Welcome to the Ending Explained for Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc, Episode 8, titled “The ‘Mu’ in Muichiro.” The episode is centered around the figure of the Mist Hashira, Muichiro Tokito, and his past. This comes after, in previous episodes, we have seen quite a bit of change in the character. When we met Tokito, he was quite cold, and Tanjiro had difficulty coming through him and his wall defenses. However, Tanjiro, like usual, touched Tokito deeply by saying something his father used to say. We know that Tokito has problems remembering things from his past, so Tanjiro must have triggered some memories that are changing who he is.
The episode also marks the start of a new fight between one of the Hashira’s and one of the Upper-Rank Demons. So far, it has only been Tanjiro battling one of the demons, but with Tokito finally coming to full strength against Upper-Rank Demon 5, Gyokko, it seems we are in for quite a formidable battle. Tokito is not only extremely strong but also one of the youngest Hashira to have ever existed, which means that his potential to become stronger is out of this world. The episode also goes all out with the animation by giving us one of these hype moments in the end, which starts the battle as such.
The following paragraphs contain spoilers for Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc, Episode 8. Read at your own risk.
How Did Tokito Become A Demon Slayer?
Tokito is quite an interesting character, so from the start, the episode captivates us as we will see what happened to this character in his childhood. Demon Slayer is one of these stories that often uses flashbacks.
The author uses it to build up character stories that reveal the motivation behind who they are as people. Tokito started as a very mysterious, cold person, so seeing why he is the way he becomes fascinating. We start with Tokito recovering from the many spines that Gyokko stabbed him with.
Tokito, whose full name is Muichiro Tokito, starts remembering something. Tanjiro told him that helping others only benefits him in the long run. Tokito remembers that this is something his father used to say, and his father also had the same eyes as Tanjiro.
We go back in time several years to when Tokito used to live with his father. He remembers that his father was a lumberjack, so he used to help him cut trees. Their relationship seemed quite good; you can see that Tokito held his father in high regard.
However, not all things are good. Tokito’s mother became quite sick. Tokito used to care for her, but no matter what he did, his mother’s condition wouldn’t improve. His father went looking for medicine, which included some very rare herbs. This seemed to be the clue behind making his mother healthy again. Fate strikes and his father dies while looking for the herbs.
Tokito had to bury his father and mother, who couldn’t get healthy alone. Tokito was eleven years old, and his life and he were already all alone.
It is here that Tokito remembers something else. It was a lie that he was all alone. He was actually with one more person, his twin brother, Yuichiro. However, Yuichiro and Muichiro couldn’t be more different in personality. Muichiro seems positive and charming, while Yuichiro becomes hardened by their struggles.
Seeing Yuichiro blaming his father for leaving them all alone is quite sad. He says their father was stupid for going out during a storm. He should have stayed at home because the herbs wouldn’t have helped their mother anyway.
Does Tokito Receive A New Sword?
The dynamic continues, with Yuichiro becoming increasingly hard with his words and Muichiro becoming more fragile. The episode’s name becomes the spotlight when Yuichiro says that the “Mu” in Muchiro means incompetent. Muichiro takes this very badly, but he still believes he can establish some sort of relationship with his twin brother.
Muichiro remembers that living with his twin brother was quite an uncomfortable experience. They bicker constantly, and Muichiro is afraid of speaking before his brother. It was definitely not the ideal situation.
One day, while carrying water, Muichiro meets Lady Amane from the Demon Slayer Corps. She approaches the twins and tells them that they are the descendants of a very old line of hunters that originally developed breathing techniques.
The corps believe that the twins have the potential to become great swordsmen, and so Lady Amane has come to recruit them. However, Yuichiro doesn’t accept the offer and dismisses Lady Amane with his rude words. Yuichiro doesn’t want anything to do with these Demon hunters at all.
On the other hand, Muichiro seems excited about the idea of becoming a swordsman. He tries to convince his brother that this path is right for them. They are alone, so joining the corps would help them survive in the world. Yuichiro snaps and humiliates Yuichiro.
The twins stopped talking from that day. Tokito remembers how sad it was until a demon appeared inside their house one day. The demon is about to kill Muichiro, but Yuichiro takes the blow to save his brother. Muichiro snaps, and his power comes out. The next thing Muichiro remembers is the agony of the demon and him waiting for the sunrise so that the demon could die.
Muichiro seemed to have had a mental breakdown at this point, resulting in the empty lakes in his memory. He does remember his brother’s deathbed, as he hears Yuichiro hoping for the best for him in the future as he dies. In the present, Tokito recovers his memories and will to fight, and when Gyokko destroys the cabin while Haganezuka is working on Tanjiro’s sword, Tokito saves both swordsmiths. Kanamori, his new swordsmith, gives Tokito his new sword, made by following the instruction of his old swordsmith, an old man named, Tetsuido.
Tokito slashes Gyokko with a powerful blow, and to the demon’s surprise, he is hit by it. Tokito promises that the next blow will kill the demon, as he has no time to waste.
