Tokyo 1970: I'll draw Doraemon?

Morimoto was completely convinced.

……

Fushimikawa noticed that the impact of "Confessions" was growing, and even a reporter from the Tokyo Shimbun wanted to interview him.

Let's talk about the creative process of using a realistic style.

But Fushimikawa noticed that everyone's attention was focused on the new style, and not many people were discussing the plot of "Confessions".

This is clearly a wonderful comic, containing a great deal of his effort.

The director of "Confessions" in the previous life put a lot of effort into the film; it was a labor of love, and every shot had its purpose.

Fushimikawa could not possibly remember all the details; he could only do his best to present "Confessions" as perfectly as possible and wait for everyone's evaluation and feedback.

But to his surprise, no one was discussing the highly controversial plot; instead, they were focusing on the art style.

It's quite unusual that the most popular comics on the market aren't being discussed about their content.

This left Fushimikawa both amused and exasperated.

"I'll wait a little longer," was all he could think.

Putting down his comics, he decided to meet with a reporter from the Tokyo Shimbun.

I wanted to use him to convey my thoughts and also to let the cartoonists above calm down.

Chapter Fifty-Three: Confession

"Please wait a moment, the teacher is on his way back," Hirokane Kenji said to the reporter as he put down his tea.

He hadn't been at the studio long when he heard a knock on the door.

At the door stood a middle-aged stranger, carrying a crossbody bag and a camera. He had a refined appearance and a gentle demeanor, and said he had arranged to interview Mr. Oikawa in advance.

Hirokane Kenji had heard about this, and after seeing his press pass, he invited him into the studio to wait.

After carefully storing away the unpublished storyboards and manuscripts, he began to entertain the reporter from the Tokyo Shimbun.

"Thank you so much for all your hard work," reporter Otsuka said gratefully. "I'll just sit here and wait; you don't need to bother."

"Well, the teacher will usually be back in about half an hour." After giving this last instruction, Hirokane Kenji went off to draw his manga.

He's currently drawing a short comic called "Wind and Scent".

The story revolves around a male protagonist who is tired of repetitive sales pitches and back-office socializing. He wants to live a simple and peaceful life with his girlfriend from the countryside, but he can't give up the prosperity of the big city. He can only waver between them and constantly suffer internal conflicts.

The target of the submission was Shogakukan's youth magazine, "BIG COMIC".

"The teacher's realistic style suits me so well."

Hirokane Kenshi sighed inwardly.

He was really lucky to meet the perfect teacher at the age when he was most creative, a teacher who could help him unleash his talents to the fullest.

If it were a decade or two later, when he was middle-aged and unable to change his habits, and then encountered "Confessions," it would be too late.

"Shh!"

With that thought in mind, he gathered his thoughts and started drawing with the G pen.

Looking at him, Otsuka nodded involuntarily.

If you want to achieve something, you have to work hard.

He took out the prepared question draft, read it several times, then took out "COM" and started reading "Confessions" again.

……

The comic begins with a group of students drinking milk.

Some of them were innocent, some were youthful and cute, and some had fierce looks.

The classroom was noisy and chaotic. Despite the fact that their female teacher, Yuko Moriguchi, was giving a lesson, the students openly fought and bullied the weak.

"In literature, milk represents innocence, purity, and a sense of security. It is a symbol of fragile beauty and is often used to highlight darkness."

Otsuka meticulously analyzed the manga's oppressive atmosphere.

Aside from the unsettling light coming through the windows, the entire film is dominated by a heavy blackness—the students' uniforms, the teachers' clothes, and the overall dim environment.

Milk amplifies this point, which can make people feel very uncomfortable.

The tone of the work was set from the very beginning.

This comic is probably not very wholesome.

If elementary school students saw this, they would probably cry, right?

Teacher Yuko Moriguchi ignored the students' noise and continued talking until she announced that she would be resigning at the end of the month, at which point the noise stopped abruptly.

Then came...

A roar of cheers erupted from the hall.

It's perfectly normal for teenagers to dislike those who discipline them. There was a case where a female student, seeking revenge on a male teacher who scolded her in class, texted him saying she wanted to die. The teacher rushed to the hotel she specified, and the girl used this incident to ruin his reputation.

This caused Yuko Moriguchi to be very cautious about contact with male students, and she would ask male teachers to handle related issues.

The students angrily accused the teachers of not trusting them, but they certainly didn't deserve to be trusted.

Dark clouds covered the sun, and Yuko Moriguchi began to tell her story.

Her fiancé is the renowned teacher, Masayoshi Sakuramiya.

Before the wedding, Yuko Moriguchi discovered she was pregnant, and then came even worse news: due to her previous promiscuous lifestyle, Masayoshi Sakuramiya contracted an infectious disease.

The students were terrified. In their ignorance, they thought that shaking hands, coughing, sneezing, or breathing the same air could all lead to infection.

However, she also expressed her dissatisfaction with Yuko Moriguchi's decision to only have children and not marry Masayoshi Sakuramiya.

Yuko Moriguchi still loves Masayoshi Sakuramiya and laments that Masayoshi, who loves beauty, is unable to be with children due to an infectious disease.

However, children of patients with infectious diseases suffer more severe harm than children from single-parent families.

Due to her work commitments, Yuko Moriguchi has little time to spend with her daughter, Aimi, as she grows up, and her love for her daughter only grows stronger with each passing day.

Her life settled into a peaceful and orderly routine.

Everything changed this year when the nanny fell ill. Yuko Moriguchi brought her child, Aimi, to school and left her in the infirmary, waiting for her to finish her meeting so they could go home together.

As a result, the child fell into the water and died.

Yuko Moriguchi recounted her sorrow with a blank expression.

But some students mocked those who cried for it.

Can this kind of child really be educated well?

Yuko Moriguchi did not believe the police's judgment; she was certain that her daughter could not have died from accidentally falling into the water.

Suppressing her grief, she began her investigation, and that's how it started.

Facing the bewildered students, she remained calm:

“Aimi is dead, but it wasn’t an accident. She was murdered by two of you.”

A man named Watanabe Shuzo was smugly confronting his beautiful mother who was questioning him.

"Phew~ This guy is a real bastard!"

Even though he had read "Confessions," Otsuka was still very angry at this moment and wanted to rush into the manga and beat up Shuya Watanabe.

He's starting to worry that Yuko Moriguchi, who claims she "wants to kill him," might forgive Shuya Watanabe's mistakes because of the influence of the author, Oikawa.

After all, the manga had already laid the groundwork, showing that Watanabe Shuya's descent into darkness was due to his teacher, Moriguchi Yuko's, lack of understanding and the harm she caused him.

He used to be a student who expected his teacher to praise him.

"If that's the case, that would be disgusting."

The Japanese have a history of ruthlessness and fear retaliation, so they hope to receive forgiveness from others.

Such scenes often appear in my own literary works.

Therefore, the probability is very high.

Otsuka scratched his head, considering whether he should ask Oikawa-sensei about the future development of the plot of "Confessions".

Just then, the door was pushed open.

A handsome guy from Aichi Prefecture appeared at the door.

A smile played on his lips as he chatted and laughed with the pretty girl beside him.

"Okay." Otsuka thought to himself: Your manga is making me almost depressed, but you're so happy. That's really too much.

The comedy master brings joy to the audience, but keeps the sadness to himself.

The horror cartoonist, however, remained cheerful on his own, causing pain to his readers.

"Hello, you must be Reporter Otsuka? I'm Oikawa Ji. I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting."

Fushimikawa originally planned to meet Otsuka during his free time on the weekend, but the man couldn't stand it and said he would come to the studio.

Thus, today's rushed solo interview came about.

"It's me who's causing you trouble during the week, teacher. I'm so sorry."

Otsuka stood up and shook hands with Fushimikawa.

"Let's get started. I still have some comics to finish in a bit."

Fushimikawa said it bluntly.

“That would be perfect.” Otsuka and Fushimikawa sat down facing each other, and he took out his notebook to record the conversation.

“I once read a young writer’s account of how American animators would bring in fawns to keep in the factory area in order to better complete ‘Bambi’. They would also observe and sketch other animals’ subtle movements, such as twitching ears, wagging tails, and chewing, to make the animation as realistic as possible.”

"The American spirit of craftsmanship is evident in their dedication to creating masterpieces, regardless of cost. This is where we Japanese lose out; we always settle for mediocrity and don't respect animated works."

"Although I don't quite agree with his subsequent comments, compared to the 13-year-old child you wrote about, that young writer is much more mature and kind."

"But over the years, we've gradually lost touch with him, and we don't know what he's been doing."

'I'm being interviewed by you.'