CH 25

Arc-2 Chapter-7: What is a Special Broadcast?

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As I was watching TV in the living room, the door of the house opened violently. It was Yukiho, rushing home.

"Has it started yet?"

"No, not yet."

I got up from the couch. I picked up her jacket and bag that she had taken off to put them away.

Yukiho washed her hands and gargled at breakneck speed and made her way to the living room. She dived onto the couch where I was sitting a moment ago. She then reached for the vegetable sticks on the table in front of her.

"It's starting! Daikichi-kun! Hurry up!"

"I know."

With a wry smile, I sat down next to Yukiho. I put my arm around Yukiho's shoulders as we watched TV side by side.

[It's been a long time. I'm Mikio Doi! I expected to make a regular appearance, but it's only for the first time, Takamine-san!]

The special episode of the desert island program has begun.

[I stabbed a lot of fish for you, Kaho, so you can look forward to it! Although we ate all the fish ourselves!]

"This one's a little more low-key, just fetching water."

"Hey! This is a three-hour special and all you do is fetch water! What are you doing? Come on, be conscious, ratings figures, ratings figures!"

"It can't be helped, I didn't think it would rain. Besides, that fetching of water saved me from dying."

"That's one thing, but come on!"

As it was the end of the work day, Yukiho's tension was high. By the time Doi disappeared, the vegetable sticks had also disappeared from the table.

"Look! Did you see that? See that! Perfect harpooning! Not even Daikichi-kun can beat it!"

"Don't be silly, I'm better than you."

"Then, let's compete in the next recording. I'm not going to lose!"

"All right, if you lose, you're gonna be punished."

"You're punishing me!?"

"Oh? Are you scared, Yukiho?"

"It's not like that! I'm fine!"

"Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid."

"Muh!"

While we were having a good time talking, the program went on. An hour into the broadcast, a torrential downpour began.

"It's already raining. Is everything going to be okay for it to be this early?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"Oh? You know something?"

"Well, what do you think?"

"You know something."

"Mmm-hmm."

The rain was getting worse. The president and I started talking on the phone. This scene seems to be a showpiece, and it's almost uncut. The screen was split in two, showing me and the president. Both of our expressions were serious and full of tension. In the midst of all this, I occasionally see Yukiho's face. She was crying like a baby. She wasn't acting, she was crying for real. It seemed that she was very anxious.

[Which do you think is better, Yoshikawa-kun?]

[I think...]

Do we head for the ship or stay in the cave? Decide one or the other - that's where the commercial came in.

When a commercial ends, it's on to the next one, and when that one ends, it's on to the next one. It was a raging barrage of commercials.

"That's too long! When's the commercial going to end?"

"This is a showpiece, so they decided it was okay to drag it."

The president is free to choose where to interrupt the commercial. Often, the president uses a technique like this one, where he uses a series of commercials in a dramatic scene.

"Oh, it's over."

It took a few minutes, but the commercial finally ended. While most of the nation's viewers were exhausted, I chose to live in a cave. Soon there was nothing but rain on the screen.

"Why are you filming all the rain?"

"Yui-san said something like we should put it on the ground and film it. The sound of the rain must have drowned it out, because there was no audio."

Yukiho agreed with me.

"But I would have liked at least one other scene."

"Apparently, the boss thought the same thing."

The screen switches to Yukiho and Kaho. They seem to be in a hotel room.

Yukiho grinned, "Here it comes." She seemed very confident about the scene.

[Hey, Yukio, what are you making?]

The president approaches Yukiho. She was working on something at a desk set up by the window. She is crying and folding a notepad with the hotel logo on it.

"I'm folding a thousand paper cranes, praying for Daikichi-kun's safety..."

Yukiho speaks while sobbing.

[Ah, yes...]

The president looks indescribable. He is a regular person, so he reacts like a regular person. Kaho, standing next to her, suddenly started to cry. Unlike Yukiho, it was obvious that she was acting.

"Wadaji-san, Yui-san, Yoshikawa-san, let's make a thousand paper cranes!"

❄「わだじも、結衣しゃん、吉川しゃん、千羽鶴、づくりゅ！」❄

Kaho sits next to Yukiho and together they begin to fold.

"You know what? Kaho was so inspired by me that she cried too! Isn't it a very touching scene?"

"............"

I froze for a while, then let out a big breath and said. "Are you an idiot, by any chance?"

"Eh...!"

"A thousand paper cranes aren't going to change anything! And if you're going to fold them, use origami! Why are you wasting the hotel's notepaper! If you want to impress me, at least go buy some expensive origami!"

I chuckled and poked her.

Yukiho smiled bitterly, "Oh no."

"And I didn't get the paper cranes that Yukiho and Kaho folded!"

"Well, that's because..."

"The boss threw them out before I could get to them."

"Giku-"

Yukiho stuck her tongue out at me and I smiled stupidly.

[Paper, we're out of paper!]

[Paperrrrr!]

Yukiho and Kaho are crying on the TV. They seemed to have used up all the notepaper.

[I'l, I'll get more right away!]

The hotel staff stationed in the room panicked.

[No, no need. Don't worry about it.]

The president replied instead.

The scene changes. After that, the origami cranes are no more.

❄

The program was coming to the end. This is the scene where Yui and I are sent to the Self-Defense Force. At the bottom of the screen, there was a message of thanks and apology to the SDF.

"A SDF ship! I love it!"

"It was a valuable experience, yes, but we should be sorry for the trouble we caused those who work for our country."

"I think your earnestness is really wonderful!"

Yukiho smiles and twines her arms around me.

I grinned at her.

[The next episode of "Fearful life-"]

The next episode of "Life on a Deserted Island" was announced, and the program came to an end.

"Well, let's take a bath! It's already 11pm and I'm sleepy!"

Yukiho stood up. That's when it happened.

[We will now begin our emergency conference.]

Without interrupting the commercial, the emergency conference began.

"What's this?"

Yukiho sat down next to me again.

"Huh?"

I looked at the other channels. Only SS TV was broadcasting the emergency conference.

[Thank you for gathering here at this late hour.]

As soon as he appeared on the stage, a man in a flashy suit with a punched-out perm said so.

It was our president.