Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 may be Togashi fanboy Akutami’s biggest tribute to the Hunter x Hunter mangaka
The markings on Sukuna from Jujutsu Kaisen, and Yusuke from Yu Yu Hakusho (Image via Gege Akutami/MAPPA, Yoshihiro Togashi/Pierrot)

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 leaked spoilers recently surfaced on the internet, showing Sukuna’s response to Gojo’s initial Hollow Purple at 200%. The two sorcerers began engaging in close-range combat, destroying several buildings, bridges, and roads in the process, which depicted just how deadly they are in combat. There’s also something to be said about Gege Akutami’s adoration of the majestic Yoshihiro Togashi recalled for his work in Hunter x Hunter.

And it appeared to our eyes that there’s more than what meets the eye (hah!). Here are all the references that author Akutami made in Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 to other works, including Hunter x Hunter.

But first, laying out what happened in Chapter 224

Ryomen Sukuna from Season 1 Episode 4 of Jujutsu Kaisen
Ryomen Sukuna from Season 1 Episode 4 of Jujutsu Kaisen (Image via Viz media)
  • Both Sukuna and Gojo seemed to be enjoying the fight, with the Six Eyes sorcerer lying down flat on the floor to dodge an attack before blasting his opponent away into a wall.
  • Similarly, Sukuna directed an attack at Gojo while mid-air using a finger-gun gesture. Fans were quick to notice that Jujutsu Kaisen mangaka Gege Akutami, a dedicated fan of Yoshihiro Togashi’s work, had once again slipped in some very obvious nods to the iconic mangaka’s past projects.

While this is not the first time Akutami has referenced the Hunter x Hunter author, this might be the most significant of all such tributes.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the Jujutsu Kaisen, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Hunter x Hunter manga.

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 may be Togashi fanboy Akutami’s biggest tribute to the Hunter x Hunter mangaka
Nobara namedrops Yyu Yu Hakusho in chapter 64 (Image via Gege Akutami/Shueisha)

Akutami’s references and easter eggs in Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 raw scans showed the King of Curses, Ryomen Sukuna, being forced to take a more defensive stance against Satoru Gojo, the strongest modern sorcerer alive.

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 raw scans: Is Akutami imitating Yoshihiro Togashi?

The Six Eyes sorcerer continued to attack Sukuna relentlessly, sending his opponent crashing into buildings, once with the latter still atop a broken bridge. Sukuna escaped from the attack unscathed, attacking Gojo with his signature “Dismantle” move while they were both in the sky.

Yu Yu Hakusho Reference

  • Only this time, he used a finger gun gesture to direct Dismantle at the Six Eyes sorcerer, a very obvious reference to the Yu Yu Hakusho protagonist, Yusuke Urameshi’s signature move, Spirit Gun.
  • The workings of cursed energy in Jujutsu Kaisen shares similarities with Nen from Hunter x Hunter, and Spirit Energy from Yu Yu Hakusho. So it seems that Sukuna’s gesture is more than just a stylistic tribute going deeper into how the King of Curses used the “Spirit Gun” hand sign to direct cursed energy towards Gojo.

Hunter x Hunter reference

  • The second major tribute that Akutami included in the choreography of the Gojo vs. Sukuna match in Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 is inspired by Gon’s trademark Nen attack in Hunter x Hunter.
  • The iconic battle of this shonen series had shown the protagonist, Gon Freecs, learning to control Nen and perfecting his ultimate move, which he named after the Japanese slogan for “Rock-Paper-Scissors,” namely, “Jankenpon.”

The latter half of the Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 leaked spoilers showed Gojo and Sukuna trapped inside a falling building, with a broken door between them. As the two gear up to land a powerful attack, Gojo’s posture is unmistakably similar to Gon’s when he uses Jankenpon against an opponent. 

How Jujutsu Kaisen has given tribute to Togashi even in the past

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 may be Togashi fanboy Akutami’s biggest tribute to the Hunter x Hunter mangaka
Yuji mentions popular battle moves from Naruto, Bleach, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Dragon Ball series (Image via Gege Akutami/MAPPA))
  1. Jujutsu Kaisen has referenced and name-dropped Togashi in the past, along with sneaking in tributes to several other mangakas and their works, since he was inspired by series like Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto, Tite Kubo’s Bleach, ONE and Yusuke Murata’s One Punch Man, and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto’s Neon Genesis Evangelion.
  2. Interestingly, the Jujutsu Kaisen anime even showed Yuji name-dropping Rasengan, Bankai, Dodon Ray, and Spirit Gun.

This is ironic in hindsight considering Sukuna did use the Spirit Gun gesture, but not while he was still inside Yuji’s body. But above them all, Togashi remains the biggest influence in Akutami’s work to date.

  1. The mangaka admitted in a 2020 interview that he had based Suguru Geto’s character off of Shinobu Sensui from Yu Yu Hakusho.
  2. Kinji Hakari’s reaction to hitting the jackpot inside the domain of his cursed technique seemed to emulate the rather creepy expression of fulfilment Hisoka wore often in Hunter x Hunter, while Aoi Todo’s character may have been inspired by Zarakai Kenpachi from Bleach.

The mangaka also takes stylistic inspiration from the Yu Yu Hakusho creator, since Sukuna’s tattoos bear a striking resemblance to Yusuke’s mazoku tattoos, while Gakuganji looks very similar to Netero from Hunter x Hunter.

Moreover, Gakuganji’s dynamic with Gojo is also somewhat reminiscent of Netero and Killua’s relationship. This does not come as surprising, however, since Akutami confirmed in the same 2020 interview that he tended to stick close to Togashi’s art style. 

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 may be Togashi fanboy Akutami’s biggest tribute to the Hunter x Hunter mangaka
The similarity in Hakari and Hisoka’s expressions (Image via Gege Akutami, Yoshihiro Togashi/Shueisha)

Is Akutami striving to make Jujutsu Kaisen the next Hunter x Hunter? 

  • While Gege Akutami does indeed draw inspiration from Yoshihiro Togashi, the story of Jujutsu Kaisen is nothing like either Yu Yu Hakusho or Hunter x Hunter.

Togashi is often lauded as the mangaka as one of the pioneers of the shonen battle and adventure manga, influencing other iconic works like Naruto and Bleach. Akutami learns and replicates certain tricks from the iconic manga creator, including subversion of popular tropes of the shonen genre. However, he usually adds his own spin upon these deviations, thus giving his series a fresh look and feel.

Anyone who enjoys Togashi’s works will immediately notice that Gege Akutami is an ardent Togashi fanboy, but his references and tributes go far beyond just his favorite manga author, extending to iconic movies like Lord of the Rings, Cast Away, Kill Bill and even 2001: Space Odyssey.

Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 224 possibly includes a reference to Christopher Nolan’s Inception as well, specifically in the scene where Gojo and Sukuna appear upright inside a rotating room, directing preceding Gojo’s postural similarity to Gon’s Jankenpon.

 

The series also references innumerable other artistic sources like Claude Monet, the Digimon series and games, Winnie the Pooh, Japanese and Chinese mythology, and scientific theories and principles.

Jujutsu Kaisen might not be as genre-defining as Hunter x Hunter in terms of its treatment among many other popular new-gen shonen series, but it would be an insult to Akutami’s creative and intellectual genius to call the series a copy of Togashi’s work.

Arundhoti Palit
https://www.spieltimes.com/author/arundhoti
Arundhoti Palit is a literature post-graduate and an anime content writer at Spiel Times. A bit of a Japanophile, Arundhoti enjoys reading manga and Murakami during her spare time. Be it books, movies, manga or anime, she tends to dive deep into theories and background research, picking up weird trivia and info-dumping along the way.