In the Heart of Kunoichi Tsubaki

Alternate Titles

くノ一ツバキの胸の内
Kunoichi Tsubaki no Mune no Naka

Synopsis

Deep in the mountains, in the middle of nowhere, lives a group of kunoichi. Their name is Akanegumi. Consisting of unique kunoichi girls divided into several teams, they each study hard as they polish their skills. But they have an ironclad rule that must not be broken: There are absolutely no boys allowed!

Tsubaki is a young apprentice kunoichi and the leader of Akanegumi’s Dog Team. Skilled in ninjutsu even enough to be recognized by the head of the group, she stands above the rest and is trusted by those around her. But, there’s something she can’t get off her mind. Having never even seen or had contact with boys, she’s totally curious about them. In fact, the more she thinks about them, the more she wants to meet them!

Background

In the Heart of Kunoichi Tsubaki began as a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Soichiro Yamamoto that has been serialized in Shogakukan's Monthly Shonen Sunday shonen manga magazine since January 2018. As of November 2021, six collected tankobon volumes have been published. The manga was nominated for the 6th Next Manga Awards in 2020.

A TV anime adaptation was announced in November 2021 by Aniplex. It is being produced by CloverWorks and features Takudai Kakuchi as director, with Konomi Shugo handling series composition, Yousuke Okuda handling character designs, and Yusuke Shirato composing the music. The anime’s opening theme song is "Highlight" by The Peggies. The anime will premiere in Japan in April 2022.

Characters

Tsubaki (Voiced by: Yuko Natsuyoshi)
Tsubaki is the leader of the Dog Team of Akanegumi, a girls-only group of kunoichi where no boys are allowed. She is skilled at all kinds of ninjutsu and has a very serious personality, and as such, her teacher has high hopes for her. Her only fault is that she loses her cool when it comes to boys, whom she still doesn’t know anything about.

Sazanka (Voiced by: Miyari Nemoto)
Sazanka is a small kunoichi belonging to Dog Team who is younger than Tsubaki and is her underclassman. She is easily misunderstood by those around her due to her foul mouth and penchant for mischief, and she’s even seen as a problem child by her teacher. On the other hand, she looks up to Tsubaki, who accepts her as she is, and calls her “Nee-sama.”

Asagao (Voiced by: Sayumi Suzushiro)
Asagao is a tall kunoichi belonging to Dog Team who is the complete opposite of her classmate Sazanka in both looks and personality. She is a glutton who likes to eat not just three meals a day, but often four or five and sees skipping meals as the ultimate punishment. Though she’s a kunoichi, she’s bad at ninjutsu.

Benisumomo (Voiced by: Aya Yamane)
Benisumomo is a member of Sheep Team and a self-proclaimed genius kunoichi who is highly skilled at all kinds of ninjutsu. She sees Tsubaki, who is also skilled at a variety of ninjutsu, to be her rival and often challenges her to see who is superior. She likes to conceal how hard she actually works.

Konoha (Voiced by: M.A.O)
Konoha is the teacher of the lower grade students. Though she suffers from lower back pain, she often follows Hana, who regularly works too hard. She has a forte for the ninjutsu technique “Art of Dancing Leaves,” through which she uses tree leaves to block her opponent’s movements.

Hinagiku (Voiced by: Marika Kono)
Hinagiku is the leader of Horse Team and is skilled in the “Art of Dream Devotion." She thinks she is cuter than anyone else, and because of this she gets desperate when anyone seen as being cuter than her is around.

Touwata (Voiced by: Miyu Tomita)
Touwata is a member of Sheep Team who is small and wears a big scroll on her back. She is skilled in the “Art of Disappearing.” She values hard work and dedication above all else and loves to train. She doesn’t like the cold.

Hana (Voiced by: Yumi Uchiyama)
Hana is the lead ninjutsu teacher at Akanegumi. She is strict about the rule of no boys allowed and is the main one to repeatedly admonish the girls about it. She has a reputation for being scary when she gets angry, and she has high hopes for Dog Team’s Tsubaki.

Music

Opening Theme Song: "Highlight" by The Peggies

• Anime Site (Japanese)
• Twitter (Japanese)

• Original Creator: Soichiro Yamamoto
• Director: Takudai Kakuchi
• Series Composition: Konomi Shugo
• Character Design: Yousuke Okuda
• Music: Yusuke Shirato
• Animation Production: CloverWorks