Kokushibo

* Profile
* Full Body

**Kokushibo** (黒死牟, *Kokushibō*?) is a major supporting antagonist of the first half of the *Kimetsu no Yaiba Reishoki anthology* on Wattpad. He was a demon affiliated with the Twelve Kizuki, holding the highest position, **Upper Rank One** (上弦の壱, *Jōgen no Ichi*?).

Nearly five centuries ago during the Sengoku Era, Kokushibo was once a human by the name of **Michikatsu Tsugikuni** (継国 巌勝, *Tsugikuni Michikatsu*?), a former Demon Slayer and the older twin brother of Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the strongest Demon Slayer that ever existed while also being the first, last, and only Moon Hashira (月柱, *Tsuki Bashira*?).

Kokushibo is also the ancestor of Muichiro Tokito and Yuichiro Tokito and the one responsible for turning Zenitsu Agatsuma's senior, Kaigaku, into a demon and joining the Twelve Kizuki.

## Etymology

* Kokushibo's alias contains the On'yomi/reading of the kanji for "black" (黒, *koku*?) and the Kun'yomi/reading for "death" (死, *shi*?) and "eye" (牟, *bō*?).
	+ Kokushibo's human family name contains the Kun'yomi/reading
	+ kanji for "to inherit, succeed" (継, *tsugi*?) and "country" (国, *kuni*?), while his first name also contains the Kun'yomi/reading of the kanji for "sterness, severity" (巌, *michi*?) and "to prevail, victory" (勝, *katsu*?). His father was the one who named him, as he believed Michikatsu would be strong and successful.

## Appearance

Kokushibo is a very tall man of muscular stature and pale skin complexion. He possesses long, spiky black hair with red tips that he keeps in a ponytail. His most notable feature is the three sets of eyes on his face with yellow-orange irises and red flesh sclera that have black straight lines diverging from each iris. His middle set of eyes has kanji of "**Upper Rank**" (上弦, *Jōgen*?) and "**One**" (壱, *Ichi*?) engraved in them while his other sets of eyes feature black pupils and a cracked pattern in the irises. Kokushibo also has red markings resembling flames on the top left side of his forehead and the bottom right of his chin. His appearance is described to be profoundly majestic and dignified by Muichiro Tokito.

Kokushibo wears a purple-and-black hexagonal patterned nagagi kimono and black umanori-styled hakama pants tied with a white uwa-obi. He carries a fleshy katana at his waist that has eyes in the space between the tsuka ito wrapping of the handle of his sword. The tsuba and blade are shown to have eyes and veins. The scabbard is also fleshy in appearance.

As a human, Kokushibo's appearance was nearly identical to his demon form, with the exception of the number of eyes, his prominent eyebrows, and less pale skin. His eyes had dark purple irises and normal, white sclera as a human. As a child, he was usually seen wearing a white kimono as opposed to the purple-and-black patterned one he is seen wearing as an adult.

After being beheaded by Sanemi Shinazugawa, Tatsuji Fujita and Gyomei Himejima, Kokushibo evolves into a more grotesque and monstrous form, with protruding fangs and mandibles, large white horns on the front and and back of his head, pointed nails, red outgrowths on his face, his pupils looking at different directions, shorter and messier hair, several thin tubes poking out of his body, and numerous black and red scorpion tail-like appendages haphazardly sprouting all across his entire body.

### Gallery

Michikatsu at age 7Michikatsu's appearance with his Demon Slayer Mark as a 23-year-old man (pre-demonization).Kokushibo's appearance with dozens of katanas protruding from his body.Kokushibo's post-decapitation appearance
## Personality

    Kokushibo was reserved, silent, and aloof, maintaining an aura of unnerving tranquillity and mystery that compliments his position as Upper Rank One. He rarely speaks; when he does, he talks in a slow and emphatic sense that gives more gravitas and authority to his words. He was an adamant rule-follower, punctual, and he showed a great deal of respect to the hierarchy of the Twelve Kizuki, as seen at the Upper Rank gathering. Kokushibo was shown to be humble as well, and he did not hesitate to admit his failure or complain of any difficulty.

    He displayed a very strong sense of loyalty towards Muzan Kibutsuji, with most of his actions being done with the sole purpose of fulfilling Muzan's goals. Despite exhibiting outward reservation, dignity, and humility, there was a cold and unforgiving side to his personality; his words could be extremely harsh, especially when reprimanding individuals. His threats came off as nothing short of cruel and overwhelmingly serious, and he demanded absolute obedience.

Kokushibo has been shown to be genuinely delighted when the opponents he faced challenged him; such as helping dress Muichiro Tokito's amputated hand over his talented swordsmanship, praising Gyomei Himejima for his unparalleled human abilities and sparing Akaza because he enjoyed the challenge of battling him. However, due to this, he also felt irritation after he realized he died and he pitied Gyomei for his impending death from unlocking his Demon Slayer Marks.

He had a complex relationship with his human past. He showed something of warmth towards his descendant, Muichiro, commending his skills and resolve, and moved to convert Muichiro into a demon to spare his life. At the same time, he referred to Muichiro and his abilities as the natural result of his "cells" being passed down.

In his duel against Gyomei, the demon's banter suggested a fear of death. When Gyomei's marks appeared, Kokushibo pre-emptively bemoaned the loss of a talented fighter and urged him to become a demon to continue honing his skills. He seemed surprised when Gyomei vehemently rejected his offer and called his mentality pathetic.

    It was revealed that as a human, Kokushibo harbored an immense sense of envy towards his younger twin brother, for his natural talent and incredible abilities. These feelings of jealousy and contempt strengthened upon seeing his brother become a peerless warrior of unmatched caliber among even the Demon Slayer Corps, with none of the Hashira coming close to his level of strength, and this envy peaked when he discovered that Yoriichi was still alive and in old age, despite the curse of the Demon Slayer Marks supposedly killing him before he turned 25.

    However, despite this immense jealousy, spite, and outright hatred he harbored for Yoriichi, he still deeply cared for and loved his brother, as seen when he was touched by Yoriichi treasuring the handmade flute he had made for him as children. Kokushibo shed genuine tears over his brother's death, and even went as far as keeping the flute itself for the following centuries as a memento to his beloved and hated younger brother.

Likely a result of his inferiority complex and his immense desire for strength, Kokushibo feared the prospect of suffering defeat. So much so, he became increasingly more aggressive and agitated when being pushed further into a corner, causing him to become more desperate in his attacks and the use of his demon power. During his battle with the Hashira, he came to realize the steep price he had paid for the strength he so much desired, becoming an ugly monster far from from his idealized dream of becoming the strongest samurai just like his brother, symbolizing how much his deep ambitions and resentment had warped him for the worst.

Moreover, his overinflated desire to surpass his brother is even shown in the form of his six eyes, which imply his desperation to attain the Transparent World in order to exceed his brother. Later upon his death, he greatly lamented and regretted his choices in his life and began to openly question himself if the path he walked was truly the right one. Kokushibo died without knowing why he was ever born, and was full of regret and sorrow for not being able to accomplish anything that he had wanted.

## Abilities

### Overall Abilities

    Kokushibo is the highest ranking member of the Twelve Kizuki and an extraordinarily powerful demon, second only to the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji himself. He has battled countless Demon Slayers and has amassed vast experience and knowledge over his nearly 500 year long life. His physique is one of the most polished and immense in existence, as not only is he a user of Total Concentration Breathing, but also a marked individual who made use of the Transparent World as well as a demon that possesses the highest concentration of Muzan's blood in the organization.

His overwhelming power is first displayed when he slashes off Akaza's arm before he could react, and it is later stated by Doma that Akaza would never be able to surpass the both of them despite having improved his skills for 113 years prior to their meeting. During the Infinity Castle Arc, Kokushibo manages to effortlessly overwhelm the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, a prodigy who was previously shown to be capable of singlehandedly defeating Gyokko, Upper Rank Five, while injured. The gap between them is so large that Kokushibo created afterimages to the Hashira, despite Muichiro's impressive speed and perception, and even after activating his Demon Slayer Mark, Kokushibo easily slices off Muichiro's hand before he could react and is able to nonchalantly catch his sword while in mid-swing and stab Muichiro with it.

Genya Shinazugawa, who played a major role in the defeat of Upper Rank Four, Hantengu, also stood no chance against the Upper Rank, as Kokushibo is able to make quick work of the Demon Slayer, casually slicing him apart with no resistance, and moving so fast that Genya is utterly powerless to do anything. Although the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa, was able to fair better than the former two, he is also quickly overpowered when Kokushibo decides to try harder, making deep cuts all over the Hashira's body that would've killed an average Hashira according to Kokushibo. As further testament to his overwhelming power, Kokushibo could overpower both Sanemi and Gyomei Himejima simultaneously, the current generation's strongest Demon Slayer, even when both Demon Slayers had awakened their Demon Slayer Marks which increases their physical abilities and allows them to perform better. When Tatsuji Fujita, joined the fight, and using his auspicious aura to ease the tension building in the battle, it gave the Demon Slayers the chance to drive Kokushibo in a corner that made him become more serious in his battle.

    Ultimately, it took the combined effort and abilities of Gyomei, Sanemi, Tatsuji, Muichiro, and Genya, the former four who were marked, to even land a significant injury on him. Moreover, Gyomei, Tatsuo and Muichiro also had awakened the Transparent World, which allowed them to better analyze the Upper Rank's movements and view the world in slow-motion. Despite that, the only way that the Demon Slayers could win was to immobilize him, which took the lives of Muichiro and Genya, the latter needing to awaken a Blood Demon Art which required him to consume a piece of Kokushibo's sword as well as his hair in order to do so. The Demon Slayers only managed to decapitate Kokushibo as Genya's Blood Demon Art immobilization allowed Gyomei, Tatsuji and Sanemi to reach his neck, and even then, they barely damaged it, having to turn their blades red in order to fully behead him. Despite all that, Kokushibo managed to regrow his head through sheer will, making him virtually invincible with the exception of the sun, as stated by him. In the end, Kokushibo died due to Muichiro's Bright Red Nichirin Sword hampering his regeneration, and the realization of how ugly he has become in his pursuit of strength causing him to lose the will to fight.

    **Tactical Intellect:** As a talented swordsman who has existed for over four centuries, Kokushibo has experienced countless battle situations and threats which he has learnt to overcome. This was displayed during his battle with three Hashira and Genya, where he was able to adapt to their special and unique fighting styles and tactics nigh instantaneously after witnessing it. For example, after Muichiro unleashed his first attack against the Upper Rank, he was able to determine he was a user of Mist Breathing, a talented one at that. This was further accentuated through Kokushibo being able to take on Sanemi and Gyomei simultaneously despite both of them being marked and being users of different Breathing Styles, meaning he'd have to deal with 2 vastly different opponents at once, which he did so successfully, even overwhelming them multiple times. After guaging Tatsuo's overall abilities and seeing him pose a threat to his existence, he decided to go all out.

**Indomitable Will:** Solely because of his goal to surpass his younger twin brother, Yoriichi Tsugikuni, Kokushibo possesses superhuman willpower and an indomitable spirit. When he was about to get killed, he forced his regeneration to evolve, and regrew his own head along with a myriad of enhancements, all because he didn't allow himself to die until he accomplished his goal.

### Demon Slayer Abilities

**Demon Slayer Mark:** Kokushibo awakened his mark when he trained under Yoriichi. The Demon Slayer Mark drastically improves the abilities of an individual, making them much stronger and faster than what they can achieve normally, though at the cost of being cursed to die at the age of 25. However, by turning into a demon and gaining immortality, Kokushibo is no longer bound by the curse.

* **Transparent World:** Similar to Yoriichi, Kokushibo has not only gotten access to the Transparent World, but also obtained the ability to constantly use it. This allows him to see the muscles, blood flow, and joint movement of his opponents. He can accurately predict and anticipate the movements and attacks of his opponents with this ability. He was also able to identify that Muichiro was his descendant, immediately discern that Genya consumed demons to gain strength, as well as the strength of Muichiro, Sanemi, and Gyomei with one look, even being able to tell that the latter two's physical body and techniques are at their peak.

### Demon Abilities

**Biological Absorption:** Kokushibo possesses the ability to absorb human and demon bodies through physical contact. Although this trait has never been displayed, it is stated that Kokushibo would absorb the demons that challenged him and were defeated. It can likely be assumed that he uses this method as a faster alternative of consuming humans, or Demon Slayers.

**Flesh Manipulation:** Like all demons, Kokushibo possesses the ability to manipulate his own flesh to a high degree. In terms of changing his body, he can alter his face into possessing two more pairs of eyes while also elongating his forehead. Most notoriously, he uses this ability to create an extremely durable and sharp katana, complete with a tsuba and its own scabbard. Because of this, his katana can never be destroyed as he can regenerate it like he would with normal wounds. After undergoing a transformation after being decapitated, Kokushibo greatly morphed his body to adopt a more beastly and grotesque appearance, growing appendages, thin tubes, sharp mandibles and horns.

* **Sword Manipulation:** As an extension of his flesh manipulation ability, Kokushibo can manipulate a detached part of his body in the form of his katana. This allows him to easily regenerate parts of if it was destroyed or damaged as he would his body, which was shown numerous times when the blade returns to its original shape when Gyomei or Sanemi damaged it with their attacks. Furthermore, he can freely manipulate the form of the blade, shown when he grew three additional blades from the original blade to increase its reach and further increase its size, turning it into a weapon similar to the Shichishito (Seven-Branched Sword). Later, Kokushibo also displayed the ability to grow and protrude dozens of blades from his own body, allowing him to perform a multitude of slashes from them without a swinging motion. From its activation alone, Kokushibo not only managed to blow away Sanemi and Gyomei, but slice apart Muichiro, Genya, the trees rooting him down, as well as numerous pillars in his surroundings.

**Immense Regeneration:** Kokushibo possesses one of the most powerful regenerative abilities in existence, second only to the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji. His regeneration speed is even faster than Akaza and Doma, regrowing his ear and right shoulder effortlessly. Later, after being decapitated by two marked Hashira, Kokushibo is able to regenerate his entire head and successfully conquered death by beheading after being decapitated by Nichirin Swords, a feat considered impossible for demons and only accomplished by two other demons: Akaza and the Demon King himself. However, while the speed at which he regrew his head was far faster than the former, his regeneration after being decapitated became unstable, causing him to take on a monstrous visage.

**Monstrous Transformation:** Later, after re-growing his head while battling Gyomei and Sanemi, Kokushibo undergoes a transformation that causes him to take on a more monstrous and grotesque form, with protruding fangs and mandibles, large white horns on the front and and back of his head, pointed nails, red outgrowths on his face, his pupils looking at different directions, shorter and messier hair, several thin tubes poking out of his body, and numerous black and red scorpion tail-like appendages haphazardly sprouting all across his entire body. Kokushibo states that any attacks thrown at him in this state would be meaningless, and that the sun would be the only way to kill him. However, shortly after this transformation, Kokushibo's body crumbled due to Muichiro's Bright Red Nichirin Sword and losing the will to continue fighting.

### Physical Abilities

    **Immense Durability:** Due to having an extremely high concentration of Muzan's blood, Kokushibo possesses incredibly high durability. His neck is so resistant that a marked Sanemi barely made a cut despite swinging his sword with all his might. Furthermore, Gyomei's massive spiked iron ball similarly is ineffective in damaging his neck despite the Stone Hashira slamming his flail on Kokushibo's neck from above and the heat absorbed from the sun searing him. Even when a marked Sanemi slammed his katana down onto Gyomei's spiked iron ball and with Tatsuo delivering an upward slash to his neck with his Reiki-infused bright red blade, the Demon Slayers only successfully sliced off Kokushibo's head when both of the former's weapons turned bright red, which had to hamper his regeneration and burn his flesh.

    **Immense Speed & Reflexes:** Kokushibo possesses immense levels of speed far surpassing that of all his other Upper Rank brethren, as first shown when he slashed off Akaza's arm before he, or any of the other Upper Rank demons present, realized. He displays his phenomenal speeds on multiple occasions while fighting. Firstly, he is able to effortlessly outpace Muichiro's Mist Breathing techniques, moving so fast he appears to teleport. This caused Muichiro himself to state that Kokushibo's speed was in another dimension compared to his own, despite having his own speed being amplified from the Demon Slayer Mark. When Genya uses his shotgun to shoot the Upper Rank from a distance, Kokushibo manages to suddenly appear behind him before the bullets could reach, before slicing his arm off the moment he arrived. Afterwards, he slashes off his other arm and his torso so fast that his arms didn't even appear to move.

    Later when his bout with Sanemi began, he could easily keep up with his techniques and movements despite the latter having to exert himself to the limit in order to stay alive. When Sanemi uses his brother's shotgun to shoot at the Upper Rank, Kokushibo is fast enough to block the bullets even when the shotgun is at point-blank range. After feeling the need to try harder, Kokushibo subdues the Wind Hashira with a single technique that was fast enough that he couldn't evade in time, delivering a multitude of cuts and slashes all across his body. Against Gyomei, the strongest Hashira of the current generation, Kokushibo is still more than capable of keeping up with his unorthodox attacks. Even after both Hashira became marked, an enraged Kokushibo could unleash sword attacks that even they couldn't fully react to and continuing to out-speed them with his techniques. After Tatsuo joined the fight and with his attacks proved as a threat to his life, it drove Kokushibo to go all out. His speed posed such a threat towards his opponents that Muichiro had to sacrifice a leg in order to stop the Upper Rank from moving so that Genya can fully immobilize him with his Blood Demon Art. After transforming, Kokushibo is able to move so fast, he appears as a blur to a marked Gyomei and Sanemi when they attempted to finish him off.

**Immense Strength:** As a transformed Demon Slayer who has gained the Demon Slayer Mark, on top of having the highest concentration of Muzan's blood, Kokushibo possesses immense physical strength. He is able to crack the ground just by stomping on Sanemi's sword, and is capable of wielding a gigantic sword much heavier than a regular katana and swinging it incessantly at immense speeds without rest or much effort. After transforming, Kokushibo was able to slice off Muichiro's arm with his bare hands akin to a blade.

**Unlimited Stamina & Endurance:** Like all demons, Kokushibo possesses infinite stamina and vitality, never tiring and always remaining in optimal physical and mental condition all the time as well as being able to endure waves of onslaught as if it were nothing. Despite having his ear, limbs and whole chunks of his body being repeatedly torn off and destroyed, he never once showed a sign of pain or agony. Even when his head was being crushed by Gyomei Himejima's spiked iron ball, he remained resilient.

### Supernatural Abilities

    **Menacing Aura:** Kokushibo possesses a menacing and overwhelming presence that made Muichiro Tokito, a Hashira who has faced and defeated countless demons and even an Upper Rank in the past, lose the will to fight and caused his body to tremble uncontrollably.

**Extrasensory Perception:** Kokushibo can detect the presence of others outside of his range of perception, as shown when he dodged Genya's gunshots and appeared directly behind him despite Kokushibo not looking at Genya at all. With the Transparent World, he could perceive the bodily structures and see through the bodies' of his opponents and use this information to predict their attacks and movements. He also seems be extremely proficient in the use of the Transparent World, being able to trace back the heritage of a young child back to his own bloodline with a simple glance and also tell that Genya had eaten demons before by presumably analyzing his digestive tract. He is also able to immediately determine how strong his opponents are by looking at their muscles and bodily structure. Outside of his vision, Kokushibo also seems to be able to keep track of the locations of his peers around the Infinity Castle, evident as he no longer felt Akaza's presence when he died. With his perceptory abilities, he could tell that Tatsuji was an Umoya and that his blade was infused with Reiqi and that if he was decapitated, it is game over.

## Fighting Style

**Master Swordsman:** Due to training and refining his swordsmanship skill for over 400 years and getting a major boost to his physical capabilities, Kokushibo has become the most powerful and skilled swordsman in the modern era, and the third-strongest swordsman in existence, behind his younger twin brother, Yoriichi Tsugikuni and his most talented student, Dumisani Nkosi. As a Demon Slayer in the golden era, his swordsmanship was already outstanding as he learnt them from Yoriichi himself and later stated that their techniques were so refined and legendary that they have no hopes of it being passed down for future generations.

Kokushibo's skill in the blade allowed him to defeat Akaza, a prodigy at hand-to-hand combat and martial arts. With his exceptional sword wielding skill, he could singlehandedly take on Sanemi, Muichiro, Tatsuo and Gyomei when they were marked as well as Genya when he assimilated his blood and gain a small portion of his power and had access to Blood Demon Arts. Kokushibo's swordsmanship is further empowered with the development of his own Blood Demon Art, which greatly improves the lethality and power of his techniques, making every single one of his sword swings incredibly deadly.

### Breathing Style

**Moon Breathing** (月の呼吸, *Tsuki no Kokyū*?): Kokushibo is the first demon that utilized Breathing Styles. His Breathing Style, in particular, is one of the most dangerous and powerful ones displayed thus far. Enhanced with his Blood Demon Art, he can create many chaotic crescent moon blades when slashing that vary in length and size in crescent shaped sword attacks. Kokushibo had continued to develop this Breathing Style and had created over a dozen techniques over the centuries he had lived.

### Blood Demon Art

    **Crescent Moon Blades:** Complementing his combat style: Moon Breathing, his Blood Demon Art allows him to create and manipulate dozens of sharp blades shaped like traditional crescent moons from his flesh katana. They are implied to be created from his blood and can be either a bright yellow or a bright blue in color. These crescent moon blades are extremely chaotic, constantly changing in size, length and speed, making Kokushibo's attacks extremely unpredictable and unreadable as they have no set pattern. This Blood Demon Art greatly enhances the power of his techniques, making every single one of his sword swings extremely deadly and dangerous. He also seems to be capable of using his Blood Demon Art as long as his katana is unsheathed, allowing him to create crescent moon blades even without swinging his sword or unleashing a technique. The volatile nature of his Blood Demon Art makes it extremely challenging for Demon Slayers to circumvent. Sanemi stated that if not for his years of experience in the field of demon hunting, he wouldn't have been able to defend himself from Kokushibo's attacks.

Kokushibo's Blood Demon Art seems to have a secondary ability which allows him to manipulate the shape and range of his sword slashes when unleashing his Moon Breathing techniques. His slashes usually create and are surrounded by a red/orange crescent shape that carry his crescent moon blades. Kokushibo seems to be able to control said slashes to a certain extent, increasing their range and shape to attack his target in impossible ways under normal circumstances. When he distorted his katana into its branch-like appearance, his slashes turn into a light purple color. Kokushibo displayed the ability to exponentially increase the range of his sword slash with his Moon-Dragon Ringtail technique and shape his slashes into a circular drill-like shape with his Drilling Slashes, Moon Through Bamboo Leaves technique.

#### Techniques

Although Kokushibo created 16 forms of Moon Breathing, he however used only has only used 12 throughout the series, two techniques during his battle with Hitotsuyanagi Higashisanjo in the Sengoku Era, while 11 of the 16 forms in the main Demon Slayer story in the Infinity Castle Arc.

* **First Form: Dark Moon, Evening Palace** (壱ノ型: 闇月・宵の宮, *Ichi no kata: Yamidzuki - Yoi no Miya*?) - Kokushibo draws his katana and performs a singular horizontal slash following a crescent shape, creating numerous chaotic crescent blades along its path, before sheathing it back into his scabbard. This technique is extremely reminiscent of Iaijutsu.
* **Second Form: Pearl Flower Moongazing** (弐ノ型: 珠華の弄月, *Ni no kata: Shuka no Rōgetsu*?) - Kokushibo performs three crescent-shaped slashes while releasing a multitude of crescent moon blades along with them.
* **Third Form: Loathsome Moon, Chains** (参ノ型: 厭忌月・銷り, *San no kata: Enkidzuki - Tsugari*?) - Kokushibo performs two extremely broad crescent-shaped slashes directly in front of him, from which a storm of smaller crescent moon blades are released.
* **Fourth Form: Tears of a Mourning Widow, Moonlight** (肆ノ型: 涙喪孀・月光, *Shi no kata: Nadamo Yamame - Gekkō*?) - Kokushibo unleashes an upwards slash that arcs over them, from which many crescent blades emerge.
* **Fifth Form: Moon Spirit Calamitous Eddy** (伍ノ型: 月魄災渦, *Go no kata: Geppaku Saika*?) - Kokushibo creates multiple long and curved slashes layered over one another, essentially creating a vortex of crescent moon blades. As stated by Sanemi Shinazugawa, this technique was performed without Kokushibo swinging his katana.
* **Sixth Form: Perpetual Night, Lonely Moon - Incessant** (陸ノ型: 常夜孤月・無間, *Roku no kata: Tokoyo Kogetsu - Muken*?) - Kokushibo rapidly performs a multitude of curved slashes several meters in front of him that releases a wild barrage of crescent moon blades capable of slicing up the surroundings.
* **Seventh Form: Mirror of Misfortune, Moonlit** (漆ノ型: 厄鏡・月映え, *Shichi no kata: Yakkyō - Dzukibae*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo performs a frontal crescent-shaped slash that unleashes numerous straight and curved slashes that expand outward.
* **Eighth Form: Moon-Dragon Ringtail** (捌ノ型: 月龍 輪尾, *Hachi no kata: Getsuryū Rinbi*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo performs a massive long-ranged curved slash that leaves dozens of crescent moon blades along its path.
* **Ninth Form: Waning Moonswaths** (玖ノ型: 降り月・連面, *Ku no kata: Kudaridzuki - Renmen*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo performs multiple curved slashes, all in close proximity, that leave numerous crescent moon blades along its path.
* **Tenth Form: Drilling Slashes, Moon Through Bamboo Leaves** (拾ノ型: 穿面斬・蘿月, *Jū no kata: Senmenzan - Ragetsu*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo creates three rotating circular saw-like slashes with crescent moon blades following their path.
* **Eleventh Form: Lunar Eclipse, Sorrow and Tragedy** (拾壱ノ型: 月蝕・不幸慘事, *Jū Ichi no kata: Gesshoku - Fukōsanji*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo swings it to generate a massive, dual-layered slash from which multiple crescent moon blades erupt.
* **Twelfth Form: Whiplash Gales, Moonlit Meadow** (拾弐ノ型: 暴風・月夜草原, *Jū Ni no kata: Bōfū - Tsukiyo Sōgen*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo unleashes a chaotic barrage of slashes from which hundreds of crescent blades erupt.
* **Thirteenth Form: Mirror of the Moon's Gentle Embrace, Shadows of Encroaching Dawn** (拾參ノ型: 抱擁・侵食暁天, *Jū San no kata: Hōyō - Shinshoku Gyōten*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo unleashes numerous horizontal arching wave slashes that send forth countless crescent blades.
* **Fourteenth Form: Catastrophe, Tenman Crescent Moon** (拾肆ノ型: 兇変・天満繊月, *Jū Shi no kata: Kyōhen - Tenman Sengetsu*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo performs a multitude of curved slashes which expand outward in every direction that incrementally grow in size, essentially creating an omni-directional vortex of crescent moon blades that surrounds him.
* **Fifteenth Form: Lonely Moon, Omnipotence and Futility** (拾伍ノ型: 孤独月・全能無力, *Jū Go no kata: Kodokuzuki - Zen'nō Muryoku*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo swings it in a massive arch, unleashing a barrage of crescent blades and then dashes forwards, unleashing a second, much smaller slash accompanied by crescent blades.
* **Sixteenth Form: Moonbow, Half Moon** (拾陸ノ型: 月虹・片割れ月, *Jū Roku no kata: Gekkō - Katawaredzuki*?) - Using his altered katana, Kokushibo swings upward, sending six curved slashes crashing down several meters in front of him, powerful enough to leave craters in their wake.

## Equipment

**Standard Nichirin Katana:** Before his demonization as Kokushibo, Michikatsu Tsugikuni carried around a standard sized and shaped Nichirin katana that was light purple in color. His katana's tsuba is circular shaped with 4 slight indentations, with a black center and a golden border. Along with his katana, Michikatsu also carried a standard sword sheath that was dark-coloured.

Michikatsu's Nichirin katana.
**Flesh Katana:** After becoming a Demon, while also being a former Demon Slayer and user of a Breathing Style, Kokushibo wields a demonically modified version of his Nichirin Sword. As suggested by its appearance, the weapon is created from his own flesh and blood, and due to his body's immense durability and hardness, its blade is as sharp, if not more so, as a regular Nichirin Sword. His sword is blood-red, with veins and his eyes all around the blade and even the hilt. However, it is unknown whether those eyes can be used to extend his vision. His katana's tsuba is circular with 4 slight indentations, a center with 3 eyes and several black veins and a golden border. He also carries a sword sheath at his waist that has the same fleshy appearance as his katana. According to the second databook, Kokushibo named his weapon **Kyokokukamusari** (虛哭神去, *Kyokokukamusari*?, lit. "Hollow Cry of the Godless").

Kokushibo's katana (post-demonization).Kokushibo's full katana.
## Battles

Kokushibo Battles

**Pre-Series Battles**

* Hizashi Origanbu vs Kokushibo
* Enjuro Rengoku vs Kokushibo
* Dumisani Mavundla vs Kokushibo
* Takeshi Hayate and Mokaro Kuze vs Kokushibo
* Hitotsuyanagi Higashisanjo vs Kokushibo

**Infinity Castle Arc**

* Muichiro Tokito, Genya Shinazugawa, Sanemi Shinazugawa and Gyomei Himejima vs Kokushibo

## Trivia

* Kokushibo has been challenged three times for his position. One of these battles involved Akaza. While Kokushibo would usually absorb the demon he defeated, he let Akaza live because he enjoyed the challenge.
	+ Kokushibo is the first Demon Slayer to become a demon.
* He became a demon in his early 20s and lived as such for an additional 460+ years.
* Kokushibo once killed the leader of the Demon Slayer Corps that led his generation of Demon Slayers, Hideyoshi Ubuyashiki. This caused the Corps to put extreme effort in hiding the residence of future leaders. This event was also the one that caused the Kakushi to be formed.
* The relationship between Yoriichi and Michikatsu parallels the mythology of the Shintō kami Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi, respectively. Amaterasu is the most sacred of Shintō deities, the sun goddess. Tsukuyomi, the moon god, is her former husband and brother. After Tsukuyomi killed Uke Mochi, another Shintō kami, Amaterasu refused to ever look upon him again, moving to another part of the sky and beginning the cycle of day and night. Like the deities, the siblings also feud and have chosen different paths (that of the Demon Slayer and the demon), developing their respective breathings of the sun and moon.
* Kokushibo is considered to be a "business partner" by Muzan.

## Michikatsu's view of the other Hashira (before becoming the demon Kokushibo)

* *"A pretty face like her in the corps won't last for long."* - Flower Hashira.
* *"Okay to talk to yet too loud."* - Flame Hashira.
* *"His arrogance is really annoying."* - Mist Hashira.
* *"His friendship with Yoriichi makes my skin crawl."* - Stone Hashira.
* *"Learn to respect women, stupid."* - Thunder Hashira.
* *"A valuable existence who does not hesitate in giving Yoriichi a piece of his mind."* - Water Hashira.
* *"A comrade in arms with whom I enhance my sword skills."* - Wind Hashira.
* *"I envy him day after day."* - Sun Hashira.
* *"His abilities are making me inferior and it is annoying."* - Stellar Hashira.

## Quotes

* (To Dumisani Mavundla) "*You are just like me. Everything was destined to be yours but you said yourself "I simply wanted to work hard hard and use my powers for good since I'm a chosen one after all" and acted accordingly. You and Yoriichi are the same. Both of you are selfless, principled and you see what's ahead and the progress of the next generation. Why is it that you were one of the few to learn my brother's Breathing Style and execute it flawlessly yet I'm not? Why are you a reflection of me of how a better older sibling is to be? Why is it you're actions make me look like a mockery of myself? Why?*"
* (In regards to Akaza) "*Akaza's presence is gone. He has fallen. Akaza... weren't you going to defeat me? A path had open for him to attain further heights... but he renounced it himself. How exceedingly weak.*"
* (To himself) "*The old and ugly creature that was once my little brother had pity for me. But... I wasn't angry. Even though 60 years ago, he had been such an eyesore. The voice calling me "brother" was terribly hoarse. My brother had never shown the slightest emotion... so at the sight of him shedding tears, something welled up in me for the first time since birth. I was confused... at my own unexpected unrest. But I must kill... this part of me from when I was human... This old man of brittle flesh past his prime... He was a Demon Slayer, and I must cleave anyone who turns a sword upon me. But his odd sentimentality... disappeared the next moment.*"
* (In response to Yoriichi Tsugikuni's statement about future generations) "*Yoriichi... when you smiled, I couldn't help it... but I always found it disturbing. And when we were talking about how there were no successors for the various breathing techniques you suddenly started viewing things with strange optimism and you smiled. In my conceit I believed that only our generation was special. I felt sick with disgust and irritation. What did you find so amusing? [...] What is so amusing about imaging such a future? Just thinking about losing makes me boil with anger.*"
* (To himself) "*The ugliness of not admitting defeat even though they took my head, chopped me up and crushed me. Living in disgrace. Have I lived hundreds of years for this? Was I so afraid of defeat that I became a monster? Did I want to be strong even if it meant eating people? Did I become this miserable creature because I didn't want to die? No. Yoriichi... I just wanted to be you.*"
* (To himself) "*I could never grab hold of anything. Anything at all. I abandoned my home. I abandoned my wife and children. I abandoned my humanity. I cut down my descendants and abandoned being a samurai. But even all that wasn't enough? You said that those who master their paths all reach the same place. But I never did. I could not see the same world that you did. Why could I not leave anything behind? Why could I not become someone known? Why are we so different? Why in the world was I ever born? Tell me... Yoriichi*."