The world of Jujutsu Kaisen is built around the idea that Yuji Itadori will eventually die. In order to finally end the threat created by the remnants of Sukuna, the higher-ups have determined that after Yuji collects all 20 of Sukuna's fingers, he will be put to death.
The manga and the anime both put Yuji in tight situations that the young jujutsu sorcerer is ill-prepared for. A few of these tight situations only injure Yuji, but a couple of them leave him gasping for his final breath. Luckily, keeping Yuji dead has proven to be more difficult than just killing him.
10 Prior To Eating Sukuna's Finger, Yuji Had No Way To Defeat The Cursed Spirits Attacking His School
Prior to eating the first of Sukuna's fingers, Yuji Itadori is little more than a hyper-athletic high school student with no way to exorcise cursed spirits due to a lack of cursed energy. Though his physical strength and speed are able to help Megumi by keeping the cursed spirits distracted, Yuji is way out of his depth until he eats Sukuna's finger.
By eating Sukuna's finger, Yuji gains access to cursed energy and saves his own life. If Yuji hadn't made the crazy decision to eat the finger, he surely would have died alongside Megumi and his fellow members of the Occult Research Club.
9 After Eating Sukuna's Finger, Yuji Had A One In A Million Chance Of Surviving As A Vessel
If Megumi Fushiguro is to be believed, Yuji's odds of surviving after eating Sukuna's finger were pretty terrible. Even Satoru Gojo makes it clear that Yuji is lucky for having maintained control over his body after eating one of Sukuna's fingers.
Apparently, consuming a special grade cursed item is a one-way trip to hell, unless the vessel is blessed with an unexplainably powerful sense of self. It may also be the case that Yuji's true heritage had something to do with his survival. Perhaps there is something in Yuji's blood that helped him escape this specific close call with his life.
8 After Losing A Hand, Five Fingers, & A Cursed Weapon, Yuji Nearly Loses His Life Before Giving Up Control To Sukuna
The first challenge Yuji faces alongside both Megumi and Nobara is the threat of a special grade cursed spirit within an unfinished domain. With the power of one of Sukuna's fingers aiding it, this special grade cursed spirit can be compared to Yuji in terms of raw strength, but when it comes to knowledge of jujutsu and cursed energy, Yuji is well outmatched by the spirit.
Luckily, Yuji is able to rely on his allies to escape from the special grade. Well, Yuji is able to rely on his allies and Sukuna. If Yuji hadn't given control of his body over to Sukuna, he never would have been able to utilize the cursed energy coursing through his body in any sort of meaningful way.
7 After Giving Sukuna Control Of His Body, Yuji Is Forced Into A Secret Binding Vow In Exchange For His Life
After giving Sukuna control of his body to escape the threat of a special grade cursed spirit, the King of Curses makes it abundantly clear that he is not Yuji's ally. In fact, Sukuna manages to accomplish something that only one other person has managed to accomplish to date: Sukuna killed Yuji Itadori.
By ripping out Yuji's heart while in control of his body, Sukuna guarantees that Yuji will die if he ever tries to take control of his body again. Of course, Yuji sacrifices himself in order to save Megumi from Sukuna and ends up falling face first into the dirt. After a short conversation with Sukuna and a secret binding vow, Yuji wakes up in a morgue just before being dissected.
6 Jogo's Domain Expansion Would Have Easily Incinerated Yuji If Satoru Gojo Weren't There To Stop The Special Grade Cursed Spirit
When Gojo is confronted by an overconfident, Mount Fuji-looking, unregistered special grade cursed spirit, he uses it as a learning opportunity for Yuji. Despite the fact that Jogo is one of the most powerful cursed spirits that viewers have seen on screen, Gojo makes combat with the fiery spirit look like child's play.
Gojo brings Yuji into the fray despite the fact that Itadori is far outmatched by Jogo in order to teach the young jujutsu sorcerer about domain expansion. It is a useful lesson that Yuji surely pulls some information out of, but if Itadori were ever left inside Jogo's Coffin of the Iron Mountain Domain without Gojo, he would surely be burnt to a crisp.
5 Aoi Todo Makes Yuji Dumber Than He Already Is By Smashing His Head
When Aoi Todo is first introduced, he pushes Megumi Fushiguro to dig deep into his bag of tricks. Though the fight may have seemed to be one-sided, Todo may be lucky that Inumaki and Panda-Senpai stopped the fight before Megumi got serious.
Todo has a habit of toying with his foes, a fact that saved Yuji Itadori's life during the Kyoto Exchange Event team battle. In order to take Todo off the board, the members of team Tokyo decided to let Yuji and Todo fight while the rest of them worked to exorcise cursed spirits. Leaving Yuji alone with Todo was nearly a death sentence. If the two boys hadn't found a way to bond over their taste in women, Yuji may have died at the hands of his best friend.
4 Team Kyoto's Nefarious Plans Begin With Principal Gakuganji's Demands & End With A Single Clap Of Todo's Hands
The Kyoto Goodwill Event Arc introduces an entirely new jujutsu school to the world of Jujutsu Kaisen. Though fans had already met Todo and Mai prior to the team battle that puts Yuji's life on the line, it isn't until this arc that Team Kyoto threatens Yuji's life.
It is truly amazing that Yuji managed to survive this attack after taking such a sound beating from Todo. Just seconds before facing the entirety of team Kyoto in combat, Yuji was slouched against a tree with blood trickling down his face. Still, Yuji demonstrates some incredible agility just before Todo's Boogie Woogie cursed technique pulls him completely out of harm's way.
3 Cursed Womb: Death Paintings Kechizu & Eso Were Soundly Defeated By Nobara's Cursed Technique
While Fushigiro takes care of the special grade finger-bearing cursed spirit that threatens his sister, Yuji and Nobara spend the final episodes of the JJK anime battling two cursed womb: death paintings. Kechizu and Eso may not seem like much, but the combination of the blood manipulation cursed technique and the naturally poisoned blood of cursed spirits is enough to force both Yuji and Nobara into a close call for their lives.
If it wasn't for Nobara's grit and a Resonance cursed technique that perfectly counters Eso's cursed technique, she and Yuji would have been defeated by Eso and Kechizu. Just another reason Nobara Kugisaki is the best girl to ever make it into a shonen anime series.
2 In The Name Of His Fallen Brethren, Choso Throws Himself At The Chance To Kill Yuji Itadori
The anime just recently introduced Choso in the last few episodes of season 1. The last of three cursed womb: death paintings to be revived by Mahito is hell bent on killing Yuji Itadori after he and Nobara killed his two brothers at the end of the first season.
Choso carries this impassioned rage alongside him until he finally confronts Yuji during the Shibuya Incident Arc of the manga. When the two meet, Choso breaks Yuji down with an impressive display of the Blood Manipulation cursed technique. If Choso hadn't experienced a change of heart at the very last second, Yuji Itadori would be dead.
1 A Binding Vow Forces Yuta Okkatsu To Kill Yuji But Is Still Not Enough To Take Itadori Down For Good
Itadori's Extermination Arc follows right after the epic Shibuya Incident Arc in the manga. After Gojo is trapped inside the Prison Realm and Sukuna murders thousands of innocent lives with Yuji's body, Yuta Okkatsu returns from overseas to exterminate Yuji Itadori.
Without Gojo's support, Yuji looks like nothing more than Sukuna's vessel, forcing the Jujutsu world to view the young upbeat student as a villain. Fortunately, Okkatsu is not the type to be manipulated by popular demand any more than Gojo is. After stabbing Yuji through the heart with his katana, Yuta heals Yuji's heart before the wound is able to end his life for good.