Jujutsu Kaisen, Vol. 4 by Gege Akutami
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Yuji Itadori is resolved to save the world from cursed demons, but he soon learns that the best way to do it is to slowly lose his humanity and become one himself!
In a world where cursed spirits feed on unsuspecting humans, fragments of the legendary and feared demon Ryomen Sukuna were lost and scattered about. Should any demon consume Sukuna’s body parts, the power they gain could destroy the world as we know it. Fortunately, there exists a mysterious school of Jujutsu Sorcerers who exist to protect the precarious existence of the living from the supernatural!
While investigating a strange set of mysterious deaths, Itadori meets Junpei, a troubled kid who is often bullied at school. However, Junpei is also befriended by the culprit behind the bloody incident—Mahito, a mischievous cursed spirit! Mahito sets in motion a devious plan involving Junpei, hoping to ensnare Itadori as well.
Warnings: body horror, graphic violence
Yuji rushes to stop Junpei despite being dissuaded from doing so by Ijichi, and we get to see Junpei’s cursed techniques, to which the former is somehow resistant against? It can’t all be Sukuna, because he refuses to help Yuji when facing up against Mahito, who discovers the vessel of Sukuna himself is a lot to handle. With Nanami joining in the fray and the two of them teaming up against Mahito, the latter unleashes his domain expansion, which is well, quite powerful. I like the way that Yuji unknowingly got Sukuna to help, but I’m still thinking what that bond between them will mean in the future.
We also get Nanami’s backstory in this book – about how he got back into Jujutsu society after leaving it to go be a salary-man. It is interesting to see the characters’ reasons for being a sorcerer, to pursue this path instead of being a regular person; yes, a lot of it does come down to ‘we have to save people because we can’ but with how the upper strata of Jujustsu tech is mired in their own conflicts and drama, it is a good change of pace. The curses (and cursed user) meanwhile are looking to their main goal instead of infighting – to bring about an age of curses, even if they aren’t there to see it.
The second half is the ‘friendly’ Goodwill Event with the Kyoto School, which is anything but friendly. Never mind the student rivalry, the moment Yuji is introduced as a surprise by Gojou, the Kyoto principal goes full-on ‘take him out’ to his students. Their competition has them doing a hunting session, as in, they have to take out curses in a bounded area, but we all know that is just an excellent excuse for a ‘hunting accident’. Todo, who is a straight shooter, doesn’t want any part of his principal’s schemes and goes out for a direct attack; I feel like he would be an excellent addition to Gojo’s class.
Previous books in the Jujutsu Kaisen series
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