Tokyo 1970: I'll draw Doraemon?

"I'm counting on you for everything."

Fushimi Kawa rolled over and pinned her down.

"Wait!" Fujiwara Maki exclaimed quickly, "There's something in the bedside drawer..."

Biting her lip, shy and hesitant, she whispered in a voice barely audible, "Full size."

……

In the early morning, as he turned over, Fushimikawa touched smooth skin.

It's smoother than silk, so smooth that you can't put it down and never get tired of holding it all day.

Fujiwara Maki was still sleeping peacefully. Looking at her sleeping face, Fushimikawa felt incredibly at ease and happy.

Half an hour later, Fujiwara Maki woke up.

Worried that her younger sister would see her, she covered her face and chased Fushimikawa away.

After leaving the Fujiwara residence, he was on his way to his studio.

Fushimikawa was still in a good mood.

He looked at the passersby on the street, wishing he could greet them and shout "Good morning!"

Maintenance workers were pruning tree branches by the roadside. Fushimikawa walked to the fence and saw a tree branch that was about one meter long and two centimeters thick, just the right size to hold in his hand.

The main feature is a section of tree burl about 10 centimeters from the branch, which looks like a special hand guard.

This is simply a miracle product.

"Um, um," Fushimikawa said cheerfully, waving his hand, "can I have it?"

“Sure,” the middle-aged man working turned around, revealing a kind smile, “It’s just trash that’s going to be thrown away anyway.”

"Thank you."

Fushimikawa held the "magic weapon" and waved it around in his hand for more than ten minutes before realizing that he couldn't walk back to his studio and had to take the subway or a taxi.

……

"What's that wooden stick used for?"

While drawing, Eiko Ueda couldn't resist any longer and pointed to the wooden stick next to Fushimikawa's workstation, asking curiously.

“Well, well,” Fushimi said thoughtfully, arms crossed, “our studio selects the most hardworking person every quarter, and the winner gets to keep it for a period of time as proof of their hard work. Pretty good, right? Hahaha.”

Eiko Ueda sighed, "Who would want this?"

“It seems there’s no other way,” Akira Toriyama suddenly said, his eyes blazing. “I have to beat you, Ōtomo-senpai!”

Eiko Ueda waved her hand: "Take it and use it yourself, Otomo..."

“I will not lose!” Katsuhiro Otomo stood up, responding firmly to Akira Toriyama’s challenge.

"The first place winner from Oikawa Studio, that Kurano Maru, will only belong to me!"

"How come even you..." Ueda Eiko complained, "and you've even come up with a name? Are you guys really that childish?"

Akira Toriyama explained, "Ueda-senpai doesn't understand. Actually, ever since I entered the room, I've been looking at that magic staff. It's truly a masterpiece of craftsmanship. Every detail looks like it was carved by hand, yet upon closer inspection, it's full of traces of natural growth. What an amazing artifact!"

Eiko Ueda was speechless: "The magic staff..."

"Senior Otomo, you're so cunning! You kept drawing on your own while I was explaining! Ah!"

The boisterous Akira Toriyama quickly sat down and began drawing the background for "Naruto".

Seeing this lively scene, Fushimi Kawa smiled, and even picked up the Setsaiken and started waving it around in a moment of self-satisfaction.

"Ah Chuan, you seem very happy..."

Asano Megumi, who had been observing from the sidelines, smiled as she looked at Fushimi River's face.

……

Naruto and Parasyte continued to be serialized smoothly as planned.

Following the "Land of Waves Mission Arc" is the "Chunin Exams Arc".

With Fushimikawa rarely drawing side stories and constantly advancing the main plot, the written test chapter is underway.

Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro from Sunagakure, along with the twelve Konoha 12, all appeared.

What readers should note is that after activating the Sharingan, Sasuke, who should have been a force to be reckoned with, was actually beaten helplessly by a boy with a watermelon-shaped haircut.

His eyes could see, but his body couldn't keep up with the other person's speed.

If it weren't for the timely intervention of the opponent's teacher, Sasuke might have already been defeated.

This comedic teacher, who is just like the boy with the watermelon rind, said something that shocked everyone.

"Let me tell you, I'm stronger than Kakashi. By the way, my record against him is 50 wins and 49 losses."

This teacher named Kai doesn't seem strong at all; he's just like a random passerby.

Readers are all complaining: "Is Oikawa trying to promote a high-profile character by putting down Kakashi?"

"This guy looks dumb, what's so great about him?"

"Sasuke and Kakashi, this teacher and student pair, are so pitiful. They've all become tools for the new characters."

Adding to the fact that Rock Lee confessed his feelings to Sakura Haruno, readers became even more annoyed with him.

"Don't you even look in the mirror? Forget Sasuke, you're not even as good as Naruto."

Naruto: ...

Naruto has entered a period of steady growth; its performance and popularity among readers are rising slowly rather than suddenly surging.

There is no indication of where it may be.

……

"Don't even think about the idea that Naruto will have problems and its performance will plummet."

In the editorial department of Weekly Shonen Jump, Nagano Nori addressed the editors below him.

As the magazine whose style is most similar to hot-blooded battle manga like "Naruto", "Weekly Shonen Jump" has been significantly influenced.

The ever-increasing issuance volume began to falter, and the previous upward trend was no longer seen.

Weekly Shonen Magazine and Weekly Shonen Sunday are both laughing at Jump, hoping that this former rising star will be defeated by another rising star.

They could all sense the threat posed by Jump.

Future is also making a strong showing. Based on the current trend, the magazine's annual circulation may reach a staggering 50 copies by the end of the year.

Now that these two magazines are fighting, they're happy to see it happen.

Nagano Nori, however, became troubled.

"The good news is that there's only one Naruto manga in Shonen Future, and none of the other manga seem to have the potential to become a huge hit. In other words, the sales of Future are all being driven by Naruto. One man can't carry the whole thing, and Future is prone to problems. Its current success is likely to be short-lived."

Nakano analyzed that his idea was good, and many editors nodded in agreement.

"I heard that Mirai-sha commissioned a piece from Osamu Tezuka, and he accepted. If..." An editor raised his hand, sharing information he had obtained from another source.

One editor countered, "No, Tezuka-sensei hasn't drawn a hit work in a long time, not even 'Leo's Tale'..."

"Stop talking!" Nakano interrupted him. "You have to respect your seniors."

"Yes!"

Their view was obvious: Osamu Tezuka was outdated and not worth worrying about.

Noriyuki Nagano didn't think much of it; even if Osamu Tezuka returned to his peak and created masterpieces, there was nothing they could do.

Ultimately, what matters most about comic magazines is the quality of their serialized works. No matter how many external tricks you use, they can't compare to improving the quality of your own magazine.

"I'm counting on you all to carefully judge the entries submitted for this year's Tezuka Award. Even if the quality is just average, please select talented newcomers," he told the editors.

"Yes!" Many editors stood up, demonstrating their determination to work hard.

"Speaking of manga awards, the results for the selected works in Bungei Shunju should have been announced by now, right?"

"It has nothing to do with us."

The two editors were talking in hushed tones.

That's true. Shueisha doesn't own any seinen magazines. The "Bungei Shunju Manga Award" is an award for adult works and has no connection with Shueisha.

maybe.

……

"As monsters, parasites should be like scattered soldiers or terrorists, but under the pressure of humanity, they have formed an organization and even controlled a city through elections. This unexpected development is really interesting."

The final selection for the "Bungei Shunju Comic Award" is conducted by a panel of literary authors and comic artists.

These veteran authors look down on many entertainment-oriented comics.

Therefore, the winning works of the "Literary Spring and Autumn Cartoon Award" need to contain elements that satirize society and have contemporary value to some extent.

In addition, in order to increase the award's visibility, "Sazae-san" and "Osomatsu-san" won the award.

Now it's Parasyte's turn.

As Shirato Sanpei's voice fell, many voices of agreement rang out.

“In the past two years, the only outstanding youth comic is Parasyte.”

"This manga is truly remarkable. It satirizes many things, such as environmental protection and the relationship between humans and animals. The story is also quite nuanced, with the protagonist Shinichi Izumi's changing mindset and the development of the opposing side all unfolding together, making it feel like a realistically changing world."

"Shinichi Izumi lost a part of his humanity. When he saw the affection between mothers and children, he thought of his deceased mother and was heartbroken, but he couldn't shed a tear. He could only bang his head against a tree until blood slid down his cheeks, and only then did he experience the pain of blood and tears. This story shocked me."

"Ryoko Tamiya's transformation is quite interesting. The child she gave birth to for the purpose of the experiment has actually allowed her to experience maternal love and is becoming more and more like a human. Humans and parasites are originally opposites, but Ryoko Tamiya's existence seems to show that the two sides do not necessarily have to kill each other. If they can understand each other, they may be able to coexist. The same is true for the relationship between humans and nature. Since the revision of the Basic Law on Pollution Control, serious incidents like Itai-itai disease have disappeared from Japan."

Whether they were cartoonists or writers, the judges all praised Parasyte.

The other comics that made it to the final round were simply tossed aside and ignored.

Their opinion is already quite clear: Parasyte will undoubtedly take the top spot in this year's "Bungei Shunju Comic Award".

"Let's begin the vote then," the moderator suggested.

"The results of the selection are..."

"Parasyte, passed unanimously!"