Summary

  • Hunter x Hunter's manga and anime have been in hiatus for quite some time now, leaving fans worried about the popular title's future.
  • Yoshihiro Togashi made some vague updates about Hunter x Hunter's status, guaranteeing that it's still being made.
  • Even with the lack of concrete announcements and updates, it seems likely that Hunter x Hunter may be coming back soon.

Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter x Hunter may be one of the most beloved and influential shonen manga and anime in history, but these days it's better known for its infamously lengthy hiatuses. Due to severe health complications, Togashi had no choice but to take long breaks and put Hunter x Hunter on hold. Things got so bad that after resuming manga work in October 2022, Togashi had to take yet another break in December 2022, and it's still technically ongoing as of this article's publication.

That said, both Weekly Shonen Jump and Hunter x Hunter fans understand Togashi's reasons. Togashi's editors didn't drop Hunter x Hunter, but suggested that it be placed in another slot that wasn't as demanding as Shonen Jump's weekly releases. After months of silence, Togashi surprised everyone by revealing that Chapter 401 was actually finished, and that he was working on several more. Unfortunately, there's no tangible news about Hunter x Hunter's new season.

Updated on May 17, 2024, by Ajay Aravind: Hunter x Hunter is popular enough to outlast the numerous hiatuses taken by mangaka Yoshihiro Togashi, also known for creating the iconic Yu Yu Hakusho. It seems that at least seven new HxH chapters might be coming out, but fans will have to wait and see how everything plays out. Although the anime's seventh season is just as uncertain as the manga, it's actually more likely to happen. As such, we've updated this article with some more relevant information.

Hunter X Hunter Chapter 401 Has Yet To Be Released

The Previous Chapter 400 Was Released On December 26, 2022

In Hunter x Hunter Chapter 400, Feitan and Phinks bumps into Nobunaga, Melody attends some important meetings and receives a romantic confession from Kaiser, Fugetsu seemingly loses herself to the darkness, and Kurapika agrees to help Prince Tubeppa. The chapter was a continuation of the Succession Contest Arc, which is far from over. Similarly, the characters are still a long way from reaching the Dark Continent. And once they get there, they would have to explore a land hundreds of times larger than the entire known world — and filled with countless monsters capable of slaying the strongest Hunters in a millisecond. Most importantly, however, Gon still hasn't returned to the main storyline since his brief appearance in Chapter 345. There's just too much at stake here for the HxH fandom.

On March 9, 2023, Togashi announced that Chapter 401 was ready to be published. The only hurdle left was that Shonen Jump's editors were deliberating when and where to put the long-awaited Hunter x Hunter chapter. Unfortunately, there are currently no details about what Chapter 401 may be about. As such, it's unclear if Chapter 401 would pick up where Chapter 400 ended, or shift to someone else's perspective.

Then, on October 2, 2023, Togashi tweeted that he was about to "start [something] over". It was initially unclear if Togashi was referring to the supposedly finished Chapter 401, something else entirely, or if he was speaking broadly about returning to regular work as a mangaka. The much-awaited Chapter 401 doesn't even have a release date yet, but Togashi's ominous Tweet was more than enough to get Hunter x Hunter fans both excited and concerned. Thankfully, his later Tweets have been bearing good news.

Fans were understandably excited about the news that Togashi was back to drawing and writing again. But with Togashi's poor and unpredictable health in mind, fans were also worried that he may accidentally push himself too hard just to finish a new chapter. As much as they couldn't wait to read more Hunter x Hunter, fans would prefer it if Togashi took as long as he needed to recover instead of forcing himself to work. There are very few mangaka in the world capable of creating two distinct and equally influential manga — for instance, Togashi's Yu Yu Hakusho is considered to be one of the foundation stones of 21st-century anime. The author needs his rest, but the fans also need to keep their excitement going.

The closest that Hunter x Hunter's manga got to an update was the re-release of Kurapika's Memories. Written and illustrated by Togashi, the two-part special that highlighted Kurapika's past was originally released in 2013 as a giveaway for those who watched the Hunter x Hunter movie Phantom Rogue. The prequel was released digitally in July 2023 by Hunter x Hunter's publishers, Shueisha. Kurapika's Memories currently doesn't have an official English translation, meaning some fans have no choice but to wait longer or resort to questionable online means.

The Hunter X Hunter Anime Is Still Stuck in Limbo

With every minuscule update from Togashi or the Hunter x Hunter manga, questions arise about the anime. The 2011 revival stopped at the conclusion of the "13th Hunter Chairman Election" arc. This leaves two more arcs (namely the "Dark Continent Expedition" arc and the ongoing "Succession Contest" arc) waiting to be adapted. Although the anime hasn't been officially canceled, there hasn't been a new episode since 2014. What's more, there's barely been any updates or news from either Shonen Jump or Madhouse about the anime's future.

That said, Togashi himself fanned the flames of speculation. On May 24, 2022, Togashi tweeted what seemed to be a storyboard for the anime. His Tweet roughly translated to "four more episodes left." There wasn't much else to expound from the Tweet, but many fans took it as confirmation that Togashi was hypothetically involved in Hunter x Hunter Season 7, and that it was in production. Since nostalgic reboots like Bleach: Thouand-Year Blood War and Shaman King are pretty big right now, it wouldn't be too surprising to see Hunter x Hunter follow suit.

The only things delaying Hunter x Hunter's theoretical comeback would be the amount of time that a single anime season (let alone an episode) needs to be made, and the COVID-19 pandemic. The entertainment industry was hit hard by the pandemic and the lockdowns, but the notoriously unforgiving and unethical anime industry arguably suffered the most. Entire productions were delayed or outright canceled, and either could've happened to Hunter x Hunter — assuming it was even being made in the first place.

Hunter X Hunter May Be Coming Back Sooner Than Expected

Togashi Is Presumably Working On Chapter 407 As Of May 15, 2024

Yoshihiro Togashi's last two Tweets on May 15, 2024, were images presumably showing the rough drafts of Chapter 407. The text reads that he has started working on it already. That said, the pages have been cropped out of the image, leaving only some vague indecipherable scribbles visible from the corners. This may not sound all that exciting, but Togashi has apparently completed at least two chapters in the span of two weeks — assuming his Tweet schedule is the same as his creation schedule. This uncharacteristically speedy rate of work has breathed fresh air into the franchise, and his Tweets have been seen millions of times. However, this still doesn't answer the question of when fans are going to get Chapter 401 (which probably must be complete by now).

In any case, the groundbreaking and influential Shonen manga may be coming back sooner than expected. Based on what is known about Hunter x Hunter's current status, a good amount of work has already been completed. It seems that the remaining hold-ups are just a matter of finalizing the release schedules or addressing some last-minute revisions. Some fans even think that the announcement of the anime's return is inevitable, and is being saved for a special event. With Togashi's now-regular updates and the fact that Shonen Jump seems intent on bringing Hunter x Hunter back, fans are optimistic that their long wait will finally be worth it.