In Demon Slayer, the close and strong relationship that Tanjiro and Nezuko share with one another is the main driving force behind Tanjiro’s motivation to become a Demon Slayer. At the very start of the series, we find that Tanjiro’s family was murdered by a demon, with only his sister, Nezuko Kamado, being the only survivor. However, she was no longer a human as she was transformed into a demon.
In the earlier parts of the story, the only lead that Tanjiro had about his family’s killer was the scent that was left behind at his home. The demon who killed his family was also responsible for turning Nezuko into a demon, thus making him the primary target for Tanjiro.
After passing the Final Selection Exam and becoming a Demon Slayer, then completing his next mission, Tanjiro heads to Asakusa town and ends up face-to-face with the demon responsible for his family’s slaughter. It is revealed that it was no ordinary demon that killed his family and turned his sister into a demon; it was the king of the demons himself, the demon progenitor, Muzan Kibutsuji!
Why Did Muzan Kill Tanjiro’s Family?
Muzan Kibutsuji is the main villain of Demon Slayer, who was the first person to become a demon over a thousand years ago before the story began. He is well-known as the King of Demons, the oldest and strongest of all demons.
He is shown to be capable of turning anyone into a demon by injecting his own blood into the person’s body. And so, he is the progenitor of all demons in existence, which makes him control every single demon in existence and enables him to rule over them with an iron fist.
Despite his ability to turn people into demons, the process isn’t always successful, as their bodies can reject the transformation, resulting in them becoming horribly disfigured and dying.
His tendency to turn people into demons lies in his ultimate goal of becoming the perfect being which can’t be accomplished unless he manages to overcome a significant weakness all the demons share.
The motives behind Muzan’s keen interest in transforming regular people into demons like him align with his goal of conquering the sun.
All demons in Demon Slayer are afraid of the sun, as simply getting exposed to them will almost immediately kill them by disintegrating their bodies. Muzan is no exception to this weakness which he finds a great hindrance throughout his time as a demon and motivation to become as strong as he wants to be.
Because of this, there isn’t a solid and real reason behind Muzan’s attack on Tanjiro’s family and his attempt to turn Nezuko (and other members of the Kamado family) into demons besides his pursuit of overcoming his weakness towards the sun. At the time of Muzan attacking Tanjiro’s family, it can simply be presumed that it was out of coincidence and no personal vendetta despite the hatred that the two will have for one another.
We can imagine that during the night that Muzan attacked Tanjiro’s family, he was doing so to further his intentions of creating a demon that could survive the sunlight. He most likely attacked and killed Tanjiro’s family and attempted to turn them into demons, with only Nezuko surviving the onslaught and transformation.
Muzan’s dreams of overcoming the weakness demons share towards the sunlight eventually become a reality as Nezuko develops a resistance towards the sun later in the story, immediately catching Muzan’s interest. It only helped to boost his desire to have Nezuko for himself to be able to gain the same resistances she has towards the sun.
Contrary to what several people may think, as it is easy to mix up events from the story, Muzan never had a real reason to attack Tanjiro’s family as a personal vendetta against the siblings or the Kamado family.
Tanjiro and Muzan never met until their fateful meeting in a city where Tanjiro encounters Muzan. Muzan catches a glimpse of Tanjiro’s earrings and instantly develops a hatred towards him. Before this encounter, Muzan never knew about the existence of the Kamado family, even the fact that the earrings of the person who almost killed Muzan several centuries ago had been passed down as an heirloom by the family for the succeeding generations.
Muzan could’ve simply killed Tanjiro’s family out of the motivation to further realize his ambition to become the ultimate being, and it was just the perfect coincidence that the Kamado family was the only family keeping the Hanafuda earrings that Yoriichi was wearing when he encountered and overpowered Muzan during their fateful meeting.
Also Read: Who is Demon King Tanjiro?
FAQs
Im late, but Muzan didn't want the chance for another breath of the sun user to be born, so he killed all of Tanjiro's family; except Nezuko because he saw potential in her and turned her into a demon.
Why did Muzan kill Tanjiro's family? ›
Another theory suggests that Muzan might have attacked Tanjiro's family due to their connection to Yoriichi, who almost killed Muzan years ago. Given his petty disposition, it makes sense for the Demon King to hold a grudge against Sun Breathing users. Hence, he might have decided to kill them as revenge.
Why does Muzan want to kill Ubuyashiki? ›
The hatred between Muzan and Ubuyashiki family runs deep, and they want to eliminate each other. However, Kagaya reveals that Muzan is a blood relative of the Ubuyashiki family. Since they are the descendants, it makes sense for the Ubuyashiki family to want to destroy the stain of their clan.
How did Tanjiro lose his family? ›
The protagonist of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Tanjiro Kamado is the oldest son of a late charcoal-seller, Tanjuro. In the first chapter of the manga, his family (his mother and his younger siblings) is massacred by a demon named Muzan Kibutsuji, with only his sister Nezuko Kamado surviving only to become a demon.
Why did Muzan not kill Tanjiro when they met? ›
He doesn't know tanjiro's strength, and because Tanjiro is wearing the hanafuda earrings, Tanjiro reminded him too much of the Sun Breather, the only person Muzan ever truly feared. Meaning he's a coward. ever since the sun breather speed blitz him, and he thinks of most demon slayers. as not worthy of his attention.
Why does Muzan want Nezuko? ›
Muzan wants to absorb Nezuko now because she is immune to the sun, and he is not. The reason as to why he wants to absorb her is because he wants to be immune to the sun and be immortal.
Why does Muzan hate Tanjiro so much? ›
Although Muzan had never met Tanjiro before then, he knew immediately that he needed to eliminate him after recognizing the hanafuda earrings he wore to be the ones his would-have-been killer previously donned, as later revealed.
Why did Muzan didn t kill Nezuko? ›
except Nezuko. As he knew that Kamado family. was practicing sun breathing, he believed that Nezuko could become an ideal demon. which he can devour later and become immune to sunlight.
Who turned Muzan into a demon? ›
How Did Muzan Become a Demon? After the physician treated Muzan with medicine made from a flower known as the Blue Spider Lily, Kibutsuji became enraged at the lack of results and murdered his doctor. As soon as Muzan spilled the doctor's blood, however, he realized he had gained incredible, inhuman strength.
Who does Muzan regret killing? ›
He deeply resented the thought of having to spend the rest of his life avoiding sunlight during the day and having going out at night, and it was only then that he came to truly regret his foolish decision to kill the doctor before the latter had finished treating him with his medicine.
Tanjiro, on the contrary, dies at 25 because he does not match Yoriichi's strength.
Who is Muzan scared of? ›
Demon Slayer's main antagonist, Muzan Kibutsuji, is indeed the strongest demon to exist in the story. But he himself fears Yoriichi so much that even anything associated with Yoriichi makes him shiver, like Tanjiro's Hanafuda earrings, which originally belonged to Yoriichi.
How did Nezuko become a demon? ›
After a Demon attack kills almost her entire family, Nezuko is turned into a Demon by the orchestrator of said attack, Muzan Kibutsuji, At first, she is rather wild and even attacks her single remaining brother, however she quickly comes to her senses and swiftly jumps in to defend him from Giyu Tomioka when the ...
Who killed Nezuko's family? ›
A few years later, after Tanjiro had joined the Demon Slayer Corps, he encountered Muzan Kibutsuji while visiting the city of Asakusa. It was there that Tanjiro confirmed by Muzan's scent that he was the demon who'd massacred the Kamado family.
What happens to Tanjiro after Muzan dies? ›
Following the death of Muzan, every demon that had been under his control is killed, leaving Tamayo's assistant, Yushiro, as the sole demon left alive. Tanjiro loses sight in his right eye and most mobility in his left arm as a result of the battle, but returns to his family home with Nezuko, Inosuke, and Zenitsu.
Why did Muzan want the blue spider lily? ›
Muzan's Recipe For Immortality
He wanted to be able to walk in the sunlight and live forever. In order to gain this, he needed two things: the Blue Spider Lily and the body of a demon who could withstand the sun.
What if Muzan never killed Tanjiro's family? ›
Muzan would still be difficult to deal with however with Nezuko and the Kamados likely carrying the Demon Slayers doing what Naruto did with the Shinobi Alliance protecting them and healing their wounds this would mean that Muzan would have a hard time killing his enemies and once the sun comes up everyone would likely ...
Why did Muzan turn Tanjiro into a demon? ›
As Muzan was dying, he passed his essence into Tanjiro, granting him more than just incredible power. This would allow him to become the new progenitor of demonkind in Demon Slayer, spreading his unique ability to withstand sunlight onto any new demons he created from his blood.
Why is Muzan afraid of Tanjiro? ›
As the young slayer aids in picking off more and more of the Twelve Kizuki, Muzan finds just as many reasons to be scared of Tanjiro Kamado. Tanjiro also ends up being the one to land the final blow on Muzan's original body, further proving why Muzan is scared of Tanjiro throughout the series.
