Chapter Summaries

Haruto arrived too late to save the Kocho sisters’ parents, but rescued the girls and killed the demon that attacked them. After the Kakushi took the sisters to find their living relatives, Haruto left for another suspected demon sighting.

• Kanae and Shinobu faced a horned demon after it killed their parents.
• Haruto arrived, rescued the sisters, and beheaded the demon with one strike.
• Haruto confirmed that the sisters’ parents were dead, and the Kakushi arrived to handle the aftermath.
• Haruto learned the sisters would likely stay with living relatives and chose not to ask their names.
• Cang Kong directed Haruto toward reports of missing woodcutters, and Haruto set off for his next assignment.

Haruto tracked a plant-controlling demon on Muyun Mountain and discovered it was Byōha, Lower Rank Three of the Twelve Kizuki. After learning Byōha had just eaten a person with rare blood and was temporarily slowed, Haruto realized he had a chance to kill him.

• Haruto found withered plants and traces of human blood on Muyun Mountain, confirming that a demon with a Blood Demon Art was nearby.
• Haruto rested at an Inari shrine and used Star Breathing, Third Form: Star-Counting and Dipper-Worship, to sense a demon feeding on a traveler.
• Haruto reached the feeding site and found a scrawny demon eating a man in priestly robes.
• Haruto recognized the demon's eye inscription as Lower Three and learned from the comments that his name was Byōha.
• Haruto realized Byōha had eaten a person with rare blood, leaving him temporarily weakened and giving Haruto an opportunity to slay him.

Haruto fought Byōha, Lower Rank Three, and defeated him with Moon-Banishment despite suffering severe injuries. After confirming Byōha’s head and body were burning, Haruto passed out.

• Byōha attacked Haruto with Withering, but Haruto dodged and struck back with Star Breathing’s Bright Tears.
• Byōha regenerated from Haruto’s Starlight Prairie Fire and used Growth to pierce Haruto’s shoulder and drain his blood.
• Haruto exploited Byōha’s sluggishness to cut his neck, but Byōha countered with Surge and impaled Haruto with blood-draining vines.
• Haruto gathered his remaining strength and launched Moon-Banishment as Byōha attacked with Embracing Tree.
• Byōha’s tree sent Haruto flying, but Haruto’s spinning Nichirin Blade severed Byōha’s neck.
• Haruto stayed conscious long enough to see Byōha burn, then passed out.

After killing Lower Rank Three Byōha, Haruto Takanashi survived severe injuries and began recovering at a Wisteria House. His friends brought him back to Mount Sagiri, where he remained fixated on eating black pork.

• Kagaya Ubuyashiki and several Demon Slayer Corps members learned that Haruto had slain Lower Rank Three Byōha, and Himejima expected the Hashira ranks to grow.
• Kakushi carried the gravely wounded Haruto to a Wisteria House, where a doctor operated on him through the night and he hovered near death for a week.
• Haruto woke beside Cang Kong, and Sabito visited him and heard how rare blood had helped him defeat Byōha.
• Haruto overheard the doctor discussing black pork and desperately wanted to eat it, but Sabito warned that chewing, swallowing, and using the toilet would be painful.
• After Haruto’s wounds began to heal, Giyu and Sabito carried him back to Mount Sagiri so he could be there before Makomo’s final selection.
• Haruto greeted Sakonji Urokodaki by asking for black pork.

Kanae Kocho and Shinobu Kocho visited Haruto to thank him for saving them and to deliver his medicine. After helping change his dressings, the sisters asked him to teach them how to hunt demons.

• Sabito gave Makomo a bracelet before she left for Mount Fujikasane to take part in the final selection.
• Haruto found Mount Sagiri quiet after Makomo departed, while Sakonji Urokodaki spoke of retiring as Water Hashira and mentioned Jigoro Kuwajima.
• Kanae and Shinobu arrived at Sakonji's home with Haruto's medicine and were startled to find him badly bandaged.
• Kanae and Shinobu changed Haruto's dressings and thanked him for saving them in Takinogawa Village.
• Shinobu asked Haruto to teach the sisters how to hunt demons.

While recovering at Sakonji Urokodaki’s cabin, Haruto met the Kocho sisters and heard Kanae’s wish to redeem demons, a belief shaped by the loss of their family friend Irimura Koichi. The sisters left with letters of introduction, and Cang Kong reported that Makomo had passed Final Selection.

• Sabito and Giyu returned to the cabin and met Kanae and Shinobu, who were helping care for Haruto.
• Sakonji Urokodaki warned Kanae that her and Shinobu’s physical weakness would make it difficult to fight demons, while Kanae asked if demons could be redeemed and turned human again.
• Shinobu told Haruto that the demon in the village had been Irimura Koichi, her parents’ childhood friend, and explained that Kanae believed demons were victims of those who transformed them.
• Haruto gradually recovered enough to walk, and Kanae suggested the Demon Slayer Corps establish a medical department with rehabilitation plans.
• Sakonji Urokodaki gave each Kocho sister a letter of introduction, and they departed a day later.
• Cang Kong brought news that Makomo had passed Final Selection and become an official swordswoman of the Demon Slayer Corps.

Haruto visited Kagaya Ubuyashiki at Corps Headquarters, where Kagaya showed him the wisteria-covered graveyard of fallen swordsmen and spoke of his family’s curse. The chapter left Kagaya grieving the lives lost to Muzan Kibutsuji and unable to accept that he might die young.

• Haruto arrived through heavy snow and gave Kagaya and Amane gifts for their daughters, Hinaki and Nikka.
• Haruto told Kagaya that he had visited the Swordsmith Village and the Rengoku Family, where he found Shinjuro drinking and Kyojuro training with Flame Breathing notes.
• Kagaya said he would not approve Shinjuro’s resignation and urged Haruto to recognize the Demon Slayer Corps’ need for the next generation.
• Haruto accompanied Kagaya to the mountain graveyard, where Kagaya described the many swordsmen who had died during his years as Corps leader.
• Kagaya explained the Ubuyashiki family curse and praised Amane for marrying him despite his short life expectancy.
• Kagaya blamed Muzan Kibutsuji for the suffering and struggled to accept that he might not live past thirty.

After a busy New Year of demon-slaying, Haruto encountered Sanemi Shinazugawa and his younger brother Genya in Tokyo. That night, he sensed a demon attacking Sanemi’s home and rushed to help as Sanemi fought it in grief and rage.

• Kagaya urged Haruto to return to headquarters as a Hashira in a year, and Haruto left despite the snow to continue his work.
• Headquarters gave Haruto a succession of missions, and he spent New Year killing demons and briefly met Murata at a Wisteria House.
• In March, Haruto saw Sanemi and Genya discussing their father’s death and promising to protect their family.
• After dinner, Haruto sensed a demon in a residential area and found Sanemi fighting it after it had killed his younger siblings.
• Haruto arrived to help Sanemi and announced himself as he drew near.

Haruto restrained Sanemi and Genya’s demon mother after she killed their five younger siblings, then explained that she could not be cured and had to die. Near dawn, Sanemi carried her outside to see the sunlight one last time.

• Haruto pinned Sanemi’s transformed mother and prepared to behead her, but Sanemi begged him to spare her.
• Genya arrived and attacked Haruto with his slingshot, so Haruto disarmed him and stopped him from interfering.
• Haruto found the five younger siblings dead inside the house and sent Cang Kong to alert the Kakushi.
• Sanemi asked whether his mother could recover, and Haruto explained that becoming a demon was not an illness and that he could not spare her.
• Near dawn, Sanemi carried his mother outside, and Haruto told Genya that they were going to let her see the light one last time.

After Sanemi left to hunt demons, Haruto took Genya in and brought him to Mount Sagiri to train. When Genya failed to learn Water Breathing, mysterious comments revealed that he could become a demon eater.

• Sanemi left a message asking Haruto to care for Genya, and Genya angrily ran after his brother before falling asleep nearby.
• Haruto learned that Genya had no living uncle to take him in and decided to bring him to Mount Sagiri.
• Genya joined the group training on the mountain, where Haruto jokingly called himself the boy's dad.
• Genya later told Haruto he could not use Water Breathing or Flame Breathing.
• Mysterious comments appeared, identifying Genya as a demon eater, and Haruto wondered what that meant.

Haruto took Genya on a demon-slaying mission to investigate his suspected Demon Eater ability, and Genya gained a temporary demon-like transformation after eating demon flesh. Kagaya confirmed the ability and directed them to seek out Tamayo in Asakusa.

• Haruto brought eight-year-old Genya along to a mission despite Sabito's concerns and subdued a demon attacking a livestock farm.
• Genya sensed that eating the demon might give him energy, and Haruto washed the demon before letting him try a bite.
• After swallowing demon flesh, Genya developed black eyes, bulging veins, and fangs, but retained his reason and displayed greatly increased strength.
• Genya's transformation faded over the next few days, and the fangs eventually fell out.
• Haruto wrote to Kagaya, who identified Genya's constitution as the Demon Eater and explained that stronger demons could grant greater abilities.
• Kagaya told Haruto to take Genya to Asakusa and find Tamayo, a demon knowledgeable about demons.

Haruto learned that Tamayo was over four hundred years old, then traveled with Genya to Asakusa, where Chachamaru led them to Yushiro. Yushiro brought them to meet Tamayo and bristled when Haruto teased him about having a crush on her.

• Cang Kong told Haruto that Tamayo was over four hundred years old, and Haruto joked that they should bring her Oda Nobunaga’s autograph as a gift.
• Haruto and Genya explored Asakusa and ate their way through the busy district while waiting for Tamayo to contact them.
• Chachamaru appeared and led Haruto and Genya away from the crowds toward another demon.
• Yushiro insulted Haruto, and Genya defended his teacher’s looks by listing the women in the Corps who had asked about him.
• Yushiro shoved Genya and demanded to know why Tamayo wanted to see Haruto, so Haruto pulled Genya away and accused Yushiro of having a crush on Tamayo.
• Yushiro blushed and fell silent, and Haruto decided he wanted to tease him.

Haruto met Tamayo and teased Yushiro, then learned Kagaya Ubuyashiki had asked Tamayo to test his unusual blood. Remembering how Byōha reacted after drinking it, Haruto realized he had become a substitute source of blood for Tamayo.

• Haruto presented Tamayo with a gift while Yushiro glared at him jealously.
• Tamayo left to change, and Haruto provoked Yushiro until Tamayo ordered him to stop.
• Tamayo returned in a physician's coat and prepared to draw blood from Genya and Haruto.
• Tamayo explained that Kagaya Ubuyashiki had told her Haruto's blood held unusual power and asked her to try it.
• Haruto recalled Byōha's reaction after drinking his blood and realized he had become a substitute blood source.

Haruto gave Tamayo a sample of his blood, which made her experience clear memories of events from earlier that day as though she were watching herself relive them. Tamayo collected more blood to study, then offered Genya a severed finger so he could test his ability to gain strength by eating demon flesh.

• Haruto let Tamayo drink his blood, and she experienced fragments of her memories as if she were observing another version of herself.
• Tamayo explained that she could not change what she saw and warned Haruto that his blood might tempt demons to drain him.
• Haruto wondered whether Byōha had been distracted by memories from drinking his blood before Haruto killed him.
• Tamayo asked to keep a blood sample to research medicine, and Haruto donated a full syringe.
• Tamayo snapped off a finger and offered it to Genya to eat while Yushiro objected and Genya looked sick.

Genya ate Tamayo’s finger and developed a version of her Blood Demon Art, while Haruto learned that Genya’s inability to use Breathing Styles complicated his plans for passing on Star Breathing. After Haruto reassured Genya about demons, Tamayo considered whether Haruto was a “dream thief” as she examined his gift and blood.

• Genya ate Tamayo’s finger, briefly transformed, and said he felt better after the intense reaction passed.
• Genya manifested a version of Tamayo’s Bewitching Blood-Daylight Demon Fragrance, which left Haruto’s thoughts sluggish until Tamayo covered his face with a towel.
• Tamayo told Haruto not to let Genya fight demons alone until he could digest demon flesh and blood more quickly, and she agreed to continue corresponding with him as a research partner.
• After leaving Tamayo’s Residence, Genya asked Haruto what demons were really like, and Haruto explained that a tragic past did not justify harming innocent people.
• Tamayo opened Haruto’s gift of scented candles and examined his blood, wondering whether he really was a dream thief.

Haruto spent his seventeenth birthday reflecting on his training and new Star Breathing forms before returning to headquarters to accept his promotion to Hashira. He left after visiting Kagaya and his family, with the Final Selection ending that day and the Kocho Sisters among its participants.

• Genya helped Makomo prepare dinner while Haruto trained alone on Mount Sagiri beneath the stars.
• Haruto reflected on six months of experimenting with his blood and developing two new sword forms, then summoned Cang Kong on his seventeenth birthday.
• Haruto visited Kagaya at headquarters and agreed to be promoted to Hashira, declining a Hashira Meeting in his honor.
• Haruto entertained Hinaki and Nikka with stories about Kagoshima as Kagaya and Amane hoped their children would grow up free of demons.
• Haruto left headquarters to attend to the Final Selection, which the Kocho Sisters had entered.

After Kanae and Shinobu passed Final Selection, Haruto met them at Mount Fujikasane and gave them matching butterfly hair clips. Shinobu wondered if Haruto liked Kanae and imagined becoming family with him, while Kanae recognized her sister was letting her imagination run wild.

• Kanae and Shinobu passed Final Selection, chose their tamahagane, and received their uniforms and Kasugai Crows.
• Shinobu recognized Haruto's parrot, Cang Kong, and the sisters found Haruto waiting beside the mountain path.
• Haruto congratulated the sisters and explained he had come to meet them as their senior and recommender.
• Haruto gave Kanae a pink butterfly hair clip and Shinobu a pale purple one.
• Shinobu suspected Haruto liked Kanae and imagined the three of them becoming a family, while Kanae called her back from her fanciful thoughts.

Haruto encouraged Shinobu after she admitted she could not cut off a demon’s head, and helped her and Kanae consider wisteria poison as an alternative. As the sisters discussed how to develop a poison-based weapon, Haruto revealed that he knew about sword forging.

• Haruto took Shinobu and Kanae to a ramen shop and reassured Shinobu that her speed and thrusts had made her useful during the selection trial.
• Haruto suggested that Shinobu could kill demons with wisteria poison instead of decapitating them, and Shinobu and Kanae began discussing the idea.
• Shinobu and Kanae considered poison-coated blades and darts, then worried that they did not know how Nichirin Blades were forged.
• Haruto revealed that he knew about sword forging because he had trained as a swordsmith’s apprentice for twelve years.

Haruto returned to the Swordsmith Village with Kanae and Shinobu, then met Gyomei Himejima at the hot springs. Himejima recounted the demon attack at the temple that led to his imprisonment, and revealed that the child who betrayed them was Kaigaku.

• Haruto brought Kanae and Shinobu to the Swordsmith Village, where Godogawa mistook Kanae for Haruto’s prospective bride.
• Haruto directed the sisters to the village chief, then went to the hot springs after Zekka told him Himejima was waiting.
• Himejima congratulated Haruto on becoming a Hashira and said he had believed in Haruto’s potential since he mastered Star Breathing.
• Himejima explained that a child extinguished the temple’s wisteria incense after making a deal with a demon, which then killed seven children.
• Himejima said Sayo had accused him of killing the children, leading to his arrest, and revealed that the child who made the deal was Kaigaku.

Haruto learned that Godogawa had urged him to marry because a demon who killed his grandfather and father might still be hunting the Takanashi family. He rejected the idea of having a child merely to preserve the family line while the demon remained alive.

• Haruto teased Godogawa about his supposed romantic interest in Tamayo, then asked why his master kept pressuring him to settle down.
• Godogawa explained that he had tried to keep Haruto from becoming a demon slayer because he feared for his life.
• Godogawa recounted how Haruto’s grandfather, Takanashi Sōma, was killed by a demon who preyed on exceptionally attractive people, and revealed that Sōma’s son Ryoji had also died in the attack.
• Godogawa told Haruto that the demon later killed his father, Yūsei, and had left a message threatening Sōma’s descendants.
• Haruto told Godogawa that marriage and having a child would be pointless while the demon remained alive, and said marrying only to produce an heir would be despicable.