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badgalsasuke · 1 month ago

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Kishimoto for Aera Magazine (Dec 8th, 2014)

I couldn't find clean scans but I was still able to translate most of the Naruto special published by Aera magazine. It's consists of page 9 and then an interview from pages 33-35 plus another article from pages 36-39 but I couldn't translate these last three pages because I couldn't find them anywhere but oh well, I decided to still post the rest of the Naruto special.

Person in focus (refers to those gracing the cover of the magazine)

"Memories came flooding back and I had to hold back the tears." The globally mega-hit manga "NARUTO" serialized in "Weekly Shonen Jump" has recently concluded. Seven of his collaborators, assistants and editors gathered at the workplace in the early hours to express their gratitude for the hard work.

The photo was taken at the workplace where "NARUTO" was created. It was on a high floor of a building overlooking central Tokyo. It was a studio befitting the work of a ninja manga that has sold over 200 million copies worldwide. But the author exudes a soft, fluffy aura, and still retains the vestiges of an innocent boy. "Here, the windows are too big, so it's really hot. We need an electric fan," he said.

He refused to give up, and was undeterred. The protagonist Naruto, who overcomes hardships to become the best ninja, can be considered the author's alter ego. The "real" Naruto has also worked hard to bring out his hidden talent. He is well known for his skill in drawing, but after receiving a newcomer's award, he was unable to draw a manga that he was satisfied with for a long time. In order to master professional expression techniques, he visited libraries and bookstores to read books, went to video rental stores to rent movies, and thoroughly studied "what kind of work makes people happy" by himself for two years.

So while one might think he is a writer who seeks popularity, he also has a strong penchant for being a writer who sticks to his own ideas. After the serialization of "NARUTO" got on track, he took the results of Jump's regular reader surveys seriously, but he didn't really want to hear them because "if the results are good, I get carried away, and if they're bad, I get depressed." He always holds out until the last minute to finish his manuscript. It was common for him to hand over the Monday issue in the early hours of Friday.

The 700th and final episode was also completed at nearly 3am. Suddenly, the door to the workplace opened and seven past collaborators entered. When the first editor handed him a bouquet of flowers, "memories suddenly flooded me and I had to hold back tears." Having pretended to be calm, he couldn't show his uncool side at this point. "I thought I had hidden it well, but later they told me, 'That was close.'" Father of two children. His twin brother, Seishi, is also a manga artist.

Shigeru Suzuki, Editorial Committee Member, Asahi Shimbun (please also see related articles from page 33)

Timeline on the left of the page.

Manga artist Masashi Kishimoto was born on November 8, 1974 in Okayama Prefecture.

As an elementary school student, he became obsessed with Toriyama Akira's "DRAGON BALL" and repeatedly copied the characters.

The first manga he drew was a ninja boy manga.

As a junior high school student, he was always in the baseball club, but was shocked by the expressions in the poster for the movie "AKIRA" written and directed by Otomo Katsuhiro.

As a high school student, he started drawing manga seriously.

In 1993, he entered the art department of a university in Kyushu. He drew manga for young men, but saw the potential in manga for boys and changed direction.

In 1995, he won an honorable mention in the Hop Step Award, a new manga award from Weekly Shonen Jump, for "Karakuri."

In 1997, he published a one-off "NARUTO" in Akamaru Jump.

In 1999, he began serializing "NARUTO" in Weekly Shonen Jump.

The November 10th, 2014 issue of Weekly Shonen Jump will be the final issue of "NARUTO," which has run for a total of 700 chapters. The film "THE LAST: NARUTO THE MOVIE," for which he is the story supervisor, will be released on December 6th. The "Kishimoto Masashi NARUTO Exhibition: Commemorating the Finale" is scheduled to be held in Tokyo in the spring and Osaka in the summer of 2015.

"It'd be a lie if I said I wasn't worried!" What Masashi Kishimoto wanted to portray in "NARUTO"

When the end of the series was announced, the news literally spread around the globe. 15 years have passed since the series began in 1999. What was it that manga artist Masashi Kishimoto was trying to draw over 700 episodes?

The mega-hit Weekly Shonen Jump series NARUTO, recognised worldwide as the flagship of modern Japanese manga, came to an end this November.

Born into a special lineage, the protagonist's growth story, which is a classic fantasy tale of virtue being repressed, combined with anime-inspired visuals and the exoticism of a ninja village—elements that represent "Japan from a Western perspective"—blended harmoniously and was well-received overseas.

In discussions between the author Masashi Kishimoto and the first editor in charge, the initial setting was conceived where the protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki, who possesses immense hidden power and is overwhelmingly positive, and his rival, Sasuke Uchiha, who, despite being blessed with talent and beauty, carries a dark past, become aware of each other, are drawn to each other, and ultimately fight in the end.

The enemies keep getting stronger, and the special moves become increasingly flashy, which is a "success formula" unique to "Jump." Keeping this in mind, Kishimoto-san stuck to his "non-negotiable" elements as an author. He wanted to portray the inner struggles of the characters, saying that it would be a lie if they didn't struggle when exchanging blows with their friends. At one point, he even prepared for the possibility of losing readers, but after the conflict, Naruto scaled up even further as a ninja and faced the final great war.

Born from the bath and soaring through the world for 15 years "Both Naruto and I faced battle drenched in sweat" On the large desk were a large number of pens. The deserted assistants desk gave the impression of a fierce battle. I interviewed him at work one week after the series ended.

In the fall of 1999, after two or three weeks of his first serialized work, "NARUTO," Masashi Kishimoto thought to himself, "I've embarked on something great."

"The person in charge told me I would have to do it for five years, but I thought do I really have to continue this difficult work for years?"

At that time, the serialization of "DRAGON BALL" (ended in 1995) and "SLAM DUNK" (ended in 1999), which had established the golden age of Jump, had come to an end, and Jump had handed over the top spot to "Weekly Shonen Magazine." However, in 1999, "ONE PIECE" began, the previous year "HUNTER × HUNTER," and in the same year, "Hikaru no Go" and "The Prince of Tenis" began serialization, and it was a time when a new lineup was being built.

"I was thinking about a samurai manga, but then 'Rurouni Kenshin' and 'Blade of the Immortal' came out first. Then I saw the illustrations by Nishio Tetsuya for the anime version of 'NINKU' and was blown away by how good and cool they were. I thought, this is it."

The target is middle school boys

Naruto, who has sealed inside his body the Nine-Tailed Fox that had attacked the ninja village of Konohagakure, is feared and hated by everyone. However, there are also people who recognize him, and he grows into a boy who is not discouraged by failure. On the other hand, his rival Sasuke is a talented young ninja from a distinguished family, but after his clan was destroyed by his older brother Itachi, he is obsessed with revenge. In short, it is a story of a ninja's growth. It reminds me of "Failure Ninja Rantaro", but with bizarre ninjutsu, sorcery, magic, and even giant creatures appearing one after another, the overall atmosphere is more like a fantasy like "Harry Potter".

The entire work is divided into two parts: the first part, as seen in the volumes, covers Naruto's growth period, while the second part corresponds to his time as a young ninja. "In Part 1, Naruto and the others are still growing, so the actual fighting against external enemies is done by Naruto's sensei, Kakashi and other Jonin. When readers vote for their favorite character, the strongest Kakashi comes first, which is not good. We'll have to change the title to "Kakashi". We skipped two and a half years in time to Part 2."

Has your readership changed? "No, my main target audience has always been boys in their second year of middle school."

Female readers are Sasuke's fans.

Female readers are probably more of a fan of the cool Sasuke than the mischievous Naruto. "Sasuke is a 'tsundere.' No, more like just 'tsun.' Sasuke and his brother Itachi have complex inner lives, so I have to be careful when drawing their expressions. On top of that, my editor makes a lot of requests. The first editor said things like, 'That's not the face of Sasuke in my mind,' 'Lower the corners of his mouth by another 2mm,' and 'Itachi should be more expressionless.' For some reason, that editor only complains about Sasuke, saying, 'Isn't this wrong?'" There are other many unique villains who also appear in the story.

Jiraiya, Naruto's teacher after graduating from Kakashi, is known as the "Pervy Sage" and is also a summoner. Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, is in her fifties but has been given the appearance of a young woman through magic (jutsu). And Orochimaru, the deserter ninja who deceives Sasuke, is one of the "Legendary Three Ninja" who was his mentor until the middle of the story. "They are characters from the 'The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya,' which has also been turned into a kabuki play. Yes, I knew about it because I read it before the series started. Sasuke's 'Sharingan' is also based on Jiraiya's eye." *In the folktale the character Jiraiya has an eye called the sharingan but the skills of the eye are very different from one story to another.

A scene that lacks a sense of catharsis

The characters are all quirky and somewhat difficult to understand, with each one having a detailed personality. With the author's technique, even minor characters end up being drawn in detail. "There was a time when I received a precious color page and drew a scene where two old men comrades where fighting with swords. Readers must have been confused. At that time, the editorial department scolded me, saying, 'What are you doing?' Initially, I thought, 'It's fine if it gets canceled,' but gradually I got the hang of it and started to get into it."

"The story takes up the most time. After my next meeting with my editor, the first thing I do is take a bath. I have a notebook that won't get wet, and I take a few sheets of it, two plastic bottles of water, and writing utensils. I stick the paper on the wall of the bathroom and start drawing down any images that come to me. I probably spend about two hours in the bath. The bath is the best place for me to come up with a story."

The toughest part during serialization was around volume 48. It was when Naruto, while questioning the meaning of his duty, was trying to persuade a formidable enemy called "Pain" with words. The dialogue is all about reconciliation. Naturally, there is no "cathartic feeling" from defeating the enemy.

"My editor told me, 'This isn't what a shonen manga is supposed to be,' and I wondered if a protagonist who resolves their inner conflicts wouldn't be entertaining. It was a harrowing experience. But if I didn't like it there, I wouldn't be able to understand Sasuke's inner self, and the meaning of the final battle scene wouldn't come through."

Was there any concern that second-year junior high school readers would drift away? "I wanted children to read it and think about it. I think the kids who understood it got it. Well, it's a bit selfish of the author, I guess. I thought if I didn't struggle here now, I wouldn't be able to continue writing "NARUTO" in the future. Oh well, if the readers drift away, then there's nothing I can do about it. I made up my mind about that. Thanks to that, I was able to write the 698th chapter, the climax, comfortably."

Read it from the beginning again

As it approaches the end, the story delves into the origins of myths and the mysteries of the universe. Naruto and Sasuke are friends, but they are also connected to brothers from Indian mythology. This manga frequently features themes of brotherly bonds, rivalries and selfishness. Moreover, it is usually the younger brother who takes on the more favorable and highlighted role. Is this influenced by his relationship with your twin brother, Seiji, who is also a manga artist? "That might be true. I get along very well with my younger brother, though."

Even after finishing the final chapter, the days of "NARUTO" continue. "Even if I play games, I surprisingly don't get hooked."In December, the movie "THE LAST -NARUTO THE MOVIE-" will be released, and in the following year, "NARUTO" will continue. I'll go greet everyone so they start reading from the beginning again."

#Kishimoto interview #Naruto archive #you will not find this interview anywhere else!! (and for a reason it was very tough with such low quality)#This is the closest Kishimoto's been to telling readers to fuck off and he was gonna draw what he wanted

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whencyclopedia · 1 year ago

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In Search of Japan's Hidden Christians: A Story of Suppression, Secrecy and Survival

“In Search of Japan’s Hidden Christians” documents the arrival, flourishing, stifling, and eventual prohibition of the Christian faith in Japan's Edo period. It was survived only through those known as “Kakure Kirishitans” (Hidden Christians), whose secret ceremonies and home-grown rituals persevere even today.

Dougill writes about the history of Christianity in Japan writ large, before focusing more precisely on the history of Hidden Christians and their existence today. There is much for both the casual reader and the academic to enjoy here, as the author interweaves his own perspectives and experiences (particularly those he had while traveling in Japan to research the topic) into the narrative. Dougill leaves little room for interpretation as he explains his thoughts and emotions throughout the book, which may sometimes conflict with the reader’s own. As such, the book reads as more a journey of the author's understanding of the topic, factually and emotionally, rather than the work of an impartial academic who seeks nothing but the cold truth without a hint of bias.

Chapters One and Two chart the arrival of the first Jesuit missionaries, the difficulties they initially faced, and the eventual conversion of some Japanese people. Chapter Three shows the reader that the Christian faith experienced some significant success in its early days, as the missionaries found favour with then Shogun Oda Nobunaga. However, in Chapter Four, we see a shift as the Christian faith that was spreading throughout the nation was seen as a potential threat by the new shogun, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and expulsion edicts were put in place. Chapters Five and Six are about the intensification of the prohibition of the faith, as well as persecution, including the crucifixion of the 26 Martyrs at Nagasaki.

Then, in Chapters Seven and Eight, the Shimabara Rebellion is explained, as well as some of the circumstances that came about after the incident such as how the Christians would attempt to hide their religious symbols in plain sight. Chapter Nine is dedicated to Endo Shusaku and his widely-known work Silence, which leads into Chapter Ten, where the history of the faith in Japan is harboured and sometimes transformed by Japanese thought in the Goto Islands, off Kyushu. Chapter Eleven explains the Dutch connection in Nagasaki and how some of the first Hidden Christians started to emerge into public view as the country began to open itself up to the world after its period of isolationism. Finally, Chapter Twelve explains the Protestant and Catholic connections to the country a bit more and reveals to the reader that the Hidden Christians of Japan were more akin to a Japanese folk religion rather than the Christianity that first arrived on their shores. Additionally, the book includes a short bibliography, as well as many images of what Dougill writes throughout the book which helps to lend a sense of realism to what can sometimes feel like an otherwordly topic.

While Dougill, who currently teaches British Culture at Ryukoku University in Kyoto, at times shows a limited understanding of Christian doctrine, the discerning reader might be able to find what the author misses through his discourse. Regardless, this book is a fascinating tale of hope amongst harrowing circumstances and the determination of the human spirit, and anyone who seeks to learn more about this little-known part of Japan’s history should see this book as a window into a much larger world.

For those wishing to look further into this topic, Ann M. Harrington's Japan's Hidden Christians (1993) which, written from a Catholic point of view, focuses more on the beliefs of Hidden Christians may be of interest. Some more contemporary analyses are Kirk Sandvig's Hidden Christians in Japan: Breaking the Silence (2019) and Christal Whelan's documentary Otaiya: Japan's Hidden Christians. Finally, The Beginning of Heaven and Earth: The Sacred Book of Japan's Hidden Christians, written by Hidden Christians during their years of persecution and edited and translated by Christal Whelan, would give the reader an insight into the beliefs that these particular Christians held and regale the reader with Bible stories with intrinsically Japanese themes.

#History #Christianity #HiddenChristians #Japan

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daikaiju-yuki · 5 months ago

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An isle of dreams.

Author of How to Have an Adventure in Northern Japan, Raffael Coronelli, returns to Japan on two southward journeys — first circling the subtropical island of Kyushu, then exploring its secretive corners, forging lasting relationships with the people who make it one of the most culturally exhilarating places on Earth. From big metropolitan Fukuoka, to the natural beauty of Miyazaki, to the corners of Oita Prefecture and the depths of Beppu’s electric nightlife, experience an adventure through history, cuisine, and the universal power of friendship and love on the adventure of a lifetime in Kyushu.

The new epic from the creator of Daikaiju Yuki is out now.

Order link

#Kyushu #Raffael Coronelli

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arkipelagic · 1 year ago

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Japanese attempts at invading early Spanish colonial-era Philippines

The earliest written mention of fears of a Japanese invasion in the broadest sense of the word appears in a Memorial to the Council of 1586, in which there is speculation within Manila that the Japanese wakō [i.e. pirate gangs] might have greater ambitions beyond mere plunder: they "make a descent almost every year, and, it is said, with the intent of colonizing Luçon [Luzon]." That never happened, but in 1591 the first proper invasion scare began when the Philippines entered the consciousness of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-98). By means of a series of brilliant military campaigns, Hideyoshi had reunified Japan after the chaos of a century of civil war, and he now set his mind on overseas expeditions.

… Farandaquiemon was a Japanese Christian merchant from Sakai called Harada Kiemon. He had visited Manila on several occasions, most recently in 1591, and, having looked at its defences, he returned to Japan convinced that the city could be taken easily. Together with his colleague Hasegawa Sonin, described as a "court favourite," Kiemon persuaded Hideyoshi to write his arrogant letter to the governor of the Philippines. Hideyoshi's military strength and his unification of Japan had become known in Manila, so the bombastic letter begins with a reference to these military triumphs and his miraculous birth that had augured Hideyoshi's destiny to rule other nations. The threats appeared later in the missive: "If an ambassador is not sent, I shall unfurl my banner and send an army against that country to conquer it with a multitude of men; so that that country will repent at not having sent me an ambassador."

The Spanish sent back a reply dated 1 May 1592 that was delivered to Hideyoshi by the Dominican friar Juan Cobo. Cobo traveled to Japan with a Chinese Christian called Antonio López, who appears to have been sent as a spy. Cobo and López met Hideyoshi at Nagoya Castle, the military base in Kyushu built for the invasion of Korea.

… On 1 June 1593, López was questioned closely under oath about what he had seen and done in Japan, with most of the questions relating to his knowledge of any Japanese plans for an attack on the Philippines. López said first that he had heard that Hideyoshi had entrusted the conquest to "Kunquyn," which probably refers to Harada Kiemon. There was also a possible motive, because "[i]n Japon there is universal talk of the abundance of gold in this land. On this account, the soldiers are anxious to come here; and are coming, as they do not care to go to Core [Korea], which is a poor country." López also stated that the Japanese had interrogated him about the military strength of the Philippines. He seems to have tried misinformation on that point, even though his initial reply had caused some arrogant amusement: "The [Japanese] laughed when they heard Antonio say that these islands contained four or five thousand Spaniards. They said that the defense of these islands was merely a matter for jest, for one hundred of the Japanese were worth two or three hundred of us."

Lopez … also had overheard the Japanese discussing the likelihood of the Philippines being reinforced when under attack. "[F]our months are needed to go from Mexico to Luçon," said López, "and on this account but few soldiers could come from Mexico. Japan is not more than twenty days' journey distant, and therefore it would be well for us to appreciate this fact." In terms of Harada Kiemon’s personal ambitions, everyone López had met believed that when the Philippines were conquered he would become the governor.

Excerpt from Wars and Rumors of Wars: Japanese Plans to Invade the Philippines, 1593–1637 by Stephen Turnbull, published in 2016

#japan #philippines #asian history #military history #history #east asia #southeast asia #spanish colonialism #x #luzon

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spacenutspod · 2 months ago

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Stars form in Giant Molecular Clouds (GMCs), vast clouds of mostly hydrogen that can span tens of light years. These stellar nurseries can form thousands of stars. Astronomers know this because they observe these regions in the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds and watch as stars take shape. But the Universe is more than 13 billion years old and has been forming stars for almost that entire time. The early Universe was different in notable ways. Was star formation any different in the early Universe? One of the main differences between the early Universe and the modern Universe is metallicity. Elements heavier than hydrogen and helium, called metals in astronomy, didn’t exist in the very early Universe. Only after massive stars formed and died did the Universe’s metallicity increase. Metallicity affects many different processes, including star formation. Metals help cool down clouds of gas and dust, allowing them to collapse and form stars. Scientists know a lot about the star formation process, but there are many outstanding questions. One of them concerns star formation in the early, low-metallicity Universe. How different was the star formation process billions of years ago? “We can’t go back in time to study star formation in the early universe, but we can observe parts of the universe with environments similar to the early universe.”Kazuki Tokuda, Kyushu University, Japan New research in The Astrophysical Journal tackled the question. It’s titled “ALMA 0.1 pc View of Molecular Clouds Associated with High-mass Protostellar Systems in the Small Magellanic Cloud: Are Low-metallicity Clouds Filamentary or Not?” The lead author is Kazuki Tokuda, a Post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences in the Faculty of Science at Kyushu University in Japan. Tokuda is also affiliated with the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. This simulation shows stars forming in a molecular cloud, including the jets emitted by young protostars. Astrophysicists know a lot about the star-formation process, but there are still many questions awaiting comprehensive answers. Video Credit: Mike Grudic/STARFORGE “Even today our understanding of star formation is still developing, comprehending how stars formed in the earlier universe is even more challenging,” said lead author Tokuda in a press release. “The early universe was quite different from today, mostly populated by hydrogen and helium. Heavier elements formed later in high-mass stars. We can’t go back in time to study star formation in the early universe, but we can observe parts of the universe with environments similar to the early universe.” One of those places is the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a dwarf galaxy near the Milky Way. The SMC’s metallicity is much lower than the Milky Way’s, containing only about one-fifth as many metals. This makes it analogous to the early Universe about 10 billion years ago. In the Milky Way, star-forming molecular clouds tend to have a filamentary structure. Astronomers have wondered whether these same filamentary shapes are a universal feature found throughout cosmic time. “To test whether these structures are universal throughout cosmic star formation history, it is crucial to study low-metallicity environments within the Local Group,” the authors explain in their paper. Since the SMC is a close neighbour and also has a low metallicity, it’s a good place to look. However, searching the SMC for these filamentary features has been difficult due to the insufficient spatial resolution of many observatories. The researchers used the Atacama Large Millimeter-submillimeter Array’s (ALMA) power to examine the SMC and see if it has the same star-forming filamentary structures. They focused on the molecular clouds associated with massive young stellar objects (YSOs) in the (SMC). This image from the research shows the overall view of the SMC and the positions of the target YSOs. Image Credit: Tokuda et al. 2025. “In total, we collected and analyzed data from 17 molecular clouds. Each of these molecular clouds had growing baby stars 20 times the mass of our Sun,” said lead author Tokuda in a press release. “We found that about 60% of the molecular clouds we observed had a filamentary structure with a width of about 0.3 light-years, but the remaining 40% had a ‘fluffy’ shape. Furthermore, the temperature inside the filamentary molecular clouds was higher than that of the fluffy molecular clouds.” This figure from the new research shows the 17 molecular clouds the researchers observed with ALMA. Most had the same filamentary shape as clouds in the Milky Way, shown in the yellow boxes. But 40% had a fluffy shape, as shown in the blue boxes. Image Credit: (ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), Tokuda et al. 2025, ESA/Herschel) In their paper, the authors describe it this way: “Our analysis shows that about 60% of the clouds have steep radial profiles from the spine of the elongated structures, while the remaining clouds have a smooth distribution and are characterized by lower brightness temperatures. We categorize the former as filaments and the latter as nonfilaments.” This figure shows the 17 molecular clouds in the study. The ones with yellow check marks are the ones identified as filaments. Image Credit: Tokuda et al. 2025. The clouds were not uniform and displayed a diversity of shapes. The researchers classified them into four separate types: single filaments, hub filaments, spatially compact clouds, and diffuse clouds. These panels illustrate the four types of filaments the authors used to categorize their observations: (a) single filaments, (b) hub filaments, (c) spatially compact clouds, and (d) diffuse clouds. Image Credit: Tokuda et al. 2025. The temperature difference between the filamentary and fluffy shapes was probably due to their ages. The authors think all clouds started out as filamentary and had high temperatures due to cloud-to-cloud collisions. The clouds have weak turbulence when the temperatures are higher. However, as the temperature drops, the movement of the incoming gas creates more turbulence. This smooths out the filamentary structure, creating the fluffy shapes. According to the research, filamentary and fluffy clouds form stars differently. Clouds that hold onto their filamentary shapes are more likely to break apart along their length and form many lower-mass stars similar to our Sun, including planetary systems. When the filamentary structure changes to a fluffy structure, it becomes more difficult for such stars to form. The implication is that the morphology of the clouds tells us about their evolutionary stages. “Some of the filamentary clouds are associated with YSOs with outflows and exhibit higher temperatures, likely reflecting their formation conditions, suggesting that these clouds are younger than the nonfilamentary ones,” the authors write in their paper. The study also emphasizes that the same temperature and structure changes have not been observed in higher metallicity environments like the Milky Way. “Such transitions in structure and temperature have not been reported in metal-rich regions, highlighting a key behaviour for characterizing the evolution of the interstellar medium and star formation in low-metallicity environments,” the authors explain. With these results, Tokuda says the next step will be to compare them with observations of the Milky Way and other environments richer in heavy elements. “This study indicates that the environment, such as an adequate supply of heavy elements, is crucial for maintaining a filamentary structure and may play an important role in the formation of planetary systems,” said Tokuda. “In the future, it will be important to compare our results with observations of molecular clouds in heavy-element-rich environments, including the Milky Way galaxy. Such studies should provide new insights into the formation and temporal evolution of molecular clouds and the universe.” There are still more details to uncover about these filaments, what shapes them, and how they affect the stars they form. How does turbulence play its role? What role do magnetic fields play? Some filaments host YSOs with protostellar outflows. How does that radiative feedback affect the filaments? Future research will address those questions. “Future studies using the James Webb Space Telescope to measure the detailed IMF <initial mass function> down to the low-mass regime, combined with ALMA’s ability to probe the physical properties of the parent molecular gas, will be crucial to deepening our understanding of star formation in low-metallicity environments,” the authors conclude. Press Release: In ancient stellar nurseries, some stars are born of fluffy clouds Research: ALMA 0.1 pc View of Molecular Clouds Associated with High-mass Protostellar Systems in the Small Magellanic Cloud: Are Low-metallicity Clouds Filamentary or Not? The post Fluffy Molecular Clouds Formed Stars in the Early Universe appeared first on Universe Today.

#space #astronomy #news #science

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spacetimewithstuartgary · 2 months ago

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An overlooked nuclear force helps keep matter stable, study reveals

Researchers from Kyushu University, Japan have revealed how a special type of force within an atom's nucleus, known as the three-nucleon force, impacts nuclear stability. The study, published in Physics Letters B, provides insight into why certain nuclei are more stable than others and may help explain astrophysical processes, such as the formation of heavy elements within stars.

All matter is made of atoms, the building blocks of the universe. Most of an atom's mass is packed into its tiny nucleus, which contains protons and neutrons (known collectively as nucleons). Understanding how these nucleons interact to keep the nucleus stable and in a low energy state has been a central question in nuclear physics for over a century.

The most powerful nuclear force is the two-nucleon force, which attracts two nucleons at long range to pull them together and repels at short range to stop the nucleons from getting too close.

"Scientists have formed a good understanding of the two-nucleon force and how it impacts nuclear stability," says first author Tokuro Fukui, Assistant Professor of Kyushu University's Faculty of Arts and Science. "On the other hand, three-nucleon force, which is when three nucleons interact with each other simultaneously, is much more complicated and poorly understood."

Fukui describes nuclear forces by likening them to a game of catch. With the two-nucleon force, two players, or nucleons, interact by throwing a ball to each other. The ball, a subatomic particle called a meson, can vary in heaviness, with the lightest meson, known as a pion, responsible for the long-range attraction between nucleons.

With the three-nucleon force, there are three players, or nucleons, and balls, or mesons, are passed between them. At the same time as throwing and catching the balls, the players, or nucleons, also spin and move in an orbit within the nucleus.

Although the three-nucleon force has historically been considered to be of little significance when compared to the two-nucleon force, a growing number of recent studies have highlighted its importance. Now, this new study clarifies the mechanism of how the three-nucleon force enhances nuclear stability, and demonstrates that as the nucleus grows, the force gains in strength.

In their research, Fukui and his colleagues used advanced nuclear theory and supercomputer simulations to study the exchange of pions between three nucleons. They found that when two pions are exchanged between three nucleons, the nucleons are constrained in how they move and spin, with only four combinations possible. Their calculations revealed that one of these combinations, known as the "rank-1 component," plays a crucial role in promoting nuclear stability.

Increased stability occurs, Fukui explains, due to enhancing a process known as spin-orbit splitting. When nucleons spin and orbit in the same direction, the alignment of these nucleons leads to a reduction in energy. But when nucleons spin and orbit in opposing directions, these nucleons exist in a higher energy state. This means that nucleons "split" into different energy shells, providing the nucleus with a stable structure.

"Our supercomputer simulations showed that while the three-nucleon force increases the energy state of the nucleons with an aligned spin and orbit, it causes the nucleons with opposing spins and orbits to gain even more energy. This results in a larger energy gap between the shells, making the nuclei even more stable," reveals Fukui.

Importantly, this effect becomes more pronounced in heavier nuclei that contain more nucleons. In the heaviest element examined—carbon-12, which has 12 nucleons—the three-nucleon force caused the energy gap to widen by a factor of 2.5.

"This effect is so large that it has almost equal weighting to the impact of the two-nucleon force. We expect the effect to be even stronger for elements heavier than carbon-12, which we plan to study as part of our next steps," says Fukui.

The three-nucleon force could play a key role in understanding how heavy elements form from the fusion of lighter elements in stars. As this force grows stronger in heavier nuclei, it increases their stability by creating larger energy gaps between nuclear shells.

This stability makes it more challenging for the nucleus to capture additional neutrons, which are essential for forming heavier elements. In cases where the nucleus already contains a "magic number" of protons or neutrons that completely fills its shells, the nucleus becomes exceptionally stable, which can further hinder the fusion process.

"Knowing the energy gap between different nuclear shells is crucial information for scientists trying to predict the formation of heavy elements, which they cannot achieve without understanding the three-nucleon force. For magic number nuclei, conditions that provide colossal amounts of energy may be needed," says Fukui.

Finally, the researchers discovered another surprising effect of the three-nucleon force on nucleon spins. With only the two-nucleon force, the spin states of both nucleons can be measured individually. However, the three-nucleon force creates quantum entanglement, where two of the three nucleons have spins that exist in both states at once until measured.

"Quantum entanglement of nucleons can occur just like with electrons, although the larger mass of nucleons presents different challenges. These differences may have implications for future research, including in emerging technologies like quantum computing," concludes Fukui.

IMAGE: The three-nucleon force enhances spin-orbit splitting, which causes a larger energy gap between nuclear shells and stabilizes the nucleus. Credit: Tokuro Fukui / Kyushu University

#science #space #astronomy #physics #news #astrophysics

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materialsscienceandengineering · 5 months ago

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Microfluidic technology has become increasingly important in many scientific fields such as regenerative medicine, microelectronics, and environmental science. However, conventional microfabrication techniques face limitations in scale and in the construction of complex networks. These hurdles are compounded when it comes to building more intricate 3D microfluidic networks. Now, researchers from Kyushu University have developed a new and convenient technique for building such complex 3D microfluidic networks. Their tool? Plants and fungi. The team developed a 'soil' medium using nanoparticles of glass (silica) and a cellulose based binding agent, then allowed plants and fungi to grow roots into it. After the plants were removed, the glass was left with a complex 3D microfluidic network of micrometer-sized hollow holes where the roots once were.

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nijigasakilove · 6 months ago

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Episode 2 and things already escalating quickly here! Who tf would threaten Takuya over the fake marriage? Like it’s none of the office’s business.. if they say they’re married they’re married that’s the end of it. Mfs treating Anchorage like it’s Syria 😭 you’re gonna get paid and be at a US branch with better work conditions.

Also, we knew they’d have to meet family eventually, but episode 2 and Takuya dad already here!? News travel way too quickly in this universe lmao. Nice fella and seems genuinely concerned about his son. Also it’s cool to see some Kyushu traditions and wedding customs mentioned! My fave part of Japan, particularly Fukuoka.. and Kumamoto prefecture is gorgeous.

Glad we got to see a little of Rika’s true self too. When she’s talking about Maps she really is glowing. I love seeing people talk about things they’re passionate for.

Good episode! Adult workplace romance just hits different

#animangahive #animanga #animanga hive #anime #fall anime #fall 2024 anime #kekkon suru tte hontou desu ka #365 days to the wedding

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thesakuragarnet · 1 year ago

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Pent-Up (TouKei Quirkless College AU)

Summary: Touya and Keigo are long-distance and going through a dry spell.

THIS WORK IS 18+ ONLY! S3XUAL TAGS WILL BE HIDDEN BELOW THE KEEP READING BUTTON!

Non-Spicy Tags: DabiHawks, College AU, No Quirks AU, long-distance relationship, fluff, light angst, smut, making out, swearing, idiots in love, teasing

Word Count: 3,462 words

AO3 link

Spicy tags: explicit s3xual content, sub bottom Dabi, dom top Hawks, aftercare, a n a l s3x, masturb8tion in the shower, shower s3x, n!ppleplay, bl0wjobs

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Touya missed Keigo. There was nothing else to it. He missed his dumb, adorable laugh. He missed the way his eyes sparkled with flecks of gold in the sunlight. He missed the way that they fell into the same rhythm of steps when they walked side by side. He missed the way that they would sit on opposite sides of the room, not saying anything, simply enjoying each other’s company. He missed the way his lips curled into a smile filled to the brim with love when he caught him staring. But most of all, he missed his touch. He missed the way his hand fit perfectly in his. He missed the way his soft lips pressed against his neck. He even missed Keigo waking him up in the middle of the night because he’d accidentally stolen all the blankets in his sleep. Touya missed Keigo.

And at this very moment, Touya can’t bring himself to concentrate on his professor’s lecture. It had been a month. A whole month of not seeing each other. Touya and Keigo were high school sweethearts, graduating from UA high school and choosing to continue dating long-distance when Keigo had to go back to Kyushu to take care of his mom. Touya was enrolled at Kyoto University, which was about a six-hour train ride away. Despite everything, they’d made it work. They traded off, visiting one another every other weekend, but they hadn’t gone this long without visiting in years . It hadn’t seemed to put any strain on their relationship, but, nonetheless, it was annoying. To Touya, it was more than annoying. It was gut-wrenching. He needed Keigo…especially with how the past few weeks had been going. Everything was crashing down on him. His last round of exams had thoroughly kicked his ass, he’d lost sleep from the stress, and he’d gotten in a minimum of ten fights with his parents over the phone. The stress and exhaustion were making him feel physically sick. His brain is filled with white noise as he tries to process literally anything his professor is saying. All of it goes in one ear and out the other. All he can think about is Keigo. They’re supposed to meet up at a halfway point tonight to get dinner, and each tick of the clock on the wall is driving him insane. He’s dividing the time in his head, counting the minutes, seconds, and hours. Suddenly, his phone screen lights up beside his open notebook on the desk, and Touya sharply inhales when he sees the familiar nickname crawl across the screen. Frantically, he opens the text message.

Kei: hey…something came up at the hospital. They need me to work an extra shift. I’m so sorry, T, but I’ll have to rain-check this one.

Touya’s world comes crashing down around him, and he feels his chest getting tight. This was the only thing that had kept him going all week, and now it was ripped from his hands. Who knew when they were going to get to see each other again? Two more weeks? Four more weeks? Touya can’t stand it. He wants to be angry; part of him is angry, but he knows it isn’t his fault. He swallows his sigh of disappointment as he sinks into the chair, wishing he could continue to sink into the ground until he was away from everyone and everything. Touya barely even registers when class is over until he blinks, realizing that he’s the only one left in the room. His heart aches and his throat hurts as he feels tears welling up in his eyes, and he sloppily gathers his belongings before storming out of the classroom. He stops dead in his tracks when he looks out the window and sees the torrential downpour, realizing he’d forgotten his umbrella.

…

The walk to his apartment from campus was about thirty minutes, and Touya trudged through the pouring rain with a scowl painted on his face. He’s freezing, soaked to the bone, and more desperate than he’s ever felt. He’d needed a nice weekend with Keigo. He’d been craving the feeling of Keigo’s strong arms wrapping around him, keeping him safe and snug. He’d been longing for Keigo’s blissfully amorous touch that would make him forget about all of his problems. Now, his weekend is just going to be filled with emptiness. He’ll probably just heat up one of his dwindling cans of ramen, eat the same thing for three days in a row, stay inside all day, curled up in a blanket, wishing that Kyushu would’ve offered a program that he could transfer to. He’d have no excuse not to answer his phone if his mother called, badgering him about making any friends, which he still hadn’t. Touya was a loner…except when he was with Keigo. His phone vibrates incessantly in his pocket as he sees his apartment complex come into view. For a fleeting moment, hope stirs in his gut, and he tears it out…only to see that it’s his father calling. He grits his teeth as the vibration stops, only to start again almost instantly. He stalks into the building, fumbling for his keys as he stomps up the stairs to his floor. The third time the phone jolts against his leg, Touya snaps. As he storms to his door and jams the keys into the lock, he answers the phone.

“I DON’T WANNA FUCKING TALK RIGHT NOW!” He snaps angrily, his voice cracking as he violently shoves the door open. The second he steps inside and lifts his head, he sees Keigo standing in the middle of his living room, holding a bouquet of rindo flowers, looking extremely concerned. Touya drops his phone as he stares at Keigo, open-mouthed in total shock. He feels faint. Keigo is here . Keigo is here here. In his apartment.

“Uh…surprise?” Keigo laughs nervously, not sure what to make of his frazzled, sopping-wet boyfriend as the awkward silence is permeated by the faint irate screams of Touya’s father blasting from the phone. Slowly, the white-haired man processes the scene before him, taking note of the cinnamon candle burning on the table between two freshly made plates of yakitori. Touya picks up his phone, promptly hanging up on his father as he turns around and closes the door, pressing his hands flat against the wood as he stares at the ground. He takes a few deep breaths, trying to calm down and decide which emotion to choose. Moments before, he was angry enough to smash something, and now, everything he wanted is right behind him. If Keigo knew how shitty he’d been feeling, he probably wouldn’t have tricked him like this. In truth, Touya hasn't been as open lately. He didn’t want Keigo to feel bad about having to constantly cancel their time together. But…

“You fucking liar ,” Touya laughs light-heartedly as he turns around, pointing a fake accusatory finger at his boyfriend as he feels his anger melting away. Keigo seems to silently sigh in relief as he shrugs sheepishly, holding the flowers out to him.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have tricked you. Seems like you haven’t been having the best day,” Keigo mutters apologetically as Touya takes the flowers.

“It’s the best day, now ,” Touya grins, drinking in the familiar scent of his favorite flower, picking up the faint whiffs of his boyfriend’s cologne mixed in. He’s so full of intense relief at this moment that it’s almost painful. The heartache he’d been experiencing for weeks is fading. On instinct, he walks forward, opening his arms to pull Keigo into a hug, but the blonde steps back and laughs nervously as he puts his hands up.

“Whoa, there, loverboy. I promise I’ll give you the biggest hug in the universe but you may wanna get out of those wet clothes before you catch a cold,” Keigo sneers, and Touya rolls his eyes, huffing and wiping away the strands of white hair that are plastered to his forehead from the rain. He suddenly becomes very aware of how cold he keeps his apartment, and the chill sends an uncomfortable shiver through his body in combination with his soaked clothes.

“Lemme jump in the shower real quick before dinner,” Touya mutters, leaving his bag on the floor as he heads to the bathroom.

…

He still can’t believe Keigo is here . He can’t remember the last time they were alone in his apartment. The last couple of times they’d gotten together, they met at a halfway point. Keigo hadn’t spent the night over in ages . In fact, Touya had almost forgotten that he still had a key. He’d been so pent-up over the past couple of weeks. He’d craved Keigo’s touch. He’d craved Keigo’s voice in his ear, breathing down his neck. As Touya stands in the steaming shower, he zones out, daydreaming about his lover. A soft sigh breezes past his lips as he imagines Keigo pinning him to his bed, staring into his eyes through the thrusts, planting soft kisses on his lips that harshly contrast with the rough sex. Touya feels light-headed as the blood surges from his brain to between his legs, and one of his hands ghosts over his erection as he slowly strokes himself.

“ Keigo ,” Touya moans under his breath, eyelids fluttering closed as he braces himself against the wall, his back pressing against the cool tile as his brain fills with his boyfriend’s groans of pleasure.

“ Oh, fuck ,” He whimpers, his other hand grasping at his pec, digging his fingernails into his skin the same way that Keigo does. His back arches as a chill runs down his spine, and he inhales the steam as the warm water trickles down his face. Touya doesn’t hear Keigo enter the bathroom over the water and his own pleasured noises; he hadn’t realized how loud he’d gotten. Keigo strips down, a smile playing at his lips as he listens to his partner fantasizing. He’d missed the sweet sounds he made; Keigo had missed the way he felt pressed up against Touya… inside him. With a mischievous grin, he pulls the shower curtain back, and Touya almost jumps, turning white as a ghost. His rock-hard cock throbs in his hand.

“Having fun without me?” Keigo asks innocently, taking in the scene in front of him as he steps into the shower. Touya can’t find the words as Keigo puts his hands on the wall, each one on either side of his head.

“I truly wonder…,” Keigo hums, eyes scanning up and down his lover’s slightly-toned body. Their bodies are separated by only mere inches, cocks twitching with just barely enough space to avoid one another. “How long we both can make it without touching?”

Keigo’s voice is sickeningly teasing, on the verge of taunting with a slightly sadistic air. Touya’s heart is racing, and, for a moment, he feels faint. Keigo was thoroughly in shape, and the sight of his bulging biceps as he presses his hands against the wall is enough for Touya to bite his lip. He wants Keigo all over him. He wants him to use him up until they’re both puddles of pleasure, and then he just wants to fall asleep snuggled up in his arms while Keigo whispers sweet nothings in his ear.

“Can you do something for me, baby?” Keigo croons, and Touya practically dissolves into the floor at the pet name. He gulps, nodding wordlessly as they’re locked in an intense staring contest. Blue absorbed into gold.

“I’m going to kiss you. But. The first person to touch the other loses,” The blonde proposes.

“What happens if you win?” Touya raises his eyebrow.

“Bragging rights,” Keigo shrugs, “It’s just something a little different. Something to really snap the tension.”

“Okay,” Touya stammers, wishing he could rip the fucking tension in half. He can hardly take it. He’s on the verge of begging.

A smirk plays at Keigo’s lips and, slowly , he closes his eyes, leans in, and kisses Touya. It takes everything inside Touya not to moan like a whore into his boyfriend’s mouth. Keigo’s kisses are incredibly addicting. His touch is a drug that Touya can’t get enough of. The white-haired man’s eyes flutter shut as he kisses him back; the soft, innocent sounds of their lips colliding in intermittent bursts are inaudible beneath the water.

“Missed you…so much…,” Keigo breathes between kisses, and Touya echoes his words before desperately flicking his tongue at Keigo’s bottom lip. The blonde chuckles before teasing with a short, returning glide across his boyfriend’s top lip, and Touya’s eyes roll back into his head. He wants to grab Keigo. To pull him so close. He wants skin-to-skin contact. He wants savage passion. He wants Keigo . Touya desperately sucks on Keigo’s bottom lip, gently taking it between his teeth and pulling, as if silently pleading. Keigo exhales sharply through his nose, as if trying to restrain himself from railing Touya into next week. He shudders as he effortlessly slips his tongue into his boyfriend’s mouth, making him moan like a bitch in heat. Touya almost seems surprised with himself at the noise, but he doesn’t let that distract him for very long as he focuses on how Keigo’s tongue traces against his own. Restrained, low whimpers muffle in Touya’s throat as he fights the urge to crumble into a pleading, horny mess. The sounds are music to Keigo’s ears, and it gets him even more riled up. Steam from the water fills the shower, fogging up the mirror and the entire bathroom.

Keigo’s the one who breaks first when he feels Touya moan his name into his mouth, tasting sweeter than honey; he grabs Touya’s shoulders, startling him.

“You win,” Keigo laughs under his breath as he takes a step forward, ripping a moan from Touya’s throat as their cocks rub against one another. A small stream of curses falls from the blonde’s lips as his calloused hands slowly travel down Touya’s body, fingernails lightly tracing against his skin, sending shivers down his spine. Touya kisses Keigo with a fervor, water droplets clinging to his eyelashes as the water cascades down their bodies.

“ Fuck me ,” Touya whines between sloppy lip locks as Keigo’s fingers tenderly ghost over his nipples. They’d been together so long, they’d memorized all of each other’s weak points.

“Not yet,” Keigo answers, borderline impatient, as if he’s trying to convince himself. Deliberately, he pinches Touya’s nipples between his fingers, making his boyfriend curse and writhe against the wall. The movement increases the friction between their cocks, forcing moans out of both of them. Keigo starts to bend down before he presses his lips to one of his nipples, swirling his tongue around and around before carefully taking it between his teeth. Touya softly cries out, eyelids fluttering as one of his hands finds its way into Keigo’s hair, combing through the damp blonde locks.

“ Kei ,” Touya gasps as his cock throbs, aching for more stimulation than the fleeting feeling of Keigo’s length. Keigo’s stare is full of lust as he traces kisses down his body, knees bending until they hit the tile of the shower floor. Touya’s eyes fly open, and he looks down to see Keigo kneeling before him, staring at his cock with a hungry gaze.

“ Please, please, please ,” Touya finds himself begging before it even registers in his head, and Keigo’s lips curl into a devious smirk.

“You don’t have to beg, T. I’ve been thinking about this all day,” Keigo huffs before he licks up and down Touya’s cock. Touya drags his hands down his face, leaning his head back against the wall to moan in ecstasy as Keigo takes him all the way into his mouth. It takes an uncomfortable amount of self-control for Touya not to greedily thrust. He wants more. He wants it forever . Keigo’s eyes water as he fights his gag reflex, pushing forward until his nose is pressing into Touya’s flesh. Keigo reaches into the basket of various shower gels and other bottles beside them, and Touya realizes he’s looking for the lube.

“W-wait, wait, wait,” Touya stutters, breathing hard as he gently pushes Keigo off of him. Keigo coughs, sputtering under the water, and Touya promptly turns the pressure off. The air is still thick with steam. He reaches up into the top shelf and hands Keigo a bottle. Immediately, the blonde resumes deepthroating his lover as he opens the bottle and slathers it on his fingers. Touya’s voice breaks as he cries out, and Keigo works two fingers inside him, slowly massaging in circles.

“ God, don’t stop ,” Touya begs, his mouth hanging open, and his moans bounce off the walls without background noise to mask them. The lewd sounds of Keigo slurping and sucking turn him on even more. Touya feels his whole body practically melt, and as his muscles relax and give in, Keigo presses a third finger inside.

“Almost ready for me, baby?” Keigo grunts as he pulls back to take a breath, pressing a slutty kiss to Touya’s tip.

“I want you so bad,” Touya answers, his voice sounding horribly desperate. Keigo starts to spread the lube over his throbbing length as he tries his best not to break. Seeing Touya getting off feels so good.

“Lemme know if I’m too rough,” Keigo insists as he rises, and Touya promptly turns to face the wall, putting his hands against it as he spreads his legs. Keigo’s heart flutters seeing Touya in such a horny frenzy. It had been too long. The moment he starts pushing inside, Touya becomes a stuttering, begging mess. Touya’s breath comes out in choked sobs as he becomes completely absorbed in the pleasure, turning his head to press his cheek into the cool tile of the shower wall. His tongue slightly lolls out of his mouth as his panting makes wisps in the steam with every roll of Keigo’s hips.

“ God , you’re so fucking sexy,” The blonde huffs as he leans forward, gently pressing his teeth into the side of Touya’s neck. The white-haired man whines, lips trembling as his legs shake and Keigo picks up his rhythm. Every thrust wrecks him so beautifully. His nerves feel like they’re on fire, and his emotions are intensely flaring throughout his body. The aching emptiness he’d been feeling for weeks has been replaced with overflowing passion. The two feel like they’ve been brought back to life…as if they’re breathing clean air after drowning for so long.

“ Kei , Kei, ah~” He moans, his breath hitching when he feels his lover reach around and wrap a hand around his twitching cock. Keigo plants deep kisses on Touya’s neck, hungrily sucking on his skin. Their pleasured noises blend together in a beautiful harmony, echoing off of the walls and resonating in the bathroom acoustics. Keigo mutters Touya’s name under his breath, eyelids fluttering as he feels the familiar buildup in the pit of his stomach.

“Close,” He murmurs swiftly into the nape of Touya’s neck, and his answer is a sudden jolt of his lover’s body as he orgasms without warning. The way his insides squeeze around Keigo sends him over the edge, and he harshly bites Touya’s shoulder as he empties into him. Within a few moments, Keigo slows his hips to a halt, and they remain still and shaking, breathing hard in the damp, warm bathroom.

“I fucking love you,” Touya stammers, stumbling over his words as he tries to regain his composure.

“I love you, too,” Keigo whispers sweetly, planting a gentle kiss on the bite mark he left.

…

With full stomachs and full hearts, Touya and Keigo are now cuddled up on Touya’s twin mattress. Touya rests his head on Keigo’s bare chest, listening intently to his familiar heartbeat as Keigo traces small circles on his back with his fingertips.

“I vote we never go that long without seeing each other ever again,” Touya chuckles half-heartedly, and Keigo sighs.

“I second that…but you know I can’t promise it. You’ve got, what. One more year? Then you graduate and can move to Kyushu with me,” Keigo yawns groggily before adding “Then we have to put up with seeing each other more often than ever.”

“I think I’ll be okay with that,” Touya smiles, wrapping his arms around Keigo’s middle and nuzzling into his pecs. “How’d you even manage to be away for the whole weekend?”

“I bribed Rumi to watch Tomie. She owes me, and she was doing some motivational summit in town anyway,” Keigo replies.

“Remind me to thank her,” Touya murmurs as his eyelids start to droop. Keigo kisses the top of his boyfriend’s head as they both fall asleep in each other’s arms.

#my hero academia fanfiction #ao3 writer #dabi x hawks #dabihawks #toukei #ao3 #dabi #keigo takami #hotwings #fanfic #dabihawks smut #dabihawks fluff #dabi smut #hawks smut #quirkless au #college au #smut #bnha smut

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t0r1b34r · 10 months ago

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Life Update

Ok guys!! So I’ve gotten lots of questions!! About whether or not I’m planning to update First Light and when and how I’m doing, etc. etc.

So here’s a life update!!

Tori! Where are you now? We miss you!

I’m currently in Beppu, Oita Prefecture, Japan! It’s insane. When I was younger, I’d always dreamed of coming to Japan and walking through Torii gates, wearing a kimono, and exploring the beauty of Japan’s natural forests. And guess what? I’ve done it!! Thanks to a study abroad program through my university, I’m currently spending a semester studying political science abroad. Incredible!!

I arrived on March 22nd, and will return home on August 15th. Every day has been spent exploring the beauty of Japan, making new friends, and studying hard to learn Japanese. たのしいですよ！！

But because I’ve been so busy I haven’t been able to update as much as I’ve wanted to. Date I say a part of me even lost inspiration in being distracted with so many other things…!!!!!

So when are you going to update?

Great question. Recently, I finished binge rereading First Light and getting reacquainted with Audie and Gale. It’s been a while, after all! And oh, how it filled me with so much happiness to read everything they’ve done and been through. All of the happy and excited feelings I felt when I first wrote the fic came back to me. And it’s inspired me on what I’m going to write next, believe me.

I cannot give an exact date on when the next update is gonna be. I can only say that it’ll be sometime before next week ends, if I’m lucky. Here’s the things I need to catch up on right now:

My Japanese class (I’m like 4 topics behind guys don’t skip class)

My international law class (seriously guys)

My peace, humanity, democracy class (don’t FUCKING skip class!!!)

Planning my flight back home

Planning my goodbye trip before I go home

I have hope! And inspiration! And so much excitement!!! And so much LOVE!!!

Can we get some pictures of all you’ve done in Japan!?

That would be AWESOME however I’m not the most keen on posting pictures of myself online just yet. I do want to go into politics after all— not that having a massive and popular fic under my resume is a downside LOL

But here’s some non-face pics from my recent trip to Osaka :)

I’ve made so many amazing and incredibly friends from all over the world. I never thought I’d be able to travel like this, much less to the place of my dreams.

If any of you are in the Kyushu/Oita area and wanna hang out, let me know. I’d absolutely love to!

But in the meantime, stay tuned for more Nobleweave coming real soon.

Love you!!!!

#bg3 #bg3 fanfic #bg3 first light #bg3 spoilers #bg3 gale #bg3 oc

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stirringwinds · 2 years ago

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how i think Kiku’s people might understand his existence in-universe, especially before the modern era:

the vibes the shogun expects from foreign ““kami””/personifications:

hws netherlands arriving when De Liefde shipwrecks on kyushu in 1600:

#nedpan #hetalia #hws netherlands #hws japan #shitpost #but also not really lol #it's significantly a lot more humble than the Black Ships for a first meeting #the first row is izanami and izanagi who are said to have created the very japanese islands #amaterasu next then—and then ninigi-no-mikoto her grandson #who is said to have come down to earth #and said to be the ancestor of the emperor jimmu etc

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badgalsasuke · 22 days ago

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Kishimoto Interview for Web R25 (Dec. 4th, 2014)

SOURCE PART 1 SOURCE PART 2 SOURCE PART 3

Interview by Atsunori Takeda

Long interview BREAKTHROUGH POINT - The moment they broke through. What did they think when they hit a wall in life?

It took a long time to be recognized. ― Masashi Kishimoto on finishing "NARUTO."

Born in Okayama Prefecture in 1974. While studying at Kyushu Sangyo University's Faculty of Arts in 1996, he won an honorable mention in the 132nd February Hop☆Step Award for "Karakuri". He then wrote "Michikusa". Until "NARUTO" began serialisation in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999, he thoroughly self-taught himself about manga and film production. He spent a period of time in obscurity. Three years later, it was made into an anime by TV Tokyo. The manga has sold in over 23 countries and exceeded 200 million copies. The anime has aired in over 60 countries. Nine theatrical versions have been made so far. www.naruto-movie.com The original manga ended with the 700th chapter in the issue of Jump released on November 10th. The 72nd volume of the book will be released on February 4th. An exhibition and a short intensive serialisation are also planned for next spring as part of the project to kick off a new era for NARUTO.

With his cinematic camera eye, overwhelming drawing ability and superb imagery, he has created a whole new world of ninjas, never seen before. At first glance, the protagonist appears to be a cheerful and innocent symbol of good versus evil, but in fact he faces life and society with a huge handicap, continues to desire recognition, and becomes a hero who saves the world. "NARUTO" is over. Of the many interviews with Masashi Kishimoto, I hope this will be one of the more interesting!

After the serialization ends, it's game time. Then the movie.

An interview with Kishimoto was published in the Asahi Shimbun morning edition on November 11th. The accompanying digital web version includes a longer version of the interview, as well as a timeline showing how the story unfolded and how society has changed over the 15 years of serialization. The interview was conducted about 10 hours after the final episode of "NARUTO" was completed. When asked how he felt about finishing the series, Kishimoto Masashi replied, "It hasn't really dawned on me yet." We visited him about three weeks after the interview.

―How do you feel now?

"It feels like time passes so quickly when there are no deadlines. I started serializing when I was 24, and for 15 full years, there was a deadline every week, a deadline that was glaring at me from behind no matter what I did, and I lived a life where I had to be there, but after just three weeks, I've gotten used to a life without it."

―So, you've been bombarded with more interviews than ever before. This makes us the sixth media outlet to be featured, both on TV and in magazines.

"Interviews are embarrassing. I don't know what to say or how to say it, or how to pose for the photos (laughs)."

―How was a week during serialization?

"We have a meeting for the next issue late at night on the day the manuscript is submitted. Then it takes three days to submit the storyboard, or sometimes four. After that, we draw it in three days, and then have another meeting late at night on the same day… Right now, I'm trying to do things that I couldn't do during serialization. I'm jealous of my assistants talking about games. I thought I'd do a lot of them when I finished, so I've already tried quite a lot… but I'm completely behind the times (laughs). Games have evolved too much. I thought I'd get hooked, but I just can't keep up. Other than that, I guess I just watch movies."

―And the Naruto movie (The Last)

"The animation company Pierrot brought me a logline (a summary) for it." That was a part I would never have drawn myself, but when I actually read it, I thought, "I want to see this," so I said, "Let's do it."

―A love story between Naruto and Hinata. Was there a possibility that you would have said "Let's give up"?

"I've always said that if we don't have a good script, we should stop making movies out of routine. There's no point in making something out of inertia. But it turned out well. After that, I talked with the screenwriter Maruo Kyōzuka, and we exchanged opinions with various people to refine the script further. Here, this character will move like this. I joined the script around the second draft, and I might have said too much, but Kyōzuka was very passionate and put up with my selfishness. I think we were able to make something good thanks to him."

The story of 700 chapters

―Do you generally like working alone?

"Yes. When I was thinking up storyboards, I'd just close the curtains here and mulled it over by myself."

―Then, after that, an assistant comes in and actually draws the picture. How many people were involved in total?

"There are always six of us. We bring in a seventh person just before the final deadline."

―Isn't it a hassle to give direction to your assistants?

I got along well with them. I didn't lose many assistants. Some of them had been with me for 15 years. I wanted them to become independent and make their debut. You have to have that much ambition. Some of my assistants seemed to have the impression that NARUTO was something that would continue forever. So from about four years ago, I told them, 'We're getting ready to end it soon, so you should get on with your own productions.'"

―Did you realize from the story flow that it was about to end?

"It was right in the middle of the Pain arc, and then there was the war, and then I thought it would end when I got to the end with Sasuke and Naruto. I couldn't read through how long each series would take, but I could see what else I had to do to finish it."

―When did you start planning the larger chunks of the story?

"It was when I finished the first part of the story about Naruto as a child. After that, Naruto and the others grow up a bit, and I thought up all the flow from then on at that time. After the first part was finished, I was given a few weeks off… although I was still made to draw the complete story (laughs)."

―After five and a half years since the series began, and 27 volumes, you were initially told to continue for five years, right? And that was exactly when you achieved that.

"If it loses popularity, Jump will cancel it straight away, but if it's popular it will continue. All I had to do was write something good and make it interesting for the readers. I had the big picture in mind, but I worked desperately every week to achieve that."

―After that, Kishimoto-sensei spent the entirety of his 30s working on Naruto. While he was obviously desperate to entertain the readers, I couldn't help but read into him thinking that he must have had these thoughts in mind…

"Yes."

―For example, Kakashi says to Kakuzu, "From our perspective, you're just a out-of-sync old man. So you're here, dying, crawling around, while the new generation overtakes you, one after the other" (Vol. 38). Shikamaru says something similar in Vol. 44, but when it comes to the theory of generational change, is Kishimoto-sensei part of the new or old generation?…

"I already had the image of having been doing this for a long time, so I didn't have the mindset of shouldering it myself. Rather, I wanted to support my assistants... I'm not in a position to teach, but as a senior, I always hoped they would spread their wings quickly. I gave various pieces of advice, and while drawing the manuscript, I talked to each of them as carefully as possible and shared ideas. That part was quite similar to Kakashi's words."

―I'll leave it to the Asahi Shimbun to interpret Pain's idea of peace, but I think his words "What is war?" express a sort of anger toward other lukewarm works.

"What do you mean by lukewarm?"

―It's as if the villain and the storyline exist only for the protagonist. It's as if everything around him is conveniently arranged just to encourage his growth…

"I see."

―Pain says, "Especially for your generation who have never experienced war, it can't be helped. You try to find meaning in death, but all you have is pain and hatred that you don't know where to direct it. Garbage deaths, eternal hatred, unhealed pain - that's what war is" (Volume 49). He says that reality is not convenient for the protagonist.

"Actually, I think that's fine. For example, even if it's an easy-to-understand morality-versus-evil story, if the setting is a shonen magazine and the readers are children who have not yet experienced many things. It takes skill to convey the subject matter in an easy-to-understand way and make it interesting, without making it difficult, and I respect that kind of work. But the more difficult it is to write such a work, the easier it is to create a drama and the world feels wider. There were a lot of morality-versus-evil works in Jump, so with "NARUTO" I also aimed to see how I could create a work that wasn't like that. So, in a way, it's a niche industry in Jump (laughs)."

―You've been drawing "NARUTO" for a long time. Have you ever felt a gap between the "Masashi Kishimoto" who continues to draw manga here over the past 15 years and the "Masashi Kishimoto-sensei" who has sold 200 million copies worldwide and has risen in status?

"I don't think I've changed since before I started drawing "NARUTO". Maybe the reactions of those around me have changed. In the first place, isn't "drawing manga" something that isn't really acknowledged in society? For example, even in college, when I said that, no one would say, "Wow, that's amazing!" (laughs). But when I appeared at an event called "Jump Festa", the people there welcomed me with open arms. They called me by my first name. "Masashi!" (laughs). Not just girls, but guys who looked like old men too (laughs). But I realized how happy it is to be acknowledged by someone. That's linked to the theme of "NARUTO" too."

―You said that you place great expectations on your protagonist.

"It really was difficult to get recognition (laughs). Manga itself wasn't accepted by society, and even when I drew manga, editors wouldn't say it was interesting… Well, it wasn't interesting at all, so it can't be helped (laughs)."

―Of course, you draw it thinking it's interesting, right?

"Of course (laughs). When I was a newbie, I drew uninteresting manga thinking it was interesting, and that was probably my biggest mistake as a manga artist. It was a manga for elementary school kids, drawn for a shonen magazine, and the main character is an elementary school kid who finds a wallet on the street. He spends all the money in it. I drew a manga called 'Michikusa' (Side Trip). I won an award in Jump, so my editor asked me to draw my next work, and that's what I drew (laughs). How out of touch with the world I am. There are readers, and what do they want? That's where my editor's work started. It was about 3-4 years before 'NARUTO' started… looking back, it was a long road trip (laughs). It took a long time for me to be recognized after that."

#kishimoto interview #naruto archive #This was so hard to find but ultimately I did it!#It's not that the page of Kishimoto's interview was deleted #the entire website that carried these interviews no longer exists

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