Full-time comic artist

Tori Akino has always been very supportive of me, which has given me a lot of motivation. He also taught me professional skills while I was drawing comics. I am so lucky.

At Toriakino Studio, everyone is a friend, with no hierarchy. Oda sees this and remembers it.

However, it would be wonderful if one day my serialized work could surpass that of Tori Akino.

……

It's July 20th, and the professional Go tournament is halfway through.

This time, Xiaochun lost completely.

Including the previous ones, he has lost a total of seven games.

According to the rules of professional Go competitions, he is already allowed to withdraw from the competition.

Looking around the exam room, I saw that Odagiri had just finished his battle; that kid had won again.

In this month, Odagiri only lost two out of twelve matches. He ranked among the top three among the participants.

He has a very high chance of becoming a professional chess player.

Moreover, including the preliminary rounds, his chess skills have continued to improve over the past month.

Xiaochun had been observing this all along.

He waved to Odagiri and walked towards the door.

As he left the competition venue, he turned around, and sure enough, Odagiri was following him.

Xiaochun tossed him the helmet. "Come on?"

"What are you doing, uncle?" Odagiri asked, puzzled.

Xiaochun said, "Didn't you want to go for a drive?"

"Oh yeah, with so many matches, I'd completely forgotten about them."

Odagiri sat in the back seat, holding Koharu's waist, enjoying the whistling wind.

Ten minutes later, the two arrived at a nearby park, parked their car, and took a stroll in the park.

Xiaochun couldn't help but ask curiously, "How long have you been learning Go?"

“It’s been over a year,” Odagiri thought for a moment. “I became interested in Go after watching Hikaru no Go last March.”

"Hikaru no Go?" Koharu smiled, patting Odagiri's head, feeling that his Go journey was not over yet.

The new generation that emerges from within may dominate the future of Go.

“Yes, Hikaru no Go was born because of Uncle.” Odagiri said, looking up.

This is why he is so close to Xiaochun.

In the summer of 1993, if Koharu hadn't guided Akino Mirai, there might not have been a "Hikaru no Go" series, and he might not have come into contact with Go.

I can't imagine myself without playing Go.

"Have you ever seen Bird Akino?" Koharu asked with a smile.

“I’ve met him.” Odagiri swung his hand and strode forward. “I met him at a book signing event. He’s a very handsome and gentle older brother.”

"Hmm." Xiaochun nodded, and said with a complicated expression, "When I first met Tori Akino, he didn't know how to play Go, but now he can beat professional players. He really is a genius."

"I've witnessed his growth firsthand, just like seeing you. Keep going, Odagiri. I've placed my own Go journey on your shoulders, so please don't fail."

Odagiri looked at him with a complicated expression.

He understands firsthand how painful it is to be unable to become a professional Go player.

So he nodded and said seriously, "Yes, I definitely will."

The two strolled around the garden, stopping and starting as they went.

The discussion touched on Odagiri's growth.

"When I first started playing chess, I didn't have many opponents to play against, and I didn't have a teacher to guide me, so my skills improved very slowly."

After some time, when the manga series "Hikaru no Go" reached the point where Sai appeared, I realized that there was actually an online Go game.

You can play chess against players thousands of miles away.

This was the beginning of my progress. After some time, I met a chess friend online, who could also be considered my mentor.

Playing chess with him was the time when I improved the most outside of my graduate school years.

Because of him, I barely qualified to become an auditor.

Actually, I've always wanted to thank him properly. After the professional exam, I plan to contact Mr. Higashino again.

At first, Xiaochun kept nodding, indicating that she was listening.

Seeing that he had been talking for a long time, he picked up his water glass and took a sip.

I had just swallowed when I heard the words "Higashino-sensei".

Suddenly, a burst of air shot out, fine and dense like a watering can, and a rainbow could even be seen in mid-air.

"Who? Who did you say?" he asked incredulously.

“Higashino-sensei, Higashino-sensei,” Odagiri repeated twice.

"What a small world..." Xiaochun murmured to herself.

"It turns out that besides me, there are other people who have entrusted their chess careers to you."

He shook his head, deeply moved.

"Higashino has his own troubles too. It's true that his work makes it impossible for him to find time to play Go. Hmm, I'm at peace with that now."

With the last weight lifted, Xiaochun felt much lighter.

"Do you know Mr. Higashino?" Odagiri asked in surprise.

“Of course we know each other, we’re pretty close.” He waved his hand. “Where are you going? I’ll give you a ride.”

“Back to the Go Institute,” Odagiri said.

"Uncle Koharu, who exactly is Mr. Higashino?"

"Just ask him then, he'll definitely give you a surprise," Xiaochun said mysteriously.

"Tch," Oda said unhappily, "I'll find out someday."

……

They rode their motorcycles back to the competition venue.

But from a distance, I saw a reporter at the entrance of the chess academy.

They might be here to film today's professional exam.

Xiaochun didn't pay attention.

Worried about disturbing the other party, I stopped 30 meters away.

But then he saw the other person walking towards him.

"Hello, I'm a reporter from TV Tokyo. May I have a moment of your time?"

The reporter pointed the microphone at Xiaochun, who looked bewildered.

After realizing what had happened, he began to give interviews to reporters.

The story between Akino Toriyama and his own Go career. More importantly, his evaluation of the "Hikaru no Go" series.

Koharu became increasingly confused, while Odagiri behind her was very excited, which also attracted the attention of reporters.

When asked about their relationship, Xiaochun answered truthfully.

Unexpectedly, the reporter became excited and referred to them as the real-life Tsubaki and Hikaru Shindo.

Even after the reporter left, Xiaochun was still in a daze.

“Uncle, she calls me Hikaru Shindo!” Odagiri was quite happy.

……

In August, Higashino Hibiki saw this interview on television and almost choked.

After asking director Tetsuya Endo, I realized it was for the promotion of the second season of "Hikaru no Go".

Unexpectedly, they found a great gimmick.

"Such a dramatic event is bound to have a climax!" Tetsuya Endo said happily.

"The ratings will be very high!"

As he said, since that news was broadcast, there have been more and more news reports centered around Koharu and Odagiri.

For example, at the Go club, we interviewed the club's long-time customers about their opinions on Xiaochun.

"Xiaochun has always worked very hard at Go. In our clubhouse, he plays against opponents whenever he has one, and when he doesn't, he memorizes Go scores, treating himself like a student in the academy. He is extremely diligent. Moreover, in order to take the professional Go exam, he even gave up his job and went to work as a bricklayer on a construction site. He is truly remarkable."

An elderly man with white hair said this.

On the other hand, there was also an interview with Shinoda, a fourth-dan professional dan, about his opinion on Odagiri.

"He is indeed a child who is improving very quickly, and he also loves playing Go. There are only a dozen or so students as focused as him each year. He has only been learning Go for a little over a year. If I had to say which character he is like from 'Hikaru no Go,' it would definitely be Hikaru Shindo."

The interview has generated increasing buzz.

At the construction site where Koharu worked, neither Odagiri's parents nor anyone else escaped.

Even at Higashino Hibiki's place, reporters came to interview him.

It was late August.

The three participants who have qualified as professional chess players have been selected.

The youngest among them is fourteen-year-old Odagiri!

In this regard, the Go Association directly referred to him in its own newspaper as "the real-life Hikaru Shindo, 1-dan Odagiri".

It's truly remarkable that this young man, amidst the public scrutiny, remained unaffected and maintained an impressive record of only two losses, thus achieving a professional first dan ranking.

During the interview, the reporter asked, "Does Odagiri, a first-dan player, have a Fujiwara no Sai among his followers?"

“I wish I had one,” Odagiri said. “Unfortunately, I don’t. But back then, when I was playing Go online, a gentleman taught me like a teacher. He was my Fujiwara no Sai.”