Joseph Luster
September 21, 2021 
Area 88 creator Kaoru Shintani made the official announcement on Monday that his wife—manga author Kayono Saeki—passed away on August 29. The fellow creator was 69 years old and passed due to lung cancer.
Saeki was diagnosed with stage four cancer three years ago, and the cancer had already spread so surgery wasn’t an option. According to the announcement, her condition took a turn for the worse back in March, and she passed with her family surrounding her.
Some of the manga for which Saeki was known are the Smash! Meg manga, which debuted in Sho-Comi in 1980, and the Kuchibeni Combat and Akihi manga. She also teamed up with Shintani on the Quo Vadis manga in 2007 and her Hi no Ryosen manga netted her the 23rd Japan Cartoonists Association Award in 1994.
