Episode 45

Sesshomaru Wields Tokijin is the forty-fifth episode of the InuYasha anime.

Synopsis

 * 1) The Tōkijin proves too much for Kaijinbō, and he is destroyed from the inside, because of Tōkijin's awesome power.
 * 2) Inuyasha and his friends wonder who could have commissioned Kaijinbō to forge such a sword; to their shock they find out that it was none other than Sesshōmaru.
 * 3) Tōtōsai reveals to Inuyasha that up until this point, before Tessaiga broke, Inuyasha was relying on his father's power to protect him, but now that it has been forged from his own fang, Inuyasha must build up his strength to master his own powers.
 * 4) Sesshōmaru decides to test out the Tōkijin on Inuyasha; Inuyasha is separated from the Tessaiga and his yōkai blood takes him over again, for a moment; Inuyasha's friends whisk him away and they manage to escape.

Summary
As the sun rises, Inuyasha completes his transformation back to his half-demon form and allowing Tetsusaiga to transform into its' combat form; however, Inuyasha immediately discovers that Tetsusaiga is much heavier than before, and he is barely able to swing or parry with it. Fortunately, Kainjinbo's use of the demonic blade Tokijin soon destroys his body, as his own weak demonic powers are no match for Tokijin's evil aura.

Meanwhile, Kagura seeks out Sesshōmaru (who is resting with his companions Rin and Jaken) and informs him of Tokijin's location and the destruction of Kaijinbo, which she covertly observed. She takes a moment to flirt with him, finding Sesshomaru very attractive, then hints that he may have power enough to kill Naraku before she flies away. Kagura muses to herself that she is still bound to Naraku by her heart, but she would rather die than remain his puppet forever.

Inuyasha angrily berates Totosai for having compromised Tetsusaiga, as he is now barely able to wield it, let alone use the Wind Scar. Totosai replies that there is an easy way for Inuyasha to overcome this, only to reveal that Inuyasha will have to build up his own physical strength accordingly; this earns him a whack on the head from Inuyasha. Totosai then explains that Tetsusaiga was re-forged with Inuyasha's own fang, rather than that of his father; correspondingly, his own power must be increased to match his father's before he can properly wield the Tetsusaiga in his own right.

The group then muse over what to do with Tokijin; none of them is capable of purifying the intense evil aura around it, so Miroku suggests they erect some kind of barrier around it to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. However, moments later they are interrupted by the arrival of Sesshōmaru, riding on the two-headed dragon Ah-Un. Sesshōmaru confirms that he commissioned Kaijinbo to forge Tokijin and ignores Totosai's warnings that its' aura will overwhelm him if he touches it. Sesshōmaru takes Tokijin and easily overcomes the blade's aura, claiming it as his own, much to Totosai's dismay. He then challenges Inuyasha, as he wishes to understand why the scent of Inuyasha's blood changed to full-demon during his previous battle with Goshinki.

The ensuing sword fight is extremely one-sided; even though Sesshomaru only has one arm, his full-demon strength allows him to wield Tokijin effortlessly, while Inuyasha is barely able to parry his furious attacks with the new, heavier Tetsusaiga. Noting this weakness, Sesshomaru soon disarms him and blasts him back across the field with Tokijin's power. Myoga immediately insists that Inuyasha retrieve Tetsusaiga. However, reasoning that it is useless against Sesshomaru anyway, Inuyasha leaves the sword and simply makes a head-on charge at his half-brother; Sesshomaru easily blasts him back again, inflicting minor injuries in the process. Inuyasha slumps to his knees. Disdainful, Sesshomaru charges Inuyasha, intending to deliver a killing blow; however, halfway across the field, he freezes, as the scent of Inuyasha's blood has changed to full-demon again. Inuyasha's appearance then changes to its' more monstrous form as he begins to snarl in a feral rage. Totosai tells the group to grab Inuyasha and flee, then blasts a column of flames across the field, separating the half-brothers. Kagome subdues Inuyasha with "Sit" and the group escapes with Tetsusaiga, leaving Sesshomaru to muse why the scent of Inuyasha's blood changes when he is in danger.

Differences from the manga

 * In the manga, Kagura met Sesshōmaru after he fought Inuyasha and was able to locate Tōkijin all by himself. In this episode, he met Kagura before he located Tōkijin and was unable to on his own until Kagura told him how the sword reeked of Goshinki's aura, which was somewhat odd given his sharp nose and intellect.
 * In the manga, Sesshomaru arrived to claim Tokijin immediately after Kaijinbo's death (as opposed to a long time going by between them in this episode), which is a possible explanation as to why Kagome never uses a Sacred Arrow on Tokijin, though it is not explained why no one ever thinks of it before Sesshomaru arrives.