Demon Slayer:  Who becomes the Flame Hashira after Rengoku Kyojuro's death? Explained

Demon Slayer has had a lot of amazing moments in the anime adaptation by Ufotable. One of the most memorable moments was Kyojuro Rengoku's final battle in the series, standing up to the third Upper Moon, Akaza. This moment made Rengoku a fan favorite in the series and is talked about a few years after his death took place in the anime.

Rengoku was also the Flame Hashira and there are some questions in the Demon Slayer fandom about who took over his position in the organization. While that is something that hasn't been addressed in the anime thus far, there is an explanation of what happened to the Flame Hashira position after the death of Rengoku in the story.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and not Sportskeeda.

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Explaining who took over Rengoku's position as Flame Hashira in the Demon Slayer series

Simply put, no one took over Rengoku's position as the Flame Hashira after he died fighting Akaza during the Mugen Train arc. One of the most significant reasons for this is that there was no time in the organization to find a replacement. This is something that also happened with Tengen Uzui when he lost his hand and retired after the events of the Entertainment District storyline.

Another reason is that no one else can use Rengoku's Flame Technique, this is also shown through the character of Kanroji Mitsuri, the former's apprentice. Mitsuri was incapable of using Rengoku's techniques, which is why she decided to go in her own direction as a swordswoman and also why she isn't a candidate for the Flame Hashira position, either.

Truth be told, the only real candidate in the series who could have taken Rengoku's position as the Flame Hashira was his own father, Shinjuro Rengoku. However, despite being affected by his son's death and feeling regret for wasting his life with drinking, the character never came back to his original role as a Hashira.

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Rengoku's impact in the story

Rengoku in the anime (Image via Ufotable).

The case of Rengoku in the series shows how an anime adaptation can propel a character to a higher level when it comes to popularity and worldwide recognition. There is no denying that the Mugen Train anime film was a worldwide success and gave Rengoku a lot of exposure, becoming one of the faces of the series in the community.

Rengoku, from a narrative perspective, was instrumental in adding a degree of tension to the story as he was killed at a moment when people of the main cast were not dying. He was also very important in elevating the character of Akaza as the latter was boosted as an antagonist. He also added an element of tension with the protagonist, Tanjiro Kamado, since the latter now wanted to take down that Upper Moon.

While Rengoku spent little time in the series, his death was mentioned and felt time and time again throughout the story. Several characters mention him and how he was missed, which is something that makes his death feel a lot more realistic and felt.

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Final thoughts

No one took over Rengoku's Flame Hashira position after he died fighting Akaza in the Demon Slayer series. That was mostly down to the organization not having time to replace him and also because no one else besides his father was capable of replicating his techniques.

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