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The Hinokami Kagura (ヒノカミ神楽 (かぐら) , Hinokami Kagura^?, lit. Dance of the Fire God) is a Breathing Style only known and taught by the Kamado family.

It is passed on from father to son in every generation alongside the hanafuda earrings. The Kamado family uses the breathing style within a ritual ceremony practiced every new year, where the Breathing Style user offers the Fire God a dance from sunset to sunrise to ward off diseases.

The dance is composed of twelve segments repeated throughout the night.^[1] The last user is Tanjiro Kamado, who learned the breathing style from his father, Tanjuro Kamado. Though, other people can learn this, if taught by a Kamado.

Sun Breathing

The Sun Breathing (日 (ひ) の呼 (こ) 吸 (きゅう) , Hi no kokyū^?) is a style of swordsmanship utilized by the first Demon Slayer to use "breaths", Yoriichi Tsugikuni, and serves as the basis for other Breathing Styles derived from it as a result of Yoriichi changing the breathing techniques to suit the individuals he taught.^[2] The Sun Breathing combat style seemingly mimics the burning effect of sunlight on demons and replicates it with the users special swordsmanship and movements.

The derived styles eventually branched out into the main breathing styles: the Water Breathing, Flame Breathing, Wind Breathing, Thunder Breathing, Stone Breathing, and the Moon Breathing. Before Kokushibo died, he mentions that all swordsman who knew/utilized the Sun Breathing were killed by him and Muzan Kibutsuji, before proceeding to question why the Sun Breathing still persists due to the existence of the Hinokami Kagura (ヒノカミ神楽 (かぐら) , Hinokami Kagura^?).^[3]

Kokushibo and Shinjuro Rengoku independently identified the Hinokami Kagura as the Sun Breathing, the latter through the memoirs of his Demon-slaying ancestor.^[3][4] The two styles were later confirmed to be the same.^[5] There is a (previously unknown) thirteenth form, which can be learned from the Sun Breathing as a Hinokami Kagura User,^[6] that is achieved by completing the twelve movements in succession.^[5]

However, Tanjiro remained uncertain of the breathing style's true nature until he gained access to the memories of his ancestor, Sumiyoshi. His ancestor's wife, Suyako, requested to see the Sun Breathing performed during Yoriichi's last visit to the family. Sumiyoshi memorized the movements and was gifted the hanafuda earrings by Yoriichi before parting. The breathing style and earrings were then secretly passed on from father to son in the Kamado family every generation as a rite of passage. Henceforth, the Sun Breathing became known as the Hinokami Kagura.

Sun

Water

Moon

Flame

Thunder

Stone

Wind

Flower

Serpent

Love

Sound

Beast

Mist

Insect

Users
Yoriichi Tsugikuni	Sumiyoshi	Tanjuro Kamado	Tanjiro Kamado

Techniques

• Dance (円 (えん) 舞 (ぶ) , Enbu^?, lit. "Waltz")^[7] - A single high-powered vertical slash.
  • Flash Dance (円 (えん) 舞 (ぶ) 一 (いっ) 閃 (せん) , Enbu Issen^?, lit. "Waltz Flash")^[8] - Developed and utilized only by Tanjiro Kamado. Tanjiro utilizes a similar method like the Thunderclap and Flash technique of the Thunder Breathing, allowing them to use an advanced version of Dance by inhaling huge amounts of oxygen, increasing the pumping of blood through the entire body, focusing it on the legs, and releasing it all to assault the target with a slash. This technique was capable of outspeeding Genya Shinazugawa and Nezuko Kamado, as well as the fleeing Hantengu, although it is still said to be slower than Zenitsu Agatsuma's Thunderclap and Flash.
• Clear Blue Sky (碧 (へき) 羅 (ら) の天 (てん) , Heki-ra no Ten^?, lit. "Blue Heaven")^[9] - The swordsman spins their body vertically to create a 360-degree slash.
• Raging Sun (烈 (れつ) 日 (じつ) 紅 (こう) 鏡 (きょう) , Retsujitsu Kōkyō^?, lit. "Scorching Crimson Mirror")^[10] - The swordsman unleashes two horizontal slashes to hit or defend from incoming attacks.
• Fake Rainbow (幻 (げん) 日 (にち) 虹 (こう) , Gen'nichi Kō^?, lit. "Parhelion Rainbow")^[11] - The swordsman utilizes this technique to evade incoming attacks with high-speed twists and rotations, thus creating afterimages. The afterimages work most effectively on enemies with good vision as they will probably fail attack the afterimage instead of the actual body of the user.
• Fire Wheel (火 (か) 車 (しゃ) , Kasha^?, lit. "Fire Chariot")^[12] - The swordsman leaps behind the opponent and spins in the air while releasing a flaming attack in a circular motion. It is likely the predecessor/progenitor of the Water Breathing: Second Form - Water Wheel.
• Burning Bones, Summer Sun (灼 (しゃっ) 骨 (こつ) 炎 (えん) 陽 (よう) , Shakkotsu En'yō^?, lit. "Burning Sun")^[13] - A powerful defensive technique. The swordsman unleashes a circular slash that defends from imminent frontal attacks.
• Sunflower Thrust (陽 (よう) 華 (か) 突 (とつ) , Yōkatotsu^?, lit. "Sunflower Lance")^[14][15] - A single thrust attack with the point of the blade. It is possible for this technique to be the progenitor for the Water Breathing: Seventh Form - Piercing Rain Drop and the Mist Breathing: First Form - Low Clouds, Distant Haze.
• Solar Heat Haze (飛 (ひ) 輪 (りん) 陽 (かげ) 炎 (ろう) , Hirin Kagerō^?, lit. "Soaring Flame Haze")^[16] - The swordsman charges towards the target, attacking it with a haze covered slash that seemingly fails to land, but actually does hit the target. This technique is possibly the predecessor of the Mist Breathing itself.
• Setting Sun Transformation (斜 (しゃ) 陽 (よう) 転 (てん) 身 (しん) , Shayō Tenshin^?, lit. "The Setting Sun")^[17] - The user backflips into the air to deliver a powerful upended flaming sword slash.
• Beneficent Radiance (輝 (き) 輝 (き) 恩 (おん) 光 (こう) , Kiki Onkō^?, lit. "Shining Ray Of Grace")^[18] - The swordsman spirals into the air and delivers a powerful slash that surrounds the enemy.
• Dragon Sun Halo Head Dance (日 (にち) 暈 (うん) の龍 (りゅう ) 頭 (かぶり) 舞 (ま) い, Nichiun no Ryū Kaburimai^?, lit. "Solar Halo Dragon Dance")^[19][20] - Possibly the Sun Breathing 's most powerful singular technique. The swordsman unleashes a continuous fast and powerful sword attack that takes the form of a flaming sun dragon and is capable of decapitating multiple enemies at once. It is possible that this technique is the predecessor of the Water Breathing Tenth Form - Constant Flux.

• Flame Dance (炎 (えん) 舞 (ぶ) , Enbu^?, lit. "Waltz")^[21] - A two-combo strike which starts with a vertical slash and then a horizontal one right after.

• Thirteenth Form (十 (じゅう) 三 (さん) ノ型 (かた) , Jū San no kata^?)^[22] - The user continuously performs all twelve forms of the breathing style in repetitive succession to increase the accuracy and agility of his movements while reducing fatigue. This form was created solely for the purpose of killing Muzan, since the repetition of all twelve forms aims to destroy Muzan's twelve vital organs (seven hearts and five brains) that move freely inside his body thanks to his shape-shifting ability.

Users

Users
Tanjuro Kamado	Tanjiro Kamado

Demonstrations

Trivia

• The passing of the Sun Breathing as a Kagura draws heavily from Japanese mythology. In Japanese folklore, famous tales in the Nihon Shoki and Kojiki explain that the Kagura ritual originates when Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, retreated into a cave, plunging the world into darkness. In response, Ame-no-Uzume, goddess of revelry and of dawn, danced outside the cave to entice the sun goddess out. From these events, the Kagura was born, a ritualistic dance that honors Kami (Gods and ancestral spirits). Likewise, the Sun Breathing was disguised as a Kagura and passed down as the Hinokami Kagura.
• The kanji for "sun" (日 (ひ) , hi^?) has the same pronunciation as the kanji for "fire" (火 (ひ) , hi^?).

References