ItaFushi

ItaFushi is the slash ship between Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro from the Jujutsu Kaisen fandom.

Introduction Arc
Itadori and Fushiguro first meet at Itadori's highschool. Fushiguro goes to Sugisawa Third High School to retrieve a cursed object (Sukuna's finger), and when he walks around the campus, he norices Itadori competing against the athletics club advisor. Megumi is impressed when he sees Yuji long throwing a ball 30 meters. Later Itadori runs past him, and Megumi senses the presence of the cursed object. He calls out to Itadori, who doesn't hear him and runs away with incredible speed.

The next time they meet is in the hospital, after Itadori's grandfather has passed away. Megumi explains that the cursed object that he sensed on Itadori is a finger of Sukuna and that he needs it to protect innocent people from danger. Itadori says that he doesn't have the finger anymore, just the case. He explains to Fushiguro that his friends are planning to unseal the object and do some ritual with it. Megumi is shocked by this and then tells Itadori that his friends are going to die if they go through with it.

Both quickly head back to Itadori's school and encounter curses attacking Itadori's friends. Fushiguro fights the curses, but is interrupted by Itadori coming to help him. Even though Fushiguro forbade Itadori from coming, Itadori insists he has to save people, listening to his grandfather's last words. Fushiguro is then attacked by powerful curse and gets injured. Itadori begins fighting it, but can't kill it as a curse can only be killed with cursed energy. Itadori makes a decision: he swallows Sukuna's finger to gain cursed energy, in order to save his friends and Fushiguro. Fushiguro is horrified by this decision and thinks about how it's almost certain death for Itadori, but there is a one in a million chance that Itadori survives. Itadori manages, to Fushiguro's surprise, control Sukuna and kill the curse, saving his friends and Fushiguro in the act.

After Gojo Satoru arrives, beats Sukuna and knocks Itadori out, he asks Fushiguro what he should do with him. Fushiguro says that Itadori should be executed according to the rules of Jujutsu society, but that he doesn't want to let him die. Gojo asks Fushiguro if this is due to his personal feelings, which Fushiguro confirms to be the case. He follows up by asking Gojo to do something about it.

Cursed Womb Arc
As Itadori, Kugisaki and Fushiguro enter a detention center, they get trapped in a domain. Kugisaki and Itadori freak out, but Fushiguro tells them not to worry as they can track the scent of the entrance with his Divine Dogs. Itadori thanks Fushiguro for being so reliable and for being the reason so many people, like him, get saved. This flusters Fushiguro and he tells them to keep moving.

Itadori comes across the corpse of the son of someone he talked to outside. He insists they bring his body back. Fushiguro tells Itadori no, and adds that saving people isn't always the answer. He acknowledges that Itadori is stuck on the idea that he can guide people to proper deaths and wants to save as many people as he can, but Fushiguro also proposes the question of what happens once someone he's saved hurts or even kills someone innocent. Itadori responds by asking why Fushiguro saved him in the first place. Fushiguro is unable to answer.

Itadori switches to Sukuna to fight a strong curse and save Kugisaki and Fushiguro. After Sukuna easily overpowers the curse, he meets Fushiguro. Sukuna removes the heart from Itadori's body, so when Itadori takes back the control of his body, he would die immediately. This gives Itadori no choice but to let Sukuna take control. Fushiguro tells Sukuna that Itadori will switch back even if it means taking his own life. However, Sukuna argues that Yuji too much of a coward to kill himself. Fushiguro engages Sukuna but is overwhelmed by the curse's strength. After Sukuna corners him, Fushiguro recalls how his sister was unfairly cursed despite being a good person and how his father left him. He doesn't believe karma is automatic and therefore almost nobody gets to enjoy true fairness. That is why he will save people unequally, based only on his own conviction. Fushiguro tells Itadori, who is slowly starting to take control of his body again, that he saved him simply because he didn't want to see a good person die. He believes that this is okay because he's a sorcerer and not a hero. Itadori takes back control of his body as he listens to Fushiguro admit he never regretted saving him. Out of time, Itadori succumbs to his wounds and tells his friend to live a long life. Fushiguro is seen to hold back tears as Itadori's dead body falls to the ground in front of him.

Cursed training Arc
Itadori is resurrected by Sukuna, but Gojo decides to keep this a secret from everyone. Itadori trains with Gojo while Fushiguro and the others think he's dead.

Vs. Mahito Arc
During the Juju Stroll from episode 13, Fushiguro prepares meatballs for the upperclassmen and Kugisaki. Kugisaki asks him how he knows how to cook, and Fushiguro says that Itadori was the one who taught him. Then Gojo and Itadori are seen eating in another place. Gojo praises Itadori's food and Itadori tells him that they were easy to make and that he taught Fushiguro how to make them.

Kyoto Goodwill Event Arc
Itadori and Gojo come up with a plan to reveal Itadori's survival and decide to surprise the Tokyo students at the start of the Exchange event, expecting the first years to be crying tears of joy. However, Itadori's plan doesn't go so well, as his friends don't show signs of being happy to the point that both would "cry" of joy. Instead of that, both were extremely shocked and horrified (though Kugusaki was holding back tears) upon realizing that Itadori was alive while they thought he had died.

When the students from Tokyo meet to discuss their strategy, they struggle to find a role for Itadori because they don't know how strong he is. Fushiguro then puts his confidence in Itadori and tells his upperclassmen that if everyone from Kyoto fought Itadori without cursed energy Itadori would win. After Itadori gets scolded by both of his friends, Fushiguro asks him if something happened and if he's okay. Itadori at first lets the question slide, saying he's okay and laughing it off. When Fushiguro asks again, Itadori seems surprised by how well Fushiguro can read him and confirms that something did indeed happen (Junpei's death), but that he was also fine. He tells Fushiguro that because of what happened he doesn't want to lose to anyone else again. Fushiguro then passes Itadori while telling him that he doesn't really want to lose either.

Fushiguro is forced to fight Noritoshi Kamo after Kamo tells him that he plans to kill Itadori. He wants to kill Itadori to act as a proper heir to his clan and claims he is the same as Fushiguro. Fushiguro rejects this ideal and claims he has renounced any connection to the Zenin family. He doesn't care who's right or wrong, he just simply wants to follow his conscience to save others, he says while thinking of his sister and Itadori. He follows up by saying that if they can't agree to that, then they can only agree to curse each other.

When Jujutsu High is suddenly attacked by Geto's group in the middle of the Exchange Event, Fushiguro and Maki are forced to fight the cursed spirit Hanami, who seriously wounds both of them. Itadori and Todo appear at the scene to save Maki and Fushiguro and stand in for them in the battle against the cursed spirit. Fushiguro expresses his frustration over Yuji getting into a fight with an opponent that seems impossible to defeat, but Itadori reassures his friend with one look and adds that it will be fine. Fushiguro seems stunned, but he agrees with Itadori and lets him do what needs to be done. He tells Itadori that if he dies again, he'll kill him himself. Itadori responds by saying he "can't go dying then". During the fight with Hanami, Itadori attempts to use the Black Flash twice. The first time he lets his emotions take control, and his movements are fuelled by anger as he remembers a dying Junpei and a wounded Fushiguro.

Death Painting Arc
Itadori, Fushiguro and Kugisaki investigate deaths caused by a curse and end up at Fushiguro's old middle school. They discover that everyone who's died went to Yasohachi Bridge. As the trio heads to the bridge, they meet the sister of someone from the middle school. She explains that she also went to the bridge, and that Fushiguro's sister Tsumiki was with her. After she leaves, Fushiguro is visibly distraught due to the possibility of his sister dying. Itadori immediately notices how shaken up Fushiguro actually is and rushes to his side, attempting to ground him. Later, Fushiguro goes to the bridge alone at night trying to find the curse. He's surprised when he notices that Kugisaki and Itadori sneak up behind him. The three of them cross the bridge and begin fighting the curses.

After Kugisaki and Itadori have finished fighting Eso and Kechizu, they see a sleeping Fushiguro on the ground holding a finger of Sukuna. When Fushiguro wakes up they express their happiness for him being alive. After Itadori accidentally eats the finger of Sukuna Fushiguro was holding, he holds out his hand to help Fushiguro stand up, which Fushiguro accepts. After they've returned to Jujutsu High, Fushiguro asks Kugusaki not to tell Itadori about how the presence of Sukuna's fingers is making curses more active, because he does not want Itadori to feel guily. At the same time, Itadori tells Sukuna not to tell Fushiguro about the same thing, because he does not want Fushiguro to regret saving him.

Shibuya Incident Arc
On October 31, Itadori and Fushiguro are split up into groups in Shibuya. After Gojo Satoru is sealed by "Geto", Itadori receives a message from Mechamaru informing him of what happened. Itadori rushes through the station and climbs up a building, calling out for Nanami, who is with Fushiguro. Nanami, Fushiguro and a student named Takuma meet up with Itadori and Itadori explains everything to them. Itadori, Fushiguro and Takuma then proceed to take on curses and curse users. They split up, and Itadori and Fushiguro proceed to fight the curse user Awasaka together, combining their strengths and making a perfect team. Fushiguro quickly figures out their opponent's technique, after which Itadori and him overpower the enemy with ease, killing him. Itadori tells Fushiguro that he's heading to Shibuya station, which is currently crowded with mutated humans, curses and curse users. This makes Fushiguro feel extremely uneasy, but Itadori tries to reassure him that he'll be fine. He says he'll be okay, because if he dies Fushiguro will kill him himself, repeating Fushiguro's words during the fight with Hanami. Fushiguro tells him to never forget those words. He tells Itadori "I'll see you later" as they part ways.

After fighting his father, Fushiguro is attacked by Haruta Shigemo. He tries to get away from Shigemo, but due to the cursed weapon the curse user attacked him with he cannot move very well. He collapses and explains how the Ten Shadows Technique works as he prepares to unleash his suicide attack against his opponent. While he tries to summons the deadly shikigami, he thinks back to when he told Itadori that he'll see him later. He apoligizes to Itadori for not being able to see him later, and finally summons Eight-Handled Sword Divergent Sila Divine General Mahoraga. He immediately gets knocked out by it a few seconds later.

Itadori's Extermination Arc
Itadori and Choso are living in the middle of the ruins of the now destroyed Shibuya district. Itadori expresses concern over what Sukuna is planning to do with Fushiguro and remembers the people Sukuna killed in his rampage, as he thinks about when Fushiguro asked him about what he would do if someone he saved kills someone in the future. Itadori and Choso meet Naoya Zenin soon after. Naoya asks about where Fushiguro is, since he heard Fushiguro is looking for Itadori. Itadori asks him what he wants with Fushiguro, and becomes enraged when Naoya expresses his desire to kill him to become the head of the Zenin clan. Choso and Itadori start fighting Naoya but are interrupted when Yuta Okkotsu shows up.

After his fight with Okkotsu, Itadori wakes up around a fire with Okkotsu sitting opposite to him. He explains how he killed Itadori but revived him at the same time, to get around the binding vow the higher-ups placed on him. Soon after, Fushiguro shows up after searching for Itadori for days on end. Itadori calls out his name, relieved to see him again and to see he's alive. Fushiguro tells Itadori to come back to Jujutsu High, but Itadori tells him to stop acting like everything is normal. He explains how he's killed too many people to be accepted back into the school, saying it's his fault for letting Sukuna out. Fushiguro counters by saying it's all "our fault". Itadori thinks to himself about how typical of Fushiguro it is to say that. Fushiguro explains how they're sorcerers, not heroes, and that all they can do to prove themselves is to save as many people as they can, using Itadori's own ideology against him. Itadori tells Fushiguro that he can't go with him, because as long as he's around him, Fushiguro will suffer. Fushiguro doesn't accept this and tells Itadori to start by saving him, giving Itadori a reason to keep on living and saving him once again.

Culling Game Arc
After accepting Fushiguro's plea for help, Itadori tells Okkotsu about Sukuna wanting something from Fushiguro. He asks Okkotsu to kill him, if Sukuna takes over again, so that no harm can be done. Okkotsu accepts. They return to the school and meet up with Maki and Yuki Tsukumo. They decide to enter the tombs to meet Master Tengen to ask him about the Culling Game. As they enter the tombs, Itadori puts his hand on Fushiguro's back, comforting him. As Tengen explains the rules of the Culling Game, Itadori is horrified to learn that he'll have to kill people again. Fushiguro, knowing Itadori is traumatized and hates killing people, tells him that won't be necessary as he's already thought of some alternatives. As the group parts ways, Itadori is scared to learn that Okkotsu will be going alone, and won't be able to protect Fushiguro in case Sukuna takes over.

Quotes
"I've never once regretted saving you."

- Megumi to Yuji, Chapter 9, episode 5

"If you die again, I'll kill you myself!"

- Megumi to Yuji, Chapter 48, episode 19

"No, Fushiguro. It's because... as long as I'm around, you will suffer!"

- Yuji to Megumi, Chapter 143, "One More Time"

"I'm begging you, Itadori. I need your strength."

- Megumi to Yuji, Chapter 144, "That Place"

Moments

 * In the first episode/chapter, Fushiguro asks Gojo to save Itadori. Gojo asks if his request was caused by his personal feelings which Fushiguro then confirms to be true.
 * At the beginning of the Cursed Womb Arc, Fushiguro gets mad at Kugisaki and Itadori for not taking the mission seriously, but his face gets flustered when Itadori calls him a reliable teammate.
 * When Fushiguro talks or thinks about good people, Itadori often comes to his mind.
 * In the second Anime ending, Itadori records Fushiguro with his phone while he has paint on his face and is asleep.
 * In Todo's first appearance, he asks Megumi what kind of woman is his type, to which he replies with "as long as they are compassionate" (unshakeable character in the anime) which a lot of fans believe matches Yuji's personality. Megumi did not use any gendered pronouns as well.
 * Before the Kyoto Sister School Exchange Event begins, Fushiguro expresses concern for Itadori and when the latter says that he's fine, Fushiguro senses he's lying and when he asks again, Itadori admits that something did happen.
 * During the battle with Hanami, Fushiguro exclaims '' If you die, I'll kill you myself!" to Itadori to which he replies "Guess, I can't afford to die then".
 * As Fushiguro recovers from his wounds, he tells Itadori he will become stronger than him one day. Itadori faintly blushes and laughs as Fushiguro says that.
 * Manga panel from chapter 56, when Yuji stares at Megumi through the car window, after the latter sent him and Nobara away, is directly referenced in the second OP VIVID VICE, when Yuji is shown wistfully staring at something from the car's backseat.
 * In the Juju Stroll of episode 23, Itadori quickly assumes Fushiguro is getting hit on by a woman. Itadori, Kugisaki and Gojo then proceed to act like his jealous lovers to ruin his chance with her.
 * In the episode 24 and chapter 63 of the manga, Fushiguro asks Kugisaki not to tell Itadori about the cursed events he accidentally caused, knowing that Itadori would feel bad about all the deaths. This is paralleled by Itadori telling Sukuna not tell Fushiguro about this so the latter would not feel bad about saving Itadori.
 * In chapter 139, when Naoya meets Yuji and Choso, he describes how he will harm Itadori, and only in passing mentions that he has to deal with Megumi. Yuji misses the part where Naoya promises to break his legs, and yells out to Naoya inquiring what he wants with Megumi. Later Naoya thinks that he shouldn’t have mentioned Megumi at all, because the reaction seemed scary to him.
 * After the events of the Shibuya Arc, Itadori expresses his self-hatred towards Megumi because of the massacre Sukuna committed when he overtook his body. Megumi then says that he shares the blame for those deaths as he was the one that released the untamed Shikigami.
 * As the Culling Game rules were explained, Megumi assures Itadori that he does not have to kill anyone again.
 * When Maki was explaining their plan for the Culling Game, Itadori immediately thinks of Megumi's wellbeing.
 * In chapter 144, Megumi asks Yuji to help him save his sister Tsumiki. According to Hakari Kinji, when a sorcerer asks another sorcerer for help, it's like asking them to put their life on the line.

Fanon
It is the most popular ship for both Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro under both Jujutsu Kaisen (Anime) and Jujutsu Kaisen (Manga) tags on AO3. It is the second most written ship in the fandom overall, but the most written ship in English.

A lot of fans started to ship them once the anime started, other people were already shipping them as the manga was released. Their personalities complement each other very well like yin yang due to their combination of hot and calm temperament, and that surely attracts a lot of fans. In many ways, this was helped by both the intuitive nature of the ship as the best male friends in shonen work, and the very well-written dynamics of their relationship already in the first arcs of story. It can be shipped alongside with NobaMaki and SatoSugu. A lot of fan works on the ship focus on following up the events of the main story, or drawing possible scenarios "behind the scenes". However some authors like to indulge in imagining what their relationship could be like in a real world with no curses (like here). College AU stories are especially popular.

In an interview with Gege Akutami, he revealed that Yuji would grow taller Megumi. So in aged-up AU's, Yuji is always portrayed as the taller and muscular one. In another question, Gege also revealed that Yuji would be a firefighter if he didn't end up as a Jujutsu High student, and because of Megumi's cursed technique and his affiliation with animals, many fans headcanon that he would be a veterinarian. This trope has been recognized a lot in the Eastern side of the fandom.

Trivia

 * In the manga, when Megumi was asked what his type was, a more accurate translation of his response was "unwavering humanity". Yuji's name in kanji translates to unwavering humanity.
 * Yuji likes watching TV, and Megumi likes reading (nonfiction, in particular).
 * Megumi's theme song, "Island in the Sun" by Weezer, parallels Megumi and Yuuji's relationship. Many people interpret this song as romantic.
 * Yuji taught Megumi how to cook niku-dango (meatballs).
 * Yuji is 2 centimeters shorter then Megumi, but according to Gege Akutami, he will grow and probably surpass his friend in height.
 * Both are sorcerers with incredible potential, and are said to be able to rival Gojo Satoru in the future.
 * Jujutsu Kaisen characters do blush a lot, and Yuji is not an exception, when it comes to Megumi.
 * Yuji and Megumi's VAs, Junya Enoki and Yuma Uchida, seem to share a friendly and playful dynamic, often joking with each other like in this podcast.
 * During the live stream of Juju Fest 2021, Japanese voice actors were performing different scenes from the anime that have been selected by other voice actors. Yuji's Japanese VA Junya Enoki picked the scene with Megumi using his Domain Expansion for the first time, he said that this scene "displays how amazing and skilled Megumi is and because it feels like Megumi awakens and he is set free".
 * On 19 August 2021 Enoki, Yuji's VA, went on a stream for Premium Bandai to introduce the Jujutsu Kaisen tamagotchi figures. Enoki played with the Yuji and Megumi tamagotchi, turning them towards each other and bringing them closer.
 * A manga panel from the Death Painting Arc that was not in the anime shows Fushiguro giving his half-finished sandwich to Itadori as they were outside the convenience store.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

ART
 * Fushiguro/Itadori tag on Pixiv
 * Itadori/Fushiguro tag on Pixiv

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