List of ''Inuyasha'' characters

From left to right, Kirara, Sango, Shippō, Kagome, Miroku, and Inuyasha.

The Inuyasha manga and anime characters are created by Rumiko Takahashi. Most of the series takes place in a fictional version of Japan's Warring States period with occasional time-travel/flashback elements to modern Tokyo or the Heisei period. The setting and plot incorporate many elements of traditional Japanese folklore and religion; its main characters (both protagonists and antagonists) include a Shintō priestess, a Buddhist monk and several types of yōkai, usually rendered as "demon" in English-language translations of the series.

Main characters

Inuyasha

Voiced by: Kappei Yamaguchi (Japanese); Richard Ian Cox (English)

Inuyasha (犬夜叉, Inuyasha) is the main character of the series. Born of a dog-demon father and a human mother, his appearance equivalent to that of a fifteen-year-old boy. As a half-demon, he had a difficult and lonely childhood, as demons and humans despised him for his mixed bloodline. He has dog ears, claws, superhuman strength, and other demonic abilities. He sports a red garment called the Robe of the Fire-Rat and is always barefoot.

In 2001, Inuyasha won the Animage Grand Prix for Best Male Character.[1]

Kagome Higurashi

Voiced by: Satsuki Yukino (Japanese), Moneca Stori (English, original series, movies, games), Kira Tozer (English, The Final Act)

Kagome Higurashi (日暮 かごめ, Higurashi Kagome) is the narrator and coprotagonist of the series. Brave and kind girl who believes in never turning her back on someone in trouble, she develops a close relationship with Inuyasha over the course of the series and begins to fall in love with him during their quest to collect the Shikon shards and defeat Naraku, though she finds herself competing with the revived Kikyo for his affections. Although physically weak, she becomes stronger and skilled in archery as the series progresses, and eventually learns to master her immensely strong spiritual powers.

At the beginning of the series, Kagome is a fifteen-year-old junior high school student who was born in 1982 in modern Japan. She is the reincarnation of the deceased (and later resurrected) priestess Kikyo, and thus resembles the priestess in looks. Kagome has the Shikon Jewel unknowingly hidden inside her body until her fifteenth birthday, when a demon pulls her into the Bone Eater's Well at her family's shrine and takes her 500 years into the past. They emerge in the Feudal Era about fifty years after Kikyo's death, where the demon tears the jewel from Kagome's body.

Miroku

Voiced by: Kōji Tsujitani (Japanese); Kirby Morrow (English)

Miroku (弥勒, Miroku) is an eighteen-year-old lecherous Buddhist monk who travels the countryside performing spiritual services, such as exorcisms and demon exterminations. Miroku can attack enemies with his khakkhara and sutra scrolls, but his greatest weapon is the Wind Tunnel (風穴, Kazaana) embedded in the palm of his right hand, which is actually a hereditary curse originally inflicted upon his grandfather by Naraku.

However, Miroku remains notorious for his recurring lechery, usually manifesting as shameless flattery, semi-surreptitious groping, and asking every woman he meets to bear him a child. While he learned these bad habits from the monk Mushin (夢心), who raised him after his father was engulfed into his own Wind Tunnel, Miroku also has the more serious motive of wanting an heir to continue his journey if he dies without defeating Naraku, and over time Miroku falls in love with Sango.

Sango

Voiced by: Houko Kuwashima (Japanese); Kelly Sheridan (English)

Sango (珊瑚, Sango) is a sixteen-year-old demon slayer (妖怪退治屋, yōkai taijiya, "Apparition Exterminators"). She hails from a village that practices the act as their profession and is also the original home of the Shikon Jewel. While travelling, she wears a traditional woman's kimono, over which she wears long skirt, most likely "mo-bakama", and traditional woman's arm guards and leg guards, and straw sandals. As a demon slayer, Sango dresses in a black skin-tight jumpsuit, and pink armor plates made of demon parts, and a red sash. Of her broad repertoire of tools and tricks for fighting demons, Sango usually wields her most powerful weapon called the Hiraikotsu (飛来骨, "Flying Return Bone"), a human-sized boomerang made of purified demon bones. Her other weapons include a short sword, a concealed blade and various poisons. She is always accompanied by the demon-cat Kirara, her mount.

Sango has suffered more heavily at the hands of Naraku than most; her brother Kohaku was possessed by Naraku and manipulated into killing their father and comrades and wounding her, while her village was destroyed in an attack by Naraku's minions. Kohaku was subsequently killed, but resurrected as a puppet by Naraku through a Shikon Jewel shard. Left for dead at first, Sango is tricked by Naraku into thinking Inuyasha destroyed her village; after she learns the truth, she and Kirara become the final members of Inuyasha's team. At first she is motivated solely by the desire to free her brother from Naraku's influence, but overtime she develops mutual affection and loyalty for the entire group.

Though she harbors disdain for Miroku initially (given his lecherous attitude towards women) Sango gradually develops feelings for him and each of them often risks their lives to protect the other. She accepts Miroku's roundabout proposal of marriage in the sixth season, and spends much of the seventh season trying to keep him out of danger, as his Wind Tunnel has grown to the point that it might consume him if he uses it again. After Naraku is defeated, she and Miroku marry; by the time Kagome returns to the feudal era, they have three children.

Shippo

Voiced by: Kumiko Watanabe (Japanese); Jillian Michaels (English)

Shippo (七宝, Shippō) is a young orphaned kitsune, who attempts to steal the Shikon Jewel from Inuyasha and Kagome, wanting to become stronger and avenge his father's death. Though his plan fails, Inuyasha and Kagome aid him after hearing his story, and he becomes their companion. Shippo normally appears to be a young boy with certain fox-like features: his legs, feet, ears, and tail. He can shape-shift, but his other forms (such as a large flying balloon) are temporary and often ineffective, usually given away by his lingering fox tail. He can also create illusory duplicates of himself, as well as weak Foxfire (狐火, Kitsunebi) magic and toy-based tricks such as his giant spinning top attack.

Kirara

Voiced by: Tarako

Kirara (雲母, Kirara) is Sango's faithful companion who usually appears to be a small kitten-sized feline with two tails, but can become large enough to carry several passengers whenever the need arises. She is a spiritual entity, like the kitsunes; her full-sized form has fangs and flames, while in her small form, she is small and cute.

Recurring characters

Kikyo

Voiced by: Noriko Hidaka (Japanese); Willow Johnson (English)

Kikyo (桔梗, Kikyō) was a powerful, high-ranking priestess who lived fifty years prior to the events of the series. Kikyo was given the task by demon slayers to guard and purify the Shikon Jewel. She fell in love with Inuyasha, who considered using the Shikon Jewel to turn him completely human so it would fade and she could live with him as a normal human. However, having had an indirect role in his creation, Kikyo is mortally wounded by Naraku posing as Inuyasha and believed the real Inuyasha betrayed her. Kikyo found Inuyasha, who also fell for Naraku's deception when he assumed Kikyo's form to antagonize the half-demon into attacking the village, and sealed him to the Sacred Tree. Though Naraku had expected her to use it to save her life, and corrupt it so he can have it, Kikyo dies after requesting to have the Shikon Jewel be burned with her body on the funeral pyre. Though Kikyo intended to keep it safe within her soul, the Shikon Jewel is brought back to the feudal era through her modern-day reincarnation, Kagome Higurashi. She is then revived by a demon witch Urassue with a deep grudge against Inuyasha for his apparent betrayal and supposedly inflicting her with deep, fatal wounds on her chest and left shoulder. She tried to drag Inuyasha to hell as revenge. Later, upon knowing that Naraku was the one who tricked her and Inuyasha to hate each other, Kikyo set her goal to destroy him by allowing the evil man to complete the Shikon Jewel; fragment by fragment and then purify him along with it.

She is killed once more when she got caught in Naraku's trap at the sacred mountain of Mt. Hakurei, where she was struck through with Naraku's venomous tentacles and fell into a river polluted with toxic miasma. She was eventually found in a waterfall, and healed by her own modern-day reincarnation, though only for a short time. After being fatally hurt at the hands of Naraku yet again, she had spent her final moments with Inuyasha before she passed on for a third and final time; her spirit being carried among the twinkling stars by her Soul Collectors.

Sesshomaru

Voiced by: Ken Narita (Japanese); David Kaye (original series, movies, games), Michael Daingerfield (The Final Act) (English)

Sesshomaru (殺生丸, Sesshōmaru) is a powerful dog demon (daiyōkai), feared throughout the feudal era. Born of a great demon bloodline, he is the older half-brother of Inuyasha. Chronologically, he is over 200 years old, while according to the official Inuyasha Profiles guide by Rumiko Takahashi, his appearance is equivalent to that of a 19-year-old male. He appears as a tall and handsome young man. He has fair skin, golden eyes with slit pupils, waist-length white hair (in the anime, his hair reaches as far as his knees), and a purple crescent moon on his forehead. Sesshomaru's true form is that of a giant red-eyed white dog. He produces an acidic poison that is mainly released from his claws in the Dokkasō (毒華爪) attack. While in his true form, the Dokkasō attack is transferred to his fangs.

Sesshomaru holds his father in high esteem for being a powerful demon and desires to take his legendary sword, Tessaiga, for himself. He displayed an animosity towards Inuyasha for being named by their father to have ownership of Tessaiga. However, in order to teach Sesshomaru compassion, his father bestows him Tenseiga (天生牙), a sword that cannot harm the living yet can bring back someone from the dead only once. Because it was a weapon that could not harm, Sesshomaru keeps the weapon as a decorative piece on his person for occasional use. He is accompanied by Jaken and A-Un, and later a human girl Rin after she treated his injuries. He earns his own sword Bakusaiga later in the series along with a newly regenerated left arm. Sesshomaru initially targets Inuyasha due to his obsession with possessing the Tessaiga, but he later shifts his focus to Naraku, his pride having been injured due to Naraku repeatedly manipulating him and Inuyasha against each other and having killed Kagura.

Jaken

Voiced by: Yuichi Nagashima (Japanese); Don Brown (English)

Jaken (邪見, Jaken) is a small green imp-like demon who is extremely loyal to Sesshomaru, often praising his master's greatness, although Sesshomaru usually ignores and sometimes abuses him. Jaken himself is not especially powerful, but he wields the Staff of Two Heads (人頭杖, Nintōjō), a fire-throwing staff that Sesshomaru gives him. The manga explains little about Jaken's past, but the anime shows that Jaken was once a lord among similar demons.

Rin

Voiced by: Mamiko Noto (Japanese); Brenna O'Brien (English)

Rin (りん, Rin) is an eight-year-old orphan girl who is always barefoot. She finds Sesshomaru in the woods beneath a huge tree and tends to his injuries. After witnessing some bandits brutally murder her parents, Rin is sent into a period of shock, only communicating with hand gestures and friendly smiles. Rin is mortally wounded during the wolf demons' raid of her village. Sesshomaru finds Rin's lifeless body and, uncharacteristically revives her using Tenseiga. After this, Rin starts to speak and remains in company with Sesshomaru, Jaken, and A-Un. Despite his established contempt for humans, Sesshomaru continually protects Rin for the rest of the series, even showing genuine grief during The Final Act when Rin's soul is lost in the netherworld, though his mother is able to save her. Throughout the series, she is known for her kindness and loyalty to Sesshomaru, and develops a good relationship with Kohaku over the course of the series.

A-Un

A-Un (阿吽, Aun) is a two-headed dragon demon with some horse-like features and Sesshomaru's beast of burden who is one of two yōkai in the series and is explicitly stated to be a herbivore, like Totosai's ox. Despite traveling with Sesshomaru for centuries, he has no name until Rin gives him one, calling the right head "A" and the left head "Un" (the kanji symbols 阿吽 together translate as "Alpha and Omega"). A-Un can fire yōkai energy from both mouths. The right head shoots blue beams of lightning, while the left shoots green lightning that can control clouds and possibly the weather and has the ability to fly like Sesshomaru. A grey cloud-like gas trails from his legs in flight, similar to Kirara's flames.

Kohaku

Voiced by: Akiko Yajima (Japanese); Alex Doduk (original series eps. 24–101), Danny McKinnon (original series eps. 102–167, movie 2, games), Aidan Drummond (The Final Act) (English)

Kohaku (琥珀, Kohaku) is Sango's eleven-year-old brother who, like his family, is also a demon exterminator. Disguised as a young nobleman, Naraku summons Sango's family and companions to slay a false demon on Kohaku's first day on the job, then controls him with a spider web and makes him kill all of the other exterminators, with Sango surviving solely by sheer luck. While Kohaku is seemingly killed by the castle's guards, Naraku resurrects him as an amnesiac puppet to use against his sister using a shard from the jewel. After several encounters with Sango and her friends, Kohaku begins to recover his painful memories, and seeks to atone for the sins he committed while under Naraku's control by doing whatever he can to kill him. Kagura helps him escape from Naraku, and later joins with Kikyo to use his shard to destroy Naraku. After Kikyo's death, he begins traveling with Sesshomaru's group. During a confrontation with Naraku, the piece of his Shikon Jewel was taken, but Kohaku survived thanks to Kikyo's power allowing him to live. At the end of the series, Kohaku travels with Kirara to continue his demon-slaying job to help those in need.

Demon Wolf Tribe

There are different Demon Wolf Tribes in this show that come from the North and the East. They have a humanoid appearance, pointy ears, and fangs. Most of their outfits are made from fur and are shown to wear instep guards. By the end of the anime, the Demon Wolf Tribes were united into one tribe.

Koga

Voiced by: Taiki Matsuno (Japanese); Scott McNeil (English)

Koga (鋼牙, Kōga) is a wolf demon who is the young leader of the Eastern Wolf Demon Tribe that was nearly wiped out by Kagura and Naraku. He first meets Inuyasha as an opponent in battle, but becomes a reluctant, occasional ally despite maintaining a strong sense of rivalry about their relative combat strengths and the courtship of Kagome. He quickly falls in love with Kagome after kidnapping her because of her kindness and beauty. Inuyasha is always uneasy and jealous during Koga's visits because he worries that Kagome might have feelings for Koga. In this way, Koga has often been the source of Kagome's and Inuyasha's fights. Koga and Inuyasha don't get along, but the two do team up whenever Kagome's life is in danger whenever they go up against Naraku or one of his demons.

Koga later wields a most powerful weapon named Goraishi (五雷指) and carries a sword that he does not often use that he took from a human as "decoration".

Ginta

Voiced by: Hiroyuki Yoshino (Japanese); Paul Dobson (English)

Ginta (銀太, Ginta) is a wolf demon from the Eastern Wolf Demon Tribe that always follows Koga around, alongside Hakkaku. They both deeply worry about Koga and Kagome since she is almost always in trouble with Inuyasha around.

Hakkaku

Voiced by: Daisuke Kishio (Japanese); Alistair Abell (English)

Hakkaku (白角, Hakkaku) is a wolf demon from the Eastern Wolf Demon Tribe that always follows Koga around, alongside Ginta. They both deeply worry about Koga and Kagome since she is almost always in trouble with Inuyasha around.

Kai

Voiced by: Yuka Nishigaki

Kai (灰, Kai) is a wolf demon from the North Wolf Demon Tribe and the older brother of Shinta. His village was attacked by a badger demon that worked for Byakuya, who kidnapped Shinta and coerced him to steal Koga's jewel shards from him. In the epilogue of the anime, Kai was present when Koga and Ayame have their wedding.

Shinta

Voiced by: Momoko Saitō

Shinta (芯太, Shinta) is a young wolf demon from the North Wolf Demon Tribe and the younger brother of Kai. His village was attacked by a badger demon that worked for Byakuya. Byakuya kidnapped and held Shinta captive to coerce Kai to steal Koga's jewel shards, in exchange for his little brother's safety. In the epilogue of the anime, Shinta was present when Koga and Ayame have their wedding.

Ayame

Voiced by: Yumi Kakazu (Japanese); Natalie Walters (English)

Ayame (菖蒲, Ayame) is a red-haired wolf demon that appears only in the anime. She is the granddaughter of the North Wolf Demon Tribe's leader. Koga once saved her from the Birds of Paradise and promised to marry her when she got older. In the epilogue of the anime, Ayame finally got married to Koga.

Antagonists

Naraku

Voiced by: Hiroshi Yanaka (first appearance), Toshiyuki Morikawa (formal form) (Japanese); Paul Dobson (English)

Naraku (奈落, Naraku, litt. "Hell") is the main antagonist of the series, having caused the misery of most of the main cast. He was born fifty years ago from the desires of a gravely burned bandit named Onigumo (鬼蜘蛛, "Spider Demon"), who was found by Kikyo who tended to his wounds. As the injuries had severely crippled him, Onigumo forms a pact with the surrounding demons attracted to his darkness to consume him in return for his soul to occupy a new body created from their merged bodies so that he could satisfy his frustrated lust for Kikyo. However, with Onigumo buried deep in his subconscious, the newly born Naraku acted against his human self's desire as he arranged for Kikyo's demise and her falling out with Inuyasha in the expectation that events would corrupt the Shikon Jewel. When Kikyo had the jewel burned with her corpse, Naraku bides his time until the Shikon Jewel is brought back to the feudal era by the priestess's reincarnation, Kagome Higurashi.

While Naraku originally appears in the form of a hooded figure wearing a robe made from a baboon pelt, which is also utilized by his Golems (傀儡, Kugutsu), he later permanently assumes the guise of the young lord Kagewaki Hitomi (人見蔭刀).

Naraku's basic abilities are shape shifting and absorbing his opponents, later gaining new abilities as he enhances himself over the course of the series. Unlike other half-demons, Naraku can choose what time of the month he loses his demonic powers where he is reduced to a human head attached to multiple demons. Much to his distaste, Naraku permanently has a spider-shaped birthmark on his back that is a constant reminder of the humanity that constitutes his being. Naraku possesses several poisonous abilities, such as producing a deadly miasma (瘴気, shōki) and the poisonous Saimyōshō (最猛勝) wasps, the latter used chiefly to prevent Miroku from uncovering his Wind Tunnel.

It is revealed near the end of the series that the Demon of the Shikon Jewel has been the true enemy of the entire story, manipulating Naraku as an instrument he created to assure his continued existence.

Demon of the Shikon Jewel

Voiced by:

Demon of the Shikon Jewel (四魂の玉を生み出した合体妖怪, Combined Yōkai Spawned by the Shikon no Tama) is the incredibly powerful dragon yōkai created from numerous demons from ancient time that battled the priestess Midoriko before forcing the priestess to trap their souls in what became the Shikon Jewel. From his spirit was born the evil called Magatsuhi.

In the manga, he was created when many minor demons possessed a mortal man who secretly desired Midoriko and formed into one demon in order to kill her, similar to how Onigumo loved Kikyō and created Naraku. However, unlike to Naraku, he was not a half-demon but a full demon completely devoid of human feelings. In fact, while Onigumo's deadly body was completely devoured by demons and his evil soul used as their adhesive, the human who loved Midoriko was only incorporated on the base of the dragon's neck, where you can see only his head and right hand.

It was only after Naraku's death that he reveals the Shikon Jewel's intention to trap Naraku and Kagome, then replacing him and Midoriko, to prolong its existence. Then, after Naraku's death, he became the ultimate enemy of Inuyasha inside the jewel: he has been the true enemy of the entire story, manipulating Naraku as nothing more than an instrument he created to assure his continued existence. In fact, while being the main antagonist, Naraku himself has never found happiness and wanted Kikyo's love. He had promised to satisfy Naraku's desire once the jewel had been completed, but in reality he did nothing but manipulate him to his liking. In fact, once the jewel has been completed, he did not satisfy this desire.

Inuyasha fights through him to reach Kagome before holding the composing demons off. In the manga, he is destroyed forever by Inuyasha when he cuts the point of light in the darkness inside the Shikon Jewel with Meido Zangetsuha, which is the key to destroy the jewel's evil. In fact, with Inuyasha's attack at this very point, the purity of the Jewel called Naohi annihilates forever the evil corrupting presence within it, then the Jewel's shimmering and voice completely stopped. Instead, in the anime version, Kagome destroys the demon for good when she made a selfless wish for the Shikon Jewel to be erased from existence.

Magatsuhi

Voiced by: Takeshi Kusao (Japanese); Michael Dobson (English)

Magatsuhi (曲霊, Magatsuhi) is the evil corrupting presence within the Shikon Jewel, born from the spirit of the dragon demon, that caused various events in the series. His existence is eventually made known to Inuyasha's group when Naraku gave him a temporary human-like body to act through to assist in the restoration of the Shikon Jewel with the personal goal to completely defile it. As it would later be revealed, Magatsuhi is responsible for sealing Kagome's full spiritual power out of fear of the girl being a threat to him. After losing his temporary body due to Bakusaiga, Magatsuhi resorts to bodily possessions before being stopped by Inuyasha with Dragon-scaled Tessaiga and killed by Sesshomaru with Tenseiga during the final battle against Naraku.

Naraku's incarnations

After acquiring enough Shikon Jewel shards, Naraku gained the ability to create new demons from his being that are technically his "offspring". However, each is treated by Naraku as expendable minions; tools to use as he wishes. He manipulated some of his earliest creations through threatening to destroy their disembodied hearts should they betray him. Eight detachments were directly created by Naraku within the series' storyline.

Kanna

Voiced by: Yukana (Japanese); Janyse Jaud (English)

Kanna (神無, Kan'na) is Naraku's first detachment, appearing in the form of a ten-year-old girl in white. Kanna is the only person that Naraku trusts with important information about his actions, allowing her to dictate in his stead. As a "concealed incarnation" of Naraku, Kanna has no scent or demonic aura, which makes her undetectable to Inuyasha, Miroku and Kagome, and immune to demonic aura-related effects such as the Hakurei barrier. She also is nice to Kagura and informative of Naraku's warnings. She is immune to the Infant's ability to read hearts to know what someone is truly thinking, but possesses thoughts and feelings of her own.

Kanna carries a demonic mirror that can act as a crystal ball for scrying and steal souls of those reflected in it. Once a soul is trapped by her mirror, she can control that person's body to carry out her bidding.

Kagura

Voiced by: Izumi Ōgami (Japanese); Janyse Jaud (English)

Kagura (神楽, Kagura) is Naraku's second detachment, although she is introduced before her "elder sister" Kanna. As a wind witch who is always barefoot, Kagura uses a fan to enhance her powers where she can create a blade-like tornado or use wind to animate dead bodies. She can also use her feather hair-ornaments as transportation, enlarging them to ride in the wind. Though initially cold and calculating, Kagura despises Naraku more than she does his enemies, because he possesses her disembodied heart and uses it as a means to punish her or remind her of her place. As a result, Kagura's desire to be free leads her to covertly aid both Inuyasha and Sesshomaru, developing feelings for the latter, in hopes that they can kill Naraku for her so that she can reclaim her heart. As time goes on, Kagura becomes much more sympathetic and caring toward Inuyasha and even more hostile toward Naraku and his minions. She is ultimately killed by Naraku moments after he returns her heart, but dies content that she got to see Sesshomaru one last time and that she is free.

Goshinki

Voiced by: Masaharu Satō (Japanese); Michael Kopsa (English)

Goshinki (悟心鬼, Goshinki) is Naraku's third detachment, a large oni with two horns extending from its head, as well as spikes protruding from his elbows. He extremely agile for his size; however, his most dangerous ability is reading minds, which he uses to avoid dangerous situations and exploit his enemies' weaknesses. When Goshinki breaks Tessaiga, he provides Inuyasha's demon lineage the opportunity to take over. Goshinki struggles to read the now feral and blood-lustful Inuyasha before he is completely ripped apart with only his head remaining. Goshinki's head is then found by Sesshomaru, who momentary revives the demon so his fangs can be used by Totosai's expelled apprentice, Kaijinbo (灰刃坊, Kaijinbō), to create the cursed blade Tōkijin.

Juromaru and Kageromaru

Voiced by: Takumi Yamazaki (Japanese); Brian Drummond (English)

Juromaru (獣郎丸, Jūrōmaru) and Kageromaru (影郎丸, Kagerōmaru) are respectively Naraku's fourth and fifth incarnations, but are extremely dangerous. While the more human-like Juromaru is like a berserker who is normally shackled with a mask covering his mouth, the parasitic Kageromaru uses his sickled arms to kill Naraku before being placed in his brother's stomach. Acting through a puppet, Naraku later removes the restraints on Juromaru so he and Kageromaru can slaughter Inuyasha's group and Koga; however, the two fail and are killed.

Muso

Voiced by: Hiroshi Yanaka (Japanese), Paul Dobson (English, Onigumo), Brian Dobson (English, Muso)

While technically Naraku's sixth incarnation, Muso (無双, Musō) is actually Onigumo himself. Originally faceless and without memory of his past, Onigumo took the face and name of a wandering monk. Eventually with Kagura watching on Naraku's order, Muso ventures to Kikyo's former village and regains his memories of Onigumo and desires for Kikyo. He sees Kagome with Inuyasha and fights in order to possess Kagome. However, as the demons composing his body are beginning to break away because his human aspect is removed, Naraku is left with no choice but to reabsorb Muso back into his body.

The Infant and Moryomaru

Infant voiced by: Ai Kobayashi (Japanese), Chiara Zanni (English)
Moryomaru voiced by: Masaki Terasoma (Japanese), Ross Douglas (English)

The Infant (赤子, Akago) is Naraku's heart and seventh detachment, appearing in the form of a human baby yet can speak fluently and control people with the darkness in their own hearts. It is later revealed that the Infant's appearance was intentional by Naraku as he expected the detachment to be as devious as himself. His goal was to use Kagome to find the remaining shards of the Shikon Jewel. He finds her jealousy of Inuyasha's feelings for Kikyo, but Inuyasha saves her before the Infant can control her. Because the Infant possesses his heart, Naraku had the infant placed under much protection. Over time, however, the Infant and Hakudoshi conspired to destroy Naraku while making themselves the dominant aspect of his being.

To that end, Hakudoshi provides the Infant with Moryomaru (魍魎丸, Mōryōmaru), a 100-foot-long (30 m) demonic golem created from demons who was briefly sealed in the body of a monk named Goryomaru (御霊丸, Goryōmaru) before assimilating the human's body after he was killed by Hakudoshi. While Moryomaru was originally a puppet, he gains a mind of his own when the Infant is placed inside of him. Acting as a medium of the Infant's will to become a dominant aspect of Naraku, Moryomaru goes to absorb different demons to increase his power to the point of nearly defeating most of Naraku's enemies when they ganged up on him as he destroyed Tokijin before running off. However, Moryomaru meets his end when tricked into absorbing Naraku, enabling him to reabsorb the Infant and consume Moryomaru from the inside out.

Hakudoshi

Voiced by: Ai Kobayashi (Japanese); Chiara Zanni (English)

While indirectly Naraku's eighth detachment referring to himself as the embodiment of his "essence", Hakudoshi (白童子, Hakudōshi) is actually created from the right half of the Infant when he was severed in half by the power of a dying monk and matured into a barefoot boy who is extremely dexterous and proficient with a halberd and other handheld weapons. As they were originally one, Hakudoshi possesses many the Infant's abilities while unable to be killed directly as he does not possesses Naraku's heart. Hakudoshi also acquired the demon horse Entei before the steed was killed by Inuyasha. Like Naraku himself, Hakudoshi is sadistic and loves to cause chaos

Byakuya

Voiced by: Mitsuaki Madono (Japanese); Michael Adamthwaite (English)

Byakuya of the Illusions (夢幻の白夜, Mugen no Byakuya) is Naraku's final detachment created for the sole purpose of acting during Naraku's final moments, a moth-Demon who uses illusions and origami magic while able to detach his left eye to serve as recon. As Byakuya was designed to only exist as long as Naraku lives, his body can be severely damaged when Naraku suffers mortal injuries. Originally, his purpose is to observe Inuyasha and Moryomaru's growing powers and report back to Naraku, gradually becoming more active in his creator's plans. During Inuyasha's final battle with Naraku, Byakuya uses the bladeless sword he carried on his person to absorb Inuyasha's stray Meido Zangetsuha to carry out his task: slashing Kagome with time delayed Meido that would activate upon Naraku's death. Though hit by Inuyasha's Meido Zangetsuha at point blank range, Byakuya accepts his fate as he achieved his purpose.

Entei

Entei (炎蹄) is a fire-breathing horse yōkai that obeys only the most powerful of yōkai. The anime gives some insight into Entei's background which was completely unexplored in the manga. Entei first appears to a rather powerful halberd-wielding ogre demon named Rengokuki who fought off hordes of demons with ease and had a strong will. Recognizing his strength, Entei offers him his servitude and the two become a feared duo. He was destroyed by Inuyasha.

The Band of Seven

The Band of Seven (七人隊, Shichinintai) were group of human mercenaries that were killed a long time ago. They are resurrected undead manipulated by Naraku through Shikon Jewel shards to hold off his enemies during his time at Mount Hakurei.

Kyokotsu

Voiced by: Daisuke Gōri (Japanese); Dave "Squatch" Ward (English)

Kyokotsu (凶骨, Kyōkotsu) is a giant who happens to be both the largest of the Band of Seven and the weakest. Though human, Kyokotsu has developed a taste for demons. Kyokotsu terrorizes the wolf-demon tribes before being defeated by Koga in battle, who pulls out his Shikon shard and returns him to the dead.

Jakotsu

Voiced by: Ai Orikasa (Japanese); Jenn Forgie (English)

Jakotsu (蛇骨, Jakotsu) is the Band of Seven's third-in-command and Bankotsu's most trusted ally. A gay homicidal woman-hater, who wears women's kimonos and who sadistically kills his male opponents as a sign of affection. Jakotsu is armed with a snake-like sword which has segmented retractable blades that reach a great distance and bend at a moment's notice, making it difficult for an opponent to calculate his next move. When Inuyasha and his group arrive at Mount Hakurei, Jakotsu battles Inuyasha until he is defeated. The fight leaves Jakotsu severely weakened and Renkotsu uses the opportunity to steal his Shikon shard.

Mukotsu

Voiced by: Tetsu Inada (Japanese); Trevor Devall (English)

Mukotsu (霧骨, Mukotsu) is a short man who acts as the Band of Seven's poison maker, concealing his face behind a veil. He abducts Kagome out of lust, attempting to rape her (the anime depicts him initiating a wedding ceremony before Miroku and Sango come to their friend's aid). Though he succeeds in poisoning the human heroes, Mukotsu is killed by Sesshomaru.

Renkotsu

Voiced by: Tomokazu Sugita (Japanese); Brian Drummond (English)

Renkotsu (煉骨, Renkotsu) is the second-in-command of the Band of Seven that often uses wires and fire, which he spews from his mouth, and later a hand cannon. Renkotsu is the band's most intelligent member and secretly acts against Bankotsu by stealing their comrades' Shikon shards for his use. When Bankotsu learns of this, he kills Renkotsu.

Ginkotsu

Voiced by: Hisao Egawa (Japanese); Mark Gibbon (English)

Ginkotsu (銀骨, Ginkotsu) is a cyborg-like member of the Band of Seven, with a slew of different weapons, such as saw blades and a firearm on his back. Renkotsu maintains Ginkotsu's mechanical body, before it is destroyed by Inuyasha. Renkotsu then rebuilds Ginkotsu into a tank-like body. Eventually, Koga causes Ginkotsu to self-destruct by clogging his cannon with a piece of Renkotsu's armor. Ginkotsu's jewel shard is subsequently used by Renkotsu to heal his wounds.

Suikotsu

Voiced by: Hiroaki Hirata (Japanese); Michael Donovan (English)

Suikotsu (睡骨, Suikotsu) was originally a physician who developed a blood thirsty second persona and is armed with artificial iron claws. After being revived, Suikotsu's good side attempts to live a normal life before his alter ego assumes control at the coaxing of his comrades. At one point, Suikotsu returns to the village with his normal "good" appearance, but is still violent and willing to kill.

Bankotsu

Voiced by: Takeshi Kusao (Japanese); Matt Hill (English)

Bankotsu (蛮骨, Bankotsu) is the leader of the Band of Seven, and its youngest and strongest member. Though a skilled mercenary who killed many people, Bankotsu retains a sense of honor and compassion where his comrades are concerned. Bankotsu carries the Zanbatō-like halberd Banryu (蛮竜, Banryū), a weapon he reclaims by attacking the daimyō who executed the band. Defeated by Inuyasha by slicing him in half based on the manga series, and when Banryu's power was reflected by Inuyasha's Bakuryuuha attack.

Supporting characters

Feudal Japan characters

Hachiemon

Voiced by: Toshihiko Nakajima (Japanese); Terry Klassen (English)

Hachiemon (八衛門, Hachiemon), otherwise known as simply Hachi, is a tanuki from Awa who serves Miroku. His basic abilities are low and he has no weapons or skills for battle. He is an unremarkable being, but he understands Miroku well. Although Hachi is Miroku's servant, he often does not travel with him. Since he is a tanuki, he has the ability to transform. If he puts a leaf on his head and transforms, he can assume the form of a giant yellow gourd. He can fly in this state. When he runs away, he can lay down a smoke screen to deceive enemies.

Kaede

Voiced by: Hisako Kyoda (Japanese), Pam Hyatt (English, original series, movies, games), Linda Darlow (English, The Final Act)

Kaede (楓, Kaede) is Kikyo's younger sister that assisted her with various tasks, such as gathering herbs or holding her quiver of arrows. After Kikyo's death, Kaede became an unusually strong shrine priestess in her own right and defends the village against demons. When Kagome arrives, Kaede recognizes her as the modern-day reincarnation of Kikyo. After Kagome frees Inuyasha, Kaede puts the "Subjugation Beads" onto him to give Kagome the ability to control him with a mere spoken word: "Sit." Kaede is highly respected by the villagers and the members of Inuyasha's group, and she often advises them about demons and other spiritual anomalies. Though Inuyasha is easily annoyed by her, he listens to her when necessary and does not hesitate to protect her from a threat. Kaede loses her right eye sometime during her life and wears an eyepatch over it. Supplementary information states that she "lost her elder sister and her eye in an incident fifty years ago."[2]

In the anime, she loses her eye while helping defend the village from a demon attack shortly before the Shikon Jewel incident. Kikyo's powers weakened after falling in love with Inuyasha and in her state, she still tried to defend the village during a demon attack. A demon began attacking Kaede from behind and Kikyo fired an arrow at the demon. The demon broke into pieces from the arrow and a piece of the debris pierced Kaede's eye. In The Final Act, Kikyo's spirit appears before Kaede in a vision, apologizing for the suffering she caused her younger sister. When the vision ends, Kaede is in tears, thinking of all the years she lost with the sister she loved so much, and regrets not being able to do anything to help her.

Three years later after Naraku's defeat, Rin lives with Kaede in the village to become accustomed to living alongside other humans. While having been present when Sango gave birth to a baby boy, Kaede is also training Kagome to become a full priestess.

Myoga

Voiced by: Kenichi Ogata (Japanese); Paul Dobson (English)

Myoga (冥加, Myōga) is a flea demon who appears randomly and gives Inuyasha information on current events, foes, and the shards of the Shikon Jewel. Assigned to protect Tetsusaiga's hiding place in the grave of Inuyasha's father, he runs away when Sesshomaru comes there in search of the sword. Myoga often flees before or during a battle, which the others recognize as a sign of pending danger; his mere presence in any area is enough to determine its safety. Myoga enjoys drinking demon blood, and actually saves Inuyasha's life at one point by drinking a spider demon's venom out of his blood. He can save the others in a similar manner, but often gets slapped for drinking their blood without permission. In the anime, he is engaged to another flea demon named Shoga, but continually runs from her to avoid the marriage.

Totosai

Voiced by: Jōji Yanami (Japanese); Richard Newman (English)

Totosai (刀々斎, Tōtōsai) is an elderly blacksmith and the creator of Tessaiga and Tenseiga, from the fangs of his old friend, the Great Dog General, who entrusted him to help his two sons. As Inuyasha grows stronger and Sesshomaru grows more compassionate, they become more capable of mastering their respective swords, which Totosai strengthens accordingly. He spends most of his time at his forge inside a volcano, but sometimes travels elsewhere on a flying three-eyed ox named Mo-Mo (猛々). Totosai often appears to be a cowardly, absent-minded old man, but he has the strength to pause an attack from Sesshomaru long enough to allow Inuyasha to get away; he can breathe fire and his long forge hammer can open large fire pits in the ground. At the end of the manga, he continues his role as a blacksmith as seen when giving Kohaku a new weapon.

Jinenji

Voiced by: Hisao Egawa (Japanese); Michael Dobson (English)

Jinenji (地念児, Jinenji) is a half-demon who lives in a hut with his human mother. Together, they grow a variety of medicinal plants, including some known for being powerful against poisons. He is first seen when Kirara is poisoned by Naraku's miasma and Inuyasha and Kagome travel to the village to find a cure. Because of his demon blood, the villagers falsely suspect him of killing people, but Jinenji is a gentle giant who is scared of humans because of the way they treat him. He is surprised when Kagome is not frightened by his appearance at all and willingly helps him collect herbs. Jineji also holds a crush on Kagome and loves Kagome's warm smile. Shunned and abused by humans during his own childhood as a half-demon, Inuyasha attempts to convince Jinenji that he needs to be more forceful towards the villagers, especially after he rescues them from the demon who really committed the murders. In the end, Jinenji decides to continue his more gentle approach, giving healing herbs to the men injured during the demon attack. Like Inuyasha, Jinenji becomes fully human once a month. During one of these times in the anime, Rin visits his home searching for the same cure to heal Jaken, who was poisoned by the wasps while protecting her. At the end of The Final Act, Jinenji teaches Kagome about herbs and medicine as part of her training to be a full priestess.

Shiori

Voiced by: Kaori Mizuhashi (Japanese); Nicole Bouma (English)

Shiori (紫織, Shiori) is a half-demon who was born from a human mother named Shizu and a bat demon father named Tsukuyomaru. She helps grant Inuyasha's Tessaiga the ability to break Naraku's barrier after he saves her from the demon bats.

Goryomaru

Voiced by: Masaki Terasoma (Japanese); Ross Douglas (English)

Goryomaru (御霊丸, Goryōmaru) was a monk who lived in an old temple with a group of orphaned kids. The children, whose parents were killed by demons, were rescued by him and were taken care of. Goryomaru was attacked by a demon which tried to "absorb" him. While trying to overpower the demon, his arm got replaced by the demon's laser-shooting cannon-like arm.

The children he rescued are his followers as well and employ rechargeable urn-like weapons (which resemble Goryomaru's arm) to fight and exorcise demons. The monk and the children's slaughtering of demons capture the attention of Kagura who finds the temple and attacks it. She retreats after being badly hurt by Goryomaru's beam. Following this, Hakudoshi finds Goryomaru and kills him by cutting his throat. Later, Goryomaru is revived by Naraku and is fused with Moryomaru.

Sesshomaru's mother

Voiced by: Yoshiko Sakakibara (Japanese); Lisa Ann Beley (English)

Sesshōmaru's Mother (殺生丸母, Sesshōmaru no Haha) is a powerful dog yōkai who was the first wife of the Dog General. While she is similar to her son Sesshomaru in demeanor, she is somehow kind-hearted with a certain playfulness about her. Like Sesshomaru, she has the ability to transform into a giant dog demon. After the Dog General's death, entrusted with a Meido Stone that allows her to open a path to the underworld and revive the dead, Sesshōmaru's Mother takes residence in a large palace in the sky. When Sesshōmaru's Mother is visited by her son over the matter of Tenseiga and the Meido Zangetsuha, having waited for her role in the Dog General's plan to enable her son to stand out of his father's shadow, she carries out her lover's plan by using the Meido Stone to place Sesshomaru in the underworld for a test. Though Sesshomaru passed the trail to understand that Tenseiga is a weapon of healing and life that can be used by one who is compassionate towards others, it costs Rin her life. Sesshōmaru's Mother, seeing Sesshomaru deeply cares for the girl as the Dog General did for Izayoi, proceeds to revive Rin with the Meido Stone. Ultimately, Sesshomaru's Mother succeeds in teaching her son to value the lives of others and set him on the path his father intended.

Dog General

Voiced by: Akio Otsuka (Japanese); Don Brown (English)

The Dog General (犬の大將, Inu no Taisho) was an extremely powerful yōkai lord who ruled the Western Lands, and was known throughout Japan. Never formally addressed with a name, he fathered two sons by two different mothers: Sesshomaru from his consort, a dog demoness, and Inuyasha from a human woman named Izayoi. The Dog General is first mentioned in chapter twelve of the manga as Inuyasha's father, "a demon dog that prowled the lands of the west." The Dog General possesses the power to absorb his enemies' attacks and make them his own, such as gaining the Meido Zangetsuha ability from Shishinki. Prior to his death, Myoga explaining that the fight played a part in his death, the Dog General sealed Ryukotsusei after being unable to kill him. The gateway to the Dog General's tomb is hidden in a black pearl (a mystical gem that creates a path between the mortal and spirit worlds) inside Inuyasha's right eye. Within the pearl, the Dog General's body is shown as an enormous dog skeleton in a suit of armor, serving a shrine where Tetsusaiga, a weapon created from his fang, was placed before Inuyasha could claim it. Over the course of the series, his sons having been in constant conflict because of succession, the Dog General was revealed to have secretly planned the events that would allow Inuyasha to inherit a perfected Meido Zangetsuha and to be able to make peace with Sesshomaru who would be able to finally stand out of their father's shadow.

Izayoi

Voiced by: Kikuko Inoue (Japanese); Alaina Burnett (English)

Izayoi (十六夜, Izayoi) was a gentle, beautiful human, who is the daughter of an impoverished noble house. She loved the Dog General and was saddened that the young Inuyasha was shunned for his half-demon status. Little else is revealed about her family, age, or even how she died, with Inuyasha only noting that she died "a long time ago" and that her manner of death "wasn't her fault." Upon her death, Inuyasha inherits the Robe of the Fire Rat, which the Dog General gave Izayoi to protect her on the night Inuyasha was born, and a shell containing Izayoi's favorite lip coloring, which he gives to Kikyo in the anime.[3][4]

In Inuyasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler (not directly based on the manga series), on the night of Inuyasha's birth, she was a captive of Takemaru of Setsuna and his samurai, who plan to lure the Great Dog Demon into coming to rescue her so they can kill him. Izayoi pleads with Takemaru to leave and save his own life, but Takemaru claims he loves her and stabs her through the chest with a spear. Before dying, she gives birth to Inuyasha. The Dog General, being injured by Ryūkotsusei, fights his way through Takemaru's men and the burning building to reach his dead lover and his newborn child. He uses the Tenseiga to restore her to life, then covers her with the Robe of the Fire Rat and orders her to flee. The Dog General names their son Inuyasha and before Izayoi flees to safety, leaving her lover to fight against Takemaru to the death.

Hosenki

Voiced by: Ryūzaburō Ōtomo (Japanese); Dave Pettitt (English)

Hosenki (宝仙鬼, Hōsenki) is an oyster-demon who cultivates a variety of magical jewels. He created the black pearl in Inuyasha's right eye that enabled Sesshomaru to travel to his father's grave and try to steal Tessaiga, the sword his father willed to Inuyasha. Needing to return to the netherworld later in the series, Inuyasha's group seeks out Hosenki, but learn that he has died and his namesake son cannot make the gems yet. He tells Inuyasha that he must wait a hundred years before he can make the gems. They find another path to the netherworld where they find the departed Hosenki sitting among the bones of the Dog General's body. However, he has been corrupted by a tainted shard of the Shikon Jewel and attacks Inuyasha. After Naraku reclaims his shard, Hosenki returns to normal and gives Inuyasha the use of "Adamant Barrage", an attack gained by Inuyasha's loyalty to his friends and lack of greed.

Midoriko

Midoriko (翠子, Midoriko) was an extremely powerful priestess who lived centuries before the events of the series. She was well known for her vastly strong spiritual abilities, more specifically her ability to purify demon souls and spirits, rendering them completely powerless. It was because of this ability that she was both hated and feared by demons. In her final battle, she was ambushed by many yōkai. The battle lasted for seven days and nights and eventually a yōkai, created when many yōkai possessed a mortal man who secretly desired Midoriko, captured her in his jaws. In one final attempt to defeat the demon, she pulled his soul into her body - fusing it with her own soul - and then expelled them both simultaneously. Both the demon and Midoriko died, but their souls combined to give birth to the Shikon Jewel. Midoriko and the demon remained imprisoned within the Jewel and continued to battle ever since.

In the ending, when Inuyasha entered the jewel, he finally saw Midoriko herself and witnessed her to help him fighting and defeating a huge amount of demons then disappearing and never returning. In the manga, the demon's desire expressed by Naraku dissolved forever her soul in order to prepare the place for Kagome. In fact, after her disappearance, the demons tells to Inuyasha that her battle with them has lasted for hundreds of years since the Shikon Jewel was born, and Kagome will continue it from here. Furthermore, as soon as the light dies, the huge spider web with Naraku's dead soul instantly appears. Then, Inuyasha became her true successor in the ancient fight against the demon. Instead, in the anime series, after Kagome makes her wish to destroy the jewel and also stop its plan to replace the demon and Midoriko with Naraku and herself, Midoriko ceased her fighting and disappeared along with the demons she fought, implying that her battle had finally ended and she was allowed to move on to the afterlife.

Modern Japan characters

Kagome's family

Mrs. Higurashi

Voiced by: Asako Dodo (Japanese); Cathy Weseluck (English)

Mrs. Higurashi is the mother of Kagome and Sota. She is never given a name. The novel Shousetsu Inuyasha reveals that her husband, Kagome's father, was killed in a car accident when Kagome was five years old. Since then, she was widowed and left to take care of her two children, with the help of her father-in-law. She is very supportive of Kagome and welcoming to Inuyasha. She helps Kagome by taking care of the lunches and dinners for her to bring to Inuyasha's world for them to share with her friends. She does not appear to mind Kagome spending long periods of time in the feudal era.

Sota Higurashi

Voiced by: Akiko Nakagawa (Japanese); Saffron Henderson (original series seasons 1–5, movies 1 & 2), Rebecca Shoichet (original series season 6, movie 3, The Final Act) (English)

Sota Higurashi (日暮草太, Higurashi Sōta) is Kagome's younger brother, with whom she has a typical brother-sister relationship. He looks up to Inuyasha as an older brother figure.

Grandpa

Voiced by: Ginzo Matsuo (original series seasons 1–2, movies 1 & 2), Katsumi Suzuki (original series seasons 3–6, Movie 3, The Final Act) (Japanese); French Tickner (English)

Grandpa (じいちゃん, Jiichan) is the grandfather of Kagome and Sota and Kagome's mother's father-in-law. Grandpa often covers for Kagome's prolonged absences at school with interesting, and often absurd, excuses, which make Kagome's friends worry a lot about her.

Kagome's friends

Hojo

Voiced by: Yuuji Ueda (Japanese); Matt Smith (Original Series and Movies), David A. Kaye (The Final Act) (English)

Hojo (北条, Hōjō) is a school friend of Kagome who has a crush on her. Kagome's school friends think that they should be together, but Kagome, while she is attracted to him, never took the dates he asked her on seriously, even though she agreed and every single time would either forget or bail out on the dates so that she could go back to the feudal era to be with Inuyasha. Hojo is always under the pretense that Kagome has a fatal illness, due to the excuses Kagome's grandfather tells in order to keep Kagome out of school for long periods of time while she is in the Feudal Era. Because of this, Hojo is frequently seen giving Kagome traditional remedies and supplies for her various fictional illnesses. Sometimes, her grandfather uses the gifts from Hojo on himself. In the ending of The Final Act, Hojo is seen dating his college classmate after the series ended.

Ayumi

Voiced by: Nanami Okamoto (Japanese); Cathy Weseluck (English)

Ayumi (あゆみ, Ayumi) is one of Kagome's friends from the modern era. She has wavy shoulder-length black hair. Being the naive, optimistic, gentle one of the three, she is the only one of the group to express support for Kagome's relationship with Inuyasha.

Eri

Voiced by: Yuki Masuda (Japanese); Saffron Henderson (original series seasons 1–5, movies 1 & 2), Rebecca Shoichet (original series season 6, movie 3, The Final Act) (English)

Eri (絵理, Eri) is one of Kagome's friends from the modern era. She has straight shoulder-length black hair and is frequently shown wearing a yellow headband. Like Yuka, she is very outspoken and concerned with Kagome's relationship health, and because of this, she never hesitates to give her opinion on Kagome's potential boyfriends (Hojo and Inuyasha).

Yuka

Voiced by: Kaori Shimizu (Japanese); Jillian Michaels (English)

Yuka (由加, Yuka) is one of Kagome's friends from the modern era. Yuka has neck-length brown hair. Being the most outspoken of the three, as well as being very sharp-witted, she often expresses concern over Kagome's relationship with her "delinquent boyfriend," Inuyasha.

References

  1. ↑ "Animation 24th Grand Prix [June 2002 Issue]." Animage Archived 2008-09-15 at the Wayback Machine.. June 2002. June 24, 2008 "Animation 24th Grand Prix June 2002 issue Archived 2009-04-08 at the Wayback Machine.(In Japanese)
  2. ↑ Takahashi, Rumiko (2007). InuYasha Profiles. Viz Media. ISBN 978-1-4215-1346-1.
  3. ↑ "The Tragic Love Song of Destiny (Part 1)". InuYasha. Episode 147.
  4. ↑ "The Tragic Love Song of Destiny (Part 2)". InuYasha. Episode 147.
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