Nobara's return in Jujutsu Kaisen manga will be the ultimate trump card against Sukuna

In the ongoing Shibuya Incident arc of the Jujutsu Kaisen anime, fan-favorite character Nobara Kugisaki is engaged in a heated battle with Mahito's body double. While the battle looks promising, and it seems like Nobara can finally prove her strength as a Jujutsu sorcerer, readers of the manga are already aware of her fate.

Nobara is one of the series' main characters, alongside Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro. Although she has played a central role in the story up to the Shibuya arc of the anime, her fate in the manga is still up in the air. However, there's still room for her to eventually return to the narrative and help take down one of the main antagonists of the series, Ryomen Sukuna.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the Jujutsu Kaisen manga. Reader's discretion is advised.

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Exploring how Nobara Kugisaki's return could be the key to defeating Sukuna in Jujutsu Kaisen manga

In the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, Nobara Kugisaki met her shocking demise at the hands of Mahito. Although she initially overpowered his body double, Nobara eventually came in contact with Mahito's Idle Transfiguration, which blew up half of her face. Since then, her fate has been left ambiguous by series creator Gege Akutami.

Until now, there have been hardly any mentions of the character in the manga, which left fans theorizing and speculating if she will ever return to the series. It's a popular belief in the fandom that Nobara survived Mahito's attack, and some good points back it up.

In chapter 124 of the manga, Mahito mentioned that he could not finish off Nanami with a single touch and wondered what effect it would have on Nobara. Secondly, when Arata Nitta attended to Nobara after her face was blown off, he mentioned that despite her not having a heartbeat, she wasn't completely dead and could still be treated.

Furthermore, when Megumi was asked about Nobara's condition, he simply stood silent with a grimacing look. Although Yuji took this as confirmation of her death, it doesn't necessarily have to mean that.

Lastly, when Satoru Gojo met his end against Sukuna and spoke to his friends in the afterlife, fans noticed one important thing. Although all of Gojo's friends who had died in the story were present at the scene, Nobara was nowhere to be found. This little detail gave her fans some form of hope for her return.

While it's all but mere speculations as of now, some fans theorized that Nobara's eventual return to the story could be the key that leads to Sukuna's defeat. Before his fight at Shinjuku in the Jujutsu Kaisen manga, Sukuna mentioned that Gojo had hidden away his last finger. Furthermore, right after being unsealed, Gojo said he had some important matters to attend to before fighting The King of Curses.

Considering Gojo's ability to foresee how events will unfold, one might not put it past him to create certain contingencies in the event of his death. That contingency could tie in with Nobara's return to action and aiding in Sukuna's defeat.

One should remember that Nobara's Straw Doll Cursed Technique allows her to inflict serious damage directly to her opponent's soul by applying Resonance to an object with direct ties to her opponent. If Gojo left Sukuna's last finger with Nobara as a contingency, she could use it to land a perfect surprise attack on The King of Curses and give her allies an overwhelming advantage.

Nobara Kugisaki as seen in Jujutsu Kaisen (image via MAPPA)

It should be noted that along with Nobara, Yuji Itadori also has the power to damage his opponent's soul. With her help, Yuji can be the one to finally end Sukuna's reign of terror and avenge his deceased sensei.

Back at Jump Festa 2020, series creator Gege Akutami revealed that towards the end of the story, out of Gojo and his first-year students, either one of them or everyone except one would die. Looking at the current state of the manga, it's not hard to see which ending he is going with.

However, Akutami is known for subverting the reader's expectations with his unpredictable style of storytelling. As of now, nothing can be said for sure about the fate of the heroes in Jujutsu Kaisen.

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To conclude

Although Nobara's return in Jujutsu Kaisen is mere speculation as of now, it could create a memorable moment and a turning point for the heroes in the story. By returning and aiding in Sukuna's defeat, Nobara's story would come full circle and re-establish her status as one of the most important characters of the series.