Akeno Tsugikuni (
Appearance[]
Akeno was a young woman with a petite build and fair skin. She has black waist-length hair tied parted apart on top of her forehead with a bow at the bottom of her back along with two bangs that reach her eyes.
She wore a magenta kimono with a white juban under it. Over this, Akeno wore incredibly long formal clothing that could possibly be or inspired by Jūnihitoe with multiple thin overlapping white crescent moons with polka-dots above them, reaching past her bare feet being dragged along the floor.
Personality[]
Akeno was described as a very religious and pure-hearted woman, always praying to the god of the sun for little to no disaster in the world along with her constantly worrying for Yoriichi and Michikatsu. She was noted to be a very calm and quiet person, with people describing her demeanour as doll-like.[2] Despite this, she also possesses a fierce love for the two, as shown when she accosts her husband for considering killing Yoriichi. Despite her protective constitution, she doesn't complain to being helped as seen when Yoriichi as a child would always support and carry her impaired side due to her terminal sickness.
History[]
Akeno lived during the Sengoku period of Japan, nearly five centuries before the Taisho era. She gave birth to twin boys in a time it was thought to be a bad omen, as twins would have fought to be the family's rightful heir. In particular, the younger twin had a large and strange looking mark on the upper-left side of his head. This caused her husband to consider killing the boy just after his birth. At this, Akeno became furious and angrily grabbed her husband's kimono, needing to be restrained by two servants. She vouched for his survival and he eventually relented, deciding the boy would live in the temples when old enough. Of her two boys, the older one was named Michikatsu and the younger twin was named Yoriichi.
Akeno supported by her son.
Due to her husband's dislike of Yoriichi, Akeno constantly fought with him. Their clashes would even include Michikatsu when he attempted to play with his brother, resulting in his father beating him. She also battled an illness that slowly affected her entire body. Yoriichi, due to his mark giving him the ability to see her illness, would constantly be seen supporting the left side of her body; unfortunately, this kind action inadvertently caused Michikatsu to consider him weak and pathetic, developing a disgust for Yoriichi. Since he initially never spoke, Akeno tried to help this by making Hanafuda-charm earrings for him and praying to the god of the Sun to bless and cure his deafness.
Akeno would write her experiences and thoughts in a diary until her condition eventually killed her. That morning, Yoriichi informed Michikatsu about her death, before leaving the Tsugikuni household. Later, Michikatsu would read her diary and was shocked to learn about her illness and Yoriichi's attempts to aid her, causing him immense envy at the fact that Yoriichi was special. Her demise also came as a great shock to her husband, who had never known about her condition. Her will gave a final instruction to her husband to live with her two sons as a happy family. To support Akeno's wishes, he tried to find Yoriichi at the temples he believed him to be at but was unsuccessful. Despite the two constantly being at odds, Akeno was sorely missed by her husband and he never remarried again after her death.[3]
Synopsis[]
Infinity Castle Arc[]
In his final moments after being unable to regenerate from his wounds, Akeno's son Michikatsu, transformed almost 500 years later into the demon Kokushibo, saw his life flashed before his eyes. He remembered the circumstances of his early life and how his mother had fought for Yoriichi's survival when his father wanted to have him killed.[4]
Sunrise Countdown Arc[]
During the final battle between the Demon Slayer Corps and Muzan Kibutsuji, Tanjiro fell unconscious due to the effects of the demon's blood in his body. He saw memories of his ancestor Sumiyoshi of when Yoriichi had visited him and spoke about his life following his banishment from the Corps. During this meeting, Yoriichi talked his mother, fondly remembering that she was a pure-hearted woman of deep faith, who prayed for strife to disappear from the world everyday. Because he was thought to be deaf, she made him earrings out of charms and prayed that his deafness would be cured, later mentioning that he had regretted causing her so much worry.[5]
Later on, while remembering the true forms of Yoriichi's Sun Breathing, Tanjiro recalled how Yoriichi gave Sumiyoshi the earrings his mother gave him during his last visit, which would then be passed down through successive generations until they eventually arrived to him.[6]
Trivia[]
- The Sun deity that she prays to everyday is more than likely the Shintō deity Amaterasu Ōmikami, since during the Sengoku period, multiple clans prayed to the kami for good fortune during warfare.
- Because of this, it's possible that Akeno represents the legendary "Himiko (Pimiku)" (
卑 彌 呼 Pimiku?) also known as "Shinwei Waō" (親 魏 倭 王 ?), the first queen (if not ruler) of all of ancient Japan (known as "Wa"倭 ) in the Yayoi period. This is due to Pimiku being believed in records of the Kojiki or Nihon Shoki to be the daughter of the sun deity Amaterasu, and lived within Japan's first written record warring period. This likely references back to the wars of the Sengoku period that Akeno faced through along with her devotion to the sun deity.
- Because of this, it's possible that Akeno represents the legendary "Himiko (Pimiku)" (
- Because of her quiet demeanor, it startled many people when she angrily confronted her husband for wanting to kill Yoriichi.[2]
- Her terminal illness was not known by any individual prior to her death besides herself and Yoriichi, the latter due to him having access to the Transparent World.[3]
- Her illness was exacerbated by the poor treatment of Yoriichi
- Akeno was the first person Yoriichi ever spoke to.
- Akeno is a gender-neutral name of Japanese origin meaning “bright,” “shining,” “strong,” and “dawn.” In Japanese, Akeno is written using kanji.
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*The story does not indicate which child of Michikatsu carries on the lineage nor the quantity of generations that follow prior to the Tokito's.
References[]
- ↑ Kimetsu no Yaiba Second Fanbook.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Kimetsu no Yaiba Manga: Volume 20, (Extra Pages).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kimetsu no Yaiba First Fanbook.
- ↑ Kimetsu no Yaiba Manga: Chapter 177 (Page 2).
- ↑ Kimetsu no Yaiba Manga: Chapter 186 (Page 7).
- ↑ Kimetsu no Yaiba Manga: Chapter 192 (Page 2).