Shinobu Kocho is a major supporting character of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. She is a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slayer Corps and the current Insect Hashira.

Shinobu Kocho is also the younger sister of Kanae Kocho along with her adoptive younger sister Kanao Tsuyuri. After a demon killed her parents, Shinobu joined the Demon Slayer Corps along with her sister in order to protect others from suffering the same fate as her.

Shinobu is a special case among Demon Slayers and the Hashira. Her physical strength doesn't allow her to be able to cut even a low-level demon's head off, so she had to find another way to kill them. Her weapon is specifically designed for her lack of physical strength and is designed to inject the demons she fights with the poisons that she creates. While it certainly takes skill to wield it, it won’t be of any use if she runs out of it.

The chances of her running out of poisons are slim since her sheath doubles as a mixer and loader. However, when it comes to physical power, this sword doesn’t have much but works perfectly for Shinobu and her fighting style.

Fighting Style

As a Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps, Shinobu is one of the most powerful and skilled swordswoman in the entire organization. Her fighting style is incredibly unique, but as effective as traditional swordsmanship styles. Shinobu's swordplay specializes in sword thrusting and piercing techniques in order to inject poison into demons. Her sword thrusts are so fast and powerful that they can pierce boulders and out-speed Water Breathing's Drop Ripple Thrust form, the fastest thrusting technique in that Breathing Style. However, the structure of her sword makes it ineffective for blocking attacks, so she makes up for it with her swift thrusts and stabs. Her swordsmanship prowess allowed her to go against Upper Rank Two, Doma, who has lived and fought for over a century, further showcasing her brilliant sword wielding skill.

Breathing Style

Insect Breathing: A Breathing Style created by Shinobu Kocho, who designed it to compensate for her lack of physical strength to cut off a demon's head. She has became extremely proficient in this swordsmanship style, allowing her to defeat countless demons and even go toe-to-toe with the second strongest Upper Rank demon, Doma.

Techniques

• Butterfly Dance: Caprice - The user leaps into the air and charges towards the opponent and stings them multiple times with their blade to inject poison.
• Dance of the Bee Sting: True Flutter - The user dashes at their target at blinding speeds and uses the momentum of their speed to then strengthen a single thrust into their opponent and inject poison into them.
• Dance of the Dragonfly: Compound Eye Hexagon - A six strike attack with which the user aims to strike and inject their target with multiple doses of poison at the target's weak spots (such as the neck, heart, torso, etc.) in order to kill them with a large dose of poison.
• Dance of the Centipede: Hundred-Legged Zigzag - An attack with which the user uses their full speed to run a zigzag pattern that confuses their opponent in order to create an opening for them to directly stab their opponent's neck and inject poison to kill them, with the stab's force and power being further enhanced by the momentum of their speed. Doma noted that the sheer speed of this technique is strong enough to destroy an entire wooden bridge.

Stinger Nichirin Katana: Shinobu carries a heavily modified Nichirin katana forged by Tecchin Tecchikawahara as her primary weapon. It is the same as any katana from the handle to slightly above the hilt, but above that, the weapon loses its blade and is replaced by a rod. It ends in a needle-like tip, resembling an insect's stinger in appearance and function. The "stinger" is designed for injection of Wisteria poison into demons, as Shinobu uses her medical expertise to replace her relative lack of strength and inability to decapitate demons. Her katana's hilt is designed to bear resemblance to a four-petaled aqua-colored flower, trimmed with orange. The blade is lavender-blue in color, with the words Evil Demon engraved on the right face, while the words Destruction are engraved on the left face due her sword's structure. Along with her katana, she has also modified the weapon's sheath, using it as a portable poison mixer and loader.