Full-time comic artist

Seeing that Shohoku's attack had failed, Rukawa Kaede quickly passed the ball to the back, which happened to be the position where Mitsui Hisashi was.

Given Mitsui's skill level, he has a very good chance of making the three-pointer!

However, Jin Zongyilang of the Hainan basketball team intercepted the ball in time, and they began their counterattack!

The momentum has shifted, and the Hainan basketball team has possession of the ball! Xiangbei quickly retreats to defend!

Their basket was empty, and Kiyota Nobunaga was the closest person. Jin Soichiro suddenly threw the ball out!

Kiyota Nobunaga sprinted towards the Shohoku basket, chasing after the basketball.

This scene made Sakuragi Hanamichi's eyes widen in horror.

"Damn it! Don't run away, you wild monkey!"

As he spoke, he chased after them.

Amidst the astonished gazes of countless people, Sakuragi Hanamichi, who was far from the basketball, gradually closed the distance by virtue of his height and physical advantages.

When the situation became extremely dangerous under the basket, Sakuragi Hanamichi leaped high and actually caught the basketball in his arms!

"what!"

"That's outrageous!"

That speed and jumping ability are absolutely terrifying.

Coach Gao of the Hainan basketball team stood up in shock.

Sakuragi Hana made a big splash, although he then committed a traveling violation.

The reigning champions Hainan, who had won sixteen consecutive years, faced off against the dark horse Shohoku. The audience expected it to be a one-sided match, but it turned out to be a fierce battle with many twists and turns.

Neither side was willing to give in, and the competition was extremely fierce.

The stadium, like the eye of a typhoon, drew all the attention of the spectators.

The game had only just begun, but the atmosphere in the stadium was already electric!

Such a wonderful match is a rare treat!

Readers were captivated by the competition; the fast-paced, non-stop content kept them hooked.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Takehiko Orimo exclaimed, his eyes wide.

Unlike those readers, he was impressed by Higashino Hibiki's drawing skills.

I didn't think about it carefully at all; I just watched it as it happened. The scenes from earlier were still in my mind, as if I had really watched a basketball game!

That's too difficult to do.

It's like a battle scene; some comic artists can only draw a stream of consciousness, and the audience can't figure out how the fight actually happened. Then suddenly, the result appears.

Some works depict all the important scenes, with smooth transitions between each step, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the action, their breath quickening as they imagine the thrilling battles.

Only a very few comic artists can bring readers a cinematic experience through comics.

"Tori Akino-sensei is truly amazing!" Takehiko Orimo exclaimed in admiration.

Hibiki Higashino's ability to achieve this is related to his realistic art style and his experience as an assistant at Akira Toriyama's studio.

Akira Toriyama was a true master in this regard, a rare and exceptional individual.

and so……

"Stop bothering me!" Akira Toriyama said painfully, "I've said everything I needed to say, I haven't held back!"

"Thank you for your hard work, Toriyama-sensei," Hibiki Higashino said, bowing and scraping. "There's just one thing I don't understand: how do you draw the muscle lines in the legs to make them look more realistic? After several intense rounds of combat, how should you use white space in the manga? And how thick should the auxiliary lines for the body shaking during heavy breathing be?"

"Hello! Toriyama-sensei! Hello!"

Akira Toriyama hung up the phone quickly, utterly speechless.

"It seems that Tori Akino is under a lot of pressure in the new storyline."

I've never bothered him like this before.

"Is it because we've reached a critical juncture? Or is it because of my new work?" Akira Toriyama wondered.

He picked up Jump and slowly began to read Slam Dunk carefully.

Every line was meticulously examined, and the task was not completed until five minutes later.

"Isn't this great?"

Akira Toriyama smiled.

……

The phone rang, and Higashino smacked his lips before hanging up.

"That Toriyama-sensei, really." He shook his head and sat back down at his desk.

The updates to "Slam Dunk" took up a lot of his energy.

It's incredibly difficult to draw a truly exhilarating and exciting match; you have to consider every single element.

Background, characters, rhythm, negative space...

Every part has its use.

He was racking his brains trying to figure out which frame was the key part and how many shots should be used to depict it.

Remembering the plot isn't just about comics; the artwork is also a very important part.

Hibiki Higashino demanded perfection from himself during the matches between Shohoku and Kainan, and suffered greatly as a result.

Seeking advice from Akira Toriyama was partly a way to vent emotions, and partly it was to get his attention.

"This is so hard for me."

……

Inside the studio.

Despite failing to pass the serialization meeting, Oda continues to serve as Hibiki Higashino's assistant.

Now he stared at Higashino Hibiki's storyboard in disbelief. Was this even a storyboard?

He felt ashamed.

Whether it's spatial perspective or the characters' expressions, everything is drawn exquisitely.

It gave him the feeling that even just storyboards could be very interesting.

That's absolutely outrageous.

"No wonder I can't serialize manga..." Oda sighed, "Is this industry really that competitive?"

As Hibiki Higashino walked into the studio, Oda raised his hand and said, "Sensei, why don't we just submit the storyboard? I don't think we need to draw the original manuscript!"

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Akemi Akimiya couldn’t help but say, “How could you use a storyboard as the original manuscript? That’s so unambitious.”

“Akimiya-sensei is right.” Yoshii Yamahisa nodded.

Oda sighed, "I still have to work."

Hibiki Higashino said, "You're complaining to me, but once the serialization actually starts, you'll work even harder than me. You might only sleep two or three hours a day, and spend the rest of your time drawing manga."

"That's a future that's both desirable and terrifying." Oda shook his head.

After the casual conversation and the assignments, the living room quickly quieted down, with only the swishing sound of pens clicking away.

This is their usual routine.

……

It's Friday, and July has begun.

Musashino Art University has started its summer vacation.

Because the content of "Slam Dunk" has returned to basketball games, the need to draw audience backgrounds has resulted in an endless workload for Toriakino Studio, but things have become a bit easier now.

Tanaka exclaimed in admiration, "Only at this moment do I realize that a teacher is still a student."

The most popular comic artist on Jump is just a college student, currently 21 years old.

When he was 21, he was so socially anxious that he didn't dare to see people.

Next to Musashino Art University, there is a high school called Enhiko High School, Higashino Hibiki's alma mater, which he had not yet graduated from at this time.

Yan Yan High School Auditorium.

In the general education area, students were whispering and complaining among themselves.

"Isn't today a day off?"

Why aren't we on holiday yet?

"Is the principal going to speak? Why can't you hurry up?"

"I also want to go watch the Japanese basketball league."

Gradually, the quiet murmurs turned into a cacophony, and it looked like the order was about to be lost.

When the headmaster, Shindo, saw this, he took his bamboo sword, walked up to the podium, and banged it hard.

"Quiet!"

The entire auditorium fell silent instantly.

After stepping down from the podium, Shindo checked his watch. There were still ten minutes until the agreed time. The person should be arriving soon, right?

……

Hibiki Higashino walked to the school gate and looked at this scene with nostalgia; it was his youth.

The principal was beside him, watching him with a smile.

"Higashino-kun, it's rare that you can find the time to return to Yan Yan."

"I'm so sorry, I've been too busy," Higashino Hibiki said with a bow.

Oda once accepted Hibiki Higashino's request to conduct research at Enhiko High School, which served as the prototype for Ryonan High School.

However, he later went to Kamakura High School, which was obviously more suitable, so he abandoned Enhiko High School.

Because of this, he had to accept the principal's request to return to his alma mater to give a speech.