JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL
Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc: Why Did Sanemi Attack Genya? Here's What Happened
The reason behind Sanemi suddenly attacking his younger brother Genya during the Hashira Training Arc in Demon Slayer is grimmer than you can imagine. Here is what happened between the siblings.
This article contains spoilers from the Demon Slayer anime and manga
Koyoharu Gotouge’s Demon Slayer is characterized by not only a great storyline but also great (often bleak) backstories. One such story is of the sibling duo Sanemi and Genya Shinazugawa, who have an unfortunate history. In the recent episode, the older of the two Sanemi attacked his younger brother, which shocked the audience.
It might seem that Sanemi was being openly hurtful towards his younger brother who unfortunately cannot use a breathing technique. However, a deeper look into the altercation tells us that he was just trying to save his only surviving family.
What happened between Sanemi and Genya in the recent episode?
The 5th episode of Demon Slayer season 4 was titled I Even Ate Demons and focused a significant time on the Wind Hashira Sanemi Shinazugawa and his younger brother Genya Shinazugawa. In this episode, the disagreement between the two siblings reaches its climax and we see Sanemi trying to gouge out Genya’s eyes.
The Hashira Training Arc has been filled with mostly pretty positive training scenarios so far, so not only did this confrontation take Tanjiro and the others by surprise, but the audience as well. However, people have to understand that Sanemi did not attack his little brother out of hatred or resentment. Instead, it was his last-ditch effort to make sure his younger brother did not suffer a similar fate to his other younger siblings, or worse, their mother.
The history of the Shinazugawa brothers is really grim
The Demon Slayer saga is filled with really unfortunate incidents that change the lives of people forever, and almost all of these stem from demon attacks. The story of Sanemi and Genya is the same. When they were children, Sanemi and Genya were the two oldest brothers to five younger siblings, and they all lived with their mother who worked hard to provide for them.
However, on one fateful night, their mother is turned into a demon who destroys everything in their home and takes the life of their five younger siblings. Sanemi is ultimately able to kill her, but it leaves a really bad imprint on Genya, who in the heat of the moment starts to blame his older brother for killing her. Later, Sanemi became the Wind Hashira and distanced himself from Genya. The younger starts to try really hard to become a good Demon Slayer to make his brother proud. But since he could not use a breathing style, he had to resort to eating demon flesh, which grants them their physical abilities for a short while, to fight demons.
Sanemi attacked Genya because he wanted to save him
Even though it did not look like it given Sanemi’s constantly angry demeanor, he was actually trying to save his younger brother from a tragic fate. When he discovered that Genya was eating demon flesh to gain their powers momentarily to fight better, he got angry and worried. Seeing how he had to kill his own mother who had turned into a demon and destroyed their whole family, he could not believe that his only remaining family would partake in such a monstrous act as eating demon flesh.
However, even though he was angry with his brother, it was not only his anger that led him to attack Genya. He was also very worried. Sanemi thought about what would happen if Genya took things too far one day and ended up like their mother. It would truly destroy him if he could not even save his younger brother from this terrible fate which made his whole family suffer. That is why, trying to strike Genya’s eyes was his last effort to stop him from eating demon flesh and partaking in fights. Instead of an act of hate and violence, it was one of worry and desperation, although it was very poorly demonstrated.
At the end of the manga, we will see the terrible fate that Genya suffers and how it completely breaks Sanemi, who is the only remaining Shinazugawa family member after the final fight. The brothers were unfortunately not able to reconcile until Genya was on his last breath and it made Sanemi feel like he had failed as an older brother. He hoped that attacking his brother would stop him from ingesting demon flesh and he would be alive, but unfortunately, that did not work.
ALSO READ: Demon Slayer Season 4: How Does Hashira Battle Sanemi vs Obanai Plays Out In the Manga? Explained
Latest Articles
