#yushiro

This au is so fun to think about cause there’s so much chaos and shenaniganary

I put way too much much effort into their roles

Today I would like to lightly analyze Kaigaku and Zenitsu through the lens of contextual interpretation and folk tales. This going to be a little dive into the words Yushiro says to Kaigaku in Chapter 146.

"Those who were not provided anything from people go on to not receive anything from people. Those who simply want things, in the end, are the same as those who have nothing, because they cannot create anything on their own."

Yushiro, where did this come from? Where did you even come from, I'm sure Kaigaku wondered. He must have spent his final moments in utter befuddlement.

I'll bet that official translators in various languages might have felt somewhat befuddled about what to do with these lines too, since Japanese is a very high-content language. Yushiro does not make his meaning and its connection to Kaigaku explicit, so when translating into a low-context language, a lot of what you inevitably get is the translator's interpretation. They can stay close to literal meaning of the text and leave readers a little confused, or they can add context based on broader understanding of the plot and characters, although it runs the risk of not being what the original writer explicitly meant. (I am not dunking on translators; I am stating a reality of translation. Also, I'm using my own translations in this post since I only have the Japanese versions of this manga.)

Part of why Yushiro's commentary might feel sudden to a reader is because readers have followed along inside both Zenitsu and Kaigaku's heads, and therefore seen many more layers than only what they actually say aloud to each other. Zenitsu and Kaigaku also have shared history of being raised in a martial tradition and they both understand the pride and prestige of it, which Yushiro doesn't care about.

If we instead look at what Yushiro has witnessed about their exchange, it (in paraphrase) boils down to:

"I stick with those who assess my worth accurately! That stupid old man didn't make me his successor!"

"Jiichan didn't have a good successor because we both suck. I can only use the First Form and that's the one you can't use."

"Don't put me in the same category as you! You and that old geezer should both just die!"

"Seems you ate a lot of people. You have no way of telling apart right and wrong, do you?"

"I can tell them apart. Those who assess my worth accurately are righteous! Those who assess me too low are wrong!!"

(At which point, Yushiro is probably rolling his eyes about how Kaigaku totally lacks a dictionary-level understanding of 善 and 悪.)

"How's my Blood Technique Breath combo? (Blah blah blah, something-something about the details of how it works)"

(Yushiro was probably so underwhelmed. Stupid demon was practically born yesterday.)

"I'm special. I'm not like you. I'm different from both* of you!"

(And then a big boom. Yushiro sees his moment to step in and intervene now that this annoying demon is dealt with.) *(This plural could also be translated as "all of you," like Kaigaku is saying he's different from all the Demon Slayer Corp, but because the context of the conversation is that he was only ever talking smack about Zenitsu and Kuwajima, I've gone with "both." Just a small example of how translators constantly make decisions that inevitably make text more explicit.)

"Damn it! I knew that old man was playing favorites with you! He had something he only taught you and never taught me!"

"No. Jiichan wasn't the kind of person to do that. This is my own form. One that I thought up myself, that only I can do. With this, I wanted to stand and fight at your side, as your equal."

Even if Yushiro was only there to hear the last bit, his comments can be better understand in context as replying directly to those final lines. The following rewrite of Yushiro's lines is a level of interpretation that strays from the text since I have added "specialness" for context:

If people didn't provide you with a way to feel special, you probably weren't going to receive anything like that anyway. If you simply desire being special, that's the same as not having been special in the first place, because you couldn't make yourself special on your own.

Or to add another level of interpretation, which strays even more from the literal text by adding even more context:

So what if your master didn't teach you that. You sure wouldn't have been receptive to it anyway, huh?* All you wanted was for him to make you feel special, but wanting that feeling so badly goes to show you never had anything special in you in the first place. After all, you sure didn't make your own sword form like that guy did, did you?

That phrasing would make the subtext a lot clearer: Of course the two of you aren't the same. That guy is better than you; you only ever selfishly wanted what he had because you totally lacked it.

Although it would be too meta for Yushiro to point it out, there is subtext which comes across loud and clear if you read this in a language with kanji: There is a difference between right (善) and wrong (悪). Zenitsu recognizes that his path and Kaigaku's path have diverged.

And Zenitsu, who has 善 in his name, is the one on the righteous path.

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NOW!! WITH THAT OUT OF THE WAY!! Here's the point that inspired this post.

In Japanese folk tales, there is a very common story setup with two similar characters, but one is right (善) and the other is wrong (悪). Rather than being worded so strongly, one is usually doing things out of pure motives, and the other does things out of jealousy and wanting the good fortune that the pure one has. In the end, the jealous, selfish person tries the same thing that the pure-hearted person did, but it has a disastrous result. Instant karma.

Quite often, the characters are old men, like in the stories Kobutori Jiisan and Hanasaka Jiisan. They are two sides of the same coin, like the cover of Chapter 145.

There are also folk tales in which someone receives a miraculous boon, but they must be careful not to selfishly overuse it, lest they lose it or suffer some terrible fate worse than where they started. For example, in some versions of Kasa Jizo, the story goes on to show how the kind old man (or his selfish wife) turn avaricious after receiving a gift in exchange for their simple kindness, and they wind up losing everything. In contrast, in some versions of Issun-boshi, the heroic oni slayer is able to use a magic hammer to grant a deeply-held wish, as well as to give himself a practical amount of money and food for his journey. However, he is wise and careful not to use it for any more than that.

If we were to plug Zenitsu and Kaigaku into these stories, it would be easy to see what roles they fall into. Zenitsu, despite his proclivity to an easy life and over-eating and over-spending, values the gift of swordsmanship and Jiichan's time and efforts spent on him, and his intentions for how to use this gift are pure. Kaigaku's are not, which is why his selfishness causes this gift to backfire.

Yushiro probably would have had passing familiarity with folk tales like these. They are moral tales intended for children, to show the difference between two paths, right (善) and wrong (悪). That's probably why instead of saying something so direct as "Those who can't tell the difference between right and wrong," he instead framed it as "those who simply want things."

Especially when you're soaking the sheets during ovulation week, but trying not to disturb him cause he needs his space after all.

But today your heat was just too much. You were trying to be quiet on the bed, feeling yourself through your underwear; let's be honest, through his boxers, but it just wasn't enough for you. You peep to the living room and there he is, with his headphones on and a focused face on his phone, like he's actually curing cancer. So annoying. And so inconsiderate. You needed him more than his friends.

So you decide to play dirty. Off those soaked boxers of his, and you're putting on some crotchless black bandage panties, no shirt and no bra. You pick up a pillow and off you go to make him fulfill his duties.

You quietly go towards the sofa where he's sitting, on the edge, face glued to his phone, and it's not until you're in front of him that he looks up, down, and up again with a nervous shocked face, and he lets off an awkward chuckle. You put your index finger on top of your lips, shushing him, and putting the pillow behind him, motioning him to lay down.

“Keep playing your game” you say silently while he's all wide eyed.

“Heeeyy, are you there?”, you hear from his headphones. 

“Y-yeah…..I-I'm still h-here” he says, stuttering. So cute.

You straddle his clothed crotch slowly, grabbing a hold of his t-shirt and start grinding on him, eliciting quiet moans from you, and a flushed face from him, mouth agape.

Once he feels fully hard, you slide off his shorts and underwear and place kitten kisses on his rosey, precum leaking tip.Your tongue starts wetting his underside, from the base up a few times until you take him fully in your mouth, sucking and swirling your tongue all over his bricked cock. He's not even paying attention to his phone, and muted his headphone so he's just looking at you and trying so, so hard not to moan too loud.

“Hey, what are you doing? They're right behind ya”, you faintly hear coming from the game.

You just look up at him and continue your ministries on his cock, letting out a small chuckle.

“I-I…think I ju-just got killed, ah……I think I'm out”, he's such a liar.

You stick out your tongue and lick from the base up, and slowly but surely align his anxious tip with your entrance, and little by little,  you start sinking yourself down his stiff dick, squelching sounds from your heat now sounding deafening. 

“Ah, ah…..oh my God babe….ugh I needed you so bad….”, now you're all flushed and red in the face. He's still holding his phone, but eyes roaming the part where your bodies connect, frowning. Head tilted back and letting out tiny moans.

You grab the upper part of your tits with your palms, as if you're displaying them for him, and continue bouncing on his cock, stretching out your warm pussy.

“Babe, I don't think I can hold it, I'm close”, damn ovulation, made you so sensitive. 

“It's okay princess, I'll cum with you”, his right hand comes off his phone, thumb going straight to your clit, rubbing circles, and that got you over the edge.

“Ah, ah, aah baaabee……I'm cumming ah…”, your soppy cunt contracting on his cock inside, while he groans and shoots his creamy load deep in you.

You collapse on his chest, both catching your breaths, and him caressing your head and placing a kiss on top of your head.

“Good fucking girl”. You chuckle.

“Uuuh, guys………you're……..not on mute”, you hear, coming from his headphones. 

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kenma kozume- kuroo tetsuro- atsumu miya- kei tsukishima- suna rintaro- gojo satoru- geto suguru- choso kamo- inumaki toge- yuuji itadori- hirotaka nifuji- taro kabakura- zenitsu agatsuma- kamado tanjiro- tomioka giyu- muichiro tokito- genya shinazugawa- yushiro- eren yaeger- jean kirsten- connie springer- and all your faves.

So what if Mitsuri joined the Demon Slayer Corps to find love?

So did Zenitsu. Nezuko is all he can talk and think about. His first scene is him literally begging a girl to marry him.

Tengen constantly talks about his wives and his love for them. A love so great that it is the main driving force behind ALL of his major life decisions. He left his toxic family because of them, he joined the Corps because of them, he decided to retire and left the Corps because of them. He has stated how they're his main reason for living, and how he considers their wellbeing and importance above his.

Tamayo is Yushiro's entire world, so much so that he's content being absolutely devoted to this woman and her goals, even though he knows that she's still in love with her husband. He's just content with being by her side and supporting her in everything, even if it goes against his best interests.

Obanai literally teleported 3 feet because he got a letter from Mitsuri and proceeds to read it with the ferocity of a lovesick teen who just got a text back. He's shown to be utterly in love with her and cares about her wellbeing and comfort.

The main cause of Giyuu's depression is because Sabito, his first love, died! And one of the things that brings him out of it is the thought of making and giving Sanemi, his new crush, his favorite food.

Yorichii, the strongest character in KnY, just wanted to have a family with the love of his life, Uta. His very first proper introduction has him holding a baby, FOR SUCKS SAKE!! We don't even see his expression because the yearning was that deep! When a character in KnY is framed from the back, you know the emotion is strong.

Genya is always flustered and horny when he's in the same airspace as or even thinks about a girl.

Hakuji not only took care of Koyuki but loved her so much that it permeates through his BDA as Akaza even though his memory was wiped. His soul remembers and honors her even if his mind doesn't.

The main reason Gyutaro hated Uzui was because he's a chad and was getting hoes.

Shinjuro Rengoku had a decade-long crashout because Rika died.

But yea no, let's shit on this ONE female character for the crime of wanting love and a family. Just say you hate women and go.