Hunter × Hunter

In the world of Hunter × Hunter, Hunters (ハンター, Hantā) are licensed, elite members of humanity who are capable of tracking down secret treasures, rare beasts, or even other individuals, and can also access locations that regulars cannot. To obtain a license, one must pass the rigorous annual Hunter Examination run by the Hunter Association, which has a success rate of less than one in a hundred-thousand. A Hunter may be awarded up to three stars: a single star for making "remarkable achievements in a particular field"; they may then be upgraded to two stars for "holding an official position" and mentoring another Hunter up to single star level; and finally upgraded to three stars for "remarkable achievements in multiple fields".

Nen (念) is the ability to control one's own life energy or aura, which is constantly emitted from them, knowingly or not. There are four basic Nen techniques: Ten (纏) maintains the aura in the body, strengthening it for defense; Zetsu (絕) shuts the aura flow off, useful for concealing one's presence and relieving fatigue; Ren (練) enables a user to produce more Nen; and Hatsu (發) is a person's specific use of Nen. Nen users are classified into six types based on their Hatsu abilities; Enhancers (強化系, Kyōkakei) strengthen and reinforce their natural physical abilities; Emitters (放出系, Hōshutsukei) project aura out of their bodies; Manipulators (操作系, Sōsakei) control objects or living things; Transmuters (変化系, Henkakei) change the type or properties of their aura; Conjurers (具現化系, Gugenkakei) create objects out of their aura; and Specialists (特質系, Tokushitsukei) have unique abilities that do not fall into the previous categories. A Nen user can enter into a Contract (誓約, Seiyaku) where, by pledging to follow certain Limitations (制約, Seiyaku), their abilities are strengthened in relation to how strict they are. An example of this is Kurapika who, in order to have an unbreakable chain that will fully restrain members of the Phantom Troupe, offered his life, should he use it on anyone other than its members.

Author Yoshihiro Togashi stated that his hobby of collecting various objects inspired him to create a manga about collecting, initially conceptualized under the title "(something) Hunter". The final title, Hunter × Hunter, was conceived while Togashi watched the television variety show Downtown, where hosts often repeat phrases for comedic effect. The "×" in the title is silent. As with his previous series, YuYu Hakusho, Togashi used drafting ink and Kabura pens for illustrations, but began employing an eMac software for coloring.

Togashi typically works with few or no assistants; however, fellow manga artist and future wife Naoko Takeuchi assisted in applying screentone to single-color pages for the first volume. The birth of their first son early in the manga's publication led Togashi to believe his personal life would significantly influence the work, particularly its theme of a young boy searching for his father.

The series ranked fourth on Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga of 2012. In November 2014, readers of Media Factory's Da Vinci magazine voted Hunter × Hunter as the eleventh greatest Weekly Shōnen Jump manga series of all time. In 2019, the series ranked seventh on Da Vinci's 19th annual "Book of the Year" list. On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Hunter × Hunter ranked eleventh.

6 million collected volumes in Japan by February 2012, making it Shueisha's eighth best-selling manga series. 3 million copies by 2014. The manga had over 72 million copies in circulation by December 2018; over 79 million copies in circulation by November 2021; over 84 million copies in circulation by July 2022; and over 100 million copies in circulation by June 2026. Several individual volumes have topped Oricon's list of the best-selling manga in Japan during their release week, such as volumes 30 through 36.