Tokyo life starting with painting

Of course, Konoe Ryoka and the others are not the only ones who care about Kumamon. Hosokawa Koharu received countless invitations for interviews in just two days after the promotion of Kumamon began.

Of course, the goals of these people are also very clear - all for Higashinoji.

Some people have previously wondered whether Tsukasa Higashino, who won the Youth Art Prize's double gold medal and designed Kumamon Bear, and Mr. Higashino, who painted "The Lonely Gourmet" and "The Ring", are the same person.

After all, Mr. Higashino from Urashima Publishing House and Higashino Tsukasa have the same last name.

In other words, it is possible that Tsukasa Higashino used the pen name "Higashino" to serialize the series in Urashima Publishing House.

Unlike Tsukasa Higashino, who won a double gold medal at the Youth Art Award, Urashima Publishing House's "Teacher Higashino" was at the peak of his career when he debuted. Many young people across Japan are fans of "The Ring" and "The Lonely Gourmet".

It wasn’t until the genius high school designer Higashino Tsukasa designed the image of Kumamon that his popularity was comparable to that of Urashima Publishing’s ‘Higashino-sensei’.

There is another very interesting phenomenon here.

That is, fans of Higashino Tsukasa are incompatible with fans of Higashino-sensei of Urashima Publishing House who drew the manga.

Both sides are dissatisfied with each other, they just feel that the other side is taking advantage of the popularity of their favorite author.

So in the discussion boards of "Midnight Bell" and "The Lonely Gourmet", there are always people posting some pictures of Kumamon.

In the discussion board of Kumamon, someone will attach a picture of a particularly terrifying Sadako cartoon - it scares many girls who like cheap bears and can't sleep at night.

Fan representatives on both sides also have different opinions.

While talking about how could Mr. Higashino, who drew "The Ring", design a character like Kumamon? It's simply impossible!

On the other hand, it was said that the designer of Kumamon, Higashino Tsukasa, is young and good-looking. How could he be an old man in his thirties with a dark mind like 'Higashino-sensei' who draws horror comics and food comics? (Many media publicized that Mr. Higashino is in his thirties or forties, so these fans believed it.)

The two sides were fighting like crazy. As soon as Saturdays and Sundays were free, fans would start a war on these two different discussion boards, and the fighting was fierce.

In addition to the chaotic evil ones on both sides, there are also some lawful neutral fans. They not only like Higashino Tsukasa's Kumamon, but also Mr. Higashino's "Midnight Ring" and "The Lonely Gourmet". They remain neutral and occasionally watch Discouraging fights in the discussion forum - 'Don't fight anymore, don't fight anymore, don't you both like it?' ’

The more fermented the topic, the higher the popularity.

This is a pain for Hosokawa Koharu, the editor-in-chief of Tono Division.

“Really”

After finally dealing with a group of reporters crouching outside Urashima Publishing House, Hosokawa Koharu breathed out a tired look.

The purpose of those reporters is also very simple.

He just squeezed in and asked about the relationship between Higashinoji and Higashino-sensei.

But Hosokawa Koharu had the obligation to keep Higashinoji secret, so he could only smile and keep silent about these topics, and walked into Urashima Publishing House with "no comment" along the way.

And that's not all. Recently, Koharu Hosokawa can even see reporters near her home.

"I'm going to have a nervous breakdown if this keeps up."

Hosokawa Koharu poured herself a cup of coffee, looking very tired.

I used to envy famous people being interviewed by reporters.

But when he was actually surrounded by reporters for interviews, Hosokawa Koharu was not very happy.

There was nothing she could do about it, those reporters were chattering and asked very pointed questions, which made her feel very tired just to deal with them.

"Teacher Higashino, can you come back soon?" Hosokawa Koharu sighed.

It would be great if Higashinoji came back and accepted the interview on his own terms, and he wouldn't be able to torture her at all, Hosokawa Koharu.

There is also

Hosokawa Koharu shook his head to get rid of these messy thoughts, looked at the data on his desk again, and couldn't help but smile.

She is now waiting for Higashinoji to come back.

"Midnight Ring" and "The Lonely Gourmet" can really bring a big surprise to Higashinoji.

In this way, Kumamoto Prefecture operated in Osaka City after Kumamon Bear disappeared for two days, making the image of Kumamon Bear become a cute and cute creature reported in major magazines. The Kumamoto Prefectural Government finally stepped forward.

And following them out was Kumamon who had been hiding before.

Jumping around on the TV screen, Kumamon conquered countless people with his cute image.

But this is not the only surprise that the Kumamoto Prefectural Government has given everyone.

They announced on TV that they would license the image of Kumamon to the whole country for free, and those who use the image of Kumamon only need to submit an application to Kumamoto Prefecture. As long as Kumamoto Prefecture approves it, they can use this image to produce products.

This courage shocked many media.

Because this is equivalent to the government spending money and providing it to businesses for free.

Yes, at a time when Kumamon was becoming popular all over the island, the Kumamoto Prefectural Government made such a decision, which undoubtedly required strong courage.

When Higashinoji saw Kumamoto Prefecture's declaration, he was slightly surprised, but he quickly understood it.

Kumamoto Prefecture mainly wants Japanese merchants to spontaneously promote Kumamon Bear, and when they promote Kumamon Bear, they will naturally be introduced to Kumamoto Prefecture, the hometown of Kumamon Bear.

The greater the reputation of Kumamoto, the more people know about Kumamoto Prefecture. The more people know about Kumamoto Prefecture, the more tourists will come to Kumamoto Prefecture for sightseeing. This will effectively boost the tourism economy of Kumamoto Prefecture. .

After all, if Kumamoto Prefecture alone wants to promote the Kumamon mascot image nationwide, it will undoubtedly require a lot of investment.

So it is better to distribute this mascot character and let Japanese merchants use it and let the merchants promote it spontaneously.

Because the character of Kumamon was originally designed for the economy of Kumamoto Prefecture.

As for Higashino's Kumamon peripheral sales expenses?

This means there is no need to worry.

As long as you are famous, then the peripheral products will be sold.

Kumamoto Prefecture itself will also produce many Kumamon peripherals for sale across the country, and in the future, when Kumamon cooperates with Shinkansen and various Japanese airlines and 2% of the cost goes to Higashinoji, it will be a huge success. A huge amount of money.

So Higashinoji is not worried about this at all.

Compared with this, Higashinoji is more concerned about when he will go back.

"I've been in Kumamoto Prefecture for two weeks," Higashinoji sighed.

During this period, he did not accept any interviews from any media. Presumably Kumamoto Prefecture helped cover up a lot in order to provide him with a better creative environment.

Even Shenmu Qiren gave a laptop to Higashinoji, with several mini-games specially installed on it for Higashino Chihaya to play.

But by this time it was almost time to go back.

Kumamon has been completely finalized, and the next step is to design Kumamon’s other actions.

But that kind of thing can be done at home in Tokyo, so Higashinoji has no necessary reason to continue to stay in Kumamoto Prefecture.

Thinking of this, Higashinoji also called Shenmu Qiren.

"Teacher Dongye wants to leave? This? Why so suddenly?"

Shenmu Qiren thought that she was busy with work here these days and neglected Higashinoji over there, so he was unhappy, so he said: "I will take Mr. Higashino with me after I finish my recent work. Let’s go sightseeing in our famous places in Kumamoto Prefecture”

"It's not because of this." Higashinoji smiled: "It's just that Kumamon's announcement is on the right track. If I stay in Kumamoto County any longer, I will definitely cause trouble for you, Fumaki-san."

He paused and then added: "Of course, there are also personal reasons. I have been out for two weeks, and I still have schoolwork in high school, so I am a little embarrassed to continue delaying it like this."

"That's it. I'm very sorry, Mr. Higashino." Only then did Fukure Kirito realize - Higashinoji was still a high school student.

It's not that he forgot that Higashinoji was a high school student, but Higashinoji's ability was so strong that he subconsciously ignored the identity of the other high school student.

Even the governor of Kumamoto Prefecture met with Higashinoji, chatted with him for a long time, and finally shook hands and took photos.

"Since this is the case, I will not retain Mr. Higashino, but if Mr. Higashino comes to our Kumamoto Prefecture next time, be sure to call me. I will definitely take Mr. Higashino around."

Shenmu Qiren made a promise and chatted with Higashinoji for a while, and finally said that he would go and have someone prepare a ticket. Higashinoji would definitely be able to return to Tokyo tomorrow at the latest.

To this, Higashinoji was naturally grateful.

Just like that, the next day came in a blink of an eye.

Higashinoji got into the special car prepared by Shenmu Qiren and headed towards the airport.

How I came to Kumamoto Prefecture from Tokyo is also how I left Kumamoto Prefecture and returned to Tokyo.

Naturally, the process in between does not need to be described in detail.

The only difference is that Higashino Tsukasa, a young artist who won a double gold medal at the Tokyo Youth Art Prize, has now become Higashino Tsukasa, the Kumamon designer known to countless people in Japan.

Higashinoji and Higashino Chihaya quickly returned home.

Looking at the almost unchanged furnishings in his home, Higashino breathed out a sigh of relief.

He specially called someone to come over and help with dust removal and cleaning every day, so there was no need for Higashinoji and Higashino Chihaya to clean it deliberately.

"Asuka, I'm going to bed first." Higashino Chihaya was sleepy and yawned repeatedly.

To this, Higashinoji also nodded: "Well, Chihaya-san, please go and rest first. I'll call you when you're eating."

There was nothing she could do. After flying and taking a car, it was no wonder she was tired.

After sending her into the room, Tonoji sorted out the contents of the travel bag.

I’ve got the horse meat jerky souvenir I brought to Urashima’s editorial office, and I’m going to give it away now. There are also a lot of Kumamon’s original peripherals—simple keychains, wallet cases, and other gadgets.

As the chief designer of Kumamon, Higashinoji wouldn't have much of a problem getting this.

He packed these things into a shoulder bag and walked out the door.

Walking back to Tokyo from Kumamoto Prefecture, Higashinoji certainly felt like he was returning to the city from the countryside.

This is not to say that Kumamoto Prefecture is too poor, but simply that Tokyo is too prosperous, which creates this sense of gap in Higashinoji's heart.

To this, Tonoji just smiled and shook his head.

To be honest, he prefers the rural sentiments of Kumamoto Prefecture than Tokyo.

Isn’t there also such a saying? People who have stayed in big cities for a long time always want to go to the countryside to experience farmhouse fun.

I got off the bus at the station and walked straight to Urashima Publishing House.

But what Higashinoji doesn't know is that the current Urashima Publishing House is basically surrounded by newspaper reporters and others.

His appearance naturally attracted the attention of many reporters.

And Kunihiko Yoshioka is one of these reporters.

"Isn't that Higashinoji?"

Yoshioka Kunihiko couldn't help but mutter to himself as he looked at the figure appearing under the Urashima Publishing House.

Now there are headlines.

The fact that Higashinoji appears in Urashima Publishing House and enters Urashima Publishing House can only mean one thing——

"The person who designed Kumamon, Tsukasa Higashino, was the one who drew "Midnight Bell" and "The Lonely Gourmet" Higashino-sensei."

These two people are the same person!

Even if they have not yet received recognition from Higashinoji, the fact that Higashinoji appears here at Urashima Publishing House can already explain a lot of things.

He took several photos in a row, left a few colleagues to continue squatting, and then drove away directly.

At the same time, reporters from several newspapers nearby took action.

Of course, Higashinoji, who is a party involved, does not know this.

To be precise, he has been staying in Kumamoto Prefecture after all.

Although I knew that the mascot Kumamon was very popular now, I didn't expect it to be so popular, attracting many reporters to stop in front of Urashima Publishing House.

He greeted Miss Uzaki at the reception and gave her a pack of horse meat jerky and some Kumamon peripherals before going upstairs.

"Teacher Higashino?!"

Hosokawa Koharu was stunned when he saw Higashinoji appearing in front of him.

"Well, it's me, Editor Hosokawa. I just returned to Tokyo." Higashinoji smiled and handed several bags of horse meat jerky to Hosokawa Koharu, and also gave her some Kumamon keychains and wallet clips: "These are souvenirs for the editors in the editorial department. Please accept them without being polite."

"Oh, no." Hosokawa Koharu stupidly took what Higashinoji handed over, but quickly shook his head and asked: "Teacher Higashino, didn't you encounter anything strange when you came to the publishing house? ?”

"Huh? Something strange?" Higashikata became a little interested.

Isn’t it just a matter of visiting the publishing house? What other strange things can you encounter?

"" Looking at Higashinoji's indifferent expression, Hosokawa Koharu instinctively felt bad.

So she hurriedly explained: "Mr. Higashino, you may not know that you have just returned to Tokyo. Recently, many newspaper reporters have been squatting in front of our publishing house. Many people think that Tsukasa Higashino, who designed Kumamon Bear, is related to Mr. Higashino from our publishing house. By showing up at the publishing house, aren’t you giving them a title to use?"

Hosokawa Koharu was a little anxious, but Higashinoji just smiled: "That's okay, if you take the picture, you'll get it."

Yeah, it doesn’t matter if you’re photographed.

He didn't do anything shameful.

Thanks to Moqing Moqing, Teppanyaki Squid, Book Friends 20170707220438252, Book Friends 150810131358763, Okay Silly Big Guy, yahchenz, Shadow Master, devildan, Fenghua Peerless, poi, God Generation Zero, Zhang Kantianxia for the rewards! Thank you so much!