By the Sword
- Name
- By The Sword
- Creator
- Sanami Matoh
- Genre
- fantasy anime and manga
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q5003884
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — By The Sword • Ja Kanji — 妖 -you- • Ja Romaji — Yō • Genre — Fantasy, Adventure
Key facts
Key facts
• Type — manga • Author — Sanami Matoh • Publisher — Akita Shoten (volume 1) Biblos (2003-2005) • First — 2000 • Last — 2005 • Volumes — 3 By the Sword, known in Japan as You, is a Japanese manga series created by Sanami Matoh, who is also the creator of Fake.
Plot
Plot
Asagi was born with a mysterious power that gives him the ability to slay demons, by channeling it through a sword. As this generally breaks every sword he uses, Asagi begins searching for a legendary sword known as the "Moegi". Along the way he meet a young girl named Kaede and the spirit of her father Kurenai, who join him on their journey. After he obtains Moegi, the group switches its focus to searching for Kurenai's body, which Asagi can rejoin him to using Moegi. They are also joined by Suoh, a famous spear wielder, his companion Rinrin, a woman of wolf origins named Aoi.
Manga
Manga
The By the Sword first tankōbon (bound volume) was originally published by Akita Shoten on August 24, 2000. Later, it was republished by Biblos that released the first volume along the second volume on October 10, 2003. The third and final volume was published on October 5, 2005, by Biblos. The English version of By the Sword was released by ADV Manga on March 7, 2005. In the localisation process some nudity scenes have been removed. For example, ADV Manga edited-out nipples.
Catalogued output
Versions and prints
The following works and productions are recorded by name or by count.
Reception
Jarred Pine from Mania.com qualified the story as "extremely average", and said it "just feels uninspired." He criticized the several demon battles that "don't progress the storyline", saying it "isn't going anywhere", and the "stale" humor. Despite Pine praised the costume designs and action scenes he stated it "doesn't offer anything new" for the genre. Animefringe's Janet Crocker commented By the Sword has "a lot of family drama". Crocker called the story "engaging", and noted "it's two steps away from turning into a Jerry Springer episode."
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article By the Sword (manga), revision 1374152317 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
References
Citations
References
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authority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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