Top Ninja Manga Recommendations

ONE PIECE

Also known as One Piece.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy

As a child, Monkey D. Luffy was inspired to become a pirate by listening to the tales of the buccaneer "Red-Haired" Shanks. But his life changed when Luffy accidentally ate the Gum-Gum Devil Fruit and gained the power to stretch like rubber...at the cost of never being able to swim again! Years later, still vowing to become the king of the pirates, Luffy sets out on his adventure...one guy alone in a rowboat, in search of the legendary "One Piece," said to be the greatest treasure in the world...



Tags: Pirates , Travel , Found Family , Shounen , Ensemble Cast , Super Power , Tragedy , Ships , Male Protagonist , Fugitive , Conspiracy , Crime , Military , Politics , Terrorism , War , Slapstick , Time Skip , Gods , Primarily Adult Cast , Post-Apocalyptic , Lost Civilization , Slavery , Anachronism , Cultivation , Large Breasts , Dystopian , Swordplay , Mythology , Environmental , Prison , Religion , Gangs , Animals , Espionage , Anti-Hero , Skeleton , Cyborg , Meta , Anthropomorphism , Primarily Male Cast , Samurai , Henshin , Adoption , Assassins , Robots , Food , Guns , Medicine , Mermaid , Drugs , Amnesia , Dragons , Revenge , Desert , Battle Royale , Kemonomimi , Monster Girl , Oiran , Time Manipulation , LGBTQ+ Themes , Centaur , Ninja , Zombie , Memory Manipulation , Trains , Angels , Transgender , Female Protagonist , Clone , Dinosaurs , Gender Bending , Aliens , Body Swapping , Shapeshifting , Primarily Child Cast , Curses

NARUTO

Also known as Naruto.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Supernatural

Before Naruto's birth, a great demon fox had attacked the Hidden Leaf Village. A man known as the 4th Hokage sealed the demon inside the newly born Naruto, causing him to unknowingly grow up detested by his fellow villagers. Despite his lack of talent in many areas of ninjutsu, Naruto strives for only one goal: to gain the title of Hokage, the strongest ninja in his village. Desiring the respect he never received, Naruto works towards his dream with fellow friends Sasuke and Sakura and mentor Kakashi as they go through many trials and battles that come with being a ninja.

Tags: Shounen , Ninja , Revenge , Coming of Age , Found Family , Super Power , Male Protagonist , Martial Arts , War , Tragedy , Orphan , Time Skip , Necromancy , Kaiju , Cultivation , Magic , Philosophy , Henshin , Anachronism , Animals , Love Triangle , LGBTQ+ Themes , Travel , Demons , Heterosexual , Espionage , Aliens

Jigokuraku

Also known as Hell’s Paradise: Jigokuraku.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Mystery , Supernatural

Gabimaru the Hollow is one of the most vicious assassins ever to come out of the ninja village of Iwagakure. He’s ruthlessly efficient, but a betrayal results in him being handed a death sentence. He has only one hope—in order to earn his freedom, he must travel to a long-hidden island and recover an elixir that will make the shogun immortal. Failure is not an option. On this island, heaven and hell are just a hair’s breadth away.



Tags: Survival , Samurai , Philosophy , Ninja , Ensemble Cast , Anti-Hero , Mythology , Gore , Tragedy , Historical , Gods , Primarily Adult Cast , Male Protagonist , Eco-Horror , Swordplay , Battle Royale , Body Horror , Gender Bending , Shounen , Nudity , Arranged Marriage , Heterosexual , Super Power , Travel , Amnesia , LGBTQ+ Themes , Crime , Yandere

BORUTO: NARUTO NEXT GENERATIONS

Also known as Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Supernatural

The ninja adventures continue with Naruto’s son, Boruto!

Naruto was a young shinobi with an incorrigible knack for mischief. He achieved his dream to become the greatest ninja in his village, and now his face sits atop the Hokage monument. But this is not his story... A new generation of ninja are ready to take the stage, led by Naruto's own son, Boruto!

Years have passed since Naruto and Sasuke teamed up to defeat Kaguya, the progenitor of chakra and the greatest threat the ninja world has ever faced. Times are now peaceful and the new generation of shinobi has not experienced the same hardships as its parents. Perhaps that is why Boruto would rather play video games than train. However, one passion does burn deep in this ninja boy’s heart, and that is the desire to defeat his father!



Note: Includes the one-shot "Naruto: The Path Lit by the Full Moon".

Tags: Shounen , Ninja , Gods , Super Power , Male Protagonist , Aliens , Primarily Child Cast , Fugitive , Memory Manipulation , Cyborg , Martial Arts , Anti-Hero , Cultivation , Espionage , Orphan

Billy Bat

Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Mystery , Supernatural , Thriller

The story is set in 1949 and follows Japanese-American comic book artist Kevin Yamagata as he draws the popular detective series "Billy Bat" for "Marble Comics." When he learns he may have unconsciously copied the character from an image he saw while serving in occupied Japan, he returns to Japan to get permission to use Billy Bat from its original creator. Upon arriving there, however, he becomes embroiled in a web of murder, cover-ups, and prophecy that all leads back to Billy Bat.

It is soon evident, however, that the truth of Billy Bat's nature is far larger than Kevin could ever guess, spanning millennia and across the world.



Note: Won the Max und Moritz Prize for "Best international Comic" in 2014.

Tags: Drawing , Historical , Time Manipulation , Seinen , Philosophy , Conspiracy , Politics , Ensemble Cast , Urban Fantasy , Travel , Foreign , Achronological Order , War , Time Skip , Primarily Adult Cast , Police , Religion , Male Protagonist , Dystopian , Ninja , Guns , Swordplay , Anachronism , Espionage , Nudity , Terrorism

Gintama

Also known as Gin Tama.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama , Sci-Fi

The samurai didn't stand a chance. First, the aliens invaded Japan. Next, they took all the jobs. And then they confiscated everyone's swords. So what does a hotheaded former samurai like Sakata "Gin" Gintoki do to make ends meet? Take any odd job that comes his way, even if it means losing his dignity.



Included Bonus Chapters:
Volume 1: Dandelion (One-shot).
Volume 2: Shirokuro (One-shot).
Volume 24: 13 (One-shot).
Volume 38: Bankara-san Ga Tooru (One-shot).
Volume 41: Special Lesson.

Tags: Samurai , Found Family , Parody , Meta , Swordplay , Male Protagonist , Aliens , Philosophy , Shounen , Episodic , Tragedy , Space , Historical , Anachronism , Ensemble Cast , Time Skip , Police , War , Dystopian , Robots , Ninja , Ghost , LGBTQ+ Themes , Homeless , Assassins , Crossdressing , Fugitive , Idol , Shrine Maiden , Body Swapping , Gender Bending , Judo , Drawing , Gangs , Female Harem , Dissociative Identities , Afterlife , Amnesia , Cult , Military , Reincarnation , Nekomimi , Conspiracy , Politics

Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan

Also known as Rurouni Kenshin.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Romance

One hundred and forty years ago in Kyoto, with the coming of the American "Black Ships," there arose a warrior who, felling men with his bloodstained blade, gained the name Hitokiri, manslayer! His killer blade helped close the turbulent Bakumatsu era and slashed open the progressive age known as Meiji. Then he vanished, and with the flow of years, became legend.



Included one-shots:
Volume 1: Rurōni -Meiji Kenkaku Romantan- (second one-shot for the series, which Watsuki calls a "side-story")
Volume 3: Rurōni -Meiji Kenkaku Romantan- (first one-shot for the series, which Watsuki calls the "pilot")
Volume 6: Sengoku no Mikazuki (Nobuhiro Watsuki's debut one-shot)
Volume 28: Meteor Strike

Tags: Swordplay , Historical , Samurai , Shounen , Heterosexual , Male Protagonist , Martial Arts , Ninja , Assassins , Tragedy , Gore , Military , Urban Fantasy , Love Triangle , Cultivation

Yuragi-sou no Yuuna-san

Also known as Yuuna and the Haunted Hot Springs.

Status: Finished
Genres: Ecchi , Romance , Supernatural

Homeless and haunted by ghosts, high schooler Kogarashi thinks his luck has finally turned when he finds Yuragi-sou-a cheap boarding house that was formerly a hot springs inn, now full of super sexy, scantily clad female tenants. If Kogarashi can use his spirit abilities to banish the ghost that haunts the inn, he can even live there rent-free! But when the ghost, a beautiful teenage girl named Yuuna, appears before him, Kogarashi takes pity on her and is suddenly not so sure about the exorcism. Will he help save Yuuna from becoming an evil spirit? And what supernatural secrets do the other boarders hold?



Note: Includes five extra chapters

Tags: Ghost , Female Harem , Nudity , Shounen , Male Protagonist , Female Protagonist , Inn , Youkai , Large Breasts , Tragedy , Ninja , Nekomimi , Kemonomimi , Super Power , Amnesia , Economics , Martial Arts , Gender Bending , School , Age Regression , Drawing , Love Triangle , Succubus , Teacher

BORUTO: TWO BLUE VORTEX

Also known as Boruto: Two Blue Vortex.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy , Supernatural

With everyone's memories having been altered, Boruto finds himself being hunted by his own village. After escaping with Sasuke, what future awaits Boruto...?



Tags: Shounen , Memory Manipulation , Super Power , Male Protagonist , Ninja , Time Skip , Aliens , Tragedy , Cyborg , Terrorism , Cult , Philosophy , Yuri

Jitsu wa Watashi wa

Also known as My Monster Secret: Actually, I Am….

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Fantasy , Romance

High school student Kuromine Asahi is the kind of guy who literally cannot tell a lie. Whether it’s trying to maintain a poker face in a simple game of cards, or keeping scurrilous gossip to himself, Asahi is a total failure when it comes to the art of deception.

So what happens when he stumbles upon the most shocking secret of his life? When Asahi learns that Shiragami Youko, a beautiful girl of few words, is actually a vampire. Can Asahi possibly keep his lips sealed?



Tags: School , Vampire , Heterosexual , Male Protagonist , Monster Girl , Demons , Female Harem , Love Triangle , Time Manipulation , Shounen , Aliens , Urban Fantasy , Female Protagonist , Werewolf , Ghost , Ninja , Age Gap

Kozure Ookami

Also known as Lone Wolf and Cub.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama

An epic samurai adventure of staggering proportions—over 7000 pages—Lone Wolf and Cub (Kozure Okami in Japan) is acknowledged worldwide for the brilliant writing of series creator Kazuo Koike and the groundbreaking cinematic visuals of the late Goseki Kojima, creating unforgettable imagery of stark beauty, kinetic fury, and visceral thematic power that influenced a generation of visual storytellers both in Japan and in the West.



Tags: Revenge , Samurai , Historical , Swordplay , Assassins , Episodic , Male Protagonist , Tragedy , Seinen , Gore , Ninja , Politics , Nudity , Yakuza , Primarily Male Cast ,

BLACK TORCH

Also known as Black Torch.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Fantasy , Sci-Fi , Supernatural

Although he may appear rough-and-tumble, Jiro Azuma’s compassionate side emerges when it comes to the furry critters he can communicate with. But Jiro's soft spot for animals gets him in major trouble when a suspicious stray cat fuses with him, granting him exceptional power but also dragging him into humanity's hidden battle against powerful Japanese spirits, mononoke.



Tags: Youkai , Demons , Male Protagonist , Shounen , Martial Arts , Urban Fantasy , Ninja , Animals , Amnesia , Cannibalism , Twins

Mahou Sensei Negima!

Also known as Negima! Magister Negi Magi.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Ecchi , Fantasy

After graduated from a magic academy, 10-year-old genius boy Negi Springfield was assigned to a huge Japanese school as an English teacher for practical training. To his surprise, the 8th grade class assigned for him is all-girl. In addition to teaching (and being teased by) those 31 pretty girls while trying to keep his magic capability in secret, he's also looking for clues about his father, who was once known as "Thousand Master" but mysteriously disappeared years ago.



Tags: Female Harem , Magic , Shounen , Super Power , School , Male Protagonist , Primarily Female Cast , Teacher , Slapstick , Urban Fantasy , Martial Arts , Age Gap , Tomboy , Nudity , Coming of Age , Kuudere , Yandere , Robots , Isekai , Vampire , Ninja , Swordplay , Love Triangle , Tsundere , Memory Manipulation , Kemonomimi , Ghost , Time Manipulation , Guns , Ojou-sama , Foreign , Nun , Tanned Skin , Space Opera , Yuri , Demons

SHY

Also known as Shy.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Comedy , Drama

Earth was on the brink of a third World War when super-powered individuals came forth from each country around the globe, ending the conflict and ushering in a new era of relative peace. Among those heroes, Japan is represented by a timid young girl known as “Shy.” She may spend more time worrying about her own shortcomings than she does battling villains, but she’ll show the world that despite it all she still has the heart of a hero!



Note: Nominated for the Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category.

Tags: Superhero , Henshin , Super Power , Female Protagonist , Shounen , Coming of Age , Tokusatsu , Philosophy , Yuri , Suicide , Ninja , Space , Yandere , Disability , LGBTQ+ Themes , Body Horror

Ayakashi Triangle

Also known as Ayakashi Triangle.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Comedy , Ecchi , Romance , Supernatural

Teenager Kazamaki Matsuri has long been part of an elite force of ninja exorcists, tasked with fighting malicious ayakashi spirits who threaten Japan–especially those after his childhood friend, the spirit medium Kanade Suzu. As he fiercely protects her, and his relationship with her blooms from friendship into something more, a powerful cat ayakashi vows to get between the lovebirds: by casting a forbidden spell that turns Matsuri into a woman! With no apparent way to undo the spell, Matsuri must continue battling ayakashi–and go back to school–in this new feminine body until he can find a way to turn back.



Note: The series originally started serialization in Weekly Shounen Jump. It then moved to Shounen Jump+ starting April 25, 2022.

Tags: Gender Bending , Female Protagonist , Ninja , Youkai , Nudity , Urban Fantasy , Shounen , Exorcism , Male Protagonist , LGBTQ+ Themes , Heterosexual , Yuri , Love Triangle , Femboy , Bisexual , School

Kengan Omega

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Sports

Sequel to Kengan Asura. Takes place 2 years after the tournament.

Tags: Martial Arts , Athletics , Ensemble Cast , Conspiracy , Male Protagonist , Boxing , Primarily Adult Cast , Wrestling , Assassins , Judo , Tragedy , Ninja , Clone

Hitoribocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Slice of Life

Hitori Bocchi suffers from extreme social anxiety, she’s not good at talking to people, takes pretty extreme actions, is surprisingly adept at avoiding people, her legs cramp when she overexerts herself, gets full of herself when alone, will vomit when exposed to extreme tension and often comes up with plans. Now she is entering middle school and her only friend, Yawara Kai, is attending a different school. This leaves Bocchi alone, surrounded by new classmates with whom she must make friends before Kai will talk to her again.

Note: Includes 1 extra chapter.

Tags: School , 4-koma , Primarily Female Cast , Female Protagonist , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Ensemble Cast , Hikikomori , Primarily Child Cast , Seinen , Slapstick , Primarily Teen Cast , Iyashikei , Coming of Age , Ninja , Episodic , Teacher , Ojou-sama

NARUTO Gaiden: Nanadaime Hokage to Akairo no Hanatsuzuki

Also known as Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action

In the years since the great ninja war, peace has bloomed in the ninja world, and a new generation has begun to take root. Naruto’s work as Hokage seems to be pretty mundane, but his son, Boruto, is constantly demanding attention. Luckily for Naruto, he can make clones of himself to babysit his son. But Sasuke’s daughter, Sarada, could be the target of a mysterious figure who has connections to the Uchiha clan!



Tags: Ninja , Shounen , Super Power , Male Protagonist

Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi

Also known as The Elusive Samurai.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Action , Adventure

Set in feudal Japan in between the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, our hero Houjou Tokiyuki is a boy on the run that history all but forgot! When the Kamakura shogunate is overthrown by Ashikaga Takauji, Tokiyuki's family and standing are viciously taken away from him, and he must flee to the far reaches of the land to survive and seek out his revenge!



Tags: Samurai , Shounen , Historical , Surreal Comedy , War , Ninja , Archery , Fugitive , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Swordplay , Anachronism , Gore , Suicide , Primarily Male Cast , Found Family , Primarily Child Cast , Tragedy , Religion , Ghost , Time Skip , Body Horror , Gods , Female Harem , Spearplay , Disability , Polyamorous , Biographical , Tomboy , Scat , Demons , Heterosexual , Ensemble Cast , Cannibalism

ORIENT

Also known as Orient.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Fantasy

The new shonen action manga from the creator of Magi is here! Musashi is a teenager living under demon rule. As children, he and his best friend made a promise: to become the greatest warriors in the world and overthrow the demons. But life intervenes, and five years later, he finds himself about to become a miner. Yet can Musashi truly be satisfied with a "normal" life?

Tags: Swordplay , Demons , Dystopian , Kaiju , Shounen , Lost Civilization , Male Protagonist , Gore , Ninja , Historical , Magic , Samurai , Nudity , Agriculture , Motorcycles