Kokou no Hito
The Climber
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Kokou no Hito

Alternative Titles

Japanese: 孤高の人
English: The Climber
More titles

Information

Type: Manga
Volumes: 17
Chapters: 170
Status: Finished
Published: Nov 1, 2007 to Oct 27, 2011
Genres: Award Winning Award Winning, Drama Drama, Sports Sports
Theme: Psychological Psychological
Demographic: Seinen Seinen
Serialization: Young Jump
Authors: Sakamoto, Shinichi (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 8.831 (scored by 4826448,264 users)
1 indicates a weighted score.
Ranked: #352
2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity: #94
Members: 146,795
Favorites: 9,029

Available At


Resources

8.83
Ranked #35Popularity #94Members 146,795
Add to My List
Volumes: /17
Chapters: /170

Synopsis

Through pain and arduous effort, one can reach the top of the world. Standing where no man has ever set foot before, there is an exhilarating feeling of success. This is what Mori Buntarou trains, works, and lives for.

His climb to the top starts when he transfers to a new high school. Despite his lonesome and solitary nature, Mori's classmates persuade him to climb the school building. Without a harness or hesitation, he begins his scale to reach the top. Edging past the point of no return, he halts when he is faced with a final intimidating obstacle—a horizontal overhang. Adrenaline courses through him, and Mori jumps for the final hold at the summit.

From there, he casts his eyes upon something that he normally would not have seen—another peak, another goal. With an awakened passion and newfound purpose in life, Mori explores the breathtaking sport of rock climbing.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Background

Kokou no Hito won an Excellence Prize at the 14th Japan Media Arts Festival in 2010.

The series has been published in English as The Climber by VIZ Media under the VIZ Signature imprint as 2-in-1 omnibus volumes since April 15, 2025.

Characters

Mori, Buntarou
Main
Oonishi, Masao
Supporting
Katou, Hana
Supporting
Niimi, Taku
Supporting
Miyamoto, Hajime
Supporting
Takemura, Ayumu
Supporting
Hara, Keito
Supporting
Kurosawa, Mutsumi
Supporting
Kobori
Supporting
Momo
Supporting

Reviews

Aug 13, 2017
The saying ‘’A picture paints a thousand words’’ is truly exemplified by this manga. While the amount of dialogue in-series isn’t exactly low, the main character speaks rarely throughout the whole manga; yet that is its biggest feat. While manga, like anime, is a visual medium, most works don't utilize their visuals to full extent, only going as far as to present scenarios in a very bare-bones and basic manner. That's where Kokou no Hito shines, as it manages to tell the story solely through its astonishingly utilized visuals - be it the visualization of psychological struggle or metaphorical imagery that adds a symbolic layer ...
Jan 17, 2026
Mixed Feelings
(THIS REVIEW COINTAINS SPOILERS)

I am gonna start with the positive cause I have a lot of bad to say, but I don't wanna paint the impression this manga is bad so:
The art is incredible, and undoubtedly the highlight of this manga. Sakamoto’s portrayal of climbing and mountain landscapes is breathtaking, capturing the raw, grueling essence of the sport. The visuals immerse you, making the physical and emotional challenges of the characters tangible. In that aspect, The Climber shines, offering a truly visceral experience of what it feels like to climb mountains.

Unfortunately, the writing doesn’t match the quality of the art. While the story centers on ...
Sep 19, 2023
Yeah, it's sad. I found it to be really boring, i didn't managed to like one single character, i find all the choices the main character does stupid... it would be a 3/10 for me if it wasn't for the maestry of technical things Sakamoto - the mangaka, which i've read Innocent before, other of his works - did on Kokou no Hito. It is so beautiful, it has so many experimental things like characters getting crazy in the middle of the cold and their speech getting inverted in the speech balloons, the scene where Mori sees the dawn and there's an orchestra going on ...

Interest Stacks

21 Entries · 14 Restacks
48 Entries · 330 Restacks
by Alpich
34 Entries · 115 Restacks

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Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Kokou no Hito Chapter 55 Discussion
UnknownGhost5 - Oct 3, 2023
3 repliesby Lbest1226 »»
Jan 4, 4:41 PM
Poll: Kokou no Hito Chapter 48 Discussion
ThePimp - Aug 4, 2014
3 repliesby Lbest1226 »»
Jan 4, 4:08 PM
Poll: The Climber Chapter 42 Discussion
Khalid - Aug 28, 2010
11 repliesby Lbest1226 »»
Jan 4, 3:38 PM
Poll: Kokou no Hito Chapter 19 Discussion
Culex - Mar 31, 2015
11 repliesby Thruddingsfly »»
Jan 3, 5:53 PM
Poll: Kokou no Hito Chapter 41 Discussion
ThePimp - Aug 4, 2014
12 repliesby GoldSwxrdfish »»
Nov 25, 2025 3:36 AM

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