Akaza

Akaza is a major antagonist of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. He is a demon affiliated with the Twelve Demonic Moons, holding the position of Third Highest Moon.

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Centuries ago, Akaza was a human named Hakuji before being transformed into a demon personally by Muzan Kibutsuji.

Apparence

As a demon, Akaza took on the form of a tall, muscular young man with skin so fair it appears white or gray, decorated with thick blue lines, resembling the criminal tattoos he had as a human. Akaza has short, bright pink hair that falls around his head. His eyes are slanted inward and pink lashes, blue sclera and yellow irises, with the kanji for "High Rank Three" etched into them. Three blue lines on his face run vertically across his eyes from below his ears to above his temples. Another blue line runs from the center of his hairline to the bridge of his nose, two more lines appear around his neck, three more branching off from the bottom line to his torso.

The center line runs directly down his chest to the middle of his belly, and the other two branch off to either side of his chest to join the two lines on his pectorals; this same three-line pattern is also repeated around his waist. On his arms, there are other lines that go down the front of his shoulders and join two lines, which go around his biceps. They continue down to his wrists, under which you can see that each of his fingers is also dark blue with an orange nail, his toes also sharing this unusual appearance.

He wears little clothing, only a dark pink-purple haori, short and sleeveless, cut at the waist, left open to expose his chest, which was decorated with a square pattern on his back. Underneath, he wears a pair of white baggy pants that he rolls up to his knee, with a blue rope belt to hold it at the waist. Akaza prefers to be barefoot, but wears a chain of large round beads around each of his ankles.

When he was human, as Hakuji, he had the same hair, but black rather than pink, and pale blue eyes with unusually colored pale pink lashes. He was also very muscular as a human, and on each of his forearms he had three black criminal tattoos. He also wore a dark blue-gray yukata.

Personality

Akaza is a strong, stubborn and impulsive demon. He loves to fight, especially against powerful Demon Slayers. He despises all those he deems weak, but sincerely respects those who are strong in his eyes, regardless of their species. As soon as he meets someone he deems capable of standing up to him, he demands to know their name and doesn't stop until he finds out; he remembers all the names he has memorized as a tribute to their strength.

Akaza has a deep-seated psychological need to become stronger, and doesn't get along with his fellow high rankers, seeing them as his rivals. He is somewhat jealous of the two Demon Moons above him, Doma and Kokushibo, lashing out at the former and vowing to kill the latter. Even after being beaten and decapitated during his fight with Tanjiro Kamado and Giyu Tomioka, he was stubborn and continued to fight without even knowing why he wanted more power.

As a human, Hakuji possessed the same stubborn personality with a big heart and resilience. He valued others more than his own well-being, and hated himself for having a life "full of empty words and promises". Even after becoming a demon and losing his memories of his human life, certain reminiscences influenced Akaza's decisions; he refused to eat women, even though he knew it would make him stronger. His hatred of weak and cowardly people comes from a corruption of his human memories, where a rival dojo poisoned the well of his dojo because he was never able to beat it.

After remembering his entire past and all his regrets as a human, he begins to regret his actions as a demon. He realizes that he hates himself for all the times he wasn't there to save or protect those he loved, and that he was the person he really wanted to kill all along.

History

Human life as Hakuji

Hakuji was born and raised in the slums by a sick father whom he loved deeply. In order to pay for his medicine, Hakuji stole from people in the city, but he was caught three times. The magistrate beat him and gave him tattoos, threatening to cut off his arms the next time he was caught and calling him a "demon child." When Hakuji returned home after his third beating, a villager informed him that his father, having learned of his arrest, had hanged himself. In the letter he left, he stated that he wanted Hakuji to live his life to the fullest and that he did not want to take medicine if it was earned through dishonest means.

With his criminal tattoos and no home to return to, Hakuji was eventually banished from Edo. Devastated by the loss of his father and enraged by the society in which he could not support himself, he would fight with people and beat them. One day, after almost killing seven adult men in a village, he was approached by Keizo, the owner of a local dojo. Annoyed by the man's jovial attitude, Hakuji challenged him to a fight, but was easily defeated.

Keizo then took him in so that he could take care of Koyuki, Keizo's sick daughter. Her mother, who had been taking care of her before, had drowned due to stress and Keizo had to do odd jobs to keep them afloat, so Hakuji was put in charge of taking care of her. Already used to taking care of his father, he didn't have too much trouble, although he found it embarrassing when she burst into tears seemingly without reason. On one such occasion, unbeknownst to her, he had indirectly motivated her by telling her that "there will be a next year" to see a local fireworks display.

One day, he discovered that Koyuki had been forced out and left there by the heir of the neighboring kenjutsu dojo who had always tried to take over Keizo's land and prevented her from having students before Hakuji. Enraged, Keizo and Hakuji fought the dojo, and after defeating nine people, Hakuji made them promise never to meddle with the Soryuu or Koyuki dojo again. The heir of the rival dojo became furious and swung a sword at the boy, but the boy punched the side of the blade and broke it. The other members of the dojo were so moved by the beauty of this technique that they accepted their loss and apologized for the rudeness of the heir, leaving the Soryuu dojo in peace.

Two years later, Koyuki's health had improved enough that she could stand up and do housework. Hakuji continued to train as a student of Keizo in the Soryu style, and the dojo began to grow. One day, Keizo proposed to Hakuji to take over the dojo and take Koyuki as his wife, to the surprise and embarrassment of the young man. He accepted, silently swearing to protect them both, even at the cost of his own life. At a festival, Koyuki told him about her past and asked him if he really agreed with the proposal, to which he replied by reaffirming his commitment to her, promising to protect her for the rest of his life.

The heir of the rival dojo heard about the marriage of Hakuji and Koyuki, and gathered some angry disciples to fight Hakuji, but they lost; this victory was short-lived. The young man went to his father's grave to inform him of his marriage, but he soon realized that something was wrong when he returned. A student of the dojo informed him that the rival dojo had poisoned the well where Koyuki and Keizo were drinking water. Both of them had died shortly after drinking the water while Hakuji was away.

Enraged, Hakuji killed the sixty-seven members of the rival dojo with his bare hands, pulverizing them to the point that their bodies were no longer recognizable. This incident caught the attention of Muzan Kibutsuji, and although he was disappointed to discover that it was a human and not a demon who had committed such a horrible act, he decided to make Hakuji one of the Twelve Demonic Moons. Hakuji, having nothing left to protect and having lost the will to live, agreed and became the demon Akaza.

Demonic life as Akaza

After transforming, Akaza lost his memories of when he was still human, with only a desire to become stronger, although he did not know why. Despite this, as Doma noted, he refused to eat or harm women. Because of his strength, loyalty, and desire to become stronger, he became a favorite of Muzan, who only sent him on special missions.

During his life as a demon, Akaza noted that he had encountered and fought several Demon Slayer Pillars in his hundreds of years of life. During these encounters, Akaza had invited each of them to become a Demon, as he appreciated the Pillars' natural strength, genius, and skills, and wished to continue fighting them forever. However, Akaza was turned down by each of them, which made him very confused as he did not understand their desire to remain human.

Although not exactly specified, Akaza stated that none of the Pillars he fought used the Breath of Flame, proving that his fight against Kyojuro Rengoku was a first for him.

Fifty years before his fight and death against Tanjiro Kamado and Giyu Tomioka in Infinity Castle, Akaza had met and fought a powerful Water Pillar with remarkable skill and power in the use of the breathing style. He had successfully killed him and for the next half century had not encountered anyone else of the same skill level until his duel with Giyu.

Synopsis

Arc Train de l'Infini

Akaza appears shortly after Tanjiro, Kyojuro, Inosuke, Zenitsu and Nezuko defeat Enmu and save the passengers. Noticing Tanjiro on the ground, he immediately rushes forward to kill him, but the Pillar of Flame stops the attack and cuts his arm in two. After quickly healing the wound and complimenting his blade, Akaza is asked why he attacked an already wounded person, to which he replies that he just wanted to get rid of him quickly before talking to Kyojuro. Believing that he is at the peak of his fighting spirit as a Pillar, he tries to persuade him to become a demon. He claims that as a human, he would eventually grow old and die, while as a demon, he could continue to grow more powerful. When Kyojuro repeatedly refuses the offer and refutes his claims; Akaza, annoyed, declares that he will kill him instead, and activates the Destructive Kill, Compass.

Akaza and Kyojuro fight fiercely, with Tanjiro and Inosuke watching from afar, knowing that the two are at a completely different power level. Akaza is wounded several times but instantly regenerates his wounds, while taunting Kyojuro, saying that all the Pillars he killed never accepted his offer of change. The demon leaps into the air and hits Kyojuro with Destructive Killing, Void, causing him to temporarily retreat, though the attack is quickly repelled. Knowing that a ranged fight will be difficult, the Pillar of Flame rushes forward and tries to attack from close range, but all of his blows are deflected and dodged. Akaza again mocks his weak human stamina compared to his demonic physiology and again tries to persuade Kyojuro to change, which again fails. They exchange attacks again, Inosuke even pointing out that if he tried to help Kyojuro, he would be too slow and killed instantly. Akaza starts to physically hit his opponent, hurting him severely. All of Kyojuro's sword strikes are futile in the face of the demon's rapid healing and he begins to despair, despite his multiple Blast of Flame attacks. The Demonic Moon counters the Pillar Flame tiger with his destructive kill, Maelstrom. Akaza suddenly retreats, allowing Kyojuro to catch his breath, but Tanjiro and Inosuke see him bleeding profusely, unlike the Demon Moon who is completely healed.

Akaza, once again, taunts Kyojuro for his numerous wounds, while his own had already healed instantly due to his demon nature. Kyojuro's body suddenly bursts into flames, declaring that he will fulfill his duty as a Pillar, to the confusion and astonishment of the demon. He decides that he will try to hurt him as much as possible, even if he has to die, and rushes forward with his secret technique. Akaza is amazed by the fighting spirit of his opponent, and wishes he could fight with him forever. Declaring that he is the Pillar of Flame, he uses Ninth Movement: Purgatory, and rushes forward. Akaza responds with Destructive Kill, Eradication. They hit each other; Kyojuro slices Akaza's arm, his torso and almost goes through his neck, and the demon thrusts his arm into Rengoku's solar plexus, until it goes through him.

Akaza desperately begs him to become a demon, knowing that the wound he inflicted is fatal and amazed by the will of his opponent to fight, and describes him as one of the chosen few. Kyojuro refuses once again, remembering his mother's promise to protect the weak, and thrusts his sword deeper into his opponent's neck, even catching his fist when Akaza tries to strike him with his free hand, shocking the demon. The sun begins to rise and Akaza tries to run away but is held in place by Kyojuro who refuses to surrender. Tanjiro and Inosuke try to help the Pillar, with Inosuke using the first charge of Breath of the Beast: Perforation to attack the demon. Akaza suddenly cuts off his own arms from Kyojuro's body to escape the oncoming day. He enters the forest nearby, Tanjiro frantically chases after him and throws his sword at the Upper Moon, piercing his chest. Akaza hears Tanjiro's cries, calling him a coward for retreating, which infuriates him as he whispers to himself that he was running from the sun, not the Slayers. Deciding that the battle is over and that Kyojuro will soon die, Akaza takes refuge in the forest, leaving Inosuke and Tanjiro with a dying Kyojuro.

Arc Quartier des plaisirs

Akaza appears before Muzan and reports that he was unable to find the Blue Lycoris, instead he shot one of the Pillars. Muzan retorts that there was only one Pillar and declares that his wish is that all of them be dead. Irritated by his failure, Muzan takes control of Akaza's cells and makes him bleed profusely. The Demon Lord mocks him for acting proudly while three other demon slayers were still alive and he could have killed them as well, ending his rant by stating that "even the Third Highest Moon has been put down". When he is dismissed by Muzan for his failure, he notices the blade near Tanjiro. Remembering how he called him a coward, he angrily smashes it to pieces and declares that he would spill his brains the next time they meet.

Some time later, Akaza is suddenly transported to the Infinity Castle by Nakime. He is welcomed by Gyokko and Hantengu but he doesn't care to talk to them. He asks the demon Biwa where Muzan is and where the First Upper Moon is when he is happily welcomed by Doma. Annoyed by his attempts to have a conversation with him, he irritably asks Doma to remove his arm, then violently breaks his jaw when he does not. An unruffled Doma continues to try to talk and even thinks that the attack is simply a sign of their "friendship". Nakime answers his question and states that the First Upper Moon is the first to arrive, which then announces the appearance of Muzan. Muzan expresses his disappointment with Gyutaro and wonders aloud why the Upper Moons are always there without a purpose, shocking them all; Akaza himself does not answer knowing his recent failure. Gyokko suddenly declares that he has new information for their leader and Doma unintentionally asks if he can participate in a mission, prompting Akaza to angrily destroy his superior's head for "disobeying Muzan's orders."

Suddenly, his hand falls and Kokushibo appears before him, scolding him for disrupting the hierarchy. A regenerated Doma tries to calm the First High Moon but angrily tells Akaza if he wanted to take Doma's place and beat him, he would have to do it in a real battle. A silent Akaza overhears Doma's statement that such a battle would be fruitless, as even the newer Doma is much more powerful than he is, earning his ire. Doma continues to try to defend Akaza but Kokushibo asks him directly if he understood what he said. Akaza complies but discreetly threatens to kill him too. As Kokushibo disappears, Akaza rushes out of the Infinite Dimensional Fortress, ignoring Doma's attempts for another conversation.

Skills & Competencies

Demonic abilities

• Improved Speed: Akaza is extremely fast, as shown in his fight with Kyojuro when he moves at super fast speeds, moving so fast that even Tanjiro Kamado and Inosuke Hashibira could not perceive his blinding movements, the latter noticing that he was in "another dimension". This is further illustrated by the fact that he could move so fast that it looked like he was teleporting, which he frequently displayed, managing to do so even for Tanjiro who can sense the future. Even Giyu Tomioka, one of the fastest demon slayers, was instantly matched by Akaza in speed despite the fact that he had awakened the mark of the demon slayers moments before
• Enhanced Strength: Akaza possesses phenomenal physical strength. His incredulous strength has been demonstrated on several occasions, especially when he punches or kicks, which is powerful enough to generate powerful shockwaves and break the ground. Akaza also easily broke Giyu's sword in half with a single side punch despite the latter swinging his blade down and destroying the head and jaw of the Second Highest Moon, Doma, with his arm, and even piercing Kyojuro's solar plexus. Combined with his Blood Power, his strength is further increased, allowing him to cause craters in the ground by simply hitting him.
• • When he was a human at the age of 11, he is able to completely knock out several adult men in a fight with nothing but his bare fists and legs. At the age of 18, even before becoming a demon, he is easily able to decapitate, dismember, and mutilate 67 armed adult kendo masters with his bare fists, to the point that even Muzan thinks he is a demon who performed these feats.
• Enhanced Regeneration: Akaza has one of the most incredible regeneration abilities in the series due to the assimilation of a massive amount of Muzan Kibutsuji blood. He is able to instantly regenerate from minor and severe wounds caused by Tanjiro and even from lost limbs inflicted by Giyu and Kyojuro with little effort. During his battle with Giyu and Tanjiro, his regeneration further evolved as he did not die even after having his head cut off by a sword of the sun, and then completely regrew a new one afterwards, a feat considered impossible for demons and only Muzan, the Demon King, had accomplished before.

Blood Power

Akaza has a unique ability called Technique Deployment. Akaza starts by initiating a unique stance in Soryu style. Currently, there are 2 versions of the stance. The first stance is performed by bending his knees into a half crouch, extending his right arm with a half closed fist facing his body and bending his left arm with an open palm; the second version is almost identical except that he opens his palm on his right arm while fully clenching his fists in a downward bend on his left arm. Afterwards, Akaza uses his Destructive Killing fighting style while unleashing shockwave-enhanced martial arts techniques.

• Compass: Akaza deploys a light blue snowflake-shaped compass underneath him with numbers from 1 to 12 that can detect and track his opponents' locations and incoming attacks by detecting a person's "Fighting Spirit". This technique can also be used to discern an opponent's weak points, as Tanjiro stated when Akaza was always instinctively aiming for his vital signs as if his fists were magnets drawn to them. Akaza has always activated this technique when he engages in combat, which makes all the other techniques he uses extremely difficult to counter and dodge while making his attacks all the more deadly.
• Void: Akaza punches the empty air in front of him, creating a shockwave from the pressure of his fists, then sends it flying towards his enemies. These airborne shockwaves can be created several times in a row.
• Maelstrom: Striking in front of him, Akaza creates a barrage of shockwaves from a distance that can overwhelm Kyojuro's Fifth Movement technique: Flame Tiger.

Anecdotes

• Akaza's alias contains the respective kanji for "lush growth", "cave" and "sitting, cushion".
  
  • His name as a human contains the kanji for "komainu" and "to heal".
• Akaza was the only demon in the Twelve Demonic Moons who refused to eat or kill women, and he had special permission to do so.
• Akaza was one of Muzan's favorites because he was loyal and serious.
  
  • Despite his loyalty, Akaza never felt any respect or admiration for Muzan. He only saw him as someone who gave orders and saw himself as someone who had to obey.
• Akaza's Compass technique forms the shape of a snowflake; perhaps due to the influence of his fiancée (Koyuki's name contains the kanji for "snow", and she wears three snowflake-shaped hairpins).
• Many of Akaza's attacks and techniques are named after fireworks, a reference to her promise to Koyuki to see fireworks.
• Akaza is the only deceased member of the higher ranks who met the people he knew in life when he disappeared. There are two members of the Twelve Demonic Moons who were shown experiencing this, the other being Rui.
• Akaza's Japanese dubber has the role of Gaara from Naruto: Shippūden.
  • The English dubber of Akaza has the role of Mahito from Jujutsu Kaisen.
• Akaza is ranked 17th in the second popularity poll with 1982 votes.
• It is implied that Akaza retained most of his human traits as a demon, including his tattoos. As his crimes increased more and more by killing and devouring people, the tattoos on his arms became more and more prevalent to symbolize the number of crimes he committed.

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