I Thought This Was a Slice of Life

"Shu-chan can't come over anymore?!"

"Why!"

"I don't want that... waaaah!"

"Waaaa---!"

"Uwaaa---!"

"Wait, hold on?!"

No, why are you all crying?!

Shuya felt like his ears were being assaulted by demonic sounds; the sheer power of five children crying was enough to destroy the heavens and the earth, to the point where even the Great Dao felt like it was being ground to dust.

Half an hour later, he and Rena finally managed to settle the emotions of the Quintuplets.

After they finished their tantrum, Rena was too exhausted to keep pushing back against Shuya's gift.

Only after Shuya told her to treat it as an early birthday present did she reluctantly accept, while demanding that Shuya never give her another birthday gift again.

Shuya, of course, agreed wholeheartedly.

The Quintuplets were sniffling as they held the game consoles, but after playing for a while, they were already shouting and laughing again.

Rena: "..."

Shuya: "???"

Raising kids is seriously f*cking hard.

But regardless, as long as they stopped making a scene, it allowed Rena and Shuya to breathe a sigh of relief.

Shuya noticed the expression on Rena's face at that moment.

As Rena looked at the game consoles in her daughters' hands, a faint trace of sorrow appeared in her eyes.

As a mother, she also wanted to satisfy her daughters' material needs, but given her capabilities, she was already doing her absolute best just to raise them to grow up healthy.

Although she could seek government assistance if things got truly desperate, Rena felt that since she had hands and feet, she didn't need to.

This was the final dignity of a mother.

Shuya took a look at the environment of this house.

Although poor, it was warm.

Although poor, it couldn't help but make one...

Feel a sense of deep respect.

Shuya suddenly stood up.

Rena and the Quintuplets couldn't help but have their attention drawn to him.

Moved by the warm atmosphere of the scene and his own imagination, Shuya felt his blood boil with courage. Ignoring everything else, he looked at Rena and shouted loudly: "Don't worry! I will absolutely make you all happy, ahhhhh---!"

As a father!

In his excitement, Shuya forgot to add that last part, which resulted in a massive misunderstanding.

Shuya's shout echoed through the cramped living room.

Silence.

Shuya could hear the sound of his own heart beating.

Rena: "..."

She looked at Shuya speechlessly, then glanced at her daughters.

She slowly revealed a beautiful smile that was awkward but polite: "Ah... um? That... Shu-chan? Actually, it's not that I'm against you pursuing my daughters..."

Shuya was bewildered: "Huh?"

Rena looked troubled: "But... could you tell me, which one of them are you actually choosing?"

Shuya was stunned: "Eh?"

"..."

Rena said in disbelief: "You don't actually... want them all, do you? This... this is..."

Shuya began to realize things were going south: "No, no, no, I don't! I didn't! This is a misunderstanding! I was actually talking to Re—"

I am devoted only to you!

He didn't get to finish his sentence.

The Quintuplets were already making a ruckus again.

Ichika took the lead, shouting excitedly: "Is Shu-chan proposing to us?!"

"Proposal, proposal!"

The other little huskies raised their hands and cheered.

Yes! I want to propose, but not to you lot!

Inoue Shuya had no chance to defend himself; the Quintuplets excitedly tackled him to the ground, mimicking scenes from television dramas as they covered his face in slobber.

He already knew one fact.

He! Had! Messed! Up!

Shuya was already in despair.

He didn't even know how he had made it home.

Shuya also ignored Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura, who were curiously asking him what had happened and why it was so noisy next door.

Shuya lay on his bed, two lines of silent tears streaming down his face.

He had been defiled by the Quintuplets.

If only he had known that a shota could also be molested by little girls.

Shuya had a nightmare that night and started muttering mysterious things in his sleep:

"No! Oh, brother, don't!"

"Don't do it!"

"Let me take a look!"

"Uhoh! Good man!"

"Won't you do it?"

Too many memes!

However, by the next day, Shuya had completely revived.

It was just a minor setback; he was still far from the point of giving up!

Inoue Shuya!

You must work hard!

Anyway, since he had to wait for tens of thousands of words before applying again, he would just try tweaking his profile for now.

Section 26: Junior Martial Sister Sakai Seisen

Shuya's parents were highly efficient and quickly found him an acting coach and a music teacher.

The person teaching Shuya acting was an old actor named Kato Nobunaga, who was over seventy years old and a legendary figure in the entertainment industry, akin to a hidden master.

Kato Nobunaga agreed to be Shuya's teacher out of respect for Hanazawa Sakura's grandfather.

The music teacher was named Ayako Ishikawa, a close friend of Hanazawa Sakura's mother.

Ayako Ishikawa was a famous musician, a renowned composer and lyricist who had written many hit songs and held a prestigious status.

Having these two as teachers was an absolutely top-tier arrangement, the kind that money alone couldn't buy.

In particular, Kato Nobunaga had high status in the industry, and having him as a mentor would bring Shuya many benefits.

Hanazawa Sakura and Inoue Hikoo took Shuya to visit Kato Nobunaga early in the morning.

Kato Nobunaga's house was huge, even featuring a beautiful Japanese-style garden, which showed he was clearly not short on money.

The usually hyperactive Inoue Hikoo put on a straight face and acted like a good boy the moment he saw Kato Nobunaga, being so respectful that it made Shuya feel a bit nauseous, but Shuya forced himself to suppress any dissatisfaction and put on his most innocent, adorable smile.

He figured that an old man like Kato Nobunaga must love cute little children, so he thought he would try to win his favor first.

Kato Nobunaga's wife clearly fell for it, constantly picking up snacks and shoving them into Shuya's hands.

This first meeting was just a round of pointless reminiscing about the past and present.

Perhaps it was a common trait among the elderly.

Kato Nobunaga talked about how he and Hanazawa Sakura's grandfather had struggled and worked hard back in the day.

In the end, Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura couldn't take it anymore and fled, using work as an excuse, leaving Shuya there all by himself.

Seeing this, Kato Nobunaga asked his wife to leave as well, leaving only him and Shuya behind.

Kato Nobunaga looked rather serious, but not to the point of being intimidating; he felt like a stubborn old scholar.

He hadn't taken many acting roles recently, focusing instead on teaching and training newcomers.

He had always only lectured at schools and never taken on disciples, so Shuya's treatment was one of a kind.

Kato Nobunaga didn't stay silent to appear profound; once his wife left, he began to speak with Shuya.

He took a sip of tea, looked into Shuya's eyes, and said, "Shuya, do you know? I have always felt that you are a very good acting prospect."

"Really? Thank you, Grandpa."

Shuya gave a shy, well-behaved smile.

Kato Nobunaga laughed as well: "Yes, that's it. That exact hypocritical smile. I can tell that you were acting the very first time you appeared in public. Up until now, acting has even become a part of your life."

"..."

Shuya was startled, and his smile slowly faded.

This old man really knew his stuff.

Kato Nobunaga nodded meaningfully: "I won't concern myself with your reasons for doing this. As your acting teacher, my only task is to improve your acting skills. Everything else is your parents' job, so... don't waste time. Let's get started right away."

He thought for a moment and added: "By the way, let's set a small goal: make that fake smile of yours look real as soon as possible."

Shuya twitched the corner of his mouth. He stopped faking a smile and simply bowed respectfully: "I'm counting on you, teacher."

For the first time in five years, someone had seen through Shuya's disguise.

He was also looking forward to the old man's instruction.

And just like that, Shuya's acting training began.

"Then, first of all..."

After the morning acting session, Shuya was picked up by Saori. After grabbing a bite to eat, he headed to the gym.

He met up with Mai-chan right on time to exercise.

Today, the two of them switched up their routine; instead of running, they hopped on stationary bikes.

The two chatted away while they worked out.

"Mai-chan, I started taking acting lessons today too."

"Eh? Shuya started taking lessons too?"

Upon hearing Shuya's words, Mai asked: "Who is your teacher, Shuya? My teacher is Uehara Kei."

Shuya said: "An old man named Kato Nobunaga. Do you know him?"

"Never heard of him."