Full-time cartoonist.

Chapter 155

Weekly Shonen Jump editorial department.

A group of editors sat together with their mouths open and their expressions ridiculous.

Bottle Jijiu shook his head in astonishment: "I never expected that he would grow to this extent."

"Yes."

"Let "Soul of Chess" end and start a new serialization. At that time, I couldn't understand it at all."

Several editors continued.

"Well," editor Asada nodded, "After all, "Soul of Chess" was one of the best works on Jump at that time. The sales volume of the single volume is 100 million, and the popularity is quite high."

Because of reading the comic "Soul of Chess", more than 100 million people have learned Go, which is indeed a phenomenal work.

Such a work ended quickly, and it was a great loss on the platform of Jump.

"The editor-in-chief understands Mr. Akino's creative ability, and feels that he is more than that," Bottle sighed, "That's why the serialization of "Slam Dunk" came about, and this work has skyrocketed!"

……

Forty days after the release of the first volume of "Slam Dunk", the news that the sales volume exceeded 200 million immediately caused a huge response.

Newspapers and TV news, overwhelming reports.

Takao Igarashi, editor-in-chief of "Weekly Shonen Magazine", shook his head as he watched.

He became the editor-in-chief of magazine in 1986, and he wanted to surpass the jump that existed in "Dragon Ball" and "Saint Seiya".But after being suppressed for 10 years, there was no hope at all.

When the circulation of the magazine was more than 200 million, the jump has reached more than 600 million, which is a huge gap that makes people hopeless.

But with the end of "Yu Yu Hakusho" and "Dragon Ball", the jump giant lost two thighs and appeared in decline.

As the magazine continues to forge ahead, and because of the serialization of "Kindaichi Juvenile Case Book", the circulation has reached 430 million copies, which is at the peak of history!
Seeing that he can surpass jump and realize his long-cherished wish for many years!

Takao Igarashi looked forward to this moment day and night.

At the beginning of 1996, the gap between the two magazines narrowed to 60 copies, and this trend is also shrinking.

At this time, Nobuhiko Horie stepped down, and Kazuhiko Torishima, a Shueisha hero, came to power.

He implemented a lot of strategies.

Held a training class for cartoonists, strengthened the selection of newcomers, and the weight of Xiaozheng's achievements has been increased...

It seemed to be very effective, and the jump was in full swing for a while, which made Takao Igarashi nervous, and followed Torishima Kazuhiko to start involuntarily, so the situation did not change.

The confrontation between two top manga magazines, I don't know how many years it will last, but no matter what, Takao Igarashi will persevere and defeat Shueisha!

He already has enough determination and high fighting spirit.

But what he never expected was that Torishima Kazuhiko's most incomprehensible trick turned out to be the key to breaking the situation!

It can be called "the hand of God"!
He was caught off guard by the beating, and now his mind is still in a daze.

"The sales volume of the first volume of "Slam Dunk" exceeded 200 million!"

Looking at this news, Takao Igarashi felt bitter in his heart.

Back then, Bird Akino Mirai finished "Soul of Chess" and started a new serialization.He still didn't understand this decision, and felt that Kazuhiko Torishima had lost his head.

Unexpectedly, it was this decision that extinguished his hope.

Another manga appeared on Jump, continuing the glory of the Platinum Age and ushering in a new era, all belonging to the era of Akino Tori.

Thanks to this:

"The circulation of "Weekly Shonen Jump" has exceeded 500 million!"

When the circulation of "Weekly Shonen Magazine" was 430 million, the jump was 450 million, only a gap of 20.

But now, it has been enlarged to 70!
This is already the circulation data of popular magazines!
Today, the potential of the magazine, the potential of Kindaichi, is about to reach the peak, and the jump can no longer be touched!
"As expected of Kazuhiko Torishima," he smiled wryly, letting go of the obsession in his heart.

……

"The single volume of "Slam Dunk" exceeded 200 million copies!" Yamamura Morido heard the news, and his whole body was in a bad mood.

At this moment, he was waiting for a practice match to start in the basketball gymnasium of Nippon Sports University.

Suddenly he heard the students around him mention this with great interest, and seeing their blushing and very happy faces, Yamamura Shoudao's heart twitched.

"It's only been released for forty days, right?"

Forty days to break through 200 million?How does a manga that has only been serialized for 10 months have such a great influence?
Shancun Shoudao was puzzled.

His half-cut manga "Sun Murder Incident" sold only 40 copies in its single volume.

In an instant, he seemed to have eaten a lemon, and it was so sour that he couldn't stand it.

I used to be confident enough to compete with him, and both sides are in the middle of the jump.

But today, one person's work has been cut in half, and he has not thought of a new serialization for a long time, and one person has soared into the sky, leaving his mark on the times.

The gap was so big that he really wanted to beat Niao Akino in the future, and found out the depression at this time.

"As expected of Mr. Akino Tori, you are really amazing." Yamamura's companion, the female college student who invited him to watch the game, Kikuchi Hidemi swayed excitedly, with a blush on her face, very cute.

"I really adore him!"

With 3 minutes left before the start of the game, the atmosphere at the scene became more and more intense.The entire stadium was full of people, and everyone was looking forward to the players entering the field.

Only Shancun guarded the way, his face darkened.

"That guy, Tiao Akino, is not a good guy," Shancun said loudly, waving his hands, "He is always smiling, but he has a bad stomach!"

He finally met a female reader, and his reputation was ruined because of Bird Akino.

"Niao Qiuye!" In his heart, he raised his right hand high and raised his index finger, "It's definitely not a good thing!"

Kikuchi Hidemi narrowed her eyes and looked at him, "I'm going to be angry when you say that, Mr. Akino Tori, huh."

Finally, she turned her head, as if ignoring the mountain village guarding the road.

Shancun wanted to vomit blood, he had never been so depressed like this moment.

He was still an opponent before, but it feels like he has become humbled now.

"I'm sorry," Yamamura bowed his head, "I said something wrong. Mr. Akino Tori is a genius, and he is constantly growing. The stories are getting more and more interesting, and the painters are getting better. He is not satisfied with the status quo, but is looking for infinite possibilities. .”

Although it was from his heart, he blushed to death after saying such a long list.

"Damn bird Akino!"

He could only feel powerless and furious in his heart.

For love, the proud Yamamura Morodo bowed his head.

His heart was crying.

"That's right, what you said is very professional, I recognize you." Kikuchi Hidemi patted Yamamura Morimichi on the shoulder, smiled and nodded in satisfaction, then gave a thumbs up and blinked with one eye.

As if being shot by Cupid's arrow, Morimichi Yamamura's heart skipped a beat.

He started searching, and said more good things about Hibiki Higashino: "Tori Akino started serializing at the age of 18, and has been drawing manga diligently. He is a manga artist with both talent and hard work. "Slam Dunk" is in his The subordinates will definitely climb up and become more and more exciting."

"Yeah!" Kikuchi Hidemi nodded again and again, looking at Yamamura with gentle eyes.

She said: "At the end of this month, the college basketball conference will start. Do you want to watch the game together?"

"Of course!" Yamamura Morido replied quickly, for fear that she would take it back.

He felt warm in his heart, and felt that it was no big deal to praise Higashi Hibiki once in a while.

Bird Akino Mirai is already a genius.

At this moment, the game began.

Players from both sides entered the arena, namely the Meiji basketball team and the Nippon Sports University basketball team.

"The Meiji basketball team really worked hard," Yamamura said with emotion. "We played friendly matches with many schools and won all of them. It seems that they are the favorites to win the championship."

Seeing the high spirits of the Meiji University players, Yamamura recalled their game against the East China Sea basketball team.

It was indeed a fierce game, and it also made him meet Kikuchi Hidemi and fell in love with the sport of basketball.

Under the principle of "fairness, justice, and openness", the players work hard and never give up, which is the charm of sports.

These college students, without the concerns of interests, can reflect this point even more.

Kikuchi Hidemi watched this scene seriously, she also hoped that her team would win.

But recalling that the strength of Meiji University is not inferior to the top four in Tokyo, coupled with the arduous training, she also became anxious.

"Please take care of me."

On the court, Feng Nan, the captain of the Meiji basketball team, shook hands with the opponent with a smile on his face.

"Please take care of me." Yoshimura Teru, captain of the basketball team of the University of Physical Education, shook hands in a friendly manner.

The game is about to start.

……

Kanto University Basketball League.

This is the Kanto area, a student federation formed by the university student union, and also the organizer of the college basketball game.

Every year around this time, it gets busy.

"This year's audience is extraordinarily large." At the meeting, looking at the data, a student federation member said in surprise: "There are many audience appointments for the first round of competitions, which is twice as many as at this time in previous years. .”

He was gearing up and full of motivation.

"There are more and more people who like basketball," said another person, holding his glasses, with a happy expression on his face. "If this continues, maybe it will reach the level of baseball. Maybe in the future, basketball games can also compete with Jiazi. Become the highest level of student sports, just like the park!"

"I'm also looking forward to this day!"

"However, it is still impossible."

"Ha ha ha ha."

There was laughter in the room.

How can there be sports that are as popular as baseball?
Even those who love basketball feel that this is impossible.

"The increase in the popularity of basketball is mainly due to the influence of "Slam Dunk," the president looked at the members on both sides, and said, "It's not because of our efforts, but because of the interesting works of cartoonists, so we still I have to keep working hard. There is still a long way to go to promote basketball in Japan.”

The members present all nodded silently.

At this moment, someone knocked on the door, it was the secretary of the association.

"Director Masamura of the Japan Basketball Association has something important to discuss."

"Please invite him in," said the president.

Not long after, Masamura Satoru, who was in his 40s, walked into the conference room, "I'm sorry to disturb you."

"Our side just ends, so it doesn't have any impact," the chairman asked, "Is there anything wrong with Mr. Masamura?"

"It's the Basketball Association who asked me to tell you something," Masamura said, "As for this year's college basketball competition, you should be in charge of the academy. However, the Basketball Association wants to issue a proposal. Special invitations to this year's college basketball competition Guest, I hope to invite Mirai Tori Akino to the scene. Maybe it will have a great effect."

Seeing the enthusiasm of the students, he smiled triumphantly, and continued: "This time, the single volume of "Slam Dunk" exceeded 200 million. The strong appeal of Mr. Akino Tori shocked the Basketball Association."

"Yeah." Many people nodded.

"I waited in line for four hours at the signing event before I got Mr. Akino's signature."

"You're not bad. I endured the urge to urinate for two hours, and finally almost peed in my crotch."

"Sensei's manga is very interesting, so everyone likes it very much."

They whispered softly, the president knocked on the table, and then fell silent.

"Ahem," Masamura Satoru coughed twice, and continued, "If Akino is invited to be the special guest, it will be good for the audience, as well as us. Presumably, more tickets will be sold. ... Cough, it has attracted more viewers."

"We understand the idea of ​​the Basketball Association." The president murmured lightly, "Please wait a moment, we need to discuss something."

"Yes, sorry to bother you."

The director of the basketball association left the meeting room, and the president's smile drooped.

"Is the consideration primarily of interest, not of gratitude?"

He disdains what adults think.

"However," someone raised his hand, "everyone will be happy if Mr. Akino Tori participates. Maybe the teacher is also looking forward to watching the competition up close."

The president pinched his chin, thinking deeply.

"That's right, I also hope Mr. Akino Tori will be the special guest. Our school's basketball team will definitely be very excited!"

"Maybe it will inspire the teacher."

"This basketball game must be memorable."

Members of the Student Federation spoke one after another.

"Then let's vote with a show of hands," the president said, "The one who agrees, raise your right hand."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone raised their right hands, even his own arm was raised high.

"Then unanimously pass," the president smiled.

Afterwards, they discussed which games Hibiki Higashino would be invited to, and finally decided that they were the two most important games, the decisive battle in Tokyo and the championship and runner-up in the national competition.

……

Tunghai University Gymnasium.

The members of the basketball team did not rest, honing the formation taught by the coach.

"The national competition is about to start," Ma Chang patted his chest, "Recently, my heart is beating so fast, and my whole body has become tense. It's really bad."

"Me too," Xiao Lin nodded, "Although everyone has worked hard, when it comes to verifying the results, it is inevitable to be nervous."

"There is no need for this," Ye Shen said with a straight face: "We work harder than anyone else, we sweat more than anyone else, we must win! Dominate the country!"

"Oh! Dominate the whole country!" Everyone cheered, and their aura increased visibly to the naked eye.

At this moment, the manager of the basketball team ran over.

"Big... big news! Ming... The results of the friendly match between Meiji and Sports University are out!"

She was out of breath with exhaustion, but she managed to speak out.

Everyone was waiting with anticipation, what happened to such a two-party strong team?

"78:124!" The manager stood up and said loudly, "Sports University wins!"

In an instant, everyone present widened their eyes.

"That mighty Meiji University is actually behind by so many points?" Baba moaned in disbelief, "What kind of monster is the sports university basketball team?"

(End of this chapter)