Arifureta fans couldn’t be more thrilled with the return of their favourite dual gun-wielding, merciless and snarky anti-hero, Hajime Nagumo.
Even though we’re only two episodes into the new season, we’ve got war brewing on the horizon and Hajime seemingly in dire straits after being blasted by a strange beam.
But web novel fans know that his story is far from over as he rises to become the series strongest character besting humans, monsters and demons alike.
While an ever-increasing body count left in the wake of his wrath and cruelty are a testament to unlimited power, we do wonder- How strong is he?
Hajime’s strength is shown to surpass the fake heroes, demons, monsters of the seven Labyrinths, the most powerful Apostle Noint, Ehit’s retainer Alva and even the fake god himself!
How Strong is Nagumo?
Like every isekai protagonist, Hajime Nagumo had humble beginnings. Starting as a shy and naive otaku with only a heart of gold to boast, he soon found himself in the depths of the Orcus Labyrinth, struggling to survive amidst its gruesome monsters.
And to make matters worse, he had only the basic skills of a measly Level 2 Synergist. After losing an arm and almost succumbing to the pain of starvation and dehydration, Nagumo snapped.
Replacing his once kind-hearted and soft-spoken persona was a ruthless, raging beast pumped to the brim with the will to survive no matter the cost.
After dining on monster meat, his body transformed from its less than stellar physique to a muscular hunk. However, he had to endure severe pain due to the constant breakdown and regeneration of his body resulting from the adverse effects of the monster meat and healing properties of the Ambrosia.
Once his ordeal was over, he noticed that his stats had skyrocketed, instantly taking him to Level 8 with the addition of a multitude of unique abilities.
1. Nagumo Strengths
Nagumo’s diet of demonic monsters mutated him into an absolute beast of a hybrid with strength, speed and durability, rivalling that of Kouki, the most robust ‘Hero’, Knights of the Holy Church and Freid Bagwa’s demon army.
While his basic stats increased exponentially, he also developed the rare abilities of Mana Manipulation and Iron Stomach.
While the former allowed him to use mana without the need for magic circles, the latter made it possible for him to continue consuming monster flesh without its harmful effects, even levelling him up with every new species he ate.
Additionally, his sensory perception got a considerable boost, essentially turning into a monster tracker as he could pinpoint Myu’s location deep in the sewers from the surface.
Besides having an arsenal of superhuman abilities, he is an excellent craftsman and gunsmith. Honing his transmutation magic and using his newly found ore appraisal skill, he successfully brought modern weaponry to Tortus by fashioning his first gun, Donner.
His exceptional marksmanship complements his craftsmanship, which birthed an entirely new form of combat style called Gun – Kata.
He also made us otakus proud when he engineered the Steiff motorcycle, the Brise pickup truck, a submarine and the most impressive Fenrir airship from the knowledge he gained reading his favourite anime and manga.
And to top it all off, he became a brilliant battle tactician and strategist, often predicting a battle long before it starts, as seen in his fight against Noint and Ehit.
However, his immense power was also matched by his intense cruelty. Going to the extreme of the ‘once bitten twice shy’ motto, he leaves no loose ends and nothing to chance.
Torture, harassment, manslaughter, mass murder and an endless list of horrific violent crimes are all a means to end that he’s perfectly comfortable with. So much so that he even has 108 harassment styles on standby.
While these are the most prominent of his abilities, here are some honorary mentions – Map designing, hand to hand combat, stealth, rigorous training methods that transformed Shea’s village of lovable rabbit Beastmen into lethal assassins.
And just when we thought Hajime couldn’t get any more OP, he’s got magical abilities. While not on par with Yue’s, his Creation Magic catapults his transmutation skills to a whole new level, allowing him an unlimited supply of minerals of any kind and even crafting Artifacts imbibed with the other Ancient Magics.
Even the author, Shirakome, acknowledged Hajime’s unparalleled power when updates of his stats and levels stopped after gaining Evolution Magic from the Haltina Labyrinth. This shows that getting Hajime’s wrong side would be a fatal mistake.
2. How Strong is he Compared to the Liberators?
The Liberators were wielders of the ‘Age of God’ Ancient Magics falsely accused of being heretics after failing to reveal Ehit’s evil nature.
They were forced to seal themselves away in Labyrinths, waiting for the right candidate to bestow their knowledge and magic upon.
While Hajime could clear the maze of its last surviving member Miledi Reisen, he still needed Yue’s magic and Shea’s combat skills to take out Miledi’s Azantium golem. Although his tactical intelligence guided the battle in his favour, he failed to kill her.
But since his encounter with her, his strength and strategic prowess had grown exponentially, which is especially highlighted when he bested both Noint and Alva, despite them being blessed with immense power by Ehit.
Even though his magical affinity isn’t on par with the Liberators, he would still be able to defeat them one on one with his superior battle predicting intellect and techno-magical weaponry.
Will He Live Forever?
It’s no doubt that Hajime reigns supreme as the strongest and undefeated champion of Tortus with his stat breaking levels of power. But, can his unlimited power grant him immortality?
No, his strength alone wouldn’t be sufficient to grant him eternal life. The only person capable of giving it to him would be his wife, Yue.
Since Shirakome loves a harem ending, he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity for a ‘love conquers all’ solution for Hajime.
So, why does Hajime not have what it takes to become immortal? Even though he’s shown to have immense reserves of superhuman abilities and an exceptionally keen sense strategy, his affinity to magic is lacking despite his demon hybrid physiology.
While he acquired Creation, Evolution and Concept Magic, it still wouldn’t be enough to grant him eternal life as Restoration and Spirit Magic is the key to immortality.
While the former can directly interfere with time and negate the effects of ageing, the latter can move a person’s soul to an inanimate object, thus allowing the user to live forever.
Unfortunately, Hajime shows no signs of using either of the two despite his mana manipulation skill, which could technically allow him access to all the Ancient Magics.
However, his Evolution Magic could resolve this by bumping his mana manipulation. But since there is no account of how much mana would be needed, it may backfire on him if his mana resources were depleted significantly.
In the end, Yue would be his saviour. Since she’s a vampire princess and a mystic art prodigy, she boasts the highest affinity to the Ancient Magics compared to all life forms of Tortus.
She could use Restoration and Spirit Magic to increase his life span or even turn him into a vampire using Metamorphosis Magic.
Regardless of her magical abilities, Yue’s possessive love for Hajime would make her do anything to ensure they lived together for the rest of their lives.
Does he Defeat Ehit?
We finally see Hajime and Yue defeat Ehit in Chapter 177 of the web novel, which details the epic three-way battle resulting in the triumph of our beloved power couple over the false god.
Ehit was initially presented as a benevolent god who summoned the “Heroes” from Earth to protect the people of Tortus against the scourge of demons and monsters that inhabited the world.
However, episode 5 of season 1 was a real eye-opener for both the fans and Hajime as Ehit’s true nature and intentions were revealed.
Posing as the realm’s guardian and saviour, Ehit took great pleasure in watching the suffering of humanity through skilfully manipulating constant wars between them and the demons in his “chessboard of life and death.”
While Hajime vowed to steer clear from saving the world from the monstrosity its people worshipped, Ehit wouldn’t allow him to jump ship whenever he wanted.
In addition to orchestrating the conflict between humans, monsters and demons, Ehit only brought the heroes of Earth to add a little spice to his game, never intending to let them leave alive. Thus he became a bothersome yet powerful obstacle to Hajime’s quest.
Upon learning of Hajime’s rising power and knowledge of his true motives, Ehit decided it was time to intervene, hurling everything he had against him – his Apostles, his retainer Alva and the members of the Holy Church.
But all of it proved to be futile as Hajime and his team struck them down.
Fearful after his pawns’ defeat, Ehit eventually possessed Yue to attain the immortality and power he craved and needed to end Hajime.
However, Hajime’s tactical genius, strength and mystical weaponry, coupled with Yue’s powerhouse of magical abilities, finally led to Ehit’s death.
About Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest
Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest is a light novel series by Ryo Shirakoma. It was first published in November 2013 as a novel and received a light novel in 2015. It has several manga adaptations and season 1 of its anime premiered in July 2019.
Hajime Nagumo, an average otaku, is often bullied by his classmates. He wishes for his annoying classmates to be summoned to another world. Little did he know that his wish would come true, and he would be summoned along with them.
To thrive in this new world, he has to face every challenge that comes his way. However, a shocking event will make him a character feared by others.
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