Chapter 28: $2 Million Dollars Offer (Bonus Chapter)

As I promised, this is a bonus chapter from my own stash to start the week!

Enjoy!

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Since that day, Shimizu had stopped ignoring Tsuna, and they were often seen chatting during practice breaks, much to everyone else's annoyance.

Of course, the others couldn't resist joining in, disrupting their conversations every time. It irritated Tsuna to no end, but he swallowed his frustration. Seeing Shimizu's amused smile when he was interrupted, and the way she seemed entertained by his annoyed expressions, made him decide to let it slide.

In the two days leading up to their practice game against Aoba Johsai High School, Daichi adjusted their training schedule. The pace was slower to preserve their energy, and by the end of practice, he had finalized the starting lineup.

Still, there was one small issue...

"Phew... We're finally about to play against them!"

Tanaka's voice boomed through the small, slightly worn locker room beside the gym.

It was early in the morning, and the team was preparing the equipment they'd need for the game later that afternoon.

Suga chuckled, "You seem pretty confident, Tanaka!"

"Of course, we've played against them before and won," Tanaka hummed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"But that was with Tsuna. This time, we're playing without him. I'm curious to see how we stack up against the top four teams in the prefecture without our ace."

"I guess you're right," Daichi replied with a small smile as they all climbed the stairs.

Reaching the locker room, the captain continued, "It's about time we see how much we've improved as a team."

However, as they stepped inside, their attention was immediately drawn to the orange-haired freshman sitting on the bench.

His face was pale, and his expression looked strangely blank.

The team exchanged worried glances, realizing there was a problem.

"Shit..." Tanaka muttered under his breath.

Suga asked, "Is he still nervous?" 

"Ahh..."

Daichi facepalmed, feeling a bit speechless by this.

Yesterday, Kageyama had unintentionally pressed Hinata and got him nervous about the practice game.

They'd assumed a day would be enough for Hinata to regain his confidence. But Hinata's current expression just made them realize the short guy was more shaken than they had anticipated.

They knew...

"He's completely a lost cause," Daichi muttered, his shoulders slumping.

Karasuno had it rough in the morning as they all tried their best to get Hinata back on track only to make it worse.

Meanwhile, in the crowded streets of downtown Tokyo...

"That's why I don't like this city..."

A tall teenager with gray hair and sharp brown eyes muttered to himself as he stepped out of a taxi.

He pulled his jacket tighter around him, glaring half-heartedly at the people flooding in and out of a tall, five-story building even when it was so early in the morning.

The Fujikawa Shoten logo gleamed at the top and below the logo, large banners flapped in the breeze, showcasing the covers of their best-selling light novels.

One banner, in particular, caught his attention.

A kid with a heart-shaped scar on his forehead held a wand, standing triumphantly under the bold title Harry Poggers and the Rizzlerz Stone.

Tsuna sighed, scratching the back of his neck, "Hmm, they've set it up already?"

The Harry Poggers and the Rizzlerz Stone was one of the best-selling light novels currently on the market after all.

Considering he had first written the story in English before Fujikawa Shoten offered him a contract to translate it into Japanese, its rise to fame in even the international community wasn't exactly shocking.

Along the way, the novel had garnered attention from international publishers, eager to bring his absurdly popular series to a global audience.

It was the main reason he came today after all. 

To meet representatives from one of those international publishing houses. They were interested in acquiring a licensing agreement to translate and distribute his work worldwide.

For most authors, this was a dream—a golden ticket to fame and fortune.

Tsuna, however, wasn't like most authors.

Fame? He couldn't care less. Fame meant interviews, public appearances, and being branded with the title Rizz God, which, frankly, he found mortifying.

'Why did I even choose that pen name?'

He shuddered at the thought of being recognized for the ridiculous moniker, swearing he'd stay anonymous forever.

But wealth?

Now, that was another story.

"Tsuna!"

A voice called out as Tsuna stepped inside the bustling building. He turned to see Machida approaching him; she looked exhausted as she rubbed her temple.

"Let's go, our guest is already inside..."

"This early?"

Tsuna raised an eyebrow.

It was only 7 a.m.—a full hour before the scheduled meeting time. But it seemed like they were quite eager as Tsuna's eyes quietly gleamed.

"Yeah, well, things are in a rush. I'll explain what happened on the way."

"Alright..."

Without wasting another moment, he followed Machida toward the elevator.

As the metallic doors slid shut behind them, Machida started to fill him in.

"Have you heard of Yes Press?"

"Yeah. One of the top publishers in North America, right?"

"Exactly," she confirmed. "One of their representatives is here, but there's a bit of an issue. His Japanese is... not great. Actually, it's barely understandable."

Tsuna frowned slightly, "So? Don't we have someone who speaks English?"

"We do, but she's supposed to be our writer instead of translator..."

Machida sighed, pressing a button on the elevator panel, "And her English is pretty basic, and she gets flustered easily. She stuttered through the initial greeting, and it's making things awkward."

"So... the guy's not Japanese?"

"Not this time," Machida shook her head, "Usually, we'd have someone properly briefed or a translator ready, but this completely caught us off guard. We didn't have time to prepare."

Tsuna started to see why this was becoming such a headache. Negotiating with a language barrier was never easy, especially when most Japanese weren't fluent in English.

"Hmm, I guess I can translate it for you."

"You... can speak English?"

"I wrote the original draft of Harry Poggers in English, remember?"

"Right..." Machida blinked, visibly relieved. "Alright, then. Guess we've got our translator."

The elevator chimed softly as the doors slid open, and they stepped into the sleek corridor leading to the Editorial Director's office.

As they walked toward the door at the far end, Machida stopped just before the door and turned to Tsuna.

"Umm, don't be surprised," she said hesitantly. "But this... might not go in the direction we were hoping for."

Tsuna tilted his head, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Before Machida could elaborate, she pushed open the door. The muffled sounds of conversation spilled out into the hallway before it suddenly coming to a stop.

"Two million dollars!"

"Like I've said so many times, we're not planning to se—uh, wait, what? Two million dollars? As in US dollars!?"

The voice of Fujikawa Shoten's editorial director, tinged with surprise, rang through the room.

The office was spacious.

A cozy sofa set occupied the center, facing a sleek coffee table, while a large desk stood near the window at the far end, overlooking the bustling Tokyo skyline.

Two men sat on the sofa.

One was the editorial director, a bald Japanese man who looked tempted by the offer. The other was a middle-aged foreigner with blonde hair, dressed sharply in a tailored suit.

He looked confident despite his broken Japanese.

As Tsuna he looked around, his eyes caught a tall, dark-haired girl standing behind the sofa.

'So she's the writer that suddenly got turned into a translator Machida-san was talking about...'

She had long hair tied back with a white headband. She was beautiful and appeared to be around his age. And yet, Tsuna could see her posture was awkward as if she felt out of place amidst the heated discussion.

"Like I said," Machida spoke up, noticing Tsuna's gaze, "she's our new, upcoming writer. We were finalizing her contract when our guest interrupted us."

"I see," Tsuna muttered, glancing at the girl again.

Her wide eyes met his, and for a brief moment, he thought her expression lit up—her gaze sparkling with an emotion he couldn't quite place.

"Gentlemen," Machida clapped her hands lightly to refocus the room's attention, "allow me to introduce our writer, Tsunayoshi Matsumoto. He goes by the pen name Rizz God."

The blonde man, lounging casually on the sofa, finally turned his head to look at Tsuna.

Machida gestured toward him. "And Tsuna, this is Sam Jackson, the representative from Yes Press."

Jackson nodded in acknowledgment but didn't bother to stand. Instead, he stayed comfortably seated, one arm draped over the back of the sofa.

Tsuna slid into the seat opposite Jackson as the director awkwardly explained, "Well, Tsuna-kun, as you can see..."

It was obvious he was tempted by the offer on the table. Tsuna glanced at him, then turned his attention back to Jackson.

"Mr. Jackson, right? It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Oh, finally, someone who speaks English!"

Jackson's eyes widened for a moment, then a grin spread across his face. He chuckled loudly and then imitated Tsuna's thick Japanese accent.

"My name's Sam Jackson. As you can tell, Yes Press doesn't just want a licensing agreement—we want to buy out the whole contract. So, Mr. Matsumoto, as the author, would you be so kind as to let us know what you think?"

"…?"

Tsuna's brows furrowed, his lips twitching in irritation.

What's the deal with this guy?

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