Shonen Jump Confirms Long Running Series to End After Five Years

Shonen Jump has become one of the biggest platforms to introduce the world to fresh manga stories. While classic series like Dragon Ball and One Piece have helped push Weekly Shonen Jump to new heights, newcomers like Jujutsu Kaisen and Kagurabachi are following in the Z-Fighters and Straw Hats’ tradition. While some shonen series will seem endless, perhaps more will end their stories after a handful of years on the shelves. In a surprise update, one of the biggest new Shonen Jump stories has ended this week, with a major shonen franchise bidding fans a fond farewell in Japan.

The Elusive Samurai has been a mover and shaker in the shonen world since the manga first debuted in 2021. Receiving an anime adaptation in 2024 from Studio CloverWorks, a second season has already been confirmed to begin this summer. This week in Japan, the 238th chapter of The Elusive Samurai was released, acting as the series finale for the work of Yusei Matsui. Without diving too deeply into spoiler territory, the characters are shown via time skips that feature the figures, mostly, receiving life-affirming endings. While this chapter has yet to arrive in North America as of yet, Viz Media is planning to release it to Western readers later this week.

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A Major Shonen Jump Series Is Going to End After Five Years

The Elusive Samurai’s Future

While the manga has officially ended in Japan, The Elusive Samurai, most likely, still has a very long future ahead of it in the anime world. The first season, which was made up of twelve episodes, covered around thirty chapters of the original Shonen Jump series, meaning we still have around two hundred installments. This could potentially mean we would have around four more anime seasons in the future, and fingers crossed that CloverWorks sticks with the adaptation.

For those who haven’t jumped into The Elusive Samurai, the first season is available to stream on Crunchyroll, following the story of Hojo Tokiyuki. When Hojo’s royal family is overthrown by a competing army, Tokiyuki is saved by Suwa Yorishige, an idiosyncratic priest who is unlike any other holy man roaming this anime world. Creator Yusei Matsui is, fortunately, ending his manga on his own terms, as there have been many examples of Shonen Jump series in recent memory canceled prematurely.

Weekly Shonen Jump has canceled some major new arrivals in recent days, with the likes of Astro Royale, Super Psychic Policeman Chojo, Otteru of The Flame, Harukaze Mound, and Ping Pong Peril already releasing their final chapters. Shueisha will, for those who might not be aware, routinely examine the popularity of various manga based on polling and overall sales numbers, often leading to cancellations. Luckily, a recently canceled manga, Super Psychic Policeman Chojo, has been confirmed to receive an anime adaptation despite its jettisoning from Shonen Jump. This occurrence is a rare one, but it does prove that there is still hope for canceled manga to find new life.

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