Final Judgment Concluded

Three days before the final trial, the fifty-six candidates were summoned to the Sononokizaka Building for a short-term closed training session.

It was called intensive training, but it was actually a hidden selection process—simple dance practice, small group singing, and observation by staff members in daily life.

Feiniao stood in the corner of the dance studio, mimicking the teacher's movements.

She had never formally studied dance before, but she had good coordination and flexibility, and she could roughly follow the teacher's demonstration after watching it once or twice.

Hua Hua stood next to her, her movements weren't perfect either, but she learned quickly. The dance teacher walked up to Hua Hua and wrote a few words on the form.

When I walked up to Asuka, I paused for a few seconds, watched her body and followed her movements, and then wrote on the form, "Good foundation, good body control."

During the group sing-along, Asuka stood in the third row and heard her voice blend into the harmonies of dozens of people. Suddenly, she realized that this was no longer a one-person affair.

This wasn't like when she sang alone in the music room, her voice bouncing off the walls so only she could hear it.

This is the voice of dozens of people overlapping, like a river, and she is a drop of water in the river. No rush, no need to rush.

Staff members moved among the people, observing each person's personality, behavior, and ability to withstand pressure.

Some people sat silently in a corner during their break, while others gathered together and chatted excitedly.

Hua Hua's social skills were on full display during the training camp. During breaks, she would go and chat with the people next to her, asking for the names of seven or eight people, and then report back to Fei Biao.

She told Asuka that Mai Shiraishi was standing in the row next to her, half a head taller than her.

"She looks really good," not the kind of good looks that comes from careful makeup, but the kind of good looks that makes you think, "This person shouldn't be here," even without makeup.

Asuka followed her gaze and saw only a figure in a white T-shirt standing quietly in the line, with his hair tied low, not speaking to anyone.

Nanami Hashimoto stood on the other side, silent, without smiling or making any extra expressions. Just standing there, she gave the impression that she had a story to tell.

Asuka didn't go over to talk to her; she was never good at initiating conversations.

The training lasted a day, and no one was eliminated; everyone advanced to the final round.

But Asuka knew that each of them was on record.

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August 21st, the final hearing day.

When the bird awoke, it was still dark. A sliver of light peeked through the gap in the curtains, hazy and indistinct, as if the sun hadn't yet decided whether to rise.

She lay in bed listening to the cicadas chirping outside the window for a while, then sat up and put on the clothes she had prepared the night before.

She wore a light pink short-sleeved shirt, paired with a dark blue pleated skirt that resembled shorts. Her hair was down, not tied in a ponytail, and she wore a pair of red ankle boots.

She wasn't wearing the white hat; it was placed on the shoe cabinet in the entryway.

She looked at herself in the mirror for a while. The girl in the mirror had bloodshot eyes and dry lips.

"I'm not wearing it today," she said to herself in the mirror.

When they went out, Mother Bird stood at the door, holding a small cloth bag containing water and a small rice ball.

"Eat it when you're hungry." Asuka took it without saying a word, clutching the cloth bag tightly in her hand.

Mom didn't say much, she just straightened her collar and gently pushed her shoulder.

"Go."

Hua Hua was waiting for her at the station. Today, she had her hair in double buns and was wearing a white dress, looking much quieter than usual.

"You've changed your style?" Asuka asked, looking at her.

"Today is different." Hua Hua took a deep breath. "Today I'm really going to be an idol."

When the two entered the SME Nogizaka building, there were already many people in the corridor.

Fifty-six girls, some in performance costumes, some in school uniforms, some in casual clothes. Some wore elaborate makeup, some were almost bare-faced. Some were smiling, some were so nervous they were expressionless.

No one spoke in the waiting area; the air was like a tightly wrung-out sponge, ready to leak water at the slightest touch.

Hua Hua pulled Fei Niao to a corner and sat down, placing her bag on her lap and fiddling with her fingers on the bag strap.

The bird leaned against the wall, closed its eyes, and refused to look at the people coming and going or listen to the whispers.

She heard someone say in a very soft voice, "Mai Shiraishi is over there." She opened her eyes and looked in the direction of the voice—

A girl wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and black trousers stood there. She was quite tall, and her features were so delicate that she seemed unreal. However, her expression was very reserved, unlike someone who was used to being in front of a camera.

Hua Hua leaned closer and whispered, "It's so pretty, isn't it?" Fei Niao nodded.

Someone pointed to the other side and whispered "Nanami Hashimoto". Asuka turned her head and saw a person sitting on a chair in the distance.

Short hair, thin, wearing a dark top.

She didn't look at anyone, didn't speak to anyone, just sat there as if everything around her had nothing to do with her.

It's not a deliberate aloofness, but a natural, ingrained sense of distance.

The bird looked at her for two seconds before looking away.

The group list was posted on the bulletin board.

The fifty-six people were divided into six groups, with eight to ten people in each group. Fei Niao and Hua Hua were assigned to the first group.

Bird number 9, Flower number 8.

A slightly older girl stood in front of them, turned her head to look at them, smiled, and introduced herself as Nojo Aimi, from Chiba Prefecture, and seventeen years old.

Hua Hua immediately started chatting with her, while Fei Niao listened quietly from the side.

The staff started calling out numbers. When they called the first group, Huahua grabbed Feibiao's hand, her palms were sweaty, and she spoke in a very low voice.

It was as if he were speaking to a bird, or perhaps to himself: "Let's go in together."

Ten people lined up and walked through the heavy door.

The room was so big that when a bird walked in, its first reaction was that its footsteps were too loud.

Six people were sitting behind the long table. In the middle was Yasushi Akimoto, with a serious expression, leaning back in his chair, without a pen in his hand or any forms in front of him.

He didn't recognize any of the people next to him except for Yoshio Konno and Asuka.

Six pairs of eyes, twelve pupils, fell upon them from different angles, as if scrutinizing them, as if looking at them, as if searching for something they themselves did not know they possessed.

Starting from number 1, they are numbered sequentially.

Number 1 stood in the center of the room and sang a ballad, his voice trembling.

Number 2 danced a short dance, and the movements were very energetic.

After singing, number 3 danced.

Numbers 4, 5, 6, and 7 will complete the task in sequence.

Number 8. Hua Hua stepped forward.

She stood in the center of the room, her hands hanging at her sides, and took a deep breath.

Self-introduction: "Erika Ikuta, fourteen years old, first-year student at Ritsu Otowa Junior High School, Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was steady.

She sang a cappella—she chose aiko's "Star," and the very first line made Hiroaki Suzuki, who was behind the long table, stop writing.

Hua Hua's pitch was extremely stable, her breath control remained consistent throughout, and she pushed up the high notes cleanly and crisply without the slightest hesitation.

Hiroaki Suzuki wrote a few words on the form. Asuka later heard that he wrote "The best vocal condition in the entire event, clear tone, extremely stable pitch, zero mistakes".

During the talent show segment, Hua Hua didn't sing or dance like the others. She turned to the judges' panel and softly asked, "Could I play the piano?"

Akimoto Yasushi nodded slightly.

Hua Hua walked to the upright piano in the corner of the room, sat down, and gently placed her fingers on the keys.

She paused for a moment, as if confirming something with the piano—they had known each other since they were four years old.

When the first note falls, it is the second movement of Beethoven's "Pathétique" Sonata.

It wasn't a piece for showing off virtuosity; it was slow and deep, each note seeming to be carefully lifted from under the keys.

Hua Hua's finger movements were extremely light and gentle, without exaggerated changes in strength, yet they calmed the entire room.

Feiniao sat on a chair in the waiting area, watching Huahua's back—her shoulders were slightly forward, and her head was tilted slightly, as if she were listening to a sound that only she could hear.

She suddenly remembered that Saturday morning three years ago.

The first time she stepped into Hua Hua's music room, Xia Mo sat in front of the brand-new piano, his fingers running across the keys. Sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the blinds, drawing golden stripes on his shoulders.

She had just met the two of them then, unaware that the bond between the three of them would become so deep.

The last note of Hua Hua's voice slowly faded into the air. She stood up, bowed to the judges' panel, and turned to walk back.

As she passed by the birds, she blinked rapidly.

Number 9. Asuka stepped forward.

The room was quieter than before. She could hear the rustling of Hua Hua's skirt as she sat back down behind her, and the soft rustling of papers being turned over behind the long table.

Six pairs of eyes fell on her.

"Introduce yourself."

"Saito Asuka, thirteen years old, sixth grader at Katsushika Ward Municipal Kazuchiba Elementary School, Tokyo."

"A cappella".

Asuka took a deep breath.

She chose Kana Nishino's "if," and the chorus started right away.

The problem was apparent from the very first note. Her voice wasn't loud, her breath control was weak, and her high notes were noticeably strained, like someone climbing a hill and suddenly feeling their legs go weak.

She wasn't off-key, but every note was barely audible, with no room for error or compromise.

Konno Yoshio paused his pen on the form for a moment before writing a line: "Vocal level is average, pitch is acceptable, but a lot of training is needed."

After she finished singing, Akimoto Yasushi leaned back in his chair, looked at her for a while, and asked, "What do you consider your strength?"

"Drumming. Timpani." Asuka paused for a moment. "And dancing."

"Dance?" Akimoto Yasushi's gaze lingered on her for a moment. "Have you studied it?"

"I haven't had any formal training, but I learn very quickly."

"Then let's do a jump."

During the free talent segment, Asuka changed her mind at the last minute.

She didn't walk the runway or play the piano. Instead, she walked to the center of the room, took a deep breath, and performed a simple dance routine that she had choreographed on the spot—without music or choreography, just following her body's intuition.

Her movements weren't complicated, but she had a good sense of rhythm, and her body lines stretched out naturally as she danced, unlike someone who hadn't received systematic training.

The dance director gave her a high score on her form and wrote in the comments section: "Excellent dance sense, precise rhythm, and physical expressiveness far surpasses that of amateurs of the same age. She is a strong candidate for dance positioning."

When Asuka landed, she was slightly out of breath, and the stray hairs on her forehead were a little disheveled, but she didn't brush them aside. Akimoto Yasushi looked at her for a few seconds, a hint of interest appearing in his eyes.

He picked up the form that was placed to the side and wrote a sentence—

"Her mixed-race features are rare, she has a solid foundation in dance, and despite her young age, she has a strong stage presence. She has great potential and is worth nurturing."

The free exhibition has ended.

The score given by the dance director says it all.

Her sense of dance and rhythm ranked among the top in the group of 56, and her coordination and control impressed everyone present.

Fei Niao returned to her seat. Hua Hua sat down next to her, glanced at her sideways, and quietly reached out to shake her hand under the cover of the chair.

There were no extra words, just a one-second touch, and then release.

After the first group of interviews concluded, all ten people bowed and left the room.

While waiting for the results in the rest area, Hua Hua pulled Fei Niao to the vending machine to buy drinks.

When she came back, she saw Mai Shiraishi standing with a short-haired girl at the corner of the corridor. Hana went up to them and greeted them, "Shiraishi-san, were you nervous just now?"

Mai Shiraishi turned her head, paused slightly, then smiled, somewhat embarrassed. "I was shaking the whole time, and my mind went completely blank while I was singing."

"Me too!" Hua Hua said. "I was shaking at first, but I stopped shaking when I played the piano."

The short-haired girl next to Mai Shiraishi didn't speak; she just stood there quietly.

Hana glanced at her and tentatively asked, "Are you... Hashimoto-san?"

Nanami Hashimoto nodded, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Mm."

"You're from Hokkaido?" Hua Hua's tone carried a natural sense of closeness. "That's so far."

"It's alright." Hashimoto Nanami's voice was soft and her speech was slow, as if she were talking about something very ordinary. "Tokyo is warmer than Hokkaido."

Hua Hua smiled, chatted for a few more minutes, and then pulled Fei Niao back to her seat.

Asuka barely said a word from beginning to end; she wasn't good at initiating conversations in such situations.

On the night after the final review, the six judges deliberated and selected 36 qualified members from the 56 applicants.

Akimoto Yasushi held the list and went through it one by one.

Saito Asuka—Akimoto Yasushi circled the name. "A face that's instantly memorable is more important than anything else."

"It doesn't matter that she's young. She has a good foundation in dance and plenty of potential. She's worth nurturing. Nogizaka needs this kind of raw talent."

Yoshio Konno added to her record of the Tokyo event. The dance director also chimed in, "The dance she performed during her audition was among the best of today's amateurs in terms of both dance sense and rhythm."

The bird's name was written in the qualified column.

Mai Shiraishi – She has a striking, abrupt change in appearance, but during the interview, her voice trembled with nervousness.

Akimoto Yasushi was initially hesitant, fearing that her outstanding performance would disrupt the group's balance. However, he ultimately made the decision based on the advice of Konno and others.

The reason is that "Nogizaka46 needs a flagship icon."

Nanami Hashimoto – Yasushi Akimoto said, "No need to discuss."

She sings off-key, but her charisma is unique. Yasushi Akimoto said, "Flaws can be trained, but a unique charisma cannot be replicated."

Nanase Nishino – In her audition video, she forgot the lyrics halfway through her song. After forgetting the lyrics, she paused for a few seconds, stood there blankly with an indifferent expression, then bowed and said, "I'm sorry."

Although her vocal performance was at the bottom, her drawing talent was a pleasant surprise.

Yasushi Akimoto pointed to the face in the paused video and said, "Her aloofness and vulnerability are things that others can't imitate. Nogizaka needs people like her who are imperfect but have unique qualities."

Erika Ikuta received the highest score in vocal performance. Hiroaki Suzuki commented that she was "the top vocalist among all members, a natural-born singer with excellent singing skills, and her a cappella performance far surpassed that of all others in her cohort."

Beethoven also received a perfect score in the talent segment. Akimoto Yasushi said, "This child is the only choice for the vocal core of the group, and his musical literacy can make up for the group's shortcomings in classical music."

The list is finalized; there are thirty-six people.

The birds and flowers knew nothing of this. All they knew was that they had traveled nearly 36,000 miles to reach the end.

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On September 22, the official list of the first batch of trainees was officially announced.

The bird learned this on its way home from school.

Her phone vibrated, and she took it out to look at it—it was an email from the Nogizaka46 Operations Committee.

The title reads "Notification of Passing the First Term".

She stood by the roadside, staring at her phone screen for a long time. Pedestrians walked past her, the sound of bicycle bells drifted from afar, and the setting sun cast a long shadow over her.

The first thing she saw was the word "qualified," and then she silently repeated her name in her mind to make sure she hadn't misread it.

The list also included Erika Ikuta, Mai Shiraishi, Nanami Hashimoto, Nanase Nishino, and many other names she didn't recognize.

She sent her mother a message: "I got elected."

Mom replied, "Okay. We'll celebrate together when I get home tonight."

Feiniao stared at the line of text for a few seconds, and just as he was about to put his phone away, it vibrated again.

She picked it up and saw it was a message from Hua Hua, not text, but a photo.

The photo shows two cartons of strawberry milk placed side by side on a table, with a note behind them that reads, "Cheers!"

Asuka replied with a message: "Cheers."

send.