Warning! Massive spoilers for Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle to follow! Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle has finally made its way to North America after releasing in Japan earlier this Summer, and with it has killed off some major characters as it makes through this massive film trilogy. The new film officially starts the anime’s adaptation of the massive Infinity Castle arc from Koyoharu Gotoge’s original manga, and with it pits Tanjiro Kamado and the surviving Demon Slayers against Muzan Kibutsuji’s terrifying demon army. And there was no guarantee that everyone would survive through the night.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’s entire Infinity Castle trilogy will be taking place over the course of a single evening, and fans will be treated to all kinds of intense fights before it’s all over. The first film kicks this off with some truly major fights that fans have been waiting to see in action, but this also means there are many winners and losers through these fights. With five notable deaths in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle alone, below is a ranking of how much impact each of the deaths have on the story and fan reactions.
5.) Kaigaku
One of the key fights within Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle is between Zenitsu Agatsuma and the mysterious Kaigaku. Revealed to be the name of the former Lightning Breathing student who was studying alongside Zenitsu, Kaigaku had decided to become a demon as he was angered over the fact that he and Zenitsu were supposed to both carry on the Lightning Breathing Style. Kaigaku felt like he was the superior one, and thought the suggestion of sharing the style’s future together with Zenitsu was an insult. Thus he gained the abilities of a demon and was intended to become the new Upper Six, replacing Gyutaro.
A demon who also had the ability to wield a breathing style, he had a lot of abilities that were beyond Zenitsu, but was ultimately defeated in their fight. It was claimed that Kaigaku had not been a demon long enough to truly grasp his power, and Zenitsu was able to take him out before Kaigaku became even more dangerous (and thus get revenge for his fallen grandfather). But in terms of deaths fans will care about, this is certainly much lower on the list than the others.
4.) He comes
One of the other major fights headlining the film was between Akaza and Giyu and Tanjiro. This was the first fight that was revealed for the new film, and has been prominently placed as the one that gets the most focus of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle overall. It’s with good reason, however, as Akaza is one of the key Upper Ranks that Tanjiro has been trying to get back at after the demon had defeated Kyojuro Rengoku during the events of the Mugen Train arc. And Giyu and Tanjiro really worked for this one.
Akaza was ultimately defeated with a combination of their teamwork, and the fact that Tanjiro was able to reach a new ability. Unlocking the “Transparent World” allowed Tanjiro to fight on the same playing field that Akaza had been on this whole time, and this meant that he was able to cut off Akaza’s head as a result. But Akaza ended up being the one to completely take himself out of the equation as his memories of being a human were influential enough to get him to realize that he no longer wanted to live on as a demon.
3.) Diika
Through Akaza’s flashback, fans are also introduced to two other key characters who meet an unfortunate fate. The first is Keizo, who Akaza is reminded of thanks to his similarities with Tanjiro. Voiced by Avengers: Doomsday star Channing Tatum in the English dub release, Keizo is revealed to be the one who taught Akaza (who went by the name Hakuji as a human) to fight in the first place. Akaza had been living a terrible life to that point as he was branded as a criminal when trying to steal food and money to pay for his sick father’s medicine, but Keizo ultimately say his potential and took him in.
In living together with Keizo, Akaza starts to dream of a better future. Keizo wants him to eventually take over the dojo someday and it seems like this is going to be the case. Only for Akaza to see one day that Keizo had been poisoned by a rival dojo that had been after the property. It’s one of the heartbreaking deaths that set Akaza out towards his terrible demonic path, and one that Akaza did not remember until he was on death’s door himself.
2.) Koyuki
But the real tragic part of Akaza’s past was Koyuki. Introduced as Keizo’s daugher, Akaza was originally recruited in the first place to help care for her. She had been fighting an illness that was looking worse by the day, but Akaza refused to leave her side and filled her with all kinds of hope for the future. It’s something she even references to him later and reveals that because he never looked down on her, Koyuki was able to eventually reach a much better level of help. She never gave up on herself.
Akaza and Koyuki were actually slated to be married as Koyuki fell in love with him, so Akaza left the dojo for a few days to visit his father’s grave and tell him the news. But when he returns he sees that not only did Keizo did from the poisoned water from a rival dojo, but Koyuki died as well. It’s such a heartbreaking loss that Akaza was sent on his violent demonic path, and only seeing her as he approached death brought Akaza some much needed peace and closure after so many years. But it’s still not as heartbreaking of a moment as the final death in the film.
1.) Shinobu
The third of the key fights outlined in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle was between Shinobu Kocho and the Upper Two, Doma. This was the most unbalanced fight of the film, and saw Shinobu quickly enter her fight with Doma without any hesitation. She new she was not going to be strong enough to cut off Doma’s head, but hoped that her poisons would be enough to balance the scales a bit. Unfortunately, that’s not revealed to be the case as it’s not long before Doma kills her. Making matters even more heartbreaking, Doma absorbs her body into his own.
Kanao happens to see it go down, and it kicks off what is likely going to be their major fight coming in the next film in the trilogy. But this is the most heartbreaking death in the film by far as not only has Shinobu been an important Hashira, she was also big in Tanjiro and the others’ lives as well. The film revealed that Doma was ultimately also the demon that killed her big sister, and Shinobu was trying to get revenge. She’s failed for now, so we’ll have to see how the fight with Doma continues in the next two films.
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