Jujutsu Kaisen Sourced Gojo's Design From Naruto But Not From Kakashi

Jujutsu Kaisen is taking over the anime fandom these days, and we have its new season to thank. In a few weeks, the show will return to the air with our first look at the Shibuya arc. Gojo and Geto have kept fans entertained as of late with a throwback arc, but now all eyes are about to turn to Gojo as we know him from season one. And if you were convinced his iconic look was crafted because of Naruto's sensei, well – think again.

It is an incredibly common comparison though. If you did not know, Naruto's Hatake Kakashi is considered one of the most popular mentors in shonen anime. New teachers are always compared to Kakashi whether they're from My Hero Academia to One Piece. Of course, Jujutsu Kaisen fell prey to the trap, and Gojo's covered features reminded many of Kakashi.

However, it turns out the teacher of Team 7 was not the inspiration behind Gojo. Another ninja from the Chunin Exams had more to do with Gojo's creation than anyone, and Gege Akutami admitted as much in a resurfaced chat from Japan.

"I often hear people say that it's cool that Gojo Satoru has powers like Kakashi but all I can say to that is that he's not really on the same level as Kakashi. As for Gojo's character design, it was actually influenced more by a protector wearing the bandages and blindfold on his head during the second phase of the Chunin Exams rather than Kakashi. The character design left a massive impression on me back then but when I finally met [Masashi] Kishimoto and asked him about it, he said, 'Was there a guy like that...?'," he shared.

As you can see above, the character Akutami mentioned is definitely in the Naruto manga though his anime role is marginal at best. The man was a member of the Hidden Leaf's analysis team, and he was pretty powerful. During Sand's Invasion during the Chunin Exams, the little-known character takes out some impressive foes, and this unnamed analyst stuck with Akutami.

If you are not familiar with Gojo and want to check out his lessons, Jujutsu Kaisen is easy to binge. The manga can be read through the Shonen Jump app while the Jujutsu Kaisen Anime is streaming on Crunchyroll. So for more details, check out the official synopsis of Jujutsu Kaisen below:

"For some strange reason, Yuji Itadori, despite his insane athleticism would rather just hang out with the Occult Club. However, her soon finds out that the occult is as real as it gets when his fellow club members are attacked! Meanwhile, the mysterious Megumi Fushiguro is tracking down a special-grade cursed object, and his search leads him to Itadori..."

What do you think about this Jujutsu Kaisen homage? Do you remember a character like this in Naruto? Let us know what you think in the comments below as well as on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!