How Kanao Overcame Her Hardships

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for the Demon Slayer Manga

Tsuyuri Kanao had a long journey to healing her inner child. With an abusive childhood that left her mentally broken and unwilling to show emotion to anyone, even if they had good intentions, Kanao’s growth was slow yet steady.

However, although Kanao had been on the path to healing, Kocho Kanae’s death had left everyone missing her presence and compassion, thus leading Kanao to become stagnant once more. However, Kanao began to open her heart once more thanks to Kanae, Shinobu, and Tanjiro. Though it was with Doma’s death that Kanao overcame her hardships and once again walked the path of healing in Demon Slayer.

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Kanao’s Inability to Express Her Emotions

Without Any Orders, Kanao Flips a Coin to Decide Her Next Decision

Tsuyuri Kanao has had one of the most tragic backstories in the gruesome series of Demon Slayer. When Kanao was a child, she was subjected to abuse from both of her parents, which resulted in beatings that led to her sibling’s death. Due to the severity of her living situation, Kanao soon cut off all her emotions, as the slightest emotion, such as crying, would send her parents off in a rage, which could result in fatal punishment.

As Kanao’s parents lived an impoverished lifestyle, they soon sold her into slavery, which Kanao accepted as, at this time, she was perceptive in noticing the adults around her disliked children who were not obedient. Thankfully, Kanao was quickly saved by the Kocho siblings as Kanae, the Flower Hashira, took the lead in saving her.

Unfortunately, at that point, Kanao was already mentally stunted, as living in fear constantly led her to cut off her emotions so those around her would not hurt her. Shinobu first believed Kanao was a last cause, and although Kanao had cut off her feelings, Kanao also would not do any task unless ordered. This tactic was likely what made her seem obedient; therefore, she would not be on the receiving end of any physical abuse.

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However, Kanae has faith and believes that she could change with a little incentive that would allow her to function independently. Kanae’s insistence that Kanao uses the coin given to her to make decisions was the first chip in breaking Kanao’s wall. Although Kanao remained aloof and quiet, unwilling to make conversation unless necessary, Kanae’s compassion and love helped her grow.

We see the initial sparks of Kanao’s assertiveness come to light when Kanao joined the Demon Slayer Corps. Initially, Kanao was supposed to join the other girls working at the Butterfly Mansion; however, this idea was quickly scrapped due to her inability to do tasks without orders. Kanao, instead, had a natural talent for learning the Breath of Flower, but the Kocho siblings did not condone this. Still, they allowed her to continue learning as Kanao finally showed interest in something. Kanao’s assertiveness in joining the Corps demonstrates her ability to feel emotions somewhat, even though, at the time, she could not display them; this was the first step toward Kanao’s recovery.

How Doma’s Death Freed Her From Her Hardships

As the Youngest Adoptive Sibling, Kanao Fulfills Her Sister’s Wishes

While these developments signify considerable advancements in Kanao’s character evolution, the unfortunate demise of Kanae likely impeded this growth once again. Following Kanae’s death at the hands of Doma, she found herself incapable of shedding any tears; this may be attributed to her previous upbringing, which fostered this particular coping mechanism. Throughout the series, Kanao has exhibited substantial progress in expressing her emotions and has enhanced her responsiveness to others, independent of the coin, primarily due to Tanjiro’s influence.

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With Kanae’s compassion and Tanjiro’s insistence, Kanao is able to function without much need for the coin. However, her assertiveness and true personality come to light during the battle with Doma within the Infinite Castle. Before the battle with Doma, Kanao was acutely aware of Shinobu’s plans to sacrifice herself to weaken Doma significantly. Although Kanao was not happy with Shinobu’s plan, she was Shinobu’s Tsuguko and respected her choice.

At the time of the battle, Shinobu would have had a significant amount of Wisteria Flower poison circulating throughout her body, making it a deadly trap for the misogynistic woman-eater Doma. Defeating Doma had been Shinobu’s quest for revenge since her sister died at his hands. At fourteen, Shinobu became the head of the Butterfly Estate after her sister died; since then, Shinobu has been harboring a deep resentment for Doma and only had his description to identify him.

Before the battle within the Infinity Castle, Shinobu relayed her plan to kill Doma. However, it required her to sacrifice herself. Upon finding Shinobu and Doma amidst battle, Shinobu signaled to Kanao, which was likely the start of her plan for Doma to absorb or eat her. As Kanao was aware of this plan, all she had to do was stall the battle.

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Although quiet, Kanao is exceptionally perceptive, thanks to her keen eyesight. She has never been talkative, especially during battle. This is displayed during the Mount Natagumo arc, where She only complies with her orders to kill demons. However, during the battle with Doma, Kanao insults Doma with intent, prolonging the battle and taunting him for his psychotic personality.

Though subtle, Kanao remained on the defensive side of the battle, wounding Doma and taunting him with each opportunity. This trait was likely the rage she had been building up after witnessing Shinobu die at Doma’s hands. This raw emotion, which had been drawn out of her, gave her time to misguide Doma in her actions, preventing him from realizing the poison would begin to take effect.

Once the Wisteria poison had finally taken effect, that was the signal Kanao needed to give that final push and use the Flower Breathing Final Form: Equinoctial Vermilion Eye technique to slice Doma’s head off with the assistance of Inosuke. Doma’s death was symbolic in various ways to Kanao.

• Doma killed the Kocho siblings.
• Shinobu sacrificed herself to ensure Doma would be weakened by her poison.
• As the youngest and adoptive sibling, Kanao was able to put her sister’s souls to rest with Doma’s death.

While the battle against Muzan was still not over, Kanao’s hardships and trauma finally ended as she fulfilled Shinobu’s dying wish. Although she had previously closed off her heart to others, now that Doma had been defeated, Kanao could cry out for the first time, symbolizing her journey to healing her heart, as she no longer needed to fill it with excuses.

Demon Slayer is now available to stream on Crunchyroll.