Himejima Gyomei

One of the nine lords of the Guisaldae, his nickname is Amju (岩柱). He is the most senior of the current lords, and his skills are unparalleled, so he holds the position of leader of the lords. He uses the Rock Breath, one of the five basic sects of full concentration breathing.

His hobby is Shakuhachi, which he learned from a fellow monk, and it seems that he was once beaten with a broom by his grandmother for blowing it for too long. According to the drunk Uzui Tengen, his true identity is unknown. It is hard to notice because he usually acts so nonchalantly, but he is actually blind. He lost his eyesight due to a high fever he suffered as a child.

He has black hair with a two-block hairstyle that sticks out at the top, thick eyebrows, the white eyes typical of blind people, a horizontal scar on his forehead[10], and in the anime version, he has darker skin than other characters. He usually chants Buddhist prayers, wears prayer beads on his arms, and always walks with his hands clasped together. The letters engraved on the front of his haori are Namu Amitabha (南無阿弥陀仏), and the letters engraved separately on the back are also a blurry version of Namu Amitabha.

In the past, when he was a monk, he had a relatively thin physique, but after entering the Demon Slayer Corps, through extreme training, he became a huge muscle man who surpassed even Uzui Tengen. On top of that, he has a tremendous height of over 2m, so of course, he is the biggest and most massive character in the story, not to mention the main characters.

He is usually reserved and doesn't speak much, but he is actually a very outstanding character, just like the main character, Tanjiro Kamado. He is basically a very kind and gentle person[11], and has a tender heart that sheds tears over trivial things[12].

Since he is the most senior among the lords and is practically the leader, his leadership skills are also excellent[13], and during lord meetings or battles, his usual soft-spoken appearance disappears and he becomes extremely serious.

However, according to Genya's comments, he is quite clumsy at teaching others.

He also has a surprisingly cute side, and despite his serious appearance, he really likes cats. Just looking at a cat makes him shed tears like a waterfall, and he keeps mumbling how much he likes cats while holding them in his arms. However, because Kyomei's power is so strong, the cat hates it because it's too much pressure. It is said that he and Mitsuri, who also like cats, talk a lot about cats.

Himejima Kyomei is the strongest person recognized within the Demon Slayer Corps, and is a character with strength that is on a different level from other lords. His physicality and fighting ability are amazing. Kyomei shows extremely fast movements and improvisation during battle, protecting his comrades in times of danger.

His existence is absolutely trusted within the Gwisaldae, and he is evaluated as an unrivaled force within the Gwisaldae.

At a whopping 220cm tall, he is a fearsome giant, rivaling former basketball player Ha Seung-jin, the tallest man in South Korea. Even the second tallest, Tengen (198cm), looks small compared to Kyomei. Even by modern standards, his physique is monstrous, but Kyomei had this size in the Taisho era in the 1910s, when the average height of adult men was around 160cm. If we substitute this for the average height of adult men in modern Japan (around 170cm) and the average height of adult men in modern Korea (around 171cm), he would be the tallest at around 234~235cm. That is why Chungju, who had a particularly small physique among the demon slayers, envied him.

He was born with incredible strength along with his physique. He was a warrior with such strength that even during his time as a monk, when he had not trained at all and ate little, he was able to crush a goblin's head with his bare hands all night long.

His body is not only a natural frame and brute strength, but also a result of extreme training. Even in his main training, his training was a ruthless training that was close to being a powerhouse. With the addition of techniques such as breathing and repetitive movements to his body, he gained physical abilities that other states would admire or envy.

His physical ability goes beyond simple brute force to include his agility, to the point where he can counter the weak stopping power of strange weapons with his agility.

He also has excellent senses and reflexes. It is said that even when he was a normal person, he was suspected of being blind because he avoided all the pranks that other monks played on him, and his reaction speed is far beyond that of a normal person. It is said that he supplements his vision by shaking the iron chain connecting the iron ball and the axe, and calculating the distance to the enemy by listening to the sound that bounces off the object. Considering that bats, dolphins, and the visually impaired use echolocation based on the sound they make, it is an ability close to miracles.

A user of Rock Breath, one of the five basic schools of Concentrated Breathing.

Although he is a user of the five major breathing techniques that form the basis of all breathing, he is characterized by using a strange weapon called a chain mallet instead of a classic Japanese sword.

Type 1 Samunam · Double-Polar: A technique that throws an axe and a mace together to attack from both sides simultaneously.

Type 2: Sky Breaker: A technique where you throw the iron hammer upwards, step on the chain with your foot, and then strike the opponent's head with the iron hammer.

Third Type Dark Ball's Skin: Spins an iron ball and an axe around himself at incredible speed, neutralizing the opponent's attacks.

Type 4: Yumunam · Sokjeong: A technique that simultaneously attacks from the front with an axe and changes the trajectory of the iron ball to pull it back to attack from the side.

Type 5: Wheel Strike: A technique that strikes the ground with an axe and iron ball four times.

Quite uniquely, Kyomei's Ichirindo is shaped like a chain-linked hammer and axe. Most of them are Japanese swords, and even if they are not Japanese swords, they are at least classified as swords. Compared to other Ichirindos, this one is a weapon that has completely escaped the shape of a sword.

Unlike other states where the 一륜도 is usually depicted as being carried in a scabbard, the 一륜도 of Gyomei is made of large chunks of iron, including the chain, the mace, and the axe blade, making it an awkward weapon to carry around on its own, let alone in a scabbard. When carrying it, one hand holds the axe handle and the other arm wraps the chain around it a few times.

The Chinese character for exterminating evil spirits (惡鬼滅殺), which blacksmiths carve into the blades of Ilryundo swords, is also engraved on the back of the axe.

The size of the iron ball hanging on one end is a solid block of iron larger than Kyomei's head. Kyomei not only swings this iron block with one hand with his supernatural physical ability, but he also carries it around, evading his opponent's attacks with agile tricks, and even attempts to counterattack in that situation.

As it is heavy, it is obvious that the attack power is overwhelming compared to other Ilryundos, so there is no need to cut off the neck like other swordsmen. It is because it kills the goblin by simply crushing the head whole. In most comics, these types of blunt weapons are not depicted as lethal due to the cartoonish allowance, but Gyomei's iron mace is also characterized by being depicted as an eraser that not only destroys the part it hits, but also simply erases it. For this reason, while other characters' depictions of combat power are like cutting down objects in the surrounding area, Gyomei's combat power is depicted as more destructive, like shattering the terrain in the vicinity.

It is believed that the reason Kyomei, who has an overwhelming physique that can kill a goblin with just his bare hands, uses such a complex weapon is because he was blind and had no choice but to research and perfect it to overcome his lack of vision in the harsh situation of fighting a goblin.

Basically, he attacks by throwing or swinging his most powerful weapon, the iron ball, but depending on the situation, he also throws an axe or throws both at the same time, and after an attack, he pulls the chain to retrieve his weapon, taking advantage of an opening to wrap the opponent in the chain and bind them, or he uses force in that state to tear them apart. The number of attacks is extremely diverse. In the case of the axe, it is used as an auxiliary weapon to the iron ball in attacks, but since it is the only part of this strange weapon that has a fixed handle, it acts as a kind of anchor that helps maintain the center of gravity by holding it with one hand when casting techniques.

As such a complex weapon, it has many shortcomings, but the weakness of this chain weapon, which is its weakness in close combat, is fully overcome by Kyomei's acrobatic movements that make full use of his incredible physical ability. His agility is such that he can dodge his opponent's attacks by doing somersaults while using a weapon that weighs several tens of kilograms despite his large body of over 2 meters. When that doesn't work, he has shown himself blocking with his chains. Because of this, Kyomei's battle scenes are extremely three-dimensional and dazzling, unlike his massive body.

However, due to the limitations of the manga space, the detailed movements of Gyomei are inevitably depicted in a somewhat vague manner. In particular, the Rock Breathing technique is depicted in a way that makes it difficult to know how it is performed, even though there is no special production like in other sects. Furthermore, since the weapon itself is such a strange weapon, it is also difficult to know what form of swordsmanship Rock Breathing originally was.

The weakness of long weapons, especially chain weapons, in terms of weapon destruction was resolved by using the best materials. In other words, it is a weapon with a rare high damage rate in Demon Slayer. The strength of the maces and axes used as weapons, as well as each chain, is also very high.

In addition, the black crimson iron used as the material is a high-purity iron that has absorbed a lot of sunlight that has never been found even in the Warring States Period, so even if a goblin touches it, it will burn with smoke. Kyomei makes full use of this point to block attacks with chains, and also uses a technique to rip the opponent apart by wrapping them around and pulling them back.

Ubuyashiki Kagaya: A person who saved Kyomei's life when he was falsely imprisoned and whom he respects. Kagaya also trusted Kyomei the most among the lords and appointed him as their leader.

Kochou Kanae (older sister), Kochou Shinobu (younger sister): When the parents of the two sisters were killed by a goblin, they saved them by defeating the goblin. Kanae and Shinobu also entered the Demon Slayer Corps to save people and goblins. There is more detail in the novel, but when the Kochou sisters he saved came to his house half a year ago, he tried to send them back. [16] However, seeing the sisters' sincerity, he promised that if they moved a giant rock in the yard, he would introduce them to a voice actor and let them enter the Demon Slayer Corps. He helped the sisters, who moved the rock with a lever, enter the Demon Slayer Corps. Even the goblins felt sorry for Kanae, but she was so affectionate that she thought Shinobu, who was small in stature, would be weak and would hurry the order, and in the end, it all worked out. Even though she seemed timid on the outside, she seemed to cherish them, as she sometimes recalled the orphans she had taken care of in the past while eating meals together at home. Seeing Shinobu's personality crumbling after losing Kanae, he reproaches himself for making the right decision to send his sister to the Demon Slayer Corps, asking if he was that sad and miserable.

Kaigaku: The culprit that made Kyomei distrust children. Kyomei was living with Kaigaku and the orphans at the temple, but one day, Kaigaku ran away after stealing money and met a goblin. He survived, but the rest of the orphans were killed by the goblin, and Kyomei was imprisoned for murder, which led to his distrust of children.

Sayo: A 4-year-old girl who was the only one inside the temple when the goblins attacked it. Kyomei subdued the goblin with his bare hands and saved Sayo, but he was imprisoned after being accused of killing everyone. However, it was revealed that the person Sayo was referring to was actually a goblin who had just disappeared in the sunlight, and Kyomei was simply misunderstood by the people there.

Sayo later became unable to speak due to mental shock, and it wasn't until she was 14 that she wanted to meet Kyomei and apologize.

The rest of the orphans: When the goblins attacked the temple, Gyomei told them to stay calm, but they all ran away. In fact, they went to get tools to subdue the goblins.

Tokito Muichiro: Although he is a childish person, he vaguely knows that Muichiro lost his memories due to something that happened in the past, so he says of Muichiro that he is "mentally mature."

Shinazawa Sanemi: At first, when Sanemi started spewing nonsense at the old man, he was evaluated as 'crazy' and tried to deal with it, but now that he realized the truth about the old man and reflected on it, he is friendly. Sanemi respects his senior and leader, Lord Kyomei, and speaks politely to him.

The rest of the states: As he was practically the oldest and the leader, most of the states also relied on Kyoumei to some extent.

Kamado Tanjiro (older brother), Kamado Nezuko (younger sister): At the Jujutsu Trial, he said that she was a pitiful child and that she should be killed to free her. When the elders told him to tolerate Nezuko's existence, he had no choice but to tolerate it.

Shinazawa Genya: Tsuguko. She took him in as a disciple because she was worried about eating demons. She comforted Genya, who was feeling inferior and anxious, and Genya also opened his heart to Kyomei.