The world of Demon Slayer is one shrouded in the terror of man-eating demons who have even more terrifying specialized powers that can melt skin from bone, but its true emotional weight lies in the pasts of the humans who fight against them. Every member of the Demon Slayer Corps, and even a surprising number of demons, carries a devastating history of loss, pain, and unimaginable tragedy that fuels their resolve to set their hearts ablaze. These harrowing pasts shape their identities, abilities, and moral compasses, turning their personal unimaginable pain into the strength needed to protect the innocent. Their journeys are not just about slaying demons; they are deeply moving full character arcs of enduring trauma, seeking justice, and finding purpose in a harsh, brutal world.
The weight of each character’s suffering is a constant presence looming over every moment they are on screen, making their sacrifices and victories all the more meaningful.
Warning: this article contains massive spoilers for Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and the manga.
10) Tanjiro & Nezuko Kamado
The Kamado family’s peaceful life as charcoal sellers was brutally shattered when Muzan Kibutsuji, the Demon King, attacked and seemingly murdered everyone except Tanjiro, who was gone overnight. Tanjiro returned home the next morning to find his entire family massacred, except for his younger sister, Nezuko. However, Tanjiro was unaware that the Nezuko he knew had been transformed into a demon. This single, horrific event upended his world, forcing the kind-hearted boy to take on the solemn, desperate mission of finding a cure for Nezuko and avenging his loved ones.
Their joint tragedy is the core of the entire story. Tanjiro’s unwavering love and fierce protection of Nezuko, even in her demonic state, and Nezuko fighting alongside her brother as a demon who kills demons, is the heart Demon Slayer. Tanjiro’s grief is tempered by a remarkable empathy and his devotion to Nezuko, turning his personal agony into a selfless desire to understand and protect others who have suffered at the hands of demons.
9) Obanai Iguro
Born into a cruel, isolated clan that sacrificed its members to a snake-like demon for wealth, Obanai spent his early life imprisoned and tormented, though ironically revered as the first boy born into the clan in centuries. Obanai was terrorized nightly by the snake demon, causing the young boy to grow up in unimaginable fear. When the snake demon demanded it, Obanai’s mouth was slit on each side to make his appearance more serpent-like. His only friend was a tiny white snake—Kaburamaru—who remained with him the rest of Obanai’s life. When he realized the demon’s ultimate goal was to eat him once he was bigger, Obanai was eventually able to escape his cage and ran away, with the demon in pursuit. He was saved by the then Flame Hashira, Shinjuro Rengoku—Kyojuro Rengoku’s father—who sensed the demon and arrived to slay it.
Obanai suffered with deep feelings of impurity due to his facial scars, wearing bandages over his lower face to hide the physical representation of his past torture that haunts him. He throws himself into his duty as a Hashira, hoping to cleanse the “filth” of his family and himself through relentless demon slaying. His intense, desperate loyalty to the Corps and his love for Mitsuri are the only two anchors in a life defined by generational darkness.
8) Sanemi & Genya Shinazugawa
As children, Genya and Sanemi (the Wind Hashira) were two of eight Shinazugawa siblings. Their father was an abusive alcoholic who abandoned the family, leaving their kind-hearted mother to work tirelessly to provide for her children. However, the brothers suffered an unimaginable loss when their mother was turned into a demon and killed most of their siblings. Sanemi, forced to battle their mother until daylight to save his siblings, returned home to find only Genya had survived. Genya, young and traumatized by the attack and the bodies of his dead siblings surrounding him, rejected Sanemi and branded his older brother as a murderer, not understanding the truth of what had really happened and that the demon Sanemi was forced to slay was their mother.
This misunderstanding permanently fractured their bond, leaving a vast rift between the two brothers that both—especially Sanemi—were not willing to repair. Sanemi dedicated his life to demon slaying, hardening his heart, and pushing Genya away to protect him from the dangerous life of a Demon Slayer. Genya, seeking his brother’s approval and validation after realizing the mistake he had made as a child, pursued the same path, though he was unable to use any breathing techniques. Despite this setback, Genya persevered, even though Sanemi consistently berated him, figuring out alternative ways of fighting demons, such as his unique ability to consume demon flesh and temporarily gain their powers. Genya and Sanemi’s distant relationship is defined by unspoken love, devastating regret, and a terribly tragic ending in the final fight against Muzan.
7) Kanao Tsuyuri
As a small child, Kanao was subjected to unimaginable poverty and continuous unspeakable abuse by her parents, causing her to snap and have a complete mental breakdown at such a tender age. Kanao became emotionally broken and unable to speak or make decisions for herself, as she had essentially become a husk of a girl. She was eventually sold into slavery, but remained completely devoid of any will or feeling. During her time as a slave, she was bound and dragged around her slaver like an animal. She was never bathed or cared for as a human being, wearing tattered clothing covered in grime.
She was saved from this brutal existence by Kanae and Shinobu Kocho, who adopted her. Shinobu voiced doubts about Kanae’s decision to take Kanao in, as Kanao’s trauma was so deep that she could barely move. Kanae reassured her sister and Kanao, giving her a coin to flip as a tool to learn to make decisions. Her backstory is a powerful testament to the crippling effects of extreme neglect and the long, difficult path to reclaiming one’s own heart and agency.
6) Giyuu Tomioka
Water Hashira, Giyuu Tomioka, lost his older sister, Tsutako, on the day before her wedding when she sacrificed herself to save him from a demon. This early loss left Giyuu with overwhelming guilt that she traded her happiness for his life. Soon after, he was taken in by retired Water Hashira, Sakonji Urokodaki, along with another orphaned boy the same age as Giyuu named Sabito. During Final Selection, Sabito—the one who Giyuu believed was the more talented of the two and worthy of taking up their master’s place as Water Hashira—died protecting him and the other recruits.
These two defining losses left Giyuu with an immeasurable amount of survivor’s guilt, reflected in the unique design of his haori that he made with half of his sister’s haori and half of Sabito’s. Though he did eventually succeed Urokodaki, Giyuu doubted his worth as a Demon Slayer and a Hashira, believing he did not deserve the honor that was meant for Sabito and hoping Tanjiro would take his place. Giyuu’s dark mood and isolationist tendencies are reflections of the weight of the lives sacrificed for his own. In Giyuu’s mind, being distant and alone is a shield against the pain of a life marked by the sudden, violent loss of his loved ones.
5) Gyomei Himejima
The Stone Hashira, Gyomei Himejima, is the biggest and arguably strongest/deadliest out of the entire group. However, he is a gentle and caring soul who lived as a caretaker for nine orphaned children in a temple in his youth. His life was shattered one night when one of the children broke a rule and extinguished the wisteria that kept them safe, letting a demon into the temple. This act led to a brutal massacre, with Gyomei fighting the demon throughout the night until the sun rose, causing the demon to disintegrate. Only Gyomei and one small girl survived.
Tragically, the surviving girl was panicked and confused after the night of intense trauma and fear, and falsely accused Gyomei of the gruesome murders the demon had committed. Gyomei was imprisoned for her perceived crimes until he was exonerated by Kagaya Ubuyashiki and taken under his wing to train as a demon slayer. The truth of Gyomei’s physical and emotional strength is rooted in that one tragic night and the loss of his innocent family.
4) Muichiro Tokito
Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, and his twin brother, Yuichiro, were orphaned at a young age and lived in complete isolation, fending for themselves in their parentless house. Yuichiro was the harsher of the two, pushing Muichiro’s survival instincts. The two were frequently visited by Amane Ubuyashiki, wife of Kagaya Ubuyashiki—head of the Demon Slayer Corps, who invited the twins to leave their lonely mountain to live at the Ubuyashiki residence nearby. Before the twins could act on the offer, a demon attacked in the middle of the night. Yuichiro was fatally wounded while trying to protect his brother, and Muichiro was left grievously injured and emotionally devastated.
Amane found the twins after the attack and rescued Muichiro, who eventually proved to be a prodigy with a sword, becoming a Hashira in only 2 months at 14 years old; a feat that normally took Demon Slayers years to achieve. The trauma of his beloved twin brother’s death and his own near-death experience caused Muichiro to develop complete amnesia, adopting a calm and detached persona. He forgot not only his family and his past but also his own identity, as his mind desperately tried to shield him from the crushing pain of his twin’s sacrifice. However, his memories resurfaced during the Swordsmith Village arc thanks to Tanjiro, allowing Muichiro to recover all that was lost and bringing him back to the person he was before the demon attack.
3) Tengen Uzui
Tengen Uzui, the Sound Hashira, was born into a family of shinobi where his brutal father forced Tengen and his brother to undergo extreme, inhumane training to turn them into emotionless weapons. His father blindfolded each of the boys and made them battle to the death, using their skills as shinobi in the ultimate test of survival. Tengen unknowingly killed two of his brothers, and out of nine siblings, only Tengen and one younger brother survived the training, leaving Tengen with crushing guilt that re-shaped his philosophy on how he wanted to live.
Tengen rejected his father’s cruelty and abandoned his clan with his three wives to join the Demon Slayer Corps. His obsession with being flashy stemmed from his traumatic past, as he wanted to live life to the fullest after a childhood filled with death and destruction. Unlike the cruel teachings his father tried to impart, Tengen instructed his wives to always prioritize themselves in a survival situation and focused on their happiness, proving to be a man with great respect for the lives of his loved ones.
2) Yoriichi Tsugikuni
Yoriichi was born a twin in an era where twins were considered a curse. Though his father wanted to kill him at birth, his mother convinced him to allow Yoriichi to live so he could be sent to a temple upon reaching 12 years old. This agreement meant Yoriichi was raised alone in a separate house from his parents and twin brother, Michikatsu, upon whom his father doted. However, Yoriichi proved to be a prodigy in swordsmanship, as he was born with the sun-breathing technique and a demon slayer mark. Yoriichi soon eclipsed Michikatsu in their father’s eyes, leading to a deep-seated jealousy on Michikatsu’s side. As originally negotiated, Yoriichi left his family at the age of 12, but only because his father intended to send Michikatsu away in his place, as Yoriichi’s talent was unmatched.
He wandered for years with his only true happiness eventually being found in the form of his beloved wife, Uta, and their unborn child. However, while Yoriichi was in town, his wife and child were tragically killed by a demon. This terrible loss drove him to become a Demon Slayer with all breathing techniques originating from his sun breathing form. Michikatsu joined him but chose to abandon the Corps to become more powerful than his twin, becoming Upper Rank 1, Kokushibo. Yoriichi’s failure to save his twin or kill Muzan Kibutsuji led to his eventual isolation and pursuit of a peace he could never attain.
1) Shinobu Kocho
Shinobu and her older sister, Kanae, witnessed their parents brutally murdered by demons at a young age. This horrific event inspired the pair to join the Demon Slayer Corps. Kanae eventually rose through the ranks, becoming the Flower Hashira, and constantly worked to maintain a hopeful outlook and keep a smile on Shinobu’s face. The shattering moment of Shinobu’s life came with the death of her sister, who was fatally wounded by Upper Rank 2, Doma. Consumed by grief and a burning need for vengeance, Shinobu adopted the gentle smile her sister always loved, masking a fierce, self-destructive rage.
After Kanae’s death, Shinobu had one goal: to destroy Doma. However, as her small frame made her too weak to decapitate a demon, Shinobu hatched a secret plan to ingest small amounts of poison for years, essentially turning her entire body a deadly weapon against demons. Knowing her final battle would be a losing physical fight against Doma and that he would kill and absorb her, Shinobu’s sacrifice brought about Doma’s death by poisoning, allowing her to avenge her sister and achieve her ultimate goal at the cost of her life.
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