"What are you doing?"
"That's not nearly enough. Suck more!"
Inside the recording studio, Sakura was speaking into the mic, holding a script in hand as she perford the lines for Mosquito Girl from episode two of One Punch Man.
Originally, the role was ant for Shouko.
But the mont she saw the script and the rough character sketches, she blushed and shook her head in refusal.
Clearly, her journey to becoming a voice actress still had a long way to go.
In the end, the character with the most lines went to Sakura—and she was loving it. As she voiced the lines, she even made silly faces at Kyousuke beside her.
"If you ask , Sakura, you should just skip high school and go straight into voice acting. You already sound like a pro. That way, you could also look out for Shouko more," Naoka said sincerely as they stepped out of the studio.
"Aww, the voice coach said the sa thing just now. I guess when you're talented, you can shine at anything," Sakura said, cradling her face with her left hand in a mock-show of vanity.
"Totally! You were born to be a voice actress," Naoka bead.
"But... I refuse!" Sakura declared, then ran over and hooked her arm around Kyousuke's.
"I'm going to high school with Kyousuke and Shouko."
She flashed a playful pink tongue at Naoka as she turned to look back.
"Tch," Naoka huffed, turning instead to Shouko, who was waving goodbye at the studio door. "Alright, we'll head out first."
"I'll co pick you up after your session," Kyousuke added, glancing back as well.
Shouko and Naoka had chosen minor roles—a frog monster and a slug monster, each with just two lines.
But Shouko had asked to stay and watch how the professional voice actors worked.
After a quick discussion with the production company, Kyousuke arranged it for her.
Originally, Kyousuke had thought about using his clout as EGOIST to get Shouko directly into a voice acting agency.
But after consulting Tetsuya Shimomura, the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen High and a seasoned industry veteran, he gave up on the idea.
For one, they were about to start their final year of middle school, and Shouko needed to focus more on her studies.
On top of that, Kyousuke's influence in the ani world hadn't been firmly established yet.
It would be smarter to wait until One Punch Man aired and assuming it was successful—leverage that success alongside Attack on Titan to negotiate with a top-tier agency.
That way, Shouko would get the recognition and support she deserved.
Also, after learning the real reason Shouko had vocal issues during her last dical checkup, Kyousuke had put his foot down—no more reckless self-training.
It was ti to study properly.
"But the director was right about one thing," Naoka said as they walked down the stairs of the old studio building. "Kyousuke, you'd be perfect as Saitama's voice actor."
BOX was a well-known animation studio, but their building was still an old-school, seven-story structure with no elevator.
Word was, they left the stairwell intact so animators could take a break and smoke while enjoying the view.
"Totally," Sakura added. "You totally modeled Saitama after yourself, right? I an, you're the legendary Tokyo delinquent every school fears, yet you spend your days goofing off."
"Just like Saitama—super strong, but still out there fighting aunties for discounted eggs."
She playfully slapped Kyousuke on the shoulder, getting more hyped with each sentence.
"You and Saitama are a match made in heaven!"
"Spare ," Kyousuke groaned, furrowing his brow.
Kisaki Tetta had already gone around during promo saying Kyousuke was Saitama's inspiration.
If he actually did the voice acting too, it'd be the end of him.
"Hehe, and you were teasing Shouko for being shy. But you're the one who can't handle embarrassing lines, huh?" Sakura smirked.
Well... if it were Saitama's lines, Kyousuke could probably manage. They weren't that cringey. But Genos' lines? No way.
As they chatted, the group exited the studio building. Kyousuke split off from Shouko and Sakura at that point.
They were planning to hit the shops and try so of Suginami Ward's famous ran—yes, another local specialty was ran.
Kyousuke, anwhile, hopped on his motorcycle and headed to Eriri's place.
Since she was freelancing, she wasn't working at the company office.
They'd work on the script together there, then later in the evening, he'd bring both Eriri's illustrations and his own script to the studio saving the production team a lot of legwork.
As the animation progressed, BOX began to realize just how insanely talented this EGOIST guy really was.
Sure, his manga already hinted at his genius, especially his storyboarding.
But once the actual ani work began, it was clear his talent went far beyond just "impressive."
At first, he storyboarded like most mangaka—ssy and casual, treating it like comic panels. But after a bit of guidance from a senior scriptwriter, everything changed.
His storyboards beca flawless—no errors in tiline, character entrances, or scene depth. The animation and cinematography teams had zero complaints.
It was as if the entire ani already existed in his head, and he was just drawing what he saw in his mind's eye.
So, what's a storyboard script? In simple terms, it includes the shot number, the fra, a description, and the ti.
For example, in One Punch Man's first episode where Saitama fights Vaccine Man, a rough storyboard might just be: stick-figure Saitama facing stick-figure Vaccine Man, surrounded by small boxes symbolizing destroyed buildings.
A side note would say: "Saitama saves a little girl, Vaccine Man demands to know who he is, Saitama delivers his iconic line, his cape flutters in the wind." Then you add the duration of the scene.
Yeah, it sounds complex, but it's really just distilling the key monts of a scene into still fras with context.
And Kyousuke nailed it.
So much so that Director Hodaka Itagaki kept trying to recruit him full-ti, even joking about making him a cheap laborer.
Even the president of BOX made offers. But thankfully, Kyousuke had the sense to turn them all down.
During Christmas, he also turned down Eriri's invite to spend a "proper Christmas" at her place.
He also said no to a certain upperclassman's offer to discuss "the symbolic significance of Christmas in literature" at her house.
Instead, he headed to Roppongi with Sakura, Shouko, and Naoka.
For under 3,000 yen, they could go up to the Sky Deck on top of the Mori Tower in Roppongi Hills and see Tokyo Tower up close.
In fact, standing there, Tokyo Tower once the tallest structure in Tokyo—actually looked a little shorter from where Kyousuke stood.
"Kyousuke, Kyousuke! Am I taller than Tokyo Tower now?"
Sakura stood on tiptoe a few ters from the edge of the rooftop, excitedly striking poses while Shouko snapped pictures of her.
She was absolutely thrilled—completely unfazed by the fact that they were 238 ters in the air.
Technically speaking, Tokyo Tower was still taller at 333 ters, but that didn't seem to matter to Sakura.
"Yes, yes, Sakura-sama is the tallest in the world," Kyousuke muttered, clearly uninterested in correcting her.
He just wanted the photo session to end. His legs were trembling.
This so-called "observation deck" was actually a helipad, and they didn't even open it on windy days.
Luckily, the weather was clear and calm today, but it was still terrifying.
Kyousuke wasn't exactly soone who could tear space and warp to the ground if he tripped and fell.
He didn't know if it was just his nerves, but the air felt thinner up here.
If they stayed much longer, he swore he might suffocate.
To his surprise, the usually timid Shouko was also caught up in the excitent, running around and taking pictures with Naoka.
From the rooftop, Tokyo Tower was only about a kiloter away, and the bustling Roppongi area stretched between them, glowing with light.
Cars below looked like toy models, their headlights forming shimring rivers across the streets.
Fortunately, with Tokyo's December nights nearing freezing temperatures, even the most enthusiastic selfie-takers couldn't hold out long.
Soon, the group wrapped up their impromptu photo shoot.
"Kyousuke-kun, you're still the sa as when we were kids," Shouko said softly as they rode the elevator down.
"Yeah, I rember he even got nervous just crossing the Suimon Bridge," Naoka chid in, referring to a past camping trip.
"It's dangerous, okay? Falling would be no joke!" Sakura put her hands on her hips, mimicking Kyousuke's serious voice with an exaggerated frown.
The three girls burst into laughter. Thankfully, the elevator was empty except for them.
Kyousuke covered his face in embarrassnt. What's wrong with being afraid of dying? He hadn't even started his great life yet!
When they reached the 51st floor, they entered the Museum Cafe.
Thanks to a reservation, they got a pri spot by the window except Kyousuke chose the seat farthest from it.
Watching Sakura resu her selfie spree in front of the massive glass panels, Kyousuke silently gave thanks.
Thankfully, Eriri, Kasumigaoka-senpai, and these three girls didn't really interact.
If any of them ever found out what his "plans with friends" actually looked like...
"Hmph!"
"That was scheduled before you invited , okay?"
"Hmph!"
"Eriri, why is Saitama missing a leg in this sketch? You ssed up, didn't you?"
"Hmph!"
Yeah... Eriri would probably turn into a baby who could only say one word for so ti.
———————————————————————
As the Christmas bells rang through the icy night, in the futuristic Mori Tower, Kyousuke quietly sipped his coffee.
His deep, dark eyes reflected the bustling city beyond the glass, and the three radiant girls sitting across from him—all beautiful in their own unique way, full of youth and life.
And anwhile, in a tiny apartnt in Toshima Ward, a down-on-her-luck but still stunning novelist huddled under a blanket that offered no warmth.
Her long, shapely legs curled beneath her as she stared at her laptop, plotting the most painful end for a heartless male lead who dared to toy with her affections.
Her lovely face, pale from the cold, looked almost ghostly in the glow of the screen.
Her fingers, stiff with chill, struggled to type... but her full chest burned with fury and creativity.
Yeah.
After spending so much ti with her, Kyousuke had co to understand Utaha-senpai a little better.
On the surface, she was gentle and elegant, but let her see anything in his house that suggested another girl had been there, and she'd instantly shift gears dragging him out to buy sothing more to her taste.
Thankfully, she still respected his space as his ho, never crossing the line.
But still, the thought of sharing high school life with her made him nervous.
Unlike the seemingly ethereal Sakura, the clueless Shouko, the non-threatening Naoka, or even the stubbornly shy Eriri, Utaha-senpai had a presence like a lioness marking her territory.
In contrast, Okudera-senpai was much easier to get along with.
During dinner at The Garden of Words, right after inviting Kyousuke to her place for a Christmas tasting, she noticed him pause mid-bite and laughed, saying, "Maybe it's better to go check out what top restaurants are doing for Christmas instead."
Okudera-senpai was now in her final year, while her classmates were all job-hunting.
She was scouring the city for the perfect place to open her restaurant.
Kyousuke offered to have his people help find a good location—he knew they could sniff out the best deals even in Tokyo's toughest markets—but she refused.
"If I rely on my investor for everything, won't that make look incompetent? I've always dread of building sothing from nothing."
"I've got blisters on my feet from walking all over the city, but I've never been happier!"
Even though she'd been rejected for Christmas plans, she wasn't upset in the slightest.
Still dressed in her work clothes, she sat across from him, mixing his pasta sauce carefully before leaning forward on the table, resting her chin in her hands, and gazing at him with warm, amber eyes.
"I know my dream is out there, waiting for —and my investor—to make it real."
"Then let's renovate it together when you find it!" Kyousuke said, for so reason full of confidence despite never having renovated anything in his life.
Girls like these, each beautiful in their own way, kept Kyousuke constantly on his toes.
'Maybe I should start buying more properties,' he thought, sipping his coffee and stroking his chin as if pondering serious investnt strategies.
———————————————————————
After Christmas ca winter break.
In Japan, most schools break from January 1st to the 10th, but Kyousuke's school let out two days earlier.
To avoid another multi-girl invitation disaster, he fled to Hokkaido, bundled in a luxury down coat he bought in Tokyo.
There, in the snow-covered north, he spent New Year's visiting the Tamisui Shrine with his family.
He and his collaborator even put out a Christmas special for One Punch Man on Kyousuke's personal website, "EGOIST."
In it, Saitama tried to swat a mosquito too hard, and the shockwave from his punch shattered the atmosphere—scaring away Santa's reindeer.
So that year, children all over the world got no presents.
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