Dropout Idol Fruit Tart (おちこぼれフルーツタルト)

I gotta go now! See ya, mom!

Goodbye, sweetheart! I believe in you!

Thank you so much, I'll give it my best shot!

My name is Ino Sakura and I'm 15.

This spring I'm going to school in Tokyo so I can

pursue my dream of becoming an Idol!

Tokyo, the capital of Japan.

Entertainment, music, fashion.

All kinds of trends are set here!

It's the city of dreams.

And for the first time ever, I'm here!

Hey!

Here... I am!

Uh. Hello, Miss Manager!

Morning!

Follow me, it's this way. Let's get going!

Mm!

Kay! Coming!

I'm here in Tokyo, my dream come true.

Uh, wha...?

Higashi-Koganei,

Higashi-Koganei...

In this nook of the entertainment world,

stands the fourth dormitory of Rat Productions,

a mid-level agency.

The dorm, known as Mouse House,

is where the girls test their skills against one another,

and grow in order to survive the cruel

battlefield that is the entertainment industry,

So Mouse House is where our heroines

live out their lives together.

It'd be nice if any of that were true.

I don't disagree.

This tart is so yummy!

Ugh.

Man, there are way too many child actors these days.

The competition's already steep to begin with!

Yeah, I hear ya.

But, Roko, you're considered pseudo-lolita now.

What?

Oh, please calm down you two.

You shouldn't be fighting over something so small.

Yeah, it's easy for you to say that!

Besides, it's not just me! Neither of you are doing well

in the popularity department, either!

Ah!

Hayu, you're a musician who can't cooperate!

Nina, you're a model but you're a total introvert!

And then there's me.

No matter what I try, I only get cast in childish roles.

That's cause you still look like one.

There, there, now.

Remember we're meeting someone new today,

and we wanna make a good first impression.

Mm-hm.

Then we gotta go to the store and stock up

for the welcome party!

We'll set a good example as their seniors.

Are you being serious?

I'm nervous. What if when the new girl shows up,

she's taller than me?

What? Well... That would be...

By the way, could you tell me how tall you are?

Oh. I'm 155cm tall.

Oh, okay.

You're aspiring to become an idol, aren't you Ino?

What made you decide that that was what you wanted to do?

I guess it's all because I've loved idols

and celebrities ever since I was a little girl!

Hmm.

My ultimate dream is to stand on the same stage

as they do someday.

Yup! You'll do just fine! The maniacs will love you!

You're the kind of girl we're missing!

Wait, just what "kind of girl," do you think I am?

Tokyo's not nearly as jam-packed with buildings

as I expected it to be.

What? Well of course not!

Whenever I saw it on TV,

the city always looked so intimidating!

So, this is your first time in the big city I take it?

Well, yeah!

I grew up living in the countryside of Okayama,

so I was surrounded by farms and paddy fields.

There were even unattended roadside shops for veggies.

I am in Tokyo, aren't I?

Yup, you are.

We're here.

This is the fourth dormitory of Rat Productions, Mouse House.

Cool!

It's surprisingly average!

But I know this is the place where my experienced

and brilliant seniors live and work diligently together!

-- --

Hm?

So anyway, it's time for you to meet your new seniors!

These three are the residents of the Mouse House!

Nice to meet you!

Hello, my name is Ino Sakura

and I'm an aspiring idol from Okayama!

I know I have a lot to learn, so please bear with me!

I'm Hayu Nukui, and I'm a musician!

Nobody knows who I am yet, but don't worry they will!

Uh.. My name's Nina Maehara.

And, um, I suppose you could say I'm working as a model.

I'm Roko Sekino, an ex-child actor.

Alright, now pay attention!

We are the Mouse Task Force!

Mouse Rangers!

So, what did you think of our dormitory song?

We all worked super hard on it together!

It... was amazing. I'm speechless.

But more importantly...!

More importantly?

You aren't Broko, by chance? Are you?

I've always been such a huge fan of yours!

I love that song from the commercial.

Huh? What's wrong?

Brocco... Brocco... Brocco...

Broko! What's the matter?

P-Please, you have to stop now!

Roko is still trying to heal from the trauma

of that experience!

I-I had no idea.

But the whole thing caught me by surprise!

I never thought I'd run into Roko at Rat Productions.

You rocked the boat and got canned at the last agency

you were part of, didn't you?

What?! No I did not!

It was my choice to leave that lousy agency behind!

They kept milking the "Broko" gimmick for years,

even after the hype already passed.

So, of course, I made the decision to run away

from the agency and let them fire me.

Pretty cool, huh?

In what way?

And after that was when my childhood friend, Nina, here

was kind enough to introduce me to Rat Productions.

But even so, it seems like changing agencies didn't do much

because I'm not getting work, anyway.

So I guess I was completely forgotten after all.

No! There's no way that's true, Roko!

Being able to work with someone I admire as much as you

is a dream come true for me!

Ino...

Even though I might be a little bit older than you are,

I hope you'll let me learn everything I can from you!

What's up with the camera, Hoho?

Are you trying to spy on them or something?

Oh, I'm just getting some behind the scenes footage

for the new show, so pretend I'm not even here!

We're getting a new show?

Yup, you bet you are!

And it's success will determine whether or not

they'll demolish Mouse House, so...

Huh?

What?! Demolish Mouse House?!

That's right. Housing a washed up child actor,

an unpopular model,

and an unknown musician,

seems to have become more of a burden to the agency

than the higher ups are willing to bear.

Then, what's the point of taking on an aspiring idol?

Well that's because

I've the ultimate recovery plan to save Mouse House right here!

Huh?

Dropout idol?

What's the idol show about?

This is what we're going to do to keep Mouse House standing.

You girls are gonna become an Idol group,

and then by producing a weekly 5-minute variety show

for an entire year, we'll rake in enough cash

to save this place from destruction!

Huh?

And the name of your Idol Group will be Fruit Tart!

You're calling us Fruit Tart?

"We're off to Higako!"

This is my first morning in Tokyo.

I'm in an unfamiliar room, it smells new and different.

That's right!

Starting today, I'm going to be an idol,

right along side my amazing seniors!

Good morning, how is everybody?

Ugh. I don't wanna do this idol thing at all.

I mean, I'm really an actor, you know?

Yeah, and I'm not confident in my singing or dancing.

What? Really?

To be honest, I'm kind of looking forward to it, myself.

In any case, I still find it hard to believe

the agency's actually strapped for cash.

I mean we get three meals a day, don't we?

Well, what do you think, Inocchi?

Uh... what are you having for breakfast, Hayu?