"Tsuna, are you looking for something?"
After seeing him looking around since he left the bookstore, Shouko, having been led by him for a while, finally lost her curiosity and asked.
"Huh?" He turned his gaze away from the alley and shook his head, signaling her not to worry.
"It's nothing."
He thought better of keeping it to himself. Telling her would only make her as suspicious as he was.
Besides, they were almost home, just one block away, and since he hadn't moved for so long, he thought it might be an illusion...
"Yeah." Shouko didn't ask any more questions.
Just as they were only a few steps away from home, a hurried voice suddenly rang from behind them:
"Kid! Kid!"
"Wait, wait!"
Tsuna and Shouko turned their heads in unison. He calmly reached into his pocket and grabbed the stun gun he had asked Shouko for at the bookstore.
The two of them were greeted by a middle-aged man in a black suit and brown cap, who hurried over and then stopped about a meter behind them.
"Hehe..." The middle-aged man, noticing the wary look on the boy next to the girl, quickly raised his hand and waved, reassuring him,
"Don't worry, uncle, I'm not a bad guy, okay?"
Seeing the boy's wariness didn't fade in the slightest, the middle-aged man reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a dozen cards. He pulled out the top one and handed it to the two of them,
"I'm from Futaba Media. This is my business card. You can take a look." Tsuna released his hand from Shouko, took it, and compared it with the middle-aged man's face. It was indeed a real one.
He had roughly guessed why the man had stopped him and Shouko.
He didn't let go of the stun gun, though. He wasn't about to let down his guard just because of a business card. His expression returned to normal.
For a moment, the atmosphere was a bit quiet, with no one speaking. It was finally broken by the middle-aged man's awkward laugh.
"To put it simply, I specialize in finding good-looking kids to be entertainers. Entertainers are the kind you see on TV."
He suspected the two kids hadn't grasped his business card, which was why they remained silent. He explained it in a more accessible way.
"Uncle, we know. Aren't you a talent scout?"
The middle-aged man looked at the girl who had spoken, a little surprised. Trying to appear more friendly, he complimented her,
"Yes, yes, you're quite clever, you even know how to be a talent scout."
He was about to reach out and touch the girl's head, but as his hand reached mid-air, he suddenly heard a surge of electricity. He looked over and quickly withdrew his hand.
He was completely confused as to why the two kids would bring stun guns with them while out shopping.
Judging by the style and brand, it was a full-powered one.
"How about this, kids, are your parents home? Uncle needs to see them." Feeling a bit out of sync with them, the middle-aged man quickly changed the subject.
"Sure, we're just a few steps up. Uncle, follow us." Upon hearing this, Tsuna put away his stun gun, took Shouko by the hand, and turned back toward home.
It was better to let Shizuka handle this matter herself. There was a 99% chance she'd reject him anyway, so it would be quicker for her to talk to this uncle. If he rejected him here, he'd probably continue to pester Shouko and Tsuna, and they'd still have to go back to Mom later. It was better to let her handle it directly.
"Okay, okay," the middle-aged man rubbed the back of his head with a simple expression and followed the two.
He'd been observing the two children for two or three days, and they were definitely siblings. He'd seen them leaving and returning from the same room at the same time.
If they weren't siblings, they were likely cousins or something similar, but judging by their closeness, it was likely they were siblings.
It couldn't be a child bride or son-in-law, could it? Haha...
This amusing idea was dismissed as soon as it was proposed.
————————
"I'm back!" x2
"Excuse me!"
"Huh?"
Shizuka, still catching up on TV in the living room and pondering what to eat tonight, thought nothing of the two people outside. Then, immediately after, she heard a middle-aged man's voice, and she became confused.
Shizuka paused the TV, stood up from the sofa, and walked out of the living room to check. She saw her son and daughter-in-law changing their shoes.
A salesperson in a sharp suit stood behind them. Confused, she asked, "Hello, who are you?"
The middle-aged man looked over, his eyes brightening. He had observed them from a distance before.
Even then, he'd thought this family was incredibly good-looking, whether it was the siblings or the couple.
"Hello, Ma'am!"
The middle-aged man's thoughts snapped back, and he bowed to introduce himself. Then, as before, he pulled a business card from his suit pocket and handed it to Shizuka.
Seeing they weren't salespeople, Shizuka glanced at the card and asked Tsuna to get her a pair of disposable slippers, but he flatly declined, stating that his socks would suffice.
Seeing this, the other three stopped talking and let him into the living room to chat.
Tsuna even went to the kitchen to get a cup of tap water for him.
"Oh, thank you," the middle-aged man said, nodding in thanks. After taking a sip, he looked at Shizuka and continued,
"Here's the thing. I think your two children have the potential to be child stars (their looks are great)."
Tsuna ignored the other man's words and sat straight down next to Shouko.
"Um..." Shizuka pretended to hesitate, then shook her head and said slowly,
"No, the children's father and I don't plan to let them become child stars."
"This..." The middle-aged man, still reluctant to give up, continued to list numerous benefits, including the benefits it would bring to the family.
Shizuka and Tsuna were unmoved or moved. They knew there were complicated issues here. This man only talked about the advantages and didn't mention the disadvantages at all.
Besides, Japan is now full of child stars and artists, and Tsuna felt that without making some effort, there was no way they could stand out.
But beside him, Shouko was a little tempted, especially after hearing the middle-aged man's talk about the benefits. She wondered if this would make her mother's job easier...
Seeing the wife didn't react, the middle-aged man turned to the two children and said temptingly,
"Children, become child actors and you can become very popular. The little brother will be liked by the girls, and the little sister will be the same."
This sentence was a perfect warning.
Shouko's excitement disappeared without a trace after hearing this. She turned around and saw Tsuna staring intently at the oranges on the coffee table. Her tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
If she saw a hint of temptation on his face, she would bite him.
As for the idea of making her mother's job easier...
According to Tsuna, her mother had been promoted to a middle-level manager in Uncle Miyamura's agency. Even if she became a child actor now, she wouldn't be able to make money for a few years.
By then, her mother might have been promoted again. If she became a child actor, she would only make her worry.
(End of Chapter)
---