Kurenai Shinkurou is an orphan with a tragic and violent past. However, he’s putting that violence to good use and earning a living settling conflicts as a mediator. His next client proves to be more than he’s used to when he meets the young child Kuhouin Murasaki, daughter of a powerful syndicate family. It isn’t long before the enemies that threaten her life soon threaten his, and Kurenai has to use every ability he has to keep them both alive. As they survive one conflict after the next, the two forge the familial bonds they both desperately desire.

In our opinion, the author of this series, Katayama Kentarou is one of the most underrated in all of Japan. His works display a maturity often missing in many works, and his characters always draw a bit of sympathy, even the villains. The action in Kurenai was top tier, and sometimes over the top with supernatural combat. It’s a series we would have loved to see 10 more volumes from, and even more.

Yuuki Wakura knew he lived in a dangerous world where men were treated as second-class citizens to women, but even still, he didn’t expect to find himself in an even worse one. Transported into a demonic gate and attacked by a horde of monsters, he is rescued by one of the elite female soldiers of his world and made into her “slave”. His rescuer Kyouka Uzen has no power herself, but she draws out the latent abilities of those who swear loyalty to her, which Wakura has now done. Together with her other team members, they keep the demons that threaten the world from crossing over and attacking Japan.

We were caught off guard by Mato Seihei no Slave. At first, it appeared to be just an ecchi romance manga with some light S&M play, but it’s actually a well-drawn and exciting battle manga with a few kinky elements. Wakura isn’t just your typical MC who lets himself be used and mistreated just in exchange for some female attention. He thinks rationally and uses the strength he gains in exchange for some dignity to protect those he cares about. This series is new but so far very much worth reading.

Some, if not all, of the greatest mercenaries in the world have come from Mikado High School. But this latest batch of students has no idea that hidden among them is one of the most powerful faculty members disguised as a wimpish student. Hayama Morito might look like a weak child who the girls can’t help but dote on, but he’s a grizzled war veteran undercover protecting the most dangerous student to ever attend, Kotonoha Nanase. Her circumstances hold the keys to maintaining the balance of military power in the world, and it will take everything these teachers have to keep her safe.

Funny at times, dark at others, and with a hint of romance, Gun x Clover is as unpredictable as it is exciting. Not a single character has a full piece of the puzzle surrounding Kotonoha Nanase, but solving it is the only way anyone involved with Mikado High will survive. We enjoyed this series through its ups and downs, and would highly recommend reading it. It’s worth a read alone just to see how cool a protagonist Hayama Morito is.