Assaulted by Memories

Preparing to clash with Akaza again, Giyu takes stock of how badly he is hurt. He has lost the hearing in one ear, his sword hand has gone numb, and he can no longer gauge his remaining strength. A swordsman pushed beyond his body's limits loses accuracy and strains his muscles, while a demon feels neither fatigue nor pain, which makes surviving an Upper Rank with a single Breathing Style remarkable. Even so, Giyu commits to saving Tanjiro.

A woman's apparition grips Akaza's hand and pleads with him to stop. He demands she identify herself and explains that he needs greater power, originally so he could recover medicine for his ailing father. The plea drags him back into his early years as a thieving child.

Akaza's human origins

As a boy called Hakuji, Akaza steals to support his sick parent. Hauled before a magistrate, beaten bloody, and threatened with branding and the loss of a hand, the eleven-year-old laughs off every warning and is labeled a demon child. He soon learns his father has taken his own life out of shame.

The martial artist appears

At the grave, Hakuji reads his father's parting letter urging him to live honestly. Consumed by grief and fury, he beats down a crowd of men in a nearby town. A wandering martial artist named Keizo witnesses the brawl, praises the boy's raw skill, and offers to take him in.

The flashback marks the first full reveal of Akaza's past during the Infinity Castle Arc. Keizo introduces Hakuji to his frail daughter Koyuki, whose illness echoes that of Hakuji's late father. Akaza realizes his dislike of Tanjiro stems from how strongly the young slayer reminds him of Keizo.