Full-time comic artist

It's getting more and more complex, and more and more interesting.

After finishing the comic, Xiao Ri's chest heaved, and he couldn't calm down for a long time.

After taking two deep breaths, Xiao Ri turned the pages, reluctantly leaving "Hanzawa Naoki".

There's a surprise to come: the author's own answers to readers' questions.

Reader 1: How long will "Hanzawa Naoki" be serialized? I feel that the author is an impatient person. Apart from "Slam Dunk", no other manga has been serialized for more than two and a half years.

Akino Mirai: It's a secret, I can't reveal it, but please be prepared. ('?')

Reader 2: The wife storyline is a bit boring. The scenes of housewives together are very different from the main storyline of the manga. Will Mr. Tori Akino adjust it?

Torino Mirai: The main storyline is too depressing, and we need to lighten the mood. Thank you for your suggestion.

This question-and-answer format was something Xiao Ri found quite novel.

I feel more drawn to that unfamiliar author.

A sense of closeness has been established.

……

"Mr. Higashino, you're here to read comics today too?"

"Good morning, Ms. Kambara."

There is a large bookstore near the Higashino family home, which is one of the selling points of the villa.

Hibiki Higashino would occasionally come over to browse and buy volumes of other manga magazines. There were always manga that would resonate with him, because not all good works were in Shueisha.

The shop assistant was very attentive and helpful, and Higashino bowed slightly to greet her.

He walked towards the best-selling publications section at the store entrance.

"Hanzawa Naoki" is right here.

"How's this comic?" he asked the clerk at the Kanbara store.

"It's selling like hotcakes," Kanbara replied with a smile. "Especially the girls, they're so excited to get their hands on 'Hanzawa Naoki'."

"Huh?" Higashino Hibiki was taken aback. He picked up "Hanzawa Naoki" and asked in surprise, "Girls like this?"

"Hanzawa Naoki" is a fast-paced workplace manga, devoid of melancholy or sentimental tales of love and hate.

“Yes,” Kanbara said, dusting the bookshelf lightly with a duster as she chatted with Hibiki Higashino, “They said, ‘Finally, a collected volume!’ and then they bought it with unusual excitement.”

“Probably because,” Kanbara thought seriously for a while, “the manga magazine that publishes 'Hanzawa Naoki' is a bit flawed. Girls are shy and embarrassed to buy it. So being able to buy the collected volumes directly is very convenient.”

The photo covers of female idols are perfect for men, full of attraction, but women are prone to worry.

Weekly Shonen Jump is positioned primarily for men; otherwise, it wouldn't have so openly established "sex" as the core of the magazine.

Sex, violence, and rights can all stimulate male hormones.

Women don't care about this as much.

Everything about Young Jump is geared towards male users.

Manga like "Hanzawa Naoki," which is suitable for all ages, is at a disadvantage in this respect.

But there's nothing we can do about it; Weekly Shonen Jump is already one of the top platforms.

"I see." Higashino Hibiki suddenly realized, staring at the collected volume. "I really overlooked the feelings of female readers."

Kanbara was taken aback. "Huh?"

"The appeal of 'Hanzawa Naoki' lies in its resistance against oppressive workplaces, and Japanese women face even greater oppression in this regard," Hibiki Higashino explained. "Women entering the workforce resonate with 'Hanzawa Naoki,' so it's only natural that they would like it."

In its previous life, "Hanzawa Naoki" achieved the highest single-episode viewership rating in Japan since the Heisei era.

This achievement could not have been accomplished by a single group alone.

“That’s it! Mr. Higashino is very insightful. He has expressed all my thoughts perfectly. Amazing, amazing!” Ms. Kanbara pointed at Higashino Hibiki with both fingers.

"Where."

"It's quite insightful that Mr. Higashino could think of this. But what about that Akino-sensei..." Ms. Kanbara sighed, arms crossed, "Because he's a shonen manga artist, he always interacts with male readers in his manga. The topics I care about have never been mentioned by him."

"Eh? What does Ms. Kanbara want to know?"

"For example, in the wives' gathering in the manga, Hanzawa Naoki is given the cold shoulder, and Hanzawa Hana is also excluded. Is that really the case?"

Is there anything else?

"Hmm... I wanted to ask Mr. Toriakino's opinion on Fujisawa Miki, and what her storyline would be like. I guess she won't be drawn in the manga anymore. I'm always worried that something might happen to her."

"Understood." Higashino nodded. "Thank you for your support. Goodbye."

Hibiki Higashino stepped aside, bypassed Kanbara, and headed towards the manga section.

“It’s alright…” Kambara was slightly taken aback as she watched Higashino leave.

"What does Mr. Higashino do? He seems very charismatic, which compels me to answer his questions... He seems like a great writer."

"But what use is it for him to know all this?"

Hibiki Higashino lingered in the manga section for a while. He saw a manga that was a road movie, somewhat like "The Journey of Witch".

However, they weren't so glamorous; they were heartwarming little stories left behind in different regions.

It wasn't as scary as "Mushishi." After finishing one of the stories, Hibiki Higashino felt a gentle warmth and happiness.

"It's truly a great film."

He picked up the comic book and walked towards the cashier.

……

Welcome home.

"Yes, I'm back."

Higashino looked at his wife and couldn't help but laugh.

Akemi Akemi asked in surprise, "You seem to be in a good mood today?"

Hibiki Higashino showed off the comic book: "I've found a wonderful comic."

"Congratulations then. Let me take a look in a bit."

"Ah."

He walked into the living room, looked up at the clock, and saw it was ten o'clock.

"I'm going to write the storyboard for 'Bakuman'."

"Come on!"

"Thank you."

This is Higashino Hibiki's daily routine during his break.

Taking time to consider storyboards is something he has always been doing.

Before leaving, he put the comic book down.

Akemi Akemi picked it up curiously and looked at it for a while before becoming engrossed in it with a big smile on her face.

At 2 PM, Hibiki Higashino finished the storyboard and contacted Koji Yoshida, who said he was free and would come over to take a look in a bit.

"It seems like Yoshida always has free time." Hibiki Higashino walked out of the studio and scratched his head. "He could just send a fax, but he insists on coming over here."

Akemi Akemi looked up and answered absentmindedly, "She probably likes coming over."

“How could that be? Our house isn’t a royal palace,” Higashino Hibiki shook his head. “Yoshida is just too serious. He’s meticulous about everyone’s work.”

"Yes!" He nodded firmly.

"Perhaps." Akemi Akemi smoothed her bangs, ignoring Hibiki Higashino, and focused on reading the manga.

She finally finished reading it before Koji Yoshida arrived.

"It felt like I had gone on a trip and met so many kind people. Along with the warmth, there was a sense of loss and reluctance to leave."

She also spoke highly of the comic.

Hibiki Higashino nodded repeatedly, "Right, right? I'm really looking forward to the rest of the story. I just don't know which magazine it will be serialized in."

He opened the cover and looked at the title page.

At that moment, Koji Yoshida arrived, and Hibiki Higashino had no choice but to open the door first.

"Tori Akino-sensei, it's been a long time!" Yoshida Koji greeted him enthusiastically, grinning from ear to ear, beaming with joy.

Higashino retorted, "What do you mean 'long time no see'? Didn't we just see each other last weekend?"

"A day apart feels like three autumns."

He followed Hibiki Higashino into the living room, greeted Akemi Akemi, and then saw the manga.

"Isn't this the comic book from 'Puberty' magazine?"

"Yoshida, you know this?" Hibiki Higashino asked in surprise.

"Yes, I heard it was canceled midway," Yoshida said calmly. "There are only 10 more chapters left before it ends."

"Huh?" Akemi Akemi was stunned. "It's clearly an interesting manga..."

"The sales of the individual volumes are not ideal; the third volume only sold 30,000 copies." Yoshida shook his head. "Such a result would only lead to a 50% cancellation rate at any other magazine."

"The target audience for this comic is middle-aged and elderly people, but the readers of 'Adolescence' are children aged 12 to 16, who will not like this slow-paced style of comic."

Akemi Akemi sighed, "What a pity."

Because the wrong positioning was chosen, even an interesting work had to be canceled.

……

After reviewing the storyboard.

"This chapter is so interesting!" Yoshida exclaimed, slapping the table in delight. "The new character, Eiji Niizuma, is just like a teacher, possessing absolute confidence and sharpness."

"If I become Jump's most popular author, please grant me the authority to end a manga I hate."

"Eiji Niizuma's image was immediately established; he truly lives up to his reputation as a teacher."

When invited to Tokyo by Hisashi Sasaki, the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jump, Eiji Niizuma, the strongest newcomer, made the following condition.