The younger brother of the Wind Hashira, Sanemi Shinazugawa, Genya Shinazugawa makes his first appearance during the final selection that took place at Mount Fujikasane. It was also here that Tanjiro met Genya when they qualified to become Demon Slayers together.

Although constantly seen angry and in a bad mood, Genya harbors a troubled past where his family and he suffered abuse from his father and his mother's transformation into a demon, leaving his brother to end up killing her since she killed his other brothers and sisters.

From the beginning, Genya is seen as an extremely tough and determined fighter, both mentally and physically, but what's the problem with his fighting style?

Do you have weapons?

Genya also makes an appearance in the final Swordsmith Village Arc, where his character receives more screen time and plays a vital role in the battle against Upper Moon Demons 4 and 5.

However, unlike his peers, Genya was unable to develop a breathing technique which forced him to adopt a new technique in his fight against demons, the new technique he developed involved the use of a dual-wielding method of using a double-barreled shotgun and a nichirn wakizashi (a smaller version of a katana).

Genya is an expert marksman and has loaded the gun with not just normal bullets, but bullets made from scarlet crimson ore, the same material used in nichirin swords that is highly effective against demons.

The combination of gun and sword is a unique fighting style seen in the Demon Slayer series.

While most Demon Slayers used unique swords with different shapes and styles, Genya chose to stand out from the rest and chose to fight using a gun, which is perfect for long-range combat.

This also shows the advancement of weapons technology during the Taishō Period of Japan. Once Genya hits a target directly with his weapon and if the blow was not powerful enough, he can still use his wakizashi to advance and finish off his opponent.

As Genya was unable to adopt or learn a breathing technique, he was later trained by Gyomei Himejima, the Stone Hashira, who took him under his wing and taught him to use repetitive actions, a technique that uses the repetition of words or phrases in order to clear the mind and focus on his attack and avoid distractions, this technique is also similar to a breathing technique that a demon slayer would use.

Tactical and Hidden Skills

In addition to his tactical skills, Genya also has a power that he uses as a last resort and when all else fails, this is his ability to consume demonic flesh and temporarily gain attributes similar to the flesh of the demon he consumed, by doing so he is able to further improve his physical condition, giving him a competitive edge.

As this is a form of blood demon art, he is also able to fuse his weapon into his hand, making it an even more powerful weapon. When Genya consumes demon flesh, it also gives him a demonic appearance with features such as fangs and black sclera.

However, while unproven, the downsides of using this continuously could be harmful to Genya's body, as continued consumption of demon blood could be fatal over time.

The use of the nicihirn weapon and blade combined with body-altering properties makes Genya a powerful demon slayer, and he also plays an important role in the fight to defeat Muzan, and later faces the Upper Moon Demon 1, Kokushibo, making him a unique character in the series as he dreams of becoming a Hashira.