Not Gojo but Kenjaku could have awakened the true potential of Yuji in Jujutsu Kaisen

Modified Jun 21, 2024 00:00 GMT

Not Gojo but Kenjaku could have awakened the true potential of Yuji in Jujutsu Kaisen (Image via MAPPA)

Kenjaku is one of the main antagonists of Jujutsu Kaisen. He planned Itadori Yuji's birth by stealing the soul of Sukuna's twin, which the King of Curses devoured inside the womb. Moreover, he also possessed the body of Kaori Itadori, the protagonist's mother, before she gave birth to him.

However, despite having such questionable origins, Itadori was raised by his grandfather who taught him to help the weak and not become a bully. Later, with the help of Gojo Satoru and his friends, Yuji was able to learn so much in a short amount of time, becoming one of the most powerful sorcerers in the series.

But could things have been different if Itadori had allied with Kenjaku from the start of the series, just like Choso and the other Death Paintings? The protagonist would still be used as the vessel to bring back Sukuna but he could have awakened his cursed technique, Shrine, much earlier, thus making him much stronger than he is right now.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the Jujutsu Kaisen manga series.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Exploring Itadori's fate if he'd started as an ally of Kenjaku

Kaori (Kenjaku) and Yuji (Image via MAPPA & Shueisha)

Itadori Yuji is the main protagonist of Jujutsu Kaisen and the son of Jin and Kaori Itadori. Unfortunately, before conceiving the protagonist, Kaori's body was possessed by Kenjaku. Moreover, Jin Itadori had the soul of Sukuna's twin brother, which the King of Curses ate when they were both inside their mother's womb.

Despite all these complications, Itadori Yuji was born into the world, but as indicated by the start of the series, the protagonist's parents died sometime after his birth. So, he was raised by his grandfather, Wasuke Itadori, who didn't like Kaori as he had sensed something sinister from her after she was possessed by Kenjaku.

Itadori as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

When Yuji was admitted to Jujutsu High, he had little knowledge of sorcery and learned his way one step at a time. He learned most things from Gojo Satoru but learned the basics of cursed energy manipulation from Nanami, Black Flash from Aoi Todou, Blood Manipulation by consuming Death Paintings, and RCT and Simple Domain through soul-exchange.

But things could have turned out differently if Kenjaku had kept his eyes on Itadori after he was born and taken custody of him. For starters, Yuji could have trained alongside professional sorcerers like Choso and the other Death Paintings and could have been introduced as Choso's official brother (because both shared Kenjaku as one of their parents).

Itadori's Shrine as seen in the manga (Image via Shueisha)

Also, Kenjaku could have fed him Sukuna's finger at an early stage, thus making Yuji's affinity for Shrine, Sukuna's cursed technique, higher than the current timeline of Jujutsu Kaisen. This would have resulted in Itadori awakening Shrine much earlier.

Moreover, his Shrine would have awakened in its peak form, not like the one he has in the current timeline where he can only cut things. So, his true potential could have awakened with Kenjaku, instead of with Gojo Satoru.

Final thoughts

Kenjaku as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

It is hard to imagine Itadori as one of the antagonists of Jujutsu Kaisen as he is the central protagonist of the series. Moreover, his resolute will is also the result of his grandfather's teachings, which could be the reason why Kenjaku didn't fight to take Itadori under his custody.

As for eating Death Paintings and awakening Blood Manipulation, Kenjaku could have done this at an early stage. So, Itadori would have been a different person if he had been under Kenjaku to start with.

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Edited by Meenakshi Ajith