Chapter 214 of Jujutsu Kaisen has finally arrived, continuing on the Culling Game Arc and following on from the many recent plot twists. You can read the new chapter yourself, for free, on either the VIZ official website or on Manga +.
Compared to some of the more expository or dialogue-heavy chapters we’ve had of late, 214 is a return to form as we get an intense fight between Yuji and Sukuna. With some excellent art, insane choreography and even some story hints, Fearsome Womb Part 6 is an excellent continuation of Jujutsu Kaisen that only has up wanting more.
Here is our review of Chapter 214 of Jujutsu Kaisen. You can find our review of Chapter 213 here.
Summary
Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 214 continues right where we left off in the previous chapter. Hana, blinded by her love and affection for Megumi, falls into Sukuna’s trap. He mauls her, leaving her severely wounded, before throwing her off the roof to the ground below. Yuji gets to the scene just as Hana falls to the ground, the sound sending him into a blind, seething rage that we haven’t seen in Yuji in some time.
The sorcerer leaps at Sukuna with an incredible display of physical might that catches even Sukuna off guard. The two then engage in a fierce brawl, with Yuji throwing everything he has and more at the Curse. During the fight, Sukuna comments that he “gets it” and that Yuji is from “that time” before calling Kenjaku disgusting. They continue to fight, but Sukuna manages to catch Yuji off guard with a quick use of his Curse Technique.
In that brief moment of calm, Sukuna responds to Yuji’s ask of why he has to spread misery by asking why Yuji (and humans in general) have to be so weak. The statement reminds Yuji that, no matter how human they look, they are and always will be Curses. At this point, it seems that Yuji has completely thrown aside any reservations he had about fighting Sukuna in Megumi’s body, as he approaches the Curse with murderous intent.
Sukuna, ever arrogant, goads Yuji into coming closer, readying his Dismantle Curse Technique in the process. To his surprise, Yuji pushes through it: despite being cut to bits, losing half an ear and suffering immense amounts of damage, he just keeps moving past it and towards Sukuna. The King of Curses wonders why Yuji is so tough before stating that it isn’t Yuji that is strong, it’s that he is weak. Specifically, Sukuna’s Cursed Energy output is too low, with him damning Megumi as Yuji ends the chapter with a punch straight to his face.
Shackled Strength
Thoughts
A Return to Rage
It’s been a while since we’ve seen Yuji this angry, probably not since Shibuya and his Wolf-meet-Rabbit moment with Mahito. The Cursed Technique fights are always fun and figuring out the rules is entertaining, but nothing is more satisfying than watching Yuji go ballistic with his raw strength, especially on a target as strong as Sukuna. Jujutsu Kaisen 214 definitely gave us a feast in terms of an excellent fight.
It’s honestly quite a moment of catharsis after how Yuji has been treated over the last few chapters. He’s been betrayed, had his life’s purpose ripped away from him, lost several body parts and has now lost his best friend to the Curse that was always tormenting him. Life hasn’t been very good to Yuji lately (and it likely won’t improve any time soon) so at least we get to see him vent his frustration on Sukuna a bit.
Something that is quite poignant, if tragic, is how Yuji’s worldview continues to develop. Yuji has said that line about Curses always being Curses once before – during Chapter 27 when Mahito transformed Junpei and Sukuna refused to help – and it is soul-destroying to see that nothing has changed. Sukuna is an interesting character to watch and an amazing villain to get hyped at, but he will always be pure evil. There’s no changing Sukuna: Yuji’s just been reminded of that.
That all being said, I don’t think Yuji has hit his “Honoured One” moment yet and I am eagerly anticipating that breaking point.
Yuji Needs A Break
Kenjaku’s Gross Proclivities
While a lot of this chapter was just a badass fight between Sukuna and Yuji, there were a couple of hints and teases sprinkled throughout. The biggest one was probably Sukuna’s line about Yuji in which he says:
‘I get it. The boy is from that time-‘
“Kenjaku does the grossest things.”
Jujutsu Kaisen, Chapter 214
We already know a little about Yuji’s connection to Kenjaku. He’s related, at least partly, to the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings that Kenjaku created all the way back in the Edo period, and we’ve seen Kenjaku inhabiting Yuji’s mother’s body in a flashback. But there seems to be something else going on here, a particular interest Kenjaku had in Yuji to make him the way he did.
There’s also that line about Yuji being from “that time”. The two ways that this statement could be taken are either 1) Sukuna is talking literally and is referring to a different time period that Yuji has been pulled from or 2) he is referring to the flashback with baby Yuji, his father and Kenjaku. The first option is possible (as we have seen with the reincarnated sorcerers in the Culling Game) but the latter seems like it makes the most sense as everything we have seen about Yuji’s past has him as a child in modern times, not in any other time period. This statement does raise questions about what Sukuna knows about Yuji and what Kenjaku may have done to him.
The “gross” comment is eye-catching but isn’t very surprising on its own. We know that Kenjaku is a disgusting person – terrible enough to have the bloody King of Curses calling him out on it, in fact – based purely on what he did to create the Death Paintings and how he has inhabited the bodies of at least 3 people (including Yuji’s mother) so knowing that there’s more isn’t much of a shock. The fact that it is explicitly related to Yuji, based on Sukuna’s comment, is the interesting part.
Kenjaku’s Many Faces
Shackled Sukuna
Another really interesting thing about Jujutsu Kaisen 214 is Sukuna. Things aren’t going his way, even after wanting to get his hands on Megumi for the whole series
There are three distinct possibilities for Sukuna’s line about how Megumi’s Cursed Energy limits him. The first is that he is simply being his usual arrogant self, too high and mighty to consider that maybe Yuji is just that strong. The second is that Megumi is limiting him, holding Sukuna back similar to how Yuji suppressed him. Finally, it could be that Megumi isn’t doing anything: his body just has less Curse Energy to tap into. Sukuna could just be cursing at how weak of a body he has decided to possess.
The first theory does fit with Sukuna’s overall character. Yet, it would be odd for Akutami to include this line in Sukuna’s internal dialogue (where the most vulnerable and truthful information is often revealed). Meanwhile, the second and third theories shine new light on the events in the previous chapter, specifically Sukuna’s summoning of Nue.
Fans had speculated that perhaps what changed Nue into its new, twisted form wasn’t Sukuna’s abundance of Cursed Energy. Instead, it could be that he perceives the Ten Shadows differently than Megumi, granting them a stronger visage as he believes in their power far more. This line about him having less Cursed Energy could further point to that conclusion. It would also give Megumi a clean line of progression for making his Shadows stronger (if he ever comes back, that is).
Whatever the reason, it’s unlikely that Sukuna is going to take this for much longer.
They Are and Always Will Be
The Fate of Angel
To close, let’s once again talk about Hana and Angel. Despite some hopes and theories that Hana and Angel were just duping Sukuna last chapter, it is very clear that Sukuna – as Curses are wont to do – took advantage of Hana’s infatuation in order to eliminate her. Angel is a massive threat to Sukuna and the best bet for defeating him, something he clearly understood himself.
Despite this, I don’t think Hana is dead. Sukuna’s attack did a lot of damage and, if she isn’t packing Reverse Cursed Energy, she’ll be down an arm for the rest of the series. However, Sukuna (or Megumi, technically) didn’t receive any points upon her death. Additionally, we got that line last chapter about how Angel’s symbiotic bond with Hana allowed her to recover from unconsciousness faster than predicted. Perhaps something will come of that and help Hana get back into the fight.
A different way of looking at that statement is a bit farfetched, but still within the realm of possibility. Angel and Hana were in a symbiotic relationship (meaning that they fed off or relied on each other to survive) in contrast to Yuji and Sukuna. We already know that Yuji is an excellent Vessel and with Sukuna in Megumi’s body and Angel’s symbiotic host near death, we could see Angel join Yuji. Angel would get a new body to survive off and Yuji may get the power-up he needs.
Simpler Days
Either way, we’ll learn the answers to at least some of our questions next week. Chapter 215 of Jujutsu Kaisen releases on March 5th.
