This article contains spoilers for Black Clover chapter 336!
Yuno just made a stunning admission that changes the entire dynamic of his relationship with Asta in Black Clover, saying that Asta's death finally makes it possible for Yuno to surpass him and become the Wizard King. Asta has always seen Yuno as superior, so the reveal that Yuno has the opposite perspective is a startling revelation.
So far, Black Clover has depicted Asta as struggling to surpass Yuno, but it turns out that was only one side of the story. The other half is hard-won, only being exposed on Asta's apparent death. After the villain Lucius Zogratis manipulated her soul, Sister Lily seemingly killed Asta, whose goal has long been to become the most powerful mage in the Clover Kingdom. It's a goal that it seemed no-one believed him capable of, but now it turns out that Yuno secretly perceived Asta totally differently than fans knew.
When Yuno hears the news that Asta is dead in chapter 336 of Black Clover by mangaka Yūki Tabata, the child prodigy and prince says that he always considered Asta to be the one ahead of him. He then continues, saying that if Asta is indeed dead, then he will finally surpass him, take out Lucius Zogratis and become the Wizard King.
From the very beginning, Yuno has always appeared to be a great many steps ahead of Asta. During the Grimoire Acceptance Ceremony in Hage village, not only did Asta fail to receive a grimoire, but Yuno received the coveted four-leaf clover, even becoming the owner of a second grimoire hundreds of chapters later. In addition to Yuno having the ability to wield the rare Spirit Magic, a spirit chose him as her host, which is considered divine protection and proof of strength. Then there are the many times in which Yuno has ascended to high positions of rank much quicker than Asta. In fact, when Asta was recently awarded the title of Senior Magic Knight, First Class, this impressive accomplishment was overshadowed by the fact that Yuno had already become Grand Magic Knight.
Even though Asta had already won an impressive number of fights against incredibly powerful opponents, Black Clover offered only a few hints at how much of an influence Asta was on Yuno's life as a mage. In Yuno's battle against Dark Triad member Zenon in chapter 308, the only thing that gets Yuno back to his feet is the promise he made to Asta. Yuno also received a shock during his later battle with Lucifero upon learning how insignificant he was in comparison to the King of Devils, and how Asta was the only one who could defeat the supreme devil.
While Black Clover is already indicating Asta isn't actually dead, the reveal of Yuno's perspective is still a major twist, and one that sheds light on his own goals going forwards. Readers will never be able to look at Yuno and his relationship with Asta the same way again, especially when the two reunite later in Black Clover's story.
Black Clover chapter 336 is available to read now from Viz Media.