Superhero characters promote safe sex in new anime series. (soranews24.com)

A Japanese lawmaker couple have left the main ruling Liberal Democratic Party as prosecutors appear set to launch a criminal investigation into their alleged vote buying. (NHK)

Japan received an estimated 1,700 foreign travelers in May, an all-time low for the second consecutive month, amid the coronavirus pandemic, government data showed Wednesday. (Japan Times)

SoftBank Group's planned 4.5 trillion yen ($41.9 billion) asset sale has fueled fears in the currency market of renewed volatility in the yen, which has enjoyed relative stability underpinned by aggressive Japanese investment broad. (Nikkei)

Electric-car maker Tesla and Japanese partner Panasonic have entered into a new three-year agreement on the supply of batteries from the sprawling Gigafactory 1 in the U.S. state of Nevada. (Nikkei)

Tokyo confirmed 16 more coronavirus infections Wednesday in a first drop under 20 since June 10, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government said. (Japan Times)

Police are trying to identify a white object that was seen flying over the city of Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, northern Japan, early on Wednesday morning. (NHK)

The Bank of Japan has decided to maintain its policy of massive monetary easing to support the country's economy during the coronavirus pandemic. (NHK)

A court in western Japan has handed a suspended prison sentence to a secretary of Upper House lawmaker Kawai Anri for paying campaign staff more than the legal limit during Kawai's run for the Diet last year. (NHK)

Testing by Japan's health ministry suggests that 0.1 percent of people in Tokyo have developed coronavirus antibodies. (NHK)

Japan Airlines has decided to fully reopen Terminal 1 for domestic flights at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on July 1 as more passengers are beginning to travel since the state of emergency was lifted on May 25 in Japan. (NHK)

Japan's deployment of the Aegis Ashore missile defense system will be put on hold due to the ballooning price tag and the logistics of rolling out the hardware, Defense Minister Taro Kono said Monday. (Nikkei)

A Japanese university team has succeeded in the first-ever mass proliferation of rainbow trout germline stem cells, or GSCs, in vitro, a technique that could pave the way for preservation of endangered fish and enable their mass production. (Kyodo)

Microsoft has helped the Japanese government create a contact-tracing app that officials hope will prevent a second wave of coronavirus infections, following more than monthlong delay in Tokyo's decision-making on the policy. (Nikkei)

It is less than a month since 22-year-old Hana Kimura, an up-and-coming professional wrestler, died. She was known for taking part in the popular Japanese reality show "Terrace House," which follows the lives of six young people who live under the same roof while looking for love. (Nikkei)

The rainy season may be in effect for much of the archipelago but temperatures are in mid-summer form. (tokyoreporter.com)

A man who was confirmed with rabies, the first case in Japan in 14 years, has died of the disease. (NHK)

Temperatures soared across many parts of Japan on Monday, with the mercury hitting 35 degrees Celsius in portions of the Kanto region. (NHK)

Officials in Tokyo are working on preventive measures to prepare for another possible surge of coronavirus infections. They've set up a team of experts amid a recent daily spike in confirmed cases. (NHK)

My favorite view of Tokyo Tower is here. (ONLY in JAPAN)

Asia’s largest retailer is betting that it has the right product at the right time: a Uniqlo face mask. (Japan Times)

A 15-year-old girl was hit and killed by a train in an apparent suicide in Fujimi, Saitama Prefecture, on Saturday. According to police, the incident occurred at around 10 a.m. between Tsuruse and Mizuhodai stations on the Tobu Tojo Line, Sankei Shimbun reported. (Japan Today)

The Black Lives Matter movement found a foothold in Tokyo as thousands of protesters marched in the capital on Sunday to protest racism and police brutality, and spread awareness of racial discrimination in Japan amid a wave of demonstrations worldwide following the killing of George Floyd in the United States. (Japan Times)

What are the odds COVID-19 patients with no symptoms could later develop them? (Japan Times)

An explosion at a Honda Motor Co. plant in Suzuka, Mie Prefecture, seriously injured two men on Sunday, police said. (Japan Times)