Why Kusakabe is the unsung hero in Jujutsu Kaisen, explored

Modified Jul 31, 2024 22:00 GMT

Why Kusakabe is the unsung hero in Jujutsu Kaisen, explored (Image via MAPPA)

Kusakabe from Jujutsu Kaisen is one of the strongest and wisest sorcerers despite only being a first-grade sorcerer. His immense knowledge of sorcery and expertise in utilizing cursed energy matches the strongest ones like Sukuna and Gojo. Unfortunately, despite being such a strong character, fandom often overlooks him.

He saved Miwa from Kenjaku's Uzumaki attack, showcasing his knowledge of sorcery; he later taught Yuji the basics of domain expansion and reverse-cursed technique, showcasing the love he has for his fellow sorcerers. This makes him the unsung hero of the sorcerer who has been helping others without anything in return.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the Jujutsu Kaisen manga series and includes the author's opinion.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Exploring the character of Kusakabe as one of the most versatile sorcerers

Atsuya as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

Atsuya Kusakabe is a first-grade sorcerer and a teacher for the second-years at Jujutsu High. He is a tall man with an aged look who stays annoyed most of the time and is always scared of danger despite being a high-level sorcerer.

The sorcerer made his first appearance in the series during the Shibuya arc, where he expressed his desire to kill Itadori as he was why everything went wrong. During this arc, he first goes against Geto's army and outclasses them using his swordplay.

Atsuya saving Miwa as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

He later appeared out of nowhere to save Miwa, who provoked Kenjaku to use the technique Maximum Uzumaki. He used this attack and earned the praise of Kenjaku, who never considered the modern generation to have knowledge of sorcery still.

From this point, Atsuya became a proper part of the plotline and was involved in training almost every sorcerer, with the spotlight on Itadori. During the Shinjuku Showdown arc, after Gojo Satoru was released and the sorcerers trained to face the King of Curses, Kusakabe was involved in training Itadori.

Atusya helping Itadori with switch training (Image via Shueisha)

With the help of Ui Ui's cursed technique, Atusya taught Itadori the basics of reverse-cursed technique and domain expansion, which helped the sorcerer against Ryomen Sukuna in the final fight. Moreover, Atsuya also taught Itadori Simple Domain, a technique in which Atsuya specialized.

Even though Simple is not an innate cursed technique, Atsuya's use of this technique made him special and the strongest first-grade sorcerer in the eyes of sorcerers like Gojo Satoru, Kento Nanami, and Mei Mei. After the King of Curses bested Maki, Atsuya entered the battlefield to go against Ryomen Sukuna.

Atsuya scared of facing Sukuna (Image via Shueisha)

As expected from his character, he was scared of going against the strongest sorcerer in history. Fortunately, he performed pretty well as Ryomen Sukuna was pushed back against Atsuya's Simple Domain technique. He used it to sense Sukuna's incoming slashes, impressing the King of Curses.

Unfortunately, the King of Curses was impossible to beat, and Kusaksbe was slashed after the sorcerer left a blind spot. Atsuya's hard work as a sorcerer, perfecting the Simple Domain, helping other sorcerers nurture to become stronger, and caring for his students made him an unsung hero of Jujutsu Kaisen.

The fandom tends to forget about him due to his tag as a 'supporting character.' While other supporting characters, like Gojo Satoru and Kento Nanami, are still in the spotlight despite their deaths, the same couldn't be said about Atsuya.

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Edited by Toshali Kritika