The following article contains spoilers for Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 181, "Tokyo No. 2 Colony, Part 1," by Gege Akutami, John Werry and Snir Aharon, available in English from Viz Media.
The Culling Game has been a wild ride that continues to live up to every bit of the hype, and in some ways, exceed it. The ongoing saga has already introduced several interesting new characters and their incredible Cursed Techniques. Most of these new characters have left lasting impressions and some, like Hiromi Higuruma, quickly became favorites among fans. Unfortunately, the point of the Culling Game is to kill other players for points, which means that the likelihood of a newly introduced character being killed off is higher than usual.
It's always disappointing when fans get attached to awesome new characters only for them to die within a few chapters. Thankfully, this isn't the case for Ryu Ishigori and Takako Uro. The two reincarnated sorcerers will continue their second chances at life (for now, at least) since Yuta has graciously spared their lives. This is all thanks to the rule that Yuji added after his fight against Higuruma: players no longer need to kill their opponents for points -- they can freely transfer them as they wish.
Yuta's battle against Ishigori and Uro was undoubtedly the most epic of the Culling Game so far. Both reincarnated sorcerers were entertaining to watch as the fight went on. Moreover, both proved to be nuanced characters who have much more to offer besides a fight against Yuta. After all, these characters are hundreds of years old and perhaps the two most powerful antagonists introduced in the Culling Game thus far.
According to Uro, her Cursed Technique treats the sky (but really space in general) as a surface. It's a mind-bending, reality-warping technique with a wonderful visual aesthetic. That's not the most captivating thing about her character though. What makes Uro so enthralling is her admittance that the reason she accepted Kenjaku's invitation is her many regrets from her first life. When Yuta asked her how she could be so desperate for her own sake and if she doesn't have a lover or friends, she asked him if he's one of the Fujiwara. This implies that she has some kind of connection to Yuta's ancestors and holds a grudge against them.
It was revealed in Chapter 173 that Uro is the former captain of the Sun, Moon and Stars Squad. This squad is a group of assassins directly associated with the Fujiwara clan. They pursue lives of selfless devotion in darkness and are forsaken the right to bear a name. A certain individual gave Uro a name despite this. Tragically, it was only to have her executed as a proxy for her crime of killing a member of the same clan. It's completely understandable why she holds a grudge against Yuta's ancestors and is now fighting to live this second life for herself.
In contrast, Ishigori doesn't have a complex Cursed Technique or a complicated past. His technique grants him the highest Cursed Energy output of all the players, making his attacks extremely powerful. He said he fought worthy opponents and met a good woman, so he doesn't have any particular regrets from his previous life. Still, he wasn't satisfied until his fight against Yuta. The way he described his life up until that fight is as if it was a good meal but never with any dessert. There was always a constant feeling of thirst -- a vague instinct that something was missing. His fight against Yuta was apparently able to finally quench that thirst.
Now that the battle is over and both Uro and Ishigori remain alive, it will be interesting to see what becomes of the two of them. There's still some mystery surrounding Uro's past and her connection to the Fujiwara clan, so fans would undoubtedly appreciate getting the complete picture. It would also be fun if at least one of them, if not both, end up fighting alongside Yuta at some point in the future. As the Culling Game continues to get more intense against all odds, Yuta and his friends are going to need all the allies they can get.
