Highlights
- Yuji confronts his trauma and finds a new purpose after witnessing the devastating aftermath of Sukuna’s battle against Mahoraga.
- The climactic battle between Yuji and Mahito begins, with Mahito initially gaining the upper hand through manipulation and transfigured humans.
- Nobara’s shocking death pushes Yuji to his breaking point, but Aoi Todo returns to support him and they fight together to defeat Mahito.
Just before the climax of Jujutsu Kaisen’s infamous Shibuya Incident arc can be reached, Yuji had to face yet another hurdle that would not only bring him face to face with a familiar enemy but would test the very foundations of his resolve and make him confront who he is as a person.
In episode 42 of Jujutsu Kaisen, Yuji begins his final fight against the strongest Disaster Curse, Mahito. In this fight, Yuji would face some of the most traumatic events in his life, which would also be the things that would greatly impact the future of the series. So, let’s take a look at the climactic battle between Yuji and Mahito.
Jujutsu Kaisen: Sukuna Vs. Mahoraga, Explained
Episode 41 of Jujutsu Kaisen showed the King of Curses go up against the Divine General of the Shikigami. So, how did the fight turn out?
Build-Up to the Fight
Sukuna’s decisive battle against Mahoraga caused untold devastation across much of Shibuya and, towards the end of the fight, Sukuna unveiled his Flame Arrow technique to put the beast down for good. In doing so, the attack also created an incredible explosion that killed hundreds, if not thousands, of residents.
Upon seeing the destruction that he indirectly caused, Yuji falls into a depressive state, blaming himself for everything that has happened. However, he then strengthened his resolve and swore to himself to get rid of all the evil in the world so nothing like this would happen again, finding a new purpose despite being heavily traumatized by all that he had seen.
At the same time, Jujutsu Kaisen reveals that Nanami survived against Jogo, but was severely burnt in the process. What followed was a heartbreaking scene where Nanami wished to go to Malaysia where he could rest, beautifully juxtaposing his battle against many transfigured humans with scenes of him finally enjoying his life.
After Mahito’s appearance, Nanami was greeted by a vision of his best friend, Haibara, and in that instance, he made peace with his life and where he was headed. As Yuji enters the area, Nanami imparts his final words to his student. Mahito then uses his Cursed Technique to transfigure Nanami and kill him, further expounding on Yuji’s trauma and dragging him even deeper into a terrible state of mind as their battle finally begins!
Jujutsu Kaisen: Hakari’s Domain Expansion, Explained
Of the many Jujutsu Kaisen Domain Expansions seen, Kinji Hakari’s gambling based technique is one of the most complicated one yet.
Yuji vs Mahito Begins
In a fit of rage at seeing his teacher die at the hands of a villain who has taken so much from him, Yuji charges at Mahito and starts to yell. They then start their brawl, with the Curse initially gaining the upper hand by taking advantage of Yuji’s anger and using his terrifying Cursed Technique. Because of this, Mahito employs many transfigured humans on a hesitant Yuji who doesn’t want to hurt any more people.
Yuji’s hesitation continuously proves to be a great barrier for him to overcome, as Mahito makes gigantic transfigured humans that completely stop Yuji’s progression in the fight multiple times. After Mahito summons a massive, snake-like monster against Yuji, he continues to mock the young sorcerer.
As they are confined to a much tighter space by Mahito’s summons, they eventually fight some more and break out through the other side to continue their brawl. This follows both of them through the entire Shibuya train station, hurling projectiles at one another and battling through multiple floors in a battle to determine who’s stronger.
It is here that Mahito runs away, prompting Yuji to chase him. He uses multiple humans as distractions against the sorcerer and, in doing so, retains the upper hand in battle due to Yuji’s humanity and regard for others. Then, fans would find out in a flashback that Mahito split himself in two to distract Jogo so that his odds of being the one to find and kill Yuji would be greater.
Jujutsu Kaisen: Takaba’s Cursed Technique, Explained
Takaba is one of the most interesting characters in all of Jujutsu Kaisen, mostly due to his mysterious and powerful Cursed Technique.
When the episode catches up with the clone, fans see that he is fighting against Nobara close to where Yuji is. This clone is significantly weaker than full-power Mahito and so, he can’t transfigure Nobara upon touching her. In the fight, she uses her straw doll technique to great effect as it allows her to target Mahito’s soul, even through the clone.
The resonance to Mahito’s soul makes the original also take a lot of damage, giving Yuji the chance to pummel him and gain the upper hand. However, the clone runs to Yuji’s location, causing Nobara to chase him down as well. By taking advantage of her blindside and the confusion, the original briefly touches and transfigures Nobara.
As a flashback of her life plays, fans would then get treated to one of the most shocking moments in the entire series where one of the members of the main trio is killed. Upon seeing Nobara die right in front of him, Yuji falls into the deepest hole that he has ever been in. The toll of seeing Gojo imprisoned and witnessing the deaths of Nanami and Nobara proves to be far too much for him as he freezes in his tracks and stops fighting.
Mahito takes full advantage of this by delivering a Black Flash to Yuji and tosses him around like a ragdoll as he refuses to fight back. Sukuna’s presence within Yuji puts transfiguring him off the table, so Mahito does the next best thing and beats him mercilessly, but just before he can land the finishing blow, he disappears to the sound of a clap.
Jujutsu Kaisen: The Great Families, Explained
The Jujutsu world is largely governed by 3 great families, each with their own histories and values.
This is where Aoi Todo makes his much anticipated return to the series. Yuji breaks down and tells Todo that he couldn’t save anyone, revealing how much of the weight of the entire Shibuya Incident he truly holds on his shoulders. However, Todo comforts his best friend and tells him that none of this was his fault and that to choose the life of a Jujutsu sorcerer is to choose a life of hardship.
After reassuring Yuji and revealing that there is a small chance that Nobara may survive, the sorcerers take their battle stance, as they begin their battle against the Disaster Curse. Todo’s mastery of Boogie Woogie is seen in its full glory as even Mahito commends him by saying how, despite knowing the way the technique works, it is still very disorienting and difficult to deal with.
Flying all across Shibuya as Mahito’s transfigured humans chase them down, Todo and Yuji fight and make their way to the Cursed Spirit to continue the battle as Todo provides the ultimate support role for himself and Yuji to deliver vicious blows to Mahito, with Yuji eventually managing a Black Flash. Seeing how both other combatants have achieved the Black Flash, Todo does the same after chastising himself.
All 3 of them are now on equal terms and fighting at 120% output. As the battle rages onto the streets of Shibuya, Mahito reveals all sorts of new tricks, culminating in a 0.2-second Domain Expansion similar to what Gojo did, due to which he destroys Todo’s arm. This spells the end for Boogie Woogie.
It is here that Todo is taken out of the battle and Mahito unlocks his true form, ‘The Instant Spirit Body of Distorted Killing’. This form has an armor-like carapace that negates regular physical attacks done to it, giving him a great advantage over Yuji. However, thanks to Todo’s distraction, Yuji is once again able to use the Black Flash to destroy Mahito, finally putting an end to the Special Grade Curse.
The Aftermath of the Battle
Throughout the fight, Mahito told Yuji; ‘I’m You’. Many fans were caught off guard by this, as they all thought these two characters to be opposites who were nothing alike in terms of actions or ideals. However, Mahito went on to reveal that just as it is Yuji’s nature to save and protect people, it is his nature to cause death and destruction, and that both of them are simply following their nature.
Jujutsu Kaisen: Inherited Techniques, Explained
Inherited Cursed Techniques are techniques in Jujutsu Kaisen that are not formed from the characters’ minds. So what are they?
He went on to say that since Yuji doesn’t think twice about saving someone, he doesn’t think twice about harming them. This concept is brought full circle after Mahito’s defeat as he runs away, scared of what Yuji has become. Yuji finally acknowledges that he and Mahito are the same and that now, he will not think twice about indiscriminately killing the curse, just as Mahito does to normal people.He promises that if Mahito ever came back, and no matter how many times he did, Yuji would always find a way to kill him.
Jujutsu Kaisen can be streamed on Amazon Prime and Netflix.
