Kagome Higurashi is fifteen, lives at her family's shrine in modern Tokyo and is dragged down the shrine's old well by a centipede demon. She climbs out in feudal Japan, five hundred years in the past, where she meets a boy with dog ears pinned to a tree by a sacred arrow. That boy is Inuyasha. Within a day, Kagome accidentally shatters the Shikon Jewel, a gem that grants demons enormous power, and the shards scatter across the country. The two of them have to work together to collect them.
Rumiko Takahashi's manga ran in Weekly Shōnen Sunday from 1996 to 2008, and Sunrise's anime was one of the shows that brought Japanese animation to a wide Western audience on Adult Swim. It's an adventure, a monster-of-the-week show, a love triangle and a long tragedy about a villain who keeps turning people's love against them. The cast divides neatly into the heroes, Sesshomaru's party, the people Naraku has hurt, and Naraku himself.
- Creator
- Rumiko Takahashi
- Manga
- Weekly Shōnen Sunday, 1996–2008 (56 volumes)
- Anime
- Inuyasha (2000–2004), The Final Act (2009–2010), by Sunrise
- Sequel
- Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (2020–2022)
- Setting
- Sengoku-era Japan, reached through a well in modern Tokyo
Inuyasha's group
Fans call them the Inu-gang. Each member has been wounded by Naraku in some way, so they're more than a team of convenience: everyone has a personal reason to see the hunt through, and over many episodes of bickering on the road they become a family.
Inuyasha
Half-demon · Wielder of Tessaiga
Inuyasha is the son of a great dog demon and a human princess. Neither demons nor humans ever accepted him, and he has the chip on his shoulder to prove it. He's rude, impatient and quick to fight, but he's fiercely protective of anyone he lets close. His sword, Tessaiga, was forged from his father's fang, and it also seals away his demon blood. Without it, he turns into a mindless full demon. Once a month, on the night of the new moon, he becomes fully human, and that's his most vulnerable secret.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Kappei Yamaguchi / Richard Ian Cox
Kagome Higurashi
Modern schoolgirl · Priestess in training
Kagome splits her life between the feudal era and middle school, where her grandfather keeps inventing illnesses to explain her absences. She's the reincarnation of the priestess Kikyo and can sense the jewel shards, which makes her essential to the hunt. Her spiritual arrows grow into one of the strongest weapons in the group. She's warm and stubborn, and she chooses to stay by Inuyasha even when his feelings for Kikyo hurt her.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Satsuki Yukino / Moneca Stori
Miroku
Buddhist monk · Bearer of the Wind Tunnel
Miroku's right hand holds the Wind Tunnel, a cursed void that swallows anything in its path. Naraku placed the curse on his grandfather, and it will eventually swallow Miroku too unless Naraku dies. He's a smooth talker and a con artist, and he asks almost every woman he meets to bear his child. The show plays this for laughs, but it also makes clear he's a young man who expects to die early. Underneath, he's the group's most thoughtful voice.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Kōji Tsujitani / Kirby Morrow
Sango
Demon slayer · Wielder of Hiraikotsu
Sango comes from a village of professional demon slayers, which Naraku destroyed in a single night. He then took her little brother, Kohaku, and turned him into a puppet controlled by a jewel shard. She fights with Hiraikotsu, a huge boomerang made of demon bone. She's the most disciplined fighter in the group and carries the heaviest grief. Her slow romance with Miroku is one of the most grown-up relationships in the series.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Houko Kuwashima / Kelly Sheridan
Shippo
Young fox demon
Shippo is a kitsune child whose father was killed by the Thunder Brothers, Hiten and Manten. He joins the group early and becomes Kagome's shadow. His powers are mostly illusions and fox fire, more useful for tricks than fights, and he knows it. He's also the one who tells Inuyasha exactly how badly he's behaving.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Kumiko Watanabe / Jillian Michaels
Kirara
Sango's cat demon
Kirara is a small two-tailed cat who transforms into a large, flaming steed. She's Sango's oldest companion, carries the group into the air, and is loyal enough to stay with Kohaku when Sango can't.
Kaede
Village priestess · Kikyo's younger sister
Kaede was a child when Kikyo died, and she's now an old woman with an eyepatch who runs the village near the well. She's the group's base, their source of lore, and the one who put the subjugation beads on Inuyasha.
Myoga
Flea demon · Old retainer
A tiny flea who served Inuyasha's father and offers advice, mostly from a safe distance. He's famous for vanishing the moment a fight starts.
Totosai
Swordsmith
The forgetful old demon who forged Tessaiga and Tenseiga. He refuses to fix either sword for anyone he thinks will misuse it.
Hachiemon
Miroku's tanuki friend
A raccoon-dog demon who turns into a flying mount and helps with Miroku's scams.
Sesshomaru and his companions
Inuyasha's older half-brother starts the series as a villain and ends it as one of its most loved characters. His small band of followers is half the reason.
Sesshomaru
Full dog demon lord
Sesshomaru is cold, proud and vastly powerful, and he resents that their father left the destructive Tessaiga to a half-breed while he got Tenseiga, a sword that can only heal. He loses his left arm to Inuyasha early on and spends years trying to outdo him. Then he revives a dead human girl with Tenseiga almost on a whim, and she follows him. His change from there is slow and almost silent, and it's one of the best-handled arcs in the series.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Ken Narita / David Kaye
Rin
Sesshomaru's human ward
Rin is an orphan who stopped speaking after her family was killed. She tends to Sesshomaru when he's wounded, is killed by wolves, and is brought back by his sword. After that, she follows him everywhere, happy and unafraid. She's the reason he starts to understand compassion, though he'd never put it that way.
Jaken
Sesshomaru's retainer
Jaken is a small green imp with a two-headed staff who worships his master and gets kicked for his trouble. He spends most of his time babysitting Rin and complaining about it. He's the main comic relief in Sesshomaru's scenes.
- Voice (EN)
- Don Brown
Ah-Un
Two-headed dragon
Sesshomaru's silent dragon mount, which mostly carries Rin and Jaken.
Kikyo, Koga, Kohaku and other key players
These characters are neither part of the group nor its enemies. Each one is pulled into Naraku's plans in a different way, and each forces Inuyasha or Kagome to face something.
Kikyo
Priestess · Guardian of the Shikon Jewel
Fifty years before the story, Kikyo was the jewel's protector, and she and Inuyasha were in love. Naraku tricked them into believing each had betrayed the other. She pinned Inuyasha to the sacred tree and died of her wounds. A witch brings her back in a body of clay and grave soil, sustained by the souls of the dead, and she returns bitter, then determined to destroy Naraku on her own terms. She's the third point of the love triangle, and the series treats her with real sympathy.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Noriko Hidaka / Willow Johnson
Koga
Leader of the wolf demon tribe
Koga runs at incredible speed thanks to two jewel shards in his legs. He announces that Kagome is his woman within minutes of meeting her, much to Inuyasha's fury. He's a loud, cocky rival who becomes a reliable ally, and his betrothed, Ayame, keeps reminding him of a promise he forgot.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Taiki Matsuno / Scott McNeil
Kohaku
Sango's younger brother
Kohaku was a demon slayer in training when Naraku seized his mind and made him kill his own family. He's kept alive only by the jewel shard in his back, which means freeing him could kill him. His recovering memories and his attempts to make amends are one of the saddest threads in the story.
Kagome's family
Mother, Sota and Grandpa
Her calm mother, her little brother Sota, who idolises Inuyasha, and her grandfather, who keeps telling the school she has exotic diseases.
Hojo
Kagome's classmate
A sweet, oblivious boy who keeps giving Kagome health remedies for her made-up illnesses.
Naraku and his incarnations
Naraku is the main villain, and the series is structured around peeling back what he's done. He rarely fights head-on. Instead, he splits off pieces of himself, called incarnations or detachments, to do his work.
Naraku
Half-demon · Main villain
Naraku began as Onigumo, a badly burned bandit cared for by Kikyo. Obsessed with her, he offered his body to a horde of demons, which merged into a new half-demon. Naraku arranged the betrayal that killed Kikyo and sealed Inuyasha, then cursed Miroku's family and destroyed Sango's village. He's patient and cruel, with a body that can be rebuilt again and again. His weakness is the human heart he can't get rid of, which still wants Kikyo.
- Voice (JP / EN)
- Toshiyuki Morikawa / Paul Dobson
Kagura
Wind sorceress · Incarnation
Kagura controls wind with her fan and wants nothing more than freedom from the creator who holds her heart in his hand. She looks for anyone who might kill him for her, and her short, sad arc with Sesshomaru is a fan favourite.
Kanna
Void demon · Incarnation
A small, pale girl with a mirror that can steal souls and reflect attacks. She has no visible emotions, but she makes one quiet choice that matters.
Hakudoshi and Akago
Incarnations
Two halves of an infant Naraku created to hide his heart. Hakudoshi is a cruel child warrior, while Akago reads and twists the darkness in people's hearts.
The Band of Seven
Resurrected mercenaries
Bankotsu leads seven dead warriors whom Naraku brings back with jewel shards. Jakotsu, Renkotsu, Suikotsu, Ginkotsu, Kyokotsu and Mukotsu fill out the band. Their arc is one of the most popular in the anime because each fighter is distinct.
Byakuya
Illusionist · Incarnation
A smirking illusion-caster who serves as Naraku's messenger and spy in the final arc.
Hiten and Manten
The Thunder Brothers
Early villains who killed Shippo's father. Their fight is Shippo's first real moment of courage.
Voice cast at a glance
The Japanese cast stayed largely the same across the original series, the films and The Final Act. The English dub was recorded in Vancouver, and most of its main cast also returned for The Final Act.
| Character | Japanese | English |
|---|---|---|
| Inuyasha | Kappei Yamaguchi | Richard Ian Cox |
| Kagome Higurashi | Satsuki Yukino | Moneca Stori |
| Miroku | Kōji Tsujitani | Kirby Morrow |
| Sango | Houko Kuwashima | Kelly Sheridan |
| Shippo | Kumiko Watanabe | Jillian Michaels |
| Sesshomaru | Ken Narita | David Kaye |
| Kikyo | Noriko Hidaka | Willow Johnson |
| Naraku | Toshiyuki Morikawa | Paul Dobson |
| Koga | Taiki Matsuno | Scott McNeil |
Kappei Yamaguchi is also known for playing Usopp in One Piece and L in Death Note. For more casting connections, see our voice actors page.
What the characters are really about
Takahashi is best known for comedy, and Inuyasha has plenty of it. Underneath, though, it's a story about being caught between two worlds.
- Inuyasha is half human and half demon, and he spends the series learning that he doesn't have to choose one side to be worth something.
- Kagome lives in two eras and carries another woman's soul. Her growth is about being loved for herself, not as Kikyo's replacement.
- Kikyo is stuck between life and death, and between love and resentment.
- Naraku is the dark mirror. He's also a half-demon trying to escape the human part of himself, and he fails because he hates it rather than accepting it.
- Sesshomaru slowly learns what his father meant by having something to protect.
The brothers' feud belongs on any list of great anime rivalries, and Inuyasha's prickly-then-tender manner is an early male take on the tsundere type covered in our anime archetypes guide. Kagome's trip down the well also makes the series an ancestor of the modern isekai boom, explained in anime genres.
Where to start
- Inuyasha (2000–2004) — 167 episodes. The anime adds filler between manga arcs and stops before the ending.
- The four films — Affections Touching Across Time, The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass, Swords of an Honorable Ruler and Fire on the Mystic Island. They're side stories; the third, about the brothers' father, is the one most fans recommend.
- Inuyasha: The Final Act (2009–2010) — 26 episodes that pick up where the first series stopped and finish the manga's story at a brisk pace.
- Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (2020–2022) — a sequel following the next generation, including Sesshomaru's daughters and Inuyasha and Kagome's daughter, Moroha.
All Inuyasha character names A–Z
A–G
- Ah-Un — Sesshomaru's dragon
- Akago — Incarnation
- Ayame — Wolf demon
- Bankotsu — Band of Seven
- Byakuya — Incarnation
- Ginkotsu — Band of Seven
H–J
- Hachiemon — Tanuki
- Hakudoshi — Incarnation
- Hiten — Thunder Brothers
- Hojo — Classmate
- Inuyasha — Half-demon
- Izayoi — Inuyasha's mother
- Jakotsu — Band of Seven
- Jaken — Sesshomaru's party
K
- Kaede — Priestess
- Kagome Higurashi — Heroine
- Kagura — Incarnation
- Kanna — Incarnation
- Kikyo — Priestess
- Kirara — Cat demon
- Koga — Wolf demon
- Kohaku — Demon slayer
- Kyokotsu — Band of Seven
M–R
- Manten — Thunder Brothers
- Miroku — Monk
- Mukotsu — Band of Seven
- Myoga — Flea demon
- Naraku — Villain
- Onigumo — Naraku's human self
- Renkotsu — Band of Seven
- Rin — Sesshomaru's ward
S–Z
- Sango — Demon slayer
- Sesshomaru — Dog demon
- Shippo — Fox demon
- Sota Higurashi — Kagome's brother
- Suikotsu — Band of Seven
- Totosai — Swordsmith
Frequently asked questions
Who are the main characters in Inuyasha?
The core group is Inuyasha, a half-demon; Kagome Higurashi, a modern schoolgirl who can travel to feudal Japan; Miroku, a cursed monk; Sango, a demon slayer; Shippo, a young fox demon; and Kirara, Sango's two-tailed cat. Sesshomaru, Kikyo and the villain Naraku round out the main cast.
Is Kagome Kikyo's reincarnation?
Yes. Kikyo died fifty years before the story begins, and the Shikon Jewel was burned with her body. Kagome is born with Kikyo's soul and the jewel inside her, which is why demons attack her as soon as she falls into the past. When Kikyo is later brought back, she shares part of that soul.
Who does Inuyasha end up with?
Kagome. After the final battle, she's sent home and the well stops working. Three years later it opens again, she returns to the feudal era for good, and the epilogue shows her living there as Inuyasha's wife and training as a priestess with Kaede.
Why does Inuyasha say "Sit, boy"?
He doesn't; Kagome does. Kaede puts a string of subjugation beads around Inuyasha's neck early on, and Kagome's command word slams him face-first into the ground. In Japanese the word is osuwari, which the English dub turned into "Sit, boy!"
Are Inuyasha and Sesshomaru brothers?
Half-brothers. They share a father, the great dog demon, but Sesshomaru's mother was a full demon and Inuyasha's mother, Izayoi, was human. Their fight over their father's swords, Tessaiga and Tenseiga, runs through the whole series.
How many episodes of Inuyasha are there?
The original anime has 167 episodes (2000–2004), and Inuyasha: The Final Act adds 26 more (2009–2010), which finish the manga's story. There are also four films and the sequel series Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon.