Manchuria Opium Squad Gets an Anime as the Manga Resumes With New Artist Tsurushima

Three pieces of news landed for Manchuria Opium Squad on the same Monday: an anime adaptation, a circulation milestone, and the return of the manga itself with a new artist. The last of those carries the most weight, because it follows the death of the series' original artist. This post sticks to what Anime News Network (ANN) has reported, keeps the tone measured, and labels anything that is my own analysis.

Because the series' history is difficult, a note on approach. This post does not speculate about the late artist or about what any of the people involved are feeling, and it does not guess at how the art will look from here. Where the reporting is silent, this post says so.

What was announced

According to ANN's report by Joanna Cayanan, posted on October 4 (in India time) and covering news from Monday in Japan, "This year's 45th issue of Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine announced on Monday that writer Tsukasa Monma and late artist Shikako's Manchuria Opium Squad manga is receiving an anime adaptation."

ANN later added an update to its article: "Pony Canyon also revealed a visual and stated the animation studio and staff will be announced at a later date." That sentence is the full extent of the production detail in the report. ANN's image is credited as courtesy of Pony Canyon, and the copyright line on the visual names the "Manchuria Opium Squad" Production Committee. That is a credit line on a visual, and it should not be read as a statement about who is making the anime.

In plain terms, that means a few things are not yet known:

• The animation studio has not been announced.
• The staff and cast have not been announced.
• No air date or premiere window has been announced.

Nothing in the sources checked for this post says where the anime will stream, in Japan or elsewhere, so there is nothing to report on that front either.

Circulation: more than 3.5 million copies

The same announcement carried a sales figure. ANN writes, "The company also revealed the manga has more than 3.5 million copies in circulation in Japan." The report ties the figure to the announcement and gives it as "in circulation." ANN does not say how the number is counted or break it down further, so this post will not either.

The manga resumes, with a new artist

The most consequential line in ANN's report is this one: "The manga also resumed serialization in the magazine on Monday, with new artist Tsurushima drawing the manga."

ANN adds a detail about Tsurushima's background: "Tsurushima was Shikako's senior colleague while working as assistant for Yasuhisa Hara's Kingdom manga." That is the entire description of the connection between the two artists that ANN provides. It does not say how Tsurushima was chosen, and neither will this post.

Two chapters on return

ANN says, "The manga resumed with two chapters." The report then explains how the first of those chapters came together, which is the part that deserves the most care.

According to ANN, "The 12-page chapter 216 was originally planned to be 16 pages long." It continues: "Shikako was able to complete 11 pages before they died." And then: "Monma arranged the 12th page, which does not feature any characters, and the assistant(s) who had been supporting Shikako drew the background."

Chapter 216 appears to be the last chapter Shikako worked on, shortened from its planned length, with the final page assembled by the writer and the background drawn by the assistants who had been supporting Shikako. I am relaying ANN's account and not adding to it.

Then the handover: "From chapter 217, the manga takes a new step with art by Tsurushima." ANN's wording suggests that the second chapter in the return is 217, though that is my reading of the report, and the article's quoted sentences do not spell it out. What is clear from ANN is that 217 is where Tsurushima's art begins.

What happened to Shikako

For readers who have not followed the story, the context comes from an earlier ANN report. Published in December 2025, it carried the headline "Manchuria Opium Squad Artist Shikako Dies at 37." According to that report, the editors announced on a Monday that Shikako had died on November 8 of choroidal melanoma, which ANN described as "a rare form of cancer that develops in the eye."

ANN also reported that the staff said they would respect Shikako's wishes, and that plans for finding a replacement artist were undetermined at the time. This is the thread that connects the two reports. In December, no replacement had been determined. In October, there is a new artist, an anime announcement and a return to the magazine, all on the same day.

I will leave it there. The facts of the loss are ANN's to report, and the details are not mine to embellish.

What the series is about

For anyone new to the title, ANN quotes Kodansha's description of the manga, which opens with this line: "Here in Manchuria, the cheapest thing you'll find is a person's life."

The synopsis, as ANN relays it, runs as follows. In 1937, a man named Isamu Higata is sent to Manchukuo, the Japan-controlled Chinese puppet state, to serve in its standing army. After losing sight in his right eye in battle, he is banished to an agricultural facility, where the commanding officers constantly abuse him. In a dusty corner of that facility he finds a field of poppies, which are the raw material for opium. Needing money for his seriously ill mother, he decides to produce the illicit drug, a choice that, per the description, sends his future and the fate of all of Manchuria in unknown directions.

That summary is Kodansha's, not mine, and this post does not add plot detail beyond it. Because it covers only the premise, this post is spoiler-free.

Where to read it in English

ANN says Kodansha publishes the series in English on its K MANGA service. That is the only English-language availability detail in the reporting used here. This post cannot say whether a print edition exists in English, and it has not checked beyond what ANN states. If you want to start the series now, K MANGA is the route ANN identifies.

If you follow Kodansha's wider publishing news, there is a separate recent story about the company's plans in another market:

RelatedKodansha India Announces Its First Five Manga Titles, Led by Attack on Titan and Blue Lock

What we know and what we don't

The ledger, as reported by ANN:

• Weekly Young Magazine's 45th issue announced on Monday that Manchuria Opium Squad is receiving an anime adaptation.
• Pony Canyon revealed a visual and said the animation studio and staff will be announced at a later date.
• The manga has more than 3.5 million copies in circulation in Japan.
• The manga resumed serialization in the magazine on Monday with new artist Tsurushima, a former senior colleague of Shikako's on the assistant team for Kingdom.
• The return consisted of two chapters. Chapter 216 is 12 pages, shortened from a planned 16, with 11 pages completed by Shikako. From chapter 217, the art is by Tsurushima.
• Per ANN's December 2025 report, Shikako died on November 8 (the headline gives the age as 37).
• Kodansha publishes the series in English on K MANGA.

And what has not been reported in the sources checked: the animation studio, staff, cast, release date, any streaming or licensing plans for the anime, and any comment from Tsurushima about taking over. There is also no reporting in these sources on how the series' schedule will work going forward.

What this means for readers

For existing readers, the practical news is simple: the story continues in the magazine, with Tsurushima on art from chapter 217. For everyone else, an anime has been announced, with the details still to come.

The newest chapters are in the magazine now, and the anime studio and staff are still ahead.