Crossover Anime: I'm Kasumigaoka Utaha's Brother

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Chapter 0109 The movie theme song has been confirmed! (4/5 Please subscribe)

A tense atmosphere filled the living room. Baili Xiao coughed lightly, interrupting everyone's thoughts.

As someone who had seen the animated film "5 Centimeters Per Second" and cried over it, he already had a certain degree of "immunity" to it—but even so, during his performance just now, he couldn't help but recall the scenes he had seen before.

"Looks like everyone here has a story to tell?" Baili Xiao joked, but this obviously inappropriate joke worked. Many people burst out laughing and then glared at Baili Xiao.

“Your joke is really…” Eriri turned her head away from where Hyakki couldn’t see her and quickly wiped her cheek with her hand: “Let me make this clear beforehand! It’s not because you sing well that I’m like this, it’s just… I’m just one of the producers of [5 Centimeters Per Second], and I’m too easily moved by the story!”

(A textbook example of tsundere behavior)

Upon hearing Eriri's words, many people had this thought in their minds, after all... everyone knows about her "tsundere" problem (or cuteness factor?).

"Clap clap! Clap!" The soft but crisp sound of clapping rang out. Baili Xiao's gaze shifted to Akane Akasaka, who wore a faint smile and shrugged slightly, looking somewhat troubled: "I never thought that at my age, I could still be moved to tears by a song..."

A fleeting glimmer of recollection crossed her eyes, before she gazed at Baili Xiao for a long time: "Baili-kun, is this the theme song you composed for '5 Centimeters Per Second'? It's very good, very good. Just listening to the song makes one feel depressed and want to cry. This is not something an ordinary song can achieve."

"I shouldn't have had that doubt, 'Could it be that Baili-kun can't sing?' Well, he proved it to everyone right now..."

Baili Xiao's gaze swept over everyone, and those he saw all lowered their heads, their cheeks slightly flushed, unable to meet his eyes.

Of course... "these people" do not include Mashiro and the Muse.

"No, meow, please don't let the teacher sing such sad songs anymore, meow." Hoshizora Rin hugged Koizumi Hanayo with teary eyes and choked out. The latter reacted even more strongly and couldn't hold back her tangled and suppressed emotions for long after Hyakuri Xiao's singing started.

During their free time from training, many members of Muse would choose to "find a cool and quiet place to read a volume of '5 Centimeters Per Second'"—as it was the result of the hard work of their seniors in the studio, they were very interested in it and also wanted to learn more about their teacher, Baili Xiao, through this method.

Then... after a few days, everyone except Koizumi Hanayo, who was still stuck at the end of the second volume, had watched "5 Centimeters Per Second" once or even twice!

It's not that Koizumi Hanayo "doesn't like" or "doesn't have time"; on the contrary, she is the one among the nine Muse who spends the most time reading, even to the point that it affects her rest!

Why is it that everyone else has finished reading it, but she's still stuck at the end of the second volume?

It's all because... she's too sensitive. She's already shed tears at least five times just by reading to the end of the second volume!

In addition, hearing spoilers from people like Rin-nyan who had already watched the show, saying things like "the later episodes are even sadder," scared her so much that she wanted to watch it but was too scared to, and she struggled with the decision for a long time.

That's why... as soon as Baili Xiao started singing, while those around her felt a sense of oppression, the sensitive girl was already sobbing uncontrollably. Only by burying her face in Xingkong Lin's shoulder could she appear less agitated.

"Wow~ Teacher is really amazing..." Honoka scratched her head, glanced at Minami Kotori and Sonoda Umi beside her with red-rimmed eyes, and chuckled awkwardly, "Teacher not only taught us songs but also dance moves. Now it seems that even singing is something no one can compare to..."

At this point, the usually carefree girl became even more embarrassed: "I always feel that if teachers debuted as idols, there would be no chance for us..."

Minami Kotori shook her head: "Koko, you're thinking the wrong way. If a teacher wasn't better than us, how could they become a teacher? Right?"

“There’s a limit to how strong you can be. Someone like the teacher… there’s simply no comparison.” Nishikino Maki interjected, then suddenly realized everyone was staring at her. She took a step back, fiddling with the end of her red hair, and weakly explained, “I… I certainly didn’t intend to compare myself to the teacher. You… you shouldn’t be thinking too much…”

Looking at the completely unexpected and even somewhat exaggerated scene in front of him, Baili Xiao grinned, put the guitar aside, and slapped his hands together. Just as he was about to say something, he saw Shiina Mashiro slowly get up and walk towards him: "What's wrong, Mashiro?"

Shiina Mashiro gently shook her head, thought for a moment, and then slowly raised her small, fair hand to cover her left breast: "Teacher, I don't know why, but I feel so sad..."

"Uh..." Baili Xiao raised an eyebrow—he couldn't very well tell Zhenbai, "You're upset because of my singing, right?" Even if he did, the latter would most likely not understand...

Just as Baili Xiao was pondering how to explain, Shiina Mashiro made a move—she walked up to him, looked him over, then found a comfortable position and sat between Baili Xiao's legs. She looked at the stiff, expressionless Baili Xiao with a puzzled expression, and seeing that he showed no intention of moving, she took the initiative to pull Baili Xiao's hands over and clasp them together at her waist...

After feeling her heart for a moment, Shiina Mashiro nodded slightly: "Yes, that feels much better."

"Creak!" A harsh sound, seemingly from somewhere, suddenly rang out, as if wood was being broken. With this sound, many people couldn't help but twitch their eyebrows.

"Mashiro, isn't this a bit inappropriate to do this in front of so many people?" Eriri's lips twitched.

"Hmm..." Hashima looked at the two's position (body position?), shook his head vigorously, as if trying to shake off some thoughts from his mind.

"Hehehe." Seeing this scene, Izumi Sagiri couldn't help but reveal an "innocent" smile. As the former Eromanga teacher, she inadvertently came up with another "good idea".

"Ahem!" Baili Xiao, under the spotlight, coughed twice, his face tense and serious: "You should know that Mashiro didn't mean anything by it."

As Bai Lixiao said, Shiina Mashiro, who knew nothing about matters between men and women, always regarded him as a "father" (taking care of her and teaching her to draw) - when she was feeling sad, she would naturally hope to receive warmth from her "parent".

Of course... knowing is one thing, but Mashiro's behavior and current sitting posture are just too shocking. If this continues... not to mention others, even the woman named "Kasumigaoka Utaha" who has already started shaking her right leg will not be happy!

You should know! In front of everyone! Kasumigaoka Utaha and Hyakuri Akira never acted this intimately!

"Ahem!" Baili Xiao made the most correct choice at this moment—changing the subject: "So? Now that I've finished singing, are you still against me singing the movie theme song?"

"Of course not! To be precise, perhaps only Hyakuri-kun could sing this theme song to such an extent?" Akane Kousaka stood up, a pleased smile curving her lips. "Then, I'm really looking forward to the day when '5 Centimeters Per Second' is officially released. I wonder how many people will be moved to tears then?"

Chapter 0110 Busy Machida Sonoko! (5|5 Please Subscribe)

"【Huaxia】Studio Director Baili's first independently produced manga, 【Love Live!】, will be officially released tomorrow! Please purchase it at major bookstores!"

"Bookstores under Shinazugawa Bunko and Chishima Publishing will each give away a limited number of beautifully illustrated Love Live! posters to the first fifty customers who purchase the book!"

"In addition, you can also make a reservation at the rouge-en-rouge guild headquarters. There are 300 exquisite illustrated posters waiting to be given away within the guild!"

"The exquisite illustrated posters are also hand-drawn by Mr. Baili himself, and are limited edition!"

"Official Love Live! merchandise is now on sale!"

After the Love Live! manga passed censorship and was sent to various printing presses, Shinazugawa Bunko, rouge-en-rouge circle, and Chishima Publishing all announced on their official websites or Weibo accounts that the manga would be officially released tomorrow.

This news caused a huge sensation in the fan fiction community—the reason being the nine character designs that Baili Xiao had previously drawn!

Unlike the previous character design sketches, the character designs released by the three companies this time are the final versions that have been colored and refined, and were completely completed by Baili Xiao alone!

Simple line drawings can only show aspects such as facial features, body shape, and clothing. When people see a character sketch, the only feeling that comes to mind is "cute".

However, the final version presented to the public now showcases the characteristics and strengths of each individual.

Honoka's boundless energy, Minami Kotori's cuteness, Sonoda Umi's heroic spirit, Koizumi Hanayo's gentleness, Hoshizora Rin's sunshine, Nishikino Maki's arrogance, Ayase Eli's seriousness, Tojo Nozomi's maturity, and... Yazawa Nico's petite...

This is the power of Baili Xiao's paintings; when you see his paintings, you don't feel a static image, but rather as if you are actually there.

"Just for these nine character designs, I'm definitely buying this Love Live! manga!"

"There are so few posters this time. At least several thousand were released at the [5 Centimeters Per Second] launch event..."

"That's for sure. You know, things are valued for their scarcity. If there are too many, they'll just become commonplace."

"No sales event this time? Thank goodness! Every time I think about the release of Volume 3 of '5 Centimeters Per Second', I feel terrible!"

"Don't get too excited yet. The combined bookstores of Shinazugawa Bunko and Chishima Publishing don't amount to much, and there's only one rogue-en-rouge circle. So, when you think about it..."

Online, discussions about Love Live! are everywhere, sweeping through almost every corner of the fanfiction community. Anyone who likes anime, even a newbie, will be strongly recommended the message: "Did you know? Tomorrow is the first release of the Love Live! manga! Want to go together?"

Meanwhile, Shinazugawa Bunko, rouge-en-rouge circle, and Chishima Publishing, which have confirmed the official release date, are now carrying out intensive "strategic" deployments!

"Remember! Every bookstore must hang up promotional banners and post promotional posters!" Machida Sonoko adjusted her anti-radiation glasses, wearing a tight-fitting business suit, and held a folder in her hand as she instructed the people in front of her: "The most important thing is that you absolutely cannot keep any of the beautiful illustrations and posters of [Love Live!]! You should know what the consequences will be if you are found out, right?"

“Ah? Miss Sonoko…this…” Sitting to Machida Sonoko’s left was the manager of the bookstore that had the highest annual sales in the entire year under the Shinazugawa Bunko Group, a man in his thirties.

He exchanged glances with the other store managers, and they all saw the same awkwardness in each other's eyes—they were all store managers, all had the quota of "fifty exquisite posters," and what they wanted to do was something they all knew but didn't tacitly agree on.

I like Love Live! too! I'll secretly keep two pictures.

Relatives, lovely juniors, employees who've been sexually harassed... Pshaw! I misspoke about the last one!

If they want some, they should keep some, right?

So, of the original fifty slots, perhaps less than thirty will actually be available to customers...

"Do you think I don't know what you're thinking?" Machida Sonoko snorted coldly and continued, "For this manga release, there are only 900 posters in total, 300 for each store. If you use some of them privately, there will be very few spots available for customers!"

"Um... Ms. Yuanzi, couldn't we increase the number of posters a little? Considering the current market potential, nine hundred definitely won't be enough." A store manager raised her hand, making this suggestion: "Although increasing the number of posters will raise the cost (of the giveaways), it would be a huge boost to both Professor Baili's reputation and the influence of our paperback series..."

Machida Sonoko took a deep breath, her eyes behind her glasses gradually turning cold: "The cost of the poster? For Shinazugawa Bunko now, those costs are completely negligible!"

"Why only nine hundred posters? It's to preserve the value of Professor Baili's work! As you've all seen, the posters she drew are on a completely different level from those drawn by Eri Kashiwagi and other professors! Don't you think the more posters like these, which are works of art, the better?"

The shop manager, who had spoken earlier, froze, gave a dry laugh, and lowered his head—he knew, of course, that his suggestion had been somewhat rash, but... what could he do! It was precisely because the poster drawn by Teacher Baili was of such high quality, so exquisitely drawn, like a work of art, that he had contradicted Machida Sonoko without a second thought...

Because of her good working and personal relationships with Machida Sonoko and Hyakuri Akira, she has become a figure on par with the editor-in-chief in Shinazugawa Bunko—someone that not just anyone can cross!

"Alright! I know your difficulties." Machida Sonoko put down the folder, her fingers tapping lightly on the desk, her nails making a "tap-tap-tap" sound as they touched the surface. "Here's what we'll do! The fifty slots for each bookstore are absolutely non-negotiable, but I'll reserve one extra poster for each of you. Don't even think about getting any more!"

"This..." The store managers exchanged glances, all giving wry smiles. "Then let's do as Miss Yuanzi says..."

"Alright, you can all go back to your bookstores now. Even though Professor Hyakusei isn't here, don't cause any trouble for this release." Machida Sonoko waved her hand expressionlessly. After everyone left, she got up, locked the door, drew the curtains, and then took a cardboard box from under her desk.

Inside the cardboard box... there were more than a dozen exquisite posters of different scenes, most of which were illustrations of the Muse from Love Live! when they participated in the competition!

"It's so great to know Baili-kun! To receive a poster made by hand, Muse is amazing! I've seen them in person, but they look even cuter in the comics!"

When no one else was around, Machida Sonoko fully revealed her true nature, her eyes shining as she looked at each member of Muse on the poster, finally pausing on the figure of Tojo Nozomi.

"Wow! My little Xixi is so elegant! Mature, poised, and with a touch of playfulness! I definitely have to take a picture with her next time!"

Chapter 0111 [Love Live!] Release Begins! (1/3, Please Subscribe)

The following day, at the rouge-en-rouge club headquarters!

One after another, the staff members with haggard faces walked back and forth in the club. For them, today was a good day - the release of Baili-sensei's [Love Live!] manga - but the hard work of the previous month had drained all their energy.

With Eriri and others drawing at such a fast pace, they have a large number of original drawings and in-between drawings to process every day. During this time, many of them get less than five hours of sleep a day (on average).

Despite being exhausted, they would only complain verbally and never say things like, "Ugh, I'm so tired! I'm quitting!"

Every day at work, after processing each teacher's original artwork, they could feel their painting skills slowly improving—perhaps not by much, but for artists like them, it was a rare opportunity.

Because of this, their bodies grew thinner day by day, but the light in their eyes grew brighter and brighter, until... yesterday, the keyframes and in-between frames needed for the animated film "5 Centimeters Per Second" were finally completed!

As if they had suddenly lost their minds, after a night of revelry and celebration, they slept soundly, only to find upon waking up that having nothing to do was incredibly boring!

Of course, it's not like they have absolutely nothing to do. After all, many of them had previously taken a break from their serialized comics, so they can simply pick them up again and continue drawing.

But now they've discovered—the comics they drew before were rubbish! How could I have drawn such garbage? Did I really draw this?

Faced with their former "children," they went from "very good, quite good" to "never mind, I don't want them anymore," with many artists even having the idea of ​​"castrating" them!

"Sigh, it seems that improving my painting skills isn't necessarily a good thing..." An artist sighed as he sat in a chair, holding a piece of bread from a convenience store in one hand and an oat milk tea in the other, looking somewhat dejected.

The person sitting next to him was even thinner and more haggard, with his cheekbones clearly visible—that person took a deep drag of his cigarette and exhaled a smoke ring: "Cut it off."

"Huh?!" The first artist stared wide-eyed at the person in disbelief.

"What else can I do? I used to update slowly and even drew some toxic parts. I was constantly being pressured by readers, who even wanted me to..." The man stopped abruptly, silently threw away his cigarette, and stood up.

Although he didn't say the last word, anyone who's into anime and manga knows what that word is.

"I've learned a lot from studying with all the teachers this past month. I'm planning to start a new comic book, and I'm sure there will be collections, flowers, tips, and even subscriptions..."

"Smack!" The sound of a stack of A4 paper rolled into a cylinder and slammed onto one's head.

"Everyone, perk up! Today is the release date of Hyakusho-sensei's [Love Live!] manga! Don't let anything go wrong!" Akane Kousaka retracted her "paper stick," ignoring the artist's aggrieved expression, and shouted loudly, "Look at the people queuing outside! Do you see them? There's still half an hour until the official release, and the number of people has already exceeded five thousand!"

Five thousand...