The following article contains major spoilers for the final arc of the series.
The fact that Tanjiro Kamado is escaping a difficulty that seems impossible every minute is all part of the fun in Demon Slayer, yet the series would have ended the credits long ago, had it obeyed its own logic. Although the protagonist is a person of a good heart and head of a rock, the difference in power between a rookie slayer and a hundred-year-old demon is typically too broad to be closed by being nice alone. Many fans have remarked on how a world as vicious as this one requires Tanjiro to have a guardian angel (or a very kind mangaka) constantly looking over his shoulder.
These entries discuss the villains who almost had the victory before some twist of the plot changed the plan, or a last-minute save changed the series. These characters did not merely push the hero to his limits; they destroyed them entirely, starting with the threats encountered at an early stage of the anime, and finishing with the final boss. These are the seven instances where, to viewers who love a good what-if scenario, the bad guys really ought to have won.
The Strongest Demons In Demon Slayer
There are several powerful demons present in the Demon Slayer anime. These characters are the most dangerous.
7 Yahaba
The battle against Tamayo at her house was a literal headache to the fandom as it compelled Tanjiro to battle the unseen powers of physics. The arrows used by Yahaba as vectors gave him the ability to toss the protagonist around like a ragdoll without ever having to get close enough to strike with his sword, and that is a nightmare to any close-quarters fighter. As the hero was already working with a number of broken ribs, each landing was a possible game ender, and since the demon could shift the direction in which the force was found, the use of the foot was practically useless.
Lore-wise, the main protagonist of the story only managed to escape this mess due to the arrogance of Yahaba himself and some desperate means employed to cushion the force of such violent arrow throws. Instead of trying to be a bit creative in his manipulation of vectors, the demon could have just twisted the hero into a pretzel and made him realize too late how to counter the Blood Demon Art. It was the near-death experience that demonstrated to the community how dangerous demons may be when they cease engaging in a fair battle and start to interfere with the environment.
6 Enmu
The Mugen Train arc is a favourite amongst the fans, but it also houses one of the most frightening near-moments in the series. Enmu is able to put Tanjiro in a dream reality in which the only way out is by committing suicide, creating a lethal mental cycle. The dreams were so rapid that Tanjiro could not even establish what the reality was. In real life, he almost struck his own neck with his sword. Had he hit, the tale would have been closed by a self-inflicted death blow before the train could have gotten to its destination.
That is when the fandom credits All with the fact that Inosuke physically deflected the blade of Tanjiro. The boar mask and wild instincts of Inosuke allow him to see through the tricks of Enmu. He came in, screamed at Tanjiro to come to his senses, even as the blade of the sword was about to enter his throat. Tanjiro would have been a sitting duck without Inosuke and the help of Nezuko through the help of her Blood Burst to remove the influence of the demon. Enmu had won the battle of the mind; Tanjiro was still alive because he had a team to watch his blind areas.
5 Hantengu
The battle with Upper Moon Four was a very tough trial of patience, which Tanjiro could not possibly succeed in on his own. Zohakiten clone was a huge multi-headed dragon that dominated the battlefield with sonic scream and wood manipulation. Tanjiro was so overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the attacks that he was pinned down and nearly crushed multiple times. The manga depicts his stamina as almost zero, as he could only continue because of the fear of the Upper Moon keeping him in motion.
Would people say yet again that I couldn't be human? I was afraid, so I've been holding back my power. But not anymore! - Mitsuri Kanroji
The fandom knows that Mitsuri Kanroji, the Love Hashira, is the actual hero of this struggle. She came in at the right place at the right time to take on a huge shockwave that would have instantly killed Tanjiro. As Mitsuri got the main body, Tanjiro continued to find it hard to find the actual Hantengu, a mouse-sized animal lurking in the grass. The time constraint of the day was the rising sun lore-wise; had they been in Infinity Castle or a gloomy cave, Hantengu would have eventually worn Tanjiro down.
Demon Slayer: Every Major Character's Age, Height, And Birthday
A must-read for Demon Slayer fans: ages, heights, and birthdays of the series' most iconic characters!
4 Rui
The Mt. Natagumo Arc has been regarded as the point when the powerscaling of Demon Slayer became a reality. Even after Tanjiro unlocked the "Hinokami Kagura" in a stunning display of fire and determination, the manga reveals a brutal truth: it didn't work. Rui used his Cutting Thread Cage to cut off his own head before Tanjiro could attack, and thus the demon still existed and controlled. The huge energy depletion of the fire dance had left Tanjiro lying face down in the dirt and unable to move.
It is the most popular clutch moment in this series: had Giyu Tomioka not shown up with the Eleventh Form: Dead Calm, Rui would have killed Tanjiro in a few seconds. It is argued among fans that technically, Rui won that exchange, as he outplayed Tanjiro's biggest move and had lots of Blood Demon Art left to spare. To Tanjiro, this is a huge wake-up call.
3 Daki & Gyutaro
The fight in the Entertainment District was a bloody battle which Tanjiro felt had broken him. Flying Blood Sickles as wielded by Gyutaro were covered with poisonous blood that triggered death in a normal human being in several minutes and Tanjiro was hit more than once during the fight. Fans remember how helpless Tanjiro felt during the fight. Had it not been for Tengen and the support from Inosuke and Zenitsu, Tanjiro could never have beaten an Upper Rank all by himself at this point. Gyutaro was an experienced killer, who had killed fifteen Hashira, and there was no way he could lose to a team of rookies.
The only reason Tanjiro is still around is because of Nezuko’s "Blood Burst" removing the poison and Tengen Uzui’s "Musical Score" technique buying enough time for a final opening. Tanjiro was practically a corpse even after victory; without Nezuko setting fire to his blood, he would have died right then and there. If we purely based on the lore of the Upper Moon's lethality, Gyutaro had the kill confirmed, and only a series of "miracle" saves kept Tanjiro’s heart beating.
2 Akaza
Tanjiro had just beaten Akaza with his decapitating strike because of his Selfless State, which allowed him to avoid Akaza's "Compass Needle", but the legend shows that Akaza was the better fighter. Akaza, having lost his head, did not want to die as, in a horrifying shift, he grew it back through sheer force when Tanjiro lay helpless and unconscious. By this time, the struggle was finished. In a single attack, Tanjiro had given his last gasp of soul, but this was not enough to stop the massacre of Upper Moon Three.
The community understands that Tanjiro never defeated Akaza; Akaza defeated himself. When Akaza recovered his memories of Hakuji and Koyuki, he killed himself by himself with his own technique. The demon would have taken another five minutes to remain as a monster and Tanjiro and Giyu would not have existed any longer. It is also among those few shōnen instances in which the antagonist was much stronger than the protagonist and had to resolve the situation based on a moral experience instead of a physical victory.
1 Muzan Kibutsuji
The last battle with the Demon King was turned into a game of desperate survival, which Tanjiro lost, in fact, on multiple occasions. Muzan was so fast and strong, that he smeared all the slayers on the ground with a poisonous blood that immediately decayed their cells. Tanjiro had been hit so hard his half his face had swelled to a giant tumor, and he was technically dead at one point in the battle. It only took a high-stakes medical cocktail by Tamayo to get him on his feet again.
Demon Slayer: Saddest Deaths In The Series, Ranked
As Demon Slayer's narrative continues, a lot more characters meet a tragic end. But, which deaths hit the hardest by the end of this story?
Lore-accurate details show that Muzan was fighting while aged 9,000 years in a single night by four different poisons, yet he still almost won. Well, technically, he did. Had the Demon Slayer Corps not been there to protect him and the sun to take the hit, Tanjiro would have died in vain along with everyone else. It demanded all that had survived, an immense drug dose, and the souls of the departed Hashira to be scarcely able to pull Muzan to the light. In the case of Tanjiro, this was not a duel that he won but a disaster that he managed to survive because other people were ready to die on his behalf.
- Release Date
- April 6, 2019
- Network
- Adult Swim
Based on Koyoharu Gotouge's shonen manga, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is an action anime set in Japan during the early 20th century. Seeking revenge for the murder of his family while also looking to save his sister, Tanjiro joins the Demon Slayer Corps as they try to eradicate Demons led by Muzan.
- Main Genre
- Animation
- Seasons
- 4
- Studio
- ufotable
- Japanese Title
- Kimetsu no Yaiba
- Based On
- Manga
- Creator
- Koyoharu Gotoge
- Number of Episodes
- 63
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll, Hulu, Netflix
- MyAnimeList Score
- 8.26 (Hashira Training Arc)
