i dont think i’ll ever get over how at peace kunikida looks here. i don’t really know how to phrase if but it’s something about how kunikida has always been ready to sacrifice himself, how he has never shied away from death’s door, as if that is the only way he can truly fulfill his ideals
what will kunikida do when he finally achieves it all? i believe he sets this perfect, ridiculously high standard for himself for a sense of purpose, or rather a reason to live. will he still choose to live without it?
there’s something symbolic about how kunikida separates from his notebook when he sacrifices himself. it’s as if he is tethered to living because of his ideals, and when he goes, he leaves behind his notebook, releasing himself at last
jouno once asked if he was relieved to be freed from his self-inflicted burden. at that time, i believe the answer was still ‘no’, for it wasn’t fully his choice. he still had much to do, the agency was messy and running, he couldn’t truly die in peace
this time, even though i don’t believe he’s fully dead, i think kunikida is okay with dying here. because atsushi just saved junichirou! he chose to fight for what’s left instead of ceaselessly grappling for something already fading. it’s something that kunikida has taught him since the very first day—think about what you can do. kunikida himself wasn’t able to save them, but atsushi did, and in him, his ideals will continue to live. atsushi’s actions showed him that even if he dies, they’ll be okay. they’ll be okay without him
i think that’s why this is the most at peace we’ve ever seen kunikida. to know that his teachings have impacted someone and that it wasn’t all for naught. this is relief
