Kekkaishi

Description

From Viz:
Yoshimori couldn't care less about catching demons. Until he realizes that his apathetic attitude is taking a toll on his friendship with Tokine. Just as he decides to take matters into his own hands, a couple of amphibious demons and the pesky ghost of a pastry-chef show up to complicate matters.

Note: Won the 52nd Shogakukan Manga Award in the Shounen category.

Type

Manga

Related Series

N/A

Associated Names

Kekkaishi Ayakashi Hojinden

Kết Giới Sư

ผู้ผนึกมาร

結界師

결계사

Groups Scanlating

Latest Release(s)

c.345 (end) by a-team 14 years ago

c.344 by a-team 14 years ago

c.343 by a-team 14 years ago

Search for all releases of this series

Status in Country of Origin

35 Volumes (Complete)
18 Volumes (Complete - Kanzenban Edition)

Completely Scanlated?

Yes

Anime Start/End Chapter

Starts at Vol 1, Chap 1

Ends at Vol 13, Chap 121 (Parts are omitted, changed or added)

User Reviews

Kekkaishi by KrisKelvin

Forum

23 topics, 192 posts

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User Rating

Average: 8.5 / 10.0 (1629 votes)

Bayesian Average: 8.46 / 10.0

27%

26%

13%

Last Updated

August 25th, 2025 9:07am PDT - 3 days ago

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Genre

Action Adventure Comedy Drama School Life Shounen Supernatural
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Categories

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Category Recommendations

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Silent Mobius

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Recommendations

Hagane no Renkinjutsushi

Author(s)

Artist(s)

Year

Original Publisher

Shogakukan

Serialized In (magazine)

Shuukan Shounen Sunday (Shogakukan)

Licensed (in English)

Yes

English Publisher

Viz (35 Volumes - Completed)

Activity Stats (vs. other series)

Weekly Pos #819 (No change)

Monthly Pos #1446

(-453)

3 Month Pos #2603

(-215)

6 Month Pos #2989

(-668)

Year Pos #4071

(-151)

List Stats

On 3161 reading lists

On 1471 wish lists

On 3258 completed lists

On 186 unfinished lists

On 582 custom lists

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Forum Posts Click to view the forum

Latest Arc [Spoilers]

14 years ago

Just started read this.

14 years ago

one last chapter.... i think

14 years ago

Kekkaishi arcs?

14 years ago

mahora sama.... he/her/whatever

15 years ago

User Comments [ Order by usefulness ]

Underrated

by MASTER GUYVER
4 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

Yes, Kekkaishi is one of the most underrated anime/manga I've ever watched/read. Despite have around 50 anime episodes (I think 50) this precious gem doesn't receive the attention it deserves.
It's a decent shounen and still is entertaining to this day. I plan on rereading,yes I reread alot of stuff but that's because a lot of modern day stuff is recycled trash and grabs attention because of it's art style. I'm not sure if this was really axed but the ending was rushed but not too the point were it ended with a bitter taste in my mouth but only made me wish for more. It's sad because I really liked the the two main characters.
If they made a decent remake and not copy and pasted garbage of the anime, I would watch it, sadly most things come out with 13 episodes. I miss the good time where 24 episodes were necessary. They rush when there's thirteen and it's mostly unsatisfying

... Last updated 4 years ago

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Shaggy Dog Story of a Shonen manga

by CCheshire
5 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

It's one of the few mangas I feel compelled to re-read when I feel tired of the current series and it actually has an OK ending. The main problem as I felt was how they handled the MC's Mother and the final scenes since we never understood why she was so powerful. It could've been covered in the last few vol but IDR other than God Wills It and I swear few line changes here and there MC would've had enough power and training to seal it off 100% on his own.

Also, I felt that in a way that it was odd how serious both their families were towards the MC being the heir, and in reality, he's like 14 y.o. and struggling to not fall asleep in class. I get it but moments like it felt adults never considered how being a teen and being forced to fight every night for your life is detrimental but then again it's a manga. Not to mention his older brother (21 y.o.) gives him a long speech about not relying on power alone but then again... he's a kid.

I liked how the manga-ka handled death and the aftermath of loss on the cast where everyone can die and sometimes there's often no real way for MC to cope with constant fighting. I feel like that too many Shonen everyone dies and we move on to the next scene because plot demands it.

I realize now that it's actually 300+ ch series but it's still very readable and the art is still great. There's a lot of key moments where I just focus on the composition of the scene and the story. Also, there's no creepy scenes with MC and Tokine just no. MC is pretty pure-hearted hero as his hobby is baking cake castles and I liked how the manga-ka handled his one-sided crush that it never goes over board.

FWIW: I watched the anime several years ago and it follows the manga faithfully and I think the battles look much faster in motion so JIC you wanted to see it in a full effect.

Also the Kekkaishi battle system actually made sense in I could understand how people could focus and rely on it unlike a lot of other manga where it's STRENGTH OF WILL = POWER UPs.

Final Thoughts: I have to admit the final vol introduced way too many characters and it would've been much better if they just focused on the MC's family and Tokine's family instead of splintering into side antagonists. I started to feel tired as I realized yet another new character is introduced and how it tied to the main story.

Also, if they had cut down 1/3 of the story and removed the Shadow org plot it'd be much more concise and less confusing but dreams.

... Last updated 4 years ago

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Many half-baked, unexplained, and wasted potentials

by jackalan
7 years ago

Rating: 7.0 / 10.0

I heard of Kekkaishi for a long time now and finally decided to take it up thinking: I must give this a chance! Tanabe Yellow was once an assistant to Makoto Raiku, she must have some real nice stuff! (Cause I love Gash endlessly.)

I came to the manga and really, really read it. Sometimes, I forced myself to continue with it.

There were a couple of good things. One, although I kept forcing myself to read, this manga was quite easy to read - in term of story and flow. Even if I put it on hold now, I could still see myself going back to it.
Two, It was quite authentic - more like honest - the characters' displays and emotions. Manga characters can be quite dramatic sometimes (especially some over-the-top stuff, you've been there for sure). But in Kekkaishi, especially the MCs (the 2 families), they don't do those silly shits of acting up. Sure, sometimes I felt cheesy how they don't see anyone else but their most important person amidst a-crowd-of-people. It still seemed authentic and real and upfront and nice.

The bad thing, like my "Subject" of this comment: many ideas and storylines are half-baked, unexplained and wasted potentials. Imagine a lava chocolate cake, Tanabe Yellow would just scrape the top surface without ever spooning down to that gooey, chocolatey goodness that'd pour out and melt in one's mouth. Like the old man Heisuke. I didn't get the full scope of his story with Risa and Byako. Like who they were? What were their connections? How was she manipulative? How her desire of maintenance went with his efforts of supporting her? How did they stop being spouses? How did she became assistant to Heisuke? How was her love for Byako formed/intensified/etc.? It really was thin. And it could have been a hella good storyline to shed more lights into these characters. Byako seemed like an opponent at the start. But damn, he got finished easily. And then the story with the Princess and Byako. And how he never found a goal for his life? And what led him to the resolution that he wanted to stay with the Princess? And then it was damn confusing when the Princess seemingly died after she fixed him up. Then somehow he also met his end there which I found out after reading things online. This manga is too damn vague!

Yoshimori and Tokine and the families are really likable though.

Oh yeah, and the story of Hazama and Karasumori. Man, it was too damn brief to be the catastrophe of it all. He just asked and was granted those dark power without sacrificing anything? Too good to be true even for the most evil of them all. And then the love storyline... was like picking your vegetables, so simple, so... I don't know. I'm disappointed.

After so many things, I became pretty disheartened. I mean this series is over 300 chapters! You could have done something more conclusive than this (not the eventual ending but the many small storylines' endings), Tanabe Yellow! Please do so in your next works! Please stop doing half-baked ideas with potentially beloved side characters (you just blatantly introduce them here, then sweep them out like dust - too many sides that are just sides, unexplored and surface.)

... Last updated 7 years ago

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Disappointing

by liopolt09
7 years ago

Rating: 8.0 / 10.0

Trainwreck side story that destroys the main story, is exacerbated by a rushed plot without success to giving flesh to the characters that should be considered (the worst, which is foreshadowed throughout the story, Yoshimori Mother). Side stories are actually made for the conflict between the main plot and help the foundation of main plot, but in the end the side story isn't really able to come into direct contact because the problem with evil figures whose agenda is outside the main plot agenda, this who made the plot really weak.

Simply put, this story should just tell a personal story, which is grounded and attached to the main character, because at the end of the conclusions is lack. Kekkaishi is interesting at the beginning of the arc because the main character is always active in making problems and deciding the direction in which the plot is, there are problems and development of Tokine and Yoshimori's relationships that become the flesh of the story, and how family ties are built.

The weak ending of all things, a brief explanation that feels late without the main character succeeding in any action. Closed with after story which does not dramatically conclude about what is really the story's core, really, it's a shame because Kekkaishi according to me is shounen which is really special from the premise, character, and all the elements that should be in any decent shounen manga.

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I enjoyed the journey more than the destination

by GrumpyNPC
7 years ago

Rating: 8.5 / 10.0

This is a manga worth reading. I very much enjoyed the entire thing, but I have to admit the last quarter was not my favorite.

The ending was...

bittersweet, I wish the mom did not have to stay sealed up, she had already sacrificed 10 years away from her familly. I like to think that the reason she told Yoshimori to make a copy of himself was so that she could have him with her and not just for the lord. I also wish that Yoshimori had participated more in the last battle instead of just building a new world. The entire series we see him become more and more badass but in the end all he does is play the kekkai version of minecraft. I would have liked to see him kick some ass and take some names. On the positive side, a lot of love pairings were defined or hinted at, and I like how things ended with Tokine and Yoshimori, a kiss would have been a nice bonus, but their future together is hard to dispute.

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It's a good shonen

by achyif
9 years ago

Rating: 9.6 / 10.0

Carefully crafted, well-paced, and thought-out plot with reasonable and interesting characters and enjoyable fights. Has tropes but they are handled very well and therefore it never becomes cliched. I definitely recommend this series (and Tanabe Yellow's other works) if you like shonen.

... Last updated 9 years ago

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great series

by sakirol
10 years ago

Rating: 10.0 / 10.0

Solid plotline from start to finish with an actual ending. Interesting story. Plot twists and turns, but the mangaka managed to keep the integrity of the story intact. One thing though is that the story doesn't focus on the MC in battles.

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It's a Nice Ride

by monkry
11 years ago

Rating: 9.6 / 10.0

I choose Kekkaishi to be read first because of tragedy tag. I really like it 🙂 Haha, I really like how Yoshimori desperately trying to protect Tokine. Yoshimori really developed from the start, so was Tokine. How the land mysteries started to be revealed... And I love all the character.

And that ending... I still wanna know,

what those 2 family doing from there on? Because the power is something that they had, now after the land they should protect ain't there anymore, for what they used the power? Helping Urakai or what?

I love how she ended it for Tokine and Yoshimori tho, judging from how they were all the series, that's the most suitable end, that's just so like them 🙂

The most heartbreaking part is in the end where

Yoshimori made a clone of Gen... That part really broke my heart even more than Gen's death scene...

Anyway, it's just like Asmageddon said below, I really didn't regret had tried reading Kekkaishi :')

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well- constructed manga

by whitespade
11 years ago

Rating: 9.8 / 10.0

initially, it doesn't look like it, but as you progress along the story, you will see how well constructed and put out all aspect of the plot is. this is not the standard shounen that rambles on any direction, but everything that occur actually have significance for the story.

the mc and his love interest is the standard shounen main type, but with a bit of twist. the mc have a reason to 'protect' instead of the usual 'i see you for 3 sec let me lay my life for you' he knows the other party very well and his interest build up form childhood. the usual childhood/big sister type love interest have a strong and reasonable quality about her, that makes her one of the few girls in shounen manga that can be admired for her own self, not for her association with the mc.

the art is quite interesting in its ordinariness, there is very little flashiness in it with very rounded edges and detailed but muted background. even with the standard face shape, it is amazing how the mangaka able to make everyone separate with each other just by changing the eyes and the hair. i never get confused with one character with another. this is also because they are imbued with individual personality, so you seldom feel deja vu with the different type of friends and rivals.

the ending made me teared up a bit, but on the whole this manga is fun and exciting. such a rich world with varied beings and powers - i would love for stories that use this world as background again, using other characters such as the shikigami, with his polar opposite personality from the mc.

so please read this manga, you will not be disappointed!

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Has it's ups and downs

by PZcolo
11 years ago

Rating: 7.0 / 10.0

Great start till the fall of Kuroboro, after that I lost interest considerably both from the story and chars, luckily it gets better again in the final volumes in the escapation of the conflict in the Urakai and the unfolding of Karasumori's story.
Overall it was interesting and it's nice to have a long action story with a proper ending for a change.

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