Sakamoto Days

''Sakamoto Days'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by . It has been serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' since November 2020, with its chapters collected in 22 volumes as of June 2025. It is simultaneously published in English by Viz Media and the ''Manga Plus'' online platform.

The story revolves around Taro Sakamoto, a retired legendary hitman who has settled into a quiet and mundane life as a family man. However, his peaceful life is disrupted when former enemies and colleagues from his hitman days come seeking revenge. To protect his family and loved ones, Sakamoto must use his exceptional combat skills to face off against a variety of adversaries while trying to maintain his ordinary facade.

An anime television series adaptation produced by TMS Entertainment aired from January to March 2025, with a second cours set to release in July of the same year.

By March 2025, the manga had over 8 million copies in circulation.

Plot

Taro Sakamoto used to be an unrivaled hitman, earning legendary status in the criminal underworld by being feared by some and idolized by others. One day, however, Sakamoto fell in love at first sight with Aoi, a convenience store clerk. In order for them to date, Aoi gave him the ultimatum that he must quit being a hitman and never kill again. Sakamoto agreed, and after his retirement they started dating, got married, had a daughter named Hana, and eventually opened a family-run convenience store of their own in the suburbs of Tokyo.

Several years later, Sakamoto has settled into his humble life, but also grown portly as a result of his relative inactivity despite still being immensely powerful. The world of hitmen eventually locates him, and many soon attempt to target the Sakamoto family, either seeking revenge or resenting his retired status. Now, with the help of three other former criminals who become employed at the store under Sakamoto—clairvoyant hitman Shin Asakura, orphaned crime boss daughter Lu Xiaotang, and sniper Heisuke Mashimo—Sakamoto must protect his family (or die trying) against the criminal underworld, all while maintaining Aoi's no-kill policy.

Production

The idea of pairing up Taro Sakamoto with a character that can read minds allowed for insight into the character's motivations and for comedy to flourish since Suzuki intended for Sakamoto to be a more quiet and reserved character. According to editor Soushiro Ishikawa, Suzuki focuses on readability while creating action scenes and his background in style of painting allows him to create interesting layouts. Suzuki and Ishikawa would hold meetings every week in person in order to discuss how to progress the story, but after the COVID-19 pandemic they hold meetings online. Suzuki is influenced by manga artists Katsuhiro Otomo, Takehiko Inoue, and Hiroya Oku, and by the works of director Christopher Nolan. He draws inspiration from action films such as '' The Equalizer'' and the ''John Wick'' series.

Suzuki originally drew dark one-shot stories. However, when creating ''Sakamoto Days'', he opted for a more lighthearted tone to better suit the demands of weekly serialization. For the concept of Sakamoto being a retired hitman, Suzuki said he was fascinated with the idea of a fat person being incredibly strong, thinking as well about the reasons that led him to that state; "Why is he fat? Because he retired. Why is that? Maybe because he got married? That's how I made it." He was particularly intrigued by the idea of a strong, obese fighter, a notion that was partly influenced by the comedic action film '' Enter the Fat Dragon''. Regarding action scenes, Suzuki strives to captivate readers by incorporating unexpected twists and surprises. He employs an analog pen for character illustrations and works with a team of assistants. The character Shin emerged from Suzuki's interest in exploring the potential of an esper who interacts with Sakamoto through telepathy. Meanwhile, Lu was conceived as a Chinese assassin heroine, reflecting Suzuki's desire to diversify the cast. Although Suzuki acknowledges that his characters can sometimes be difficult to distinguish visually, he found Gaku to be the easiest to draw due his independent personality. Suzuki commented that he had already planned the ending of the series by 2022.

Adaptation

For the animated adaptation, served as the director. Watanabe noted that Sakamoto's design reflects the original manga's expressiveness while distinguishing his two forms; the fat version has a symbolically deformed face, while the skinny version is more realistic. Watanabe highlighted Sakamoto's distinctive personality and calm daily life, which create a striking contrast during action sequences involving his obese physique. The director also emphasized the unique sound effects and vocal performances for Shin, which were carefully crafted under his guidance. Reflecting on the narrative, Watanabe noted that despite its comedic foundation, the series occasionally delivers unexpected moments of violence, an aspect he found particularly commendable. Despite his experience with manga, Watanabe found ''Sakamoto Days'' to be a unique challenge, as he aimed to balance intense action sequences with the lighthearted tone established by Suzuki. One of the most demanding scenes in the early episodes involved a rollercoaster fight, which required extensive time to create a detailed 3D model and manage the scene's vibrant color palette. The animation was done using Clip Studio Paint and Adobe, incorporating a paper texture to enhance the visual style of the action sequences. Additionally, the team conducted research on real firearms to ensure their accurate depiction in the anime.

Tomokazu Sugita voices the protagonist Taro Sakamoto, having previously been familiar with the original manga series. Initially cast as Kashima, he was later asked to voice Sakamoto instead, appreciating the character's relationships with family and friends. Nobunaga Shimazaki voices Shin Asakura, who noted that the character's perceived weakness and lack of skill, despite being over 20, creates a deliberate contrast with the stronger, more experienced characters, enhancing the cast's balance and making the dynamics more engaging. Lu Xiaotang is voiced by Ayane Sakura, who enjoyed exploring the character's dynamic interactions.

Media

Manga

''Sakamoto Days'' is written and illustrated by . Suzuki first published a one-shot titled in Shueisha's ''Jump Giga'' on December 26, 2019. ''Sakamoto Days'' debuted in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' on November 21, 2020. Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual volumes. The first volume was released on April 2, 2021. As of June 4, 2025, 22 volumes have been released.

The series is simultaneously published in English by Viz Media and the ''Manga Plus'' online platform. Viz Media started releasing the volumes in print on April 5, 2022.

A spin-off manga by Tetsu Ōkawa, who has worked as an assistant on the main manga, titled ''Sakamoto Holidays'', started in Shueisha's ''Saikyō Jump'' on July 4, 2024. The first volume was released on January 4, 2025. In June 2025, Viz Media announced that it will start publishing the volumes in both physical and digital format starting in Q2 2026.

Novels

A novel adaptation with an exclusive story by Renka Misaki, titled , was released under Shueisha's Jump J-Books imprint on April 4, 2023.

A spin-off novel with exclusive episodes also written by Renka Misaki, titled , was released on December 4, 2024.

Anime

In May 2024, it was announced that the series would receive an anime television series adaptation produced by TMS Entertainment. It is directed by , with scripts by Taku Kishimoto, character designs by Yō Moriyama, and music composed by Yuki Hayashi. The series runs in two split season cours, with the first cours aired from January 11 to March 22, 2025, and the second cours premiering on July 14 of the same year, on TV Tokyo

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