The following contains spoilers for the ending of the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba manga by Koyoharu Gotouge, John Werry and John Hunt, available in English from Viz Media.
One of the most popular anime and manga franchises of the decade, Demon Slayer perfectly blends action, comedy, tragedy, thrill and suspense. Muzan Kibutsuji, the series’ primary antagonist, killed Tanjiro Kamado’s entire family and turned his sister Nezuko into a demon. As the first demon in the world, Muzan’s strength is incomparable — yet he is still more or less a mystery in the anime.
The series has yet to mention why Muzan hates Tanjiro and his family to the point of hunting them down and eradicating them. It also doesn’t make sense for him to kill everyone else but leave Nezuko on her own after turning her. Muzan has been planning for something big since the beginning. However, the anime series has yet to reveal his true goal. Here’s a look at the secret behind Muzan’s real goal — and if he ever achieved it.
Why Muzan Attacked Tanjiro Kamado’s Family
Despite the massive number of demons at Muzan’s beck and call, he detests them but still continues to create them in order to achieve his goal. When he attacked the Kamado family in the first episode of Demon Slayer, he didn’t simply kill them instantly. He first injected them with a dose of his blood, hoping to create a demon capable of walking in the sun.
Everyone else died due to his blood, but somehow Nezuko survived. As it turns out, despite the speculations and several fan theories that the Kamado family massacre was part of an elaborate scheme, the series never confirms why Muzan chose them specifically. He was only aware of the Sun Breathing technique passed down in the Kamado family after their death when he saw Tanjiro and his earrings. Therefore, his attack on the Kamado family was completely random.
It could’ve been done to introduce the major antagonist as well as give the story some depth. After all, the essence of a shonen series is to have some sort of tragedy happen to the protagonist and give him a purpose to fight the major antagonist. In this case, Tanjiro set out to become a demon slayer to take revenge on Muzan and find a way to heal his sister. In the process, he also helps out those who are victims of those demons.
What Is Muzan Kibutsuji’s Real Goal in Demon Slayer?
Muzan is the strongest being in Demon Slayer’s world. He has been alive for over a thousand years and seems to possess no weakness except for one. Despite all his strength, he will be killed as soon as steps into the sun. As a proud creature, Muzan finds it humiliating to hide in the shadows and only step out when the sun has set. In the Heian era, when Muzan was still a human, he was dying from an unknown illness when a doctor used a mysterious Blue Spider Lily to turn him into a demon.
Muzan did not know what would become of him once he took the medicine, but realizes he has become something inhuman after killing the doctor. He also instinctively realized that he would die because of sunlight. As an immortal being who has not stepped foot in the sun, his biggest wish is to live in this world freely without any weaknesses and become the perfect being.
Ever since he became a demon, Muzan has been relentless in his pursuit of conquering the sun. To get rid of his weakness, he began searching for the rare flower that turned him into a monster. These efforts were in vain, however, so he adopted a different approach. He started experimenting on humans and making demons in hopes that one would be able to withstand the sunlight. When that happened, he would simply consume the demon and gain its ability.
Moreover, there is one more goal Muzan has. Over his entire life, he has only ever lost in combat against one man — Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the first swordsman to use the Breathing Style, found the Sun Breathing technique and injured Muzan with it. Though it wasn’t enough to kill Muzan, the wounds Yoriichi left have been burning him for over 500 years. Tanjiro wears the same earrings as Yoriichi, which is why Muzan was so eager to kill him as soon as he saw him.
Does Muzan Achieve His Goal By the End of Demon Slayer?
The series’ final arc was more gruesome than fans could ever hope for as Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki attacked the headquarters of the Demon Slayer Corps. The fight went on for the entire night, leaving the Corps with a huge number of casualties. It took the efforts of every Demon Slayer to finally corner Muzan and drag him into the sun. As his body fully burns into ash, the once-invincible demon who ruled the shadows of Japan, spreading misery and suffering for over a millennium, finally tasted defeat, ending the seemingly eternal war with the Demon.
However, despite his death, Muzan turned Tanjiro into a demon by transferring his consciousness into him. As he transfers his blood and memories into Tanjiro’s injured body, he is able to revive himself as a perfect being who can conquer the sun. Tanjiro’s body healed instantly when the transition was completed, even to the point of regenerating his severed arm. However, with the help of Nezuko and other demon slayers, Tanjiro fought back Muzan’s consciousness and managed to return his body to normal.
Tanjiro rejecting immortality and the powers of a demon finally put an end to Muzan, both in body and soul. Unlike the other demons, who regretted their actions as their lives were ending, Muzan showed no remorse. He was extremely afraid of death, thus he latched on to his biggest rival, Tanjiro, to survive. Therefore, Muzan was finally able to achieve his true goal in Demon Slayer — even if it only lasted for a short while.
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