Summary
Cursed Techniques are the backbone ofJujutsu Kaisen’spower system. In a world filled with powerful sorcerers and terrifying Cursed Spirits, these techniques serve as the primary means of combat, with the series being no stranger to abilities that are far stronger than their contemporaries in either defensive or offensive aspects. However, very few powers come close to the Crown Jewel of the Zenin Clan: the Ten Shadows technique.
This Cursed Technique allows the user tosummon 10 distinct Shikigamiwith unique abilities and uses, each of whom must first be tamed by the user, who, in the current timeline ofJujutsu Kaisen, is Megumi Fushiguro. However, as strong as this technique is, many argue that it’s largely useless since there is one primary reason why it was able to go toe-to-toe with the strongest characters in the series, so let’s look at why this is.
Story Arc
Fearsome Womb Arc
The Ten Shadows technique is the most revered Cursed Technique belonging to the Zenin Clan, who distinguish themselves by valuing the abilities ofthose with Cursed Energyabove all others. Though there are quite a few powerful abilities belonging to this clan, the best of them is the Ten Shadows due to its versatility and strength. It allows the user to summon and control 10 powerful Shikigami, each one different from the last.
These can range from tracking someone to providing the user protection since each Shikigami is used for a specific situation. The user of this technique starts with the two Divine Dogs, after which they must defeat every subsequent Shikigami to tame them, allowing for their summoning and use afterwards. These Shikigami and their specific abilities are as follows:
Mahoraga’s Unmatched Power
Mahoraga is the final Shikigami and the one that none of the previous users of the technique have ever been able to tame due to its unmitigated strength. Above the Shikigami itself is a wheel that turns repeatedly the longer a fight goes on, which signifies that it hasadapted to whatever is thrown against it. This essentially means that the more it fights, the stronger it gets, since previous methods of damaging him don’t work anymore. The only way to truly defeat it is to use one incredibly powerful attack to kill it as quickly as possible.
This is the main reason why many fans consider the Ten Shadows to be a largely useless technique. Although the remaining Shikigami are certainly strong and have their uses in certain situations, they serve no real benefit against the most powerful opponents who exist at the very top tier of strength. The best example of this is in Gojo’s fight against Sukuna, where the latter took over Megumi’s body and was able to use the Ten Shadows.
Mahoraga’s support role in the fight is the only reason why Sukuna was able to fight and defeat Gojo, since he used the Divine General to adapt to the Infinity Cursed Technique so he could find a way to bypass it. Here,Sukuna also used Totality, which is an ability of the Ten Shadows that allows the user to merge multiple Shikigami into one that has the abilities of all of its constituents. However, at the level of the strongest characters in the series, the gimmicks of the Shikigami wouldn’t even work.
Merged Beast Agito was the one Sukuna used; a Totality of Nue, Great Serpent, Tiger Funeral, and Round Deer. Although powerful and equipped with the ability to use Reverse Cursed Energy to heal itself, it stood no chance against Gojo, who even remarked that it did not fit in with the strength of the others present in the battle, before eviscerating the being with a Lapse Blue attack. This showed that while it was powerful on its own, it simply couldn’t keep up with the likes of Gojo, Sukuna, and Mahoraga; the strongest characters in all ofJujutsu Kaisen.
You know, I’ve been thinking… you just don’t fit in with this crowd!
This seems to be the crux of why people think of the Ten Shadows as being a largely useless technique. Once Mahoraga is tamed, there is simply no need for the rest of the Shikigami due to how powerful he is. Sure, they can still be summoned as distractions, but Mahoraga exists at a level of strength that he would likely not even need that support. He is the only being inJujutsu Kaisento have ever adapted to andgotten the better of Gojo’s Infinity, prompting many fans to believe that he is the only reason Sukuna was ever able to win that fight.
There is merit to this as Sukuna wouldn’t have found any other way of bypassing Infinity or, if he had, it would have taken him far longer and taken up more of his Cursed Energy. In essence, the rest of the Ten Shadows exist only as a means of taming Mahoraga, which just goes to show that the technique is only valued because of the Divine General’s strength.
Why The Technique Is Still A Great One
Is Mahoraga The Only Worthwhile Shikigami?
All in all, the claim of the entirety of the Ten Shadows largely being a useless technique does make some sense since Mahoraga is the only way a user can exist at the top tiers of power. However, a user of this technique who hasn’t tamed the Divine General can still be quite powerful since the other Shikigami are powerful enough to contend with evenSpecial Grade Cursed Spirits. Though Megumi may not have been able to ever beat Sukuna, he could still have won against other extremely powerful enemies.
Plus, the only way that the user can tame Mahoraga in the first place is by defeating him on their own without any external help from other sorcerers. To do this, they would have to tame and perfect the powers of the previous Shikigami and bring them together to defeat the strongest one of them all, which negates the claim of the technique being useless. Although no one has ever been able to do this, it implies that doing so is still possible.
Jujutsu Kaisencan be streamed onCrunchyrollandAmazon Prime.
Jujutsu Kaisen
Based on Gege Akutami’s Jujutsu Kaisen manga, Mappa’s battle shonen anime envisions a world where Jujutsu Sorcerers battle against entities born out of Cursed Energy. One day, a teenager named Yuji Itadori is dragged into this conflict when he eats a possessed finger.
