The demons of Demon Slayer are vicious creatures that secretly sow destruction and death all throughout Japan, under the will of Muzan Kibutsuji, the first and most powerful demon. While every demon in Demon Slayer has superhuman strength and can develop special techniques called ‘blood demon arts’, the upper moons are the 6 most powerful demons in Muzan’s forces.
They are all hundreds of years old, and have killed countless people and several demon slayers. Even Hashira often fall to them. The upper moons vary wildly in personality, abilities and design, so here are the basics on who they are and what makes them so dangerous.
Upper 6 - Daki and Gyutaro
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This pair of siblings functions as a dark mirror to Tanjiro and Nezuko. Despite Daki being the first to appear during the ‘entertainment district’ arc, Gyutaro is considered the true upper 6 demon, as Muzan himself refers to him as such. Using his sister as the face of the duo however, helps Gyutaro to remain hidden. In a rare occurrence for demons, they are still as close as they were as humans, with Gyutaro being shown to be very brotherly to Daki, especially when she’s hurt. He prizes her beauty, due in part to his own ugliness.
Daki’s demon abilities are predominantly focused on her obi. These pink sashes can be used as extra limbs to attack opponents, and can even be separated and left alone to function independently of Daki. However, she will only be at full power when all her obi are inside her. Gyutaro meanwhile, uses a pair of poisoned sickles to slash and fire blood at his opponents. Due to their duo, they can only be killed when both are beheaded simultaneously.
Upper 5 - Gyokko
As upper 5, Gyokko is a step above Gyutaro and Daki. He has by far the most demonic appearance of the upper moons, as he has a stark white, legless body that emerges out of a decorated pot. He has mouths where his eyes should be, and his eyes are on his forehead and chin. His many tiny arms also fall off his head like hair, or randomly around his body. He has a generally agreeable personality, easily getting along with the other upper moons and occasionally giving them gifts. However, he is just as sadistic as his peers.
Gyokko has an unusual fighting style, as he can create hordes of fish-like demons with a variety of abilities. He also has the ability to teleport between any of his pots at will, and use them to trap victims or attack with large tentacles. He also has a true form that makes his body more humanoid and scaly, allowing him to fight more traditionally.
Upper 4 - Hantengu
Despite being upper 4, Hantengu is initially quite timid. His rank is proof of his strength, but he’s rather cowardly, always crawling on all fours and cowering from friend and foe alike. This however, is part of his trick. When beheaded, he will split into multiple demons, with a maximum of 4 alternate personalities, each corresponding to a different emotion. There are also 2 more forms that can be released under different circumstances, making him an extremely difficult demon to pin down. These forms betray his emotional instability, and he generally considers himself innocent and the victim, despite his many crimes.
Each of Hantengu’s forms has a different name and different powers. The main body lacks any special abilities but is very durable. Sekido (anger) fights with ranged, electric attacks, Karaku (pleasure) fights with fans that can create powerful gusts of wind, Aizetsu (sorrow) fights with long range spear strikes, and Urogi (joy) can fly and fights with ear-piercing sound waves. The 4 can also fuse into Zohakuten (hatred), who can use all of their abilities, on top of his own wood manipulation abilities.
Upper 3 - Akaza
First seen at the end of the ‘mugen train’ arc, Akaza is well known for being quite powerful. As seen in his fight against Rengoku, he loves to fight, and is more than willing to praise his opponents for their skill. However, amongst the other upper demons, he is a bit of a problem child, since he has a strong disdain for Doma, and an inferiority complex to both Doma and Kokushibo. He detests Doma especially, as he has a rule against eating women, and Doma prefers to eat women.
Akaza is a pure brawler, with all his blood demon arts being martial arts techniques that allow him to deliver powerful and constant strikes. He also has a strong willpower, making him capable of surviving even after being beheaded. However, he is by far the most human of the upper moons, as evidenced by his commitment to never eat women due to someone he loved when he was a human.
Upper 2 - Doma
Despite being the 2nd most powerful of the upper moons, Doma gets little respect amongst his peers. His overly casual personality mixed with his complete lack of empathy makes him detestable to humans and demons alike. Even Muzan himself isn’t a fan of Doma. While all demons have reduced empathy for humans, Douma is a psychopath with no emotions, who instead attempts to fake emotions and relationships. He is also the leader of a fairly large cult organization, who worship him as their leader and god.
Doma has had a hand in several other characters’ backstories. He was the one who turned Gyutaro and Daki into demons, as well as killing Shinobu’s sister and Inosuke’s mother. His blood demon arts all make use of ice and cold. He can even create ice constructs that fight independently of him, and use all of his techniques without diminished power. He could easily end most fights very quickly, but his personality makes him willing to play with his food.
Upper 1 - Kokushibo
Kokushibo is extremely unique, being the first demon slayer to be turned into a demon. He was a human during the Sengoku era, and thus witnessed the birth of breathing styles and demon slayers. For most of his life as a human, he had a growing inferiority complex towards his brother, Yoriichi, who went on to be the first breathing style user and most powerful demon slayer. It was this sense of inferiority that eventually led him to become a demon. He has a very stoic personality, only speaking when necessary and attacking with brutal efficiency. Even demons as strong as the upper moons respect and fear his power.
As one might expect, he fuses both his demon powers and his breathing style into a deadly combo. His moon breathing techniques are plentiful and enhanced by his demonic strength and speed. His sword is also made out of his own body, meaning he can manipulate its length to further increase his range and change the shape of his attacks.