YAIBA
Yaiba: Samurai Legend (stylized as Y∀IBA) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gosho Aoyama. It was serialized in Shogakukan's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Sunday from September 1988 to December 1993, with its chapters collected in 24 tankōbon volumes. The manga has been licensed for English release in North America by Viz Media.
The story follows Yaiba Kurogane, a samurai boy raised in the forest by his father who ends up returning to city life in Japan. Yaiba encounters a rival swordsman, Takeshi Onimaru, but when the battle just so happens to end in a stalemate, a humiliated Onimaru is lured into malevolence upon stumbling across a magical katana, culminating in his plans to take over the world with an army of demons. This forces Yaiba and his allies to go on a quest to defeat the newly transformed demon lord, while also encountering several figures from Japanese history and mythology along the way.
A 52-episode anime television series adaptation, titled Kenyū Densetsu Yaiba, produced by Pastel, aired on TV Tokyo and Television Hokkaido from April 1993 to April 1994. A second anime television series adaptation, produced by Wit Studio, aired its first season from April to September 2025. A second season has been announced. The second anime series has been licensed in English by Viz Media.
By May 2024, the manga had over 17 million copies in circulation. In 1993, Yaiba received the 38th Shogakukan Manga Award for the shōnen category.
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