Sukuna vs. Mahoraga is a battle fought between special grade incarnated sorcerer, Sukuna and the most uncontrollable shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique; Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga. It occurs during the Shibuya Incident when Sukuna is forced to intervene in an exorcism ritual in order to preserve Megumi Fushiguro's life for his own future plans.
Prologue
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The curse user Shigemo surprise attacks Megumi from behind.
Following Megumi's peculiar fight with his own ressurected father, he's suddenly assaulted by Haruta Shigemo. The curse user slashes Megumi from behind with his hand-sword cursed tool, severely injuring the student.[1]
Without any choice, Megumi decides to go with his last resort. He divulges the Ten Shadows Technique while maintaining distance from his opponent. Shigemo doesn't take this seriously and just waits for Megumi to stop talking and for him to collapse from his wounds.
Shigemo is momentarily distracted by the nearby clash between Sukuna and Jogo. By the time he turns his attention back to Megumi, the sorcerer has finished revealing his technique. The most important piece of information that Megumi tells his opponent is that he can summon any shikigami at any time in an attempt to exorcise them. He decides to summon one that no other Ten Shadows Technique user has ever been able to defeat. Having been ignoring Megumi as a non-threat most of this time, Shigemo realizes the situation has been turned on him too late and tries to stop his adversary at the last second.
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Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga!
Megumi summons the Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga, the most unstoppable shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique. Forced to take part in this exorcism ritual, Shigemo understands he and Megumi have to defeat the Mahoraga to survive. However, Megumi is far too injured and tells his opponent he'll be the first to pass on. Mahoraga violently knocks Megumi aside into a building, leaving him completely incapacitated.
Mahoraga sets its sights on Shigemo next, causing him to panic. Scared for his life, Shigemo frantically demands the jujutsu sorcerer wake back up. Sukuna notices the situation after defeating Jogo and uses his immense speed to rescue Shigemo before he's crushed by Mahoraga. By rescuing the curse user, Sukuna avoided ending the ritual, saving Megumi's life. Sukuna confirms his hunch was right and recognizes the situation Megumi is in. He still has plans for the young sorcerer, so Sukuna heals him with a reverse cursed technique. In order to save Megumi, Sukuna sets his sights on defeating Mahoraga and voiding the ritual altogether.[2]
Battle
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Sukuna avoids the Sword of Extermination and counterattacks.
The shikigami begins the battle by attacking Sukuna with the blade attached to its wrist. It slashes the sword down at Sukuna, and he blocks it with his forearm. The impact cracks the street beneath Sukuna's feet and creates a shockwave that blasts Shigemo back. Sukuna notices something other than cursed energy emanating from the blade and avoids it by flipping out of the way as the weapon crashes into the ground. While upside-down in midair, Sukuna delivers several rapid-fire left straight punches to his opponent's chin. Before he lands, Sukuna finishes his combination by slashing the shikigami's body with his Dismantle technique.
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Dismantle!
With its body sliced with numerous deep gashes from Sukuna's attack, Mahoraga momentarily falls down on one knee. Sukuna recognizes the shikigami's weapon as the Sword of Extermination, an infamous cursed tool used by cursed spirits that emits positive energy. He even admits that it would make short work of any normal cursed spirit.
The eight-handled wheel on Mahoraga's head turns clockwise, and suddenly all its injuries are healed. Sukuna notices this and immediately attacks with another slash. Mahoraga deflects it with the Sword of Extermination this time, surprising Sukuna, taking note that the shikigami can see the technique now.
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Mahoraga adapts to Sukuna's offense and sends him crashing through Shibuya with one attack.
Mahoraga loads up for another heavy swing and Sukuna puts his guard up. This time, Mahoraga breaks clean through Sukuna's block and sends him crashing through numerous buildings across Shibuya. The last place he crashes into is an office building that Mahoraga follows him into with blazing speed. Instantly after admitting Mahoraga's attack wasn't bad, the Sword of Execution nearly stabs Sukuna through the face.
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"My turn!"
Sukuna acrobatically flips out of the way to avoid getting hit. He carries his momentum into a spinning kick that snaps Mahoraga's head back. Sukuna mounts the shikigami's arm before placing it on his target's face and charging it with cursed energy. Declaring its his turn, Sukuna unleashes a massive slash that cuts the entire building in half diagonally. Sliced vertically down its body, Mahoraga is sent crashing out of the collapsing structure by the technique. While Mahoraga is still reeling in midair, Sukuna capitalizes, following up with a powerful axe-kick that sends his opponent crashing several hundred meters into the ground.
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Mahoraga adapting to Sukuna's slashes.
Believing he's properly deduced Mahoraga's technique, Sukuna predicts it will stand up and heal again shortly. Right on que, Mahoraga's wheel turns and all of its injuries disappear. Sukuna compares its ability to Yamata-no-Orochi. While its first attack used positive energy, it adapted the second strike with infused cursed energy that broke Sukuna's guard. Additionally, Mahoraga was able to recognize and deflect Dismantle. Both of these advancements occurred after the eight-handled wheel rotated the first time.
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Malevolent Shrine!
Furu's Incantation of the Ten Sacred Treasures and that wheel represent a complete cycle and harmony. Mahoraga's technique is the ability to adapt to any and all phenomena. Sukuna compares it to a late throw in rock-paper-scissors. He admits that if Megumi had unleashed Mahoraga as originally intended during their fight when they first met, it probably would have defeated him. Amused, Sukuna thanks Megumi for showing him the way and activates his Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine![3]
Sukuna customizes Malevolent Shrine with a Binding Vow that allows an escape route out of its effective range. As a result, the pact also increases the maximum radius of Sukuna's domain to two hundred meters as a result. In order to avoid hitting Megumi, Sukuna narrows that down to about one-hundred and forty meters.
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Sukuna incinerates Mahoraga before it can adapt and recover again.
Until the technique is deactivated, Malevolent Shrine relentlessly attacks anything in range. It cuts down anything with cursed energy using Cleave and hits all inanimate objects with Dismantle. This results in massive devastation on a city-wide scale. It not only decimates Mahoraga with an endless barrage of slashing attacks but over a hundred-meter radius of Shibuya as well. This takes the lives of numerous civilians who were thought to be saved and leaves the entire area of land around Sukuna completely barren.
Mahoraga is severely injured by this but survives the ordeal. Sukuna knows the only way to beat Mahoraga is to slaughter it with a different technique before it can adapt. He believes the shikigami has not only adapted to dismantle, but to slashing techniques in general. In order to finish the fight, Sukuna decides to unleash the pyrokinetic ability he used to defeat Jogo. He fires an immensely powerful fire arrow at Mahoraga before it can regenerate, creating a giant explosive pillar of fire from the impact that completely annihilates the shikigami.[4]
Aftermath
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Sukuna puts an end to the exorcism ritual.
All that remains of Mahoraga is the eight-handled wheel. Immobilized in awe, Shigemo watches as Sukuna walks over toward him with the wheel. Sukuna chucks it aside and the wheel disintegrates, signifying the conclusion of the exorcism ritual. He tells the curse user to be gone, prompting Shigemo to flee in joy. Ecstatic that he somehow escapes with his life again, Shigemo leaves. However, he was not safe from Malevolent Shrine's effects like Megumi was. With a delayed effect, Shigemo's body slides apart, having been completely sliced in half.
Sukuna notices he doesn't have much longer to control Yuji's body. He takes Megumi to the Shibuya Tollgate where Yaga and Shoko Ieiri are, so he can be treated. Sukuna disappears as quickly as he appears, so Yaga only catches a glimpse of him, unsure whether it was Yuji or not.[5] Immediately after, Sukuna returns to Dogenzaka and relinquishes control over Yuji's body, asking the young student to take a good look at the destruction that took place in his stead.[6]
Trivia
- When Mahoraga hit Sukuna across Shibuya using cursed energy, Sukuna actually flew all the way outside the curtain. Since there was no particular effect on either fighter, and visually it had no bearing on the fight, Gege Akutami chose to leave it out.[7]
- The anime adaptation greatly extends the fight and presents it in a widescreen aspect ratio.
- More new scenes were added to the battle when it was released on Blu-Ray.
References
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 114 (p. 1-3) and Episode 40.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 117 (p. 2-21) and Episode 41.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 118 (p. 1-19) and Episode 41.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 119 (p. 4-13) and Episode 41.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 119 (p. 14-19) and Episode 41.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga and Anime: Chapter 120 (p. 1-2) and Episode 41.
- ↑ Jujutsu Kaisen Manga: Vol. 14 (p. 148).