The Elusive Samurai anime will premiere in July 2024, and the first short trailer featuring the main character Hojo Tokiyuki has been released. The announcement was made during Anime Japan 2024’s Aniplex Stage.
The series is directed by Yuta Yamazaki with Yusuke Kawakami as the deputy director. The character design is done by Yasushi Nishitani with Yoriko Tomita writing the script. Studio Clover Works is in charge of the animation. The cast includes:
The series was first announced in March 2023 at Anime Japan 2023. Since then, it has released short videos of the characters that will be appearing in the series.
The Elusive Samurai is a historical manga series written and illustrated by Yusei Matsui. It has been serialized in Shuiesha’s Weekly Shounen Jump since January 2021 and currently has 14 volumes. It recently won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award.
The series takes place between the Kamakura and Muromachi periods during the Kenmu Restoration. It follows an eight-year-old boy named Hojo Tokiyuki, the heir to the Kamakura shogunate with a talent for hide-and-seek. His life turns upside down when his family is overthrown by Takauji Ashikage. He manages to escape and is rescued by a self-proclaimed priest. Now, he must restore the Kamakura Shogunate to its former glory while recruiting allies and evading being killed by his enemies using his only ability to run and hide.
The manga is currently licensed by Viz Media, who is releasing the series simultaneously in English digitally. It started to publish the volumes in English in July 2022.
Source: Official Website; Anime Japan 2024
© Yusei Matsui/Shueisha/ The Elusive Samurai Production Committee