Yuta Okkotsu

Yuta Okkotsu is the main protagonist of Jujutsu Kaisen prequel series Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School. He was initially a Special Grade Cursed Human haunted by his late childhood friend, Rika Orimoto. Satoru Gojo mentored Yuta and enrolled him at Tokyo Jujutsu High.

Yuta is currently a second-year student at Jujutsu High who is studying overseas.

Appearance
Yuta is a young man of average size with disheveled black hair and dark blue eyes. His body language makes it easy to tell that Yuta is very stressed. His posture is very unconfident and his eyes have dark spots under due to lack of sleep.

At his old school, Yuta wore a suit for their uniform. For casual wear, Yuta sports a long-sleeve shirt that stops at his forearms, or a black t-shirt, and dark green pants.

After transferring to Tokyo Jujutsu High, Yuta received a specialized uniform. Yuta has a loose white jacket with sleeves that stop at his forearms. The rest of his uniform appears to be the usual Jujutsu High dark colors. He also often carries his sword on his back.

Personality
Yuta was a very timid and lonely boy who was bullied a lot growing up. Due to Rika haunting much of his early life, Yuta was unable to make connections with other people and has lost all confidence in himself. This makes it difficult for Yuta to interact with others, as they often scare him without meaning to or he's just too shy to speak to them.

Even so, Yuta genuinely cared about other people and decided to isolate himself from them even if it means remaining alone. Maki Zenin called Yuta out for being a moody kid who's lived his entire life without goals. He acknowledged that this was true and used her advice to gain a resolve for being a Jujutsu Sorcerer. This helps Yuta realize that deep down he truly desires the confidence to feel like he belongs.

While his timid nature stays intact, Yuta slowly begins to become more social and interact with others normally. Even after early signs of improvement, Yuta still struggled to understand someone like Toge Inumaki. He was initially scared of Toge until he realized how kind of a person he truly is and made an effort to establish a friendly connection.

Gaining friends helps Yuta gain confidence in himself and establish the goal to help set Rika free. He felt responsible for her turning into a curse in the first place and worked extremely hard to find a way to help her. He pushed himself during training and took the words of all his friends and mentors to heart, showing a more determined side of himself. At his core, Yuta wants to become someone who can help keep others out of danger.

Against Suguru Geto, Yuta showed the darkest side of himself. Geto hurt Yuta's only friends, and the young man was more than willing to kill him for it. Yuta's rage allowed him to even command Rika's power at will. He was willing to sacrifice his life to use Rika to kill Geto in order to avenge his friends, the only people who give him the confidence to continue living.

History
6 years ago, Yuta was given a promise ring by Rika and the two promise to marry each other when they grow up. Unfortunately, Rika was killed by a street accident, forcing Yuta to subconsciously curse her soul to remain with him.

Cursed Child Arc
Yuta is involved in an incident where four student were seriously harmed. The Tokyo Magic College notices that Yuta is cursed with a special graded curse, and takes him to be executed which Yuta agrees with. During his isolation, Yuta tries to kill himself, but Rika stops him. Gojo manages to get Yuta enrolled into the college. When Yuta decides to just stay in isolation, Gojo convinces Yuta to attend the college.

As Yuta meets with Panda, Maki, and Toge, which all three notice that Yuta is cursed. The three prepare to attack Yuta, which confuses Yuta. Gojo explains to Yuta what this college is and what they teach. Gojo also warns the three, which Rika appears and defends Yuta. Gojo then explains Yuta's situation to the class. Gojo also introduces the class to Yuta, and that they will be pairing up to today's lesson. Yuta is paired up with Maki, which Yuta has trouble with her.

Gojo brings Yuta and Maki to an elementary school where two children have been taken by spirits. Gojo explains to Yuta how Cursed Spirits are created, and leaves them to handle the problem after putting up a screen. When three spirits appear, Yuta is amazed as Maki exorcises them all. As they head inside, Yuta is worried about the spirits that are dwelling in the school, while Maki notices that the spirits are not attacking them. Maki wonders if it is because of Yuta, and asks to see his student ID. Maki is distracted when she finds out that Yuta is a Special-Grade Sorcerer as Yuta tells Maki that there is a spirit behind her.

Yuta and Maki are devoured by the spirit, which results in them finding the missing children. Maki suddenly falls to the ground as Yuta wonders what to do. Maki asks him why he came to the college, to which Yuta answers, explaining he "wants the confidence to be able to live." Maki encourages Yuta to exorcise the spirit, which causes Yuta to put on the ring that Rika gave to him and has Rika attack the spirit. Once Yuta and the others are freed, Yuta carries them to the exit. As Yuta is about to fall over, Rika's spirit encourages him to continue on, which gives Yuta enough willpower to reach the exit.

After the incident, Yuta is at a hospital with Gojo where Maki and the children are being treated. Yuta talks with Gojo about how this was the first time that he had summoned Rika, and says that he remembers when he made the promise with Rika. Yuta also says that he believes he was the one that had cursed Rika, and vows to find a way to release Rika from the curse. Afterwards, Yuta is given a katana by Gojo, who explains to Yuta how he can break the curse that is on Rika by imbuing the tool with the energy of the curse, bit by bit.

Three months later, Yuta is training with Maki as Panda, Toge, and Gojo watch. Gojo assigns a mission to Toge on which Yuta will accompany him. Gojo explains what Toge's ability is and that Yuta is to observe Toge without bringing out Rika.

Yuta and Toge are then driven to the Hapina Shopping district by Ijichi Kiyotaka. Once they arrive, Ijichi begins to explain the mission. Yuta and Ijichi notice that Toge has headed off to buy throat medicine. Yuta and Toge then head into the shopping district, and Yuta watches as Toge easily exorcises the spirits. As they leave, Yuta and Toge notice that the screen has not been raised. Suddenly, a powerful spirit appears and attacks them. Toge pushes Yuta out of the way and uses his ability to twist the spirit's arm. Toge begins to cough, requiring Yuta to save him from the spirit's attack and bring him to safety. However, during this encounter they lose the throat medicine. After resting for a bit, Toge decides to go face the spirit. Yuta decides to accompany him, despite Toge's insistence. As Yuta approaches the spirit, the spirit notices Rika's presence and becomes furious. Yuta manages to dodge some of the spirit's attacks and is able to land a blow on the curse. Yuta notices that he can't defeat the spirit and quickly throws the throat medicine, which had been resting on the floor, to Toge. Toge takes the medicine and uses his ability to crush the curse. Afterwards, the two celebrate with a high-five. At some point during this altercation, Yuta drops his student identification card, which is picked up by Suguru Geto.

Afterwards Yuta and Toge head back to the college. Yuta meets with Panda, who explains how Toge is a nice guy and that Toge was worried about Yuta since their situation are similar. Yuta then goes to train with Maki, which he asks her how to pour curse power it his sword but she has no idea.

Days later, Yuta is with Toge, Panda, and Maki when Geto and his comrades show up. Geto quickly introduces himself to Yuta and begins to explain his reason for wanting to kill everyone who is not a Sorcerer. Yuta then becomes angry with Geto when he starts to insult his friends. As the faculty come and try to force Geto out of the college, Geto announces a date and location for the Hyakki Yakkou. Geto then leaves with his comrades, but leaves some cursed spirits for the college to deal with.

On December 24, Yuta is in the classroom when Maki shows up. The two start to talk, causing Maki to explain her situation and how she plans to head back to the Zenin clan and become its head one day. Yuta says how he want to become someone like Maki someday and wants to fully support her. Maki becomes embarrassed by this and leaves.

When Geto puts up a screen, Yuta notices it being put up.

Later, Yuta comes across Geto and his defeated friends. Yuta gets angry and summons Rika to his side. As Getou launches multiple spirits to attack Yuta, Yuta defends against them all and manages to rescue his friends and heal them. As Getou summons more spirits, Yuta uses Rika's powers to easily exorcise all the spirits through the use of Inumaki's cursed technique. Yuta manages to get close to Geto, but Geto manages to overpower Yuta causing Rika to pull Yuta away from Geto. Yuta decides to continue to fight and get close again, but Geto manages to break Yuta's katana. Yuta simply starts to punch Geto, which forces Geto to distance himself. After a brief chat the two have with each other, Geto decides to use all of his spirits against Yuta and Rika through the Extreme Quantity Cursed Spirit Manipulation "Tornado" technique. Yuta resolves to fully release Rika's power at the cost of his life with use of a Binding Vow technique. They fire a blast strong enough to exorcise all of Geto's spirits and force Geto to retreat.

Afterward, Yuta awakes to find all of his friends around him. Yuta notices Rika and explains what he had done to his friends' rejection, but is shocked when he notes Rika's curse has been undone. Gojo arrives and congratulates Yuta on undoing Rika's curse. Gojo also explains that Yuta is a distant relative of his through the sorceror Michizane Sugawara, which accounts for the unprecedented strength of the curse he was able to place on Rika at her death. Yuta then bids Rika goodbye as she fades away.

Later, Yuta is walking with Gojo, who assuages his concerns about being the cause of Getou's attack and hands Yuta back his student ID. Yuta then meets up with Maki, Panda, and Toge.

Cursed Training Arc
Fushiguro Megumi mentions to Kugisaki Nobara that Yuta is currently studying overseas when she first meets the second-year students. Meanwhile, while watching over Yuji's dead body, Gojo mentions to Ichiji that he believes Yuta is one of the few students that have the potential to someday surpass him, alongside Itadori Yuji and third-year student, Hakari.

Shibuya Incident Arc
Gojo mentions that they still have Yuta on their side, but the Curse User controlling Suguru Geto's body tells Gojo that Yuta's powers (both copying Cursed Techniques and his boundless Cursed Energy) came from when he had detained, his loved one, Rika's soul and that Yuta "can't become the next Satoru Gojo."

Abilities and Powers
Overall Skill Level: Yuta is one of four Special Grade Sorcerers recognized by Jujutsu High. While being haunted by Rika's Cursed Spirit, Yuta was immediately registered as a Special Grade due to Rika's immense power. He apparently dominated all of the Kyoto students in the 2017 Goodwill event and was able to defeat Suguru Geto after releasing the limiters on Rika's power.

After training with Gojo and the other students, Yuta learns to control his Cursed Energy and becomes reliable with a sword. Even after Rika's Curse is dispelled, Yuta retains his Special Grade ranking and Gojo has stated that Yuta has the potential to surpass him. Yuta's great power comes from being a descendant of one of the Three Great Sorcerer Clans and is the reason he Cursed Rika when he rejected her death at a young age.

Expert Swordsman: Yuta was given a katana mainly as a way to channel Rika's power. Through vigorous training with Maki, a frequent Cursed Tool user, Yuta became decent with a sword, able to hold his own against powerful Cursed Spirits and even Suguru Geto, who has exceptional physical prowess. However, he often makes mistakes including cutting too shallow or pouring too much Cursed Energy into the blade, which can cause it to break.

Trivia

 * Yuta ranked 7th place in the manga's 1st Character Popularity Poll with 7,934 votes.