In this Tokyo where ghouls run rampant, thousands fall prey to them every day.
The story begins with this black-haired youth named Kaneki. After more than a decade of being single, his luck finally turned today. Faced with the beautiful Rize, Kaneki's admiration was practically overflowing.
After their date, Rize mentioned that ghouls had been too active lately and asked Kaneki to escort her. This infatuated young man saw it as an opportunity and eagerly followed Rize home. On the way, they encountered Touka, a waitress from the coffee shop. Touka simply glanced at them and said nothing more.
The naive boy, however, had already followed her into a secluded alley and began his passionate confession. But suddenly, the atmosphere shifted, becoming increasingly tense.
Kaneki was terrified. He never imagined that the woman he admired was a man-eating monster.
Scared, Kaneki tried to flee, but tentacles from behind Rize grabbed him and cruelly flung him against a wall.
Rize was no longer the lovely woman she had been. Her eyes now held only the glint of prey.
As Rize prepared to feast on the dying Kaneki, a steel cable above suddenly snapped. Tons of machinery plummeted down, instantly engulfing them both. This, in a way, saved Kaneki's life. He couldn't recall what happened next, only that he merged with Miss Rize in a sea of blood.
When Kaneki opened his eyes, both his pupils and his destiny were about to change.
Recovering, Kaneki found he couldn't stomach any food, feeling only nausea. The doctor's examination revealed no abnormalities.
Kaneki, however, insisted his sense of smell was off; everything he ate tasted of blood. The doctor reassured him, suggesting it was likely psychological, a natural reaction to such a traumatic accident.
Not long after, Kaneki was discharged. He knew deep down that what happened with Miss Rize wasn't a dream, and his body must have undergone some transformation.
Back home, Kaneki sat before the television. The host was speaking.
The differences between humans and ghouls were being explained.
Ghouls could only obtain nourishment from human bodies, and their tongues were structured differently from humans', making human food incredibly unappetizing, even repulsive.
At this point, Kaneki's mind went blank. He couldn't believe what he was hearing on TV. He grabbed a hamburger and shoved it into his mouth, but the overwhelming nausea sent him to the toilet to throw up.
Refusing to believe it, Kaneki tried again, but each attempt ended in failure. Even the hamburger his friend had specifically rushed to get for him was inedible. As night fell, Kaneki stood on the street, watching the passersby, almost unable to suppress his instincts.
Returning home, Kaneki saw the eye that wasn't his own again, and the faint figure of Miss Rize behind him. He panicked and shattered the mirror with a punch.
Now, Kaneki understood everything. He understood why he had survived such a ordeal unscathed.
Despair washed over him. Driven by ghoul instincts that night, Kaneki ventured outside, searching for prey.
Suddenly, Kaneki regained his senses. Was he any different from a ghoul now?
But then, the aroma of meat wafted from a nearby alley. Instinct drove him forward, only to see ghouls devouring a human at the corner. He realized he had been drawn by the scent of the corpse.
The ghoul currently feeding was surprisingly friendly.
A man with glasses suddenly appeared, claiming to be the boss of this territory. Seeing Kaneki with his single red eye, he felt a visceral discomfort and began strangling Kaneki, intending to kill him.
At that moment, a beautiful woman appeared – it was Touka, the coffee shop waitress from before.
Looking at the dismembered limbs on the ground, Touka furiously rebuked the man for his cruel methods. Clearly unyielding, he prepared to attack her.
The ghoul battle officially commenced. Sensing danger, the man with glasses turned and fled. Touka, seeing Kaneki kneeling on the ground, struggling to endure, felt a pang of sympathy and picked up a severed limb, intending to feed him.
But Kaneki refused to give in. As a human, he fought hard to suppress his desires.
Touka looked at the one-eyed ghoul before her and recalled seeing him with Miss Rize earlier.
Touka couldn't understand why Kaneki hadn't been eaten by Rize. Then, as if suddenly understanding something, she looked again at the kneeling ghoul. Touka decided to help him and shoved a piece of flesh into his mouth.
From this day on, you are no longer human.