Full-time comic artist

"Do you...do you have contact with Mr. Akimiya?"

"Of course, when I had my exhibition in Tokyo, wasn't it at the Akimiya Museum of Art? So we made contact. He looks quite arrogant, but he's actually quite easy to talk to. We sometimes exchange ideas, like about paint colors."

Higashino suddenly realized that when Akira Toriyama was working, he lived in the countryside and couldn't buy complete sets of paints.

He then took out the colored ink from the oil-based pen and used it to color the comics.

It looks unique and has a distinctive style.

"No! No!" Higashino Hibiki patted his cheeks to calm himself down, and asked in a panic, "Then what did you say?"

"Are you feeling unwell?" Akira Toriyama asked with concern, but Hibiki Higashino strongly assured him that he was fine.

“Alright,” Akira Toriyama said, “I told him that you are reliable, hardworking, and very talented…”

"Is that all?" Hibiki Higashino asked happily.

“And, well,” Akira Toriyama pondered, “he’s also very individualistic and does things that are unexpected.”

"Am I like that?!" Higashino Hibiki's expression panicked.

"Haha, after all, it's rare to see someone like you, so young, with a shaved head. It really surprised me back then. Haha."

He left laughing.

Higashino Hibiki was left standing there, large beads of sweat running down his forehead.

……

"Tori Akino-sensei, what's wrong?"

After an unknown amount of time, someone waved a hand in front of Higashino Hibiki's eyes.

Higashino Hibiki snapped out of his daze, looked at the person in front of him, and forced a smile: "Hello, Kazuki Takahashi-sensei."

"Are you OK?"

"I'm fine, what's wrong?"

"I do have some things I'd like to discuss. Sorry to bother you."

Sitting next to Hibiki Higashino, Kazuki Takahashi began to talk about his troubles.

"Last year, the airing of the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime and Bandai's 'Spell & Wizardry Cards' didn't improve the sales of the collected volumes."

"The first edition of the 11th volume of Yu-Gi-Oh!, released last month, was only 27 copies. I'm worried it will be cut in half."

Since its serialization began in 1996, it has been plagued by the issue of being abruptly canceled.

This is the norm for manga artists in Jump.

Even top comic artists worry about this.

Many once-famous works ultimately ended up being canceled.

Hibiki Higashino understood Kazuki Takahashi's concerns.

Despite the animated adaptation, the results were still unsatisfactory, and the IP value remained mediocre even after merchandise was released.

Jump had high expectations for Yu-Gi-Oh!, and this disappointment could very well lead to the project being canceled.

Hibiki Higashino had been reading Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Yugi used Kuriboh and Dark Chaos Wizard to defeat Pegasus and rescue his grandfather.

“Your worries are unnecessary,” Hibiki Higashino said. “I saw on TV that a Yu-Gi-Oh! movie is in production, which shows that Jump hasn’t given up on this series and is still developing its value.”

"That's precisely why it's even more unbearable."

He worried that the results would still be unsatisfactory and the investment would be wasted.

"Bandai has sold the card game rights to Konami, and new cards are being designed. If they're the same as last year's..."

"Konami!" Higashino exclaimed in surprise.

"Your time has come."

He spoke solemnly to Kazuki Takahashi.

Although Konami is a terrible person, she has indeed made a great contribution to Yu-Gi-Oh! cards.

"Tori Akino-sensei, I'd like to ask for your opinion, please." Takahashi Kazuki asked again.

“Hmm,” Higashino Hibiki thought for a while, “One of the major problems with Yu-Gi-Oh! is that the rules of the card game are not perfect.”

He gave an example: "For instance, the star rating of a card represents its defense and attack power. If all high-star cards could be used directly, then high-star cards would be too powerful."

Low-star cards have practically no value; the game is only fun if they can create checks and balances or form combos.

The future of Yu-Gi-Oh! lies in making the rules of the cards playable in real life and removing absurd plots like "Rock Giant attacks the opponent's Moon Spell Card, causing the tide to recede and the opponent's aquatic monster to self-destruct."

Kazuki Takahashi seemed to be deep in thought. He bowed respectfully and thanked him.

"I understand."

……

Hibiki Higashino can finally eat cake.

With the New Year approaching and Jump ceasing publication, Akemi Akemi could take a week off and no longer needed her assistant's work, so she went home.

He was too lazy to cook and was thinking of having a nice meal in the evening, but he kept getting disturbed. They were all teachers and seniors, so he couldn't eat cake while replying to them.

That would be extremely impolite.

The cake was right in front of him, its aroma wafting towards his nose. Higashino Hibiki had been holding back for a long time before picking up his knife and fork again.

"Tori Akino-kun," someone called him.

Higashino Hibiki's face scrunched up. "Who is it?"

Turning around, I saw it was Hirohiko Araki.

This teacher also taught him.

Higashino sighed helplessly.

"Araki-sensei, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"You look so miserable, it doesn't seem like you want to see me."

He joked, "It's just that you lost to me in a short comic strip competition, is it really worth getting hung up on like this all day?"

“That’s not why I’m talking about it,” Higashino Hibiki said, pursing his lips.

"Confessions is a very good book; my mood changed several times. Teacher, your short stories are truly amazing."

Hirohiko Araki's specialty is strategic thinking; he can see the thunder in the smallest details.

His craftsmanship is exceptional; he is practically unmatched when it comes to short stories.

Hirohiko Araki smiled, patted Hibiki Higashino on the shoulder, and left.

Higashino was surprised. "He wouldn't have come over just to hear me say some flattering things, would he?"

"If it's true, then Araki-sensei is too naive."

It's just a mere sixteen times I got first place in the minor civil service exams. There's no need to take it all out on me.

"What a stingy person."

……

Higashino stopped thinking about him, looked around, and saw no one he knew.

He looked expectant, rubbed his hands together, and slowly turned his head toward the cake.

But in the distance, Higashino Hibiki saw someone.

He strode towards him.

A tear rolled down Higashino Hibiki's cheek.

The visitor was of a very high seniority; he was Masami Kurumada's teacher in "Saint Seiya" and a friend of Hibiki Higashino—Hiroshi Motomiya.

Therefore, Higashino Hibiki had no choice but to put the cake down.

"Is there something you need, Teacher?"

"I'm really happy today," he said, beaming.

This was a long story to tell, Higashino Hibiki stood up and listened attentively.

"The signing of the Joint Declaration on Establishing a Friendly Partnership between China and Japan last year was a good thing, and people from both countries are making continuous efforts to achieve this."

"Prime Minister Obuchi also advocates for Sino-Japanese friendship."

"His daughter, Ms. Yuko Obuchi, donated 100 billion yen to establish the 'Obuchi Green Fund' to support afforestation efforts in China. Over the past year, there have been more and more Sino-Japanese friendship activities in Tokyo; that's truly wonderful."

“When I came here today, I saw Chinese lion dances on the streets of Tokyo, so I was thinking of having a couple of drinks and having a heart-to-heart talk with someone.”

Hiroshi Motomiya was very happy with what he said, but Hibiki Higashino was moved and refused.

He had a lot to say, but finally let out a long sigh.

Everyone knows what's going on, no need to say more.

Higashino Hibiki seemed uninterested, which surprised Motomiya Hiroshi. He assumed Higashino was in a bad mood and didn't say anything more.

After he left, Higashino Hibiki lost all interest in eating cake.

Less than two minutes later, Higashino Hibiki decided that eating was more important.

But at that moment, a waiter came to Higashino Hibiki's side and whispered something.

"Hello, sir, the Shueisha New Year's Party has officially begun. Please proceed to the meeting hall."

"Okay... okay. Thank you."

"My stomach is rumbling," Higashino Hibiki said through gritted teeth.

Chapter 212 Oda's Heartbreak

Hibiki Higashino was starving, but he had no choice but to attend Jump's New Year's party.

On stage, Shueisha President Wakana Masaru spoke eloquently, encouraging the staff for their hard work last year and envisioning Shueisha's future development for the industry professionals in attendance.

Wakana was speaking with great interest, which made Hibiki Higashino's face turn green.