Usagi Yojimbo #12

Stan Sakai's cover for this 1997 Dark Horse issue sets an immediately tense mood: the rabbit ronin Usagi stands sword-drawn in a darkened forest clearing, his expression grim and focused, while a wide-eyed woman in traditional dress crouches warily nearby and shadowy, monstrous cat-like figures loom in the surrounding darkness. The story title — "The Obakeneko of the Geishu Clan" — promises a supernatural encounter rooted in Japanese folklore, and the cover delivers that atmosphere with quiet confidence. Sakai's clean, expressive linework makes the danger feel both playful and genuinely eerie, a balance this series handles better than almost anyone else in comics.