#if Kenjaku could create yuuji as Sukuna's perfect vessel

[epickiya722]

I know I made other posts of these moments but... so far this season both Sukuna (left side) and Yuuji (right side) have had some moments where they have done the same thing.

Like...

So they both had that one shot

Pushed back hair with the death glare, looked down at someone like "pathetic", red eyes & black shadows

Boxed with someone bigger than them and won

Swung from something

Tied someone up and threw them

Stuck to a wall and backflipped away to avoid attacks

Bonus: they have scared Mahito shitless

Bonus: I hadn't realize that Sukuna threw an airplane wing at Mahoraga in that fight, so throwing things at their opponents, too.

[hermitw]

I caved and read ch. 271.... This is my jjk ending reaction post

SO WHO WAS THAT WITH TAKABA????

Yesterday I reread the last chapters, and the latest translation makes them sound less out of character. More based in reality. As well as other moments that can easily be explained within grounded reality (like Hiromi's arm not being fully healed - that makes sense. It was cut off with Sukuna's CT, and Higuruma JUST learned RCT in that moment. Even if he's on par with Gojo, who was up against Toji's cursed tool as the only curse... Sukuna's CE is so dense that Todo's technique couldn't even reach Choso - who is half curse, and within range - or Yuuji (which would make sense bc he and Sukuna are basically twins and Yuuji's been steeped in his CE). So maybe Hiromi could grow an arm back, but it isn't perfect, and it wasn't life-threatening. If Shoko had to prioritize her RCT, which is likely bc Rika was needed to heal Yuuta's body, then Hiromi's arm was on the back burner). And regarding the RikaBus - originally I imagined her insides, zipped open like her weapon storage we saw in the culling games, but to supply electricity to the TVs. Now, I think she might have eaten a part of Hajime Kashimo in order to do this. Idk man

But there are continuity errors and idiosyncraties. I still think the dream theory was valid - just like Yuuta/Gojo's domain's barrier was left floating around, I think Yuuji's shifted them into the curse rift between dreams and reality, but it wore off with time. His domain's focus on sightseeing and Sukuna's muscle memory of a barrierless domain (as well as Yuuji's in experience with domains, and barriers in general until his replacement training) make this more likely to project further.

This dreamlike effect could also be caused by the merger. A condition of it seems to be having absorbed Tengen - which Sukuna had to do, after Kenjaku. They were using Tengen to create / empower the merger, and this control was officially given to Megumi, as he was the vessel. Something interesting could have happened if Tengen had clung onto him as the most stable host, but their remains were found in Sukuna's. So... (depending on the language used, maybe some of Tengen is still in him and he has some power from it) it seems the merger is not going to be completed. But we don't know what the merger would really look like - even kenjaku with his thousand years of jujutsu knowledge and experience couldn't guess. So I think it's only fair to play into the dream stuff that he mentioned to Sasaki while working toward that.

So whether it was residue from Yuuji's domain (let's not forget that Kenjaku was actually pregnant with him, and he ate all those death painting wombs that had kenjaku's blood from another body, and blood connections are a thing especially when blood manipulation CT is involved), the merger, or a combination, the dream state is fading back to reality (but what does this mean for Takaba's partner??).

Actually - hear me out - during the time Tengen was out. Between the time when Sukuna left Megumi, and when Tengen's remains were placed at the barrier - were the dreamlike qualities limited to this era? I can read again and look for things but I'm not the most observant when it comes to those details. It might also take a short time to shift things back into place once Tengen is back to restore the barriers. So any input here is appreciated.

We did get enough closure on the merger (as much as I wish Sukuna got to fight it). while some people were already becoming cursed spirits, they're gathering in Tokyo. The katana and sumo otakus are there. And since cursed energy is directed at Tokyo to such an extent, it seems that our sorcerers get to have some fun, low-risk missions. Which is so sweet, I'm glad to see it.

And while we don't know whether the reincarnated sorcerers can be stripped from their vessels, it seems like they're going to try - I imagine this is in Gakuganji's hands, and not certain that it will work or even be attempted.

I'm interpreting the big eyes to mean that the sorcerers are still a bit like momotetsu characters, playing into jujutsu headquarters' game - but it's fleeting, it's going away. (for context, my momotaro folktale vs game analysis is here)

Ultimately I feel like. Insane and gaslighted that my theories which had a lot of foreshadowing (I thought anyway) haven't happened. (Gojo returning and the last panel shows him as sukuna's vessel) But they still could. Well, to some extent at least (rip sukuna idk if that one injured fingie could bring you back but you got your peace and I'm happy for you).

.... I still think that Geto and Gojo could come back. Geto might be back, idk. Maybe takaba just found someone who looked like him.... Maybe it was a temporary effect of the dream scatter.

I'm not desperate for them to, I'm not insisting that they would (I've always been in denial that Geto would stay dead lmao). But the TIMING of when we saw the sugar-creating CT, along w the fsct that GOJO was the one always eating sugar for his brain, had me convinced that he was going to return. I... Honestly suspect that he could be back, but taking a much-needed rest. Faking his death until he's ready to reveal himself. Not to mention the clock theories on Gojo and Sukuna returning.

But I don't need them to come back. I really did like the last chapter (though I rly thought takaba & Geto were behind the momotaro eyes smh).

Sukuna's afterlife scene - though we didn't see him visit the airport (I wish Gojo got to see true form sukuna, that's his wife). Sukuna had Uraume with him, and they were able to face Mahito in passing, and leave him behind. We see Sukuna engage in physical contact for the first time, outside of violence (the only consensual form he seemed to be granted in life).

The chapter still feels short like something is missing but, whatever. We got the first years' chaos, we got post-prison realm Gojo, also the curse victim's character design is so?? I love her.

So my unresolved questions are - who is with takaba?

And

Who is on the left behind sukuna?

Tldr: I've settled into the belief that Uraume transitioned during the Heian era, so that's who is behind Sukuna. (Gege confirmed they were amab, and part of their deal w kenjaku was to incarnate as a woman) I believe that Uraume discovered they'd still be nonbinary, in any body. Sukuna's trans but was out of touch with emotions and didn't rly explore it. I'll keep what I said earlier up, anyway.

But for how, I'm going with that being Uraume, showing their two paths. Afaik we only see Uraume with white hair during the Heian era - but on my 4th read, I'll be looking for this person.

It makes more sense to show one person's potential outcomes here than for it to be about Sukuna choosing one person or another. I can say with certainty that is not Yorozu (I doubt she ever wore clothing so properly).

The posture, hair etc. resembles Uraume more than anyone, I think. This is about their possible paths. The left one might be the role they took after Sukuna mummified, or maybe they could have grown taller if they didn't trade it for something in a pact, like seeing Sukuna again in the future.

Uraume might have had an older sibling. Choso's speech about little brothers benefiting from the older brother's path, either to follow the right path or to avoid the wrong one he takes, comes to mind. I always felt like that was out of place, the same way "Yuuta Okkotsu can't become the next Satoru Gojo" became relevant later.

Alternate take on this mystery panel in ch. 271 is that Sukuna could have transitioned. This post gave me the courage to actually post about it and ngl!! I think this is the answer.

The changes in art style, I realize now, were very intentional as well and I've been hoping they translate into the anime. It's all to evoke certain emotional, mental states in the reader, to match that of the story.

Damn I forgot to react to the colored page.... Tldr, it gave us closure on Ui Ui / Mei Mei, and Higuruma Hiromi could be my favorite surviving character. He's the next Geto and the next Gojo.

[cursedvibes]

My JJK Arc Ranking

Culling Game (ch 159-221) + Baka Survivor (ch 239-243)

Perfect Preparation (ch 144-158)

Itadori's Extermination (ch 137-143)

Death Painting (ch 55-64)

Shibuya Incident (ch 79-136)

Vs Mahito (ch 19-31)

Fearsome Womb (ch 1-18)

Hidden Inventory (ch 65-79)

Shinjuku Showdown (ch 222-262+)

Kyoto Goodwill Event (ch 32-54)

Cursed Child (Vol 0)

Note that this is my personal ranking of which arcs I like the most and least, not any objective statement. Like for example, I think Hidden Inventory is well-written, but it doesn't interest me much, that's why it's further towards the bottom.

With the manga drawing to a close, I thought I'd write down my thoughts about what we've gotten so far and what I like or don't like in the different arcs.

Culling Game

Starting at #1 with the Culling Game Arc. It's where my interest in the story really picked up and I got invested to the point of bothering to write analyses, dig into the lore and historical background and even start writing fanfiction. Culling Game is the meat of the story, where we got introduced to new important lore of characters, further explored their themes and connected dots that had been set up before. It is sort of a lul after the big climax of the Shibuya Incident, but I think that's also what was needed here, since this is more of a section where Gege takes time to explore concepts and characters further. Shibuya is a big payoff for the first part of the story and Culling Game builds on that, it establishes a level ground for the last part of the story. Characters like Yuuji and Maki for example found themselves fundamentally changed after Shibuya and used this time to find their footing again and try to create a new way for themselves to move forward. In Yuuji's case he had to do it twice even with the massive turn of not being Sukuna's vessel anymore aka having his role, purpose and ideal death taken from him. He catches himself relatively quickly though.

Also this arc just had a lot of moments I really like, actually most of my favourite moments in jjk happen here. Like Kenjaku calling Yuuji their son, Yuuji's fight against Higuruma, Maki's awakening, Noritoshi reconciling with his mother having a new family, Kenjaku & Uraume rolling up to the White House, the Yuki vs Kenjaku fight, the Heian trio spa day, Yorozu's backstory, Kenjaku and Tengen getting Sukuna's mummy and much more. The fights were for the most part also great. You always took something new away and I liked how we were slowly spoon-fed information about the Culling Game and Kenjaku's plans. Almost every chapter had something to pick apart and even with the cycle through the colonies there was always tension because you didn't know what this would all lead to. Even when the protagonists were doing well, things could change at the drop of a dime. There was a false sense of security. The main group got a little bit of control only to have it ripped away when they least expected it.

Baka Survivor

I put the Baka Survivor arc up here as well because while it might technically be during the Shinjuku Showdown, I thought it was so far removed from the fight against Sukuna that it's reasonable to see it as its own mini-arc. Plus, I think this section is a lot better than the majority of the Shinjuku Showdown. It's like Gege took some time to play around and write what was fun to them, the stuff they actually want to write. The end was a bit...meh. Mainly because of the context of this fight and Kenjaku's larger role in the story, especially what Kenjaku's death this early would mean (or not mean...) for Yuuji. Yuuta's integration here was also very weak because while he might have reasons to go after Kenjaku that were a little bit explored (although I think you could've done way more with it than just "wants to do it for Gojo" after all a big theme of this fight was connecting with other people and building friendships/partnerships, which is something closely related to Yuuta's character), he was absolutely irrelevant from Kenjaku's perspective. You could've put anyone in his place and it wouldn't have changed anything from Kenjaku's point of view. Well, maybe if you put Yuuji there, but Gege was clearly not interested in exploring their relationship like that....

Anyway, I have raved about this arc a lot on my blog already, but in summary I absolutely love how we explore both Kenjaku and Takaba further, compare them and their understanding of comedy/curiosity and how both of them struggle to open up to others, show their real self and make themselves vulnerable. I especially think that this was actually thematically a very nice end for Kenjaku. They indulge in what they really want, have fun without the need of excessive cruelty (although there was violence from both of them) and they allowed themselves to connect with someone else again and make a friend. Chasing after their superficial goals of merging humanity they lost their closest friend, Tengen, were thrown into doubt and Takaba both offered himself as an alternative and pulled them further away from their insane ideas. Best thing about it is that Kenjaku went for it! They got caught up in the comedy with Takaba, they paid the price for allowing themselves such a close relationship with someone else and lowering their guard, and they still didn't regret it. In fact they were glad they spend their time before their death with Takaba and finally having fun. Of course the merger plan continues, they can't just let Tengen die with them or fall into the protagonists hands and it is too late for Tengen to change back anyway, but I absolutely love Kenjaku's character development here. Just remains to be seen how Takaba will leave this fight and how he will react to having once again lost a partner.

Perfect Preparation

Really like this arc for all the new lore we get as well as emotional chapters like the Zenin massacre and Yaga's death. The introduction of Hakari and Kirara was fun too, but the highlight for me is definitely the meeting with Tengen and Maki's massacre. Ch 145 and 146 might be in the top 5 of the chapters I have reread most often. You always find something new there and there's so much about the relationship between Tengen, the Star Plasma Vessels and the six eyes to take apart, particularly with later reveals like Yuki also being a Star Plasma Vessel. Those two chapters were also what first really got me more interested in Kenjaku and their history with Tengen. It's when it becomes apparent just how much Kenjaku has planned and arranged over the past millennium and it also raises even more questions of why Tengen never mentioned them before and how Kenjaku could stay undercover for so long.

Then we of course also have the Zenin massacre. I like how it starts with giving us some clan politics. I love that shit. Wish we got something similar for the Kamo and Gojo, but oh well. Maki's meeting with her mother when she goes for the weapon storage is already pretty chilling, but it's even better when you see her mother go from "why can't you make me proud of you for once?" to "I'm glad I gave birth to you". Shows how much she suffered under the Zenin as well, despite playing by their rules. Too bad she only came to the conclusion to treat her kids decently when it was already too late. Maki also only found out her mother did care about her and was the one to finish off Naoya when she was already dead. Just like her reunion and clearing conversation with Mai, it all happens just a little too late and that's what makes it so wonderfully tragic.

Also shout-out to Yaga's death scene. I've come to appreciate it much more recently and I particularly like seeing him together with all the other autonomous cursed corpses he keeps hidden away and the hints of the friendship he has with Kusakabe.

Itadori's Extermination

Honestly, I mostly like this arc for its atmosphere. It's one of the instances where you feel the most just how much destruction, chaos and desolation Shibuya and the start of the Culling Game caused. The main characters roaming the streets all split up and sleeping by campfires, the broken buildings and civilians hunting for scraps of food, curses praying on desperate humans...it's great. Wish we got more of that later on, but I only really got a similar feeling when the foreign armies attacked.

And of course we get the fateful Itadori flashback here. I don't know how many hours I spend looking at those two pages and taking the dialogue apart. Just two pages and I've become utterly obsessed by this weird family. Also the first time we see Kenjaku in a vessel that is not Geto, so that's extra nice.

I remember also really liking Yuuta's reintroduction when the chapters first came out. He looked so much worse than in Vol 0, so that was really intriguing. Bit disappointed there wasn't more conflict and it turned out he looks like shit because...well, that's just his look now. Still good arc.

Death Painting

I like this one because it's where Yuuji, Nobara and Megumi feel most like a team going on a mission and solving a mystery. Especially the opening of it, with weird paranormal events that remind you of classic Japanese horror stories is really nice and always manages to draw me in. Kinda wish there were more missions like that just for the sake of atmosphere, even though I don't think the story necessarily needs it. Seeing Mahito and Kenjaku capture a civilian man, strip him, nail him to a wall and then feed him a cursed fetus was also insane. Never get tired of watching/reading that no matter if it's the manga or anime. Vol 7 was the first jjk volume I ever bought and I remember how striking it was to open the book and start with that scene. Gave me chills.

I also love the entire fight with Eso and Kechizu. One because I just like their characters and getting introduced to the background of the Death Painting's existence was interesting, but I also really enjoyed Yuuji and Nobara's dynamic here and their talk about what it means to kill.

Shibuya Incident

Really good arc and what made me more interest in how jjk would continue when I first read the manga, but rereading it there are definitely some fights and scenes that really drag for me and I end up skipping whenever I read it again or when I watched S2. Like all the curse users working for Kenjaku that ended up being entirely irrelevant. The backstory of Ogami and the guy with the big eyes was nice because it gave us an insight into what the life of regular curse users (not big hitters like Geto or Kenjaku) is actually like and how society changed when Gojo was born. That's some world building I very much appreciate. Aside from that all the curse users are very forgettable though. There's a reason I only remember Ogami's name and none of the others'. Some other stuff also just comes down to character preferences like I'm not that interested in what Nanami or Ino were up to and Toji was also...eh. Nice, but I'm not losing my mind over it. Nanami's death scene is great though. I mostly love Shibuya for its later stages. Yuuji's fight against Mahito, how seeing his friends and civilians die through his inaction makes him breakdown, how his world view changes over the course of fighting Mahito and their scene at the end when the roles of predator and prey are reversed. Kenjaku's entrance and explanation of their plan and what was to come is also very interesting and probably the part I reread most in this arc.

Vs Mahito

I gotta say I do really like Junpei's story and his developing friendship with Yuuji. Yuuji's first few encounters with Mahito are great as well. It's nice seeing them get to know each other and seeing the inciting incidents that cause both of them to gradually get more and more obsessed with killing the other. I also really appreciate this arc for giving us some of those slower scenes that are just focused on Mahito, the curse family or Mahito & Junpei talking philosophy. Mahito is a quite fascinating character even in his simplistic cruelty and here you can also see the most just how horrific, but also intriguing, Idle Transfiguration is. This arc has one of the best horror in jjk and I appreciate the anime for emphasizing the comparisons to the Human Centipede movies and human experimentation even further. It's really close between this and Shibuya Incident. I just ended up putting Shibuya higher because when it hits, it hits hard and I still like the high points it has more than the Vs Mahito arc. Still appreciate the groundwork this arc laid for Shibuya to be as impactful as it was.

Hidden Inventory

Like I said in the beginning, I do think this arc is well-written and I think it's a great way to flesh out Gojo and Geto's characters as well as give us more world building and establish the background presence of Tengen and the connection of the Star Plasma Vessel and six eyes to her. I'm also convinced that what we learn here about the Time Vessel Association and the cults that build around Tengen will become relevant again when we get to the Heian flashback and Sukuna's/Tengen's/Kenjaku's backstory. Still have that "Kenjaku created the Time Vessel Association in the Nara period" theory in the back of my mind. This lore is also the main thing I like about this arc. Don't get me wrong, Gojo and Geto's struggles and change in mindset is nice too, but I don't care much about Gojo and don't like Geto, so I ended up focusing more on everything around them. Including Riko. I find her story, the way she grew up and her inevitable death very interesting. Episode 3 of season 2 is still my favourite episode of the season of maybe even the entire anime because it's just that beautiful and I love how they added to the themes of her character by connecting her to the ocean. The inside of the Tomb of Stars is also so eery and entrancing, I could soak in that atmosphere forever. The only reason it's so low is because a lot of this arc is dedicated to Gojo and Geto and their relationship etc. While that is absolutely necessary and was very well done, it's not something I'm much interested in.

Fearsome Womb

Start of the series. It's really those first few chapters and the mission at the detention centre I like about it. It's where you see Yuuji still quite naive and ready to play the hero. I am very interested in his life before joining Jujutsu Tech and when he first got introduced to jujutsu, so this is always nice to revisit and see how he acted before he was forced to become a seasoned sorcerer very quickly. Those glimpses of how Yuuji was always a bit of a loner and also extraordinary from the start due to Kenjaku's meddling. Knowing his family background makes these scenes now even more interesting. His mentality back then is also what makes the moment in the detention centre so special, where he realizes Sukuna isn't Kurama and won't be a convenient power source for him. He could die if he is careless (which he is, of course, he never dealt with anything like this before) and he is scared of it.

Besides that, I also like the introduction of Kenjaku and the curses, how chill it is and how you see them walking among regular citizens undetected by anyone. I think that's especially a fitting introduction to Kenjaku's character. They are unassuming in the beginning of the series, easy to overlook next to flashy Mahito and Jogo, but that's how they have always been throughout history and it's part of the reason for why they never drew much attention besides the Death Painting experiment, which wasn't directly linked to them. Of course Tengen covering for them was the other big reason.

Overall, nice start into the series, even if some parts are a bit slow and don't animate me much to reread them.

Shinjuku Showdown

Shinjuku Showdown fights on a reread do merge well into each other, but it's undeniable that they are very formulaic. Yuuta starts out the same way Higuruma does. Talking about regrets, giving his all, how he has to end everything with a technique only he can use and then he gets cut down. Same with Maki, Kusakabe, Miguel and Larue. It is all the same. We are currently literally watching a slight reshuffle of the fight that started this arc.

Parallel we learn more about Yuuji's new abilities and Sukuna has to gradually exert more force. Technically a good thing, but it's all so repetitive that it loses more and more of it's emotional impact for me. If there is any emotional impact at all. Eventually it just becomes explaining of cursed technique after cursed technique that won't work anyway with minimal depth otherwise. Things get a bit better when most people have been cut away and we start focusing on Yuuji and Sukuna, but by that point I'm already so tired by everything that came before that I can't get that hyped about it and just want a complete change of pace that breaks all rules that have been set up and introduces something completely new. Like the merger for example... Although I have to say, Kashimo's fight might be my favourite still out of the bunch. Has a lot to do with my particular interest and what I'm looking for in a fight. It was short, but we got a nice wrap-up for Kashimo's character, learned more about the Heian era, explored the theme of love and strength and got what is so far one of the deepest looks at Sukuna's philosophy and mindset.

Besides that, on the reread, by the time Kusakabe's fight happens I'm catching myself only skimming the pages. It doesn't help that there's not much initiative happening from Sukuna's side besides the very recent chapters. He's just waiting for others to do something, which lowers the perception of any imminent threat from him. The later half (before Yuuta showed up again) isn't as bad as the Gojo vs Sukuna fight, but I'm still having a hard time staying invested while reading it. Gojo vs Sukuna 2.0 pretty much tanked my interest again. Every week I'm shaking Sukuna to just spit out his backstory already and release Tengen because that's the only thing I care about at this point and I'm bored of this fight. But again, my opinion, others likely feel otherwise.

Kyoto Goodwill Event

Was a bit tempted to put it above Shinjuku Showdown, but at the end of it Shinjuku Showdown still has some scenes I really like, like Kashimo's fight, Yuuji fighting Sukuna and the Sukuna, Uraume and Kenjaku scenes in ch 222. That's more than what I could say for Kyoto Goodwill Event. I don't necessarily dislike it. It doesn't really have any moments that bother me as much as the ones in Shinjuku Showdown, but at the same time nothing in this arc really stands out to me or catches my interest. Often I end up forgetting about it entirely. There's not really much to say about it because I don't have any strong feelings about this one. Not really something I reread unless I'm looking for some very specific information.

Cursed Child

When I first read Vol 0 (right before the Death Painting arc) I thought it was a concept story for jjk. The infant stage of it before Gege made the proper story. Sort of like the original chapter of Naruto where he's actually a fox spirit. Interesting to read to see where jjk started, but not tied to canon. That's also why I didn't question Geto acting very different here. I just though "wow, they made his character way less aggravating". So yeah, Vol 0 is really not something I find interesting or enjoy and I think the writing in it is quite rough. I didn't find Yuuta very compelling. He's an obvious Shinji rip-off, which wouldn't be that bad in itself except I don't find his personality that interesting and him pulling powers out of his ass without any of them being set up prior made me really dislike him. He can just copy techniques now and use them much better than the original person because he's just that overpowered. Who knows how he learned about any of this, who knows what the limitations to any of his powers are, he can apparently just do anything and that makes his fights not very thrilling because there aren't really any stakes. He also has barely any connection to the villain of this arc except that he happens to kill people Yuuta cares about. Geto's ideology is entirely irrelevant. Geto could've said he's killing people because he wants to turn them into Christmas decoration and the fight would've happened the same way. I think putting an ideologically-driven villain against someone whose only care is that his friends are alive and who has also not even the experience to judge if anything Geto says is justified wasn't a very good move. Centring Gojo and Geto's conflict would've been better and also showing us literally anything that would make it possible for us to judge if any of Geto's complaints are justified, if he's talking about real problems. Just going by Vol 0, we don't know that. We can only tell that the bullshit he spouts is an allegory for white supremacy/racism, which obviously is bad. But on it's own it seems like he's just spouting bigotry for bigotry's sake, which doesn't make for a very compelling villain, especially if the rest of the characters and setting don't fit his attitude. Nobody can ever even bring themselves to say something like "genocide bad, eugenics bad". They just don't engage with what he's saying and if that's the case, then why bring it up in the first case. It makes Geto's antics even more unnecessary. On its own it's really not that good of a story and since it's a oneshot with initially no guaranteed sequel, I would expect a bit more.

All that being said, the first time I read Vol 0 I was very annoyed and glad I followed it up with the Death Painting arc, something which is much better written and more up my alley. If Vol 0 was my first exposure to jjk, I don't think I would've continued reading. Having more context from Hidden Inventory fleshes at least out what Gojo and Geto have going on, but my complaints about Yuuta and his lack of meaningful relation to Geto and what he stands for still makes me dislike this arc.

[bibibbon]

Hey Bibi! I was thinking on my ask about Sukuna and Yuuji working better as twins and another point I just thought of is isn't one of Sukuna's monikersis that he is a "God with two faces".

If the Twin theory was true, this would be literal in the narrative of the Jujutsu - Sukuna would be both himself "the king of curses" and Yuuji an extremely capable sorcerer , Sukuna's nemesis and former vessel as well as the "one chosen by the black flash."

With this theory, they would truly be two sides of the same coin.

Plus, the narrative potential of this move for Yuuji is immense - it creates more of an identity crisis for Yuuji than the "Sukuna's nephew" one does because there's more of a familial distance there so he would find it easier to double down on the hatred he feels to distance himself from Sukuna and kill him anyway.

With the twin theory, there's the parallels to Maki which I also like - I feel like she would have been perfect in supporting Yuuji with this revelation. I could see her also feeling disgusted with Sukuna's hatred as, although Maki and her had rough patches in thier relationship, she would have never done the things to her twin that Sukuna did to Yuuji.

Anyway, let me know your thoughts!

Hi @doodlegirl1998 👋

Sorry for not answering sooner

Hmm now that I think about it I am leaning more into having sukuna and yuji be twins especially because kenjaku did say that he viewed yujis role as him coexisting with sukuna. The paneling of that manga panel also emphasises the whole same coin different sides theme that the two have going on. Sukuna being the natural menace with two faces and yuji being picked by the black flashes is such an interesting title that needs to be explored by gege.

Sometimes I do like to think that yuji is basically Jin with no wasted potential.

However, I still think it's hella interesting the relationship and rivalry they have considering that they had to share a body and their souls are quite similar. Yuji considering that his body was made due to the residual of one of sukunas fingers has way more of sukuna's similarities and all than his own father Jin itadori. Also, yuji being related to sukuna in any way would definitely cause him an identity crisis which I really want gege to explore. I also wish gege would explore itadoris thoughts behind him being half curse and being related to kenjaku (I doubt he would fully do that though).

I do remember stating in one of your asks that if sukuna and yuji were twins it would highlight their parallels with the zenin twins. I still think that the arguement somewhat stands but instead of twins it's yuji and choso being paralleled siblings with the zenin twins. There's also the fact that sukuna doesn't seem to be directly hateful concerning Jin itadori and their relationship (Jin and sukuna) could be loosely paralleled to maki and mai.

I do definitely see your point with maki being perfect to help yuji with this and to be honest I really wish that they had more screentime interacting with eachother. Whenever we see maki and itadori together they're usually up to throwing hands but it would be so much more interesting if we got a scene of them talking especially after the revelation that yuji is indeed a Kamo clan member. As you have stated if sukuna and yuji were twins maki as the older twin would definitely be disgusted at sukuna and his actions. However, I feel like she would still be disgusted at him for 1) killing tsumiki and 2) if she found that he is even related to anyone and had family.

[ssaraexposs]

I need to get something off my mind...

Let's just ASSUME (cause none of that it's actually been confirmed) that Kenjaku PLANNED to create the perfect vessel for Sukuna to reincarnate (hence, giving birth to our dear Yuuji). We now know that Sukuna wanted Megumi instead, because the Ten Shadows technique it was the only way to pierce through Gojo Satoru's mugen. So... did Kenjaku's original plan actually backfired on him? Did he believe Sukuna could kill Gojo either way? Why did he think about seal Gojo off, when he could have relied on Sukuna all along? Did he suspect Sukuna couldn't?

Because the fact that Kenjaku gave birth to Yuuji still doesn't make sense to me. It's not like he cares for him, so he didn't feel any parenthood all of a sudden. Kenjaku's far from hot- headed. He wouldn't make a child, out of a mistake. He doesn't leave stuff to fate to deal with. He just experimented with the Death Paintings, in order to create being half-human, half curse. So what's his deal with Yuuji?

[lesbiansanemi]

Read the Yuuji curse fic and i am EATING YOUR WALLLLLSSSSS MY SKRUNKLIES

Okay but like. The potential of Yuuji-Kenjaku partnership au. The dynamic shift between picture perfectly self-serving sorcerer Sukuna and twisted, loving King of Curses Yuuji.

Maybe Suguru's faction is waylaid early on by a stranger with stitches lining their forehead, because they heard that a member of Suguru's family was a girl from the countryside with a penchant for dolls. Suguru can't focus on those damn monkeys or even Jujutsu Society anymore because some bastard is working with filthy "intelligent" curses and kidnapped Mimiko. That's just as unforgivable as being the reason those curses exist in the first place. So Suguru is still around to cause problems, maybe.

Either way, years later, "Kugisaki Nobara" swaggers into Ryomen Sukuna and Uruame's first year class at Tokyo Tech.

And you know. Hey. What if. While Maki was still born with nothing. Mai was born a year later with Ten Shadows. Consider toxic, tragic, doomed since conception Nobamaki in the midst of clawing for someone else they can't bear to live without.

And Megumi gets to trans his gender cuz that's always fun

Anyways these are all just ideas since I have self-inflicted brainrot now jdfhskdl

Omg sorry, have had a hectic few days but ANON ANON COME BACK YOU CAN'T JUST SAY THIS AND THEN LEAVE OMG YOU'RE INFECTING ME WITH BRAIN ROT !!!!!

Yuuji being the King of Curses, but specifically it stemming from how much he loves Megumi and Nobara. Man hang on a second.... hang on second !!!!! Like we all know I adore the whole "love is the most twisted curse of all" and so that being reflected in the King of Curses... Yeah, that hits.

Also Yuuji and Kenjaku having a partnership is really interesting too! Because like canonically, Kenjaku just kinda did things without really consulting Sukuna (or at least, that's what seems to be implied) so Yuuji working with them specifically because he doesn't just want to be incarnated again, but so Megumi and Nobara can be... Making sure they have suitable vessels and bodies.... It would be a super interesting dynamic between them! Kenjaku working to make/find those bodies for all of them

And Kenjaku deciding to go after Mimiko is so fun. It creates such a messy conflict for Geto, which in turn affects Gojo, and would also spiral into the Yuta and Rika consolation if Geto isn't as focused on him because he's preoccupied with Mimiko.

Kenjaku likely wouldn't incarnate Nobara without knowing they could incarnate Megumi and Yuuji. One of them by themselves likely wouldn't mean the most stable incarnated curse! But Kenjaku having Sukuna for Yuuji, and having heard about Mai, knowing if they can get their hands on her, she's likely to be a good vessel for Megumi. So they make the decision to incarnate her in Mimiko once they have their hands on her. Mimiko growing up already having Nobara incarnated in her, Nobara developing a fondness for her vessel because she sees herself in this girl. Oh, it would be such an interesting dynamic!

Forgive me, I'm bouncing all over the place, but the implications of Uraume and Sukuna with this being a role swap AU! I'm not sure if this is what you intended, but where my brain is going, is Sukuna being in a similar position as Yuuji is in canon, with him being created specifically to be Yuuji's vessel. But instead of being separated from jujutsu society, growing up in it, being involved in it, as you said, being a picture perfect cutthroat sorcerer. Maybe a bastard child from one of the big three clans? Being connected with them, but looked down upon. Feel like it would be interesting circumstances for him, with Uraume being what feels like his one true ally. Uraume being the one to find the cursed object that allows Yuuji to be incarnated in Sukuna. Sukuna deciding to consume it because he wants more power. And them being enrolled in Tokyo Tech!!! Making them Gojo's students!!! MM. Yeah. Yeah, I'm having a lot of thoughts about that

So Yuuji incarnates in Sukuna, and Kenjaku releases Nobara/Mimiko into the world so she can be enrolled in Tokyo Tech and be by Yuuji's side once again.

Gojo now suddenly having access to Geto's missing adopted daughter, but not realizing it.

And then. Ugh. The Zenins. I'm obsessed with that little plot thread like you don't even know!!! Maki being enrolled at Tokyo Tech, and a year later, Mai is enrolled in Kyoto. Maybe Nobara originally decides to get close to Maki so she hopefully has a chance to get to Mai so they can use her to incarnate Megumi. That's the plan after all! But it's difficult to get access to a Zenin. Kenjaku hasn't been able to manage it yet, but now that Nobara and Yuuji have incarnated in their vessels (even if Nobara is essentially sharing a body, and Sukuna is able to repress Yuuji) they decide it's up to them now to get Megumi's vessel. It's not right without him! But Nobara gets attached to Maki. Maki gets attached to Nobara. Feelings develop, and Nobara begins the miserable spiral of desperately needing Megumi's vessel. Everything pales in comparison to that. She won't give up on it just because she's developed feelings, but that doesn't mean she doesn't start to feel guilt for it. It's the first time she's felt guilt in a long time, and Yuuji is having a difficult time understanding her feelings. After all, this is for Megumi. Nothing matters except that!

But they're finally able to get access to Mai, maybe during the exchange event. Maybe that was the plan the curses worked on for that rather than stealing the fingers as it was in canon. So Megumi is able to incarnate in Mai, and Maki is enraged and hurt. Yeah. Yeah

I am.... so sorry, I just fucking ran with this, it's just!!! Such a fun and interesting concept for an AU and my brain is EATING IT!!!!!

[yuujispinkhair]

winter have you seen the recent theory circulating on twitter that yuuji and megumi may be related?? and what are your thoughts on it????

Heyyy <3 I saw the theory, and it's very interesting! I love seeing what people come up with! But I feel like it can't work because, as far as I understand it, for this theory, it is assumed that Yuuji uses heavenly restriction?

JJK spoilers under the cut

But I don't think he can use heavenly restriction since he is currently able to heal himself, which means he is using a cursed technique? (Please don't take my word for this!! I am not very familiar with all the lore)

But I don't mind, really, whether Yuuji and Megumi are related or not. It wouldn't affect my shipping preferences. But personally, I rather think that Yuuji and Sukuna are related. And I hope for a revelation like this! I know Gege said Sukuna had no children, but maybe he had a twin brother, and that brother had children? Or one of Kenjaku's experiments created a new bloodline with Sukuna's genes, and the Itadori's descended from that?

I find it suspicious that true form Sukuna kind of looks like Yuuji and Wasuke. He even has the same pink hair as the Itadoris. Also, I remember that one manga panel where Jin was wearing his glasses in a way that made them look like Sukuna's second pair of eyes. And Wasuke's name refers to ancient Japan and assistant/help. I feel like all of those things could hint at Sukuna. And why did Kenjaku pick the Itadori family to try for a child he could use as the perfect vessel (cage) for Sukuna? Why choose a non-sorcerer family? Why this family? Why did he want Jin to be the father? I don't think he did that randomly. It would make sense if he knew they were already connected to Sukuna.

I could be completely wrong about all of this, though, because I don't really understand the cursed techniques, etc. But I like the thought of Yuuji and Sukuna being connected, so this is what I hope for :)

What do you think about those theories? Or do you have your own? I am excited to see if Sukuna really gets his own body and how that body will look!! Maybe that can answer some questions!

[xitpenumbris]

SukuIta thought: Sukuna biting Yuuji for the first time, hard enough to break skin, vicious and punishing, getting a taste of his blood and realizing how easily he could get addicted to it.

Heady and addictive, absolutely to his liking.

His sweet vessel, perfect to the core.

(I'm just super weak to the idea of Kenjaku creating Yuuji to be perfect for Sukuna, to the smallest detail, fjfhgg).

[noritoshiikamo]

jjk spoilers!!!!!!!

very quick question, wasn't it stated that yuuji does not have a ct bc he wasn't born with one? and didn't choso list all the names of his bothers (i.e. all the death paintings) which means yuuji is not death a painting? or did i mix it up??? 😅😭

jjk spoiler

i feel like im not gonna make sense lol but

he isnt but he couldve some sort of heavenly restriction going like maki or toji. his body is literally a miracle to be able to withstand sukuna, its a bit sus for him to be born with insane strength and ability to withstand sukuna. and lets say that fr yuuji isnt born with ct, whos there to confirm that when he has no connection to like jujutsu world except for kenjaku/his mother? we know that usually sorcerer developed their ct when they are a kid i feel like the grandfather is hiding that fact away from him to protect him from the second wife/kenjaku, i feel like itadori is born with ct but only the grandfather knew and hes hiding it away from him

THIS IS JUST MY THEORY AND I WONT BLAME U FOR SAYING IM STUPIDLY REACHING but like fjjfjfh we only know the only successful experiment is the dp and we don’t know whether noritoshi/kenjaku stopped their experiments after the dp is destroyed (i could be wrong??? i forgot) or maybe noritoshi the ancestor was stopped but kenjaku is still alive with that information so like

MAYBE yuji is the the second phase of the experiment, a perfection version of dp? we know dps need to be planted into a host but yuuji is born straight up cursed jdjdjdjjd idk and we dont really know whats the purposed of kenjaku/noritoshi creating dp anyway is it bcs noritoshi is really evil from start or is it just kenjaku/noritoshi just woke up one day and like “im bored lets do human experiments” or maybe kenjaku possessed noritoshi the ancestor to take advantage of the knowledge about the dp just so he could produced a vessel for sukuna and yuji being related to dp or is a dp himself is just a coincidence???

i mean kenjaku possessing the second wife, impregnated her body with a baby with his own cursed energy and giving birth to the second phase of death painting doesn’t sound crazy much to me

bruh i do sound tad crazy

[epickiya722]

So Kiya, I see this interesting theory of Yuuji and Sukuna in twitter, what do you think :

"I am starting to think cursed energy treated them (Sukuna & Yuuji) as conjoined twins because their souls shared a body"

"If Yuji has Sukuna CE and will later use his CT, he's techically his "twin" in a weird way"

"Yeah. Could still be true that they were siblings in the past or something. Just that as of rn, given what we know about ce and twins, without canonical confirmation that they were real twins, this could probably be the closest we can get to confirming the theory"

Oooooh, wait, wait, wait! I got thoughts! I have thoughts! The gears are turning! This is about to be so long, I just know it.

(Also, like to apologize it took me forever to answer this because I'll be real... I was stumped and for a while I barely could conjure up words for anything. Posts and fics.)

Okay, I always thought the whole "Yuji being Sukuna's reincarnated twin" theory rather interesting and honestly, I'm here for that. This is more of a joke for me, at first, that what if Yuji was Sukuna's reincarnation and I'm working on posts for that.

Now, being a reincarnation for his twin, has me thinking about some things.

I mentioned in this post that I find it fishy that Kenjaku birthed a vessel for Sukuna and one that somehow was able to control Sukuna, too. Yuji is a perfect vessel.

Thinking about it more, and it's just a thought, what if Kenjaku had been involved in Sukuna's birth somehow and is the reason why he turned out the way he is?

Not saying I'm right, but hear me out!

Picture this. What if Sukuna's parents asked Kenjaku for some kind of favor dealing with a child? Kenjaku took it as an opportunity to test out a few things and what if during Sukuna's growth in his mother's womb, it wasn't just him? There could have been another twin and yet Kenjaku may have done something that resulted in Sukuna's having the deformities he has? The four eyes, the four arms? Hell, you know it's been said some people have "eaten" their twin in the womb? Sukuna could have done that and because of Kenjaku, however Sukuna had been birthed was the result.

Sukuna mentions he was an unwanted child and maybe, just maybe it was because he didn't turn out how his parents imagined him to be and could have abandoned him. And if they did, Kenjaku possibly could have gotten their hands on Sukuna and looked after him for their own purposes.

But why? Well, my guess is to use him later as a tool for at least one of the reasons, but also just another case of wanting to experiment with souls and the human body.

Now, bringing back Yuji. What if Sukuna could have also had two souls, one that would belong to his intended twin, when he was a baby?

When Kenjaku made Sukuna's fingers into cursed objects, they also took the soul Sukuna host for his intended twin to later create Yuji. It seems wild, but hey, this is Kenjaku and almost anything is possible in JJK.

I think about what Mai talked about with Maki in chapter 149. (So spoiler alert ahead.)

She mentions how twins are considered a bad omen to sorcerers. To gain something, you have to sacrifice something. (Indentical) twins are considered one individual by cursed techniques. "I am you and you are me."

Let's apply this to Sukuna and Yuji.

To gain something, you have to sacrifice something -> Sukuna's birth, but the sacrifice was his would be twin.

Twins are considered one individual -> As the theory suggests, Yuji and Sukuna are like twins. After some rewatches and rereads, I realized that as different as they are, Yuji and Sukuna do be having quite a bit of similarities (I already made a few posts about such and I'm working on another). It's like they are one individual.

Twins are considered bad omens -> Sukuna brings nothing but pain and Yuji only feels pain and also consider that the people around Yuji has something bad happen to them.

Going off that last point, think about the Zenin and Hasaba twins. The Hasaba twins were killed by Sukuna and even their backstory is nothing but sad. Before Suguru took them in, the village saw them as the cause for their misfortune and mistreated them. Nanako and Mimiko only had each other. Same for the Zenin twins. They were mistreated by their clan and even if they fell out for a time, Mai and Maki are still close and only had each other. Both cases of the twins end badly. For the Hasaba twins, again, they are killed. For Maki and Mai, Mai dies.

Circling back to Yuji and Sukuna, here's something I see that the two have in common, kind of.

They're both loners.

They are surrounded by people, and yet they never really truly fit into a place. Sukuna reigns as the "King of Curses" and does as he pleases but he just never seem truly satisfied to me. It's like he's a part of himself is missing. That doesn't mean I'm excluding Uraume. Uraume is Sukuna's bestie, for real. Think about how he treats others. He's all for a good fight and impressed by some. If someone or something annoys him, he eliminates. It's a repeating cycle for him.

For Yuji, he remarks to Noritoshi that he's always been a loner. He does have friends, Megumi and Nobara, and even the upperclassmen from his previous school. Also peep the middle school flashback. The boys were discussing girls, but what was Yuji doing? Reading off to the side. He engaged in the conversation when addressed, but other than that, he is alone. Going back to Megumi and Nobara, the same episode shows Yuji going off on his own. Nobara goes shopping and Megumi was going home.

Yuji often tends to do a lot of things alone and even if it's with someone, like fighting a villain, it's not like he seeks out the help, at first. Instead, he syncs up with that person with the time comes for it.

While surrounded by people, some that do have positive relationship with, it just always seem they were missing something or someone in their lives.

What if like Maki and Mai... Nanako and Mimiko... they were meant to be twins? They seemed lonely because they did not have his twin with him?

To summarize, yeah, I'm on board with that theory. Cursed energy probably did treat the two like twins just as Mai and Maki were because... what if they were meant to be twins.

I mentioned this a while back. In this post, I wrote about what of the soul technique Yuji is going to use was the technique that Sukuna had? He seemed familiar with it. Now what if, that was a technique that could have been one Sukuna's twin was meant to have?

Just something I wanted to throw out there.