A First in 40 Years: The Legendary Kendo Manga Musashi no Ken Returns!
Nostalgia is blowing through the manga world! Master artist Motoka Murakami has announced that he will be writing a new story for his legendary kendo-themed series Musashi no Ken (Sword of Musashi) after a full 40-year hiatus. This classic work, which concluded its original adventure in 1985, is returning with special content to be published on Shogakukan's digital platform, Sunday Webry. Titled "Musashi no Ken Final", this new work will consist of two chapters and offer fresh content to fans of the series for the first time in many years.
This special comeback is coming to life as part of Sunday Webry's "Wednesday Masters" project. The project aims to bring short stories from legendary mangaka who have left their mark on Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine to readers. The first chapter of Motoka Murakami's new story will be published on May 20, 2026, and the second and final chapter on June 3, 2026. This announcement, coming after approximately 40 years since the series' 1985 finale, has excited both long-time readers and the new generation of fans interested in classic series.
Musashi no Ken was originally published between 1981 and 1985 and crowned its success by winning the prestigious 29th Shogakukan Manga Award in 1984. The story followed the journey of young Musashi Natsuki (who takes his name from both the legendary swordsman Musashi Miyamoto and the numbers 6/3/4, which represent his birth date) as he strives to climb to the top of the kendo world through discipline, perseverance, and competition. The popularity of the series spread across Japan through a 72-episode anime series produced by the Eiken studio between 1985 and 1986, as well as various video games.
