The Elusive Samurai

The Elusive Samurai (逃げ上手の若君) is a Japanese historical manga series written and illustrated by Yusei Matsui. It is based on the historical figure of Hōjō Tokiyuki, a young samurai determined to enact revenge on Ashikaga Takauji, a samurai who betrayed and caused the downfall of his family. It has been serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump since January 2021, with its chapters collected in 16  volumes as of July 2024. An anime television series adaptation produced by CloverWorks premiered in July 2024.

The series won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024.

Premise
Set between the late Kamakura and early Muromachi periods, during the Kenmu Restoration, the story follows the tale of Hojo 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.

Characters

 * Hōjō Tokiyuki (北条 時行)


 * Suwa Yorishige (諏訪 頼重)


 * Shizuku (雫)


 * Kojirō (弧次郎)


 * Ayako (亜也子)


 * Kazama Genba (風間 玄蕃)


 * Fubuki (吹雪)


 * Ashikaga Takauji (足利 高氏)

Manga
Written and illustrated by Yusei Matsui, The Elusive Samurai started in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump on January 25, 2021. Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual volumes. The first volume was released on July 2, 2021. As of July 4, 2024, 16 volumes have been released.

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. In October 2021, Viz Media announced that they would publish its volumes in print, with the first one released on July 5, 2022. Shueisha also simulpublishes the series in English and Spanish for free on the Manga Plus platform.

Chapters not yet in tankōbon format
These chapters have yet to be published in a volume.

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. Yūsuke Kawakami serves as assistant director, and Gembi and Akiyuki Tateyama composed the music. The series premiered on July 6, 2024, on Tokyo MX and other networks. 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.

In North America, the series is licensed by Aniplex of America, streaming it on Crunchyroll. Muse Communication licensed the series in Southeast Asia.

Reception
By May 2022, the manga had over 1 million copies in circulation; over 1.5 million copies in circulation by April 2023; over 2 million copies in circulation by March 2024; and over 3 million copies in circulation by July 2024.

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. The series ranked eighth on the Nationwide Bookstore Employees' Recommended Comics of 2022. Along with Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, Sūji de Asobo, and Trillion Game, The Elusive Samurai won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024.

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".