Chapter 5

——————Seek Recommendations, Seek Collections——————

As Kawanaka Haru walked into the AKB48 theater, he found that the theater was quite small, with a maximum capacity of only about 200 people.

Even so, the AKB48 performance was not fully booked, with some seats still empty.

"It seems the development of this girl group is still quite average," Kawanaka Haru made this judgment.

He was very lucky, as his seat was in the front row...

This allowed him to better observe the AKB48 members.

Soon, the AKB48 members began to perform on stage.

When Kawanaka Haru saw Shinoda Mariko, he was slightly taken aback.

The world is indeed small...

However, he quickly composed himself and began to observe each member's performance.

The first song the members performed was "Sakura Petals," with beautiful lyrics and the members giving their best effort.

Of course, these were not what Kawanaka Haru was focusing on; his primary goal was to find which member suited him.

After a period of observation, Kawanaka Haru had his target.

As the group's ace, Maeda Atsuko was definitely not his target, and the management might not be willing to let her go.

Sato Yukari, Oe Asami, and Toshima Hana did not have any standout features.

After much consideration, he finally set his sights on three members: Itano Tomomi, Takahashi Minami, and Hoshino Man.

After determining his target, Kawanaka Haru began to study the country's talent agency system. This country's talent agencies seemed to be a special existence, independent of Asian and global agencies, with strict requirements for artists and both domestic and international media, ostensibly to protect the artists, making them appear very prestigious. For example, in the 21st century, when the global internet is so advanced, Johnny's & Associates still prohibits the use of photos and videos of their artists online, and even on blogs and Twitter, artists are strictly forbidden from posting their real photos. Except for exclusive endorsement ads, which cannot avoid being used for promotion, even the official websites of TV dramas where they are the lead actors are not allowed to post their photos, such as when Nakatani Shingo starred in the TV drama "Journey to the West," the official website used a cartoon version of Sun Wukong instead of Nakatani Shingo.

Due to the special nature of this talent agency system, Kawanaka Haru was very cautious in his considerations.

In this country, unless you join a talent agency, private agents cannot survive.

For the current Kawanaka Haru, it was impossible to operate independently from a talent agency.

He had been thinking about what kind of talent agency he should join.

After much deliberation, he finally decided to join a talent agency.

AKS was his best choice at the moment. Although AKS had not yet officially become the talent agency for AKB48 members, Kawanaka Haru believed it would not be long before that happened.

The president of AKS was Kudou Yasushi, but the person truly in charge was Akimoto Yasushi, which explained why Akimoto Yasushi had such significant influence in Akihabara.

For Kawanaka Haru, AKS was just a stepping stone; his true goal was to become a dominant figure in the talent agency industry, not just a tool for the agency; this was Kawanaka Haru's ambition...

Of course, these were still far off. His first step was to become a signed agent at AKS.

...........................

In Akihabara, Akimoto Yasushi's eyes and hairstyle were always the same, and even the suit he wore seemed to be the same style.

Togasaki Tomonobu told him about his encounter in the cafe, which immediately piqued his interest in the young man named Kawanaka Haru.

"Mr. Akimoto, someone is here to apply for a job," a staff member outside the door gently pushed it open.

Akimoto Yasushi frowned slightly.

"What are his characteristics?" Akimoto Yasushi asked.

"A very young person, seems like a college student."

Akimoto Yasushi's heart stirred; this person must be the one Togasaki Tomonobu mentioned.

"Let him in."

Akimoto Yasushi sat in his seat, quietly waiting to see what this young man was like.

The young man wore a silver down jacket, had a high nose, thin lips, and arched eyebrows that slanted into his hairline. His handsome profile was flawless, but what caught Akimoto Yasushi's attention and startled him were the deep, piercing eyes behind the gold-rimmed glasses and the very confident and calm demeanor.

The young man's eyes did not have the innocence and naivety typical of a young person but were filled with沧桑 (沧桑 means "沧桑" in Chinese, which can be translated as "world-weariness" or "worldliness") and experience. Most importantly, the young man remained composed and calm even when meeting him.

While Akimoto Yasushi was observing Kawanaka Haru, Kawanaka Haru was also experiencing a surge of emotions.

Because Akimoto Yasushi gave him a very familiar feeling...

So familiar that his usually calm heart was stirred.

That person was Sun Yubo, and Kawanaka Haru even suspected that Sun Yubo might have been reborn as well?

These thoughts, though long to describe, were formed in an instant by both of them.

"Mr. Akimoto, hello... I am here to apply for a job as an agent," Kawanaka Haru bowed deeply to Akimoto Yasushi.

"Hello, please sit down," Akimoto Yasushi's attitude was gentle, but Kawanaka Haru became even more cautious.

Kawanaka Haru handed his resume to Akimoto Yasushi and sat down in the chair that the staff had already prepared.

The resume included some of Kawanaka Haru's personal information, honors, and his views on AKB48 and the talent agency industry, as well as how to handle public relations crises for the members he would represent.

After a brief glance at Kawanaka Haru's personal information, Akimoto Yasushi carefully read through Kawanaka Haru's thoughts on AKB48 and his methods for handling public relations.

After a long while, he gently put down the documents.

"Very good... Congratulations, you are hired... But finding a successful artist to sign is up to you."

"Thank you, Mr. Akimoto." Kawanaka Haru bowed deeply to Akimoto Yasushi.

"I hope we have a pleasant cooperation." Akimoto Yasushi stood up and extended his hand to Kawanaka Haru.

"Pleasant cooperation!"

The two large hands were tightly clasped together.

After Kawanaka Haru left, Akimoto Yasushi picked up Kawanaka Haru's vision for AKB48 again.

"This young man is not simple..." Akimoto Yasushi sighed deeply.

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