Chapter 115: Department Head! Hiroshi Nohara! Everything Is Under Control!
Toshihide Takada was truly desperate.
But facing his executive deputy director’s impatience, Nobuhiko Sakata’s smile showed no change. In his perpetually squinted eyes, however, emanated an unyielding authority, like a sharp blade wrapped in a smooth jade scabbard—seemingly harmless, yet revealing its sharpness.
“Rules?” he chuckled, retorting, “Mr. Takada, at our Tokyo Television Station, the biggest rule is ‘results’.”
“Mr. Nohara used an afternoon variety show to achieve 27.5% ratings; he used a sub-golden slot unit drama to achieve stable ratings above 21%; he even managed to get over 10% ratings from a late-night animation that your Tokyo Faction almost killed. Tell me, among your subordinates, which second-class director can present such a report card?”
“…” Toshihide Takada’s throat felt as if it were stuffed with hot cotton. He opened his mouth but couldn’t utter a word. His gloomy face instantly turned a deep, purplish-red.
He couldn’t refute it.
“Alright,” Nobuhiko Sakata waved his hand, his gesture akin to shooing away a noisy fly, “This matter has been unanimously approved by the board of directors. It’s settled.”
Having said that, he no longer looked at Toshihide Takada’s exceedingly displeased face, turning instead to Asumi with a smile as warm as a spring breeze, “Mr. Asumi, please issue the notification. Starting today, our Production Bureau will have one more, and its youngest, department head with independent production rights.”
…
When Asumi’s chief secretary, that intellectually beautiful woman who normally looked down on everyone, personally delivered an appointment document bearing a vibrant red seal, along with a brand new nameplate carved from premium zelkova wood, to 【Hiroshi Nohara’s Special Production Team 】, the entire office instantly fell into a bizarre, deathly silence where a pin drop could be heard.
On that nameplate, in strong, calligraphic strokes, were characters that would make any television professional go wild—
【Hiroshi Nohara’s Independent Production Department 】.
The air seemed to freeze.
Everyone stood stunned, as if under a spell, staring at the nameplate, their faces etched with disbelief and shock.
“Am I… am I not seeing things?”
After an unknown period, a laugh filled with self-mockery and absurdity shattered the silence.
It was Kei Tanaka who spoke.
This former second-class director was now looking at the nameplate as if it were a monster, then glancing at the young man who had been calmly drinking coffee the entire time. A wry, bitter smile appeared on his face.
“I’m a second-class director working under a third-class director, and that’s one thing. But now, that third-class director has a title for an Independent Production Department that’s even higher than mine… Is this even a thing in the entire Neon Television Industry?”
His words were like a switch, instantly igniting the entire office!
“It’s more than just you!” Kenji Sato also adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose. The face that always held a gentle smile was now also filled with shock. “Tsuyoshi and I are also third-class directors. After working at Tokyo Television for so long, this is the first time I’ve seen a third-class director have the authority of an Independent Production Department…”
“Independent Production Department… My goodness…” Tsuyoshi Yamamoto nodded in shock, his eyes widening as he looked at the nameplate. “This… isn’t this the kind of treatment that the station only grants to senior second-class directors preparing to aim for first-class director status? Section Chief Nohara… he just got promoted to third-class!”
“This isn’t just breaking the mold, this is… a leap to the heavens!” Sato pursed his lips and concluded, “Special treatment for a monster.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
In the corner, Ichiro Hashishita stared blankly at the nameplate. His eyes, long filled with regret and awe, now held only a pure, soul-deep reverence, born from witnessing a true miracle.
He remembered himself, struggling at the television station for seven or eight years, only to barely climb to the position of senior fourth-class director.
And that young man, he became a third-class director in less than half a year.
No, to be precise, from fourth-class director to third-class director, and then to having his own independent production department, he only took less than two months.
This speed could no longer be described as “genius.”
It was monstrous!
A dimensional reduction strike that could bring despair to all his peers of the same era!
“What’s so strange about it?”
Amidst the discussions filled with shock and absurdity, Hoshi Minamimura’s voice sounded remarkably matter-of-fact.
He stood with his hands on his hips, his young face beaming with pride as if defending his idol, like a fanatical supporter. “Haven’t you seen what achievements our Section Chief has made!”
“27.5% for 《Super Change Change Change》! 21% for 《World of the Strange》! And over 10% for 《An Shizhi》!”
“Any one of these three works would be enough for an ordinary second-class director to brag about for a lifetime! Our Section Chief, alone, has created three myths in three different fields simultaneously! Let alone just a third-class director, even if he were promoted directly to first-class director now, I would still think it was well-deserved!”
The office instantly fell silent.
Everyone exchanged glances, then revealed knowing, wry smiles.
Yes, they were still entangled in that rigid, outdated hierarchical system, forgetting that in the face of absolute strength, all rules seemed so pale and powerless.
“Hoshi is right,” Tsuyoshi Yamamoto exhaled a long breath and nodded with emotion. “I’ve been directing for twenty years, and my best result was a crime drama with 15% ratings. Compared to the Section Chief’s consistent ratings exceeding 20%, it’s like… children playing house.”
“We lost fairly,” Kei Tanaka also shook his head. All the unwillingness had faded from his face, leaving only pure admiration. “This era is no longer ours. It belongs to… monsters like him.”
These words plunged all the old veterans of the Kanto Faction present into a long silence.
It was a feeling of bone-deep powerlessness and awe, born from witnessing true genius.
Age? Seniority?
In the face of absolute strength… they truly weren’t enough!
…
The massive shockwave caused by Hiroshi Nohara’s promotion quickly swept through the entire Tokyo Television Station with an unstoppable force.
The pantry, the most well-informed and chaotic place within the television station, was now enveloped in a chorus of bitter discussions.
“Did you hear? That Hiroshi Nohara got promoted to third-class director! And… he has his own Independent Production Department!”
A third-class director, looking around forty-something with a shiny bald head, held his coffee cup, his voice filled with suppressed jealousy.
“Heard it? Of course, we heard it. The whole Production Bureau is buzzing about it now.” His gaunt companion beside him snorted, his voice so sour it could be lethal. “Damn it, I’ve toiled at this station for fifteen years, and my hair is almost all gone, just to barely reach this position. How can a kid in his early twenties… just because he’s lucky, struck it rich, and produced a few decent programs?”
“Decent?” The bald director let out a wry laugh at the words, his voice filled with despair. “Brother, stop fooling yourself. Is that ‘decent’? That’s ‘mythical’! 27.5% for an afternoon variety show! 21% for a sub-golden slot drama! 10% for a late-night animation! You and I, combined, all the things we’ve ever produced, do our total ratings even compare to one of his shows?”
“…” The gaunt director’s face instantly turned a deep, purplish-red. He opened his mouth, but couldn’t refute a single word.
“Sigh!” The bald director sighed deeply, the breath carrying the helplessness of having accepted reality. “Forget it, no point comparing, can’t compare. Being born in the same era as such a monster is the misfortune of us mortals. My only hope now is that he doesn’t suddenly decide to film our specialty, morning dramas. Otherwise, people like us will truly have no way to make a living.”
These words, filled with black humor, also conveyed a cruel reality.
In the face of Hiroshi Nohara’s talent, which could overturn the rules of the era, everyone’s struggles seemed insignificant and comically futile.
They didn’t even have the right to be jealous anymore.
All that remained was to look up, and to pray.
To pray that the deity would not cast his destructive gaze upon their own already barren, small plot of land.
…
The Human Resources Department moved with astonishing speed. Almost simultaneously with the issuance of the appointment document, a middle-aged man with a face full of gentle smiles, resembling a Maitreya Buddha, personally appeared at the entrance of the office that had become the focus of the entire television station, accompanied by two subordinates.
“Oh my, Minister Nohara! Congratulations! Congratulations!”
The newcomer was the deputy head of the Human Resources Department, a seasoned veteran named Watanabe. Normally, he was arrogant, only offering polite nods even to second-class directors.
However, at this moment, his chubby face bloomed with an almost fawning enthusiasm. His demeanor suggested that Hiroshi Nohara wasn’t just a newly promoted third-class director, but a long-lost relative.
It couldn’t be helped.
Who wouldn’t flatter Hiroshi Nohara when he was currently ‘favored by the Emperor’?
Even Director Sakata highly valued Hiroshi Nohara, and Sakata had praised him publicly to many leaders countless times, which Watanabe had overheard more than once.
Moreover, Hiroshi Nohara was also a confidant of Deputy Director Asumi.
And Hiroshi Nohara was so young.
If…
If another twenty or thirty years passed.
When he himself would be too old to work and retired.
What achievements would Hiroshi Nohara, this young man already so famous that he could rest on his laurels for twenty or thirty years, attain then?
What position would he hold?
Just thinking about it sent a chill down his spine; one had to fear and respect him!
As the saying goes, it’s better to bully the old than the young. Hiroshi Nohara’s talent and future were now a bright, clear path.
So who would dare offend him?
“Deputy Minister Watanabe, you are too kind,” Hiroshi Nohara said with a smile, rising and shaking his hand with neither subservience nor arrogance.
“Not at all! Not at all!” Deputy Minister Watanabe waved his hands repeatedly. His narrowed eyes quickly scanned the office, which, though spacious, now felt somewhat cramped due to the expansion of personnel. He then spoke in a tone of great concern, “Minister Nohara, you are now the sole head of an Independent Production Department in our station! This office space might seem a bit… too small for you.”
He paused, took a floor plan from his subordinate, and like the most professional real estate agent, enthusiastically gestured across it.
“Look, this entire floor, apart from your area, only has Iwata’s classroom. I’ve already spoken with the higher-ups, and Iwata’s classroom will be moving to the seventh floor next week. By then, this entire half-floor space will be allocated to you! Would you prefer to combine it into a large open-plan office, or to partition it into several independent editing rooms and meeting rooms? It’s all up to your discretion!”
These words made everyone present instinctively gasp.
Iwata’s classroom… was being “banished” like this?
After all, that was one of the core classrooms of the Tokyo Faction!
And now, because of one person’s rise, it was being unceremoniously swept out.
“And this,”
Deputy Minister Watanabe handed over another document, his smile growing even brighter. “According to station regulations, the Independent Production Department has the authority to establish subordinate classrooms. Additionally, you can apply to the finance department each month for independent operating funds of up to ten million yen. This money is entirely at your disposal and does not require anyone’s approval!”
“Of course, your department’s operating expenses remain as they are; this special independent operating fund is entirely up to you to decide!”
Ten million yen!
Every month!
In the office, gasps of suppressed excitement erupted once again.
This wasn’t just a simple delegation of power; it was like giving him a gold mine he could exploit at will!
“Of course,” Deputy Minister Watanabe added as if remembering something, his tone carrying a hint of schadenfreude. “According to regulations, the Independent Production Department must produce at least one A-grade project with ratings no lower than 15% annually. However…”
He looked at Hiroshi Nohara, the narrow slits of his eyes flashing with undisguised admiration. “For you, Minister Nohara, who constantly creates rating myths, this small requirement is as simple as eating and drinking! Hahahaha!”
“Thank you, Deputy Minister Watanabe,” Hiroshi Nohara simply smiled calmly. “I will submit the department renovation plan and personnel expansion plan as soon as possible.”
“Excellent, excellent! We await your plans eagerly!”
Deputy Minister Watanabe concluded his pleasant flattery session and left, completely satisfied.
The moment he left, the entire office erupted as if a depth charge had been dropped, instantly boiling over!
“Minister! Can we establish classrooms now too?”
“My goodness! Am I dreaming?!”
Everyone was like they had been injected with adrenaline, their faces flushed with excitement.
While they had known about it before, it was one thing.
But now.
Experiencing it firsthand.
Was an entirely different matter!
“Alright, quiet down.”
Hiroshi Nohara’s voice was like a basin of warm water, instantly dousing the soon-to-explode powder keg.
He walked to the whiteboard, picked up a marker, and wrote several powerful characters on the pristine surface.
【Hiroshi Nohara’s Independent Production Department 】
Then, he turned around, his gaze sweeping over the subordinates who were now completely won over, and calmly began to assign tasks.
“From today onwards, I declare that the Independent Production Department will officially establish three core classrooms.”
“First, the Variety Show Classroom. Directed by Kei Tanaka, serving as Section Chief. He will be fully responsible for all production matters of the 《Super Change Change Change》 project.”
“Second, the Television Drama Classroom. Directed by Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, serving as Section Chief. He will be fully responsible for the 《World of the Strange》 project.”
“Third…”
He paused, his gaze falling on the man who had been keeping his head down the entire time, his body tense like a drawn bowstring.
“Animation Classroom. Directed by Ichiro Hashishita, serving as Section Chief. He will be fully responsible for the 《An Shizhi》 project.”
“…”
The entire office instantly fell into a bizarre, deathly silence where a pin drop could be heard.
Everyone froze, turning to look at the young man standing at the whiteboard, their faces a mixture of complex emotions.
They had considered countless possibilities, but never in their wildest dreams had they imagined Hiroshi Nohara making such a seemingly insane decision!
To appoint a traitor as the Section Chief of an independent classroom?!
“Sec… Section Chief… I…”
Ichiro Hashishita’s head shot up, his eyes wide with shock.
He didn’t know what to think at that moment; his mind was a blank slate, only filled with a sense of overwhelming fear from an immense, unbearable kindness.
Ichiro Hashishita instinctively started to refuse, his voice hoarse and filled with humility, “I… I don’t deserve it…”
However, before he could finish.
‘Clap! Clap! Clap!’
A crisp, benevolent applause rang out without warning from behind him.
He stiffly turned his head and saw Hoshi Minamimura, Roji Hase, and Yō Kitagawa, the three young people who had once hated him, leading the applause.
Although their faces still held a hint of awkwardness.
Their eyes, however, had long lost their original coldness and contempt, replaced by a complex recognition, unique to witnessing a prodigal son’s return.
Immediately, a deafening wave of applause surged, forming a torrent powerful enough to melt steel!
“Section Chief Hashishita! Congratulations!”
“Congratulations!”
The well-intentioned congratulations, like the gentlest of hands, gently lifted Ichiro Hashishita’s already shattered heart.
“Waaah—!”
He could no longer hold back, and the thirty-five-year-old man, like a child, let out suppressed and painful sobs.
In his cries were regret, gratitude, and an endless sense of relief, like surviving a disaster.
He bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle in Hiroshi Nohara’s direction.
“Thank you… Minister Nohara!”
The crowd erupted in cheers again.
Watching this dramatic scene unfold, Kenji Sato, who hadn’t spoken much, showed a wry, bitter smile.
Holding his coffee cup, he walked over to Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, nudged him with his elbow, and said self-deprecatingly, “See, even Hashishita is a Section Chief now. And I, a third-class director, have become a liaison officer with nothing to do. It’s truly… comparing people makes one angry.”
Despite his words, his eyes, hidden behind his gold-rimmed glasses, gleamed with a complex mix of annoyance and unwillingness that he couldn’t suppress.
Tsuyoshi Yamamoto simply glanced at him calmly and said nothing.
However, his eyes held a hint of scrutiny.
To be honest, Tsuyoshi Yamamoto had always felt that his old friend, who was acting as a liaison officer, seemed to have someone behind him.
But he had no proof.
Moreover, he also felt that his old friend didn’t seem to have done anything against the Kanto Faction, nor had he gone against Hiroshi Nohara’s arrangements; instead, he was working diligently.
He subtly withdrew his gaze, a few suspicions forming in his mind.
It seemed that his old friend had, after all, accepted some people’s offerings back then in the dim past.
Hiroshi Nohara ignored the undercurrent of this interlude.
He looked at the three section chiefs he had just entrusted with important responsibilities, and his voice rang out again, filled with undeniable power.
“Alright, everyone.”
“From now on, your first task is to expand your teams. You can recruit personnel from your own departments. Anyone from the Kanto Faction with ability, I want them. If you can’t recruit them, tell me, and I’ll personally ask Deputy Director Asumi for them.”
“Within a week, I need to see three fully staffed production classrooms that can operate independently.”
“At that time, the subsequent production of An Shizhi Season 4! World of the Strange Season 2! Super Change Change Change! All must keep up!”
“Meeting adjourned!”
At his command, the entire silent office instantly came alive.
Everyone, like parts wound up, began to operate with unprecedented efficiency and precision.
A departmental expansion, which outsiders would consider a miracle, officially began.
Time quietly slipped away amidst this busy period filled with passion and hope.
And the young person, admired, envied, and resented by countless people, acted like a true master strategist behind the scenes, delegating all specific tasks to his subordinates who had long been loyal to him.
He himself returned to the tranquility that belonged solely to him.
He began to have more time to conceive the even more astonishing stories for the subsequent World of the Strange.
More time to polish every detail of Super Change Change Change that could ignite a national carnival.
He even had more time to pick up the brush he had set aside for a long time, and on that blank drawing paper, continue to depict the grand world of Yu Yu Hakusho, filled with hot-bloodedness and friendship.
Of course, he did not forget the most important private project he named “Elder Brother’s Happiness Improvement Plan.”
With a sum of money that no one could refuse, he paved all roads for his elder brother’s “Nohara Agricultural Corporation.”
Taking advantage of the opportunity while everyone in Japan was focused on the cities.
Relying on his local connections in his hometown.
From the most advanced automated agricultural machinery, to the highest quality organic fertilizer, and even hiring the most professional agricultural consultants in Japan…
It was almost like cheating, but in a short period, he managed to transform the small rural farm, which was once just a nascent project, into a modern agricultural corporation that could make the entire Akita Prefecture Agricultural Cooperative take notice!
It could even allow his elder brother, Hiroshi Nohara, to work at the Agricultural Cooperative and serve as an elected leader.
After all, when the economic bubble burst and the economic crisis arrived.
The Agricultural Cooperative was a big prize!
Even as real estate and all industries declined.
The Agricultural Cooperative, with its large number of farmers and guidance for numerous agricultural workers, also had significant power to manipulate elections.
And he himself, like the most skilled hunter, patiently waited for the appearance of the key figure who could change his elder brother’s entire destiny.
Sakuruda Ikuna.
He knew that the kind and wonderful girl would soon appear in his elder brother’s life due to changes in circumstances.
There was no first marriage worth lamenting.
Only with my elder brother.
A beautiful love affair!
At that time, a romantic comedy, personally directed by him, filled with rustic charm, about a domineering president falling in love with me, would officially begin.
Everything was fine.
Everything was under control.
This summer was destined to be a golden season of harvest and hope for Hiroshi Nohara.
