284 Shin's first waifus
In the Suzuki Finance CEO's office, Shiko currently gazes at the Forbes magazine cover featuring Shinro Suzuki and the latest issue of Fortune.
Having just read the Forbes cover story on Shinro Suzuki and the latest Fortune issue, Shiko can't help but feel a bit shocked by his younger brother's remarkable growth.
The rapid establishment and success of KiShin as a major company in just a few years truly amaze Shiko. The evident investments in other companies, including Apple, worth billions despite trailing Microsoft, showcase KiShin's financial prowess.
"Seki, he's incredibly powerful now, isn't he?" Shiko comments, gesturing toward Forbes and Fortune.
"Seki, what if we start our own company?" Shiko suddenly suggests, pondering the entrepreneurial success of his brother.
"Are you kidding?" Seki exclaims, noticing Shiko's serious expression. "Establishing a business from scratch is incredibly challenging. We're doing well in the Suzuki Group. Shinro's luck doesn't guarantee the same for us."
Shiko nods, sighs, and agrees, "You're right. Our younger brother's luck is extraordinary."
---
Vice Chairman Shito Suzuki of the Suzuki Group also comes across the Forbes cover and interview of Shinro Suzuki, initially considerably shocked.
Shito reacts, "That young brat has quietly grown this much over the years!?" as he reads the Forbes feature on Shinro Suzuki.
His wife is equally astonished, leading her to compare their son, Shuichi, to Shinro.
Despite Shuichi introducing his wife to the family, including Samaza and Kumiko, the revelation of her pregnancy doesn't elicit much emotion from them.
Shito's parents, Sazama and Kumiko, compare Shuichi to Shinro, now a billionaire. This dissatisfaction is palpable to Shito and his wife.
Due to this, Shito aspired more than ever to acquire the Suzuki Group's shares and become its chairman.
However, Shiro Suzuki remained vibrant and showed no signs of relinquishing the position anytime soon.
---
During the Suzuki Group Board meeting, Shiro discussed the business direction with the board. After the meeting concluded, as Shiro was leaving the room, some board members unexpectedly congratulated him.
"Congratulations, Chairman Shiro."
"I must say, I envy you, Chairman."
"Absolutely." The board members exchanged admiring comments, causing Shiro to furrow his brows in confusion. Amidst his busy schedule, he couldn't fathom why they were congratulating him.
Perplexed, Shiro asked, "What does this mean? Why are you all congratulating me?"
The board members exchanged glances before one explained, "It seems you weren't aware, Chairman. It's because of this." He presented two magazines, with Forbes on top.
"Hmm?" Shiro examined the magazine cover and remarked, "Forbes featuring my son? I already knew about that."
Smiling, one board member said, "It's the other magazine behind Forbes."
Shiro nodded, noticing the Fortune magazine. Initially confused, he sought an explanation from the board members.
"Chairman, in the Fortune magazine, you'll see that your son is not only successful enough to be on the Forbes cover, but it explains just how remarkably successful he is..."
"That's right... Sigh. I really didn't expect young Shinro to grow his company to this point."
"Yeah... Being the major shareholder of Rebolt Technology, a successful phone seller since 1994 and even now."
"And the major shareholder of Apple as well. Plus some undisclosed businesses... It's genuinely surprising..."
"Yeah, Chairman is really a good father to have a son like that..."
Shiro initially smiled at their words, but the last part made him feel ironic.
'I don't think I'm a good father at all...' Shiro couldn't help but think.
---
In Tokyo, Japan, alongside the flourishing video game fan base, the anime fan community had surpassed it in size.
Thanks to the current top-rated anime, Dragon Ball, reaching episode 146, the excitement among anime fans was growing. The storyline focused on Son Goku facing the green villain, Piccolo.
Enthusiastic discussions unfolded among anime fans, and anticipation for what would happen next was high.
The female fans of Dragon Ball were amazed to witness kid Goku transforming into a grown young man. Some even speculated on Goku becoming Bulma's husband.
Dragon Ball's revenue soared, with KiShin Merchandise experiencing a surge in merch sales not only in Japan but also in the USA.
The profitability of anime like Dragon Ball, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and EarthBound was exceptionally high.
Despite this success, the majority of anime fans were still boys or men. While Pokémon attracted female fans, the overwhelming majority remained male. One contributing factor was the prevalence of male protagonists in anime, with themes and categories geared toward males. The scarcity of anime featuring female protagonists stemmed from societal norms in Japan, where males were seen as providers, females as housewives, reinforcing a culture that emphasized male superiority.
That's why entertainment giants like Nippon, Tora, Suzuki, and Tokyo 7 released only a handful of anime with female protagonists and themes, most of which turned out to be failures. Subsequently, they refrained from producing anime centered around females, as they perceived their primary audience to be male and overlooked the potential of female viewers.
---
In Chairman Shin's office, as he observed the charts highlighting the disregard for female audiences by entertainment companies, a wide grin spread across his face.
"You're grinning widely... You must be devising a plan for this situation, right?" Mira's voice sounded beside Shin as she examined the charts detailing the anime fan base's gender and age demographics. She was the one who presented this information to Shin.
"I think it's about time I produce that anime..." Shin grinned widely.
Mira looked at Shin thoughtfully, intrigued and curious about what he had in mind.
Little did she know, Shin was contemplating reviving one of the successful anime for females from his past life. In that life, it was so renowned that whenever he wanted to watch something, his sister would interrupt him and switch to the channel airing this particular anime.
Initially hesitant because it was considered a girls' anime, Shin found himself watching it due to the cute appearances of the characters. It was none other than the widely popular 'Sailor Moon.'
During that period when Shin had yet to discover adult h-anime and h-visual novels games, the characters from Sailor Moon held a special place as his first waifus.
