‘Demon Slayer’: How & When Did Muichirō Activate His Demon Slayer Mark? What Does It Look Like?

When one decides to talk about Demon Slayer, one usually talks about the demon slayers themselves or the demons. And while the series has offered us a variety of other intriguing characters, we are going to talk about one specific Demon Slayer – Muichirō Tokitō, the Mist Hashira – in this particular article. Muichirō is a very interesting character because he is quite young yet enormously powerful. It is a known fact that a powerful Demon Slayer can, under certain conditions, activate the Demon Slayer Mark, which gives them a significant power boost under certain conditions. In this article, we will tell you how and when Muichirō activated his Mark and what it looks like.

Muichirō activated his Demon Slayer Mark during the battle against Gyokko. Gyokko initially trapped and almost killed the Mist Hashira, but he was saved thanks to the efforts of Kotetsu, who helped him. After that, Muichirō found new power and, after having met the conditions, managed to activate his Demon Slayer Mark, which has a misty shape, with which he managed to defeat Gyokko, the Upper-Rank Five of the Twelve Kizuki.

The rest of this article will focus on Muichirō’s story and how and when he received his Demon Slayer Mark in the world of Demon Slayer. We have now provided you with the answer to the question you were looking for, but we will expand on it by talking a bit about the Demon Slayer Mark and how Muichirō got the chance to activate it in the series. This article has spoilers, but only for those who haven’t seen or read any Demon Slayer episode or chapter.

In order for a Demon Slayer to activate their Mark, certain conditions have to be met

The Demon Slayer Mark is a mysterious mark that can be obtained and appear on the body of a powerful Demon Slayer, most usually his head, but it can also appear on other body parts. The Mark itself resembles a tattoo, scar, or birthmark. Almost every Demon Slayer has a unique pattern, probably connected to the Breathing Style they use (the Tsugikuni brothers and Tanjirō had the same marks, but this was intentional and had a symbolic value); because it resembles symbols seen on Demons, it has often been compared to them.

It remains unknown how and why such a Mark appears on the body. Still, the first recorded possessor was Yoriichi Tsugikuni, who was also the first Demon Slayer and the creator of the Sun Breathing Style, the first Breathing Style in history. It was relatively common during the Sengoku Era.

Most records detailing it were lost. After the Golden Age of Demon Slayers, it became very rare, both because it was difficult to activate and because Muzan managed to decimate the Corps over the centuries. It appeared once again during the main timeline when Tanjirō and some other characters managed to activate it.

To activate it, a user must have survived a life-threatening state, including a heart rate above 200 bpm and a body temperature above 39° Celsius. Such conditions usually kill a person, but if a user manages to survive it, it means they are worthy of the Mark, as Muichirō explained.

But, the activation supposedly comes at a cost. Maintaining the Demon Slayer Mark is a complex process that requires a lot of energy, and prolonged use seems to drain the body. This is why many Demon Slayers with the Mark died young, which gave birth to a theory that the Mark is actually cursed and that each possessor will die when they reach the age of 25. We have already talked about this curse in a previous article, so we won’t be repeating ourselves here – we just thought you needed to know about the Demon Slayer Mark.

Now that we have explained what the Demon Slayer Mark is and how it is activated, we can actually discuss Muichirō and how he managed to do it in the series.

Muichirō activated his Demon Slayer Mark during his battle against Gyokko

Although Muichirō had been known as one of the most powerful Hashira even before the start of the Swordsmith Village Arc, he was still not one of the Hashira who had activated their Demon Slayer Marks at the time. As far as we know, Muichirō had not faced an Upper Rank before this arc, which means that he probably never faced a Demon that was powerful enough to initiate the activation process in him. But this changed when he faced Gyokko.

When Gyokko appeared in the Swordsmith Village and showed off his morbid human sculpture, after having commented how he disliked the taste of swordsmiths, he targeted Kotetsu and Kozo next. Still, Muichirō Tokitō stepped in front of him to protect the two swordsmiths. Gyokko then started his fight with Muichirō, but he soon managed to trap him in his Water Prison Pot, after which he targeted Hotaru, who was, at the same time, working on restoring Yoriichi’s blade for Tanjirō, as he had promised after Tanjirō found the blade in the Yoriichi Type Zero doll.

Hotaru paid little attention to Gyokko and Hantengu attacking the village since he focused on fixing the blade. Gyokko, furious that the swordsmith managed to ignore him, wanted to make him lose focus, so he kept attacking him constantly.

But, even after being attacked and receiving serious injuries, Hotaru continued to work on the blade and eventually managed to give it to Tanjirō despite having his mask broken, his body hurt, and losing one of his eyes. Kotetsu showed his bravery when he rushed for Gyokko’s pot to free Muichirō, who was in danger of dying, while Kozo tried to protect Hotaru.

Kotetsu’s fortitude was indeed the reason Muichirō was able to free himself. In the process, he also awed his Demon Slayer Mark, which took on the shape of a mist cloud.

Muichirō escaping his prison surprised Gyokko, so he unleashed his dangerous Octopus Vase Hell, but Muichirō was ready this time and quickly used his Sea of Clouds and Haze techniques that, once again, surprised Gyokko so much that he simply retreated into one of his pots and reappeared in another one. Muichirō then insults the visual appearance of his pots, which angers Gyokko, after which he releases his powerful Ten Thousand Gliding Slime-Fish. Still, Muichirō can deflect them as well.

Gyokko then becomes increasingly furious and reveals his true form, which is more monstrous and demonic, also revealing that in this form, anything he punches simply turns into a fish.

He is also much stronger and faster in this form, so he looks for Muichirō , who is ready for an attack. As Gyokko is looking to kill him, Muichirō simply uses his Obscuring Clouds and, to the Upper Rank’s surprise, manages to effectively decapitate him thanks to his skills and the fact that he has activated his Demon Slayer Mark.

As the Demon Slayers killed Hantengu and Gyokko, Kotetsu, who had helped Muichirō, was later revealed to have survived the dreaded attack, and he continued to live on in the village. Muichirō and Mitsuri returned to their respective homes, and the Demon Slayers left the Swordsmith Village, with Muzan losing two additional Upper Moons. And this is the story of how Muichirō Tokitō activated his Demon Slayer Mark.