Blade of the Immortal (US)

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 1: Blood of a Thousand by Hiroaki Samura introduces Manji, a wandering samurai in feudal Japan who has been unwillingly granted immortality. Burdened by this curse, he is told that only the deaths of one thousand wicked men can release him from endless life. His path crosses with a young girl whose family was murdered, and he agrees to aid her in her pursuit of vengeance. This first volume of the historical fantasy manga establishes a violent, morally ambiguous quest that blends swordplay, supernatural elements, and psychological tension.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 2: Cry of the Worm continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy set in feudal Japan, following the immortal swordsman Manji and his young companion Rin. Bound to a bloodworm curse that regenerates his wounds, Manji must kill one thousand criminals before he can die, a task that shapes every confrontation in this manga volume. When Rin discovers a prized sword from her destroyed dojo in the hands of a wandering ronin, the pair close in on someone tied to the massacre that defined her past. With detailed artwork, morally ambiguous combat, and a focus on revenge and obligation, this graphic novel deepens both the world and the uneasy partnership at its center.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 3: Dreamsong continues Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy manga with a focus on Makie, a geisha trained from childhood as an assassin. Torn between the roles of entertainer and killer, she faces a decision that threatens both her survival and the fragile balance around her. Her path collides again with Manji, the cursed swordsman who cannot die, drawing them into a brutal confrontation where ideals, loyalties, and futures are all at risk. With translation by Dana Lewis, this volume deepens the series’ blend of Edo-period atmosphere, graphic violence, and introspective character drama.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 4: On Silent Wings continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy set in feudal Japan, following the uneasy partnership between the immortal swordsman Manji and the young avenger Rin. Condemned to endless life until he has killed a thousand criminals, Manji now serves as Rin’s protector and reluctant mentor as she tracks Anotsu Kagehisa, the master swordsman responsible for her father’s death. This volume deepens the moral tension of their quest, as Rin’s training and growing resolve force her to confront how vengeance might reshape her character. With translation work by Dana Lewis and Toren Smith, the manga blends samurai action, psychological conflict, and period detail in a seinen narrative about violence, obligation, and identity.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 5: On Silent Wings II continues Hiroaki Samura’s mature samurai manga set in a violent vision of feudal Japan. Rin’s pursuit of those responsible for her parents’ deaths leads her to a boy whose father is revealed as one of the killers, now living as a mask maker desperate to hide his past from his child. Torn between her hatred and her exhaustion with killing, Rin seeks acknowledgment rather than blood, even as the man prepares to fight to preserve his new life. Meanwhile, the immortal swordsman Manji must decide how far to go in defending Rin without trapping another child in the same legacy of revenge.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 6: Dark Shadows continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent, introspective manga set in a stylized version of feudal Japan. Manji, a ronin granted unwanted immortality, remains bound to his grim bargain: to kill one thousand foes in hopes of ending his undying state. His path is entwined with Rin, a determined young woman pursuing vengeance against the swordsmen who destroyed her family, drawing them deeper into rival schools, shifting alliances, and moral ambiguity. This seinen volume blends historical fiction and dark fantasy with detailed artwork and measured pacing, emphasizing character conflict as much as swordplay.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 7: Heart of Darkness continues Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy manga with Rin and her immortal bodyguard Manji entering the stronghold of the Akagi assassins. Led by the skilled and enigmatic Hyakurin, this group seeks revenge against the Itto-Ryu sword school and its leader Anotsu Kagehisa, who ordered the killing of Rin’s parents. As alliances shift inside this hidden enclave of killers, Rin and Manji must decide how far they are willing to cooperate without losing sight of their own mission. This volume collects an eight-issue arc, showcasing Samura’s detailed artwork and morally complex portrayal of vengeance in Edo-period Japan.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 8: The Gathering continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy set in feudal Japan, following the immortal ronin Manji and the vengeful young woman Rin. Bound by a curse that prevents him from dying, Manji must kill one thousand enemies to regain his mortality, a task that draws him deeper into the era’s shifting alliances and brutal swordplay. This seinen manga volume focuses on the tightening web of rival warriors and factions converging around the pair, emphasizing moral ambiguity, graphic combat, and the cost of revenge. Samura’s artwork and pacing highlight both the period detail and the stark emotional distance between survival, justice, and redemption.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 9: The Gathering II by Hiroaki Samura continues directly from the events of the previous volume, resuming the action moments after Manji disappears into the forest. Set in a stylized historical Japan, this seinen manga volume focuses on two tightly contained threads: Manji’s brutal confrontation in the woods and Rin’s tense ordeal at the government checkpoints. Rather than shifting among many subplots, Samura structures the book as a sustained battle sequence paired with an extended interrogation, allowing both violence and psychological pressure to unfold in detail. The result is a focused installment that deepens the ongoing conflicts while maintaining the series’ blend of fantasy-inflected immortality and grounded period drama.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 10: Secrets shifts focus to Anotsu Kagehisa as he arrives at the isolated Shingyoto-ryu dojo, invited to bring the school under the Itto-ryu banner. Instead of cooperation, he encounters hostile students who will only accept him if he defeats their strongest fighters, a test that hints at deeper motives and hidden tensions within this remote mountain setting. In parallel, the immortal swordsman Manji struggles to recover from being brutally dismembered, while Rin remains missing and intent on her vendetta against Anotsu. Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy manga, translated by Toren Smith and Dana Lewis, continues its seinen blend of violent swordplay, political maneuvering, and moral ambiguity, collecting issues #58–65 of the series.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 11: Beasts continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga in Edo-period Japan, as the story shifts focus to scattered allies and escalating reprisals. Rin presses on alone in her obsessive hunt for Anotsu Kagehisa, leader of the outlaw Itto-ryu sword school, while her immortal protector Manji painstakingly recovers from brutal dismemberment and begins tracking her trail. Around them, shifting factions of swordsmen and assassins close in, with Hyakurin’s capture by Itto-ryu killers turning interrogation and torture into a central tension. This seinen manga volume collects issues #66–72 of the graphic novel series, blending period detail, moral ambiguity, and stark violence.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 12: Autumn Frost continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in feudal Japan, following immortal swordsman Manji and the uneasy ally Magatsu as they track the sadistic killer Shira. Their pursuit is complicated when Shira, maimed by Manji in an earlier encounter, turns to hired hunters and devises a method of torment that exploits Manji’s inability to die. The volume focuses on brutal swordplay, shifting loyalties, and the psychological cost of endless conflict, rendered in Samura’s detailed black-and-white artwork. This installment deepens the manga’s ongoing exploration of revenge and moral ambiguity within a stylized yet grounded samurai setting.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 13: Mirror of the Soul continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in Edo-period Japan, shifting focus to Anotsu Kagehisa as he pauses his campaign to consolidate power through a politically charged marriage. The quiet setting of wedding rituals and clan negotiations exposes rivalries, shifting loyalties, and the rigid expectations of samurai society. While Anotsu navigates these formalities, Rin and other enemies close in, keeping the threat of revenge and assassination close at hand. This seinen manga volume blends character study with tense intrigue, using its graphic novel format to contrast ceremonial calm with the constant possibility of sudden bloodshed.

Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 14: Last Blood by Hiroaki Samura pushes its long-running vendetta into a tightly focused confrontation. Rin finally corners Anotsu Kagehisa, the man responsible for her parents’ deaths, only to find him gravely ill and beyond what her sense of honor allows her to kill. Captured by students of the Shingyōtō-ryū seeking their own revenge, she becomes the fulcrum of intersecting grudges in a violent Edo-period setting. When Manji, her immortal protector, arrives, he faces a moral paradox: to rescue Rin, he must defend Anotsu, the enemy he has vowed to destroy, sharpening the manga’s ongoing exploration of duty, vengeance, and shifting loyalties.

Blade of the Immortal, Vol. 15: Trickster continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga in Edo-period Japan, focusing on shifting allegiances and tactical cruelty. Rin has been captured by three Ittoryu swordsmen, leaving her unable to alert her immortal protector Manji that he is walking into an ambush prepared with kessen-satsu, a rare toxin capable of undermining his famed regeneration. As Manji closes in, the Mugai-ryu assassin Giichi shadows his movements, his intentions toward both Rin and Manji unclear. This volume emphasizes strategic maneuvering, moral ambiguity, and the physical cost of combat within a seinen manga framework.

Blade of The Immortal, Volume 16: Shortcut by Hiroaki Samura continues the series’ blend of historical drama and dark fantasy in Edo-period Japan. While Rin agonizes over the disappearance of her immortal bodyguard Manji, she crosses paths with two itinerant fighters, the impulsive Doa Yoshino and her imposing partner Isaku Yasono-okami, whose presence quickly proves more burden than comfort. Determined to find Manji, Rin infiltrates the fortress of Habaki Kagimura, even as Habaki’s medical specialists subject Manji to ruthless experimentation to probe the limits of his regenerative powers. This volume deepens the manga’s ongoing themes of violence, loyalty, and survival within a grim, meticulously rendered historical setting.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 17: On the Perfection of Anatomy continues Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy manga in a confined, almost clinical setting. Captured by Habaki Kagimura’s regime, the immortal swordsman Manji becomes the subject of medical investigation as officials attempt to unlock his regenerative bloodworms for their own purposes. Lead examiner Burando is ordered to experiment on condemned prisoners, and the escalating brutality of these procedures steadily erodes his composure and ethics. As bodies accumulate in this Edo-period stronghold, Manji endures dissection and recovery, waiting for an opportunity to retaliate against those who have turned anatomy into a weapon.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 18: The Sparrow Net continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in Edo-era Japan, focusing on imprisonment, medical horror, and political intrigue. Manji’s regenerative body is subjected to increasingly grotesque experimentation in the depths of Edo Castle, as Habaki Kagimura’s physicians struggle to harness his immortality and one doctor’s sanity unravels. Above ground, Rin navigates a city under tight surveillance, pursued by harsh authorities while she searches for her missing protector. This seinen manga volume emphasizes claustrophobic tension, bodily mutilation, and the moral collapse of those who seek power at any cost.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 19: Badger Hole continues Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy saga in Edo-period Japan, shifting from preparation to direct infiltration. Rin and Doa move from the margins of conflict into the heart of Edo Castle, using a hidden tunnel system known as the Badger Hole to slip beneath the fortress and challenge Kagimura’s grotesque immortality research. Along the way, an aging physician, an anxious peasant, and a new Itto-ryu fighter complicate their progress and test their resolve. This volume emphasizes tense underground exploration, shifting alliances, and Rin’s gradual development as a fighter as she pushes toward the prisons where Manji remains incapacitated.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 20: Demon's Lair continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in Edo-era Japan, following Rin and Doa as they push deeper into the hidden “Badger Hole” complex. Their search for allies leads them to Toraemon, the reluctant assistant to Doctor Burando, whose gruesome experiments with immortality have turned the underground cells into a grim laboratory. What appears at first to be a straightforward chance to free Manji quickly becomes another grueling struggle through tunnels, prisons, and moral compromise. This seinen manga volume emphasizes claustrophobic settings, ethical horror, and the cost of survival within a corrupt system.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 21: Demon Lair II continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in the flooded tunnels beneath Edo Castle, where Manji’s long captivity under Habaki Kagimura and Doctor Burando finally nears a crisis point. As Manji and Doa fight their way past the shogun’s executioner and other assassins, a transformed Isaku clashes with Asaemon and Kagimura’s forces in parallel confrontations. Burando is forced to confront the consequences of his immortality research when his most extreme kessen-chu experiment emerges, turning the escape into a siege against something far worse than human opponents. Amid the chaos, Rin struggles to hold onto her resolve while an old enemy returns, tightening the series’ focus on survival, guilt, and the cost of unnatural power.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 22: Footsteps continues Hiroaki Samura’s historical fantasy saga in Edo-era Japan, as Manji and Rin recover from their brutal imprisonment and are forced to reassess the uneasy bond between immortal bodyguard and vengeful ward. While Doa and Isaku bring unexpected news to the reassembling Itto-ryu, their leader Anotsu becomes the target of a desperate new campaign. Condemned to die unless he eliminates Anotsu within a month, Habaki Kagimura turns to a fresh group of dangerous criminals, forming the ruthless Rokki-dan after the collapse of the Mugai-ryu. This seinen manga volume weaves shifting alliances, political pressure, and personal guilt into an increasingly tense conflict among swordsmen, outcasts, and officials.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 23: Scarlet Swords continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in Edo-era Japan, focusing on shifting loyalties and the cost of atonement. Disgraced former general Habaki Kagimura, ordered to commit ritual suicide for past crimes, gathers his elite Rokki-dan unit—including his own daughter—for a final campaign to exterminate the outlaw Itto-ryu sword school. As Anotsu, the Itto-ryu’s calculating leader, prepares layered countermeasures, the conflict becomes a tactical struggle as much as a physical one. Meanwhile, the immortal warrior Manji, newly released from Edo’s dungeons and still missing a limb, navigates familiar faces and unresolved grudges in a volume that blends seinen brutality with intricate political maneuvering.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 24: Massacre continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga in Edo-era Japan, as political intrigue and personal vendettas converge on Edo Castle. Kagimura, convinced he is closing in on Anotsu and the Itto-ryu swordsmen, unleashes his forces in pursuit, unaware that Anotsu has turned back toward the castle on a desperate and enigmatic mission. The volume focuses on shifting strategies, mistaken assumptions, and the high cost of loyalty within a world of assassins and samurai. Samura’s award-winning manga blends graphic action with a grim, seinen sensibility that explores power, honor, and survival in a corrupt regime.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 25: Snowfall At Dawn by Hiroaki Samura, translated by Philip R. Simon, pushes the long-running samurai saga toward one of its most brutal confrontations. In Edo-period Japan, the immortal swordsman Manji, still fighting despite the loss of an arm, finally faces the sadistic Shira, whose obsession with revenge has only grown more elaborate and cruel. As their duel escalates, Manji must contend not only with his own limits but with Shira’s fixation on harming Rin, the young woman he has sworn to protect. This seinen historical fantasy volume also follows the Ittō-ryū, where a key warrior’s death underscores the series’ stark approach to violence and consequence.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 26: Blizzard continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga as the aftermath of the previous volume’s brutal clash unfolds. Manji and Rin, joined by new allies, struggle to regain momentum while a severely injured Magatsu faces a revitalized opponent, raising doubts about his survival. As multiple narrative threads in this seinen manga begin to intersect, long-running rivalries and loyalties in Edo-period Japan move toward a larger reckoning. This volume deepens the series’ ongoing exploration of revenge, endurance, and shifting allegiances through stark, cinematic artwork and tightly staged combat.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 27: Mist on the Spider's Web continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga as the fractured Itto-ryu sword school struggles to survive. With Anotsu Kagehisa’s followers scattered yet still lethal, Habaki Kagimura drives his Rokki-dan shock troops to eradicate the remaining Itto-ryu, even at the risk of sacrificing his own daughter. Set in a stylized version of Japan’s past and presented in graphic novel form, this volume pushes its seinen cast toward increasingly desperate choices and shifting alliances. Featuring translation work by Philip R. Simon, it maintains the series’ blend of intricate combat, moral ambiguity, and political intrigue.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 28: Raining Chaos continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy saga as rival factions collide in Edo-period Japan. The long-running feud between rogue swordsman Anotsu and fallen official Habaki escalates into brutal close-quarters combat, while a trio of eccentric Rokki-dan enforcers finally intercepts the retreating Itto-ryu, disrupting everyone’s plans. Amid the chaos, immortal warrior Manji and determined Rin remain entangled in shifting alliances and vendettas that push the series toward its conclusion. With translation by Philip R. Simon, this seinen manga volume maintains the series’ blend of graphic action, moral ambiguity, and intricate character conflicts that have earned Blade of the Immortal multiple international awards.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 29: Beyond Good and Evil continues Hiroaki Samura’s violent historical fantasy in late-Edo Japan, as disgraced official Habaki seizes control of a quiet harbor and turns it into a lethal checkpoint. His Rokki-dan enforcers slaughter all who arrive by sea, hoping to intercept any allies of the fugitive Anotsu and his warriors. Against this backdrop of escalating brutality, immortal swordsman Manji, vengeful Rin, and the cornered Anotsu move toward an inevitable collision with Habaki’s forces. With translation by Philip R. Simon, this seinen manga volume focuses on shifting loyalties, tactical cruelty, and the blurred lines between justice and atrocity.

Blade of the Immortal Volume 30: Vigilance by Hiroaki Samura brings the long-running historical fantasy manga close to its conclusion in a blood-soaked coastal town. Former Edo official Habaki finally confronts Anotsu, the outlaw he has long pursued, while Manji and Rin are drawn into a brutal clash with one of Habaki’s most relentless Rokki-dan fighters. At the same time, the elusive Makie is forced to hold her ground against multiple agents from Edo Castle, turning the port into a battleground of intersecting vendettas. This seinen graphic novel continues the series’ blend of period detail, sword combat, and moral ambiguity that has earned Blade of the Immortal major awards in Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

Blade of the Immortal, Volume 31: Final Curtain by Hiroaki Samura brings this long-running historical fantasy manga to its violent conclusion in Edo-period Japan. Disgraced officer Habaki and elusive swordsman Anotsu meet in a decisive confrontation, observed by Manji, Rin, and a dwindling circle of survivors as their era of vendettas and shifting loyalties comes to a close. The volume’s extended length allows for sustained action, grim suspense, and a final escalation of the series’ characteristic brutality and moral ambiguity. As the last installment of an Eisner- and Media Arts Award–winning saga, it offers a definitive end to Rin’s revenge quest while pushing its characters into stranger, more unsettling territory.