Tokyo | July 30, 2025 : A powerful 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, triggering tsunami waves that reached parts of Japan’s Hokkaido and Russia’s Kuril Islands. But beyond the natural disaster itself, what’s capturing global attention is an eerie 1999 manga prediction by Japanese artist Ryo Tatsuki—now dubbed the “Japanese Baba Vanga.”

In her self-published comic "The Future I Saw", Tatsuki claimed to have experienced visions of future disasters, one of which warned of a major catastrophe in southern Japan on July 5, 2025. Although the predicted event didn’t occur on that exact date, the recent seismic activity on July 30 has reignited interest in her alleged prophecy.

Social media exploded with debates, conspiracy theories, and uncanny comparisons. A post on X (formerly Twitter) read, “Not the exact date, but you have to respect Ryo Tatsuki.” Others quickly chimed in, pointing out how close the timing was to the original prediction and speculating that Tatsuki may have been referencing a general timeframe rather than a specific day.

The hashtag #July5Disaster trended for days earlier this month, driven by online forums and Japanese media outlets discussing the prophecy. The frenzy led to real-world consequences: according to regional travel agencies, flight bookings from Hong Kong to Japan fell by 83% between late June and early July, reflecting widespread anxiety over the prediction.

Tatsuki, who rose to cult fame in Japan for her manga’s accurate depiction of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake, has long been the subject of speculation. Some of her other visions described heatwaves, political turmoil, and pandemics—many of which have been loosely linked to real-world events. This has earned her comparisons to Bulgarian mystic Baba Vanga, who was famous for her vague but often cited predictions.

Despite the buzz, scientists have been quick to throw cold water on the speculation. Professor Sekiya Naoya, a seismologist at Tokyo University, dismissed the claims as “scientifically groundless.” “Earthquakes cannot be predicted—not in date, not in scale, not in location—with current scientific tools,” he told NHK News. “To attribute seismic events to artistic or psychic visions is both misleading and dangerous.”

Japanese officials had issued a public statement earlier this year, urging citizens to disregard Tatsuki’s predictions and not to spread misinformation online.

Yet for many, especially younger internet users, the line between prophecy and coincidence is increasingly blurred in an era of virality. Whether Tatsuki truly saw the future or her work simply aligns with recurring natural patterns, the debate underscores a timeless human tendency: searching for meaning in chaos.

As Japan recovers from the tremors and watches the coasts for aftershocks, one thing is certain, the legend of Ryo Tatsuki just got stronger.