Blade of the Immortal #124

Blade of the Immortal, created by Hiroaki Samura, began its serialized run in the Japanese monthly manga magazine Afternoon in 1993. The series follows Manji, a cursed ronin who must kill one thousand evil men to regain his mortality. Issue 124 represents a later chapter in the series' long-running narrative, showcasing Samura's signature stark, ink-heavy aesthetic and his propensity for cinematic, anatomically complex action sequences that departed from the conventions of typical period-piece manga.

Samura’s work on this series was lauded for its artistic maturity and historical-fantasy fusion. By the time this issue was released, the manga had firmly established its reputation as a sophisticated work of seinen literature. The design of the characters and the choreography of the fights were heavily influenced by Samura’s interest in fine art and traditional Japanese woodblock prints, contributing to the series' enduring status as a definitive work in the gekiga subgenre.