“Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.”
– CONFUCIUS
A lot of people have different ideas about Kurapika’s fate in the Succession Arc. At this point, it’s almost impossible to predict, but I’d like to explain why I think Kurapika will survive. This post will double as a breakdown of Kurapika’s character and hopefully offer some perspective on the direction his story might be headed.
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HUNTER EXAM
From very early on, Kurapika’s main motivation is established to be revenge for the massacre of the Kurta Clan. This is a goal that Kurapika places above his own life.
“I do not fear death. I fear only that my rage will fade over time.“
– KURAPIKA, CHAPTER 2
He is more afraid of becoming complacent with the death of his comrades than he is of his own death. While his trauma may seem to be the primary source of his rage, he has always been very quick to anger in matters concerning his brethren.
His predisposition to anger first becomes evident in his fight with Leorio in Chapter 3. It’s important that Kurapika is linked to Leorio early on; whereas Gon is crucial in progressing Killua’s arc, I believe Leorio will be crucial in progressing Kurapika’s. Kurapika and Leorio’s relationship is similar yet different to that of the younger duo. They are constantly grouped together during the Hunter Exam Arc, and it’s easy to forget that Kurapika is the one to which Leorio confesses his true motivation.
The main takeaway here is that we should view the four protagonists as a pair of pairs. They are all connected to each other, but the bonds between the older two and the younger two are more pronounced.
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YORKNEW CITY
During Kurapika’s Nen training, we get a significant statement from Izunavi that paints a pretty clear picture of Kurapika’s character.
Izunavi suggests Kurapika’s chains are in fact binding him, rather than the Troupe. He’s not one to get in the way of his student’s resolve, but he seems to be implying that Kurapika’s mission is itself misguided.
The futility of Kurapika’s revenge mission becomes clear when the Troupe makes use of Kortopi’s power to fake their own deaths. Kurapika learns that the people responsible for the massacre of his clan are allegedly dead, and what is his reaction?
To drown in an indescribable emptiness. This is what really convinces me that achieving revenge and subsequently dying is not in Kurapika’s endgame. At some point, he needs to realize that revenge will not bring him peace, nor will it bring happiness.
Of all people, Gon seems to understand this most.
Interacting with Leorio, Killua, and Gon (and the many, many other characters whom Kurapika has, perhaps unwillingly, befriended), ultimately falls more in line with his true quest—the one given to him by Pairo.
However, Kurapika’s lust for revenge ultimately leads to him pushing his friends away—he doesn’t want to lose them like he lost Pairo and the rest of his clan. At the end of Yorknew, Kurapika decides to save Killua and Gon over killing Chrollo, and it leaves him in a terrible state.
So, by the time the Succession Arc comes around, he’s turned the self-isolation dial up to eleven. As smart as Kurapika is, he’s a complete mess mentally. He can’t sort out the contradictions in his goals or actions—Melody points this out during the hostage exchange.
Leorio also seems to understand the underlying problems with Kurapika’s psyche.
I’m a fan of the dialogue in the anime as well.
“Look after Kurapika. He acts calm, but he can be rash. He’s smart, but doesn’t always think things through.“
– LEORIO PARADINIGHT
Kurapika does ultimately shift goals from revenge against the Phantom Troupe to collecting the Scarlet Eyes, but he doesn’t shift completely. I’ll talk about this more later on, but Kurapika is still going about collecting the eyes in a way that runs contrary to Pairo’s quest. He is punishing himself, likely due to survivor’s guilt, and shutting out the people who can bring him peace.
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ELECTION ARC
I want to talk a little bit more about Leorio. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen as much of the lanky doctor, but his character seems to be developing around strong supportive relationships and communication. This is first established in his rebuke of Ging.
Remember that Kurapika hasn’t told anyone about the lifespan-shaving condition behind Emperor Time. He has probably convinced himself it gives him a strategic advantage, but the reality is his friends would completely disapprove of the ability. Think about the reactions of Izunavi, Melody, and especially Leorio to this news and the convenient fact that they are all present on the Black Whale. Emperor Time being revealed to others, especially Leorio, will be a major motivator in Kurapika’s character development, forcing him to introspect.
Finally, at the end of the Election Arc, Leorio attempts to contact Kurapika after Nanika heals Gon.
Kurapika completely ghosts Leorio. It’s a pretty bold narrative choice by Togashi—he’s being very upfront with Kurapika’s tragic flaw here, and the Dark Continent Expedition Arc will turn Kurapika’s angst and self-isolation up to eleven. As he approaches his end goal, he falls further and further into his self-imposed exile, shutting out the people who care about him, while at the same time keeping them just out of arm’s reach.
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DARK CONTINENT EXPEDITION
As soon as Kurapika is reintroduced in this arc, we’re reminded he is still easily angered by the mention of his brethren.
In the Succession Arc, we’ll learn that when Kurapika is angered he is forced into Emperor Time. The longer he remains in Emperor Time, the shorter his lifespan becomes. In other words, Kurapika’s rage now has a tangible effect on his health. This is some rather on-the-nose symbolism regarding how Kurapika is dealing with his trauma, and one of several important aspects of Kurapika’s character he will have to reconcile in the current arc.
Kurapika is extremely intelligent and good-hearted, earning the respect of several good judges of character (i.e. Leorio and Mizaistom), but is poisoned by his self-destructive mission and his survivor’s guilt. Remember that Nen is supposed to be an extension of one’s own will, so Emperor Time says a lot about Kurapika’s current mindset.
Another thing Kurapika has to reconcile is his self-imposed isolation. There’s an exchange in this arc between Kurapika and Leorio which is played off as a joke but is actually quite telling.
Kurapika constantly tries to close himself off from other people, despite paradoxically admitting things are easier with Leorio around. Remember Hisoka’s horoscope analysis of the different types of Nen users? Specialists are said to be “independent and charismatic”. This is very interesting because those characteristics are typically at odds with each other. However, we can see with a character like Chrollo that they can in fact coexist. It’s also easy to see how Kurapika fits the mold of “independent”, but does he fit “charismatic”?
I would say he absolutely does. As much as he tries to push people away, they end up being drawn to him. I think this is being particularly set up with Bill, as well as with Mizaistom and Woble. So it’s really impossible for Kurapika to shut people out. They will always come to admire and support him. Izunavi is, yet again, completely correct about this.
There are many contradictions with Kurapika’s thinking, and I’m almost convinced he knows his quest is wrong but keeps on his destructive path as a form of punishment. In Chapter 344, Kurapika admits his quest is coming at a great cost.
The following panel is my favorite in the entire series and is also very telling.
Whenever I see this panel, I want to put a hole through my wall.
The amount of irony in this panel is astounding, and there’s a lot to read into. Firstly, Kurapika makes no mention of revenge against the Troupe here. In accordance with what Gon said, he is prioritizing collecting the Scarlet Eyes. However, he is still extremely predisposed to anger and will likely attempt to exact revenge if informed of the Troupe’s presence.
Secondly, we’re reminded that Kurapika’s current mentality is damaging not only his fulfillment of Pairo’s quest but also his relationship with others. Despite all the friends he has made, he has convinced himself he has “nothing left”.
In a similar vein, this panel hints at another major problem of Kurapika’s: he is trapped in the past. This is contrasted by his relationship with Woble. The Scarlet Eyes symbolize the past, and death, while Woble symbolizes the future, and life. Kurapika’s obsession with the death of his clan blinds him to the value of life, and this will most likely come to a head in the Succession Arc.
“Something more important than the thing you’re hunting… could be right there by the side of the road.”
– GING FREECSS, CHAPTER 338
As a final refresher, here are the issues with Kurapika’s mentality prior to the Succession Arc that I believe need to be resolved.
- He is easily angered, a flaw that now has a tangible effect on his health.
- He refuses to reach out to people, instead shutting them out.
- He still believes in taking revenge on the Phantom Troupe, even if it has been sidelined for the Scarlet Eyes.
- He is overly focused on past death, rather than future life.
- His actions are contrary to Pairo’s quest.
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SUCCESSION ARC
There are just a few scenes I would like to highlight in this arc that haven’t already been mentioned. The first involves Oito’s rebuke of Babimyna and Kurapika.
Interestingly enough, Oito’s words seem to get through to Babimyna. He’s a fascinating character in his own right, but not the focus of this write-up, so let’s keep looking at Kurapika.
I think Kurapika feels bad here and tries to console Oito, but gets completely shut down. The question remains if Kurapika was deeply affected or not, but I think this scene emphasizes his downward spiral. Kurapika is obsessed with obtaining information in this arc, solely to achieve his ends. It’s constantly restated, especially in how he deals the Sayirid situation.
His mentality in this arc reminds me of Gon’s in the Chimera Ant arc (which I wrote briefly about here). He’s headed down a dark path. If he succeeds in his mission of collecting the eyes, it won’t be a hero’s success. It will be a sad conclusion to a poisonous quest. I suspect Kurapika will have to make a major choice in this arc, possibly multiple choices, similar to the one he made at the end of Yorknew City. If it’s Bill, Woble, or Oito this time, will things be different?
Ultimately, it seems Kurapika will learn of the Phantom Troupe’s presence on the Black Whale.
Regardless of how Kurapika finds out, it’s bound to cause trouble and force him to re-evaluate his philosophy.
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TYING IT ALL TOGETHER
In this last section, I’d like to bring in some of the ideas I’ve heard from other people, as well as some of my own.
The Troupe Becoming Hisoka’s Enemy Instead of Kurapika’s
I’ve seen this idea floating around in different places, and I think it’s consistent with what I’ve written here. I’m pretty sure Kurapika will end up facing off against Tserriednich, while Hisoka will play the anti-hero yet again, cutting the Troupe’s numbers in half. I wrote more about Hisoka becoming the Troupe’s enemy (with the help of a post-mortem Neon) here.
I don’t know when this realization will take place, and I can’t see Kurapika forgiving the Troupe, but he needs to move on from the past. He needs to lay it to rest, and while that may mean collecting the final Scarlet Eyes, it doesn’t mean getting revenge on the Phantom Troupe.
Chrollo and the Spiders aren’t even thinking about Kurapika right now, nor do they know he’s on the Black Whale. They are all hyperfocused on finding Hisoka, who recently killed two of their members.
Nitro Rice
I didn’t like this idea at first, but recently it’s grown on me. Nitro rice refers to an off-handed comment about a rare rice on the Dark Continent that can extend one’s lifespan.
The idea is that Kurapika will avoid the fatal condition of Emperor Time by consuming this rice. At first, I thought this would be an extremely anti-climactic resolution that would eliminate the stakes established by Emperor Time, but now I believe there are ways it could work. Namely, Kurapika must be completely indisposed at the end of the Succession Arc.
Whether this means being put into some kind of Nen stasis or simply being kept in an environment where there is no chance of him activating Emperor Time, I don’t know. I imagine him being at the end of his lifespan and thus kept away from anything that might trigger Emperor Time. I can see Melody assisting in this.
He may also have his Nen purposefully taken away (Or maybe he can use Steal Chain on himself? Not sure how that would work). It would be a pretty bad idea for him to proceed to the Dark Continent without Nen, so that would also force him to stay behind.
This is how I see the Nitro Rice plotline being possible. Leorio leaves Kurapika in good hands and goes on a quest to the Dark Continent to save his friend. This would parallel the story he told Kurapika in the Hunter Exam arc.
Faking Kurapika’s Death
This may seem outlandish, but hear me out. It’s quite possible that Kurapika will kill Tserriednich after being provoked. This is foreshadowed by his conversation with Mizaistom on the way to the Zodiacs.
If this occurs, it will cause a dangerous political situation between the Kakin Empire and the Hunter Association. I believe this situation may very well end with Kurapika’s death being faked. I wrote about the Black Whale’s destruction being used as a cover-up for the Succession War here, but it could also be used to fabricate Kurapika’s death.
It goes like this:
- Kurapika kills Tserriednich.
- News gets out or he is detained by the Judicial Department.
- The Black Whale sinks.
- The situation is resolved by the Hunter Association claiming Kurapika died.
- Kurapika never resurfaces or assumes a disguise.
Peace superseding honesty is a major theme of the Succession Arc which is established very early on.
Kurapika’s death would also parallel the Troupe faking their deaths, as well as symbolize a metaphorical death and rebirth for Kurapika. His old self will die, and his new self will be born.
Ressurection
It’s also possible Kurapika will die and be revived. Togashi loves to plant hints for the story in his volume covers, and it seems a ressurection may be in store for Kurapika (explained nicely here, by u/1vergil). I originally thought this would happen via Woble’s Spirit Beast, but I now believe the fourteenth prince has much less benevolent ability—one that is counteractive, sinister, and potentially fatal.
However it occurs, a literal resurrection could remove the effects of Emperor Time and would parallel Gon’s resurrection in the Chimera Ant arc, which was also symbolic of a change in character.
Everything I’ve Written Here Could Be Resolved with a Deathbed Confession
This is unfortunately true, but I feel it would be much less impactful than Kurapika’s survival. If Kurapika dies at the end of this arc, what does that say about the trauma he went through? Was there no hope for him at all? Did his friends fail him?
Personally, I think there is light at the end of Kurapika’s tunnel.
Additional References:
My own follow-up post further discussing Kurapika’s mentality
The Library of Progg 