Muichiro

Muichiro is a young boy of fair skin and short stature with a lean muscular build along with long, straight hair of a black color that fades to pale turquoise as it approaches his waist. He wears his hair loose with two clumps protruding slightly from each side of his head, a set of marginally shorter hair left down to frame his face, and unruly bangs over his forehead. He also possesses large, empty-looking pale turquoise eyes. He is identical in appearance to his older twin brother Yuichiro.

Following his meeting with Tanjiro Kamado and the return of his childhood memories, Muichiro's once empty looking eyes seem to now have a hopeful glimmer that is accompanied with a more upbeat and cheery expression, reminiscent of his former demeanor before the death of Yuichiro.

Muichiro wears a dark, slightly turquoise-tinted version of the Demon Slayer uniform. His uniform has longer, looser sleeves that are more reminiscent of those of a kimono than of the standard cuffed uniform. Along with this, the lack of bands of cloth wrapped around his calves gives his uniform an overall loose and sizable appearance. He also has dark blue tabi socks and a pair of white zōri with dark blue straps.

Muichiro is an air-headed individual who seems to constantly wander off in thought and is unable to focus on anything. Impassive and, at times, obtuse, he tends to think only for himself and operates on logic alone, never letting emotions guide him, making him seem seemingly apathetic and indifferent. However, Tanjiro Kamado sensed that Muichiro wasn't being apathetic on purpose as he didn't emanate any animosity. Despite his mostly uncaring and unserious demeanor, he has been shown to become serious when it is required and is devoted to his position as the Demon Slayer Corps' Mist Hashira. Alternatively he seems to display a cold and arrogant side; as shown by him violently shaking down Kotetsu and calling him stupid, saying his time as a Hashira was important, more so than his own, and that all that the swordsmiths could do was make weapons. Despite this, Muichiro doesn't seem to be indifferent towards Kagaya Ubuyashiki, most likely due to his immense respect for his master.

However, before the death of his twin brother when the siblings were eleven, Muichiro's personality was that of a much more compassionate and optimistic individual, the polar opposite of his current disposition. Having originally taken after his father, he was shown to display a higher level of kindness and understanding, believing he should aim to do good for others if he wanted good to be done for him. When told by Amane Ubuyashiki that they were descendants to Demon Slayers of old, Muichiro became excited at the prospect of being able to protect people.

After his brother was attacked by a demon and witnessing his final moments and death, Muichiro subsequently lost his memories and has held an omnipresent rage deeply suppressed inside of him that inevitably drove his future, intense training. After this memory loss, he started exhibiting the indifferent attitude of his twin brother he is now known for as a Hashira. Following his battle with Gyokko and reuniting with Tanjiro after the latter's battle with Hantengu, he warmly thanked Tanjiro for helping him regain his identity and showed concern for his wellbeing.

During his later interactions with Tanjiro, Muichiro started regaining his memories of his past, causing him to behave more maturely and seriously, even choosing to help Kotetsu when his life was in danger instead of ignoring him. After his memory was fully restored, Muichiro began expressing more emotions and became more confident in himself and started caring more for his peers in the Demon Slayer Corps. He also started exhibiting emotions common for someone his age, particularly childishness and immaturity when interacting with his other Demon Slayers. He also appears to be evidently biased towards Tanjiro after his battle with Gyokko in the Swordsmith Village, as his cheerful demeanor when around him was replaced by a cold indifference when around other Demon Slayers. However, he was shown to be more aware of himself and those around him, evident when he realized that Obanai Iguro had a crush on Mitsuri Kanroji, which surprised Gyomei Himejima. His kindness also aided him in building friendships among the Demon Slayers and making happy memories like the ones back when he lived with his family.

Despite his young age in comparison to his Hashira brethren, Muichiro is an incredibly talented and skilled member of the Demon Slayer Corps, who was noted by the Flame Hashira Kyojuro Rengoku to be more skilled than he was at his age.[4] Even before becoming a Demon Slayer, he was able to completely overpower a demon using only wooden stakes and farming tools.[5] He has the astounding feat of becoming a Hashira a mere two months after picking up a sword,[6][7] a feat that would normally take five years of training for the average person and at best two years,[8] which earned him the praise of the Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui. After gaining his Demon Slayer Mark, he was able to engage Gyokko, the fifth highest ranking demon of the Twelve Kizuki, in combat with little difficulty, eventually killing him even after he had transformed into his true form.[9] His fighting prowess was also commended by Kokushibo, the most powerful member of the Twelve Kizuki, and played a major role in the Upper Rank's defeat in spite of his lethal injuries.[10][11]

Endless Rage:[12] Muichiro attributes the origin of his willpower towards training and his strength towards the awakened rage that is always present and boiling within him, both appearing after his brother's death. This unquenchable rage is the source for his indomitable willpower and undaunted spirit, shown when he continued to fight despite having beyond fatal injuries, such as having his arm, both his legs and later his entire torso sliced. Despite everything, he remained steadfast which ultimately led to the defeat of Kokushibo.[13][14][15][16]

Demon Slayer Abilities Demon Slayer Mark: During his battle against Gyokko, Muichiro's body reached the requirements to unlock the Demon Slayer Mark, which manifests as three dark red clouds on his face. While the mark is active, his vitality, speed, and strength are greatly enhanced, to the point where he not only shrugged off the effects of a powerful paralytic poison and used Mist Breathing forms in rapid succession, but also was capable of singlehandedly overwhelming and killing Upper Rank Five of the Twelve Kizuki.[17] Later on, in his battle against Kokushibo, Muichiro manifested his Mark at will in order to fight the Upper Rank. [18]

Bright Red Nichirin Sword: During his battle against Kokushibo, Muichiro dyed his Nichirin Sword a bright red color by gripping it with all his might, allowing him to hamper the regeneration of Kokushibo, which later proved to play a pivotal role in his defeat.[16]

Transparent World: Muichiro obtained the ability to see the Transparent World during the midst of his battle against Kokushibo, which allowed him to see the muscles, blood flow, and joint movement of his opponents, aiding him in landing a hit on the Upper Rank and keeping him in place and creating an opportunity for his allies to kill him.[10]

Trivia: Muichiro's surname contains the Kun'yomi reading of the kanji for "time" (時とき toki?) and the Kan-on'yomi for "transparent, permeate" (透とう tō?). His first name contains the Go-on'yomi for "nothingness" (無む mu?), "one" (一いち ichi?) and "son" (郎ろう rō?). The first kanji of Muichiro's first name, "nothingness" (無む mu?), is noted to also be used to write the word "infinity" (無む限げん mugen?).[38] Additionally, its meaning of "nothingness" stands in stark opposition to the first kanji of his twin brother Yuichiro's name, as that kanji means "existence". Not only do Muichiro and Kokushibo share the commonality of having twin siblings, but Muichiro also shares the letter "M" with Kokushibo's human name, Michikatsu. Coincidentally, Muichiro's older twin brother Yuichiro shares the initial "Y" with Michikatsu's younger twin brother, Yoriichi Tsugikuni. Muichiro shares his Japanese and English voice actors with his twin. Muichiro's rankings in the popularity polls are as follows: Muichiro ranked 29th place in the first popularity poll with 55 votes. Muichiro ranked 3rd place in the second popularity poll with 11,948 votes. Even before he entered the Demon Slayer Corps, Muichiro could sleep soundly no matter if there was a tempest or a thunderstorm, and he never lost his appetite.[4] Muichiro can't have pets because Ginko, his Kasugai Crow, would get jealous.[39] Muichiro views the other Hashira as follows:[4] "She's like a swallow, and she has a kind face." - Insect Hashira "He's like a monkey. Sometimes he ruffles my hair." - Sound Hashira "He's like a wildcat. He's quiet and has pretty eyes. The nonmatching colors surprised me at first." - Serpent Hashira "He's like a bear. So he's the strongest." - Stone Hashira "He's just sort of there." - Water Hashira "He's looks like an owl. He has a cheerful and pleasant voice." - Flame Hashira "She's always chirping. Like a pink baby chick. Her hair is pretty." - Love Hashira "He looks like a wolf." - Wind Hashira Muichiro's level of openness was ranked as 40%.[4] Muichiro is one of only four Hashira that use a normal Nichirin Katana. The other three are Kyojuro Rengoku, Sanemi Shinazugawa, and Giyu Tomioka.