morioh cho talent show

DISCLAIMER: Some of this chapter was inspired by 'The Ghost and Molly Mcgee' Talent show episode.

Zari accidentally enters herself in the Morioh cho talent show, but she discovers that technology isn't her only skill.


The story begins with Josuke and Okuyasu eating their lunch outside of Cafe Deux Magots.

Okuyasu points to the talent show flier, " look Josuke, there's an upcoming Morioh talent show. you're gonna sign up for it?"

Josuke waves his hand, "Nah, i'm good. not really my thing anymore. used to when I was kid but now it's like, eh."

"yeah, I hear you on that one. Even if I did sign up, I don't know what my talent would be. I'll get stage fright, have a meltdown backstage, and forget the lyrics to my own song and then there's always someone whose confidence is so huge, it crushes everybody else!" Okuyasu explains

(cuts to a girl, who is practicing with a yo-yo for the talent show.)

Tobias approaches her, "Aww, how cute...you called that a talent!" the girl stops and cries

"see." Okuyasu said

Zari sits her bento box down on the table, "ooh, the Morioh-cho talent show signup sheet is up, i'm gonna enter."

"I didn't know you had a talent, Zari? I always thought technology was your thing." Josuke said

Zari takes out her pen, "yeah, it is, cousin Jojo. I'm always helping out backstage with the tech crew."

(while she's talking to Josuke, Zari doesn't realize she wrote her name in the "Talent" list instead of "Tech" list in the sheet.)

"I mean, sure, I admire the bravery of those people who face the blinding spotlight, but with all my anxieties that's definitely not-AAHH!"

[pen drops; dramatic thud]

"what? what's wrong?!" Josuke alarmed

"I-I signed up on the wrong list!" IN PEN!"

"bummer." Okuyasu adds in

"It's okay, I-I'll just cross it out..Huh?!" Zari notices that the sheet isn't on the wall anymore and one of the organizers takes it.

"NO! I gotta get that sign-up sheet back!" Zari exclaimed

Okuyasu intervens, "whoa whoa, chill Zari! Don't you see? this was no accident!"

Zari raised an eyebrow, "It wasn't?"

"No. This is a perfect opportunity for you to perform. Deep down, you know you have a talent and you want to express it, right?" Okuyasu said

"yeah. Well, I guess I can sing?" Zari said

Okuyasu rejoiced, "WHAT?! you sing?! let's hear it!"

at the Higashikata residence

(after school, Josuke and friends go back home to hear Zari's singing voice.)

[sappy ballad plays] (singing poorly)

while Zari sings, different animals react to her terribly out of tune voice. Some try to hide while others cover their ears. a man outside, who's walking his dog nearby the house, hears Zari singing.

[howling] the man covered his ears, "Great northern beans! that's some horrible singing!"

Zari abruptly stops, "Jojo, how come you guys are looking at me like that?"

Josuke and others were both shocked and horrified by Zari's singing.

Zari downcasts and hides in her blanket, "I figured. you guys hate it!"

Josuke stammers, "No, no. That's not it! um…to be honest…we thought it was, um..."

"different." Tomoko finished the sentence

(agreeable murmuring)

Okuyasu crossed his arms, "do you guys have clogged ears or something? it clearly sounds ter—OW!"

Kiwi stomps on Okuyasu's foot. "What Okuyasu means is Zari, just like your Aunt said that you have a different sound."

"yes yes, very unique." Kyoko adds in

Zari lifts the blanket up, "really? should I start singing again?"

Tomoko intervenes, "um, you know what, it's getting late anyway. why don't we just call it a night."

she whispers to Josuke, "I'm gonna escort them to the door by protecting their ears and mines. Just stay with Zari."

Tomoko and the others left the living room leaving Josuke and Zari alone.

"Jojo, be honest. Is my singing really bad?" Zari asked

Josuke stammers, "well…um…uh…it was um…awesome!"

"really? you liked it?" Zari rejoiced

"Oh yeah. I've never heard anything like it!" Josuke nervously answered

"Aw, thank you cousin Jojo knowing you think I can do it makes me think I can do anything! you're the best cousin ever!" Zari smiles and hugs him

Josuke downcasts, "yeah...yeah, that's me."

The next day at Budogaoka High school

In the cafeteria, after lying to Zari about her singing, Josuke tells Koichi and Okuyasu about it and tries to find ways of telling her the truth without hurting her feelings.

"Ugh! This is all my fault. I straight up lied to Zari about her singing. she's going to humiliate herself in front of the entire town! I need to figure out how to stop this."

Okuyasu eats on his bowl of noodles, "why don't you tell her that her singing is horrible."

"I can't tell her that. I don't want to hurt her feelings. I don't know how she'll be able to take it." Josuke said

"Come on, Josuke. Zari's gonna have to hear the truth sooner or later. it's not good to keep it bottled up like that."

Koichi was surprised by Okuyasu's statement. "Wow, I can't believe I'm saying this but Okuyasu's right, Josuke. you have to tell Zari the truth about her singing."

Josuke rubs his chin, "yeah. Like the old saying goes, 'A lie is much juicier than the truth.' I have to be brutally honest with her but, much more of a tender honesty."

at the Higashikata's residence

Later that day, Zari is in her room doing vocal warm-ups for her singing voice.

[knocking] "come in!" Josuke opens the door and closes it then sits down on Zari's bed. "Hey Zari."

"Jojo! you're just in time to hear my vocal warm-ups! how does this sound?"

[wailing]

Josuke plugs one of his ears and puts his hand on her shoulder, "Okay okay, It's alright. hey Zari…"

Zari continues her vocal warm-ups. During this time, Josuke is in the middle of thinking of a way to tell her the truth.

Josuke in thought, "Dammit! How can I tell her without hurting her feelings? guess I've got to tell her in the nicest way possible!"

"Zari, I think I need to tell you something."

"what is it, Jojo?" Zari asked

"well,…uh…I…um…" "come on, Josuke. just tell her already! What the hell are you waiting for?!"

"…you can't perform at the talent show tomorrow night!"

Zari's smile fades into a nervous look, "why not?! Did I lose a rubber band in my braces?!" she stretches one side of her mouth flashing her colorful braces.

"No, you can't perform tomorrow night, because... (to himself) Brutal honesty time (back to Zari) you're a terrible singer!"

Zari frowns, "what? But you said..."

Josuke downcast, "I know. I lied. I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt your feelings. I should've told you the truth yesterday but you were so happy and I didn't want to ruin it for you.

Zari sits down next to him, "wow. never really thought of it that way."

"I know." Josuke said

"and you lied to me about sounding good when I really sound bad just to keep me happy, Jojo. And to be honest, I've never…been any happier than that!" Zari smiles

"I know you haven't—wait what?" Josuke puzzled

"Jojo, you're the first person to ever tell me something that I'm terrible at. most people wouldn't tell me about it at all. you really do care about me and I appreciate it so much! For now, I am done being scared of the public. I have to go to that talent show tomorrow night and face my fear!" Zari stands up striking a heroic pose.

"What are you gonna do for your performance?" Josuke asked

Zari suddenly changes her robe to a bright magenta leotard, resembling ballet,"I'm gonna wing it!"

"oh, no..."Josuke palm slapped his face

At the Budogaoka community center, now the night of the talent show where people are outside conducting interviews and people inside are talking and getting set-up

[Female Reporter Talking in the background] "We are now at the Morioh Cho Talent Show featuring the finest talent in the town..."

Zari peeks out from behind the curtain, "Wow! sure is a full house! [gasps] There's Aunt Tomoko and Cousin Jojo! They are gonna be so proud!"

"I gotta get ready!"

Ms. Kuki gets everyone's attention, "Alright, people, listen up. Gather around everyone."

[performers gather around]

"There's a full house of audience filled with our family and friends waiting for this moment for us to shine. give it all you got and try not to be too nervous nor shooken up. Now, let's give them the razzle dazzle that they've been waiting for!"

(performers cheered)

In the audience, Josuke and his friends are sitting at the front row table nearby the stage. The guys are wearing their tuxedos while the girls are in their evening gowns.

"So what happened after you told Zari the truth about her singing last night, Josuke?" Kiwi asked

"she pretty much was inspired by it and just said that she's gonna wing it." Josuke replied

"I wonder what she's going to do for her performance instead." Kyoko added in

Josuke shrugs, "I have no idea but whatever it is, I'm pretty sure she has it all figured out."

Okuyasu eats a platter of fish sticks with side tartar sauce, "she better because this is all filmed and gonna be on national TV." [crunch] "mmh, it would be better with salt." he shakes salt on the fish sticks and eats it.

Koichi raised an eyebrow, "how do you know that?"

"um, the reporters and paparazzis are sitting on the other side of the room." Okuyasu points behind showing the reporters and paparazzis.

The show starts and the crowd applauds. Ms Kuki comes out wearing a black sequined dress and holding the cue cards.

"Good evening and welcome to the 1st annual Morioh Cho Talent Show. Sponsored by Budogaoka industry schools. Our first act is from a wonderful young woman performing her routine. Put your hands together for Yukako!

crowd claps as curtain rises for Yukako, dressed in cheerleader uniform

"Hooray!" Koichi cheered as his eyes welled tears of joy, "My girl is finally a star."

"Give me a M-O-R! [jumps up and down] Give me a I-O-H! [jumps up and down again] Morioh Cho! [jumps up and down] Morioh Cho! [jumps up and down] Morioh Cho! [jumps up and down]" Yukako cheers

"Thank you! thank you" the curtain closes.

Ms. Kuki then walks back out on the stage. "And now, poetry. By Rohan." The curtain opens. Rohan is dressed in all black and is sitting on a stool.

[bongos drum roll]

"the sound of the breeze, when I feel the wind in my hair…

…my feet are on the ground with light shining down. I wave my hands high up in the air."

"Rohan's actually pretty good at this." Josuke said

"He has such a way with words." Koichi said

"eh, he's alright, I guess." [crunch] Okuyasu chows down on the appetizer

The audience applauds as the curtain closes and it opens again revealing ventriloquist Hazamada wearing his tuxedo with a mini version of the Surface mannequin doll also dressed in a little tuxedo and a sign that says 'Hazi and Surface!'

"Hey Hazi, have you heard about the goldfish going bankrupt?"

"no, I haven't. what happened?"

"Now, he's a bronze fish!"

Hazamada starts cackling as everyone in the audience sat there in complete silence.

[crickets chirping]

"get it? the fish was gold then went…Bronze." [clears throat] Okay, how about some dancing? The lights then go dark and the music becomes techno as Little Surface dances weirdly making weird noises as it dances.

"what the...?!" A man shouts

Little Surface continues to make weird noises and dance weirdly as the crowd starts becoming uncomfortable by its performance.

[techno music stops] Little Surface continues dancing with the music off. Ms. Kuki walks out onto the stage.

"okay. Thank you, Hazamada for that…interesting performance. Let's give up for Hazi and Surface! everyone!"

[scattered clapping]

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for. the final act of the night. put your hands together for..."

[all streamers, confetti and red, pink and blue balloons fall everywhere]

"…Zariana Higashikata performing her ballet routine 'the Frenzy Flamingo'"

a bunch of spot lights gleam around the auditorium. pink and green lights blinks as the crowd applause and cheers. Curtain opens and the background shows an orange and pink sunrise.

Zari comes out wearing a light pink leotard with a light pink tutu with matching ballet slippers and leg warmers. Her hair sits in a high top bun with flowy white feathers on each side of her head. Jotaro films her on the camcorder camera while she dances with prop birds, accompanied by fast paced classical music.

she flies up into the air then prances around the stage. She then takes out a pair of pink lengthy dancing ribbon wands and holds the ends of it. Zari runs off the stage holding onto the ribbons. She then takes one of the wands, twirls it around, and throws it up and swings on it. she swings around a pole, making the ribbon look like a swirl on the pole.

Josuke and the others were in complete shock and amazed by Zari's performance.

"wow. she's actually really good!" Koichi said

"yeah. I'm just as surprised as you are, Koichi. Zari actually found her talent." Josuke smiles

Zari lands on an empty table. The table spins around and ends up with bows décor on it. she jumps in the air and lands between a married couple. she twirls the ribbon in the air and twists it around the man's buttoned shirt giving him a bow tie. the man smiles.

"there we go." Zari smiles

She runs off twirling the ribbon then runs across the top and bottom of the main stage, giving them bows as well. Zari twirls the ribbons and dances. The scene changes to show Zari on stage tip-toeing sideways while holding the ribbon wands. She then spins around striking a final pose. The scene pans out to show the decorated stage. The crowd starts cheering as Zari happily jumps into Josuke's arms and gives him a hug.

Outside of the community center, Josuke carries Zari in his arms as he and others walk out of the center carrying a golden trophy from the talent show. A crowd of news reporters and paparazzis were jam-packed in front of the building.

"I'm Zamiuko, Here live right outside the Budogaoka community center for the first annual Morioh cho talent show where local residents show off their hidden skills and talents to the neighborhood. However, only one contestant did manage to ace her performance tonight and take home the golden trophy for the year."

Reporter walks over to Josuke and the others and holds the microphone in front of Zari.

"I'm here with the contestant winner as we speak…What's your name, sweetie?"

"Zari."

"That's a pretty name. How does it feel to be the first winner of the annual Morioh cho talent show?"

"It feels great honestly, I would've never done this without my cousin Josuke's help. He helped me conquer my fear of stage fright. At first I thought I didn't have talent but now thanks to my cousin Jojo, I'm able to show off my talent!"

The camera zooms in on Josuke's face as he nervously smiles.

"Incredible! Sanwaikai Brawl winner, Josuke Higashikata is not only an icon but also an influencer on the youth!"

(cameras shutters)

"Josuke, I must ask this question, It's been two months since you've been the Sanwaikai Brawl king, what do you have planned out next?" said Reporter Zamiuko

"Whatever happens, happens. Things happen for a reason. I planned to protect this town along with family and friends, be an influencer to my fellow peers, and become a great impact in this town." said Josuke

"Well there you have it, folks. Josuke Higashikata is not only an event winner, he's also a hero. Reporter Zamiuko, here signing out and signing off, Goodnight."

Elsewhere, An unseen person stops the footage and pulls out to reveal it on a laptop. A sinister laugh is heard from the person using it.