Why Toji sold Megumi to the Zenin clan is an important plot in Jujutsu Kaisen. After all, it is how Gojo Satoru and Megumi Fushiguro met, giving Megumi a compelling backstory. In this blog, let us discuss the relationship (or non-relationship) between the estranged father and son.
Who is Toji Fushiguro?
Toji Fushiguro or Toji Zenin. He was the son of the famous Zenin family. But unlike other members, Toji must suffer scornfully and coldly from the family. The reason is that, unlike the others, Toji didn’t have cursed energy.
The Zenins were one of the three prominent families of the jujutsu world. So having a son who didn’t have cursed energy like Toji is something that’s dishonorable for the family because he couldn’t exorcise cursed spirits. That’s why for all the time spent with the Zenin clan, Toji always lived in isolation from the family.
But despite living without any cursed energy, Toji received another gift. He was the one who had Heavenly Restriction.
Basically, in Jujutsu lore, having one gift (A) takes away the capacity to have another gift (B). And in the case of Toji, it took away from him the cursed energy. Toji has no cursed energy. Instead, Heavenly Restriction was bestowed upon him a superhuman physical strength. All his speed and strength were far beyond the average person’s or even greater than many jujutsu sorcerers.
But the Zenin family still didn’t recognize the power of Toji and always saw him as a tumor in the family. And because of that reason, Toji left the family to become a killer for a living.
He married a woman who saved him from the pain of the past and gave birth to Megumi. Unfortunately, Toji’s wife died. After her death, Toji once more time stepped on the old path.
He married another woman, who gave birth to a daughter named Tsumiki. However, the couple abandoned both Tsumiki and Megumi.
One time, Toji received a job to kill a person. He completed it even when he must overcome the strongest sorcerer – Gojo Satoru. But in the end, Gojo was still stronger and killed Toji with his cursed technique.
Before he died, Toji told Gojo about his contract with the Zenin family and that Megumi would be sold to the clan. So, his last words were to ask Gojo to take care of his son.
The Relationship Between Toji and Megumi
The relationship between Toji and Megumi was pretty bad. After all, Toji abandoned Megumi for years and even moved to the next step with another girl when Megumi was just a small child.
Megumi even couldn’t remember Toji’s face. And at that time, Megumi was just a primary school student. He ultimately had no good memory of his father until his father died.
Toji only remembered Megumi when he was dying and needed some money. After the death of Toji, Gojo came to Megumi and was really surprised by the kid.
Megumi showed no feelings for his father, even when he knew that Gojo was the person who killed his father.
But Megumi and Toji would not see each other again at the Shibuya event. In the end, Toji asked his son’s last name. Upon knowing that Megumi was using the name Fushiguro, Toji killed himself by stabbing the knife through his head.
If the fight kept going, the one in danger was absolute Megumi. With Toji, he might just want to have a little time with Megumi. He wanted to see how his son grew and then took his life once he had accomplished his goal.
Why Toji Sold Megumi
For Toji’s Love of Money
Although he died, we should not forget what Toji did to Megumi and his mother.
Toji was a true jerk. A father leaving his son when he was just a baby is unacceptable.
He was also a killer. Many people died under his hands just because he needed money. And all the money he made was put into gambling and women. When a man asked him about Megumi, he said: “Who?”
What the? In chapter 113, Toji meets Megumi after a long time. He did remember a little about the moment he signed the contract to sell Megumi to the Zenin clan.
According to the contract, Toji made an appointment with the Zenin family and told him about Megumi’s potential. If Megumi reveals his cursed techniques at 5 or 6 years old, Toji will send Megumi to the Zenin clan. And he needed money in reverse.
If Megumi’s cursed technique is more similar to the Zenin family’s cursed technique, he will receive more money.
Toji was indeed a bad guy. He probably just needed some more extra cash, and Megumi was a perfect item to get that money.
Toji loved to gamble, womanize, and abandon his child. With Toji, Megumi might just be a burden at that time.
So, selling Megumi to the Zenin clan was a wise choice for him. It was hitting two birds with one stone. He can get some money and throw the burden away at the same time.
That’s what everybody will see if they meet Toji for the first time. But if we take a look deeper into Toji’s origins, we might have a different answer.
For Megumi to Have a Better Life
The reason why Toji sold Megumi is that he wants Megumi to have a better life. The Zenins were a huge clan, and a clan like that will always need a talented kid to keep the tradition of the family.
Unlike Toji, Megumi had a vast potential to become a powerful jujutsu sorcerer. Gojo said that Megumi might be even stronger than him in the future.
With that said, if Megumi showed the clan that he had the power they were seeking, he would get so much love as well as a great environment to learn, live, and open a better future for himself.
Toji took so much hate from that family, but he also understood what that family could do to his son. He didn’t want his son to live a life like him. After all, Toji was still a father.
At least, that’s one positive thing we could think about Toji in this situation.