The Demon Slayer anime series generally relies on the classic power of friendship and love as the heroes push themselves to defeat the demons whom they swore to destroy. Most of the elite Hashira do that too, but there is a distinct exception: Shinobu Kocho, the official Insect Hashira. Shinobu actually goes against the grain in many ways in Demon Slayer's story, creating a character arc unlike any other in this shonen anime.
Ever since her introduction in the Mount Natagumo story arc in Season 1, Shinobu has been the odd one out among the Hashira and has been a contradictory character in fascinating and meaningful ways. Shinobu may have the same duty has her fellow Hashira and other slayers, but the way she goes about it seemingly breaks all the rules of the Demon Slayer Corps. Due to her past expriences and physical strength, that's simply who Shinobu Kocho needed to be, almost serving as a counterpoint to the likes of Kyojuro Rengoku and Muichiro Tokito.
Shinobu Kocho's Backstory Set Up Her Contradictory Ways
Her Outward Persona and True Rage Are Like Fire and Ice
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Contradictions and subversions are at the heart of Shinobu Kocho's character arc, and it all started a few years ago, when she was a hot-tempered slayer fighting alongside her beloved older sister, Kanae Kocho. In those days, as a shonen-style flashback showed, Kanae was the gentle and sweet Flower Hashira who wouldn't hesitate to help anyone and everyone in need. Case in point, she saw a young slave girl in bondage and freed her on principle, accepting that quiet girl as her new apprentice. The girl, named Kanao Tsuyuri, brought out the best in the big-sisterly Kanae while provoking Shinobu's irritation. Shinobu was more than a little annoyed at her big sister's impulsive actions regarding Kanao, but there was no taking it back. The sisters' personalities couldn't have been different, and when tragedy struck, the contradictions only deepened.
Tragically, Kanae Kocho died at the hands of Doma, one of the Upper Moons, and that profoundly changed Shinobu. Naturally, Shinobu developed a vengeful wrath for all of demon-kind, hating them all for robbing her of her beloved Hashira sister, but Shinobu didn't always wear those emotions on her sleeve. By Demon Slayer's current events in the year 1915, Shinobu acted like the exact opposite, presenting a polite and carefree persona that fooled everyone who met her. On the outside, Shinobu acted somewhat similarly to her dearly departed sister, but it was just a mask. Shinobu's white-hot anger persisted anda fueled her drive to become an elite demon slayer who showed no mercy to her enemies. Tanjiro Kamado only saw that anger when he sniffed it out at the Butterfly Estate, which surprised him. Shinobu's bottled-up rage was palpable.
Kanae's death prompted another contradiction in Shinobu regarding Kanao Tsuyuri. At first, Shinobu was exasperated by the idea of Kanae adopting and training that silent girl, but after Kanae's demise, Shinobu dedicated herself to Kanao and adopted her as a younger sister. Shinobu did a total 180 about Kanao, and not only that, she has been training Kanao to the exclusion of almost everyone else. Shinobu thus honors her sister's memory by at once being the same person Kanae had been, and being the total inverse as well. If there's irony in that, Shinobu evidently doesn't see it.
Shinobu Kocho's Training Preferences Subvert Expectations
She Will Only Train the Girl Who Once Annoyed Her
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Shinobu Kocho's training arcs, and lack thereof, are another example of this Hashira subverting expectations for shonen anime. Powerful, elite fighters like the Hashira are usually glad to train the young underdog protagonists, and it may foster deeper relationships beyond student and master. Some mentors do this out of mere duty. Shinobu Kocho, meanwhile, did neither for Tanjiro Kamado and his team, or at least, not very much. This is another contradictory aspect of Shinobu Kocho's character arc, dismissing the idea of training the heroes and instead focusing on just one student: Kanao Tsuyuri. It's true that Tanjiro, Inosuke, and Zenitsu trained at the Butterfly Estate after the Mount Natagumo battle, but it was mostly Aoi Kanzaki, Kanao, and the other girls who trained them, not so much Shinobu herself.
Shinobu's subversion of the shonen mentor archetype only deepened when Tanjiro and his friends underwent their final and most challenging training regimen of all. When the Hashira training arc launched in Season 4, a few Hashira excused themselves from the program, Shinobu Kocho being one of them. She did nothing to train Tanjiro, Genya, and the rest in preparation for the final battle against Muzan Kibutsuji and the Upper Moons, because Shinobu had just one student in mind: Kanao Tsuyuri. Not much of their training was actually seen, but the point was made that Shinobu favored Kanao above all other students. That may have been personal preference and/or the fact that Shinobu was one of the few demon slayers qualified to finish training Kanao in the way of Flower Breathing.
Whatever Shinobu's intentions, she contradicted Season 4's entire narrative by declining to share her expertise with the trainee demon slayers. Even the foul-tempered Sanemi Shinazugawa and the aloof, airheaded Muichiro Tokito gladly did their duty as combat instructors, while the outwardly polite Shinobu did not. Normally, if a teacher has an exclusive student in shonen anime, that student is the protagonist to help make the protagonist seem more unique and special. An example is Jiraiya in Naruto, who only trained Naruto Uzumaki himself, or Kishibe reluctantly training Denji and Power in Chainsaw Man exclusively. But even compared to a subversive character like Kishibe, Shinobu Kocho is highly unusual, throwing all her training into a side character like Kanao while ignoring the actual protagonist.
Shinobu Kocho's Insect Breathing Represents Resourcefulness and Desperation
Only an Underdog Uses Techniques Like Poisoned Blades
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The entire Demon Slayer Corps has a theme of underdog desperation and inventiveness to it. That's because the slayers are mere humans fighting the supernatural minions of Muzan Kibutsuji the demon king, and even Hashira often die in the line of duty. Some Hashira seemingly contradict this theme of desperation, such as Kyojuro Rengoku and his flamboyant confidence, while Shinobu Kocho openly leans into this theme. She isn't just physically weaker than demons -- she is also physically weaker than other humans, to the point Shinobu cannot hack off a demon's head. That's a critical flaw for any demon slayer, so Shinobu invented Insect Breathing to compensate. In so doing, she forged one of Demon Slayer's most unique and memorable fighting styles.
Shinobu's Insect Breathing makes use of a slender Nichirin sword with a stinger-like tip, a tip that is coated in various poisons designed to kill demons in a matter of seconds. Few other demon slayers are ever seen using poison, aside from the Corps' usage of wisteria to create poisonous anti-demon barriers at certain locations. Insect Breathing is based on sting-like motions with that slender sword to stab or lightly cut a demon and administer that poison, like an insect delivering a venomous sting to a much larger target. That fighting style made its combat debut in the Mount Natagumo story arc, where Shinobu faced the spider clan's "daughter" member and killed her with those poisons. Later, Shinobu worked alongside the demon doctor lady Tamayo to invent yet more poisons to use on Upper Moon members like Doma.
Shinobu Kocho's Relationships Grew Warmer and Friendlier Over Time
She Doesn't Easily Welcome People Into Her Heart
Unlike her fellow Hashira Sanemi Shinazugawa, Shinobu Kocho doesn't show outright hostility toward the people she meets, instead presenting her falsely calm and polite exterior while hiding her rage. Still, even if Shinobu acts agreeable, it's clear that the Insect Hashira doesn't easily allow people into her heart. That started with Kanao Tsuyuri, whom Shinobu rejected at first as an unnecessary and even unwelcome addition to her and Kanae's life. Shinobu radically changed her attitude about Kanao after Kanae's death, at least. Then, in the present day, Shinobu was skeptical when Tanjiro Kamado pleaded with the Hashira to allow Nezuko the demon to take shelter in the Corps. Shinobu did accept Kagaya Ubuyashiki's decision without complaint, but she still acted a bit coolly toward the Kamados after that, merely showing them her falsely sweet exterior.
Shinobu warmed up to Tanjiro a bit and even explained herself to him to an extent, but she didn't tell him about her true rage. She also declined to train Tanjiro, instead letting Aoi and the other girls to handle it. Meanwhile, Shinobu had a fairly aloof attitude toward Zenitsu and Inosuke, acting professionally toward them without treating them like good friends, which was quite different than how Kyojuro Rengoku and Mitsuri Kanroji treated them. Finally, there's the matter of Shinobu's best friend, the melancholy Water Hashira Giyu Tomioka. They get along and often undertake missions together, but it seems they don't easily bring out the best in each other. Fans might conclude that for all her friendly words, Shinobu is determined to keep her heart hidden away, nursing her grief-fueled rage to undertake a mission of vengeance alone. She has no time for best friends or love in a quest like that.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
TV-MA
Animation
Action
Adventure
Release Date April 6, 2019
Cast Natsuki Hanae , Zach Aguilar , Abby Trott , Akari Kitō , Yoshitsugu Matsuoka
Main Genre Animation
Seasons 5