The Tale of Genji

is a Japanese manga version of Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji by Waki Yamato. It follows nearly the same plot with some modern adaptation. It was originally published from 1979 to 1993 in the manga magazine Mimi, which Yamato had worked for already in the years before. It spanned thirteen volumes and was published by Kodansha. The series was partially translated into English (as The Tale of Genji) by Stuart Atkin and Yoko Toyosaki as a part of Kodansha's attempts to publish bilingual manga as a study guide for Japanese students. The Tale of Genji sold 20 million copies. The first ten volumes focus on Hikaru Genji and his life, the final three volumes follow two princes, lord Kaoru and Niou no miya (Royal Prince with Perfumes) after Hikaru Genji's death. An anime adaptation was scheduled to air in Fuji Television's noitaminA block, starting January 2009, but the producer decided to make the anime directly from the original Tale of Genji, calling the new anime Genji Monogatari Sennenki. Characters