Good morning!

I'm Shizuku Hinomori from MORE MORE JUMP! Thank you for having me here today.

Yes, thank you for coming.
We're almost ready to begin fitting you, so please have a seat and wait here.

Understood.

(All we're doing today is trying on our outfits for the shoot.)

(But everybody involved is here, so I have to stay focused.)

Hinomori.

Oh, Hagiyama...!

Once again, I look forward to working with you on this commercial.

Yes, I'm also looking forward to working with you.

You were so incredible during that audition. I promise to do everything I can in order to keep up with you.

Thank you...
I really appreciate you saying that, Hinomori.

So, Hagiyama...

Can you tell me what was going through your mind during the audition?

What was going through my mind...?

Yes.
I know it's a very open-ended question...

But I'd like to have a better understanding of your thought process, since we're going to be working together.

I want to know how you were able to shine so brilliantly that time.

...
I just...

My thought was...
To pose in a way which exceeded everyone's expectations.

Their expectations...?

Yes.

I have to keep going above and beyond.
My presence has to be powerful enough to blow others away.

I was sure that was the answer, so I decided to pose accordingly.

After all, the theme of this commercial demands that from us...

And more importantly, I think that's how a top idol ought to be, at all times.

But I'm still nowhere near that level.
I have to keep finding ways to improve.

Hagiyama...

(But she's already so dazzling.
Despite that, she still feels...)

(No, her resolve is precisely why her technical acuity is so high.)

(But I...)

Okay!
I'm seeing no issues with your outfit!

Actually, I'm sorry...
I need to quickly go ask about which accessories we'll be using, so would you mind waiting here for a bit? Call it a short break.

Yes, that's fine.

(It seems like they'll be done fitting me very soon...)

(Which means I need to begin strengthening my resolve in preparation for our shoot...)

(No...
I can think that all I want, but I don't actually know how to do that...)

I'm sorry, but...
I'd like to go for a bit of fresh air.

Phew...

(Keep it together...
I can't let this chance slip.)

Yikes, what do we do now?

(Huh? Mr. Oikawa...?
And that looks like the director, Mr. Saeki, next to him...)

I don't know...
Our client has every right to make this request, but as things stand, the balance just isn't there...

Right. Hinomori isn't bad for this...

But she sort of pales in comparison to Hagiyama's brilliant aura.

(Oh...)

(It's just as I suspected...)

(But I don't blame them for feeling that way. It's true, compared to her, I leave a lot to be desired in skill and in mindset...)

(I have to accept that, and keep finding ways to improve.)

Maybe asking Hinomori to audition was a mistake...

Oh, were you the one who said to get her in to audition for this?

Yeah, it was me.
We didn't stand to gain much since she doesn't belong to an agency, but I wanted to see that aura again.

(What...?)

You wouldn't believe how dazzling she was back then. She was just like Hagiyama. No, even more brilliant...

...!

(Mr. Oikawa...
He thought that highly of me...?)

(But to say I possessed an aura that was more brilliant than Hagiyama's seems...)

She told me herself.
When I asked her why a fifteen-year-old girl like her had such a driven look about her.

She said...

Really...? Well, I guess anyone would feel that way if they were the lead of a group like Cheerful * Days.

*Nod*
It just goes to show that people change when they have something to lose.

True...
That being said, if we don't see some improvement, then things aren't going to go well.

Right...
If things don't immediately go well, then we'll have to redo the storyboards with Hagiyama as the sole focus.

It's a real shame, thinking about that brilliance. But at the end of the day, business is business.

...!

(Mr. Oikawa asked me to audition because he was so impressed by the way I was back then...)

(But I'm falling short of his expectations...!)

(I don't want to disappoint him any further...!)

(Because if I fail here, then he and the others will likely never ask me to work with them ever again.)

(Not only will that affect my future, it may even jeopardize the future of MORE MORE JUMP!)

(I accepted this audition looking to lift everyone up. If I were to drag them down instead... No, I won't let that happen.)

I have to get myself together...!!