Kajika (Manga)

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Kajika
Kajika tankōbon cover
カジカ Kajika
Author	Akira Toriyama
Publisher	Shueisha (JP)
Publication	Weekly Shōnen Jump
Demographic	Shōnen
Manga Series
Original Run	Weekly Shōnen Jump 1998 No. 32 to Weekly Shōnen Jump 1998 No. 44 (07 July 1998 to 29 September 1998)
Chapters	12
Volumes	1

Kajika is a twelve-chapter manga series by Akira Toriyama, debuting in the 1998 No. 32 issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump, originally released 07 July 1998 in Japan. The series ran through to the No. 44 issue that same year, and a collected volume was released the following January.

Though it has received other international releases, Kajika remains officially unreleased in English.

Synopsis

Kajika is a boy who has set out on a journey to save 1,000 lives in order to undo the curse a fox put on him. He comes to the rescue of Haya, a girl being pursued by G. Gibachi and his group, and ends up being entrusted with the egg of the last dragon in the world...?!

Characters

Characters in Kajika are generally all named directly for specific fish species; Akira Toriyama mentions in several of his weekly comments during the original serialization that his workroom is overflowing with tanks and tropical fish.

Major Characters

Kajika (カジカ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A young boy cursed and subsequently transformed into a fox-boy, Kajika sets out with the spirit Gigi to save 1,000 lives to reverse the curse. Kajika is likely named for the fish of the same name (カジカ kajika), the sculpin, a type of benthic fish that belongs to the superfamily Cottoidea in the order Scorpaeniformes.

Gigi (ギギ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 Now traveling with Kajika as a spirit, Gigi is the young fox who cursed Kajika after being killed by him.

Haya (ハヤ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A young thief who steals a dragon egg from Gibachi, Haya winds up pulled into a larger fight than she anticipated alongside Kajika. Likely named for the general term for the freshwater fishes of the family Cyprinidae in Japan.

Gibachi (ギバチ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 2 A gang leader looking to secure the blood of a baby dragon. Likely named for the fish of the same name (義蜂 gibachi), a species of catfish called the cut-tailed bullhead.

Isaza (イサザ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 2 A world-class assassin with powerful techniques and a curious heritage. Likely named for Gymnogobius isaza, a type of gobie.

Donko (ドンコ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 3 Obsessed with technology and blessed with incredible speed, Donko attempts to get the best of both Kajika and Isaza before getting roped into the full mix of things himself. Likely named for the dark sleeper (鈍甲 donko in Japanese), a species of freshwater sleeper native to China, Japan, and Korea.

Minor Characters

Yugoi (ユゴイ) Debut: Kajika Chapter 1 A henchman working under Gibachi who attacks Haya, Yugoi is quickly defeated and cleansed by Kajika. Likely named for the flagtail, a type of ray-finned fish (ユゴイ科 yugoi-ka in Japanese).

Bluegill (ブルーギル) Debut: Kajika Chapter 3 A villain with 35 murders under his belt (listed in the bounty hunter book with a 400,000 Don reward) who Kajika stumbles into. Likely named directly for the bluegill, a type of freshwater fish.

Miscellaneous

• Ron-Ron Island (ロンロン島 Ronron-tō): An island said to have been the home to dragons.
• Dragomin (ドラゴミン Doragomin): Stated to be within the blood of a newborn dragon, which it uses to then mature at an incredible rate.
• Life Pill (命の丸薬 Inochi no Gan'yaku): TBD
• World-Class Bounty Hunter Catalog (世界の一流賞金稼ぎカタログ Sekai no Ichiryū Shōkin Kasegi Katarogu): TBD
• Fox-Man (キツネ人 kitsune-jin): The "Fox-Man" (or "fox-person") Kajika is turned into.
• Kawa Clan (カワ族 Kawa-zoku): Clan to which Kajika and Isaza belong to, said to have been wiped out from a volcano four years ago.
• Rivans (リーバ人 Riiba-jin): People of the Riva region or race.
• Eagle Wind (鷲風 Shūfūn): A special technique of the Kawa Clan members.
• Don (ドン Don): Currency in use in the world of Kajika.

Production

Cover of the 1998 No. 32 issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump featuring the debut of Kajika

Coming off the heels of the 14-chapter series COWA! in 1997-1998, Kajika in 1998 was one of Akira Toriyama's comparatively-longer works following the completion of Dragon Ball in 1995. Alongside Neko Majin and other short works, Sandland followed next in 2000.

Kajika featured several full-color pages during its original Weekly Shōnen Jump serialization (namely in chapters 1, 2, and 6), all of which were converted to greyscale in later collections.

Original Serialization

#	Chapter Title	Pages	Publication	Issue	Sale Date
1	Kajika the Cursed	31	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 32	07 July 1998
2	Gibachi's Scheme	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 33	14 July 1998
3	Kajika and Isaza	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 34	21 July 1998
4	The Third Man	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 35	28 July 1998
5	Isaza's Abilities	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 36	04 August 1998
6	Donko's Operation	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 37/38	11 August 1998
7	Kajika's Shock	15	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 39	25 August 1998
8	Gibachi's Dragon Power	13	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 40	01 September 1998
9	Will the Curse be Lifted?!	13	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 41	08 September 1998
10	The Decisive Battle: Kajika vs. Gibachi	13	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 42	15 September 1998
11	Kajika's Doubts	13	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 43	22 September 1998
12	Kajika the Kind	13	Weekly Shōnen Jump	No. 44	29 September 1998

Releases

Kajika's 2014 collected volume new obi and comment from Akira Toriyama

Kajika received a single-volume complete tankōbon release 08 January 1999 in Japan. The volume is presented exclusively in black-and-white, with any color pages from the original serialization presented instead in greyscale. Toriyama's comment on the inside of the dust jacket states:

この頃、仕事は奥さんとコンピューターに、ちょっとだけ手伝ってもらってるけど、できるだけボク一人でやるようにしている。自分だけのペースでできるからだ。ただかなりしんどいので、この『カジカ』のように12回ぐらいが限界。というわけで、この間の犬とウサギの世話は両親に頼み、ハムスターは子供の担当。だが小さいのもいれて18本の水槽にいる魚たちのエサやりと水換えだけは、自分にしかわからないコツがあるので、頼むわけにはいかないのだ。きついぞ〜。

---

These days, I have my wife and my computer help me just a little bit with my work, but I try to do as much as I can on my own. That's because I can do things at my own particular pace. Except, it's also really exhausting, so like with Kajika here, about 12 installments is my limit. So with that in mind, during that time I entrusted my parents with looking after my dog and my rabbits, and my kids handled the hamsters. But feeding the fish and changing the water in their 18 fishtanks (including the small ones) has a trick to it that only I really get, so there's no way I can leave that to anyone else. It's rough~.
— Akira Toriyama

A digital release later came in 2014.

In April 2014, in celebration of the Jaco the Galactic Patrolman collected manga volume release, Shueisha began including new comments from Akira Toriyama on the obi (paper band surrounding the book, generally promotional in nature) of his seven other (non-Dr. Slump and non-Dragon Ball) manga volumes. While each comment was only a short few lines, they provide a quick bit of insight with the occasional nod or comparison to Dragon Ball. Toriyama also contributed a new illustration for each comment showcasing a representative character crossing their arms. These comments were also briefly archived on Shueisha's promotional Jaco the Galactic Patrolman website. For Kajika, Toriyama stated:

ドラゴンボールの反動でとっても地味な作品ではありますがボクはこういうのがスキなのであります。

---

As a reaction to the flashiness of Dragon Ball, this is a very unassuming work, but I like this kind of thing.
— Akira Toriyama

A text-only translation of Kajika by Sherwin Abesamis of Suushinchuu and toriyama.org made the rounds online in early 1999, while the Toriyama's World team released a complete English "scanlation" of Kajika in 2001.

Legacy

Kajika, Isaza, Donbe, and Haya all make a cameo appearance in the fourth chapter of Toyotarō's Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission series.

With 1000 good deeds completed, Abra transforms into "Neko Majin V" in the eighteenth chapter of Toyotarō's Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission series.

Artwork of Kajika used for the 1998 No. 37/38 issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump

Alongside Dub from Dub & Peter 1, Ackman and Tenshi from Go! Go! Ackman, Yukio Kyūmonji and Kaede Beniya from Jiya, as well as Pack from the Dragon Ball GT television special, the foursome of Kajika, Isaza, Donbe, and Haya make a cameo appearance in the fourth chapter of Toyotarō's Dragon Ball Heroes: Victory Mission series, originally published in December 2012.

Later in Victory Mission's eighteenth chapter, with 1,000 good deeds completed, the character Abra transforms into "Neko Majin V", a likely nod to Kajika's curse of needing to save 1,000 lives.

Akira Toriyama's illustration for Kajika used for the cover of the 1998 No. 37/38 double-issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump (containing the series' sixth chapter) was featured as a December 2019 entry in the Dragon Ball Official Site's The Nearly Complete Works of Akira Toriyama ongoing weekday column.

Though officially unreleased in English, Viz often mentions Kajika in their biography for the author in selected Akira Toriyama works.

International Media Coverage

• Animerica Extra, May 2000 issue, "In Depth – Kajika"

External Links

• TBD