Where should you start reading after the Chiikawa movie?

After the movie comes the Island Arc in volume 8, and after that the Parallel World Arc

If you want to keep reading after the movie Chiikawa: The Secret of Mermaid Island, the fastest route is to first read the Island Arc (Siren Arc) in volume 8 of the manga to the end, then proceed to the Parallel World Arc, which is not yet collected in tankobon. The movie's source material is the Island Arc collected in volume 8, a long story in which Chiikawa, Hachiware, and Usagi head to an island after Usagi brings a recruitment notice promising a 100x reward.

Remember the reading order as "Island Arc in volume 8 → Parallel World Arc → subsequent uncollected arcs" and you won't get lost. If you've finished the Island Arc in the tankobon, you can go straight to the Parallel World Arc from the uncollected-episodes list. If you watched the movie first, checking the pacing and panel flow unique to the original posts before moving on lets you trace the Island Arc from its opening to the end of the journey at your own speed. The departure scene, where a bird-shaped ship comes to pick them up, is also a landmark for finding the start of the Island Arc in volume 8.

Even if you have volume 8 on hand but are unsure how far you read, comparing against the original post cards on the Island Arc page makes it easier to find where to resume. Conversely, if you clearly remember finishing volume 8, you don't need to reread the same 130 episodes. You can also just continue from the Parallel World Arc onward and return to volume 8 only for scenes that caught your attention, and the story still connects.

Even after seeing the movie, volume 8 is still worth reading

Even if you've already seen the movie, there's no need to skip the Island Arc in volume 8. The Island Arc is a long story of 130 episodes published on X from March 14 to November 26, 2023, involving not only Chiikawa and friends but also Rakko, Momonga, Furuhonya, Kurimanju, Shisa, Shimajiro, and others. Rather than deciding in advance how it differs from the movie, the safest approach is to check in the original what happens, and in what order.

Early on, they learn that it's not only a 100x reward—the island's special ramen and sweets are also free—and Rakko reads the recruitment notice and joins the trip to the island. After arrival, there's time to savor anticipation of the food, with Shisa enjoying a fruit parfait after the ramen. The lively trip preparations gradually give way to unsettling incidents, so reading from the beginning rather than picking up only the second half lets you appreciate the shift in tone. The brightness of the feast sets off the tension to come—a runway typical of the Island Arc.

If you don't have volume 8, you can follow the original X posts in order of publication on the Island Arc page. When you want to confirm the order of events in the original, using volume 8 or the original posts as a landmark makes it harder to lose track of where you are.

Finish the Island Arc, then move on to the next long arc

For those resuming mid-way through the Island Arc, the story's major turning point comes when one of the island's residents goes missing and Chiikawa and friends are asked to help with the Subjugation. The three are handed unfamiliar weapons from the islanders, and the story eventually moves toward preparing a meal with the islanders and their companions. From there the plot approaches the heart of the incident, so if you don't yet know the ending or the circumstances surrounding the Mermaid, it's best to read through volume 8 in order rather than settling for a summary.

The landmark for having finished is the final stretch, where the island journey reaches its close. When looking for what comes next, move to the page for the following long arc. The end of the Island Arc includes some lingering, resonant moments, so rather than checking them off one by one like sequel previews, it's most satisfying to receive them first as the conclusion of a single long arc.

The next major long arc, the Parallel World Arc, is uncollected in tankobon

The next major long arc after the Island Arc is the Parallel World Arc, 27 episodes published from February 23 to March 31, 2024. As of 2026, it has not been collected in tankobon, but the preview at the end of volume 8 announced its inclusion in volume 9, planned for release in 2026. You have two options: if you want to wait for the books, check the collection info for volume 9; if you want to read it now, go to the Parallel World Arc page, which arranges the original X posts in order of publication.

Here, "next" means the next major long arc to read after the Island Arc. There were also short posts between the end of the Island Arc in November 2023 and the start of the Parallel World Arc in February 2024, so if you don't want to skip a single post, proceed in date order from the full post list. If you just want to quickly follow the long arcs' storylines, using the Parallel World Arc as your next entry point is perfectly fine.

The story starts moving when Hachiware begins to feel something subtly off about the weapons and the appearance of the people around. On his mobile device is an ID for a level-5 Weeding certification he doesn't remember earning. Then a face-bearing tree hands him a bug net and tells him the conditions for returning to his original world. The core of the arc is Hachiware's hesitation as he senses good things about this world too, yet still weighs whether to go back. The atmosphere shifts into a long arc that examines the world's workings and the place to return to.

If you want to read even the everyday short episodes published between the Island Arc and the Parallel World Arc in order, the full post list is the better fit. Long arcs only → uncollected-episodes list; don't want to skip any of the publication flow → full post list. Just decide your goal and the entry point becomes clear.

After the Parallel World Arc, read the 9 uncollected arcs in publication order

As of 2026, there are 9 episodes after volume 8 that remain uncollected in tankobon. After the Parallel World Arc comes the Dashi Event Arc, where a mix-up between "dashi" (stock) and "shimono" (a program) draws them into a tournament. Next are the Pajama Parties Bone Arc, where Pajama Parties Green encounters an ominous bone, and the Treasure Hunt Arc, where Chiikawa and friends' and Momonga and friends' explorations run in parallel. From laughable misunderstandings to unidentifiable eeriness, each long arc has a distinctly different feel.

After that come, in order: the Kurimanju God Arc, where Kurimanju is treated as a god at an altar; the Angel and Jizo Arc, centered on Usagi and the ring above his head; the Weeding Certification: Sunfish Arc, where Chiikawa retries the level-5 Weeding certification exam; the Rental Bicycle Arc, which shifts from a story of a fall and compensation to a three-person ride; and the Ghost Photo Arc, investigating a black shadow in a photograph. Being able to read all 9 long arcs awaiting collection is where you currently stand.

To compare each arc's serialization period, episode count, and brief synopsis, the "uncollected-episodes list" is handy. Starting with the Parallel World Arc, the entries up through the Ghost Photo Arc are arranged in publication order. Proceeding from the top rather than picking only intriguing titles makes it easier to also grasp the everyday moments in between and the changing distances between characters.

For the fastest route use the uncollected-episodes list; to include short episodes use the full post list

If you want to know what happens after the movie as quickly as possible, after finishing the Island Arc in volume 8 move to the "uncollected-episodes list" and proceed from the Parallel World Arc onward—that's the shortest path. Standalone illustrations and food-related short episodes unrelated to the main plot are published between the long arcs, so long-arc pages alone can't fully reproduce the publication order.

If you don't want to skip even the short everyday episodes, use the "full post list" and follow, in date order, everything after the Island Arc's final post. If you lose track of how far you've read, check the Island Arc's collected range on the volume 8 page and return to the end of the journey on the Island Arc page. The right answer simply depends on whether you wait for the next book volume or read the X posts first. The single road after the movie connects once you have the three anchors: volume 8, the uncollected-episodes list, and the full post list.

Even after catching up to the latest point, you'll need to check arc by arc whether each has been collected into tankobon. The uncollected-episodes list shows the status of book releases, and the full post list shows the flow of publication dates. If you separate your eagerness to read ahead from your desire to line the volumes up neatly on the shelf, you won't be unsure how to read while waiting for volume 9.