Warning: Spoilers for the Hashira Training Arc
Season 5 of Demon Slayer, which adapts the comparatively short Hashira Training Arc to the screen, is one of the big reasons to be excited about anime in 2024.
It will kick off on Feb. 23, with the release of the special ‘To the Hashira Training,’ which combines the last episode of season 4 and the first of season 5, and will be available for streaming on Crunchyroll.
As the name suggests, this is a training arc, or, in other words, the calm before the epic climax of the series kicks into gear.
Preparing for the storm
Due to Nezuko’s newfound ability to endure sunlight, a full-scale war has become imminent. Master Kagaya Ubuyashiki knows this, and thus, when reuniting with the Hashira, his wife, Amane, who represents him as he’s too feeble and sick to get up from bed, communicates all the necessary information. This includes Nezuko’s sun resistance as well as the demon crests that some demon slayers are capable of manifesting, the first of whom in many years was Tanjiro – who, in the meantime, is given the restored the 300-year-old sword by Hotaru Haganezuka.
To manifest the marks becomes the Hashira’s objective. Another equally important objective is to train the lower-ranking demon slayers to be prepared for the ultimate battle ahead. This is unusual, as the Hashira usually only have a few carefully handpicked Tsuguko to whom they impart their knowledge.
Each Hashira is in charge of training the demon slayers in one skill, for instance, Mitsuri Kanroji is, understandably, teaching flexibility. The training follows a proper order, and the slayers can only move on to be taught by the next Hashira once they have completed the previous Hashira’s training.
Backstories, plans, and developments
It is also important to note that some of the characters get their backstory revealed whereas others go through moments that spur character development – or even, both in tandem. An example of the former would be the Water Hashira Giyu Tomioka, who ends up revealing the true story behind his mismatched haori – the fact that he becomes able to share his traumatizing past with Tanjiro, and even remember some things he had forgotten, is also a huge step towards growing past the trauma and emotional stagnation. An example of the latter would be, surprisingly, Zenitsu Agatsuma, who receives some tragic news that changes him significantly, giving him a fierce new motivation, the pay-off of which we’ll only see during the next arc, the Infinity Castle Arc.
Shinobu Kocho shares with Kanao her long-time-coming idea of how to defeat the demon who killed her sister, Kanae. A plan she’s finally ready to put into motion. Meanwhile, Ubuyashiki sends his crow to summon Lady Tamayo to the estate for her to be able to study Nezuko in person.
It is also heartening to see Tanjiro going through the training and being adored and given a nicer treatment by many of the Hashira – Tengen, Muichiro, and Mitsuri – while others still cannot stand his guts – Obanai and Sanemi. Speaking of Sanemi, Tanjiro does attempt to help the Shinazugawa brothers make their peace, but that does not go too well, as the temperamental Sanemi cannot be easily reasoned with. The pay-off for the brothers’ relationship also takes place during the next arc.
The last Hashira’s training is the Stone Hashira’s. It’s an exhausting set of activities that seem simple at first but require an intense effort of concentration. Tanjiro eventually manages to succeed at the tasks with the help of Genya, who had been training with the Stone Hashira as a Tsuguko before the events of this arc. Upon completing the Stone Hashira training, Gyomei Himejima also shares his tragic backstory with Tanjiro and the moral lesson he learned from it.
While this is happening, the demons, Muzan and the “Biwa woman” Nakime, are keeping track of the demon slayers’ movements, although, they are struggling to find Nezuko and the Ubuyashiki family. But, at the end of the arc, Muzan does find and meet Ubuyashiki, coming face to face for their first and last-ever meeting.
