Hikaru no Go

Hikaru no Go (ヒカルの碁) is a popular Japanese anime and manga coming of age story based on the board game Go written by Yumi Hotta and illustrated by Takeshi Obata. The production was supervised by Yukari Umezawa (5-dan). The manga is largely responsible for popularizing Go among the youth of Japan in recent years.

First released in Japan in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump in 1998, Hikaru no Go has achieved tremendous success, spawning a popular Go fad of almost unprecedented proportions. Twenty-three volumes of manga were published in Japan, comprising 189 chapters plus 11 "omake" (extra chapters). An anime series ran for 75 half hour episodes, along with extra New Year's Specials in January 2003 and January 2004.

In January 2004, the manga series debuted in the United States in the English language periodical Shonen Jump published by VIZ, now VIZ Media. In 2005 it was announced that VIZ Media also has the license to the anime, which will be released on DVD starting on September 27, 2005.

Contents

1 Series Premise and Story 2 English-language adaptations 3 Characters 4 Manga Volume Contents 5 Voice actors (Seiyū)

Series Premise and Story

Hikaru Shindo, the title character, is an elementary school student in Kita Ward, Tokyo. While exploring his grandfather's attic, he stumbles across a Go board haunted by the spirit of Fujiwara-no-Sai, a fictional Go player from the Heian era. Sai wishes to play Go again since he has not been able to since the late Edo period. Because of this desire Sai, and because Hikaru is the only one that can "hear his voice," (unofficial translation) inhabits a part of Hikaru's mind.

Urged by Sai, Hikaru starts playing Go even though he initially has no interest in the game. The arrangement is that Sai will tell Hikaru the moves to make and Hikaru will place the stones on the board. When Hikaru beats Akira Toya, a boy his age but very skilled at Go, Akira begins a quest to discover the source of Hikaru's strength. Thus begins an obsession which will come to dominate the rest of Hikaru's life while captivating the reader's (or viewer's) attention.

Shindo becomes a member of Haze Middle School's Go team along with Kimihiro Tsutsui and Tetsuo Kaga several months before he actually attends that school. They play in the Winter middle school Go tournament, but right after Haze's team defeats Kaio Middle School's team, a boy discovers Hikaru Shindo's identity and Haze's team gets disqualified because at the time, Hikaru did not go to Haze Middle School.

Due to the fact that Kaga was loyal to the Shogi team as opposed to the Go team, Hikaru and Kimihiro recruit some other boys so that the team could play in the summer middle school tournament. With newcomer Yuki Mitani, Hikaru, Kimihiro, and Yuki play in the summer tournament but lose to Kaio Middle School (Kaiō) in the second round.

Hikaru, seeing Akira's skill grow, decides to become an insei so he can chase after him; this means he must leave his school's Go club. With Tsutsui, the founder, dropping out to study for high school exams, it is up to Hikaru's friend, Akari Fujisaki, to keep the club together. Yuki Mitani leaves but he returns to the club for occasional play.

Hikaru becomes an insei and meets fellow trainees Shin'ichiro Isumi and Yoshitaka Waya along with others. Hikaru also meets a spoiled brat named Kosuke Ochi. Ochi is the first to pass the professional exam and Waya is the second. Akira, who became a pro the year before, tests Hikaru by tutoring Kosuke in Go, but Kosuke loses to Hikaru. Shin'ichiro Isumi quits the Nine Star Club and is no longer an insei, but still pursues Go. Hikaru passes the professional exam and becomes a professional player.

Akira gets an impressive winning streak, which ends at twenty-six with a loss to Kurata. He gets an award for the highest win percentage and the longest winning streak. Hikaru gets his professional player certificate and vows to catch up to Akira.

When Hikaru learns he is to play his first oteai game, he also learns that Akira is his opponent. Akira doesn't show up at the game, giving Hikaru the win by default. It is revealed that Toya Meijin, Akira's father, is in ill health. While the Meijin is in the hospital, Hikaru asks him to play a friend of his on the internet. He asks this because Sai wants to play Toya Meijin and can only do so if Hikaru is playing the game over the internet. Toya Meijin accepts and says that if his opponent wins, he will retire. Sai, who plays for Hikaru, wins. True to his word, Toya retires after his next title match, but remains a respected player in the Go community.

Throughout the series, as Hikaru grows, Sai begins to realize that the purpose of his attachment to Hikaru is primarily intended to help Hikaru, rather than allow Sai to continue play. After Sai's game with Toya Meijin, Sai realizes that he has completed his tasks on earth, and fades away a few days later.

Distraught at Sai's disappearance, Hikaru embarks on several journeys to the various memorials of Hon'inbo Shusaku, the body Sai last possessed in an attempt to search for him. When Hikaru finally realizes that Sai is gone, he vows never again to play Go.

After Hikaru misses several matches and is threatened with expulsion from the Professional Go Player's Association, Shin'ichiro Isumi comes back from a Go study trip in China and convinces Hikaru to play with him. Upon playing the first few moves, Hikaru realizes that the only place he could find Sai was to play Go - that Sai only existed in the skills he taught Hikaru. Afterwards, Hikaru once again began playing in his matches.

The anime series ends with Hikaru's match against Akira Toya, the culmination of their years of rivalry, but without the presence of Sai. Hikaru loses, but afterwards is visited in a dream by Sai, who hands Hikaru his fan as a symbol of his presence. Later, Hikaru buys his own fan, and keeps it as a memento of Sai.

As a result of the match, Hikaru and Akira acknowledge each other as rivals. The final scenes in the anime show Toya and Hikaru arguing like old friends over Go concepts in the Toya family's Go parlor.

The manga version of Hikaru no Go goes beyond the anime, and goes further on in Hikaru's career to the International Youth Go Tournament. Hikaru, along with Akira and a Kansai Go player are selected to represent Japan, while Suyon Hon (a Korean Go player that was beaten by Hikaru earlier in the series) and two others represent Korea and three of Shin'ichiro Isumi's Chinese friends represent their country.

Due to a translation error, an interview of one of the Korean team's players downplayed the skill of the legendary former player Hon'inbo Shusaku. Although the Korean later finds out, he refuses to correct the error and instead emphasizes it when he realizes that it enrages Hikaru, who takes it as a direct affront to Sai. This leads to Hikaru eventually challenging the player on the Korean team, the captain, in a match where he loses by only one half of a moku.

Japan eventually comes in last, behind Korea (1st) and China (2nd).

The manga then ends cyclically, with Sai's ghost once again asking "can you hear my voice?"

English-language adaptations

Hikaru no Go is published in English in the United States Shonen Jump magazine, and in individual graphic novels.

The manga is unedited in the Shonen Jump version and the manga chapters that can be read on the Shonen Jump website. Unlike the earlier Shonen Jump versions, instances of cigarettes are removed from the Hikaru no Go graphic novels so that they can be labelled as appropriate for everyone. For instance, the cigarette that smoker Tetsuo Kaga puts on a Go board is changed to a wad of chewing gum in the graphic novel. The cigarette habits were edited out in more recent (as of 2005) Shonen Jump editions along with the graphic novels. The change in the graphic novels is controversial with the series' fans. Similar changes were made when it was adapted as an anime, inside Japan.

Characters

Names are in Western order (first name before surname) except for Fujiwara-no-Sai's.

• Hikaru Shindo (進藤 ヒカル Shindō Hikaru) - Protagonist who is assisted by Sai.
• Fujiwara-no-Sai (藤原佐為) - Ghost who can't stop playing Go and the mentor of Hikaru Shindo. Sai wants to play the divine move (a.k.a. the Hand of God). In the manga and anime, Sai had possessed the real-life figure Hon'inbo Shusaku and made him a good player.
• Akari Fujisaki (藤崎 あかり Fujisaki Akari) - Hikaru's childhood friend. She begins to learn Go as well when Hikaru becomes interested and later joins the Haze Middle School Go club.
• Akira Toya (塔矢 アキラ Tōya Akira) - Hikaru's biggest rival and Kaio Middle School student. Akira was already a very strong player when Hikaru first began playing and was amazed by Hikaru's seemingly impossible strength. Since his first game with Hikaru, Akira has been obssessed with discovering the secret behind Hikaru's strength.
• Yuki Mitani (三谷 祐輝 Mitani Yūki) - A player at the Go Club at Haze Middle School who overcomes his cheating habit.
• Tetsuo Kaga (加賀 鉄男 Kaga Tetsuo) - President of Haze Middle School's Shogi club. Kaga hates Go because he likes Shogi better and because Toya is better than he is, yet he still plays Go from time to time to keep his skills limber. Tetsuo smokes cigarettes, which were kept in the earlier U.S. Shonen Jump versions of Hikaru no Go, but were removed from the U.S. graphic novels and the later (as of 2005) Shonen Jump versions.
• Kimihiro Tsutsui (筒井 公宏 Tsutsui Kimihiro) - Optimistic nerd who relies on a strategy book. Kimihiro is the founder of Haze Middle School's Go club.
• Toya Meijin (塔矢 名人 Tōya Meijin) - Akira Toya's father. His real name is Koyo Toya (塔矢 行洋 Tōya Kōyō); Meijin is a title he got for defeating the best Go players in Japan.
• Yoshitaka Waya (和谷 義高 Waya Yoshitaka) - Hikaru's "big brother" insei.
• Shin'ichiro Isumi (伊角 慎一郎 Isumi Shin'ichirō) - Insei that has a lot of self doubt during the pro exam.
• Kosuke Ochi (越智 康介 Ochi Kōsuke) - Spoiled brat that Akira tutors so Akira can test Hikaru's strength
• Kaoru Kishimoto (岸本 薫 Kishimoto Kaoru) - Kaio Middle School Go club chief and former insei who did not become a professional
• Yun Sensei - Yun is a Korean Go professional who tutors Akira shortly after the winter middle school Go tournament so Akira can defeat Hikaru.
• Yuri Hidaka (日高 由梨 Hidaka Yuri) - A 3rd year Kaio Middle School student who stands up for Akira when he gets bullied by three other kids who dislike his presence.
• Ito (伊藤 Itō), Kojima (小島), and Okumura (奥村), a.k.a. Mean Kids - The family names of three pupils who dislike Akira Toya's presence in the Kaio Middle School Go club; they bully him by making him play two games without looking at the board.
• Shu - The owner of a Go salon where Hikaru finds Yuki. Shu knows a cheater when he sees one. He hires Dake-san to teach Yuki a lesson about cheating.
• Dake-san (Mr. Dake) - A person hired by Shu to teach Yuki Mitani not to cheat. He poses as a regular at the Go salon and hides his strength. He bets money on the game, reveals his strength, and wins 10,000 yen (about $90 U.S.) from Yuki. Hikaru and Sai later win the money back. Dake-san sings romantic songs while playing Go.
• Kuwabara Hon'inbo (桑原本因坊 Kuwabara Hon'inbō)- The current holder of the Hon'inbo title in Hikaru no Go. Kuwabara is friends with Toya Meijin.
• Harumi Ichikawa (市河 晴美 Ichikawa Harumi) - Ms. Ichikawa is the cashier of the Go club that Akira Toya teaches at. She feels saddened when Akira leaves the club to become a better Go player.
• Shigeo Morishita (森下 茂男 Morishita Shigeo), a.k.a. Morishita Sensei or Mr. Morishita - A man who became a pro at the same time that Toya Meijin became a pro. He is Waya's go teacher when Waya first appears. Morishita also mentored Michio Shirakawa (7-dan), the community Go leader.
• Yuta Fukui (福井 雄太 Fukui Yūta) - An insei and classmate of Waya's who doesn't have a hot head like Waya does.
• Yuki's sister - A girl who lets Hikaru go on the computers at an internet cafe where she works at for free during her shifts.
• Seiji Ogata (緒方 精次 Ogata Seiji, 10-dan) - A Go professional who sees Hikaru's talent when he explains a go move that would baffle professionals.

Manga Volume Contents

Titles from chapters 1-40 are U.S. Shonen Jump titles. The rest are literal translations of the Japanese manga titles.

Volume 1

• Game 1 - Hand of God
• Game 2 - From a Level Beyond
• Game 3 - Matters of Life and Death
• Game 4 - Inexcusable
• Game 5 - Akira Bares His Fangs
• Game 6 - A Decisive Blow
• Game 7 - Three Problems of Life and Death

Volume 2

• Game 8 - Should I Lose?
• Game 9 - First, Second, and Third
• Game 10 - Debut Match
• Game 11 - An Inkling of an Awakening
• Game 12 - Gem
• Game 13 - I'm Not Going to Play You
• Game 14 - Better Than The Best
• Game 15 - Mirror Go
• Game 16 - Conspiracy on a Rainy Day

Volume 3

• Game 17 - Leave the Go Club!
• Game 18 - If Only You Weren't Here
• Game 19 - ¥1,000 a Game
• Game 20 - The Third Member
• Game 21 - A Very Despicable Act
• Game 22 - Hon'inbo Shusaku
• Game 23 - Kimihiro's Concern
• Game 24 - Kaio's Third
• Game 25 - Preliminary Battle

Volume 4

• Game 26 - You Play Him
• Game 27 - Third Face-off
• Game 28 - Divine Vision
• Game 29 - Zelda
• Game 30 - Sai
• Game 31 - Who is Sai?
• Game 32 - He Is Not Sai
• Game 33 - Akira
• Game 34 - A Memorable Game

Volume 5

• Game 35 - Sai vs. Akira
• Game 36 - Sai's True Identity
• Game 37 - Second Semester
• Game 38 - A Thousand Years of Selfishness
• Game 39 - I Want to Know How Strong You Are
• Game 40 - Start
• Game 41 - The Go Club Is Heating Up!
• Game 42 - Resolutions
• Chapter #43 - The Next Step

Volume 6

• Chapter #44 - Insei Test
• Chapter #45 - Black Coffee
• Chapter #46 - Trigger Device
• Chapter #47 - The Room of Profound Darkness
• Chapter #48 - Ōza vs. Akira [1]
• Chapter #49 - Ōza vs. Akira [2]
• Chapter #50 - Ōza vs. Akira [3]
• Chapter #51 - The Place I'd Like to Return to From Time to Time
• Extra Chapter-The Haze Jr. High Go Plyers in Honnōji Enjō

Volume 7

• Chapter #52 - The Two Study Groups
• Chapter #53 - Anxiety
• Chapter #54 - Everyone's Tomorrow
• Chapter #55 - Welcome to Class One
• Chapter #56 - Sai's Disciple
• Chapter #57 - Since Then
• Chapter #58 - Young Lion's Tournament
• Chapter #59 - Tōya's Turning Around
• Chapter #60 - It's Coming!! Pro Exam

Volume 8

• Chapter #61 - Hon'inbō Kuwabara
• Chapter #62 - I Can Play?
• Chapter #63 - I've Come This Far
• Chapter #64 - The Man of the Pro Exam Prelim's First Day
• Chapter #65 - Seeking Three Wins
• Chapter #66 - Pro Exam Prelims Day Two
• Chapter #67 - Pro Exam Prelims Day Three
• Chapter #68 - The Pro Exam, Day 4, And Then...
• Chapter #69 - Team Assembled
• Extra Chapter Honnōji Enjō Rhearsal

Volume 9

• Chapter #70 - Training! Training!!
• Chapter #71 - Can't Win
• Chapter #72 - Four
• Chapter #73 - A Perfect Coincidence
• Chapter #74 - Hon Suyon
• Chapter #75 - Only One Winner
• Chapter #76 - My Name Is...
• Chapter #77 - Main Test Begins
• Chapter #78 - Flood of Wins

Volume 10

• Chapter #79 - Hikaru vs. Tsubaki
• Chapter #80 - Substitute
• Chapter #81 - Careful Game
• Chapter #82 - Moment of Evil
• Chapter #83 - The Whereabouts of the Win
• Chapter #84 - Waya vs. Ochi
• Chapter #85 - Revival
• Chapter #86 - Unpredictable
• Chapter #87 - Who's This Black?

Volume 11

• Chapter #88 - The First Passer
• Chapter #89 - Always Together
• Chapter #90 - Come to the Pros!
• Chapter #91 - I Have Lost
• Chapter #92 - Defeat Shindō
• Chapter #93 - Pro Exam Final Game
• Chapter #94 - Violent Battle
• Chapter #95 - The Second Passer
• Chapter #96 - Finally!

Volume 12

• Chapter #97 - The Awaiting Pros
• Chapter #98 - The Beginner Dan Series
• Chapter #99 - I'll Play
• Chapter #100 - Hikaru's Long Thought
• Chapter #101 - The Invisible Game
• Chapter #102 - Determined To Play Again
• Chapter #103 - The Fraudulent Signature
• Chapter #104 - Kurata 6-Dan

Volume 13

• Chapter #105 - First Pro Game
• Chapter #106 - Pressure
• Chapter #107 - Confession
• Chapter #108 - Alone In The Hospital Room
• Chapter #109 - toya koyo
• Chapter #110 - Excited Mind
• Chapter #111 - Sai, Once Again
• Chapter #112 - Sai vs Tōya Kōyo [1]
• Chapter #113 - Sai vs Tōya Kōyo [2]

Volume 14

• Chapter #114 - Sai vs Tōya Kōyo [3]
• Chapter #115 - Sai vs Tōya Kōyo [4]
• Chapter #116 - The Thousand Year Answer
• Chapter #117 - Revelation
• Chapter #118 - Investigations
• Chapter #119 - Test of Strength
• Chapter #120 - One-Color Go
• Chapter #121 - Tōya Kōyo's Retirement
• Estra Chapter - Treat Me, Waya-kun!

Volume 15

• Chapter #122 - Stupid Hikaru!!
• Chapter #123 - I Don't Want to Disappear!!!
• Chapter #124 - Goodbye
• Chapter #125 - Sai Has Disappeared?
• Chapter #126 - Searching for Sai
• Chapter #127 - Hiroshima's Strongest Player
• Chapter #128 - The Final Clue
• Chapter #129 - Come Back!!
• Chapter #130 - I Won't Play Anymore

Volume 16

• Chapter #131 - Chinese Go Institute
• Chapter #132 - Le Ping
• Chapter #133 - Isumi Tested
• Chapter #134 - Yang Hai's Advice
• Chapter #135 - Isumi vs. Le Ping
• Chapter #136 - Forfeit, Forfeit...
• Chapter #137 - The Final Tournament
• Chapter #138 - The Visitor
• Chapter #139 - From This Game

Volume 17

• Chapter #140 - Resolution
• Chapter #141 - First Return Game
• Chapter #142 - The Sprinting Two
• Chapter #143 - Go World Rumblings
• Chapter #144 - Finally This Day
• Chapter #145 - Hikaru vs. Akira
• Chapter #146 - Hikaru's Go
• Chapter #147 - Only I Know
• Chapter #148 - The Nostalgic Smile

Volume 18

• Sidestory #1 - Tōya Akira
• Sidestory #2 - Kaga Tetsuo
• Sidestory #3 - Nase Asumi
• Sidestory #4 - Mitani Yūki
• Sidestory #5 - Kurata Atsushi
• Sidestory #6 - Fujiwara no Sai

Volume 19

• Chapter #149 - The Strongest Beginner Dan Ever
• Chapter #150 - A New Stage
• Chapter #151 - Me Too!
• Chapter #152 - The Opponent is 7-Dan
• Chapter #153 - One Step Forward!
• Chapter #154 - The Arrival of Ueshima!
• Chapter #155 - The Two That Don't Come
• Chapter #156 - Hikaru vs. Kadowaki

Volume 20

• Chapter #157 - Memories
• Chapter #158 - First Hand, Tengen
• Chapter #159 - Kansai Go Institute
• Chapter #160 - A Moment's Timidness
• Chapter #161 - The Young Lions
• Chapter #162 - Graduation
• Chapter #163 - The Members Will Be...?
• Chapter #164 - Yashiro vs. Hikaru
• Chapter #165 - Second Hand,Tengen

Volume 21

• Chapter #166 - Yashiro's Loss
• Chapter #167 - The Youngsters
• Chapter #168 - A Month Before The Hokuto Cup
• Chapter #169 - The Burden Of Expectations
• Chapter #170 - The Korean Go Association
• Chapter #171 - Proof Of Existence
• Chapter #172 - Tōya's Home
• Chapter #173 - First Board Is Tōya
• Chapter #174 - Hokuto Cup Gathering

Volume 22

• Chapter #175 - Suyon And Yongha
• Chapter #176 - Fighting Words
• Chapter #177 - Let Me Be First Board!
• Chapter #178 - China Vs Japan [1]
• Chapter #179 - China Vs Japan [2]
• Chapter #180 - China Vs Japan [3]
• Chapter #181 - China Vs Japan [4]
• Chapter #182 - Defeat Ko Yongha
• Chapter #183 - Ko Yongha's Big Question

Volume 23

• Chapter #184 - Japan Vs Korea [1]
• Chapter #185 - Japan Vs Korea [2]
• Chapter #186 - Japan Vs Korea [3]
• Chapter #187 - Japan Vs Korea [4]
• Chapter #188 - End Game
• Chapter #189 - I Call Out To You
• Extra Chapter 1 - Fujiwara no Sai Vs Tōya Akira
• Extra Chapter 2 - Oka And Shōji

Voice actors (Seiyū)

• Hikaru Shindo - Tomoko Kawakami
• Fujiwara-no-Sai - Susumu Chiba
• Akira Toya - Sanae Kobayashi
• Akari Fujisaki - Yumi Kakazu
• Kimihiro Tsutsui - Makoto Tsumura
• Yuki Mitani - Yuu Asakawade:Hikaru no Go

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