Kobayashi Tetsu's expression was dark as he stared at Chiyama Hayato, unwilling to speak.
Chiyama Hayato bowed again.
"Please rest assured. As an invited special player, we will provide you with an appearance fee."
Kobayashi Tetsu instinctively wanted to decline. He lowered the brim of his cap and was about to wave his hand when a sudden thought flashed across his mind like lightning.
Everyone knew—
Big companies never did meaningless things.
If SEGA supported the block-puzzle tournament to build reputation while promoting their upgraded SG-1200, then why was Nintendo hosting this game competition?
It absolutely wasn't merely to quarrel with SEGA out of pride.
Kobayashi Tetsu straightened his hat, suddenly serious.
"If you want me to appear, it's not impossible. But my appearance fee is very high."
"That's not a problem," Chiyama Hayato said with a smile.
"Would ten thousand yen be acceptable? If the amount isn't suitable, we can also sponsor an FC console."
The FC console was priced at 14,800 yen upon release.
Kobayashi Tetsu lowered his head and glanced at Kobayakawa beside him.
"What about her? Has she been invited?"
"Ah… this must be Miss Kobayakawa, the third-place winner of the block-puzzle tournament, correct? Apologies, but we currently have no plans to invite you."
He said it flawlessly. Kobayakawa puffed her cheeks and refused to speak.
Third place really had no human rights!
Kobayashi Tetsu grinned mischievously.
"You've gone through so much effort already. I'm not unreasonable. Forget the money—if you have a Famicom, just give me one."
Only then did Chiyama Hayato look relieved. He pointed toward the shop behind him.
"In that case, Blue-Eyes White Dragon-kun, why not come into our store right now? I guarantee that from today until the competition begins, you may play the arcade version as much as you like."
Kobayashi Tetsu tugged down his baseball cap and followed Chiyama Hayato toward the Nintendo specialty shop.
Behind them, Kobayakawa clenched her fists, her face flushing red as she muttered softly:
"Traitor! A single ten thousand yen and you're bought off!
And why doesn't she get ten thousand yen!?"
…
…
In the Nintendo specialty shop, Kobayakawa sat on a high stool in front of an arcade cabinet, staring at the screen.
The dim, slightly discolored screen showed two characters—one green, one red—and monsters constantly emerging from pipes.
Kobayashi Tetsu recognized the game instantly.
Mario Brothers!
In some places, it had gone by other names: the Pipe Worker Mario, Pipe Mario, or Water Pipe Mary.
This was the first game ever under the Mario Brothers name. The more widely known mushroom-eating Mario was actually the second game.
In the first Mario Brothers, Mario and Luigi were novice plumbers fighting monsters in the sewers. The combat style was similar to the sequel—hit from below, then stomp.
Kobayashi Tetsu leaned on the cabinet, fiddling with the controls.
He had played this game before—and even held a speedrun ranking back home. Though he hadn't been the record holder at the time, he was definitely on the leaderboard.
He was extremely familiar with it.
After pretending to take his time getting used to it, he began rapidly operating the controls.
Chiyama Hayato stood nearby with a drink in hand, his eyes gradually lighting up.
There was fire in his eyes—there was light in his eyes!
To him, Kobayashi Tetsu was like the radiance of the first sunrise, the glow of dusk on a clear lake.
"A-Amazing! To reach this level on your first attempt—I knew I chose the right person!"
Chiyama secretly pinched his palm in excitement.
At the block tournament, he had already noticed that Kobayashi Tetsu played differently from everyone else—as if he was always one step ahead in game technique.
This was exactly the kind of performance effect they needed!
A performance match was called a performance match for a reason. Without spectacle, how could it attract players?
Chiyama tried probing a little.
"Blue-Eyes White Dragon-kun, is this really your first time playing Mario Brothers? Your skill is too incredible!"
Kobayashi Tetsu said, "First, I'm not called Blue-Eyes White Dragon."
Chiyama nodded.
"Second, yes. It's my first time playing a Nintendo arcade game."
Chiyama finally smiled in satisfaction.
He had been overthinking it anyway.
Mario Brothers' arcade version was released on July 12, 1983, three days before the Famicom.
It was only August now—of course this was Kobayashi's first time playing it.
"To be able to reach this level is truly remarkable. Blue-Eyes White Dragon-kun, this is an FC console manufactured yesterday. Please accept it. And on September 1st, please participate in the performance tournament sponsored by Nintendo and hosted by my shop!"
Kobayashi Tetsu accepted the box and noticed an additional smaller package inside.
Chiyama explained, right on cue:
"Oh, that's a Donkey Kong game cartridge. Since you now have the console, of course you need a game. How could I possibly let you spend your own money?"
Kobayashi clicked his tongue and gave Chiyama a thumbs up.
You're damn impressive!
"Chiyama-kun, you really understand people. With my skill, do you still need to worry? On the day of the event, I'll give you a flawless performance!"
Though Chiyama wasn't used to such overfriendly behavior, with Kobayashi's guarantee, he felt reassured.
A promise was a promise.
Double blessings at once!
With an FC in hand, who needed that junk SG? He absolutely believed this Famicom could reel Kobayashi into Nintendo's camp!
Kobayashi tried the arcade game a bit longer, cleared every stage, then stood up calmly—like a peerless swordsman untouched by dust.
"This game is decent. Not too difficult. I'll head out now—on September 1st, I'll definitely show up."
He and Chiyama shook hands firmly before he turned away.
Chiyama, meanwhile, couldn't help sighing in admiration.
What a good kid!
His eyes were never wrong—teenagers with dyed hair, at the peak of their chuunibyou phase, were the easiest to control! Throw a game console at them and they'd practically kneel and shout "godfather!"
…
Godfather Kobayashi Tetsu carried the free Famicom and game cartridge back to the Shimayori Game Shop across the street.
Kobayakawa looked up at him, her slender shoulders trembling.
"T… Traitor!"
"What traitor? They're paying me to go. They even wanted to give me ten thousand yen, but I refused. He practically knelt and begged me to accept it, so I had no choice but to take the console."
Kobayashi laughed. "What? Don't tell me you're unhappy because they didn't invite you?"
As he leaned close, Kobayakawa's face inexplicably reddened. She quickly lifted her schoolbag to block him.
"You're too close… and it's not that!"
She couldn't say exactly why—just a vague sense of disappointment. But thinking it over, there was no real rule preventing a gamer from playing whatever games they wanted.
Eventually, she puffed her cheeks and calmed down.
"So… are Nintendo games fun?"
Kobayashi Tetsu's expression instantly grew solemn.
He removed his baseball cap and fanned himself, nodding heavily.
"Fun. No—too fun."
Kobayakawa didn't understand.
If it was so fun, why did he look like that?
She had thought he didn't enjoy himself at the Nintendo shop.
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