Celadon City, the editorial office of Shonen Adventure magazine.
"Yes, Gym Leader Lt. Surge, we've received your feedback, and we'll be sure to pass it on to Mr. Masuda."
"Yes, yes, we understand how you feel."
"Rest assured, the publisher will take this matter seriously!"
Kikkawa Maho held the communicator, wearing a professional smile and speaking as politely as she possibly could.
Only when the disconnect tone sounded through the communicator did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Then she looked down at the copy of Pokémon Adventures on her desk and couldn't help rubbing her temples.
"What even is all this...?"
As a manga editor, Kikkawa Maho had handled plenty of reader complaints before.
Some complained that the protagonist was too weak, others that the villains were too strong, and some even wrote letters specifically asking for more appearances because their favorite characters had too little page time.
But this was her first time encountering someone like Masuda Senbei, who had drawn real-life Gym Leaders as villains and prompted them to call in personally to complain.
Worst of all, this was only the second one!
Thinking of the ninja Gym Leader in the manga who specialized in Poison-type Pokémon, Kikkawa Maho suddenly had an ominous feeling.
After a moment of silence, she picked up the communicator and dialed a familiar number.
"Hello, Mr. Masuda?"
"Miss Maho? What's the matter?"
"Gym Leader Lt. Surge just called."
"..."
The other end of the line suddenly went quiet.
Only after a long while did Shiraishi Ritsu cautiously ask, "What... did he say?"
Kikkawa Maho looked at the notes she had just taken during the call.
"He said the illustration you sent him was indeed excellent, and both he and Raichu liked it very much."
"Isn't that good, then?"
"But..."
The moment Shiraishi Ritsu heard that word, his heart sank.
"He also said not to think you could smooth things over just by sending him a drawing."
"..."
Shiraishi Ritsu slowly put down his pencil.
He turned to look at Smeargle, who was hard at work on the manuscript beside him, and suddenly felt that being a manga artist was far too thrilling.
He had only just seen Sabrina off a few days ago, and now Lt. Surge had come knocking.
Could Koga be next?
At the thought, Shiraishi Ritsu couldn't help shuddering.
"Miss Maho."
"Yes?"
"I have an idea."
"Go ahead."
Shiraishi Ritsu took a deep breath and asked with complete seriousness:
"How about... we go on hiatus?"
The other end of the communicator went silent for two seconds.
Then-
"What?!"
Kikkawa Maho's voice suddenly rose, startling several nearby editors into turning to look.
"Mr. Masuda! What did you just say?!"
"Go on hiatus."
Shiraishi Ritsu answered as though he were perfectly justified.
"I feel like I've been under too much creative pressure lately. I need some time off to get myself back into shape."
"You only told me yesterday that all the storyboards for the next installment were finished!"
"That was yesterday!"
"What's the difference between yesterday and today?"
"Today, there's another Gym Leader ready to settle the score with me!"
"..."
Kikkawa Maho was momentarily at a loss for words.
As absurd as that reason was, she actually couldn't find a suitable rebuttal.
Half an hour later.
Shiraishi Ritsu arrived at the publishing house with Smeargle.
The moment he pushed open the editorial office door, he saw Kikkawa Maho sitting behind her desk with her arms crossed, waiting for him.
Her expression instinctively reminded him of Sabrina a few days earlier.
"Ahem, Miss Maho, good afternoon!"
"Mr. Masuda, please sit."
Kikkawa Maho pointed to the chair across from her.
Shiraishi Ritsu obediently sat down.
Smeargle, meanwhile, expertly climbed onto the little stool beside him and pulled a Berry cookie out of his backpack, ready to watch the show.
"All right."
Kikkawa Maho pushed a document in front of Shiraishi Ritsu.
"These are the reader survey results for the last three installments of Pokémon Adventures. Take a look first."
Shiraishi Ritsu picked it up and flipped through a few pages.
Huh?
First place?
He froze for a moment, then carefully checked again.
Pokémon Adventures had actually taken the top spot in the latest reader popularity poll!
"Miss Maho, this..."
"That's right."
Kikkawa Maho smiled.
"Your manga is now one of the most popular works in the magazine. The circulation department has already begun increasing promotional spending, and the first collected volume is in production too."
"What's more, quite a few bookstores in other cities have contacted us over the past few days, hoping to preorder the collected volume."
Shiraishi Ritsu's eyes grew brighter as he listened.
This was all money!
He could almost see a hefty manuscript payment beckoning to him.
But before he could enjoy it for long, Kikkawa Maho continued, "So, Mr. Masuda, are you really planning to go on hiatus now?"
The smile on Shiraishi Ritsu's face instantly froze.
"Well..."
"Do you know what the consequences would be if you stopped now?"
Kikkawa Maho counted them off on her fingers.
"First, the magazine has already scheduled your serialization slots for the next few issues. A sudden hiatus would require us to redo the layout."
"Second, we're promoting the collected volume, and readers' expectations for the story are growing. Suspending publication now could easily hurt the work's momentum."
"Finally, your and Smeargle's manuscript payments would also be affected."
At that last sentence, Smeargle, who had been sitting beside them eating his cookie, suddenly pricked up his ears.
"Smear?"
Manuscript payments?
What manuscript payments?
Noticing his reaction, Kikkawa Maho couldn't help smiling.
"Smeargle, if you go on hiatus, you won't be getting as much in manuscript payments anymore."
"Smear?!"
Smeargle's eyes widened.
He hurriedly put down his cookie and tugged on Shiraishi Ritsu's sleeve.
Master!
You can't mess around with something like this!
Shiraishi Ritsu, however, shot him an annoyed look.
"Weren't you pretty happy when you heard about the hiatus earlier?"
Smeargle immediately shook his head.
Shiraishi Ritsu pointed at him.
"What were you so happy about? No serialization means no manuscript payments!"
Smeargle lowered his head and looked at his little backpack.
The high-grade paints he had bought not long ago were still inside.
He also remembered the large art studio his master had promised him, and that entire wall of professional art supplies.
After a moment of silence, Smeargle quietly picked up the brush beside him and went back to work.
"Smear..."
On second thought, forget taking a break.
Kikkawa Maho couldn't help laughing at the sight.
"See? Even Smeargle doesn't approve of a hiatus."
The corner of Shiraishi Ritsu's mouth twitched.
He just couldn't bear to give up his high-grade paints!
Still, on second thought, he couldn't quite bear to give it up either.
After all, Pokémon Adventures was a work he and Smeargle had put so much effort into. They had finally achieved these results, and simply giving up now would be something of a shame.
But the problem was...
"Miss Maho, have you thought about what comes afterward?"
Shiraishi Ritsu suddenly asked.
"Afterward?"
"Yes, the later story."
He picked up the manga on the desk and turned to a page.
"We've only reached the Kanto arc, and Sabrina and Lt. Surge have already come knocking."
"Don't forget, there's Koga too."
At his words, Kikkawa Maho's expression immediately grew somewhat awkward.
"We'll prepare to communicate with Gym Leader Koga in advance as well."
"And after that?"
Shiraishi Ritsu spread his hands.
"After the Kanto arc ends, there'll be new stories. According to my current outline, even more famous real-life Trainers will appear later."
"For example, Kanto's Elite Four."
"Lance, Lorelei, Bruno, and Agatha."
"There's also Pryce from the Johto Region, as well as the Champions of regions like Hoenn and Sinnoh."
As he spoke, even his own scalp began to prickle.
Especially when it came to Lance.
Lance in Pokémon Adventures was a villain of considerable importance.
That powerful Dragon-type Trainer had even had an extremely dangerous plan in the manga.
If the real Lance saw that...
Shiraishi Ritsu could already imagine him riding Dragonite up to the door of his studio.
Further down the line, there was Pryce too.
The distinguished Ice-type Gym Leader of Mahogany Gym had actually become the mysterious Masked Man in the manga.
Then there were Champion-level figures like Steven and Cynthia.
Although they wouldn't necessarily all be portrayed as villains, their experiences in the manga differed from reality, and someone was bound to be curious.
"Miss Maho, I keep feeling like Trainers from all over the world might chase me down to ask about the plot someday."
After hearing him out, Kikkawa Maho remained silent for a long time.
She had originally only thought Masuda Senbei was rather bold for daring to use real-life Gym Leaders as character models.
Now it seemed this manga artist was far bolder than she had imagined.
"Wait..."
Kikkawa Maho suddenly realized something.
"Mr. Masuda, have all those people you just mentioned already been worked into the later outline?"
"Yes."
"Even the Champions?"
"Of course!"
Shiraishi Ritsu nodded proudly.
"I'm planning to make Pokémon Adventures a super-long manga spanning every region!"
"..."
Kikkawa Maho rubbed her forehead.
She suddenly felt that her future workload as his editor would probably be enormous.
"Mr. Masuda."
"Hm?"
"Can't you design a few completely original characters?"
"I have!"
Shiraishi Ritsu answered without hesitation.
"Red, Green, Blue-aren't they all original characters?"
"I mean the important villains!"
"..."
Shiraishi Ritsu fell silent.
Change them?
Absolutely not!
Although he now publicly claimed Pokémon Adventures was his original work, those familiar plots and characters were all things he had loved in his previous life.
If he replaced every classic character just because he worried about their real-life counterparts coming knocking, could this manga still be called Pokémon Adventures?
At that thought, Shiraishi Ritsu shook his head.
"Miss Maho, when it comes to the main characters' storylines, I'd still like to follow the original outline as closely as possible."
"Understood."
Kikkawa Maho did not press the matter any further.
As an editor, she naturally understood that the most important part of a manga was the story itself.
Changing character relationships on a whim could indeed easily affect the subsequent plot.
However, when a work involved real people's reputations and the use of their likenesses, the publisher also needed to handle things carefully.
So the two resumed their discussion.
First, the next issue would retain a prominent fiction disclaimer, and the reader Q&A section would explain the differences between the manga characters and their real-life counterparts.
Second, any future storylines involving real Gym Leaders, Elite Four members, and Champions had to be submitted to the editorial department for advance review. The use of their likenesses, promotional authorization, and any potential controversies also needed to be discussed with the people involved as early as possible.
If any particularly sensitive content came up, both sides would discuss specifically whether its presentation needed adjusting.
In addition, Shiraishi Ritsu's home address and contact details could not be casually disclosed to outsiders.
After all, Sabrina had already come knocking in person once.
If every reader could easily find his studio in the future, how was he supposed to draw manga in peace?
"As for Gym Leader Lt. Surge..."
Kikkawa Maho thought for a moment.
"Since he's already expressed an interest in talking to you, I suggest you take the initiative and respond. A proper conversation might resolve the problem."
Shiraishi Ritsu pulled a long face.
"Miss Maho, what if he asks me to battle his Raichu?"
"Don't you know a lot about Pokémon battles?"
"Knowing about them is one thing. Being able to win is another!"
Shiraishi Ritsu pointed at Smeargle beside him.
"This one of mine is certainly great at drawing, but in an actual battle against Lt. Surge's Raichu, he'd probably go down in one hit."
"Smeargle!"
Smeargle cried out indignantly.
Master!
How could you look down on your own partner like that?
Shiraishi Ritsu glanced at him.
"What? Do you actually want to fight Raichu?"
Smeargle gave it some serious thought.
Then he silently lowered his head and went back to drawing.
Forget it.
An artist shouldn't get into fights on a whim.
The sight made Kikkawa Maho laugh.
After nearly an hour of discussion, Shiraishi Ritsu finally abandoned the idea of going on hiatus.
After all, his manga career was at a critical stage of development.
Besides, both he and Smeargle had already grown accustomed to this life.
Every day, they planned storylines and drew manga, with payment for their work arriving at the end of the month.
Occasionally, he read letters from readers and listened to people discuss Red and Green's adventures.
Shiraishi Ritsu actually quite liked these days.
"All right."
He stretched.
"If I can't go on hiatus, I'll keep drawing!"
"That's the spirit!"
Kikkawa Maho smiled in satisfaction.
"I believe that as long as we handle the relevant issues carefully, Pokémon Adventures is sure to achieve even greater success!"
Shiraishi Ritsu nodded, then remembered something.
"Oh, right, Miss Maho."
"What is it?"
"I've pretty much finished the manuscript for the next issue."
"Already?"
Kikkawa Maho's eyes lit up.
"What's the storyline?"
"Hehe, an important Team Rocket storyline, of course!"
Shiraishi Ritsu pulled several storyboard pages from the document envelope he carried with him and handed them over.
"There's a really spectacular Pokémon battle this time. Smeargle and I put a lot of effort into designing the moves."
Kikkawa Maho took the pages and began studying them closely.
In the panels, several Pokémon were locked in fierce combat inside Team Rocket's Secret Base.
Red led his companions into action, while the Team Rocket executives finally revealed their true strength.
Most eye-catching of all was a Raichu wreathed in crackling electricity.
It stood in the center of the training ground with a fierce expression, the surrounding ground seeming to shake under the impact of the electric currents.
And the man standing behind Raichu was none other than Lt. Surge.
Kikkawa Maho stared at the panels for several seconds.
Then she slowly raised her head.
"Mr. Masuda..."
"Hm?"
"Are you sure you still want to keep drawing Gym Leader Lt. Surge right now?"
"Of course!"
Shiraishi Ritsu answered with complete conviction.
"This is an important storyline! Besides, don't you think Raichu's battle scenes look especially cool this time?"
Kikkawa Maho fell silent.
She looked down at the pages, then recalled the phone call from Lt. Surge earlier.
Suddenly, she felt a bit of a headache coming on.
"Mr. Masuda."
"What?"
"I think I'm starting to understand why Gym Leader Sabrina came knocking in person."
Shiraishi Ritsu: "..."
Wait!
He'd clearly made Lt. Surge look so cool this time!
It should be fine, right?
Smeargle, meanwhile, was not worried in the slightest. He was proudly admiring the Raichu battle scene he had just finished drawing.
He had even begun looking forward to what readers would say once the new issue came out.
As for how Lt. Surge himself would react...
Smeargle had never considered that question.
All he knew was that he had drawn this battle scene especially well!
And as Shiraishi Ritsu gazed at those manuscript pages, he thought for a moment before smiling again.
"Don't worry, Miss Maho!"
"I know where to draw the line this time!"
Looking at his utterly confident expression, Kikkawa Maho suddenly felt even less reassured.
After all, Shiraishi Ritsu had said the same thing last time.