Full-time comic artist

Nishimura's hair was blown wildly by the wind, and the horse lowered its head, leaving a pile of drool on his head.

"Hey, hey, this isn't grass," he glared at the horse with displeasure.

“Darling,” his wife stroked Nishimura’s hair, “you need a haircut.”

“Okay,” Nishimura nodded with a smile.

The nearest barbershop was 50 kilometers away. He rode his motorcycle across the vast grassland and arrived in the town half an hour later.

"Hey, Nishimura, long time no see."

"Long time no see, Uncle Turtle."

What hairstyle do you want this time?

"Bald, right?"

"Eh?"

Keep it simple.

He has a wife and children, and he's past the age of pursuing handsome men.

Ten minutes later, Nishimura touched his stubble and walked out of the barbershop.

He felt very proud of his maturity.

"At this moment, I need a cigarette."

Nishimura took out the cigarette box and found it to be empty.

So he went into a supermarket, where the young female cashier was staring intently at the television.

Nishimura was looking down for a cigarette when he glanced up and was surprised to see Higashino Hibiki on TV. "Ah? Higashino!"

"What Higashino? This is clearly Tori Akino Mirai-sensei," the girl retorted.

"Yes, yes," Nishimura replied perfunctorily, having forgotten to buy cigarettes, and asked the shopkeeper, "Where is this?"

On the television screen, Hibiki Higashino was wearing a suit, his jet-black hair combed on top of his head, with only two short strands hanging down on either side of his forehead, making him appear both composed and charming.

The young cashier was captivated, her eyes glued to the television screen.

Nishimura touched his bald head again, his mood plummeting.

Compared to the dazzling Higashino Hibiki, he, a peer, appeared to be more than ten years older.

The girl ignored him and gave a perfunctory reply, "Of course, it's an award from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs."

"An award ceremony by the Agency for Cultural Affairs!" Nishimura asked in surprise, "Another award ceremony?"

"Do you also like Mr. Toriakino?" the girl asked unexpectedly.

“It’s a little strange to say I like it,” Nishimura scratched the back of his bald head, “but there’s nothing wrong with it.”

"Akino Toriyama's *Slam Dunk* won first place in the manga category of the 'Japan Media Arts 100 Awards,' and the awards ceremony was broadcast live. He's truly amazing! *Death Note* and *Puella Magi Madoka Magica* were also in the top 10."

The girl defended Higashino Hibiki; actually, Death Note was ranked 11th, its honor stolen by Puella Magi Madoka Magica.

"Ah," Nishimura exclaimed, his mouth agape, "How come I didn't know?"

The girl chattered on, "Even the main character in 'Bakuman' got sick, so the real-life Akino-sensei must have had it even harder. He worked so hard to win the crown, he's truly amazing..."

Nishimura nodded blankly.

……

"How come I didn't know!"

Higashino's ears perked up, and he held his phone far away. "Nishimura, what don't you know?"

"Of course, it's 100!" The midday sun shone directly on Nishimura's bald head, but he didn't care. As soon as he walked out of the supermarket, he called Higashino Hibiki to question him.

"Ah, this?" Hibiki Higashino said with a smile, "How's your video production going?"

He had forgotten about Nishimura. After all, there were so many people around him, and if he notified them one by one, it was inevitable that he would miss characters who had not shown up for many years.

Nishimura was successfully influenced by Hibiki Higashino, and he was extremely proud of it, saying, "Of course I succeeded! I have 3 fans now!"

"Oh! You're amazing."

"I can earn 30 yen a month from videos."

"Amazing, amazing."

Under Higashino Hibiki's flattery, Nishimura smugly forgot about the 100th selection.

"Okay, let's talk again next time."

He licked his lips, reluctant to stop talking, and hung up the phone.

"Huh? What was I about to ask? Never mind."

He hopped on his motorcycle and sped home.

"Get out of here! You can come back when your hair grows back!"

The gentle wife stared at Nishimura's bald head in disbelief, then flew into a rage.

"You bastard, a part of your hair is mine too!"

Her husband, nicknamed "Hard-boiled Egg," is causing her so much distress.

……

Mashiro Moritaka persuaded his girlfriend Azuki Miho and his partner Takagi Akito to work hard on the original manuscript.

When Eiji Niizuma visited him in the hospital, she was relieved to find that Mashiro's gaze still shone as brightly as a manga protagonist's.

Mashiro Moritaka was not defeated; he quickly returned to his studio and started drawing manga.

"It's so exciting!" Soma Satoru thought, looking at "Bakuman." "The mutual respect between manga artists, their relationship of rivalry and friendship, is so captivating. I wonder when I'll ever get my own serialization..."

Watching "Bakuman" made him increasingly itchy.

He's in high school this year, but his writing still hasn't reached the level required for serialization.

Reality is not a comic book; in the end, only Mirai Torino was able to serialize a manga in high school.

Soma Satoru always worked very hard, but the harder he worked, the more he felt the gap between himself and serialized manga artists.

This gap is difficult to bridge.

It's unlikely he'll be serializing it anytime soon.

In the manga "Bakuman," Mashiro Moritaka suffers a relapse of his illness and knocks over the crayon holder on the table.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his body was trembling violently.

Mashiro Moritaka barely managed to control his right hand, enduring the excruciating pain, and with his girlfriend's help, he held a colored pen and began filling in the artwork.

Soma Satoru's eyes widened as he looked at the comic.

"Even if my body is in excruciating pain, I still have to draw comics?"

He felt suffocated.

……

“That’s normal.” Soma Ichiro nodded with a smile.

"If you dedicate yourself to something wholeheartedly, you will achieve a level of focus that is unimaginable to ordinary people."

"The serialization of a comic is the result of years of hard work. After striving relentlessly and refusing to settle for mediocrity, becoming a comic artist means you can't allow yourself to be affected by unexpected events. I would do the same if I were in that situation."

Soma Satoru was shocked by these words.

He thought his desire to become a cartoonist was no less than his uncle's.

Looking back now, I realize I still have a long way to go.

"I'm a stubborn person, you don't need to learn from me, haha."

Worried that he might have corrupted the child, Soma Ichiro quickly tried to smooth things over, saying awkwardly, "Well... well, health comes first."

Afterwards, Satoru Soma looked up some information.

For example, Yoshihiro Togashi endured back pain and drew manga while lying down.

Even before his death, Osamu Tezuka continued to draw manga.

He underwent a baptism.

Chapter 402 Sasaki, the Unexpectedly Blamed One

When Sasaki Naoki, the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jump, learned that Mashiro Moritaka was ill, he came to the hospital room and demanded that Suspicious Detective Trap immediately cease publication until Ashirogi Muto and Yumeha graduated from high school.

A new author's comics will inevitably be canceled if they take a long break from publication.

The latest episode of "Bakuman" immediately sparked heated discussions.

"Mashiro is the best: Sasaki is treating me differently, I'll retaliate in kind, and I'll pay him back double! (laughs)"

After the anime "Hanzawa Naoki" ended, the phrase "double payback" became a popular saying, and many people used it as a meme.

The comments section under this post became a playground for memes.

"Hanzawa Naoki's two superiors, Asano Tadashi and Higashida, colluded to betray the bank. Owada was also involved in using his own money to pay off his wife's debts. Sasaki bullied Mashiro Moritaka, so as the editor-in-chief, he must also have problems. He should be bowing and scraping and apologizing!"

"Haha, everyone's ideas are really interesting."

Many people didn't take it seriously, thinking it was just a test for the protagonist.

Mashiro Moritaka and Takagi Akito went through many hardships and drew four short stories before they finally had the opportunity to serialize them.

During this time, they gave up their studies, gave up time to be intimate with their girlfriends, argued, worked as assistants to others to learn, and struggled day and night.

So this setback in the story is actually nothing.

Readers have long been used to it.

Of course, there are also some people who thrive on chaos.

"Is Toriakino Mirai doing this on purpose? Because Torishima Kazuhiko spoke ill of him, she's belittling Jump."

"He's really cunning."