Under Ninja (Japanese: アンダーニンジャ, Hepburn: Andā Ninja) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kengo Hanazawa. It has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine since July 2018. An anime television series adaptation by Tezuka Productions aired from October to December 2023. A live-action film adaptation premiered in Japanese theaters in January 2025.
Contents
Plot
The ninja organization in Japan, which once flourished, was dismantled by the GHQ after the Pacific War and disappeared. However, the ninja still exist in secret, and it is said that there are 200,000 of them living in Japan today, hiding and working in the dark in the public and private sectors and in all kinds of organizations. While some of the elite ninja work behind the scenes in national level conflicts, the ninja at the end of the line are often unable to find work. One of them, Kuro Kumogakure, who is living the life of a NEET, receives a serious "ninja assignment," an order from his superiors to infiltrate a high school with the latest equipment.
Characters
Kurō Kumogakure (雲隠 九郎, Kumogakure Kurō)
Voiced by: Taito Ban
Portrayed by: Kento Yamazaki
Katō (加藤)
Voiced by: Tarusuke Shingaki
Portrayed by: Shotaro Mamiya
Miracle Hibi (日比 奇跡, Hibi Mirakuru)
Voiced by: Tasuku Hatanaka
Suzuki (鈴木)
Voiced by: Atsumi Tanezaki
Portrayed by: Mai Shiraishi
Shion Hachiya (蜂谷 紫音, Hachiya Shion)
Voiced by: Daiki Yamashita
Portrayed by: Ryubi Miyase
Kawado (川戸)
Voiced by: Chika Anzai
Portrayed by: Haruka Kinami
Ōno (大野)
Voiced by: Chō
Portrayed by: Tsuyoshi Muro
Eita (瑛太)
Voiced by: Shūichi Uchida
Portrayed by: Ryо̄tarо̄ Sakaguchi
Noguchi (野口)
Voiced by: Sora Tokui
Media
Manga
Under Ninja, written and illustrated by Kengo Hanazawa, started in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Magazine on July 23, 2018. Kodansha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes. The first volume was released on February 6, 2019. As of August 6, 2026, 18 volumes have been released.
In North America, Denpa announced the English language release of the manga in July 2020.
Anime
On September 6, 2021, it was announced that the series would receive an anime television series adaptation. It is produced by Tezuka Productions and directed by Satoshi Kuwabara, with scripts supervised by Keiichirō Ōchi, character designs by Nobuteru Yūki, and music composed by Shōta Kowashi. The series aired from October 6 to December 22, 2023, on TBS and BS11. The opening theme song is "Hyper" by Kroi. Crunchyroll streamed the series outside of Asia.
Live-action film
In March 2024, it was announced that the series would receive a live-action film adaptation. The film adaptation is written and directed by Yūichi Fukuda, and stars Kento Yamazaki and Minami Hamabe as Kurō Kumogakure and Ayaka Noguchi respectively. The film premiered in Japanese theaters on January 24, 2025. The film's theme song is "Doppelgänger", performed by Creepy Nuts.
The film was scheduled to premiere in Los Angeles on January 8, 2025; however, it was cancelled due to the wildfire state of emergency.
Reception
The series was nominated for the 49th Kodansha Manga Award in the general category in 2025.