What are the Upper Ranks in Demon Slayer and who are the current ‘Twelve Kizuki’ members in season 3: The Swordsmith Village Arc?
Demon Slayer season 3 episode 1 ‘Someone’s Dream’ was truly outstanding, even by Ufotable’s standards, and is currently sitting at an incredible 8.73/10 on MyAnimeList.
However, one of the best scenes from the anime series’ return episode was one of the first; when the Upper Ranks gather in the Infinity Castle to debrief on the death of Daki and Gyutaro.
This has led to many fans wondering about how the Upper Ranks work in Demon Slayer, who the members of the mysterious Twelve Kizuki are in season 3, and where they even come from – here is everything that you need to know.
Demon Slayer’s Upper Ranks explained
Demons are supernatural monsters that originated with Muzan Kibutsuji in the Heian Period of Japanese history; which occurred between the years 794 and 1185 AD.
It is said that Muzan had contracted a deadly disease that would kill him before he turned 20 and in order to save him, enlisted the help of a doctor to try an experimental medication technique on him.
The procedure would include consuming the mythical ‘Blue Spider Lily’, but Muzan would kill the doctor before he was able to administer the final part of the medicine; leaving Muzan in his demonic state and unable to withstand direct sunlight. This is why Muzan is desperately searching for the Blue Spider Lily, which would allow demons to roam freely during the daytime.
In the centuries that passed after, Muzan would share drops of his blood with those who he deemed worthy enough of the power it possessed; including criminals, warriors, and even terminally ill children.
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The demons would then be classified into two main categories; known as the Upper and Lower Ranks – the Upper Ranks themselves would form the ‘Twelve Kizuki’, i.e., the most powerful 12 demons spawned from Muzan.
As of season 3 of the Demon Slayer anime, these include the following Upper Ranks – although there are replacement Upper Ranks later in the manga:
- Upper Rank One – Kokushibo
- Upper Rank Two – Doma
- Upper Rank Three – Akaza
- Upper Rank Four – Hantengu
- Upper Rank Five – Gyokko
- Upper Rank Six – Gyutaro
- Upper Rank Six – Daki
Whilst the Upper Rank demons are incredibly powerful individuals, their hierarchy and behavior with one another are just as fascinating – as see in season 3 episode 1 during their gathering in the Infinity Castle.
On the one hand, the Upper Ranks adhere to the hierarchy of their relative numbers, i.e., Kokushibo is more powerful than Doma, who is more powerful than Akaza etc.
However, the rankings of each demon can change if they challenge another demon and defeat them in single combat; this also applies to the Lower Ranks that we have seen in Demon Slayer so far:
- Lower Rank One – Emmu
- Lower Rank Two – Rokuro
- Lower Rank Three – Wakuraba
- Lower Rank Four – Mukago
- Lower Rank Five – Rui
- Lower Rank Six – Kamanue
- Lower Rank Six – Kyogai
Again, there are certain characters that are set to replace some of the Lower Ranks in future Demon Slayer anime content; just don’t assume that just because a demon is killed, their rank is lost forever.
By Tom Llewellyn – [email protected]
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