The Rurouni Kenshin: Hokkaido Arc manga, penned by Nobuhiro Watsuki with story collaboration from his novelist wife Kaoru Kurosaki, officially resumed serialization in Shueisha’s Jump SQ. magazine on July 4, 2025. This return marks the end of a hiatus that began after the manga’s June 2024 issue, released in May 2024.
Hiatus and Author’s Health
The decision to put the Hokkaido Arc on hiatus was announced in September 2024, with the stated reason being Nobuhiro Watsuki’s poor health. During the break, the magazine staff and Watsuki discussed the best approach for a stable and continuous resumption of the series. Prior to this, the manga had experienced a multi-month break, not appearing in issues from July to September 2024, after initially being slated for a one-issue break in June 2024.
Background of the Hokkaido Arc
The Rurouni Kenshin: Hokkaido Arc (officially titled Rurouni Kenshin, Meiji Kenkaku Romantan: Hokkaidō-hen) is a direct sequel to the original Rurouni Kenshin manga series. Watsuki and Kurosaki first launched this sequel in Jump SQ. magazine in September 2017. The manga follows Himura Kenshin and his companions as they journey through Hokkaido in 1883 in search of his father-in-law.
It previously went on hiatus in December 2017 after Watsuki faced charges related to the possession of child sexual abuse images, but resumed serialization in June 2018. Viz Media had been simultaneously publishing the manga in English digitally via Weekly Shonen Jump but ceased its English publication after the 2017 hiatus.
The Rurouni Kenshin Franchise
Nobuhiro Watsuki originally launched the Rurouni Kenshin manga in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 1994, concluding the 28-volume series in 1999. The original manga has more than 72 million copies in circulation worldwide and centers on Kenshin Himura, a former deadly assassin in the Meiji Restoration, who seeks a new life beyond violence.
The franchise has seen numerous adaptations, including a 95-episode TV anime series, an anime film, three original video anime (OVA) projects, five live-action films, and a stage musical. A new television anime project, re-adapting the main manga series, premiered in July 2023. Its second season, Rurouni Kenshin Meiji Kenkaku Romantan: Kyōto Dōran (Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Disturbance), premiered on October 3, 2024, and a third season has been confirmed. Crunchyroll streams the anime series, including an English dub.
