Kintsugi Kyoudo

**Kintsugi Kyoudo** (金継ぎ 強さ *Kyōudō Kintsugi*) is a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slayer Corps and the previous Star Hashira (星 柱 *Hoshi Bashira*).

## Appearance

Kintsugi is seen as a frail man with light silver hair, deep blue eyes, and a pale complexion. His son Hikari strikes a resemblance to him in hair and eye color, however after being attacked by Yūgen, Hikari's eye color is no longer identical to his father's. After retiring from the Demon Slayer Corps, due to the effort he had put in over the years as a Hashira, Kintsugi appeared much weaker and more tired than he was while serving as a swordsman. He was also born with a star-like mark on his neck.

Kintsugi wears an outfit similar to his oldest son Kiyōi, sporting a faded purple cloak with the kanji for "star" (星 *hoshi*) embroidered across its rims. During his time as a Hashira, he wore a white cape-like haori with a light blue flame pattern that ran from the middle to the ends, which his son Hikari wore upon his death.

As a Demon Slayer and the eighth Star Hashira of the Corps, Kintsugi held a completely different appearance. He appeared a lot stronger physically, wore a dark yellow-tinted Demon Slayer Corps uniform, and had bright gold hair as a result of using his Breathing Style, Star Breathing.

## Personality

Kintsugi is a calm, gentle and quiet person throughout his life, almost always seen with a kind smile on his face. After retiring from the Demon Slayer Corps, he hoped to live a peaceful life with his family and was able to for some time, until his wife began to berate and physically torture his youngest son Hikari for his supernatural gift. Because of this, Kintsugi, despite his usual frail, tired state, continuously summoned his strong mental fortitude he developed as a Hashira and stood up to his wife multiple times through his life.

Because of this, although he appears calm and forgiving on the outside, he possesses a decent, noble aura with a quiet yet analytical perception to his surroundings. According to both of his sons, he prefers to keep his true abilities hidden as to not disrupt the peace of the village he lived in, and wants to keep his history as a Demon Slayer to himself and his family only. However, as shown during his and Hikari's battle against Upper Rank Six, Yūgen, he will not hesitate to protect his family and would never show mercy to any enemy he came across.

## History

At a point in his life, presumably during his time as a Hashira, Kintsugi met his wife after saving her from a demon attack in his village. From there, the two continued to meet each other until they eventually married and had their three children.

Although he had a strong connection with the Demon Slayer world, after retirement, Kintsugi was a wise but frail and weak man.

He died some time after his eldest son, alongside his daughter, his wife, and hundreds of residents within his village but still manages to inspire his remaining child.

## Abilities

**Overall Abilities:** Despite being permanently weakened by his immense efforts as a previous Hashira, Kintsugi is shown to be an incredibly strong individual. During his fight against Yūgen, who at the time was Upper Rank Six and therefore perceived as the seventh most powerful demon in existence, he was able to utilize his Breathing Style to its maximum capabilities, even unleashing its Unspoken Form and almost decapitating the demon faster than the blink of an eye.

**Demon Slayer Mark:** As an elemental master and being able to access the Transparent World, Kintsugi's birthmark on his neck is secretly a Demon Slayer Mark. This is proven by him awakening his mark during his fight against Upper Rank Six and the identicality between his and his son Hikari's mark which is shown during his fight against Upper Rank Six (who at that point had been promoted to Upper Rank Three) during the Infinity Castle Arc.

* **Transparent World:** It is revealed that Kintsugi has the ability to foresee his opponent's attacks by seeing their blood flow, muscles and joint movement.

**Extrasensory Perception:** Kintsugi possesses the ability to perceive attacks from countless enemies even after retiring as a Demon Slayer, as well as being able to counterattack with equal power quicker than the enemy could land a hit on him. This is shown during his battle against Upper Rank Six where he was able to dodge and counter all of the demon's attacks even when they came from behind him.

## Fighting Style

**Master Swordsman:** As a previous Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, Kintsugi was one of the most powerful and skilled swordsmen in the entire organization. He carried these skills through to his retirement, where he taught the ways of swordsmanship to his sons Kiyōi and Hikari despite Hikari using a different Breathing Style to his father. His swordsmanship prowess also allowed him to keep up with Upper Rank Six during his battle with her.

### **Breathing Style**

**Star Breathing** (星 の 呼吸 *Hoshi no Kokyū*): A Breathing Style passed down to Kintsugi from his father, and his father before him. This swordsmanship style makes use of elegant, flowing movements similar to the glow and beauty of stars and constellations to attack in unpredictable, powerful ways.

#### **Techniques**

* **First Form: Glowing Scorpio** (壱ノ型 輝く蠍座 *Ichi no kata: Kagayaku Sasoriza*): - The user drives their blade in front of them, taking a low stance before jumping forward and slicing through nearby targets in the shape of the Scorpio constellation.
* **Second Form: Golden Constellation** (弐 ノ型 黄金 星座 *Ni no kata: Ougon Seiza*): - The user throws their sword forward, which then follows the target until it strikes them and envelops them in a ball of golden energy before burning them.
* **Third Form: Purgatory Light** (参 ノ型 煉獄の光 *San no Kata: Rengoku no Hikari*): - The user drives their sword into the ground, generating bright, burning beams of light that grow stronger the further into the ground the blade goes. This allows the user to jump forward and aim to decapitate their target while they are distracted by the beams of light generated from a further distance.
* **Fourth Form:** **Bright Rain of Stars** (肆ノ型 星の明るい雨 *Shi no kata: Hoshi no Akarui Ame*): - The user flies above the target, twirling in a flowing motion similar to Water Breathing, and falls down, striking through the target's neck with a beam of bright light.
* **Fifth Form: Aries' Heavens** (伍ノ型 牡羊座 天上 *Go no Kata: Ohitsujiza Tenjo*): - The user leaps up in the air, and flies above the target in the form of the Aries constellation. Once they complete the constellation, they fly into the middle, and each corner of the constellation shoots a bright, burning beam of light that directs onto the target and will not cease until they hit.
* **Sixth Form: Blessed Whirlwind** (陸 ノ型 恵まれた 旋風 *Roku no Kata: Megumare ta Senpuu*): - The user envelops themself in a golden aura, and fly around the target with a violent whirlwind-type circle, closing in on them and slicing them multiple times.
* **Seventh Form: Kiyoi** (*lit. Seventh Form: Pure*) *(捌ノ型 清い Hachi no Kata: Kiyōi*): - The user takes a powerful, battle-ready stance, and is enveloped in a white flame-like aura. All internal injuries are healed in a matter of seconds, and any lost limbs are regenerated. The user's sword is also enveloped in the white flame, and generates bolts of golden light that strike the target without any necessary movement from the user. The user then rushes forward, aiming to decapitate the target.
* **Unspoken Form** (暗黙の形式 *Anmoku no Keishiki*): - The user takes a powerful, low stance, energy from nearby stars as well as the user's strength charging within the user's blade and enveloping it in a white flame. The user then leaps up with the ability to stay airborne for as long as they use the form, slashing the air in front of them and sending a powerful beam of flaming light towards the target. While performing this technique, the user is able to perform other techniques of Star Breathing at the same time. This form can only be used by those who have mastered Star Breathing, due to the pure caliber and power of the technique having the ability to kill an inexperienced user. Because of this, this form is only used by Kintsugi Kyoudo and Hikari Kyoudo.

## Equipment

**Standard Nichirin Katana:** Kintsugi carried around a standard Nichirin Katana whose blade was decorated with engraved stars, with the handguard being a black star shape with a white outline, engraved with golden markings of the sun. This handguard was later gifted to his son Hikari Kyoudo after his retirement from the role of Star Hashira. As a previous Hashira, the words **Destroyer of Demons** (惡鬼滅殺 *Akki Messatsu*) are engraved on the side of the blade. His scabbard is similar to that of Zenitsu Agatsuma's (as noted by Hikari himself), due to its white color and golden rims.

## Battles

### Shinjuku Arc

* Kintsugi Kyoudo and Hikari Kyoudo vs Yūgen

## Trivia

* Kintsugi's name means "to repair with gold", and is a Japanese word that cannot be translated directly into English, while his last name consists of the traditional kanji reading for "strength" (強度 *kyōudo*).
* Kintsugi's sword was made by Hotaru Haganezuka, the same swordsmith who would later forge his son Hikari's sword.
* During his time as a Hashira, Kintsugi was known as one of the strongest physically and in terms of his Breathing Style, with the role of Star Hashira existing since the Sengoku Period.