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[choclemon]

Wow, who's that handsome goofball??!

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Let’s kick off to a blazing start on this KNY writing blog with an in- depth character analysis of everyone’s favourite fire- type human...

Rengoku Kyojuro!

A.K.A. That one annoying weirdo who shows up for a single arc, makes the entire audience fall hopelessly in love with him forever, then dies! ~

Power move tbh.

[Insert gigantic disclaimer here that all the posts on this blog will be my personal headcanons. Interpretations always vary from reader to reader- so let me know anything you agreed with, or felt completely differently about; I love that kind of thing! This whole blog is basically just a self- indulgent space for me to analyse the crap out of this series for fun, so come join me in my spiralling demon slayer brainrot!! The more the merrier :D]

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No, but seriously, who is that guy?

Kyojuro is a shining mentor figure, courageous and supportive; a brash, unforgettable character lovingly crafted by Gotouge to make the Mugen Train arc as excruciatingly painful as possible.

The thing is, my kneejerk reaction when he first showed up in canon was: “this guy is dangerous”. Lurking beneath that amicable smile is a professional killer who will not hesitate. We were given a brief glimpse into this side of Kyojuro during his initial encounter with the Kamado siblings at corps headquarters; upon being confronted with the traumatised orphan boy and his demon sister, he was the very first hashira to object, calling for Nezuko to be beheaded and vehemently declaring “no trial is required!!”. Sure, he was far from alone in chomping at the bit for child murder back then, but that reaction was a telling indicator that Kyojuro’s particular brand of passionate loyalty is more than capable of driving him to make brutal snap decisions. Even if deep down he felt uncomfortable about the outcome, he acted rashly because the situation directly contradicted his even deeper- rooted morals. Had things been left to the flame hashira alone, the story of the Kamado siblings would have ended right there and then.

What would have happened if Kyojuro had been the one to discover them in the forest that fateful day instead of Giyuu? I’m not totally convinced, but I’m inclined towards that same bloody outcome he immediately called for before the trial. Perhaps Tanjiro’s tenacious defense of his sister would have persuaded him... but I suspect Kyojuro’s quick- fire judgement would lop that demon's head off “to protect the civilian from being eaten!!” before the poor kid even had a chance to explain who she was.

Love him or hate him, the flame hashira is an intense character who invariably leaves a lasting impression on the reader. In all his canon appearances, Kyojuro is unabashedly vocal about anything he feels strongly about, even to the point of rudeness- but still remains sensitive and attuned to the needs of others. He demonstrates an impressive capacity to change his opinion on the fly, yet stubbornly sticks to his core ideals- even if they sometimes get in the way. In other words, this is a character who gleefully contradicts himself at every turn... which of course makes me want to stick him under a microscope to study like a bug! 🧐

***continued under the cut***

I think Kyojuro is a highly emotionally intelligent individual who knows he’s fucked up to the bone as a result of all the pressure he’s under, but is reluctant to share any of this heavy emotional burden with others. After all, such a show of vulnerability would likely have been met with silence, rejection, or outright mockery by his family growing up. Shinjuro being a depressed alcoholic father with his own grief and self- worth issues is an obvious culprit here, but I’d argue Ruka inadvertently did a lot of harm too. By placing so much emphasis on the importance of using his strength to protect the weak and upholding the family tradition, she planted a brave, wholly self- sacrificing heroic ideal in her young sons mind. She was fully aware of the harsh realities he would face if he followed in his father’s footsteps, so in addition to preparing him to be mentally resilient, she sought to protect him from the temptation of misusing his strength and status as a hashira, instilling a sense of noble purpose in her son. In doing so, however, she failed to teach him an important nuance: when devoting yourself to a life shouldering the burdens of others, it’s vital that you take proper care of yourself too. Which can occasionally mean prioritising your needs over others, sharing your own burdens when they become too heavy.

If she had lived longer, perhaps Ruka would have corrected his path as he matured, serving as a backbone of motherly emotional support that would’ve allowed him to be a little more forgiving towards himself. Given that he was still very young when she died, it almost seems like the naive child Kyojuro internalised that straightforward “be a brave hero and use your strength for others!!!” lesson initially, and because it was the precious advice given to him by his late mother (and at the surface level it is sound advice), in his developing mind it grew into something almost irreproachable, an unbreakable life motto. Follow that up with a decade of grieving alongside an abusive alcoholic father who tells him over and over that he’s “useless” and will “never amount to anything”… it’s only understandable that he clung so hard to the memory of his mother’s shining hopes for his future. The recently- bereaved young Kyojuro would have quickly learned to be adaptable in stressful situations, smoothing over volatile arguments to maintain open lines of communication within his broken family. His mother’s words kept him motivated despite his father’s toxic criticism, simplifying the overwhelming pressure and conflicting expectations weighing on his small shoulders into an easily- digestible heroic ideal he must strive to become.

This brings us to the complication of Kyojuro being the eldest son throughout that early grieving period; he was uniquely positioned to prevent Senjuro from falling too far into the lonely emotional pit he suddenly found himself in. He couldn’t ask for mutual support in return; he would never expect that from anyone in the first place, let alone from the precious brother he was attempting to shield from the very same turmoil hidden within himself. There was a full ~6-7 year age gap between them, which would have only enhanced Kyojuro’s instinct to coddle his junior as much as he was physically able. When Shinjuro fell into his inevitable drunken decline, you bet the young Kyojuro did everything he could to redirect the brunt of the abuse away from his little brother, even taking responsibility for his father’s behaviour in public on his back too.

As Senjuro grew older, he’d naturally have become more capable of understanding his brother’s situation, so their relationship would probably have evolved into something more mutually supportive than the “reassuring mentor- student”, and I hate to say it but “replacement- father” dynamic we were presented with in canon. I’m sure they goofed off together plenty as normal siblings do, but for the most part- at least from the brief glimpses we were shown of them interacting- Kyojuro viewed his brother as a precious source of familial love and happiness (that he must work hard to raise well and protect at all costs!!! :>), while Senjuro deeply admired his older brother in return, leaning heavily on him for all the emotional and practical guidance their father was no longer able to provide.

At the tender age of ~13-14 post Mugen Train, Senjuro had to grow up fucking fast. I don’t doubt that one of the most agonizing things for him would have been the knowledge of how much Kyojuro had privately sacrificed for him growing up, but now that he was finally old enough to fully understand and support him in return… he was gone forever.

With the above mess in mind, what is the ever- suffering big brother supposed to do with all his bottled up trauma and insecurity? Kyojuro’s answer was simple: passionately burn right through it!!! Project a straightforward, irreproachably heroic persona to the world, wholly embodying the selfless ideal his mother encouraged him to be. He follows corps rules to the letter, becomes almost universally liked by his peers; after all, years of practice smoothing over awkward family interactions no doubt made him an expert at keeping everyone happy. Adopting a selfless, hard- working approach to life that must not be deviated from under any circumstances.

This is because Kyojuro is all too aware of the damage it would cause his loved ones if he were to let himself go, having witnessed and been a victim of Shinjuro’s violent depressive outbursts. In his determination to avoid falling into the same trap, he goes to the opposite extreme, throwing himself whole- heartedly into everything. Not just out of loyalty to the corps, his acceptance that a warrior could die tomorrow, or even the memory of his mother’s words; it’s because deep down he’s terribly afraid he’ll end up spiralling like his father if he ever puts in less than his all. His inner world is literally on fire; this guy is so damn passionate about meeting an impossible standard he violently rejects his own self. Kyojuro sets his figurative self- worth ablaze and uses it as fuel to help others even more! High- functioning depression, full power let’s go!!!

One other important thing to take into account is that the Kyojuro we first meet in canon is only 20- barely into adulthood- and over the preceding couple of years would have shouldered more responsibility than ever before by taking on the mantle of a hashira.

Perhaps I’m over- projecting here, but I can remember having a tendency to think in absolutes at that age, angrily shutting away childhood traumas and plugging the gaps with a confident front, all so I could focus on handling what were suddenly very adult- sized responsibilities. Acknowledging and processing my feelings was too dangerous to be worth the risk of burdening others; not to mention the prospect of being seen as anything less than perfectly self- assured at all times felt like a catastrophe.

Kyojuro’s selfless hero character archetype takes that very human response to the absolute extreme, since easing off training and “wasting time” taking care of personal needs in his profession would mean death; either his own, or that of the people he’s trying to protect. The smallest display of weakness is met with dire consequences. Not so different from the punishing environment of his childhood, right? Yikes, I’m starting to see a pattern here…  

The scene where his father rejects the news he has become a hashira is probably the clearest demonstration of Kyojuro’s immense empathy and his willingness to listen to others- and his careful avoidance of ever voicing his own needs. He accepts Shinjuro’s callous lack of support, knowing that trying to defend his position would only upset his father more, which in all likelihood would worsen the fallout later for him and everyone else involved with the household. He immediately proceeds to pour out all the reassurance he really, desperately needed to hear himself… to comfort his beloved little brother.

Even if he knew he was hurtling towards certain disaster on that train, I’m convinced Kyojuro wouldn’t do anything to save himself. This is a character who would solve the trolley problem by physically stopping the thing with his bare hands and getting run over in the process, simultaneously saving everyone and a random person that happened to jump off the bridge overhead at the exact same time, who goes on to have a change of heart after witnessing such a heroic display. All this without crushing the eggs of a dumb bird that made its nest in the trolley tracks ahead…

You get the idea.

Kyojuro was a man who truly didn’t care about himself. He expected to die young; probably to a demon in a grotesquely violent fashion. That that was the reality of his job, and it suited him. He kept himself functional by throwing 100% of himself into every day, using his warrior’s strength to protect the weak just as his mother taught him. After all, why even bother worrying about personal feelings, when you believe yourself to be utterly disposable- when your entire purpose in life can be boiled down to suffering so that others don't have to?

From Kyojuro’s perspective, examining those rejected emotions too closely only causes him further pain, and he would run the risk of overburdening others if they became so inflamed they were allowed to rise to the surface. That would distract from the mission at hand, and the consequences would surely be dire!! Yes, ignore them, squash that stuff back down right where it belongs- set your heart ablaze slaying everyone else’s demons instead! It’s the only way to live!!!

Of course, the one mentor figure left alive who was best placed to steer Kyojuro off this noble path of self- destruction… was trapped in the pit of despair that lies at the very end of it.

At least his kid died before joining him in that pit, right?..

Nah, I reckon Kyojuro spent his life there, with a beaming smile plastered across his face 😄