20 Best Anime series like Natsume's Book of Friends: The Waking Rock and the Strange Visitor (2021)

When she was a little girl, Atsuko "Akko" Kagari saw a magic show performed by a witch named Shiny Chariot. From that day on she wanted to be just like her. Enrolling at Luna Nova Magical Academy and having no magical background, can she become a witch like her idol Shiny Chariot?

Yuuto Suoh gets more than he bargained for when he joins his childhood friend Mitsuki Shimoya in testing out an urban legend. When he uses his phone to take a picture of himself with the local shrine's divine mirror, he is whisked off into another world – one heavily steeped in the lore of the old Norse myths. Using his knowledge gained from school and from his solar-powered smartphone, he has the chance to bring the Wolf Clan, the same people who cared for him, to prominence, all while earning the adoration of a group of magic-wielding warrior maidens known as the Einherjar.

Konohana Kitan is the heartwarming story of a new apprentice named Yuzu, and the other fox girls who work at a hot spring hotel called Konohatei. The staff at Konohatei live by one belief: no matter who one may truly be, no matter what, anyone who is a guest is a god. Of course, that includes you. Let the hospitality of Yuzu and the Konohatei heal your tired soul.

One day after school, Asahi Kuromine stumbles upon the truth that Youko Shiragami, the girl he has a crush on, is actually a vampire. According to her father's rules, Youko must now quit school in order to keep her family safe. However, Asahi does not want her to go and promises that he will keep her true nature secret. Unfortunately, this turns out to be easier said than done, as Asahi is a man who is easy to read and is unable to keep any secrets to himself.And this is the only the beginning of his troubles—more supernatural beings enter his life, and he is forced to protect all of their identities or face the consequences. Jitsu wa Watashi wa follows Asahi as he deals with his new friends and the unique challenges they bring, struggles to keep his mouth shut, and desperately tries to win Youko's heart in the process.

A mecha otaku is reincarnated into another world as Ernesti Echevarria, also known as Eru. In this world, huge humanoid weapons known as Silhouette Knights exist. Dreaming of piloting those robots, Eru and his friends, Archid Olter and Adeltrud Olter, aim to become Knight Runners.

Aya Asagiri is a middle school girl who has problems both at school with bullying and at home from physical abuse by her brother. While browsing online, a website pops up on her computer featuring a creepy looking person. This person appears to take pity on her, and announces that she has granted Asagiri magical powers.

Year 198 of the Solar Era in Tokyo, special fire brigades are fighting against a phenomenon called spontaneous human combustion where humans beings are turned into living infernos called "Infernals". While the Infernals are first generation cases of spontaneous human combustion, later generations possess the ability to manipulate flames while retaining human form. Shinra Kusakabe, a youth who gained the nickname Devil's Footprints for his ability to ignite his feet at will, joins the Special Fire Force Company 8 which composes of other flames users as they work to extinguish any Infernals they encounter. As a faction that is creating Infernals appears, Shira begins to uncover the truth behind a mysterious fire that caused the death of his family twelve years ago.

Gintarou is a fox spirit that has been protecting the small Inari temple since the Edo era. Saeki Makoto's family possesses the power to see the gods' agent, but the ability is limited to one living relative at a time. When Makoto's mother passed away while she was still young, Makoto inherited the ability as the sole remaining family member. With the help of fox spirit's power, Makoto and Gintarou help the people of their community, in spite of their many differences.

Spurred by the flame raging in his heart, the Black Swordsman Guts continues his seemingly endless quest for revenge. Standing in his path are heinous outlaws, delusional evil spirits, and a devout child of god. Even as it chips away at his life, Guts continues to fight his enemies, who wield repulsive and inhumane power, with nary but his body and sword—his strength as a human.

In a post-apocalyptic world dominated by the so-called "Numbers," each human will have their identity branded with their own "Count," which could define any number related to their life. May it be one's walked distance or amount of compliments given to them by others, this Count could lead them to the abyss when it has dropped to zero.In the year 305 of the Alcian calendar, Hina has inherited a mission from her Mother, whose Count has depreciated to zero, to search for the Legendary Red Baron. In her adventure, she meets a half-masked swordsman named Licht who tries to hide his identity, as he is known as a degenerate for having an incredibly low Count.

A samurai lord has bartered away his newborn son's organs to forty-eight demons in exchange for dominance on the battlefield. Yet, the abandoned infant survives thanks to a medicine man who equips him with primitive prosthetics—lethal ones with which the wronged son will use to hunt down the multitude of demons to reclaim his body one piece at a time, before confronting his father. On his journeys the young hero encounters an orphan who claims to be the greatest thief in Japan.

Legendary half-vampire, half-human vampire hunter Blade is tracking Deacon Frost, a very powerful and influential vampire who killed his mother and who heads Existence, a secretive vampire organization that operates in Southeast Asia.

Seth is a boy who seeks to become a great magician, and a group of witches who seek to travel to the Radiant. Radiant is a mythical land that spawns monsters called "Néméses" which fall to the world from the sky. While traveling, they are also hunted by The Inquisition.

When Yadomi Jinta was a child, he was a central piece in a group of close friends. In time, however, these childhood friends drifted apart, and when they became high school students, they had long ceased to think of each other as friends.One of the friends from that group, Honma Meiko, now has a wish she asks Jinta to fulfil. The problem is, she can't remember what her wish is anymore. As Meiko won't cease to bother Jinta about it, he gives in and decides to try to grant this wish he knows nothing of; for that, however, the help of his other former friends, now all very estranged from himself and from each other, may turn out to be necessary. He hasn't spoken to Anjou Naruko, Matsuyuki Atsumu, Tsurumi Chiriko, or Hisakawa Tetsudou in a long time; as he struggles to grant Meiko's wish and gathers his old friends together in the process, all the old feelings that still exist between them and have long been stashed away are bound to come up again.

In the Sun Kingdom, sunshine is part of its citizens' everyday lives, and rain is something that they have never even heard of. However, in a faraway land called the Rain Dukedom, the weather is reversed, and everybody has the power to create rain with their voices.Livius Ifrikia has conquered the entire world and expanded the Sun Kingdom's influence in the three short years since he was crowned king. Upon learning about the powers to create rain, Livius decides to marry Nike Remercier, one of the princesses of the Rain Dukedom. However, those outside the Sun Kingdom have spread a rumor that Livius is a cruel, ruthless, and tyrannical ruler, and as word reaches the princess, she begins to prepare herself for the worst. But when she finally meets her fiancé, Nike discovers that he is an entirely different person from what she originally expected.

Morphed into a raccoon beastman, Michiru seeks refuge, and answers, with the aid of wolf beastman Shirou inside the special zone of Anima-City.

The psychic suspense story revolves around people who possess the ability to infiltrate people's minds and manipulate memories. Their powers have been used in the underworld for covering up incidents, assassinations, and other deeds. These powers can not only destroy other people's spirits, but also corrupt the users' own hearts at the same time. The users had to protect their fragile and insecure hearts, as if chained to each other. They are called "pets" out of fear and despising.

In the year 2043, Infinite Dendrogram, the world's first successful full-dive VRMMO was released. In addition to its ability to perfectly simulate the five senses, along with its many other amazing features, the game promised to offer players a world full of infinite possibilities. Nearly two years later, soon-to-be college freshman, Reiji Mukudori, is finally able to buy a copy of the game and start playing. With some help from his experienced older brother, Shuu, and his partner Embryo, Reiji embarks on an adventure into the world of Infinite Dendrogram.

After losing her grandfather, Aoi—a girl who can see spirits known as ayakashi—is suddenly approached by an ogre. Demanding she pay her grandfather’s debt, he makes a huge request: her hand in marriage! Refusing this absurd offer, Aoi decides to work at the Tenjin-ya bed and breakfast for the ayakashi to pay back what her family owes.

Year 526 of the Liturgical Calendar. The world knew that witches existed, and that they practiced the notorious art of sorcery. Nevertheless, the world did not know anything about the study of magic. Our story follows a half-man, half-beast mercenary; humans mockingly call his kind the “fallen beasts”. He always dreamt of becoming a human, but one day, he met a witch who would change his life forever. “Do you desire a human form? Then be my escort, mercenary!” The witch introduced herself as “Zero”, and explained that she was searching for a one-of-a-kind magical tome that bandits had stolen from her lair. Entitled “The Book of Zero”, the grimoire supposedly contained valuable magical knowledge that could be used to effortlessly bring the world to its knees. Thus, in order to realize his dream of becoming a human, the mercenary must accompany Zero on her journey—despite her being one of the witches he so loathed. This is the story of a haughty sorceress and a kindhearted beast.

We don't have an overview translated in English. Help us expand our database by adding one.

Sota Hatate is a boy who has the unique ability to see "Flags" above the heads of other people. The "Flags" mark critical crossroads in people's lives — when the choices they make will determine love, friendship, victory, and even death. He transfers into Tokyo's elite Hatagaya Academy, but instead of living by himself in the boys' dormitory, he ends up living with many beautiful girls under one roof.

Ushio thinks that his father's talk of an ancient ancestor impaling a demon on a temple altar stone with the legendary Beast Spear is nuts, but when he finds the monster in his own basement, Ushio has to take another look at the family legend! To save his friends and family from the invading spirits, Ushio is forced to release Tora from his captivity. But will the creature prove to be worse than the curse?

Lingalind is a land enclosed by the Wall. The Wall covers, protects, cultivates, and nurtures the land. One day in Edger, a village on the outskirts of Lingalind, a mysterious man named Back Arrow appears. Arrow has lost his memory, but he claims that all he knows is that “I came from outside the Wall.”

In the year 2138, virtual reality gaming is booming. Yggdrasil, a popular online game is quietly shut down one day. However, one player named Momonga decides to not log out. Momonga is then transformed into the image of a skeleton as "the most powerful wizard." The world continues to change, with non-player characters (NPCs) beginning to feel emotion. Having no parents, friends, or place in society, this ordinary young man Momonga then strives to take over the new world the game has become.

Three years ago, the world learned that harpies, centaurs, catgirls, and all manners of fabulous creatures are not merely fiction; they are flesh and blood - not to mention scale, feather, horn, and fang. Thanks to the "Cultural Exchange Between Species Act," these once-mythical creatures have assimilated into society, or at least, they're trying. When a hapless human teenager named Kurusu Kimihito is inducted as a "volunteer" into the government exchange program, his world is turned upside down. A snake-like lamia named Miia comes to live with him, and it is Kurusu's job to take care of her and make sure she integrates into his everyday life.

Once upon a time, fairies were tools of war.The story takes place in a world where fairies possess and dwell in animals, giving them mysterious abilities. By removing the organs of a possessed animal and transplanting them into humans, fairies can be summoned as an alter ego and be used as a weapon. Such individuals who used fairies as war tools were called "Fairy Soldiers." Once the war was over and they completed their roles, the soldiers lost their purpose. Some began working for the government, some joined the mafia, and some even became terrorists, as each chose their own way to live.Nine years have passed since the war. The protagonist Mariya is a new recruit of "Dorothea," an organization which investigates and suppresses fairy-related crimes. Amidst the unstable political situation, criminals with lingering wounds from the war and past conflicts emerge and engage in terrorism as an act of revenge. This is the story of Fairy Soldiers, fighting for their own justice in a chaotic postwar world.