Japanese culture, it was tantamount to a slap in the face!
SLAM!
Suzuki Kiyoto shot to his feet, palms crashing down on his desk. His face was crimson, his teeth clenched in fury. "Iwata Masao — barging in here like this — do you truly believe that hiding behind Deputy Director Takada makes me afraid of you?"
But Suzuki Kiyoto's rage didn't faze Iwata Masao in the slightest. That sinister expression remained unchanged, his smile dripping with menace.
He took two steps forward, regarding Suzuki Kiyoto — hands planted on the desk, glaring at him with barely contained fury.
And flashed a provocative grin. "Of course. Deputy Director Takada is a key leader of TV Tokyo's Production Bureau. He oversees the production of all film and television projects — he's the direct superior of every director here. Shouldn't we show sincere respect to Deputy Director Takada?"
"You...!" Suzuki Kiyoto ground his teeth even harder. The rage in his eyes looked ready to combust into physical flame.
But against Iwata Masao's words, all he could do was clench his jaw in silence.
Because the man was right.Takada Toshihide — Deputy Director of TV Tokyo's Production Bureau, a director with real authority, overseeing the production of all film and television projects.
He held absolute power over budget allocation and project leadership.
Below the Bureau Director himself—
You could say he was the second or third most powerful person in the entire Production Bureau.
Suzuki Kiyoto was merely a lowly Grade 3 Director at TV Tokyo's headquarters Production Bureau. While he held some authority, compared to Deputy Director Takada, he was nothing.
So no matter how furious Suzuki Kiyoto was, he didn't dare openly confront Deputy Director Takada.
The concept of hierarchy in Japan was deeply ingrained.
Watching Suzuki Kiyoto seethe with impotent rage, Iwata Masao's sneer deepened into an expression of open mockery. "Relax, Suzuki-kun. After all, you are my... senpai."
"Even though we're both competing for the same Grade 2 Director promotion slot with our ghost-story projects, it's all fair competition. You don't really think I'd use Deputy Director Takada's influence to gain an unfair advantage, do you?"
"What exactly do you want?" Suzuki Kiyoto's voice was strained with barely controlled fury. "If this is all you came to say, I'd like you to leave my office."
Suzuki Kiyoto had issued a direct order to leave.
Iwata Masao's gaze slid sideways to Hiroshi, still standing nearby — a young face that clearly belonged to a fresh graduate — and his eyes filled with undisguised contempt. With a derisive snort, he turned back to Suzuki Kiyoto. "Then I won't intrude any further, Suzuki-kun. I heard you brought in some up-and-coming manga artist for help. Looking at this now, I'd say you're getting rather... desperate."
Without waiting for a response — and utterly disregarding Suzuki Kiyoto's murderous glare — he turned with a smirk and sauntered out of the office.
Swaggering the whole way.
"All right, everyone out." It was a long moment before Suzuki Kiyoto finally sank back into his chair, exhaustion etched on his face. He waved for Kitagawa Yao and the two young staffers to leave.
Sitting there, looking at Hiroshi — who still appeared somewhat stunned — Suzuki Kiyoto managed a weary, self-deprecating smile. "I'm sorry you had to see that, Hiroshi-kun."
Hiroshi didn't know what to say, so he said nothing.
But even in silence, he understood perfectly.
It was nothing more than workplace politics.
He'd worked in a government office in his previous life — he'd seen more than his share of scheming and backstabbing.
That said, such blatant, face-to-face mockery — practically tearing up any pretense of civility — was a first even for Hiroshi. He was genuinely taken aback.
And as for his classmate's uncle and this man's position within TV Tokyo's Production Bureau—
It was clearly rather awkward.
"The people here at TV Tokyo headquarters have always been very cliquish. As a director who worked his way up from an affiliate station, every time a promotion comes around, it's nothing but headaches." Suzuki Kiyoto was a man in his fifties, after all, and he quickly regained his composure.
He let out a self-mocking chuckle and picked up the Yamishibai artbook once more.
A sharp, steely light flickered in his eyes.
If, before today, he'd had no real confidence or strategy to compete against Iwata Masao for the Grade 2 Director promotion—
Now—
With this Yamishibai artbook in hand—
Suzuki Kiyoto felt the game had changed entirely.
"Hiroshi-kun." He looked up, his gaze settling again on the young man who still stood with his head respectfully bowed.
"Here." Hiroshi responded immediately.
"Do you have anything else planned today?" Suzuki Kiyoto asked.
"N-no, I don't." Hiroshi seemed to have guessed what was coming.
"Then stay." Suzuki Kiyoto exhaled slowly, his expression turning dead serious. "I'll handle your onboarding personally. Starting today — let's bring the Yamishibai anime to life!"
"It would be my honor! Please take good care of me, Mr. Suzuki!" Hiroshi bowed deeply, unable to suppress the smile breaking across his face.
"No — let's take care of each other."
Suzuki Kiyoto stood as well and returned Hiroshi's bow — a formal, deliberate gesture.
It was, in effect, a profound acknowledgment of Hiroshi's worth.
Then Suzuki Kiyoto led Hiroshi out of his office and into the work area of his independent production section — the workspace belonging to his team as a Grade 3 Director.
He began the introductions.
"This is our Executive Director, Hashishita Ichiro — a Grade 4 Director. He assists me with shooting plans, call sheets, and on-site coordination."
"Hello, I'm Hashishita Ichiro. Pleased to meet you." A man in his thirties, his face covered in dark stubble, stood up with a quiet, reserved air. He bowed politely to Hiroshi.
"Pleased to meet you as well." Hiroshi returned the bow.
"These two are assistant directors — Minamura Hoshi and Haseji Hashiru. They also serve as script supervisors for our team. Like you, they graduated just last year."
"Hi, pleased to meet you." The two young men who had tried to block Iwata earlier stood up and bowed to Hiroshi.
"Pleased to meet you." Hiroshi bowed again.
"And Kitagawa Yao — our team's office assistant. Anything you need, you can go to her. She handles a great deal of our day-to-day work." Suzuki Kiyoto introduced Kitagawa Yao last.
"Hiroshi-kun!" Kitagawa Yao grinned cheerfully and bowed. "Pleased to meet you."
"Pleased to meet you." Hiroshi returned the bow once more.
Inwardly, he felt a twinge of resignation.
But there was no helping it.
Such were the rituals of etiquette.
And finally, Suzuki Kiyoto introduced Nohara Hiroshi to the team.
"Everyone, you may not know Hiroshi-kun, but he's already a somewhat well-known manga artist even while still in university. The series YuYu Hakusho, currently running in the weekly Shonen Jump — that's his work."
"Ohhh—!!!"
The two assistant directors, Minamura Hoshi and Haseji Hashiru, instantly wore expressions of utter shock.
Their gazes locked onto Hiroshi with disbelief.
"The author of YuYu Hakusho — Nohara Hiroshi-kun?!" The two exchanged stunned glances, each seeing awe and admiration mirrored in the other's eyes.
They were young men, after all.
For their generation, a manga magazine like Shonen Jump held a status comparable to what Qidian would one day command in the world of web novels.
Getting a series serialized in its pages was proof enough of exceptional talent.
And more than that—
They were genuine fans of YuYu Hakusho!
While the manga was still in its early serialization — second or third-tier in the rankings — anyone could see that as the story progressed, its popularity was surging. It was only a matter of time before it exploded.
And they'd been faithfully following every new chapter, never imagining the author would be standing right in front of them.
How could they not be stunned?
"I know you're shocked, but we have work to do now."
Suzuki Kiyoto watched the two young men's wide-eyed reactions with satisfaction, then clapped his hands and held up the artbook in his hand.
He passed it to Kitagawa Yao, signaling her to take it.
Then he spoke with unmistakable gravity. "The horror anime that our Suzuki production team will be creating — is Yamishibai, brought to us by Hiroshi-kun!"
"I want everyone to give it their all over the coming period. Let's get the first episode produced as quickly as possible. Understood?"