Hokazono might give Hakuri a Gojo treatment in Kagurabachi soon

When Hokazono began the Sword Bearer Assassination Arc in Kagurabachi, many fans felt Hakuri Sazanami would have a massive role to play. It turned out true as the Sazanami sorcerer demonstrated his Storehouse powers to retrieve Seiichi Samura's Enchanted Blade, Tobimune.

Yet, little did he know of Samura's actual intentions. It was revealed that he viewed the Enchanted Sword Bearers, including himself, as sinners and wanted to eliminate them. Eventually, Samura killed Uruha right in front of Hakuri's eyes. The boy was reeling from his internal injuries as a side effect of using his Storehouse powers multiple times.

Lying on the ground helplessly, Hakuri mustered his strength and used his Storehouse one more time to summon Chihiro Rokuhira to the Senkutsuji temple. However, the boy's actions in the latest Kagurabachi chapter may permanently sideline him through the rest of the arc, akin to how Gege Akutami sidelined Satoru Gojo in Jujutsu Kaisen from the Shibuya Arc and the Culling Games Arc.

Disclaimer: This article is speculative in nature and reflects the author's opinions. It also contains spoilers from Kagurabachi manga and Jujutsu Kaisen.

Hokazono could sideline Hakuri like Gojo in Kagurabachi's Sword Bearer Assassination Arc

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Although Hakuri Sazanami and Gojo have almost no similarities except their white hair, there's a good chance the ongoing Sword Bearer Assassination Arc in Kagurabachi may give them a further feather of similarity.

One of the many problems Gege Akutami had with Jujutsu Kaisen was Satoru Gojo, who had the answer to every fix in the narrative. With his Six Eyes and Infinity, Gojo could decimate even the strongest of Curses.

It was becoming difficult for Akutami to write a narrative where characters like Yuji, Nobara, Megumi, and others could shine. The only choice was to sideline Gojo from the narrative. Although the white-haired sorcerer was a fan-favorite character, Akutami chose to prioritize the narrative and use Kenjaku to seal him in the Prison Realm in the Shibuya Arc.

Gojo, as seen in Jujutsu Kaisen (Image via MAPPA)

The act negated the influence Gojo had over the story of Jujutsu Kaisen and allowed the rest of the cast to showcase their skills. While Hakuri Sazanami is by no means akin to Gojo in terms of strength, his Storehouse power in Kagurabachi makes him the most valuable character in the Sword Bearer Assassination Arc.

Prior to the arc's actual beginning, Chihiro Rokuhira proposed they use Hakuri's power to register the contracted sword bearers into his Storehouse and retrieve their respective stolen Enchanted Blades from Hishaku. For that, they went to the Kamunabi organization and disclosed their plans.

Eventually, when Uruha, one of the Enchanted Blade contractors, was attacked at his fortress, Kamunabi decided to temporarily hire Chihiro and Hakuri and assigned them the mission to save Uruha. During their mission, Hakuri tried to demonstrate his powers to protect the contracted sword bearer but couldn't.

Chihiro and Hakuri in the manga (Image via Shueisha)

In the Rakuzaichi Arc of Kagurabachi, Hakuri had pushed him to his limits. Hence, it needed some time for him to regain his powers. That's why Hakuri could neither register Uruha to his Storehouse at that time nor demonstrate his offensive attack, Isou. Eventually, one of the Hishaku sorcerers, Hiruhiko, attacked the party.

Chihiro took a gamble and left Uruha and Hakuri alone on a train that was headed for Senkutsuji temple, their next destination. Meanwhile, he took on Hiruhiko and the other Hishaku reinforcements. He was assured of Uruha and Hakuri's safety since Samura, one of the strongest Enchanted blade contract holders, dwelled in the Senkutsuji temple.

Chihiro was right, as Seiichi Samura demonstrated his fine sword skills to eliminate several Hishaku assassins who infiltrated his fortress. That's when the organization sent even more reinforcements and one of their strongest sorcerers. Samura didn't have his Enchanted Blade at that time because Hakuri was still recovering from his past injuries.

Hakuri tries to use Storehouse (Image via Shueisha)

Eventually, Samura's guardians at the Senkutsuji temple, the Makizumis, cunningly planned to get the blind swordsman, Hakuri, and Yoji Uruha out of the temple. However, Samura wanted to protect his guardians, so he wanted to return. That's when Hakuri Sazanami regained the Storehouse power to retrieve Samura's Enchanted Blade.

The act left him reeling on the ground since he was far from being fully recovered. However, later in Kagurabachi, Hakuri shockingly learned while lying on the ground that Samura intended to kill the Sword Bearers since he considered them more sinister than the Hishaku organization.

As Samura and Uruha faced each other in a death duel, Hakuri kept blaming himself for not pushing himself harder to retrieve the latter's Enchanted Blade beside Samura's Tobimune. During the death duel, Hakuri frantically recalled that he could still summon Chihiro.

Hakuri retrieves Tobimune (Image via Shueisha)

With the final ounces of strength, Hakuri summoned Chihiro Rokuhira to the temple in Kagurabachi. However, as one of the Makizumi girls mentioned in the narrative, Hakuri could either permanently lose his powers or incur brain damage and die if he abused his powers prior to his full recovery.

Hakuri was still young to master, so he couldn't use the Storehouse multiple times like his late father, Kyora Sazanami. Since he was still reeling on the ground, there's a good chance his final Storehouse move to get Chihiro to the temple may render him useless for the rest of the arc.

Hokazono keeping Hakuri in full shape for the remainder of the Sword Bearer Assassination Arc may not be ideal for narrative reasons. For example, he could push himself more to try and retrieve two more Enchanted Blades for the remaining contract holders to allow them a chance to face Samura.

Hakuri feels guilty about Uruha's death (Image via Shueisha)

Although he is currently living on life's edge, Hakuri could still be saved by Shiba. He could teleport him and take him to Char or someone else in the Kamunabi for treatment. A quick recovery could allow Hakuri to retain his "most valuable" status in the arc and retrieve the remaining stolen blades.

However, Hokazono may keep Hakuri incapacitated for an arc or two. At worst, the Sazanami sorcerer could lose his sorcery powers. It could perhaps allow Hakuri to learn some other techniques, or even wield an Enchanted Blade, and return in a grand fashion like Gojo did in Jujutsu Kaisen's final arc. At any rate, Hakuri could become the Gojo of Kagurabachi if his influence in the arc is rendered useless.

Conclusion

Takeru Hokazono can take multiple routes with Hakuri Sazanami's fate in Kagurabachi. Yet, the author may choose to keep the sorcerer away from the narrative for the time being because of his current health status and importance in the arc. Some other characters, like Hiyuki, Shiba, or maybe Kazane, may get their chance to shine in the current arc in Hakuri's absence.