NeoGeo Launches and Wedding Preparations
July is scorching hot, and the heat is unbearable.
The box office for "Lugia's Explosive Birth" is still soaring, while the creator of the series, Nakayama Takuya, is currently "confined" in the Nakayama family mansion, unable to move.
"Takuya, stand up straight, shoulders back."
The mother, Nakayama Miyuki voice, yet it carried an undeniable authority.
Holding a folding fan, she was meticulously scrutinizing her son's reflection in the mirror.
Two experienced tailors were carefully adjusting the black patterned haori that Nakayama Takuya was wearing.
The layers of clothing were piled up, making the room feel like a steamer in the sweltering summer heat.
Takuya felt sweat almost dripping down his forehead.
"Mom, isn't that enough? It's just an outfit," he muttered under his breath.
"What do you mean 'just an outfit'?" Nakayama Miyuki raised an eyebrow. "This is the formal attire worn by the men of the Nakayama family for their most important ceremonies; every detail must be perfect. Your father back then..."
"Yes, yes, my father was exceptionally brave and valiant in his youth, captivating you at first sight," Takuya immediately replied, his tone tinged with flattery.
Sitting on the sofa next to her, Oguchi Nakagawa Eri sweets). Seeing her fiancé eating like this, she couldn't help but cover her mouth with her sleeve, her eyes curving into crescents.
Just then, a butler quietly entered carrying a document and respectfully handed it to Takuya.
"Executive, these are the documents you instructed your assistant to send over."
Takuya felt like he had been saved and quickly took it.
Nakayama Miyuki frowned, but after glancing at her smiling future daughter-in-law beside her, she ultimately said nothing more, only tapping the table lightly with her folding fan to express her displeasure.
Takuya's gaze swept quickly across the documents, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up.
"Oh? SNK's NeoGeo is finally released? It's been delayed until July—three months later than I remember."
He secretly made his own plans.
Perhaps Sega's early development of Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting reshaped the Mega Drive and handheld market, creating a butterfly effect that led to delays in SNK's internal projects and robbed them of some of their luck.
When he saw the price of the home console, which was as high as 58,000 Japanese yen, he almost burst out laughing.
This price is practically robbery.
While the hardware can indeed perfectly replicate the arcade experience, in this era of economic bubble bursting, how many families are willing to spend the price of a top-of-the-line television on a game console that can only play arcade games?
"What are you thinking about? You're laughing so happily." Eri's gentle voice came through, tinged with a hint of curiosity.
"It's nothing, just a competitor who overestimated himself and made a huge gamble," Takuya said seriously, waving the documents in his hand.
"A high-stakes gamble?" Eri, puzzled.
"Look, SNK released a new console. Although it's ridiculously expensive, they still have the R&D capabilities." Takuya's eyes were full of schadenfreude. "But with the current economic situation, there are definitely fewer home consoles that can afford this price. I heard that Kawasaki Eikichi borrowed a lot of money in SNK's name to invest in real estate in the past two years, and I guess he lost a lot this year. He might be going all in this time."
"Let's not talk about them anymore. Anyway, Sega's new arcade board is almost finished, so we're not afraid of their challenges at all." Takuya turned to Eri. "What do you think, should we get a complete Pokémon figures for our kids?"
Eri blushed deeply at his sudden change of topic, giving him a reproachful glare. "Who discusses children's toys before marriage?"
"Why not?" Takuya said matter-of-factly, "My mother says she wants a grandson every day."
Listening to her son and future daughter-in-law flirting and even dragging her into it, Nakayama Miyuki, who was standing to the side, finally couldn't keep up the serious expression on her face and turned into a helpless yet doting smile.
She cleared her throat, interrupting their conversation. "Alright, you've finished trying on the clothes. Takuya, the day after tomorrow is the day you and Eri go to the shrine for your purification ceremony. You're not allowed to concern yourself with company matters these next few days, understand?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Takuya stood at attention and gave an awkward salute, which made Eri chuckle.
At the end of August, the lingering heat of midsummer had not yet dissipated, and the cicadas continued their incessant chirping.
The month-long run of "Lugia's Explosive Birth" officially ended amidst a frenzy, and the final box office figures were solemnly placed on Matsuoka's desk in Toho's publicity department in a report document.
Matsuoka took a deep breath and opened the report.
When the number starting with "6" came into view, he felt his heart skip a beat.
The final box office was 6.08 billion Japanese yen!
This figure not only far surpasses the 5.05 billion Japanese yen earned by Kadokawa Pictures' heavily invested and hailed epic film of the year, "Heaven and Earth," but also unsurprisingly takes the top spot at the annual box office.
This is an unreasonable and disruptive approach, a complete disruption of the traditional film industry using a brand-new business model.
Matsuoka was so excited that his hands were trembling. He grabbed the phone, wanting to share this amazing news with Nakayama Takuya immediately.
"Call me Nakayama, the special envoy!" he practically yelled at his secretary.
However, all that came through the receiver was a polite but cold "no answer" message.
Undeterred, he dialed Sega's Managing Director's Office again.
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Matsuoka, but Executive Director Nakayama is currently on personal leave and will not be handling official business at this time."
holiday?
At this pivotal moment in history, he was actually on vacation?
Matsuoka was stunned, then a feeling of both amusement and admiration welled up inside him.
Only that man could remain leisurely detached after stirring up such a massive wave.
He hung up the phone helplessly, thought for a moment, and then quickly composed a text message, every word of which was filled with excitement.
[Nakayama Special Agent! Final box office 6.08 billion! We are number one in annual box office!]
At this moment, Nakayama Takuya naturally wouldn't receive this text message.
On the outskirts of Tokyo, an ancient shrine stands quietly nestled among the mountains and forests, isolating itself from the hustle and bustle of summer.
The enormous camphor tree provided ample shade, and the air was filled with the unique aroma of incense mixed with damp earth.
Nakayama Takuya and Nakagawa Eri, dressed in pure white Japanese-style clothing, knelt in the purification room in front of the shrine.
The priest beside me was chanting a blessing in an ancient tone, each syllable seemingly capable of cleansing the soul.
The ceremony was elaborate and solemn.
As the icy "divine water" poured down from the wood, flowing down his forehead and over his entire body, Takuya couldn't help but shiver.
This water is really cold.
He subconsciously glanced at Eri beside him, only to see that she was also shivering slightly from the cold, but her eyes were clear and firm.
Their eyes met, and they both saw a hint of embarrassment and an barely concealed smile in each other's eyes.
The originally solemn and dignified atmosphere instantly became warm and cozy because of this little incident.
After the ceremony, the two changed into dry yukatas and Oguchi warm barley tea in the tea room to ward off the chill.
Takuya then picked up his coat, which was lying to the side, and took out his phone.
The screen lit up, and Matsuoka's text message, filled with exclamation marks, immediately popped up.
The corners of his mouth slowly turned up.
"What's making you so happy?" Eri, holding a teacup and curiously leaning closer.
"It's nothing," Takuya handed her the phone, his tone as casual as if he were talking about something trivial, "It's just that we're sure to receive a big gift from Toho for our wedding."
Eri stared at the numbers on the screen, her beautiful eyes widening slightly, before giving him a reproachful glare.
"You're joking about serious matters again."
"How can this be a joke?" Takuya put his phone away confidently, his gaze turning to the lush green forest outside the window, his eyes becoming deep.
"With two consecutive theatrical releases being the highest-grossing films of the year, Toho will definitely have to pay a price if they want to piggyback on our Pokémon theatrical film promotion."