At the age of sixteen Ryo Narushima was a genius and looked to have no trouble of getting into Tokyo University and joining the elite of society. However, that summer something cracked inside Ryo's head. With a small knife he brutally murdered both of his parents only leaving his sister alive and cowering in a corner. It is at this grotesque incident that our story begins...
Shamo has finished publishing and it has 338 Chapters. It is also Known as: 軍鶏, Shamo
Genres: Drama , Action , Psychological , Martial Arts , Violence , Seinen
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Top 10 Manga Like Shamo [2024 List]
- 10. Kengan Ashura
- 9. Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
- 8. Hajime no Ippo
- 7. Ichi The Killer
- 6. Sanctuary
- 5. Ashita no Joe
- 4. Gekiryuuchi
- 3. Berserk
- 2. Holyland
- 1. Vagabond
10. Kengan Ashura
[Chapter count includes all the specials, actual story is 236 chapters long]
Since the Edo periods of Japan, gladiator arenas exist in certain areas. In these arenas, wealthy business owners and merchants hire gladiators to fight in unarmed combat where winner takes all. Toki Taouma, nicknamed "Ashura", joins these arenas and devastates his opponents. His spectacular ability to crush his enemies catches the attention of the big business owners, including the Nogi Group chairman, Nogi Hideki.
Kengan Ashura has finished publishing and it has 256 Chapters. It is also Known as: ケンガンアシュラ, Kengan Asura
9. Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
Six minors (16 or 17 years) answering to the nicknames of Joe, Mario, Suppon, Baremoto, Biceps and Cauliflower are put into a reformatory for offences such as aggravated assault, swindle, flight, etc. Their stay in hell begins immediately. Accomodated by a doctor paedophile, they are placed under the monitoring of a despotic and brutal crew. Companions of cell of certain Sakuragi (called Anchan), the tension flares up between the band of buddies and their new "friend".
A brawl breaks out and our six prisoners are done rossés by mysterious young man thanks to his boxing talent.
The story will not only follow the lives of these seven characters surviving in their hellish environment, but also their disillusions due to the rejection by the outside world and by their close relations. This is about the extraodinary and invincible friendships between these young men.
Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin has finished publishing and it has 235 Chapters. It is also Known as: RAINBOW 二舎六房の七人, Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
8. Hajime no Ippo
Makunouchi Ippo has been bullied his entire life. Constantly running errands and being beaten up by his classmates, Ippo has always dreamed of changing himself, but never has the passion to act upon it. One day, in the midst of yet another bullying, Ippo is saved by Takamura Mamoru, who happens to be a boxer. Ippo faints from his injuries and is brought to Takamura boxing gym to recover. As he regains consciousness, he is awed and amazed at his new surroundings in the gym, though lacks confidence to attempt anything. Takamura places a photo of Ippo’s classmate on a punching bag and forces him to punch it. It is only then that Ippo feels something stir inside him and eventually asks Takamura to train him in boxing. Thinking that Ippo does not have what it takes, Takamura gives him a task deemed impossible and gives him a one week time limit. With a sudden desire to get stronger, for himself and his hard working mother, Ippo trains relentlessly to accomplish the task within the time limit. Thus Ippo’s journey to the top of the boxing world begins.
Hajime no Ippo is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: はじめの一歩, The Fighting!, Fighting Spirit, The Fighting! Ippo, Hajime no Ippo Gaiden: Naniwa Tiger
7. Ichi The Killer
In Shinjuku Kabuki-Cho, the biggest sin town in Japan, there are two crazy guys. Ichi is a coward and a wimp, but once he breaks into tears, he turns into a human weapon. With great martial arts skill and a blade hidden in his boots, he butchers a bunch of enemies into mincemeat in the blink of an eye. His arch enemy is Kakihara, a yakuza boss who's tired of everything, including himself. Only when he pierces, cuts, and burns his own and other people's bodies does he feel that he is alive.
Ichi The Killer has finished publishing and it has 101 Chapters. It is also Known as: Koroshiya 1, 殺し屋1, Koroshiya Ichi, Ichi the Killer
6. Sanctuary
Akira Hojo and Chiaki Asami are childhood friends who have experienced hell and lived to tell about it. They arrive in Japan to attend school, and soon witness the corruption and apathy of the country's population. Enraged, Akira and Asami vow to create a new Japan; a sanctuary with a new form of politics, devoid of corruption, where people are empowered to participate in the politics and future of their country. To accomplish this, Hojo and Asami aim to conquer Japan through two dramatically different routes: the Japanese Diet and the Yazuka. Decided by a game of rock-paper-scissors, Hojo ventures to seize control of the underworld while Asami pursues the position of Prime Minister.
Sanctuary is a dark, political thriller that tells the story of these two friends as they attempt to change Japan from the inside out and create their sanctuary.
Sanctuary has finished publishing and it has 105 Chapters. It is also Known as: サンクチュアリ, Sanctuary
5. Ashita no Joe
Joe Yabuki is a troubled young man who runs away from an orphanage. Wandering through the Tokyo slums, he meets former boxing trainer Danpei. Joe is later arrested and goes to a temporary jail where he fights Nishi, his future best friend and leader of a group of hooligans. He and Nishi then go to a juvenile prison miles away from Tokyo. There Joe meets Rikiishi, a former boxing prodigy, and a rivalry develops between them. They face each other in a match in which Rikiishi dominates Joe until the latter hits him with a cross-counter, resulting in both being knocked out. This inspires the other prison inmates to take up boxing. Joe and Rikiishi vow to fight again.
Ashita no Joe has finished publishing and it has 171 Chapters. It is also Known as: あしたのジョー, Rocky Joe, Tomorrow's Joe
4. Gekiryuuchi
Kei is a high-school student bullied daily and none of his fellow classmates care. Worn down by those endless humiliations, he accepts the strange proposal of his childhood friend Akira : Suicide together to end this nightmare. But that day, Kei survives and Akira doesn't.
Months later, the young man is shocked when he discovers on the net a website about street fighting. On several videos put online, a barely recognizable Akira gives a major beatdown to his opponents! What really happened? To discover the truth, Kei has only one solution: registering on that site and go from fight to fight to find the truth about Akira...
Gekiryuuchi has finished publishing and it has 25 Chapters. It is also Known as: 激流血～OVER BLEED～, Over Bleed
3. Berserk
His name is Guts, the Black Swordsman, a feared warrior spoken of only in whispers. Bearer of a gigantic sword, an iron hand, and the scars of countless battles and tortures, his flesh is also indelibly marked with The Brand, an unholy symbol that draws the forces of darkness to him and dooms him as their sacrifice. But Guts won't take his fate lying down; he'll cut a crimson swath of carnage through the ranks of the damned—and anyone else foolish enough to oppose him! Accompanied by Puck the Elf, more an annoyance than a companion, Guts relentlessly follows a dark, bloodstained path that leads only to death...or vengeance.
Notes:
- Volumes 1-5 contain the 16 prequel chapters 0A - 0P.
- Chapter 83 was omitted from Volume 13 due to the author’s request.
- Volume 14 includes “Berserk: The Prototype”.
- Due to the author's passing, starting from Chapter 365, the manga is illustrated by Studio Gaga (Miura's assistants) and supervised by Kouji Mori (a close friend of Miura's).
Berserk is currently publishing and has Chapters. It is also Known as: ベルセルク, Berserk: The Prototype
2. Holyland
Yuu is a high school kid who doesn't really fit anywhere. To find a place he can belong, be accepted, he will do anything. However one thing leads to another and he is forced to fight to keep his place, his holyland.
Holyland has finished publishing and it has 182 Chapters. It is also Known as: ホーリーランド, Holy Land
1. Vagabond
In 16th century Japan, Shinmen Takezou is a wild, rough young man, in both his appearance and his actions. His aggressive nature has won him the collective reproach and fear of his village, leading him and his best friend, Matahachi Honiden, to run away in search of something grander than provincial life. The pair enlist in the Toyotomi army, yearning for glory—but when the Toyotomi suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of the Tokugawa Clan at the Battle of Sekigahara, the friends barely make it out alive.
After the two are separated, Shinmen returns home on a self-appointed mission to notify the Hon'iden family of Matahachi's survival. He instead finds himself a wanted criminal, framed for his friend's supposed murder based on his history of violence. Upon being captured, he is strung up on a tree and left to die. An itinerant monk, the distinguished Takuan Soho, takes pity on the "devil child," secretly freeing Shinmen and christening him with a new name to avoid pursuit by the authorities: Musashi Miyamoto.
Vagabond is the fictitious retelling of the life of one of Japan's most renowned swordsmen, the "Sword Saint" Musashi Miyamoto—his rise from a swordsman with no desire other than to become "Invincible Under the Heavens" to an enlightened warrior who slowly learns of the importance of close friends, self-reflection, and life itself.
Vagabond has finished publishing and it has 327 Chapters. It is also Known as: バガボンド, Vagabond
