Full-time comic artist

At night, he picked up Sasaki's information and read it aloud to Akemi Akemi, who was drawing a manga.

Until Akemi Akemi, frightened, crawled into bed.

……

The date is April 2nd.

Slam Dunk has ended as scheduled, leaving readers feeling empty.

Only now are they willing to believe that their youth with Shohoku has come to an end.

Sakuragi Hanamichi suffered a back injury and is undergoing rehabilitation.

Haruko writes letters to Sakuragi every week, telling him about the team.

Shohoku High School reached the top 16, but Akagi Takenori ultimately failed to gain admission to Fukasawa University of Physical Education. He and Kogure Kiminobu began working hard to prepare for university entrance exams and retired from the basketball club.

Haruko Akagi became the new manager of the basketball team, and she and Ayako managed the team together.

All of Shohoku's third-year players stayed on to prepare for the winter selection.

Hainan ranked second in the country.

Rukawa Kaede has not yet gone to the United States; he is currently undergoing intensive training with the All-Japan Youth Army.

Ryota Miyagi became the next captain of Shohoku, Mitsui trained hard every day, and the substitutes worked hard to become starters.

Coach Anzai works hard to lose weight.

Kenji Fujima now sports a beard and looks disheveled, a far cry from his former handsome appearance.

Uozumi, who left the team, couldn't let go of the team, while Captain Sendoh Akira was fishing.

Shinichi Maki likes to play on a surfboard, Nobunaga Kiyota races with his dog, and Soichiro Jin is training.

The Wada brothers of Sannoh are working hard, while their ace, Eiji Sawakita, is heading to America.

Coach Takato and Coach Taoka are discussing the National Sports Games...

In short, Slam Dunk has ended, but the story of high school basketball in Kanagawa and Japan continues.

Behind the scenes, Sakuragi and his teammates are working hard, and Shohoku might become the national champion, while Sakuragi Hanamichi might become an NBA star.

……

"That's a good ending."

The village chief was completely absorbed in the music.

"That's not right!"

He suddenly realized.

"Slam Dunk has ended, so how can my sports manga compare to it?"

Despite saying that, the more he studied sports manga, the more he felt that "it is impossible to surpass Slam Dunk."

Slam Dunk has reached the pinnacle of sports manga, and perhaps no manga will be able to compare with it even in ten or twenty years.

The pressure of guarding the road in the mountain village is immense.

Four months after the end of "The Bizarre Detective Agency", he still had no clue.

No matter what the setting is, it all seems too immature compared to "Slam Dunk".

"Congratulations on the successful conclusion, Tori Akino Mirai."

Chapter 262 The Selfish Bird Akino and the Mizuchi Festival

"Goodbye, Mr. Toriakino."

Tanaka waved goodbye to Hibiki Higashino, and Omori left yesterday with the prize money for completing the manga. Hibiki Higashino's studio was officially disbanded.

After Slam Dunk ended, he no longer needed an assistant.

Hibiki Higashino also commissioned a moving company to move two work desks and unused furniture to the Red Leaf Villa.

Today, having finished his work, Tanaka also bid farewell.

"Thank you so much for your hard work all this time," Higashino paused for a moment, then waved goodbye to his assistant. "Goodbye, Tanaka, have a safe journey."

"My teacher helped me more," Tanaka said with a smile.

He looked up at the sky and sighed, "I thought I would be terrified of leaving Tori Akino Studio, but now I realize it's not such a big deal."

"I, Tanaka, am about to depart gracefully."

He turned and walked further and further away in the season of blooming cherry blossoms.

Hibiki Higashino couldn't help but call out to him, asking, "Tanaka, will we ever see each other again?"

"Of course!" He turned and gave a thumbs up. "The author will definitely be serializing it in Jump. Be sure to let me know when that happens! I'll definitely be back!"

Higashino Hibiki breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.

Tanaka has been his assistant since university.

Five years have passed in the blink of an eye. The two of them had long been friends, and Higashino Hibiki was quite reluctant to part ways with them.

Have a safe trip!

……

After Tanaka left, Hibiki Higashino returned home.

The living room only has two work desks left, making it feel empty.

Hibiki Higashino needs to finish the "Slam Dunk" series, write a short essay for the new manga, and also work as Akemi Akimiya's assistant.

"I'm really not used to it," Akemi Akimiya shook her head.

Hibiki Higashino leaned against the doorframe, looking rather greasy, and said, "It's time for us to enjoy some time together."

"You're so silly." Akemi Akemi couldn't help but laugh, feeling much better.

……

The spring breeze carried a soothing and intoxicating scent. After a busy morning, Higashino Hibiki lay down in the living room and fell asleep almost immediately.

Akemi Akemi covered him with a blanket and said gently, "Get some sleep."

With Slam Dunk over, it's time for Hibiki Higashino to finally get a good night's sleep.

He has been drawing comics since 93, from high school student to now, without ever stopping.

"Thank you for your hard work all this time, Mr. Torino Akino."

……

When Hibiki Higashino woke up, it was already dusk.

He got up and found Akemi Akemi on the balcony, talking on the phone with an excited voice.

"Thank you, Ms. Fukatsu!"

After the phone call ended, before Higashino Hibiki could even ask, Akemi Akemi shouted, "Sakura Quest has won an award!"

The awards ceremony held by Ribon in April was to encourage comic book artists who have been serializing their works for more than six months.

It's a very low-value award, like being a model student in a class?

Akemi Akemi, however, was very excited.

"Congratulations, Ms. Akimiya!" Hibiki Higashino immediately congratulated her loudly, looking even happier than when he won the Shogakukan Manga Award.

"Well, I can't compare to you," Akemi Akemi said, smoothing her hair.

"This is just the first step!" Hibiki Higashino said nonchalantly. "Akami, you'll win many more awards in the future!"

……

the next day.

The "RIBON" comic was awarded.

Akemi Akimiya went on stage, and the editor-in-chief of RIBON presented her with the trophy and certificate with both hands, thanking her for her hard work.

Higashino Hibiki sat in the audience, clapping enthusiastically.

“That’s… Tori Akino Mirai!” The person who recognized Hibiki Higashino was taken aback. “What’s he doing here?”

"This is just a small award from 'RIBON,' so why would it attract Toriakino Mirai?"

"He clapped so earnestly."

The guests at the event were all employees of Shueisha or related companies, there to present awards to RIBON Manga and boost its popularity. It was just a formality, something they could have done casually. But they didn't expect to see the super popular manga artist, Akino Mirai.

Who exactly is this person on stage?

Someone dug up some information: "Akimiya Akemi...the author of 'Sakura Quest'...this work performed very well, ranking among the top on Ribon."

"This style of comic... would be perfect for an anime adaptation."

……

Akemi Akemi appreciated Higashino Hibiki's hard work and rewarded him with a big meal.

Back home, Higashino placed the RIBON Award in the most prominent spot on the bookshelf, while the Tezuka Award trophy had to be moved aside.

As for the Shogakukan Manga Award trophy, it was placed in a corner.

……

At 6 PM, the Slam Dunk anime also came to an end, reaching its grand finale.

When Tanakai returned home from Tokyo, he found his nephew visiting, and the final episode of "Slam Dunk" was playing on TV.

"Jing, you're finally back!" His elderly mother patted his shoulder and exclaimed.

As Tanaka's salary increased, his elderly mother finally stopped worrying about his future.

Tanaka's high-paying job in Tokyo is something she boasts about to others.

But, "Have you found a girlfriend yet?"

The elderly mother still has her worries.