Jujutsu Kaisen fans have rarely noticed Gojo's battle IQ and it's saddening

Modified Feb 23, 2025 19:30 GMT

Jujutsu Kaisen's Gojo Satoru seems to have it all—dashing looks, overwhelming abilities, charisma, and humor—many would call the man Gege Akutami's perfect idiot. Another thing that he does possess and which seems to go unnoticed at times is his tremendous battle IQ. Throughout the series, Gojo hasn't had many battles, but the ones he did display a high level of intellect.

For instance, his making a massive gamble by activating Infinite Void for 0.2 seconds (so as not to harm non-sorcerers too much) was a risky but sharp play.

There were a number of instances in the series like this where the Six Eyes user proved he stood at the top of the food chain. This feature will glimpse at one such instance which occurred during the "Battle of the Strongest".

Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed in the article belong solely to the author.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Gojo's battle IQ may have gotten underappreciated by fans

Gojo vs Mahoraga in Jujutsu Kaisen (Image via Viz Media)

During Jujutsu Kaisen's "Battle of the Strongest", Gojo Satoru and Ryomen Sukuna engaged in a destructive bout in Shinjuku. Their fight left immense destruction in its wake and wowed readers as it was one of the series' most anticipated face-offs. Sukuna triumphed, having used Mahoraga and Merged Beast Agito to best Gojo.

However, it was during a brief section where Gojo was fending off the Divine Sila General that his expertise shone brightly. Before delving in, it is worth understanding what Gojo's Blue and Red do.

Blue is created when Gojo amplifies Limitless with negative CE, birthing a vacuum, which pulls the world to fill the space. Red is the opposite of Blue, flowing positive energy into Limitless and inverting Blue thereby creating a powerful repulsive force.

Now, in the battle, Gojo fires off a Red into the Sky above Mahoraga, aiming to collide his Blue with it for his (final) Purple. But due to the ongoing fight, Mahoraga had already adapted to Blue previously and was unaffected by its pull. So, leveraging this, he put himself between Blue and Mahoraga to interfere with Purple's formation.

Gojo Satoru in Jujutsu Kaisen (Image via MAPPA)

This allowed Gojo to accelerate himself and be pulled by Blue's gravity to charge in and land a powerful hit on the General. In essence, Mahoraga's adaptation ability backfired in this instance, i.e., Gojo used the ability against him. This is just one of the many moments during the Gojo-Sukuna fight when the Six Eyes user's battle IQ was on full display.

His doing so was a testament to the fact that he was strategizing and formulating tactics whilst battling. In practice, this is quite tough given that one's full focus will be on the battle itself. It was nothing out of the ordinary, but a simple manipulation of his existing abilities and his opponent's skillset. His innovation and creativity with his Cursed Technique was a reason why he was ranked number 1.

Again, because of using his Domain so many times, Gojo's brain was suffering heavy damage. While he did not explicitly "repair" the damage done, he did use the power of the Reverse Cursed Technique (RCT) to essentially "rewire" his brain by using the undamaged parts to form a new circuit and thus bypass the damaged bit. This allowed him to retain his abilities and keep fighting.

Final thoughts

Gojo Satoru’s battle prowess goes far beyond his raw strength and overwhelming Cursed Techniques. With these things, it is his strategic mind and keen intellect ability that makes him a truly formidable fighter. While fans often praise his immense power, his battle IQ looks to be an underrated aspect of his character. Through his clash with Sukuna, Gojo continuously adapted and exploited both his own abilities and his opponent’s weaknesses to tip the scales in his favor.

As mentioned above, his clever use of Blue’s gravity to accelerate himself into a decisive strike against Mahoraga exemplifies his deep understanding of combat mechanics. Furthermore, his ability to rewire his brain mid-fight using the Reverse Cursed Technique underscores his resilience and ingenuity. Gojo doesn’t just overpower his enemies, he outsmarts them through analysis, adjustment, and strategy and his intelligence deserves as much recognition as his strength.

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Edited by Sreerupa Das