The manga Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Oni resumed publication on Tuesday with its 22nd chapter, following a four-month break. The previous chapter was released on January 28.
Created by Asahi, the manga explores a “missing link” in the Higurashi: When They Cry series. It is promoted with the tagline: “The final demon awakens. A new Higurashi toward the truth.” Set in the Taisho Era in 1923, the story centers on a tragedy in the village of Hinamizawa that transforms the lives of a young girl and her friends. It also delves into the life of Oryō, the powerful matriarch of the Sonozaki family—one of Hinamizawa’s Three Great Families—who is feared as the “Empress Sonozaki.”
The series debuted in Monthly Action magazine in February 2022. When the magazine ended publication, the manga moved to Futabasha’s Web Action website in February 2024. The third collected volume was published in September 2024.
In related developments, Kei Natsumi concluded the Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei: Iro Tōtoshi-hen manga in February 2025. Launched on Square Enix’s Gangan Online in June 2023, the series served as the “answer arc” for Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Rei. That manga, in turn, is a sequel to two other titles in the franchise: Rei: Oni Okoshi-hen by Natsumi and Rei: Hoshi Watashi-hen by Seigo Tokiya, which both wrapped up in 2022.
The Higurashi franchise began in 2002 with a visual novel released by 07th Expansion at Comiket. The story follows a series of mysterious murders occurring during an annual festival in a seemingly quiet rural village. In 2014, Higurashi: When They Cry Hou was released for PC in Japan as a commemorative edition for fans.
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