Top 10 Times Demon Slayer Characters Went Beast Mode
#10: Enmu Gets Derailed
The plan here is pretty straightforward: find Enmu, expose his neck, and get slaying. For anyone else, the demon’s instantaneous regeneration may have been a problem. But, this is Tanjiro we’re talking about, and he’s yet to find anything that his Hinokami Kagura can’t cut through. And this demon is no different. So, after Inosuke clears the way, it only takes Tanjiro one slice to cut clean through Enmu’s jugular. Clearly, the Mugen Train wasn’t the only thing going off the rails here. Tanjiro swung his sword in the name of his late father, and given the results, something tells us he made his old man very proud.
#9: The Father Spider is Squashed
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As Inosuke will attest, it takes more than your garden-variety pesticide to get rid of these arachnid demons. Luckily, there’s a foolproof alternative, and that’s calling in Water Hashira Giyu Tomioka. As if to prove it, he arrives on the scene, rescues Inosuke, and slaughters the Father Spider in record time. By the time all is said and done, Giyu looks more annoyed than anything else. In fact, this might go down as one of the most nonchalant decapitations the Demon Slayer Corp has ever seen. If this is Giyu when he’s barely trying, it’s hard to say if there’s any demon out there who could take him at his peak.
#8: Tanjiro Gets the Upper “Hand”
Tanjiro’s nothing if not passionate, and he put that skill to work during Final Selection. There, he wasn’t just fighting to become a Demon Slayer, he was trying to avenge Sabito, Makomo, and all the rest of the Hand Demon’s victims altogether. The monster certainly didn’t make it easy on him. But, after Tanjiro reaffirmed his convictions one last time, not even the Hand Demon could keep up anymore. Let’s just say that his Total Concentration led to a total victory. In that one, glorious slash of his sword, Tanjiro single handedly proved that he might be cut out for this job, after all.
#7: Thunder Breathing
Ironically, Zenitsu awakened to his power by going to sleep. Then, through pure instinct alone, he put the Spider Demon center stage of a killer light show. Emphasis on the word “killer.” Just like an actual thunder-clap, this fight is over pretty much as soon as it begins. If it makes the demon feel any better, odds are, nothing else could have stood in Zenitsu’s way, either. Even with lethal poison pumping through his veins, as long as he’s got Thunder Breathing, Zenitsu can clearly still finish a fight. Now, if only he knew how to channel this intuition more often, he wouldn’t have to be so scared all the time.
#6: Yahaba Goes Down
At first, it took everything Tanjiro had just to dodge the Arrow Demon’s projectiles. To say nothing of getting close enough for a counterattack. That is, until Tanjiro realized that he didn’t need to wait for an opening. The projectiles could make one for him. In a literal example of “what comes around, goes around,” the newbie slayer reflected Yahaba’s own attacks in order to close the distance. It’s a rousing example of Tanjiro using his brains instead of his brawn, and it paid off with a new decapitation for his resume. It’s hard to think of a more embarrassing way to go than dying because of your own attack.
#5: Rui’s Ruin
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There’s cool, there’s epic, and then there’s whatever Tanjiro and Nezuko did in episode 19. We’ve seen them fight before, but never quite like this. And we don’t mean Hinokami Kagura - although that doesn't hurt, either. We mean where their backs are up against the wall, and all they have left are each other. Yet, somehow, that’s all they needed to give Rui a fight like none other. Webs, demon arts, and Upper Ranks be damned, nothing can stop Tanjiro and Nezuko’s combined assault. Not even Rui’s neck. Even though his beheading wouldn’t stick, there’s no forgetting the moment that Tanjiro and his sister showed Rui what real slayers look like.
#4: End of the Upper Six
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Daki and Gyutaro brought twice the normal carnage to the Entertainment District, so it’s only fitting that it took twice the slayers to bring them down. The end result was a final flurry where absolutely nothing was held back. This is a breathless frenzy from Tengen’s flashy entrance all the way to Daki and Gyutaro’s beheading. In between, you've got Zenitsu’s Godlike Speed, Inosuke’s clutch save, Tanjiro growing his mark, and too many other amazing moments to name. It’s cool enough when one slayer pops off, but the fact that four of them did at the same time made for a final stretch that’s the epitome of the word epic.
#3: The Flame Hashira’s Last Stand
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Even on the brink of death, even though the struggle against demons is practically hopeless, Rengoku still refused to go down without a fight. So, as his last act, he charged up a fiery strike so powerful, not even a fist through the chest could slow it down. Healing or not, no demon wants to be on the wrong side of that attack. The very fact that Akaza had to cut tail and run is a victory in itself. Sure, the demon escaped and the Flame Hashira lost his life, but Tanjiro is right when he says Rengoku is the real winner. After all, this is more than a hero’s death. It’s a blaze of glory.
#2: Breathless Beatdown
Daki had regenerative abilities, long-range obi attacks, and a distinct sadism, but none of that mattered in the face of Tanjiro’s upgraded Hinokami Kagura. At the cost of his ability to breathe, he achieved the strength to slice through just about everything in his path, including Daki herself. That’s right, Tanjiro didn’t just give her a run for her rank, he nearly succeeded in cutting off her head. Twice! It’s just a shame his lungs failed him before he could finish the job. Despite the fact that this ends with his loss, there’s no denying that Tanjiro was a sword-swing away from ending the entire arc right there.
#1: Nezuko Unleashed
She may want to protect humans, but at the end of the day, Nezuko is still a demon. That fact became all too clear when Daki decided to threaten Tanjiro. Before she could even lay a finger on him, the Upper Rank got a major thrashing courtesy of Nezuko’s true power. Unfortunately, that belligerent rampage didn’t stop at Daki. Tanjiro’s sister lost any and all semblance of control, to the point she had to be restrained by the very person she transformed to protect. It’s obvious that Nezuko’s rageful power-up is a dangerous tradeoff. But, considering that she effortlessly kicked Daki to oblivion and back, it might just be worth it.
