Manga artist Yuuki Kikuchi started his 「100日後に死ぬワニ」 (hyaku-nichi go ni shinu wani / The crocodile who dies in 100 days) manga in December 2019 when things were still calmer and nobody anticipated all the havoc 2020 would bring.

He launched his manga series on Twitter and, every day, brought us the daily life of the main character, the crocodile (Wani Kun).

What is unique about the manga is that we get to know how many days the crocodile has left to live at the end of each page.

We know and observe his life, a life that is so relatable to ours. We wonder what’s going to happen next, how is it going to end, and we hold inside this tiny hope that he gets to live. We keep on reading.

The thing is: we know, but he doesn’t. He goes on with his ordinary life, watching TV, reading "One Piece," eating a cup of ramen with his friend, the mouse, not knowing he only has little time left to live.

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The manga starts with the crocodile laughing while watching TV.

Absorbed in the show he is watching, he just goes on laughing “Ha Ha Ha.” We can see he is enjoying it and we unconsciously smile, seeing him so happy.

But then we see: “99 days left until death.”

Our smile fades away and we start wondering how everything will turn out. We wait for the next chapter and the next day, when it’s once again published on Yuuki Kikuchi's social media account.

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The crocodile's life is as normal as it can get. This time, he watches an advertisement. It’s his favorite product, "Kumo Futon" (Cloud Futon).

He can’t resist the desire to have it, so he takes the phone and orders it. The operator on the other end of the line informs him: “There’s a one-year wait. Is that okay?” Unaware of his cruel fate, Wani Kun excitedly answers “YES.”

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On the third day, our protagonist saves a little chicken who crossed the road on a red light.

“Thank God nothing happened. If you are not careful, you might die.”

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As the series continues, we meet his friends, Mogura Kun (the mole) and Nezumi Kun (the mouse), along with his potential love interest, Crocodile Senpai lady from his workplace whom he asks for her plans on Christmas on the 12th day.

Crocodile: “Senpai…”
Senpai: “What is it?”
Crocodile: “Do you have any plans for Christmas?”
Senpai: “I do”
Crocodile: “Thought so…”

Then, the count reads: “88 more days until death”.

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His life goes on as usual and we finally arrive at the point where only two days of his life are left.

We see the crocodile working at the shop and sorting things. His colleague tells him he looks “genki” (in good spirits) and he replies with "Really? You’re imagining it.”

By this point, the manga has become a lot more popular and is already being uploaded on Yuuki Kikuchi’s Instagram account as well.

With only two days left, you can see several comments such as “Don’t die”, “I want the croc to live,” “I’m so sad,” etc.

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One day before his death: Day 99

The manga starts with an announcement: "The cherry blossoms that began blooming last week are expected to be in full bloom this weekend. It will be rainy in some places, but mostly it will be fine, the perfect weather for hanami (flower viewing)”.

At the fortunate weather forecast, Wani Kun bursts into a big smile...

“One day until death.”

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The long-awaited finale was published on 20th March 2020. The Mayan Calendar predicted the death of humanity and global destruction in March 2020.

By this time, many theories about how the Croc would die had appeared and some even said that all the characters would perish at the end.

Some people thought he would die of old age, others that he would fall ill, some were more positive and said he would continue living happily with his friends while continuing his everyday life.

Are any of these predictions right? Check out Yuukichi Kikuchi's social media accounts Instagram and Twitter and find out how it all ended.

I read it as soon as it came out and was at a loss for words.

The author wants those who read it to be aware that we all live once, never knowing when we will die, so we should ask ourselves if what we are doing now is the right thing.

We should be thankful we are living and not take it for granted.

We should know that our lives are precious and start taking action. Maybe instead of watching TV, eating, sleeping, there is something else we should do.

We mustn’t waste our lives, otherwise, we will end up regretting it later when it will be too late.