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ヒカルの碁 [Hikaru no Go] #10
Hikaru no Go, Vol. 10: Lifeline
The main round of the pro test has begun. Everyone's feeling the pressure, no one more so than Hikaru's friend Isumi, who has failed the test twice before. Fighting off his feelings of self-doubt, Isumi faces his next opponent, who turns out to be Hikaru. But a careless mistake lands the pair in an awkward position!
203 pages, Paperback
First published December 4, 2000
9 people are currently reading
204 people want to read
About the author
Yumi Hotta
100 books100 followersYumi Hotta (堀田 由美 Hotta Yumi, most often written as ほった ゆみ) is a Japanese mangaka, best known as the author of the best-selling manga and anime series Hikaru no Go, about the game of go that is widely credited for the recent boom of the game in Japan. The idea behind Hikaru no Go began when Yumi Hotta played a pick-up game of go with her father-in-law. She thought that it might be fun to create a manga based on this traditional board game, and began the work under the title of Nine Stars (九つの星 Kokonotsu no Hoshi), named for the nine "star points" on a go board. She later worked with Takeshi Obata (the illustrator) and Yukari Umezawa (5-Dan, the supervisor) in the creation of Hikaru no Go. She won the 2000 Shogakukan Manga Award and the 2003 Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize for Hikaru no Go.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
February 23, 2024
The pro test continues and intensifies for the main character Hikaru and his insei (professional Go player apprentice) friends. That said, one of the main draws of this series is seeing Hikaru grow as a go player and this volume has that in spades.
January 28, 2022
The main round of the Pro Go exams are still on-going. Hikaru changed. Not only his abilities but also his mind set, and the players around him realise that slowly. Akira Toya wants to know how good of a Go player Hikaru is. Akira found out about his triumph game against Hong Suyong, the insei from South Korea. He's eager to find out how long it'll take Hikaru to catch up to him. For the next three weeks, until the end of the exams, he's teaching Ochi Go so he'll be able to defeat Hikaru when he once becomes his opponent.
January 15, 2012
So now I am up to volume 10. This series is so addictive I have finally broken out my Go books. Yes, I am going to try to start playing Go again! I'll bet I can beat some smarty-pants 12-year-old Go prodigy. Har har har.
Anyway, my last review was incorrect -- in this volume, Yumi Hotta helpfully provides a score sheet for all of the players taking the professional Go test (an ongoing series of games that spans weeks for the characters and so far, four volumes for the readers), and Hikaru is 13, not quite 14 yet.
Anyway, there was not a lot of forward progression in terms of plot in this volume. Hikaru is... still playing games in the pro test trials, just like the last three volumes. But still, if you've come this far, you're invested in these fictional Go players and their tallies of wins and losses. Hikaru has a winning streak which is broken, but he recovers. A major cinch point comes when he is playing Isumi, an older boy more desperate than Hikaru is to make it to the end because he's failed the test three times. (The stress and tension they show these kids under is quite phenomenal, and probably quite realistic. You'd think they were competing in the Hunger Games.) Isumi does something that is a no-no in Go; he moves a piece after he took his finger off of it. According to the rules, this means he has just forfeited the game. Will Hikaru call him on it and win on a technicality, or will he play through?
One by one the final competitors are winnowed down to a handful, including one of the youngest Insei, Kosuke Ochi, who is an insufferable little brat and just the sort of obsessive little twit you can imagine having no life outside of Go. Man, I want to see Hikaru not only beat this kid, but beat him. With blunt objects.
Ochi has a rich grandfather who hires professional Go players to tutor him, so who shows up to help prep Ochi for his game against Hikaru on the final day? Akira Toya, of course.
This volume maintains tension and interest in one Go game after another, but I'm only giving it four stars because, come on Hotta, sooner or later you have wrap up this pro test storyline. Either Hikaru's going to make it or he's not.
Anyway, my last review was incorrect -- in this volume, Yumi Hotta helpfully provides a score sheet for all of the players taking the professional Go test (an ongoing series of games that spans weeks for the characters and so far, four volumes for the readers), and Hikaru is 13, not quite 14 yet.
Anyway, there was not a lot of forward progression in terms of plot in this volume. Hikaru is... still playing games in the pro test trials, just like the last three volumes. But still, if you've come this far, you're invested in these fictional Go players and their tallies of wins and losses. Hikaru has a winning streak which is broken, but he recovers. A major cinch point comes when he is playing Isumi, an older boy more desperate than Hikaru is to make it to the end because he's failed the test three times. (The stress and tension they show these kids under is quite phenomenal, and probably quite realistic. You'd think they were competing in the Hunger Games.) Isumi does something that is a no-no in Go; he moves a piece after he took his finger off of it. According to the rules, this means he has just forfeited the game. Will Hikaru call him on it and win on a technicality, or will he play through?
One by one the final competitors are winnowed down to a handful, including one of the youngest Insei, Kosuke Ochi, who is an insufferable little brat and just the sort of obsessive little twit you can imagine having no life outside of Go. Man, I want to see Hikaru not only beat this kid, but beat him. With blunt objects.
Ochi has a rich grandfather who hires professional Go players to tutor him, so who shows up to help prep Ochi for his game against Hikaru on the final day? Akira Toya, of course.
This volume maintains tension and interest in one Go game after another, but I'm only giving it four stars because, come on Hotta, sooner or later you have wrap up this pro test storyline. Either Hikaru's going to make it or he's not.
March 16, 2021
Getting pretty interested in the pro exam story arc again. Some of the best parts are still related to Sai's presence in Hikaru's life, even though there's a lot less Sai the more stronger Hikaru gets, unfortunately.
September 10, 2025
4.5/5 (Review is for the series as a whole and does not contain spoilers)
12-year-old Hikaru finds an old Go board in his grandfather’s attic and accidentally frees the ghost spirit of a young Go teacher from medieval Japan, named Fujiwara-no-Sai. Sai has a strong passion for Go and wants to achieve the “Divine Move,” but unfortunately for him, Hikaru knows nothing about Go and has little interest in learning the game. When Sai finally convinces Hikaru to play, they defeat fellow middle school student, Akira, who has been training relentlessly with his father, Go master Toya Meijin. Akira, who is good enough to go pro, is shocked at his defeat and declares that Hikaru is his rival. This rivalry sparks a passion in Hikaru, who decides to learn the game and soon becomes a good enough player in his own right.
This series is appropriate for the middle grade age group, and may inspire readers to want to learn how to play the game of Go. The author consulted with actual Go players to make the manga moves more authentic, and throughout the series there are tidbits and instructions on how to play and resources for learning more about the game. In addition, this series teaches valuable lessons about friendship and explores some of the challenges in coming-of-age, especially as we grow up and move away from some people. This series is also likely to appeal to fans of sports manga, as it features similar story telling devices, and works to build tension in the Go games that the players play. Overall, this series is a fun, low stakes story that makes me want to learn a bit more about the game of Go.
12-year-old Hikaru finds an old Go board in his grandfather’s attic and accidentally frees the ghost spirit of a young Go teacher from medieval Japan, named Fujiwara-no-Sai. Sai has a strong passion for Go and wants to achieve the “Divine Move,” but unfortunately for him, Hikaru knows nothing about Go and has little interest in learning the game. When Sai finally convinces Hikaru to play, they defeat fellow middle school student, Akira, who has been training relentlessly with his father, Go master Toya Meijin. Akira, who is good enough to go pro, is shocked at his defeat and declares that Hikaru is his rival. This rivalry sparks a passion in Hikaru, who decides to learn the game and soon becomes a good enough player in his own right.
This series is appropriate for the middle grade age group, and may inspire readers to want to learn how to play the game of Go. The author consulted with actual Go players to make the manga moves more authentic, and throughout the series there are tidbits and instructions on how to play and resources for learning more about the game. In addition, this series teaches valuable lessons about friendship and explores some of the challenges in coming-of-age, especially as we grow up and move away from some people. This series is also likely to appeal to fans of sports manga, as it features similar story telling devices, and works to build tension in the Go games that the players play. Overall, this series is a fun, low stakes story that makes me want to learn a bit more about the game of Go.
July 26, 2025
The best instalments are coming thick and fast now.
During the pro test, we have seen quite a bit of other players/contenders; their motivations, mental state, and background make a large part of the story. I also learnt to appreciate Shinoda sensei; his empathy and the unobtrusive support he provides to both his own students and outsiders is endearing.
And in this volume, a stroke of fate falls. Its echoes reverberate throughout the rest of the series.
Let's see now under a spoiler:
Starting here, we get the win/loss ratio written out next to the characters in some of the scenes, which helps keeping track. The test moves into the final stages. Also, loved seeing Akira put Ochi in his place (not before messing up his previous approach to find out about Hikaru's strength via Ochi, but that was par for Akira).
Almost impossible not to pick up the next volume at once. I did.
During the pro test, we have seen quite a bit of other players/contenders; their motivations, mental state, and background make a large part of the story. I also learnt to appreciate Shinoda sensei; his empathy and the unobtrusive support he provides to both his own students and outsiders is endearing.
And in this volume, a stroke of fate falls. Its echoes reverberate throughout the rest of the series.
Let's see now under a spoiler:
Starting here, we get the win/loss ratio written out next to the characters in some of the scenes, which helps keeping track. The test moves into the final stages. Also, loved seeing Akira put Ochi in his place (not before messing up his previous approach to find out about Hikaru's strength via Ochi, but that was par for Akira).
Almost impossible not to pick up the next volume at once. I did.
May 6, 2022
Another 5 Star Volume!
by Barbara Kelley
This volume was about games 1 through 20 of the Pro Test Exams. As of game 20, Ochi has 1 loss, Waya has 2 losses, and Shindo and Isumi have 3 losses, and Honda has 4 losses. If there are multiple players in 3rd place, then there are playoffs to see who become the 3rd pro. Only the top 3 players will become pros. A pro gets paid to play Go, and if they win most of their games, they are raised in rank from 1 Dan to 2 Dan to 3 Dan, all the way up to 9 Dan. They can also try out for other titles, as well, such as Ju Dan (equivalent to a 10 Dan), Meijin, Oza, and Ho'Ninbo. I have learned a lot by reading this series. There are 23 volumes in this series. I gave this volume another 5 star rating! I will read Volume 11 next!
by Barbara Kelley
This volume was about games 1 through 20 of the Pro Test Exams. As of game 20, Ochi has 1 loss, Waya has 2 losses, and Shindo and Isumi have 3 losses, and Honda has 4 losses. If there are multiple players in 3rd place, then there are playoffs to see who become the 3rd pro. Only the top 3 players will become pros. A pro gets paid to play Go, and if they win most of their games, they are raised in rank from 1 Dan to 2 Dan to 3 Dan, all the way up to 9 Dan. They can also try out for other titles, as well, such as Ju Dan (equivalent to a 10 Dan), Meijin, Oza, and Ho'Ninbo. I have learned a lot by reading this series. There are 23 volumes in this series. I gave this volume another 5 star rating! I will read Volume 11 next!
November 5, 2023
The pro test is in full swing as Hikaru and co. give their all; with pressure felt on all sides. Vol. 10. is mostly made up of tension and anxiety about the matches and how they played out. However there is some good subplots in this one. Ochi finds an unlikely teacher in Akira, who even shares a secret with him he has never told anyone else. Hikaru must grapple with a win he secured through resignation as the player made a conduct mistake; with Sai helping him overcome it. We also briefly learn about how hard it is for the adult players to be in the tournament due to its two month length.
Hikaru No Go continues to be an excellent manga series with its sharp focus on characters, their relatable motivations, and making go an exciting game.
Hikaru No Go continues to be an excellent manga series with its sharp focus on characters, their relatable motivations, and making go an exciting game.
May 17, 2023
I was fully going to give this volume 3 stars... but then that thing happened on page 86 and my heart started racing!!!!
Another thing I really like about this volume is that we get a bit of insight about the financial background of some of these players, like: some of them have travel costs and hotel costs and had to quit their jobs to be able to be here for two months. So when some of them lose, it's heartbreaking. You just want everyone to be able to live their dreams of being a pro go player, but it's not possible. 💔
Another thing I really like about this volume is that we get a bit of insight about the financial background of some of these players, like: some of them have travel costs and hotel costs and had to quit their jobs to be able to be here for two months. So when some of them lose, it's heartbreaking. You just want everyone to be able to live their dreams of being a pro go player, but it's not possible. 💔
April 7, 2025
The Pro Exams are an ongoing marathon, but Hikaru is showing out and making each and every volume even more intriguing. The growth in the characters over the last few volumes is apparent and that makes for a more intriguing volume that you hold within your hands. Akira is more and more intrigued by his "rival" and wants to see just how much he's grown. This volume feels especially good as the seeds from previous chapters are beginning to blossom. Great art! Great story! Great combination equals must read manga!
February 28, 2018
Continues to move slowly through Hikaru's Pro-Test. This is a very internal volume, almost all the action is designed to play up whatever the character is thinking--or in Hikaru's place talking about with Sai, which seems to have replaced any internal monologue he might have.
September 15, 2017
Not a bad manga, just not my favorite.
November 10, 2017
この巻はびりびりだった！
伊角さんの必死の顔は怖かった。でもやっぱり彼の負けは寂しかった。おちはあまり好きじゃないなんで彼が一番強い人なの？プロ試験の受ける人はわや、しんどう、と伊角さんはずだった。みんなはバレバレになるいやだ。伊角さんけっこ好きも会えなくてはいやだ。
伊角さんの必死の顔は怖かった。でもやっぱり彼の負けは寂しかった。おちはあまり好きじゃないなんで彼が一番強い人なの？プロ試験の受ける人はわや、しんどう、と伊角さんはずだった。みんなはバレバレになるいやだ。伊角さんけっこ好きも会えなくてはいやだ。
April 8, 2019
Pretty great board game manga, Really liked the story and the art was really nice😁😻👌♟♟📖💕
December 10, 2020
chà thích tâm lý Akira quá
November 22, 2021
Sedikit twist utk trio SHindo-Waya-Isumi.
Wajah putus asa Isumi begitu menakutkan.
Wajah putus asa Isumi begitu menakutkan.
January 14, 2022
Good choice not to play out every single game in the pro test. The mange focuses more on the events and discussions inbetween the games.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 18, 2023
Touya sente il fiato di Shindo sul collo perché manca davvero poco al suo arrivo nel mondo del professionismo del Go.
December 3, 2023
I really like the competitiveness that all the characters have and it is cool seeing the process of progression that a professional Go player goes through (even if it is v simplified). The art is 🔥🔥.
February 5, 2024
In the pro test, we have some wins, we have some losses, but we also get people hyping up Hikaru~
July 25, 2024
Going pro is just a step
June 29, 2021
In this tankobon we follow Hikaru Shindo as he ploughs through the Pro Exam and follow him through his emotional roller coaster ride, the ups, the downs, and the occasional loop-de-loops. It is surprisingly a tension filled and morally introspective exam, which lets us see Shindo grow both on and off the goban.
Out of twenty-seven games in the Pro Exam, this tankobon covered fifteen of them, giving a grand total of twenty-one games (plus six games from the previous tankobon). Shindo's record is eighteen wins and three losses.
He lost his tenth game to Hiroshi Oshima, an outsider, because he wasn't feeling well (happened off screen); he lost his thirteenth game to fellow insei and friend, Yuta Fukui, because he couldn't get the previous game with Shinichiro Isumi out of his head and heart; and he barely lost his seventeenth game to fellow insei and friend, Toshinori Honda.
The other top four from the last tankobon are recorded with the following: Isumi at 17-4, Yoshitaka Waya at 19-2 and Kousuke Ochi at the top of the leader board with 20-1, only losing to Isumi. With only six more games to play and three pro spots open, it really too close to call who would be the victors.
Running parallel to the Pro Exam story is the one between Ochi and Akira Toya. Ochi's wealthy grandfather had hired Toya to tutor Ochi, which Pro Go Players often do. Ochi admires Toya and wants him to see him as a potential rival and equal, but he quickly finds out that Toya's only concern is Shindo. Toya also has an ulterior motive; he's using Ochi as his proxy to gage Shindo strength on the goban. Let's just say their relationship wasn't courteous or friendly.
To show that Ochi should take Shindo seriously, despite what he's heard throughout the Pro Exam of Shindo's strength, Toya shows him Shindo's game with Hon Suyon (tankobon 9). Toya's School Go Club Adviser was there to witness the match between the two and shared the kifu (record) with Toya. Later on, to reinforce that he should be wary of Shino, Toya showed Ochi the second game he played with Shindo (rather Sai through Shindo), which put the fear in Ochi.
All in all, this tankobon is filled with dramatic tension with the promise for more drama and pressure, because the very last match that Shindo has to play in his Pro Exam is Ochi. I can't wait to read the next tankobon.
Out of twenty-seven games in the Pro Exam, this tankobon covered fifteen of them, giving a grand total of twenty-one games (plus six games from the previous tankobon). Shindo's record is eighteen wins and three losses.
He lost his tenth game to Hiroshi Oshima, an outsider, because he wasn't feeling well (happened off screen); he lost his thirteenth game to fellow insei and friend, Yuta Fukui, because he couldn't get the previous game with Shinichiro Isumi out of his head and heart; and he barely lost his seventeenth game to fellow insei and friend, Toshinori Honda.
The other top four from the last tankobon are recorded with the following: Isumi at 17-4, Yoshitaka Waya at 19-2 and Kousuke Ochi at the top of the leader board with 20-1, only losing to Isumi. With only six more games to play and three pro spots open, it really too close to call who would be the victors.
Running parallel to the Pro Exam story is the one between Ochi and Akira Toya. Ochi's wealthy grandfather had hired Toya to tutor Ochi, which Pro Go Players often do. Ochi admires Toya and wants him to see him as a potential rival and equal, but he quickly finds out that Toya's only concern is Shindo. Toya also has an ulterior motive; he's using Ochi as his proxy to gage Shindo strength on the goban. Let's just say their relationship wasn't courteous or friendly.
To show that Ochi should take Shindo seriously, despite what he's heard throughout the Pro Exam of Shindo's strength, Toya shows him Shindo's game with Hon Suyon (tankobon 9). Toya's School Go Club Adviser was there to witness the match between the two and shared the kifu (record) with Toya. Later on, to reinforce that he should be wary of Shino, Toya showed Ochi the second game he played with Shindo (rather Sai through Shindo), which put the fear in Ochi.
All in all, this tankobon is filled with dramatic tension with the promise for more drama and pressure, because the very last match that Shindo has to play in his Pro Exam is Ochi. I can't wait to read the next tankobon.
August 3, 2025
The pro test continues! I love the way these creators do a 'tournament arc' round robin like this. Hikaru is definitely the main character, as we see him win (and maybe even lose???) against certain characters. The focus is always on him. But it's not always from his perspective! We meet up with Mr. Tsubaki again, and see how he's handling the stress compared to Hikaru. We see Isumi starting to break down, and he gets his own little arc about how he's playing. Ochi, Hikaru's fated final opponent that will happen in the last game of the test, gets most of the story though. How he prepares for Hikaru, what he thinks of Hikaru, and his pride going through the tournament are all important plot elements. We learn more about Hikaru by studying his peers in the pro test, instead of seeing him make personal leaps and bounds.
We barely see any of the actual go games, which would be a disappointment for many topical manga but somehow they make it work! It's more about the characters' motivations, and the mental strength it takes to overcome their losses, instead of the gameplay itself. We breeze through have the games in the pro test and it just means that the games we do see are even more important... why are we being showed these games, out of all of them? Dozens of games, and this is the only one we see play out? What makes it so crucial? The actual act of playing go, instead of talking about or thinking about go, is a great 'action scene' in the middle of all the other drama.
We barely see any of the actual go games, which would be a disappointment for many topical manga but somehow they make it work! It's more about the characters' motivations, and the mental strength it takes to overcome their losses, instead of the gameplay itself. We breeze through have the games in the pro test and it just means that the games we do see are even more important... why are we being showed these games, out of all of them? Dozens of games, and this is the only one we see play out? What makes it so crucial? The actual act of playing go, instead of talking about or thinking about go, is a great 'action scene' in the middle of all the other drama.
May 26, 2011
プロ試験の浮き沈み！第１１巻を楽しみにしていますが、他の人がもう図書館に借りたので、１ヶ月ぐらい待たないといけないかもな T_T
The ups and downs of the pro exam! I was really looking forward to vol 11 but someone's got it checked out of the library, so I have to wait probably a month or so before I can read it T_T
Anime-manga match-up:
ep 38 = vol 10 up to pg 49 （第７９～８０局）
ep 39 = vol 10 pgs 52-89 （第８１～８２局）
ep 40 = vol 10 pgs 91-135 （第８３～８４局）
ep 41 = vol 10 pgs 138-177 （第８５～８６局）
1st half of ep 42 = vol 10 pgs 179-203 （第８７局）
The ups and downs of the pro exam! I was really looking forward to vol 11 but someone's got it checked out of the library, so I have to wait probably a month or so before I can read it T_T
Anime-manga match-up:
ep 38 = vol 10 up to pg 49 （第７９～８０局）
ep 39 = vol 10 pgs 52-89 （第８１～８２局）
ep 40 = vol 10 pgs 91-135 （第８３～８４局）
ep 41 = vol 10 pgs 138-177 （第８５～８６局）
1st half of ep 42 = vol 10 pgs 179-203 （第８７局）
July 27, 2007
I don't know how this comic manages to be so damn exciting. It is. This whole volume is just games they're playing against each other, determining who goes pro - the tension is amazing.
Akira's scary when he's being so obsessively competitive with Hikaru. He's very intense. Probably why he's my favourite.
Akira's scary when he's being so obsessively competitive with Hikaru. He's very intense. Probably why he's my favourite.
February 9, 2011
Yumi Hotta, Hikaru no Go, vol. 10: Lifeline (ViZ, 1998)
The Pro Test continues, and as we kick off the book, Hikaru is still undefeated... but he has his most challenging foes yet to come, including Isumi and Ochi. This one focuses almost entirely on the matches, along with an interesting subplot (Ochi's grandfather contacts Toya for tutoring). A phenomenal series stays strong. ****
The Pro Test continues, and as we kick off the book, Hikaru is still undefeated... but he has his most challenging foes yet to come, including Isumi and Ochi. This one focuses almost entirely on the matches, along with an interesting subplot (Ochi's grandfather contacts Toya for tutoring). A phenomenal series stays strong. ****
August 14, 2007
Tension tension tension. Toyas effort to expose the mystery of Shindo's meteoric rise gains another convert. The old men of the test fall over the cliff. Good friends test each others resolve. Why do these volumes have to be devoured so quickly?
February 6, 2008
I did a little happy dance when volume 10 of this manga series arrived at the library. The tournament to determine who becomes a professional go player is still raging, and tension mounts as Hikaru must defeat his own friends to win the title.
August 28, 2015
This story is comfort food for me. I can't quite put my finger on what keeps me rereading/rewatching this and the anime, but my interest in Go certainly helps. I also like that it's a generally positive story about getting good at something.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews