Giyu Tomioka appears in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba as a major supporting character. He is the current Water Hashira and a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Voice Actor of Giyu Tomioka
In Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Johnny Yong Bosch provides the English dub voice for Giyu Tomioka, while Takahiro Sakurai provides the Japanese voice.
Giyu – Height, Weight
Giyu is a tall young man with a muscular build and a pale complexion who wears an unimpressed or emotionless expression almost all of the time. His unruly black hair, which sticks up in tufts around his head and is tied back in a low messy ponytail at the base of his neck, is unruly and uneven in length.
His bangs form an uneven fringe that falls over his eyes. His eyes are sharp and moderately large, with deep sapphire irises that fade to a lighter blue and bluish-black pupils, and thin eyebrows framing them.
Giyu is dressed in a dark cyan-tinted Demon Slayer uniform with buttoned white leg-wraps and a pair of white zri with dark blue straps, his socks the same cyan color as his uniform. Giyu wears a haori with two different patterns split down the middle: a solid pink-red on the right, and a geometrically patterned haori on the left with squares of green, orange, and yellow.
These haoris were later identified as belonging to Tsutako Tomioka, his late older sister, and his deceased friend Sabito.
He loses his right arm in the battle with Muzan Kibutsuji. Giyu cuts his hair to shoulder length after the fight and wears it loose rather than in a ponytail.
Power and Abilities
Giyu is a powerful swordsman and a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps. In his transformed state, he can easily defeat the Father Spider Demon and Rui, Lower Rank 5. During his fight against Akaza, Upper Rank 3, he was able to hold his own for a while, and like Kyojuro, Akaza is so impressed by Giyu’s abilities that he offers to turn the Hashira into a Demon, something Akaza only asks of the most deserving of his opponents. In fifty years, Akaza claims he hasn’t fought a Water Hashira as skilled as Giyu.
Enhanced Strength: Giyu appears to be self-conscious about what others think of him, and he is taken aback when Shinobu Kocho claims that he is despised by many. Apart from that, he doesn’t appear to be bothered by Shinobu’s other pokes, even ignoring her. Despite this, they are good friends who have shared a lot of experiences.
Immense Speed & Reflexes: Giyu has incredible speed and reflexes, tying up Inosuke Hashibira before he even realized what had happened. He could also cut Rui’s head off in the blink of an eye. When he reawakened his mark, he was able to move so quickly that even Upper Rank 3, Akaza, struggled to keep up.
Immense Stamina & Endurance: Giyu has incredible stamina and endurance as a result of his arduous training, which he has mostly demonstrated in combat. In his battle with Akaza, he managed to keep fighting and remain determined despite being severely weakened by dozens of powerful blows all over his body, a feat that pleasantly surprised Akaza. Giyu fought Muzan Kibutsuji, the Demon King, for nearly an hour in the Sunrise Countdown Arc.
Tactical Intellect: Giyu possesses amazing tactical intelligence and wits as a Demon Slayer with incredible talent, being able to cycle through all of his swordsmanship forms while keeping up with two phenomenally powerful Demons and winning.
Demon Slayer Mark: Giyu awakens his Demon Slayer Mark during his battle with Akaza, which appears as a fluid-water-like design on his left cheek, complementing his breathing style, Water Breathing. When activated, he gains a massive boost in speed, precision, and endurance, allowing him to fight the Upper Rank 3 on even ground for an extended period of time.
Fighting Style and Weapons
Giyu wields a standard Nichirin Katana, which he shares with the majority of Demon Slayers. His katana is blue in color, which matches his breathing style, Water Breathing. The hilt of his katana is hexagonal in shape, with a bronze core and an overlapping Fuschia border, and his scabbard is black. The words Destroyer of Demons are carved on the side of his katana.
Crimson Red Nichirin Blade: During the fight against Muzan, Sanemi slams his sword against Giyu’s, temporarily turning both of their blades red, giving them the ability to thwart Demons’ enhanced regeneration.
Master Swordsman: As a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, Giyu is one of the organization’s most powerful and skilled swordsmen. Giyu has finely developed swordsmanship, according to Akaza, the Upper Rank 3.
Water Breathing: Water Breathing is one of the five main Breathing Styles that is descended directly from Sun Breathing.
Water Breathing is a combat and breathing style that mimics water, specifically its flow, flexibility, and adaptability, using the user’s movements, techniques, and abilities. The user bends their body, arm, and weapon in a flowing motion in most, if not all, known techniques.
When used correctly, the user visualizes themselves manipulating and generating water in various shades of blue with white wavy patterns reminiscent of waves found in classical Japanese paintings, causing water to appear to emanate from their weapon, surroundings, or themselves.
Personality
Giyu has a serious expression on his face at all times. He has a reserved demeanor and a strong sense of justice, and he has no patience for those who are unaware of their own limitations and waste their lives. Despite allowing Nezuko Kamado to live due to Tanjiro Kamado’s perseverance, he kills other Demons without hesitation and shows no respect for them, as do most Demon Slayers.
Despite this, Giyu broke the Demon Slayer Corps’ code of conduct by protecting Nezuko from Shinobu’s assassination attempt. This implies that, unlike some other Hashira, he does not completely despise Demons and is willing to make an exception for one if they do not kill and eat humans. This demonstrates that he deals with Demons pragmatically rather than with hatred, as some other Hashira do.
Giyu appears to be self-conscious about what others think of him, and he is taken aback when Shinobu Kocho claims that he is despised by many. Apart from that, he doesn’t appear to be bothered by Shinobu’s other pokes, even ignoring her. Despite this, they are good friends who have shared a lot of experiences.
He is a man of few words who has difficulty interacting with others, so he prefers to keep his distance. He even goes out of his way to tell Akaza that he despises talking and that he prefers to keep his name to himself because he believes names should not be shared.
Later on, Giyu is revealed to have developed an inferiority complex as a result of his participation in the Final Selection. It becomes so severe that he considers resigning as the Water Hashira until Tanjiro convinces him that rather than acting on his survivor’s guilt, he should cherish his life and live on for those who gave their lives for him.
When he believes Tanjiro has died after the fight with Muzan, he feels survivor’s guilt once more. While crying, Giyu admits that he is always the one who is saved.
Trivia
- Kyojuro Rengoku and Giyu are the only two characters who have their own spin-off. Giyu’s spin-off, Giyu Tomioka: Gaiden (Part 1) and Giyu Tomioka: Gaiden (Part 2), is a two-part story that depicts events following Giyu’s encounter with Tanjiro and Nezuko (Part 2).
- Giyu’s crow is a very old crow, so it tends to make mistakes when giving messages. He is said to also make Giyu very nervous.
- The role of Sasori from Naruto: Shippden is shared by Giyu’s Japanese and English voice actors.
- Giyu’s first design, by Koyoharu Gotge, was similar to the official design, but with fingerless sleeves, a cloth that tied the ends of his haori around his waist, and looser hakama pants.
QUOTES
- (To himself) “She must’ve been craving a feast right from the start, even her own brother. But she protected him and turned her attention to me. I wonder if… just maybe… these two are different.”
- (To himself regarding Tanjiro Kamado) “Don’t cry. Don’t despair. Those things will do you no good. Your family is dead and your sister has become a Demon. Your heart is crushed. I know your pain, how you must want to cry out. If I’d come half a day sooner your family might have survived. But there is no turning back time. Fill your heart with anger. Strong, pure anger that gives no quarter. Anger that becomes the unwavering force that drives your limbs. Weakness and empty promises cannot protect your sister or find her a cure. And they certainly cannot avenge your family.”
- (To Shinobu Kocho) “I’m not disliked by people.”
- (To Akaza) “If you want to kill Tanjiro… First, defeat me!!
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