「CHAPTER 10」
After safely finishing the storyboard, he began drawing immediately. This time,
he was ahead of schedule since his work was going smoothly. After he drew most of the
manuscript, he called up his assistants, but Yanase also came and acted as usual. Because
they had extra time, Yanase was training the other assistants with their techniques.
Remembering the conversation the other day, Yoshino observed them and saw that
Nozomi was gazing at Yanase with loving eyes.
She really does like Yuu…
He began feeling bittersweet the more he watched her innocent behavior.
“…-sei, Sensei, are you listening?”
“Eh? What?”
“I knew it, you're not listening. I said, I finished drawing in the minor characters
in this manuscript I'm holding, so what should I do next?”
“Oh, really? Then how about we take a break for a while? It's perfect timing to do
it now. Everyone should take a break after finishing some part of their work.”
“Oookay.”
“Oh, yes. Let's have a tea break with the cake Nozomi-chan brought us. Is
everyone okay with coffee instead of black tea?” Yoshino said as he wiped the tip of his
pen, put it down, and quickly, but making sure not to spill, closed the ink jar. This was
the appropriate time to take a break. Work effectiveness would increase that way.
“I'll make coffee.”
Without waiting for an answer, Yanase got up, and Yoshino called after him.
“Thanks for that. There are new flavors on that shelf, so use your favorite.”
“Mhm, okay.”
After Yanase looked at the coffee beans, he began to drip the coffee beans in the
usual manner. Yanase wasn't thinking of Yoshino and the others as he did this. He was
picky about coffee (actually, picky about all food in general), so he didn't want to let
Yoshino and the other assistants to get in his way. When he was busy, he made do with
instant coffee and take-out food for meals, but when he had time, he cooked his meals.
As Yanase passed around the cups of freshly made coffee, he inadvertently spoke.
“Ah, that reminds me. I started working as a temp for Ijuin-sensei.”
“Ijuin-sensei? Do you mean the Ijuin Kyo?”
“Yeah. That Ijuin-sensei.”
“Eh-!? Seriously?” Yoshino inadvertently exclaimed, because he was so
surprised. Ijuin Kyo was Yoshino's favorite author who wrote “The☆Kan”. He was a
popular manga artist who had his books serialized with many publishers. But a rumor
went around from his assistants that because he was so busy, working for him was quite
“cruel”. A manga artist's crunch time could more or less be called tremendous, but to call
it cruel was too much. What kind of hell lay before you once you entered that place?
“Yup. His assistants asked me to. It seems that the assistants got into a fight or
something and the ones who worked as regulars quit. Right now, only one newbie, who
can't seem to draw backgrounds, is left.”
“Wow! That's terrible… It'll be hard to find immediate assistants.”
In a sense, it was hard to look for assistants who were specialists in a particular
technique and who had extra time in their schedule. It was probably especially virtually
impossible to find a type of person whom a picky author such as Ijuin approved of.
There are two types of assistants: The first type is in the process of becoming a
professional manga artist, polishing and studying their techniques. They are the types
who help out the already professional manga artists. The other type is called professional
assistants who make their living doing assistant jobs as their specialty. This was Yanase's
case. One way to find assistants is to put up a recruitment announcement in the magazine
you publish and on your official homepage. With this, you have a chance of recruiting an
assistant. Other assistants can be found through people you know, and the editor will ask
them if they would like to contribute to help. But there was not enough time for that right
now. After lurking around and using personal connections, talk of Yanase must have
come up.
“After they searched everywhere, they came to me. They said I don't have to sign
with them, so I went there to give it a try this month.”
“Ohhh. I see. Ah, but that's really good!”
“Jealous?” Yanase smiled proudly at Yoshino, who was in agony.
“Of course I'm jealous! I want to be his assistant too! I want to see his new
manuscript for ‘The☆Kan’!!”
“What's there for you to do, Chiaki? You need to draw your own manuscript.”
But Yoshino did not back down even though Yanase had a very good point.
“Th- then, get him to sign one of his comics for me!”
He had been half-joking when he said he wanted to go work for Ijuin as an
assistant, but him being a fan and wanting Ijuin's signature was true. One time, Ijuin had
a book signing, but Yoshino had to give up on going because the place was kind of far
away, and the time conflicted with his schedule. When the signing had been in Tokyo,
Yoshino had gone behind Hatori's back and stood in line there.
“Don't be crazy. I want it myself, but I can't ask something like that. Even if I'm
just temporarily working there, I'm still going there to work.”
“That's true…”
Yanase was being reasonable. Even Yoshino himself would probably think badly
of an assistant who had just started working for him and then suddenly asked for an
autograph. It wasn't like Yoshino wouldn't be happy if that assistant said she was his fan,
but when he called up assistants, it meant the deadline was fast approaching and a lot of
work had to be done.
“Hatori…would kill you if you ask him to do that. Why don't you try asking the
editor-in-chief?”
“That's impossible. He would refuse to do it…”
Yoshino couldn't ask such a bold request. For starters, he felt it would be a small
problem for his image if people found out that the delicate and shy, shoujo manga artist
“Yoshikawa Chiharu” liked a big-boned shounen manga artist.
“Then give up.”
“Damn it… Ijuin-sensei, won't you come to a signing one more time? To Tokyo,
no, even Nagoya would be fine. I'll find time to go there.”
An assistant muttered with admiration as she watched the conversation between
Yoshino and Yanase.
“Sensei really likes “The☆Kan”, doesn't he?”
“But it's so interesting! I definitely can't draw like that!!”
“I'd be surprised if you drew that kind of manga, sensei. Every artist has their own
style.”
“When you put it that way, you may be right. You can't always have fun when
you draw.”
Yoshino would read any type of manga. But he was a shoujo manga artist, and
thought the world he created in his comics was the most accurate representation of
shoujo. He wasn't good at drawing other genre and that was precisely why he was
attracted to those other genre of comics.
“Well, the least I can do is tell you about my adventures over there, so look
forward to it as you do your own work.”
“Uwa! I can't wait!”
Yanase's words urged Yoshino to work, and he was glad that he worked unusually
fast on his manuscript.
* * * *
“Good work~”
“Good work. Let's do well again tomorrow.”
“Okay~ But sensei, please complete all your assignments too.”
“Ha ha…I'll try…”
Hearing these stern words, Yoshino forced a smile and saw off the assistants as
they went home. The only one left out of the assistants was Yanase.
Is now a good time to talk about the trip…?
He wanted to suggest that they should include Hatori with them but he was
nervous to say this because he felt like the atmosphere between them today was
extremely awkward. Watching Yanase's complexion, Yoshino nervously began to speak.
“He- hey, Yuu. About the trip…”
“Yeah, when will we go? If Ijuin-sensei has some stuff for me to do, it would be
impossible to go soon, but if we go the month after next month I think I will ask him to
let me off.”
“Tha- that's not what I mean. Umm…I think we have to invite Tori with us after
all. I feel really bad about what happened last time, so…”
“Which time? That crunch time you almost died in?” Yanase asked with a cold
tone of voice; his gaze steady on Yoshino.
“Um…that too, but about the trip, as well…”
Even though Yoshino apologized to Yanase about the trip again right now,
Yanase gave him a cold look.
“Chiaki, do you know what I was angry about?”
“What about…? That I suddenly left that night, right?”
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