Summary
- Jujutsu Kaisen makes a touching callback to a dead hero, proving his lasting impact.
- Nanami's final words serve as inspiration for Yuji in his battle with Sukuna.
- The manga reminds readers of the allies who couldn't make it to the end, showing their important mark on the story.
Warning! Contains spoilers for Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter #247!
Jujutsu Kaisen just made a touching callback to a dead hero, Nanami, that proves they still have a major impact on the series even long after their death. This is great given death is so common in Jujutsu Kaisen it can often feel like characters are being cut down before they have a chance to have their full potential impact on the story. This brief flashback shows that Mangaka Gege Akutami is still thinking about these characters even long after they have been killed off.
In chapter #247, translated by John Werry with lettering by Snir Aharon, Yuji and Higuruma are fighting Sukuna in Shinjuku. Over the course of that fight, Sukuna has been dominating, callously casting aside Yuji and focusing on the more threatening Higuruma and his Cursed technique that could potentially kill him. Higuruma knows this and knows that his role is just to hit Sukuna with his sword, no matter what it takes.
At the end of the chapter, he takes a devastating blow from Sukuna but es his Sword to Yuji to have him take the swing. This reminds Yuji of Nanami's final words, "You've got it from here".
Jujutsu Kaisen's Nanami Flashback Shows His Death Had Meaning
This is especially poignant given Nanami's relationship with Yuji before his death. Nanami served largely as Yuji's mentor while most of the Jujutsu Society thought Yuji was dead. This caused Yuji to look up to him and have an arguably closer relationship with him than he had with Gojo, his other mentor figure. This also made Yuji extremely impacted by Nanami's death in the Shibuya Incident, which occurred right in front of his eyes. Nanami's final words to him were what he ed in this latest chapter, and applied at the time to defeating Mahito. Now they apply to a different mission.
Nanami gave his last words grudgingly at the insistence of an apparition of his dead friend Haibara.
Yuji has lost a lot of friends and allies over the course of the series, from his classmate Nobara in the Shibuya Incident arc to his other mentor Gojo more recently in the battle against Sukuna. With all these deaths, it can be easy for fans to forget how deeply Yuji can feel these losses and how impactful each of these characters has been on the protagonist's life. With the series nearing its conclusion, it is great that the manga reminds readers of all the allies who couldn't make it to the end and shows that although they are gone they still have left an important mark on the story.
Nanami Still Serves as an Inspiration For Yuji in Jujutsu Kaisen
Nanami's inclusion here is especially great because fans have debated whether characters like Nobara are actually dead, but no one has done this for him. While those other characters may still have an impact on the story according to some theories, Nanami's remaining role is to serve as an inspiration for Yuji and everyone else who knew him. Jujutsu Kaisen's latest chapter has fulfilled that role and provided fans with an emotional callback to boot.
Jujutsu Kaisen is available from Viz Media and Manga Plus.
