Ryomen Sukuna

Lore & Background

According to Akutami, Sukuna is 'less of a sorcerer and more of a walking disaster.' Sukuna was created as a cruel, narcissistic, depraved and supremely arrogant figure within the story. The real person turned mythological figure 'Ryōmen-sukuna', who was the character's inspiration, traces back to the classical book Nihon Shoki, where Sukuna's fantasized physical figure (two faces and four arms, with 20 digits) and malicious demonic personality are shared with the character. In ancient history, Sukuna was an enemy to the Yamato family but was also worshiped by some as a deity. His association with demonic imagery was formed after the Imperial House of Japan declared him a vicious force of nature. Ryomen means 'two-faced', which can be applied to the character both literally and figuratively. Sukuna did not ever have a wife or family in his life as a human, and was feared as a human less than Satoru Gojo due to how vicious the world of Curses was at the time he lived. Gege stated Sukuna 'will kill anybody in an instant' and that he has no morals, taking pleasure out of making things tough for Yuji Itadori.

In Their Own Story

Over 1,000 years ago, during the Heian era, Sukuna was the most powerful curse user at that time, served by an underling named Uraume. At the beginning of the story, his power is sealed in 20 mummified fingers scattered throughout the world. Megumi Fushiguro traces one of his fingers to Sugisawa High School. During an attack by cursed spirits, Yuji Itadori eats the finger and becomes a Jujutsu Sorcerer, with Sukuna regaining consciousness within him. Though Yuji has full control over his body, he is targeted for execution due to the danger Sukuna poses, with Satoru Gojo's patronage as his only protection. In a mission to exorcise a Special Grade Cursed Spirit which holds one of Sukuna's fingers, Yuji and his colleagues are greatly endangered, so the young sorcerer gives Sukuna control of his body to defeat his assailant. Sukuna destroys the opponent but seizes the moment of freedom to rip out Yuji's heart to ensure he stays in control, ingesting one of his mummified fingers, then attempts to kill Fushiguro, becoming very interested in the latter. When Yuji wrestles back control to save his friend, he dies and meets Sukuna within his soul. Sukuna offers to return Yuji to life on two conditions, that Yuji allows him to take control of his body for a full minute when he chants 'Enchain', and that Yuji will forget about this agreement. When Yuji does not oblige Sukuna informs him that even if he were to break the agreement, he would be punished for breaking the contract and even offers that for said full minute he will not kill or hurt anyone during said minute. When Yuji still says no, Sukuna offers they will fight to the death, If Yuji wins, he will revive him with no conditions. If Yuji loses then he gets revived with Sukuna's. Yuji agrees, to which he ultimately gets his head cut off by Sukuna. Sukuna remains silent from then on, only roused by an encounter with the Cursed Spirit Mahito, in which he mocks Yuji for losing a friend. In the Shibuya Incident, Yuji is gravely injured, and the Cursed Spirit Jogo force-feeds him many of Sukuna's fingers. Sukuna, indifferent to Jogo but ultimately coming to praise his strength, kills him after a very destructive battle across the city. He reunites with Uraume after the battle, and states he has a plan to regain freedom. He then saves Megumi from Mahoraga, his summoned Shikigami, catastrophically razing much of Shibuya ward in the process, before surrendering control back to a traumatized Yuji. Amid the Culling Games, Yuji, Megumi, and their two new allies Hana and Takaba are in a hotel discussing how to put an end to the culling games. Hana reveals her Cursed Technique is 'Angel', who is an incarnated sorcerer who is bound to Hana, like Yuji and Sukuna. Angel has the power to negate Cursed Techniques. Megumi wants Hana to negate the Prison Realm seal containing Satoru Gojo to free him, which the Angel obliges, but says before that they must help them kill 'The Disgraced One'. Just then, Yuji is pulled into his and Sukuna's bonded soul. Sukuna warns Yuji that before anything escalates further, that he is 'The Disgraced One'. Further through the Culling Games, Yuji, Megumi, and Hana end up rescuing Megumi's sister, Tsumiki. Soon it is revealed Tsumiki's body is being used by an incarnated sorcerer named 'Yorozu' who is participating in the Culling Games to fight Sukuna. Yuji and Hana chase after Yorozu flees. Sukuna then chants the word 'Enchain' to take over Yuji's body. He rips off Yuji's finger, claiming that the binding vow he and Yuji agreed on did not include him of not being injured. Sukuna transforms the ripped off finger into a cursed object, forcing Megumi to digest it in order to take over his body. Hana and the Angel realize that 'The Disgraced One' has taken over Megumi's body and uses Jacob's Ladder to negate Sukuna from Megumi's body. Sukuna tricks Hana into thinking Megumi has regained control and bites her arm off. Yuji and Sukuna are battling when Maki joins in to aid Yuji. Uraume shows up and aids Sukuna with a block of ice, and the two of them get away. Sukuna partakes in a ritual called 'The Bath', where Uraume takes cursed spirits and wrings them out before they turn into dust, so Sukuna can submerge Megumi's soul deep within evil to prevent him from taking control. Sukuna returns to the colony and ends up killing a sorcerer along the way. Sukuna then meets up with Yorozu, proceeding to kill her to fully break Megumi's soul. In Shinjuku Showdown, Sukuna challenges Satoru Gojo to a duel, Gojo nearly wins but gets caught off guard when Sukuna makes a binding vow to use 'World Cutting Slash' on Gojo, killing him, but at the cost of every use after required the hand signs, chants, and manual aim. The remaining sorcerers watching the battle attempt to fight Sukuna in Gojo's place but are overpowered once Sukuna regains his true form. While battling, Sukuna is caught off guard when he sees Gojo reappear, only to be revealed that its Yuta utilizing Kenjaku's technique. Sukuna gets caught in Yuji's newly formed domain expansion, who tries persuading Sukuna to change while strolling through Yuji's hometown. Sukuna gets hit by Nobara when Nobara used her technique on the last finger hidden by Gojo, which allows Yuji to deliver a final blow to Sukuna. Yuji offers one final chance to Sukuna, but Sukuna refuses and disintegrates right after.

Reader's Guide

Ryomen Sukuna stands as the narrative's ultimate boogeyman: the King of Curses whose very existence threatens to unravel the fabric of jujutsu society. His arc ignites when Yuji Itadori consumes one of his indestructible fingers, binding the two souls in a parasitic coexistence. While initially confined as a passive, mocking observer within Yuji's mind, Sukuna ruthlessly exploits moments of vulnerability or specific contractual loopholes to seize full control, turning Yuji's body into an instrument of apocalyptic devastation. His combat style is a terrifying blend of brute force and surgical precision, anchored by his innate techniques: Dismantle, which effortlessly slices through inanimate objects and low-level sorcerers, and Cleave, which dynamically adjusts its cutting power to match the target's durability before obliterating them. Beyond these slashes, Sukuna is a master of Reverse Cursed Technique (RCT), allowing him to regenerate from fatal injuries instantly—a trait that renders prolonged attrition against him futile. His supremacy is cemented by his Domain Expansion, Malevolent Shrine, an open-air sanctuary that traps victims in a relentless storm of thousands of simultaneous slashes, creating a kill zone where survival is statistically impossible.

Did You Know?

• Sukuna's name and two-faced, four-armed design are inspired by the mythological figure 'Ryōmen-sukuna' from the classical book Nihon Shoki.
• Sukuna never had a wife or family in his life as a human.
• Gege Akutami stated Sukuna 'will kill anybody in an instant' and has no morals.
• Sukuna's power is sealed in 20 mummified fingers scattered throughout the world.
• Sukuna was voted as the ninth most popular character in a March 2021 Viz Media popularity poll.