Hattori tilted his head. "A Chinese wuxia drama?"
"Exactly. Nobuhiro Watsuki is a huge fan of Hong Kong and Taiwanese wuxia films. Many of the action sequences in Rurouni Kenshin were inspired by those movies." Takuya Nakayama's speech quickened slightly. "When he mentioned this, I got excited. I have some connections in China, so finding a team that understands martial arts choreography isn't too difficult. Then I started thinking—since we're considering a Sino-Japanese co-production, why not bring the Korean market in as well? Rurouni Kenshin has plenty of characters and story potential. Adding another market would diversify the risk."
Hattori's expression was a mixture of amusement and skepticism. Half of it seemed to say, "You little rascal, you've got some nerve," while the other half suggested, "This idea isn't entirely unreasonable."
"So, the live-action rights were just... negotiated like that?"
"We just kept talking until we signed." Takuya Nakayama looked a bit embarrassed. "The process was rather informal. But Watsuki was very interested, and Shueisha didn't object much. After all, live-action adaptations boost manga sales."
Hattori laid the two documents side by side, studied them for a while, then leaned back in his chair, resting his hands on the armrests.
"Takuya, let's be direct. I'll take the GAINAX agreement. Sega Galaxy can handle this project. Copyright management and committee affairs are well within our scope."
He paused, then pointed to the Rurouni Kenshin film and TV rights.
"But this... I'm not familiar with it. The Chinese partnerships, the Korean market channels—Sega Galaxy's existing team has no experience with these. I know little about China's film production system, and Korea is a complete blind spot for me."
"I understand."
"You'll need to manage this project yourself," Hattori said plainly. "Nobuhiro Watsuki trusts you, and the relationships with China and Korea are in your hands. Sega Galaxy can provide copyright management and administrative support, but don't expect me to handle the creative side."
Takuya Nakayama smiled. "Don't worry, Uncle. I won't shirking this. I was planning to handle it myself anyway."
"By the time this project really kicks off, you might already be President," Hattori said, picking up his teacup. "Don't use 'business is too busy' as an excuse then."
"Not at all," Takuya Nakayama said, standing up and stretching his shoulders. "Filming is a good way to clear my head. Staring at financial reports and strategic plans all day would make my brain rust."
Hattori also rose, tidied the two folders, and locked them in his desk drawer.
"Alright, I'll hold onto these for now. I'll have our legal team review the GAINAX agreement this week and confirm any issues with you. We'll file the Rurouni Kenshin film and TV rights for now. Once you've finalized the Chinese partners, we can proceed with the official project launch."
"Thanks for the trouble, Uncle."
Hattori walked around the desk and patted Takuya's shoulder.
The two walked toward the door.
"By the way," Hattori paused at the door, "what exactly is Hideaki Anno's new project? He always does things his own way. He's not planning to burn through a huge amount of money again, is he?"
Takuya turned back, considering how to describe it.
"Giant robots."
"Robots again?" Hattori's voice carried a hint of exasperation. "Sunrise hasn't sold enough Gundams yet, and Anno wants to jump on the bandwagon too?"
"It's different," Takuya Nakayama said, pushing the door open and turning back to give Hattori a slight bow. "You'll see when it's finished. This thing is nothing like Gundam. The concept is pretty innovative, so just wait and see. It's guaranteed to make money."
Takuya returned to his office at Sega Galaxy. He hadn't even settled into his chair when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in."
The person who entered made Takuya freeze.
Director Yoshikawa.
His suit was still wrinkled from a long flight, his tie half- undone and hanging loosely on his chest. His shoes, however, were polished to a shine. The whole man looked like he'd just stepped off a plane.
His eyes were bloodshot, and the skin on his cheekbones was dry and parched. He walked in with surprising briskness, but once he sat down, he leaned back, clearly struggling to keep himself upright.
"Uncle Yoshikawa?" Takuya quickly stood up. "When did you get back? I was planning to fly to Los Angeles in a few days to meet you."
Yoshikawa waved his hand and pulled a stack of documents from his briefcase, dumping them on the desk.
"No need, it's all handled."
Takuya Nakayama turned to pour tea, glancing back at him.
"What do you mean, 'all handled'? The E3 public services—security coordination, off-site guidance, temporary staff recruitment, even navigating government relations in California—you handled all of that yourself?"
"I couldn't have done it alone," Yoshikawa replied, accepting the teacup and taking a large gulp. "Tom helped a lot, but as president, he couldn't spend all day running around with me. Later, I brought in Howard Lincoln and Kazuo Hirai."
Takuya Nakayama settled back in his chair, surprised. "Howard Lincoln? From Nintendo of America?"
"The very same," Yoshikawa confirmed, setting the cup down on the corner of the desk. "E3 is an industry-wide event, not just our company's affair. If there's a security or public service incident, every participating manufacturer will be held accountable. When I approached him, I laid out the logic clearly, and he readily agreed. He already had established connections in California, and he smoothed the way with several key figures among the state legislators."
"And Kazuo Hirai?"
"Kogahira is a clever man," Yoshikawa said, a hint of admiration in his voice. "He's worked at CBS/Sony for years and knows the American way of doing things inside and out. He's been handling the university outreach."
Takuya Nakayama poured himself a cup of tea and took a slow sip. "Universities?"
"For the Off-Site Service Guidance. We couldn't just hire temporary staff, could we?" Yoshikawa counted on his fingers. "Stanford, Berkeley, Caltech, UCLA, USC—we visited five schools, negotiating with the administration for temporary volunteer partnerships. University students are enthusiastic and presentable. Give them uniform T-shirts and have them stand at the entrance, and they look so much better than random people off the street."
Takuya Nakayama nodded. This approach was consistent with what Oguchi Hisao had suggested earlier: American university students' energy and strong execution skills made them ideal for tasks like guidance and distributing flyers.
"Thank you for your efforts."
"It's not really an effort—just makes your face ache from smiling so much." Yoshikawa finally showed a hint of fatigue, leaning back in his chair.
"Howard Lincoln is a local Californian. He can chat with anyone and get things done even while playing golf."
Yoshikawa finally showed a hint of fatigue, leaning back against the chair.
"Howard Lincoln is a California native. He can strike up a conversation with anyone. He even gets business done while playing golf."
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