XIII

0 THE FOOL ; beginnings, risk, naivete, impulse

"the fool views the world with a sense of childlike wonder. infinite possibilities exist. [...] the fool heeds no warning! like a child, they can only view the world through the prism of themselves" — true heart intuitive tarot, rachel true.

juuzou's journey as the fool all begins with his birth name (up for debate whether it's his actual birth name or not, but this is all we're given of his previous life before being kidnapped by big madam). juuzou was previously known as rei. while the kanji for his name is written as 玲 ("exquisite, clever"), it can also be written as 零 ("zero, null"). as rei, he is doted on by his mama and treated like a doll, but when he doesn't score high enough "good boy points" is when juuzou gets abused by mama.

XIII DEATH ; rebirth, second chances, transformation

"death claws away at its own decay, revealing new life underneath" — true heart intuitive tarot, rachel true.

contrary to popular belief, death is not a negative card and does not literally mean death. it's my personal favorite card of the whole deck and 13 is my lucky number, so any time i pull it, i view it as a positive sign. it's a symbol for change and the death of things that no longer serve a purpose in your life.

juuzou's entire design is a reference to death. his hairclips, his quinque being in the shape of a scythe, the roman numerals XIII etched into the quinque, him working in the 13th ward in the joker bonus chapter, and even his own name which can be written with the kanji 十三 (thirteen). not to mention the references to friday the 13th's jason voorhees.

i feel like ishida purposely feeding into the misconception that the death card is a negative card is kind of genius. it hides the intention he had for juuzou's future growth as a character and misleads readers who aren't familiar with tarot beyond how it's portrayed in popular media.

XII THE HANGED MAN ; surrender, acceptance, sacrifice, change

"sometimes you have to put yourself in uncomfortable positions to learn and grow. surrender to the now, understanding the you do not know everything" — true heart intuitive tarot, rachel true.

over the course of part one of tokyo ghoul, we see how he changes from someone who doesn't fear death to ultimately facing the possibility of the person who has come into his life as a father figure potentially dying right in front of him.

this major change for him comes during the owl suppression mission. as juuzou's leg is severed and he is knocked back, one of his hair clips flies off leaving them in the numerals XII for the hanged man. it's at this moment too when shinohara sacrifices himself to save juuzou. i'd also argue that his leg being severed is a visual reference to the fact that the hanged man is typically portrayed by hanging from one leg.

XX JUDGEMENT ; healing, clarity, transformation

"under the watchful eye of angel gabriel, figures stand with arms outstretched, signifying release from old burdens, self-judgement, and secrets from the past." — true heart intuitive tarot, rachel true.

even before tokyo ghoul:re, juuzou is seen with the stitches near his right eye and the corner of his mouth in the shape of the roman numerals XX. it's been hinted since the very beginning that he would have a major transformation. when this symbolism become more obvious is during chapter 32 of tg:re when he gets promoted to special class (the same rank shinohara was) and we finally see him with his hair clips now in the XX numerals. he has now become the mentor.

XXI THE WORLD ; completion, happiness, closure

"the world signifies the completion of the fool's journey, and the turning of the wheel of fortune" — true heart intuitive tarot, rachel true.

shinohara waking up after being comatose for several years marks the completion in juuzou's story and is reflected in his hair clips and stitches showing the numerals XXI. even in kaneki's own story, juuzou was never a villain and never a morally grey character. his morals were formed by trauma and challenged constantly to the point of them changing over time. he has gone from an abused child with no remorse for killing to a well-respected peacekeeper that now has the emotional intelligence to cherish those around him.