The various government retainers are beginning to take sides and the Tokugawa Shogunate is on the verge of tearing itself apart. Unfortunately, a succession dispute has risen concerning which of Ieyasu's grandsons are destined to take up the reins of power when their father finally decides to step down. Regardless, hostilities and bad blood remain between Kouga and Iga, ensuring a tenuous co-existence at best.įast forward to the year 1614 Ieyasu has retired from power (although he still wields considerable influence within the government) and passed the torch to his son Hidetada. The fighting finally ends when Hattori Hanzo the 1st succeeds in forging a cease fire between the two clans by conscripting both into the service of Tokugawa Ieyasu (the man who seized power to become Shogun and form Japan's first truly stable form of centralized government). The deadly competition between 10 elite ninja from each clan unleashes a centuries-old hatred that threatens to destroy all hope for peace between them.Īt the dawn of Japan's Azuchi-Momoyama period (the late 1500s) two rival clan of Ninja, the Iga Tsubagakure and Kouga Manjidani, are engaged in a bitter blood feud that has spanned for centuries. Two ninja clans, Tsubagakure of the Iga and Manjidani of Kouga, battle each other to determine which grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu will become the next shogun.
cite web | url= | author=Joel Hahn | title=Kodansha Manga Awards | work=Comic Book Awards Almanac | accessdate=] The manga was later followed by a sequel series titled The Yagyu Ninja Scrolls which was also based on a novel by Futaro Yamada. The manga won the 2004 Kodansha Manga Award for general manga. The anime, produced in 2005 by Gonzo Studios, closely follows the manga aside from a handful of distinctions. The manga was authored by Masaki Segawa and published in Japan in 20, based on the novel " The Kouga Ninja Scrolls" by Futaro Yamada published in 1958. Nihongo| "Basilisk"|バジリスク~甲賀忍法帖~|Basilisk Kōga Ninpō Chō is a Japanese manga and anime series.
Network = flagicon|Japan TV Saitama, Animax, TV Kanagawa, Chiba TV, Mie TV, KBS, AT-X, Jidaigeki Senmon Channelįlagicon|Mexico flagicon|Argentina flagicon|Brazil AnimaxĮpisodes = 24 Magazine = flagicon|Japan Young Magazine Uppers Genre = Action, Historical fantasy Infobox animanga/Mangaįlagicon|Canada flagicon|United States Del Rey Manga Ja_name_trans = Basilisk - Book of the Kouga Ninja Arts He forces his authority of the Iga clan to take over it after Ogen passes away.Caption = Kouga Gennosuke on the cover of Basilisk volume 1. Tenzen Yakushiji – Tenzen is the second-in-command of the Iga clan and one of the ninjas who takes part in the battle against the Kouga clan. He permits Gennosuke to marry Oboro and also takes part in the fight against the Iga clan. When she was younger, she was engaged to Danjou.ĭanjou Kouga – Danjou is the Kouga clan’s leader and Gennosuke’s grandfather. She permits the marriage of Oboro to try and unite the two clans. Ogen - Ogen is the Iga clan’s leader and is Oboro’s grandmother. He is betrothed to Oboro and also takes part in the battle against the Iga Tsubagakure clan.
Gennosuke Kouga – Gennosuke is the heir of the Kouga clan and was adopted by Danjou Kouga. She also takes part in the fight against Kouga. She was engaged with Gennosuke Kouga in the hopes of uniting the two clans. Oboro – Oboro is the heir of the Iga Tsubagakure and is the granddaughter of the Iga leader, Ogen. They must decide whether to fight for their love or fight for their clan. To settle the power struggle, Ieyasu declares the cease fire between the Iga and Kouga over and order them to choose 10 warriors from each side to fight to the death and whichever clan has the surviving member would decide which son was to take over.īefore the declaration of the death match, Gennosuke (Kouga’s heir) and Oboro (Iga’s heir) were engaged in the hopes of stopping future conflicts between the two clans. Hidetada’s sons are involved in a power struggle against each other and their dispute is tearing the Tokugawa Shogunate apart. Things become heated when Ieyasu stepped down from power and his son, Hidetada, takes his place. Even then, the Iga and Kouga clans still hated each other. The two clans have been warring for centuries until a cease fire was agreed on when they were both under the service of Ieyasu Tokugawa.
The manga contained real images in the background but the characters are hand-drawn and bombastic.īasilisk is about the Iga Tsubagakure clan and the Kouga Manjidani clan. The anime adaptation was produced by Gonzo and aired on 2005. It was published in Young Magazine Uppers from 2003 to 2004.
Basilisk was created and illustrated by Masaki Segawa.