Anime Characters With Nullification Powers

I’m sure we all have our own favourite super hero characters simply because of the awesome powers they hold. Be it the typical superhuman strength, speed, x-ray visions, energy projections and to those more sophisticated like telekinesis, telepathy, clairvoyance and self-healing, these characters with such powers never cease to amaze us. But how about those characters that don’t have a single power to their name and yet be heroes? Well, technically they seem that they don’t have powers but their power isn’t having any such powers of such sort. Confused?

What I’m talking about are characters who possess nullification powers. That’s right. Of all the powers that we people would love to have, in my opinion the powers to nullify and negate other powers must be the most underrated one. Sure, these characters may not have other cool powers but their ability to neutralize the power of the others makes them a class of their own. You can bet that they are ‘safe’ from any dangerous huge spells and thus in a way make them the ‘untouchables’. So here are the few anime characters with nullification powers that I know of:

Mikan Sakura (Gakuen Alice)

The first anime character that I know that holds this power. In a world where magic powers are known as Alice, of all the cool Alices that she might think she would have, it had to be a Nullification Alice for the 10 year old optimistic, cheerful and good-natured girl. One of the few rare Alices, her power temporarily cancels out other Alices that are in close proximity with her. She first discovered this power of hers when she unknowingly cancels out Natsume’s flames from burning her to death. Initially she was unable to control her Alice causing it to be unstable. But as time goes by, she is able to control and utilize her Alice to its full effect with the help of her friends.

Touma Kamijou (To Aru Majutsu No Index)

Probably the most famous character with nullifying powers. In a world where science and magic constantly clash, Touma’s right hand is known as the Imagine Breaker which allows anything to be neutralized, negated or nullified at the mere touch. And I mean just about anything that is magic, psychic or divine powers. This means that he also constantly cancels out his own good luck and thus his favourite phrase of being the unluckiest guy in the world. First seen when he neutralizes Index’s Walking Church clothes, tearing apart every bit of it leaving her stark naked. A point to ponder: If it is able to cancel his good luck, shouldn’t it sometimes cancel out his bad luck too?

Yuka Minase (11eyes)

Each of the Fragments that are drawn into the Red Night possesses a particular power. Yuka’s nullification power is not known till halfway through the series whereby her screams of despair causes nullifying shockwaves not only towards the enemies but her comrades as well. She is able to unleash this power whenever she sees her loved one (especially Kakeru) in absolute danger. Each time she uses this power, she will fall into an unconscious state. It’s just too bad that she could nullify powers but not her own mental state.

Oboro (Basilisk)

As the descendant and current leader of the Iga Clan, what she lacks in the area of martial arts or ninjutsu techniques, she makes up for her Mystic Eyes that she is born with that neutralizes any sort of ninjutsu to the bearer who looks directly into it. Engaged to the leader of the opposing Kouga Clan, Gennosuke, she is completely torn between her love for him and her duties of her clan and the current war between both sides complicate matters. She used the Seven Days of Darkness potion to temporarily seal her eyes because she fear that she would use her powers against her own clan if she ever saw them attack Gennosuke.

Asuna Kagurazaka (Mahou Sensei Negima)

Her nullification powers are revealed via a trip back in time. In fact, when Asuna was young, she had very strong magical powers. So strong that she could burn down the entire village even if she didn’t want to. In order to ‘distance herself from all kinds of magic’, she made a contract with the demons and thus any magic or spells that come into contact with her will be negated. In exchange for this, she only has 10 years to live. So for all the crazy antics in school like love potion madness or magic fights with Evangeline, now you know why they have no effect on her.

Jeremiah Gottwald (Code Geass: Lelouch Of The Rebellion R2)

A fallen Britannia Knightmare Frame pilot after a fake plot by Zero to save Suzaku. In the second season, he receives a mask piece which is suited in his cybernetic left eye called Geass Canceller that is able to nullify all Geass effects. Unlike other Geass users, Jeremiah does not need to look directly into the eye of his victims in order for it to take effect and just needs to be in a reasonable radius. In turn, the Geass Canceller also works as a shield as it protects him from the effects of other Geass being used upon him.

Yuka Suzuki (Fairy Tail)

It was hard for me to decide whether to list him under here. You see, Suzuki’s power is to nullify other wizards’ powers via projecting nullification waves. He can also throw these waves around and create a barrier as a shield. So technically that is some sort of magic itself, right? No? Confused? Anyway the drawback of using this nullification power of his is that though any powers within the radius sphere of this wave will be cancelled out, powers can still be used from the outside to help objects that are inside the sphere. Get it?

Nothing more, nothing less…
This list isn’t meant to be exclusive as there may be much more other power nullifying characters out there that I am not aware. Hmm… Maybe their powers nullified my memories when I first got to know them. Anyway there are some characters which I feel do not qualify to be put into this list. For instance, Marshal Teach AKA Blackbeard from One Piece. He has this Yami-yami Devil Fruit which gives him the power of darkness. Technically it may seem on the surface that it cancels out all other powers but in actual fact what it really does is that it absorbs other powers. You know, nothing can escape the darkness, the Black Hole. Not even light. As for Suzumiya Haruhi No Yuutsu‘s Yuki Nagato, I feel that her ability to nullify data links is actually just a part of her complicated high skill level that we average humans can’t comprehend. So that’s why it seems like she is able to cancel artificial interface connections.

So remember that even if you don’t have other cool magic effects to begin with, picking a bone with power nullifying characters means that you too will be as ‘hopeless’ as them. Now that is what I call a fair chance and on equal footing. In other words, what a “turn off”. Having such powers is nothing to be ashamed of and definitely it is not a useless power. So technically if with great powers come great responsibilities, would it mean that if you have none, you don’t have to shoulder any? And if there are too many power negations, would this nullifying effect be cancelled out too? Argh! Too much of this nullifying talk has nullified my brain cells already.