Shonen manga is known for its plots, and Jujutsu Kaisen easily has one of the best storylines out there.
The manga created by Gege Akutami first came out in 2018, and just 4 years later, it already has an insane fan following. With the release of Jujutsu Kaisen 0: The Movie that premiered in 2021, the series has seen a fresh wave of admiration.
Things are only getting more thrilling for fans, what with the events of the prequel movie and new connections with manga chapters and anime episodes. But with so much happening, it’s only natural that the timeline of this vast series gets a little confusing.
Today, I’m going to break down the complete timeline of Jujutsu Kaisen, explain the chronology of the story arcs, and also tell you where the live action film fits in. Let’s do this.
1. Year 65: Before the Beginning
We thought we knew where it all started, but the impetus of the story, Cursed Energy, too has an origin.
Before Ryomen Sukuna became a cursed spirit, he was a human sorcerer. According to legend, he was known as the Imaginary Demon during the Golden Age of Jujutsu 1000 years ago for killing hundreds of other powerful sorcerers.
After his death, his 20 fingers became Cursed Objects that cannot be destroyed by even the strongest sorcerers.
2. Years 710-794: The Nara Period
This is when Master Tengen first created the Jujutsu Society to establish a system to preach the moral foundation of Jujutsu and to protect the non-sorcerers.
This is also a time of destruction in Japan, where several natural disasters cause a build-up of fear and negative energy. This, in turn, directly creates the Cursed Spirits we see in the series today.
Tengen spreads Japanese Buddhism and Jujutsu throughout the land, which leads to the formation of the rival community, the Star Religious Group.
3. Years 794-1185: The Heian Period/The Classic Era
Jujutsu reached its height of advancement during this period and it came to be known as the Golden Age of Shamans – or the Golden Age of Cursed Techniques.
There are so many new Cursed Techniques whizzing around that a Jujutsu sorcerer named Ashiya Sadatsuna creates a technique – which would later be called Simple Domain – to protect his disciples from evil curses and sorcerers.
This technique would be used by Mechamaru in the battle against Mahito, and by Kasuki Miwa against Maki.
The Samurai class begins to rise, beginning the Feudal period in Japan, and the distinction between the aristocrats and the common people.
Buddhism and Jujutsu sees a deeper rift between this period and the situation actually gets quite bad, although the period would be known as one of peace and prosperity.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0, the prequel, mentions that Michizane Sugawara, the ancestor of Satoru Gojo and Yuta Okkotsu, is also born around this time.
He turns into one of the Big 3 Vengeful Spirits, along with Masakado Taira, and Emperor Sutoku, who all come to be feared by the people of that era.
Sukuna, the King of Curses, is sealed at the end of the period.
4. Years 1868-1912: The Meiji Period/The Modern Era
This heralded the beginning of the industrial revolution in Japan, with the East trying to catch up to the West’s transportation system and development.
A girl with special genetic makeup bears a cursed child with the mixed blood of human and Cursed Spirit. This child is Noritoshi Kamo, who would be remembered as the most evil sorcerer in history.
Noritoshi – or the older spirit called Kenjaku that inhabits his body – creates the 9 Death Painting Wombs.
The Meiji leaders make 5 provisions for their people, namely:
- Deliberative assembly must be widely established and all matters decided by public discussion
- All classes of society must unite and help the state carry out administrative affairs
- All people will be allowed to pursue their own calling
- The evil traditions of the past will be forgotten and the kingdom would follow the laws of nature
- Knowledge will be the topmost priority so as to improve the foundations of the imperial reign
5. Years 1982-2019: The Heisiei Period
Japan witnessed a major economic growth spurt during this era. This is the beginning of current affairs as we know them.
I. 1989, December 7: The Birth of Satoru Gojo
Satoru, as we know, is the first in over 400 years to possess the Gojo 6 Eyes and inherit the Limitless. He is so strong that his existence alters the balance of the entire world.
II. 1996: Toji visits Gojo
Toji Fushiguro aka the Sorcerer Killer, when he was still a part of the Zenin family, goes back in time to see what the fuss was about Gojo.
III. 2002, March 20: The Birth of Yuji Itadori
IV. 2006: The Hidden Inventory/Gojo’s Past Arc
Gojo’s past is mainly explained during this arc. Masamichi Yaga assigns Suguru and Satoru, classmates at Jujutsu High, the all-important task of finding Master Tengen a new body. Without this, the world of Jujutsu as well as the non-sorcery world would come down crumbling.
The Star Religious Group resurfaces to prevent this from happening.
Toji also appears during this arc and serves as the main antagonist.
Gojo evolves and masters Reversed Curse Technique and space manipulation. In their epic 1v1, Gojo shows Toji who’s boss and fatally wounds him. Before he dies, Toji tells Gojo about his child, Megumi Fushiguro.
V. 2007: Geto Goes Rogue
While Gojo is busy turning into a God, Geto encounters Yuki Tsukumo who talks him out of Jujutsu High’s mission. He later goes on to massacre an entire village – 112 people, to be precise – saving 2 girls, Nanako and Mimiko.
He does this by using his Cursed Spirit Manipulation. He is sentenced to execution.
Geto creates a religious group to help him gather a personal army of Cursed Spirits.
VI. 2010
A 10-year-old Yuta Okkotsu promises his best friend Rika Orimoto that they would one day get married. This cute scene turns horrific pretty quickly as Rika is run over by a drunk driver right before his eyes.
Yuta unknowingly turns Rika into a Cursed Spirit and she becomes attached to him.
VII. 2016
Yuta comes in contact with the Special-Grade Curse: Rika. He meets Gojo who tells him that he can utilize his ability to a force that he could use. After the Cursed Spirit Rika goes on a rampage, Gojo gives Yuta a katana that would store the power of Rika and tells him that he will learn to control Rika over time.
Sometime later, Yuta is faced with the Cursed Spirit let loose by Geto, who wanted to witness how powerful Rika really was.
This is also when we realize how much Geto has really changed, his whole personality is different, more sadistic. With the 2 kids he had rescued from the village, Nanako and Mimiko, he wants to create a paradise filled with only Jujutsu sorcerers. He targets Jujutsu High and confronts Yuta.
Gojo steps in and Geto announces that his war against them would commence on the 24th of December where he would perform the Night Parade of 100 Demons. He wants to unleash 1000 Cursed Spirits across Kyoto.
VIII. 2017, December 24: The Night Parade
Geto’s plan is transparent: he wishes to kill Yuta so he can imbibe Rika since it is the only way he can defeat his nemesis, Gojo.
Yuta manages to wield Rika’s full power and defeats Geto. Gojo appears and Geto is killed.
Gojo reveals to Yuta that they both share the ancestor Michizane Sugawara, one of the 3 Vengeful Spirits. This is where Jujutsu Kaisen 0 ends and the events of the main story begin.
6. 2018, June: Yuju Itadori Enters
This is the start of the series.
Megumi Fushiguro, descendent of the Zenin family, is given the mission of locating a Cursed Object in Jujutsu High. Yuji and Megumi pair up to find it.
Yuji eats the Cursed Object, i.e., Ryomen Sukuna’s finger, giving the King of Curses a gateway into the new world.
Yuji is sentenced to execution for becoming a vessel to a demon, but the execution is put on hold so he can gain admission into the school and try and defeat Sukuna with his own body.
I. 2018, July:
Yuji, Megumi, and Nobara go to the Detention Center and Nobara is sucked into a portal. Megumi follows, as Yuji faces off against a Special Grade Cursed Spirit. Sukuna’s Spirit takes over and kills it, after which he finds and eats another Cursed Finger that someone had left there.
Yuji learns the basics of Cursed Technique and Energy.
The battle of Jujutsu High students against the Kyoto School takes place.
II. 2018, September-October: The Death Painting Arc
The Death Painting Wombs from the Meiji period return.
Yuji, Megumi, and Nobara are sent on a task to investigate a string of murders committed by Curse Techniques.
Geto – or rather Pseudo Geto (this is Geto’s dead body possessed by the ancient sorcerer Kenjaku), along with the Cursed Spirit Mahito, help the Death Paintings reincarnate into human vessels.
After the Battle Beneath Yasohachi Bridge in which the students emerge successful, Pseudo Geto announces adjustments to his plan.
After this arc in the manga is the Gojo’s Past Arc, but chronology-wise, we have the Shibuya Incident Arc next.
III. 2018, October, 31: The Shibuya Incident
This is the culmination of Pseudo Geto and Mahito’s plan to take down humanity and give Sukuna his throne. Their main objective is to seal Gojo so they can succeed.
Geto places a large curtain over Shibuya, trapping the civilians, and blocking off all physical and technological means of communication. But of course, Gojo manages to walk straight through the curtain.
Gojo begins fighting with Hanami, Jogo, and Choso, and gets rid of Hanami.
Meanwhile Mei’s Team (Mei Mei, Ui Ui, and Yuji) tries to find the Curse at Meiji-Jingumae Station. Yuji defeats the Grasshopper Spirit and breaks the Cursed Object that was creating the curtain.
Meanwhile at Shibuya Station, Gojo manages to defeat Mahito, Jogo and Choso, along with the 1000 transfigured humans created by Mahito. But he is eventually captured by Pseudo Geto who has activated the Prison Realm.
Old rivals/best friends Gojo and Geto come face-to-face, only Gojo recognizes that this isn’t really Geto. Gojo is sealed and Geto succeeds.
Team Mei arrives at Shibuya to commence Operation: Rescue Satoru Gojo. The other 2 standby teams, Team Nanami (Megumi Fushiguro, Kento Nanami, and Takuma Ino), and Team Kusakabe (Atsuya Kusakabe and Panda) also arrive at the same time.
During his time inside the Prison Realm, Gojo realizes that time doesn’t pass inside the cube. He manages to make the cube so dense and heavy that it destroys the ground it is kept upon. The cube is immovable and Pseudo Geto stands guard.
Pseudo Geto is confronted by the spirits of Nanako and Mimiko, the 2 girls Geto had rescued from the village. They command Kenjaku to return Geto’s body.
The Curse Users Awasaka, Grandma Ogami, and her grandson are introduced. Grandma Ogami summons Toji Zenin, who takes over her grandson’s body. The grandson cannot control Toji and he takes over, killing Grandma Ogami.
Toji effortlessly defeats the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Dagon. He is confronted by his son, Megumi, and Toji manages to override the Cursed Technique to kill, after which he himself dies.
Nanako and Mimiko feed Yuji some of Sukuna’s fingers, and Jogo arrives, and decides to feed him another 10 fingers. At this point Yuji has consumed 15 Cursed Fingers.
Ryomen Sukuna awakens.
Sukuna exorcises Jogo, as well as Nanako and Mimiko.
Megumi, who is at the brink of death, remembers Gojo telling him how the head of the Gojo clan possessed the Six Eyes and Limitless Techniques and the head of the Zenin clan had the 10 Shadow Technique. They killed each other during battle, beginning the endless feud between the 2 families.
Megumi summons Mahoraga, the 8-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General.
Sukuna activates his Domain Expansion to defeat Mahoraga.
Yuji switches back to himself and decides to continue fighting.
Mahito is still alive, and he kills Nanami and critically injures Nobara. With the help of Aoi Todo, Yuji manages to finish Mahito once and for all.
Kenjaku absorbs Mahito and rebirths several ancient sorcerers into the new world. He also casts Idle Transformation and awakens the non-sorcerers selected for the Culling Game, which would be revealed later, in chapter 143.
He escapes along with Uraume, taking the sealed Gojo with him.
IV. 2018, November, 1-8: Yuta’s Return
The post-credit scene of the Jujutsu Kaisen 0 movie had teased the return of Yuta, and he is officially introduced in Itadori’s Extermination Arc.
The authorities give Yuta the task of killing Sukuna, i.e., Yuji Itadori. The orders for executing Geto are also given, and the act of freeing Gojo is criminalized.
Megumi becomes the new head of the Zenins and he finds Yuji to help save his sister, Tsumiki, from the Culling Game.
Yuta has also found Yuji but instead of killing him, bonds with him over their similar circumstances.
Until this instance, Gojo has been sealed inside the Prison Realm for 8 days.
V. 2018, November 9: Master Tengen is Contacted
Megumi, Yuji, Yuta, Choso, Maki, and Yuki manage to get in contact with Master Tengen through the Tombs of the Star.
Tengen reveals the details about the Culling Game and tells them that the only way to free Gojo is through the back of the Prison Realm.
VI. 2018, November 12:
Yuji and Megumi enter Tokyo Colony 1, and Hakari and Panda enter Tokyo Colony 2, so they can enter the Culling Games.
Hiromi Higurama, former antagonist and one of the top players of the Culling Games, becomes Yuji’s ally.
Meanwhile, in Sendai City, Yuta faces off against the Special Grade Cockroach Cursed Spirit Kurourushi, the Jujutsu sorcerers Uro and Ishigori.
We see Yuta bring out the engagement ring given to him by Rika, and the Cursed Spirit of Rika reawakens.
Gojo has been currently sealed for 12 days as of the latest chapter.
We know Kenjaku wants to recreate the Golden Age of Cursed Techniques. But what with Yuta’s reappearance, we can look forward to some great battles in the Jujutsu future. I can’t wait to see how this Culling Game plays out.
7. About Jujutsu Kaisen
Jujutsu Kaisen, also known as Sorcery Fight, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Gege Akutami, serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump since March 2018.
An anime television series adaptation produced by MAPPA premiered in October 2020.
The story revolves around Yuuji Itadori, a high-school student who, despite hating athletics, is insanely fit. Yuuji gets involved in the world of sorcery when he swallows a powerful talisman to protect his friends from its curse.
On observing that Yuuji wasn’t affected much even when inflicted with this curse, Satoru decides to send Yuuji on a quest to save the world.
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