is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gege Akutami. It was serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump from March 2018 to September 2024, with its chapters collected in 30 volumes. The story follows high school student Yuji Itadori as he joins a secret organization of Jujutsu Sorcerers to eliminate a powerful Curse named Ryomen Sukuna, of whom Yuji becomes the host. Jujutsu Kaisen is a sequel to Akutami's previous work, Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, which was retroactively titled Jujutsu Kaisen 0 following the release of Jujutsu Kaisen.
Jujutsu Kaisen is licensed for an English-language release in North America by Viz Media, which has published the manga in print since December 2019. Shueisha has published the series digitally in English on its Manga Plus platform. Two novels, written by , were published in May 2019 and January 2020, respectively. An anime television series adaptation, produced by MAPPA, aired its first season on MBS from October 2020 to March 2021. A second season aired from July to December 2023. A third season aired from January to March 2026. A fourth season has been announced. A short-term spin-off sequel manga series written by Akutami and illustrated by manga artist , titled Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, ran in Weekly Shōnen Jump from September 2025 to March 2026.
By December 2025, the Jujutsu Kaisen manga had over 150 million copies in circulation, including related novels, digital versions, and Jujutsu Kaisen 0, making it one of the best-selling manga series of all time.
Synopsis Setting In Jujutsu Kaisen, all living beings emanate a power source known as , which arises from negative emotions that naturally flow throughout the body. Most people cannot control this energy, and as a result, continually release it. The accumulation of uncontrolled Cursed Energy gives rise to , malevolent spiritual entities driven to harm humanity. These Curses often manifest as grotesque monsters, drawing on traditional Japanese folklore, such as (vengeful spirits), (ghosts), and .
are individuals capable of controlling the flow of Cursed Energy within themselves, allowing them to use it, granting them inhuman abilities and minimizing its passive release. High-ranking Sorcerers and powerful Curses can refine this energy to perform , specialized abilities that are often unique to the individual or inherited through familial bloodlines. An advanced form of these abilities is known as a , in which the user conjures a pocket dimension that traps their target inside. Within the Domain, the user's techniques are significantly enhanced and guaranteed to hit.
Sorcerers are governed by the Jujutsu Society, a secretive and hierarchical organization tasked with protecting non-sorcerers from Curses and managing the battles against them within Japan. Its central governing body, the Jujutsu Headquarters, is led by the Jujutsu Commander, appointed by the Prime Minister upon nomination by the three major sorcerer families: the Gojo, Zen'in, and Kamo clans. It operates educational institutions such as the Tokyo and Kyoto Jujutsu High Schools, which train new generations of sorcerers. These schools are directly controlled by the Jujutsu Headquarters, and their principals are appointed based on recommendations from the major clans. Despite its noble mission, the Jujutsu Society faces criticism for its strict adherence to tradition and the disproportionate influence of elite sorcerer clans, leading to several internal conflicts and controversial decisions.
Plot
Yuji Itadori is a high school student with unnatural physical strength and athletic ability. One day, at school, his friends attract Curses by unsealing a rotten finger talisman. Yuji swallows the finger to protect Jujutsu Sorcerer student Megumi Fushiguro, tasked with retrieving the finger, unwittingly becoming host to the powerful ancient sorcerer Ryomen Sukuna. The leaders of the Jujutsu Society intend to exorcise Sukuna, and Yuji, by extension. However, noticing Yuji's capability to retain control over his body, Satoru Gojo, the strongest sorcerer in the modern Jujutsu world—brings him to the Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School for training. Gojo has Yuji's execution postponed until he consumes all twenty of Sukuna's fingers, thereby enabling Sukuna's complete destruction through his death.
Meanwhile, a group of intelligent Cursed Spirits plot an elaborate attack to reform Jujutsu according to their ideals. The group is led by Suguru Geto, a mysterious sorcerer and Curse User believed to have been killed by Gojo a year earlier, whose entourage includes the soul-manipulating Curse, Mahito; the fire Curse, Jogo; and the nature Curse, Hanami. Yuji is devastated after Mahito kills his friend Junpei Yoshino, but is unable to take revenge. Mahito infiltrates Tokyo Jujutsu High and steals three "Death Paintings"—dormant, half-human, half-Curses—before summoning them to their full form. During a battle, two of them end up being exorcised, leaving Choso as the sole Death Painting survivor.
On Halloween night in Shibuya, Gojo destroys Hanami, but is ultimately sealed by Geto, revealed to be the ancient sorcerer, Kenjaku, inhabiting Geto's corpse. Choso defeats Yuji, but spares his life after having a vision that reveals they are brothers. Subsequently, Jogo force-feeds an unconscious Yuji ten Sukuna fingers, enabling Sukuna to briefly take control. Sukuna kills Jogo and nearly destroys all of Shibuya in the process. He then hands control back to Yuji, who is overwhelmed by the sight. With help from Kyoto Jujutsu High student Aoi Todo, Yuji defeats Mahito, but Kenjaku absorbs the Curses and awakens countless sorcerers, advancing his millennia-old plan for a new era of Cursed Spirits.
In the aftermath, the Jujutsu higher-ups reinstate Yuji's immediate execution and appoint second-year student Yuta Okkotsu, who instead helps Yuji. They group together with other sorcerers to seek Master Tengen—an immortal, part-Curse, part-human sorcerer. Tengen reveals Kenjaku's plan to merge the former's consciousness with the entire Japanese population through the "Culling Games"—a battle royal among the awakened sorcerers, designed to accumulate vast amounts of Cursed Energy. Eventually, Tengen is captured by Kenjaku. Yuji and his allies rescue Megumi's stepsister, Tsumiki, from being forced into the Culling Games; however, she is killed by Sukuna after he takes control of Megumi's body.
A month later, the unsealed Gojo battles Sukuna, who fatally bisects him. Meanwhile, Yuta defeats Kenjaku, who, before dying, makes Sukuna the Culling Games' master. The remaining Jujutsu Sorcerers attempt to fight Sukuna, but are overpowered as he regains his true form. In a flashback, it is revealed that Sukuna ate his twin brother in the womb a thousand years ago. The twin's soul reincarnated into Yuji's lineage, and Kenjaku's possession of Yuji's mother during conception combined to forge his unique physique and his capacity to host Sukuna. With help from his allies, Yuji manages to defeat Sukuna, although Choso sacrifices himself in the process. Megumi successfully frees himself from Sukuna, who subsequently disintegrates. Some time after the battle, Yuji reflects on Gojo's hopes and trust in him, and although Sukuna's last finger is shown, his defeat makes his return unlikely.
Production Development Manga author Gege Akutami first published Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, a four-chapter series that ran in Jump Giga from April 28 to July 28, 2017. The series would later serve as a prologue to Jujutsu Kaisen and was retitled as Jujutsu Kaisen 0. According to Hiroyuki Nakano, the chief editor of Weekly Shōnen Jump, Jujutsu Kaisen received unanimous approval from the serialization committee. It debuted in Weekly Shōnen Jump on March 5, 2018.
Influences Akutami stated that Neon Genesis Evangelion influenced the mythological aspects of the series, and was also influenced by horror and found footage films. Akutami is particularly a fan of Yoshihiro Togashi, author of YuYu Hakusho and Hunter × Hunter, expressing intentions to have an art style as close as possible to his. The author is also a fan of Tite Kubo, author of Bleach, and discussed in an interview with him the similarities between their works. Other manga artists who influenced Akutami include Masashi Kishimoto (Naruto) and Yusuke Murata (Eyeshield 21 and One-Punch Man illustrator).
The magic system of Jujutsu Kaisen is largely inspired by Hunter × Hunter, whose fights, in Akutami's words, "rejects emotional arguments", stating however, that like , World Triggers author, whose magic system is also similar to Togashi's series, Akutami was trying to find and develop an own style. For the first Jujutsu Kaisen chapter, Akutami used the first chapter of Bleach as an off-point, and considered a twist on Narutos Nine-Tails by using someone "incompatible" to generate an interesting dynamic. That approach resulted in the creation of Ryomen Sukuna.
Conclusion In October 2020, Akutami stated that the story's ending and main stages were planned, but that the path between the two remained "fairly free." In February 2021, Akutami stated that the series would probably be finished within two years, declaring, however, no confidence in that statement. Akutami knew how the story for Megumi Fushiguro would end, but not for Sukuna. On June 9, 2021, it was announced that the manga would enter a hiatus due to the author's health issues; it resumed publication on August 2 of the same year. In December 2022, Akutami hinted that the manga would end within a year, stating during the Jump Festa '23 event: "If you accompany me for up to one more year (probably), I will be very happy." In December 2023, at the Jump Festa '24 event, Akutami stated in a handwritten comment that it would probably be the last Jump Festa in which the series would continue in serialization, hinting that it would end within 2024; the series concluded on September 30 of said year.
Media Manga
Written and illustrated by Gege Akutami, Jujutsu Kaisen was serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from March 5, 2018, to September 30, 2024. Its chapters were collected and published by Shueisha into 30 individual volumes, released from July 4, 2018, to December 25, 2024; the final volume includes 16 pages of four epilogues newly drawn for the manga, focused on characters Yūko Ozawa, Uraume, Nobara Kugisaki, and Panda.
Shueisha began to simultaneously publish the series in English on the app and website Manga Plus in January 2019. Viz Media published the first three chapters for its "Jump Start" initiative. In March 2019, Viz Media announced the print release of the series in North America. The 30 volumes were released from December 3, 2019, to May 12, 2026.
Akutami and manga artist created the short-term manga series Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, which ran in Weekly Shōnen Jump from September 8, 2025, to March 9, 2026.
Novels Two novels written by have been released under the Jump J-Books imprint. The first, , was released on May 1, 2019. The second novel, , was released on January 4, 2020. In February 2022, Viz Media announced that it had licensed the novels for an English-language release. Jujutsu Kaisen: Summer of Ashes, Autumn of Dust was released on December 27, 2022, and Jujutsu Kaisen: Thorny Road at Dawn was released on April 25, 2023. In September 2025, it was announced that writer will pen a spin-off novel for the franchise.
Anime
A 24-episode first season of an anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA was broadcast on MBS's Super Animeism block and TBS from October 3, 2020, to March 27, 2021. A prequel film, Jujutsu Kaisen 0, premiered in Japanese theaters on December 24, 2021.
A second 23-episode season, titled Hidden Inventory / Premature Death (episodes 1–5) and Shibuya Incident (episodes 6–23), aired from July 6 to December 28, 2023.