Name: Sesshoumaru
Name: Sesshoumaru
Alias(es): Lord Sesshouhamru, M'lord, Seshoumaru-sama
Race: Inu Youkai (dog demon)
Age: 900+, physical appearance is that of a 19 year old human (so the mangaka says, but he looks older than that to me...)
Hair: Silver
Eyes: Gold
Height: 5'8" (Due to both the given weight and some reference pictures of Inu next to Sess, I am not entirely certain that this figure is correct. He may be taller.)
Weight: 221.3 lbs (on a personal note, that man must have muscles of solid steel to be that short, weigh that much, and be so slim. I mean, granted I'm a girl, but at 5'10" I only weigh 150lbs. Maybe they are including his armor?)
Family: Inu no Taisho (father, deceased); Mother (name unknown, alive); Izayoi (step-mother, deceased); Inuyasha (half-brother, alive); Jaken (attendant); Rin (ward)
Status: Taiyoukai (daiyoukai?), which basically means Demon Lord. It is as much a level of power as a rank, and he is presumably the Lord of the Western Lands, as his father was before him.
Quote:
Anime: InuYasha
Voice: (English) David Kaye (Japanese) Tsutomu Narita (credited as Ken Narita)
History and Personality: Lineage - Sesshoumaru is one of the sons of the powerful Inu no Taisho. Since the Inu no Taisho is considered to be a (T)daiyoukai (great/lord of youkai), Sesshoumaru is, technically speaking, a daiyoukai himself. He is mostly a calm and collected person who hardly shows any emotions and rarely laughs. He rarely smiles, and when he does, it's usually not a good thing; as once Jaken begged Sesshoumaru to beat him rather than to smile because it was Sesshoumaru's smile that he feared most. Sesshoumaru believes that struggle is the only way for survival and mostly throughout the series shows his contempt for Inuyasha, his half brother.
Sesshoumaru's mother has recently been introduced in the manga. Her name is not yet mentioned. She is also an inu youkai like the Inu no Taisho, which means she can transform into a giant youkai-dog. She also appears to know some kind of secret about Tenseiga. She wears around her neck the Meido-Seki that was given to her by Inu no Taisho. She uses it to summon a Hellhound that grabs Rin and Kohaku and runs through the Meido crescent that Sesshoumaru created with Tenseiga. Sesshoumaru chases after it for the 'sole' purpose of killing it. After he enters it we learn that this is one of the Inu no Taisho's tests for his sons. More information about her will be revealed in later chapters.
Quest for Personal Strength - Proud to the point of arrogant, and with the ambition to walk the path of conquest, he desires to become stronger, even at the expense of others. He will not, however, use the shards of the Jewel of the Four Souls to gain strength, which separates him from other youkai questing for power. Sesshoumaru wants to become strong by using his own strength and would never borrow power from another source. As the Shikon Jewel increases the user's power unnaturally he sees it as beneath him, while swords like the Tetsusaiga (Iron-Breaking Fang), the Tenseiga, and the Tokijin, which attack the opponent using only the youki (demon power) of the person wielding them, are acceptable.
Heritage of the Swords - Sesshoumaru originally coveted Inuyasha's sword, the powerful Tetsusaiga. Tetsusaiga was a destructive sword made from one of his father's fangs. A barrier was cast around the sword so that most youkai (or anyone without compassion for humans - which would include Sesshoumaru) cannot hold or wield it as it burns their flesh.
Even knowing that he could not touch the sword, Sesshoumaru still desired to take it from Inuyasha. While his initial motivation appears to be pride and greed, Sesshoumaru later claims the sword should rightfully be held by one able to fully wield its power. For this reason, he fought with Inuyasha in their father Inu no Taisho's grave and by chance, Inuyasha transformed the blade for the first time and hacked off Sesshoumaru's left arm. After that, Sesshoumaru began using the arms of other youkai, but they rotted and became useless after a while since the organs of lesser youkai can’t bear the power of a daiyoukai that is contained within Sesshoumaru. Later he made a deal with Naraku, he would kill Inuyasha in exchange for a human hand with a shard of the Jewel of the Four Souls. Normally he wouldn’t use the Jewel, but for Tetsusaiga’s sake he was willing to make an exception. That way he could wield Tetsusaiga and use it. There is a small contradiction in this matter as the sword only transforms when it is wielded by those who have the will to protect humans. At that time, Sesshoumaru certainly was not thinking of protecting anyone but the Shikon shard must have acted as an override. Another opinion states that Sesshoumaru was able to compel the sword to obey him through his own power and that it could not harm him with its protective barrier because the arm belonged to a human. The main reason that the arm didn’t quickly rot away as do most of the arms he wields is because the Shikon shard prevented the arm from being destroyed by Sesshoumaru's strong youki. However, he later lost this arm and the ability to wield the Tetsusaiga with it. Now though, he has stopped trying to steal the sword as he now knows it is the only thing keeping Inuyasha under control.
At this point it should be noted that nothing in the manga has yet suggested that Sesshoumaru is capable of wielding the Tetsusaiga on his own. In the anime and the third movie Sesshoumaru has been shown using the Tetsusaiga, but he never does so in the manga. He is never so much as able to grab the Tetsusaiga without the use of additional help (examples are the use of the Shikon shard to allow him the usage of a human arm to wield the sword).
Sesshoumaru inherited the Tenseiga, the companion blade of the Tetsusaiga, another sword made from his father's fang. However, the Tenseiga, which can bring 100 people back to life with a single swing, was originally incapable of harming an opponent, thus it was useless in a battle. This is why he desired the Tetsusaiga instead. He eventually uses the power of Tenseiga to resurrect the head of Goshinki so that Kaijinbo could forge the Tokijin from his fangs. Although the Tokijin was a formidable weapon, it is later destroyed during a fight with Moryomaru. However, the swordsmith Totosai reforged Tenseiga to be usable as a weapon, enabling Sesshoumaru to perform the Meido Zangetsuha technique, which cuts a passage between living world and the afterlife and forces his opponent through it.
Sesshoumaru's mother, who began to appear starting in chapter #466 of the manga and whose name has not been revealed, seems very like him in some respects; she probably contributed to his cold demeanor and his initial attitude toward humans. Observing that he is traveling with two human children (Rin and Kohaku), she inquires casually if he is planning on eating them. Sesshoumaru sought out his mother to find out more about Tenseiga, implying that she has information regarding the creation of Inu No Taisho's swords. His mother informs him that Inu No Taisho entrusted her with the Meido-Seki ("dark-path jewel"), instructing her to use it should Sesshoumaru visit with questions regarding Tenseiga. Inu No Taisho left the Meido-Seki with her apparently as another of his tests for his sons and a possible means of further empowering Tenseiga, informing her that "If you use Meido-Seki Sesshoumaru will be faced with great danger... However you must not feel fear or sadness." When the Meido-Seki is used, a hellhound appears and abducts Rin and Kohaku, prompting Sesshoumaru to follow it through the Meido Tenseiga opened into the underworld. As of chapter #469, Sesshoumaru is confronting the master of hell there in order to save Rin's life.
Companions - He is followed by his minion, a youkai named Jaken, and later by a human orphan named Rin, whom Sesshoumaru brought back to life using Tenseiga. Though he told Jaken that he was merely testing his sword, his thoughts revealed that it was Tenseiga itself that compelled him to resurrect Rin. He is also followed by a two-headed dragon named Ah-Un. Ah-Un is Rin and Jaken's main form of transportation when Sesshoumaru takes flight or when they need to cover long distances quickly, as only Sesshoumaru and Ah-Un are capable of flight. Most recently, Sesshoumaru saved Kohaku's life from a trap arranged by Naraku, and Kohaku has also joined his retinue.
Intellect- Throughout the series, we also get to see glimpses of his intellectual ability. When he first fought Moryomaru we saw how good a tactician he really is when he attacked him using his Kanetsu ability. Moryomaru only kept absorbing his attacks and thought Sesshoumaru was a fool for empowering him. As it turns out Moryomaru's arm then blew into pieces since it couldn't handle the burden of Sesshoumaru's attacks, and thus he permanently lost his ability to absorb attacks of youki and using them in counterattacks. Other times we also get to see how knowledgeable he is of the youkai world; when Rin inquired about a skeleton she saw Sesshoumaru told her that it belonged to youkai with a nearly impenetrable armor called the Meioju, another time when Rin was about to drink the water from a youkai lake Sesshoumaru told her to stop since the lake was a youkai called the Numawatari and it devoured all who came close to it.
Examples of growing compassion - Although Sesshoumaru maintains a cool, uncaring exterior, throughout the story his compassion seems to be growing. When Inuyasha went insane after turning into a youkai, Sesshoumaru came to see for himself the power that Inuyasha could produce, and managed to defeat him. He then instructed Kagome to return the Tetsusaiga to Inuyasha in order to restore him to his former self. It is possible that he lost interest in obtaining the Tetsusaiga mainly due to Inuyasha's need for the sword to control his youkai blood. He then left claiming that he intends to kill Inuyasha one day, when Inuyasha could adequately fight back. However it is possible that by claiming the right to kill Inuyasha for himself, Sesshoumaru is actually doing a backhanded favor for his younger brother. By making this public declaration, Sesshoumaru is claiming first right to Inuyasha's death by Sesshoumaru's own hand, and at his choice of time and place. Thus Sesshoumaru can then choose to battle any shared adversary with no loss of face and without admitting any familial attachment or emotions. This is a curious but historically documented manner of saving face and denying emotional attachment.
Sesshoumaru not only tolerates a human Rin, but also acts almost like a father to her and rushes to her aid when she gets in trouble. Naraku once had Kagura kidnap Rin as a get-away plan in his attempt to absorb the body and the youkai power of Sesshoumaru. Naraku's plan failed and he tried to escape - Sesshoumaru was incensed and began to pursue Naraku. But upon hearing that Rin was in danger, Sesshoumaru let him go and came to the aid of the girl.
Even though he is very abusive towards his servant Jaken, he only makes him accompany him when he is facing a weak foe. He has repeatedly warned Jaken to move out of the way prior to an attack. Further, when Naraku first emerged in his youkai form, Sesshoumaru told Jaken to stay behind him as he attacked the youkai.
On his way to Mount Hakurei, Sesshoumaru saved Kagome, Miroku, and Sango from the poison user Mukotsu, one of the Shichinintai, but once again claimed that he only killed someone who was in his way.
When Kagura was injured, Sesshoumaru pulled her from the river she was drowning in, after Rin fell in trying to save her. Some argue that it might be only because Rin wanted him to save Kagura or because he wanted an excuse to save her. Also, when Kagura was dying, Sesshoumaru purposely sought her out and even used the Tenseiga (for the first time without any prompting), only to realize that Tenseiga could not save her.
In the manga (beyond the anime's current point), Inuyasha and his companions were involved in a fight with the "water god" Numawatari. After none of their attacks were able to harm him, Sesshoumaru arrived and insulted Inuyasha's inability to kill a "low life youkai". He then easily dispatched the "water god" using his Meido Zangetsuha ability. Sesshoumaru then leaves after learning about the Tetsusaiga's new abilities with a strange smile on his face.
Recently in the manga Byakuya, Naraku's newest offspring, seeks out Kohaku, who has one of the last three shards of the Jewel of the Four Souls. Byakuya uses his youkai powers to launch shoki snakes at Kohaku, causing him to fall unconscious. He is about to take him back to Naraku, when Sesshoumaru appears and launches a ranged Meido-Zangetsuha (still in the crescent moon shape), barely missing him. Byakuya flees claiming that he doesn't want to die, and comments on how it is so unlike Sesshoumaru to save someone. Rin goes to help Kohaku, and Sesshoumaru tells her not to touch him, because he is covered with poisonous snakes. Thereafter, Kohaku has been shown following Sesshoumaru along with Rin, and Sesshoumaru seems to have also taken Kohaku into his protection, albeit in his typical grudging fashion (after once more rescuing Kohaku from peril, Sesshoumaru tells him curtly, "Don't make me waste time unnecessarily. This arm is only for holding a sword." However, he also advises Kohaku to take the path back to safety while he himself intends to proceed into greater danger). It is speculated that Sesshoumaru may take an active role in protecting the singular remaining shard Kohaku now holds.
Also recently in the manga, Rin appears to be dead due to her time in Hell (additionally, Sesshoumaru notes her scent now matches those of the dead around him). Sesshoumaru had entered Hell for the purpose of rescuing her, and upon learning he could not save her life, he was 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 that he would trade anything in exchange for Rin's life. This is a defining moment for the character, as he had previously made it apparent he valued only his own life (though outwardly). Never before had he directly stated he valued Rin's life. This is also the first, and only, time that he has outwardly expressed compassion throughout the entire series.
Attitude toward humans - Sesshoumaru sees everyone, human and demon alike, as below him, and kills everyone who is in his way (at least at first). However, he makes several comments early on which lead us to believe that he holds humans in greater contempt than demons. Still, unlike many lesser demons, he does not go out of his way to harm humans, and no indication is given that he eats them - though he does tell Rin that he does not eat human food. He seems to view humans as more of a nuisance than anything else, and this is probably due mostly to his perception that they are 'weak', especially in regard to emotion.
Future Role in Naraku's Destruction - It is worthwhile to speculate that Sesshoumaru will play a vital role in the destruction of Naraku, yet to be revealed in the manga. After he broke Tokijin, he seemed to swear an ambiguous oath of vengeance against Naraku for Kagura's sake. However, he seems to have taken an extended leave of absence from the hunt for Naraku. This is most likely because he does not want to engage Naraku half cocked like Inuyasha often does (if Inuyasha had initially been able to wield Tetsusaiga with any hint of its true power, Naraku would have died in their first encounter).
Curiously enough however, he is now allowing Kohaku to travel with him, and finding Kohaku is now Naraku's primary objective. So it is doubtless that the two will meet again even though it appears that Sesshoumaru is no closer to mastering the Meido Zangetsuha technique than last we saw him.
In chapter 466, Sesshoumaru notices a shape flying through the sky. An instant later, he shifts into his dog form, and chases after the other youkai. In the sky, it is revealed that this other creature is a youkai-dog much like Sesshoumaru. The two land quickly and revert back to their human forms; the other youkai-dog takes the form of a beautiful woman, and she addresses Sesshoumaru without an honorific, much to Jaken's shock.
Sesshoumaru tells her that he was wondering if she could tell him more of his father's memento, Tenseiga. The woman then reveals herself to be Sesshoumaru's mother, saying, as if confirming something, that Sesshoumaru's come to pay her a visit. According to her, his father left her with a black jewel which may help him to attain the Tenseiga's true potential. From the jewel comes a black demon dog who attacks Sesshoumaru. He tries to use the Meido Zangetsuha to fight it, but with no success. The dog grabs Kohaku and Rin and flees with them through the portal opened by the Meido's attack. Sesshoumaru rushes after them, claiming he is not doing it to save the kids, but to defeat the monster. He successfully defeats the monster by using, strangely enough, Tenseiga's healing powers. It is explained that as Meidou was the link to the next world, and Rin was in danger, Tenseiga's healing powers was thus effective in slaying the dog. However, more creatures of darkness pop up, which Sesshoumaru defeats.
Unfortunately, Sesshoumaru's mother says that as her son goes on the "Path of Darkness", Rin will die. As they continue along the path towards the point of no return, where they would no longer be able to get back to the world of the living, Rin stops breathing. When they reach what Sesshoumaru's mother referred to as the point of no return, Rin was absorbed by the darkness. Sesshoumaru's mother decided to use the meidou-seki to open a path back to the world of the living at that point, however he refused, deciding to instead follow after Rin. Sesshoumaru's mother stated that once the path she had created was closed, that he would be trapped there forever, as he walked away, it was closing quickly. Following the path that Rin had been pulled down led him to find an enormous oni that was holding Rin's body. Sesshoumaru identifies the oni as the Master of Hell, and at the close of chapter 469 prepares to fight it. He ends up easily defeating the oni, but it is then revealed that Tenseiga can only revive a specific person one time, meaning that he can't use it to revive Rin a second time. It is here that he has a very noticable moment of sorrow, mentally beating himself up for trading something such as upgrading Tenseiga for Rin's life. He then purifies all of the souls in Hell, and is able to subsequently unleash a full power Meido Zangetsuha attack, in the form of a large circle.
Relationships:
Inuyasha - Though a great deal of this is speculation on my part I am going to say that Sesshoumaru didn't care about Inuyasha one way or the other before he was sealed to the tree. In fact, it seems that they did not have any interaction at all before Inuyasha's sealing. This observation is based primarily on the episodes involving the panther demons tribe, in which there is a flashback to 50 years before. Jaken evidently went to summon Inuyasha to help in battle, and Sesshoumaru simply asks where he is. Then Jaken informs him that Inuyasha has been sealed by a miko and Sesshoumaru does not appear happy. In addition, Sesshoumaru's comments to Inuyasha upon his initial appearance in the anime seem to indicate that the reason he detests him is that he allowed himself to love, and then be betrayed by, a human woman - and, worse, a miko - and he's doing it again... Apparently he does not hold Inuyasha's mixed heritage against him, only the fact that he has succumbed to human weaknesses. he sees this as a degradation of their father's house and will not tolerate it. This would explain, in part, why his attitude toward Inuyasha seems to change as the series progresses. As Inuyasha proves himself to be stronger than Sesshoumaru expected, Sesshoumaru no longer sees the need to kill him. Though he still claims that Inuyasha's life will be taken by him he has, so far, made no further attempt to do so, and has, in fact, actually worked with Inuyasha on more than one occasion. He also saved Inuyasha from the madness of his demon blood transformation, though he found an excuse for that as he does for everything else that might look like kindness. Inuyasha initially seems merely wary of his older brother, but since the first thing Sesshoumaru does is drag the memory of his mother through the dirt and then threaten Kagome, Inuyasha rapidly grows to hate him. However, he eventually finds that Sesshoumaru is not so simple to understand as he once thought and begins to attempt to reason with him instead of just fighting. Still, the two always argue, even when 'working together'. Though the two will probably never get along (at all) it does seem that they are moving toward tolerating one another.
Rin - Rin discovered Sesshoumaru injured in the forest after Inuyasha used the Wind Scar on him. For reasons no one knows she is drawn to him and tries to help him. He rejects her, but she keeps coming. And then she does not come because she has been killed by wolves. Sesshoumaru, now well enough to travel, recognizes her scent and goes to see. Once there the Tenseiga compels him to save her. For reasons he does not understand, and hasn't bothered to reason out, he allows her to remain with him and he protects her. He states that he expects her to care for herself, but typically send Jaken or Ah-Un with her. Though he states that he will not be lured to save her, he always is (though, again, he is the master of excuses). Rin is devoted to him and obeys his every command (even to stop screaming - which she does rather abruptly). When a holy man tries to 'free' Rin of Sesshoumaru he tells her that she can remain with the humans if she wishes, but she chooses to go with him. His behavior (in not killing the monks and ordering her away) seems to indicate that he wishes to know if she still wants to follow him. However, at the end of the anime, Sesshoumaru's feelings concerning her have not been made clear. In the more recent chapters of the manga Sesshoumaru actually admits to valuing her life (perhaps even equal to his own) and says that he would do anything to save her - a rather startling admission from the master of excuses. Many fans speculate that once Rin grows up their relationship will take a turn toward the romantic. I tend to agree. And to all those who make faces and say "she's too young", let me remind you that Inutaisho was probably several thousand years old when Izayoi was born. When you're practically immortal everyone is young compared to you...
Jaken - Sesshoumaru 'saved' Jaken quite by accident many decades ago, and Jaken (abandoning his own people, whom he seemed to rule) followed after him, enraptured by his perfection. For some reason Sesshoumaru kept him and entrusted to him the Staff of Two Heads. Jaken is very loyal even though Sesshoumaru generally ignores him, and when he is not ignoring him he abuses him. Occasionally this bothers Jaken, but in the end he always decides that Sesshoumaru has the right to do as he pleases.
Techniques: Primary Weapons - Tenseiga & Tokijin, Whip,Claws. Claws and Fangs in Dog Form.
Attacks and weapons descriptions-
Dokkasso (Poison Flower Claws): Sesshoumaru's claws release deadly acidic poison which can melt flesh. Sometimes he uses it like Inuyasha uses his Exorcising Claws of Steel attack, but he can also use it in the form of a green attack that looks like he’s spraying acid.
Whip of Light: Sesshoumaru can generate a thin, whip like strand of yellow energy from his fingertips that can slice through almost anything. This attack was only in the anime and not in the manga, possibly as an alternate way of getting his hands on Tetsusaiga in one part of the anime. The whip also displays characteristics of poison akin to the burning effect it has on contact, possibly an extension of his claw attack.
Mokomoko-sama: It is the fluffy boa on Sesshoumaru's shoulder. Sesshoumaru can extend it to great lengths, and use it to whip or constrict people. It was once used to knock the Tetsusaiga out of Inuyasha's hands. The creator, Rumiko Takahashi stated that when she was creating Sesshoumaru, the thing was supposed to be armor, but she went a little out of hand. In episode 35 of the anime, both ends of the fluff are seen, therefore allowing one to assume that it is detachable. However, in his fight with the Shichinintai, it was grazed by Jakotsu's sword and apparently started bleeding, and that has never been explained. Instead of having the fluff draped over his shoulder, it is instead behind his head, both ends extending down to past his waist, as a pillow. Sesshoumaru's father had two mokomoko-sama, that extended from the shoulders like Sesshoumaru's leading some to believe that when Sesshoumaru fully matures he will have two of them as well, however, the human form of Inu no Taishou was only in the movie and was never revealed in the manga. Also it bears a striking resemblance to the fur that separates Tetsusaiga’s blade from the hilt; this isn’t surprising as both have a common origin. Sesshoumaru's mother also had a mokomoko boa, that was split into two.
Kenatsu: Translated as Sword Pressure, it is Tokijin's ability to cut and harm enemies without physical contact. In the beginning, it takes the form of a rain of needle-like energy which deals moderate damage to foes. Later, as Sesshoumaru fully masters the sword it is released as a blue wave of energy that completely disintegrates the adversary. The strength of this attack depends on how it is unleashed by Sesshoumaru. Usually it shoots beams of blue light, and when Sesshoumaru utilizes its full potential it comes out in the form of parallel blue trails of energy similar to how InuYasha’s Kaze no Kizu is released. Shortly before the Tokijin broke he managed to shatter the Kongosoha spears that Moryomaru launched at him. Also he managed to break off part of Moryomaru's armored shell using Kenatsu. This is especially noteworthy since he was angry at the time, and is the only character in the series to break the shell using sheer force. Inuyasha managed to break it with the Dragon-Scalled Tetsusaiga, but that is different since it absorbs youki. In the Sesshoumaru's first battle with Moryomaru, it is implied that Tokijin's kenatsu ability is not just based off of Tokijin's base power. It is implied that Sesshoumaru can mix in some of his youki in the kenastu blasts.
Soryuha (Dragon Strike): This attack is unique to the third and fourth movies, appearing neither in the manga nor the anime series. It is a very powerful move on the level of Inuyasha's Bakuryuha. When Soryuha is unleashed in the third movie, thick arcs of blue lightning stab the earth and carry their destructive force to Sesshoumaru's opponent. In the fourth movie it is interesting to note that the energy released by Soryuha resolves into the shape of a dragon right before destroying the enemy (in keeping with the attack's name). Soryuha is unique among the various sword techniques of the series in that, unlike moves like the Kaze no Kizu (Wind Scar), Kongosoha, and Meido Zangetsuha, Sesshoumaru is capable of performing Soryuha with both Tokijin and Tenseiga - rather than being an ability of either sword, it seems that it is instead a manifestation of Sesshoumaru's on youki, requiring a sword only as a conduit. Tokijin proves to be less than ideal in that respect, unable to bear up to repeated uses of the ability as it is "only an oni's fang." Another unique fact about this attack is that Seshoumaru can use without actually having to swing the sword, but by simply holding it horizontally and commanding the strike.
Meido Zangetsuha: With the reforged Tenseiga, Sesshoumaru slashes at an enemy and creates a black crescent shaped gap in the world of the living, sending the 'cut' enemy directly to the next world. While at the beginning the wave takes the shape of a crescent resembling a crescent moon, Totosai claims that eventually through training, Sesshoumaru will be able to make the wave into a complete circle resembling a full moon. However, he appears to have started mastering the technique by enlarging the crescent shape before moving on to a full circle. Recently he has been shown to be able to shoot the Meido Zangetsuha from a distance. He fully masters the technique in chapter 470, in which he is able to unleash the attack as a full circle.
Other Abilities and Traits -
Flight: ability to float in the sky or generate a sparkling dust cloud to ride on. Whenever Sesshoumaru uses his flight powers for an extended period of time, the leg bottoms of his hakama extend to semi-transparent ephemeral flowing masses, similar to how one would picture the wind driven cloak of a ghost. This does not happen when he chooses to fly upon his dust cloud or ride Ah-Un. Also sometimes his mokomoko-sama extends to a huge length when this happens, and sometimes other mokomoko-sama’s are formed from the original that lift him up in the sky and only disappear or retract back into the original mokomoko-sama when he is no longer flying.
Super speed: ability to move at blinding speed, both on land and through the air. When he does this he leaves behind shadow like images.
Teleportation: ability to morph into a ball of energy and move himself (and small amounts of other material, including other living beings) over great distances in a short amount of time (only in the anime).
Daiyoukai: As the son of a great youkai-dog general (Taisho meaning General or Leader), naturally Sesshoumaru is a far superior youkai; endowed with heightened senses, intelligence, strength, and a myriad of youkai powers. While he usually appears to be a very handsome human bearing splendid clothing and amour; he can transform into his true form at will. As he transforms he is either surrounded in a bright red aura or has a tornado circling around him. His eyes then take on a bright red color and youkai marks on his body widen and become more apparent similar to Inuyasha during his youkai transformations, however, Sesshoumaru’s transforms much further due to his youkai blood and becomes a gigantic, crimson eyed, acid-breathing (only in the anime) canine with fluffy white fur. In this form his nature changes to adopt an animal-like instinct, in the anime his “Dokkasso” attack is released in his saliva and spread like an acidic aroma that melts anything nearby, and he loses the massive speed he had in his human form; in the manga he uses his claws.
Immortality: Being a youkai, Sesshoumaru does not suffer from old age the way humans do. He appears to be a young man in his 20s; however he has been around for at least a few hundred years. According to the official Inuyasha character guide (Zusetsutaizen Ougikaiden), Sesshoumaru has the appearance of a nineteen-year-old. An official age has never been given by Rumiko Takahashi.
Immunity: Various episodes of the anime (perhaps the most indicative being episode #104) inform that Sesshoumaru is immune to diseases, poisons, and gases that can paralyze or kill both humans and weaker youkai. His greatest resistance seems to be towards holy and divine powers; his resistance to purifcation powers was so strong that he was able to enter Mount Hakurei, despite its purification barrier (which was the most powerful barrier in the entire series as its reach extended throughout the surrounding area of entire mountain), without being purified and was only slightly weakened in his battles against Jakotsu, and Suikotsu. Also in episode #19 when Kagome shot Sesshoumaru using one of her Hama no Ya, Sesshoumaru caught it using his right hand’s forefingers. Most youkai would have been purified but Sesshoumaru remained unharmed with not even a scar on either of his fingers. It seems that the only mystical powers that Sesshoumaru isn’t resistant to is youki such as those of Inuyasha’s Kaze no Kizu. Another example of his strong body seems to come from Naraku’s inability to absorb him. Once Naraku used Rin as bait in order to absorb Sesshoumaru. As Sesshoumaru blasted pieces of Naraku’s flesh, those same pieces wrapped themselves around him. Then Naraku reconnected himself with the pieces of his flesh that covered Sesshoumaru and attempted to absorb him to no avail; as when Sesshoumaru broke out he didn’t have so much as scar from the absorbing process.
Weapons and Items -
Tenseiga: Tenseiga is a sword that can revive the dead. It does this by letting Sesshoumaru see the pall-bearer youkai that take away the souls of the dead so that he may destroy them with Tenseiga. In extreme cases, the Tenseiga also protects Sesshoumaru from potentially lethal attacks. When in use, the Tenseiga has a blue aura. Lately in the manga, the Tenseiga is reforged by Totosai to become a weapon allowing Sesshoumaru to execute the "Meido Zangetsuha". This sword also has the name of 'The Heavenly Fang'.
Tokijin: Tokijin is a sword crafted by the evil sword smith Kaijinbo from the fangs of Goshinki as part of Sesshoumaru's continued efforts to obtain Tetsusaiga or a sword to rival it. It can fire off extremely powerful blasts of pure evil energy, but because it is filled with Goshinki's malice, only Sesshoumaru can wield it without being controlled by it. Tokijin 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 Soryuha - however, being "only an oni's fang," Tokijin cannot bear up to repeated uses of Soryuha the way that Tenseiga can. During a recent arc of the manga, Sesshoumaru broke Tokijin while battling Moryomaru, and afterwards abandoned the broken pieces with no further interest in keeping the sword.
Staff of Two Heads (also called Staff of Skulls, and also known as Two-Headed Staff): Locates his father's grave, can fire streams of flame. The staff is usually held by his servant Jaken. Also, it's seen that the Staff of Two Heads can be used to summon youkai.
Trivia: Sesshoumaru's name is most often attributed to mean "Killing Perfection", but because 'maru' has many meanings it may be closer to "destroyer of life". Other possibilities include 'Destruction Man' (which sounds too much like a cheesy super-villain) and 'end of the circle of life'.
There is some debate as to whether Sesshoumaru's "fluffy" is meant to be his tail or something else. The mangaka (artist and creator) states that originally she was just trying to draw armor and the 'boa' evolved. Regardless, it can obviously be used in combat.
Sesshoumaru is missing the lower half of his left arm - because Inuyasha cut it off in the battle at their father's grave.
Sesshoumaru has not trasnformed into his full youkai state (giant dog state) since having his arm severed. This is possibly because a three legged dog would be rather awkward...
The crescent moon on Sesshoumaru's forehead is presumed to be the symbol of his position as Lord of the Western Lands. It is also speculated that the moon is the symbol of his family in general, and they are refered to in fanfiction often as "The House of Moon."
Similar to the way Inuyasha hits Shippo on the head many times for making him angry, Sesshoumaru does the same to Jaken when he makes stupid comments or does anything stupid, most of the time because he is annoyed. However, in episode 35, he is throwing rocks at Jaken to get his attention. Usually, when he hits Jaken, the camera turns to the sky as Sesshoumaru hits him, therefore we have never seen him actually hit him, but Jaken is usually seen with a huge bump on his head.
Why we love him: ...because we're sadistic and drawn to power? Umm... yeah... he's cold and arrogant, but he's also beautiful and graceful and deadly. And I have to say I think his dubbed voice is sexy... emotionless though he sometimes is. And you have to wonder how emotionless he really is. It's nice to see a guy who actually becomes a better person over time, even if he fights it the whole way ^_^
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