Laid-Back Life in Tokyo: I Really Didn't Want to Work Hard-Chapter 864 - 509: Night Dance (Part 2)

He found the vice president of the Dance Club who had welcomed him yesterday, Murata.

Uesugi Sakura looked around and asked, "Just the two of us guys?"

"Just two." Murata nodded, "Before you, there were a few guys who came to join, but after a glance, they left."

Uesugi Sakura realized something felt off and frowned, "This Night Dance, our school has to participate with at least 150 people, right?"

"Yes."

"Even if the number of guys in our school is small... is it this bleak? A year-end festival with no male participants?"

"Ahem... Male population decline is just one aspect, the main reason is the lead dancer..."

"What do you mean?" Uesugi Sakura pressed on.

"Because our school has too few guys, not many signed up, so except for the lead male dancer, everyone else at the back has been switched to girls... To keep it uniform, the guys at the back also have to wear the same costumes as the girls, and the girls are all in short skirts... You understand what I’m saying now?"

Uesugi Sakura gave a brief summary:

"So, except for the lead male dancer, all other guys have to dance in women’s clothing?"

"Uh, yes, that’s it."

"So that’s why male sign-up is so bleak?"

"Exactly."

Uesugi Sakura understood.

He could totally empathize with the feelings of those guys.

After all, who wants to be in the middle of a bunch of girls, wearing a short skirt, showing off their hairy legs?

They’d get laughed at to death by the girls.

It would be absolutely mortifying.

Uesugi Sakura suddenly realized another problem:

"There’s only one lead male dancer, which means if it comes down to just the two of us, a decision will be made between us?"

"Yes, Uesugi-san," Murata suddenly straightened up, "It’s either you in women’s clothing or me, this is a battle for honor!"

"..."

Uesugi Sakura was speechless, are all Japanese men this dramatic?

"Who will teach me the dance?"

"Of course, I will." Murata said.

"You’re not going to cut corners while teaching me, are you?"

"Of course not, I don’t have much else, no girlfriend, but my credibility is reliable."

"... It’s not necessary to mention whether you have a girlfriend."

Murata clapped his hands together, "So, let’s begin, first you need to learn the rhythm of the Night Dance, just so you know, the rhythm of the Night Dance changes a lot."

Uesugi Sakura: "Before we start, I think I should ask, what is Night Dance?"

"You don’t know?"

"Not clear."

"You came to learn without knowing?"

"Precisely because I don’t know, that’s why I’m here to learn."

Uesugi Sakura’s words seemed to stun Murata, and after a brief pause, he explained, "Night Dance has six main elements: music, dance steps, yukata, mizutama... explaining each one is too much, in short, it’s a very energetic dance."

Apparently, you don’t know the theoretical knowledge either.

Sakura had heard about the Night Dance back home in Ehime Prefecture.

It’s a traditional dance celebrated at festivals.

However, due to the development in recent years, this dance has been infused with many other Western music styles, like jazz, disco, etc.

The style is varied, the dance is varied, there are serious ones, and there’s also the type that’s catered to energetic young girls.

"Ahem, anyways, let’s start by learning the rhythm, which is the most basic thing in dance."

"Alright." Uesugi Sakura watched as Murata walked forward and turned his back to him.

"One, two, three."

Murata raised his hands with the mizutama, and after two steps, smoothly turned to the other side, during which the mizutama in his hands emitted a crisp sound.

Uesugi Sakura suddenly found this thing quite interesting.

Murata demonstrated this small section in front of him, which was quite smooth.

From right to left, the hands moved according to a specific rhythm with two steps to the other side, surprisingly without any sense of interruption, but with continuous fluid motion.

"Hmm? Follow me to learn it." Murata put down his hands, stood up straight, and said.

"I don’t have your Mizutama."

"Ah, sorry, sorry, I forgot," Murata quickly walked to the drawer at the back of the classroom and took out a pair of Mizutama for him, "Come on, follow me first, it’s just a small section, not too difficult."

"Alright."

Holding two Mizutama with a combination of vermilion, yellow, and black, Uesugi Sakura began to follow the movements Murata taught in front, raising his arms, holding the rhythm, and placing them above his forehead.

"One, two, three."

In front, his legs smoothly alternated with two steps, and his hands elegantly shifted to the other side.

Uesugi Sakura hadn’t quite figured out what was happening.

Murata turned back and asked, "Do you want me to go through it a few more times?"

"Please do."

...

"Fusion is the charm of Night Dance! So don’t worry about any constraints; it’s quite normal for multiple styles to appear within a single piece."

Following the previous movements, Murata’s hand swayed above, from left to right and then from right to left, finally both arms leveled, continuously shaking the crisp-sounding Mizutama while he squatted down.

Uesugi Sakura watched silently with unwavering eyes, and afterwards, he seriously performed each move as Murata demonstrated, smoothly connecting them.

Murata couldn’t help but be surprised, "Uesugi-san, you’re really talented."

"Not bad, I guess." Uesugi Sakura lowered his hands.

"Haha, but we haven’t even finished learning the first small section. Don’t be overly confident; we still have a few weeks of learning ahead. We need to get the basics right first, then practice with the girls, rehearse with the Waseda members, and finally perform in the year-end celebration."

Murata smiled.

"Alright, no more chatter from me. Next is a bending and retreating move, turning your head and displaying a smile is the most critical step."

"Let’s continue."

Perhaps with Hanamaru Hanabi arranging a birthday celebration for him, Uesugi Sakura learned particularly diligently this afternoon.

Murata, as the dance club’s vice president, did not hold back, teaching everything he could.

Unfortunately, without music, they could only mutter the one-two-three rhythm to keep the dance beat.

By evening, Uesugi Sakura felt he had sweat quite a bit.

Continuous cha-cha steps, hand waving, hand shaking.

It seemed easy, but once you start moving, it consumes a lot of energy quickly.

The clear sky’s sunset fell, the winter day, after all, is much shorter than summer.

"Alright, let’s call it a day; we completed a small section of basic learning." Murata said with a smile, his forehead covered in sweat, "The entire dance lasts more than ten minutes; we’ll have to dance through a street by then, much more tiring."

"Is that it?" Uesugi Sakura put down the hands he had raised.

"If you want to stay here longer, I have no problem; I can give you the key, you can practice slowly on your own."

"Then give it to me."

"Hmm? I thought you were just joking."

Uesugi Sakura said, "Since I have nothing to do at home, I’d rather practice here more."

Murata showed a "you’re amazing" expression on his face, then took out a set of keys from his pocket and tossed them to him, "Here, take it, keep at it, I’m off to eat some barbecue."

"By yourself?"

"Otherwise?" Murata chuckled as he opened his hands, "I already told you I don’t have a girlfriend. Alright, that’s enough, see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

Murata left the dance studio, while Uesugi Sakura looked towards the other side of the classroom where the girls were.

Hanamaru Hanabi and Ayaka Rie, along with Kyujuu Rika and several other girls, were still practicing the movements, even if their hair was soaked with sweat, they continued.

...They sure are dedicated.

Since those girls are working so hard, what reason do I have to slack off?

Uesugi Sakura supported his knees, stood up again, and began practicing the first move he learned this afternoon in front of the mirror.