Scramble Crossing
1
Airi
*Sigh*
Another day, another tough shoot!
2
Shizuku
But it ended up being a lot of fun.
I never thought I'd get to be the one pulling a prank on people.
3
Minori
Me neither. My heart wouldn't stop racing during the entire thing!
4
Minori
Unfortunately...
Our prank didn't go that well.
5
Haruka
Yeah.
Replacing all the ghosts in that amusement park's haunted house with idols seemed like a good idea, but...
6
Haruka
Shizuku was acting so suspiciously that everyone figured out who she was, and our prank sort of ended up turning into a meet and greet.
7
Shizuku
While you all did such a good job of being ghastly ghosts and spooky spirits that no one noticed who you were.
8
Airi
To be fair, the production teams are always prepared for these things with shows that involve a lot of pranks...
9
Airi
Anyway, the producer really seemed to enjoy it, so I'm calling it a job well done!
10
Shizuku
Hehe. I'm really glad.
11
Shizuku
And it's so nice how we've been getting invited onto all these different programs lately.
12
Haruka
Yeah.
They've mostly been online and local programs, but it definitely feels like people are noticing us more.
13
Haruka
So, let's keep up the good work.
14
Minori
Right!
So we can do a show at the Dome!
15
Airi
Us doing a show at the Dome's still way off in the future, so let's just keep trying to accomplish what we can for now.
16
Shizuku
What we can for now...
Our next goal is to perform at the Butokan, yes?
17
Haruka
Yeah, and it seats 15,000...
We've been getting a lot more media attention lately, so I feel like we're making good progress...
18
Haruka
But how many people do you think would show up if we made an announcement right now?
19
Airi
We have a lot more subscribers and followers online now, but getting people to physically come if we actually did it is a different story.
20
Minori
If we actually did it...
21
Minori
Then, why don't we?!
22
Shizuku
What?
23
Minori
If we just did one, then we'd know exactly where we're at in terms of how many people we can attract, right...?
24
Minori
Plus, we've been getting a lot of comments asking about when our next show's gonna be! I have a feeling everyone's already really excited about it!
25
Haruka
Yeah, and it has been a little while since our solo show.
26
Airi
True. And it'd be nice to see everyone's faces again...
27
Airi
Alright, let's start planning for it!
28
Minori
Woohoo!!
29
Shizuku
Oh, that means we'll need to find a venue, come up with a set list and such...
30
Minori
Yeah, right!
Since we're doing this, we should do something that'll blow everyone's minds! Any ideas?
31
Haruka
As much as I want to keep discussing this, it's getting pretty late, and we're all tired from work...
32
Airi
Yeah... Let's head home for now.
We'll discuss this again another time after we've had a chance to come up with ideas!
33
Shizuku
Okay!
A few days later
Rental Meeting Room
34
Saito
I see...
So that's why you asked me to join you today.
35
Haruka
Yes. We thought that it'd be best to ask you for advice regarding our ideas for the show and how to run the venue.
36
Shizuku
We hammered out a list of things that we'd like to do now, but we're not sure how practical they're going to be. So, we were hoping to get a second opinion.
37
Saito
I'll be more than glad to help!
Please give me a moment to read through this document of yours!
38
Saito
Let's see...
39
Saito
These all sound like really great ideas!
It shouldn't be hard to do them!
40
Shizuku
Thank goodness...
41
Saito
However, Minori, your “gifts for everyone” idea might hurt your budget a bit...
42
Saito
Not too long ago, this would've been pretty easy to pull off. But now, MORE MORE JUMP! has a lot more fans...
43
Saito
Footing the bill for enough gifts to hand out to everyone you meet is already going to be pretty tough. On top of that, the crowd may become a bit chaotic.
44
Saito
Which means you'd have to hire more staff and security. In other words, higher costs.
45
Minori
Th-That's right! All the big idol events have tons and tons of security!
46
Minori
I never thought that we'd ever have to need that much security at one of our events...
47
Airi
We trust our fans to behave themselves, but we do need to have a plan in place just in case.
48
Haruka
Right...
It's always fun to directly interact with our fans, but those kinds of events come with certain risks.
49
Minori
I know our safety is important, but I also don't want any of our fans to get hurt!
50
Shizuku
I agree. We should do what we can to ensure that everyone who comes to see us has a good time.
51
Saito
Still, I'm sure your guests would be over the moon to receive a gift from MMJ! So, if you can stay within budget, I say go for it.
52
Saito
Since you haven't picked a venue yet, you can book one first and see what you're going to have left before deciding what to do.
53
Minori
I see...
54
Airi
Thanks for always giving us such detailed advice, Saito! We really appreciate it!
55
Saito
No, I'm only able to say these things because I was recently involved in helping put together a fairly involved event. I'm just glad to put that experience to good use!
56
Shizuku
I don't know what to say. I'm starting to feel bad about always receiving so much wonderful advice from you.
57
Haruka
That's not limited to just events.
You've been giving us all sorts of good advice regarding our schedule after we started appearing on TV.
58
Haruka
So, thank you very much for all your help.
59
Saito
No, um... I feel honored that I get to help with the operations of MORE MORE JUMP!
60
Saito
And I became so excited when I heard that you'd be doing another event...!
61
Saito
Oh, look at me...
I'm babbling away about how I feel as a fan.
62
Airi
Hehe. And we couldn't be more grateful.
63
Saito
Anyway, that's enough of my fangirling.
Let's get back to discussing your event!
64
Saito
As I mentioned a moment ago, I suggest that you all start by looking for your next venue.
65
Saito
Are there any that happen to immediately come to mind? If so, I can ask to see if they'll be available.
66
Minori
Oh, that'd help so much!
67
Minori
So, we were actually in the middle of deciding where we can do this...
68
Shizuku
The thing is, we have quite a lot on our plate at the moment.
69
Shizuku
Our original goal for today was to find a good date for our next event and see which venues are available while looking at our current schedule.
70
Saito
Yes, I see!
In that case... Would you mind showing me your current schedule?
71
Haruka
Yes, of course.
This is what it looks like right now...
72
Saito
Wow...! Busy is right!
You're all booked up for the next few months...
73
Saito
Oh, hang on...
74
Haruka
Did you find something?
75
Saito
Oh, it's just...
About what you have planned for Friday on this week here...
76
Saito
This meeting for FluffTalk is scheduled to end not long before your interview with LoVE IDoL is supposed to begin.
77
Saito
You're supposed to meet in Akasaka for FluffTalk, but Yokohama for LoVE IDoL... Will you be able to make it to this interview in time?
78
Minori
What...?!
79
Airi
She's right...
Our FluffTalk meeting ends at seven and that interview for LoVE IDoL starts at eight. Which means...
80
Shizuku
We're only going to have about an hour to get from Akasaka to Yokohama. It's usually around forty minutes by train...
81
Shizuku
And we run the risk of being late if we get lost or anything else happens.
82
Haruka
Yeah...
And that's assuming this meeting actually ends right at seven. We'll be cutting it really close.
83
Airi
I'm so sorry.
It's my fault for penciling in both. I'll call them right away to see if we can change the meeting time.
84
Shizuku
Airi...
85
Airi
Phew... It's still some time away, so they were happy to meet at a different time...
86
Shizuku
What a relief...
87
Airi
Again, I'm really sorry.
I caused you all stress over something I did.
88
Haruka
No, don't say that.
It's our fault for leaving it all to you.
89
Minori
We can check over everything together next time!
90
Haruka
Right.
It's always good to have another set of eyes look over everything.
91
Airi
I'd really appreciate it.
Still...
92
Airi
We would've been in huge trouble if you hadn't caught this just now, Saito. I don't even know how to begin thanking you...
93
Saito
No, I just happened to notice is all...
It was nothing, really.
94
Saito
Still, managing such a packed schedule all by yourselves seems like a tall order.
95
Airi
It is. I'm not gonna lie, I've sort of been at my wit's end for a little while now... My hope is that we'll be able to hire a manager soon.
96
Airi
But that means looking for the right person for the job and figuring out how to actually go about hiring them. We just haven't had the time.
97
Saito
Yes, I see...
Especially considering how busy you all are right now.
98
Haruka
Also, we're not a company or anything, so we wouldn't be able to hire them as our employee per se.
99
Haruka
Which basically means we'd be taking them on as a freelancer... I'm not sure how many people we'll find who are willing to work under those conditions.
100
Minori
Th-That's true...
101
Airi
On the other hand, we want someone we can trust and who understands who we are as a group.
102
Minori
Th-That's also true...!
103
Airi
As a result, we haven't really been able to get ourselves to start looking for someone.
104
Saito
I see...
105
Shizuku
(Someone we can trust...
Someone who understands who we are...)
106
Shizuku
(Who's also suited to the job of a manager...)
107
Shizuku
(Wait a second...)
108
Shizuku
Saito, aren't you the perfect choice?
109
Saito
What...?
110
Shizuku
You've been supporting us all this time, giving us so much wonderful advice and being so reliable.
111
Shizuku
You even immediately saw a problem with our schedule after having only a quick glance at it.
112
Shizuku
I honestly believe no one else is more well-suited for this job than you.
113
Saito
M...
114
Saito
M-Me...?!
Next Chapter: Someone Dependable