Chapter 20: The Things Concerning Me
Time slipped away quickly, and with the thunderous boom of a ceremonial cannon, the roaring clamor of the venue gradually subsided. The host's booming voice reverberated throughout the entire stadium via the amplification equipment: "Spectators and fans, the opening ceremony of the 97th All Japan High School Soccer Tournament has officially begun!"
On the temporary stage at the edge of the pitch, the spotlights suddenly flared to life, illuminating the entire stage as bright as day. Behind the scenes, the staff members were tensely making their final adjustments.
"Next up, let us welcome with a round of enthusiastic applause, the singer performing this tournament's theme song—Hikari!"
On the far side of the stands, Takashi Kadomori straightened his spine, leaning his body forward slightly as his sharp gaze locked onto the stage.
The reason he had come here today was to evaluate Hikaru Hoshino's live performance capabilities in such a massive venue. As an ace manager, Kadomori possessed exceptional judgment, allowing him to quickly and accurately determine an artist's actual talent and their future potential.
In his eyes, Hikaru's songwriting ability was undoubtedly top-tier. In just a few short months, he had already produced six highly polished tracks for himself and Ai, every single one a masterpiece. Not only were the lyrics and melodies outstanding, but their commercial value was equally astounding. In terms of streaming performance alone, he had already surpassed numerous veteran vocalists. Based on his current trajectory, entering the ranks of a national artist was merely a matter of time.
However, because he had yet to release a physical album, his record sales were dismal—still at zero to this day. Therefore, through the lens of traditional industry evaluation, it was still difficult to classify him as a "powerhouse vocalist."
This was not a fatal issue. As a company that kept up with modern trends, Xini Entertainment had long since regarded streaming metrics as one of the crucial standards for measuring an artist's true strength.
Even so, Kadomori remained entirely in the dark about how Hikaru actually fared live—and this happened to be a pivotal factor. For a professional singer, offline performance capabilities absolutely could not be weak.
In this National Stadium holding over 50,000 people, could Hikaru, a rookie singer, withstand the pressure and deliver a normal performance? This was the answer Kadomori wanted to know most.
After all, many singers choked during offline gigs. Recording an album and singing live are two completely different beasts—there is little pressure in a recording studio, and the pitch can be corrected in post-production, making it the ultimate comfort zone. Of course, if Hikaru could only perform well in a studio, it wouldn't be the end of the world, but it would mean that many of the company's slots for major live events would simply not go to him.
On stage, Hikaru slowly stepped out. He wore a dark, patterned button-up shirt adorned with reddish-brown maple leaves, paired with a pair of crisply tailored shorts, his hair combed meticulously.
For such a formal occasion, Hikaru had unexpectedly chosen a casual style.
Yet, this styling failed to help him transition into a relaxed state of mind.
Staring out at the dense, black sea of spectators surrounding him, Hikaru felt a heavy weight of pressure, and fine beads of sweat began to pool in his palms.
*This is completely different from yesterday's rehearsal...* As an ordinary person in his past life, he had never experienced a grand stage like this. Though he had performed at the Summer Festival before, the scale there was entirely incomparable to this. This was Hikaru's very first time performing on a stage of this magnitude.
Hikaru's thoughts drifted to Ai standing on the stage of the Tokyo Dome.
As an idol on that absolute pinnacle stage, drawing the gazes of everyone, no one could resist being captivated by her performance.
*Back then, was she just as nervous as I am now?*
Hikaru firmly wiped the sweat from his palms, casting his gaze toward the center of the stands in a specific direction. He still remembered the seat number he had given Ai, guessing that she should be sitting around there. He strained his eyes to look, but he could see nothing; he couldn't even make out a silhouette—the dense black shadows crowded together made it impossible to tell anyone apart.
But Hikaru knew that Ai was watching him.
If he choked right now, he would probably be mocked by that guy Aqua for the rest of his life, wouldn't he?
No, even he would mock himself. Late at night in the future, he would suddenly remember today's blunder, burst into tears, and deeply regret why he hadn't performed properly, leading to a permanent state of social death for the rest of his life.
At a time like this, he could only brace himself and force his way through.
A hero can't flee right before the battle! Hikaru took a deep breath and signaled the band. The drummer understood, crossing his drumsticks to slice a graceful arc through the air before heavily striking the opening note.
*Boom!*
The drums thundered to life, and Hikaru gripped the microphone, opening his mouth to sing:
What's the difference between you and me?
We're the same kind of being, I know that
But still, I'm afraid of something
I hope everyone else feels the same
The sound equipment arranged by the tournament committee was incredibly professional. Hikaru's low, raspy voice reverberated through the amplification system across the entire stadium, instantly drowning out all the background noise.
In a single instant, the originally boisterous stands suddenly fell quiet. The 50,000-capacity stadium became dead silent, as if this were not the venue for a soccer match, but rather his own exclusive concert.
*Boku no Koto (The Things Concerning Me)* was a cheering song specifically composed by Mrs. GREEN APPLE for the "97th All Japan High School Soccer Tournament." Before Hikaru's reincarnation, this song's cumulative streams had already surpassed 430 million, maintaining a legendary run on the Billboard JAPAN Hot 100 year-end charts. The theme of the song was an anthem of life that transcended victory and defeat—it praised the preciousness of living out every single page of high school life with absolute sincerity, serving as a song of encouragement dedicated to those who fight with all their might even while stumbling along the way.
Hikaru himself loved this song deeply. In his past life, as an ordinary person struggling through a mundane society, he profoundly understood the emotions conveyed within the lyrics.
Though he had made it big now, he would absolutely never forget his past days of hardship, nor would he ever abandon his struggling brothers!
After undergoing professional training for a period of time, Hikaru's vocal skills had seen a massive improvement. At the very least, within the lower vocal register, he could control it entirely, utilizing his resonance techniques with seasoned mastery.
On stage, the bassist's fingers danced across the strings, the low, powerful yet slightly muffled bass notes laying down a rock-solid foundation for the entire track. The guitarist launched into an explosive performance, exuding a pure rock aura. The drummer remained remarkably steady, controlling the tempo of the piece, every single strike landing precisely on the beat.
The entire band synchronized flawlessly; the accompaniment was crisp without overshadowing the vocals, perfectly carrying Hikaru's voice.
Hikaru continued to sing, a firm, resolute emotion embedded within his voice:
Who laughs at a desperate life?
It's too soon to drown in sadness
So I always remind myself–
There's always tomorrow
Hikaru looked out toward the distant horizon.
Tomorrow follows tomorrow, there is always a tomorrow anyway.
Yes, after all, there is always tomorrow.
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