Full-time comic artist

"Higashino once asked me, 'Is there anything you want to do?' My answer was—'No.'"

"After that, I decided to work as an assistant while looking for targets."

"The result is still the same today: I haven't found my dream."

"I think that fulfilling Higashino's dream is my dream."

"But sure enough, that was just me trying to comfort myself."

He lowered his head in shame.

Hibiki Higashino looked at him, feeling guilty and apologizing, "I'm sorry, Yoshii-kun."

"Hikaru no Go", "Slam Dunk" and "5 Centimeters Per Second" all owe a lot to him.

Like myself, drawing both long-running serials and short comics, my assistants really worked very hard. For a period of time, they didn't have any holidays for several weeks in a row.

"Actually, there's nothing wrong with not having dreams. Just live your life well and take good care of your family, that's enough."

"Thank you so much for your hard work over this long period of time."

"It's just time to say goodbye, Yoshii-kun."

He had already graduated from university and couldn't continue working as an assistant indefinitely.

Because Yoshii Yamahisa has no intention of developing a career in the manga industry.

Therefore, you should find a promising job.

"Yes." Yoshii Yamahisa nodded, and he sighed, "Yes, it's time to say goodbye, and it's time for me to step out of my comfort zone."

……

As Yoshii Yamahisa graduated and embarked on his future, Hibiki Higashino's studio threw him a farewell party.

Upon hearing this news, Eiichiro Oda actually put aside his work and returned to his studio for the first time.

"Want to come over here?" he asked excitedly.

After he started serializing his own work, he realized how difficult it was to be a cartoonist and how fortunate he was to have a senior assistant to share the workload.

Moreover, in terms of drawing skills and familiarity with manga work, Yoshii Yamahisa is a cut above him.

"I'll pay you double."

Higashino Hibiki stared at him with dead fish eyes. "The banker's son, do you think I'm short of your salary?"

I can certainly afford to pay double wages.

Oda is such a visionary.

As expected, Yoshii Yamahisa decisively refused.

"That's outrageous! Kishimoto didn't even agree to be my assistant. I'm the second most popular manga artist in Jump now."

One Piece is definitely ahead of Hunter x Hunter right now; Oda's talent has been fully unleashed.

However, it won't be long before Oda realizes how terrifying Yu-Gi-Oh! is.

Apart from Oda, everyone present had a cool and aloof personality.

Thankfully he was there, which made things a bit more lively.

Midway through, Higashino Hibiki received a phone call; Takahashi Kazuki said he was going to pay a visit.

Hibiki Higashino and he made an appointment for a time.

……

"Tanaka-san, I hope to see your work soon."

"Mr. Akimiya, thank you for your guidance over the years."

"As for Oda-kun, I have nothing to say."

Two hours later, after tidying up the living room, Higashino watched Yoshii Yamahisa leave, feeling somewhat melancholy.

After standing there for a while, he returned to his dormitory, where Oda greeted him.

"What do you mean by 'I have nothing to say to you'?" Oda asked, puzzled.

Higashino Hibiki was speechless. "Didn't you say anything to me either?"

“You two must have said goodbye in private.” Oda’s eyes widened.

That is indeed true.

Hibiki Higashino patted Oda on the shoulder, sighed, and expressed his pity for him.

"I..." Oda was speechless.

The dormitory doorbell rang.

"I'll do it, I'll do it." Oda stretched out his hands and ran off happily.

"Is it Akira Toriyama?" he asked expectantly.

"As expected, it wasn't." Disappointment returned.

This person is truly "naive and innocent".

……

Higashino walked to the front door.

"Editor Yahagi, Professor Takahashi."

One is an editor at Jump, and the other is Kazuki Takahashi.

I watched Hibiki Higashino, the editor of Yahagi, in the anime "Bakuman". At that time, he was already the deputy editor-in-chief of Jump.

Bakuman is a manga series by Takeshi Obata and Tsugumi Ohba, which tells the story of two main characters pursuing their dreams of becoming manga artists.

The editors in the comics are all based on real people.

Both Kazuhiko Torishima and Takashi Sasaki make appearances.

However, Hibiki Higashino wasn't sure if this editor, Yahagi, was the deputy editor-in-chief from the manga; they might just share the same surname.

However, because of this, he remembered this editor Yahagi very well.

"Eh? Tori Akino-sensei actually knows me," Yahagi said in surprise, bowing his head. "I'm sorry to bother you today."

At the Jump editorial department, he heard that Kazuki Takahashi was going to visit Hibiki Higashino, so he asked Kazuki Takahashi to come along.

“It’s alright,” Higashino Hibiki said, extending his hand to invite the two of them in.

Kazuki Takahashi had informed Hibiki Higashino in advance, but he hadn't expected that Hibiki would also bring an editor.

“I could have just said it at the door; I have a lot of work to do,” Kazuki Takahashi said, handing over a package. “This is a set of Yu-Gi-Oh! cards made by Konami. Thank you for your continued support; I’ve benefited greatly from it.”

"Eh? Yu-Gi-Oh! cards!" Hibiki Higashino exclaimed with delight. "Thank you, Takahashi-sensei. I've wanted to buy these for a long time."

"I'm so glad you like this gift."

"Of course, whether it's for entertainment or collecting, it's the best gift I've received this year."

Takahashi and Nozomi bid each other a satisfied farewell.

As for Yahagi, he had something he wanted to ask Hibiki Higashino to do.

After the door in the entryway was changed, Higashino invited him into the living room.

Oda followed Yahagi and sat down on the sofa.

Higashino Hibiki brought over coffee and placed it in front of him and Yahagi.

"Teacher, where's mine?"

"I don't have a third hand, go make yourself some coffee." Hibiki Higashino shook his head at Oda, then turned to Yahagi and said:

"Mr. Yahagi, please speak."

Oda left in anger.

“It’s like this,” Yahagi cleared his throat, “There is a young man who is quite talented, and I would like to ask you to let him study here for a while.”

Yahagi handed over a manuscript; the title of this short comic was "True Friends".

“This is a work he created in 1997,” Yahagi said. “Please take a look before you make a decision.”

Higashino Hibiki took it, pulled out the manuscript, and glanced at it.

I understand.

This Mr. Yahagi is very likely to be the future deputy editor-in-chief.

After all, this book, "True Friends," is a work by Masashi Kishimoto.

The protagonist is Naruto Uzumaki, a mischievous troublemaker. The elders decide to help him find a true friend, and the story unfolds from there.

Compared to Hibiki Higashino's "Robot" from back then, "True Friends" is a great improvement and has already taken on the style of "Naruto".

It demonstrates a mature skill level.

Masashi Kishimoto has made great progress.

This year is already 1999.

“It’s very interesting,” Hibiki Higashino said after reading it. “There’s a possibility it will be serialized.”

“That’s true,” Yahagi said. “Kishimoto-kun is working hard towards serialization. I’ve also decided to recommend Naruto to the editorial department so that it can be included in the serialization meeting.”

He values ​​Kishimoto highly.

"There is one thing, however: Kishimoto's understanding of serialized works is still very superficial, and his plot settings are somewhat whimsical."

"I want him to get used to the pace of serialization in advance and understand how manga artists work. So, please, Mr. Toriakino."

Yahagi lowered his head.

“Mr. Yahagi, you’re too kind,” Higashino Hibiki helped him up. “It’s nothing at all.”

With Yoshii Yamahisa gone, he also lacks an assistant. Kishimoto Masashi won't be staying for long, but he's just the right person to fill the gap.

Hibiki Higashino was still thinking after Yahagi left.

Adapting to the pace of a manga artist? It seems Yahagi is quite confident.