Full-time comic artist

“You’ve misunderstood me. That’s not what I meant,” the principal said with a smile. “I just know that cartoonists really work hard.”

He recalled, "More than ten years ago, I met the manga artist Akira Toriyama at an art exhibition of students from an elementary school in Meguro Ward. During our conversation, he said that he only slept three or four hours a day and was always yawning."

The principal looked at Higashino Hibiki with kind eyes, "You must be having a much harder time as a student, and it must be very difficult for you."

Higashino stared at him blankly for a long time before nodding.

……

hall.

"I heard that a well-known alumnus is coming."

The student council members were whispering gossip.

"A well-known alumnus? Who is it?"

"I don't know."

"It must be someone who has achieved great success. Damn it, if I find out who wasted my time, I'll definitely give them a good scolding."

"Yes, curse him behind his back!"

Higashino Hibiki was completely unaware of the students' resentment. He went backstage, looked in the mirror and saw no problems, then nodded to the principal.

And so the event officially began.

The principal and teachers finished their speeches in about ten minutes.

The students were still wondering why Higashino Hibiki had taken the stage when it used to take at least half an hour to finish.

He was wearing a black suit with a visitor badge pinned to his chest. He stood tall and approached the microphone with a big smile.

"Hello everyone, I am Hibiki Higashino. I am honored to be invited to give a speech at Yan Yan High School. I am really sorry to disturb your rest."

After the opening remarks, the teachers led the applause.

"So young!"

"Only around twenty-five years old, right?"

The students whispered among themselves.

"Has he achieved such success at such a young age?"

They didn't understand.

“Hibiki Higashino…” someone murmured, “That name sounds so familiar.”

"I feel like I've heard that place before!"

“Hibiki Higashino…” someone thought for a moment and then suddenly realized, “Isn’t that the name of Akino Mirai-sensei!”

"That's right! Tori Akino-sensei is our senior!"

Then, someone stared intently at Higashino Hibiki.

High school students happen to be the audience of Jump, and due to their love for Higashino Hibiki, a large number of students are also readers of Higashino Hibiki.

Even if you don't watch "Slam Dunk," Hibiki Higashino is still their pride.

"Higashino-san! Are you Toriakino-sensei?!"

"It's the senior year of high school!" a very lively student shouted.

"Yes, it's me." Higashino Hibiki nodded. "I'm Tori Akino, the manga artist."

The whole place erupted in cheers!

Hibiki Higashino rarely receives such treatment. Apart from two book signings, he basically doesn't participate in activities. This kind of eager gaze makes him a little uncomfortable.

"Tori Akino-sensei, I want to become a manga artist too! What's your secret to success?"

One of the students asked excitedly.

Higashino swore that he absolutely did not use any shills.

"That's a very good question," Higashino Hibiki gave a thumbs up.

This will allow him to connect the dots and get to what he wants to say.

“Becoming a manga artist isn’t something you can achieve just by talking.” Standing in front of the microphone, Hibiki Higashino said with a serious expression, “At Enhiko High School, I received a good education, so my drawing skills are much better than the average person’s, which is one of the foundations of my success.”

The students nodded thoughtfully.

They know these principles too, and when successful people say them, it's easy for them to take them to heart.

"The second point is the determination to persevere to the end."

He thought of Akemi Akemi, and many other people.

"Cartoonists are gamblers; only one in ten thousand succeeds."

Chapter 187 Da Bi and Sakuragi Hanamichi's Brilliant Performance

"I know many people who work in the comic book industry and want to get the opportunity to be serialized," Hibiki Higashino said candidly.

At Yan Yan High School's art department, many students dream of becoming comic artists. This profession is rewarding, pays well, and has a good social status, making it an ideal career.

But because of this, it rolled up very well.

"They are very good at drawing and work very hard, but they just can't serialize their work. While working as an assistant, I need to take on odd jobs, otherwise I can't make ends meet in Tokyo."

"Some people gave up and started to pursue the path of becoming professional cartoonist assistants."

"Some people persevere, but ultimately achieve nothing, leave Tokyo, and return to their hometowns to live."

Higashino Hibiki spoke very seriously, with a solemn expression.

He succeeded easily, but that's because he was a bug in the system. For an ordinary person to become a comic artist is as difficult as climbing to the sky.

After hearing what Higashino Hibiki said, some students who dreamed of becoming manga artists turned pale, while others had firm eyes.

People with a determined gaze usually come from well-off families.

"Even if you overcome numerous obstacles and gain the right to serialize your work, as a newcomer, for example in Jump, most newcomers' first works are canceled halfway through."

"There's a rule in Jump that uses positive grades as the standard: the better ones go up, and the worse ones go down. Every now and then, Jump holds a serialization meeting and selects two or three new serializations. But there are only twenty serialization slots, so works with low popularity have to be eliminated. It's that cruel."

"For example, Kazuki Takahashi, who is currently serializing Yu-Gi-Oh!. His first work... well, I don't remember the name of that work either, but it was canceled very quickly."

"There are also teachers who have outstanding works and have become idols for many people. But in the end, they still cannot continue to serialize their works."

"This is an industry that only values ​​ability." Hibiki Higashino took a deep breath. "The winner takes all. Most people who become manga artists still live a life where they don't know where their next meal will come from. That's the reality."

"So, people who dream of becoming cartoonists are no different from gamblers."

This is Higashino Hibiki's reflection.

At last year's Shueisha New Year's party, many manga artists talked about things happening around them.

People they know, or their assistants, have left the industry, and this is the norm.

When feeling sentimental, all one can do is sigh and encourage oneself.

"So, Mr. Toriakino, are you telling us to give up?!"

The student raised his hand high and asked, unwilling to give up.

Higashino Hibiki answered decisively, "Of course not!"

"People who have dreams and work hard to achieve them are very happy."

"The result is important, but the process is also important."

"The experiences and lessons learned in the pursuit of results will be a lifelong treasure."

"And you won't have to regret it when you're old, wondering why you didn't work harder when you were young."

Higashino Hibiki's words were incoherent and rambling; he didn't even know what he was saying, but he poured out all his feelings.

"Of all the people I know, not one regrets their choice! That's enough!"

"Young people have the drive to overcome all difficulties. I'm just telling you about the difficulties of this matter. I'm not trying to stop you."

"This is to encourage you to accumulate more knowledge and strive harder."

The entire audience burst into applause.

Hibiki Higashino then shared some interesting anecdotes from the manga industry and his own experiences before leaving the stage amidst cheers.

Before the students had dispersed, Higashino Hibiki hurriedly said goodbye.

……

Back at the studio, Oda looked at him with dark circles under his eyes.

He still didn't approve the second serialization at the meeting, and is now working even harder to revise it.

This made him grit his teeth and say that he would make Torishima Kazuhiko admit his mistake.

Perhaps it's the same mindset as Akira Toriyama before.

"Thank goodness you're back, teacher. I almost fell asleep."

On Friday, work ended before noon, and everyone else went back to their dormitories and homes, but Oda was reluctant to leave.

"You need to get some rest; your health is the most important thing," Hibiki Higashino said.

"Yes." Oda nodded. "I'll definitely be fine!"

"Ah."

Hibiki Higashino's cell phone rang; the caller was Hisashi Sasaki.

Friday afternoon was the day to announce Xiaozheng's grades.

"I'm number one," Sasaki said bluntly.

Hibiki Higashino had already anticipated this, and was still very happy.

Slam Dunk hasn't serialized any official matches for a long time, so he hasn't been able to win first place in the junior rankings for a long time either.

As Oda watched this scene, he felt a dry cough in his throat, so he stood up to get a glass of water.

……