On December 31st, from 9:30 in the morning, all relevant personnel of the Red and White Song Club were in place in the NHK building, and the official performance would be held in the evening.
Everyone in Nogizaka is no exception. You have been following the process all day long, and there are not many opportunities to rehearse.
Until 6:30 in the evening, almost half an hour before the official performance, the rehearsal activities and processes have been stopped, and everyone on stage has changed into clothes for the official performance.
In the empty lounge, the 38 official members of Nogizaka46 formed a circle, with three photographers accompanying them standing in the middle.
"Well, today is the day when all the members are here. It's the first time for Kohaku to appear. Various things have happened since the formation of the group to now, but everyone has worked hard, so we can play Kohaku like today. Today, I hope I can Let’s put everything that has happened up to now behind us and stand on the stage happily!”
"はい."
Sakurai Reika stood among them wearing a snow-white velvet dress and said loudly.
"Let's get started, get ready!"
"の~ぎゆ~ぎゆ~Work hard, thank you, smile! うちらはNogizaka, Kamizaka! 46!"
"Yeah!" "Come on!"
There was not much time left for them in the lounge. After forming the circle, the NHK staff signaled that they were ready to go on stage. Walking out of the lounge, the first-term students wearing snow-white dresses took the lead, and the second-term students were dressed and waiting. The purple uniform that will be performing later follows behind.
Japan is like this. It attaches great importance to class forms. I wish everyone knew that Nogizaka has two members. The first-term students wear a new uniform wrapped in silver, with a delicate red lace flower pinned to their shoulders. The second-generation students do not have new uniforms.
"Lan Shi, it's your first time going to Hongbai. What do you think?"
The great condor, like the sloth, hung on Terada Ranyo's shoulder, one arm around her neck.
"It's incredible. At this time in the past, I was still watching red and white at home. My heart was pounding." As he said this, Terada Ranyo held on to the microphone, which was not skewed.
"Pumping, banging, banging? Let me touch it and see."
Immediately, the cold little hand of the Great Condor slid all the way down his neck to Terada Ranyo's left chest, but before it reached its destination, Terada Ranyo knocked it off.
"Stop making trouble... let's go quickly." Terada Ranyo was a little embarrassed and angry, and his pace quickened a little.
"Hey, wait for me, why are you in such a hurry?"
38 people were shuttled backstage at the Red and White Song Festival. The scene was completely different from the previous day. At this time, they, the little idols, really realized what a "big occasion" meant. In addition to the staff, there were many people wearing formal clothes backstage. There are young people, middle-aged people, and gray-haired old people. I don’t know what they all do. Everyone has a work badge on their chest, and they seem to have their own job.
It is no exaggeration to describe it as a huge crowd of people.
Standing in the aisle waiting to go on stage, the members were lined up in a row. Perhaps because they were all nervous, they spoke very little.
"eagle!"
The Great Condor, who was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed and concentrating, suddenly felt someone pinched his face and called his name. He was about to fight back when he opened his eyes and saw a face he hadn't seen for a long time.
"Sister Yamei!" In an instant, joy climbed onto her brows, "Why are you here?"
"I am the guest of honor this time."
Masami Nagasawa tied her hair back and wore a light yellow kimono with gold threads on the neckline. She only wore light makeup and no excessive modifications, making her look like a classical beauty.
"Oh~"
"Come on, I'm watching you from below. I have to go on stage."
"Um!"
The two waved goodbye, and the Great Condor watched her walk through the door.
Except for Masami Nagasawa, Haruka Ayase, the host of the red group, also said hello to her before taking the stage. However, due to time constraints, neither of them spoke properly and only encouraged each other a few words. In addition to the two big condors looking at each other, two official brother Bananamen also entered the venue as the second MC.
"It's your turn, come on. Remember your position!"
STAFF reminded that the first-term students entered the venue through the side door with the cheering sticks they had been assigned in their hands, while the second-term students continued to stay in the passage, waiting for the opening ceremony to end.
"That's Japan! That's Kohaku!"
"This is Japan, this is Kohaku."
"The true heart of Japan exists here, and this year's 'Red and White' is the decisive version of entertainment!"
"Wow~"
There was a round of applause from the audience.
"The 66th NHK Red and White Song Battle!" the three hosts said together.
The opening stage lasted for several songs, and it had nothing to do with Nogizaka. It just showed its face from a distance, so I won’t go into details.
After coming down from the front desk, the first-generation members took off their coats. After the show, they only had fifteen minutes to prepare. Because there were members in the group who were under 18, they were photographed in front. They were the fifth performer. The members moved behind the stage and prepared to wait for the host to introduce the guests before they came on stage.
"Ikoma-san, MC will turn on the microphone for you."
"I understand, I understand."
On the occasion of taking the field, STAFF did not forget to give a reminder.
"OK, come on."
Before the guests had finished their introductions, the members of Nogizaka quickly stood on the stage and took their positions, while the Great Condor hurriedly stood behind Hashimoto Nanami.
"Eh? It seems like something strange got mixed in behind. The stage is really full of freshness. Everyone from Nogizaka46, they are officially making their first appearance in red and white."
Haruka Ayase introduced this female idol group to the audience for the first time.
"Please give me your advice."
When the members politely returned the favor, there was no shortage of shouts of support from the audience.
"It's so popular." Inohara Yoshihiko sighed.
"Nogizaka46, which is in its fifth year of existence, ended 2015 with the Kohaku Utakai Festival. How do you feel now?"
While Ayase Haruka was speaking, many of them saw in the audience, the two banana men as MCs of the second channel, making their iconic self-introduction gestures in the air. They were very excited, although they could not hear the two formulas. Brother's shouting, but everyone felt warm in their hearts.
"I have expressed my determination before to reach the goal of reaching Kohaku one day. After all, it is Kohaku. It takes a whole year for all members to stand on this stage together like now. I am very happy and very nervous." As the captain, Sakurai Reika was the first to speak.
"Yeah, please do your best."
"Thank you, I'll do my best."
"Ikoma-san even shed tears during the previous reception."
"Yes, but I was born as a group. It is really a great thing to be able to stand on this stage today. We will give the best performance with the most sincere gratitude. We will work hard. .”
"Then please prepare to perform."
"Please give me your advice."
"Please enjoy, Nogizaka46's 'Kun no Name No Hope'."
As soon as they finished speaking, a familiar melody came from the speakers, and the members quickly found their positions. This was their first shot in front of the people of the country, and no one could make any mistakes.
With countless spotlights shining on his face, the Great Condor couldn't help but squint his eyes. As if watching the lights, some bits and pieces after joining Nogizaka flashed back before his eyes.
There have been times when I have been bitter and tired, I have wanted to give up, and I have had self-doubt. There are sad times, but mostly the members are happy together. I dance wildly and energetically on LIVE, but there are also times when I have to compromise in order to achieve an acre of land.
Two years ago, with waist-length black and shiny hair, she came to Tokyo from Asahikawa. At that time, she only joined Nogizaka for money. She had no interest in the team and just wanted to hang out until she graduated. , she quit as soon as she found a job. She didn’t have much ideals or ambitions, she just wanted to live a life that an ordinary person should live.
Two years later, she stood here, but what she wanted was a chain called a bond, connecting her with other people.
Two years is enough time to change a lot of things. Not only has her appearance changed, but her heart has also changed a lot subtly.
It’s not just her, there are everyone in Nogizaka, everyone comes to Nogizaka with dreams and their own goals. They may all work hard for themselves at the beginning, but who dares to say that they are not Working hard for the team?
"it's over!"
After getting off the stage, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The Great Condor rushed down the stairs and was about to return to the lounge when he saw Rina Ikoma who was taking questions from the photographer. He said hello and continued downstairs.
My body and mind seemed to feel much more relaxed all of a sudden. The heavy stress of the past few days was all left behind, and I felt refreshed both physically and mentally.
"Okami-san."
"はい?"
The Great Condor, who was going down the stairs, found a photographer carrying a camera following behind her, taking pictures of her.
"How does it feel to participate in Kohaku for the first time?"
"Feeling..." The Great Condor muttered, and his pace slowed down a lot, otherwise it would be tragic if the photographer fell down after him. "Yeah~ I'm happy."
"Um, gone?"
Seeing the photographer who said nothing, I wanted the Great Condor to say more so that he could record more material.
"Besides being happy, why should I be sad? (Laughs) It's false to say anything else. The same goes for other people. They only have happiness in their hearts, but just being happy is enough, isn't it?" The Great Condor said slowly.
"Although we only went up to perform a song, the time was very short, but the result of our hard work over the past year is in these few minutes, so even if it only lasts for a few minutes, we are very happy. Without the foreshadowing of hard work, where would it be?" The joy of victory. You say so, hehe."
She smiled at the camera.
Back in the lounge, except for the six people including Shiraishi Mai and Hashimoto Nanami who also had a backup dance show, the other members now only need to wait for the Kohaku Song Concert to end.
From 7:15 to 11:45, except for the five-minute news break in the middle, the entire program proceeds in an orderly manner. Of course, what caught the most attention of the members was the cheongsam outfits worn by Nana Hashimoto and others. The high-slit cheongsam was very eye-catching.
Finally, after participating in the closing ceremony, the girls in butterfly dresses returned to the lounge with excitement. Finally, the long-lost victory of the red group ended.
"yeah!"
From the corridor to the elevator, from the elevator to the lounge, everyone kept chanting. It seemed that only by shouting could they express the passion in their hearts. In a true sense, on the stage of Kohaku, the debut ended with success.
"Quick, quick, it's time!" "Surround it, surround it!"
When the hour and minute hands infinitely approached 0 o'clock, I don't know who started it, greeting everyone, forming a circle like a circular formation, and 2016 was about to be ushered in.
"Eagle, come on!"
Just as the great condor walked towards the crowd slowly, Saito Asuka, who had already taken his position, waved to her.
"coming."
The Great Condor stood beside Saito Asuka. Saito Asuka smiled with his little fangs exposed and took the initiative to grab the Great Condor's hand. The Great Condor was sandwiched between Saito Asuka and Hoshino Minami, and their hands were as warm as small heaters.
"I'm coming!"
"8!"
"7!"
"6!"
"5!"
"4!"
"3!"
"2!"
"1!"
"Happy New Year!"
The moment the countdown ended, everyone held hands and jumped in the air.
"Happy new year!" "Woohoo!" "Yeah!"
Not only the members, but the STAFF standing nearby also cheered together. Of course, a must for girls is to take pictures. Everyone gathered together, and Takayama Kazumi took the phone and took a group photo.
This photo records the historical highlight moment of Nogizaka46. Even if you look back many years ago, this should be the best era.
In the group photo, the members are posing in different poses. The Great Condor is standing behind Saito Asuka, pulling Saito Asuka's cheeks with both hands, like pulling plasticine, and the cheeks are deformed, even though Saito Asuka is His two slender arms tried their best to reach back to stop her from being ravaged, but to no avail, which was very funny.
"Don't pinch my face!"
"whee."
"You... hum, forget it, I won't argue with you today." Asuka Saito was about to retaliate, but something seemed to come to his mind and he held it back.
Um?
"Happy birthday to you...."
Just when the Great Condor was wondering why Saito Asuka was acting out of character today, the sound of a birthday song came from the door. He turned around and saw two women in kimonos slowly walking in pushing a trolley with a cake on it. Behind him were two men in suits, one fat and one thin.
The visitors were none other than Ayase Haruka, Nagasawa Masami, and the two official brothers Banana Shitakuto and Himura Yuki.
"Happy birthday to dear Ookami, Happy birthday to you~!"
Then, the surrounding members also invariably clapped and sang the birthday song. It was easy to hear from the lyrics that they were all wishing the Great Condor a happy birthday.
When she saw the cake, she remembered that today was her birthday. I used to look forward to the stars and the moon to think about my birthday, but now that it's my birthday, I almost forgot.
Everyone's singing voice was not loud, but every word and every syllable was sung into the heart of the great condor. How could there be so many people with me on my birthday in the past? My parents and two younger brothers could only call me The Xiang Ben family that she befriends next door only has seven members at full count, and now, in addition to the 37 members, there are two sisters, two brothers, and many staff present, all celebrating her birthday.
Saito Asuka quietly stepped back, and Ayase Haruka and Nagasawa Masami slowly pushed the cart in front of her.
"Eagle, make a wish." Nagasawa Masami said to her.
The great condor clasped its hands together and closed its eyes. After five seconds, it opened its eyes and blew out the candle in one breath.
"Bah bang bang~" Everyone clapped.
"Happy Birthday!" "HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Eagle!" The members, staff, Ayase Haruka, Nagasawa Masami, Shitara Tou, and Himura Yuki all applauded in celebration.
"Come on, share the cake with the birthday girl."
Saying that, Ayase Haruka handed a plastic knife to the Great Condor.
"Hey. Who wants to eat the cake?" the great condor asked looking around.
"Me, me, me!" Erika Ikuta was the most active, raising her hands and rushing out from the side, so fast that even the Great Condor was amazed.
"You? Not for you."
"Hey, why...I apologize to you for what happened yesterday!" Erika Ikuta bowed deeply.
"Well, if you say something nice, it's not like I can't give it to you."
"Great Ying-chan, Ying-chan, you are the best! You are the cutest! I love you the most!"
"You are really going to any lengths to get food, are you speaking out of conscience?" The great condor sighed as he looked at Eri Ikuta's small mouth covered with honey.
"Who said I was unconscionable? What I said was all the truth."
"Hahaha."
The people around him laughed when they saw it.
2015 has ended successfully. This is the first time Nogizaka46 has appeared on the national stage, but everyone believes that this will definitely not be the last time.
The Red and White Song Society is their goal. This is the end point, but it is also the starting point.
The road up is long, and there are more challenges waiting for them. After climbing this mountain, there are higher mountains waiting for them to climb. There may be separation in the future, but what remains unchanged will always be in their hearts. That firmness.
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'I hope my father's health gets better. '
'I hope my family, friends and fans will always be healthy and happy. '
'I wish my figure could be fuller. '
'I hope I can become rich. '
'I hope Nogizaka will become the number one idol group in Japan. '
