Sub-protagonist of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. She forms the main quartet (Kamaboko Squad) along with Tanjiro Kamado, Zenitsu Agatsuma, and Inosuke Hashibira, serving as the sole female member among them.
Younger sister of the protagonist, Tanjiro Kamado. She lived a normal life until one day, she was attacked by Muzan Kibutsuji and turned into a demon. The story begins when Tanjiro embarks on an adventure with Nezuko to turn her back into a human. In essence, she is the catalyst for the story of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
During her human life, Tanjiro, as the eldest son, had to spend more than half of his day outside the house to support the family, so Nezuko was almost solely responsible for taking care of her younger siblings. She also did sewing and gathered wild vegetables, not only looking after her siblings but also willingly helping her mother with household chores, living her life as a filial daughter.
Similar to her brother, she has bangs that reveal her forehead, long hair that reaches her waist, and drooping eyes with a single strand of eyelash on the upper lid, along with pink pupils. In her human past, she had a graceful and mature appearance with black hair tied up with three small ribbons, but after becoming a demon, she began wearing her hair down, her nails grew longer, she developed sharp fangs, her eyes changed, and she has a slightly youthful appearance due to regression. Even as a human, she was known as a beauty in the village, and given the many mentions of her beauty in the series, it seems her innate beauty remains even after becoming a demon.
Unlike Tanjiro, who strongly resembles their father, Nezuko's eye shape and the highlights in her eyes are a perfect match for their mother's face. Especially when she was human and tied her hair up, she looked almost identical to her mother.
She is a considerable beauty, and as mentioned, her appearance was consistently praised both in life and after becoming a demon. In fact, when Yushiro first saw Nezuko, he called her 'ugly,' which Tanjiro couldn't even comprehend why he would say that. Considering Tanjiro's personality, who cherishes his family but doesn't speak carelessly, and Yushiro later changing his words about it, one can gauge Nezuko's appearance within the story.
Her attire consists of a pink kimono with a hemp leaf pattern, a red and white checkered obi, and a dark brown haori worn over it. After becoming a demon, she folds her kimono to make it easier to move around.
Another of her most prominent features is the bamboo muzzle she wears. Initially, it was placed by Giyu Tomioka as a precaution in case Nezuko went berserk and bit someone, but since Nezuko cannot speak anyway and doesn't seem bothered by it, Tanjiro doesn't say much. Moreover, seeing that she continues to wear it even though she can remove it freely, it suggests that Nezuko herself likes it, but also that she is somewhat aware that she might unintentionally bite someone someday.
In her human life, her father passed away early, so despite the poor family circumstances, as the eldest daughter, she was very kind, mature, and self-disciplined in her role of caring for her younger siblings. She even advised Tanjiro, saying, 'Happiness isn't just about having plenty,' showing a maturity beyond her years even considering the era. Because of this, Tanjiro felt both gratitude and guilt towards Nezuko.
Unfortunately, after becoming a demon, she lost a significant part of her consciousness. She has a childlike intelligence due to not consuming humans, cannot speak human language, and only makes 'mm-mm' sounds with the bamboo muzzle. Thanks to Tanjiro, she managed to recall her affection for her family. Later, Urokodaki cast a spell on her, instilling the belief that 'All humans are our family. Do not forgive the demons that harm humans,' making her fundamentally friendly towards humans and protective of them. She herself, despite being a demon, opposes demons that harm humans. Initially, Tanjiro was uneasy about Urokodaki's hypnosis, fearing it disregarded Nezuko's consciousness, but he was relieved when he saw that she did not antagonize Tamayo and Yushiro, classifying them as 'humans,' confirming that Nezuko's consciousness was intact.
Indeed, possibly due to the effects of regression, she often displays childlike behavior, such as spacing out or acting affectionately towards her brother, contrary to her original mature demeanor. In the Asakusa arc, she sprawled on the floor carelessly while Tanjiro was having a serious conversation with Tamayo, or occupied herself in a corner. In the Mugen Train arc, she tried to wake her sleeping brother by nudging him with her head, but when he didn't wake up, she headbutted him. Then, when her head started bleeding, she cried and threw a tantrum. It seems she was quite adored by Shinobu, Kanao, and Aoi even during her demon phase.
Tamayo speculated that since it's impossible for a demon to have no consciousness at all, Nezuko's regression might be due to something that takes precedence over the reconstruction of her consciousness, which later proved to be true. Nezuko was altering the properties of her blood herself, prioritizing things like suppressing her appetite, rapid growth, recovering energy through sleep instead of cannibalism, and freedom from Muzan's interference. In other words, Nezuko's regression occurred because, in the process of being reborn as a demon, she gained a certain level of consciousness through her brother before her demonic identity was fundamentally formed. Even before that consciousness was properly formed, she unconsciously prioritized evolution in a way that would benefit her brother and herself.
She has never consumed a single piece of human flesh or a drop of blood, yet she is far stronger than most demons. Tanjiro, on his first mission, thought the demon he defeated was inferior to Nezuko because the demon had received a large amount of blood from Muzan. While this was just the demon's speculation at the time, it was later revealed that Muzan had indeed injected a large amount of blood into her. The reason for injecting so much blood was to create a demon that could overcome the sun. Normally, consuming such a large amount of blood would cause the body to collapse before even becoming a demon, but Nezuko, possessing extraordinary talent, endured it and became a powerful demon.
However, in the early stages, she often struggled due to lack of experience, but in the later stages, after gaining experience, she could fight on par with Upper Moons. Tanjiro's master, Urokodaki, emphasized that she was not weak enough to require protection. Upper Moon Six, Daki, was astonished, sensing a demonic aura comparable to that of an Upper Moon. Kokushibo later mentioned that it takes longer for stronger individuals to become demons. In contrast, the man who became a demon in Asakusa showed immediate reactions after receiving blood, while Nezuko, despite being injected the night before becoming a demon, transformed while Tanjiro was carrying her down the mountain, suggesting Nezuko's great potential. Later developments revealed that Muzan had indeed injected a particularly large amount of blood into her, making it highly probable that Nezuko's strength is a synergy of her strong will and the large amount of Muzan's blood.
Perhaps due to receiving a particularly large amount of Muzan's blood, she possesses insane specs, at least at the level of Lower Moons, despite never having consumed humans. In the early stages, she had only been a demon for a short time, was focused on the aforementioned property changes, and lacked experience, so she was only considered strong among ordinary demons. However, she soon mastered Blood Demon Art and began to grow in combat power, eventually achieving what neither Muzan nor the Upper Moons could: overcoming the sun.
Her combat style relies on simple physical attacks, particularly focusing on kicks, combined with her incredible regenerative ability. Unlike other demons, she rarely uses Blood Demon Art because using too much blood causes her to fall asleep. Furthermore, in prolonged battles where her stamina depleted, she was prone to succumbing to the urge to eat humans and attack them, showing weakness in extended fights. However, as mentioned, even considering these weaknesses, her overwhelming physical stats alone provide sufficient combat power.
It is certain, however, that she is weaker than almost all Hashira. If she were to fight against the top Upper Moons in the final arc, she would undoubtedly be defeated. Nevertheless, with her considerable combat power and unique Blood Demon Art, she has saved Tanjiro multiple times. Her abilities would have been highly effective in the fight against Douma, but due to the plot progression, she could not participate in the final battle.
She also possesses the ability to change her body size. Normally, she shrinks her body to a child-like size to rest inside a box, but when fighting, she enlarges her body to be even bigger than usual.
Through her evolutionary process, she replaced cannibalism with sleep, making it possible for her to survive without consuming humans at all. Demons must consume people before they can grow stronger and survive. Even Tamayo and Yushiro, who modified their bodies, must consume blood and thus procure it separately. However, Nezuko suppresses her cannibalistic urges solely through sleep and instead accumulates strength. Considering that most of the tragedies in this work stem from the demonic urge to consume humans, this is an exceptionally unusual feat.
Blood Demon Art: "Explosive Blood" (爆血 - Bakuketsu): She generates flames that burn only demons through her blood. These flames not only burn the demon's body but also burn and weaken the regenerative abilities of Blood Demon Arts that act through blood or flesh. She can also burn and neutralize demonic poisons if they function as Blood Demon Arts. Of course, since it only burns parts of the demon to heal, while it detoxified Uzui Tengen, it could not heal the injuries he sustained in battle.
Conversely, it is harmless to humans and other objects, and does not burn surrounding materials like clothing at all.
Although it is a considerably powerful ability, using it actively requires her to shed her own blood, which consumes a lot of stamina, so she doesn't use it frequently. However, as Nezuko gradually grew stronger as a demon, her usage of it increased. While she used it briefly to wake her companions in the Mugen Train arc, she used it without concern for stamina in the Entertainment District arc and Swordsmith Village arc, where her Demon Slayer Mark even appeared.
This was also the first line Nezuko spoke after becoming a demon. In the anime, it is depicted in crimson and pink to distinguish it from Tanjiro's Hinokami Kagura.
Furthermore, reflecting its property of burning demons, despite being a Blood Demon Art that utilizes demonic blood, it is not affected by the Nichirin Blades.