Jujutsu Kaisen: Aoi Todo (ENFP)

If you’ve been following us for a while, you probably realize that we’ve published an article analyzing Aoi Todo before, only last time we theorized ENFJ. However, one day it occurred to use that Aoi Todo’s personality goes completely against what Fe is. He doesn’t seek to surround himself with a group of people, or gain favor with others. In fact, Aoi Todo doesn’t seem to care about his emotional impact on people at all. Instead, he focuses purely on his own fantasies, on growing in strength, and on finding a close personal connection with a worthy individual. Therefore, we are shifting our position to ENFP. I hope this makes a little more sense than our last stance. If you’re interested in reading about other Jujutsu Kaisen characters, check out Satoru Gojo, Kento Nanami, Megumi Fushiguro, Nobara Kugisaki, Yuji Itadori, and Suguru Geto.

Ne:

“The bells of the Gion monastery in India echo with the warning that all things are impermanent. The blossoms of the sala trees teach us through their hues that what flourishes must fade. However! Sorcerers like us are the exception!”

“The exchange event is where my soul can be free as the blood boils and the flesh clashes. Who knows what I’ll do if my last exchange event ends up only boring me.”

“We exist in this world with our entire mind, body and soul as a whole. It’s such a given that no one even thinks about it.”

“I keep getting that same premonition of my boredom being turned upside down!”

“Arms are just decorations. The act of applause is an acclamation of the soul!”

As a dominant extraverted perceiver (EXXP), Todo is extremely prone to boredom, a subject that he references on several occasions. Todo actively seeks means to escape boredom, and even trains Itadori because he deems Itadori to not be a boring person. However, his boredom extends beyond a need for physical thrills or physical experiences, which suggests that he’s not a Se dominant, or an ESXP. For instance, Todo has to get a read on individual people by asking them a question. If the answer is not boring, he’s interested.

Todo sees reality through the lens of his fantasy. He has extensive internal fantasies, specifically concerning his idol and Itadori. (Of course, he doesn’t produce the fantasy with Itadori until Itadori passes his test.) He even plays out a conversation in his mind with his idol in the middle of the battle, and gets inspiration from it.

When Todo first fights Itadori, he doesn’t actually spend that much time fighting. Instead, he takes on the role of teacher, and spends a significant amount of time lecturing him. This need to teach quickly takes precedence over enjoying the fight, which seems like an unlikely reaction for an ESXP who is in the middle of a competition. Todo often pauses during their duel to critique Itadori’s technique or explain an important concept. There is even a moment in the fight where Todo goes from being thrilled by getting hit with Itadori’s techniques to completely snapping out of the moment and declaring that the lagged cursed energy technique is just wrong. He then proceeds to lecture Itadori about why, ultimately giving Itadori a big picture perspective on how cursed energy works and how it’s channeled through the body.

As a few final notes, Todo speaks with language that is both dramatic, abstract, and metaphorical, which supports being an ENFP. In addition, his fighting strategy is to keep the enemy guessing. He doesn’t at all fight linearly. Rather, he plays tricks and subverts expectations.

Fi:

“I knew it as soon as I saw you, Fushiguru. I could tell you’d turn out to be a boring guy, but then you should never judge a person just by their looks. Isn’t that right? So I went out of my way to ask you the question, but you just trampled on my kindness.”

“Your friend has gotten hurt, and what’s even worse than that, they’ve rained on your honeymoon with me, your new best friend, so take it from me, I can absolutely understand why you’re boiling with rage.”

“Don’t stop, and believe in me!”

“For one, only those who have a direct connection to the victims have any right to mourn them. It would be rude of us to butt in there. And secondly, if people have died, that’s all the more reason for us to work to become stronger.”

Todo ignores any person or authority who would have him act in any way that isn’t in line with his feelings and values. He doesn’t adapt himself to others, but actually acts rather cold towards strangers or those he dislikes. However, he’s encouraging and empathetic with those he likes, such as Itadori. When Todo jumps into the battle with Mahito, saving Itadori’s life, he gives Itadori an encouraging speech, proclaiming that all things are impermanent and must fade but they are the exception. This indicates an Fi mentality, seeing the two of them as unique and set apart from everyone (and everything) else.

Todo readily expresses his emotions with those who matter to him. This is shown during his first battle with Itadori, where Todo is very openly and unabashedly emotional, indicating that he is not a thinker. In addition, Todo actively seeks an intimate connection with a like-minded individual, which is common for high Fi users. He finds this in Itadori when Itadori answers his question in a satisfactory way. Once that happens, he effectively adopts Itadori into his fantasy as a best friend and brother, in spite of Itadori’s later protests to the contrary. Todo takes him under his wing, teaches him, and encourages Itadori to believe in him.

Todo possesses strong values, which he expresses on various occasions. For instance, he tells Gojo and the others that they have no right to mourn the victims that they have no direct connection with, that doing so would be rude. (This is also indicative of Fi, because he’s emphasizing the need for there to be a personal connection, rather than focusing on humanity as a whole being connected.)

Te:

“Listen, my friend, that time-lagged cursed energy blast? That is a bad habit you’ve developed.”

“…And if you’re satisfied staying on that level, then sadly you and I can’t possibly stay best friends.”

“If you can’t land a Black Flash then I’ll just watch you die.”

“Acquired strength can only come from the accumulation of results. Tasting defeat and savoring victory, these are the things that lead us to grow. The most important thing now is for those results to continue to exist.”

Todo helps people via tough love and critical feedback. When he starts mentoring Itadori, he demands competency of him, claiming that they can’t be friends if Itadori doesn’t seek to improve his abilities. He spends their entire first fight, pointing out the weaknesses and flaws in Itadori’s technique. Furthermore, a little later during a fight against a real enemy, Todo states that if Itadori can’t land a Black Flash, he’d just watch him die. Ultimately, Itadori becomes significantly stronger because of Todo’s influence.

Todo confronts people head on, makes demands of them, and refuses to allow others to control him. As a result, he makes a lot of enemies. He often overlooks social protocol and the complaints of others, which points away from Fe. For instance, when Todo questions Megumi about his taste in women, Megumi points out that they are completes strangers. Todo then hastily introduces himself (to get it over with), proclaims them friends, and pushes him again for an answer.

Si:

“What are you saying? We’ve been so close ever since middle school, brother.”

It can be hard to distinguish where a dominant function ends the inferior begins, because the two inextricably linked. Todo’s active imagination and fantasy world, which he uses to perceive reality in a more favorable way, is being sourced from his Ne. However, inferior Si manifests in how he rewrites his past and then denies current reality in favor of his new, internal ideal of how reality should be. For instance, when Itadori claims that the two of them never went to school together, Todo just dismisses him. Instead, using his Te, he asserts his desired reality onto Itadori, denying true reality.