Kurimanju's Rare Cosplay...! Nagano's Illustration Celebrating the Chiikawa x Danmitsu Collab Draws Reactions: "That Tongue Is So Cute"

Nagano, the creator of Chiikawa, updated their official X account to unveil a new commemorative illustration marking the collaboration cover for the July 2 issue (No. 31) of the manga magazine Morning, featuring Toru Seino's manga Danmitsu — and the artwork has been drawing attention online.

The illustration includes the text "Morning magazine with the Danmitsu collab cover is on sale now!!," alongside a scene of Hachiware holding a bowl of anmitsu — a traditional Japanese sweet — while saying, "Somehow... I got a craving for anmitsu...!" a line that plays on the similarity between "Danmitsu" and "anmitsu." Beside them, Chiikawa smiles gently, Usagi nods, and Kurimanju, dressed in a bee-like cosplay costume, sticks out its tongue. At the bottom of the illustration is a message of thanks written in romanized Japanese: "URE SHI~!! ARIGATO GOZAIMASU!!"

Chiikawa is a hugely popular manga that originated on social media, created by Nagano. It follows Chiikawa — a small, adorable character — and friends as they go through days that are fun, bittersweet, and sometimes tough. Danmitsu, the manga behind this collaboration, is an essay-style comic by Toru Seino depicting his everyday married life with his wife, the TV personality Danmitsu, drawn in a distinctive style. Because Danmitsu herself is a big fan of Chiikawa, this unusual crossover came about. Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island, the franchise's first theatrical feature, is set to open on July 24.

Nagano's illustration drew praise from fans, with comments such as "That's such a Hachiware thing to say" and "What a clever comeback — as expected from Nagano." Fans also reacted with delight to the characters themselves, with comments like "Chiikawa's gentle face," "Kurimanju sticking its tongue out is so cute," and "Kurimanju's rare cosplay...!" Some fans also joked, "You kids can stick with anmitsu for now... it's still too early for you to appreciate the charm of Danmitsu."

(C)nagano (C)ナガノ/ 2026「映画ちいかわ」製作委員会