The Elusive Samurai (逃げ上手の若君) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yusei Matsui. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from January 2021 to February 2026, with its chapters collected in 23 volumes as of December 2025. The series is based on the historical figure of Hōjō Tokiyuki, the last survivor of the Hōjō clan determined to enact revenge on Ashikaga Takauji, a samurai who betrayed and caused the downfall of his family.
An anime television series adaptation produced by CloverWorks aired from July to September 2024. A second season is set to premiere in July 2026.
The series won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024.
Premise
Set between the late Kamakura and early Muromachi periods, the story follows the tale of Hōjō Tokiyuki, a boy on the run after his family is overthrown by Ashikaga Takauji. With his only allies being a shady priest and his followers, the young lord must seek revenge and regain his glory, with his only weapon: a superhuman ability to flee and hide.
Media
Manga
Written and illustrated by Yusei Matsui, The Elusive Samurai was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from January 25, 2021,[4][5][6] to February 16, 2026.[7][8] Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual volumes. The first volume was released on July 2, 2021.[9] As of March 4, 2026, 24 volumes have been released.[10]
In North America, the manga is licensed for English release by Viz Media, who simultaneously publishes the chapters digitally as they are released in Japan on its Shonen Jump website.[11] In October 2021, Viz Media announced that they would publish its volumes in print, with the first one released on July 5, 2022.[12][13] Shueisha also simulpublishes the series in English on the Manga Plus platform.[14]
Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced in March 2023. It is produced by CloverWorks and directed by Yuta Yamazaki, with scripts supervised by Yoriko Tomita, and character designs handled by Yasushi Nishiya.[15][16] Yūsuke Kawakami serves as assistant director, and Gembi and Akiyuki Tateyama composed the music.[17] The series aired its first season from July 6 to September 28, 2024, on Tokyo MX and other networks.[18][19] The opening theme song is "Plan A" (プラン A), performed by Dish, while the ending theme song is "Kamakura Style" (鎌倉 STYLE), performed by Botchi Boromaru.[20]
A second season was announced on October 6, 2024.[21] Following a re-air of the first season on the Noitamina programming block on Fuji TV and its affiliates, the second season is set to premiere on the same block in July 2026.[22]
Aniplex of America licensed the series and streamed it on Crunchyroll;[23][24] an English dub premiered on August 3, 2024.[25] Aniplex of America released the episodes on Blu-ray on August 26, 2025.[26] Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia.[27]
Series overview
Episodes
Series overview
Episodes
Reception
By May 2022, the manga had over 1 million copies in circulation;[32] over 1.5 million copies in circulation by April 2023;[33] over 2 million copies in circulation by March 2024;[34] and over 3 million copies in circulation by July 2024.[35]
In June 2021, The Elusive Samurai was nominated for the seventh Next Manga Award in the Best Printed Manga category and placed sixth out of 50 nominees.[36][37] The series ranked eighth on the Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics of 2022.[38] Along with Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, Sūji de Asobo, and Trillion Game, The Elusive Samurai won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024.[39][40]
Anthony Gramuglia of Comic Book Resources wrote that the series has become one of the "highlights of [Weekly] Shōnen Jump's newer titles", adding that "[it] is not only surprisingly emotional but also surprisingly intense, starting with all cylinders at full-throttle and never letting up".[42]
At the 9th Crunchyroll Anime Awards in 2025, Hōjō Tokiyuki was nominated for "Must Protect at All Costs" Character while the ending theme, "Kamakura Style" by Botchi Boromaru, was one of the nominees for Best Ending Sequence.[43]
Further reading
External links
References
- The Official Website for The Elusive Samurai Viz Media, retrieved May 3, 2023^
- Cezary Jan Strusiewicz. Who Was The Elusive Samurai? The Real Life of Hojo Tokiyuki Tokyo Weekender, August 22, 2024, retrieved September 15, 2024^
- Nick Valdez. Top 10 Most Anticipated Summer 2024 Anime to Watch ComicBook.com, June 26, 2024, retrieved August 19, 2024^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. Shonen Jump Launches New Manga by Assassination Classroom & Astra Lost in Space Creators, 2 Others Anime News Network, January 17, 2021, retrieved April 22, 2021^
- https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2182667/full/ Oricon News, Oricon, January 25, 2021, retrieved April 22, 2021^
- https://natalie.mu/comic/news/413667 Comic Natalie, Natasha, Inc, January 25, 2021, retrieved April 22, 2021^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. Yūsei Matsui's The Elusive Samurai Manga Ends Anime News Network, February 15, 2026, retrieved February 15, 2026^
- https://natalie.mu/comic/news/660288 Comic Natalie, Natasha, Inc, February 16, 2026, retrieved February 16, 2026^
- https://mantan-web.jp/article/20210701dog00m200046000c.html Mantan Web, November 26, 2022, retrieved October 19, 2021^
- https://www.shueisha.co.jp/books/items/contents.html?isbn=978-4-08-884873-0 Shueisha, retrieved January 19, 2026^
- Adriana Hazra. Viz Media to Publish Yusei Matsui's New Manga in English Anime News Network, January 22, 2021, retrieved April 22, 2021^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. Viz Announces Summer 2022 Book Releases Including Junji Ito's The Liminal Zone, Takashi Shiina's Yashahime Manga Anime News Network, October 10, 2021, retrieved October 10, 2021^
- The Elusive Samurai, Vol. 1 Viz Media, retrieved March 29, 2022^
- Yûsei Matsui, l'auteur de Neuro et d'Assassination Classroom, lance un nouveau manga dans le Shônen Jump Manga News, January 25, 2021, retrieved June 23, 2024^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. Yusei Matsui's The Elusive Samurai Manga Gets TV Anime at Cloverworks Anime News Network, March 19, 2023, retrieved March 20, 2023^
- https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2272169/full/ Oricon, March 20, 2023, retrieved March 20, 2023^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. The Elusive Samurai Anime's 1st Promo Video Introduces Main Cast Anime News Network, December 16, 2023, retrieved December 16, 2023^
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- Crystalyn Hodgkins. The Elusive Samurai Season 2 Anime Debuts in July 2026 Anime News Network, December 21, 2025, retrieved December 21, 2025^
- Alex Mateo. Crunchyroll to Stream Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest, The Elusive Samurai, True Beauty, More Anime for Summer Season Anime News Network, July 3, 2024, retrieved July 3, 2024^
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- Alex Mateo. North American Anime, Manga Releases, August 24–30 Anime News Network, August 29, 2025, retrieved August 30, 2025^
- Rafael Pineda. Muse Asia Licenses The Elusive Samurai, SHY Season 2 Anime Anime News Network, July 1, 2024, retrieved July 1, 2024^
- Monogatari｜Terebi Anime「Nige Jōzu no Wakagimi」Koshiki Saito nigewaka.run, retrieved July 6, 2024^
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- TVアニメ『逃げ上手の若君』. https://archive.today/20240928050725/https://x.com/nigewaka_anime/status/1829896425125110146 August 31, 2024, retrieved September 28, 2024^
- 『逃げ上手の若君』(松井優征作品)公式. https://archive.today/20250907224633/https://x.com/ansatsu_k/status/1531213834471362561 May 30, 2022, retrieved June 6, 2023^
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- https://www.famitsu.com/news/202403/24337919.html Famitsu, March 24, 2024, retrieved June 9, 2024^
- https://thetv.jp/news/detail/1206314/ The Television, Kadokawa Corporation, July 5, 2024, retrieved July 7, 2024^
- Lynzee Loveridge. Voting Opens for Tsugi ni Kuru Manga 2021 Awards Anime News Network, June 21, 2021, retrieved June 21, 2021^
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- Alex Mateo. Frieren, Elusive Samurai, Trillion Game, Sūji de Asobo. Win 69th Shogakukan Manga Awards Anime News Network, January 18, 2024, retrieved January 18, 2024^
- Crystalyn Hodgkins. 12 Works Including Frieren, Elusive Samurai, Ya Boy Kongming! Nominated for 69th Shogakukan Manga Awards Anime News Network, December 7, 2023, retrieved December 7, 2023^
- Anthony Gramuglia. Shonen Jump's 5 Newest Manga, Ranked Comic Book Resources, June 18, 2021, retrieved October 18, 2021^
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