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Beyond the Boundary

Japanese light novel series

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 5, 2026
Entity authorityQ9385099 ↗
Source-derived summary

Beyond the Boundary (Japanese: 境界の彼方, Hepburn: Kyōkai no Kanata) is a Japanese light novel series written by Nagomu Torii, with illustrations by Tomoyo Kamoi. The work won an honorable mention in the Kyoto Animation Award competition in 2011. Kyoto Animation has published three volumes since June 2012. Set in Kashihara, Nara, this story follows a young boy named Akihito Kanbara who is an immortal being and half a spirit. After Akihito saves a girl named Mirai Kuriyama from committing suicide, he learns that she is a spirit world warrior and their lives become intertwined.

An anime television series adaptation, produced by Kyoto Animation, aired in Japan between October and December 2013. An original video animation episode was released in July 2014. A two-part anime film premiered in March and April 2015.

Plot

One day, high school student Akihito Kanbara instinctively goes to save his fellow schoolmate, Mirai Kuriyama, from committing suicide. Following his pleas, Mirai suddenly stabs Akihito with a sword formed out of her own blood and is shocked to discover that Akihito is an immortal "half-youmu"—the offspring of a supernatural creature, called a youmu, and a human.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Beyond the Boundary” as japanese light novel series. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Beyond, Boundary and Japanese.

Editorial reviewA productive route into publication, performance and collection histories when the underlying object or edition remains clearly identified. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2011, 2012, 2013, 2014—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Beyond, Boundary and Japanese providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Beyond the Boundary”, the useful work is to connect “japanese light novel series” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 5, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q9385099. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.

Critical limits

Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Beyond the Boundary”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Beyond the Boundary primary sources, Beyond the Boundary archive and Beyond research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Beyond the Boundary”?
  2. How did later circulation or interpretation alter the work’s reception?
  3. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Beyond the Boundary” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.