あかね噺 [Akane-banashi] #16

The world of rakugo comes alive in this sixteenth volume of *Akane-banashi*, with a young woman clutching a wooden name-plate in the foreground — her wide, determined eyes hinting at something momentous at hand — while a red-haired man in a kimono looms behind her, visibly shaken. With the subtitle 弟子入り (*Taking on an Apprentice*) framing the action, this 2025 Jump Comics release promises a charged turning point in the relationship between these two compelling figures. Story by 末永裕樹 and art by 馬上鷹将 continue to bring striking emotional intensity to the stage of traditional Japanese storytelling.