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Sesshoumaru
Sesshoumaru is InuYasha's elder half-brother, first son of the great youkai lord Inu no Taisho and an unnamed youkai woman. While his father
died many hundreds of years ago, Sesshoumaru's mother is currently alive, living very well in a rather large and lavish palace. However, it appears
the two rarely see each other. The cause of this is unknown. Sesshoumaru is generally portrayed as an anti-hero, he shows little emotion and generally
keeps his thoughts to himself. Although Sesshoumaru may prefer to be alone, he rarely travels without a companion or two. Jaken, a loyal servant that
has followed Sesshoumaru for many years, Rin, a young girl whom Sesshoumaru saved using Tenseiga, and Ah-Un, a two-headed dragon that only
occasionally appears, make up Sesshoumaru's traveling party. Much later in the series, he is also temporarily joined by Kohaku, the younger
brother of the taiji-ya Sango. Although we are not told any details in the series, the fact that Sesshoumaru was his father's first (and at the time, only) child makes it all the more likely that he and Izayoi would have met. Or in the very least, Sesshoumaru would have known about Izayoi's existance, and probably even the relationship she shared with his father. How much interaction took place is not revealed, although cold indifference would suite Sesshoumaru's personally should the two have met at all. We are given no insight as to how each felt about the other, apart from a single scene that occurs early in the series. While trying to find out the location of his father's grave, it is Sesshoumaru who controls the oni that roughly handles the Mu'Onna when she is in Izayoi's form, going so far as to crushing her body and choking her with the chains around the woman's body. Eventually, InuYasha comes to believe that this being is his mother, but what convinces him most? Her general appearance, or the way Sesshoumaru is treating her? The series also begins with a Sesshoumaru who hated humans and his hanyou half-brother. Could these feelings have began when Izayoi became involved with his father? Perhaps Sesshoumaru saw his own mother tossed aside after Izayoi came into his father's life. Or perhaps she left him. In either case, Izayoi is the most likely cause of Sesshoumaru's parent's troubles if they were still together.
Sesshoumaru's Mother
As mentioned in Sesshoumaru's profile, the woman who first stole Inu no Taisho's heart and produced his first child is still alive. Sadly, we are not given
any name other than "Sesshoumaru's mother". She is living well and seems to hold no grudges. But what did occur when Izayoi came into the picture?
The best case scenario is that Inu no Taisho and Sesshoumar's mother's relationship has ended. Or perhaps, like i've heard a few other fans say, Izayoi
was a concubine of sorts and her being there didn't really ruin anything. We don't really want to make Inu no Taisho look like the bad guy, so let's go
with one of the few "good" scenarios (besides, Inu no Taisho is such an enigma in the series I just can't see Rumiko Takahashi making him out to be
anything but "good"). This woman only appeared in the manga for a few chapters, yet she causes so much fuss in the series. Sadly, she does not meet
InuYasha at anytime, if she had, perhaps we would have been more information regarding her thoughts on his mother, Izayoi.
Jaken
Jaken is the devoted servant of Sesshoumaru, willing to obey any orders and follow him anywhere. He also becomes sort of a baby sitter for
Rin, once she joins Sesshoumaru's group. According to the anime series, Jaken once ruled over a clan of similar youkai. However, they went to war with
another youkai clan, and Jaken nearly found himself dead when he was caught by the clan's leader. Sesshoumaru destorys the youkai because it refused
to move out of his way, which also ended up saving Jaken's life. He leaves his clan and has been a loyal servant to Sesshoumaru ever since. I cannot recall
when these events take place, although if it occured after Inu no Taisho's death, it is likely that Jaken never interected with Izayoi. However, Jaken's past is
not told in the maga, and many fans seem to believe that Jaken was Sesshoumau's sevent when he was much younger (as shown in fanfiction or doujinshi).
If this were true, then i'm sure Jaken would have known about Izayoi, although what his personal thoughts were are left to our imaginations. However,
we are told in the anime that the plan to use the Mu'Onna's body as a stand in for Izayoi was Jakens.Myouga
Myouga is a cowardly flea youkai who often provides InuYasha with information on the various people, youkai or items he encounters
during the series, and then usually runs away soon after to avoid any danger. The loyal servant and advisor to Inu no Taisho, Myouga was
originally charged with protecting his master's grave, although this soon changed when Sesshoumaru began searching for its location.
Although it is not said outright in the series, Myouga most probably knew Izayoi. Early in the series, Kagome becomes
inquisitive about InuYasha's family, and Myouga begins describing both parents to her. He tells Kagome that Izayoi was
"a beauty beyond compare", although he is smashed soon after before finisihing by InuYasha. He also speaks fondly of Izayoi while at her grave in
InuYasha the Movie: Tenka Hadou no Ken. |
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