I've always wondered why Sanemi made this statement. He could've said 'Why are you here?', 'What are you doing here?' and so on but he chooses to use the word 'spying'. It almost seems like Tanjiro (bestest boy ❤) walked in on something he wasn't supposed to see.
Unhinged theory: This wasn't just a normal spar or hashira training moment, this was a private conversation between Sanemi and Giyuu.
Let me explain:
We all know that Sanemi hates Giyuu's 'I'm not like you guys attitude' and it's also funny how he's the only one who addresses this and tries to get an explanation out of him. It's a way to show that he cares but his aggressive nature makes it seem commanding and angry.
So he goes (by his own volition, mind you!) to Giyuu's crib to talk to him. but how do the two emotionally-stunted men talk to each other? By fighting of course!
Even the fight itself seems more like a dance or a conversation rather than actual training, there's also the background music that mixes the themes of both guys.
This all culmulates to the final move which has Sanemi trying to break through and talk to Giyuu and Giyuu bless his heart unintentionally keeping up his barriers.
Another point that shows how it's more than a friendly hashira training session is the fact that Sanemi suggests that they brawl it out. There's nothing that will come out of this training-wise and it seems like it's just an excuse to get some kind of reaction out of Giyuu.
Then Tanjiro (bestest boy ❤) interrupts their conversation so Sanemi gets pissed. He even rants about it hours later!
Look at his dude, like why so angry my guy? 😂
It got me thinking, what would have happened if Tanjiro (bestest boy ❤) hadn't interrupted?
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to make a post about significant writing choices and parallels between giyuu and tanjirou would be a whole masterpost in itself. i stand on the fact that giyuu and tanjirou (as a duo) are the drivers for almost every major plot point in demon slayer.
this post, though, is less about that, and more about little things between the two that don't affect the plot but are nice to have regardless.
points below unordered.
1. one arms
this one's, i think, the most significant and meaningful out of everything that's not a direct plot-relevant thing between them. chapter 199's climax and thus the climax of the muzan fight is them; them and their one arms each, supporting each other through a red blade—first for tanjirou and second for giyuu, and notably, a together second for giyuu, signifying he's more of a support rather than a standalone character. that makes giyuu's relationship to tanjirou meaningful just by virtue of giyuu's existence being about the people he loves and develops with.
2. clothes/appearance
okay, i never said this list had to make sense to anyone other than myself. anyways, i love that both their haoris are made of sharp geometric lines—hexagons and squares.
i'll tie this in with another point, it's their colours. tanjirou and giyuu both have different shades of green and red in their colour palettes, despite giyuu's dominant colour being blue.
furthermore, i loved tanjirou's original circular sword hilt. would look really good next to giyuu's classic turtle-shell.
3. self-blame
they tend to do that, yeah. panels below specifically regarding each other.
4. sumiyoshi
"sumi" being the alternate reading of "tan" (炭) of "tanjirou"
"yoshi" being the alternate reading of "gi" (義) of "giyuu"
(unfortunately, no, giyuu's actual kanji isn't in sumiyoshi's name [炭吉]. it's probably just a cool coincidence.)
i'll definitely post a 2nd part plot-relevant details between giyuu and tanjirou, and thus this will come up in detail later: sumiyoshi and yoriichi's talk in chapter 99/ssv ep1 resembles giyuu and tanjirou's talk from chapter 130/hta ep2 a lot. if sumiyoshi and yoriichi have a resemblance to tanjirou and giyuu already, i also wanna point this out:
5. yoriichi
both yoriichi and giichi, giyuu's descendant, have "ichi" (一) = "one"/"first" in their names.
between this and the previous point about sumiyoshi, i wonder how much of it is merely an accident and how much is purposeful.
6. defending others
7. haori-pillows
it's like, whatever good tanjirou does for others, giyuu does it back for him. it's really cute.
8. their eyes
this is the main reason i've exclusively been using pictures from the manga rather than the anime. the anime does not show this, but the manga does: giyuu had white pupils, like tanjirou and related characters, and so does giichi.
in fact, these white pupils return in giyuu when tanjirou reminds him of sabito's words.
and obviously, it's inconsistent, but i will still celebrate this fact as a show of giyuu's kindness and purity that equals tanjirou's.
9. food as love language
giyuu dreaming about giving sanemi ohagi, and tanjirou preparing food for the fellow slayers during HTA or him offering genya food during the start of SSV.
and for each other, which forms the most significant moment of their development: the soba contest.
10. matching leg wraps
afaik i never saw anyone else with the same leg wraps as giyuu and tanjirou. it's exclusively just the two of them. makes me wonder if urokodaki gave them the same ones.
(giyuu on the left, tanjirou on the right)
and another thing, since giyuu's appearance is already so dominated by the two people he feels the most indebted to (tsutako and sabito), the leg wraps add tanjirou embedded in his design, because that's also someone he loves.
11. the slap
sabito is urokodaki's student, definitely.
12. dragon and thrust technique
because why not.
feel free to add anything else in tags or replies!!
thinking about demon Akaza, staring at those damned fireworks every year, not knowing why they made some part of him ache.
Akaza, decades into demonhood, still returning to that spot every year, like a migratory bird with no nest to return to. The memories are getting fainter every year, and before long, he doesn’t know why he comes back. Just that he has to.
Akaza, watching the colors in the sky and wondering what it is inside that he might be missing. Why seeing them is so infuriatingly beautiful. Why he can’t seem to look away, why he keeps coming back to watch them, why he can’t comprehend what about them is so important; just that he has to watch them. He made a promise, after all.
Akaza, centuries later, as the festival is no longer held anymore, as the people who run it have since moved or changed or died; but he’s still here. Still alive, still returning, still infuriated at why he keeps coming back to a spot he doesn’t remember at all anymore. It’s all gone now. Anything to hold onto is gone, any remnants of his past and his future have been long outlived by him alone.
And yet, he always comes back to watch the fireworks.
there are more than enough instances in which kny portrays the corrupting nature of power and the danger of seeking it, but giyu offers a different and compelling perspective through his beliefs and character.
giyu's word to tanjiro in their first encounter might seem cruel until you learn more about his past and all the loss he endured. it's true that endlessly pursuing power and prioritizing it might make you mess out on what is important in life but strength is crucial as well; strength is safety and help. power is not inherently bad. seeking and gaining power can be a noble act, if it's wielded for the sake of others and against those who only cause harm. giyu was absolutely right when he said "the weak have no power and no option". power maintains your dignity, it gives you freedom and affords you options.
just like akaza, giyu sees the world divided into the weak—which he believes he belongs to—and the strong. unlike him though he doesn't want to become stronger to trample on others but to protect and avenge his loved ones. that's exactly where his frustration with tanjiro when they first met comes from. intentions alone won't achieve anything, the harsh world will not bend to his requests and pleas. a change for the better will not happen on its own, and for it to happen you need willingness and force. that is why the story spends it's first arc on fortifying tanjiro's resolve.
after resolve comes hard work and then strength. the stronger tanjiro becomes the more capable and useful he is, and the more he's able to exact justice. there is a clear difference between his role in the first fight against akaza and the second one. he goes from a hindrance, and someone to save to giyu's equal and saves him at a point.
power is a necessity. honing and cultivating it can enable people to stand up for what is right and extend a helping hand. It can make the difference between being a victim of circumstances and being independent.
What Rank did Michikatsu [Human Kokushibō] Hold as a Samurai?
When we think of a samurai, we often envision a fierce warrior prepared for battle. While this is partly true, we often tend to forget the internal heirarchy among them. Like any military group, samurai had a clear chain of command for smooth operations. However, it's important to note that samurai were a social class rather than a military one.
These "ranks," or more so, distinctions within the samurai were closely tied to hereditary social status, the extent of land ownership, and titles within the clan, rather than personal skills, which could vary depending on the era.
In this discussion, we will concentrate on the Sengoku era, as it is relevant to our topic. I will examine Michikatsu's role based on the available canonical information.
⚠ SPOILERS AHEAD ⚠ | Masterlist
⨳ Where His Father stood
In the image above, Michikatsu talks about his father having a "vassal." A lot could be inferred from this, but it is likely that his father either might be a samurai lord [Sengoku daimyo] or a wealthy, high-ranking samurai who supports smaller samurai.
[Daimyo (大名): military lords who controlled small, unified areas in which all the land either belonged to themselves or was held in fief by their vassals]
[Vassals: subordinates who pledged their loyalty and obligations towards powerful lords]
So essentially, he was not just an ordinary samurai but rather a figure of considerable importance. His possession of vassals and land suggests that he must be exercising some form of governance, implying that he is possibly some sort of lord having an independent clan.
As you can see, he seemed to have personal servants:
And also personal messengers:
Though it is rather difficult to tell whether he was a powerful lord or not—an actual daimyo who was the direct vassal of the shogun, or just a lesser lord having a smaller land—possibly a heir to the family head or a landowner with a fief.
⨳ Was The Tsugikuni Clan Powerful?
First, let us understand what was going on during that time:
"This was the 'Age of Warring States', when scores of minor daimyo seized power for themselves in their immediate localities and fought each other until, during the mid-16th century, a comparative handful of 'super-daimyo' competed with each other on a grand scale before Japan was finally reunified" [source]
From this, it seems logical to assume that the Tsugikuni clan was a smaller one rather than a grand one—also considering Michikatsu's father's rather obsessive nature and his intense determination on getting better heirs, even to the point of being willing to harm his own family due to superstitious beliefs. Better heirs: more likely the clan gets to thrive and gain power.
Also, if we consider these words from Kokushibou:
Notice how he says this—he doesn't seem to be very surprised to know that his clan's name has died out, which would only solidify the fact that his clan must not be very powerful to begin with. [Considering that many direct descendants of the major clans today still seem to be thriving, with many carrying out their clan names. Muichiro seems to be an exception here]
So now that we know that his clan was likely not a powerful one, we could also assume that his father was a local lord rather than a full on daimyo for obvious reasons. Not only that, but this would also suggest that their clan must be a retainer family—they would be under a much stronger lord—a powerful daimyo, whom they would had to serve.
⨳ MICHIKATSU'S POSIBBLE RANK [DISTINCTION]
Before moving on, I would just like to point out that holding a high-ranking position as a samurai—such as leading troops— was a result of personal achievement rather than mere familial ties. If a family did not meet the necessary standards of talent and capability, their members would be assigned to lesser roles based on who they served.
With that being said, let us now try fitting in Michikatsu into all of this and find out what military rank he should have based on his family background:
Initailly, I was rather confused and wondered if Michikatsu could be a Hatamoto. They were the highest ranking samurai, considered the most loyal and skilled, who acted as bodyguards towards their lord. Sounds familiar, right? However, there was one piece of canon information that completely debunked this idea:
Samurai usually had to chop off their enemy’s head as proof of their kills; typically that shouldn't be done by the hatamoto, as they typically stayed close to their lords as a last resort instead of fighting on the front lines like the others.
Okay.. so he probably isn't a hatamoto. If his first instinct was to bring the head of Ubuyashiki to Muzan, then it suggests he must have done this before. if that's the case, then he must have ranked lower than a hatamoto, more so in a class where he might have been around collecting heads. After looking into what the manga could offer, I reached two conclusions:
1. He was a Taisho (大将)[general]: These ranked officials were the generals in the Daimyo's army, leading groups of soldiers called kumi. Depending on the troops they commanded, they were either referred to as Samurai-taisho or Ashigaru-taisho. They usually oversaw multiple kumi, each consisting of around 50 to 100 men.
2. He was a Kumigashira (組頭) [captain/platoon commander]: These officers controlled and led a single kumi of troops and were called samurai-kumigashira or ashigaru-kumigashira based on the type of troops in their kumi; which, often consisted upto 15-30 men each.
-> By those conical hats (jingasa) those men are wearing, I'm pretty sure they are depicted as Ashigaru foot soldiers. [This explains why he refers to them as his subordinates, as ashigaru were considered lower than samurai.]
Looking at the image, I doubt there are 50-100 men present there, and it seems more likely there are about 15-30. Therefore, we can conclude that he must be an Ashigaru-kumigashira.
Also, when people talk about Ashigaru, they usually think of peasants taken out of their farms. This is a misconception. Even though they were lower in class, ashigaru were generally treated as full on warriors. Not only were they as capable as their samurai counterparts, some were even stronger than them.The men under Michikatsu's command were fully capable and skilled swordsmen.
⨳ Michikatsu's Troops and His Role:
A general overview of the make up of the sengoku era army
—In short, the troops were reorganised in Sonae, which had between 300 to 800 men. Each Sonae included various types of troops. They were split into smaller units called Kumi, based on their weapons. These included archers, gun squads, cavalry, spear squads, and standard bearers.
By looking at these images, I see no one holding weapons, just a few casual swords thrown in here and there, which I find to be very odd..
Perhaps Michikatsu had set up his base further from his soldiers and gathered them up for a speech about the next day's plans just before they went to sleep? This could explain why they were caught off guard by the demon and didn’t have their weapons ready. After all, it’s strange not to have your weapons out when you are being attacked.
Regardless of the situation, his troops should be either a spear unit [Yari-gumi (長柄組)] or an archer unit [Yumi-gumi (弓組)].
Why you ask? This is because, firstly; guns weren't introduced until the mid sengoku period in 1543 [Michikatsu is theorised to be born around 1432] In the cavalry unit, the troops consisted of samurai rather than ashigaru, and bannermen did not engage in battle.
MICHIKATSU'S ROLE: Although there is not much provided anywhere about these commanders, from everything I have gathered: These commanding officers used to lead a unit of ashigaru soldiers. They were ranked below the sodaisho and samurai daisho (commanders) and an ashigaru taisho.
He would be assigned to train them, discipline the foot soldiers, and turn uneducated common men into reliable warriors. He would command and lead them, ensuring everyone followed his commands and maintained order within the ranks, and not disrupt the hierarchy. Hmm that sounds familiar doesn't it?
[I might actually make a detailed post about the military formation with Michikatsu if any of you are interested.]
Final thoughts:
[A/n: Hello everyone! It's been a while since my last post. No, I haven't abandoned my blogs. I just took a short break last week. Now I'm back and eager to share a theory with you all! Which I will be posting more of, both here and on my other blog, @gilded-sunrays. Please feel free to share your insights!]
And if you've made it through all of this, then I thank you wholeheartedly!
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Mitsuri's weirdness is slept on me thinks. It's true that Mitsuri sorta represents normalcy in kny's bleak setting, despite being seen as unusual over something she can't control, but still, she's a weirdo <3 (affectionate) Maybe people forget that Mitsuri is weird because she doesn't have deceased parents (therefore isn't as unhinged as the other characters) and is girly(?) so surely, she must like normal girly things like makeup and shopping. I mean true! I'm sure she enjoys those, but I don’t think those are the only things she would like. (besides food ofc) Mitsuri is depicted as so stereotypically girly that it is unconventional in itself. She made the boys wear LEOTARDS in the hashira training arc. She's weird in a childish whimsey sort of way.
Mitsuri is a fangirl. She gushes over her colleagues at the most inappropriate times, but she compliments the things that are unconventional, like Sanemi's scars, Giyuu being quiet, or Obanai being snakey. (whatever that means)
Ya girl is also so obsessed with cats that her breathing style techniques are named after cats?? Complete with meowing sound effects too. Cat Love shower hello?!??.
Also I feel that aside from normal girly things, Mitsuri would LOVE magical girl things like sailor moon. There's so much magical girl motifs to her. She is like obsessed with cute things that her breathing in itself is super colorful and shiny, with bubbles and glitters. She also does a lot of unnecessary backflips, because she's just that. Extra.
She even has little hearts on her tsuka! Everyone else is regular looking or plain. I think she's the only one with that kind of design on her katana.
And I don't think these are a coincidence. Even in extra materials she literally has a ridiculous yet adorable OC named Big Hand Cat.
Look at her dragon even! Its so silly and whimsy I love it. It's like her cat oc in dragon form, complete with the big anime eyes. Again, Mitsuri would soooo love anime.
She even made a manga where the characters are based on FOOD
In short, Mitsuri is equivalent to THAT weird art kid. She's a weirdo let her be weird. 🩷
No one ever talks about the parallels between tsugikuni brothers with the shinazugawa brothers besides the most obvious stuff but I'm going to talk about some parallel that I'm posting now in case I forget later
The way each one of brothers remembers their respective brother's smile
Both Sanemi and Yoriichi were described as people who rarely or never smiled by their respective brothers
But while Michikatsu described Yoriichi's smile as something disturbing,
Genya described Sanemi's smile as kind and says how much he & his siblings loved it; also while in swordsmith village arc, when his life flashed before his eyes, one of the last things he saw was an image of Sanemi smiling
Wherein Muichirou likens all of the Hashira (most of the Hashira, poor Giyuu) to animals.
Today, I want to discuss why Sanemi being described as a wolf is particularly insightful and apt.
But first, let's take a look at wolves in nature, specifically on the nature of sibling relationships between wolves and how they relate back to Sanemi. In this analysis I'm gonna pull out a lot of terms like Alloparenting, kin selection, and cooperative breeding, but bear with me and I'll do my best to explain everything! (I may have abused my college library for fandom purposes, oopsies!)
You've probably heard by now that the classic "Alpha wolf" pack structure that was popularized in 1970's is very much a misrepresentation of actual wolf packs in the wild. Actual wolf packs are often made up of closely related individuals with one main breeding pair. This main breeding pair produces offspring, which then become members of the pack and participate in future hunts as well as future child rearing.
So! A "pack" is really just a family unit. Most are made up of the parents and all their offspring.
Now, you've probably heard the phrase, "It takes a village to raise a child."
If you have, congratulations! You now know the concept of Cooperative Breeding in a nutshell! Basically, cooperative breeding is a social structure characterized by alloparental care. Alloparental care is any form of parental care performed by an individual towards young that are not its direct offspring. Such as...
...an older sibling raising their younger sibling.
Alloparenting is actually incredibly rare among mammals, with only about 3% of species exhibiting this behavior, the most famous of which being humans and wolves.
This is because it is a form of altruism, wherein an individual sacrifices something for the benefit of another individual. In the case of wolves, this may be food, time, or other resources as siblings will take up feeding, warming, and guarding duties while the alpha pair and other siblings are on a hunt.
Sanemi is a family-oriented man. His entire character is driven by family (and yes, this does include the likes of Masachika and Kanae, which I will discuss later).
His early life revolved around raising his siblings. When they passed and he was forced to kill his mother, his life shifted then to revolve solely around Genya, his remaining pack.
What I find interesting is the way Sanemi looks at the world through a lens of family orientation. Close friends are not simply "friends," they are family, and thus, pack. For example, Masachika became an older brother figure to him. In signs from the wind, when he was becoming Kanae, he looked at her the same way he would look at his mother. Even the way he views Tengen is through the lens of an older brother figure.
"He often acts like an older brother."
He talks to Shinobu "since she's Kanae's little sister." (thus, in a way, extended pack).
Hell, even his annoyance at Giyuu makes more sense when put into this light. Putting aside his glaring inferiority complex (and really, we shouldn't because it does play a huge role into why he hates Giyuu), we see that Giyuu very much plays into the "lone wolf" archetype. Something that very much goes against the pack-oriented nature of wolves.
Even calling Giyuu a lone wolf is a bit of a misnomer. Wolves leave the pack with the intention of starting a new pack. Thus, lone wolves are actively seeking companionship, something Giyuu is very much not doing (at least not consciously).
It clashes against Sanemi's very nature as a man of the pack. This "I'm not like the rest of you," shtick. It not only implies he's somehow above them in Sanemi's mind, but it also defies the natural order of how Sanemi perceives the world.
Despite his brash attitude, his openness is rated at 60% and he's often depicted within the inner group of the hashira.
He's not a social butterfly, but he is by no means a loner. Just look at how well he gets along with Obanai!
So, returning to the wolf analogy, we know that Sanemi is a pack-oriented man who places the survival of his family above all else. Let's talk about why wolves are so invested in their family members survival.
It's a concept known as Kin Selection.
Kin selection is where a trait is favored by the success of the individual's relatives that possess it and successfully pass it on.
Think of it like this: You share approximately 50% of your genes with your full sibling (with identical twins sharing 100%!). You also share 50% of your genes with your parent. You share just as much genetic material with a sibling as you would with your own child.
Theoretically, your sibling's success is also your success genetically.
This is, of course, a hotly debated topic, however.
Not every wolf is interested in starting their own pack. Let's talk about 0'6, the most famous wolf in Yellowstone. Specifically, let's talk about her mate's brother, 754M, who, instead of starting his own pack, followed his brother, 755M and joined his pack instead where he went on to help raise his pups as an uncle and served as a sort of third pack leader.
Which, is reminiscent of Sanemi's stance in the main story. His dreams are for Genya to find a "mate" and have "pups" of his own and build his own pack. And while Sanemi has no plans of being there physically, he plans to spend his life fiercely guarding Genya's pack, much like 754M.
Once again, however, the validity of kin selection among wolves is a a bit of a hot bed among animal behavioralists and evolutionary biologists, but it is applicable in this case to Sanemi.
Sanemi very much does not care for his own success. He says himself that if he should die, he would die with a sword in his teeth, taking out as many demons as he can while Genya has a bushel of kids.
Sanemi being described as one of the most family oriented and surprisingly altruistically loyal mammals is one of the most apt metaphors Muichirou could have chosen for him.
Everything from how Sanemi views the world to how he operates to even his appearance and tenacity can best be described as wolf-like.
Including, me thinks, the fandom's tendency to demonize him. Wolves are one of the most misunderstood animals out there and lately a lot of light has been shed on the beautiful creatures. With the Infinity castle movies so close to releasing, I think the same shift in perspective will be coming for Sanemi soon as well.
Now to link my sources! Hoo boy. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here. Here.
