Why Jujutsu Kaisen desperately needs Nobara back

Author and illustrator Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen is one of the most critically acclaimed shonen manga series right now. In a matter of three issues, protagonist Yuji Itadori and his friends have gone from being on the precipice of accomplishing everything they set out to do to seeing it all fall apart in front of them.

Unfortunately, this trend seems set to continue into the near future of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga. While death and tragedy are nothing new to the series, the excessive amount of pain and suffering that the characters have recently gone through is truly horrific.

Furthermore, with Akutami’s prophecy regarding the fates of Gojo and the first years, fans are preparing for most of the series’ main characters to be killed off.

Follow along as this article explains why, for this reason and many others, Jujutsu Kaisen desperately needs the return of Nobara Kugisaki.

Note: Parts of this article are subjective and reflect the opinions of the writer

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Jujutsu Kaisen’s latest events of misery and death merit uplifting in the form of a Nobara return

In a 2020 interview, Akutami said he intended for either one of Gojo and the first-year students (Yuji, Megumi, and Nobara) to live and the rest to die or vice versa. In other words, Jujutsu Kaisen will either end with only one of the four major characters left alive or just one killed off.

With no additional updates from Akutami on this statement, it can be assumed that this is still the direction he intends to take with the foursome. Indeed, recent issues have certainly made it seem that way. With Sukuna having taken over Megumi’s body and Yuji now fighting the King of Curses, it seems inevitable that either Yuji or Megumi will die.

There’s also the fact that Nobara Kugisaki hasn’t been seen since Jujutsu Kaisen’s Shibuya Incident arc. More specifically, fans last saw half of her face explode off after being touched by Mahito and his Idle Transfiguration Cursed Technique. With no dialogue since explicitly touching on her fate, fans have come to assume that she is indeed dead.

Likewise, the latest situation in the series has led fans to believe that Akutami intends to kill off all but one of the first-year students and Satoru Gojo. It’s hard to argue against this belief, with all signs pointing towards the imminent death of either Yuji or Megumi in addition to the suspected death of Nobara.

However, if Nobara were to return, it would seemingly confirm that Akutami intends to only kill off one of the four characters rather than have one outlive the other three. This is undoubtedly the biggest reason why Jujutsu Kaisen so desperately needs Nobara to return. With her being confirmed alive, fans may at least be able to accept the death of Megumi in exchange for everyone else’s survival.

Beyond this, Nobara is generally regarded as a fan-favorite character, with many fans admittedly missing her inherently rather than in the context of Akutami’s tease. The significance of her return and her status as a fan-favorite character make it clear that the series needs a Nobara return soon.

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Follow along for more Jujutsu Kaisen anime and manga news, as well as general anime, manga, film, and live-action news as 2023 progresses.