Togashi announces latest Hunter x Hunter manga update with Chrollo and Hisoka sketches

Monday, December 2, and Sunday, December 1, 2024, saw mangaka Yoshihiro Togashi post two significant Hunter x Hunter manga updates to his personal X (formerly Twitter) account. The posts are notable specifically for each featuring a sketch of two of the series’ most beloved fan-favorite characters, antagonists Chrollo Lucilfer and Hisoka Morow.

Each sketch was shared in an image that showed a completed storyboard for a new Hunter x Hunter manga beneath it, with Togashi confirming as much in each respective post. While he didn’t reveal the exact chapter numbers, it can be presumed that these are for chapters in the mid-420s or later considering previous updates on his work for the series.

Hunter x Hunter mangaka continues regular progress and updates on the series, suggesting good health

As mentioned above, Togashi didn’t specify which chapters of the Hunter x Hunter manga the respective updates were for. However, it can be presumed they are for chapters in the mid-420s or higher thanks to a significant update in October 2024.

On October 19, Togashi shared an update via X which confirmed the “character inking” as done for chapter 422 and he was “starting” to ink characters in chapter 423.

This is significant as this was likely the final step necessary for Togashi’s involvement in these chapters, with his assistants taking over for whatever work remained after. This would be tasks like background drawing and other work that Togashi shouldn’t be doing considering his experience, age, and health issues. Some mangaka do prefer such an intimate approach, as Togashi has in the past, but it doesn’t make sense for him at this time.

This is primarily due to the debilitating health issues he faces, which consist primarily of back problems. Togashi has previously revealed that the pain has sometimes been debilitating to the point where he’s unable to go to the bathroom by himself.

This pain is the root cause of Togashi’s hiatuses in the last decade, many of which lasted multiple years. However, all things considered, it seems as if Togashi is in a good place with his health currently.

The sustained work on the Hunter x Hunter manga is what primarily suggests this, as Togashi could and surely would put his work on break if he needed it. However, the updates and progress have come at a consistent, steady pace which seems sustainable for him in the long run. This is likely due to the hiring of his aforementioned assistants, which was first announced by Togashi in August 2022, who said he had “decided to increase [his] staff.”

Togashi’s manga began serialization in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in March 1998, where it still runs today, but on an irregular schedule to allow Togashi more freedom. The series is one of the best-selling manga of all time, having 84 million copies in circulation as of July 2022.