Master of the Machete Style Manga

Chapter 33 Picking up the manuscript at the door
This is not the first time Ken Sakamoto has serialized a novel.

Last week's serialization was entirely original, yet people were still urging me to update with whips, which put me under immense pressure.

Over the next week, Ken Sakamoto smoothly progressed the manga to chapter 11.

The editorial department has also finalized the list of participants for the next JUMP main magazine serialization, mainly because March Haru voluntarily withdrew.

According to her, she is preparing a big surprise: once all content is redrawn and the web version is updated, it will be published in JUMP in its most perfect form.

Sakamoto Ken had already found out all the details through his alternate account, "Meguro Ward's Number One Affectionate."

In his Twitter private messages, he received a reply from March Spring.

March Spring: "Thank you so much for your support, Deep Affection! The manga is currently being redrawn from scratch, and this time a very talented artist has joined the project. I will announce the news on Twitter as soon as it's finished~"

Meguro Ward's most affectionate member: "That's amazing! Ms. Mitsuki Haru, could you secretly reveal some scenes?"

March Spring: Well, that's not impossible. After all, Deep Affectionate Sang was my first reader to follow me, but it absolutely cannot fail to send.

The most affectionate person in Meguro Ward: "Of course, I'm just appreciating it myself."

March Spring: "[Image][Image][Image]"

March Spring: "How about it? The first three pages of the first chapter, and the rest of the content will be of this quality."

Ken Sakamoto downloaded the image and zoomed in to examine it closely, frame by frame.

The biggest change is the female lead's image, especially the pantyhose part.

He knew all too well what level of drawing he had done before; he had only painted the pantyhose black.

However, in Haruna's redrawn version, the texture of the pantyhose and even the semi-transparent effect caused by the joints of the legs and feet were drawn in great detail.

One of the panels shows the female lead standing high up and stepping towards the camera. Here, the original perspective is broken, and the foot is deliberately magnified, so much so that the dynamic of the toes being spread out is shown.

Because of this opening motion, the fabric of the pantyhose was pulled apart, creating a space between the toes covered by a thin layer of fabric, on which the lines of the fabric could be clearly seen.

This wasn't drawn by Haruna, was it?

She didn't draw manga last week, but after spending so much time together and attending the same Kanzaki Art Academy, Sakamoto Ken knew her skill level.

Although Haruna's drawing skills are not bad, they are definitely not at this level.

They must have recruited an assistant, and one who is extremely capable.

Are you really that eager to beat me?
Kenjiro Sakamoto knew all too well what this young lady was thinking.

She won't work hard unless there are rivals to spur her on.

But once provoked, they will never admit defeat.

In short, she's a girl who always wants to be on top. Even if you use brute force to subdue her and press her down on the bed, she'll still have an expression of absolute unwillingness to admit defeat, cursing and swearing all the while enjoying herself.

Mio is so obedient; she wears whatever you tell her to wear and does whatever you tell her to do, she's even more well-behaved than a puppy.

Ken Sakamoto had never been reborn before, but now that he has, he finds himself subconsciously recalling events from his previous life.

Although I keep telling myself to get rid of those psychological shadows, how can I forget the things I went through with them so easily?

This feeling is something that those who have never been reborn cannot understand.

Calm your mind and focus back on the work at hand.

It's December 2nd.

According to the serialization schedule, the first chapter of Chainsaw Man will be published in Weekly Shonen Jump on March 9th.

In weekly magazine serializations, writers typically start writing the manuscript for the third week within the same week, and even in the most urgent situations, they must reserve at least one week's worth of material.

The writers submit their manuscripts on Friday, and the editors' work continues until the following Tuesday.

If a writer is late with their manuscript, the editor will likely have to stay at the writer's home for the next few days to ensure that proofreading, typesetting, and submission to the printing press are completed by Wednesday.

Delays in submitting manuscripts are so common that editors rarely get to enjoy a full weekend.

Starting Wednesday, the printing plant will begin plate making and printing.

The different comic chapters, color pages, and advertisements are all combined together and then bound into a book.

By Friday, the printing plant had packaged and shipped millions of magazines to logistics hubs across the country, where they were then distributed layer by layer to bookstores and convenience stores over the weekend. This final step was usually completed by early Monday morning to ensure the magazines were ready on the shelves when stores opened.

The entire process is seamless, and once it enters the printing plant, no content can be withdrawn; otherwise, it would be a very serious work accident.

Therefore, the pressure on writers and editors is immense when they are rushing to meet deadlines.

But none of this mattered to Ken Sakamoto. He already had enough manuscript for more than two months of serialization, and soon enough for two volumes of collected manuscripts.

The cover, color pages, character designs... all of these were prepared and sent to editor Kaji, but so far it's only an electronic version. When it was serialized on the web, the manuscript scanned by Sakamoto Ken using his own printer at a convenience store was fine, but it's not enough for the main publication.

Therefore, Keiko Kaji was going to visit Ken Sakamoto's house to take all the original manuscripts back with her.

Just after 1 p.m., Ken Sakamoto received a call from editor Kaji.

"Sakamoto-sensei, are you free at noon? I'd like to come and pick up the manuscript," Kaji Keiko said.

“I can, Editor-san can come anytime,” Sakamoto Ken said.

“Okay, let me double-check the address.” Kaji Keiko said, looking at the navigation information, “13 Umeda 4-chome, Adachi Ward…right?”

"Editor, just navigate to Myōōin," Sakamoto Ken said.

"Mingwangyuan?"

"It's that temple, next to which is a large cemetery," Kenjiro Sakamoto said.

"Huh... a cemetery?" Keiko Kaji was slightly surprised.

"Yes, and the temple has free parking, while it's difficult to park in front of my apartment," Ken Sakamoto said.

“Okay, I see Myōōin on the map, I’ll be right there,” Kaji Keiko said.

Ken Sakamoto was organizing his manuscript at home. Most writers have at most three chapters of manuscript before serialization, but he had eleven.

They were all B4-sized manuscript paper, and the paper was thick. When stacked up, they were thicker than three volumes of comic books, and weighed about three or four kilograms.

Soon, about twenty minutes later, the phone rang again, and the caller ID showed the name Kaji Keiko.

“Sakamoto-sensei, I’m nearby, um… but which intersection should I come in from?” Kaji Keiko asked.

"What buildings are around Editor-in-Chief?" Ken Sakamoto asked.

“It’s an elementary school. I just passed the school gate,” Keiko Kaji said.

"Alright, Editor, please wait in front of the elementary school. I'll be right there."

Ken Sakamoto hung up the phone, checked the time: 1:30.

Editor Jia Zhi is really dedicated; he's still working on the weekend.

Holding the manuscript paper, Ken Sakamoto pushed open the door and went out.

After turning into an alley where even K-cars have to drive carefully, you'll see the gate of Umeshima Second Elementary School in Adachi Ward ahead.

Turning my head, I saw a white Toyota sedan parked on the side of the road with its hazard lights on.

The car then started again, drove forward for several dozen meters, and stopped next to Sakamoto Fitness.

The car window rolled down, and Keiko Kaji smiled slightly at Ken Sakamoto: "Sakamoto-sensei, why don't you get in the car first? Where's the parking lot?"

Ken Sakamoto simply handed the manuscript in his hand to the car window: "I brought the manuscript, editor-san can just take it."

Keiko Kaji shook her head and said, "Since we're already here, we can't just take a manuscript. I'll also talk to you about the promotion of the animated short videos later."

"Hmm... alright then." Ken Sakamoto nodded and walked towards the other passenger seat.

Actually, he didn't really want to get on the bus.

Getting into a woman's car, especially when she's driving, is something like...

I have a feeling that this will trigger very serious consequences.

After all, the beginning of the previous playthrough's ending, which led to the hatchet-wielding tragedy, was when Mio saw him get into Haruna's car...

(End of this chapter)