Monday 17 December 1997 Sonaya Offices.
At the Sonaya offices, Hikaru Kurata, Junpei Hoshida, Ken Kutaragi, and other key members of the video game department gathered for an emergency meeting. The urgent topic on the table: ZAGE's recent end-of-year event and the surprising announcements made during it. Specifically, the team was concerned about the potential impact on the scheduled January release of their latest football title, SFG: Sonaya Football Game. The mood in the room was tense, with everyone aware that ZAGE's aggressive rollout could disrupt their carefully planned launch strategy.
Hikaru Kurata then said, "With the situation like this, how do you expect our SFG game to sell properly?"
Junpei nodded, then replied, "Well, to be fair, even though ZAGE just released a bundle of 12 fighting games along with another major title, and announced that more 3rd party games are launching for ZEPS 3 in January, our chances to stand out next month are close to zero, boss. The hype they've built is massive. Most players will likely spend their money on ZEPS 3's new offerings because that's where all the excitement is right now."
Hikaru Kurata frowned, processing Junpei's assessment, but he could tell Junpei wasn't finished yet.
Then Junpei continued, "Now, I propose that we delay the release of SFG by one or two months. We should consider launching it in either late February or March. By then, the excitement around the ZAGE KOF bundle and their third-party lineup will likely have died down, giving us a better chance to shine. Launching now would almost guarantee that our game gets buried beneath all the ZAGE hype. Our best strategy is to wait until the noise fades a little—and of course, this all depends on how well our marketing team can build momentum for SFG in the meantime."
Hikaru Kurata nodded thoughtfully, clearly reluctant but understanding the logic. "I see. That's painful to admit... but you're right. Okay then, it's decided. We'll postpone our release to the end of February. In the meantime, during January, Sonaya will go all-in on a major marketing campaign for SFG. No distractions. We need full focus."
Everyone in the room nodded in agreement, their expressions serious but resolved. With that, the meeting finally came to an end, the air heavy with both determination and uncertainty.
Hikaru Kurata returned to his office and quickly dropped into his chair, leaning back with a heavy sigh. His face showed visible exhaustion as he muttered to himself, "I've never felt this stressed before."
Sonaya had become a massive corporation with multiple divisions, but the weight of maintaining its success, especially in the video game sector, was wearing on him. Years ago, Kurata had faced numerous setbacks when launching new products, but Sonaya had always managed to overcome them and outpace the competition. However, things were different with ZAGE. Despite competing for five or six years, Sonaya had never truly pulled ahead. There were moments when it seemed like they had gained the upper hand, but it always turned out to be fleeting. As quickly as Sonaya surged, ZAGE would come back stronger and push them down again.
This relentless back-and-forth had started to consume Kurata. He was becoming obsessed—not just with beating ZAGE, but with ensuring Sonaya triumphed in the video game industry. It was no longer just business; it had become personal.
For the first time in his corporate career, Hikaru Kurata felt truly overwhelmed. Never before had a rival made Sonaya feel this vulnerable, this outmatched. This wasn't his first time facing setbacks—years ago, he had encountered difficulties in other departments too. But in each case, they had eventually overcome the odds and emerged victorious. This time, however, ZAGE was different. The usual rhythm of struggle followed by triumph felt broken, and Kurata couldn't shake the feeling that they were constantly one or two step behind.
After thirty minutes of quiet reflection and rest, Kurata stood up and left his office, steeling himself for yet another critical meeting. This time, it was with the shareholders and senior executives of Sonaya. And once again, the discussion would revolve around the future of the video game division.
Now already seated in the executive meeting room, the atmosphere grew tense as one of the shareholders—a bald, middle-aged man with a stern tone—stood up and said, "Kurata-san, with all due respect, I think it's time we reevaluate our priorities. We should consider decreasing the budget for the video game division and instead allocate more resources toward our other, more profitable sectors. It's time for you to take this situation seriously, Kurata-san."
A wave of murmured agreement spread through the room. Several other shareholders nodded in support, quickly piling on with their criticisms of the video game sector. They brought up quarterly reports, citing low profit margins, missed projections, and lackluster performance when compared to Sonaya's consumer electronics or entertainment wings. Some even suggested shuttering portions of the department altogether to mitigate financial risk.
Hikaru Kurata remained silent, his expression unreadable as he listened. He scanned each face in the room, taking note of every word, every slight shift in body language. On the surface, he appeared calm, but internally, a storm was building. The longer the shareholders talked—criticizing, undermining, and dismissing the years of effort poured into the gaming division—the more difficult it became for him to hold it in.
They didn't understand. They weren't on the front lines. They didn't see the potential. They only cared about numbers and projections, failing to grasp the long-term vision he had cultivated. And as their condescension grew louder, Hikaru Kurata's patience began to crack.
Then, without warning, he snapped.
"SILENCE! YOU BASTARD!" Hikaru Kurata roared, slamming his hand down on the boardroom table with such force that the room went dead silent. The echo of the impact seemed to freeze the entire room in place. Eyes widened. Mouths shut. No one had ever seen him lose his temper like this recently.
He rose slowly from his chair, his posture rigid, fists clenched at his sides, face burning with rage. "YOU OLD FARTS," he snarled, his voice rising with each word, "only ever care about one thing—goddamn money! That's all you've ever cared about! Profits, reports, safe bets! None of you know what it's like to actually build something from the ground up!"
He pointed sharply around the table. "It's ME! I'm the one out there doing the real work! It's ME who turns failing departments around! Other divisions didn't make money at first either, but I stayed the course, I fought tooth and nail—and in the end, we crushed our rivals and stood on top! And now that the video game division is facing real competition, you want to bail? To cut and run? Pathetic!"
Kurata paced furiously along the length of the room, eyes blazing. "Do you think I like seeing the video game sector underperform? That it doesn't eat at me every single day? You fools! I HATE IT! That's why I'm always working my ass off to fix it! This isn't just another investment line. This is the future. And if we give up on it now, then we're nothing—NOTHING like the Sonaya I inherited from my grandfather!"
He stopped at the head of the table, leaning in toward the others with cold fire in his voice. "This company was built on grit. On resilience. On never backing down, no matter the odds. If we give up on our vision just because the road gets hard, then we aren't Sonaya anymore. We're cowards in suits pretending to be leaders."
He drew a breath, then delivered his final blow. "And let me remind every single one of you exactly who's in charge here. All of you combined? You hold forty percent of this company. That's it. I own the other sixty. I am the majority shareholder. That means I don't need your permission—I don't even need your approval."
His voice dropped to a cold, calculated growl. "So either shut the hell up and let me do what needs to be done, or get ready. Because if you keep standing in my way, I will make your lives a living hell. Don't ever underestimate the Kurata family again."
The other shareholders were pale with shock. In recent years, Hikaru Kurata had maintained a calm and composed presence in the boardroom, always measured, always strategic. But now, they were reminded—painfully and vividly—that he was still a Kurata. A family known not just for their relentless drive, but for their explosive anger when pushed too far. And this time, Hikaru Kurata had finally snapped.
He had to make it clear—this was still his company.
"Video game sectors won't ever give up. Not under my watch," he growled, his voice echoing even as he turned away. "And let me remind all of you: even if revenue hasn't hit our ideal benchmarks, the video game division is still generating profit. It's still viable. We're still fighting. So all of you need to just shut the hell up and stop acting like we're dragging this company down."
He stormed toward the exit, the sound of his footsteps pounding across the marble floor like a war drum. With one final stomp, he pushed open the door and left the boardroom, fury still burning in his chest—but underneath it all, a strange sense of release.
For the first time in a long while, Hikaru Kurata felt good. He had spoken his truth, unfiltered. He had reminded them all who he was. No longer a restrained executive—he was the leader of Sonaya. And he wasn't going to let anyone forget that.
Meanwhile, the man responsible for Hikaru Kurata's growing headache—Zaboru Renkonan—was at home, discussing his next big move with his family. He was risking his life by asking for their permission to go on an extended business trip to Europe and a few other countries. While the executives at Sonaya were locked in heated debates and emotional outbursts, Zaboru remained completely unfazed. He had no concern whatsoever for the chaos his company had stirred up within Sonaya he didn't even care.
To be continue
AN : Merry Christmas everyone
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