[ENG] Of course, camera crew’s gotta get naked too! (part 1)

*Please take a look at this post regarding my English translations: https://teopi.fanbox.cc/posts/8122766 . Hopefully it'll make the story more enjoyable. ~ “An island of the gods blocked off from the public, open only for special religious rituals… Wow, they’re really trying to make this place sound like the real deal, huh?!” It was the voice of Mori, the fit and confident TV news reporter, that boomed inside a vehicle packed with filming equipment and a small filming crew. We had just begun our trip to the so-called “Island of the gods.” “So as soon as we get there, we’re gonna film that ‘purification’ ritual right? I’m supposed to get butt-naked and go skinny-dipping, and pray to the gods or whatever? Good thing I worked out this morning, my muscles are pumped to the max – hey Kano, wanna have a feel?” Sitting in the seat beside Mori was Kano, the young female filming assistant, now forced to touch Mori’s flexed biceps and pretend to look impressed. “Wow, amazing!” Mori seemed to be pleased with Kano’s empty compliment and continued to blabber away with his usual arrogant air. I felt bad for Kano, but also glad that a young girl was there to keep the snobbish Mori entertained during the trip. This mystic island had just been listed as an official world heritage site. Usually, a single priest would reside on the island, any visitors forbidden. To the surprise of our TV station, our request to film a news segment on the island had been swiftly approved, and Mori was chosen to perform the sacred purification ritual on film. “So we get to the island, talk to the priest, and get right to the ritual – right, Pon-san?” I turned to Pon-san, sitting beside me in the driver’s seat. Nearing his fifties, the experienced cameraman’s beer belly didn’t make him look any younger. “They call it the ‘misogi.’ It’s a pretty common practice in Japanese Shinto tradition.” “They weren’t kidding about having to do it nude, huh?” “That’s the ancient rule. We gotta listen, or else they wouldn’t let us film.” A head poked out from behind us, belonging to our boss and director, Mr. Yamazaki. “Of course we’re doing it naked! That’s why we got Mori to be our model – you know how male nudity gets us big numbers nowadays. You guys make sure to get plenty of sexy shots of our hot model during the show, the rest is just filler content.” “Will do, sir.” Like Mr. Yamazaki mentioned, viewer ratings jumped up every time Mori showed off his ripped body in his short news segment. As a mic technician working behind the scenes (not to mention my multiple body insecurities), I couldn’t understand how Mori always seemed to enjoy stripping in front of the camera. Of course, his manhood would be censored prior to airing, but still… In any case, I was glad that I wasn’t the one stripping down. Naked or not, I already knew that I didn’t look attractive – I really didn’t need the rest of the world to confirm it. ~ Having arrived on the island on schedule, we were met with the shrine’s lone priest who guided us to a blocked off part of the island. The place was a small strip of the island’s coastline, an area of shallow water surrounded by massive boulders. At the corner of the placid body of water was a large red torii gate, much like the ones seen at typical shrines. As I set up my boom mic, I caught Kano carrying supplies out of the van. “Hey Kano, good job earlier.” “Huh?” “You know, babysitting Mr. Muscle man.” “Oh, that… I mean, it’s part of my job…right?” We smiled at each other sarcastically and shared a laugh. Unbeknownst to Kano, I had been having a crush on her for a while, but I couldn’t build up the courage to ask her out. “Hey! Can we get the mic guy here for a second?” Mr. Yamazaki called out to me from a distance. Pon-san had been talking to him for a while – perhaps this was a briefing on how to film the “misogi.” “So I was thinking, maybe Mr. cameraman and Mr. mic guy should follow Mori into the water during filming. The water’s pretty shallow, so you guys should be okay bringing your equipment, right?” “Uh, I thought we were just filming from the edge of the water, Mr. Yamazaki.” I couldn’t help but speak out against the sudden change in plan. “I know I know! But we won’t be able to catch Mori’s voice from so far, and the angles would be so limited. Plus, how can we get those sexy shots without getting right up and close?” “I, I see what you’re saying, but… I didn’t bring any swimwear, sir. I mean, I guess I could go in with my underwear, as long as we can get it dried after…” “What are you talking about kiddo, I thought we went over this already – this is a sacred ritual, to be performed BARE NAKED! No swimming trunks, no undies, no nothing!” Mr. Yamazaki’s voice seemed to echo across the shallow water in front of us, all the while the other crew members quietly continued to prepare for filming. “W-wait, what?! N-no! We’re the ones filming, why would we need to get naked?!” “Of course you do! We were allowed to film here under the condition that we follow this one rule!” “B-but, we won’t even be in the shot… Isn’t it enough for Mori to go in naked?” “No, no! It doesn’t matter whether you’re in the shot or not, it’s the fact that you guys are setting foot in the water!” “…B-besides……” I lowered my voice so that only Mr. Yamazaki and Pon-san could hear me. “……if it was an all-male crew, fine – but we have a girl working on set today…” “Geez, that’s what you’re concerned about? Alright then… Hey, Kano!” Kano stood up and looked at us from afar. “Yes, director!” “Just making sure, these guys have to film butt naked during the ritual, but you’d be fine with that right?” “Umm…y-yes, of course! Don’t mind me at all!” “See guys, crew’s only girl is okay with two more free willies on set. So, are we good to go?” God, this director! Not like Kano had any choice but to agree, and that was only half the problem. What about whether I was okay with going full commando in front of all my colleagues? “Pon-san, what do you think?” I turned to Pon-san as a last resort, but my hope was instantly shattered. “Eh, don’t you think this is part of our job as the camera crew? I mean, all the way back when I was a junior, we had it much worse you know.” “But that’s……” “Plus, the model’s ready to give it his all for the shoot. What are we doing if we don’t do the same? Hm?” With Pon-san’s words, I realized that there really was no way out of this. Besides, I should’ve known that I was never in a position to argue with a veteran director like Mr. Yamazaki. “Hey, don’t take it too seriously buddy. Let’s both get ‘purified’ and take home some of that good fortune, right?” Pon-san’s unbothered tone made me feel just a little better. “Okay, Pon-san…if you say so…” “Yeah, just what he said! Right on!” This director never ceased to irritate me, but he was still my boss and a big part of my job was to listen to him. As Mr. Yamazaki continued his briefing, I couldn’t stop thinking about how this was going to be the most uncomfortable filming experience of my career by far. ~ Being a small-scale filming, preparation for the shoot didn’t take long. “Mr. Mori, we’re set to start filming in about ten minutes!” “Alright Kano, just gonna get my body pumped up and ready!” Having already stripped down and changed into a bathrobe, the nonchalant Mori stood up from his garden chair and started stretching. Right nearby, I was busy performing final checks on my audio equipment. Knowing it was soon my turn to disrobe, a quiet feeling of dread was steadily building up in my throat. “Hey, can I be honest with you, buddy?” Pon-san’s lowered voice pulled me out of my mind. “What’s up?” “I lied when I said that I had it much worse before. This is no doubt the weirdest thing that a director’s told me to do.” “…Pon-san! Why would you lie?!” “Hehehe, you seemed super against the idea of filming in the nude, this was the only way to convince you otherwise.” “Well, of course I was against it! It’s totally unnecessary!” “But hey, you know that Yamazaki isn’t one to change his mind once it’s set. Besides, he’s one of the best in the industry – if you wanna be in this business in the long term, you’re better off being on his good side.” “I… I know…” I felt like I had been methodically cornered to give in. “Alright buddy, about time we got ready too.” “…Y-yeah……” Just like that, the dreaded moment had come. I sneaked a glance at Kano, working at a bit of a distance, and turned away from her. As I took off my shoes and socks, I braced myself for the inevitable – with a rush of adrenaline, I took off my t-shirt and threw it on the ground. Without a moment of thought, I unbuttoned and unzipped my jeans, and quickly pulled them down along with my boxers. I threw my pants on the ground and stood up straight, butt naked. My short uncut knob and wrinkled nuts hung out in the open, exposed for all to see. 〆 Part 2: https://teopi.fanbox.cc/posts/8122986