Multi-Anime, I Stand at the Forefront of Popularity Supremacy

Additionally, this pair is painted with cherry blossoms and other patterns, something ordinary shoes don't have. Furthermore, looking at the texture of these paintings, this pattern seems to be made to mimic the wood's natural grain. This texture indicates that the material used for this item is "Masa wood."

In Chinese, "Masa" is the same as the character "柩" (jiù), but in Japanese, it refers to a type of wood where lumber is cut towards the wood's core, resulting in straight wood grain. Wood that isn't straight is called "plain sawn," while straight wood is called "quarter sawn."

In short, this item is made from a rather expensive type of wood. The Japanese kun'yomi pronunciation for "Masa" is the same as the Japanese kanji words like "雅" (miyabi, elegant), "正" (tadashi, proper), and "賢" (masaru, wise), all of which denote uprightness. This is also a hint that the Hyuga Clan is a prominent family.

In modern society, a pair of Kurodaien Geta like these would start at around five thousand yen, and if Masa wood is used, the price would roughly triple. And that's for modern, mass-produced items. If it's a custom-made piece with paintings or handcrafted, the price would be even more astonishing. In ancient times, it would be astronomically expensive.

And after the graduation exam, did you all notice that Sparkle changed into another pair of shoes? It's actually quite obvious; the soles are different. These are actually Zori.

These shoes are also black, with paintings on them. Based on my experience, these should be "five-tenths three-layered" Zori. That is, Zori with three layers of leather, each layer five-tenths of a unit thick.

As I mentioned earlier, "Zori" are not actually straw sandals; most of these are made of leather. Think of them as layers of leather used to replace the wooden base of Geta. As for the price, it would start at ten times the price of the Kurodaien Geta I mentioned above. If genuine leather or more precious materials are used, prices in the hundreds of thousands of yen or even more are not impossible.

Strictly speaking, these Zori should be "Painted Five-tenths Three-layered Black and Red Genuine Leather Zori," starting at a hundred thousand yen.

There's also significance in changing shoes here. Geta are generally worn with yukata, and in the past, they were rarely worn with formal kimonos like the Furisode. Wearing Geta with kimonos nowadays is actually because modern people don't pay much attention to such details. For formal attire, the Furisode kimono Sparkle is wearing would be paired with Zori.

This kind of formal attire is usually worn at graduation ceremonies. Sparkle changing her shoes on her graduation day also symbolizes that Sparkle has already become a ninja.

Strictly speaking, at graduation, one should wear Yaya Zori, which are Zori with arrow-like shapes on the sides, symbolizing "an arrow shot never returns." They are generally worn during coming-of-age ceremonies, graduations, weddings, or when symbolizing a new beginning. By the way, this arrow shape is crafted, not painted or dyed, so there are very few people who can make them now; only a select few artisans can. Since the Ninja Path has a Japanese style, there should be more people who can make them.

From her shoes alone, it's clear that Sparkle's background is definitely not ordinary. She's at least a rich girl.

Lastly, many people say that Miss Sparkle isn't wearing Tabi, but white stockings. I can confirm this because the texture is indeed not that of Tabi, especially when compared to other characters wearing Geta. Pay attention to the graduation ceremony pictures. Therefore, based on my many years of experience appreciating stockings, these should be white stockings. I boldly predict they are definitely long white stockings!

"That's really perverted..."

Sparkle was also dumbfounded when she saw this.

Because when she went out before, she had actually considered wearing a different pair of shoes.

These viewers are simply unbelievable.

Sparkle continued scrolling down, followed by a string of replies.

[Let me add, when Sparkle received the Scroll of Sealing from Naruto, the Third Hokage clearly breathed a sigh of relief, indicating that the Third Hokage was relieved that Sparkle obtained the Scroll of Sealing, and also showing that her background is trustworthy enough.]

[High heels starting at five thousand yuan, unbelievable.]

[Three layers of genuine leather, they look expensive.]

[Three layers! The Forging Competition is still chasing me! I want to forge three layers of Damascus Bowie hunting knives!]

[Why get so worked up about things in the second dimension? Before, in a TV drama, the "poor" female lead said she was so poor she couldn't even afford to cook, but she still lived in a villa, went to Starbucks, and ate at high-end restaurants. It's hilarious.]

[What I saw is even more outrageous. The male and female leads facing unemployment crisis, yet they can move out of their 12,000 yuan rent school district apartment whenever they want, leave whenever they want, and they drive SUVs, have two Fords, and two high school children.]

[Don't try to compare TV dramas with our second dimension, dog head.JPG.]

[To be honest, if a character is wearing a gorgeous Furisode kimono and acts like a young lady in every move, and the director isn't brain-dead, then she's designed to be a rich girl. It's impossible to insist she's so poor she can't afford to eat!]

[I want to see Sparkle who is so poor she can't afford clothes!]

[Trash, no ambition! I'm different; I want to see Konohagakure where everyone is so poor they have no clothes!]

[Going off-topic, going off-topic! The Ninja Path is different. Didn't you see their promotional material? It's a realistic world.]

[You believe them just because they say so? Aren't the tragedies of "Jump Kingdom" enough?]

The Ninja Path, despite being only one episode in, had become inexplicably popular.

But after observing for a while longer, Sparkle understood.

It wasn't inexplicably popular; it was because that world hadn't had a long-form anime series for a very long time. The entire anime industry, flooded with hot money, had been churning out Isekai anime at a rapid pace, causing chaos throughout the industry.

Even well-known anime websites were forced to transform.

And just when everyone was saying, "We've suffered under Qin for too long," a long-awaited, classic Shonen battle anime appeared. Even though it was only the first episode, the audience poured an immense amount of enthusiasm into it.

"Understood, we've been holding back for too long."

Lady Sparkle gave a concise conclusion.

"Then next... ah, the rewards have finally been settled."

The rewards for the first episode of the anime could now be claimed.

Regarding the shoes and kimonos, the author specifically consulted some information. Some shoes are indeed ridiculously expensive.

If you have any interesting worlds or performances, feel free to share.

I did consider stories like "Are You Dragon?" but unfortunately, their popularity is relatively low. Otherwise, Kanae Etou would be quite interesting~.

Chapter 10: The Self-Cultivation of a Popular Character

The completion rewards for the premiere were not points or items, but something more special.

[Negotiation with the production team is complete]

[Please select one of the following as your compensation]

[1. Independent promotional poster and merchandise production]

[2. Opportunity to participate in OP1/ED1 (available before the end of Episode 5)]

[3. Opportunity for an independent OVA filming]

"Oh my, this is really hard to choose."

After seeing the content above, Sparkle found herself in a rare predicament.

An independent OVA was no small matter. She was currently a supporting character, and her screentime was always limited.

Sparkle had previously noticed that she gained the most popularity when appearing alongside the protagonist, Naruto. However, in independent scenes without Naruto, her popularity significantly decreased. In an OVA, she would be the protagonist, potentially allowing her to gain full popularity throughout, leading to a sudden surge in wealth.

But the opportunity to appear in the OP/ED was also invaluable. It would further solidify her impression on the audience. However, the OP/ED changed.

As for the first option, poster and merchandise sales, that was a steady stream, increasing exposure and gaining popularity, which was also good.

After careful consideration, Sparkle chose the OP/ED appearance opportunity.

As the saying goes, first impressions matter.

Sparkle knew she was just a supporting character, but she wanted to give the audience the feeling that she was the main character.

In fact, many people already felt that way after the first episode.

It was just that in hot-blooded anime, girls who appeared in the first episode often disappeared from the second episode onwards, becoming mere background characters. This was quite common.

Popularity, in the end, was just an illusion.

Even if she was a supporting character, as long as the audience saw her as the protagonist, that was enough.

A true idol would not be swayed by immediate benefits or the so-called stage.

An idol should lead the trend.

[Application Submitted]

[OP/ED Filming Will Commence After Episode 5 Filming Concludes]

"Let me see."

Besides the Hourglass, which couldn't be used in "performances," Sparkle currently had 20,000 Popularity Points, 1 Close-up Camera Card, and 1 Daily Life Camera Card. She could also purchase 5 random Camera Cards from the shop.

"In the original work, episode two is basically Naruto's solo show. I won't gain much popularity, so it's better to use it to improve myself."

Sparkle bought the Camera Cards first, and they yielded 3 Close-up Camera Cards and 2 Daily Life Camera Cards.

The remaining 15,000 Popularity Points were just enough to upgrade her Character Card.

Upgrading a five-star character card from LV1 to LV2 required 5,000 Popularity Points, and from LV2 to LV3, it doubled directly.

"The next 'plot' should be Kakashi and the Land of Waves."

Although she was only a supporting character in terms of stage positioning, this world was real, and this Anime Series was essentially a "reality show."

In terms of character positioning, Sparkle was theoretically the one with the best performance, and she was Naruto's friend. Moreover, Naruto didn't have that kind of obsession with Sakura Haruno from the original work.

"Changing fate against the heavens" was possible, but it required "reasons."

And Sparkle had already provided plenty of reasons.

Well, the more crucial part was that Sparkle had asked her cheap dad to tell the Third Hokage that his daughter's situation was a bit special and it would be best if she became teammates with someone she was more familiar with...

There was a backdoor, why wouldn't she use it? Hahaha, I've already manipulated things behind the scenes.

However, she would still have to put on an act when the time came.

The audience just needed to watch the plot, while Sparkle, the young lady, had many considerations for her backroom dealings.

After confirming her entry into Team 7, she naturally had to start her plan.

"Although it's somewhat useful against Chunin, it's another story against Jonin. So, I should improve my combat power now."

Even if the enemy could be deceived, if her attack power couldn't break through their defenses, it would be problematic.

Shiranui-ryu's ninjutsu was fire-based, which would be countered in the Land of Waves.

Sparkle herself could use the Hyuga Clan's Taijutsu.

But if she used those trump cards, wouldn't she expose herself? Her initial persona as the masked person would also be difficult to maintain. This should be a "foreshadowing" used only during the later reversal. Secrets are revealed layer by layer; revealing her trump cards now would be irresponsible to the audience.

A good idol should always have a way to ignite the audience's passion.

"So, I'll upgrade Jingliu's character card."

Upgrading a character card was essentially upgrading a token. Sparkle took off her black veil eye mask and enhanced it.

"——!!!"

When the level was upgraded to LV3, Sparkle clearly felt a peculiar cold light flowing into her spiritual platform from the eye mask.

It was a feeling of bone-chilling cold mixed with abnormal killing intent.

[Character Inheritance Card]

[Jingliu (Wu Xia Fei Guang) LV3]

[Rarity: Five Stars]

[Talent/Skills: Ice Affinity, Yin Affinity, Swordsmanship Affinity]

[Bonus: +10% Attention when wearing Chinese-style attire]

[Token: Eye-covering Black Veil - Eye Mask]

[Token Function: When equipped, increases Attention by 12%, Training Speed by 12%, and grants Sensory Enhancement.]

[LV3 Additional Talent: Ancient Mirror Reflecting Divinity]

[Ancient Mirror Reflecting Divinity (2/2): For every 7 consecutive days the Eye-covering Black Veil is equipped, one resonance with Jingliu can be achieved.]

At LV3, LV7, and LV10, character cards will provide unique skills.

It's a shame Sparkle can't continue to upgrade, because the Popularity Points required to go from LV3 to LV4 increased tenfold, from 10,000 points to 100,000.

"Resonance?"

Ancient Mirror Reflecting Divinity, this seems to be Jingliu's original ability, which apparently creates an ice-frozen domain, but the character card's ability is resonance?

"Miss Sparkle, it's time to get ready," Natsu Hyuga's voice came from outside the door.

Today is a rest day after the exam, and they're going to take graduation photos. So Natsu Hyuga wants to dress Sparkle up nicely.

"Mhm."

As for this so-called "resonance," I'll try it out after I'm done with important matters.

[First!]

[Seven years! I've waited a whole seven years!]