On the subway train, Kamiyā Yuu sat calmly in his seat, spreading his laptop across his lap. His gaze was fixed on the screen as he typed rapidly, his nimble fingers moving like flowing water. The fluidity of his movements made nearby passengers wonder if he was just randomly tapping the keyboard to put on a show.
Before long, however, his serious expression and the speed at which his eyes scanned the screen dispelled that suspicion. Purposeful typing and mindless tapping were easy to distinguish. Quite a few office workers—especially programmers—were already looking at him with admiration. With that kind of typing speed, how could he possibly worry about meeting deadlines?
Of course, he wasn't the only eye-catching person in the carriage. Beside Kamiyā Yuu sat a blond-haired young man, leaning back in his seat in an exaggerated posture. His head was tilted upward, eyes tightly shut as he slept soundly, occasionally letting out loud snores.
Such an unrefined sleeping posture was actually a common sight on Japanese trains—though not everyone had the nerve for it.
When boarding the train, Kamiyā Yuu had immediately noticed the sloppily sleeping blond youth. Even so, he chose to sit next to him, because this blond man was someone he knew from Kyoni Animation Co., Ltd.—a frivolous young man from the Production Department, Kimura Jirō.
"The framework of the MAYA software is almost complete. Even if the modeling functions aren't fully replicated, they can already be put to use. Hmm… on second thought, I'll wait until the entire software is finished before creating the 'Red' arc. No point splitting my focus and doing both poorly."
"The essential system components supporting MAYA are also done—that took quite a bit of effort. Why is the Windows system in this world so far behind compared to my previous one? Back there, Microsoft had already forcibly pushed the infamous Windows 10 to every household by this time."
Kamiyā Yuu had never felt that a half-hour subway ride could pass so quickly. To avoid rush hour crowds, he had deliberately left an hour earlier than usual. The early train was far less crowded, giving him enough space to use his laptop.
"Time's about up."
He glanced at the time displayed on his laptop and stopped coding. After such prolonged rapid movement, his fingers felt sore and numb. Once he paused, a burning sensation quickly spread through his hands. After doing a few exercises to loosen his fingers, he glanced at Kimura Jirō beside him, who was sleeping like a log. He couldn't help but feel a bit impressed by his ability to sleep so recklessly in public.
"This train will arrive at Uji Station, Kyoto Prefecture, in one minute. Passengers preparing to disembark, please get ready."
The sweet announcement from the train attendant rang out. Kamiyā Yuu sighed and reached over to shake Kimura Jirō's shoulder. "Kimura! Kimura! Wake up—we're almost there." He was certain that if he weren't on this train, Kimura would've slept all the way to the terminal station.
"Oh—oh!" Kimura Jirō jolted awake from the vigorous shaking, instinctively wiping the drool from his mouth as he blinked sleepily and looked around the carriage.
Kamiyā Yuu's mouth twitched. He swore he would never shake hands with this guy for the rest of his life.
"Ah, it's Kamiyā! What a coincidence—didn't expect to run into you here!" Kimura Jirō greeted him casually. After a moment's thought, he added uncertainly, "I didn't miss my stop, right? Since you're here, I guess I didn't." His use of "ore-sama" (literally "great me") wasn't considered arrogant in Japan—anyone who used such a supposedly cool self-reference just came off as a complete idiot.
Kamiyā Yuu closed his laptop and replied, "We'll reach Uji Station in Kyoto Prefecture in one minute. But I remember you don't usually take this train. How did you end up falling asleep here?"
"Ah, well, originally I didn't. But I just went to Uncle Hongō's place to collect key animation drafts. Man, it exhausted me! First thing in the morning, and they send me to pick up drawings—why not just use express delivery? They had to make me go in person. The animation industry is really going downhill!" Kimura Jirō complained bitterly.
There were different types of key animators. Aside from in-house animators like Kamiyā Yuu, there were also freelance animators who took on work from studios or production companies. Aside from lacking company benefits, they weren't much different from employed animators.
One of the important responsibilities of a Production Assistant in the Production Department was to drive company vehicles to collect key animation from these freelancers.
—With people like you, it's no wonder the animation industry is going downhill.
Kamiyā Yuu almost voiced the thought aloud.
After leaving the station, the two walked toward Kyoni Animation Co., Ltd. Kimura Jirō, frivolous both inside and out, was also a chatterbox. After venting his complaints, he launched into all sorts of topics with Kamiyā Yuu—from subway beggars to national politics—speaking with surprising seriousness and conviction.
"By the way, I heard you became a student of the Key Animation Supervisor. Seriously, I have no idea how you managed to get on good terms with that terrifying woman. If it were me, I'd be running as far away as possible," Kimura Jirō said, slinging an arm over Kamiyā Yuu's shoulder and wiggling his eyebrows.
Kamiyā Yuu smiled wryly. "Uehara-senpai is an excellent key animator. And 'terrifying' is a bit of an exaggeration, don't you think?"
"Ah, Kamiyā, you just don't get it—you really don't!" Kimura Jirō wagged his finger, putting on an air of superiority like he was educating a country bumpkin. He glanced around before pulling Kamiyā Yuu closer and lowering his voice. "You know her nickname, right? People call her 'Nadeshiko,' but that's just because they're afraid she might hear. It's written as 'Nadeshiko,' but read as 'demon'—a cold-blooded, merciless demon! You've only been here a year, so you probably don't know much yet. But trust me, you'll see soon enough."
Kamiyā Yuu chuckled and shook his head without responding. Gossiping behind someone's back wasn't his habit. Still, seeing someone as carefree as Kimura Jirō show such fear was rather amusing.
He steered the conversation elsewhere, and before long, they arrived at the Kyoni Animation building.
"Alright then, see you around sometime," Kamiyā Yuu said as he headed toward the third floor. The Production Department offices were on the second floor.
"Got it!" Kimura Jirō replied.
However, as Kamiyā Yuu continued upstairs, he noticed Kimura Jirō was still following him. Turning back, he asked curiously, "Kimura, is there something else?"
Kimura Jirō scratched his head, looking a bit uneasy. "Nothing really… but I still need to go to the Key Animation Department."
—Isn't the key animation supposed to be handed over to the Production Department by Morishita Aoi?
Kamiyā Yuu was puzzled but didn't dwell on it. The two of them continued up together to the Key Animation Department on the fifth floor.