Chapter 22

Plea for Mercy is the 22nd chapter of the InuYasha manga.

Summary

 * Kagome & Nobunaga convince Inuyasha not to kill the Tsukumo no Gama, because Tsuyu's husband is still inside him.
 * Kagome uses her hairspray as a flamethrower, making the Toad flee the lord's body.
 * Inuyasha kills the Tsukumo no Gama and gets another shard of the sacred jewel.

Synopsis

 * Inuyasha lays unconscious after being run through with the Tsukumo no Gama's tongue. Kagome asks Myōga what his solution is for releasing the lord from the Toad's possession. The flea says that even if the Tsukumo no Gama is a demon, he's still a toad, and toads are vulnerable to heat. He says she needs to douse the Tsukumo no Gama with boiling water, then his toad self will jump out from the Lord's body. Kagome is irritated by the suggestion, because getting boiling water in a situation like this might be a bit difficult. Myōga says hot oil will work as well. Kagome also finds this suggestion annoying.
 * The Tsukumo no Gama tries to devour Kagome, but she's rescued by an injured Nobunaga. The young samurai holds the toad back and tells Kagome to run away and go boil some water while he stalls the Tsukumo no Gama. Before she goes, Kagome shouts for Inuyasha to wake up, and when the half-demon regains conscientiousness, he calls them all 'soft sentimental fools', adding that maybe he's the stupidest of them all for letting her convince him not to kill the lord. Done playing games, Inuyasha draws his Tessaiga and tells Nobunaga to step aside, but the warrior refuses since Tsuyu's husband is still trapped in the Tsukumo no Gama's body. He also says he overheard what Kagome said earlier; that Inuyasha's sword won't harm a human. Nobunaga says the Tsukumo no Gama possessed the lord, who is human, and Inuyasha sighs, knowing his fang-blade can only work for the benefit of humans. Nobunaga goes on to say that they're living in brutal times, and sometimes violence is the only answer, but he says he simply cannot agree to the killing of an innocent man, no matter what the circumstances. Inuyasha sheathes his Tessaiga, but says he won't lift a finger after this point; Kagome & Nobunaga can deal with the toad on their own. "Feh. We'll see how long you last with your ideals."
 * The Tsukumo no Gama breaks free of Nobunaga's grip, and Kagome calls out for Inuyasha's help, but the half-demon doesn't budge, griping "If I help, the lord will die." Kagome grabs Tsuyu and the two of them run away from the Tsukumo no Gama into the castle hall. Once again, Myōga says they need to find something hot, if they use it on the toad, his demon-spirit will flee from the Lord's body. Nobunaga tries to stall the demon, but gets impaled by the demon-toad's tongue yet again.Inuyasha leans down to see if he's okay, but rolls his eyes when the samurai says "Don't kill him."
 * Hiyoshimaru, Nobunaga's monkey servant, rushes to Kagome with a candle; something she can use as heat to drive the demon from Tsuyu's husband. Suddenly, she gets whipped by the Tsukumo no Gama's tongue and the contents of her backpack spill all over the floor.22Manga.jpg
 * Inuyasha arrives and says he's done standing idly by, especially now that Kagome is in peril. Inuyasha dashes over and is about to slay the toad with his claws. Kagome sees a can of hairspray that fell out of her bag and then gets an idea. Just in the nick of time, she sits Inuyasha, making him fall to the floor. Kagome then points the hairspray through the candle, creating a flamethrower and burning the Tsukumo no Gama. Then, the demon-toad's spirit flees its vessel and Kagome yells to Inuyasha to get the jewel. He kills the demon, releasing the lord of his possession.  Tsuyu says "Oh, Nobunaga, thank you." and then she runs in his direction, and he rushes over to embrace her, only to see her ignore him and hug her husband instead. This makes Nobunaga feel rejected.
 * Later, Nobunaga is depressed, because he didn't get the girl in the end. Inuyasha calls Nobunaga stupid because he went out his way to save the life of his only romantic rival. If he'd let the lord die, he probably would have gotten Tsuyu. The samurai calls himself a fool and looks at the ground in anguish. Inuyasha shrugs and says "But you did save a man's life, didn't you? So that's something, I guess." Nobunaga is grateful to Inuyasha and Kagome for their help. He starts to walk away, but just as he did in Chapter 19, he falls down a cliff. Kagome says "He's a fool alright."

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Kagome
 * Amari Nobunaga
 * Tsuyu
 * Inuyasha
 * Tsukumo no Gama
 * Myōga
 * Hiyoshimaru