The World Is All One Chapter 25

Page 1
Kuroi: NO WAY!
	He couldn't have already tracked me down here.
	Ryuuguu Komachi are still in the middle of singing, aren't they?!
	Why did he have to come here right now?!

Yuu Yuu Original Work/Bandai Namco Games

Chapter 25 "Traces"

Kuroi: It's only been around 3 minutes since I started messing with the sound.
	Only myself and the sound mixer should know about this. It's impossible for him to have any prior knowledge!
	Calm down, I don't need to think about that right now.
	Damn!
	This unexpected situation is throwing my plan into chaos!


Page 2
Kuroi: ...Do you
	intend on saying what I'm doing here...?

Producer: Really?
	You're not doing anything, are you?
	I'm giving you a request from backstage.
	The mics and sound tone sound strange,
	so could you please fix and adjust them?

Sound mixer: Ah, umm...

Producer: HURRY!!!
	THE SONG'S GOING TO END BECAUSE YOU'RE SLOW!!

Sound mixer: Y-yes sir!!


Page 3
Kuroi: Ku...

Producer: ...Something troubling you?

Kuroi: (That impudent...!)
	(But, whatever. I've already accomplished enough for what I was aiming for.)
	...Hmph, excuse me!

Producer: That should be good enough for now...
	A few seconds...
	are all that's left but,
	Ryuuguu Komachi can perform to
	their full talent, Ritsuko-san.


Page 4
Kuroi: I have some trouble.
	He just saw me in the acoustics room during the performance.
	I can't let Touma and the others learn about what happened here.
	That's why I decided to do something that was difficult to notice,
	but I must be careful that I don't let them find out.
	However,

Haruka: It's just up ahead!

Kuroi: if they notice a slight disturbance in the sound, coupled with
	the fact that I was in the acoustics room even if it was just for a little while...Going back to where they are during the performance would be bad...
	I did hear that the information department was incompetent, but...

Haruka: Ah! President Kuroi!
	So he was here!

Producer: I'm sorry I yelled at you earlier!

Sound mixer: No...me too...umm...I'm sorry.


Page 5
Kuroi: W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!

Haruka: You can't pretend you don't know like that!

Hibiki: We know you've been messing with
	the mics and the mixing!

Kuroi: Grr! Move!!

Haruka: If we moved you'd run away!

Kuroi: I told you not to push!

Hibiki: I'll try going in the middle.

Producer: Stop it you two.
	If you're here for the sound, I just dealt with it.

Harubiki: Heh?

Haruka: PRODUCER-SAN?!
	Why are you here?!

Producer: Ah...Wait,
	just why are you in a place like this?


Page 6
Announcer: Beautiful!
	Isn't that the most appropriate word to describe their performance?
	So, ladies and gentlemen!
	Are you ready?
	It's time for your votes!

Hibiki: Chihaya
	told us after recognizing it from the sound.
	She said the acoustics room was suspicious.

Haruka: If I think about everything that's happened up until now,
	I'm sure that President Kuroi is heckling us again.
	I can't help but think that way.
	I don't think it's good to doubt people, but...


Page 7
Haruka: Heckling them so they can't perform to their fullest on stage,
	isn't that going too far?
	That's why we wanted to give Ryuuguu Komachi
	even a small amount of time to sing to their fullest extent before the song ended...

Kuroi: My my...
	Just what are you talking about?
	From quietly listening to you,
	anyone would notice that you're always talking about me sabotaging you.
	That's incredibly rude, really!
	Accusing me of such things,
	then reporting me for something that has no solid evidence
	would leave you in a bad position.
	You willing to give it a try?


Page 8
Kuroi: (Now they should have realized.)

Hibiki: B-but, no matter how I look at it, you're suspicious!
	Hey, Producer!

Kuroi: (Simply accusing me would be a risk to themselves.)

Producer: ...Right.
	I'm sure this is only circumstantial evidence.

Haruka: But we can't just leave it at that...

Producer: Yes we will.
	Condemning someone just because they seem "suspicious" would be a foolish thing to do.
	If there isn't any evidence left, then it never happened.
	In some cases, even if heckling occurred,
	the evidence
	could be disposed of.
	That's reality!


Page 9
Announcer: Now everyone, we are very sorry to keep you waiting!
	We will announce the final results!

Kuroi: Whatever the loser says
	is entirely meaningless.

Announcer: The winner is...
	Jupiter!!!

Kuroi: You have nothing
	if you don't win.


Page 10
Touma: Mics were in bad condition...?

Iori: Yes, so what?
	It's useless if you're hoping for an excuse.
	Is that all you wanted to ask about?

Touma: Was it...old man Kuroi?

Ritsuko: ...Dunno.
	I was only watching the stage since we talked.
	...Maybe, even if it was President Kuroi's doing,
	the person that decided on the terms for this competition was me.
	As we all know, we were cautious.
	I don't intend on tolerating any interference, but
	maybe I was outwitted because I was too naive.

Azusa: Ritsuko-san...

Ami: Ricchan.


Page 11
Ritsuko: It doesn't matter about the cause or the liability now.

Iori: No matter what, a result is a result.
	I can only accept that.
	If you think there is something to be said...
	It's that we performed our best on stage today.
	We have no regret.
	...That's it.

Touma: ...Yeah.


Page 12
Shouta: The mics?

Hokuto: Well, I think we all know why Touma said the sound felt off.

Touma: ...No.
	I didn't feel it was that. The entirety of the sound or...more like...It wasn't the mics.

Shouta: Really?

Hokuto: The entirety of the sound...huh?
	If that's the case, it might have been the mixing.

Touma: ...The acoustics room, huh?
	(Becoming top idol through winning like this?)
	If this was old man Kuroi's doing,
	we can't let him do it again.
	(It's no joke.)

Hokuto: Well, it can't be helped.

Shouta: Yeah.


Page 13
Kuroi: (...Hmm, that should be good enough.)
	(Judging from the looks of them, they should already know it's useless to make a fuss.)
	(They won't superfluously try to accuse me of anything, right?)
	(As long as I keep this from Touma and the others,)
	(I don't need to worry about what happens next.)

Hibiki: President Kuroi, umm,
	aren't you too oppressive?
	Going on like that seems painful.
	Your "you have nothing if you don't win."
	We're having tons of fun with
	all our fans onstage.
	We try hard because it's fun, but
	that isn't true for you, is it President Kuroi?


Page 14
Kuroi: (What? What's with their expressions?)
	(Why am I being looked at with those eyes?)
	I'm being pitied by the likes of them...!

Yukiho: I think there are people who grew to love Ryuuguu Komachi onstage earlier.
	Even if they lose the match,
	the passion they showed is still in the fans' hearts.

Haruka: There are
	other things that don't go away like that.
	Winning and losing isn't everything.
	...But,
	right now, I also think that...


Page 15
Haruka: We absolutely
	don't want to lose to you.

Where's the acoustics room?!

I think we're probably coming up to it.

We have to hurry!


Page 16
Kuroi: (Not only are they completely naive, they're saying whatever they feel like.)
	I want to make them realize that the naive logic
	they're going on about is, after all, just an illusion.
	But it would just be a waste of time.
	They wouldn't listen to anything I have to say...Muh?

Makoto: Ah! They're over there!

Hibiki: Eh?

Haruka: W-why is everyone...

Chihaya: We came to stop you guys.
	But it looks like we didn't make it in time...

Hibiki: Ah, it's fine, we made it in time.
	Producer came before us and dealt with it.

Chihaya: No, it's not that...Hey,
	Producer?
	How did he know to come here?

Makoto: Ah, so President Kuroi was here too!


Page 17
Producer: A-anyway you'll all be a nuisance here.
	I've already taken care of everything here, so let's go back to the waiting room.

Kuroi: ...What's this?
	Isn't he a little too relaxed?
	...Ah, come to think of it,
	he's also involved with the idols outside of SprouT.
	This is convenient.
	(It seems he has a relationship of trust with SprouT, but)

Haruka: (Muh!)

Producer: (So, let's go back!)
	(C'mon, c'mon)

Kuroi: (is that true for the others...?)
	I see, I remember.
	I think I've seen the faces of everyone here before.
	Yeah, yeah.
	Aren't you the lot that couldn't get nominated for the IA Grand Prize?


Page 18
Kuroi: It's too bad that you lost your momentum and had to drop out, but
	did anyone interfere with you?

Producer: ...President Kuroi

Haruka: There's a limit to how insensitive you can be.

Kuroi: Really? How rude of me.
	But you were prattling on about those incredibly naive things earlier.
	You were only able to say that because you still have a chance.


Page 18
Hibiki: That's not true!

Kuroi: If so,
	then you should be able to tell the same thing to the lot behind you, right?

Makoto: Hmph! You sure talk big for the person who messed with us!

Kuroi: You don't have any evidence, right?
	Every one of you loves that false accusation.
	But...that's right.
	Hypothetically speaking,
	what if I did interfere with you?
	I would have to secretly prepare the schedule in advance...
	Don't you think I would need information on the days you perform and on what program?
	Perhaps if you were harmed by me,
	someone who knows your schedules
	could have leaked the information, right?


Page 19
Hibiki: There's no use in lying like that!

Haruka: That's right!

Yukiho: Producer would definitely never do something like that.

Kuroi: Kuku...Even if that guy producing SprouT says that...
	Well then, how's this story?
	On the last day of the 765 Pro tour,
	what do you think he was doing when he left you at the venue?
	He was meeting with me.
	He came for some consultation.
	He asked "Someone's interfering with SprouT, what should I do?"
	The advice I gave him was
	"It might be good to present a substitute."
	After that, wasn't SprouT able to go about their activities freely?
	Was it because the attacks were aimed in a different direction?
	Congratulations!
	Magnificent, you have been nominated for the IA Grand Prize.


Page 20
Takane: In other words,
	we were the substitutes...?

Hibiki: T-Takane...?

Kuroi: They might be your comrades from the same office, but in the end they're competition.
	Ah, that reminds me,
	Ryuuguu Komachi lost earlier too, right?
	So that means SprouT is the top of the office.
	Get to it...!
	Can you say what you told me earlier
	at least once in front of them?
	Even if you lose the match, you'll still have something.
	It'll be fine as long as you can show your passion?
	Will those who lost be
	able to agree with such naive thoughts?!


Page 21
Everyone: We can!

Kuroi: T-they can...!

Producer: These girls that are gathered here are 765 Pro.
	That's why I'm able to be a producer.


Page 22
Producer: Well, but I do think everyone pretty much saw through your lies.

Miki: I saw, I saw nano~

Mami: There's no way SprouT or Producer would throw Mami and Yayoi under a bus!

Yayoi: Right!

Chihaya: It's ridiculous that you thought that.

Makoto: No matter what you say, the person that messed with us the most has no way of convincing us...

Kuroi: H-he was originally a 961 Pro spy!
	Looks like he came to get your trust by hiding that fact...

Takane: I see...
	Certainly,
	on top of not being prepared like this for malice that has been thrown at us,
	it is possible that I might have been shocked
	if I had first learned of Producer's past here.
	However...

Producer: Everyone at 765 Pro already knows my identity.
	They have also accepted me, these girls.


Page 23
Producer: It's too late, but President Kuroi,
	I'll tell you something I've always been thinking
	since I was your subordinate.
	You don't understand anything
	about 765 Pro.