The Great Passage

After the decision to serialize Moritaka and Akito has been made, they are introduced to Miura, their new manager. At first, the two thought it was a joke, but Hattori gives them a pep talk before leaving. While Miura doesn't seem like a bad person, he is given to rudeness and seems to be worried about the duo's future. In addition, the duo are given three assistants to work on their manuscript, and with the assistance of Ogawa, an experienced assistant, their work progresses well. At the start of the new year, Moritaka and Akito both attend Shonen Jack's New Year Party. There, they meet Hiramaru Kazuya, said to be a genius of a whole different level from Eiji.

Moritaka Mashiro and Akito Takagi are pretty much foils of each other. Mashiro, an average 9th grade student but talented artist, and Takagi, an overall advanced 9th grader and aspiring writer. After great convincing, Takagi convinces Mashiro to join him in becoming the greatest mangakas Japan has ever seen. Takagi, with his gift of writing, hopes to become a successful mangaka, and Mashiro, with his gift of art, hopes to marry the girl of his dreams, Azuki Miho.

Futami, a novice shojo manga artist, is finally publishing her beloved shogi manga, Dear Subaru. But…the stress makes her stomach hurt, she’s forced to push the deadline for her first chapter, and she isn’t making any progress on the storyboards. To top it off, she’s gaining weight from midnight snacking and starts having wild delusions! Will Futami be able to enjoy life as a manga artist?!

Fumihiko Matsumaru is an average salaryman with no girlfriend. He invited his colleague Miss Tanaka to a movie but was stood up. Right at the time he was about to toss tickets into a trash can, a cute girl appeared and asked him not to waste those two tickets. After movie and dinner, he escorted her home and found they live in the same neighborhood, yet unfortunately her apartment caught on fire hours later. Having nowhere else to stay, rookie seiyuu Aka Onda moved to Matsumaru's place, and the two had started a "more than friend but not yet lovers" relationship under the same roof while keeping this secret from their employers.