Kento Nakajima Hands a Runner's Anthem to History's Best Escape Artist
The song title is doing real work here. "Onigoto," written with the kanji for "demon," is an old Japanese word for the game of tag. For a series about a boy who survives the collapse of a government by running away, the fit could not be much better.
Kento Nakajima, who left the idol group Sexy Zone in March 2024 to launch a solo career (the remaining members now perform as timelesz), sings the opening theme. In a comment shared with the announcement, he said he has loved history since childhood, tracing it back to conversations about Japan's past with his grandfather. He added that he is grateful to sing "Onigoto" while feeling, through Hojo Tokiyuki, the turbulence of the shift from the Kamakura period to the Nanboku-cho era. As a history fan, he said he wants to fire up the show's opening "as a young lord of this era." He signed the message "Kime-jozu no Wakagimi," swapping the title's "good at running away" for, roughly, "good at striking a pose."
The main trailer, detailed in a report from Japanese anime news site Anime Hack, opens with Ashikaga Takauji (voiced by Katsuyuki Konishi) and his forces tightening their grip on Kamakura. When "Onigoto" kicks in for the back half, the focus flips to Tokiyuki finally making his move to take the city back.
Yusei Matsui's Historical Hit Wrapped in February
The Elusive Samurai comes from Assassination Classroom creator Yusei Matsui. Set in 1333, it follows Hojo Tokiyuki (voiced by Asaki Yuikawa), the rightful heir to the Kamakura shogunate, after Takauji's rebellion destroys it. Rather than dying with honor, Tokiyuki gathers a small band of trusted allies, the Nigewakato, and grows into a commander by doing the two things he is best at: running away and staying alive.
The manga ran in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump from 2021 and finished this February at 25 volumes. It won the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024 and has passed 5 million copies in circulation.
Noitamina Runs the Escape and the Counterattack Back to Back
Season 1's 12 episodes first aired in July 2024 on TOKYO MX and other channels. Since April, that season has been rerunning in Fuji TV's late-night Noitamina block as a lead-in, and the block is airing both seasons consecutively: the Season 1 rerun flows straight into the Season 2 premiere on July 17 at 11:30 p.m. New episodes then hit Prime Video in Japan at midnight the same night. Separately, a Season 1 rebroadcast starts July 13 at 12:30 a.m. on TOKYO MX and BS11, and that slot is also scheduled to carry Season 2.
CloverWorks (Spy x Family, Bocchi the Rock!) returns to produce, with director Yuta Yamazaki, series composition writer Yoriko Tomita, and character designer Yasushi Nishiya, who also serves as chief animation director. GEMBI and Akiyuki Tateyama compose the music.
Looking Ahead
Crunchyroll will stream Season 2 outside Japan when it premieres on July 17, so international fans get the new episodes in season. The full main trailer, including the first stretch of "Onigoto," is up now on Aniplex's YouTube channel, per the Anime Hack announcement.
For readers who want the source material, Viz Media publishes The Elusive Samurai manga in English in print and digital, and chapters are also available on Manga Plus. With the Japanese serialization complete at 25 volumes, the story now has a confirmed ending for the anime to build toward.