No tsunami threat issued despite fears following viral comic book prediction
A 5.3 magnitude earthquake struck Japan’s remote Tokara Islands on Saturday morning, adding to a series of tremors that have unsettled the region over recent weeks.
The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) confirmed that the quake occurred at 6:29am local time, off the coast of the Tokara island chain, at a depth of approximately 20 kilometres. No tsunami warning was issued following the tremor.
This latest earthquake follows an intense bout of seismic activity that has plagued the Tokara Islands since 21 June. Over 1,000 earthquakes have been recorded in the area during this period, including a 5.5 magnitude tremor that hit just days earlier on Thursday.
Located between the southern tip of Kyushu and the Okinawa islands, the Tokara region sits along one of Japan’s most seismically active fault lines. Regular, smaller quakes are typical, but the recent surge has raised local anxieties.
The quake has stirred renewed public interest in a viral manga comic book by artist and self-proclaimed clairvoyant Ryo Tatsuki.
The comic, titled The Future I Saw, originally published in 1999, contains a claim that a catastrophic event would strike Japan on 5 July 2025.
Tatsuki, who reportedly predicted the devastating 2011 Tohoku earthquake, speculated that cities would sink and a massive tsunami, even stronger than the 2011 disaster, would hit the country.
“Japan will witness a massive disaster on July 5, 2025,” the comic warns. Despite the coincidental timing of Saturday’s quake, officials have moved swiftly to dispel any suggestion of a link.
The JMA categorically denied any association between the 5.3 magnitude quake and Tatsuki’s comic book predictions. Seismologists echoed this stance, stressing that there is currently no scientific method capable of accurately forecasting earthquakes or their magnitude.
“There is no scientific way to predict an earthquake and its magnitude,” experts emphasised.
Nonetheless, the eerie parallels have not gone unnoticed by the public. Since the 2011 event, Tatsuki’s notoriety has surged. Her comic book has sold more than 900,000 copies, with editions now available in Chinese as well, according to her publisher.
The combination of frequent tremors and speculative predictions continues to grip the public imagination in Japan, even as officials work to reassure residents and maintain focus on factual, science-based assessments.
