“If the country of Japan as it is today completely collapses, what lies beyond that?” This heavy and terrifying question was the first thing that came to mind when I started reading the work titled “Nippon Sangoku.” It is neither a historical manga nor a simple futuristic sci-fi work. What this work depicts is Japan after civilization has crumbled, a world where the society and order that once existed as a matter of course have been lost. However, what is depicted within that devastated landscape is not just despair. Within a world swirling with chaos and desire, there is a story of a young man who stands up to change the future. Looking at the title alone, some people might be reminded of the historical Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but this work is not just a modern version of the Three Kingdoms; it was a grand strategic epic set in the future of the country of Japan.

The stage of the story is Japan in the near future. At the end of the Reiwa era, the world is heavily scarred by nuclear war, and furthermore, unprecedented disasters such as refugee problems, pandemics, and major earthquakes strike one after another. The already declining society cannot endure, and in the end, dissatisfaction with politics explodes, and the nation itself collapses due to a violent revolution. As a result, the population plummets, and the level of civilization retrogrades to the early Meiji period. For those of us accustomed to the convenient life of modern times, it is a situation like a completely different world that cannot be summed up merely by the absence of smartphones and the internet. However, what is terrifying is that this setting has a strange realism that cannot be dismissed as mere fantasy. Elements such as war, disasters, and distrust in politics are by no means stories of a distant world, which is exactly why one is strongly drawn in while reading.

Japan after the collapse of civilization goes through an era of wars and splits into three nations: Yamato, Buo, and Seii. Among them, Yamato, which reigns as the largest power, is a massive nation ruling western Japan, but its interior is by no means stable. The actual power of the nation is held by the Heike family, politics is corrupt, and the people suffer as the side being ruled. The depiction that even if a country exists, its contents are not necessarily healthy was very impressive. Even looking back at history, it is not uncommon for no matter how large a nation is to crumble from within. Although this work is a story of the future, it gives a strange sensation as if watching the repetition of history somewhere.

The protagonist, Misumi Aoteru, is a little different from the protagonists of general Warring States works. He does not possess mighty military force from the beginning, nor is he a legendary swordsman. He is a young man outstanding in knowledge and brains, working as a local official. However, his life changes drastically due to a certain incident. Saki, who is his childhood friend and wife, who raised her voice against the tyranny of the powerful whose purpose was tax collection, has her life taken away. In many works, this might be a scene where one draws a sword driven by anger. However, instead of being controlled by emotion, Aoteru confronts the opponent with calm words and logic. That figure was very impressive. I believe that precisely because he is a protagonist who transforms anger not into power but into wisdom to change the future, an appeal different from other works is born.

What I felt upon reading “Nippon Sangoku” was that this work might be one that depicts “how people change an era,” rather than being a war manga or a political manga. Aoteru does not carve out a path with just swords or fists; he moves people's hearts and changes situations through resourcefulness. And that figure looked more like a revolutionary trying to design the future, rather than a hero active on the battlefield. Despite having a heavy worldview, it has a strange charm that makes one want to know the future developments, and before one notices, one is turning the next page. It was a work that makes one want to strongly recommend it not only to people who like grand historical stories, but also to people who like politics, strategy, and human drama. The story of rebirth beginning from a ruined Japan was a world hotter and deeper than imagined.