'Hunter x Hunter' Welcomes Hiatus With One Intense Cliffhanger

Fans were devastated to learn that Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter x Hunter manga is going on hiatus yet again after returning in January and running for a few weeks, and the news hit even harder consider Togashi left the last chapter on a cliffhanger.

Fans know tensions on the Black Whale have been bubbling during the Succession Contest, and the latest chapter makes a major shift into the bloody battle to come.

The entire arc has been about establishing the different factions aboard the Black Whale and their relation to one another, while at the same time teasing a huge confrontation between all of them. The factions have been crossing over with one another in little clashes between all of them, but the true conflict had yet to spark as no one could prove that another faction had made a move.

But the pieces are piling up as the final moments of Chapter 380 not only established that the Hunter Association is not only aware of more of the Zoldyck family joining the Phantom Troupe, but they're also aware that they're on the ship. Not it's a conflict over whether or not to tell Kurapika, who's dealing with the intricacies of the Succession Contest over in another part of the boat.

To make matters worse, one of the Princes embroiled in this battle, Prince Fugetsu has now appeared in front of the Hunter Association in the hopes of asking them for help. With all of these pieces now in place, and all of these factions perilously close to a conflict, it's only going to take one move to set it all in motion.

But now thanks to the latest hiatus, fans won't get to see what becomes of this until the series returns at an undetermined time.

Hunter x Hunter is also launching an official collaboration with ANimate cafe in Japan from April 17 to May 13. You can check out more information on the official website (which you can check out here), and fans who vist the shop can purchase small charms featuring the series' characters like Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, and even the deadly members of the Phantom Troupe in adorable service maid uniforms.

Premium Bandai is currently selling a replica set of its Greed Island card game. It runs 8,800 yen (about $78 USD) and Premium Bandai will be taking orders with shipment beginning in April. If this seems like it would be too cumbersome but you still want to show off your love of Hunter x Hunter, you can do so with Premium Bandai's other replica offering, the Beatle 07.

For those unfamiliar with Hunter x Hunter, the series was originally created by Yoshihiro Togashi. The story follows a young boy named Gon Freecss, who discovers that his previously thought to be dead father is in fact alive. Not only is he alive, he is a famous Hunter, a professional traveler who specializes in finding rare treasures, exploring unidentified lands, and hunting down dangerous individuals. Gon then decides that in order to meet his father he has to become a licensed Hunter, but in that journey gets wrapped up in way more strangeness than he ever could have anticipated.

The series first ran in Shuiesha's Weekly Shonen Jump in March 1998. Unfortunately, the series has gone on a number of hiatuses ever since 2006 which were most likely incurred by bouts of illness Togashi experienced when publishing his last work, Yu Yu Hakusho. The series has run for 360 chapters, and been collected into 47 volumes as of 2017. It's one of Shueisha's most successful selling series with over 66 million copies sold in Japan.