It was serialized, under the pseudonym Akitsu Saburō (秋津三朗), and ran in Boys and Girls Newspaper (少年少女新聞 [ja], Shōnen Shōjo Shinbun) between September 12, 1969, and March 15, 1970.

In order to restore peace to the realm, Tem rallies his remaining compatriots and rebels against the Kittāru's attempts to gain control of the Sokut territory and enslave its inhabitants through military force.

It was in color and created for promotional purposes in conjunction with his work on Toei's anime film of the same title, directed by Kimio Yabuki.

This manga was influenced by illustrated stories (絵物語, emonogatari) he read in boys' magazines in his youth, such as Soji Yamakawa's Shōnen Ōja (少年王者) and in particular Tetsuji Fukushima's Demon King of the Desert (沙漠の魔王, Sabaku no Maō).

The strip has been identified as a precursor for Miyazaki's manga Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1982–1995) and later emonogatari Shuna's Journey (1983), published by Tokuma Shoten.