The Promised Neverland has officially made its long-awaited return, with creators Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu coming together for a special one-shot celebrating the manga’s 10th anniversary. The new chapter marks the first major manga release from the creative duo since the original series concluded in 2020.
The return was announced as part of the franchise’s 10th-anniversary celebrations, with the official Shonen Jump website confirming that a special side story would be published during summer 2026.
The manga originally began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in 2016 and quickly became one of the magazine’s most recognizable modern series. Shirai wrote the story while Demizu provided the artwork, following Emma, Norman and Ray as they attempted to escape Grace Field House and uncover the terrifying truth behind their existence.
The Promised Neverland Creators Share Messages After the Return
Following the one-shot’s publication, both creators shared messages with international readers through VIZ Media’s Mangaka Musings, which translates creator comments from Weekly Shonen Jump for its English-speaking audience.
Demizu celebrated the milestone by writing,
“It’s the tenth anniversary of The Promised Neverland! What a wonderful ten years! Let’s go for another ten!”
Shirai, meanwhile, thanked readers who continued to support the series during its six-year absence, saying,
“Thank you so much for waiting. We were finally able to make it. I’d love it if this story touches your heart.”
The new one-shot also gives readers an opportunity to revisit the world after the conclusion of the original manga. The story takes place in 2050 and focuses on Ayshe, a character whose unresolved feelings toward the events of the original story provide the foundation for the new chapter.
Ayshe was raised by a demon who became her adoptive father, only for him to be killed by Norman and the other children. The new story explores the emotional consequences of that event and Ayshe’s struggle to reconcile her hatred with the relationships she has developed with humans.
The character is particularly significant because she was never included in the The Promised Neverland anime. The second season substantially changed the manga’s storyline and omitted several characters and major plot developments, making the new one-shot an opportunity to explore material that remained exclusive to the original manga.
The official Shonen Jump series page confirms Shirai and Demizu as the original writer and artist and highlights the franchise’s 2026 10th-anniversary celebrations. VIZ has also previously published interviews with both creators, including a 2021 conversation with Demizu about the series and her collaboration with Shirai.
For fans who have been waiting since the manga’s conclusion, the anniversary one-shot provides a new chapter in The Promised Neverland universe while bringing its original creators back together.
