Yu Nozuki may have God-awful social skills, but that’s not keeping him from making a few friends during his mission. The first volume of Shinobi Undercover did a surprisingly good job with setting the stage and bringing a lot of solid action to this new Shonen Jump series. Sure, these high school-based stories have become a dime-a-dozen affair in the manga world, but considering the audience that Shinobi Undercover is geared towards, I can’t say that it’s surprising to see another tale of a pubescent high schooler ninja. (Yes, there have been many already.)

Thankfully, where Shinobi Undercover shines is in its visual style. Santa Mitarashi may be a newcomer in this realm, but I have a sneaking suspicion that he’ll be an artist many will talk about for years to come. Not only does he know how to capture some amazing fights, but the way he frames them from start to finish would make even the likes of Gege Akutami and Takeru Hokazono jealous! Every battle looks and feels smooth as butter, in a way that makes me wish that an anime is already in the works for this series.

Of course, it’s not just the artist’s job to make a series interesting; the writer is the one that’s leading the charge in that. Again, while there are plenty of high school action comedies already in existence, Ippon Takegushi manages to add some nice twists to the mix to make the premise fresh. Not only do we have a ninja with crippling social anxiety, but the girl, Aoi Mukai, he needs to protect is both cool and a klutz! Taki, the pretend boyfriend for Aoi, has a real dude crush on Yu, whilst “best friend” Kana may have the hots for the introverted shinobi. So on top of great visuals, the main cast of this series has its fair share of entertaining oddballs.

As for the happenings for Volume Two, it’s again shocking to see a high school-based manga series already diving into the tropes like the school sports festival. It doesn’t feel like enough time has gone by in the narrative for that to already be happening. (This is coming from someone whose Japanese school held its sports festival in October, which is the second semester of the school year.) However, it’s nice to see Aoi help Yu feel excited for the school festival, even if his participation in it comes from an unfortunate circumstance.

That circumstance involves Hachikuma, an all-nonsense spouting ninja who attempts to kidnap Aoi. Even when using threads as weapons, he manages to cause a bountiful amount of destruction in the mall they’re fighting in. Fortunately, both Yu and Taki have plenty in their tanks to take him down in ways that demonstrate Mitarashi’s knack for crafting memorable fights. Shinobi Undercover may fill itself with plenty of threatening people, but knowing that the likes of Yu, Taki, and even Kana can handle these dangerous situations.

It’s also fun to see Aoi want in on some of the action. Oblivious to why these attacks keep happening, Aoi appears to be enjoying the weird and wild ride she’s on. She even wants to have a taste of the fight for herself sometimes, as evident by the arrival of Tobi during a school trip’s test of courage. (Again, another school highlight seemingly coming around fast in the narrative.) All of this is leading me to wonder: will there be a point where Aoi smartens up to her currently life-threatening situation? And if so, will she want to return to a sheltered life, or could she find herself a trainer in one of the three newfound friends in her life?

There may be a bit of old hat to be found in the second volume of Shinobi Undercover, but it’s got a lot of potential to freshen up these classic concepts. If Mitarashi keeps showcasing some badass fights, and if Takegushi continues to deliver with some fun storytelling elements, then I’m certain that this manga series will be a surefire hit on both sides of the Pacific. Hopefully, if both the artist and writing keep the quality as is, then there’d be no problem with making this a must-read Shonen Jump series. Shinobi Undercover may attempt to make its mission a secret one, but it’s just so darn cool to read that it’ll have no choice but to emerge from the shadows and embrace the fandom that may clamor for more of what it’s offering.

Promotional consideration provided by Chantelle Sturt of VIZ Media.