His faith remains untorn, but his gi is another story.

In November of 2018, artist Yoshihiro Togashi put his Hunter x Hunter manga on hiatus. Togashi has reached a level of success in the industry where no one can force him to draw new chapters if he doesn’t want to, and Hunter x Hunter’s publishing break is still ongoing today.

But Togashi shocked the world last Tuesday when he not only created a personal Twitter account, but also shared photographic proof that he’s actively working on the series again, and that new chapters are on the way. While he didn’t share any timetable for when we’ll be able to read them, it’s still an encouraging sign that fans’ waiting will be over before much longer.

However, one fan, YouTuber Tarue Totsugeki, hasn’t just been sitting around and twiddling his thumbs while waiting for new Hunter x Hunter content. Instead, he channeled that fan frustration into his fists, making a promise to perform 1,000 karate punches a day until Hunter x Hunter restarts serialization.

▼ Day 1

To clarify, this isn’t an idea Tarue Totsugeki came up with after Togashi’s encouraging tweet. No, he made the 1,000-punches-a-day promise on January 16, 2020, more than a year after the most recent Hunter x Hunter chapter and when there was no indication at all of when the series would be starting up again. But fortitude and honor are cornerstones of the martial artist mindset, and Tarue Totsugeki has indeed been throwing 1,000 punches a day, every day, for the past two years and four months.

▼ 1,000 punches for May 24, the day of Togashi’s tweet

What Tarue Totsugeki hasn’t done, though, is replace the top of his gi, continually wearing the same training jacket for each and every video. At this point, it looks like the garb of a warrior who’s wandered the world testing himself against stronger and stronger opponents, as opposed to a manga fan whose patience is being tested on a daily basis.

So is Tarue Totsugeki now free from this regimen? Nope. Remember, his vow is to throw 1,000 punches a day until Hunter x Hunter resume serialization.

▼ 1,000 punches for May 27, brining the total to 862,000 punches and counting

So until you can actually hold an issue of Weekly Shonen Jump with a new Hunter x Hunter chapter in your hands, Yoshihiro Togashi’s fists will still be flying.

Source: YouTube/樽江突撃 via Jin
Top image: Pakutaso
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