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Ammon News - Akira Toriyama, one of the most influential and best-selling manga authors of all time, has died, aged 69, his studio said Friday.

Toriyama died March 1 of a blood clot in his brain, his production company Bird Studio said in a statement on Friday. A funeral service had been held with only his family and a few relatives, it said.

The Japanese author is best known as the creator of the popular Dragon Ball manga series, which has fans across the world and spawned a well-known anime series, video games and films.

The manga series first debuted in 1984, depicting the story of a boy named Son Goku who is on a quest to collect magical dragon balls to protect Earth from alien humanoids called Saiyans.

In 1989, it was adapted into an anime and soon became one of the most globally recognized pieces of Japanese media. It has sold 260 million copies altogether, according to his studio.

Toriyama worked for 45 years and still had unfinished work at the time of his death.

NBC