"Manga Predicts July 2025 Disaster in Japan, Causing Holiday Plan Cancellations"

Over the past few weeks, a once-obscure manga titled "The Future I Saw" (Watashi ga Mita Mirai) by Ryo Tatsuki has surged in popularity both in Japan and internationally due to a bold prediction within its pages. The manga claims that a massive natural disaster will strike Japan in July 2025, causing some to reconsider their summer travel plans to the country. This prophecy has not only dominated Japanese social media but has also intertwined with the buzz surrounding an upcoming Japanese horror movie, amplifying the public's interest and concern.

Originally published in 1999, "The Future I Saw" is a unique blend of Tatsuki's personal experiences and dream diaries she began keeping in 1985. The manga's cover art features Tatsuki's character with a hand over one eye, surrounded by postcards representing her visions, one of which chillingly references "March 2011: A Great Disaster." Following the tragic Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami in March 2011, the manga gained renewed attention, with out-of-print copies fetching high prices on auction sites.

People pray as they take part in a minute's silence to remember the victims on the 14th anniversary of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster. Photo by STR/JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images.

In 2021, Tatsuki released an updated version titled "The Future I Saw: Complete Edition," which included a new prediction of a tsunami three times the size of the 2011 disaster hitting Japan in July 2025. Given her previous accurate prediction, this new prophecy quickly spread across social media, influencing some superstitious individuals, particularly in Hong Kong, to cancel their travel plans to Japan. The situation was further fueled by Hong Kong-based fortune-teller Master Seven, who supported Tatsuki's prediction and warned of heightened earthquake risks between June and August.

Japanese TV media has focused on the responses of Hong Kong-based airlines to these predictions. Hong Kong Airlines canceled its weekly flights to Sendai, a city severely affected by the 2011 disaster, while Greater Bay Airlines reduced its direct flights to Sendai and Tokushima from May to October due to decreased demand. Governor Yoshihiro Murai of Miyagi Prefecture, where Sendai is located, criticized these predictions as unscientific during a press conference, urging travelers not to be swayed by them.

The increased media attention on "The Future I Saw" has led to over 1 million copies of the Complete Edition being sold, coinciding with the release of a horror movie titled "July 5 2025, 4:18 AM," which draws inspiration from Tatsuki's July 2025 prediction. The movie, set to premiere on June 27, features strange occurrences happening to a character on her birthday, further fueling public interest and concern.

However, misinformation on social media has confused the movie's title with the predicted disaster date, blending Tatsuki's prophecy with scientific earthquake data and creating alarmist content. Asuka Shinsha, the publisher, issued a statement clarifying that Tatsuki did not specify the date and time mentioned in the movie's title, urging the public not to be misled by fragmented information.

Japan's vulnerability to natural disasters, including earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, and landslides, makes Tatsuki's predictions resonate deeply with the public. Seismologists estimate a 70-80% chance of a Nankai Trough megaquake within the next 30 years, a scenario that could lead to massive tsunamis and around 300,000 fatalities. While the government recently updated its projected death toll for such an event, the Japan Meteorological Agency labels specific date predictions as "hoaxes."

Japanese-speaking commenters on social platforms like X have expressed skepticism about the media frenzy and panic surrounding Tatsuki's predictions. One user remarked, "It’s stupid to believe in disaster predictions from a manga. The Nankai Trough quake could happen today or tomorrow." Tatsuki herself has responded to the attention, expressing satisfaction if her manga has heightened disaster preparedness but cautioning against over-reliance on her predictions, advising the public to heed expert advice instead.