This feels
like déjà vu of the ugly. With the Nippon Sangoku anime in
full air, its author Ikka Matsuki has just announced that the
manga is going on hiatus for health reasons. It is not a preventive rest or an
adjustment of the agenda: Matsuki has had a high fever for more than two weeks,
is bedridden and is going through a steroid withdrawal syndrome.
This month's update is postponed until the state of his health allows it. There
is no confirmed return date.
Matsuki's
statement is direct and blunt. He explains that the absolute priority at the
moment is recovery, and that until that happens, there will be no new chapters.
Steroid withdrawal syndrome is a medical condition that can present severe and
prolonged symptoms when the body stops receiving corticosteroids after
continued use, which explains both the duration of the fever and the need to
completely pause work.
The timing
is particularly tricky for the franchise. The Nippon Sangoku anime
began airing this year, which means that the series is in one of its moments of
greatest public visibility just as the manga that serves as its basis needs to
stop. It's not the first time the industry has faced these kinds of situations,
but that doesn't make it any less difficult for readers who follow
serialization.
The series
reached its seventh compiled volume in April of this year and
has maintained a regular cadence since its launch in 2021, which makes this
brake more noticeable. Matsuki asked readers for understanding and promised
updates on the state of the manga as soon as his health allows.
Nippon
Sangoku: The Three Nations of the Crimson Sun is a manga by Ikka Matsuki published
on Shogakukan's Manga ONE app and Ura Sunday site
since 2021. The story takes place in a near-future Japan where civilization
collapsed after a combination of nuclear war, natural disasters, and poor
leadership. The country was divided into three rival nations, recreating a
dynamic similar to that of the trouble-eras of antiquity. The
protagonist, Aoteru Misumi, starts out as an ordinary local
official but uses his knowledge and oratory skills to rise and work for the
reunification of the fractured territory. The series received a nomination for
the Manga Taisho Awards in 2023, was included in Da
Vinci magazine's "Book of the Year" selections, and placed
in the top 20 of Kono Manga ga Sugoi!'s male readers' ranking that
same year.
