Author Ikka Matsuki is bedridden with a high fever lasting over two weeks. The cause is steroid withdrawal syndrome — a medical condition that triggers severe, prolonged symptoms when the body stops receiving corticosteroids after extended use. This month’s update is postponed. There is no confirmed return date.
Matsuki’s statement was clear as glass: health is the only priority. No sugar-coating, no vague “personal reasons.” Just the bare, necessary facts. In situations where people are waiting, clarity is a form of respect.
Steroid Withdrawal Is Not a Faint Spell
It’s a systemic reset that can floor a person for weeks. The body, having outsourced a function to medication, has to remember how to manage on its own again. It’s a quiet, internal negotiation that demands absolute stillness. This explains both the duration of the fever and the need to completely pause work.
The Timing Problem
This isn’t just a pause in production. The timing is what you’d call a confluence of pressures.
- The anime adaptation began airing this year and is currently in full broadcast.
- The series is at one of its most publicly visible moments — precisely when the source manga needs to stop.
- The animated series is now running on its own steam while its blueprint is in a holding pattern.
It’s a bit like hosting a grand opening for a library while the author is still in bed with the flu. The shelves are stocked, but the next chapter of the story is stuck in transit.
It is not the first time the industry has faced this type of situation — but that does not make it any less difficult for readers who follow serialization.
About Nippon Sangoku
Nippon Sangoku: The Three Nations of the Crimson Sun is a manga by Ikka Matsuki, published in the ONE Manga app and the Ura Sunday site by Shogakukan since 2021.
The Story
Set in a near-future Japan where civilization collapsed after a combination of:
- Nuclear war
- Natural disasters
- Poor leadership
The country was divided into three rival nations, recreating a dynamic similar to the conflict eras of ancient times. The protagonist, Aoteru Misumi, begins as an ordinary local official but uses his knowledge and oratory skills to rise and work toward the reunification of the fractured territory.
Recognition
- Nominated for the Taisho Manga Awards in 2023.
- Included in Da Vinci magazine’s “Book of the Year” selections.
- Ranked in the top 20 of the male readers ranking of Kono Manga ga Sugoi! that same year.
The series reached its seventh compiled volume in April of this year and has maintained a regular cadence since its 2021 launch — which makes this break more pronounced. It’s not a slow fade; it’s an interruption in a well-established rhythm.
The Bigger Question
Matsuki asked readers for understanding and promised updates on the manga’s status as soon as his health allows.
When a story’s creation hits an unavoidable wall, does it change how you consume the parts of it that are already out there? Do you find your appetite for existing material dampened, or does the hiatus reframe what’s already been released?
We often treat creative output like a reliable utility, but the human behind it is the most volatile and essential component of all.
Will you follow the anime while you wait for the manga to return — or do you prefer to pause both until the story continues on paper?
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