Tear Jerker / Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

Beware Of Spoilers. All spoilers on this page are left unmarked. You Have Been Warned!

Who said demons don't cry?

When it comes to Demon Slayer, you can expect a lot of heartwrenching moments in the series. Whether it be from tragic backstories or a demon's tragic death, Demon Slayer will not hold back on playing with your emotions.

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Final Selection Arc

• No one knows that they may be seeing each other for the last time, but the scene when Tanjiro leaves to go sell wood. He bids goodbye to his family and some of his siblings either want to go with him or cut firewood.
  • It's also sad how we learn from Nezuko that their dad died.
• When Tanjiro returns home the next day, he finds his entire family slaughtered, with Nezuko being the sole survivor.
  • It's even worse when we see some of the older Kamados trying to protect the younger children. Kie was in front of Hanako, Takeo was above Shigeru, and Nezuko had her arm wrapped around Rokuta.
  • And to drive the knife of the blade deeper, Rokuta was only three. Goes to show how even Muzan would go any lengths to turn even children into demons.
• When Nezuko turns into a demon at the beginning of the series, the first thing she does is attack her brother. Tanjiro, who's barely holding her back with the handle of his axe, can only tearfully beg her not to give in and become the bloodthirsty monster all other demons are. And it works, since Nezuko relents... and also starts crying, pictured to the right; She really didn't want to hurt her brother, but her newfound hunger for flesh almost drove her to do something horrible.
• Sabito and Makomo, the two children who trained Tanjiro for the Final Selection are revealed to have been Dead All Along as they have been killed by the Hand Demon captured by Urokodaki 47 years ago.
• After Tanjiro cuts off the Hand Demon's head, the latter laments that he ate his brother and it's revealed that all he wanted was that his older brother hold his hand and to see him again. Tanjiro hears him and, noting that the demon gave a sad scent, holds his hand which makes the demon cry.
• Tanjiro lamenting the fact that he has not been able to ask any demon about how to turn Nezuko back into a human since all demons did was to attack him.
• When Urokodaki hugs Tanjiro and Nezuko after Tanjiro returns from the Final Selection and you can see tears beneath his mask. It's important to note that Tanjiro is the only student of Urokodaki, besides Giyu, to have made it out of there alive. What's even more tragic was that the other students that died were all killed by the same demon that Urokodaki brought in for the Final Selection. This is why Urokodaki had reservations training Tanjiro; he did not want to lead another student to their death.

First Mission Arc

• Kazumi is a young man who lost his fiancee Satoko to the Swamp Demon and is incredibly distraught about it. After Tanjiro manages to defeat the demon and gives Kazumi the Demon's collection of accessories of the girls the demon has eaten in the hopes that he can find an accessory that belonged to Satoko, Kazumi cries uncontrollably.
• As if Kazumi's situation weren't bad enough already, a flashback reveals that he got the bruises on his face when his would-be father-in-law beat him up, blaming him for Satoko's disappearance. Most of the townspeople gossip about him with pity in their voices, so it's likely that Tanjiro was the only person who genuinely sympathized with Kazumi after Satoko's disappearance.
• When Tanjiro tries to comfort Kazumi, Kazumi lashes out at Tanjiro, claiming that Tanjiro hasn't lost anyone important to him. But when Kazumi gets a glance at Tanjiro's hands, he immediately realizes the harsh training that Tanjiro, a mere child, went through, and realizes that Tanjiro must have suffered the pain of loss, too. He then immediately apologizes for his insensitive remarks.

Asakusa Arc

• Susamaru was hardly a developed or sympathetic character, but as demons go she was one of the less loathsome, seeming more interested in the fun of battle than any sadistic motives. Her Cruel and Unusual Death by Muzan's curse was absolutely brutal, more so than many more unlikable demons' deaths, and when she's been reduced to an indistinct pile of meat, she's still alive until the sun comes up, with her mind seeming to have regressed to a state of childhood, asking for her temari ball and begging Tanjiro to play with her. Small wonder Tanjiro calls Muzan a monster who readily takes advantage of someone's loyalty for him, like he truly is as the series goes on.

Tsuzumi Mansion Arc

• Just a couple minutes after Tanjiro and Zenitsu make it to the titular house, they see a mortally wounded teen getting literally thrown out of the house and on to the ground, much to the duo's shock and the kids' horror. When Tanjiro runs to console the teen, the latter laments that even though he made it out, it may not be enough. His lamentation in the English dub is just as sad as (if not more so than) the original dub:
  Teen: (weakly) Even though I... was able to... e-escape from that horrible... place... and make it... here...(gasps)...was it... not enough? Am I still... gonna die?
  • Making this even more sad is that those would be his final words.
  • Adding to this is how distraught Tanjiro was at his death and was saddened that he and Zenitsu didn't come earlier so they could save him.
• Kyogai's past: he was an aspiring poet and musician who just wanted his father to acknowledge his talent. Sadly, his father constantly belittled his efforts and denied him that acknowledgement, which ended up getting him killed when Kyogai became a demon. Kyogai would go on to join the Twelve Kizuki, but when his power stopped growing from eating humans, Muzan threw him out, no longer seeing any use for him. This caused Kyogai to become obsessed with consuming marechi, humans with a rare blood type, in the hopes that it would help him regain his place at Muzan's side. Just before Tanjiro decapitates him, he tells Kyogai that his Blood Demon Art, which involves playing drums to both attack and control his surroundings, is an incredible skill. Realizing he's been well and truly defeated, Kyogai asks Tanjiro if he truly means what he said. While he can't forgive Kyogai for eating humans, Tanjiro says yes, he did mean it. Both this genuine honesty and the fact that Tanjiro avoided carelessly stepping on Kyogai's writing when it spilled onto the floor during their fight allow Kyogai to pass away peacefully as he weeps Tears of Joy, content that at least one person found his skills remarkable. For people who take joy in any artistic and literary pursuits to express themselves, only to be mocked by it for no good reason, it's very easy to sympathize with Kyogai.

Natagumo Mountain Arc

• Zenitsu's life was filled with self-doubt and wrong turns, he was always looking for a place to belong, to really feel someone loved him; it was by accident that Zenitsu got taken into the world of demon slaying by the chance encounter with the elder known as Jigoro Kuwajima. Zenitsu seemingly hated his training as he felt no progress was made at all, Zenitsu felt like a failure, he wanted to run but Jigoro did his best to steer Zenitsu into the path of the Thunder Breathing, even with all his incessant bawling Zenitsu realized his master Jigoro was the first person to ever truly stick by him.
• Rui's past: when was a human, he was a sick child whose parents asked a doctor (actually Muzan) to grant him a strong body. He got turned into a demon and started eating humans. Realizing their mistakes, his parents planned to kill him, then themselves, but Rui felt betrayed and killed them first. This was what caused his obsession with familial bonds despite losing his memories. It's only in his last moments that he remembers it, and that his mother's last words were an apology for not giving him a strong body. Realizing his parents truly loved him all along, he regrets that his evil deeds will lead him to Hell, away from his parents. The truly tearjerking part comes right after, as Rui's spirit starts to descend into Hell; his parents' spirits come to him, declaring that they will always be together and accompanying him to Hell. The sequence ends with Rui in tears constantly apologizing to his parents as the three of them are engulfed in Hell's flames.
  • In that flashback, we can see that Rui's parents were really not happy to murder their own son. As Rui's father is about to commit the deed, he states that they're going to die with him, showing that they were planning to kill themselves afterwards.
• In the same vein as Rui, the Mother Spider Demon was an ordinary little girl before she turned into a demon. When Rui met her, he forcibly altered her appearance into that of an adult woman's, and her new "family" horrifically abused her for the smallest mistakes. When Tanjiro is about to strike her down, she initially panics... Then she realizes that if she dies, she'll finally be freed from Rui. So she holds her arms out as if to embrace Tanjiro and accepts her imminent death. Tanjiro, who has every reason to be angry with her for killing her demon slayer puppets in a fit of rage, realizes that's she surrendering and alters his strike into a painless one meant to inflict a Mercy Kill. As she fades away, she expresses shock and surprise over how her decapitation doesn't hurt in the slightest and how Tanjiro's eyes aren't filled with hatred or rage over what she did, but sadness and sympathy, with her final thoughts being vague memories of her past as a human and a man that loved her, wondering where he is now.
• The anime expands on the Elder Sister Spider Demon's story on how she became a member of Rui's family, revealing that she had an "eldest sister" demon as a company. Said "eldest sister" treated her with kindness that stands out drastically among the demons, and marked her as pretty much the closest among the Spider Family (or even the demonkind in general) to fit the bill of a Token Good Teammate. She even offered the Elder Sister Demon to escape Rui's abusive household with her, even declaring that she genuinely considers her to be a sister. However, it was revealed that, when they escaped, the Elder Sister Demon sold out the "eldest sister" to Rui, with him punishing her by stringing her up to the house's roof and leaving her there until the daybreak, as the Elder Sister Demon just walks away, showing no empathy to her predicament. In her last moments, the "eldest sister" could only cry from the pain of betrayal before the sunlight makes her erupt into flames.
• The fate of Ozaki and some of the other Demon Slayers who were captured by the Mother Demon's threads. Ozaki cries out in pain and heartache that she's not moving of her own free will, especially as the Mother Demon forces her to fight past her body's limits. Another Demon Slayer begs for a Mercy Kill, since his broken bones are piercing his organs. After Tanjiro manages to get the manipulated Demon Slayers' strings tangled on the branches, the Mother Demon just snaps her puppets' necks, killing them.
• After the fight is over, Inosuke laments that he has not been able to defeat even a single demon and that he is not as strong as he thought, which is both surprising and saddening for a character who loves to fight.

Rehabilitation Training Arc

• While outside the Butterfly Estate, Shinobu visits Tanjiro and after a brief discussion she reveals her past: her elder sister Kanae was killed by a demon (later revealed to be Doma). After Kanae's death, Shinobu took up Kanae's personality traits, most notably her constant smile.
• One bonus chapter reveals Kanao's past: her early years were filled with so much abuse that it ended up breaking her free will and due to this, she repressed her emotions to cope with the abuse. Hell, her parents didn't even give her a name.
  • It also didn't help that her parents sold her into slavery. If it wasn't for Kanae and Shinobu's intervention her story would be quite different. As for her free will, it only took a small encounter with Tanjiro that helped her get rid of relying on single coin flips to decide on her own.

Mugen Train Arc

• The death of Kyojuro and Senjuro's mother, Ruka, changed Shinjuro (Kyojuro and Senjuro's father) so much that he stops caring about his duties as the then-Flame Hashira, and became an alcoholic. In addition, he berates his sons, telling Kyojuro they will not amount to anything as they have no talent and not caring that his eldest son became a Hashira.
• Inside the dream caused by Enmu's Blood Demon Art, Tanjiro cries when he sees his family alive and well.
  • Tanjiro cries again when he has to leave the dream world because he finds out that it is not real, despite the fact that he wanted to remain there forever.
• During the fight against Enmu, the demon puts Tanjiro to sleep again and shows him how his family berates him on being the only member of the Kamado family to be alive. This further angers Tanjiro because corrupting a memory is an even worse offense than making a fake happy one.
• Chapter 66: Kyojuro dies following his fight against Akaza. He tells Tanjiro to come next to him for a final chat. He tells him to visit his house as he may find something about the Sun Breathing and to tell his brother to follow his heart and his father to take care of himself.
• Kyojuro tells Tanjiro that he recognizes Nezuko as a Demon Slayer Corps member since she protected the humans on the train. Then he tells Tanjiro, Zenitsu and Inosuke that he believes they will become great Hashira. This makes Kyojuro's death even more heartwrenching as the three boys cry uncontrollably after he passes away. Notably, one of the few times when Zenitsu's tears aren't played for laughs.
  • Just before he dies, Rengoku sees the spirit of his mother, Ruka looking at him. When he sees her, he asks her if he did well in his final mission. Ruka smiles with pride and tells her son that he did a wonderful job. After hearing those words from his mother, Rengoku smiles, happy that he really did an amazing job, just before he passes away from his wounds.
• Inosuke tries to motivate the other two boys to stop wallowing in their grief and go training, reminding them that Rengoku has placed his utmost faith in them. Despite him trying to act tough and say he is not crying, tears are pouring through his mask.
• Kyojuro's crow can be seen crying when it goes to notify the other Hashira about his death.
• The Hashiras' reaction to Rengoku's death. Everyone is shocked and/or saddened by Rengoku's sudden death, with Obanai of all people refusing to believe that he died. This shows how much of a Ideal Hero that he was to the Demon Slayer corps and how his death is hard to believe.
  • Mitsuri's reaction probably hurts the most. This is because Mitsuri was once Rengoku's tsuguko, and the two had a close sibling-like relationship. So once she receives news of her Cool Big Bro's death, she looks greatly shocked and horrified by the news.
• Chapter 68: Shinjuro (Kyojuro and Senjuro's father) berating the former by saying he had no talent and that is why he died. When Senjuro starts crying his father tells him that Kyojuro's funeral is over and he should stop looking miserable. It is simply repulsive to see a father act this way towards his sons.
  • Tanjiro laments the fact that even though the Sun Breathing is such an incredible technique, he was not able to help Kyojuro during the battle against Akaza.
• After Tanjiro leaves the Rengoku house, Senjuro tells his father Shinjuro Kyojuro's message to take care of himself. Shinjuro finally puts the bottle of alcohol down and starts mourning Kyojuro's death, realizing that Kyojuro did love him after all this time.
• The ending song following the end of the Mugen Train anime adaptation, Homura is widely considered as one of most inspiring but heartwrenching songs to ever listen to, mainly because how this song encompasses how much influence Rengoku had on Tanjiro.
  ''I'll Go Without Looking Back
  I'll Just Look Forward And Scream
  Set Your Heart Ablaze
  Until That Distant Future''

Red Light District Arc

• When Nezuko is finally shaken off by Tanjiro from her demonic bloodlust by singing a lullaby their mother frequently sings to them, Nezuko eventually snaps and breaks down crying. While much of it does point to a possible realization that she almost gave in to her hunger for human blood, it is also possible that the memory of her family's past (and their tragic death) has just recently come back to her, and only now is she conscious enough to mourn for them. Not helping matters is Nezuko's horrifyingly realistic sobbing fit (which sounds eerily similar to Bubbles' heart-shattering crying from the episode "All Chalked Up" in The Powerpuff Girls, no less), which would definitely encourage the viewer to give the poor girl a hug!
• In the immediate aftermath of Gyutaro managing to defeat all of the Demon Slayers (ending up with Tanjiro and Zenitsu blown off from the roof), Tanjiro crashes to the ground profusely apologizing for not managing to help everyone out (as he was already injured at the time). When he's knocked out, he's treated to a vision of Nezuko (inexplicably back as to when she was a human) scolding him for beating himself too much about it, noting that he's been like that since their father died. It's a subtle way to show that, despite Tanjiro's determination and generally-optimistic nature, he has been carrying a lot of hurt and despair from his harsh life back in mountains, piled onto by his crusade for his family.
• Daki and Gyutaro were truly evil demons who killed countless numbers of people, but their sibling bond is genuine. The fact that in much of their dialogue, despite the venom of it, plainly shows the fact that they were once humans who were given a really bad deal in life.
  • At the height of their fight with Uzui and our three protagonists, their coordinated mind shows them sharing dialogue with how they were driven by circumstance to not only be evil, but be evil and cruel precisely to people who they deem have better lives than them, if only to fill their bottomless hunger and angsts. Being in such a bad mental space is not unusual even for regular people (as people suffering from antisocial personality disorder show), let alone being a demon.
  • It is eventually revealed that Gyutaro was a deformed kid born into poverty who was hated by everyone, even his own mother. It was only after his sister Ume (which would later become Daki) was born that he found happiness. Ume started to work as a prostitute while Gyutaro became a debt collector. One day, however, a customer tried to assault her and insulted her older brother and she countered by stabbing his eyes out. This caused her to get (nearly) burned to death while he was away for protecting her older brother's honor and dignity. Enraged at how everyone didn't give a damn about them, Gyutaro accepted Doma's offer to become a demon, so that his sister can recover from the brink of death through demonic blood and so that they can live as powerful demons that take away things from others, instead of having what is theirs taken away by others.
  • As Daki and Gyutaro are dying, they start bickering with each other and blaming each other for how they ended up like this. Daki does the unforgivable and for the first time, she presses Gyutaro's complex about his appearance, angrily wondering how did an ugly person like him becomes her brother. Seeing such ungratefulness in front of him, Gyutaro snaps, angrily retorting that he sacrificed everything to give her a better life and he wouldn't face such difficulties had he left her for dead back when they were humans, which leave Daki stunned and looked like she was about to cry or take back what she said. Tanjiro finds this painful to watch, and tells them that they should at least care for each other, since no one else will forgive what they have done or mourn for their deaths.
  • In his last moments, he regrets how she ended up, imagining she could have lived a much better life if she weren't related to him, showcasing how despite his jerkass bravado throughout his appearance in the series, it really underscores Gyutaro's nonexistent confidence stems by being treated unfairly and harshly because of his looks.
  • During the afterlife sequence, while he's preparing to go to Hell, he shoos Ume away, telling her to go to the "place with light", since she still has a chance at redemption, even going as far as telling her that they are no longer siblings, in hope of ushering her away from him and into the light. This only causes her to cry and apologize for being weak. She clings to his back, not wanting to be separated from him, saying that they will always be together, that she will still be his sister even after reincarnation, and reminding her brother about their promise, all while crying violently as Gyutaro finally carries Ume and brings her to Hell with him.

Swordsmith Village Arc

• The reason why Shinazugawa brothers are such jerks? Sanemi had to kill his beloved mother after she was turned into a demon, and Genya, confused and grief-stricken, called his brother a murderer. Sanemi kept his brother at a distance since then, and joined the Demon Slayers to avenge their family. Genya joined too against Sanemi's wishes, but his motivation is to get close enough to his brother and apologize for his outburst years ago.
  • Furthermore, Tanjiro and Nezuko demonstrated much early in the series that killing a demon without a nichirin weapon is extremely difficult. So, just imagine how Sanemi must've felt while killing his demon-turned mother.
• Koetetsu. Just poor Koetetsu. The kid having to witness his uncle and friends being mangled up horribly by Gyokko and then seeing that they are still alive as Gyokko twists one of the swords causing one of the swordsmith to scream in pain is enough to make fans' stomachs ache, as they have to watch the poor boy crying tears seeing his friends' brutal demise. The worst part is that the kid is just 10 years old and he just had to witness one of the most grotesque deaths caused by a demon, who's clearly taking pleasure in Koetetsu's pain. This action is enough to enrage Muichiro.
  Muichiro: Hey. You better knock it off, shitface.
• Muichiro's past, which is by far one of the most tragic backstories to have ever witnessed. Muichiro and his older twin brother Yuichiro were born into a family of humble woodcutters. When the boys were ten, they tragically lost their mother to bronchitis, and then their father died falling off a cliff, trying to find medical herbs for his wife. Their deaths caused Yuichiro to become cold, strict, and harsh towards Muichiro, believing they needed to be harder to survive. One year later, their home was attacked by a demon, who slashed off Yuichiro's left hand as he tried to protect Muichiro. This enraged Muichiro and he began using every tool and log he had to brutally defeat the demon until it was killed by sunrise. He later dragged himself to a dying Yuichiro, who begged the gods to spare his kind brother while they should punish him instead. Yuichiro later dies from his wounds and Muichiro had to spent days watching as he and his brother were being eaten by maggots. He only survived because Amane and the Ubuyashiki children arrived just in time to nurse him back to health. The trauma of losing his brother was so great that Muichiro began shutting himself off emotionally and losing his memories in the process, becoming cold and distant just like his brother.
• After Tanjiro nearly kills Hantengu, he notices sun is rising. Hantengu's still alive...and then Nezuko starts burning.
  • Tanjiro couldn't choose between saving smiths or staying with his sister, so Nezuko launches him into the air, sacrificing herself. Fortunately she survived, and gained immunity to sunlight, but it was a very close call.
  • Heck, the anime takes this scene much further by giving us a montage of the memories Tanjiro and Nezuko had together since Nezuko became a demon, while soft, melancholic music plays during that. No doubt does it add extra emotional weight to this scene.
  • It's a mix between sadness and heartwarming, but as it turns out, Nezuko was able to conquer the sun. AND she is able to speak, making her one step closer to being almost human again. All Tanjiro can do is cry as he wraps his arms around her. Heck, even the swordsmiths are crying. And Genya even smiles at this.

Hashira Training Arc

• Giyu's past: on the day before his sister Tsutako was to get married, she hid Giyu from a demon and was killed. Later his childhood gets better as he is trained by Urokodaki. He meets Sabito who was the same age as him and they become best friends. However, during the Final Selection they participated in, Giyu is injured and stays on the sidelines as Sabito defeats all demons except for the Hand Demon who kills him.
  • Giyu technically passed the selection but since he did not kill any demons, he has been feeling inadequate ever since and got plagued with Survivor's Guilt and believed that Sabito should have survived since he was the one who killed the demons.
  • For this reason, Giyu does not see himself as the Water Hashira and is distant from the other Hashira, believing himself to be different from them and not worthy of his position.

Dimensional Infinity Fortress Arc

• Akaza had one of the most tragic lives in the manga, which says a lot in a series already rife of Tragic Villains, especially to someone who managed to earn the ire of the main characters as well as the fandom for being the one who killed Rengoku, one of the most beloved characters in the series. Born as Hakuji, he lived in poverty with a sickly father. This forced him to pickpocket and commit crimes from a very young age to obtain money for his father's medicine. His filial piety was not rewarded, however, as his father committed suicide so that he would not be a further burden and Hakuji could live an honest life.
  • During his mourning, he got into a fight and was scouted by a martial artist named Keizo. Things began to start looking up when he was accepted as a disciple, and he even fell in love with the master's daughter, Koyuki. His happiness didn't last long, as some rivals who wanted their dojo poisoned their water supply, killing his new family. Enraged, he charged into the rivals' dojo, brutally slaughtering every one of them. Muzan found him shortly afterward. Amazed at his strength, he forcibly turned the broken Hakuji into a demon, who only said he just didn't care anymore. Losing his human memories after becoming the demon Akaza, he once again started pursuing strength, but then he realizes it was meaningless as he no longer has anything to protect. His anger towards the weak? It's actually his righteous fury towards the rival dojo who couldn't face him and his master in a fair fight and thus resorted to horrible and cowardly deed that lead to the deaths of his master and would-be wife, being twisted by his grief and Muzan's influence.
  • However, the spirits of his father, master, and lover manage to reach out to Akaza and convince him to return back to normal. In the end, Akaza turns back into Hakuji and tearfully embraces his lover, repeatedly asking for her forgiveness for not being able to protect his loved ones. She's just glad that he remembers them and tearfully welcomes him back, also embracing him. He hits himself instead of Tanjiro and Giyu, subsequently stops regenerating as he realizes who he wants to kill the most: himself.
  • Even his appearance can elicit this trope after his Dark and Troubled Past was brought to light that really shows his status as a Failure Hero now a Tragic Villain: his hair has the same colors of Koyuki's kimono, his powers showcase a snowflake and fireworks imagery that comes straight from Koyuki's name and their promise to see the fireworks together, and his ring-like tattoos that were branded to him as a human because of his criminal background due to his noble desire to help his ill father now covers him from head to toe, symbolizing that by crossing Despair Event Horizon, he condemns himself to Hell by becoming a demon under the service of the Big Bad who callously uses the young man's grief and anger to suit his own purposes.
• Inosuke comes to aid Kanao just in time to protect her. When he sees her hurt, he chides her for not being careful and that Shinobu will get mad. It's only due to her sorrowful stare that he realizes Shinobu is dead, causing him to remember that time when the older girl took care of him and bonded with him with a pinky promise. Needless to say, Inosuke is pissed.
• Inosuke's mother, Kotoha, turned out to be a pitiful woman who loves her child deeply but was so unlucky that, even after a lifetime of abuse and being used by bad people, she couldn't even die in peace. She was eaten while fearing for her baby whom she was forced to throw down a cliff just so he could escape a demon.
• After Doma's defeat, Inosuke and Kanao had a moment to reflect on themselves. Inosuke remembered that his mother really did love him when he was young and softly cries for her. Meanwhile, Kanao searches desperately for the hairpiece that belonged to Shinobu. She reflects on her experiences. In her childhood, she wasn't able to cry because of her harsh childhood and tells that she did everything Shinobu said to make her own life better, such as making friends who helped her out in return. She manages to find Shinobu's hairpiece and the spirits of Kanae and Shinobu give her encouragement before happily moving on to heaven, where they reunite with their mother and father, happily embracing one another. Kanae finally cries and expresses her emotions. The next chapter shows both Kanao and Inosuke letting their tears run down their face.
• The news about Jigoro's seppuku devastated Zenitsu. Jigoro died alone to atone for his other pupil Kaigaku betraying the corps to become a demon. Zenitsu had some degree of respect for his colleague but Jigoro committing suicide to atone was just too much. Zenitsu's newfound resolve eventually made him triumph over Kaigaku, the once perceived superior disciple, but the real win in Zenitsu's path was his master himself telling him on the way to the afterlife that Zenitsu was his pride and joy, Zenitsu truly found someone who had loved him, the chance meeting that changed his life for the better, even if tears were to be shed along the way.
• Tamayo is revealed by Muzan in their confrontation to have eaten her own family when she turned into a demon, and then ate other humans in despair for a period. Worse, the only reason she became a demon was that she was dying of an incurable illness and wanted to see her children grow up, unlike others who become demon for more power or already crossing to Despair Event Horizon that they think they have nothing to lose. Knowing this makes her tears when Nezuko hugs her far sadder in hindsight; she was likely thinking of her own children. And the grief of losing her husband and her children is likely the reason why she can't reciprocate Yushiro's feelings for her.
• In the fight against Kokushibo, he cuts off the limbs of Muichiro and Genya, soon about to finish off Genya with one slash. However, Sanemi breaks through the ceiling to save his brother. He later reveals that the way he acted towards Genya wasn't out of hatred over Genya calling him a monster, but out of brotherly love. He wanted to keep Genya away from the Demon Slaying Organization so that he could find a happier life for their family and for himself. Genya, realizing that Sanemi loved him all this time, tearfully apologizes to his big brother. Sanemi is absolutely pissed and is fueled with great anger towards Kokushibo for injuring his brother.
  Sanemi: "You should've gotten goddamn married, had some goddamn kids and lived until you became a goddamn old geezer. For all the times we couldn't do a thing for mom, and for all the times we couldn't do a thing for our little siblings. You should have made your goddamn wife and kids as happy as they would have been. Because I would've made sure that no demons would be heading your way..."
• Sanemi's motivation was shortly revealed after. In a flashback, it shows Sanemi having to fight demons on his own with whatever tools he could find before befriending a Demon Slayer named Masachika Kumeno and joining the Corps. The two bonded and became best friends. However, after defeating a Lower Rank, Sanemi had lost Masachika due to critical injuries. The day after, the Hashira are called for a meeting and Sanemi starts accusing Ubuyashiki of being cowardly and viewing him and the other Demon Slayers as cannon fodder. Ubuyashiki calmly apologizes to Sanemi and explains that he truly wished he could join his fellow Demon Slayers, but due to his weak body, he could not perform the training to do so. He also saw himself as cannon fodder and soon revealed that his son would continue on in his place should he ever fall in battle. And he reveals that he always remembered the names of the fallen Demon Slayers, including Sanemi's best friend and loved them all equally. He gives his best friend's will to Sanemi, which reveals that his best friend saw his own brother in Sanemi and only wanted his brother to live a happy life. This moves Sanemi to tears and thus became his entire motivation to keep his own brother Genya safe and sound.
• Aside Akaza, Kokushibou, Michikatsu Tsugikuni, is also a tragic character.
  • Chapter 176 shows Kokushibo's last stand against Himejima, Muichiro, and Sanemi. Fearing that he might lose, Kokushibo assumes a monstrous spider-like form. Upon seeing his reflection on Sanemi's blade, he realizes his own hideousness and is filled with shame. A flashback shows a young Yoriichi happily complimenting his big brother and asking him if he wanted to become the strongest samurai of the land. The young Yoriichi then tells him that he wanted to be like his big brother and become the second strongest samurai alongside with him. The flashback makes Kokushibo question the entirety of his goal throughout the centuries of assuming his demon form which culminates to him losing the will to fight. At the end of the battle, he admits to himself that he just wanted to be like Yoriichi.
  • Chapter 177 shows more of Yoriichi and Kokushibo’s past, revealing how much Yoriichi loved his twin brother even though he had trouble expressing his emotions. Which makes his clear display of emotion upon seeing his brother as a demon much more heartbreaking.
  • Chapter 178: The final Wham Shot of the chapter: Despite all that had transpired between them, when an hateful Kokushibo cuts down Yoriichi's corpse, he saw that Yoriichi had always kept the flute Kokushibo had made for him as a child, bringing Kokushibo to tears. Despite all his bitterness and hatred, Yoriichi never once looked at him with anything but love and admiration. All Kokushibou could lament on is what has he done in these centuries and remembering his decisions such as abandoning his humanity, his samurai honor, and his family. When Kokushibo finally fades away, all that's left is the sliced flute, the Tragic Keepsake he kept for so many centuries as a reminder of his brother and the last lingering shreds of his humanity. His final thoughts are to why he was born, why he couldn't be anyone special, and finally asking his brother if he knows the answer.
  • The relationship between him and his twin Yoriichi Tsugikuni is really sad. Both brothers were raised differently due to being born twins which was considered an omen. Despite showing pity to his younger brother, Michikatsu would try to spend time with him and gave him a flute he made so their father wouldn't get mad that his son was giving Yoriichi his toys. Everything was all and well till Yoriichi displayed his godly talent of swordsmanship on their father's vassal. And then when Akeno died and left her will, that's when Kokushibou's complex hate and jealousy for his brother came about when he realized Yoriichi clutched to their mother's side, not out of wanting affection but to aide her left side, showing he was never weak but talented and strong. This ends up him wishing his younger brother to die.
  • Kokushibou was shown to love his family but he ends up abandoning them when Yoriichi shows up alive again and being vastly stronger than he was in childhood.
  • Both end up having to duel one another, with Yoriichi as an elder man and Michikatsu now a demon. Yoriichi sheds tears after seeing his older brother in his demon state and Michikatsu felt confusing emotions by just seeing his younger brother as an elder man. Because of the situation that they were in, both brothers had no other decision but to fight each other.
  • What' more sad is when you see Yoriichi's POV, Michikatsu was shown to be kind and wanting to play with his younger brother, even enduring hits from their father which is never shown from his POV, for trying to spend a moment with Yoriichi. This shows Kokushibou was trying to fabricate his deep hate for his brother, instead of saying he always loved him.
  • His death in general is arguably the most sad out of the somber demon deaths. Antagonists like the Hand Demon, Rui, Gyutaro, Daki, and Akaza have deaths that could be considered bittersweet, as although they end up remembering their tragic human lives, and likely have to remain in hell for their deeds, they are reunited with their loved ones who never gave up on them enough to choose to stay with them. Not Kokushibo, he dies in pure shame and regret with no scene in the afterlife. Not even his family that he abandoned or Yoriichi, who loved him until the very end are waiting for him. He remained in his demon form instead of reverting back into his human self. He truly dies and suffers alone thanks to his self-hatred and unchecked envy.
• Chapter 179: The deaths of both Muichiro and Genya:
  • Muichiro reunites with his twin brother in the afterlife and tells him how he was happy with is life and that protecting his friends with his life is not pointless, after Yuichiro calls it so. Yuichiro relents and admits to being upset that Muichiro had to die so young as well, and the last we see of the two them embracing in the afterlife while crying.
  • After Kokushibo's defeat, Sanemi sees Genya's body and starts screaming as the latter starts turning to dust like a demon. Genya apologizes and thanks Sanemi and calls him nice as Sanemi can only scream and cry to the gods not to take his only remaining family from him. The worst thing has come to pass: all of Sanemi's efforts to prevent Genya from harm and away from demon slaying business has been All for Nothing.
    • Even more devastating, Genya apologizes for being a burden, causing Sanemi to respond by yelling that he was never a burden. But Genya's ears had already been disintegrated, so it's unknown if these words reached him.
• Chapter 186 reveals why Yoriichi, who hated hurting people despite his talent, become a demon slayer. After running away to avoid being his father's successor for his brother's sake, he met a recently orphaned girl named Uta who eventually became his wife. When she was close to giving birth, Yoriichi left their home to seek a midwife, but got sidetracked by an old man who wanted to see his dying son. By the time he returned, he found Uta dead at the front door, murdered by a demon with their child. Yoriichi spent ten days straight cradling Uta's body in shock and despair before being found by Rengoku's ancestor, who convinced him to properly bury them. He decided that day to become a demon slayer. The following chapter then reveals that the fallout of his failure to kill Muzan for good in addition of sparing Tamayo, who was under Muzan's clutches and wasn't a bad person at all once she was freed from him, resulted in him being exiled from the Demon Slayer Corps and the weight of his failure haunts him because he knows many more will die to demons because of it. It also underscores how the corps is failing to understand their adage due of their grief and trauma of being tormented by evil demons, from destroying all evil, to simply killing demons regardless whether they did violate ethics or not, somehow that the present narrative tackled with in regards to Nezuko. Then again, trauma is rarely rational and logical, every single Demon Slayer are clearly suffering from PTSD, PTED, or other mental illness thanks to demons, and each of them have different methods to cope.

Sunrise Countdown Arc

• Chapter 200. Just chapter 200. Muzan may have been defeated for good, but the cost of victory was just too great as what Kiriya comments at:
  • Gyomei refusing medical treatment from the Kakushi and telling them to let him die as his last wish. As he's passing on, he's able to reconcile with the orphan children that he looked after and died from the demon attack. Both sides apologize: Gyomei for failing to protect them and the orphans for running away from the temple during a demon attack (they were trying to get weapons for Himejima, but got hunted down). Then, Gyomei embraces the orphans tearfully as he joins them in the afterlife.
  • Mitsuri and Iguro both realizing they will die soon from their injuries. Mitsuri apologizing for not being not helpful but Iguro rebukes her words and reminisces when they first met at Ubuyashiki's mansion. Iguro thought of her as a normal girl, full of joy and happiness and he himself felt happy being around her, telling her that she saved many people's hearts, including himself. Mitsuri starts to cry as she said that Iguro always made her felt happy, from the meals they shared to how he looks at her so gently. Finally, she also confessed to Iguro that should they be born again as humans, that he could take her as his wife. Iguro tearfully and completely accepts her love and promises to her that in their next life, he would make her happy and protect her.
  • Sanemi, in a vast black space, could see Genya playing happily with their deceased siblings in a bright world of flowers. In the darkness, he hears his mother, sobbing from the fact she killed her own children, unable to join them in heaven. Sanemi understands, wishing to keep her company in hell, so that she won't have to be alone (he knew that she didn't become a demon on her own volition), to which she only cries harder. Then, his father grabs his arm fiercely and pushes him away, telling him it's not his time yet and thanking him Sanemi for being his son. Finally, Sanemi wakes up, completely bandaged and close to death, but alive nonetheless.
  • Giyu looking for Tanjiro and finding him, only for the Kakushi to say he's already dead, with no pulse at all. In tears, he asks for forgiveness from Tanjiro for being unable to protect him and from Nezuko for failing to protect him, worsening his already existing Survivor Guilt since the deaths of his sister and his best friend. And the kicker, Nezuko has just only arrived with the Kakushi to find her older, sweet, caring brother dead.
• Chapter 201: Oh boy, it's not over yet! In one last desperate move, Muzan implants all his blood and memories into Tanjiro's body, turning him into a bloodthirsty demon too strong for anyone to handle, and due to his connection to the Breath of Sun he becomes immune to sunlight like Nezuko. Now Tanjiro's own comrades will have to kill him just to stop the rise of a second Demon King... yet Inosuke can't find it in his heart to do it. It's downright serious if someone who loves to fight and constantly calls his friends' names wrong ends up being reluctant killing his comrade and friend, and starts calling out to him (by his real name no less) to snap out of it.
  • The whole total irony of it make this so much more worse and depressing than it already is: Tanjiro started out his journey as a Demon Slayer in order to turn his sister Nezuko back into a human... and now he became one himself when he was Only Mostly Dead / Not Quite Dead and Came Back Wrong as a result while Nezuko manages to turn back into a human, but unfortunately he wasn't able to see for himself. You know what makes it even worse and heartbreaking than it already was before? He became the very copy of the monster, the copy of Muzan, that he himself was fighting against and sworn to defeat with his memories implanted into him. Never before has Tragic Monster had such emphasis on tragic.
• Chapter 202: As if everything wasn't tragic enough, Nezuko shows up and embraces her dear brother crying for her brother who has had to carry everything on his shoulders and now that the roles have been reversed, is trying everything she can to bring her brother back. However he's getting worse as he slowly transforms into a demon, even harming Nezuko in the process. As they fight to bring Tanjiro back, Kanao shows up, blinded in one eye with the last remaining drug to turn demons back into humans. Knowing this is her one and only shot to save Tanjiro, Kanao triggers her Equinotial Vermillion Eye to slip in and inject Tanjiro. She is able to inject him with the medicine, but is stabbed in the process. It's only a matter of time that she will be blind for good, all because she wants to do the right thing and for the sake of her loved ones.
• Although ultimately victorious, it's all but stated that Sanemi and Giyuu will die at 25 due to have awakening their mark, leaving Tengen as the one true survivor of the original 9 Hashira we meet. Same goes with Tanjiro, leaving Nezuko, Zenitsu, and Inosuke behind.
• Chapter 205 is the final chapter of the series, which is sad for several fans. It takes place in present day Tokyo.
  • Most of the cast has died as a long time has passed, except for Kiriya, who is the oldest person in Japan, and Yushiro, who is still a demon and is now known as a mysterious, yet famous painter who depicts the same subject in most of his paintings. Said subject is none other than Tamayo.