My girlfriend is Kusunoko Saiki

"Hey, even though the production team is so busy recently, I still know what's happening in the comics industry. As JUMP's ace writer, you can't just stay here. Don't worry, leave the animation to us."

"Then I'll leave it to you. I'll leave right away."

After expressing his gratitude to Team Leader Matsuyama, Naoto immediately rushed to the editorial office.

No matter what, we can't lose this battle.

Chapter 49: Naoto's Advice

"cheers!"

In a barbecue restaurant, several magazine authors were holding up beer mugs and drinking beer in big gulps.

In front of them, the sizzling barbecue was emitting a fragrant aroma.

Big gulps of beer, big bites of barbecue, so happy.

"Ha! This is so refreshing! This time, we really made a splash. Those authors from JUMP are no match for us."

"Yes, the reason why this was so successful is mainly because Mr. Yamamoto and Ms. Qinglai are good enough. That ONE is just a lucky guy! How can he compare to us old authors?"

"That's right! The guy who became famous with just one comic is really lucky. He got an animation right after his debut. People like us who have been in the industry for more than ten years haven't even had the opportunity to be adapted into an animation. How can he do that?"

"Once we defeat these JUMP authors, the world will be ours! Hahahaha! Those guys from Sunday are nothing to be afraid of!"

A group of people were having a great time in a private room of the barbecue restaurant. They seemed to have already imagined the day when they would become famous cartoonists in the future.

These words sound as if the recent suppression of JUMP is due to them.

"Eh? Miss Qinglai? Why aren't you eating? Come on, come on, let's eat together! It's a day worth celebrating, it's not good to have a gloomy face."

Right in the middle of a group of big men, there was only one woman sitting there, looking out of place.

The woman called Miss Qinglai was filled with worry as she looked at these drunken men.

Qinglai is different from their optimistic attitude.

She has also carefully observed JUMP's recent situation.

In fact, aside from Naoto, who was dragged down by the animation, there are several other manga artists worth noting.

Take Eiji Niizuma for example. Although this is only his first comic, his imaginative plot structure and orthodox plot development have made his recent works better and better.

From being slightly unfamiliar at the beginning to being an extremely mature structure now, the speed of its growth is simply astonishing.

In Qinglai's opinion, it is not an exaggeration to call it the second ONE.

And ONE is an even more formidable opponent.

There are currently two works, each of which is a very exciting story.

No matter which comic book it is placed in, it is ace level.

The fact that the other party became so popular and was turned into an animation was definitely not a fluke.

How could a comic book author who became famous in his teens succeed just by luck?

As for the rest, such as Yacheng Mu Mengye, although their stories have declined seriously recently, they were still very interesting before.

I can only say that he doesn't have a very good grasp of the main story. If he can continue to develop it for a few more years, he will not be a T0 or T1 level cartoonist, but at least T2.

Facing such a group of people, a temporary victory is completely meaningless.

And because there is currently no leader among this group of writers, they are unable to launch an effective counterattack.

If someone could lead them to boost morale, they might be even more terrifying than they are now.

"I hope there won't be people like that in JUMP."

While Qinglai was worried, Naoto had already rushed to the JUMP editorial office without stopping.

The purpose of his visit this time was to discuss something with the editor-in-chief.

And when Naoto came up to him, even the editor-in-chief was a little surprised.

"Editor-in-chief, I think we can't go on like this. The other magazines are going too far now. Is there anything I can do?"

"Under the current circumstances, there is really no good way to fight back against the other two magazines. We have thought of several possibilities, but they were all rejected by the upper management. At present, it seems that we can only increase the publicity efforts and then find a way to break the deadlock. What do you think about this matter, Naoto-kun?"

Although Editor Sasaki is a long-time editor-in-chief of JUMP, he does not have any pedantic ideas.

Even when facing a young man like Naoto, he didn't get angry or do anything directly. Instead, he listened to Naoto's ideas.

"I personally feel that the biggest problem with JUMP right now is that the authors are almost at their limit and are unable to muster their strength to launch a counterattack. The problems of various authors have been greatly exposed in this short period of high-intensity updates."

"Oh? I didn't expect you could actually see that?"

The editor-in-chief looked at Naoto with some surprise at this moment. He didn't expect that Naoto, who was so young, could actually see the biggest situation of JUMP at the moment.

That's right, the biggest problem with JUMP right now is that the quality of the authors' works has begun to decline. This is the most serious problem. If it weren't for this reason, JUMP would have been able to make several comics popular with its strong promotion.

Think about it, wasn’t Demon Slayer also made popular in this way?

The same operation was used by the original magazine on Attack on Titan, and even on works such as The Seven Deadly Sins. While the quality of the works was stable, they directly invested resources to become the leader of their own comics. This was not a difficult task for the major magazines.

But the most important thing is that the quality has begun to decline.

At present, except for Eiji Niizuma, all other authors have begun to experience adverse reactions, especially the youngest, Tsuchiya and Akito, who now even want to vomit when the comics are mentioned.

No matter how much of a hobby you have, you probably won’t be able to stand doing it for so many days in a row.

Even his new wife...has started to get irritable lately.

When something becomes less interesting, it may be really painful.

Naoto naturally knew about this kind of thing. After all, when he was taking the exam, he had tried high-intensity drawing.

During that period, I really wanted to vomit whenever I saw paintings.

Of course, Naoto naturally has a way to deal with the current situation.

"Then, editor-in-chief, I suggest that all cartoonists and assistants be gathered together now. This will allow the authors to help each other and allow everyone to concentrate on completing their own works. The authors who still have spare energy can help those who cannot. This is no longer a battle between our cartoonists."

"This kind of thing..."

"Also, I suggest temporarily shutting down JUMP's current internal rankings. I'm sure you know the current situation. If we continue with the internal rankings, I'm worried that some authors won't be able to survive."

After Naoto made his suggestion, the editor fell silent.

Shutting down the current JUMP internal rankings? This kind of thing would probably cause a huge shock even to Shueisha.

Chapter 50: Stormy

"Do you know what it means to temporarily shut down the popularity rankings of JUMP Weekly?"

When faced with Naoto's proposal, the editor's first reaction was that it was crazy.

That's right, crazy.

In JUMP, which is arguably the most competitive company in the industry, shutting down the elimination system, even if only for a period of time, is crazy enough.

To use an inappropriate metaphor, it is almost like a country throwing away all its death sentences. Now the editor dare not imagine what consequences this will cause.

Moreover, there are only so many serialization positions in JUMP. If no one is eliminated, it means that there will be no new comics to be serialized. In this kind of situation, who will be responsible if something goes wrong?

Even he, the editor-in-chief, could not guarantee that he would be able to take the blame in the end.

"I know, but if we continue to eliminate authors like this, it will only be more disadvantageous to us. It's okay under normal circumstances, but given the current situation, I'm afraid those authors at the end won't be able to hold on. Editor-in-chief, you should understand."

Faced with Naoto's words, Editor Sasaki remained silent.

For JUMP, the last-elimination elimination system is a double-edged sword. It ensures the vitality of JUMP, but it also makes the authors physically and mentally exhausted.

What happened back then is still a thorn in his side.

If it were a normal situation, he would naturally show no mercy to the author who couldn't hold on.

But the current situation is that the authors, at the request of JUMP, are competing against the other two comics. If by doing so, these authors who have put in a lot of effort are eliminated, wouldn't that be disappointing to everyone?

Even more extremely, it is not impossible that some authors fled or even lost their lives because of this.

Moreover, it is like a war at the moment. It is really hard to accept the temporary replacement of generals. Without guaranteeing that the newcomers can bear it, keeping the old ones is the safest way at present.

"So, how long will it take you?"

"One month, at most one month!"

After seeing that the editor-in-chief showed some signs of relenting, Naoto quickly spoke to the editor-in-chief.

Although one month is still a short time for Naoto.

But it's good to give everyone some time to relax. Naoto also knows that it is impossible to close this list for a long time.

It can take as long as one day.

After hearing Naoto's promise, the editor-in-chief then picked up the phone.

At this time, Naoto noticed that the editor-in-chief's expression became very respectful after the call was connected.

Obviously, the person opposite should be a senior executive of Shueisha.

"Yes, yes, I understand. Let's do it then. Okay."

After the call, the editor-in-chief looked noticeably more relaxed. Perhaps even he himself had not expected that things would go so smoothly.

"That's it. One month. If you can't do it, there's no other way."

"Thank you editor-in-chief!"

Naoto was delighted to see that the editor actually agreed to this request.

He originally thought that it could be delayed for two issues at most, but it actually lasted a month.

It can be seen that this time, even the top executives of Shueisha began to have a headache about this matter.

But Naoto was a little curious about who the person opposite the editor-in-chief was. He was able to make the final decision so easily. This kind of courage and power should not be something that ordinary shareholders can do. It's really curious.

"Then, let's arrange the centralized training at the JUMP editorial office, so that we can get timely feedback on everything, whether it's handover or anything else."

"By the way, Editor-in-Chief, I have a small request. I wonder if I can..."

"If you have anything to say, just say it directly."

As for any other requests Naoto may have, the editor has let it go.

Anyway, no matter how big this request is, it can't be more exaggerated than suspending JUMP's ranking.

At this time, Naoto quietly said a few words to the editor-in-chief, and the editor-in-chief fell silent again.

The editor-in-chief looked at Naoto and suddenly felt that he was at a loss. What on earth was going on in this guy's brain? How could he always come up with so many crazy ideas?

In the afternoon, not only the entire JUMP editorial office, but even the entire comics industry was shaken.

When everyone heard that JUMP was going to close the popularity chart for a month, almost everyone was shocked.

Although the information JUMP gave to the outside world was that there was a fatal flaw in JUMP's own statistical data and it would take some time to rectify it, everyone with a discerning eye knew that JUMP was going to burn its boats and start a war against the other two comics.

No one had expected such a tragic level.

You know, in this time and space, even when the competition among the three companies was the most intense, JUMP never closed its popularity rankings. The last-in-last elimination system is almost as old as JUMP itself.

JUMP, this time he actually used this trick. It felt like he was a madman who wanted to take a few people down before he died.

However, unlike the opinions of the crowd outside, the editors and cartoonists at JUMP were extremely surprised.

Especially after knowing that Naoto entered the editor-in-chief's office, the editor-in-chief immediately issued such an order, and even asked to make room for cartoonists to create. You can tell whose idea this was even with your toes.

After realizing this, many editors and cartoonists were full of admiration for Naoto. They had never dared to even think of such a thing before.

Zhiren actually dared to go to the editor-in-chief? And he succeeded?! Isn't this a god?

The most excited ones are the cartoonists who are about to be killed.

Although there is only a month left, and even if the series still cannot be broken away from, at least I can make my work more fully completed and not end so hastily.

For these cartoonists, Naoto is like their savior.

Although Naoto himself didn't think so, after all, his original purpose was just to let everyone relax and not collapse directly due to excessive fatigue.

How did he become the idol of all cartoonists out of nowhere? This is too ridiculous.

Now that Naoto knows about this, he feels like he is going to dig out a three-bedroom apartment with his toes.