Who killed Kanae in Demon Slayer? Shinobu's sister's death, explained

Modified May 21, 2024 03:00 GMT

Demon Slayer and the man behind Shinobu's sister's death (Image via Ufotable and Shueisha)

Demon Slayer has several meaningful backstories, but very few were built, such as Kocho Shinobu's sister's death, Kanae. From the moment Tanjiro Kamado got to know Shinobu, it was revealed to the audience that a demon killed Kanae, and she has had a strong hatred for them ever since. The final arcs reveal that the responsible demon was the second Upper Moon, Douma.

Doma has become somewhat infamous across the fandom because of how careless and ruthless he can be when it comes to pleasing his selfish desires, which include killing Kanae during one of the latter's missions. Shinobu's sister's death resulted in the current Hashira preparing for the day she could take the life of Douma, even going as far as having several poisons for that specific moment.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

Who killed Kanae? The death of the former Flower Hashira of Demon Slayer, explained

Kanae and Shinobu in a flashback in the anime (Image via Ufotable)

The person responsible for Shinobu's sister's death, as mentioned earlier, is the second Upper Moon, Douma. At some point before the beginning of the series, Kanae was the Flower Hashira and ran into Douma one night. The two of them fought to the death, and she lost the fight.

While Douma was willing to give her the finishing blow to take her life, the sun began to rise, and he had to run away, leaving Kanae bleeding to death, only for her sister Shinobu to find her in that state. Kanae's final words described Douma and that it was best for Shinobu to leave the Corps and have a normal life with their adoptive sister, Kanao. However, the future Insect Hashira rejected this idea as she wanted revenge.

Shinobu's revenge against Douma in Demon Slayer

Shinobu and Douma meet each other during the events of the Infinity Castle arc when the heroes decide to invade Muzan's main hideout. In that place, Shinobu finds Douma eating several of her human followers, thus starting their battle and even going as far as having the Upper Moon taunting the Hashira about Kanae's death.

The battle begins, and Shinobu's several poisons don't have the effect she wanted because Douma can regenerate and develop antibodies to them. That is something that overwhelms Shinobu, and she is eventually killed, only for her younger sister Kanao to show up right in the final moments of her life, much like it happened with Kanae several years ago.

Shinobu didn't manage to kill Douma but finally got her revenge through Kanao as she, alongside Inosuke Hashibira, took the life of the Upper Moon. So Shinobu and Kanae were avenged through the little girl they rescued and accepted as their family.

How Douma died in Demon Slayer?

Kanae, Kanao, and Shinobu in a flashback of the anime (Image via Ufotable)

As Shinobu died fighting Douma, Kanao stepped in and showed greater fighting skills than her older sister when dealing with the Upper Moon. She was later aided by Inosuke, who developed his grudge against the demon once the latter confirmed that he was the one who killed his mother when he was a baby.

Kanao uses her Final Form: Equinoctial Vermilion Eye, sacrificing her eyesight to see everything in slow motion and be able to crack a weakness in Douma, with Inosuke helping her out to sever his head. They both seized the fact that the demon lacked precision in his final attacks as he was worn out after so much fighting.

Final thoughts

Douma's actions were instrumental in Shinobu and Kanao's journeys throughout the series, and their resolution is in the final arc of Demon Slayer. Furthermore, this was also a battle years in the making, with the character of Douma and Shinobu's hatred of demons being built up for years.

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