Ichika and Nino pinned Shuya's arms from either side.
"That's so unfair!"
"This is fun!"
Miku and Yotsuba pinned Shuya from behind, their little heads popping up over his shoulders on either side.
"Ehh—!"
The honest Itsuki was dumbfounded. Her lower lip trembled, and she was about to burst into tears when Rena swooped in and picked her up, placing her in Shuya's arms.
Shuya couldn't move a muscle.
Do you recognize this formation?!
Shuya was close to tears. He'd wanted to take the opportunity to hug Rena and get a picture, not be taken advantage of by the Quintuplets!
These little rascals had been eyeing my good looks for ages! Shuya cursed inwardly, but kept smiling.
The road of a lovesick fool was a hard one!
"Hehe..."
Rena covered her mouth as she laughed. Shuya stared at her, momentarily entranced.
This is the good stuff.
Shuya remained dazed as he posed for the precious group photo with the Quintuplets and Rena.
For both Shuya and the Quintuplets, it was an irreplaceable memory.
After all that excitement, the Quintuplets were soon exhausted and sleepy.
Shuya said goodbye to Rena.
He'd successfully raised their affection levels again today, and he was thrilled.
When he got home, Inoue Hikoo wore the wise expression of a man who had achieved enlightenment, while Hanazawa Sakura lounged lazily on the sofa.
Looks like they're done.
Shuya had originally wanted to ask about the Dahua Special Forces, but changed his mind when he saw them.
He chose to take a bath and go to bed. He wasn't in the mood to watch them feed him dog food.
The next day.
Shuya went to the company with his family as usual.
They were recording the fifth episode today.
After recording it, Shuya would have a few days off. Inoue Hikoo hadn't finished the storyboards for the next episode, so there was nothing to record yet.
Everyone at the company was busy.
As everyone knew, making animation wasn't just a matter of voice actors. It took a team working through numerous stages.
So far, only the first episode was complete, and the second was only halfway done.
Everyone at the company was working themselves to the bone.
Once the show actually started airing, Inoue Hikoo might not even be able to come home every day.
Shuya wasn't worried about whether they'd stay on schedule. He trusted Inoue Hikoo's pre-bankruptcy abilities, which came with a buff.
Without further ado, the three of them arrived at the company, and recording began promptly at ten.
In the fifth episode of Alien Baby Hikari-chan, after secretly observing Uesugi Yuichi in the third and fourth episodes, Yuzuki Sasaki had all but confirmed that Hikari wasn't Uesugi Yuichi's child or relative.
She resolved to uncover Hikari's origins.
After noticing that Uesugi Yuichi had bought books on childcare, Yuzuki Sasaki realized he wasn't good at raising a child, so she asked her mother for advice on all kinds of childcare techniques.
Her mother mistakenly thought she was pregnant, and after a chaotic chase around the house, Yuzuki Sasaki was finally let off the hook by her parents.
Having learned a great deal from her mother's lecture, she began deliberately showing off her childcare knowledge to Uesugi Yuichi while they were drawing.
The hook was irresistible.
And Uesugi Yuichi took the bait, just as expected.
With Hikari as her little tool, Yuzuki Sasaki successfully raised Uesugi Yuichi's affection for her.
As the days passed, Uesugi Yuichi and Yuzuki Sasaki grew closer and closer. Then, one day, Uesugi Yuichi took the initiative to invite Yuzuki Sasaki out and asked her for advice about raising Hikari.
Uesugi Yuichi was actually under a lot of pressure. Hikari wasn't an ordinary baby; his supernatural powers often left everything around him in complete disarray.
The fifth episode of Alien Baby Hikari-chan ended with Yuzuki Sasaki and Uesugi Yuichi enjoying a friendly "meet-up" (date).
According to the script, the next episode would be a crucial one: Hikari's supernatural powers would be exposed, and Uesugi Yuichi would come clean to Yuzuki Sasaki.
But the storyboards weren't ready, so they wouldn't be able to record tomorrow. Maybe not even the day after.
Under the circumstances, Shuya had nothing to do, either.
They finished recording the fifth episode early, at a little past one in the afternoon.
The young women in the recording studio went off to their part-time jobs.
Hanazawa Sakura and Shuya were getting ready to leave, too.
Hanazawa Sakura would head back to her agency afterward. As for Shuya, in the past, he'd have gone home to raise the Quintuplets' affection levels.
But he'd taken a job on a Morning Drama and promised Aoki Shin he'd work on his stamina. He wasn't going to go back on his word.
Shuya also planned to find a teacher to help him learn acting, and to start studying music as well.
It was about time.
He brought it up with his parents.
"That sounds great. You should learn new things. We'll support you," Inoue Hikoo said with a smile.
"Of course. We won't object if Shu-chan wants to learn," Hanazawa Sakura said, gently patting Shuya's head.
Shuya hesitated. "Can our family finances handle it?"
"Hahaha, Shu-chan, you're underestimating our family!" Inoue Hikoo laughed. "We know people, so it won't cost much! At most, we'll have to give the teacher a little gift."
"That's right."
Hanazawa Sakura nodded confidently.
Shuya was puzzled. "Our family's that awesome?"
Inoue Hikoo nodded. "Have we never told you? Well, we might as well explain now."
Only then did Shuya learn that his family had deep roots in the entertainment industry.
Inoue Hikoo's parents were animation producers. They had once worked under the great manga artist Tezuka Mushi, but later struck out on their own—and went bankrupt.
Compared to Inoue Hikoo's family, Hanazawa Sakura's family was even more impressive.
Hanazawa Sakura's parents were both voice actors, but her grandfather was an actor. Her grandfather and Inoue Hikoo's grandfather were good friends, and the two families had been close ever since.
Hanazawa Sakura's grandfather could just about be considered one of the earliest actors to appear in Japanese dramas. He wasn't very famous, but the people who knew him were all big shots by now.
His standing in the industry was absolutely that of a leading elder.
Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura's families could be called hidden acting dynasties, with deep connections in the entertainment industry.
The only problem was that none of their ancestors had been particularly famous.
Not only were they unknown to the general public, but the industry's younger generation didn't even know the two families had such a history.
Inoue Hikoo sighed. "Our family may have fallen on hard times, but we've never lost touch with our connections. If Sakura-chan and I go in person, we can definitely find the best teacher for you."
"I never thought you'd be good for anything besides wasting money!"
Inoue Shuya blurted out.
"Hm? How strange! My ears suddenly stopped working. Sob, sob!"
"Ahaha, did you say something just now?"
Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura pretended they couldn't hear a thing.
Hanazawa Sakura changed the subject. "Anyway, your dad and I will get in touch with some teachers. For now, you can start working out over the next couple of days. I know a well-regarded gym in the industry. I'll take you there now!"
"...That works."
Shuya gave them both a sidelong glance and let it go.
Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura relaxed in unison.
"Shu-chan and I will be off, then."
Hanazawa Sakura took Shuya out of the company, and Maeda Saori drove them to the gym she'd mentioned.
The gym had good security and was fairly upscale. Most people couldn't afford to go there.
But Hanazawa Sakura knew the owner, so getting Shuya in wasn't a problem, and they only had to pay half price.
The trainers there were supposedly former students of some famous martial arts school, so they should know what they were doing.
But Shuya was only five, so he couldn't work out too hard. A little running and swimming would do.
They wouldn't let a child touch the weight machines or anything like that.
At most, they'd let him use an exercise bike.
Section 23: 23. Shocking! The Child Star Did This with Mai-chan at the Gym!
After getting Shu-chan settled, Hanazawa Sakura and Maeda Saori headed back. Saori would pick him up two hours later. They had plenty to do and couldn't stay to watch Shuya exercise.
Hanazawa Sakura trusted this gym, which was owned by an old friend. The owner also liked Shuya and was one of his mom fans.
There weren't many people at the gym at this hour. It was the afternoon, after all, and still during working hours.
The gym was quite large, so with so few people around, it felt spacious.
Following the trainer's advice, Shuya decided to exercise on a treadmill.
It was worth mentioning that treadmills weren't really suitable for children, but the gym's owner had specially ordered more than a dozen treadmills for kids, so it wasn't a problem.
Dressed in children's sportswear and carrying a towel and water bottle, Shuya strolled over to the treadmills. Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Huh? Shuya?"
He turned around and saw a little girl with long, straight black hair.
Sakurajima Mai was dressed in sportswear too, and she looked at Shuya in surprise.
"Hey, what a coincidence, Mai-chan," Shuya said with a smile.
Mai smiled with relief and jogged over. "You come to this gym too, Shuya? That's great. I was starting to feel a little lonely here by myself."
She was lonely, definitely not scared. Mai-chan insisted on setting the record straight.
"Really? Don't worry, I'm here. We can exercise together!"
Shuya thumped his chest.
Having a cute little girl work out beside him had to be better than running miserably by himself.
"Yeah!"
Mai-chan nodded happily.
Her mother had gone to work, just like Shuya's, and hadn't stayed to watch her.
Shuya and Mai got on the treadmills together, in perfect harmony.
Neither of them spoke while running.
After a while, Mai-chan was already panting. Her stamina really wasn't very good.
If she had to film a Morning Drama right now, she'd be dead on the spot.
Before you continue