Kagaya Ubuyashiki

Kagaya Ubuyashiki is a major supporting character of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. He is the 97th leader of the Demon Slayer Corps known mainly as Oyakata-sama (お) by his subordinates and peers and is also the head of the Ubuyashiki Family.

Appearance
Kagaya has light skin and black shoulder length hair. He has a curse mark that is slowly killing him that also makes his skin look as if it was rotting spreading down his face and covering his eyes making him unable to see, by the time of his death this curse had spread all over his body making moving nearly impossible. Muzan at Kagaya's death described him as having the smile of a Buddha.

He wears a plain black kimono secured with a tan-colored braided obi over a white juban. His also wears a white, calf-length haori with a unique design of gradient flames of the colors purple and salmon pink rising from the hem up to the half of the sleeves.

Personality
Kagaya has a calm demeanor, showing genuine care about the members of the Demon Slayers, considering them his children. He is also able to handle criticism well and is honest about his weaknesses; one being his inability to become a Demon Slayer despite being their main leader. In order to make up for this, he remembers every single member of the corps and visits the deceased members at their cemetery on a daily basis until he could no longer move due to his illness.

While he may seem lenient, he gives due consideration to reason and when a situation is clear of any biases, as shown when he willingly accepted the situation of Tanjiro and Nezuko (via a letter from Sakonji Urokodaki) and even defended their cause when there are others who thought otherwise. His manner of speaking, while generally fluid and gentle, is extremely tactful; using words and intonations in a way that the person he talks to would listen. His tactful and charismatic speech is even able to make the likes of the initially passive Muichiro Tokito and the impulsive Sanemi Shinazugawa listen to what he has to say without conveying anything that would rile them up.

Towards his own kin, such as his children, Kagaya is rather strict: due to the curse of their family, he had to prepare them early on to replace him in leading the Demon Slayers. Nevertheless, he shows the same gentle aura and demeanor towards them. Beneath his otherwise kind and gentle personality, Kagaya bore a deep, burning hatred of Muzan Kibutsuji. As the cause for his family's cursed lives, he showed uncharacteristic silent anger towards the demon and addressed him without showing any indication of fear or hesitation. He repeatedly provoked him by mocking his intentions to become an eternal being and boldly stated that he would die, and in his final moments, he bore a smile on his face to lure Muzan into a false sense of security as his trap was activated. Despite his own hatred towards him, Muzan was amazed that Kagaya had hidden his bloodlust during their conversation and was shocked Kagaya was willing to kill his own family, having underestimated the lengths he would go to in order to weaken him.

Abilities
Emotion Masking: Kagaya possesses the remarkable ability to conceal his emotions and present a composed and controlled outward appearance. He utilizes this skill to maintain a calm and serene composure and deceive others' perception of him. When Muzan, the target of Kagaya's deep-seated hatred, confronted him at his home, Kagaya presented himself with the serene smile of a Buddha, effectively masking any trace of murderous intent. By completely erasing his fighting spirit, animosity, and hatred, Kagaya successfully concealed his true intentions, luring Muzan into a trap. It was only when Kagaya sacrificed himself by detonating an explosive to ensnare Muzan that the demon realized the magnitude of Kagaya's hidden emotions. Muzan likened Kagaya's concealed intent to a coiled viper lurking within his dark, lifeless stomach, leaving him in awe of Kagaya's astonishing ability to veil his true nature.

Extrasensory Perception: Kagaya possesses the ability to perceive the presence of both humans and demons, as well as determine their strength. This became evident during the Hashira meeting held after the events at Mount Natagumo. Despite becoming blind in both eyes due to the progression of his illness, Kagaya immediately sensed the presence of the number of individuals with Hashira-level power upon arrival and expressed his satisfaction that they all made it to the meeting without personnel changes. Furthermore, when Muzan arrived at the Ubuyashiki Estate with the intention to kill him, Kagaya immediately detected Muzan's presence and greeted him, even when his eyes were completely covered by bandages and Muzan was still standing at a distance outside of the estate, showcasing his extraordinary sensory abilities.

Foresight: Kagaya (and the rest of the Ubuyashiki family) possess a heightened level of foresight that helps them avoid disastrous situations and amassed them a great amount of wealth and fortune. Due to this instinct, Kagaya accurately made several guesses about multiple things that were eventually proven to be true and accurate without him knowing any prior information, as seen when he accurately predicted that Muzan's only remaining weakness was the sun and that he could not be destroyed by decapitation, that the deaths of Gyutaro and Daki would send waves that would eventually see that the Upper Ranks of the Twelve Kizuki begin losing members for the first time in hundreds of years, and that Muzan will find him and bring about the final war between Demon Slayer Corps and the Twelve Kizuki during his last five days of life.

Soothing Voice: Kagaya possesses the ability to put others at ease just by the tone of his voice and rhythm of his actions, as he displayed with Tanjiro Kamado and even the blood-lusted Hashira. In modern times, this attribute is called 1/F Fluctuation, and is said to be possessed by many charismatic people and have the strength of presence to move mass audiences.

Trivia

 * Kagaya has the same Japanese and English voice actors as Seijiro Kikuoka from Sword Art Online.
 * As stated by Kagaya, the disease currently ailing him is the curse inflicted on his family due to them birthing the "original demon." The sickness itself is a genetic disorder passed down from generation to generation in their family, it has effectively left the Ubuyashiki family with weak bodies and a lifespan of less than 30 years.
 * Kagaya's first name contains the kanji for "shine" and the Kun'yomi for "how"; the "ya" in the first character is not included and is instead replaced by the second. His surname contains the Kun'yomi for "bear, give birth to", "house, shop" and "spread".
 * Kagaya's father committed suicide when he was 19, unable to bear the thought of having his troop members die over and over again. Kagaya's siblings also died, leaving him to inherit the position of family head at the age of 4 years old.
 * All boys born into the Ubuyashiki Clan will die without surpassing the age of 30. Girls born from the clan must be married off and change surnames by the age of 13, otherwise they will also inevitably die from accidents or illness.

Quotes

 * (To Tengen Uzui) "Tengen, the path you chose is a hard one. It is hard to reject the values you learned as a child. You must always fight yourself at the same time that you're fighting on the field of battle. But in spite of your many inner conflicts and contradictions...I trust you to always fight for me and to protect innocent lives. Thank you Tengen, you are a wonderful child."
 * (To Muzan Kibutsuji) "I know what eternity is. Eternity is human feeling. Only human feelings last forever and are undying."
 * (To Sanemi Shinazugawa) "I'm sorry. I tried swinging a sword, but it made my heart pound and I couldn't even do it ten times. I would have been like you if I could have. I wanted to be a strong swordsman and protect others' lives with my own body. But... it was impossible for me. I'm sorry to have to ask you to do such difficult tasks[...] If you are pawns... then I am a sacrificial piece too. And if a single piece, even one such as myself, who moves the Demon Slayer Corps, were to die, nothing would change. This is your first time at a gathering of the Hashira, so I think you misunderstand. I do not place myself higher than you or anything like that. But everyone just treats me that way. If that bothers you, you don't have to go along with it. Instead of worrying about that, defend the lives of others as a Hashira. That is my only request."
 * (To Sanemi Shinazugawa about Masachika Kumeno) "Sanemi... all the children of the Demon Slayer Corps write their own wills. Strangely, the contents of those wills are mostly similar. Masachika's was the same. I have been thinking about giving it to you. Masachika thought of you like the younger brother he lost. He dreamed of a shining future. Just like my dream. A wish for loved ones to smile. To live happily until the day they die and to never have their lives cruelly threatened. Even if you can't be by their side. We want them to live. We want them to survive."

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