Zenitsu Agatsuma

Name: Zenitsu Agatsuma

Gender: Male

Affiliation: Demon Slayer Corps

Rank progression: Mizunoto (lowest) → Kanoe → Hinoe

Breathing Style: Thunder Breathing

Age: 16

Birthday: September 3

Height: 164.5 cm

Weight: 58 kg → 63 kg after the story ends

Birthplace: Ushigome district, Tokyo Prefecture (modern Shinjuku Ushigome area)

Blood type: Not specified in the source text

Hobbies: Hanafuda, sugoroku (board dice game)

Favorite things/foods: Sweet foods, expensive dishes such as eel

Voice actor (anime): Hiro Shimono

Stage actor: Keisuke Ueda

Noh/kyogen actor: Hiroki Nomura

Zenitsu is one of the five survivors of the Final Selection, entering the Corps in the same batch as Tanjiro Kamado and Inosuke Hashibira.

In everyday life he is neurotically cowardly and pessimistic, yet in battle he can display frighteningly high skill and speed.

He was trained by former Thunder Hashira Jigoro Kuwajima, who recognized his natural talent.

Despite that, Zenitsu suffers from deep inferiority complexes and believes he is weak, which leads to severe emotional instability.

He fights using Thunder Breathing, but could only master the First Form.

Instead of learning all forms, he refined that one technique to an extreme level, later creating his own Seventh Form.

Zenitsu participates in the Mount Natagumo arc, Mugen Train arc, Entertainment District arc, and the Infinity Castle and final battle against Muzan Kibutsuji.

He survives the final battle and eventually marries Nezuko Kamado, living with the Kamado family after the war.

Cowardly, womanizer, loud troublemaker

Zenitsu is absurdly negative and timid.

He constantly trembles, cries, and screams that he does not want to die, even in front of children.

Right after surviving the Final Selection, he keeps saying that even if he lived through that, he would just die on the next mission anyway.

His catchphrases include things like “I’m going to die on the next job!” and “I’m ninety percent dead already.”

In battle situations he often tries to run at full speed when he senses demons.

When fear peaks, his legs give out and he can barely stand, at one point even begging a civilian child to “protect him.”

However, his mental switch can flip instantly when everyone else starts acting strange.

When that happens, he becomes surprisingly calm and observant, sometimes the calmest person in the room.

Zenitsu is also extremely girl-crazy.

He became a Demon Slayer only because Jigoro Kuwajima paid off the huge debts Zenitsu incurred after being repeatedly scammed by women.

When Tanjiro meets him again after the Final Selection, Zenitsu is clinging to a random woman in the street, weeping and begging her to marry him.

When he first meets Nezuko Kamado, he falls in love at first sight despite knowing she is a demon, and immediately becomes deferential to Tanjiro as her brother.

He claims he is basically attracted to any girl, though he finds strict “class representative” types like Aoi Kanzaki a bit intimidating.

His craving for female affection sometimes gives him strange points of mental toughness, such as happily enduring agonizing rehabilitation massages just because “a girl is doing them.”

He even openly confronts Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui, a terrifyingly intimidating warrior, purely out of jealousy that Tengen has three wives.

Underneath all the cowardice, Zenitsu has a surprisingly strong and self-centered deep psyche.

Kind-hearted and fundamentally good

Despite his constant whining and fear, Zenitsu is not just a useless coward.

He is inherently kind, empathetic, and self-sacrificing.

Even while screaming in terror, he instinctively shields children with his body when demons attack.

He also tells others to leave him behind and run if his presence endangers them.

Thanks to his abnormal hearing, he can detect lies and sense people’s nature from their sounds.

But his defining trait is that he chooses to believe the people he wants to believe, even at his own expense.

Before meeting Jigoro, Zenitsu had been emotionally and financially exploited by at least seven different women.

They used him like a slave, took his money, never even held his hand, and then discarded him.

Even so, when Zenitsu hears Tanjiro protecting a demon, he still chooses to trust Tanjiro.

He describes Tanjiro’s “sound” as so gentle it makes him want to cry, and trusts him enough to defend Nezuko’s box with his own body, letting Inosuke beat him nearly unconscious rather than allow the box to be destroyed.

He is also thoughtful in small, everyday ways.

When Tanjiro, equally hungry, gives him a single rice ball, Zenitsu cuts it in half and gives some back.

His feelings for Nezuko are genuine, both consciously and deep in his subconscious.

Even when he is not awake, he instinctively puts himself in harm’s way to protect her.

Initially he cries and complains through every mission and even while being treated.

But after each battle he matures a little, slowly developing the mindset of a real Demon Slayer.

By the time he meets Tengen Uzui, he is intimidated but still stands up with Tanjiro and Inosuke to stop Tengen from forcibly dragging Aoi Kanzaki into a mission.

In the Entertainment District, despite being terrified by the presence of an Upper Rank demon, he shields an injured courtesan and is then captured, showing he is increasingly willing to act like a protector.

Deep inner darkness and abandonment issues

Zenitsu is a foundling, abandoned as a baby.

He never knew his parents’ faces or names.

In the dream realm created by Enmu, his “spiritual core” is surrounded by an endless darkness.

At its center stands another version of Zenitsu, alone in that void with a giant pair of scissors, representing his gloomy, intensely self-centered inner world.

When a boy infiltrates his subconscious in that dream, Zenitsu’s inner self appears as a morose, man-hating figure who attacks the intruder, saying that only Nezuko is allowed inside.

This reveals how possessive and fragile his inner heart really is.

When talking to Inosuke, who also grew up abandoned, Zenitsu bitterly notes that if you were truly unwanted, your name wouldn’t even be written on your baby blanket “like mine was.”

This shows he sees himself as a child his parents did not want, which feeds his deep self-loathing and insecurities.

That underlying sense of being unwanted and worthless fuels both his extreme cowardice and his desperate need to be loved.

It is also a major reason he is so emotionally unstable and self-sabotaging.

Appearance

Zenitsu has short, layered golden-yellow hair cut in blocky bangs.

He was originally black-haired, but his hair turned golden when he was struck by lightning during training.

He has thick, droopy eyebrows that split at the ends and tired eyes with dark circles under them, giving him a perpetually gloomy, anxious look.

His expressions are often exaggerated, shifting from terrified tears to steely focus when he fights.

There is a running joke among characters that Zenitsu is “buck-toothed,” and in some dream sequences he is drawn with big front teeth.

In the main art, however, his teeth are normal.

At one point someone calls him ugly while he is disguised as a courtesan in the Entertainment District.

That judgment likely reflects his horrible makeup rather than his actual facial features.

Other traits and daily life

Among the main “three idiots” squad (sometimes called the “Kamaboko Squad”), Zenitsu is the only one raised in town.

Tanjiro is a rural mountain boy and Inosuke is a literal wild child, so Zenitsu often handles city tasks like buying train tickets.

Because he dislikes inconvenient backcountry life, mountain training was far more grueling for him than for the others.

He claims it was “ten times harder” for him.

He quickly understands social contexts such as what a red-light district is when they are told about the Entertainment District mission.

He also often plays the straight man, reacting in exasperation to Tanjiro’s natural airheadedness and Inosuke’s feral insanity.

Zenitsu’s favorite foods reflect his city upbringing and fondness for rich, high-calorie dishes.

He loves eel and sweets and, according to supplemental materials, would likely have become overweight if he had not become a Demon Slayer.

After the final battle, he gains five kilograms, reaching 63 kg.

This weight gain reflects the end of constant war and the relaxed, food-filled life he eventually enjoys.

Overall combat ability

Despite his outward uselessness, Zenitsu was handpicked and trained by former Thunder Hashira Jigoro Kuwajima.

Jigoro saw in him a natural genius for Thunder Breathing and swordsmanship.

Zenitsu endures brutal, life-threatening training and survives the Final Selection.

Physically he has the strength and stamina expected of a Demon Slayer.

His greatest limitation is psychological rather than physical.

In real combat, his terror makes his muscles lock up, his sweat pour, and his breathing unstable, preventing him from using his full potential while awake and panicking.

When his fear peaks, he often faints and falls into a deep sleep.

Paradoxically, this is when his true abilities manifest.

Asleep, he enters a half-conscious, instinct-based state free from fear.

In this state his breathing becomes perfectly controlled, and he uses Thunder Breathing to devastating effect.

His true essence is that of an iai (quick-draw) master.

He moves like lightning, unsheathing and sheathing his blade faster than the eye can see, slicing demons in a single flash.

Initially, his sleeping self fights purely on instinct and rarely speaks.

Later, after more training and near-death battles, his sleeping state begins to speak confidently, analyze tactics, and show a calm, ruthless resolve.

This can look like a split personality, but it is really just Zenitsu without fear, expressing the skill he always had.

Even Inosuke later says Zenitsu should “stay asleep forever” because he’s so much stronger that way.

Zenitsu has no memory of what he does while unconscious.

When he wakes up, he just sees demon heads on the ground and his sword in its sheath and is baffled and terrified.

Importantly, he can use breathing and forms while awake during training or other low-pressure situations.

He can also fight consciously if a stronger emotion than fear takes over, such as rage, determination, or protective instinct.

Supernatural hearing

Zenitsu’s key sensory talent is his extraordinary hearing, mirroring Tanjiro’s heightened sense of smell.

He can maintain accurate battlefield awareness even with his eyes closed or while asleep.

He hears the unique “sound” that demons emit, allowing him to distinguish them from humans even if they are hiding among people or inside containers like boxes.

At a certain distance, he can reliably detect a demon’s presence.

He also hears heartbeats, breathing patterns, and the flow of blood, allowing him to read emotional states and personality.

For example, he describes Shinobu Kocho’s sound as irregular and frightening, hinting at the seething anger and grief she carries beneath her gentle façade.

He describes Kyojuro Rengoku as having a sound like a heart that has been hammered back into standing up despite being hurt, reflecting Rengoku’s relentless, disciplined resolve.

His ability to sense inner character through sound is one reason he trusts Tanjiro so deeply.

He uses this hearing in creative ways beyond combat.

He has near-perfect pitch, can play instruments like the shamisen at a very high level, and is capable of musical “ear copying” of songs.

In the Entertainment District, he becomes a courtesan-in-training and shows off excellent shamisen skills.

In the anime, his playing is stylized with lightning-like effects, visually echoing Thunder Breathing.

Despite this potential for espionage and reconnaissance, his awake personality often sabotages his usefulness by panicking at critical moments.

Fans jokingly call him “a man who only helps when it really counts,” a half-compliment referencing how he nails the most important moments but fails at many others.

Notably, he can easily distinguish between demon and human by sound in most cases.

However, Upper Rank demons can hide their presence so well that he sometimes fails to notice them until they speak directly behind him.

Physical capabilities

When not paralyzed by fear, Zenitsu’s physical abilities are excellent.

He can keep pace with Tanjiro and Inosuke during long-distance travel.

He is especially outstanding in speed and reflexes.

At the Butterfly Mansion, he is the first of the trio to clear the reflex training, even before his injuries have fully healed.

In short, he is the classic type of person who performs well in practice but chokes in “the real game.”

Once his mental barrier is removed, his speed becomes one of the most frightening in the series’ roster of Demon Slayers.

Combat style

Zenitsu’s fighting style is built around iai, the art of drawing and cutting in one motion.

He typically keeps his sword sheathed at his waist, using the scabbard for explosive draws.

When wearing clothing that cannot hold his scabbard, he carries the scabbard in his left hand and fights in a style reminiscent of a blind swordsman.

In all cases, his entire style revolves around a single, perfect lightning-fast dash and strike.

Thunder Breathing is one of the five foundational Breathing Styles taught in the Demon Slayer Corps.

It focuses on explosive footwork, extreme speed, and fast, powerful slashes.

Originally, Thunder Breathing has six standard forms.

Zenitsu, however, is only able to master the First Form.

For reasons never explicitly explained in the main story, he fails to learn the other five forms.

Instead of giving up, he devotes all his training to perfecting that one form.

By pouring all his talent into the First Form, he elevates it to terrifying levels of speed and power.

He then develops his own variations, such as multi-hit versions and a personal Seventh Form.

First Form: Thunderclap and Flash

Thunderclap and Flash is the basic form of Thunder Breathing.

It consists of a powerful forward step followed by a draw-cut, like being launched by thunder and lightning.

The speed is so high that, to ordinary observers and even most demons, Zenitsu appears to teleport.

All they perceive is him placing his hand on his sword, and the next instant the demon’s neck is cut.

Because Zenitsu focuses solely on this form, he raises its power far beyond the standard version.

He develops variants such as “Sixfold,” “Eightfold,” and “Godspeed.”

Sixfold / Eightfold:

These are rapid, chained repetitions of Thunderclap and Flash, allowing Zenitsu to bounce through multiple positions in an instant.

He uses them to attack from several angles or move across a battlefield in bursts.

Godspeed:

This is an overclocked version of Thunderclap and Flash that greatly amplifies his speed.

It is so taxing on his body that he can only safely use it about twice in a single day.

Godspeed’s speed surpasses even the normal Thunderclap and Flash by a large margin.

However, the strain on his legs and body is huge, and overuse can cripple him mid-battle.

Seventh Form: Flaming Thunder God

Flaming Thunder God is an original, self-created Seventh Form of Thunder Breathing.

Zenitsu develops it in the course of his growth and personal conflict with his former senior disciple, Kaigaku Inadama.

In essence, Flaming Thunder God is the ultimate evolution of Thunderclap and Flash.

The form involves leaning his body extremely far forward and fully swinging his sword in a single, committed cut.

Visually, a dragon-like lightning aura is depicted around him when he uses it.

Its speed surpasses even Godspeed, moving faster than the opponent’s perception can track.

While Thunderclap and Flash usually leaves Zenitsu in a stable stance ready for another attack, Flaming Thunder God sacrifices that stability.

He commits entirely to offense, leaving himself more vulnerable afterward.

In game terms, it is like spending all points on attack and speed and none on movement options or defense.

It is the pinnacle of his single-form obsession, a personal technique he uses to surpass the person he once feared and admired.

Nichirin Sword

Zenitsu wields a standard Demon Slayer Nichirin Sword, forged from special ore that absorbs sunlight.

These blades uniquely allow Demon Slayers to kill demons by decapitating them.

His sword turns yellow, reflecting his Thunder Breathing potential.

Along the ridge of the blade, there are lightning-like yellow patterns.

The sword’s overall design uses white and yellow as its main colors.

The tsuba (hand guard) is a four-lobed shape, and the handle wrapping forms triangular patterns with a white cord knot at the end.

During the Final Selection, he uses a different sword with a yellow handle wrap and a brown scabbard.

This earlier sword is likely one he borrowed from Jigoro Kuwajima before receiving his own Nichirin blade.

Corps uniform

Zenitsu wears the standard Demon Slayer Corps uniform, a black standing-collar outfit with the character for “Destroy” on the back.

The uniform fabric is fire-resistant, water-resistant, and durable enough that weak demons’ claws and teeth cannot tear it.

Over this, he wears a haori with a yellow scale pattern.

This haori is a color variation of Jigoro Kuwajima’s own haori and was given to him by his teacher.

Messenger sparrow

Most Demon Slayer swordsmen are assigned a talking Kasugai crow for communication with headquarters.

For reasons unknown, Zenitsu is assigned a Kasugai sparrow instead.

The sparrow, named Chuntaro, cannot speak human language like the crows do.

Even Zenitsu himself is baffled when he receives a sparrow instead of a crow.

Despite that, Chuntaro remains a loyal companion and often delivers critical messages.

The bird’s tiny, cute presence contrasts with Zenitsu’s bombastic personality.

Final Selection and early missions

At first glance, Zenitsu appears surprisingly tough and seasoned when Tanjiro meets him after the Final Selection.

He looks worn down, with sharp eyes and a grim expression.

However, an anime side segment reveals that he actually tried to refuse attending the Final Selection in the first place.

Jigoro slapped him silly and forced him to go, which completely undermines his “seasoned veteran” impression.

After joining the Corps, he spends most of his time fearing death and complaining.

Still, he survives dangerous missions and gradually proves his worth through his sleeping battles.

Mount Natagumo (Spider Mountain)

On Mount Natagumo, while Tanjiro and Inosuke fight other demons, Zenitsu encounters a demon that manipulates humans like spiders.

He panics and tries to run away, but is eventually bitten by a spider that slowly transforms humans into small spiders.

Facing this horrifying prospect, he collapses and falls asleep.

In this state, he uses Thunderclap and Flash: Sixfold to slice through the demon at incredible speed.

However, the venom is still in his body.

He focuses all his breathing technique to slow the poison’s spread, preventing his body from completely transforming.

This is one of the first times readers see his unconscious skill in extended action.

It also foreshadows his ability to push through fear when the stakes are high enough.

Mugen Train arc

On the Mugen Train, Enmu traps the passengers and Demon Slayers in deep dreams.

Within Zenitsu’s dream, he is happily strolling with Nezuko, carrying her on his back and showing off his ability to move at high speed while using breathing.

The dream also reveals his spiritual core’s dark environment, showing the pitch-black interior of his mind and the sinister guardian version of himself.

When a boy tries to invade his spiritual core, Zenitsu’s subconscious self hunts him with huge scissors.

In the real world, even sleeping, Zenitsu protects Nezuko’s box and fights demon threats on the train.

He maintains his role as the unconscious savior, saving people who have no idea he was the one who did it.

Entertainment District arc

In the Entertainment District arc, Zenitsu is dragged along with Tanjiro and Inosuke as part of Tengen Uzui’s mission to infiltrate a red-light district.

As the only city-raised one, he instantly understands what kind of place it is and what “undercover as courtesans” really implies.

The trio disguise themselves as girls and are sold to different houses.

Zenitsu’s makeup is atrocious, and he is mocked for his looks, but his shamisen playing is praised for its skill.

His hearing allows him to pick up subtle cues among the courtesans, and he senses something wrong in one of the houses.

He protects an injured girl who was abused by Daki (the Entertainment District Upper Rank demon) and is brutally knocked out and abducted for his trouble.

Later, Zenitsu fights as part of the larger team battle against Daki and Gyutaro.

His high-speed attacks, combined with Inosuke’s and Tanjiro’s efforts, play a significant role in decapitating the demons.

Infinity Castle: confrontation with Kaigaku

During the Hashira Training arc leading up to the final battle, Chuntaro delivers a letter to Zenitsu during Gyomei Himejima’s training.

After reading it, Zenitsu’s demeanor drastically changes, and he stops complaining, focusing intensely on training.

When the Infinity Castle battle begins after Muzan attacks the Ubuyashiki estate, Zenitsu falls into the castle with the others.

Unlike most, he runs with single-minded purpose, searching for one person: his former senior disciple, Kaigaku Inadama.

Kaigaku became a demon and joined Muzan’s ranks, taking a place among the Upper Moons.

He betrayed Jigoro Kuwajima’s teachings and dishonored their master.

Zenitsu confronts him alone in the Infinity Castle.

Their battle is both physical and emotional, representing their clashing interpretations of Jigoro’s legacy.

Kaigaku can use the other Thunder Breathing forms except the First Form, which he never mastered.

Zenitsu, in contrast, has only the First Form but has perfected it and created the Seventh Form.

During their fight, Zenitsu declares that if he is “trash,” then Kaigaku is “garbage,” pointing out that Jigoro’s tragedy was having two disciples who were each incomplete in opposite ways.

He expresses sorrow for their teacher, who had no true successor.

Zenitsu then reveals Flaming Thunder God, the Seventh Form he created so that he could someday fight alongside Jigoro as an equal.

He uses this form to finally defeat Kaigaku.

After winning, Zenitsu collapses from his wounds and exhaustion.

The emotional weight of killing his senior, combined with his loyalty to Jigoro, marks this as one of his defining moments.

Final battle against Muzan Kibutsuji

After defeating Kaigaku, Zenitsu is saved by Yushiro and treated by Demon Slayer Corps members such as Murata.

While being carried by Murata, however, he and his rescuer fall through a hole created by Nakime’s Infinity Castle manipulations and end up wandering the collapsing fortress.

When the Infinity Castle is destroyed and Muzan is driven to the surface, Zenitsu joins the final battle alongside Inosuke and Kanao Tsuyuri.

As usual, he cries and screams, but still charges in.

With the help of talismans from Yushiro, he becomes invisible to Muzan’s perception and attempts sneak attacks at high speed.

Muzan’s overwhelming attacks eventually injure him badly, temporarily knocking him out of the fight.

When Tanjiro awakens from near death and reenters the battle, Zenitsu forces himself to stand again despite being half-ruined.

Alongside the surviving Demon Slayers, he uses all his remaining strength to strike Muzan, buying precious time until sunrise.

Zenitsu survives the battle, though severely wounded and exhausted.

His survival, given his self-image and constant fear of dying, is a powerful irony and testament to his hidden resilience.

After Muzan’s defeat and the end of the Demon Slayer Corps, Zenitsu moves to the Kamado family’s home with Tanjiro and Inosuke.

He continues to adore Nezuko and tries to stay as close to her as possible.

However, he initially leaves most household chores to others, doing only bare minimum tasks like dishwashing to avoid being disliked.

He also grows jealous whenever other men interact positively with Nezuko.

He resents Inosuke living under the same roof and being on good terms with her.

He also becomes jealous of Giyu Tomioka and Sanemi Shinazugawa when they send Nezuko gifts.

Tanjiro eventually calls him out, telling him he is relying too much on Nezuko’s kindness.

Tanjiro warns him that acting like a spoiled child will make Nezuko see him as a little brother instead of a romantic partner.

Zenitsu sulks and retreats into fantasy, deciding to write his own “autobiography” titled “Zenitsu Legend.”

In this wildly biased, over-the-top story, he describes himself as over nine feet tall and so handsome that he becomes the “Thunder Pillar” purely on looks.

In this “autobiography,” Tanjiro is portrayed as someone who makes debts and abandons Nezuko to run away.

Inosuke is turned into a demon, Sanemi becomes a thief and criminal, and Nezuko is rewritten as a princess.

He proudly lets Tanjiro read the manuscript and demands feedback.

Tanjiro bluntly critiques it, saying it is hard to read, unbalanced, and spends seven pages each on Zenitsu and Nezuko while giving everyone else clumsy two-line summaries.

He also points out that everything is exaggerated and biased.

Zenitsu responds by bursting into tears.

After hearing Tanjiro’s advice about emotional maturity and not just relying on Nezuko’s kindness, Zenitsu starts to change.

He gradually improves his behavior, becoming more dependable and less self-centered around her.

At one point, he takes Nezuko to a flower field and proposes to her, shouting so loudly that her ears ring and she temporarily has trouble hearing.

He asks her to give him an answer one year later.

The story does not show the direct answer, but the manga’s modern-day epilogue reveals that they marry and have descendants.

Their great-grandchildren, Touko and Yoshiteru, still remember Zenitsu, implying he lived long enough to be part of their childhood.

Zenitsu gains weight and grows into a relatively peaceful, domestic life.

From abandoned, terrified child to hero and husband, his life completes a long arc of fear, growth, and finally, belonging.

Kimetsu Academy setting

In the parody school setting “Kimetsu Academy,” Zenitsu is a first-year student in Bamboo Shoot Class.

He is friends with Tanjiro and Inosuke and is still equally overwhelmed by love and remedial lessons.

He reluctantly serves as a member of the morality committee, checking student dress at the school gate while being terrified of delinquents.

He often gets headbutted by Inosuke for dress code violations, hit by balls from Susamaru, and even slapped by strict teacher Giyu Tomioka for his hair color.

He is the shamisen player for the student band “High Collar Bankara Democracy.”

His performance is so intense that it causes damage to listeners, parodying his powerful Thunder Breathing.

In a special Valentine’s episode, Zenitsu resolves to get at least one chocolate next year.

He interviews popular male teachers and students like Kyojuro Rengoku, Giyu Tomioka, and Tengen Uzui for tips on how to be popular.

Rengoku tells him to use abdominal breathing and speak with a wide, clear voice.

Giyu says that just quietly gazing into someone’s eyes is enough to understand each other.

Tengen bluntly says that speed and money attract women.

Zenitsu takes all of these advices literally and simultaneously.

He covers himself in fake branded goods, clutches 2000 yen, loudly shouts at girls, suddenly goes silent to stare intensely, and then chases them at supernatural speed.

Instead of becoming popular, he becomes notorious as a creepy stalker.

Later, he collapses at the school gate on Valentine’s Day, realizing his plan has failed.

That morning, Tanjiro delivers a chocolate bread Nezuko baked to him.

Zenitsu ecstatically believes he finally received a love chocolate.

However, Tanjiro also hands identical breads to Inosuke, Giyu, and Sakonji Urokodaki, revealing they are actually generic “obligation chocolates.”

Zenitsu is too thrilled to notice the truth.

In the Kimetsu Academy version of the video game, one of Zenitsu’s special moves involves doing dress-code checks.

Against male characters he screams about them carrying weapons and whacks them with a binder; against female characters he flirts and gets slapped.

Additional Kimetsu Academy traits

Zenitsu is still Jigoro Kuwajima’s adopted child in this setting and calls him “Grandpa.”

He and Kaigaku Inadama, also adopted by Jigoro, get into petty fistfights all the time but still acknowledge each other as brothers on some level.

He has a bizarrely terrifying drawing style.

His class’s art displayed in the hallway draws complaints, and his portraits frighten teachers.

When he draws a carp streamer, it looks like a creepy yokai fish.

Yet his drawings of Nezuko are surprisingly good, showing his talent is heavily skewed by obsession.

He sometimes lies when he wants to spur others’ reactions or escape danger.

Unfortunately, people occasionally take his lies seriously, making situations even messier.

Interestingly, early notes reveal that the Kimetsu Academy manga was originally planned with Zenitsu as the protagonist.

After about chapter 5 worth of planning, the main role gradually shifted to Tanjiro instead, though Zenitsu remains a central troublemaker and comedy driver.

White Cat Project collaboration

In the mobile game White Cat Project, Zenitsu appears as a thunder-element swordsman alongside Tanjiro, Nezuko, Inosuke, and Giyu.

They are transported to the world of White Cat, where they battle hybrid demons including a revived Rui.

In that event, Zenitsu once again plays the role of “accidental destroyer,” fainting and then wiping out weak demons in his sleep.

Although powerful in combat, he rarely shines in pivotal scenes due to his constant fainting.

His moves include Thunderclap and Flash and Thunderclap and Flash: Sixfold.

By holding down the screen, Thunderclap and Flash changes to a skill called “Fainting” that puts him into a special sleep state.

In normal mode he is very weak, but once he enters the special sleep state, his performance skyrockets.

This faithfully reproduces his original “weak while awake, superhuman while asleep” dynamic.

Kotodaman collaboration

In the word puzzle RPG Kotodaman, Zenitsu appears as a Light-element hero race unit.

He deals extra damage to demon-type enemies, and by unlocking his blessing abilities, he gains bonuses against dark-element and hero-type enemies as well.

His ultimate spell “Thunder Breathing First Form: Thunderclap and Flash Sixfold” hits multiple times at random targets.

This makes it strong against single bosses but less efficient against many scattered enemies.

PowerPro mobile games collaboration

In the PowerPro-style baseball mobile games, Zenitsu appears as a collaboration character in the chibi “power body” style.

He can grant players an original breaking ball called “Thunderclap and Flash.”

If the card is of SR rarity or higher, there is a chance to learn this unique pitch in story mode.

He can also grant the “Supreme Closer” golden ability, but players must choose between the pitch and the passive.

He even has combo events with Nezuko.

However, he cannot be used in certain crossover baseball schools, such as those based on Fist of the North Star.

Monster Strike collaborations

In Monster Strike, Zenitsu first appears in 2020 as a Light-element premium 5-star gacha character.

He quickly becomes notorious for his absurd versatility, dominating not just restriction quests but also higher difficulties like Super and Explosion-class missions.

His ability set allows him to trivialize many stages beyond what a 5-star is usually expected to handle.

Players widely recognize that he “broke” multiple content tiers.

Later, in an October 23, 2025 “Super-Beast God Festival × Demon Slayer” collaboration, Zenitsu returns as a Fire-element 6-star premium unit.

This upgraded version has a speed-type frame, multiple anti-gimmick abilities such as gravity and damage wall resistance, and a critical-hit luck skill.

His main friendship attack is a powerful Fire-element luminous ray.

His sub-friendship is a “Super Extreme Lightning” attack, fitting his thunder motif.

His strike shot enhances his speed and power and then triggers a “Spoiler Warning!” themed attack on stopping, referencing story events.

Together with high mobility and a wall-boost effect, this makes him a top-tier unit even at endgame difficulty.

“Dirty High Note Championship”

The casting call for Zenitsu in the anime reportedly had a tongue-in-cheek title: the “Dirty High Note Championship.”

This referred to the need for an actor who could scream at extremely high pitch in an unflattering way.

The audition acceptance documents even used this phrase for the role.

Voice actor Hiro Shimono “won” this “championship” and became Zenitsu’s voice.

It is known that Natsuki Hanae (Tanjiro) and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Inosuke) also participated in this chaotic audition process.

The result is one of the most iconic scream performances in modern anime.

Cross-series popularity votes and memes

When Zenitsu finally appears properly in episode 20 of the anime, a flood of fan-made collage images compared him with Sister Krone from The Promised Neverland.

This unexpected meme led to him receiving 44 votes in The Promised Neverland’s official popularity poll, ranking 29th.

Sister Krone, in turn, received 4 votes in the Demon Slayer popularity poll, ranking 59th.

Official commentary even shows Sister Krone reacting and “complaining” about the strange crossover popularity.

Zenitsu’s name has also appeared with votes in popularity polls for other manga series, like Left-Hand Layup-style gag crossovers and My Hero Academia.

He somehow keeps sneaking into the fandom consciousness of entirely different series.

“Zenitsu Genosaur” incident

On October 18, 2019, a figure of Zenitsu went up for preorder on Amazon.

A hobby news account announced the preorders but accidentally attached an image of a Zoids Genosaur instead of Zenitsu.

The tweet was quickly deleted, but the internet had already seen it.

Fans immediately started joking about “Thunderclap and Flash: Charged Particle Cannon” and “Breathing of Charged Particles.”

The parallels with Harry Champ from Zoids, who also stands up to Genosaur cannons to protect a woman he loves, added to the bizarre coincidence.

The meme “Agatsuma Genosaur Zenitsu” spread widely in fan circles.

Food collaborations: “Kimetsu Ichou”

Ahead of the Mugen Train film release, numerous cross-promotions launched, including with Nissin’s famous “Demae Iccho” instant noodles.

Special packaging featuring Demon Slayer characters, including Zenitsu, was created.

The design quality and playful concepts drew a lot of online praise.

Zenitsu’s presence in everyday food products shows how widely recognized his character became.

Official popularity polls

In the first official Demon Slayer character popularity poll (May 15–29, 2017), Zenitsu placed second.

His over-the-top cowardice mixed with hidden strength had already won a large fanbase.

In the illustration for that poll, the message written on his hand, ostensibly a comment to readers, was actually a jealous note aimed at Tanjiro: “Tanjiro is unfair and enviable.”

This perfectly encapsulates his petty but honest personality.

In the second official popularity poll (February 3–March 31, 2020), Zenitsu took first place by more than 4,000 votes over the second-place character.

He had once vowed in a corner of the first poll’s page that he would take first place “next time,” and he actually did it.

His arc from annoying side character to fan-favorite champion shows how well his blend of comedy, vulnerability, and heroism resonated with audiences.

Behind the screams and cowardice, Zenitsu Agatsuma became one of the most beloved characters in Demon Slayer.