Yusei Matsui is a Japanese manga artist born on January 31, 1979, in Iruma, Saitama Prefecture. His interest in drawing manga began in elementary school, and he was a member of his high school’s manga research club. Early in his career, he worked as an assistant to Yoshio Sawai, the creator of the manga Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo. Matsui began submitting his work to Shueisha in his late teens, and in 2000, his one-shot Rubbing Dead won a prize in the company’s manga festival. He later won runner-up honors at the 12th Jump Treasure Newcomer Manga Award in 2004 for the one-shot version of Neuro: Supernatural Detective.

Matsui made his serialization debut with Neuro: Supernatural Detective, which ran in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 2005 to 2009 and was collected in 23 volumes. The series follows a demon who feeds on mysteries and a high school girl who helps him solve crimes in the human world. It was adapted into a 25-episode anime television series that aired from 2007 to 2008.

His next major work, Assassination Classroom, was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 2012 to 2016 and compiled into 21 volumes. The story centers on a class of misfit students tasked with assassinating their alien teacher before he destroys the Earth, only to find he is the best educator they have ever had. The series became a significant hit, leading to multiple adaptations. A two-season anime series aired in 2015 and 2016. It was also adapted into two live-action films, with Matsui personally serving as a supervisor on the screenplay to ensure consistency between the film and the ongoing manga. A recap film, Assassination Classroom the Movie: 365 Days' Time, was released in 2016. Additionally, a spin-off anime titled Koro Sensei Quest!, which reimagines the characters in a fantasy role-playing game setting, aired as a series of short episodes from 2016 to 2017. While Matsui is credited as one of the writers for the Koro Sensei Quest! anime, the original spin-off manga was written by Kizuku Watanabe and illustrated by Jō Aoto.

After a few one-shot stories, Matsui launched his third serialized work, The Elusive Samurai, in Weekly Shōnen Jump in 2021. Set in 14th-century Japan, it tells the story of Tokiyuki Hōjō, a young heir who must use his talent for escape to survive after his family is betrayed and killed. In interviews, Matsui has noted that he chose the historically overlooked figure of Tokiyuki to explore themes of survival and to highlight that the lives of ordinary people are also a vital part of history. The series received the 69th Shogakukan Manga Award in 2024, and its anime adaptation began airing in 2024.

Across his career, all three of Matsui’s major serialized works have been adapted into anime, demonstrating his consistent popularity and significance within the industry. His artistic identity often involves blending unconventional premises—such as solving mysteries with a demon or saving the world by assassinating a teacher—with character-driven storytelling and comedic elements. Beyond manga, his works have been expanded into various media, including video games and live-action events, cementing his status as a prominent creator in contemporary Japanese popular culture.