The adaptation also confirmed its main cast.
New social media accounts for an anime adaptation of You Chiba’s “Kindergarten Wars” (Youchien Wars) opened yesterday, 1 October. The adaptation revealed a 2026 premiere, its two main cast members, as well as a celebratory illustration by manga artist You Chiba:
Kindergarten Wars: what we know so far
The studio and staff for the anime is still being kept under wraps, however the two main cast members have been revealed:
Atsumi Tanezaki (Anya Forger in Spy x Family, Gyokuyou in The Apothecary Diaries, Chise Hatori in The Ancient Magus’ Bride) will be taking on the role of Rita, a former assassin known as “the Witch” who now works as a kindergarten teacher in Kindergarten Noir.
Meanwhile, Kentaro Kumagai (Chang Blarode in Tower of God, Laios Touden in Delicious in Dungeon, Daewi Han in The God of High School) will be voicing Doug, a former swindler and known womaniser who is recruited into working for Kindergarten Noir.
The manga first began serialisation through Shueisha’s mobile manga service Shonen Jump+ in 2022 as part of its “Rookies” program as an “independent” manga. A year later, Shueisha would announce that the manga was now a full-fledged series.
The story is still ongoing, but has reached its final arc. It currently has been collected into 15 tankobon volumes as of August 2025.Yen Press licensed the manga for an English release in 2024.
You can check out the title through the official Manga Plus website, which describes the story as:
Welcome to Kindergarten Noir, an exclusive school catering to children of the global elite. Rita, one of the teachers, has been on the hunt for a boyfriend but has had absolutely zero luck so far. One day, an assassin comes after one of the children...and he’s totally dreamy?! Dive into this action-packed rom-com as it unfolds inside the world’s “safest” kindergarten!
