Kiyotaka Ayanokoji has been one of the poster boys of overall SCD and edits. Whenever a new mid- or high-tier character comes onto the scene or gets introduced, bet there’s going to be an edit or a question like “X vs. Ayanokoji.”

His character is pretty good in both normal and “meth” SCD. Likewise, he can be used in various XYZ situations because of how versatile his kit is and how few weaknesses he has, while still not completely making every matchup one-sided.

However, I’ve seen people saying that beating Ayanokoji is impossible, while others claim that beating him is easy. Neither side really provides a good explanation to support their statements that gives idea of what's difficulty of beating ayanokoji in first place and win condition etc.

So I’m gonna explain five win cons / ways to counter & beat Ayanokoji, since I have re-scaled his eval in my roster.

going good to best also it's moreso about non categorical.

1. Seeing through the mask

While Ayanokoji’s ability to construct & fabricate a layered persona is crazy, it’s not completely immune to being perceived, as the series has shown multiple times where a few classmates, mainly Hirata, are able to sense that there’s something odd or wrong about Ayanokoji that they can’t quite put their finger on.

The series tells us about “darkness.” Before you call it “corny” or whatever, it’s a storytelling thing. Basically, it’s about the repressed self / scared self / shadow.

The first time the “darkness” term was used was in V3, where Ayanokoji was “masked” and we saw the self that he hides from everyone, including the reader. That is also a storytelling thing.

The second thing is in V4, when the story shows that he and Kei are similar in terms of having traumatic pasts & concealing their true selves, with the “scar” being mentioned as well.

Later in the series, we see Hirata also noticing Ayanokoji’s “shadow,” and then the story showcases Hirata's backstory. It also follows the same pattern of the scar(not literally this time), repressed self, shadow, etc.

Basically, the “darkness” in people in the story is what happens when something highly traumatic happens to a person and disturbs their normalcy forever after surviving it. And those who have had their normalcy disturbed can sense other people whose normalcy has also been disturbed.

So, a smart character with calibre comparable to Ayanokoji, especially someone with a highly disturbed past themselves, can sense Ayanokoji’s oddness and come up with measures to counter & beat him. However, they must be careful since they could fall into the pitfall of thinking they understand his dark nature underneath, like Ryuen and others.

A character who can pull this off and counter & beat Ayanokoji: Patrick Jane. (Dead wife + good kit which specializes in STP.)

2. Behind the curtain

A smart character who utilizes proxies, red herrings, and ploys in their schemes can counter Ayanokoji’s kit.

Ayanokoji’s approach is essentially: “I’m trying to understand my past, or should I say this person’s past, by thoroughly analyzing and breaking down people.”

This is how Ayanokoji’s ToM and psychoanalysis work. We saw this with Hirata, Ryuen, Ichinose, Nagumo, Arisu, Ichika, and Takuya.

A non-confrontational or indirect style counters Ayanokoji. However, it requires really good acting skills if it’s face-to-face, or strong concealment if the character is operating indirectly.

Example: Johan in the Nameless Monster case situation.

3. INFO advantage

A character whose kit revolves around an information network and spying would counter Koji’s outsmarting, as gaining information is the weakness of any character, and having established spying against him is especially bad.

Basically, the goal is to stay one step ahead at all times, since Ayanokoji is actually reliant & great on knowledge acquisition and application. However, the SC must not reveal or leak their hand during this approach.

Character: Izaya Orihara from Durarara!!

4. Theory of the mind & Psychoanalysis

"Ayanokoji is the most defective student in class D"

One thing Chabashira got right about Ayanokoji is this. However, she doesn’t know the flaw, while as readers, we are repeatedly given hints about it: his self-centeredness.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka’s self-centeredness is the prime driving force behind everything he does. It’s his maze and castle. Many of his actions and counteractions are taken because of his self-interest in things—his curiosity, self-centeredness, and contradictions.

Your methods don’t matter. I don’t care what I have to sacrifice. As long as I have my victory in the end, I’ll be fine.

If an SC has great ToM / psychoanalysis, they could figure out how Ayanokoji works and thinks, how he exploits people, and how his operations target them. From there, they could completely counter and beat him.

However, the SC needs to build a really accurate model of Ayanokoji’s mind without Ayanokoji realizing that he is being studied.

Example: FY (Vol. 1 & 2).

5. Quick Disposition, Anticipation, and Participation

One of the main factors that makes Ayanokoji a formidable opponent is his adaptability and thinking combination.

So, an SC who has strong anticipation, participation skills, and quick offensive skills is one of the best counters to beating Ayanokoji completely without giving him any time to adapt.

The SC should be able to construct schemes on the fly against Ayanokoji and improve them if Ayanokoji notices them.

Examples: Chen ran (Inception instance) & Aki.

Verdict

These are five ways/counters to Kiyotaka Ayanokoji. However, these counters do not mean that Ayanokoji is weaker.

Notice the examples I gave and ask yourself: if Kiyotaka were to go against these characters, would that make him weaker, or would it simply show that he is capable of going against characters who possess these specific advantages?

Therefore “Kiyotaka is impossible to beat” is an exaggeration, but so is “Kiyotaka is easy to beat.” The actual difficulty depends on the opponent’s ability to exploit one of these win conditions without allowing Ayanokoji enough time or information to adapt to them.

And yes ofc obv answer - make just great at scheming with insane layering & foresight 🥀🥀

First game: Liar identity card game

10 participants wake up in the completely dim lit sealed room. Goat mask wearing introduces themselves as {mortal goat} , kills the smiling participant . then refers other {nine} will participant in the game for creation of god ; nuwa( creationist god of chinese mythology )

{Mortal Goat} commences the game and informs them of the rules:

"The instructions are as follows: I want each of you to recount the events leading up to your arrival here," The goat-headed figure instructed. "However, please be aware that among all the storytellers, one person will not be telling the truth. After each of you has finished narrating your story, we will proceed with a vote. If all eight of you correctly identify the {Liar}, then the liar will be eliminated and the rest will survive. But if even one person selects incorrectly, the liar will survive and the rest will be eliminated."

Someone interrupts {Mortal Goat} during his introduction, so {Mortal Goat} allows one minute for the {nine} participants to strategize.

After one minute, {Mortal Goat} makes everyone draw identity cards (Game of Nuwa). The game officially commences.

Our MC, Qi Xia (neat/nice summer), has the liar identity card.

{Mortal Goat} adds one thing before leaving:

"I shall no longer intervene in the proceedings. Each of you shall write down the names according to your own judgment. Remember, {the rules are absolute}. And in the end, I shall personally administer the {punishment} to the loser."

After a while, a few participants tell their stories.

A common pattern can be noted that participants were vague about what they were doing & how they got into situation that resulted them to getting woke up in this place . one participant using pseduo name and all stories are really nearby to each other provinces wise .

This catches the attention of our mc.

An intermission of 20 minutes is announced.

Qi Xia notices a desk clock at the center of the table, and the participants can't move from their positions, as if they are glued to them.

Half an hour has elapsed since they woke up.

Qi Xia examines the room once more. Every surface, whether it is the floor, walls, or ceiling, is decorated with intertwining lines, forming grids of large squares.

Qi Xia observes the two individuals engaged in a debate but refrains from intervening to halt their exchange.

Yes, keep arguing; the more vehement the argument, the better.

Qi Xia remains silent, refraining from participating in the discussion, as he closes his eyes in contemplation, reasoning through the logic of the game where if the liar wins, everyone is doomed.

The goat-headed figure had mentioned many things, notably {among all the storytellers, one person will not be telling the truth}. He also asserted that {the rules are absolute} and reminded them, {You've all been asleep in my presence for twelve hours}.

During his reasoning, he finds the key piece.

The criss-crossing lines on the wall and floor spark an awakening in his mind. He glances at the desk clock—it is nearly 1 o'clock.

Qi Xia accepts the paper and begins his calculations. He tallies the large squares on the wall, which total nine. Next, he determines there are a combined sixteen squares on the floor and ceiling.

Qi Xia continues scribbling at a rapid pace

‘If I'm correct…’ he paused briefly, then resumed, ‘these squares represent square meters, implying that we're currently in a room measuring four meters in length and width, with a height of three meters…’

‘Four by four by three... that's forty-eight cubic meters.’ Qi Xia's hands trembled slightly. "It's insufficient... completely insufficient..."

Confusion filled the room as everyone stared at Qi Xia.

qi xia arrives at this answer —{54.6} and {49.14}.

Upon seeing these two numbers, Qi Xia's complexion pales, as if he is grappling with an unsettling realization. If his assumption proves entirely accurate, then the present circumstances are undeniably ominous.

His pupils dilate incessantly, and his emotional state seems to have transcended into realms of unimaginable distress.

The clamor of everyone's arguments gradually subsides as they notice the man who remained aloof from the discussions, deeply engrossed in his calculations.

[ Could it be that he had indeed unearthed the {solution} to this perplexing question? ]

After a moment of silence, Qi Xia speaks, addressing everyone and revealing that initially he had no intention of saving anyone. But if they make the wrong choice, it will result in his demise as well, which he can't afford because someone is waiting for him outside. He urges everyone to listen to what he has to say.

He extends his hand to retrieve his {identity card}, then slowly unveils it before the group.

"This is the identity I drew." Everyone is shocked.

Qi Xia explains that in this game, the {liar} has a high chance of winning due to the overconfidence of the non-liars, and discerning whether another participant's storytelling is a lie is unclear. Plus, all other {nine} participants have come from different places, making it harder to determine whether their stories are truthful or untruthful.

Qi Xia surveyed the pensive faces around him before resuming

"The organizer deliberately selected nine of us for a reason. It was to foster a sense of absolute confidence in ourselves and to encourage us to uncover the 'inconsistencies' in the seemingly intertwined narratives."

Police Officer Li pauses for a moment, then shakes his head.

"Qi Xia, I have a question. Among the rules outlined by Mortal Goat, he mentioned {among all the storytellers, one person will not be telling the truth}, but he himself didn't share a story."

Qi Xia answers:

"{Mortal Goat} already told a story of creating a god."

Police Officer Li remains silent, his head bowed in contemplation. While he finds Qi Xia's argument compelling, a nagging sense of doubt lingers within him.

The doctor questions Qi Xia on his reasoning and asks how he can figure out if everyone is a liar. What if he's the only liar?

Qi Xia simply replies that he has figured out the pinpoint that someone is lying, listing the figures of Tian Tian.

Qi Xia explains that it wasn't a difficult conclusion to reach. He keeps pondering why the room is sealed, why there are lines drawn on the walls and floors, why there's a clock in the center of the table, and why the goat-headed figure enforced an {intermission}.

"The organizers left us clues,"

"They drew lines dividing the walls and floor into many squares, each approximately 1 meter in length."

{54.6} and {49.14} tell the amount of oxygen needed for {nine} people for one hour. However, it has been more than one hour, and in the stories, {nine} doesn't remember that they died.

The {nine} participants in this game are already dead.

They don't need oxygen.

"I made a bold assumption," Qi Xia said expressionlessly. "What if that Goat Head wasn't human? Even then, we wouldn't have enough air.

Adding:

"I made a bold assumption," Qi Xia said expressionlessly. "What if that Goat Head wasn't human? Even then, we wouldn't have enough air."

Since the rules are absolute, Qi Xia urges everyone to pass judgment on {Mortal Goat}, who lied to everyone, in order to survive the demise.

{Mortal Goat} follows the judgment, takes out the gun, and shoots himself in the heart, screaming in agony for a few minutes before dying.

Afterward, the {nine} are free to move.

second game : bamboo riddle

Qi Xia recovers {Mortal Goat}'s mask and finds this inscription:

"I am {Mortal Dog}."

"You are all under a curse."

"I hope you can all survive."

"Time will not stop even for one quarter; great danger is looming from all sides."

"If you wish to endure, circle in the direction of home a hundred times."

"By the way, there's an idiom: 'countless bamboo shoots after rain'. Why aren't bamboo shoots afraid of rain?"

"Until after the rain."

After a brief moment, rows of holes are neatly arranged on the wall, appearing as though they had always been there. Simultaneously, the sound of metal chains being dragged reverberates from all directions, with harpoons installed in them.

Qi Xia questions if {the rules are absolute} hold true for {Mortal Goat}, then it must also lead to a solution for deciphering the riddle.

But how can it be deciphered? And when will the harpoons be launched?

{Time will not stop even for one quarter}... Could this be discerned as ‘a quarter after one’? 

Qi Xia turns to the desk clock. It is already five minutes past one. If a quarter after one is when the harpoons will be launched, then less than ten minutes remain.

{Circle in the direction of home a hundred times}.

Qi Xia figures out one part of the riddle. The {nine} have to rotate the clock in the direction of their home.

However, if they select the wrong direction, they could easily squander these ten minutes. But besides themselves, was there anything else that could {circle} in this room?

Qi Xia's gaze settles on the desk clock in the center of the table. He leans forward and reaches out to gently touch the clock, only to discover that it is firmly affixed to the table and cannot move at all.

‘The clock can't be moved, could it be the chairs?’

Qi Xia lowers his gaze to the chair beneath him. It is an old, ordinary chair that exudes a musty smell. It is placed casually on the ground, without any hidden mechanisms to be found.

Qi Xia reaches out and turns the table. The table moves a little. The table has considerable weight to it, so Qi Xia can only rotate it a few centimeters at best.

Rotating it 100 times...

The crux of the matter lies in the fact that each individual's hometown lies in a different cardinal direction. How, then, could they ascertain whether to pivot left or right?

Qi Xia reasons that if the {organizer} who gathered {nine} individuals from different areas with shared experiences deliberately did so, could it be the hint to this riddle?

Qi Xia turns and regards the group as they continue rotating the table.

"Did any of you fabricate your {hometown} when narrating?"

After getting the correct provinces, Qi Xia connects the provinces on the map, getting:

右 — right (--> character in Chinese)

Qi Xia and the others rotate the table 100 times.

After 100 rotations, the table breaks into slices, efficiently giving everyone shields.

Qi Xia orders everyone to form a cone shape to shield themselves from the harpoons efficiently, leaving no gaps.

However, one of them gets hit by a harpoon and is almost dragged to death when the harpoons retract.

Qi Xia ponders about the {Mortal Dog} and the riddle.

Soon, an inquiry from one of the participants is heard. They notice that the retracted harpoon that damaged one of the participants has a message inscribed on it:

"I am {Mortal Goat}. If you can read these words, it means you've survived."

"But how many of you made it?"

"Are there any injuries among you?"

"I'm truly concerned for all of you."

"I cannot simply stand by and watch you perish."

"In a quarter of an hour, death will befall once more."

"Evade them and seek a means of survival."

Qi Xia ponders about this unique message in this situation.

If {Mortal Goat}, who once perished, had a goat mask that identified him as {Mortal Dog}, and now it's back to {Mortal Goat}...

Could this be one of the clues?

‘Goat and Dog…’ Qi Xia narrows his eyes, pondering everything carefully.

Qi Xia figures out the truth: the figure who identified himself as {Mortal Goat} had incited them to kill each other. But now, this {Mortal Goat} expresses concern for their well-being, claiming he couldn't bear to watch them die.

That is nothing but:

A lie!

Everything falls seamlessly in line with Qi Xia's conjecture. {Goat} and {Dog} aren't merely names but rather symbolic of {game styles}!

Perhaps the {Goat} mirrors the narrative of {The Boy Who Cried Wolf}. The shepherd boy's persistent falsehoods resulted in no one believing him when a genuine threat arose, suggesting that {lies} were intrinsic to {Goat} games—a test of {deception}.

{Dog}, on the other hand, could signify loyalty. Just as in the harpoon game earlier, had they not cooperated, none would have survived. So, could {Dog} represent {cooperation}?

Qi Xia connects {Mortal Dog} and {Mortal Goat} riddles and comes to the conclusion: it's all lies to let them die, just like the Lie game.

He tells everyone about {Mortal Goat}'s lying nature and how following what {Mortal Goat} says would lead to their demise. He tells everyone to stand in the center instead of the corners.

Qi Xia adjusts his statement, saying it has a higher likelihood of allowing them to escape; follow it if you want to escape from this room.

Adding on why he's certain, he says there is no {advance notice} regarding the next game in the prompt this time, indicating that it's either the last game or the organizer is preparing to eliminate everyone in this room.

Soon, everyone starts following what Qi Xia recommends.

Qi Xia lifts his gaze, fixating on the cluster of nine closely spaced holes, as though he seeks to penetrate the darkness and uncover the enigma concealed within.

In the next instant, dark-colored objects suddenly erupt from the nine apertures, causing everyone to shutter their eyes in fear.

Only Qi Xia beholds the true nature of those dark-colored objects. They are, in fact, nine weathered and grimy hemp ropes.

He reaches out and seizes one of the ropes. These hemp ropes boast a thickness equivalent to two fingers, rendering them perfectly grippable.

‘Not good…’ Qi Xia's countenance darkens. ‘The circumstances are more dire than I anticipated.’

Gradually, everyone cautiously reopens their eyes to discover the ropes dangling before them, exuding a putrid odor.

Qi Xia urges everyone to grab the two-finger-thick ropes tightly, however, noting that it would not be sufficient since one of the participants is already injured and gripping the rope for him is difficult.

Third game : NO & YES

The {nine} hanging participants are greeted by {Mortal Snake}, who is on the ground near the lever.

"Long time no see, everyone. I am Mortal Snake," he begins in a deliberate tone.

"Please, let's not get too excited," Mortal Snake's voice remains calm. He glances up at everyone before continuing, "You are in the final stage of the trial. I have a lever by my hand here. Once I pull it, you will descend safely, and no one will be hurt."

"Listen attentively, everyone. This game is titled {Yes or No}," Mortal Snake declares with a slight step forward, addressing the individuals suspended from the ceiling.

"You, as a collective, have three opportunities to question me; my responses will be confined to {yes} or {no}.

I assure you, I will uphold truthfulness. Following these queries, if I choose to spare you all, I will activate the lever. Otherwise, I will seal the door, and your destiny will unfold accordingly."

One of the participants, Xian Ran Sei, seizes the moment and speaks out without hesitation.

"Hey, can you lower us down?!"

Qi Xia tries to stop her, but it is too late.

Mortal Snake sneers and replies, "No."

Qi Xia ponders for a moment, then figures out a method to beat the logic of this game.

Qi Xia asks, "Mortal Snake, if my next question were {Will you pull the lever?}, would your answer be the same as this question?"

"Hahahaha!"

Mortal Snake suddenly bursts into laughter, so hard that he almost loses his balance. After a while, he stops laughing and says, "You are truly interesting."

"Interesting?" Qi Xia coldly regards Mortal Snake. "What's so interesting? Didn't I already win?"

Mortal Snake slowly approaches the wall and reaches out to pull the lever.

Logic

First query:

Hey, can you lower us down? → Answer: NO

Second query:

Mortal Snake, if my next question were {Will you pull the lever?}, would your answer be the same as this question?

{Mortal Snake} can't lie, so when asked if his answer to the next question would be the same, the answer would have to be YES.

Then, for the third query:

Will you pull the lever?

{Mortal Snake} would be forced to give the answer YES.

Using {Mortal Snake}'s own statement, {I assure you, I will uphold truthfulness}, against him, Qi Xia forces him to answer YES and therefore forces him to pull the lever.

This is an analysis of one of COTE's many hidden plots. This is one of my favourites and provides plenty of decent feats for Koji's insane foresight, manipulation, EQ and SQ, especially in how he gradually turns Chabashira's attempt to control him into a long-term source of information, cooperation and influence. This is still not one of his absolute best feats, but it is a very interesting one. People like to act as if Koji is just responding to things, but no, everything that happens is according to his plan. This entire plot starts in Year 1 and continues to have consequences into Year 2.

Kiyo essentially flips Chabashira's blackmail back onto her. She initially believes that she has leverage over him through the threat of expulsion and intends to use him to advance Class D, but Kiyo gradually changes the dynamic until Chabashira herself becomes a semi-proxy and information source for him.

>He wants to gather information on ANHS and Chabashira-sensei while giving Chabashira the illusion that she has control over him.
>
>He aims to stop Chabashira's attempts to pry into his life and expose the truth about his abilities to others, such as Horikita.
>
>He also wants Chabashira-sensei to stop her destructive behaviour toward her own class and instead work toward its growth.
>
>He turns the blackmail back onto her and corners her into cooperation completely, establishing her as a proxy within his information network.
>
>Using blackmail, he incorporates Chabashira-sensei into the X strategy, ensuring Kei's safety and later using her again in Year 2.
>
>In the long term, this counteraction also changes Chabashira-sensei in a more positive direction, which further strengthens Class D for his four-battle plan & class tranfer

During the start of Semester 1, in Volume 1, after a month at ANHS, Kiyo was called by Chabashira to the faculty office. This was after two events: Zero Class and the private point gain in Class D, as well as the preliminary exam that Chabashira made everyone take.

Kiyo meets Class B's homeroom teacher, Hoshinomiya Chie, who answers when Kiyo asks, "Is Chabashira-sensei here?" with, "Hmm? Sae-chan? Oh, she was just here a moment ago."

Kiyo decides to wait for a while, noting that the way she referred to Chabashira as "Sae-chan" made it clear that they were close. They were also near in age, so Kiyo assumes they were probably friends.

Hoshinomiya then tells Kiyo that she and Chabashira have been best friends since high school, which is why they use each other's first names. Kiyo finds this information superfluous.

She later asks why Sae-chan called him, to which Ayanokoji replies that he has no idea. Chie realizes that Kiyo must have been called for a reason and asks for his name while scanning him from top to bottom, something Kiyo immediately notices.

After hearing his name, Chie acts overtly friendly, saying that it's a pretty name and that he must be popular. Kiyo notes that she behaves like a student, and that if this were an all-boys environment, she would probably catch the boys' hearts.

She continues to push Kiyo, clearly trying to draw information out of him.

However, Chabashira arrives and interrupts the conversation, taking Kiyo to the faculty office.

Kiyo was being sent to the guidance counsellor's office. Chie asks Chabashira what she was up to, since, according to her, Chabashira wasn't the type to have one-on-one conversations with students. She then asks if Chabashira is after something, and Kiyo notes that he senses a "storm brewing", an idiom that hints at a conflict, difficult situation, or trouble about to erupt, after Chie slips behind him and holds his shoulders.

Following that, Chie starts a play on words by saying, "Are you looking to be dominated by a younger man?" The sexual connotation of her words correlates with her previous actions involving Kiyo, which were an attempt to fish for information while also potentially misdirecting him. In this context, Chie is effectively probing whether Chabashira believes she can dominate, or rather control, Ayanokoji.

However, when Chabashira replies, "Don't say such stupid things. That wouldn't be possible," Kiyo takes note of it. When this is combined with Chie's following words, "Hee, you're certainly right. It wouldn't be possible for YOU, Sae-chan," Kiyo recognizes that her words carry a double meaning.

Kiyo figures this out from the context of the conversation. So, when Chabashira asks Chie why she wants to follow them into the guidance counsellor's office under the pretext of it being a Class D matter, this reveals to Kiyo that Chabashira intends to use him to help bring Class D up in the rankings.

Chie then asks if it isn't okay for her to give advice too. This confirms to Chie that Ayanokoji is more capable than he appears, while simultaneously showing Kiyo that Chabashira holds his abilities in high regard for a reason.

Her urgency to get Chie to leave is also consistent with the information Kiyo has gathered from the conversation above.

When they arrive at the faculty office, Chabashira glances at the clock, showing nine o'clock, and puts Kiyo in the kitchenette until she commands him to come out when she gives the signal. Horikita arrives at the faculty office, inquiring about why she was placed in Class D.

Chabashira answers Horikita's questions in a prepared manner, which makes Horikita wonder if she knew Horikita would come here to protest.

Chabashira replies as an instructor who understands the minds of students to at least some degree. She informs Horikita about the entrance exam and interview, explaining how they evaluated Horikita quite highly, and continues the conversation with her.

During the conversation with Horikita, Chabashira hints at knowing that Kiyo had lowered his evaluation on purpose by getting 50s across the board. People assume, for some reason, that he simply didn't know better and that this is why he got those scores. But just this scene, where Chabashira says, "...Strange students who would be happy being set at a lower level," makes Kiyo immediately remark that it was like she was talking about him at the time, especially considering the fact that he ONLY answered the hard questions.

Chabashira calls Kiyo to come out. Kiyo considers it a bad idea to come out since Horikita is also there. Chabashira doubles down:

"If you don't come out, I'll have you expelled."

Kiyo comments mentally that a teacher shouldn't casually wield expulsion like a weapon.

Horikita immediately asks Kiyo if he was listening to everything. Kiyo gives a clueless answer, saying that he has no idea what they were talking about and that the walls are surprisingly thick. Chabashira calls him out, saying that Kiyo can hear everything from there.

Chabashira proceeds to inform Horikita about Kiyo's 50s entrance and preliminary marks. Kiyo acts as if it was all a coincidence. This is done to make Chabashira defend her point with more concrete evidence, specifically the questions he answered. This way, Horikita will start to see him as actually competent rather than someone who is simply faking his abilities, since he only answered the hard questions on the paper and got them right.

She does that, and Kiyo once again feigns innocence, which slightly aggravates Chabashira, hinting that she knows nothing about him beyond those scores.

"For crying out loud! I respect your frank attitude, but it'll cause problems for you in the future," the teacher said.

"I'll think about that when the time comes."

Chiyabashira-sensei shoots Horikita a glance that seems to say, "What do you think?"

Chabashira pushes the idea that Kiyo might have more intelligence than Horikita. This is significant since Horikita had the third-highest entrance score and was placed in Class D despite being evaluated highly, while Kiyo being happy with his lower evaluation on Chabashira's side suggests that some students actually prefer being placed at a lower level.

Horikita already suspects that Kiyo seems to be good at social skills but pretends to be bad, as if he is deliberately avoiding trouble. Horikita asks Ayanokoji to explain this.

This little section confirms that he was fishing for whatever secrets Chabashira might know about him beyond those test scores:

"What other reasons do you have?" Horikita asked.

"You want me to explain it to you in detail?"

I noticed the sharp gleam in Chiyabashira-sensei's eyes. It was almost as if she wanted to provoke Horikita.

"No, we'd best stop here. Any more, and I might go mad and destroy all the furniture in here," I said.

The reason he stops here is to create the illusion that she has control over him and that he does not want what she knows, which is nothing, to get out to anyone else. He also uses this as a pretext to stay under her radar while simultaneously giving Horikita more incentive to interact directly with him rather than going around his back to Chabashira, where she would still eventually be sent to talk to him.

Chabashira replies sarcastically that if Kiyo does that, she would demote him to Class E, essentially meaning expulsion, and pushes Horikita and Ayanokoji into the hallway because it is time for the faculty office to close.

[Acting skills, manipulation, deception, information gathering, thinking]

Ayanokoji solidifies the idea to Chabashira that he is simply a "boy who wants to avoid trouble", the follower of the ostrich policy. Class D and Horikita also come to view Ayanokoji this way.

Kiyo later doubles down on this image with Chabashira when Ayanokoji and Horikita solve the issues surrounding Class D's behaviour, Zero Class, and the private point gain by conducting study meetings and using previous questions from second-year students to prepare for the upcoming exam, which could potentially lead to expulsion.

However, because the class average was 40 and Sudou scored below that, he faced expulsion. Chabashira then informs the class about how the test actually works.

Ayanokoji leaves the classroom and goes to Chabashira's faculty office under the excuse of going to the bathroom. He meets Chabashira and questions why she didn't inform the class about the exam beforehand.

This shows two things.

First, Chabashira deliberately or intentionally withholding this information provides insight into her personality as a whole. It shows that she had selfish reasons for withholding the information and, at this point, didn't genuinely care about Class D as a whole.

Second, Kiyo discovers the loophole of paying private points to obtain exam points while simultaneously feeding Chabashira another layer of his manufactured image.

The conversation makes this clear:

"One week ago, when you told us that the test's material had changed, you also said something like 'I forgot to inform you.' Because of that forgetfulness, we were notified of the change one week after the other classes had already been informed."

"Every class got the same questions, the points were reflected in the same way for everyone, and every class faced the same threat of expulsion. However, Class D was compelled to test under unfair conditions."

"Whether or not you truly forgot to tell us, or if it was an intentional slip, isn't really the issue. The fact remains that one person is now being expelled from this school because of those unfair conditions."

"That's unfortunate. What you've said isn't wrong, but I can't allow you to do that. Sudou will be expelled. That decision cannot be overturned at this stage. Give up."

She'd ignored my point, but her words remained logical. As I'd anticipated, her words always held some hidden meaning.

"You said it 'cannot be overturned at this stage.' Which means there may be a way to overturn the decision."

With Horikita arriving on the scene, Chabashira breaks into laughter, commenting that Horikita and Ayanokoji are very interesting.

After exchanging exam points with Horikita and Ayanokoji, Kiyo prompts Chabashira by asking if that's okay. Chabashira responds that there's nothing more to it while looking over at Horikita, essentially prompting her to give her opinion on Ayanokoji.

Horikita replies that she sees Ayanokoji as a disagreeable person who hides his abilities.

Chabashira then comments that the pair of Horikita and Ayanokoji might be able to reach a higher-level class. Horikita replies that Class D can also reach Class A.

This is where Chabashira's "defective products" analogy becomes relevant: a class full of defective students, once their defects are repaired, may produce a superior product.

Chabashira finds this interesting and leaves by saying that, as their homeroom teacher, she will watch over them with great interest.

This is another important step in Kiyo's manipulation of Chabashira's perception of him. He continues to present himself as someone who wants to avoid trouble while simultaneously demonstrating just enough ability to make Chabashira believe that he is useful to Class D's advancement.

Acting skills, manipulation, deception, information gathering, social engineering, EQ, thinking, and long-term planning.

The feat starts with Chabashira having leverage over Ayanokoji and attempting to use that leverage against him. Ayanokoji recognizes this, gathers information about her, understands her personality and motivations, creates a specific image of himself in her mind, and then gradually changes the nature of their relationship.

He essentially turns Chabashira's attempt to control him into a source of information and eventually cooperation.

This is why the feat has much more scope than a simple manipulation feat. It involves both sides of the interaction, opposition from Chabashira, adaptation from Ayanokoji, information gathering, deception, social engineering, image construction, and long-term relationship management.

During the Sudou trial in Volume 2, Sudou gets into trouble after being framed for provoking a fight with Class C students. Horikita and Ayanokoji help Sudou get out of the situation after he was already almost expelled in the previous test.

After the Sudou trial is dissolved, Chabashira informs Horikita that she has fallen into Ayanokoji's trap. This tells us that, up until this point, Horikita believed Ayanokoji was simply someone who wanted to avoid trouble despite having the ability to do more, essentially a fool who deliberately kept himself out of the spotlight.

This is exactly the image Kiyo wants Chabashira to believe as well.

Chabashira then advises Horikita that Ayanokoji is the "defective student in Class D" and tells her to get to know him and find his fatal flaw.

When Ayanokoji later meets Horikita to talk about the trial, Horikita questions the entire scheme and asks whether she was simply being used as Ayanokoji's puppet. Kiyo immediately notices the change in Horikita's behaviour due to Chabashira's interference.

However, one notable detail is that Kiyo figures out the subject of Chabashira and Horikita's conversation without even being present.

He infers it from only a few interactions:

"I knew more about me than anyone else. I knew just how defective (Chabashira), just how foolish (Horikita) I was. I was a horrible human being."

The chain of reasoning is essentially:

Chabashira knows my entrance scores → she recognizes that the scores are artificial → she knows something unusual about my circumstances → she has already influenced Horikita → therefore, she may continue manipulating my circumstances and using expulsion as a weapon.

This becomes important shortly afterward, before the first Special Exam and the announcement of the two-week vacation on the cruise ship.

Chabashira calls Ayanokoji to the faculty office again. She attempts to manipulate him by creating an illusion of safety, telling him there are no cameras and revealing her personal history. She tells him that she was once a student in Class D and that her goal of reaching Class A was destroyed because of a trivial mistake, which also foreshadows the importance of mistakes and their consequences in later exams.

She then explains that Ayanokoji's presence is vital to Class D reaching Class A. More importantly, she reveals that someone contacted the school and requested that Ayanokoji be expelled. She claims that she rejected the request from this third party, but if Ayanokoji refuses to follow her commands and help Class D reach Class A, she could interpret his actions as grounds for expulsion.

In other words, she is threatening him with expulsion in order to force him to cooperate.

Before saying that Chabashira was simply being stupid for using expulsion and allowing a third party to interfere, there are several reasons why her approach makes sense based on the information she has gathered about Kiyo.

First, Ayanokoji has already given Chabashira three separate instances where he treats the subject of expulsion as something unfair: their first meeting, Sudou's potential expulsion, and the Sudou trial.

It is therefore logical for Chabashira, based on the false image Kiyo has constructed, to believe that he has an aversion to expulsion.

Second, Ayanokoji has already presented himself as someone who values his peaceful existence through the "boy who avoids trouble" persona. He has also shown distrust and irritation whenever someone pries into matters he considers personal.

Therefore, from Chabashira's perspective, threatening his peaceful life and bringing up the possibility of expulsion should give her leverage over him.

Kiyo further reinforces this image by acting as though he genuinely fears both the destruction of his peaceful life and the possibility of expulsion.

When Chabashira makes Horikita uncomfortable, Kiyo acts out and grabs Chabashira by the collar, questioning whether she has made Horikita uncomfortable and comparing it to someone entering another person's home while still wearing their shoes. The metaphor is essentially about crossing someone's personal boundaries.

However, while Kiyo appears to be reacting emotionally to Chabashira's actions, he is simultaneously extracting information from her reactions and behaviour.

He also recognizes that much of the story she is telling him is fabricated or at least strategically presented.

Kiyo therefore continues playing the role of someone being blackmailed by Chabashira.

Later, during the commencement of the first Special Exam, the deserted island exam, Chie-sensei interrupts Chabashira again, bringing up how it is fate that both of them ended up on the island together.

After the exam begins, on Day 1, Horikita tells Kiyo what Chabashira had told her. Chabashira had suggested that Ayanokoji was not interested in moving up the classes and had also leaked information about him to Horikita.

This is important because Chabashira is effectively turning Horikita into a proxy through which she can indirectly monitor and influence Ayanokoji.

Now Horikita also knows that there is something unusual about him.

Ayanokoji then carries out the leader swap strategy and several other feats during the exam while maintaining the illusion that he is following Chabashira's orders.

From Chabashira's perspective, Kiyo is therefore demonstrating ability while still appearing to operate within the framework she imposed on him.

When he meets Chabashira on the cruise ship after the exam, Kiyo asks whether she was impressed and also questions her about the man who wanted him expelled.

Chabashira replies that she knows quite a lot about him and asks whether that isn't enough reason for him to trust her. She also implies that the other teachers don't know about his abilities.

Chabashira then compares Ayanokoji to Icarus in his current predicament. She adds that Ayanokoji's father said:

"Sooner or later, Kiyotaka will gladly chase the means of his expulsion from school."

This is another sophisticated attempt by Chabashira to influence Kiyo. Notice how she brings up Icarus and then immediately introduces Ayanokoji's father into the conversation, creating a parallel between Daedalus and Icarus.

Kiyo, however, continues playing along with her framing:

"You should know, Sensei. Icarus(I) won't heed Daedalus' warnings."

Kiyo essentially accepts the metaphor while subtly reversing its meaning. Chabashira believes she is the one warning and controlling Icarus, while Kiyo is already aware that he is not actually operating under her control.

Afterward, Ayanokoji meets Horikita and reveals more of what he accomplished during the exam. He then establishes a direct agreement with Horikita in exchange for his personal freedom:

"I don't mind helping you get up to Class A. However, I have one condition. Do not investigate me. If you promise not to touch on this subject ever again, I will help you."

Horikita accepts without hesitation.

"If you don't want to talk, there's nothing I can really do about that. If you'll help, I have no reason to refuse you. I'm not interested in digging things up that are better left buried. After all, you dislike trouble."

Horikita's handshake was firm. I work for me. You do things for yourself. The battle to raise our class up from the very bottom was about to begin.

This effectively accomplishes several things at once.

Kiyo successfully establishes a boundary with Horikita and prevents her from investigating his background. He strengthens the false persona that he is simply someone who dislikes trouble and wants to live peacefully. He also reduces the need for Chabashira to act as an intermediary between himself and Horikita, while simultaneously keeping Chabashira under the illusion that she has leverage over him.

In Volume 4, during the cruise ship exam on Night 1, Ayanokoji wanders to the first level for a vending machine to get some refreshments. It is the type of vending machine that also serves alcohol, considering the cruise ship setting and the Japanese pub and bar area. There, he finds the four homeroom teachers and decides to eavesdrop on them.

He learns that all four homeroom teachers were classmates.

Chie-san deliberately places Ichinose in the Rabbit Group because she is interested in what Chabashira is doing with Ayanokoji, essentially placing Ichinose in a position where she can observe Ayanokoji.

Chie-sensei and Chabashira-sensei also have a personal grudge stemming from something that happened ten years ago.

On Night 2, when Ayanokoji calls Chabashira for the fake leader phone strategy, Chie-sensei follows Chabashira to the location. From their interaction, Ayanokoji understands that Chie-sensei and Chabashira have a rivalry, and that Chie placed Ichinose, who is very observant and perceptive, in the Rabbit Group to spy on Ayanokoji.

She is also willing to use Ichinose to spy on Chabashira and find out why Chabashira is interested in Ayanokoji and what she knows about his abilities.

Ayanokoji achieves the ideal scenario in the Rabbit Group while avoiding suspicion from everyone and laying out the X strategy.

In the Sports Festival, Ayanokoji meets Chabashira while passing through the main gate. He plays along with the act, and Ayanokoji answers her with, "I'm free to decide my own path," which is literally a callback to Icarus.

Chabashira does not realize that Ayanokoji is actually talking about her. Instead, she interprets it as him making his own path toward success while remaining under her blackmail. She mentions that if Ayanokoji steps out of line, she will stop covering for him, and that the same goes for his abilities.

In the Paper Shuffle, he acts and lets Chabashira know that Horikita came up with the plan and has been growing, showing her the promise of reaching Class A and beating the other classes.

After the exam, Class D would be able to evaluate Class C in the next semester, without any expulsions, something that Class D had become infamous for at ANHS.

This increases the stakes for Chabashira.

In Volumes 7 and 7.5, during the X strategy, after the parent-student meeting, Ayanokoji reveals everything to Chabashira, of course through his fabricated persona.

He tells Chabashira that what she told him was a lie and then tells her that the chairman had told him about her.

This gets a surprised reaction from Chabashira, showing that Chabashira did not have any connection with his father and that her story about his father was a bluff. chas comments kiyo tricked her on getting response .

Ayanokoji continues the conversation by saying that the chairman placed him in Class D because of their personal connection, but Chairman Sakayanagi still didn't knew that the Class D homeroom teacher still have the ambition of reaching Class A.

He also brings up Hoshinomiya's involvement and how Chabashira actually wants to supplement the class using one superior student rather than relying on the others, since she cannot submit to the authority of being a teacher.

Ayanokoji also realizes that Chabashira knew about the next Special Exam that could bridge the gap between the classes. This means that her story about blackmailing Ayanokoji into cooperating was fabricated around information she already had.

Ayanokoji then brings up the chairman again, saying that Sakayanagi will now watch over him. This means that Chabashira is now at the mercy of Ayanokoji.

Chabashira counters by saying that she can still expel Ayanokoji.

Ayanokoji responds that, given the current state of Class D, Horikita and the others will reach Class A without him. If he steps down from this point, the fight will continue, and Chabashira will not allow her ambition of reaching Class A to disappear.

That means Chabashira cannot really do anything to Ayanokoji.

If Ayanokoji were expelled, it would destroy Class D's progress and potentially cause the class to fall back to Class C, which would also destroy Chabashira's goal.

Chabashira counters again, saying that if Ayanokoji is so certain about this, she would simply expel him if she ever lost hope.

Ayanokoji counters that if, in the future, something happens that causes Chabashira to lose all hope, she can contact him, but her position as a teacher is not completely secure because of the chairman.

Did you notice what Ayanokoji did?

He cornered Chabashira into cooperation and effectively blackmailed her into following his demands, including staying off the stage in the fight between the classes and continuing to cover for him as she had done beyond what would normally be expected of her as a teacher.

Basically, the entire situation is turned against her.

Kiyo then uses his new proxy, Chabashira, to help Kei during the Ryuuen waterboarding situation. If Kei drops out, it would damage Class D and could potentially lead to rumours about Kei's past, which Ayanokoji considers a possibility.

He adds that if Chabashira does not help him, Kiyo could sabotage Class D.

This corners Chabashira into cooperating.

"To think that a student would threaten a teacher. The tables have certainly turned."

"If you do this for me, I promise I'll do nothing to hinder or sabotage Class D going forward. I think that's significant, don't you?" I asked.

"If refusing to help you with this means that we never make it to Class A, then so be it."

Kiyo later reveals that this was all just a test and that asking Chabashira for cooperation was not the main goal he had in mind.

Kiyo then suggests that she follow him and see the drama for herself, taking her to where Kei was being waterboarded on the rooftop.

There, Kiyo questions her about the conditions under which private points can be used to buy exam points, referring back to the situation with Sudou. He pressures Chabashira on the subject until she replies that she cannot answer.

This confirms to Kiyo that buying exam points with private points is only allowed under certain conditions and that teachers cannot reveal the details of ANHS's point system. It also suggests that the teachers themselves do not know everything about how the system works.

This conversation also serves to show that Chabashira is truly stepping away from the inter-class drama and fighting, while showcasing that Horikita can carry Class D and therefore that Chabashira will not give up on her hope of reaching Class A.

This keeps Chabashira in check and preserves Kiyo's leverage over her.

Upon the arrival of Manabu, Chabashira is shocked and questions whether Manabu did not agree with Kiyo. She wonders what Kiyo would have done then, especially since she does not know about the student council situation.

Kiyo simply replies:

"Who knows?"

This serves the purpose of showing Kiyo's abilities to Chabashira.

When Kiyo rescues Kei, he specifically ensures that the student council and Chabashira are there to protect Kei and handle the situation.

"A few steps below us, the student council president, well, the former student council president, and Chabashira-sensei are waiting. They know the circumstances to a certain degree, so they should be able to handle things, including taking care of your soaked uniform," I told Karuizawa.

>> The Chabashira counteraction plays a role in strengthening Kei's security and ensuring that her past remains secure, while also strengthening Kei as part of Kiyo's information network.

>> The counteraction also helps with the development of Class D in Year 1, as Chabashira-sensei becomes less willing to oppose the class in favour of a single student. This strengthens Horikita's grip over the class, increases her leadership, and contributes to Kiyo's plan of eventually making her Student Council President.

>>The counteraction also potentially works as a countermeasure against rumours about Kiyo and the White Room from Arisu, if such information were ever exposed. If that happened, Kiyo could leverage his cooperation with Chabashira to deal with the situation.

>>The counteraction also eliminates the threat of an unfair or outside-party-driven expulsion of Kiyo, since Chabashira is now willing to cover for and protect Ayanokoji.

The counteraction also provides cover for Kiyo's rumour-strike strategy in case it is exposed.

>>Due to the counteraction, Chabashira-sensei's behaviour toward Class D changes throughout Year 1 and Year 2. This helps with Ayanokoji's overall scheme of developing and strengthening Class D.

>> The counteraction becomes relevant again in Year 2 when Kiyo urges Chabashira to call a meeting with the other homeroom teachers. Through this, Kiyo expands the counteraction into a broader teacher-based information network, which also becomes useful for his countermeasures against Tsukishiro throughout Year 2.

>> The counteraction also gives Kiyo a significant amount of information about the ANHS system as a whole, including the private-point system, its conditions, and the restrictions placed on teachers regarding what they can disclose or help students with. Kiyo can then use this knowledge in later strategies, including his manipulation of Ichinose.

(imm possibly missing some details on how this connects to others thing and plot but that's what i can remember . will edit the list & post )

[long term planning][improvisation ][Emotional intelligence][social intelligence][planning coverage][deception : fabrication of control][deception : fabriaction via 2 layer persona ][manipulation][event manipulation][info gathering [acting skills][AC][perception][observation][subversion][concealment][cold & hot reading][thinking][decision making ] { ply many other categories but it's time to finish the post ; will update}

Major feat imo in the counteraction:

1. Persona utilization: it's one thing to use a persona to hide/conceal your true self, but making a 2-layer persona with fabricated weakness is another thing.

Kiyo doesn't just hide his true abilities behind a persona. He creates a fabricated weakness and makes Chabashira believe that he is simply a boy who wants to avoid trouble and live peacefully.

And when this persona of the boy who avoids trouble is exposed, he creates a second persona of someone who doesn't like being controlled and is afraid of expulsion, with another fabricated weakness.

He basically makes her think that she understands his personality and has leverage over him, while in reality, Kiyo is using that exact perception to manipulate her actions and keep her under his control.

If we take the timeline of the series, then Kiyo didn't manipulate a teenage girl first, but a teacher first.

writing wise : the arc in v5, v 6, v7 & v7.5 is inversion of the arc in v1, v2, v3 ,v4 . v1(sem 1) literally connects to (sem 2)v7 in inverted fashion

sources - https://www.reddit.com/r/IntelligenceScaling/comments/1tvnu3f/comment/opkhz5z/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1P2DxE1GzNdcV9qjkHzcMdMLpn1n99FrPzfXJ_LVwFt0/edit?usp=sharing (blackmail section : needs update on expulsion part )

Volume 1 to Volume 7 of classroom of the elite by Shōgo Kinugasa

inspiration behind the post & analysis - https://www.reddit.com/r/IntelligenceScaling/s/7lghr91vnF

also if you believe icarus symbollism , ngl bro you got yourself manipulated like chas

i think of:

1. Author Fallacy

2. "The Opponent" fallacy — taking the opponent into account instead of intelligence & outsmarting abilities

eg

[ derlord outsmarted an eldritch infinite god and tank its infinite knowledge while fluixon only outwitted unsuspecting players on island 1

so derlord >>>>>>> fluixon ]

• After attacking Takaba quickly, Kenjaku wondered for a while why they sent Takaba after him. However, after seeing how Takaba tanks the attacks, Kenjaku reasoned that:

His attacks landed, but somehow they had no effect on Takaba.

• After some more attacks on Takaba, Kenjaku induced the nature of Takaba's CT:

That Takaba can make a mockery of Kenjaku's CT attacks and is capable of manifesting any phenomena and controlling them.

Most importantly, Kenjaku has to be careful around Takaba since his jujutsu has no effect on him. However, Kenjaku is going to figure out the weakness of his CT since he thought that all CTs have a weakness.

• Kenjaku engages in conversation with Takaba. Takaba concocted a pun, but Kenjaku logically rejected the punchline.

So

When Takaba was left vulnerable after his joke was rejected by Kenjaku, Kenjaku physically attacked him and noted that the attack landed on him.

• Kenjaku figures out the weakness of Takaba's CT: the activation of Takaba's CT depends on his confidence and certainty in his jokes.

From there, Kenjaku and Takaba's comedy clash and elite ball knowledge battle begins

Feats: Figuring out the activation condition and nature of Takaba's CT and its weakness from only a few interactions, and doing so quickly.

https://preview.redd.it/5a428c9zguoh1.png?width=567&format=png&auto=webp&s=0d25799fa2c22a06fffa5e5cdd2366316e0cbc7c

Check these docs to know more about gojo's sealing

jjk season 2 ep 8 and 9

This happens after Kenjaku disables Gojo’s Reversal Red, Lapse Blue, speed blitz, Limitless, and Domain Expansion in the station.

Now, Kenjaku will target Gojo’s trump card: his thinking.

At this point in the event, Gojo was able to:

• Figure out the hit and run tactic.
• Get rid of Hanami.
• Figure out that he was trapped and that he was being targeted for some specific purpose.
• Realize that the entire Shibuya Incident was a ploy.
• Prioritize protecting the lives of civilians.

Kenjaku understands that Gojo will prioritize civilians instead of directly fighting the cursed spirits and causing casualties inside the station.

Gojo is trying his best to keep his cool and think through this adverse situation, even though many of his techniques and advantages have been neutralized.

Based on his character and personality, and without ever having met him, Kenjaku is able to understand Gojo’s EQ and Theory of Mind (ToM).

Kenjaku then turns Gojo’s own thinking against him and forces him into a situation where he becomes psychologically paralyzed, a stance Gojo does not like.

He uses Gojo’s own thought process against him without Gojo realizing what Kenjaku is doing.

First Phase

First, Kenjaku builds pressure on Gojo and creates the impression that the cursed spirits are primarily targeting him, even using civilians as cover.

This causes Gojo to focus almost entirely on the immediate threat inside the station, rather than thinking about what might be happening outside the station or what the cursed spirits ultimately intend to accomplish with the civilians.

Second Phase

After it appears that Gojo is either winning or losing against the cursed spirits, he begins to think that he can defeat them.

Then the second phase begins.

Gojo realizes that the cursed spirits have already targeted civilians and intend to target even more civilians.

At this point, Gojo becomes increasingly focused on protecting the civilians, putting even more pressure on himself.

9:14 PM: Shibuya Station

At around 9:14 PM, approximately 1,000 transfigured humans created by Mahito enter the station.

The ordinary civilians can see the transfigured humans, which causes even more panic and disorder.

Gojo now has to process the situation extremely quickly while also trying to protect the civilians.

Jogo, Mahito, and the half dead Death Painting Womb(choso) begin killing civilians freely within the crowd.

This puts even more pressure on Gojo because he has to rapidly determine who to deal with first, while simultaneously preventing further civilian casualties.

Just as Gojo begins to understand the situation and formulate a response, Kenjaku’s plan reaches its next stage.

(refer the image , yellow veil trapping the gojo, purple is veil trapping the non sorceers and red veil is extra civilians that kenjaku gather using dagon's CT )

https://preview.redd.it/b6txh7m4l4oh1.png?width=651&format=png&auto=webp&s=ff723f48df5c5ab243743cec019fc9e5b1579f72

Another crowd of civilians falls down, adding to the chaos. Cursed spirits freely start targeting civilians, and Gojo is powerless and helpless in this situation.

The cursed spirits first make it look like the main focus is a hit-and-run tactic against Gojo.

Then, in the second phase, it is revealed that attacking civilians was actually the main focus, not attacking Gojo.

Gojo would be busy thinking about how to deal with and handle this situation and get rid of the cursed spirits once and for all after seeing this disaster, especially since there is a veil blocking sorcerers from entering the station and Shibuya, leaving the civilians trapped with these cursed spirits.

Look at how much Gojo has sacrificed to protect the civilians.

The cursed spirits are forcing him to use Domain Expansion, but doing so would kill all the civilians here, which goes against Gojo’s thinking. At the same time, using Domain Expansion would make him look like a murderer.

These will be the two things happening at the same time.

First, Gojo is forgetting about the danger that he cannot use any of his Cursed Techniques.

Second, Gojo is processing so much information that becoming paralyzed is perfect .........

DOMAIN EXPANSION OF 0.2 SECONDS

https://preview.redd.it/s9xen661l4oh1.png?width=388&format=png&auto=webp&s=0141418a3d5665d3d4b1b3caafadfc59db2c3f53

Gojo Satoru once again played the best move in this difficult situation and was able to kill all 1,000 transfigured humans in 299 seconds, leaving the cursed spirits in a state where they could finish them off.

However, this “best move” was exactly what Kenjaku had forced Gojo into think of, regardless of the outcome.

That 0.2-second Domain Expansion gave Kenjaku the opportunity to seal Gojo, while also allowing him to maintain his cover and hide his true identity as Kenjaku from the other cursed spirits, who were unaware that this was not actually Geto.

The rest, we all know what happened.

https://preview.redd.it/pzbdquedl4oh1.png?width=711&format=png&auto=webp&s=0791605d869333e0f2467f1a89671397b49255a3

MVP suits : EQ, ToM and psychoanalysis

Check gojo's sealing doc for more

Fluixon, despite being the architect of the Fluixon conspiracy, ironically was himself the victim of another conspiracy—the Sidefall's Island 2 conspiracy of unification against Island 1.

That conspiracy drove Fluixon's decisions, either from paranoia or for the greater good of uniting Island 2.

"Guys. Guys! Island 1 is uniting. They have hundreds of people all aligned toward the same goal: to kill us and take our resources. And if they decide to attack any single one of our nations, it'll be easy! All they'll need to do is walk ahead. Which is why we either need to merge all of our nations right now—we all choose a spot and combine into one civilization—or we attack Island 1 first." [Strategy] [Foresight]

This issue caused a rift between Fluixon and Luminara, 3BelowZero (another leader), and other empires and nations, especially those who had reasonable responses about checking the situation, bridging Island 1 and 2, and providing aid. [Social Intelligence]

His opposition to these ideas damaged his reputation, preventing him from becoming vice leader of Luminara and hurting the generally good reputation he had in Island 1.

In all meetings, his stubbornness and bad communication isolated any potential allies.

Despite all the damage he had done to himself, Fluixon quickly organized himself after losing all his support. He kept fighting with no consideration for others. [Thinking] [Adversity Capacity]

He gathered his loyalists around his project after being rejected from Next and built a secret bunker for their operation and the conspiracy he planned, which involved his friend. [Planning] [SQ]

Fluixon showed great emotional management by involving his friend in the conspiracy and using Saps, the neutral moderator of every meeting. He understood the implications, but he was convinced it was for the greater good of uniting Island 2 despite knowing the means he was using. [EQ]

"If you had to betray one person to save a thousand... would you?"

He also showed a good ability to carry the emotional pain of using his friend. [EQ]

So, he orchestrated the conspiracy and convinced Tricolour's third-in-command to kill their leader, Jophiel. [Deception] [SQ]

However, Seraphim misinterpreted Fluixon's message and immediately killed Jophiel, sending Island 1 into chaos, as they weren't used to deaths like those on Island 2.

Despite the setback created by Seraphim, Fluixon and his loyalists quickly adapted to the new situation. Fluixon called Saps for an emergency meeting for tomorrow and messaged Seraphim to sneak into the meeting and accomplish the conspiracy. However, they failed to build the contraption correctly. [Adaptability] [Planning]

"Is there a conspiracy going on?"

"Are the leaders safe?"

—Saps

Six out of ten leaders were killed via dripstone. [Trapping]

Seraphim was successful in carrying out Fluixon's command to execute the conspiracy and caused the dripstone assassination of the leaders. However, due to the chaotic situation, the dripstone only killed 6 of the 10 leaders, and Cass didn't attend the meeting.

Saps managed to escape the scene.

However, they were lucky that Bumwealth and other nations were entirely destroyed. Bumwealth specifically was already rivaling being NPCs.

Saps was also stupid enough to think that 3BelowZero was involved, although he was still smarter than the entirety of Bumwealth combined.

The collapse and downfall of Island 1 resulted in Fluixon gaining all the power. [Strategy]

Fluixon and his loyalists paid the judge for a rigged trial, and combined with Bumwealth's stupidity, as they were the jury, Saps stood no chance. However, Saps managed to escape. [Deception]

It worked for the conspiracy since Saps became the scapegoat for Island 1, especially for Bumwealth's last leader, who wanted Saps dead. [Deception] [Subversion]

After that, Fluixon commanded his loyalists to assassinate 3BelowZero and Cass. They successfully killed 3BelowZero, but failed to kill Cass, causing Cass to withdraw from any meetings afterward. [Strategy]

Fluixon then rigged the election against LegacyAN, causing him to win the election and become the strongest head in Island 1 during the chaotic period. He stopped the construction of the bridge and promised aid to Island 2. [Deception] [Leadership]

However, that would eventually turn against him in the future, which he failed to see. He also failed to account for the fact that people would not forget what he had done.

He didn't bother getting rid of the evidence of bribing the judge and bribing the voters because he believed that everyone was too busy dealing with their own problems during this time and wouldn't have the time to stop Fluixon.

Despite Saps managing to escape to Island 2 when the border opened, a huge bounty was placed on Saps, and hunters were assigned to find him. Bumwealth also wanted him dead, as they considered Saps directly responsible for Bumwealth's downfall and collapse.

Fluixon used 3BelowZero's death, which he had organized, to motivate Luminara into completing the bridge, purely to uphold his public image as their president. [Manipulation]

With all the power, Fluixon did what he wanted to do—rule Island 1 and continue his conspiracy against Island 2. Even after the conspiracy of Island 2 was proven wrong, he still thought he was right about Island 1. [Strategy] [Thinking]

At the international meeting between Island 1 and Island 2—the Blue Cross Summit—he successfully convinced leaders at the Blue Cross summit not to declare war on Infernus and instead pursue a trial. [Deception]

He successfully influenced major political decisions involving Infernus, establishing a strong relationship with them and seeing Infernus as a safe haven due to its location. [Social Intelligence]

On the way back from an international Blue Cross meeting, Tricolour leadership confronted Fluixon.

Tricolour accused Fluixon of being behind all the assassinations based on a little video and suggested putting him on trial. However, they were never entirely convinced that Fluixon was behind everything. They simply wanted a trial to determine whether he was innocent.

"This is an outrage!"

Fluixon dodged the questions there and flipped the video evidence against Tricolour. However, he agreed to go along with Tricolour as a group. [Deception] [Countering]

The group could not flee because of the number of guards, so NewKids came to assassinate Fluixon and distract them in order to flee and throw Tricolour off their trail.

Fluixon messaged one of his crew members to attack so that he could get away from the trial and look innocent. [Planning] [Deception]

The conspiracy managed to get into communication with BSHSBoreal of Tricolour and convinced him of their innocence. Boreal was unable to convince the rest of Tricolour, but the seed was planted. [Deception]

On arriving in Luminara, Fluixon threatened LegacyAN.

By threatening to release his knowledge of LegacyAN's ties to the community and possibly the rest of Island 2, Fluixon successfully got LegacyAN to drop out of the election, and he was automatically declared the winner, becoming president of Luminara. [Deception] [Manipulation]

By doing this, Fluixon believed that any future attempts to arrest him would be rendered nearly impossible with the support and backing of Luminara's community. [Foresight]

However, Saps survived the assassination attempt afterward.

Saps' survival snowballed into a major blunder for Fluixon after Westhelm trusted Saps.

Westhelm informed LegacyAN about Saps' testimony.

Fluixon noticed that the leaders of Island 1 were avoiding him. He became paranoid that the leaders were after him and discussing Fluixon and the conspiracy behind his back. [Sensory]

He prepared an escape route and traps with mines, as he foresaw his arrest. [Foresight] [Trapping]

Eventually, Cass came to investigate the conspiracy, found the rigged trial evidence, and immediately gathered other nations and ordered a "kill on sight" on Fluixon.

Fluixon managed to escape their "kill on sight" order by making himself look innocent. [Deception] [Countering]

However, this made him look suspicious to Cass' coalition.

Fluixon used this situation to make himself look good to the people in Luminara who were aware of him. [Manipulation]

He successfully manipulated enemy positioning to turn pursuit situations into opportunities for counterattack. [Countering] [Strategy]

Fluixon then opened the tunnel he had designed and escaped from everyone to Island 2, specifically Infernus, where Fluixon and his loyalists joined forces with Infernus in exchange for helping them build traps. [Strategy] [Trapping]

However, they also built a secret tunnel for themselves as an escape route. [Planning] [Foresight]

On the last day, Fluixon was able to survive the onslaught from every nation and managed to escape using the tunnel. [Adversity Capacity]

However, Fluixon accepted Saps' duel.

"Can't say no to a friend, can I?"

"You know, Saps, none of this would've happened if you had died like you were supposed to."

At the end, Fluixon died in the duel.

Fluixon as a character was charming and calculating, but he was ultimately paranoid. This paranoia made him overlook many critical details because he believed he was right

https://preview.redd.it/tgnnqrswygnh1.png?width=487&format=png&auto=webp&s=e0d004b11b2107862d59e237ab66fb6f577fc460

https://www.reddit.com/r/IntelligenceScaling/s/BQAh20SLWq

https://villainsfanon.fandom.com/wiki/Fluixon

TENETS

be polite and chill
scaling is not that serious don't get heated

be in good faith no toxicity allowed

focus on your favs

A guide on categories used in the scaling and distribution in who' outsmarts / who's smarter etc

(see check comments reddit is flagging the post due to the links)

SCD scaling categories

II. SCD scaling Categories

Detailed Explanation Of SCD Categories

DAX PMFT'S SCALING GUIDE (including explanation of diffs and pre made distribution system**)

Dax's scaling model explained

^((categories =/= characterize. That's why situations & scenarios are included where characters are placed sometimes, though it requires knowing the characterization and personality.)

^(advice - don't give certain takes on something you don't know about, and avoid absolute certainty, as there is no such thing, especially in fiction.)

^(However, remember this quote: "Who decided that smart people are categorically superior?" (quote from one series))

^(remember to know what kind of character type (planner, XYZ merchants , behind the curtain)  ^(it is; some characters thrive in the long game/term only))

Frequent used distribution system

• ~Check rows sections in this doc

feel free to create your own dist also

Explanation of "DIFFS ,"DIFFED"  and "TIERS":

^(note: no low diff and neg diff are possible unless there's a 3-tier gap, but at that point you're using a spite matchup)

Diffs - characters wins by points in matchup

Diffed - other character loss by points in matchup

>^((+)- Implies the difficulty could be higher than what is estimated.)
^((-)) ^(- Implies the difficulty could be lower than what is estimated.)

check dax labelled link docs for more info

~ A Beginners Guide to Tiers: What they mean and what the defining characteristics between tiers are

^(* tiers are arbitrary. there are times when a character cannot be placed into a tier for various reasons, such as differences, etc.)

^(*for that, tiers are relative and exist in correlation with a specific thing. however, having an idea of F to S+ and low to top-tier comparisons gives a general framework to map things and establish a general consensus.)

Scaling system ,situations etc

^(Explanation and role of)  ^(narrative) ^(,) ^(feats) ^(and) ^(anti-feats) ^(in the scaling and matchup)

Feats : Things and notable actions the character implicitly or explicitly demonstrated/accomplished.

Anti-feats : blunders by characters . two types - impediment or non impediment

Statements: Explicit claims regarding a character's intelligence, abilities, accomplishments, reputation, or capabilities.

Statements should be considered alongside their context, reliability, and consistency with the character's actual portrayal.

Methods/Processes:   "how " a character/feat achieves a result. it's about the pathology of the formulation and the steps of the feat rather than just the outcome

Narrative: The broader portrayal of a character through the story.

Narrative should be properly read and discerned rather than treated as an automatic substitute for feats. It can include recurring portrayal, characterization, comparisons, thematic framing, consistency, and the character's established role within the story.

Narrative isn't some magical excuse to scale a character higher than their feats, nor is it something that should automatically be dismissed because it isn't a direct feat.

^(*narrative word is literally the bogeyman for scaling/scalers for some reason. like read properly and discern)

READ .THE NARRATIVE. PROPERLY.

also narrative is called story-wise.

Ability: What the character is capable of doing, demonstrated or established through feats, methods/processes, statements, narrative, etc.

ability is not necessarily the same as what a character consistently performs in every situation.

if only methods and feats are taken into account  then it's proven ability aka establish ability basically a rigorous way of judging ability expecting to to work consistently.

Outsmarting Situations:The specific circumstances in which a character's intelligence is being tested.

SCALING SYSTEM:

^(word of advice - don't scale any fear/character in isolation & independence  ; scale rather taking account of continuity and sequence of events. ask "is the character doing something logical to their past, character and environment or not?")

normal scaling (default system): taking everything into account, including anti-feats, feats, abilities, methods etc.

note: normal =/= narrative

non normal scaling  :

• stop scaling - only explicit, explainable feats with steps/steps that can be derived
• pure methodology - significant focus on rigour and steps
• methodology scaling - focus on the process/method of a feat, either implicit or explicit

(other methods are mostly neurodivergent or neurotic)

normal + non-normal scaling:

1. Complete Scaling Method
2. Dynamic Gauntlet system
3. any scaling that measures a character holistically

(except any scaling that invalidates a character for any reason, including "objectivity")

OUTSMARTING SITUATIONS:

The Fixed Situation (FS) - fixed rules and variables

The Non-Fixed Situation (NFS) - non-fixed rules and variables

The Cat and Mouse Chase Situation(C&M)

• as the cat(: cat)
• as the rat(:rat)

Reference Series

These series are mostly familiar within SCD on a broad and overall level. They make up a lot of the commonly used reading/scaling material in SCD. The main reference pool is Classroom of the elite, Tomodachi Game, Death Note (the big three ), Liar Game, Usogui, and Monster, while Code Geass, The Mentalist, and Danganronpa are used more occasionally or as supplementary references.

The reference pool and its series have characters across many different tiers and levels, making them useful for comparing and scaling characters against each other.

Familiarity here generally means broad knowledge of the series and its SCD-relevant material, rather than knowing every feat or interpretation in depth.

Reasons why I'm referring to TG, COTE, and DN  as the  big three are:

First, popularity and starters of SCD.

Second, all three are digestible and diegetic. COTE has digestible and diegetic hierarchy & dynamic of smart characters, TG has digestible and diegetic games & mind games, and DN has diegetic and digestible opposition and difficulty.

In other words, these series don't just have characters who are called smart. Their stories diegetically demonstrate and establish intelligence through games, conflicts, hierarchies, opposition, strategies, and interactions between characters.

This makes TG, COTE, and DN useful starting points for newer people to center themselves around when learning SCD. They provide recognizable examples of different types of intelligence and outsmarting while also giving people material that can be directly examined and scaled.

Plus, most people already have a general understanding of these series and characters, making it easier to learn by “osmosis” — you don't necessarily need to read the entire series yourself to have a basic understanding of the characters, their feats, and their general scaling.

This doesn't mean these three series are inherently superior to everything else. They're being used primarily because of their popularity, familiarity, diegetic material, and usefulness as reference points.

USEFUL THINGS

One useful thing you can make for SCD is a 3×3 grid showing a character’s strongest categories or suits. You can make one easily by using any 3×3 grid template in Canva and replacing the images with your own. Alternatively, you can attach nine images to Gemini or ChatGPT, provide the nine categories you want represented, and ask it to arrange them into a 3×3 grid.

For fanart, Pinterest is a convenient place to find images. Simply search for the character you want and save a piece of art that fits your edit. Safebooru is another useful alternative for finding character artwork. Always credit and source the artist when using someone else’s artwork.

For tier lists, you can use any tier-list-making site, or use the SCD-specific TierMaker template.

Finally, pixel conversion is completely optional and is mainly useful for aesthetics. You can convert an image into a pixel-art style using the Sora Pixel Converter.

Feats:

Anti-feats:

Statements:

Methods/Processes:

Narrative:

Proven ability/Ability:

outsmarting Situations:

Scale/Scaling: (The standard powerscaling definition can be used, but I'm curious about your interpretations.)

Win Cons:

Miscellaneous

What is your opinion on the role of hax?

How should theories and interpretations be treated?

Especially for characters who rely heavily on theories or interpretations during their engagement, like the protagonist from Tenet.

we yes ,we

know Kushida slays Comp Dazai🙏🗣️🔥🔥

(low effort joke/meme post)

comment of this edit

in saps position