Maybe it’s just me that I find a story like The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting seems to be a trend these days.

You know, the kind of manga where we have an adult character looking after a young character?

Yes, you can argue that this kind of story concept isn’t anything new since there is plenty of manga out there that offers a similar concept.

Manga like Aishiteruze Baby and Usagi Drop comes to mind when it comes to a story that has this adult-looking-after-a-child concept.

Okay, maybe not so much with the main character in Aishiteruze Baby since he’s only a high schooler. But even with that, he’s responsible to look after his 5-year-old cousin.

Rather than having an adult who is working on a normal job like the one in Usagi Drop, we have someone who is a yakuza instead.

While I admit that I’m not into anything trendy, I have to say that I enjoy this type of story considering how wholesome the story is, for the most part.

Yes, I know that it’s not the kind of story that I will pick in a heartbeat. But I don’t see anything wrong with reading this type of manga once in a while.

And by the way, if you’re curious about the type of books that I tend to recommend on my blog, you can read this post right here.

What The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga is all about

Here’s the book description that I got from Bookwalker.

Kirishima Tooru is the right-hand man of the Sakuragi crime family. For him, the job is a perfect excuse to let his violent instincts run wild, earning him the nickname “the Demon of Sakuragi”. It seems like nothing will stand in the way of his vicious nature.

But then one day, he receives an assignment like never before from the boss—babysitting his daughter!

This is the heartwarming (or is it bloodcurdling?) story of a little girl and her yakuza caretaker!

What got me to read the manga

I have to admit that I got this manga for free on Bookwalker during a promotion to commemorate the release of the anime.

But even if I didn’t get the manga for free, I do find the premise behind this manga interesting.

And since I’ve already watched the anime before reading the manga, I already know what to expect.

What makes The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga worth reading

When it comes to a manga like this, the premise tends to start with the adult character having an obvious flaw that harms the people around him.

In Kirishima’s case, it’s his tendency to resort to violence to resolve the conflict. While it’s beneficial to be strong, it can also be detrimental to the family especially when they want to avoid bloodshed at all costs.

As you can already expect, Kirishima changes for the better when he starts to look after Yaeka.

Sure, he still tends to resort to violence whenever he has the chance. But unlike in the past when he prefers to settle things with his fist, he becomes a lot more mindful of his own action.

He even imparts so many life lessons to Yaeka as well, causing her to trust him just as much as her father does.

This is what makes the manga enjoyable to read considering that many of us can relate to those life lessons as well.

Of course, it’s not just Kirishima who is changing for the better. We get to see Yaeka changes for the better too.

For one, she starts to open up more to Kirishima and the people around her. And she becomes more compassionate ever since then too.

When we think of a manga like this, we tend to assume that it’s the adult character that will experience the most profound growth the most.

But that doesn’t seem to be the case at all in this manga.

We get to see both characters change for the better.

Of course, the manga does have funny moments too if having a good chuckle is what you’re after.

So, it’s not always about the serious yakuza and babysitting stuff all the time.

What I didn’t expect when I read the manga

While the story itself does have many funny moments, the bonus chapters that come after the main chapters are the ones that I find to be pure gold.

Don’t get me wrong. Some scenes in the main story are funny. But the bonus chapters are even funnier.

One of them is the part where Kanami is telling them that she’ll be bringing their favorite food the next time she comes over.

If you’ve watched the anime before, it’s the episode where Kanami is coming over to the house to bring tamagoyaki for Yaeka only to discover that there’s an open house at Yaeka’s school on that day.

The same scene where Kanami is bringing tamagoyaki for Yaeka continues in the bonus chapter where she asks them about their favorite food.

Sugihara told her that he’d like to have cabbage rolls. But what shocks both of them the most is when Kirishima told her that he’d like to have pancakes.

What’s funny about this part is their mental image of seeing Kirishima with pancakes and how clueless Kirishima is when he told them about his favorite food.

Okay, I admit that I don’t do any justice when I’m describing the scene in words.

If you’re curious about how funny the bonus chapters are, then I do recommend that you give the manga a try.

You’re missing out a lot if you only watch the anime.

Who should read the manga?

If you’re into a slice-of-life manga with a yakuza as the main character and comedies in between, then you’ll find that the manga is fun to read.

Just to be clear that some scenes contain crude language. While the dialogues may not sound that crude in Japanese, the same dialogues somehow ended up sounding crude when they’re translated into English, though.

Well, that’s expected considering that this is the yakuza we’re talking about here.

You don’t expect them to speak politely among themselves, do you?

If you feel offended even by slightly crude language, then this manga isn’t for you.

Where to buy The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga

As always, you can buy the manga in print or digitally on Amazon. If you’d like to get the manga in whichever format you prefer, you can get it right here:

Buy The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga on Amazon

Of course, you can also get the manga on Bookwalker if you can’t buy the manga on Amazon. That’s where I got the manga from.

Here’s the link if you prefer to get the manga on Bookwalker:

Buy The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga on Bookwalker

Want to read the manga in Japanese? You can get the Japanese version of the manga in print right here on CDJapan:

Buy the Japanese version of The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga on CDJapan

Over to you

What do you think about The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting manga? Are you interested in giving the manga a try after reading about it on my blog?

Let me know in the comment below.

P.S. Okay, I admit that none of the books that I write has a yakuza as the main character. But if you’re in the mood to read a psychological suspense novel with a bit of romance in it, then you may want to have a look at my light novel, The Diary of Modern Cinderella.

Wondering what the story is all about? You can take a look at the book right here on my Payhip store:

The Diary of Modern Cinderella on Payhip

Interested in buying the light novel? Don’t forget to use the coupon code SEKINAMAYUBLOG to receive 25% off on your purchase.

Just to let you know that the book is available in print and on other retailers such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Apple Books as well.

But you can only get a discount when you buy the book on my Payhip store, though.