Ge-ge-ge no nyobou 7/16
a.k.a. sometimes the good guy wins!
Uraki, Shigeru's sneaky friend, grumbled, "You watch. You'll be poor again soon."
Later, Uraki was flat on his back in the kitchen. He had loosened his belt, and had his eyes closed. He groaned, "How many ohagi... how many sweets did I eat?" He opened his eyes, and looked up. Miyako Kanou, Fukuzawa's assistant, stood over him with a bundle in her hands. She said, "Fumie is outside."
Shigeru walked into the room and greeted Miyako. He glanced at Uraki and said, "Get your clothes on." Uraki sat up and pulled his belt tight. Miyako said, "Fukuzawa sent this for you." She handed the bundle to Shigeru.
Later, they sat around the table. Shigeru picked up one of the green ohagi with his chopsticks. Instead of being a bite or two, it was as big as a hand. He said, "These are very big." Uraki said, "It's your fault. Fumie was worrying about you." He stood up and walked behind Shigeru. "What if this new deal of yours fails?"
Miyako frowned. "No, that's not right. You have to believe in your manga, and yourself." Uraki sneered. "Lady, you can't tell Gege that. He's going to fail." She glared at him. "First, he's not going to fail. And second, I am not Lady. My name is Kanou."
Later, after Kanou left and Shigeru went back into his workroom, Uraki sat at the table. He looked up into the air and said, "Cool beauty. She's really cool and beautiful!" Fumie looked at him. "She's not just pretty. She does outstanding work, too." Uraki stood up and said, "Don't you think fall is the season for love?" Then he started to walk toward the workroom. "Hey, Gege, you..." Fumie grabbed his arm, and pushed him down beside the table. "You just sit down right here, and don't bother Shigeru."
At Shonen Land, the other editors were grumbling. "Why don't we just use the stories that we know are good? Get rid of this Mizuki stuff?" Kajiya, Toyokawa's friend, asked, "So what should we do, boss?" Toyokawa stood up, and wrote on the blackboard. 600,000 readers. "We aren't going to settle for what we've always done! That's our target." He slapped the blackboard. "600,000 readers! We're not going to do the same thing we've always done, we're going to do better. And Mizuki is part of that. Now, you need to think about how to make your parts just as good!" He glared at them. "So get on board." Kajiya smiled.
In his workroom, Shigeru was drawing. He stopped, and looked at it. "How do I know this is going to be popular?" He shook his head. "What if..." Then he straightened up. "No. I have to remember, Inui said, it's good, it will pull the kids. I just have to believe in it."
Outside, in the kitchen, Aiko was helping Fumie fold clothes.
At the Shonen Land office, Toyokawa was looking at a postcard. He read the message on it. Just then, Kajiya and one of the other editors came to his desk. "Look, more cards about Mizuki." They handed him the cards, and he looked at them.
Later, in Shigeru's kitchen, Toyokawa sat at the table. Shigeru sat across the table. Shigeru looked at Toyokawa and said, "So, uh... well, are you here to fire me?" Toyokawa pulled a pack of cards and letters out of his briefcase. "No, I just came to show you these." Shigeru slumped. "More cards talking about me scaring their kids, and that they can't eat after reading my manga? I got those before..."
Toyokawa held up the stack and read. "Mizuki Shigeru's manga is great. At last you've got a manga that I really like." He stretched to hand the stack to Shigeru. "These are all from your fans. And they're not just kids, those are high school students, even university students." Toyokawa smiled. "Actually, I want to make Kitaro one of our cornerstone series. But I'll need something more exciting."
Shigeru grinned. "Come back next time for something even more exciting?" Toyokawa tilted his head. "What?" Shigeru said, "That was the kamishibai, the paper theater, ending. Each show ended with a promise of more to come, a cliffhanger." Toyokawa smiled. "Yes, that's what we need."
Later, Fumie set a hotcake and tea in front of Toyokawa. He thanked her, but gently pounded on his thighs and glanced at the closed doors to the workroom. When Shigeru slid the doors open, Toyokawa set the hotcake and tea on the floor.
Shigeru laid a set of quick sketches on the table. "I'm sorry I kept you waiting. But here, these are Kitaro's friends." He pulled out a sheet with an old woman in a kimono. Her wrinkled face grinned through her long hair. "That's Sunakake Baba, the sand-throwing hag." He laid another sheet beside that, with an old man on it. His bald head seemed swollen, and he held a walking stick that was taller than he was. He was dressed in a loose cloth like a baby's dress, and had a straw raincoat thrown over his shoulders. "That Konaki Jiji, the old man who cries like a baby."
Next, Shigeru picked out a sheet with a sketch of a rough wall, with stubby arms and legs, and an eye in the middle of the wall sleepily looking out. "That's Nurikabe, the plastered wall. He gets in your way when you're trying to go somewhere. I met him during the war." Toyokawa glanced up from the sketches. "You mean he's real?" Shigeru nodded. "It certainly felt real in the war."
Shigeru grinned as he put another sheet down. "This is Ittan Momen, the roll of cotton. You can see how tall it is, and it flies!" The sheet showed a white ribbon, with arms, a long tail, and eyes. "Be nice, that one's her." Shigeru pointed at Fumie. "When we first met, I was sitting down, and she was so tall." Fumie hissed at him.
Shigeru slid another sheet onto the table. "This one is Nezumi Otoko." It was the rat man, with his hooded robe puddling around him. He seemed to wrinkle his nose, making his whiskers wiggle. Toyokawa said, "You've drawn him before, haven't you?" Shigeru nodded. "Yes, and he is based on a real person, too."
Shigeru pulled out a sheet and laid it down. It showed an eyeball, with a tiny body underneath. He started to say, "This is..." Toyokawa interrupted him, "Medama Oyaji! The eyeball father. Of course."
Shigeru looked at the sheets laid across the table. "That's enough for now. There are lots of other interesting monsters, though."
Toyokawa shivered. Shigeru said, "Is it that scary?" Toyokawa stood up. "No, I'm just too excited. This is great. I wonder, can we introduce them soon?" He sat down, and they talked about how to introduce the new characters.
Later, Shigeru walked into the pawnshop. Kameda, the pawnshop owner, sat behind the counter. He smiled at Shigeru. "I thought you'd be back. Do you want me to take the television back? I was worried about you spending so much money." Shigeru shook his head. Kameda frowned. "Oh. Well, what else do you want me to take?" Shigeru slapped his hand down on the counter with a stack of claim checks. He slid his hand sidewise, spreading them out. "Kameda, I'm here to get everything back. All of it." Kameda stared. "What?" Shigeru nodded, a tight smile on his lips. After seven years of bringing things to the pawnshop, he was reclaiming his goods for the very first time.
Shigeru pulled a handcart loaded with his goods up to the house.
Inside, he piled pictures, records, cooking pots and pans, and everything else anywhere it would sit. Then he sat down with Fumie. He unwrapped one bundle, and looked at his white suit. "I haven't seen that in so long." Fumie said, "It's pretty wrinkled." Then she unwrapped another bundle, and uncovered her wedding kimono. She picked up the pink dress that her mother had sewed, and pulled out the paper with the wish to return on it that she had put into the package when they took it to the pawnshop. She looked at Shigeru and said, "It did come back." He nodded.
As they were looking at the household goods scattered around the kitchen, the phone rang. Shigeru said, "I'll get it. It might be something about work." He picked up the handset and said, "Yes?" After a moment, he said, "Yes, it's me." Then he said, "Eh?" He listened a moment, then said, "I understand." He hung up the phone. He stared at the floor.
Fumie asked, "Was it about work?" Shigeru said, "Yes, that was Toyokawa." "Something to do with the bank?" "No..." "New work?" He shook his head. "No, not that." Fumie frowned. What else... "Don't tell me they fired you?"
Shigeru turned to her and said, "A prize!" She said, "What?" He shook his head. "I... uh... TV Kid? It won the top prize in the manga association this year. They want to give me an award."
Uraki, Shigeru's sneaky friend, grumbled, "You watch. You'll be poor again soon."
Later, Uraki was flat on his back in the kitchen. He had loosened his belt, and had his eyes closed. He groaned, "How many ohagi... how many sweets did I eat?" He opened his eyes, and looked up. Miyako Kanou, Fukuzawa's assistant, stood over him with a bundle in her hands. She said, "Fumie is outside."
Shigeru walked into the room and greeted Miyako. He glanced at Uraki and said, "Get your clothes on." Uraki sat up and pulled his belt tight. Miyako said, "Fukuzawa sent this for you." She handed the bundle to Shigeru.
Later, they sat around the table. Shigeru picked up one of the green ohagi with his chopsticks. Instead of being a bite or two, it was as big as a hand. He said, "These are very big." Uraki said, "It's your fault. Fumie was worrying about you." He stood up and walked behind Shigeru. "What if this new deal of yours fails?"
Miyako frowned. "No, that's not right. You have to believe in your manga, and yourself." Uraki sneered. "Lady, you can't tell Gege that. He's going to fail." She glared at him. "First, he's not going to fail. And second, I am not Lady. My name is Kanou."
Later, after Kanou left and Shigeru went back into his workroom, Uraki sat at the table. He looked up into the air and said, "Cool beauty. She's really cool and beautiful!" Fumie looked at him. "She's not just pretty. She does outstanding work, too." Uraki stood up and said, "Don't you think fall is the season for love?" Then he started to walk toward the workroom. "Hey, Gege, you..." Fumie grabbed his arm, and pushed him down beside the table. "You just sit down right here, and don't bother Shigeru."
At Shonen Land, the other editors were grumbling. "Why don't we just use the stories that we know are good? Get rid of this Mizuki stuff?" Kajiya, Toyokawa's friend, asked, "So what should we do, boss?" Toyokawa stood up, and wrote on the blackboard. 600,000 readers. "We aren't going to settle for what we've always done! That's our target." He slapped the blackboard. "600,000 readers! We're not going to do the same thing we've always done, we're going to do better. And Mizuki is part of that. Now, you need to think about how to make your parts just as good!" He glared at them. "So get on board." Kajiya smiled.
In his workroom, Shigeru was drawing. He stopped, and looked at it. "How do I know this is going to be popular?" He shook his head. "What if..." Then he straightened up. "No. I have to remember, Inui said, it's good, it will pull the kids. I just have to believe in it."
Outside, in the kitchen, Aiko was helping Fumie fold clothes.
At the Shonen Land office, Toyokawa was looking at a postcard. He read the message on it. Just then, Kajiya and one of the other editors came to his desk. "Look, more cards about Mizuki." They handed him the cards, and he looked at them.
Later, in Shigeru's kitchen, Toyokawa sat at the table. Shigeru sat across the table. Shigeru looked at Toyokawa and said, "So, uh... well, are you here to fire me?" Toyokawa pulled a pack of cards and letters out of his briefcase. "No, I just came to show you these." Shigeru slumped. "More cards talking about me scaring their kids, and that they can't eat after reading my manga? I got those before..."
Toyokawa held up the stack and read. "Mizuki Shigeru's manga is great. At last you've got a manga that I really like." He stretched to hand the stack to Shigeru. "These are all from your fans. And they're not just kids, those are high school students, even university students." Toyokawa smiled. "Actually, I want to make Kitaro one of our cornerstone series. But I'll need something more exciting."
Shigeru grinned. "Come back next time for something even more exciting?" Toyokawa tilted his head. "What?" Shigeru said, "That was the kamishibai, the paper theater, ending. Each show ended with a promise of more to come, a cliffhanger." Toyokawa smiled. "Yes, that's what we need."
Later, Fumie set a hotcake and tea in front of Toyokawa. He thanked her, but gently pounded on his thighs and glanced at the closed doors to the workroom. When Shigeru slid the doors open, Toyokawa set the hotcake and tea on the floor.
Shigeru laid a set of quick sketches on the table. "I'm sorry I kept you waiting. But here, these are Kitaro's friends." He pulled out a sheet with an old woman in a kimono. Her wrinkled face grinned through her long hair. "That's Sunakake Baba, the sand-throwing hag." He laid another sheet beside that, with an old man on it. His bald head seemed swollen, and he held a walking stick that was taller than he was. He was dressed in a loose cloth like a baby's dress, and had a straw raincoat thrown over his shoulders. "That Konaki Jiji, the old man who cries like a baby."
Next, Shigeru picked out a sheet with a sketch of a rough wall, with stubby arms and legs, and an eye in the middle of the wall sleepily looking out. "That's Nurikabe, the plastered wall. He gets in your way when you're trying to go somewhere. I met him during the war." Toyokawa glanced up from the sketches. "You mean he's real?" Shigeru nodded. "It certainly felt real in the war."
Shigeru grinned as he put another sheet down. "This is Ittan Momen, the roll of cotton. You can see how tall it is, and it flies!" The sheet showed a white ribbon, with arms, a long tail, and eyes. "Be nice, that one's her." Shigeru pointed at Fumie. "When we first met, I was sitting down, and she was so tall." Fumie hissed at him.
Shigeru slid another sheet onto the table. "This one is Nezumi Otoko." It was the rat man, with his hooded robe puddling around him. He seemed to wrinkle his nose, making his whiskers wiggle. Toyokawa said, "You've drawn him before, haven't you?" Shigeru nodded. "Yes, and he is based on a real person, too."
Shigeru pulled out a sheet and laid it down. It showed an eyeball, with a tiny body underneath. He started to say, "This is..." Toyokawa interrupted him, "Medama Oyaji! The eyeball father. Of course."
Shigeru looked at the sheets laid across the table. "That's enough for now. There are lots of other interesting monsters, though."
Toyokawa shivered. Shigeru said, "Is it that scary?" Toyokawa stood up. "No, I'm just too excited. This is great. I wonder, can we introduce them soon?" He sat down, and they talked about how to introduce the new characters.
Later, Shigeru walked into the pawnshop. Kameda, the pawnshop owner, sat behind the counter. He smiled at Shigeru. "I thought you'd be back. Do you want me to take the television back? I was worried about you spending so much money." Shigeru shook his head. Kameda frowned. "Oh. Well, what else do you want me to take?" Shigeru slapped his hand down on the counter with a stack of claim checks. He slid his hand sidewise, spreading them out. "Kameda, I'm here to get everything back. All of it." Kameda stared. "What?" Shigeru nodded, a tight smile on his lips. After seven years of bringing things to the pawnshop, he was reclaiming his goods for the very first time.
Shigeru pulled a handcart loaded with his goods up to the house.
Inside, he piled pictures, records, cooking pots and pans, and everything else anywhere it would sit. Then he sat down with Fumie. He unwrapped one bundle, and looked at his white suit. "I haven't seen that in so long." Fumie said, "It's pretty wrinkled." Then she unwrapped another bundle, and uncovered her wedding kimono. She picked up the pink dress that her mother had sewed, and pulled out the paper with the wish to return on it that she had put into the package when they took it to the pawnshop. She looked at Shigeru and said, "It did come back." He nodded.
As they were looking at the household goods scattered around the kitchen, the phone rang. Shigeru said, "I'll get it. It might be something about work." He picked up the handset and said, "Yes?" After a moment, he said, "Yes, it's me." Then he said, "Eh?" He listened a moment, then said, "I understand." He hung up the phone. He stared at the floor.
Fumie asked, "Was it about work?" Shigeru said, "Yes, that was Toyokawa." "Something to do with the bank?" "No..." "New work?" He shook his head. "No, not that." Fumie frowned. What else... "Don't tell me they fired you?"
Shigeru turned to her and said, "A prize!" She said, "What?" He shook his head. "I... uh... TV Kid? It won the top prize in the manga association this year. They want to give me an award."