ch 17 and the misconception some people have about it...
so we are at ch 250 ish in jjk, and many things had happened. Like, MANY. But I still see people with the 'Megumi was about to summon Makora against Todo' argument, and whether or not its a joke - its getting tired as hell.
So, I'm gonna throw this essay into the void that is the internet coz I wanna rant about it >:(
In this chapter, two students from the Kyoto branch were briefly introduced. The third year Aoi Todo, and the second year Zenin Mai.
These two went to the Tokyo branch a little earlier than the intended schedule for the goodwill event because they wanted to check out (bully) the first years, since these kids (Megumi and Nobara) will replace the third years for the event this time around.
Todo wanted his last goodwill event to be memorable, so he wanted all the best fighters to be around. But since two of the third years ran away to establish their own fight club while Yuta went on an adventure somewhere in Africa, Todo’s dream of a memorable goodwill might be a little blurry. So he had to go and assess (bully) the first years, so he may know what to expect.
Todo’s intention was clear from the start - he was only there to test whether the Tokyo branch first years are worthy enough to fight. So he asked Megumi his type of woman.
Honestly, if he was there to assess the first years, I think he should've asked Nobara her type as well but he just treated her like she was invisible the entire time. (¬_¬")
Anyway, Megumi gave him an answer and Todo didn't really like it.
If we go by what Todo states as his reason, the only one that was clear was that he thinks that Megumi’s answer was boring. Which is fair, people find different things boring - we all have our own preferences and stuff. I personally think that Megumi’s answer was good. Not just good, actually - his answer was the best I heard when it comes to such questions. But what exactly was it that made Megumi’s answer ‘boring’ in Todo Aoi's eyes?
I think the answer is that megumi’s answer was too good, actually.
The problem with Megumi, in Todo’s eyes at least, is that he thinks TOO MUCH. There are too many thoughts in this kid’s head, too much brain cells interacting with each other in there - that Todo finds boring. Now, I'm not saying that Todo is a dumbass - between Tokyo and Kyoto he and Megumi are the only one who managed to have a perfect 10 when it comes to classroom learning.
His ‘style’ of intellect is probably just completely different from Megumi’s. If Megumi answered with a surface level attraction - for example; he 'likes big butts and he cannot lie' - immediately after Todo asked him, Todo wouldn't have found it boring (he would still attack, of course). But because Megumi thought about a proper answer honestly and seriously, for way too long, Todo got offended. He likes brainless and quick answers better.
The moment Megumi hesitated to answer, he was already 'boring' in Todo's eyes.
When Todo asks someone this question, he's not only gauging their personality - he's also assessing their fighting style based on what and how they answer.
And Todo's preferred combat style is no brain, head empty, just punch punch kick - just what you’ll expect from the very same man who showed Yuji how to do a black flash. A state of being that’s the very embodiment of brainless concentration resulting in drooling and a punch stronger than your strongest punch. Given how Todo's CT works, he does strategize and think about his next moves - but not to the extent that Megumi does. Todo strategizes while he fights, Megumi strategizes and then fights. I'm not saying they fight exclusively like this! Its just the gist of their differing fighting style.
I'm just trying to get to something and putting all these in mind is important to get to it.
From the moment that Todo showed a sign of wanting a fight, Megumi’s thoughts were how he could avoid conflict and diffuse the situation. He never viewed todo as someone he had to defeat, but a problem he had to solve. Which is an insult for this guy Todo, who came into their school looking for a fight.
Even when Todo landed that first punch on Megumi, making him fly across the hallway, his thoughts were still about how to diffuse the situation - because his plan was to keep his distance from Todo. Todo was a problem, not a real enemy. Up to the point when Todo used his body to bulldoze through a building, Megumi's plan was the same. Nullify, not fight. Diffuse, not escalate.
It only changed when Todo asked him if he was even trying. Which irked Megumi, because he was trying. Trying to diffuse the situation, that is. And not fight. Which can be deduced in his choice of shikigami, he chose the defense type and not the offense ones - like his dog and the owl. Granted, the frogs had Nue's flight ability - but it's clear that Megumi only chose to summon it primarily to try and incapacitate Todo. Not fight him.
Which leads us to the actual point of this whole essay
Some people had been clowning him left right and center for 'trying' to summon Makora against Todo, which would actually be funny - if it was true. I mean, imagine summoning your untamed murderous pet against a high school bully, at the risk of killing yourself too btw.
Hilarious, right? (˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧
But, uh, Megumi didn't do that.
What happened was Megumi actually ‘wanting’ to fight Todo, not just deescalate the situation, and Todo felt that change.
Ever since Todo started that fight, Megumi never thought about fighting him - and Todo knows that, that's why he thinks Megumi is boring. Because he ‘thinks’.
They are in the school, among classmates and colleagues, unarmed and unprepared - there are literally so many things to consider before Megumi could even fully commit to a fight that he never asked to be a part of. There are absolutely zero reasons (in Megumi’s head) why he had to fight an upperclassman from a sister school out of nowhere. That was why in that 5 seconds fight that they had, we only ever see Megumi on the defense.
So when megumi decided not to think and just go with it, Todo felt that change in him. It wasn't general Makora that Todo felt, because Megumi had to do a hand sign and a chant in order for that shikigami’s presence to be felt - as can be seen when he first did that thing at the juvenile detention center. Sukuna only felt a strong shikigami when Megumi started chanting.
When Yuji first ate a finger and Megumi did the hand sign, Sukuna didn't react to it because Megumi didn't do the chant.
This is the only page that showed Megumi about to fight Todo seriously, and there is no hand sign in sight.
So, how in the world would Todo feel the general’s presence when Megumi did not do a hand sign and a chant? Do people think that Todo's spidey senses are stronger than Sukuna - that all it took for Todo to feel its presence was for Megumi to think about it? That's… huh.
With all that said, no, Megumi was not gonna summon Makora against Todo (an ally) just because of a school fight. He was just gonna do what Todo had been urging him to do - and that is to fight for real. Megumi fighting for real does not mean Makora is about to jump out of the shadow because he never used Makora to fight - Makora has always been a last resort. When shit truly hit the fan. All those instances against Sukuna, Hanami, the whole Shibuya fiasco and Sukuna about to possess him - were all Makora level threats because Gojo was not around.
I have so many rants left in me so next I'm gonna rant about how every time Megumi considered summoning Makora it is justified (ง'̀-'́)ง
