Hayate no Gotoku! (ハヤテのごとく!,Hayate no Gotoku!?), known in English as Hayate the Combat Butler is a Japanese manga series, written and illustrated by the manga author Kenjiro Hata, about a boy who starts a new job as a butler and the events he experiences with his employer. The manga, published by Shogakukan, is currently on its fiftieth volume in Japan. The English edition of the series is licensed by Viz Media for distribution in North America, the French edition is licensed by Kana, both editions use the English name "Hayate the Combat Butler". The style of the manga is comedy with a slight harem feel and constantly breaks the fourth wall.
Hayate Ayasaki is an unlucky teenager who worked since childhood to make ends meet due to his parents' irresponsible behavior. On Christmas Eve, he finds out that his parents left him with a debt of ¥156,804,000. They were about to sell his organs to the Yakuza to make money, leaving behind this massive gambling debt on his shoulders. While running away from the debt collectors, he ends up meeting Nagi Sanzenin, a young girl who is the sole heir of the wealthy Sanzenin estate, and due to a misunderstanding, Nagi ends up falling in love with Hayate. After he rescues Nagi from some kidnappers, she hires Hayate as her new butler.
Aside from performing his ordinary duties as a butler, Hayate must fight to protect Nagi from harm, a difficult task as her life is always in danger because she is the target of other individuals coveting her family's fortune, and sometimes deal with some extravagant requests from her, oblivious to Nagi's true feelings for him.