Via Oricon News (1)(2)(3)(4)(5): Koyoharu Gotouge’s hit manga series “Kimetsu no Yaiba” (“Demon Slayer”) has reached its final episode in Shueisha’s “Weekly Shounen Jump” No. 24, released today — 18th May, bringing the four year saga to a close. As a result, “Weekly Shounen Jump” No. 24 has sold out in many places in Japan as early as 4:00 AM local time.

Gotouge-sensei and the editorial staff have thanked the fans for reading until the very end, and in commemoration of the finale, “Weekly Shounen Jump” is giving away the manuscript of the final chapter to two lucky readers who send in a special application form.

Fans were quick to point out that to send in the form, one has to cut out the very last frame of “Kimetsu no Yaiba” from the issue. In an unprecedented move, “Weekly Shounen Jump” has decided to accept photocopies of the application form, negating the need to purchase the magazine to join the giveaway. But with 60 million volumes of the manga series sold so far, the publisher doesn’t appear to be too worried about undercutting sales.

In other news, the story of popular character “Kyojuro Rengoku”, the Flame Pillar is set to continue in a new spin-off “Rengoku Gaiden” (roughly, “Purgatory Side Story”); the publication dates and other details will be announced by Shounen Jump in the future.

With so many exciting news coming out from the “Kimetsu no Yaiba” franchise, it’s no wonder it’s a trending topic on Japanese Twitter. Gotouge appeared to be riding the crest of the wave when the author opened a Twitter account, however “Weekly Shounen Jump” was quick to point out that this was a fake. The account has since been deleted.

For the uninitiated, “Kimetsu no Yaiba” began serialization in “Weekly Shounen Jump” in February 2016. Set during the Taisho Era in Japan where human-eating demons existed, charcoal-seller Tanjiro Kamado had his life changed forever when his family was slaughtered by a demon. He embarked on a journey to avenge his family, and help cure his little sister Nezuko who was cursed into becoming a half-demon.

A TV anime adaptation was broadcast from April to September 2019, with a feature-length film sequel slated to release on 16th October 2020.