Kana Uehara took a deep breath.
How many manga truly achieve legendary status with just their first chapter?
Yet, the debut chapter of most manga generally reveals the work's overall quality.
The character development and narrative depth in 5 Centimeters Per Second... could this really be the work of a rookie mangaka?!
Kana carefully examined the color pages of 5 Centimeters Per Second's first chapter. Below the artwork, she found a brief introduction to the creator, Shirogane.
It was a simple sentence:
Shirogane: A minor high school student mangaka from Tokyo.
Kana was stunned.
Huh?!
A minor high school student?!
That's ridiculous!
Is the manga publisher trying to pull one over on us readers? A high school student might be able to imagine and create some saccharine romance stories.
But 5 Centimeters Per Second—with its heavy atmosphere and mature themes—could this really be the work of a high school mangaka?!
As Kana's thoughts swirled around Shirogane, the author of 5 Centimeters Per Second, a massive influx of Sakura Weekly fans flooded the official website of Hoshimori Publishing Group's Sakura Weekly.
Although Japan's internet was still developing, the kind of online novel and manga boom that Rei Kirishima had experienced in his previous life hadn't yet materialized.
After all, for major manga publishers, print manga remained the most profitable format. They had no incentive to push for digitalization.
However, online forums had been popular for several years. Fans of various manga magazines often gathered to discuss the latest chapters after reading them.
"As expected of Amamiya-sensei's new manga, Love Blooms Like Fireworks! The first chapter was so sweet! I'm in love!"
"This week's Tale of Sorrow plot was so bland!"
"It's way better than High Score Romance. Both series are already past the confession stage, but Tale of Sorrow is clearly heading toward its conclusion. The plot may be simple, but it's not dragging on. It's just that the story has reached a point where this is the only possible quality. High Score Romance? What a joke! They're obviously padding the plot. I definitely won't be buying the new manga volume."
"I'm definitely voting for Tale of Sorrow this week."
"Hey, did any of you check out that other new manga in this week's Sakura Weekly?"
"You mean 5 Centimeters Per Second?"
"Yeah, that's the one! What did you think?"
"Oh, that's great! Finally, someone's talking about this new manga. I thought I was the only one who liked it and was too afraid to speak up."
"Me too! The first chapter was so beautifully drawn. Akari and Takaki's characterization almost made me cry."
"It's been ages since I've seen a romance manga with such delicate character development. The pacing is so slow, though. After a whole chapter, Takaki and Akari still haven't met."
"What's 5 Centimeters Per Second? Is it good?"
"It depends on your taste. But the first chapter completely captivated me."
"Everyone who hasn't read it should check it out! It's a completely different style from the other manga in Sakura Weekly. I absolutely love this kind of slow-burn romance."
"Spoiler alert: the male and female leads are still middle schoolers, and the timeline seems to be set in the past, before smartphones were common. People in long-distance relationships communicated through letters back then."
"A long-distance romance manga? Is the author that bold? Daring to tackle such a niche genre?"
"This kind of manga can't last long. The plot will collapse within twenty chapters."
"We'll see when we get there. For this week, out of the two new manga and the latest chapter of Tale of Sorrow, Love Blooms Like Fireworks, and High Score Romance, I definitely liked 5 Centimeters Per Second the most!"
"Hearing you guys talk about it, I'm getting curious too. I'll check it out now."
After all, it was only the first chapter of the serialization, so 5 Centimeters hadn't made a huge splash among the Sakura Weekly manga community.
However, Misaki Yukishiro felt relieved after logging into the forum during her work break and seeing the fan comments.
At least there were no negative reviews. That was the best possible outcome, indicating that manga fans approved of the narrative pacing, character designs, and story, and were willing to patiently wait for the plot of 5 Centimeters Per Second to unfold.
"Congratulations, Takeda Jun! The fan reviews for your latest manga submission are really positive!"
At that moment, several colleagues in the Editorial Department began congratulating Takeda Jun.
"And Misaki Yukishiro, the reception for 5 Centimeters Per Second is also excellent. I wonder what the popularity rankings for the first chapters of these two new series will be."
Sakura Weekly had implemented an online fan popularity voting system. If fans wanted to support their favorite manga, they could log into their official forum accounts and enter the serial code from their purchased manga magazine to cast their votes.
This was a significant improvement over the previous system, where fans had to mail in physical ballots.
The online fan voting system was far more convenient than the old method, and the ease of participation led to a geometric increase in fan engagement.
Previously, a manga magazine with sales of several hundred thousand copies might receive only a few hundred fan letters for its most popular series per issue. Now, that number had increased tenfold, even twentyfold or more.
"5 Centimeters Per Second definitely won't lose to Love Blooms Like Fireworks, right? After all, it was unanimously praised by the Director and so many editors at the Serialization Meeting. Its debut chapter might even crack the top five in the popularity rankings," a slightly overweight editor with glasses chuckled softly.
Misaki Yukishiro and Takeda Jun both glanced at the editor, a flicker of annoyance in their eyes.
Though Misaki and Takeda were direct competitors within the Sakura Weekly editorial team, their rivalry remained healthy, with each focusing on their respective roles.
But this female editor, whose own performance was lackluster, often stirred up trouble within the group.
5 Centimeters Per Second was a short manga with a slow-paced opening. While fan reviews were positive, it would be exceedingly difficult for its debut chapter to surpass the new work by Yuto Amamiya, who already had a loyal following.
Such remarks carried malicious intent, bordering on flattery meant to undermine.
"I never aimed for the top five," Misaki Yukishiro said with a gentle smile. "I just want to avoid being in the bottom three of the popularity rankings. Even my serialized manga nearing its conclusion never ranked that low."
The slightly plump editor who had spoken earlier fell silent.
Two of her manga series had been axed from Sakura Weekly in recent months due to abysmal popularity. Typically, axed manga rank dead last in popularity. Misaki's remark made her lose face.
After the editor fell silent, Misaki and Takeda Jun exchanged a glance.
They both understood what the other was thinking.
Undoubtedly, Yuto Amamiya, a veteran mangaka with six years of experience, multiple serialized works, and a substantial fanbase, would initially dominate the popularity rankings with his new manga.
But for how long?
With both manga being serialized concurrently, comparisons and competition were inevitable.
5 Centimeters Per Second would conclude after just five chapters.
If its popularity ranking surpassed Love Blooms Like Fireworks before its conclusion, the Editorial Department would undoubtedly declare 5 Centimeters Per Second the victor.