YutaMaki

"I want to be like you. Strong and resilient. I want to be like that."

- Yuta to Maki in Volume 0 (Chapter 0.3)

YutaMaki is the het ship between Yuta Okkotsu and Maki Zenin from the Jujutsu Kaisen fandom.

Canon
Yuta and Maki are both Jujutsu High second-years, they meet in Chapter 1 of Volume 0. Maki's first impression of Yuta isn’t the best, as she believes that he is a "punk" and that she has no reason to be nice to that kind of guy. Maki, along with other students, is shocked to see a curse following Yuta around, and even considers getting rid of it, but Yuta stops her. In the same chapter, Satoru Gojo puts the students in pairs for their afternoon practice class, making Maki and Yuta work together in a pair. Maki's first reply to this is dismissive "Gah", but Yuta responds politely with, "I'm looking forward to working with you". Maki then teases him, wondering if he had been mistreated back in his middle school, and adds that she would bully him, too, for the way he acts. During this interaction, Maki says to Yuta that Jujutsu High isn't that easy, making herself seem a bit harsh and blunt.

When Suguru Geto is declaring war on Jujutsu High, he calls Maki "the Zenin family failure" for her lack of cursed energy. This angers Yuta, and he slaps Geto's hand away from his shoulder. He then tells him that he won't help someone who looks down on his friends.

After Suguru Geto leaves Jujutsu High, Maki and Yuta accidentally meet in one of the empty classrooms, and Maki tells him about her not having any cursed energy and not being able to see the curses. She admits that she wants to become a sorcerer in order to prove her family wrong and show her strength and resilience in the face of their prejudice. Yuta responds with an expression of admiration, saying that he wants to be like her, and even promising to help her take down the Zenin family patriarch she despises so much. Maki is left speechless, having never been told something like that in her life. Still, Maki calls him stupid, as it's her mission as a Zenin family member, and she must do it by herself. Feeling flustered by Yuta’s words, she leaves the room and tells herself to not go feeling like she’s been recognised, while blushing.

After fighting Suguru Geto, Maki is left severely injured. Yuta heals her immediately but Rika gets extremely upset about this, becoming jealous of and mad at Maki. Yuta then explains to Rika that Maki is a friend who’s saved his life and aggressively demands Rika to handle Maki as if she were a butterfly or a flower.

After Yuta was sent to Africa, Yuta and Maki finally reunite after the Shibuya incident. Yuta is very excited to see Maki again. Since Maki isn't in the best condition, Yuta comes running towards her, and asks if it's okay for her to be moving around. Yuki explains to them how sometimes burn scars cannot be healed, even with the help of the Reverse Cursed Technique. When the details about the Culling Game are revealed, both decide to participate in it. When Yuta mentions how Kinji Hakari, the suspended third-year, can be stronger than him when he's worked up, Maki chimes in to note that it's not true.

Moments

 * During a mission with Inumaki, Yuta remembered Maki's words, "Curses only team up if they're weak."
 * Rika once yelled at an unconscious Maki out of jealousy, saying about Yuta: “No fair... no fair! Thinking only of you! Thinking only of you!"
 * In chapter 3 of Volume 0, Maki blushes and walks away thinking: 'Don't think you got recognized or something...' after Yuta says to her: “I want to be like you, strong and resilient. I want to be like that."
 * Panda had officially stated in Chapter 10 of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga that Maki is softer when Yuta is around.
 * In the final chapter when Rika transforms back into her child self, and Yuta is ready to join her in the afterlife, Maki puts her hand on Yuta's collar holding him back.
 * During training, Panda asks Yuta if he prefers large or small chests (the conversation is labelled “sexy talk” in the movie) and Yuta replies with "Medium-sized" (“on the big side” in the movie subs). Panda then begins teasing Maki by saying that they have a chance on getting together.
 * In Jujutsu stroll for episode 15, when asked "What's your type?", Maki says "At least someone stronger than me." Yuta, who's a Special Grade Sorcerer, easily fits that description.
 * In the light novel of Volume 0, Yuta describes Maki as a ‘shining sun in the winter sky’

Quotes
"I want to be like you. Strong and resilient. I want to be like that."

- Yuta to Maki.

"No fair... no fair! Thinking only of you! Thinking only of you!"

- Rika to an unconscious Maki about Yuta.

"Don't think you got recognized or something..."

- Maki to herself thinking of Yuta while blushing.

"I owe her my life. Handle her gently, as if she were a butterfly or a flower."

- Yuta to Rika about Maki.

Behind The Scenes
"Maybe it was Okkotsu who affirmed Maki for the first time after she believed only in herself."

- Mikako Komatsu, Maki's Voice Actor on Yuta and Maki.

"That's proof that she (Maki) cares."

- Mikako Komatsu on Maki caring about Yuta. "The conversation with Yuta in VOL 0 leads to current Maki."

- Mikako Komatsu affirming the impact Yuta's words had on Maki.

Fanon
The ship used to be considered a rare-pair among fans due to the lack of content for the ship; Yuta hadn’t been introduced in the anime yet, so anime-only fans weren’t able to see their interactions in Volume 0 and Nobamaki was the dominant ship among many manga fans. However, ever since the announcement of the Volume 0 movie the ship has grown in popularity, along with Yuta finally making a comeback in the manga. Since the movie’s release the fandom has grown exponentially and is now a very mainstream ship among Jujutsu Kaisen fans, even including just casual watchers. It is often shipped alongside other popular ships, like Itafushi and Satosugu, and many Yutamaki fans ship Nobamaki simultaneously.

Many are drawn to the ship by their mutual respect, admiration of each other’s abilities, and places in the Jujutsu world. Their dynamic among fans often revolves around Maki being the more cold, assertive and aggressive one, with Yuta being more shy, outwardly loving and going along with what she says or does. The word ‘malewife’ is often used by fans to describe Yuta when referencing this dynamic. The possibility of them fighting together as a duo also keeps fans on their toes as Maki is someone with 0 cursed energy and Yuta with an almost-infinite amount, making for a deadly combination. Along with that, Yuta can use Rika to store cursed tools, something Maki can make use of, as depicted in this artwork here.

Although it is not stated, some fans believe that Yuta helped heal Maki when she was injured. Some also speculate that Yuta and Maki could have seen each other after the events of Shibuya and before their reunion with Yuji and Megumi. Some fans like to think that Yuta visited Maki when she was being healed.

Many JJK fans see a distinctive parallel between Maki and Yuta ー both lost people closest to them (Yuta lost Rika, the girl he loved; Maki lost her twin sister Mai). After this and due to their deaths they attained unmeasurable power and a special weapon (Yuta had a katana containing Rika's power, and Maki wields a sword forged by Mai through her technique). Some fan works are dedicated to this similarity (like this art).

Fandom
FAN FICTION

Trivia

 * In the original translation of the scene where Yuta tells Rika to treat Maki as if she were a butterfly or a flower, he uses the kanji «花» (hana) which asides from flower means blossom. It was theorized by fans that Yuta meant a cherry blossom. In China, they represent love, the female mystique of strength, sexuality and beauty.
 * In an interview for the Jujutsu Kaisen Official Fanbook, mangaka Gege Akutami was asked if there was ever another girl Yuta had fallen in love with after Rika was gone. Akutami's answer being, "I'm sure there will be one from now on."
 * Maki’s view on Yuta changed from an “irritating bean sprout” to an “amazing bean sprout”. This was also said in the interview translation by WAYA about Akutami as he described Maki's view on Yuta "a beansprout that annoyed her to an awesome beansprout." "beansprout" is a term of endearment derived from "bean."
 * In 2020, YutaMaki was placed 27th on the list of JJK ships on Pixiv.
 * Someone asked Gege who was Maki's first love and Gege said "I don't know", but proceeded to put as an illustration for the answer that part of the manga where Panda "ships/tease" Maki and Yuta.