Full-time comic artist

"If I recover the 500 million loan, then I'll make you kowtow to me and apologize for what happened this time!"

Kito happened to witness the famous scene where Hanzawa Naoki and Asano Tadashi had a falling out; both actors gave outstanding performances.

Asano Tadashi's Sichuan opera-style face-changing act begins with him putting on a bitter face and playing the emotional card, begging Hanzawa to take the blame for the 500 million yen loan. After Hanzawa exposes him, his crying and self-reproachful expression suddenly disappears, and he reprimands Hanzawa with a stern face, acting as his superior.

This smooth transition left Gui Tou speechless with astonishment.

The actor who played Hanzawa Naoki also amazed him. He maintained a resilient demeanor throughout the film, but when he made the other person kneel down, his gaze became resolute and fierce.

In the early stages, when facing Asano Tadashi who sheds crocodile tears, he is able to restrain his performance and highlight the other party's image.

Comics are one thing, but bringing live-action characters to life in a TV series is another.

If the production is good and the actors' performances are strong, it will produce a different kind of stimulating sensory experience than comics.

Kito was completely captivated. He subconsciously reached out and groped on the coffee table, grabbed a bottle of beer, and began to drink heartily while listening to "Hanzawa Naoki".

"boom."

He placed the empty beer bottle on the coffee table and picked up another bottle.

The two bottles of beer I bought for the baseball game were thankfully not wasted.

……

As Hanzawa Naoki faced the impending investigation, everyone in the Ajihei kitchen held their breath.

"coax!"

The kitchen stove, the "engine" of the kitchen, was lit, followed by the clattering sound of fried rice. Someone frowned and looked towards the kitchen, feeling disturbed.

Three minutes later, the chef personally served the fried chicken and fried rice to Higashino Hibiki, then put his hands in his pockets and went to watch "Hanzawa Naoki".

Higashino scooped up a mouthful of fried rice, squinted his eyes, and chewed it happily.

After dealing with the store inspection, Hanzawa investigated Higashida's mistress, Fujisawa Miki, and found Higashida through Fujisawa Miki.

He exuded masculinity, using his cane to knock Dongtian to the ground, the tip of the cane pointing at Dongtian's throat.

"Oh!"

A college student stood up and cheered loudly.

Under the unfriendly gazes of everyone, he awkwardly sat down.

The izakaya was unusually quiet; you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone watched the television with anticipation, but Hanzawa was ambushed by the little woman, causing Higashida, whom he had finally caught, to escape again.

In the rain, Hanzawa lost his usual strength and sat motionless in the mud.

"Banks are like lending umbrellas on sunny days and taking them away on rainy days," Dongtian's words echoed in his mind.

"Sigh." A chorus of sighs followed.

During the interview at headquarters, Hanzawa gave Ogiso a dressing-down and then left Tokyo Central Bank with a flourish.

He loosened his tie, looking quite spirited.

As soon as the episode of "Hanzawa Naoki" ended, all the customers in the theater stood up and gave a long and enthusiastic round of applause.

“Look,” Hiroshi Motomiya said with a smile as he clapped his hands, “everyone really likes Hanzawa Naoki.”

So there's no need to worry.

“Yes,” Higashino nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Honmiya.”

Xiaoxue smiled broadly: "TBS filmed it really well, but the original work is also excellent."

“Yes,” Higashino nodded again, then suddenly realized that the beautiful waitress was still right next to him.

He became uneasy. Had he been discovered?

"That's when I realized that Mr. Toriakino is actually a very interesting person," Koyuki said again.

She meant something.

Higashino Hibiki slapped her forehead. 100 minutes had passed, and she still remembered what she had said—"That's a manga by Tori Akino-sensei, you can't miss it."

He's been caught bragging and now he really wants to crawl into a hole.

"Teacher, please give me an autograph later."

Although Xiaoxue said it with a smile, Higashino Hibiki sensed a hint of threat in it.

“Okay, okay.” Higashino Hibiki raised his hands.

"That's great!" the girl cheered.

……

Applause filled the izakaya. A middle-aged man walked in curiously, looked around, and scratched his head, seemingly at a loss.

Xiaoxue quickly stepped forward to greet them.

The chef walked into the kitchen with a lingering sense of unease, while the others excitedly discussed the plot of "Hanzawa Naoki" with their friends, breaking down what they had just seen in great detail.

The noise inside the izakaya grew even louder.

They forgot about the baseball game, and the atmosphere was exceptionally good.

Hibiki Higashino finished another plate of fried chicken and rice, patted his round belly, and didn't rush to leave. He hadn't signed an autograph for Yuki yet.

He can't let his fans down.

After finishing her work, Xiaoxue took out a formal autographed board. Higashino looked at her in surprise, and she smiled shyly, "There's a book signing event with Mr. Yamamura in two days... Hehe."

He hijacked the mountain village.

Hibiki Higashino experienced the pleasure of NTR.

……

A cool evening breeze blew as Higashino Hibiki returned home, completely satisfied.

The next day, as soon as he got up, he received news about the ratings for the first episode of "Hanzawa Naoki".

"Even with the first episode extended by an hour, it still achieved a high average viewership rating of 23.9%! This is the highest record for a drama series in the same season! TV Asahi's 'Hanzawa Naoki' only had 19.6%, while 'Hanzawa Naoki' surpassed it by a full 4.3%. In the ranking of drama series this season, 'Hanzawa Naoki' is undoubtedly number one!"

The producer's voice was loud and excited, sweeping away Higashino Hibiki's morning laziness.

Despite the combined impact of baseball and volleyball, "Hanzawa Naoki" still delivered a satisfactory result.

The first episode of the previous "Hanzawa Naoki" series had a viewership rating of 19.4%, ranking second in the same season.

Higashino Hibiki doesn't know whether the surge in viewership was due to the manga's popularity or the lack of online streaming.

Having experienced what happened at the Ajihei kitchen, Higashino Hibiki wasn't surprised. He simply said calmly, "Thank you for your hard work."

The producer was extremely surprised and admired Akino Tori's attitude towards the future.

Even after "Benboerba" killed Tang Sanzang and his disciples, his mentality remained as calm as a mirror.

He exclaimed, "He truly has the bearing of a master."

He then told his colleagues in the same production crew, "We're having a celebration party today! We'll make sure you get your bonuses!"

"Great!"

"awesome!"

Dozens of staff cheered, and the building seemed to shake.

The person downstairs, diligently typing on their keyboard, looked up in surprise, "What's wrong with the people upstairs?"

A colleague next to him shrugged and said helplessly, "That's the cast of 'Hanzawa Naoki.' The drama became a huge hit. I'm so envious of them."

……

The viewership ratings for the second episode of "Hanzawa Naoki" were 25.3%, the third episode 26.9%, and the fourth episode 28.3%, and they kept rising without ever falling. The fifth episode, which ended the 500 million yen loan, saw its viewership rating break through 30%, reaching 31.5%, which can be described as a miracle.

Leaving aside the competing products in the same season, even dramas from the millennium have never been as popular as "Hanzawa Naoki," with each episode being so well-received that it's hard to put down.

There are only new viewers, no one leaves.

Every Sunday at 9 p.m., countless families sit in front of their television sets to watch "Hanzawa Naoki" as soon as it airs.

Nobody was watching the women's volleyball finals at the same time.

TV Asahi was devastated, having invested heavily in broadcasting but falling far short of its targets.

"It's all Torino Mirai's fault!"

The sixth episode of "Hanzawa Naoki" tells the story of how Hanzawa is tasked with saving the large hotel after a failed 120 billion yen investment and a 200 billion yen loan from the Tokyo Central Bank goes down the drain.

The series includes his entanglement with his enemy, Owada. The viewership ratings exceeded everyone's expectations. As the old chapter ended and the new chapter began, the ratings did not drop and remained at 31.5%.

Hiroshi Motomiya watched the entire "Hanzawa Naoki" series and became obsessed with it. He even put down the second season of "Kintaro" and watched it with his wife every day.

"This is truly terrifying, the results of 'Hanzawa Naoki' are incredible."

He was very optimistic about the collaboration between Akino Miki and TBS, but was still surprised.

In 2007, "Hanzawa Naoki" was the biggest miracle.

No other TV series can compare to it.

Perhaps in the future, for decades to come, no one will be able to break the record set by "Hanzawa Naoki".

After all, the viewership ratings are still rising.

He had read the manga. In the final chapter, Hanzawa Naoki launches a major counterattack, and Owada kneels down and kowtows in apology. If the actors' performances are up to par, it will definitely surpass many of the current super-explosive data.

“You’re right,” Lady Momiya nodded with a smile, “Tori Akino-kun is much better than you.”

Hiroshi Motomiya's face darkened.

……

Thanks to the immense popularity of the TV series, Hibiki Kagawa told Higashino that the average number of copies of "Hanzawa Naoki" has surpassed 300 million.

The total sales of the four volumes are 13 million.

It currently ranks 10th in total sales of manga volumes in Weekly Young Jump.

"It's all because there are too few volumes of 'Hanzawa Naoki'," the village said wistfully after his pride. "If there were 10 volumes, it would be easy to get first place."

He's still not comfortable with the end of "Hanzawa Naoki".