though chrollo’s technique is extremely powerful and showcases his immense talent, i think it also puts what could be his fatal flaw on full display.
throughout the series togashi has made it clear that the most successful fighters are those who are deeply in touch with their soul and humanity. there are lots of examples of this, but probably the most glaring was netero, who was considered the pinnacle of strength in hunter society. honing his technique quite literally required him to reach enlightenment. importantly, this was how he described what he viewed as his most challenging battle:
it was because of these achievements that he was able to continue fighting in spite of the immense injuries he suffered during the fight:
and though he did die, he was successful in the end. his plan worked, and meruem also eventually met his demise. he died with a sense of fulfillment.
what does this mean for chrollo, who’s deeply out of touch with his soul and humanity? nothing good. he has honed his technique through studying other people—stealing other people’s understandings of their souls is the core of his ability:
his planning for his fight against hisoka was excessive. he’s a genius and improved his technique such that he was 100% certain of his success. everything about the battle was meticulously planned, and he left no room for error:
togashi showed chrollo’s dependence on other people’s humanity in the most literal sense in this battle; he used the people in the stadium as tools and puppets, and his direct confrontation with hisoka was limited. he hid behind them.
he left the battle thinking he was successful, but completing a battle that he initially “won” due to a heavy reliance on his understanding of the darkness of other people’s souls, and not his own, was not successful in the end. hisoka brought himself back from death, and chrollo lost people close to him as a result. he failed.
and finally, this statement he made during the battle was rather jarring:
he looks empty and composed at the same time. he does not know his own soul. and after the most recent set of chapters, we know why.
he’s lived in a heavy state of dissociation ever since sarasa’s death, and understandably so. he shouldered the heaviest burden. he retrieved her, and only he knew what was written on the note.
improving beyond the standard he set for himself for his fight with hisoka would require soul-searching. it has to. what else can he do with his technique on a surface level? increase the number of abilities he can use at one time again? surely hisoka has planned for that.
chrollo is a tragic character, and i think the core of his tragedy is wrapped up in the fact that he hasn’t even shaken hands with his soul, never mind explored the darkness of it. i think this will be his undoing. if these harrowing truths are the reason for his death, he will lose painfully, without a sense of fulfillment, without achieving his goal, and, most tragically, without ever knowing himself.