Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle has been taking over theaters around the United States since it premiered over the weekend, and the film goes the extra mile with the heartbreaking origin of one of the anime’s biggest villains. Demon Slayer has officially sparked a new trilogy of feature films adapting the massive Infinity Castle arc from Koyoharu Gotoge’s original manga series, and with it fans have started the final fights between the surviving Demon Slayers and Muzan Kibutsuji’s demonic army. It means there will be some major losses on both sides, and they’ll all be heartbreaking for one reason or another.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle brings the franchise back to the big screen with the first of these major fights going down, and Akaza is back in the spotlight as the Upper Three is now facing off against Tanjiro Kamado and Giyu Tomioka. With the end of their fight comes a big reveal about Akaza’s past that really takes fans by surprise, and it is a truly heartbreaking one when compared to many of the other flashbacks we have seen throughout the franchise up to this point. Warning! Major spoilers for Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle below!
Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Shows Akaza’s Heartbreaking Origin
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle showcases three main fights across the first film in the trilogy, but Akaza was definitely the highest profile of the three. The Upper Three last made his mark on the franchise in the fight against Kyojuro Rengoku in the Mugen Train film, so Tanjiro has been anxious for this rematch. It turns out it’s the same on Akaza’s end as Tanjiro reminds the demon of someone from his past that he can’t quite fully make out fully at first.
As Akaza continues to fight against Tanjiro and is even on the brink of death, the demon realizes that Tanjiro has the same kind of personality that his master once had. When Akaza himself is defeated, he fully remembers his life as a human and remembers his life with Keizo. Voiced by Channing Tatum in the English dub release of the film, Keizo was the one who had initially taken in Akaza and taught him how to fight. And in their time together, the two had become very close as Akaza finally had some hope in his life for once.
Why Akaza’s Origin Is So Heartbreaking
It’s not just Keizo that we see in Akaza’s past, however, as it’s also revealed that his master had a young daughter named Koyuki who was very ill. Keizo was hoping that the young Akaza could keep an eye on his daughter, and Akaza and Koyuki ended up bonding with one another over that time. A love even sparked between them and Akaza was ready for a bright future. But Keizo and Koyuki were poisoned by a jealous rival dojo, and Akaza was left alone once more.
After losing his father as a child, Akaza already had a poor outlook on the world as he found it unfair. But with these deaths, he fully unleashed his violent side and killed everyone in that violent dojo. He was almost put to death himself, but was found by Muzan instead and turned into a demon. He had been fighting for centuries to try and gain strength, but only in his final moments did Akaza realize that he initially sought strength to protect his loved ones. It’s a heartbreaking origin that truly came full circle.
