Full-time comic artist

He concluded, "It's already a mature animation company."

It has been almost three years since Mirai-sha was founded, and with the strength of Musashino Art University students, they have indeed become the backbone of the industry during these three years of growth.

Torishima Kazuhiko, however, was observing something else.

“This novel art style is very interesting,” Torishima Kazuhiko said, glancing at Meima before stroking his chin in thought. “The drawing is simple, but the characters look very lively and creative.”

"Is the original illustrator's name Kitamura Tatsu? It seems that Tori Akino has discovered a genius."

Before watching "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day," he thought it would be full of plot holes, since it was an inexperienced company.

However, the "Future Society," despite being a makeshift team, demonstrated professionalism, did not hold back, and even had some outstanding highlights, which is truly commendable.

“However,” Torishima Kazuhiko said with a smile, “the animation is very well done, but Torishino Akino’s script is clichéd.”

This was something he hadn't expected; it was Toriakino Mirai who was holding him back.

"It lacks the subtlety of its previous works and doesn't leave enough suspense. Judging from the first episode, although it was exciting, it definitely fell short."

Sasaki held the opposite opinion, saying, "This is only the first episode. Although the progress is a bit slow right now, it has already laid the groundwork for many interesting things."

He was still quite looking forward to it.

Torishima Kazuhiko didn't speak, but nodded slightly.

That's true. Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day had a bland start, but it laid a lot of groundwork. With Akino Tori's talent, it will likely create some explosive moments in the future.

“Oh, right,” Torishima Kazuhiko exclaimed excitedly, picking up a report—the biggest surprise of the year.

Yu-Gi-Oh!, which Jump had been supporting for a long time, finally exploded, erupting like a volcano, as if millions of mammoths were running wild, unstoppable.

This is more noteworthy than "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day".

"Konami's report is here."

On February 4, 1999, Konami released Yu-Gi-Oh! cards. Due to their gameplay and high-quality production, they immediately sparked a frenzy of purchases and collections among Yu-Gi-Oh! fans and card players.

Just two months later, Konami's licensing fees and merchandise sales revenue had already made Jump and Kazuki Takahashi a fortune, reaching an astonishing 30 billion yen!

"This price trend is still rising, and the copyright revenue of Yu-Gi-Oh! is expected to exceed 200 billion yen this year!"

In terms of revenue, it is already close to surpassing Jump's number one manga, "Slam Dunk".

Although the initial print run of "Slam Dunk" was 200 million copies, the initial print run of "Yu-Gi-Oh!" was only 53 copies, even with the popularity of its cards and the airing of its theatrical release.

But who can blame them when the Yu-Gi-Oh! IP is so valuable?

The huge success of Yu-Gi-Oh! not only brought in substantial profits, but also proved that Kazuhiko Torishima's strategy was correct: to develop the IP value of his works.

“Tori Akino Mirai saw this before Yu-Gi-Oh! was serialized. His insight is truly remarkable.”

Therefore, Kazuhiko Torishima will not underestimate Mirai Torishino.

Sasaki nodded, "If Toriaki-kun were an editor, perhaps he could become the next one."

"Haha." Torishima Kazuhiko couldn't help but laugh.

……

"This is so boring!"

In Class 2 of the first year of junior high school, a chubby boy named Tsubasa Watada complained, "Because it's a work by Akino Tori, I thought it would be very interesting. It's a big loss that I chose not to watch Digimon."

He didn't really like "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day." In his mind, the anime felt pretentious and affected, and the characters' emotions appeared abruptly, which made him feel out of place.

The most important thing is...

"The pace is so slow, it's not exciting at all! It's nowhere near as good as 'Slam Dunk'."

The chubby boy lay on the table, his voice growing louder and louder.

Just as Tsuna was about to stand up and refute, he heard some classmates echoing him.

"I don't like watching it either."

"I don't understand how the plot is developing."

"The animation keeps flashing back in time, which is very annoying to watch."

The fact that so many classmates agreed with Tsubasa made Tsuna fall silent.

Along with Tsuna, viewers who love "Anohana" also fell silent.

"Will anyone actually like watching this show? No way, no way."

"The main character is so embarrassing."

"They've been deliberately creating a mystery."

"The plot about Mei's death alone took a long time to explain."

Many people clenched their fists, wanting to refute, but lacked the courage to speak up.

The same applies to Tsuna.

Right beside him, a voice rang out: "This only proves that you are not the audience of 'Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day'. Children don't have worries."

Akane Nakajima walked up to Tsubasa Watada, hands on her hips, and said, "I find it very interesting! Because I'm very mature!"

"You!" Tsubasa Mian Tianyi's hands trembled as she tried to refute him.

"I think it's very interesting too!"

"The singing is very beautiful."

"The animation had a great pace, and I watched it intently the whole time."

"I'm very curious about what will happen next, how to help Yama achieve enlightenment."

"I was really moved when Jinta started running!"

Before long, the classroom was filled with a lively discussion.

It seems that many students have watched "Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day".

The noise silenced Tsubasa's words.

His face flushed red, and he trembled with anger.

Tsuna walked up to Akane Nakajima, patted her on the shoulder, and said with a sigh, "You're still the same as before."

"What?" Akane Nakajima turned around, blinking her eyes in confusion.

"Ugh," Tsuna clutched his chest, unable to speak.

"Just as brave as before."

Akane Nakajima shook her head, then suddenly clapped her hands and asked curiously, "Can you tell me today if we want to watch 'Anohana' together?"

I'll tell you after school.

"Huh? That's so long-winded."

……

At 3:30 pm, a junior high school let out.

Akane Nakajima forgot her promise to Tsuna that afternoon. She went straight to the shoe-changing room and opened the cabinet where her shoes were stored.

"Ah!" Akane Nakajima's eyes widened. Right on the shoe was a letter with a pink heart-shaped seal.

"This is... a love letter!"

She was shocked. After changing her shoes, she clutched the envelope and ran home!

……

Bird Autumn Studio.

After a day's work, Hibiki Higashino was instructing Masashi Kishimoto on drawing manga.

"Even with a dark art style, the expression of the comic must remain clean."

“An excessive focus on shadows will negatively impact the reader’s experience.”

“Teacher, I understand.” Masashi Kishimoto nodded.

He has been studying here for almost a month and has benefited greatly.

I not only learned about the speed lines and art style that I wanted to study, but I also learned a lot about unexpected aspects.

For example, the speed at which you draw comics.

The same portrait that used to take him an hour to draw, now only takes him forty minutes when he puts in his best effort.

Drawing content faster and better is especially important for weekly cartoonists, and it is also a standard that distinguishes newcomers from veterans.

Eiichiro Oda works himself to the bone, barely managing to complete the serialization each week.

Manga artists like Hirohiko Araki can always take one or even two days off each week to rest and give themselves a weekend.

Seeing that Kishimoto understood, Hibiki Higashino stretched and went to another living room to rest.

He turned on the TV, and it happened to be a news program broadcasting a demonstration by Japanese leftists.

The host mentioned that a famous female voice actress was also cheering, and Higashino Hibiki, curious, was about to continue watching when a loud knocking sound came from the door.

The knocking sound was loud and frequent.

Higashino Hibiki could only turn off the TV and go to the door. He looked through the camera and saw Nakajima Akane, who was covered in sweat and looked very anxious. So he immediately opened the door.

"Where is Sister Akimiya? I'm looking for Sister Akimiya."

She ignored Higashino Hibiki, slipped under his arm, and dashed into the hall, calling out to Akemi Akemi.

"What's wrong?" Akemi Akemi asked, wearing an apron and holding a green onion in her hand.

"I have something to ask you!" Akane Nakajima said loudly.

……

A letter lay on the coffee table, soaked with sweat.

Akane Nakajima said it was a love letter to her.

"Where is your mother?" Hibiki Higashino asked.

"Mom is busy today," she said hesitantly. "Sister Akimiya, Teacher Tori Akino, please give me some advice."