Over the past few weeks, a previously obscure manga has surged into the global spotlight, sparking widespread discussion in Japan and beyond. The Future I Saw (Watashi ga Mita Mirai), authored by Ryo Tatsuki, has reignited public attention due to its claim that Japan will face a catastrophic natural disaster in July 2025. This prediction is now influencing travel decisions, with some tourists canceling summer trips to Japan, while social media platforms in Japan have seen a surge in related content. But why are so many people taking Tatsuki’s claims seriously—and how has an upcoming Japanese horror film become entangled in this growing wave of concern?
Originally published in 1999, The Future I Saw is based on Ryo Tatsuki’s personal dream diaries, which she began recording in 1985. The manga presents Tatsuki as a character who experiences vivid prophetic dreams. The cover of the original edition depicts her with a hand raised to one eye, surrounded by floating postcards symbolizing her visions—one of which ominously states, “March 2011: A Great Disaster.” Following the devastating Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, the manga resurfaced in public consciousness. Out-of-print copies quickly gained collector status, selling for high prices on auction sites as readers questioned whether Tatsuki had somehow foreseen the tragedy.
In 2021, a revised and expanded version titled The Future I Saw: Complete Edition was released. This edition includes an additional prediction: a natural disaster in July 2025 that Tatsuki claims will surpass the 2011 catastrophe in scale. Specifically, she describes a tsunami three times larger than the one in 2011 striking Japan. Given the perceived accuracy of her earlier vision, this new warning rapidly spread across Japanese social media, fueling anxiety and speculation.
Reports suggest that Tatsuki’s July 2025 prediction has led some superstitious individuals—particularly in Hong Kong, where the manga is available in translation—to reconsider travel plans to Japan. While the full extent of the impact on tourism remains unclear, the trend appears most pronounced among Hong Kong travelers. Adding to the unease, Hong Kong-based fortune-teller and media personality Master Seven has amplified the warning, claiming that Japan’s earthquake risk will be elevated between June and August 2025.
Japanese media coverage has focused on the responses of Hong Kong-based airlines. According to reports from ANN News and other outlets, Hong Kong Airlines has canceled its three weekly flights to Sendai, a city heavily affected by the 2011 disaster. Similarly, Greater Bay Airlines has reduced direct flights from Hong Kong to Sendai and Tokushima between May and October, citing a sharp drop in demand. Factors contributing to this decline include the circulating disaster predictions and broader economic concerns. In late April, Yoshihiro Murai, governor of Miyagi Prefecture (where Sendai is located), addressed the situation during a press conference, criticizing the “unscientific foundations” of the viral predictions and urging travelers not to let them influence their plans.
Unsurprisingly, the surge in media attention has propelled The Future I Saw: Complete Edition back into the public eye. By May 23, the manga had surpassed [ttpp]1 million copies sold[/ttpp], reflecting a significant spike in interest. This renewed popularity coincides with the release of a new horror film titled July 5, 2025, 4:18 AM, set to premiere in Japanese theaters on June 27. The movie follows a protagonist whose life begins unraveling as her birthday—July 5—approaches, drawing direct inspiration from Tatsuki’s predicted disaster date. While the film is fictional, its thematic ties to the manga’s prophecy have blurred the lines between entertainment and alarm in public discourse.
However, some online content has misrepresented the film as confirming the exact timing of an impending disaster. Misleading posts have merged scientific data about seismic risks with sensationalized interpretations of Tatsuki’s visions, prompting her publisher, Asuka Shinsha, to issue an official clarification. The statement emphasized that Tatsuki did not specify the date or time referenced in the movie’s title and warned against being misled by fragmented or distorted information circulating online.
Japan is no stranger to natural disasters. Earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, and landslides occur regularly, making disaster preparedness a national priority. While Tatsuki’s predictions lack scientific basis, they resonate against a backdrop of real geological concerns. Seismologists estimate a 70–80% probability of a major Nankai Trough earthquake striking Japan within the next 30 years (Asahi News, Kobe University). In March 2025, the Japanese government updated its projections, warning that such a quake could result in approximately 300,000 fatalities and trigger massive tsunamis across coastal regions. These credible scientific warnings have been conflated with Tatsuki’s prophecy, amplifying fear despite the fact that precise earthquake prediction remains impossible. The Japan Meteorological Agency explicitly labels such forecasts as “hoaxes” on its official website.
Despite the media frenzy, many Japanese netizens have pushed back. On X (formerly Twitter), users have criticized the irrationality of treating a manga as a reliable source of disaster forecasting. “It’s stupid to believe in disaster predictions from a manga. The Nankai Trough quake could happen today or tomorrow,” one user remarked. Tatsuki herself has responded to the attention, expressing satisfaction that her work may encourage greater disaster readiness. However, she has also urged the public not to be “overly influenced” by her visions and to rely instead on expert guidance (Mainichi Shimbun).
