Inuyasha

"Should something terrible be caused again by the Shikon Jewel, whatever it may be, I shall cut it down with my own hands."

- Inuyasha

is the main protagonist, as well as the title character, in the manga series InuYasha and its anime adaptation. The half-demon son of a great demon father, known as the Inu no Taishō, and a human mother named Izayoi, he was bound to a sacred tree by a magical arrow from the priestess Kikyō's bow while attempting to capture the Shikon Jewel. Inuyasha sought the Jewel, thinking it could transform him into a full-fledged demon. Kagome Higurashi, Kikyō's reincarnation, released him from this spell, but soon after, she accidentally shattered the Shikon no Tama into hundreds of fragments. They reluctantly agreed to work together as a team on Kaede's behalf to recover all of the fragments that had scattered across Feudal Japan before they fell into the wrong hands, though overtime they develop a close bond and eventually fall in love.

Early Life
Inuyasha was born to a human noblewoman named Izayoi, and her dog-demon lover, the Inu no Taishō. Angered by her fraternization with a demon, Izayoi's own guardsman, Takemaru, pierced her with a spear on the very night of Inuyasha's birth. Izayoi had just enough strength to give birth to Inuyasha before succumbing to her mortal wounds, though she was soon resurrected by the Inu no Taishō's sword of healing, the Tenseiga. The Inu no Taishō, suffering mortal wounds from a climactic battle with Ryūkotsusei, had just enough time left to name the newborn Inuyasha and say goodbye to his infant son and Izayoi before encouraging them to run away. He perished that night, using the last of his strength to prevent Takemaru from pursuing them, leaving Inuyasha to be raised by his mortal mother.

Inuyasha's childhood was very lonely, save for his interaction with his mother. Being a hanyō, Inuyasha was accepted neither by humans nor yōkai. Ostracized by all humans except for his mother, he was devastated when she died while he was still young. He was left with only the Robe of the Fire-Rat she had received from his father, as well as a container of rouge (the equivalent of modern lipstick), which he later gifted to Kikyō before being sealed to the sacred tree.

Unable to fight back as a child, Inuyasha was often forced into hiding whenever he encountered hostile yōkai. Such situations left him frustrated at being powerless to defend himself until he was older. Because of this, he developed a hostile and defensive personality, becoming especially reclusive on the night of the new moon, during which he lost his demon powers and became a mere mortal. Inuyasha mentioned he never once slept during the new moon to prevent his weakness from being known. When he heard of the Shikon no Tama's ability to turn even half-demons into full-fledged yōkai, he went in search of it.

First Love
Inuyasha planned to steal the Jewel from Kikyō, the miko tasked with purifying and protecting it. After several unsuccessful attempts to even approach Kikyō, Inuyasha began to develop intense romantic feelings for her, and she for him. After Inuyasha mentioned she reeked with the smell of blood, Kikyō began to take baths everyday and Inuyasha would watch from afar. Their subsequent encounters lead to a close relationship after Inuyasha saved Kaede from Mistress Centipede, who was planning on taking her hostage to take the Shikon no Tama back from Kikyō. Inuyasha and Kikyō met in a non-violent meeting for the first time after this and quickly fell for each other. After this, Kikyō became more human, displaying more emotions and playing with children while Inuyasha gave up his quest for the Shikon no Tama, deciding it wasn't worth losing Kikyō. He lived in the village for awhile and assisted Kikyō whenever she needed it. After Kikyō's powers became weakened from falling in love with Inuyasha, resulting in Kaede losing her right eye, Kikyō pondered what to do.

Eventually, Kikyō had the idea of using the Jewel to make Inuyasha a full human, as this would purify the Shikon no Tama and liberate Kikyō from the task of protecting it. The idea of leading normal lives together appealed to them both.

Another hanyō named Naraku, born from a human criminal that was pitied by Kikyō, had been observing the pair and hoped to steal the Shikon no Tama for himself. He subsequently tricked Kikyō and Inuyasha into betraying one another. Inuyasha broke into Kikyō's village and stole the Shikon no Tama, convinced that Kikyō had never planned to turn him human to begin with. In defense of the village, and to keep him from escaping with the jewel, Kikyō shot Inuyasha with a sacred arrow and sealed him to the Sacred Tree of Ages with a spell of eternal sleep. Moments afterward, Kikyō collapsed from a fatal wound she had received from Naraku, who was disguised as Inuyasha at the time of the attack. She instructed her younger sister Kaede to burn the Jewel along with her body so that demons and evil men could never again use it for evil deeds. She died soon after, and her wish to burn the Jewel was fulfilled. Despite how things went, Inuyasha still loved Kikyō.

Reawakened
Fifty years later, Kikyō's modern-day reincarnation, fifteen-year-old Kagome Higurashi, entered the feudal era through the Bone-Eater's Well, unknowingly bringing the Shikon no Tama with her. The jewel's presence awakened nearby demons, but it was the scent of Kagome's blood when she was attacked by a reanimated Mistress Centipede that roused Inuyasha from his spell. Upon first seeing her, Inuyasha mistook Kagome for Kikyō, due to their similar appearances, but his sense of smell proved they were indeed different people. Inuyasha was subsequently freed by Kagome in order to help fight off Mistress Centipede. After killing Mistress Centipede, Inuyasha attacked Kagome to get the Shikon no Tama for himself, but was thwarted by an elderly Kaede. She put her deceased sister's Beads of Subjugation around the hanyō's neck, which allowed Kagome to subdue him simply by saying the word "Sit!"

Being unable to remove the necklace, Inuyasha was effectively rendered powerless in Kagome's presence. Soon after, Kagome accidentally shattered the Sacred Jewel while shooting at a crow demon that was attempting to escape with it, and the shards were scattered around Japan. Inuyasha reluctantly agreed to team up with her to find and collect all of the fragments.

Quest to find the Sacred Jewel fragments
Inuyasha and Kagome began their journey to collect the shards of the Sacred Jewel, their tolerance for one another growing after defeating their first major enemy, Yura of the Demon Hair. Afterwards, Inuyasha's half-brother, the full demon Sesshōmaru, came asking the whereabouts of the Inu no Taishō's tomb, seeking the treasure that was endowed there. The two brothers' encounter allowed Inuyasha to obtain the Tessaiga, a fang-sword that originally belonged to his father, which Sesshōmaru had sought. After obtaining the sword and temporarily defeating his brother, Inuyasha and Kagome's relationship deepened, and they began to care for one another. As time passed, they started to gain allies in their quest for the shards, notably Shippō, Miroku, and Sango. Inuyasha also learned of the existence of the nefarious shape-shifting demon known as Naraku, and realized that Naraku must have set a trap for Kikyō 50 years ago and tricked them both into betraying one another. Upon learning that Naraku was also looking for the shards, Inuyasha vowed to destroy him and avenge Kikyō's death.

The Red Tessaiga
Inuyasha and his crew desperately sought ways to pass Naraku's barrier. When Inuyasha traveled to meet Tōtōsai for advice, Myōga learned how to strengthen Tessaiga and achieve the feat.

Myōga informed Inuyasha he needed to travel to a specific island with bat Daiyōkai. There, they used Hanyō to power their own protection barrier similar to Naraku's. Myōga informed Inuyasha he would find Taigokumaru there, and upon having Tessaiga drink his blood, it would be strong enough to break Naraku's barrier. However, Taigokumaru's barrier could not be penetrated as Shiori, a Hanyō born of a specific blood line, was able to generate a barrier with a high enough demonic aura that the Tessaiga was not strong enough to penetrate the barrier.

When Taigokumaru become confident in his ability to defeat Inuyasha, he attacked Shiori's village. When Shiori's mother emerged and pleaded for him to stop, Taigokumaru revealed he had killed Shiori's father for his insolence. As retribution, Shiori pushed Taigokumaru out of the barrier and allowed Inuyasha to vanquish him. However, Inuyasha did not have the heart to kill Shiori as he felt she was an innocent child. He vowed to find another demon with a barrier to kill to strengthen his sword. She offered the Blood coral crystal as penance for her wrongs and allowed him to destroy the crystal. This in turn strengthened the Tessaiga to transform to a red evolved version.

Naraku's Barrier
Meanwhile, Naraku had plans to absorb Sesshōmaru. He abducted Rin, as bait, to lure Sesshōmaru to his castle. He lowered his barrier and allowed his scent to escape to lure him in. At the same time, Inuyasha began tracking the scene to the castle as well.

As they drew close, Kagome began to sense a Jewel Shard fragment nearby. Inuyasha forged forward as they investigated the shard. Upon arriving at the barrier's wall, Inuyasha destroyed the barrier with his new Red Tessaiga. Naraku was in the middle of his battle with Sesshōmaru when he sensed Inuyasha's new found power. He sent Kagura to stop Inuyasha while he dealt with Sesshōmaru.

However, Kagura still yearned for her freedom from Naraku. She barely put up a fight to stop Inuyasha and instead allowed him to pass. Upon arriving, Inuyasha used his Wind Scar on Naraku. This freed Sesshōmaru, who had been engulfed in Naraku's body and was in the process of being absorbed. Sesshōmaru and Inuyasha both attacked Naraku and critically injured him in their strikes. Naraku fled in a miasma cloud, leaving Rin behind as a distraction to allow him to escape.

As Sesshōmaru ran to find Rin, Inuyasha realized that Kohaku may be guarding her. He knew Sesshōmaru would kill Kohaku and ran to save his life. At the same time, Naraku used the Jewel Shard implanted in Kohaku's back to command him to kill Rin. Inuyasha arrived in time and stepped between Sesshōmaru and Kohaku's attacks. However, Sesshōmaru used the distraction to threaten Kohaku. When Sesshōmaru peered into his eyes, he realized he was an empty husk and was commanded to perform his action. He released Kohaku to Inuyasha and his group and escaped with Rin. Inuyasha began to think Naraku could not have gone far with his injuries. He could sense no trace of him and was surprised given the wounds he had inflicted upon Naraku.

Personality
Even when his life was in danger, Inuyasha refused to back down. Enemies were taken aback by his unorthodox fighting style, and he achieved victories greater than his abilities would suggest. Inuyasha was driven by a fierce, persistent determination to win, and his guts in battle have proven to work in his favor. However, his volatile emotions could often drive him to behave childishly, and became tiresome to his friends at times. Inuyasha himself could not control his tumultuous soul. Even if seriously wounded, he would completely forget about his pain the moment someone he was trying to protect was in danger. Because of this, his emotions often pushed his body past its limits. This was especially true when Kagome was involved. Inuyasha was incredibly hotheaded and easy to upset, often striking out with his fists toward the source of his annoyance. He even occasionally struck young kids if they bothered him, which was often the case with Shippō. He was impatient by nature and could be very prideful, having much difficulty admitting he was wrong about something.

Inuyasha kept the fact that he lost his demon power on the night of the new moon a secret. He believed, having lived through a cruel past, that he might be killed if he relaxed or let his guard down. However, since meeting Kagome and gaining friends who knew of his secret, he opened his heart to others and forged bonds that allowed him to entrust his life to others. Even with his friends beside him, however, he never truly let go of this worry, and his friends quietly accepted this.

However, in coherence with his archetype of Byronic Hero, despite how cynical and asocial he outwardly behaved, Inuyasha exposed his good inner nature in casual moments. He could not hide his true feelings. Although his friends described him as "easily deceived and honest to a fault" and "unable to understand the subtleties of the human spirit", his personality was difficult to dislike. Inuyasha was extremely susceptible to spells and trickery, and has a blunt, almost brutal honesty about most things, which was why he often seemed to be rude and disrespectful to others. For example, he blatantly told Kagome her food was horrible when she made it all to impress him. This was mostly due to the fact that, having been ostracized from both human and demonic communities, Inuyasha had very little experience in how to properly react in social situations. Despite his tough and insensitive exterior, he truly cared about his friends who acted as family to him; each of them, in their own way, saved him from his loneliness, and vice-versa.

Inuyasha hated those that killed for fun, and gladly rescued people in torment. He believed that all life was equally important. He had a strong distaste for people who ostracized others just for being different, carried over from his own lonely childhood.

Inuyasha valued power more than fighting tactics, and fighting spirit more than wisdom. He fought multitudes of powerful enemies and suppressed them with raw power and instinct. Rather than analyze matters, Inuyasha ran on reckless emotion, and, even if seriously injured in battle, he eventually achieved favorable results in the end. Inuyasha's instinct and experience was a product of daily training. When he saw something new, his eyes lit up and he tried to interact with it. Additionally, he is capable of incredible cunning. In his first battle battle with Kagura, she was able to prevent him from using his Kaze no Kizu. However, he was able to direct Kagome into using her arrows to disperse Kagura's wind magic. This way, when she used her magic again, he would be able to momentarily use the Kaze no Kizu, and he did. In his battle with Ginkotsu, Ginkotsu was using his wires to prevent Inuyasha from using his sword, and by transforming his sword into its sealed state, he was able to avoid the wires. Finally, Inuyasha defeated Ryūjin by using his Kaze no Kizu several times so the dragon demon could absorb his energy and fire the energy back at Inuyasha, allowing him to use the Bakuryūha, and defeat Ryūjin. However, he is not a perfect strategist, as he has been repeatedly outmaneuvered by Naraku. Inuyasha was dense and rather slow to catch on; for example, he didn't know of Sango's strong romantic feelings for Miroku until much later than the rest of the group.

Fifty years before his awakening, Inuyasha met Kikyō, and began to develop intensely pure romantic feelings for her. By meeting Kikyō, he learned the warmth of the human heart and became romantically attracted to her. Through a conspiracy, however, they were torn apart. When he learned that Kikyō had given her life to follow him in death, Inuyasha vowed to never let another woman die again. Those feelings carried over for Kikyō's reincarnation, Kagome. The concept of Kikyō being reincarnated was utterly confusing to Inuyasha, and all he ever saw when he looked at Kagome initially was Kikyō; however, this eventually faded with time. Although scorned by a resurrected Kikyō in the beginning, feelings of romantic affection and remorse resurfaced inside of him over time. He felt guilt for causing Kikyō's death and offered to die for her for this reason, but Kagome stopped him.

Inuyasha often saw Kagome's tears during their journey. Whenever tears were shed for him, with their gentle scent bringing relief, he felt that he had found his place as a protector above all else. Contact with Kagome healed the deep loneliness in his soul. In the beginning, Inuyasha didn't think there was anyone in the world who would grieve over his death. He found a different kind of comfort in Kagome than he found with Kikyō. This different comfort was based on Kagome's similar and like-minded spirited approach to life, sharing in Inuyasha's own never-give-up attitude as well as her kindness and warmth towards him, which slowly opened him up to a world less lonely. This is opposed to Kikyō's connection to Inuyasha, which was based on two distant and lonely souls finding comfort in each other's arms.

Although his heart was wounded deeply from Kikyō's "betrayal", Kagome was able to quickly mend Inuyasha's heart, enabling him to trust others again. He quickly changed his goals from obtaining the jewel to obtain more powers for himself to wanting more power to protect Kagome, as pointed out by Miroku shortly before Sangō joined the party.

Conflicting spirit
At the root of the hanyō, Inuyasha was in conflict between his human and yōkai halves. The fear or anger at his lack of belonging caused him to feel intense loneliness. However, Kagome and his allies comforted him, and he was able to develop a strong and gentle disposition over time.

Immediately after being released from his fifty-year seal, Inuyasha sought to become a full demon and acquire power quickly by using the Shikon Jewel. In the rage of battle, he ceased to have concerns for the lives of others. However, after meeting Kagome and other gentle humans, he came to understand his human half, and began to search for true strength of spirit instead of raw demonic power. His intention to become a yōkai wavered as he encountered more of them bent on using the Jewel for evil purposes. He realized over time that he had no desire to lose his human spirit, which becoming a full yōkai would have done. As his bond with Kagome and his other companions strengthened, Inuyasha's goal to become a demon faded, and he became content remaining a hanyō.

Physical description
Inuyasha is of average height, standing at 175 cm, with a lean, wiry frame that belies his massive strength. Like his half-brother Sesshōmaru he has a thick mane of waist-length silver white hair, golden eyes with slit like pupils, claws on each digit, and short fangs in his mouth. His ears are furry and pointed like those of a dog and feel like "five uncooked Chinese dumpling shells atop one another." His nose, despite appearing normal, is always damp unless he caught a cold, in which case it dries out.

When he assumes human form, Inuyasha's demonic claws and fangs, as well as his dog ears, disappear. His silver hair also changes to black and his golden eye color changes to brown. In his more demonic form, Inuyasha's dog-demon features resemble that of his brother Sesshōmaru. When transformed as such, Inuyasha's sclera turned deep red, his irises became blue slits with white pupils, jagged purple stripes appeared on the sides of his face, and his fangs and claws lengthened.

Powers and Abilities
Inuyasha is a hanyō, born from a powerful Inu-Daiyōkai and a human mother. His father, the Inu no Taishō, was a powerful and respected demon who governed the Western Country of Japan. Despite being a half-demon, his demonic power level is the same as a normal demon's with no auxiliary skill. A testament to his powers as a half-demon was that he was able to easily kill Mistress Centipede, who had absorbed the entire Shikon Jewel, with one attack at the beginning of the series when his powers were at their weakest and most untrained which is much more impressive considering that he had done so in mere moments after being unsealed by Kagome. Regardless, Inuyasha was one of the most powerful demons seen thus far and throughout his journey he was able to take on many powerful supernatural beings (e.g., Shikon Jewel-empowered opponents, deities, and legendary figures like Magatsuhi and Demon of the Shikon no Tama).
 * Enhanced Strength: Inuyasha's yōkai blood gave him intensified physical strength exceeding that of even the strongest human. He was able to uproot trees, lift boulders, break through walls and fortress gates, and was even able to punch through solid steel. In fact, the powerful demon blood inherited from his father gave him greater strength than most low-tier demons. Only powerful daiyōkai (e.g. Sesshōmaru) were ever able to overpower Inuyasha in terms of raw physical strength.
 * Enhanced Speed: Inuyasha can run and move at speeds which easily exceeded that of a conventional horse; but he was considerably slower than Entei, the yōkai horse that served as Hakudōshi's steed. While not capable of true flight, having inherited a lesser version of his father's more rudimentary powers, Inuyasha could manipulate his own yōki to an extent when he jumped, allowing him to glide over long distances and slow his falls as he lands.
 * Enhanced Agility and Reflexes: Inuyasha has inhuman reflexes and a remarkable reaction time. He has swiped arrows fired at him out the air with his claws. He has also been able to combine his reflexes with his enhanced senses to catch objects thrown at him midair without turning around. Inuyasha's agility, balance, and bodily coordination are similarly enhanced.
 * Enhanced Stamina: Inuyasha's stamina far exceeded human standards and most demons, another result of receiving his father's powerful demon blood. He was able to run and leap vast distances at great speeds, and often complained how his comparatively weaker human companions always slowed him down by needing to rest so much every day.
 * Enhanced Endurance: Inuyasha has a very sturdy body and can endure a great deal of physical pain, as was once demonstrated in an early battle with Sesshōmaru, when he continued fighting even after being impaled in the stomach. He was also capable of surviving considerable blunt force trauma, a direct blow from a solid wooden log that broke on contact, falling several stories into a crevasse in his fight with Ryūkotsusei, and being thrown hard enough to shatter solid rock. His skin was thick enough for him to survive being tangled by Yura's wire-thin hair strands, which were capable of cutting through solid tree trunks.
 * Accelerated Healing: Inuyasha is capable of rapid recovery from even the most grievous of injuries (i.e. impalement) and can do so without any visible scarring. When Tōtōsai yanked out one of Inuyasha's fangs to repair the Tessaiga, he mentioned that Inuyasha would grow a replacement canine in just half a day. Regardless, the extent of his healing abilities are not unconditional and it has been implied he could not regenerate lost limbs.
 * Enhanced Senses: While not quite as sensitive as those of the Inu no Taishō and Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha's senses of smell and hearing are nonetheless remarkably acute. He is able to hear what people were whispering from great distances away, as was the case when, while perched on a tree, he overheard Akitoki Hōjō hiding in a bush, quietly praising Kagome under his breath. Likewise, his sense of smell is extremely keen; he could smell hints of blood from kilometers away and could detect the presence of people by smell long before they could be seen. His sense of smell was also his method of detecting yōki, and thus was used in locating the Kaze no Kizu, the striking point of the Bakuryūha and yōketsu auras, and, once, sniffing out the path of the outside world to pierce Sesshōmaru's Meidō Zangetsuha. He could catch a whiff of Naraku's power from many miles away as soon as he let down his barrier with at least as much accuracy as Kōga, despite the later being a full yōkai.
 * Claws.jpgClaws: Inuyasha has sharp, blade-like claws and he can use them to easily slice ordinary foes to ribbons. Normally, he uses these claws in his Sankon Tessō (散魂鉄爪;"Claws of Exorcism" or "Claws of Steel" in VIZ manga; "Iron Reaver Soul Stealer" in the English dub) attack. His full-powered Sankon Tessō is at least strong enough to break steel frames and destroy numerous roof tiles.
 * Blood Solidification: By using his demonic power, Inuyasha can harden his own blood and throw them like bladed projectiles in an attack he refers to as Hijin Kessō (飛刃血爪 lit. Flying Blade Blood Claws; VIZ, "Claws of Blood" or "Daggers of Blood"; "Blades of Blood" in the English dub). While he typically used blood from an already open wound, Inuyasha could draw the necessary blood to use the attack by digging his nails into his palms. He would often use this tactic as a surprise counterattack after being wounded, when his opponents would assume he was weakened by his wounds and lower their guard.
 * Longevity: Inuyasha's mixed heritage and him being the son of a powerful daiyōkai, afforded him supernatural longevity. Inuyasha noticeably aged slower than normal humans; he was over 150 years old at the time of his sealing, but looked to be the physical equivalent of a 15 year-old human.
 * Limited Time Travel: By jumping down the Bone Eater's Well, Inuyasha could travel back and forth five hundred years to and from the future. Inuyasha has repeatedly traveled to Kagome's time without the aid of a Sacred Jewel Shard. Others, besides Kagome and Inuyasha, were unable to travel through the well, as shown when Shippō attempted to go through the well but failed, and when Sōta attempted to go down the well to call Inuyasha for help during the attack of the Noh Mask, but was unable to get through either.
 * Transformation: Due to his half-demon heritage, Inuyasha transforms against his will when certain conditions are met. Thus this attribute can fluctuate between a strength and a weakness making it an unreliable ability. Most notably during the night of the new moon he is temporarily rendered human for the duration of the event. In another case, Inuyasha transforms into a full-fledged demon when his life is in mortal danger. He is also susceptible to being corrupted by an impure Sacred Jewel, turning into a savage demon. This was first seen when he and his friends were trapped in the Stone Ogre's belly, Inuyasha used a shard of the Sacred Jewel to strengthen Tessaiga's power, an effort which backfired when the impure powers of the shard flowed through Tessaiga, causing Inuyasha to transform. After Kagome purified the shard, Inuyasha regressed into a more tamed version of his yōkai form. His yōki increased exponentially, allowing him to enhance the Tessaiga's Kongōsōha's barrier-piercing effect with an intensity far superior to its previous uses, as well as being able to combine the Kaze no Kizu with the Kongōsōha. After the shard was removed from Tessaiga, Inuyasha reverted back to his hanyō self. He entered this state a second time while inside Naraku, having been corrupted into his yōkai form by the presence of the black Shikon no Tama and possessed by Magatsuhi, though he entered the purified form after smelling Kagome's blood, freeing himself from Magatsuhi's control. After Magatsuhi's demise, Kagome's spiritual powers returned him to his hanyō state.
 * Experienced Combatant: Due to being born a hanyō in a time of great strife between humans and demons, Inuyasha was very experienced in unarmed combat. However, unlike the technical skills displayed by Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha generally relied more on brute force than any type of martial arts. His conventional combat strategy was centered around attacking his opponents quickly and beating them into submission, leaving him at a disadvantage when faced with more sophisticated combatants.
 * Adept Swordsman: After obtaining Tessaiga as his signature weapon, Inuyasha used it as his main form of combat. Since Inuyasha never had used a sword before, and because he often relied solely on Tessaiga's demonic powers, skilled swordsmen normally pointed out how reckless he was when fighting them, using his lack of experience to their benefit. Sesshōmaru remarked early on that the Tessaiga was no different than a wooden club in Inuyasha's hands. However, as he continued to face great challenges from skilled opponents, Inuyasha developed his swordsmanship with Tessaiga to the point of being able to contend against Sesshōmaru in battle, though he still remained inferior in overall skills.
 * Minor Medicinal Knowledge: Inuyasha had a limited knowledge of medicine and minor illnesses; for example, he was taught by his mother how to concoct an herbal medicine that could easily cure colds in an instant, which he made for Kagome when she was sick.

Weaknesses

 * Inuyasha_Yokai_Form.pngDemonic Blood: When not in possession of Tessaiga with its sealing power and when his life is in danger, Inuyasha can unwillingly change into a full-fledged demon. While undoubtedly more powerful in this form, his demon blood overwhelms him into a whirlwind of rage whose sole purpose is destruction. In this form, Inuyasha's physical strength was more than doubled, which was more than enough to eviscerate Goshinki and Gatenmaru with a single swipe of his claws, and shove Ryūkotsusei's massive body into a cliffside with one arm. His regeneration was also bolstered, allowing him to immediately recover from life-threatening injuries and poisons received prior to transforming. His yōki was also powerful enough to erode Sesshōmaru's Meidō Zangetsuha after cutting his own yōketsu with the Dragon-Scaled Tessaiga. However, because yōki is toxic to humans, Inuyasha's half-human body and mind couldn't handle the power he inherited from his father. As a yōkai, Inuyasha was incapable of feeling pain, fear, compassion, or mercy; he only feels rage and hedonistic bloodlust, which, coupled with his newfound predatory instinct, lack of intelligence, and inability to discriminate between friend and foe, drove him to attack and kill anyone in his vicinity. With every subsequent overload, this form's intelligence diminished, and it became easier to trigger and harder for him to recover from. If left unchecked, Inuyasha would continue to fight and kill until his body either gave out or was killed by an opponent.
 * Inuyasha28.jpgNew Moon: All half-demons, like Inuyasha, lose their demonic power for a period of time; in his case, he loses his demonic powers and form during the night of the new moon. On the night of the new moon his hair turned black, his eyes turned brown, he lost his yōkai abilities and attributes (i.e. his fangs, dog ears, and claws), and could only use Tessaiga in its katana form. During the night of the new moon before the sun sets, Inuyasha suffered from pre-transformation symptoms, such as losing his acute sense of smell, before eventually turning into a human.
 * Sensory Overload: Inuyasha's sense of smell is so acute that he is vulnerable to sensory overload (e.g. in "The Cursed Ink of the Hell-Painter" he was temporarily knocked out by the strong smell of black ink). His taste buds are also highly sensitive to spicy foods.
 * Spiritual Powers: Inuyasha is susceptible to the effects of spiritual power, seeing as how Kikyō and Kagome were able to subdue him with various spells. This is inclusive of mystical objects such as the sacred arrows, sacred sutra, and the beads of subjugation. The powerful purifying barrier surrounding Mount Hakurei was also able to forcibly transform Inuyasha into his human form; beforehand the barrier did cause him noticeable discomfort and weakened his demonic abilities.

Equipment

 * Robe of the Fire-Rat: The robe Inuyasha normally wears is woven from the hair of the Fire-Rat. It serves as a fireproof armor and can has the ability to regenerate itself; for example, in the fourth InuYasha movie, Inuyasha was able to shrug off the fire of the Cauldron of Resonance, which would have otherwise completely burned and evaporated a hanyō's soul instantly.
 * Tessaiga: Inuyasha wields Tessaiga (鉄砕牙; Japanese for "Steel-Cleaving Fang"), a powerful yōkai sword forged from one of his father's fangs by the bladesmith Tōtōsai. The sword can absorb demonic powers and energy, and is useful in preventing Inuyasha from falling victim to his demonic nature, which turns him into a berserker. In its sealed state, Tessaiga resembled a rusty katana with a nicked and dented blade and torn hilt-wrap. When wielded by a user with demon blood, the blade transformed into a five-foot-long fang capable of immense damage. Over the course of his journey, Inuyasha develops Tessaiga's signature Wind Scar (風の傷 Kaze no Kizu), Backlash Wave (爆流破 Bakuryūha) and Adamant Barrage (金剛槍破 Kongōsōha, Adamant Destroying Spears) techniques. Eventually, Inuyasha gains a new ability in Meidou Zangetsuha (冥道残月破 Meidō Zangetsuha, "Dark Path of the Dawn Moon's Wave) that Sesshōmaru prepared for him as part of their father's design.
 * Sheath of Tessaiga: Tessaiga's sheath could deflect energy attacks with the barrier used to contain Tessaiga's power. These barriers, though powerful, could only withstand a certain amount of damage before breaking. The sheath also possessed the power to recall the Tessaiga. During Inuyasha's final battle against Sesshōmaru regarding the Tessaiga, the sheath possessed enough power to block the Kongōsōha but not the Red Tessaiga's barrier shattering ability.

Kagome Higurashi
Since Kagome was the reincarnation of Kikyō, she and Kikyō shared the same soul. In Chapter 546, Naraku stated that the Sacred Jewel used Kikyō's lingering feelings for Inuyasha to allow her soul to be reborn. When Kagome fell into the well, the Sacred Jewel awoke and subsequently utilized her body to return to the Feudal Era. Kagome was only able to go to the Feudal Era because her soul in one of the same as Kikyō. Once she reached the Feudal Era, Kagome's meandering ways was the reason for releasing Inuyasha from his 50-year slumber on the Goshinboku, and was responsible for sealing Naraku's fate. Once Inuyasha woke, at first glance he mistook Kagome for Kikyō, stating the two smelled and looked very similar. They were forced to team up when Kagome accidentally shattered the Sacred Jewel in an attempt to regain its possession from a demon bird. Throughout the course of their journey, Inuyasha and Kagome began to develop romantic feelings for each other and slowly began to fall in love, despite the numerous arguments and obstacles they faced.

As a result of his feelings towards her, Inuyasha became fiercely protective of Kagome, saying that "the thought of losing two women is unbearable." He would rebuke himself if she got hurt. Inuyasha often competed with Kōga for Kagome's affections, though Kagome never showed any signs of attraction towards Kōga, kindly rejecting his feelings towards her. Inuyasha's love for Kagome was quite obvious amongst the group of friends and they immediately recognized his very strong and fierce protectiveness over her. Kagome, although flattered that Inuyasha was so jealous of Kōga, was often annoyed and hurt by his temper and insensitivity.

Since Inuyasha held possessiveness towards Kagome, most enemies, including Naraku, used Kagome to gain an advantage over Inuyasha. Several times throughout the series, even when seriously wounded or near death, Inuyasha spontaneously regained physical strength beyond all odds in order to protect Kagome, much to the surprise of his friends. This led them to realize that the strength of his desire to protect Kagome brought on such spontaneous physical strength.

At first, out of pride, Inuyasha vehemently denied that he loved Kagome over and over again, but over time he stopped trying to reject his feelings towards her. Despite constantly going to Kikyō's rescue when she was in danger, he gradually came to accept that he and Kikyō had no future together, and when they met in private it was only to speak of defeating Naraku (though Kagome had a very hard time believing this). Kagome and Inuyasha provided each other with strong emotional support following Kikyō's death, as both mourned her loss; this helped bring them closer. When they were both trapped in the Sacred Jewel together, Inuyasha realized that he and Kagome were born to be with each other. Inuyasha then used the Meidō Zangetsuha to find Kagome, and once he did, he came face to face with her, they embraced, and shared a long-awaited kiss (note: the kiss occurs in the anime only).

After Kagome wished away the Shikon Jewel's existence, the Bone Eater's Well stopped working, forcing Kagome to return to the modern era for three years, during which time she completed her high school studies. During this time, Inuyasha lived a lonely life missing Kagome (Shippō stated that Inuyasha visited the well at least every three days) and spending much of his time alone. However, Kagome's strong and overwhelming desire to see Inuyasha again allowed her passage to the Feudal Era once more, and she and Inuyasha were reunited. Inuyasha and Kagome married immediately after her high school graduation, and Kagome moved to the Feudal Era to be with him for the rest of her life, vowing to become a priestess. Inuyasha and Kagome proceeded to live a happy life together where they were able to adapt to their new, permanent life together.

Kikyō
Inuyasha met Kikyō 50 years before his awakening when he tried to steal the Sacred Jewel from her. She sensed a different aura about him, stating that they were similar because they were both outsiders. Inuyasha was a hanyō who wasn't accepted by humans or demons, and Kikyō was a priestess who walked a path of blood and violence, unable to live the life of an ordinary woman. She used this as an excuse for being unable to kill him, even after he tried a second time to steal the Sacred Jewel. Eventually, Kikyō and Inuyasha's relationship grew to a point where they were comfortable enough to speak with each other up close. In Chapter 47, Inuyasha stated that "once he saw Kikyō's sad and lonely expression, for the first time in his life he felt compassion". After that point, Inuyasha and Kikyō spent most of their time with each other. Together they decided to use the Sacred Jewel to make Inuyasha a full human, granting both of them the lives of normal humans. However, a hanyō named Naraku, born from the body of a wounded bandit who secretly lusted after Kikyō and coveted the Jewel, tricked them into betraying each other. Kikyō lost her life after she was attacked by Naraku, who disguised himself as her beloved, and sealed Inuyasha into a 50-year slumber.

Kikyō was later resurrected by Urasue using her remains and Kagome's soul to animate her body and bring her back to life. She was initially enraged with Inuyasha for what she believed to be a great betrayal, but it was soon realized that neither party was responsible for the actions that occurred 50 years ago, and that they both had been tricked. Inuyasha soon realized he still loved Kikyō, stating in Chapter 76 that there hadn't been a single day where he'd forgotten about her. He later tried to refrain from seeing her, in part due to Kagome's feelings of jealousy. Nevertheless, Inuyasha never forgot Kikyō for the entirety of the series, and he became much more serious when Kikyō was involved in something. Even if he faced an issue in which Kikyō seemed to be guilty, such as when she gave Naraku a large portion of the Sacred Jewel, he covered for her.

Whenever Kikyō was in trouble, Inuyasha instinctively went to save her, saying that he was the only one Kikyō had. When Inuyasha found out the connection between Naraku and Onigumo's heart for Kikyō, he expressed both rage and jealousy toward him, promising Kikyō that he'd never let Naraku hurt her. During a conversation with Kaede, he even stated that he'd give up his own life for Kikyō if that was what she really wanted. On many occasions, Inuyasha unintentionally hurt Kagome's feelings by ignoring her whenever he ran after Kikyō, or by asking her to leave the two of them together for just a moment, causing Kagome to moan in pain and jealousy. Kagome often felt heartbroken because she felt she could not compete with Kikyō for Inuyasha's love.

Before Kikyō died for the final time, Inuyasha shed tears over his inability to save her since she was the first woman he has ever loved. He bid her farewell with a final kiss, stating that he didn't want Kikyō to endure any more sorrow and that he wanted to protect her forever. Even after her death, Inuyasha suffered severely. This was shown bluntly during his confrontation with Kaō in Chapter 473; when Kaō read Inuyasha's pain, he described Kikyō as "the woman Inuyasha had loved most in all the world."

Miroku
Miroku joined Inuyasha's group after he revealed that Naraku was the demon who killed Kikyō and deceived her and Inuyasha in order to get the Sacred Jewel. When Miroku tried to make a move on Kagome, Inuyasha instantly got mad and demanded him to never to lay a hand on her or to make any advances towards her whatsoever. This clearly surprised Kagome, and caused Miroku to believe Inuyasha was in love with Kagome, which Inuyasha instantly denied, though Miroku was left unconvinced.

Miroku and Inuyasha almost acted like brothers and always looked out for one another. Although Inuyasha was often annoyed with Miroku's lecherous tendencies towards women and viewed him as a hopeless fool, he acknowledge the spiritual power that he possessed. Miroku often gave advice to Inuyasha when it came to Kagome when she was upset with Inuyasha. When he once admitted that his ideal situation to his romantic woes would be to have both Kikyō and Kagome, Miroku responded with amusement and understanding.

Shippō
Shippō became Inuyasha and Kagome's traveling companion after Inuyasha took down the Thunder Brothers who had killed Shippō's father, making him an orphan. Shippō and Inuyasha argued constantly, but were shown to really care for each other time and again. He often bullied Shippō caused he annoyed him, hitting him in his head all the time, which was often followed by Shippō whining to Kagome and her saying "Sit!" to punish him for bullying Shippō. Although Inuyasha himself never had a positive role model for an older sibling (or perhaps because of it), their relationship was quite similar to two brothers often disagreeing and fighting out of stubbornness. Kagome later stated that they always fought because they were so close to each other.

Sango
Inuyasha treated Sango like a sister. They argued from time to time, but Sango always helped Inuyasha when he was in trouble, and occasionally gave him advice when it came to Kagome. Inuyasha sympathized with her situation with Kohaku, and often tried to give encouragement that he could be saved from Naraku's control. He cared about Sango and found her a good ally on the battlefield, though he was incredibly dense to Sango's feelings for Miroku, and often shot his mouth off about Miroku's flirtatious personality among women without thinking. This caused him to receive vicious glares from Sango, greatly confusing Inuyasha. Inuyasha, in reaction to this, usually cowered and thought to himself, "What's with the glares?"

Myōga
Myōga acted as an advisor and ward to Inuyasha's father, and since the great dog demon's death, Myōga had done the same for Inuyasha himself. Myōga often provided information for Inuyasha and his friends during their many adventures, specifically information about other yōkai and Inuyasha's father himself. Inuyasha and Myōga had a relatively close and rather familiar relationship; whenever Myōga would arrive on the scene, he would greet Inuyasha by sucking a bit of his blood, only to be flattened by the irritated Inuyasha. Myōga had a habit of fleeing the scene whenever the situation got too dangerous, much to the annoyance of Inuyasha and the others; at the same time, Myōga's disappearance often signified great danger. Although,in parts of the series he would come back and warn Inuyasha of danger or instruct him on how to make Tessaiga stronger.

Tōtōsai
Tōtōsai was the swordsmith who forged Tessaiga from the fang of the Inu no Taishō. Inuyasha would often come to Tōtōsai for assistance whenever he had problems with Tessaiga, and Tōtōsai would offer his help, albeit begrudgingly. When the two first met, Tōtōsai was very displeased with the way in which Inuyasha wielded Tessaiga, believing the hanyō to be unworthy of its power. Eventually, Inuyasha proved his might to Tōtōsai, and he proved to be another great source of knowledge and insight, very much like Myōga.

Inu no Taishō
Also known as the Great Dog General or Lord of the Western Lands, Inuyasha's father was a great yōkai who was well known and feared, and the original owner of the Tessaiga and the Tenseiga (and the Sō'unga in the third movie). He entrusted Tessaiga to Inuyasha knowing he'd care for humans and protect them, having human blood in his veins. He also gave him Tessaiga to keep Inuyasha's demon blood in check. During the battle with Ryūkotsusei, the Inu no Taishō was mortally injured, and, after the battle, died from his injuries. In the third movie, while he was still greatly wounded from his battle with Ryūkotsusei, he still managed to save Izayoi and his newborn son, whom he named "Inuyasha". He died shortly afterward. Inuyasha never met his father, but he did know of him and respected his power, gaining even more respect for him after he gained his father's sword, Tessaiga.

Izayoi
Izayoi was Inuyasha's human mother. She raised him on her own until she died. Inuyasha loved his mother and was very protective of her, often getting angry when someone insulted her. She was very caring and loved her son. Izayoi was also the only human who didn't reject or bully Inuyasha in his young life, thus leaving the two to their own and ostracizing them from other humans. When she died, Inuyasha was devastated. He buried her and visited her grave quite often.

Sesshōmaru
Sesshōmaru hated his brother because his father left Tessaiga to Inuyasha and only left him Tenseiga. Not surprisingly, Inuyasha hated Sesshōmaru, because of his cruel treatment towards him. Inuyasha cut off Sesshōmaru's left arm when Sesshōmaru was trying to find Tessaiga to increase his own power. Despite hating Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha couldn't bring himself to use his full power to kill Sesshōmaru when he used the Kaze no Kizu on him. Over the course of the series, Sesshōmaru and Inuyasha came to care for one another, and even helped each other on occasion, though they will never admit this to each other.

Higurashi family
Inuyasha always came to the modern era to pick up Kagome from her family to bring back to the Feudal Era. Kagome's mother considered Inuyasha to be a perfect match for her daughter, and viewed him like a son to her. Kagome's mother even offered her consent and support with Kagome going back and forth between the two different periods. She often made lunches for Inuyasha the others, as well as provided medical supplies for them and replaced Kagome's clothing and shoes whenever when her current ones were damaged during her deadly battles with the Feudal Era. Kagome's mother even gave her blessing for Kagome to leave the present time forever to live with Inuyasha in the Feudal Era. Sōta idolized Inuyasha as a hero to a point that he called him Inu-niisan ("Dog Brother"). Both Sōta and Inuyasha never met or knew their fathers because Sōta's father was killed in a car accident while Mrs. Higurashi was pregnant with him, and Inuyasha was born right before his father had sacrificed himself for him and his mother, and they both find Kagome to be a bit of a handful at times, especially when she's in a bad mood.

Naraku
Naraku was the enigmatic demon who was responsible for Kikyō's death and Inuyasha's being sealed to the Goshinboku. He was born of the bandit Onigumo. His plan was for Kikyō and Inuyasha to kill one another, for them to bathe in each other's blood, and turn the purity of their love into rancid hatred, thus making the Sacred Jewel even more tainted, dark, and "beautiful", as Naraku believed. When Inuyasha learned of Naraku's existence and that he was the one who ensnared Kikyō and him in a trap 50 years ago, he vowed to destroy him and avenge Kikyō's death. Throughout the series, his intense hatred for Naraku grew, as the demon became more and more evil, using and tricking numerous people for the sole purpose of gaining a complete Sacred Jewel. In the end, Inuyasha was able to defeat Naraku along with the help of his friends and allies, avenging Kikyō and destroying the Sacred Jewel for good.

Bankotsu
Inuyasha faced the young leader of the Shichinintai more times than the other members of his group and far more seriously. They often bantered back and forth, deriding the other's fighting ability, though in an interesting turn of events, Inuyasha admitted that Bankotsu was 100x more decent than Naraku after the former's second death by his hand. Inuyasha's grudging respect for his enemy was likely due to Bankotsu's compassion for his teammates and brothers within the Shichinintai.

Kōga
Inuyasha and Kōga were rivals towards each other. They were constantly fighting for any reason they could find, and whenever Kōga is near, Inuyasha instantly got infuriated, demanding he leave immediately. The first time was when Kōga's wolves attacked a human village, Inuyasha fought with them, and Kōga attacked and insulted him in retaliation. When Kōga flirted with Kagome, Inuyasha's anger increased, demanding that he leave her alone and maintain his distance whenever he tried flirting with her. Though despite all their fighting, the two did help each other when the other needed it and eventually become friends.

Jaken
Because of his suck-up, sycophantic attitude towards Sesshōmaru, Inuyasha despised Jaken, and often bullied him much like he did Shippō, except in Jaken's case he seemed to enjoy it. Inuyasha had a vindictive side, shown when it came to Jaken; for example, when he caught Jaken trying to steal the Tessaiga, he swore to make him pay the next time they crossed paths, an oath he fulfilled by beating him up.

Trivia

 * Although the official translation of his name is "Dog Forest Spirit" or "Wild Dog Spirit", a less profound, albeit more faithful, translation of "Inuyasha" (犬夜叉) is "Dog Yaksha". A yaksha is a race of creatures, or spirits, in Hinduism and Buddhism that traditionally live in forests, which is most likely the intent behind the "official" translation of "Dog Forest Spirit", since, while inaccurate, it is the one translation least likely to generate confusion among fans.
 * "Yasha” (夜叉, yasha) is the Japanese reading of the Sanskrit word "yaksha" (यक्ष, yakṣa). Interestingly, a yaksha is a close equivalent in Indian culture of the class of creatures in Japanese folklore known as yōkai, featured throughout the series. Because the characters for yasha (loaned from China) were almost certainly chosen by the Chinese to approximate the original phonetic pronunciation of the sanskrit word, their literal meaning ("night fork") is purely coincidental, and therefore irrelevant.
 * In Hinduism, the yaksha (male) and yakshini (female) represent a variety of supernatural creatures. Some of them are good, and serve the gods or protect nature, and some of them are evil, and are instead called “rakshasa” (male) or “rakshasi” (female). The yaksha were adopted into Buddhist mythology, and in Japanese the word became “yasha”. The yasha became part of the Eight Legions that defend righteousness, serving the Heavenly King Bishamonten, who defends the northerly direction. Yasha are typically depicted as having long, fluffy hair and horns. In Inuyasha’s case, instead of horns he has dog ears. Thus, “Inu” Yasha.
 * Ironically, the nomenclature of Inuyasha closely parallels Onigumo (type of demon + name of animal; i.e. "ogre spider").
 * Inuyasha's canine features (his pointed dogs-ears) are modeled after those of the Japanese native dogs breeds; such as the, the , the , , and the.
 * In the unofficial live action series Holy Pearl, Inuyasha was renamed as Wen Tian, who was half-dragon and half-human.
 * He was played by Atsuhiro Sato in a live action stage play and by Yutaka Kyan in the 2016 adaption.
 * Inuyasha, along with Shippō, Miroku, Tessaiga, and Kagome, makes a cameo appearance in  OVA Episode 13. During one of Akane's nightmares, Inuyasha is seen face down, dead, with Shippō's body on top of his and Tessaiga stuck in the floor.
 * Coincidentally, both Kappei Yamaguchi and Richard Ian Cox have also voiced Ranma Saotome's male half in Ranma ½.
 * Kappei Yamaguchi later voiced for Rinne Rokudō's father Sabato Rokudō from Takahashi's latest series. .
 * Inuyasha was once considered for a guest fighter for the game.
 * In "The Last Banquet of Miroku's Master," Inuyasha revealed that he could still talk in between Kagome's "Sit!" commands.
 * Inuyasha and Sesshōmaru were parodied by Wataru and Hayate in the series Hayate the Combat Butler. Wataru even imitates Inuyasha's Wind Scar attack. The "Kaze" part of "Kaze no Kizu" was bleeped, most likely to avoid copyright infringement.
 * In some episodes, Inuyasha's toenails were shaped just like a human's, while in others, they were sharpened like his claws.
 * In the two episodes when Inuyasha fights Naraku at Mt. Hakurei, Inuyasha called his Tessaiga to him when it was out of his reach.
 * In InuYasha the Movie: Swords of an Honorable Ruler, Inuyasha was shown to have been born with a full head of silver hair, unlike regular human babies, who are born bald or have small tufts of hair on their heads.
 * Occasionally, Inuyasha would perform dog-like actions, though mostly for comic relief. Inuyasha would sometimes get down on his hands and knees with his nose to the ground, or use his foot to scratch his ear, much like how a real dog does. It usually attracted quite a bit of attention, though Inuyasha usually didn't care, because his mind was on other things. He would also sometimes sit down and scratch his ears with his feet. He did growl from time to time, and usually did this when he was angry, annoyed, or frustrated. Also, like a real dog, he sometimes shook himself dry or played fetch (much to his annoyance).
 * Inuyasha's favorite food from the modern world was instant noodles/, although this could be annoying to Kagome, such as in Episode 9 and the first movie.
 * In the Final Act's first ending theme song, the theme shows Inuyasha and Kagome with the attached to their pinky since they were destined to meet. In Japanese culture, it is thought to be so by tying around the little finger/pinky finger.
 * Inuyasha is the second character in Rumiko Takahashi's works voiced by Kappei Yamaguchi who played Ranma Saotome in Ranma ½ and Sabato Rokudō in Rin-ne.
 * Based on the information provided in both the anime and movies, it could be concluded that InuYasha was born roughly around the year 1296 in Winter on a Full Moon, which would be during the Kamakura period.
 * Inuyasha wearing the Beads of Subjugation is hinted to be referencing Sun Wukong being forced into subjugation by wearing a headpiece blessed by the gods for him to obey Tripitaka in ancient legend of The Journey to the West. Both cannot go against the "word sayer" (Kagome and Tripitaka) nor can they remove the item themselves. It is also similar to a shock collar used to train dogs.