HIZZASHII

ningyō☀️ yoriichi tsugikuni

penned by ari

人形 ☀️ 継国縁壱

Foreward

art in graphics is by akm4adrunkcarrd updated: 06/05/25

Rules

Please find all rules on this carrd!

DOSSIER

QUICK REF

First Impressions Meme
ReferenceV: The Hierophant ☀️ X: Wheel of Fortune ☀️ IX: The Hermit

Differences from canon:-- again, he exists within a world/universe involving both my kokushibō (tsukkiakarii) and my partner's muses (uppertwo + hakuuji) and thus there's some notable differences based on this
-- most notable: he's alive during the series events. second most notable: he's a demon, turned by kokushibō herself
-- similarly notable: he's in a relationship with @hakuuji
-- he were initially alive as an extension of my old taisho verse, wherein he were kept alive via a blue spider lily within his body with the aid of tamayo, but was turned more recently (inadvertently) during a battle--specific canon point in relation to the series is undecided so it'll depend on thread! this may be updated later
-- he refuses to harm humans, and instead relies on the blood/flesh of animals or other demons
-- it is other demons that gave him the name ningyō--a term meaning "doll", literally meaning "human shaped", due to his hunting of demons. he does not hunt all demons however: he hunts those that harm and bring suffering to humans. for example, he still would not hunt tamayo, but would the swamp demon. there is a gray area he struggles with
-- he possesses the same shapeshifting kokushibō does, though he rarely uses it. his demonic art is also related to the sun, specifically solarkinesis: immense heat and blinding radiance, with a side of affecting magnetic fields
-- his default form as a demon is akin to a doll, perhaps even a reference to zeroshiki, described more below
-- he tends to stay near the eternal paradise temple, specifically to protect his twin and nieces/nephews--and his brother-in-law
-- he is a direct ancestor of tanjuro, and thus ancestor to tanjiro and nezuko--hence tanjiro possessing his hanafuda earrings

name: tsugikuni yoriichi
alias: ningyōage: approx. 500
date of birth: july 28, 68 muromachi period approx half an hour after his twin (1406, 5:50 a.m., appears 20); leo sun, virgo moon, capricorn rising
gender: agender (accustomed to he/him pronouns, but has no pref)
orientation: demi-romantic / bisexualheight: 6'1", muscular build but surprisingly lean, mainly due to far too many years of malnutrition
hair color: a deep chestnut tinged with red, reaching to his lower back. short fringe around his face, and most often put in a high ponytail. the texture is very layered and wavy, with curls towards the ends
eye color: pink, nearly a baby pink. typically he has round pupils, but heightened emotions result in slitted ones instead. likewise, white sclera shift to black when in the same state. (human: more of a ruby shade as in a pinky red). they have a glow when in darkness and shadows
distinguishing features: a large demon slayer mark in the pattern of flames, long earrings in the form of feathers, cracks upon his face around his eyes, long horns sitting atop his head, skin that still retains a tan from humanity save for limbs left blackened, and joints more akin to a ball-jointed doll
jewelry/attire: he still wears canon outfit most often, complete with the same layers. he no longer possesses the hanafuda earrings, for they're in tanjiro's possession: his take the form of long feathers instead.

APPEARANCE

he is tall and muscular, though in a slender way. toned rather than bulky, defined muscle mass--a result of his long human life being rife with too little self-care and too much malnutrition. his hair is long, dark chestnut brown but tinged with red–a wave that curls towards the ends, short bangs framing his face as the rest is tied back into a ponytail. his eyes, too, are now pink where they were once red--narrow, showing little emotion, and surrounded by cracks like tossed aside porcelain. his jaw is a touch rounder than his twin’s, his features softer, just so. a pattern of flames that once were only upon his forehead now cover his body. and earrings–feathers, worn seemingly at all times. he passed the hanafuda earrings from his mother down long, long ago. his skin remains sunkissed and tan, freckles dusting his shoulders and the bridge of his nose, though lower limbs have blackened as if burned by the sun's heat. but ningyō is a twin, the younger sibling of michikatsu tsugikuni–and thus he bears a striking resemblance to the demon kokushibō.due to being changed by her, he possesses the innate demonic art of biokinesis just like his twin, the ability to change himself, even more than the standard demonic ability to shape-shift. however, he rarely uses it and instead allows his new body of a doll to show instead--perhaps a desire to no longer be viewed as such a perfect being.to humans, his scent carries a gourmand quality, warming and comforting--honey and vanilla. to other demons, there is still an underlying note of copper, though much more subtle due to his refusal to devour the flesh and blood of humans.his fangs are quite subtle: like the vampires in the series Shiki, his fangs are actually behind his typical, human teeth. thus, unless his mouth is opened wide, they're easy to miss. likewise, his nails are kept flat rather than becoming claws. thus, the most obvious markers of his true nature are the horns upon his head, and the body of a doll.his horns are above his temples, pointing upwards with subtle curve inwards. his body is made of flesh, but the muscle and bone of his joints have morphed into something more akin to a ball-jointed doll, resulting in his movements becoming rather uncanny with a creak as he moves. a doll that has been thrown away long ago, a mimicry of the humans he loves so yet was always at the mercy of.hidden beneath clothing, he still possesses a scar across his midsection from his encounter with kokushibō centuries in the past: rather than dying, the blue spider lily kept him alive with naught but a scar.his voice is rather soft and quiet, as gentle as a breeze--like humanity, his emotions are still difficult to show, difficult to express, and it reflects in a voice far too tender for the tragedies that have befallen him.

PERSONALITY

he is special, it is said. he receives the favor of the gods, he alone stands outside of every law and rule of this world. the wielder of the first breath is a special sort of human, right?not if you actually attempt to ask him.to ningyō, he is no one particularly great, no more than any other. it isn’t a lack of self-esteem, rather a sense of realism. he is self-aware, willfully admits to his own failings–he couldn’t protect that which was precious to him–and thus he doesn’t share the view of others. he isn’t so great. but he is dutiful. ningyō has a strong sense of what is right, and what is wrong. and, perhaps, he can be unyielding--a sort of stubbornness in sticking to his ideals even to his own inconvenience.he adores his twin and akaza, and as his brother-in-law he still holds trust for dōma--though he struggles with the gray area of hunting humans vs. his loved ones. yet, when push comes to shove: he will still choose love.even that had been out of love, in his heart of hearts. ningyō isn’t a man of emotions–he feels them, of course, but they do not show easily. his expression is often blank or deadpanned, giving little away. but he sheds tears, at least once in his adult life, and he smiles. he has a strong sense of faith, of optimism, of hope for the future. he is full of compassion, and mercy, and gentleness: all the things that were never given to him when he needed them most.he is calm, and naturally inclined to help those he meets. but even when giving aid, such as saving a coal burner’s family by cutting down a demon, he still feels he cannot continue eating “for free”. he helps, not for reward, but because it is right. and he will not accept anything he feels he has not deserved, whether it is food or a too-kind word.perhaps conscientious to a fault, but while it was his sibling’s dream to be the strongest samurai, it was ningyō’s to be second strongest. he never intended to surpass michikatsu–and, indeed, will surely argue the implication that he had surpassed her at all–for there were none he loved as much as his twin. but ningyō either did not understand her, or did not listen to her–and, just maybe, it is a bit of both. he longs to make this right.truly, it is a fault of his. a tendency of making decisions on his own, of never making the effort to be understood. it simply doesn’t occur to him. his social skills are lacking, his self-worth similarly ragged, foolishly and recklessly selfless. the unwanted child, a bad omen, a younger twin with an ominous mark, the child his father wished to kill had it not been for his mother’s rage.he is the one who chased down muzan, the one who nearly took the demon’s head. he is a user of the first breath with a flaming sword charred black. he is the one that survived the blue spider lily with humanity, a humanity that does not leave him as a demon himself now.but ningyō is no different and no more special than the life of any other being.

Verses

MAIN VERSE

he thought he died. he thought his life expired after failing to land a killing blow upon kokushibō, he certainly should be dead when his body is sliced into two. and yet, he awoke again, pieced himself back together. only that the flute is gone, but the cloth of uta’s kimono remains. he has full control of himself, not bound by the curse that would bind him to muzan. an accident, surely, when the blood from kokushibō’s wound fell into ningyō’s own.now the current main verse, wherein he has entered a relationship with @hakuuji

POST-CANON VERSE

he took part in the battle against muzan, fighting him specifically and bolstering the slayer's might against him.as a demon, ningyō was forced to retreat after the destruction of the infinity fortress as the dawn neared, fulfilling his own duty in passing on his strength so his descendant could finish what he had started so long ago.ningyō covers the retreat of the surviving upper moons upon their desertion, ensuring muzan wouldn't be able to pursue them as they return to dōma's temple.

TAISHO ERA

a human that has lived so long, the flower so rarely blooming, impossible to find–and hidden within his body, allowing him to live as a human, a perfected medicine just to see to it that muzan falls. the previous main verse before he became a demon; partly inspired by a one-shot comic drawn by a twitter artist.

MODERN + REINCARNATED VERSE(s)

a fully modern verse in a fully modern world, in which he works as a florist, separate from the canon modern au.the difference between modern verse vs reincarnated verse is that in his reincarnated verse, he retains memories of his life as a demon. in modern verse, he were never a demon at all.

Headcanons

-- his imagry of being a doll is due to the perceptions of others of him in canon and the effects upon him: of being perfect, of being untouchable, yet being used as a tool for his ability rather than recognizing any of his worth as a fellow human. thus, he fully became the doll that were thrown away upon breaking-- his mark grew and spread across his body upon becoming a demon, and like his twin his body temperature rose. due to the ambient air around him being so cold in comparison to himself, he tends to feel cold or get chills hence the layers he wears-- his first family was uta and their unborn child. his second family, however, was sumiyoshi and suyako--while he could not remain with them due to the inherent danger of his presence, he still left his mother's earrings behind with them: thus, tanjiro and his siblings are the descendants of ningyō

Dynamics

Important note! This dynamics page is very exclusively for relationships that are quite major for my character and play a large part in his worldbuilding: aka, the only muses here are those belonging to myself and my partner!in effect, this mainly serves as a rundown and summary of the dynamics that have formed a huge foundation for my muse's characterization and world specifically

Akaza ( @hakuuji )

he met akaza upon arriving at the temple, initially a bit caught off guard by the demon: a stark contrast between the two, one who lived a life of carnage versus the other that couldn't bring himself to harm another, seemingly unable to be further oppositeperhaps there were still irony in it as they found understanding within each other, a blooming situationship that eventually blossomed into a proper relationship between the two demonsakaza has become the greatest treasure to ningyō, one he always seeks out and clings to, and one whose side he would even say feels like home

Dōma ( @uppertwo )

the relationship between ningyō and dōma remains rocky and tense, though ningyō doesn't fault dōma for it--for dōma still holds him accountable for the past between himself and his sister, and his failings that resulted in her fall from gracethere is still guilt that lingers over his own failings, his own lack of understanding, and so ningyō simply can't bring himself to complain when it comes to his brother-in-lawdōma allows his prescence within the temple, and ningyō doesn't ask him for more: he tries to stay out of dōma's way, instinct to avoid his cold ire

Kokushibō ( @tsukkiakarii )

perhaps, on some deep level, his new existence as a demon due to her blood does upset him still after clinging to his humanity for so long--but ningyō doesn't know how to recognize it, how to address it, and so he doesn'the knows it were accident. he knows it is kokushibō's request to her husband that allows him to stayinstead, ningyō tries to take opportunity to re-do the past, to do what he now believes he should have done centuries ago, to try to make amends--neither are who they used to be, but he still loves his sister. he knows he may never truly earn forgiveness, but if he can heal some of the hurt he caused--ningyō thinks that will be enough