Does Tanjiro Become Human Again? (& When?)

Tanjiro Kamado is the protagonist of the Demon Slayer manga and demon-themed anime. A young boy struck by tragedy, Tanjiro overcame his horrid fate and became a Demon Slayer, but not to avenge his family – he did it to find a way to return his sister, Nezuko, into a human once again. Noble as he is, Tanjiro ends up becoming a Demon himself along the way and in this article, we are going to tell you whether Tanjiro goes back to being a human again or not.

When Tanjiro and the Demon Slayers finally defeated Muzan, the demon king managed to turn Tanjiro into a demon and transfer all of his emotions into him. He was ultimately saved by Tamayo’s medicine, which Kanao injected into him during the fight. He had to struggle to free himself from Muzan’s influence but was ultimately successful.  

The rest of this article is going to elaborate further on the events surrounding Tanjiro becoming a demon and then returning back to his human form. These events happened in quick succession and were the last major events in the Demon Slayer narrative, which is why we are going to bring you as many details as we can, so you know the whole story.

Does Tanjiro Kamado become human again?

To give you the answer in brief – Tanjiro does become a human being again. But, since the events surrounding his transformation back are actually still far away as far as the anime is concerned, a lot of people don’t even know that Tanjiro eventually turns into a demon. This is why we are going to use this section to tell you how Tanjiro became a demon in the first place, as these events happened during the Final Battle Arc, Demon Slayer‘s final narrative arc.

After being defeated by the Demon Slayer Corps in Chapter 200 of the manga, in Chapter 201, Muzan Kibutsuji says that death was always with him and that his heart stopped many times, even when he was in his mother’s womb. He was stillborn, but when he was about to be cremated, he suddenly began to writhe and cry, and he was spared. The demon is relieved when he says that he has finally achieved what he was waiting for.

Recognizing that he couldn’t have done anything on his own, he thinks of Kagaya Ubuyashiki and admits that Oyakata told him the right thing by saying that all who live must die and that only feelings can be eternal. Muzan says that he didn’t remember any of the people he killed, but their feelings were conveyed and stayed alive, and even managed to defeat him. Moved to tears by the fact that the feelings of all people conquered him, Muzan resigned himself to his inevitable fate.

However, he says that his own feelings are eternal and immortal like everyone else, and he extends his hand to Tanjiro Kamado, who was with him and is still alive. As he gives all his blood to Tanjiro, Muzan says that if the boy survives, he will become the most powerful demon in history. Since he was the brother of Nezuko Kamado, who was the first Demon to gain immunity to sunlight, as well as the only one able to use Yoriichi Tsugikuni’s Breathing Style.

Slowly disintegrating, Muzan orders Tanjiro to fulfill his dream and destroy the Demon Slayer Corps in his place. As Giyu Tomioka kneels in front of Tanjiro as the surrounding Kakushi shed tears, one of them suddenly bursts in shock as the swelling in Tanjiro’s head disappears and he opens his eyes to reveal a demonic gaze.

To everyone’s shock, Tanjiro recovers his left arm and attacks Kakushi, but Giyu reacts quickly and pushes Kakushi out of harm’s way. The other Kakushi looks at him in fear and asks Tanjiro why he is acting this way when the boy is drooling profusely, enjoying his newfound fangs and claws. His Demon Slayer Mark mutates and grows to pass through the bridge of his nose, and another identical mark grows from his neck, approaching almost the other, similar to Kokushibo’s mark.

Suddenly, the sun shines brightly from the sky and Tanjiro looks up at it twice. He starts to burn and writhe on the ground. Everyone else looks on in confusion at the sudden excitement from afar, unaware of Tanjiro’s fate when Giyu suddenly announces to them that Tanjiro has become a Demon. He says that they need to pin down Tanjiro and burn him in the sun before he can kill anyone.

Tanjiro suddenly tries to find shade to avoid the sun’s rays, but Giyu intercepts him, stabbing him in the side and dragging him to the ground, with the boy clinging to his hair. Noting to himself that if he hadn’t interrupted, Tanjiro would surely have killed Kakushi, Giyu thoughtfully asks Tanjiro to remain who he was and die as a human. Suddenly, Tanjiro stops disintegrating and Giyu gives him a shocked look as the boy takes advantage of this moment to hit the Hashira.

This is the story of how Tanjiro became a demon, and not just any demon – but the new Demon King, the “Oni no Oh”. Now, we shall explore the remainder of his story.

When does Tanjiro Kamado become human again?

Now, as we have said, Tanjiro’s transformation into a demon happens in Chapter 201 of the manga. This, luckily, didn’t last very long. Namely, in CHapter 202, the Demon Slayers try to reason with Tanjiro and “force” him to fight off Muzan’s influence, but it isn’t until Kanao injects Tanjiro with the last dose of Tamayo’s medicine that he begins transforming back. After an internal struggle with the remains of Muzan’s soul, Tanjiro finally reverts back to his human form in Chapter 203 of the manga. In our final section, we are going to tell you how that happened exactly.

How does Tanjiro Kamado become human again?

So, we’re in a situation where Tanjiro has become the Demon King and is threatening to destroy the Demon Slayer Corps. Inosuke tries to reason with him, as he cannot bring himself to harm him, as does Nezuko. And while they prevent a massive slaughter, Tanjiro just keeps evolving as a Demon and this is where Kanao comes in.

Looking at how Nezuko is trying to bring her brother back, Kanao is shocked and cries. She takes out a vial of medicine from her front pocket and is relieved to find that it is intact. Remembering that she once received it from Shinobu Kocho, Kanao recalls the former Insect Hashira telling her that she made another vial of Tamayo’s medicine in fear that someone might turn into a demon.

She told her that she didn’t have to do it, as Tamayo prepared three bottles of medicine so demons could turn into humans, and the Insect Hashira confessed with a wry smile that she respects Demons. Quickly reviewing Tanjiro’s situation and she believes that she can dodge his attacks. Kanao activates Flower Breathing, Final Form: Equinoctial Vermilion Eye and attacks Tanjiro.

Tanjiro smears his hand on Kanao, but she dodges it by turning the boy over and injecting the medicine into him just as he redirects his hand and then stabs her torso. As she begins to bleed, Kanao tells Tanjiro that it’s enough and it’s time for him to get back to them, saying that he shouldn’t make Nezuko cry, Kanao falls to the ground with a thud as something stirs in Tanjiro’s mind upon hearing Nezuko’s name and the medicine begins to take effect.

This is where Tanjiro’s internal struggle begins. As his subconscious self stretches his hand up to return to being a human, Muzan Kibutsuji’s eyes grow on it. The demon asks Tanjiro what will happen after, because their whole family is dead, and there is no point in going home. Tanjiro replies that as long as he and Nezuko are alive, they will always have memories of happy days with their family.

Muzan lies that Tanjiro killed Nezuko, and Tanjiro immediately sees through the lie, calling Muzan a liar. The dead members of his family appear behind Tanjiro, pushing him up, and Muzan orders them not to interfere. Muzan orders Tanjiro to be quiet and tells him that he will soon die because of the mark, so he needs to stop thinking about others and become a demon. Tanjiro replies that he doesn’t want to live forever and will die as a human.

Muzan angrily calls him trash and asks if Tanjiro wants to live after losing so many loved ones. Together with the hands of his family, the hands of his dead fighter comrades begin to push him, and Tanjiro smells wisteria, confusing it with the smell of Shinobu Kocho. Nezuko’s hands appear from the flowers above Tanjiro’s head and grab him, starting to pull him up, but Muzan yells at the guy, ordering him to let go of his hand.

Along with Nezuko, Tanjiro’s arm is pulled up by the other survivors, and Tanjiro hears their pleas to return. Muzan grabs his torso and pulls him down, begging Tanjiro to stay with him and fulfill his dreams. Tanjiro doesn’t answer him and Muzan ends up letting him go. Tanjiro wakes up, lying on the ground, and sees the morning sky above him. A tearful Nezuko calls his name, and Tanjiro tearfully asks for her forgiveness. Tanjiro has, once again, returned to being a human.