Kaō

was a powerful yōkai who fed on the sorrow of others, feeding their used bodies to the ground afterwards.

History
Soon after Kikyō's death, Inuyasha's group arrived at a village that was controlled by Kaō. They were warmly welcomed by the villagers and offered to stay at a house that was built for travelers. The villagers are acting too happy for Inuyasha to trust them. The night of after their arrival, Kaō appeared before them and used his flowers on the villagers to give them illusions. He then disintegrated them into soil for his flowers. Inuyasha and his friends then confront Kaō. He justified these actions by saying he takes people's worries and gives them happiness and peace in return. When people are happy and have a full life, their souls are happy too. When these people die, they become very fertile soil for his flowers. He placed Sango under his spell by feeding her thoughts of her brother Kohaku. He then revealed to Miroku that he knew about the injuries he has sustained by sucking in miasma with his Kazaana. Inuyasha attacked him with the Kaze no Kizu. Kaō retreated, but left some blood behind.

Inuyasha and Kagome pursue him until they reach his castle. Kaō revealed that Inuyasha's attack did not harm him, and the blood was used as a way to lure them to him. He used the flowers surrounding the castle to trap Inuyasha to absorb his sorrow. He was dragged underground to the inside of the castle by the plants. The flowers attempted to trap Kagome too, but she warded them off with some prayer beads that Miroku gave her before they left.

Kaō succeeded in placing Inuyasha in a trance, and allowing him to weep all his sorrow over Kikyō's death with his blood. Kagome attempted to rescue Inuyasha, but a barrier was erected around the castle that prevented her from entering. She was unable to break it with her sacred arrow. She then yelled for Inuyasha to wake up. It was her voice that allowed Inuyasha to awaken from his trance. He then punched Kaō's face. Kaō was surprised that Inuyasha had awoken, and stated that he all he did was show Inuyasha dreams of what he wanted to see. Inuyasha punched him in the stomach. Kaō transformed into his yōkai form and used his tendrils to hurt Inuyasha. Kagome was able to break his barrier by combining her arrow with Miroku's beads. The arrow destroyed Kaō's body, but he was still alive through his flowers. Since she no longer had the preyer beads, he attempted to feed on Kagome's soul.

Kaō was initially unaware of how much sorrow she felt, and claimed that her sorrow was far more appealing than that of Inuyasha's. Kagome soon awoke after she was attacked, and proceeded to shoot another arrow inside the castle. Her shot purified all the flowers in its path, but Kaō was still alive. He attempted to attack Kagome again buy manifesting through the rest of his flowers. He was killed immediately after when Inuyasha cut his face in half with Tessaiga.

Afterwords
Kaō's actions caused Inuyasha to realize that Kagome was also suffering greatly because of Kikyō's death. He apologized to Kagome for not seeing it sooner.

Personality
Kaō acts elegant and pays attention to manners. He would rather live with the humans than to fight against them. Kaō is always polite to both his allies and enemies, expecting the same degree of courtesy from his opposite. He claims that his goal is to create peace and prevent all suffering, so that everyone can be happy and become fertile soil for his flowers after their death.

Physical description
Kaō's human appearance is that of a noble man with dark, messy hair. He is quite tall and has a fair complexion. He wears eyeshadows and his lips are painted red. In his demonic form, Kaō's body is made of tendrils. His face resembles a Japanese wooden mask and his eyes light up red.
 * Humanoid form
 * Yōkai form

Outfit
He wears a white robe with a red kimono underneath. He wears a tate-eboshi, as worn by Japanese nobles and scholars in the Sengoku period. He also carries a fan with him.

Powers & Abilities
Kaō's powers were shown to have been strong enough to cast his spell over an entire village. He'd been show to act in a kind and caring manner; this helps him put others in the trance his flowers create. He is also able to read the thoughts of others through his plants.

Manga vs. Anime

 * In the manga, Miroku states that he was not able to sense any demonic energy from Kaō since they arrived at the village.

Media appearances
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Manga

 * Chapter 471
 * Chapter 472
 * Chapter 473
 * Chapter 474

Anime
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 * Episode 177

Kaō Kaō Kao 花皇