Iguro Obanai

General

Obanai Iguro (伊い黒ぐろ 小お芭ば内ない, Iguro Obanai?) is a major supporting character of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. He is a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slayer Corps and the current Serpent Hashira (蛇へび柱ばしら, Hebi Bashira?).[3]

Appearance

Obanai is a young man of short stature, pale skin complexion, and a fairly muscular build. He has straight-edged black hair of varying lengths, the longest reaching down to his shoulders and the shortest stopping at his cheekbones, which he wears down with two shorter strands hanging between his eyes. His eyes are almond-shaped and tilt upwards on the far sides, and are unique colored due to Obanai possessing heterochromia—his right eye is yellow and his left eye is turquoise. He is partially blind, barely able to see out of his right eye.[4] Obanai's mouth is usually hidden by the bandage he wears over his lower face to hide his large facial scars, which were the result of his family horrifically cutting open his mouth to resemble that of a snake's gape.[5] He wears a navy blue version of the standard Demon Slayer uniform, along with a black and white striped haori, the hem and cuffs of which are striped length ways rather than vertically, which covers his hands. Obanai also sports bandages in place of the leg-wraps around his calves giving the resemblance of kyahan, as well as another set of bandages that cover his mouth, and white with blue-strapped zōri on his feet. He is also always seen with his white snake, Kaburamaru, wrapped around his shoulders. During the battle with Muzan, Obanai and the other remaining Hashira are attacked by the demon's flailing whips, and Obanai is left with three long slanted scratches over his eyes, rendering him completely blind.[6] When he was a child, Obanai had waist-length hair that he wore tied down his back with a long white bandage and a regular-looking mouth before it got cut by his family. He also wore a plain white kimono.

Personality

Obanai is a very harsh and strict individual who shows no concern for those who do not abide by the rules of the Demon Slayer Corps. His expectations for his fellow Demon Slayers are quite unrealistic, as he was seen berating Tengen Uzui for suffering heavy wounds against the "weakest" Upper Rank and telling him to "fight to the death" when Tengen insists on retiring. Tengen's retirement also highlights Obanai's devotion to the future of the Demon Slayer Corps, often at others' expense, such as when he ties up lower-ranked Demon Slayers and uses them as obstacles during Hashira Training for relatively petty reasons. He also sees the newer Demon Slayer recruits as weak and incapable of improvement, expressing extreme surprise when Tengen informs him that Tanjiro Kamado survived the battle with Daki and Gyutaro. Obanai has a rather prominent habit of pointing at people with his finger in an accusatory manner while berating them or talking badly about someone. Obanai demands that Tanjiro never go near Mitsuri Obanai threatens Tanjiro for growing too close to Mitsuri. Despite his merciless personality, there are two people he cares deeply about: Kagaya Ubuyashiki and Mitsuri Kanroji. He has a crush on Mitsuri, as he often lets his feelings shine through by sharing meals with her and giving gifts, such as the signature green socks she wears with her uniform. Obanai seems to let his overprotectiveness of Mitsuri show at times, such as when he threatens Tanjiro for growing too close to her.[7] It was implied that he has a crush on Mitsuri because of her cheerful personality that didn't let any of the hellish training she had gone through to radiate in the slightest. Talking with her also made him forget all the strife and conflict he had encountered during his past and made him feel as if he was an ordinary young man.[8] Like all the Hashira, Obanai has a great deal of respect for Kagaya.