Why Is Hantengu Always Scared?

The Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc introduced us to the top four of the twelve Kizuki.

Though each had their own unique traits, Hantengu stood out more than his fellow demon compatriots.

Unlike other demons who were arrogant and cocky, Hantengu behaved very timidly and scared, a behaviour we have not seen from any other demon in the entire series.

Even later in the series, he continues to show his cowardly side, although he also shows his more aggressive emotions in the form of his clones.

So it makes sense for the community to be curious about his behaviour and want to know about it. We give an explanation of why Hantengu is always scared.

Who Is Hantengu?

Hantengu is one of the twelve Kizuki and holds the rank of upper-rank four.

Being an upper-rank four, Hantengu is extremely powerful, and his blood demon art is called emotional manifestation.

It allows him to manifest any and all emotions he is feeling. The kanji for manifested emotion gets etched on the tongue of the demon.

In the series, we see him manifest about six emotions: fear, anger, pleasure, sorrow, joy, hatred, and resentment. Each of these manifest demons holds power equivalent to that of an upper-rank demon.

In fact, the only reason Hantengu got defeated was because of the sunrise.

We have already covered everything you need to know about Hantengu’s Blood Demon Art. You can read them if you wish to learn about his unique ability.

As every demon in Demon Slayer was once a person, after turning into a demon, they will retain a certain trait from their human lives.

We see this with Gyutaro and Daki, where Gyutaro retained his trait of being protective of his sister.

Even in the case of Akaza, before becoming a demon, he was blinded by vengeance and loved martial arts.

In his fight against Rengoku, we see those traits in Akaza.

Similarly, Hantengu’s fear is linked to his life as a human. So let’s dive into his past and find out!

Hantengu As Human

During his life as a human, he was a despicable and irredeemable man. Stealing, lying, and cheating were part of his daily routine.

He would marry women by lying to them, and then, when discovered, he would kill the women and the children he had with them. He was scum through and through.

The worst part is that he was highly delusional and seriously believed he was innocent.

After being caught by the police, he started playing innocent by pushing the blame on them. When nothing worked, he started blaming his hands for the crimes.

After listening to such arguments, the officials decided to cut his arm off, but after learning of the deeds he had done throughout the entire nation, they decided to behead him.

Muzan appeared just before he was about to die and offered him his blood, which he of course took, and Hantengu was born.

Why Is Hantengu Always Scared?

As a human, Hantengu committed heinous crimes but was not ready to bear the consequences. Due to this, he was extremely paranoid; he was scared of the consequences of his action, making him delusional.

In his delusion, he believed that he was innocent and treated unfairly. For him, the world was against him and tried to make him guilty when he was innocent.

After becoming a demon, his delusion and paranoia carried forward. Thus, Hantengu in his normal form always seems cowering and scared.