Chapter 84

Faced with this strange old man, Naoki Nagayama had to respond.

"I'm not interested in that for now."

"Eh? Really not considering it? To be honest, your conditions are quite advantageous in the industry." The old man didn't give up, "Here's my business card. If you change your mind, feel free to contact me~"

Naoki Nagayama glanced at it and saw the name of Shochiku Eiga and director Masaki Kobayashi. So he's a director.

After taking the business card, he thanked him, "Arigato, I'll contact you if I need to."

Then, feeling that it would be impolite not to introduce himself since the other person had given him a business card, he said, "Ah, my name is Naoki Nagayama. It's a bit rude, but I don't have a business card to exchange at the moment."

Masaki Kobayashi, watching Naoki Nagayama calmly take the business card and then introduce himself, suddenly laughed as if he had thought of a joke, "So you're Naoki, similar to my name~ It seems you're really not from the entertainment industry!"

? What's so funny about that? This old man must be a bit off...

The amused Masaki Kobayashi seemed to become even more interested in Naoki Nagayama and started to chat.

"Do you know anyone from the 'Hokusai Manga' team?"

"Hai, I'm friends with the lead actor, so I was invited to the screening."

"Oh? It's not Mr. Ken or Mr. Toshiyuki, right? At your age, there should be a generation gap~"

Masaki Kobayashi seemed to be playing a detective game,

"Then it must be the female lead, Miss Yoko Tanaka or Miss Kanako Higuchi?"

"......Both are friends."

Masaki Kobayashi had a look of admiration, "Naoki, you don't look that old, but you're quite impressive......"

Naoki Nagayama didn't want to talk anymore.

...

At this point, the interview on stage began. Following the host's direction, the main creative team members gave their opinions.

Kanako Higuchi was also at the front, answering questions very appropriately. If you didn't know they were prepared in advance, you might think they were the actors' real thoughts.

After a brief interview, the movie screening began.

'Hokusai Manga' tells the story of the life of the great ukiyo-e master Katsushika Hokusai, from being the adopted son of a mirror polisher to becoming a painting master. His life was full of ups and downs, colorful, and the film also contains the director's philosophical reflections on life.

The nearly two-hour duration passed in a flash. The old man beside him was very focused during the movie and didn't say anything out of place.

However, as soon as the movie ended, he started bothering Naoki Nagayama again, "Naoki, do you know Hokusai's paintings?"

"I'm not particularly interested, but I do know some of the more famous ones, like 'The Great Wave off Kanagawa.'"

"I've seen some works before, but I only learned they were Hokusai's in this movie."

"Eh? Naoki, you're not interested in traditional culture?"

"Um......I can't say I'm not interested. If I like something, I'll pay more attention to it. That's about it......"

"What about Bushido? What are your thoughts on Bushido?"

"Well, I think it should be viewed separately. The spirit of Bushido should be a process of continuous evolution. The progressive ideas, such as loyalty and righteousness, and protecting one's beliefs, should be encouraged; while the negative aspects, like aggression and random violence, should be abandoned."

"Eh? What if you're in a dilemma? Pursuing loyalty and righteousness, following the lord's order to kill a good person, should a samurai be loyal or righteous?"

"Being able to ask such a question, the samurai must already have an answer in his heart. A samurai who blindly follows orders is no different from a hunting dog kept by a rich family."

"Such a metaphor......Souka, I see, Naoki is indeed a young person of the new era~"

In the Showa era, Bushido has almost become synonymous with yakuza culture. Even in a big city like Tokyo, the Yamaguchi-gumi in the no-man's-land areas act with impunity.

Even if he avoided these places intentionally or unintentionally, Naoki Nagayama could still see how deeply rooted yakuza culture was in Japanese society.

Sigh......The yakuza background on his grandfather's side is a ticking time bomb.

Not sure if Naoki Nagayama's words had any impact, but the old man was very quiet during the post-screening activities.

It wasn't until the end of the event that he regained his energy, "What a pity, I have to go to a reception after the screening, otherwise I would have liked to have a drink and chat more with Naoki~"

Naoki Nagayama was glad to get away from this old man, but he couldn't be too rude, "Sir, that's how life goes. If we have the chance, we'll meet again. We can have a drink then~"

"Haha, you're younger but you sound like an old man......" The old man was quite carefree, "Alright, let's make it a deal. We'll have a drink when we meet again, hahaha, see you~"

Saying that, he got up and walked towards the exit, where a few older men were waving.

Naoki Nagayama sighed in relief, the troublesome guy was finally gone.

He stood up and walked towards the two female leads at the door, planning to say goodbye and go home after watching the movie.

"Miss Tanaka, Miss Higuchi, it was a great movie."

"Haha, Naoki, you liked it too? Arigato~" Kanako Higuchi smiled in response.

"The crew is probably going to have a meal together, right?" Naoki Nagayama saw the staff gathering in the hall, probably waiting for the car.

"Yes, the director is taking everyone to sing karaoke."

"Is that so? Miss Higuchi, thank you for inviting me to such a great movie today." Naoki Nagayama said, "I'll take my leave now~"

"Eh, I was thinking of going to sing with you~"

"Haha, I'm an outsider, so I won't join in."

Naoki Nagayama politely declined and then turned to Yoko Tanaka, "Miss Tanaka, remember to return the novel when you're done, or I'll come to bother you~"

"I know, you guy! Give me your phone number." Yoko Tanaka rolled her eyes.

"Haha, just a reminder~"

Kanako Higuchi, who didn't know about the novel, asked, "What novel?"

"On the way here, Miss Tanaka was so captivated by the novel I left in the car that she didn't want to let it go~" Naoki Nagayama teased, "I had no choice but to lend it to her~"

"Naoki~~!" Yoko Tanaka puffed up her cheeks.

"Hahaha, I won't say more. I'll take my leave now, see you~"

...

On the other side, a few big directors were chatting,

Shinoda Masahiro, seeing Masaki Kobayashi in a good mood, asked,

"Masaki, did something good happen? You look very happy."

"It could be considered good. I met an interesting young man today."

"Oh? A junior in the company?"

"No, he doesn't seem to be from the entertainment industry."

"Eh?"

"I heard many interesting viewpoints from him."

...