Sesshōmaru

Sesshōmaru (殺生丸, Sesshōmaru) feared throughout the world as "Lord Sesshōmaru, Demon Lord of the Western Lands," is Inuyasha's half-brother and the successor to the Great Dog Demon. Unlike many other demons, he has no interest in possessing even one shard of the Jewel of Four Souls to enhance his powers, since he is already supremely confident of his own strength and he only relies on his sword to aid him. Accompanying him is a young human girl named Rin, and a demon by the name Jaken. After Naraku attempts to manipulate him by using Rin as a hostage, Sesshomaru becomes determined to destroy Naraku.

Transformations

 * Humanoid Form
 * Sesshomaru has a Prussian blue crescent on his forehead. He also has two magenta stripes on each cheek and on the sides of his wrists as well as one magenta stripe on each of his eye lids. His eyes are a goldish amber where his half-brother, Inuyasha, are just yellow. Most of the time, Sesshomaru appears in this form in both the manga and the anime.

Sesshomaru's original form is a giant white dog with markings similar to those he has in his human form. In the anime, he transforms surrounded in a bright red aura or has a tornado circling around him. His eyes then take on a bright red color and yōkai marks on his body widen and become more apparent; the stripes on his cheeks which are usually smooth become jagged and change into a somewhat fiercer color. In the anime, he has acidic saliva and in his breath spreads poison in the form of mist that melts anything nearby. He only fully transforms to his original form three times: during a battle with InuYasha which results in the loss of his left arm, when he meets his mother , and during the battle against Magatsuhi which eventually leads to his arm regenerating and the formation of his sword Bakusaiga.
 * True Form

Clothing
Sesshomaru's armor includes a spiked pauldron that covers his left shoulder attached to the upper section of his cuirass. When damaged, his armor automatically regenerates itself using yōki. Both his armor and his long flowing sash have a decided "Mainland" (Chinese) influence, as opposed to the customary Japanese armor and Obi (sash or belt). His Kimono is mostly white with a red honeycomb and flower crest at the collar and sleeves. He wears Sashinuki Hakama, (a type of traditional flowing Japanese "pants"), which are gathered at the ankles producing the "ballooning" effect. His footwear consists of flat pointed ankle-high boots (instead of sandals), also reminiscent of Mainland influence.

Personality
An extremely strong and powerful demon lord (daiyōkai, literally great yōkai); Sesshōmaru often appears aloof and indifferent, and rarely shows any emotions other than slight annoyance or dissatisfaction. He thinks highly of himself and is cruel to others, though he is quite protective of his minions. He cares very little for others, and thinks that humans, while at times amusing, are merely mortal and ultimately expendable. He believes that struggle is the only way for survival. He especially shows great hatred for Inuyasha, his hanyō half-brother, who wields the amazingly strong and powerful Tessaiga, a sword made from one of their father's fangs that can kill one hundred demons at once in one strike. Sesshomaru believes that their father was unfair to him because he wields the weak Tenseiga while Inuyasha wields Tessaiga. He blames Inuyasha's mother for his father's death, claiming that she had made the Inu no Taishou weak which lead to his death.

Although Sesshōmaru maintains a cool, uncaring, at times even heartless exterior, the presence of Rin at his heels is proof of his growing compassion. He not only tolerates a human, but also acts in an extremely protective manner towards her and rushes to her aid when she gets in trouble. Naraku later had Kagura kidnap Rin as a get-away plan in his attempt to absorb the body and the full yōkai power of Sesshōmaru. Naraku's plan failed, Sesshōmaru ended up being very angry and wanted to go after Naraku, who was trying to escape, but upon hearing that Rin was in danger, Sesshōmaru let him go and came to the aid of Rin. Subsequently, he decided to kill Naraku as well. At this point, Sesshōmaru largely became more of an ally than an enemy.

Growing Compassion
His growing compassion prompted the master swordsmith Totosai to reforge Tenseiga, enabling the Meidō Zangetsuha attack. After Naraku attempted to control and manipulate him by using Rin as a hostage, Sesshōmaru became determined more than ever to destroy Naraku. His change in personality is highly noted when Kagome called him "Big Brother" and he only showed slight annoyance.

Although Sesshomaru maintains a cool, disinterested exterior, throughout the story his compassion seems to be growing. When InuYasha is controlled by his yōkai blood, Sesshomaru comes to see for himself the power that InuYasha could produce in that state. After defeating InuYasha, he instructs Kagome to return the Tessaiga to InuYasha in order to restore him to his former self. It is possible that he lost interest in obtaining the Tessaiga mainly due to InuYasha's need for the sword to control his yōkai blood, or because he had recently got his own offensive sword, Tokijin. He left claiming that he intends to kill InuYasha one day, when InuYasha could adequately fight back. By making this public declaration, Sesshomaru is claiming first right to InuYasha's death by his own hand, and at his choice of time and place. As by his declaration, any enemy attempting to kill InuYasha is infringing on Sesshomaru's intent to do so.

Though Sesshomaru is prone to hitting, kicking, and stepping on his servant Jaken, he has repeatedly warned Jaken to move out of the way prior to an attack. Sesshomaru also allows Rin to follow him and protects her when she gets in trouble. Kagura later kidnaps Rin for Naraku as part of his attempt to absorb Sesshomaru. When Naraku tries to escape after failing to absorb him, Sesshomaru intended to pursue Naraku, but upon hearing that Rin was in danger, he lets Naraku go, and instead goes to aid Rin.

Later, when Rin appears to be dead due to her time in Hell, Sesshomaru enters Hell for the purpose of rescuing her, but upon learning that he cannot save her life, he is crushed. When he realizes that it was his urge to strengthen Tenseiga which brought them to Hell and ultimately killed her, he casts the sword aside and says for the sword to gain power at the expense of Rin's life means nothing. However, when Sesshomaru's mother revives Rin, he is seen to be relieved.

When Kagura is injured, Sesshomaru originally intended to leave her in the river she was drowning in, but when Rin falls in trying to save her and Jaken follows Rin, Sesshomaru pulls all three from the river. Later however, before Kagura's death, Sesshomaru seeks her out and considers using the Tenseiga, only to conclude that Tenseiga cannot save her.

He has also been shown saving InuYasha's friends on several occasions. On his way to Hakurei-zan, Sesshomaru saves Kagome, Miroku, and Sango from the poison master Mukotsu, one of the Shichinintai, but only claims that he killed Mukotsu because he was in his way. He also revives a young otter yōkai's father, claiming that it was the will of Tenseiga. Another example is when InuYasha and his companions are involved in a fight with the "water god" Numawatari; when Sesshomaru arrives, he insults InuYasha's inability to kill a "low life yōkai", and then easily dispatches Numawatari using his Meidou Zangetsuha ability, leaving straight after.

Also, when Byakuya, Naraku's newest offspring, is about to take Kohaku, who has one of the last three shards of the Shikon Jewel, back to Naraku, Sesshomaru appears and launches a ranged Meidou-Zangetsuha (still in the crescent moon shape), barely missing him. Byakuya flees claiming that he does not want to die, and comments on how it is so unlike Sesshomaru to save someone. Thereafter, Sesshomaru seems to have taken Kohaku under his protection, albeit in his typical grudging fashion. Later, when Kohaku's shard gets tainted by Magatsuhi, he attempts to save Kohaku at the expense of great injury to his arm.

It is his compassion that caused the Tenseiga to be reforged as a weapon. Its offensive powers were locked until Sesshomaru shows true compassion. In battle with Moryomaru, the villain insulted the deceased Kagura, which angers Sesshomaru and he shatters Mōryōmaru's indestructible shell (and his only weapon in the process). Acknowledging the yōkai's growth because he is defending a dead person, Tenseiga called to its creator to reforge it as a weapon. Later, to show his compassion and respect for his father, he gave the offensive powers of his sword to InuYasha (albeit in his typical fashion) in accordance with his father's wishes and recognizing his brother's worth as the heir to the sword.

He refused to use Bakusaiga on Inuyasha when even Magatsuhi noted it was the obvious choice to make and in the third movie "Swords of an Honorable Ruler" it is hinted that he actually does care about Inuyasha but refuses to admit it when he is protecting him from the Sounga's "Dragon Twister" attack.

Despite his growing compassion, he, like his brother, uses impolite Japanese. He addresses strangers or people he does not like with "kisama", which, like "temee", is an offensive form of "you", though still more formal. He addresses himself with the polite "watashi", signifying his high rank and power. Other than "kisama", he uses "omae", either to Jaken or to InuYasha, the latter being occasionally and not rarely. Thus he can be insulting while retaining the dignified speech pattern of a lord, as opposed to the rougher speech used by InuYasha.

Biography
Sesshomaru began his quest for the Tessaiga by searching for the place that a short poem indicated it would be. "Seen yet never seen, protected, but never known to its protector" (Which indicated that the gate to his father's resting place was hidden in the right pupil of Inuyasha). Sesshomaru had inherited Tessaiga's counterpart called Tenseiga from his father, which he deemed worthless because it could not hurt his enemies. Sesshomaru desired the far more powerful Tessaiga, which could kill a hundred demons in a single sweep. Sesshomaru's father was a very wise and a great dog demon lord, who had fallen in love with a human woman and had a child with her named Inuyasha. Sesshomaru's father kept Tessaiga a secret for a long time to prevent it from being misused by demons or people without compassion, and casted a barrier around the sword so that a full-blooded yōkai or one without compassion for humans cannot hold or wield Tessaiga, which Sesshomaru's younger half brother Inuyasha could wield. However, even knowing that he cannot touch the sword, Sesshomaru initially desired to take it from Inuyasha, as he felt it rightfully belonged to him and not his hanyō (half-demon) sibling. For this reason he fought with InuYasha in their father's burial grounds and by chance, Inuyasha transformed the blade for the first time and severed Sesshomaru's left arm. Sesshomaru fixed the problem of not being able to wield Tessaiga by using a non-demon arm in place of his severed one. However, after he obtained a powerful sword called Tokijin, he seems to have lost interest in the Tessaiga.

Sesshomaru is followed by his minion, a kappa yōkai named Jaken, and later by an abused human orphan named Rin who had found him injured in the forest after he'd fought Inuyasha, and attempted to nurse him back to health. After healing, Sesshomaru found Rin in the forest, where she had been killed by wolves, and realized Tenseiga's true power, which was ressurrection. Sesshomaru used Tenseiga to ressurrect Rin, for unclear reasons. Even though Sesshomaru stated that he ressurected Rin to simply test Tenseiga's power, his antagonistic demeanor is seen to almost immediately begin to diminish as Rin accompanies him. Along with Rin and Jaken, Sesshomaru is also accompanied by a two-headed dragon named Ah-Un (阿吽), who mostly provides Rin with protection and long-distance transportation.

Although Sesshomaru maintains a stern, and at times even heartless exterior, his companionship with Rin is proof of his growing compassion. He not only tolerates a human, but also acts in an extremely protective manner towards her and rushes to her aid when she gets in trouble. Naraku later had Kagura kidnap Rin as a get-away plan in his attempt to absorb the body and the full demonic powers and abilities of Sesshomaru. Naraku's plan failed as Inuyasha showed up to join the fight, the two brothers attacked Naraku, injuring him severely. Naraku prepared to escape, and Sesshomaru was intent on transforming an pursuing him, but upon hearing from Naraku that he was going to have Rin killed, Sesshomaru opted to rush to Rin's aid, and Naraku escaped. After rescuing Rin, he subsequently decided to do everything he could to kill Naraku. At this point, Sesshomaru's status becomes that of an anti-hero instead of an enemy to Inuyasha and friends, both parties placing aside their differences to oppose the greater threat.

On his way to Mount Hakurei, Sesshomaru saves Kagome, Miroku and Sango from the poison user Mukotsu, one of the Shichinintai, however when confronted with the fact, he merely says, "I only killed someone who got in my way."

It is stated that around this time that Sesshoumaru's reasons for going after Naraku so feircely and helping his brother's group were because Naraku insulted his honor when he kidnapped Rin and then insulted him by openly stating that Sesshoumaru had come to his castle merely to protect a human (However when it came down to deciding if he would transform and chase after Naraku or if he would go to Rin's side when she was in danger, he chose to go and save Rin).

Later on in the same arc, Suikotsu holds Rin hostage yet again, while Sesshoumaru is battling Jakotsu, and Sesshoumaru is unable to defeat both foes on his own. It is only with Kikyo's assistance that Rin is saved from Suikotsu, thus insulting Sesshoumaru's honor further in having to accept help from a "mere woman."

Kagura, one of Naraku's incarnations, later betrays Naraku to obtain her freedom. She believes that only Sesshomaru can defeat him. She attempts to escape from Naraku after Hakudoshi dies, but is caught by Naraku and given her heart back, at a price. At the moment she hears her heart beat Naraku stabs her and injects her with miasma, purposely missing her "precious heart." She flees to a nearby meadow, a petal reaches Sesshomaru in the midst of a battle with Moryomaru. Smelling her blood and miasma, he is infuriated when Moryomaru insults her, and quickly concludes the quarrel, but breaks Tokijin in the process. Then, he turns up in front of her. Sesshomaru tells Kagura that he picked up the scent of blood and miasma. Kagura replies, "I see, you thought I was Naraku. Are you disappointed that I'm not Naraku?" Sesshomaru replies to her, "I knew it was you." He reaches for Tenseiga but then realizes at that moment that she can't be saved. Kagura is happy she got to see Sesshomaru one last time. She looks up at him and smiles as she dies before him dissolving into the wind. When Inuyasha comes right after Kagura dies, he asks Sesshomaru if she suffered. Sesshomaru simply looks toward the sky and says, "She was smilling," and then walks away.

Tenseiga calls out to Totosai at that time and he states that the sword told him that Sesshoumaru's heart had felt never before felt compassion, and that meant Sesshoumaru was ready to learn how to wield Tenseiga as a weapon. In this way it was Kagura who taught Sesshoumaru how to have compassion, and thus to move beyond his own selfishness in caring for only those whose deaths would hurt him, personally.

When Sesshomaru learns how to perform Meidō Zangetsuha, he reflects on Kagura's death, and how Moryomaru told him that she had died for nothing. He then thinks to himself, "I, Sesshomaru, will be the one to decide if she died for nothing." The wind then blows, which Rin points out, and the group of three leave Totosai. The wind is proved Kagura's spirit.

In effort to strengthen and enhance Tenseiga's powers even further, Sesshomaru visits his mother in search of answers to make a complete Meido. He ventures into Hell after a demon from the underworld grabs Rin and Kohaku. Sesshomaru's Mother offers him a way out which he declines, this offends her. Sesshoumaru finds Rin in the grasp of the master of Hell. After he slays the demon he realizes Rin isn't reviving, and states that enhancing and strengthening his sword is not worth the price of Rin's life. Dead bodies in Hell surround them, and with his grief for Rin he uses Tenseiga to purify them. When he returns to the living world with Rin's body, his mother scolds him for thinking he was a god who could control life and death, and tells him Tenseiga can only revive the same person once, and tells him that when his heart wishes to save his "loved one" (in reference to Rin), he must also at that moment feel both sadness and fear; this is what it means for him to have "a compassionate heart."

Sesshoumaru could only learn to understand the worth of a life and gain a truly compassionate heart when lost the life that was worth the most to him (which is Rin), and "a compassionate heart" is what is necessary for the one who weilds a destructive Tenseiga, which can dispatch enemies to the Meidō.

Then his mother used the jewel around her neck to revive Rin, much to Sesshomaru's relief and happiness. (His mother asks Jaken if Sesshoumaru is happy when she revives Rin, and Jaken responds that it most likely he is "extremely so".)

Sesshomaru realizes his true potential as a greater demon after Tenseiga's fighting technique, Meidō Zangetsuha is given to Inuyasha. Sesshomaru lets go of his obsession with Tessaiga in a battle with Magatsuhi, and regains not only his left arm, but also his own sword, Bakusaiga.

He later uses this sword fighting Naraku along with InuYasha's group in the final battle, aiding in the final destruction of the evil hanyō by destroying large amounts of Naraku's body.

Powers & Abilities
As a full blooded demon, Sesshomaru is overwhelmingly powerful, being a match for almost any opponent he encounters. He has exhibited senses much more powerful than that of humans and even many demons and a plethora of powerful techniques at his disposal. Many of Sesshomaru's innate abilities are a result of his lineage, being the son of two extremely powerful demons. Naraku has referred to Sesshomaru as "the perfect demon"; the natural 'completion' of Sesshomaru's demonic aura may be the reason why the Shikon Jewel appears to have no effect on his demonic abilities, and thus would explain why he has no interest in obtaining its shards. In contrast, nearly every other sentient demon, save those affiliated with Sesshomaru's father in some way, seek its power relentlessly.

Attacks

 * Dokkasō (毒花爪, Toxic Flower Claw): Sesshomaru's claws release deadly acidic poison which can melt flesh and virtually anything else very quickly and he can also spray the poison from his claws. They can fire large blades of energy similar to InuYasha's "Sankon Tesso". He is also shown to transfer poison into his punches. As he did so with Inuyasha, thus blinding him.


 * Whip of Light: In both anime and manga, Sesshomaru can generate a thin, whip-like strand of yellow-green energy from his fingertips that can slice through almost anything. The whip also displays characteristics of poison akin to the burning effect it has on contact.


 * Sōryūha (蒼龍破, Azure Dragon Stream) Dragon Strike in the English Dub: It is his signature move but it is mainly seen in the movies (three times in the third and twice in the fourth). Its strength is comparable, if not greater, to his brother's Bakuryūha. The Dragon Strike takes on the form of a dragon-like lighting by Sesshomaru waving his sword in the air and from there it takes form. He can also put in the ground which allows him break an enemy's barrier. Unlike the Wind Scar or Backlash Wave, however, this attack is born of Sesshomaru's own power rather than that of a sword, as he is seen using it with both the Tokijin and Tenseiga in the third movie. In the second episode of Inuyasha: The Final Act, Sesshomaru used the Dragon Strike on Mōryōmaru with the Tōkijin.


 * Mokomoko: The fur on Sesshomaru's shoulder can be extended to great lengths and used to whip or constrict people. . It appears to be part of his body, despite some misdepictions in the anime. When fighting Setsuna no Takemaru in the third InuYasha movie, Swords of an Honorable Ruler, the Mokomoko has been shown bleeding. Jaken has been seen clinging to it whenever Sesshomaru takes flight, but Rumiko Takahashi has said that the Mokomoko is actually a parasitic demon. Upon transforming, the Mokomoko can still be seen as a massive mane-like wrap of fur going across his body.

Powers

 * Flight: Sesshomaru has the ability to float in the sky; however, in the anime, he can sometimes ride upon a sparkling dust cloud. The latter way of flight enables him to bring others along with him while flying by riding the cloud along with him.


 * Immunity: Sesshomaru is immune to diseases, poisons, and gases that can paralyze or kill both humans and other normal creatures as well as weaker yōkai. His greatest resistance seems to be toward holy and divine powers; his resistance to purification powers was so strong that he was able to enter Mt. Hakurei's purification barrier, by far the strongest of its type in the series, without being purified. He was somewhat weakened, however, though not significantly so, and it negated his sword's powers. In another instance, Sesshomaru catches one of Kagome's purification arrows barehanded and to no ill-effect; any other demon would have been severely injured, if not outright purified. Monks who try to purify him to 'save' Rin are totally ineffective, and Sesshoumaru's yōki destroys their relics merely by being released. It seems that the only mystical powers that Sesshomaru is not resistant to is yōki such as InuYasha's Kaze no Kizu. Another example of his strong body is seen in Naraku's inability to absorb him. Because of Sesshomaru's demonic purity, his aura emanates around his body in perfect "completion", making it almost impossible to compromise. InuYasha states that human attacks will not harm Sesshomaru, and true to this, none ever have; barring one incident in Mt. Hakurei, which is excusable because of the barrier. Thus far, the only damage he has sustained throughout the series has been from yōki-powered attacks.


 * Super Endurance: Sesshomaru is able to resist pain better than most demons.


 * Super Speed: Sesshomaru can move faster than the eye can see, both on land and through the air. He leaves behind a fast-moving blur and in some cases, after-images. He can also instantaneously close long distances without being detected by others. He is capable of moving so fast that he can decapitate an entire army of samurai without they even having time to react.


 * Super Strength: Sesshomaru possesses physical strength far beyond that of a normal demon; he was able to easily lift InuYasha by the throat into the air with one hand in one of their earlier encounters. In addition, Sesshomaru was seen carrying the boulder-sized demon head of Goshinki in one hand with little to no effort. In the InuYasha profiles manga, Rumiko stated that Sesshomaru has Herculean strength, even with only one arm; his strength with only one arm is equal to InuYasha's full strength; InuYasha's strength allows him to lift a 9 to 10 ton boulder using one arm with little effort, so Sesshomaru would naturally be capable of lifting double that or far more with the same amount of effort.


 * Senses: Due to his lineage, Sesshomaru exhibits extremely heightened senses, particularly his sense of smell. He can discern characteristics of most objects through scent, such as the undead Band of Seven through the scent of graveyard soil and pure-demon blood from half-demon blood (such as when InuYasha's demon blood takes over). Through smell alone, Sesshomaru can follow events transpiring far away or which have already transpired; for example, he learned of everything that had happened during Inuyasha's confrontation with Goshinki by simply sniffing the area in which they fought at least several hours, if not days, after the battle. Besides the five basic senses, Sesshomaru's ability in sensing other's auras are exceptional.


 * Exceptional Reflexes: Sesshomaru, with his heightened senses, also possesses astonishing reflexes, as shown when he was battling Jakotsu; he managed to deflect the latter snake-like sword at the very last second with Tokijin and even hurl it back in front of Jakotsu himself.


 * Intelligence: Despite his vast overall intelligence, Rumiko Takahashi reveals that his intellect is actually one of his weakest points (despite it being considerably high, it pales in comparison to his other capabilities). With this attribute, he was able to correctly deduce that Magatsuhi can be slain with Tenseiga. Only being wrong once, in the 3rd InuYasha movie, Sesshomaru cut Takemaru in half with Tenseiga, but because of So'unga's ability to bring back the living dead, it did not work.


 * Teleportation: Sesshomaru can morph into a ball of energy and move himself, as well as others, over great distances in a short amount of time.


 * Psionics: Though Sesshomaru's psionic capabilities have never been specifically quantified, he has demonstrated exceptionally strong and powerful feats of both telepathy and telekinesis. Examples of such being his power and ability to mentally levitate and telekinetically fly skulls at Inuyasha and Kagome, and the ability to telepathically overcome Tokijin's telepathic aura.


 * Daiyōkai: As the son of a daiyōkai, Sesshomaru has inherited similar levels of power and thus is a daiyōkai in his own right — endowed with heightened senses, intelligence, strength, and a myriad of yōkai powers. While he appears to be an elf-eared human bearing splendid clothing and armour most of the time; he can transform into his true form at will, which is that of a gigantic, acid-breathing, crimson eyed, canine with white fur. With the acquisition of Bakusaiga, Totosai has stated that Sesshomaru has exceeded his father as a daiyōkai.


 * Immortality: Being a yōkai, Sesshomaru does not suffer from old age the way humans do. He appears to be around 18 to 19 years old. However, he has been around for at least over two hundred years. In the third movie, Swords of an Honorable Ruler, a flashback from the day Inuyasha was born shows Sesshomaru as, physically, only a few years younger than his current appearance (with considerabely shorter hair). This suggests that Sesshomaru could easily be over 400 years old or likely even 500 years old. Noting in the third movie Saiya, the spirit of the seath, was responsible for sealing the sword, Sounga, for 700 years, has said that Lord Takemaru had killed Inuyasha's mother, (Izayo), over 200 years ago. However, in Kagome's era, said to be 500 years ahead, the world appears to be void of demons, possibly meaning that Sesshomaru, along with all other demons, had died out at some point.


 * Regeneration: During his battle with Magatsuhi, Sesshomaru's right arm was badly injured. By beginning to transform into his daiyōkai form, the pure fighting spirit and eminence output of his demonic aura allowed Sesshomaru to completely regenerate the injuries to his right arm. In the same battle, he is also able to restore his left arm, which is cut off by InuYasha at the beginning of the series. However, the full extent to which Sesshomaru can regenerate his wounds is not given in the series.

Aliases

 * Lord Sesshomaru/Sesshomaru-sama (by his followers and those who respect him)
 * Pup (by his mother)
 * Ungrateful Pup (by his mother)
 * Onii-san (by Kagome)
 * Inuyasha's brother (by Ginta, Hakkaku, and Koga)
 * Inuyasha's older brother, Sesshomaru (by Inuyasha's friends)
 * Aristocratic Assassin
 * Master (by Jaken)
 * Demon/Yokai
 * Evil Incarnate (by Totosai)

Tenseiga
Tenseiga (天生牙, Heavenly Life Fang) Tenseiga (also known as the 'Sword of Heaven or simply 'Heavenly Fang'), is a sword that can revive the dead. It does this by letting Sesshomaru see the pall-bearer imps that take away the souls of the dead so that he may destroy them with Tenseiga. In extreme cases, the Tenseiga also protects Sesshomaru from potentially lethal attacks. When in use, the Tenseiga has a blue aura. Later in the manga, the Tenseiga is reforged by Tōtōsai to become a weapon, allowing Sesshomaru to use the Meidō Zangetsuha. It is later revealed that the ability and the sword itself is merely a cast off of the Tessaiga; his father wanted Sesshomaru to master the Meidō Zangetsuha. Sesshomaru discards the sword as his father wished, giving the ability back to the Tessaiga and making the Tenseiga only a healing sword once again.

Tōkijin
Tōkijin (闘鬼神, Demon-Fighting God): is a sword crafted by the evil sword smith Kaijinbō from the fangs of Goshinki as part of Sesshomaru's continued efforts to obtain Tessaiga or a sword matching it in power. It can fire off extremely powerful blasts of pure evil energy, but because it is filled with Goshinki's malice, only Sesshomaru can wield it without being controlled by it. Tōkijin can be used to blow back and injure an enemy with a powerful pinkish-purple aura, generated as the manifestation of pure hatred. It can also be used to slash at an opponent either directly or with kenatsu, and, like Tenseiga, can perform Sōryūha; however, being "only an oni's fang", Tōkijin initially could not withstand repeated uses of Sōryūha the way that Tenseiga could. But later, in the 4th InuYasha movie, Tōkijin seemed capable of being a conduit for the attack with no ensuing refractory period. Later in the manga, Sesshomaru broke Tōkijin while battling Mōryōmaru, and afterwards abandoned the broken pieces with no further interest in keeping the sword. He instead searched for a replacement, which he found in the Meidō Zangetsuha ability of the Tenseiga.

Bakusaiga
Bakusaiga (爆砕牙, Explosive Crushing Fang): is Sesshomaru's most recent signature weapon. The Bakusaiga manifested itself in the hand of Sesshomaru's fully regenerated, and longtime-severed, left arm during his battle with Magatsuhi. The sword is the polar opposite of the Tenseiga, as it has the power to decompose any organic material that its blade comes in contact with, nullifying any regenerative abilities while doing so. Miroku comments that Naraku would suffer the same affliction should he absorb any demon wounded by Bakusaiga. The blade itself is the manifestation of Sesshomaru's own true power, born from his detachment of InuYasha's Tessaiga. Its birth signifies Sesshomaru's graduation into a full-fledged daiyōkai, which was long compromised by his obsession with Tessaiga. Totosai comments that his ability to manifest his own blade suggests his strength has surpassed that of his father's and connotes his growth through the many trials he endured to emerge as a daiyōkai, with the Bakusaiga serving as the product of this 'rite of passage'.
 * Much like the Tessaiga's Kaze no Kizu, the Bakusaiga can also unleash massively powerful amounts of yōki, enough to slay thousands of demons with one swing. Though similar, Rumiko stated that Bakusaiga's wave attack, which is similar to the Kaze no Kizu, possesses greater power than a full power Bakuryūha from Tessaiga.

Tessaiga
Tessaiga (鉄砕牙, Iron-Crushing Fang): is a sword once wielded by Inuyasha's father. Although it now belongs to Inuyasha, Sesshomaru has the ability to wield the Tessaiga at times. He once connected a human arm with a Shikon shard embedded on it which allowed him to control Tessaiga with ease. Because of his excellent sense of smell, which is more acute than Inuyasha's, he was able to detect the boundaries of demonic aura correctly and release an extremely strong Wind Scar. When Sesshomaru tries to wield Tessaiga, and does not have a human arm, he is strong enough to withstand the barrier for a short amount of time, and even perform the Wind Scar. It even transformed, but it's possible that Tessaiga wanted Sesshomaru to wield it.

Equipment

 * Nintōjo (人頭杖, Staff of Two Heads): It is also called the Staff of Skulls, Nintōjo or Two-Headed Staff. It can locate his father's grave or perhaps Tessaiga itself, as well as fire streams of flame, it can generate large floods of water. The staff is usually held by his assistant Jaken. Also, it has been shown that the Staff of Two Heads can be used to summon yōkai. It features an old man's and a woman's head. They can speak when the staff is used. When attempting to find his father's grave, if the woman cried, that meant he had to keep searching. If the old man laughed, that meant he had found the grave.

Quotes

 * "Just because you have Tetsusaiga, it doesn't mean a low-life like you can master it."
 * "Inuyasha, your patience with this creature is astonishing. You protect her, indulge her, even seem to love her." 
 * "All that for a memory and a dead mortal girl? If I'd have known that's what it would take for you to fight, I would have killed her sooner."
 * "I have missed you as well, little brother."
 * "You fight as though you are still a child."
 * "You're truly stupid, aren't you? You know, you could just hide and run away... for you, the image of that would not be disgraceful, after all, your living soul in itself is already the pinnacle of disgrace."
 * "You haven't even released the full power of the Tetusaiga. Watch as I destroy 100 demons with one blow."
 * "Do you think you can escape from me?"
 * "You and I are simply not in the same class."
 * "You came to die with him? How sweet."
 * "It was Naraku who killed Kikyo. And... it was you, Inuyasha, who could not save her."
 * "What are you so happy about? I don't care, i'm just curious"
 * "I'll kill him eventually...but at the moment...for someone who doesn't realize anything at all, killing him has no value."
 * "I couldn't save her? Tensaiga. I let you die for this thing. Nothing is worth the cost of Rin's life!"
 * "I have never considered that half-demon my brother!"
 * "What will you do, Magatsuhi? It appears the half-demon is more difficult to control than you think."

Trivia

 * The kanji of "Sesshō" means "killing or destruction.". The suffix "Maru" is usually a suffix that is often added at the end of a Japanese name for young males in samurai families. They would use this name until they were recognized as adults, whereupon they would adopt a new name. However, it is said that "maru" can also translate as the word for "circle or perfection", which is a common Japanese motiff for what in the West is called "the circle of life." It is revealed in one of Rumiko Takahashi's InuYasha Guides that his name means "killing perfection," which best describes his usual personality.
 * Many fans have nicknamed Sesshomaru "Fluffy," referring to his Mokomoko, or the white "fluff" on his shoulder.
 * Another name given to him by fans is "Sesshy," a shorter version of his name.
 * He makes an appearance as a concept art in the front pages of Chapter 9, before he was introduced as a character.
 * Sesshomaru started out as an antagonist, but as the series progressed he became a protagonist and became one of the most, if not the most important key point to beating Naraku (his Tenseiga being the only thing to be able to kill Magatsuhi and his Bakusaiga for preventing Naraku from regenerating his body)
 * Throughout his life, he has only saved three humans, including Kagome and Rin.
 * Kagura and Sesshomaru seemed to have a close relationship, ironically after she kidnapped Rin, which was the event that led to his want to defeat Naraku.
 * Sesshomaru was seen to have a unnamed ability. As shown in the second ending, he was seen flying on a red streak and the fur on his shoulder was also red. This ability was never seen in the series or manga.
 * It is possible that Sesshomaru can read Jaken's mind when in his true form. As shown after Jaken was thinking things like "Sesshomaru-sama can break free if he wasn't in his dog form but he's too dumb to know that because he's a dog". After Sesshomaru escaped, he glared directly at Jaken and Miroku figured that they may have a mental link.
 * It has been confirmed that David Kaye, the American voice actor for Sesshomaru, will not be doing Sesshomaru's voice in InuYasha: The Final Act.
 * In the Nippon Ichi Strategy RPG game Disgaea 2: Dark Hero Days it has been confirmed that the rank 27 sword in the game is named Sesshomaru with the discription "Hurry up and find the damn jewel shards!". This is obviously as reference to the show Inuyasha but ironicly Sesshoumaru has no real interests with the Shikon Jewel