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In the middle of December, the second part of the Cyberpunk movie Blu-ray was officially released. This functioned as the grand finale for the series, tying up all the loose ends of the setting and the narrative.
While the conflict involving V, the Arasaka, and Johnny Silverhand was a major draw, the true focal point for the fans was one person.
Adam Smasher.
This character had been an absolute force of nature in Edgerunners, a being who appeared completely invincible.
However, when faced with the combined power of V and Johnny Silverhand, while he wasn't exactly a pushover, there was a visible and satisfying gap in their combat capabilities.
V inherited David's iconic yellow jacket while wielding Rebecca's green shotgun. As V stormed Arasaka Tower and dismantled the most hated character in the franchise, the fans finally got the closure they craved.
For the millions of Cyberpunk fans, seeing that sequence alone made the purchase worth every yen.
It was true that because the plot was adapted from a game narrative, the emotional resonance of 2077 wasn't quite as raw as Edgerunners, but these two movies successfully completed the story.
They allowed the audience to see the truth behind Night City, expanded on the lore, and explained exactly why Adam Smasher was so formidable, and why he was eventually surpassed by V.
Because of V's presence, the scale of the entire work was elevated. If David was a legend of Night City, then V was its god. The sales for the second part of the movie Blu-ray actually exceeded the first part by over a hundred thousand copies.
Even fans who weren't particularly invested in V's personal journey were desperate to see the scene where Adam Smasher was crushed. For them, it didn't matter who pulled the trigger; seeing Rebecca and David avenged was pure satisfaction.
By the end of December, the journey that began with the July premiere finally reached its true conclusion. While fans were already fantasizing about a second or third season, Haruto knew that 2077 was the end of the series.
Unless he decided to recreate the original game from his memories, which was far too massive a task, there was nowhere left for the story to go.
He simply didn't have the time or the energy to branch out into game development while managing three major stories like Code Geass, Hunter x Hunter, and Sword Art Online.
Haruto held a final fan meeting in Kyoto during the last week of December.
There, he informed the fans that the series was officially complete. Unlike other creators who might string their audience along to maintain hype, Haruto preferred to be direct.
Looking back at the year, Edgerunners had dominated the fall season as the undisputed king. In the winter season, the 2077 movies exerted so much influence that the dozens of other new shows airing felt like background noise.
The highest-rated new anime of the winter, Blood Blade, only managed a peak rating of 3.79%.
As the year came to a close, Haruto's university and his company both observed a three-day holiday for the New Year. Before the break, Haruto ensured that the bonuses for the Cyberpunk project were fully distributed to his staff. While it was a small fraction of the profits generated by Cyberpunk, Haruto knew that running a business meant adhering to industry standards while taking care of your people.
On the day the bonuses were paid, his employees were practically chanting prayers for his health.
Because Haruto used a centralized production model, the same team worked on every project.
Between the Madoka and the Cyberpunk bonuses, the average employee had earned triple their annual salary. It was significantly more than they had ever made at their previous studios.
This generosity led to a rather unusual situation: many employees were actually restless during their New Year's holiday. Many were posting in the company group chats, calling for more overtime once they returned so they could throw themselves into the production of Code Geass.
Haruto was a bit bewildered by this attitude.
As a university student, Haruto didn't fully grasp the hardships of the typical industry worker.
He had never experienced the toxic social hierarchies, endless revisions, or the paltry year-end bonuses of other studios where rewards were based on how well you flattered your boss.
Furthermore, Haruto was a boss who only cared about results.
He didn't care for flattery and was perfectly happy to be corrected by his subordinates if his ideas were impractical. Working for someone like him was a breath of fresh air, which explained why his staff was so loyal.
While Haruto still had much to learn about business management and cost control, his massive profit margins, often dozens of times the initial investment, meant that minor inefficiencies in operations didn't hinder the company's growth.
Other industry veterans grumbled about his bonus scheme, calling him a spendthrift who would bankrupt his company. But in reality, they knew it was impossible to ruin a business that was printing money at that rate.
Once the holidays passed, the spring anime season officially began.
However, for anime fans, the current offerings felt lackluster. Having spent two years watching the masterpieces produced by Haruto, they found it difficult to get excited about 70-point shows. By the end of the first week of January, the anime forums were filled with lamentations.
"I'm in an anime drought! Someone please recommend some good old series. I'm going to go check the rental shops nearby."
"This is rough. Is Haruto really not doing anything this season?"
"His Hunter x Hunter manga is great, though. It's been amazing since the exam started in chapter seven."
"There are no recommendations because shows as good as Madoka or Edgerunners don't just grow on trees. If there were other old shows that good, you would have already seen them. We wouldn't need to tell you."
"I'm losing it. The manga only has ten chapters so I'm trying to wait for the volume release, and in the SAO novels, Sugou is still alive and making me miserable."
"Just hang in there. Once these three months are over, we get 'Code Geass' in April."
"That show has a budget of over 3 billion yen. It's the biggest investment Haruto has ever made. It's probably going to be his best work yet."
"It's already my pick for Anime of the Year."
"The whole industry is watching April. They want to see if Haruto can pull off a hat-trick in his third year of dominance."
"So what was the best anime of last year then?"
"Is that even a question? It was Cyberpunk: Edgerunners by a landslide."
"And Hunter x Hunter will probably sweep the manga awards this year too."
"There's no real competition. Haruto is at the top of three different fields and his fans follow him everywhere. No one can touch him."
"It's going to be a boring spring. These new shows are painful to watch."
"Just endure it. Maybe someone as talented as Haruto will show up and give him some competition."
"You should keep an eye on Reina at Kiyozawa Library. She was his rival back in the day. She's not at his level yet, but she has a lot of talent. If she keeps growing for a few more years, she might give him a run for his money."
As the first week of spring passed, the anime industry was flooded with complaints from fans who were spoiled by Haruto's quality. This put the other creators in a very awkward position. During the fall, Edgerunners had crushed everything.
In the winter, the movie Blu-rays had stolen the spotlight. And now, even in a season where he had no show airing, fans were still using him as a benchmark to criticize everyone else.
By mid-January, Haruto's current university semester reached its end. He threw himself into an intense period of cramming, absorbing a semester's worth of knowledge in a week. After a grueling week of final exams, he had even lost a bit of weight.
"The first half of the third year is already over," Haruto remarked during breakfast one morning.
"You're only halfway through your third year. My entire university career is about to end," Shizuru said with a touch of melancholy, sipping her milk.
As a senior, she was in a very different position.
"Thinking back, Shizuru, your university life was remarkably disciplined," Yukino noted, choosing her words carefully.
"It was, wasn't it?" Shizuru glanced at Haruto. "I met him in my sophomore year and spent the next two years drawing manga with him. Now I'm about to graduate and I barely know my classmates. I never even joined a club."
"That sounds even more tragic than my college days," Yukino said, a teasing smile playing on her lips. "At least I joined a few clubs and entered the campus singing competition."
"You can sing?" Haruto asked, looking skeptical.
"Of course! I came in ninth in my department!" Yukino said proudly.
"I find that hard to believe," Haruto teased. "The judges must have given you extra points for your looks. I've heard you hum around the house and it's nothing special."
"You're just jealous," Yukino laughed, not taking offense. She knew Haruto was tone-deaf; despite all the music lessons he took to help with his OST transcriptions, he was still a complete amateur when it came to performing.
Reina ate her breakfast in silence before looking up at Haruto. "Are you still planning to stay here for the break, Haruto?"
"Yeah," Haruto said, his expression faltering for a moment. "You know my situation. I don't have any family left back home, just some relatives I haven't spoken to since my parents died. Even though I paid back the money my father owed them once I got famous, those ties are broken. Going back would just be awkward for everyone."
The three women listened in silence as Haruto touched on the personal life he rarely discussed.
"That's a shame," Reina said, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
"Why is it a shame?"
"It's just strange. I see you every day all year long, so not seeing you during the New Year feels wrong," she admitted.
"I feel the same way," Shizuru added.
"Well, there isn't much I can do about that," Haruto smiled.
After finishing breakfast, Reina and Shizuru packed their bags to head home for the holidays, leaving the villa to Haruto and Yukino.
The house felt suddenly empty, which took some getting used to. However, Haruto quickly realized that he could finally enjoy some quality time with his girlfriend.
Even though Shizuru had left, she continued to work on the manga throughout the holiday period.
Up until this point, HxH had been successful primarily because of Haruto's brand.
Fans followed it because they trusted him. In terms of plot, the early chapters were interesting but hadn't yet reached a level of dominance that would crush the competition in a magazine as prestigious as Prime Manga. But by the thirteenth chapter, the foundation was set. The readers finally felt the true charm and magnetic pull of the series.
The Hunter Exam had moved into its first truly iconic stage. The preliminary marathons and cooking tests were fun, but they lacked stakes.
The Trick Tower arc, however, was where the unique style of Hunter x Hunter was truly revealed. It was the arc that showcased the distinct personalities and brilliance of Gon, Killua, Leorio, Kurapika, and the legendary Tonpa.