You love some free (you)s, but you won't post claiming to be yourself. It's almost like interfering with a meme in its natural habitat. Plus, you'd probably be called a faggot. Among other things. You painstakingly save all the memes and fanart made of you as well as screenshots of a few posts you like. As you're doing this, another, more important things comes to your attention- how to dispose of the yaoi you bought yesterday of drunk. There's nothing harmful just with it existing, but... it's dangerous. Yaoi is dangerous. It makes you feel uncomfortable, and as long as it's nearby you could me mistaken for a male fujoshi. You're not sure if males can be a fujoshi by definition, but either way you have the irrational fear of having someone recognize you, see the yaoi, and then announce to the entire world you're gay. You must dispose of it. Now.
A few minutes later you're intensely staring at a piece of paper, scribbling down ideas. "Throw it out the windo... no, someone could pick it up and give it the front desk. There should be a shredder in the hotel... no, no, it'd take too long. Plus, the covers are pretty thick. If I broke it the staff would check it and find out what I was doing. I... I guess the best option is to go buy a mask and then throw it out. No, no, if I'm too suspicious the police will stop me and check the bag. They might even make me take the mask off. Fuck..."
After painstaking deliberation on how to get rid of the yaoi, you settle on the easiest option- casually strolling to a nearby dumpster and throwing it away. If you do this with confidence (and hide the bag of yaoi in your briefcase) then you'll get away from it. This is how you ended up dressed in a suit, walking through the streets of Tokyo with the rest of the salarymen getting to their jobs. Unlike these salarymen though, you were disposing of evidence. Evidence of one of the biggest mistakes you ever made. You leave the crowd and head down an alley, heading towards a dumpster. You tentatively check it and it's unlocked- success. You open your briefcase, chuck the bag of yaoi into the dumpster, and nonchalantly walk away. Mission success.

Having disposed of... that, you pass the rest of your morning normally. You get yet another call from a small manga magazine and get a number from one of their editors. As you're walking around, you get another call from an unknown number. Assuming it's another magazine's editor, you answer it. "Hello, this is Hiroka Oka, lawyer. On behalf of Higeki Enno, I'm giving you a cease and desist. You are ordered to stop circulating copies of 'Higeki Enno: Animator, Idiot, and Scourge on the Earth.', digitally or physically. If you do not stop, we will be pursuing legal action on the grounds of slander." Oh, so Enno's back on trying to get rid of the manga again. You're not sure if he gave up on actually fucking you over, or if this is just an appetizer. You...
>tell the lawyer to fuck off and hang up. They can't do anything, it's a work of truth. To the courts, it's a parody work.
>tell him fine and then get the few friends who are still selling copies today to stop. The manga is already available online, if Enno tries to censor it anymore it'll just be the Barbara Streisand effect.
>tell him you'll be referring him to your lawyer and then find a lawyer. If you just let the law tackle the problem it'll work out, even if you lose some money.
>Other

>>3651839
>We're not circulating any copies though. All the copies are circulated by completely different people we have no control of.

>>3651839
>>tell him fine and then get the few friends who are still selling copies today to stop. The manga is already available online, if Enno tries to censor it anymore it'll just be the Barbara Streisand effect.

>>3651839
>>tell the lawyer to fuck off and hang up. They can't do anything, it's a work of truth. To the courts, it's a parody work.

"You're just asking me to, in your own words, "stop circulating copies", correct?" There's a short pause before the lawyer replies. "Yes sir, we just need you to stop circulating copies." Good. You can use this loophole. "That's good then! I haven't been circulating any copies to the public. I helped draw the manga, but I only have a single copy for myself. I have no idea how my friends got ahold of copies to sell. Sorry, I can't do anything- they're not my kids after all, it's not like I have any control over them." The lawyer says "Hey, wai-" but you simply add that the manga is a work of parody and cut him off by hanging up.
Well, hopefully that doesn't turn into anything bigger. Legally you should be in the clear, but you'd rather not have Higeki waste your money when you're going to be drawing manga in a small magazine. That doesn't pay well. You continue going about your business and make your way to Comiket.

Meanwhile, in Higeki Enno's hotel room
"So he didn't just piss himself and give in? Uh... yeah, you can do whatever you want regarding that. Just get those books out of circulation and we're good. Alright, bye." As Higeki Enno hangs up the phone he sighs and holds his head in his hands. "Fuck, what's next, what's next... I do have that meeting, but I can't just let it end like this."
Higeki Enno sits like that for several minutes before knocks at his door. He mutters "Come in." as he continues trying to think of a way to get revenge against that wretched otaku, Ouji Kaiji. The door opens and a middle-aged man enters the room. "Is it time for the meeting already?" "No, it's not, but... it seems you've been acting out lately? You know that the studio has a reputation to uphold, right?" Higeki Enno glares at the man. "You know I don't give a shit about reputation- not the studio's and not my own. I did you a favor by not going nuclear and just letting that video leak out. What do you want now." The man talking to Enno awkwardly stares at the ground before shrugging his shoulders and reluctantly replying. "Look, could you just... let it go. There's no need you need to fight with this guy." Higeki Enno frowns in response. "He's just some salaryman otaku, who gives a shit? Hell, he's probably out of a job after that thing on TV yesterday."
As Higeki Enno says this he begins ignoring the man he's talking to and turns to face his computer. He shifts from tab to tab before stopping on a twitter page. Muttering to himself, he reads the tweet out loud. "I'm glad to be announcing that I'll be publishing a one-shot in the November issue of Seinen King. I encourage all of my fans to..." Higeki Enno's voice drifts off as his mouth twists into a smile. He turns back to the person he who entered the room, who gave up lecturing him a while ago. "Alright, I'll stop." The man looks surprised, but happy. "Really!" "Yeah, yeah, really. But first you have to get me a slot in Seinen King. I want a one-shot manga in their November issue. There should be another one by Ouji Kaiji in that issue, make sure I get the exact same page count and placement. No matter what make sure they don't cut or delay his. I can pay to add extra pages if I have to." The man looks worried, but before he can say anything Higeki Enno cuts him off, a look of glee on his face. "Shut up, just do it. Leave me alone now, I'm going to start storyboarding."
The middle-aged man leaves the room as Higeki Enno laughs to himself. "That fucker says I'm a hack! I'll show him! If he wants to enter the manga industry I'll crush him at every turn! I'll win every poll and reader survey before destroying every sales number he has. By the time I'm done with him he'll be done with his delusions and will give me the respect I deserve!" As Higeki Enno rants he slams his fists against the desk, spittle flying out of his mouth. "I'LL SHOW THAT BASTARD WHAT THE NAME 'HIGEKI ENNO' MEANS IN THIS INDUSTRY!"

In a stroke of genius you buy a mask and sunglasses before going to Comiket, figuring it'll make you stand out less. You don't want people taking pictures of you and posting them online after all. Anons are cool, but at the same time having their eyes on you at all times feels more terrifying in some ways than Higeki Enno constantly fucking with you.
Your plan works (or maybe you're just not as popular as you thought) and you enjoy your first couple hours at Comiket without trouble. You maintain constant vigilance in case Higeki Enno launches another one of his schemes, but nothing happens. Maybe he gave up? No... no, he wouldn't do that. You push that thought of your mind and glance at every single passerby as you shop, wondering if they're working for him.
Afternoon comes by, and with it the most important even of the day- Fukumoto-sensei's panel here! You have no idea how they got him to come, but he has! You get in line and estimate that you should be at least 30 seats early. Good, you get here early enough. You wait in the line for quite a while and eventually reach the front, but as you do something inconceivable happens. "Alright, the venue is full. I'm sorry, but no one else can enter the panel." That... what?!
You voice your confusion and tell the person in charge of the line that there should be nearly 30 seats left by your count. "I'm sorry sir, some people from the industry came and we gave those seats to them. There are plenty of other panels going on that you might be able to make it to if you leave now." That's... no! You can't accept this! Fukumoto is your favorite mangaka and you will be there for his first and likely only Comiket appearance. You...
>tell him that you are one of the people from the industry, you were mistaken and thought that you had to get into the line with everyone else. You're a representative from Seinen King, he can even talk to your editor if he wants.
>call Natsuo-san, that guy in charge of managing the Comiket floor. He helped you out by returning the manga Enno tried to confiscate with security, so maybe he can do you a favor and get you in.
>pretend to leave and look for an opening to sneak in. You don't believe there's security everywhere.
>Other

>>3655106
>Other
I don't really know how it's done at Comiket, but if we don't have a seat can't we just stand?

>>3655210
You can stand outside and try to hear as much as you can, but you're not allowed to enter because of either the fire code limiting the number of people, security not wanting a bunch of people to awkwardly stand around and make it difficult to hear/see for the people who got here early, or a combination of both.

>>3655106
>pretend to leave and look for an opening to sneak in. You don't believe there's security everywhere.

There has to be an opening somewhere. Whether it's an emergency exit, the floor above, or the conference room next door, you'll definitely get into that panel!
You begin your search by going upstairs. That is when you remember that there is nothing directly above where the panel is being held. Optimistically writing this off as 'making the search easier', you make sure the guard can't see you and circle around outside. There has to be an emergency exit or two.
After a short search you find two emergency exits. The first one won't open, but much to your surprise and excitement, the second one is unlocked. You carefully open it, afraid that an alarm might sound, but nothing happens. It shuts behind you, and you look around. This... where's Fukumoto-sensei? Where's the audience? The only thing around you is a hallway. As you're trying to figure this out, you can faintly hear something. "Fukumoto-sensei will be coming out in three minutes. Please remember to be quiet at that time. Thank you." Wait, if the voice is over there, does that mean... maybe you're back stage?! Excited, you begin looking around and confirm your guess. You're backstage! You'd get a better view in the crowd, but maybe you can talk to your favorite manga artist this way. Still, it'll have to wait until after he speaks. He has to go on in a few minutes after all.
You find where most of the staff are and manage to blend in with them without much trouble. They're all calm, having finished preparing for the panel while you were finding a way in. As you avoid talking to anyone back here, you see everyone glance in another direction and follow their gaze. At the end you see... Nobuyaki Fukumoto! Your favorite manga artist! You're excited, but you can't show it right now. He waves to everyone and then goes onto the stage to start speaking.
"Hello, I'm Nobuyaki Fukumoto, author of series like Kaiji, Akagi, and Ten. Today I'll be speaking about..." You hang onto every word as the panel begins. First there's the self-introduction, and then he talks about how he entered the manga scene for a few minutes. After that there's a weird tangent to majong, some talk about his inspiration for Akagi, and then... more majong. He did a lot of majong manga, but really? Is it really alright to derail your talk like this? As you're trying to figure this out, someone backstage approaches you. "Hey, we're going to help set up the next panel now. Get going, we need your help." Fuck! You blended in too well- they think you're staff now. You...
>pretend to help him and then circle back here, it'll take at most a minute. You can just hide and find a spot to listen to the panel in a moment.
>tell him that you're on your break right now and wanted to listen to this talk. Your schedule has you helping after it's done.
>tell him that you don't work here, Natsuo-san just told you to go to a few panels and then write him reports on how they were. If they don't look deeper into it this excuse should hold.
>Other

>>3666130
>Other: tell him that Natsuo-san has us on a lookout for a particular troublemaker that sneaks to panels avoiding the security.

"Oh? Sorry, I'm not in charge of setting up the panels, Natsuo-san sent me to here to keep a look out. Apparently a particular troublemaker has been trying to sneak into panels while avoiding the security and causing trouble. If he sees the guards he gets sheepish, so I'm dressed in plainclothes and keeping a lookout here. If he comes over and tries anything I'm supposed to stop him before he can get on stage and interrupt Fukumoto-sensei."
The man looks at you suspiciously for a moment, but then he shrugs. "Alright then, sounds tough. Good luck out there." Good, you're safe! Having secured your ticket to the show, you stay where you are and listen to Fukumoto speak, hanging on every word of his. In the end half of the panel ends up being dedicated to his inexplicable obsession with majong, but eventually it grows on you. Besides that you get to here plenty about his reasoning in drawing his popular series and why he likes gambling manga so much. You've come to the assumption that it's because he's an adrenaline junkie and because he REALLY, REALLY likes majong, but you'll keep that to yourself.
The panel ends after the better part of an hour, but it only feels like five minutes. You're disappointed, but now comes the most important part: trying to talk to your idol, Fukumoto-sensei! You also had another idol until a few days ago, but you'll try to forget about your nemesis for now. Fukumoto-sensei comes backstage from the panel, wiping sweat off his brow, and you...
>ask him for his autograph.
>approach him and ask if he any advice on staying in the manga industry once you've debuted. You can use anything you can get right now, online popularity won't last forever.
>ask him those burning questions you've had about your favorite series, you'll never have a chance again and you have to know!
>ask him if he wants to play majong, that should get him talking!
>Other

>>3673419
>approach him and ask if he any advice on staying in the manga industry once you've debuted. You can use anything you can get right now, online popularity won't last forever.

You have so many questions you want to ask Fukumoto about his manga, but... the industry! You have to ask him about the manga industry! Your popularity from everything that happened the past couple of days won't last forever, so you need to get any advantage you can before this. You wouldn't say you're unqualified to become a manga artist, but you don't have the experience.
"Fukumoto-sensei, it's nice to meet you, I'm Ouji Kaiji, I'm currently employed with Shounen King. I'm a big fan of yours." As you speak he turns to you, scratching his head. "Kaiji-san, or is it Kaiji-sensei? Er, you didn't name yourself after my manga, right?" That... ok, you guess fans that radical might exist if Fukumoto-sensei is asking. You feel slightly offended, but quickly brush it off and deny the accusations. "Ah, that's good. Meeting fans is a gamble- sometimes they're nice folks, and sometimes they're obsessive nutjobs who want to trap you in the trunk of your car and kidnap you so that you can draw manga for them until your eventual demise. Still, that incident did provide some good inspiration..."
An awkward silence lingers between the two of you before Fukumoto-sensei clears his throat. "Anyways, what can I do for you? An autograph? Advice? Do you want to know about how Kaiji is going to end?" "Well, I am curious abou how it's going to end and I would like an autograph, but the advice is more important. I'm just about to make my debut, so I thought you might have some advice about the industry. You're a veteran after all."
Fukumoto-sensei nods sagely. "I do indeed have some advice. The most important thing to remember is that the manga industry is a gamble." "A gamble?" "Yes, just like life. Anyways, it's a gamble. You're not a real manga artist until you've either created a mega-hit or several series successful enough to live off of. If you do any worse than that, you may as well get a job as a civil servant and keep it as a hobby. In essence, it's like buying a lottery ticket- even if you're skilled, there's a certain element of luck involved. You get it?" "Yeah, yeah, that makes a lot of sense. I just got my lucky opportunity, so now I have to bring the skill from here on in and make sure my luck holds out. So that I can be considered a real manga artist like you!"

As you're hyping yourself up, Fukumoto-sensei suddenly brings you back down to earth. "Actually, I'm not a real manga artist." Confused, you follow up on his statement. "Not a real manga artist? But you've made Akagi, Ten, Kaiji, and many more extremely successful series! By your standards shouldn't you have made it long ago?" Fukumoto-sensei scrunches his brows and shakes his head in response. "No, no, those don't matter anymore." "Oh! Because you're always looking forward, meaning the achievements of the past don't matter?" "No. Because I spent the money I earned from those series gambling for more inspiration. Now I'm just as broke as a newcomer." That... that's surprising. Before you can come up with a response, you hear him mutter "Writer's block is a terrifying thing..."
Fukumoto-sensei pulls out a business card and hands it to you. "Call me if you ever get your hands on a gamble, a deep look into the human psyche, or something else interesting. I always need inspiration." Fukumoto-sensei then walks away, cheerfully humming a tune. He certainly was eccentric, but at least it was in a good way, and not like that bastard Higeki Enno.
You return to the Comiket floor, enthusiastic about meeting you favorite manga artist, and much to your surprise and joy nothing bad happens for the rest of the day. Nobody calls you out for sneaking backstage or using Natsuo-san's name earlier, Higeki Enno doesn't harass you, and you don't get any more calls from your boss. Well, he probably just gave up by now. Comiket ends for the day, and as you're preparing to meet up with everyone who helped you draw the doujin for Comiket and party, you get a phonecall. "It's the host of Cash Cab Japan, Sugimoto, and I'm currently being held for several charges including reckless driving, resisting arrest, and several dozen various traffic offenses! I have one question for you: Will you post bail for me?" You're surprised he can keep character despite being held in jail and likely never being allowed to drive a taxi again, let alone the cash cab, but that's a good thing. You...
>tell him you can post bail, you haven't known him for too long but you trust him. He won't let you lose your money by running.
>tell him you can't afford to post bail right now, you just got laid off and you might be doing low-paying work for a while. You do have some savings, but this could stretch them.
>ask him if he's going to run if you pay his bail.
>Other

>>3679249
>tell him you can post bail, you haven't known him for too long but you trust him. He won't let you lose your money by running.
He's a bro, and we still have that prize money.

Well, you still have the prize money. You'd like to have a bigger buffer since you're entering the manga industry, but it's fine. Sugimoto helped you out, so you should help him out. "Yeah, I can post bail. Can you give me the address. Alright, over there? Cool, I'll bail you and then I'm heading out with some drinks for friends, you can come along if you want. Mhm, right, got it. See you there." You hang up the phone and then hail another taxi, telling it to bring you to the jail Sugimoto is being held at.
You reach the jail after a short taxi ride, pay the bail at the counter, and a few minutes later are greeted by Sugimoto in a stereotypical prison jumpsuit. You thought that was more an American thing though. Plus, he was only being held right now, he hasn't been prosecuted yet. "Did you not get your clothes back?" "No, no, but since I knew they were coming for me today I wore this. How are you supposed to adapt to prison if you don't even play the part?" That... alright, it's definitely something he'd do. "Anyways, you said we're heading out for drinks? I have a month until trial, so I should enjoy myself the best I can up until then and prepare to become a game show host- in prison!"
The two of you head to Tarou's house, where you see almost everyone who helped you out in making the doujin about Higeki Enno a few days ago. Today you can actually catch up, drink, and hang out, unlike then where you had to make sure they were all working. As you enter, you notice that Navine and Hiro are both there. You guess Tarou called them over. Navine waves at you and says hi. "Hey, thanks for going shopping for last night. I didn't expect you'd agree to go to- mgmghg hirhrm?" She's cut off as you forcefully cover her mouth. No one can know that while you were drunk you went to buy yaoi with her. No one. "You uncover her mouth and look at her, a serious expression on your face. "No one can know. No one. Also, before I'm drunk, let it be known I'm never shopping there again." Navine just laughs in response. "Of course you wouldn't for now, you got a whole bag full of stuff yesterday. Why would you need to?" There's a short pause before you respond. "Those doujins are in a better place now." You then leave, not wanting to deal with the fault of drunk you anymore.
The goes on and you drink and party, reminiscing about old times with your friends and listening to all their stories, boring and exciting, about Comiket. A lot of the ones who were retired tell you how fun it was working on a doujin one last time, and when you tell people you're entering the manga industry you get well-wishes and a generous amount of beer poured down your gullet.

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The night blends together in your happy memories, and it honestly feels like a remnant of old times. It's like the old chapters of your life, your years drawing doujins, your years going through Comiket as best you can, and these past few days, are all coming together and drawing to a close. Like the party at the end of an arc of One Piece, this is a turning point for you. You're moving up from making self-published works, and actually being paid for your work. You don't know if you'll be able to do this, but you'll try the best you can! All you can do is try anyways! And if you fail, fail, and fall down seven times in the end, you'll get up the eight time, just to try again! Even if you're kicked out of the manga industry on your ass, you'll find work at a publisher somewhere, on at the Comiket committee, or as an editor. You won't let yourself be a corporate drone ever again! You may hate that asshole Higeki Enno, but you agree with one point- normal society can shackle you down, even if it is helpful. You're staying in this world of otaku no matter what from now on.
8 years later, in a manga studio in Tokyo...
"...And that's the story of how I entered the manga industry!" Kaiji Ouji, age 36, smiles as he finishes his story. Around him are bookshelves full of manga, scattered ink, screen tones, and pieces of paper, and three exhausted looking people at tracing desks. "Yeah, Kaiji-sensei, that was a lovely story, but the deadline still isn't moving any further. In fact, it only came several hours closer when you were telling it (although in an alternate universe it may have been three months)." ...The deadline. Fuck, he's right, that's what you were running from.
"Dammit! Alright, we're pulling another all-nighter, sorry about this! If it wasn't for that bastard Higeki Enno, saying he'd fight me with his art and then continually sabotaging me..." One of your assistants scratches his head, and awkward smile on his face. "I really don't think it's Higeki Enno just because he always beats us in the rankings, we just have bad luck...." "SHUT UP! It's that bastard, it's always his fault. He's been doing this for eight years, and he's just gotten better at hiding it, he hasn't stopped. Anyways, we need to draw!" As you finish talking, you start muttering to yourself. "God, I'm going to be tired in the morning. This next day is going to be a drag. I finally got a vacation but now I have to stay up all night, pick Sugimoto-san up from prison now that he's been released early to host the National Quiz, and then go to Tarou and Navine's wedding... at least I'll get to sleep eventually."
Despite you saying this, a smile remains on your face as you continue drawing. You made it to your promised land, somewhere that has a charm different from Comiket.

Thanks to anyone who has read this far, and apologies on the pacing. I hope you got some enjoyment from reading a waifu-having manga-owning otaku shitposter writing about another waifu-having manga-owning otaku shitposter.
Last plug of my twitter in case anyone is interested in my other quests: https://twitter.com/QmWalrus

>>3684004
Thanks for running! I had loads of fun.
I'm a bit bummed we didn't get to plan our first manga in a bid to defeat Enno, but shikata ga nai.

Can't believe that Sugimoto-san got 8 years for speeding. Japanese law is scary.