Full-time comic artist

“Akane,” Mrs. Nakajima looked at her sadly, “you’re back.”

"Mommy, tell me quickly, is something wrong with you?" Akane Nakajima was very anxious, stamping her little feet incessantly, like an ant on a hot pan.

Mrs. Nakajima's gaze softened, and she pulled Akane Nakajima into her arms, saying softly, "Mom, I'm fine. I was just very moved after watching Akino Tori's new work, 'Millennium Actress'."

She has been retired from acting for 20 years, but she still misses her identity as an adult film actress.

Seeing Fujiwara Chiyoko rediscover her original aspirations and become someone who pursues her goals again, I felt a deep empathy and shed tears.

She was happy for Fujiwara Chiyoko.

but……

"Even though I've retired from acting, it doesn't mean I've lost my pursuit; rather... the goal I pursue has changed..."

"Now, I want to give Xiaoxi a happy childhood and grow up with her."

Mrs. Nakajima felt relieved the moment she saw her daughter showing concern for her.

"Oh, that's all there is to it." Akane Nakajima pouted and wriggled free from her mother's arms. "I thought something was wrong. I'm going to play games!"

She waved dismissively and walked out of the living room.

Mrs. Nakajima: "..."

I regret it...

“By the way, Mom,” Akane Nakajima returned, poking her little head into the living room, and asked, “You like ‘Millennium Actress’ so much, did you vote for it?”

"Vote?" Mrs. Nakajima tilted her head, puzzled.

"It's the reader survey form tucked inside Jump magazines," Akane Nakajima explained. "It has options for which works you like. You fill it out and mail it to the Jump editorial department. The more manga that readers choose, the better it performs, and the more likely it is to be adapted into an anime."

"Huh? Is that so? I'll vote now."

“It’s too late.” Akane Nakajima shook her head. “The results for this week’s Xiaozheng are already out. The next round of statistics won’t be until six months from now.”

Six months after each issue of Jump is published, statistics are compiled in units of tens of thousands, making the data more accurate and detailed, and even the smallest differences can be reflected.

This is the most rigorous statistical result.

“It’s alright,” Mrs. Nakajima said with a smile and shook her head. “I really love ‘Millennium Actress,’ so let me do what I can for this work.”

……

In Hokkaido, at a farm.

Nishimura's golden hair danced in the wind, blurring his vision.

He was wearing an apron and carrying a lot of tools when he entered the cowshed.

He selected a cow and led it to the compartment.

They then used a rope to hoist the cow's right hind leg.

The cow's hooves were completely hidden by the hay and mud.

So Nishimura took out a polishing machine and carefully polished it. After a short while, the pure white stratum corneum was revealed.

"Just as I expected, there are pebbles in here?"

On the right side of the hoof, he could see a small, black, rotten pit.

Even without getting close, Nishimura could smell a foul odor.

He took out a knife without changing his expression. After his university internship and the past six months of work, Nishimura had become able to ignore the stench.

He used a knife to scrape away the keratin layer around the wound, and then glued the left hoof to a pad to raise it.

After that, Nishimura began the final work. After cleaning away the pus and blood, he removed the small stones, cleaned the wound one last time, sprayed it with disinfectant, and bandaged it.

it is finally over.

He wiped his sweat; doing this kind of work in the summer, even in cool Hokkaido, was hard enough.

After dealing with a few minor issues with the cows, the sun was about to set when Xicun finally packed up his tools and finished his work for the day.

After graduation, he started working at this ranch.

The dormitory was located in the ranch owner's house, and it had dozens of rooms.

Rather, the ranch owners also live in the dormitory.

He stumbled back to his dormitory, feeling exhausted—the kind of exhaustion that makes you want to take a nice nap after a shower.

"Although it's been tough, I've become much more mature now."

Recalling his silly self in high school, he felt like he was looking at his embarrassing past.

"Back then, I was really easily startled and not calm at all."

"But now I am a tough guy who won't change his expression even if the sky falls down."

When the ranch owner's daughter saw him, she ran over excitedly. "Nishimura-san, there's a letter for you. It was delivered by a Mr. Higashino."

"Really! A letter from Higashino!"

Nishimura's eyes lit up instantly. He ran over and took the letter with both hands.

"Oh, it's been so long since we last contacted each other, I really miss him!"

He quickly opened the envelope, his eyes scanning it rapidly, reading ten lines at a glance.

"That kid Dongye, he's getting married! How awful!"

Of the three, it was unexpected that the most discreet person would get married first.

"Nishimura-san, is your friend getting married?" the ranch owner's daughter asked curiously.

She held onto the hem of her dress, curiously craning her neck forward.

"Hmm." Nishimura nodded. "Higashino is a master of hiding his true abilities!"

He thought about it carefully and realized that, apart from himself, the other two members of the trio now had girlfriends.

"Damn it!" he shouted in frustration, "I want a sweet girlfriend too!"

The girl beside him had a flushed face, like the distant sunset.

"I...can I..."

She spoke softly.

"Eh! Eh!! Really?!" Nishimura's voice rose an octave, he was utterly shocked, "Higashino's fiancée is Akemi Akemi!"

"That Akemi Akemi-sensei!"

"The most beautiful Akimiya teacher at Yan Yan High School!"

"How enviable!"

The girl took a step back and looked at the unruly Nishimura.

Finally, out of fear, he turned and ran away.

"It's a teacher-student relationship, it probably started in high school... Hibiki Higashino! God punish me!"

After a cathartic release, Nishimura came to his senses and asked, "What did you say?"

Only then did they realize that the girl who had just been beside them had run away.

"What's going on?"

……

"What's going on?!"

September arrived, and Omori, who thought he could finally relax, took a week off after only serializing "Slam Dunk," but then Tori Akino Mirai added "Slam Dunk" side stories to her schedule.

He was on the verge of a breakdown.

Is this teacher made of iron?

Although the salary is high, this place is just too busy!

He diligently draws comics.

All I heard was a "whoosh" sound!

Akino Mirai, who was standing to the side, had finished her work for the day.

Hibiki Higashino slept two hours less last night in order to save time.

He has something very important to do.

With a serious expression, Higashino sat down in front of the television and turned it on, under Omori's curious gaze.

Omori: "..."

Higashino Hibiki switched the channel to the "Honinbo" tournament live stream.

Today is the seventh game of the round-robin tournament.

Odagiri has reached the final stage again, challenging Cho Ji-hoon 9-dan, who has held the Honinbo title since 1989.

The current score is 3-3.

Whoever wins the seventh match will become the next "Honinbo" and take home the 3200 million yen prize.

During the planning phase, Zhao Zhixun glanced at Odagiri.

"Truly, heroes emerge from among the young," he thought to himself. "Odagiri, who is not yet an adult, actually makes me feel a little afraid."

He won the first two games very easily.

In the first game, Odagiri played very impatiently. Despite having six hours to play a slow game, Zhao Zhixun got the feeling that he couldn't wait to win.

Through careful planning, he wore down Odagiri's fighting spirit, and ultimately won when Odagiri's mentality wavered.

In the second game, Oda cut very slowly.

Seemingly deep in thought, Zhao Zhixun noticed that Odagiri was inwardly flustered. Making numerous mistakes, he easily won the match.

Victory is just around the corner.

However, in the following game, the opponent calmed down and began to play the game patiently.

Odagiri's eyes became calm and still, his gaze fixed solely on the game of Go.