Jujutsu Kaisen's ending could either turn Kenjaku into a total mastermind or a complete disaster, and there's no in-between

By Umer

Modified Aug 26, 2024 12:30 GMT

Jujutsu Kaisen is just a few chapters away from its possible climax, and the Great Merger planned by the villainous Kenjaku has little chance of happening, considering how much the author has to wind up. This puts the position of the series' antagonist in a bizarre position where his actions could either be a hit or a miss.

The antagonist's plan for the past 1000 years was to witness the next evolution of humanity through the merger between Tengen and humanity. Surprisingly, the only reason behind such a sinister goal was the pure curiosity of the antagonist. As masterful as this plan might look, the antagonist's work might sum up to nothing if Ryomen Sukuna doesn't activate the merger before his demise.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the Jujutsu Kaisen manga series.

Jujutsu Kaisen: Why Kenjaku's character will be judged based on the completion of his grand plan

Kenjaku as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

Kenjaku is one of the main antagonists of Jujutsu Kaisen. He is an ancient cursed sorcerer who hasn't died for 1000 of years due to his innate cursed technique, which allows him to transplant his brain inside a new body, thus evading death every time. His vessels in the past include Kamo Noritoshi (the infamous sorcerer) and Kaori Itadori (Yuji's mother).

His latest vessel was Geto Suguru, the special-grade sorcerer from Jujutsu High. From the beginning, the antagonist's motives were unknown as he despised humans and lived amongst the strongest cursed spirits, like Jogo and Hanami. However, he had a plan all along, which was revealed during the Shibuya arc.

Mahito as seen in the anime (Image via MAPPA)

At the climax of the Shibuya arc, after cornering Itadori and absorbing Mahito using Geto's cursed technique, Kenjaku used Idle Transfiguration on the entirety of Japan and awakened the cursed energy inside everyone he could. He also activated the pacts he made with past sorcerers who would reincarnate inside the bodies of Japanese people.

The antagonist revealed his motive to evolve humanity to its next stage using cursed energy as a catalyst. He would combine Lord Tengen and humanity using cursed energy, entitling this procedure as the Great Merger. Lord Tengen's immortality would stabilize this merger, giving rise to a grand cursed spirit that would be the evolution of humanity.

Kenjaku's demise as seen in the manga (Image via Shueisha)

He got hold of Tengen after the heated battle against Yuki and Choso. Moreover, he gathered enough cursed energy through the activities of the Culling Games, fulfilling every requirement for his plan. Unfortunately, the antagonist 'seemingly' died at the hands of Takaba in Jujutsu Kaisen chapter 249. However, he passed the right to activate the merger to Fushigoro Megumi (Sukuna).

The reason behind the antagonist's plan, which took thousands of years to prepare, was his curiosity to see what this Great Merger spirit would be. However, according to chapter 267, Ryomen Sukuna could be on his last breath, considering how he just got hit with Nobara's Resonance and Itadori's Black Flash.

If Sukuna isn't able to activate the merger before dying at the hands of the kid who he mocked since the start of the series, Kenjaku's plans could be in trouble.

Sukuna's state as seen in the latest chapter (Image via Shueisha)

Even if Sukuna activates the merger during his last breaths, it should happen in the next chapter (chapter 268) because the author needs to give the Great Merger spirit its proper time for the sorcerers to take care of it.

Otherwise, the Great Merger could just be a plot device to the series' climax. So, Kenjaku would come out as a mastermind antagonist if the Great Merger happened. On the other hand, if it fails to happen, he would look like one of the biggest failures in anime.

Related Links

Edited by Shreya Das