Giotto's Prediction Blogs: Inuyasha vs Yato (InuYasha vs Noragami)

(Giotto)

(Kaiser)

(Sharaku)

Yato, God of Happiness.

Inuyasha, Inu No-Taisho’s Hanyo Son.

Is life really worth spending it all alone?

Fear not, because there will always be someone out there for you.

Background

Yato

Do you believe in God? That’s a question that has been present ever since humanity has existed. To some, it’s an undeniable truth in fear of divine punishment, for others it is a matter of faith and guidance, but for some it is just a waste of time to leave your destiny in hands of someone we cannot see or prove. Everyone is on their right to freely believe and come to their own conclusions. In the world of Noragami, the tales from ancient Japan are portrayed, the Gods are given form and are looking after the world, spirits of the dead wander around in search for eternal rest, and Shinigami arrive at the moment of your death bed. People believe in them, worship them… But also facing the consequences of their existence. Hiyori Iki was just your average middle school girl, with a big attitude for her future, but little would she imagine that she’d make contact with a world beyond everyone’s eyes, the realm that is perhaps… Far away. Trying to supposedly save a man and a cat from being run over by a truck, she now was able to phase through things, look at her own body in the ground… How? She asked herself, and her answer was closer than she’d imagined when right in front of her, that mysterious man she tried to save, rocking a sweatsuit and a scarf, was someone who self-proclaimed himself a God, his name? Yato.

Yato didn’t really expect any human to just be able to perceive him as a resident of the Far Shore, intrigued by that fact and the mysterious spirit transformation with funny tail that hanged from Hiyori, Yato saw the perfect opportunity to do what he’s best at: Take any possible job for the modest price of… 5 Yen. He didn’t hesitate in helping her, just there was one problem, or well two actually, 1st One: This unperceivable world was not only filled with Gods and Spirits, but creatures spawned from the worst of human consciousness, Ayakashi. Which for the disgraceful situation of our vagabond God, he had no way to face, not without the weapons all Gods use: A Sacred Treasure, wandering human souls revived under a new name to serve Gods as weapons. And second, he also had no idea what to do about Hiyori’s case to begin with. But what could be the reason that he out of all people didn’t have a Sacred Treasure? Aren’t Gods supposed to be almighty saviors?--  Well, Yato’s case was different.

Gods can be almighty, but for a messy black haired buddhist monk, they were nothing but the bane of his existence after one of his beloved died by the hands of a so-called “Natural Disaster”, which he knew damn well was only the fault from the Gods which embodied them. Under the name of Father, he swore to take revenge on them by mercilessly causing a cull to anyone that didn’t fit his view, so perhaps someday he could end it all, end the heavens and the humanity that believed in them. Going as far as descending to Yomi, the realm of Ayakashi and fooling the Goddess Izanagi to become something more than a human, but the enemy known as The Crafter. In this attempt to take revenge against everything, his wish of Cull came to realization when a God was born out of it, a small kid named Yaboku. Which he granted everything he could ask for, a family, home and food, all in exchange so that Yaboku got rid of everyone that crossed his path, assisted by another damned soul of a little girl known as Mizuchi. Together they spent hundreds of years doing the dirty work for their Father, gaining the title of God of Calamity, until Yaboku met someone that changed his life, a wandering spirit that approached him after being disowned by her God, which Yaboku gave a new name: Sakura.

She made him appreciate the world around him, the good side and the beauty that surrounded them. But as a dark twist of fate, Sakura became aware of the most hidden question surrounding Gods… How did she die? How was her life before it all? Causing her to start a rampage and turn into a monster: An ayakashi, later exploding into a puddle. This trauma marked Yato forever, and as well led him to see death in a different way. Appreciate life, looking down on those who decide to take their lives. And this feeling only became stronger when he realized his situation as an Obscure God, everyone who he’d ever meet would later forget him, and his influence wasn’t near or as spoken as his fellow Gods, Michizane, Bishamonten, Ebisu. Hell, he didn’ t even have a shrine on his own. There was only a single person who’ll always remember him: his creator, his father, he became his only source of life in the world.

Centuries after, meeting Hiyori was probably the best that could happen to Yato. He may be mischievous, egocentric and very out loud but Hiyori had to recognize that there was nobody as hard-working as he is, learning all different types of jobs and helping humans who called his number. His Shinki may have come and gone by, but across all the important people that he’d ever met, he came across a near-fading soul, a 14 year old teen who had died decades ago by hands of his abusive and alcoholic father, former name Haruki, revived and given a new name as Yukine. Who he’d have issues at first as any parent with a rebellious kid, which almost led to their death. But Yukine proved to Yato his perseverance and willingness to change, and guide Yato. This Stray God had learnt that he had people to rely on, which inspired him with a sigh of relief… That only hurt his heart, as the phantoms of his past still hunted him. Father and Mizuchi never stopped looking for him to do the dirty jobs, which Yato tried to hide as much as he could. But eventually it catched up to everyone.

Yato had to face it, and stop making up his excuses. Opening up and revealing his situation slowly made a change, and encouraged everyone to support him no matter what, appreciating him and creating a small Shrine, even if Yato couldn’t help but carry the weight of the consequences that this could lead to. He wanted to change, he wanted to be a God that could make everyone happy just like a previous reincarnation of his pal Ebisu had told him, he started to fall in love with Hiyori due all that she did for him. Just that it was hard, like everything in life, when his Father and Mizuchi would make his life impossible and to the people he loved, they wanted him by his side, but he refused to, he refused to come back to murder. Ending up with Hiyori’s family facing terrible situations, and Yukine falling to the manipulation of Father who had taken the body of one of Hiyori’s classmates: Koto Fujisaki.

Deep within he knew what to do, but wasn’t ready for it: Father must go down, but at the same time himself. Yato accepted this inevitable death, and helped by yet another Shinki that owed him a lot known as Kazuma, who was also ready to do everything to stop this madness, Yato ventured to take Father once and for all in a long fight. But against all odds, and almost as a miracle of Gods themselves, with the help of everyone, The Crafter was given an end by Yato’s hands, after turning Hiyori into a Shinki for a brief instance. Thankfully, his theory was proved wrong, his lifeline… It wasn't only his Father, he had a new chance to keep living for longer: Hiyori.

Years passed, and he decided to stay out of her life for a while, perhaps for the better. After all the memories he foresaw from her life, he knew she needed to make her own life, grow and learn about so much. But what was truly inevitable wasn’t his death anymore, but rather that they’d meet again and again. Together, and forever.

Inuyasha

Through millennia, the nation of Japan has undergone major changes, a pretty divisive country whose conflicts have taken it to where it sits right nowadays, centuries of history and culture have been recorded, where tales of shogun, samurai and empires have been explored, but imagine for a second you could travel back in time, right to the exact moment where all of this happened… 500 years in the past. This was the case of Kagome Higurashi, a highschool girl from the Heisei Era, who found hidden within her house a mysterious well which allowed her to travel back in time, in the Feudal Era. Young Kagome gazed at something in this world… Cold, lonely and seemingly broken stabbed into a tree, his look was peaceful just as that serene white hair. Citizens and local priest Kaede warned her, this was someone that you didn’t want to liberate, after all in that tree was nothing but a violent, and reckless Half Yōkai, Half Human, Inuyasha. 

Son of the Great Dog Tōga, who had governed over Japan for hundreds of years, Inuyasha was the key for Kagome to survive in this wild world where tales of deadly beasts and ghosts are a reality. He was freed from this mysterious arrow thanks to Kagome, and he had awakened yet again and given a new chance to follow his dreams. Inuyasha helped her with an iron claw, but ruthless as he was warned to be, he wasn’t kind to young Kagome at first, he had a clear idea of what he wanted to do, and shockingly enough she was the answer to that. As in her hands was the most desired object in all history by Yōkai and Humans alike: The Shikon Pearl, which could grant Inuyasha his biggest wish of power, a resolution born out of decades of tragedy.

200 Years ago, the Great Dog Tōga had fallen in love with the human princess Izayoi, something which for every yōkai resulted beyond insulting. And in an unfortunate turn of events, Tōga perished in the hands of the yōkai Ryūkotsusei, not without first calling his newborn baby by his right name: Inuyasha. Being raised by his mother, Inuyasha had it rough growing up as he was discriminated against by yōkai and humans alike. And as years went by and his mother passed away, Inuyasha grew lonely without any of that warmth for a long time, until his eyes were captivated by a priestess in a nearby town known as Kikyo, he only had the intention to seek after the legends of Shikon Pearl to become stronger, but approaching her on a more human way as time went by, changed something in his mind, she was too in a situation that restrained her, holding up to the expectations from people as priestess, she wanted to live happily at someone’s side and exploring other aspects, such as love. Perhaps what Inuyasha needed was that too, love, compassion, maybe becoming human was the answer. 

But a dark twist of fate separated them, something that they didn’t consider was in between, crawling from the darkest sides of both humanity and yōkai, fooled them into betraying each other through the power of illusions, the Half Yōkai Naraku. With Inuyasha supposedly stealing by force the Pearl and attacking the village, causing everything to burn, Kikyo responded to her duty and with pain sealed Inuyasha into the Tree of Ages as her last doing, dying along with the Shikon Pearl.

Now, 50 years after the tragedy, things were different. Something Inuyasha didn’t want to admit how much pain it caused him for Kagome to be a reincarnation of Kikyo. But this difference wouldn’t last long, as the pearl was fragmented into pieces travelling around Japan. Whether they wanted it or not, their duty was clear and it was to gather them all, which wasn’t going to be easy. With this duo of strength and strategy, there was nothing that could stop them… outside themselves, as if two hot-headed teens could ever agree. But their adventures only grew their bond stronger. Inuyasha started to understand things that he could have never imagined, what truly meant to be human? What was the real power he needed? He’d find that in his signature weapon inherited by his father, Tessaiga, meant to protect others, to protect humans, snatching it from his arrogant pure blood brother, Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha learnt a lot from Kagome, and she learnt from him. He made even more friends along the way such as Miroku, Shippo and Sango. But there was clearly something more than friendship between both, they fell in love as chapters went by, accepting their flaws and realizing their true feelings as difficult as that could be. The problem? The ghosts from Inuyasha’s past came back to haunt him, Naraku was ready for another wave of torment to get his hands on that pearl, bringing Kikyo yet again to life, as a way to break our Dog Hanyo emotionally. And for several times he did, even losing his humanity a couple times. But even if it was difficult for her too to admit it, and to deal with things out of her reach, Kagome remained there, no matter what to snap Inuyasha into his senses when necessary. They were going to defeat Naraku at all costs, the man who had damaged their lives and for what? But pure spite and envy. 

In the end, Inuyasha had everything that mattered, friends, family and somewhere he could call home, in contrast to Naraku. And gave an end to suffering, no more magic pearls which could make everyone fight for them, but he’d never do this without love, love that transcended time. Along the way, he came to understand that true strength was never in becoming a full yōkai, but in bearing the weight of his own fang as he was, neither fully yōkai nor human, and using that to protect those he cared for. He kept fighting not as one or the other, but as himself: the father of Shihanyō Moroha, whom he would swear to protect, even if it took an eternity.

Skill and Experience

Yato

While his childish demeanor might tell you otherwise, Yato is actually someone you shouldn’t consider underestimating in a fight in the slightest. He has spent centuries fighting against all sorts of foes, be they humans, Ayakashi or fellow Gods. Particularly exceeding in killing his opponents without much effort when he was under the influence of Father. 

Yato is incredibly acrobatic, being able to jump across several buildings in his fights and engage in aerial fights without much issue. Something he compliments very well with his extensive knowledge in sword combat, which even bare-handed he’s been able to stop summon users such as Kugaha with the palm of his hands.

In terms of swordsmanship, he has been in this game for a while now, matching against respected Gods such as Bishamon who’s most notable trait is her usage of different weapons such as guns, whips and swords far bigger than a person. Going by the anime, he outskilled and gave an end to Rabo, and later in the manga completely dominated Takemikazuchi, both Gods who use swords similar to him. To give an idea, Takemikazuchi’s age has been stated to be around 1000 years old and he’s heavily known for loving to engage in fights. And Yato could match the latter having a broken arm.

Some of the combat tactics he focuses in are deadly and accurate precision, as Yato has been shown to have a really good eyesight being able to spot opponents in a town while being in a mountain, and shooting from so far away that Nora (Mizuchi) wasn’t able to detect him, despite her senses being heightened from a curse inflicted on her that made it easier to catch Kazuma.

Even if a situation may seem messy, Yato can actually come up with good counters mid-fight. In an instance, Father had him pinned down against the ground, and his thought was to use his sword as a boomerang, while Father was able to react in time, he later re-spawned his sword from the very sheath and attacked Father with a surprise move.

His centuries of existence also have granted him knowledge in different miscellaneous shenanigans such as math, plumbing and is a comic artist (This will decide the outcome).

Inuyasha

While Inuyasha might be seen as a brute force unga-bunga character and doesn’t have a lot of proper training besides in finding Yōki Vortexes, it could lead to incorrect assumptions about his natural skill as a swordfighter. Something very consistent about his character is that he has great precision with his slashes, knowing exactly how many inches his target should be for him to properly strike his foe without causing collateral damage. It is impressive to the extent that, when he first learned the technique known as the Wind Scar (discussed further below), even while blinded and in severe pain, he demonstrated enough precision to control the extent of his attack, ensuring that he did not kill his brother. Of course, all we are mentioning are skills he already possessed since the start of the series, because his evolution was so great that not a single other character has the mastery of the Tetsaiga in the same way he does. Something that clearly helped his growth is his ability to learn things very fast, to a point he mastered techniques without even knowing them, simply by instinct, instincts so sharp he is able to defend himself while unconscious.

While Inuyasha is not the brightest tool in the shed, he’s clearly not that stupid either, showing cleverness in numerous points across the manga. This is true especially when it comes to finding weak points on his enemies, developing strategies on the fly or waiting for the right moment to strike them more effectively, and he is no stranger to even tricking opponents so he can reach them. The reason why Inuyasha may seem more simple-minded than he actually is may be related to his goal of ending fights as quickly as possible, often in a single decisive blow. This is another sign that Inuyasha isn't always purely reckless, and how his instincts optimize for efficiency too… even though he will be reckless sometimes, thinking that a cockroach really doesn't deserve to keep living and overkilling it with Scar Wind, without remotely thinking about the consequences. Our doggy boy is also very experienced when it comes to fighting enemies with spiritual shields, and that’s due to a lot of the later arcs following a pattern: enemies have aura barriers, when someone shows up that he can’t break through with his strongest attack or by exploiting a weakness, he gets a power up to deal with stronger defenses, even tougher enemies appear, one of them can’t be exploited, and the cycle just keeps going on for a while.

Arsenal

Yato

Phone

Across the city, Yato makes sure to write his phone number in all sorts of places. Walls, post lamps and even bathrooms, this in order for people to ask for his God services. 

After explaining your situation, Yato can instantly teleport to your place thanks to this. He chats with Hiyori often, and unfortunately is a Twitter user.

Yukine

 

30 years ago, Haruki Tajima was a 14 year old high school student who lived with his father, who was very abusive and a first grade alcoholic. For the longest he wondered why his sister never received any of his letters, whom he missed a lot after their parents separated. Where he expressed how much he hated living alongside him, which unfortunately paid him in the worst way possible when Haruki was murdered after his father discovered the letters, the body was never found, but it remained in a freezer in the woods.

Decades went by, and his spirit was just getting weaker and about to fade away, until someone found him: Yato. Turning him into his new Shinki weapon, giving him a new name Yukine, and processing the memories of Haruki’s short life. Yato was glad to have given him a new chance to live, but as God’s Rules, keeping his real name and identity hidden. Yukine didn’t really care much about this fact, but wasn’t actually so convinced by the God that chose him, being very rejecting at first, wanting to do whatever he wanted as he was mentally still a teen. But as he matured and accepted this new given life, Yukine became a key part of Yato’s life, acting as a son and later guide to this mischievous God.

Yukine can be summoned by the weapon name: Sekki, written in his clavicle. Turning at the very beginning into a long katana where he could perform exorcisms into Ayakashi. But after getting snapped by Bishamon when he tried to protect Yato, he turned into a Blessed Vessel, a state that only a few Shinki can achieve and increases their strength and durability exponentially. Yukine now acts as Dual Blades with a similar size to his original self.

It’s important that God and Vessel hold a good relationship, as Yukine has a record of stinging Yato, which is essentially sending cursed energy caused by karma. Any bad acts or bad thoughts from the Vessel affect the God and can kill them if not threatened, with Yukine he’s required to go through the process of Ablution to not turn into an Ayakashi

Untransformed Shinki can learn really useful abilities called Spells, which do all sorts of trickery, as a fast learner Yukine became an expert in these incantations at the level of Kazuma, a Shinki from the Goddess Bishamon. The list includes the following:

• Borderline: Yukine draws a “line” between him and Ayakashi. This move is the most basic of Shinki, and can be used both offensively to cut through trees and opponents, and defensively as a barrier to attacks and incantations.

• Bakufu: This spell acts as a restriction one, holding opponents right in their place as they please no matter the rank or status. But one condition must be met- to say their name. Otherwise it’d be useless. Yukine learnt this from Kazuma.

Transformed into a weapon, Yukine can use Yato 's moves such as Zan and Zetsu. But it is worth noting that after the story progresses, Yukine becomes a lot more proficient in their use, as he can decide what to cut and what not. Specially useful in very close spaces they can't bring themselves to destroy, such as the time they were in a baby’s room and needed to slice an Ayakashi which only existed in the mirror reflection of a baby, somehow and someway he was able to cut through that only without harming Hiyori or said baby. In the anime something similar happens, where he strikes directly at a rope that was behind Rabo, in favor of not cutting Hiyori who was being held by him. And unlike your average anime weapon, he can move by himself in this state to defend Yato.

Note: If you’re familiar in the slightest with Noragami, you’d know that Yukine at one point becomes Hagusa, the name Father gave him and turned him essentially into a Shinki-Ayakashi mix. That granted Yukine some extra abilities such as his transformation with claws, turning into a spear or the Goodness Net which allowed him to do crazy things, like opening vents across the country out of rage. However we are not including any of them as Hagusa as the name is dead and therefore all abilities related to it, and well all of them are usable due Father in the first place. Yato has and would never command him with these.

Hiiro (Non-Standard)

Some know her as Mizuchi, others as Tsutsu, Eyami or Reiki. But the truth is all agree in one name: The Stray. To summarize, Strays are Shinki who have different masters and therefore, different names. For the longest time Yato held her under the name of Hiiro, as it was his Shinki assigned at birth by his Father. With her, Yato slayed people for centuries, and even nowadays used her in his known disappearances.

Her main ability is the usage of water, as she’s secretly a swamp creature. With it she can use it to drown people and protect Yato from different attacks. This water is actually super resistant to heat, shown as it protected Ebisu from Vent's temperatures.

Homever, Yato officially released her name in Chapter 39. And can’t call her ever again.

Kazune

Kiyotsugu Hirano was the son of a wealthy salt merchant, and he was supposed to inherit the business from his father, but on the day of his wedding his brother killed him in front of everyone. After that, as his soul faded into ancient Japan, a kind Goddess known as Bishamonten took him as one of her many Shinki under the new name of Kazuma.

Kazuma was looked down by many at first in the Shinki guidance, he was by far the most useless as he transformed into a simple nail. But among everything, he was very perceptive, and got to be the envy of everyone when he turned into a Blessed Vessel with a strong connection to Bishamon, becoming a flower earring that guided her, he became her most confident Shinki. Spawned from his deep admiration and love for her.

But things turned dark in this Ma clan. One of Bishamon’s Shinki was stinging her, and upon finding no one responsible, everyone started to practice deadly Ablution one to another or even kill some. This madness would only turn into more cursed energy for Bishamon, and so Kazuma, looking for anything to do, decided to do the worst thing he could have ever imagined: Look for Yato, The God of Calamity and bring an end to the Ma clan.

He never wanted to do this, but he had to. And effectively, it saved his beloved God, but also spawned a burning hatred from Bishamon to Yato, as found that cull as killing her family. Kazuma owed a lot to Yato, and for centuries held respect one to another, serving as one of the main clients of Yato’s manga.

Kazuma has a lot of experience in Incantations and Spells, having practiced them for centuries. He has a lot of knowledge in combat and has a major list of abilities while untransformed.

• Both of Yukine’s already mentioned spells (Borderline and Bakufu)

• Inko: Kazuma is capable of rendering himself or others invisible.

• Rakusui: Kazuma can force opponents to fall asleep.

• Rourou: In certain circumstances, Kazuma is able to use a truth-telling spell in order to gain information. However, he has failed to use it against gods. And he has also had his spell forcibly broken by his opponent.

• Lightning Ward Incantation: Kazuma is able to use a song to dispel lightning.

• Firefighting Incantation: An incantation that he also taught to Yukine, able to extinguish flames just as rain would.

• Fire Summoning Incantation: Kazuma is able to start fires using an unnamed incantation that is seemingly of his own creation.

• Body Decoy: Kazuma can enact a curse that disguises one individual for another.

• Minonawa: Kazuma can place a curse on a target which notifies him whenever they are in a certain proximity to one another.

At one point of the story, when Bishamon was badly damaged after challenging heavens and The Crafter. Kazuma decided on something, he needed to destroy Father no matter what. Even if it took his life, in a similar manner as Yato who accepted his fate, Kazuma became a Stray to become Yato’s second Shinki, given the name of… Kazune, weapon name Kazu. Not exactly the most original, but this awakened Kazuma’s most destructive potential.

Transformed as Kazune, Kazuma becomes a set of tools:

• Katana: Kazune becomes a really strong katana, which Yato only uses in case it’s necessary. This sword can regenerate even if snapped. And along with the fire summon incantation, Kazune can become a fire sword.

• Scarf: It makes Yato look like Speed o’ Sound Sonic.

• Bow: Kazune can act as a bow that fires flaming arrows, these arrows can phase through anything that is material. Which is a product of Kazuma’s great experience when it comes to drawing the line between the Far and Near Shore (Spirit and Human World), so he doesn’t harm anything physical. These arrows also have a radar property that can allow Yato to sense specific opponents around a whole town.

Just like Yukine, he can move on his own as a weapon to defend Yato from harm.

Shiro (Non-Standard)

The most significant person to Yato, the one he shared the most bond and time with, the one that gave him a new meaning to exist. And the one person he unfortunately had to make pass through so many terrible moments too. After Father killed Hiyori to make Yato suffer, Yato instantly revived her as a Shinki, giving her the name of Shiro, weapon name Hakki. A small dagger carrying the emotions of everything that the story meant. Which Yato used to slice Father’s throat.

Other than that, we don’t know its abilities. And afaik, since it was an action created inside Father’s new world before it stopped, Yato didn’t keep her as Shinki at all. Reviving her instead as human again by cutting ties with her, and keeping distance, at least for some time.

Holy Water

Holy Water from Tenjin’s shrine that he packed up in a bottle to purify Yukine.

Shrine

Yato’s biggest wish in existence came true when Hiyori decided to craft this shrine with her own hands. The biggest show of appreciation that he would ever receive. Shrines are vital for Gods to exist and be acknowledged as such, registering in the Land Of Gods (Takamagahara), giving him a place on it. 

He can use this shrine to say “Upward” and transport instantly to Takamagahara, however it’s worth noting that the shrine remains on earth, specifically in the hands of Hiyori. So it is debatable whether he’d have it in standard arsenal, albeit he’s shown to drag it by himself, so he’s given the benefit of the doubt.

Inuyasha

Fire Rat Robe

Once belonging to his father Tōga, Inuyasha was given the Fire Rat Robe by his mother Izayoi who turned it into this iconic red kimono. While a simple piece of cloth at first glance, it’s actually a really strong armor woven with fire rat’s fur. Making it incredibly resistant to high temperatures, such as Hellfire or the Cauldron of Resonance, which can burn young Hanyo into nothingness. Inuyasha has also shown to use it to protect his friends from Naraku’s Miasma, an extremely poisonous and deadly gas as well as other corrosive substances, or to cover Kagome from sword attacks from Yura

Tessaiga

Tetsusaiga 鉄砕牙 (Iron Fang), also known as Tessaiga, is Inuyasha’s main weapon across the series. Forged using Inu-No Taishō’s fangs, Tessaiga is a sword focused above all things on protection, representing Tōga’s most benevolent side. Hidden in his corpse in Netherworld, Tessaiga awaited for his rightful master, which by the whims of fate happened to arrive, after Sesshomaru stole the Black Pearl hidden in Inuyasha’s eye to travel to Netherworld and take it by force, but failing in the process. At first Tessaiga rejected Inuyasha, but seeing his determination to save the human girl Kagome, that rusty and old katana turned a this massive chunk of iron packing a huge destructive power and comical area of effect even under its most basic form, a thing which Sesshomaru longed for.

Tessaiga is a really special weapon, only Inuyasha and humans can use it, as it’s enchanted so no yōkai can wield it, otherwise it will reject anyone who dares to lay fingers by zapping them or creating a barrier. Unactivated Tessaiga takes the form of a simple katana, but even in this state Tessaiga can be used to spawn protective barriers by stabbing it into the ground. And after activating it by channeling Inuyasha’s yōki, it allows him to use moves like Scar Wind (which we’ll delve into later). 

Despite all its power however, Tessaiga met its end in the jaws of Goshinki, an ogre yōkai which shattered it into pieces. The weapon which once acted as Inuyasha’s seal to never fall to his Inner Yōkai was gone, and there was no return… If his friends weren’t there for him to snap him back to reality. And it’s that despite this unfortunate event, Tessaiga’s real potential was only about to be achieved. As the family's personal swordsmith Lord Totosai forged it once again, this time with Inuyasha’s own fangs, he created an unbreakable connection between the two.

But as any man who dares to carry an enormous piece of iron as a weapon, Inuyasha had a hard time mastering the weight of his own resolve, his own sword, understanding it and what it meant for him. Because if it wasn’t clear enough by this point, Tessaiga has its own consciousness and can protect Inuyasha’s life from otherwise fatal blows, functioning in a manner somewhat similar to Tenseiga, as well as warning Inuyasha in situations through burning his hands, or block attacks for Inuyasha, like the countless times it has covered itself in wind. There have been attempts to copy Tessaiga’s techniques, but none of them have reached the extent of Inuyasha’s skill with it.

But if you’re familiar enough with the series, you’d know that Tessaiga is in fact known for its unique ability to assimilate and absorb powers from other yōkai after defeating them in combat. Giving him access to a lot of different abilities which we’ll elaborate soon. 

There’s not a lot of weaknesses known for Tessaiga, but it’s shown that it can be vulnerable to getting placed into restraining spells, and despite being super effective against several sorts of creatures, it’s a known fact Tessaiga can’t affect spiritual entities.

Scabbard

What is a great sword without its trusty scabbard? While you may not expect it, Tessaiga’s Scabbard built from the Bokusen tree, it’s actually a really strong tool on its own. And nonetheless, to hold such an immensely powerful sword, an equally strong seal is required. This scabbard can help Inuyasha to block attacks from the likes of Sesshomaru and Kirinmaru, as well to create defensive barriers. Its connection with the sword also allows it to call Tessaiga telepathically.

Red Tessaiga

After defeating the Bat Yōkai Taigokumaru, which specialized in creating really strong shields with his yōki, Tessaiga absorbed its power and turned red. But unlike Taigokumaru, Inuyasha cannot create barriers, but instead slices and breaks through them through a disrupting effect. Being able to slice through some of Naraku’s barriers, chains which protected the gates to Netherworld or dimensional barriers to other worlds such as Kaguya’s Dream Castle.

Despite sounding impressive on paper, Inuyasha has to be stronger than his opponent in order to slice it, the most notable example being when he couldn’t break through Hakudoushi’s shield.

Diamond Tessaiga

After Inuyasha proved his resolve to protect his friends instead of simply asking for his sword to be stronger, Inuyasha succeeded in inheriting Hosenki’s power, a Diamond Yōkai which guarded Tōga’s grave at Netherworld. Being able to use a new powerful move called Kongosha (Adamant Barrage). This version of Tessaiga is powerful enough that its diamond slivers are able to pierce through Naraku’s Miasma Barrier in his 2nd Form, which withstood Scar Wind, Bakuryuuha, Red Tessaiga and attacks from Sesshomaru at the time.

Dragon Scale Tessaiga

Ryūjin was a dragon yōkai which commanded the swordsmith Tōshū to create a really powerful sword from his scales known as Dakki. Inuyasha defeated Ryūjin and Tōshū (who was possessed by Dakki), transforming Tessaiga into this version with green scales. For short, Dakki was a katana with the ability to drain opponents off their yōki, copying their techniques and abilities to use them back against them. Dragon Scale is basically just that but much better, as Tessaiga can absorb a nearly infinite amount of energy with it. With this form, Inuyasha has done the following:

• Absorb Mizuchi’s venom, which could erode a whole forest. This venom is so powerful even Mizuchi couldn’t regenerate when Inuyasha used it against him.

• Get rid of yōkai possession two times by draining their yōki.

• Took off a Cat Yōkai from a nun’s body.

• Removed Magatsuhi, a spiritual entity who was controlling Inuyasha.

But there was a major issue with this form, and it’s that the yōki absorption had to be moderate, as overloading it causes Inuyasha to receive a warning from Tessaiga, burning his hands if he’s reaching a limit, like with the full potential of Mizuchi’s venom, which Totosai stated he could’ve died. This happens because Inuyasha as Hanyo cannot withstand high amounts of energy… until this weakness was later resolved through absorbing Nikosen’s Holy Energy, a former monk turned yōkai as it purified the energy. Albeit even without the backlash, absorbing things like a whole Swamp Yōkai, is where things started to get difficult.

Inuyasha wasn’t happy enough with that, as he found deep within himself that this power wasn’t really achieved by effort, but rather forced power stealing planned by Naraku.  Totosai seeing this situation, sent Inuyasha to train under the guidance of an old man Holy Yōkai known as Yoreitasei to sharpen his skills in aiming at what he really needed, Yōki Vortexes, the source of power from all yōkai in the InuYasha universe (See more on: Abilities). As Dragon Scale Tessaiga with its absorbing powers, was nothing but betraying Tessaiga’s real essence as a cutting weapon. 

After defeating Yoreitasei in an illusionary world, Inuyasha found out he was a yōkai this whole time, and so he cut through Yoreitasei’s vortex absorbing both his yōki AND holy energy which is vastly stronger and pure than Nikosen’s, after this Inuyasha can actually identify the vortexes anytime and slice through them, weakening his yōkai opponents massively or killing them altogether. This was a difficult process, as he needed to be sure he wasn’t being fooled with other Vortexes which happen to appear.

Fire Tessaiga

Ginka and Kinka were two yōkai which species bond them at birth. Causing their constant fights to kill each other and win control of the body, having opposing abilities of thunder and lightning. But as Moryomaru arrived and absorbed Ginka, Kinka was practically on his death bed, mourning his brother’s absorption. But as a last act of courage, Kinka fused with Tessaiga and created Fire Tessaiga to avenge his brother. As the name implies, it has really strong fire, but it was explicitly to exploit a weakness from Moryomaru absorbing Ginka, as Ginka’s lightning resonated with Fire Tessaiga.

Black Tessaiga

 Kuroi Tessaiga (黒くろい鉄砕牙), is Tessaiga’s last achieved form in the series. After Tōga battled with the yōkai Shishinki, he copied a deadly space cutting technique known as Meido Zangetsuha (Dark Path of the Dawn’s Moon Wave). But after realizing how harmful to anyone it was, Tōga divided Tessaiga to create Tenseiga (Sesshomaru’s weapon), and hid the Meido technique inside it. Which only came out after Sesshomaru felt sympathy for Kagura’s death. 

Despite using the technique at first and being fascinated with it, Sesshomaru in his final fight against Inuyasha discovered the truth about Tenseiga being a fraction of Tessaiga, having a dilemma with it at first, and seeking anything to defeat his brother once and for all. But as Naraku intervened, and almost got them killed off inside the Meido, Sesshomaru broke Tenseiga on purpose to give this ability to Inuyasha and get them out. 

This is by far the definitive power for Inuyasha, as on a similar note to Dragon Scale, Inuyasha mastered it to its full extent, once again acknowledging Tessaiga’s nature as a cutting weapon, creating Meido Blades. Waves of this space cutting ability which were able to slice Naraku’s godly regenerating body into pieces.

Black Pearl (Non-Standard)

Hidden in Inuyasha’s right eye resides this mysterious jewel, which can lead anyone who uses it to the Border of Afterlife, a place between Netherworld and Living World that the Great Dog used as a death-bed. The place is practically impossible to escape from unless you walk to the Lake of the Staff of Two Heads, which opens itself by using Tenseiga or have really good dimensional travel artifacts such as the Meido Stone. It’s worth noting that the pearl is non-combat applicable, as Inuyasha has never used it in canon to do anything with it, unlike Sesshomaru.

Myoga The Fly

Inu-Family’s most loyal servant across all 3 known generations. Myoga is a fly yōkai, who despite being a coward for most of the time as he’d be stomped badly against any mildly powerful foe, he’s in charge to be Inuyasha’s guide, living for eons, seeing all types of yōkai, stories, and being familiar with Tōga’s weapons inherited to Inuyasha and Sesshomaru.  

And just as a good fly, Myoga can sting anyone to feed on their blood, and this has proven to be useful countless times. Snapping Kagome out of Unmother’s illusions, snapping a princess out of a sleeping spell caused by a Frog Yōkai and sucking poison out of Human Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango, Miroku and Moroha’s blood. 

He’s even able to create elixirs so they can restore their blood right after. 

Sō'unga (Non-Standard)

In Inuyasha Movie 3, it’s said that Tōga possessed another sword outside the already known Tessaiga (which rules over earth) and Tenseiga (which rules over heaven), known as Sō'unga, which rules over hell, forged from an evil hell dragon’s scales. 500 years in the present, Sō'unga was found by Kagome’s grandfather, and broke off its seal, seeking for the closest yōkai host it could take, finding Inuyasha in the process and controlling him for a brief period of time.

Sō'unga’s main ability is to summon 100 dead souls to control and take as zombies, through covering the dead with a mysterious red liquid similar to blood. Its main technique is the Dragon Twister, a large tornado filled with evil energy which leaves a major path of destruction. 

As an evil sword, Sō'unga requires its user to have a strong will to not fall possessed by it. Inuyasha didn’t meet the qualifications for and required assistance from Kagome.

Abilities

Yato

God Physiology

As previously mentioned, Gods are born from a wish, in Yato’s case he was born from his Father wishing Cull upon humanity. As a God, Yato describes he exists in a “blind spot” between the Land of the Living and Afterlife where other creatures like Demons and Ayakashi. Which makes them normally unperceivable by regular humans, only animals, children and humans with the contact of both worlds can perceive them.

Some regular people can notice them occasionally, as they aren’t that behind like Ayakashi in the Blind Spots. However eventually they’ll just be forgotten, like a person you see once but never meet with again, but even more considering they aren’t alive.

Once a God is killed, they can later reincarnate again thanks to people’s beliefs in them. But this isn’t the case for Yato, as an Obscure God he could eventually fade away as people forget him. Gods can also instantly arrive if someone calls their real name, which in Yato’s case is Yaboku. A name he doesn’t share with anyone and only a few know it.

Needless to say, Gods have insane strength and resistance as well. In Yato’s case he’s been able to fight with the pain of a broken arm, withstand attacks from Ayakashi Hiyori and Yukine. And just a mere glance of his sight can make weak summons retreat, disobeying their masters.

Also more of a Yato thing, but he smells super good for some reason, which makes it easier for Hiyori to find him.

Shinki Creation

Gods can turn spirits into their Shinki/ Sacred Treasures: deceased human spirits that act as weapons and hold inner communication with their master, who grants them a new name in life which they can remove if they see it fitting.  This all in a long process with a chant involved.

Yato formerly had a Shinki in the form of a small knife known as Tomone. But after she rejected Yato as her master, Yato soon found in the middle of action a soul of a teenage kid who he called Yukine, whose activation signal is “Sekki”, turning him into a katana. To return him to his regular form, Yato just says “Return Yukine”.

Zan

Named Zan  斬 or Rend in the Anime, this is Yato’s bread and butter for long ranged deadly attacks. A wind slice that can annihilate Ayakashi and purify them. In the end of Season 2, it’s shown that he can send several of these attacks and fuse them in a single powerful strike that was able to slice Heaven’s Purifier Ring.

Zetsu

Named Zetsu  絶ぜつ or Sunder in the anime. This is one of Yato’s most terrifying abilities, as he can cut through the bonds of people. As you’ve heard, every sort of relationship you ever had with others, will reduce you to a mere stranger or straight up don’t remember her at all. This extends to something like the Red String of Fate, which Yato once cut from Hiyori to stop her from getting criminals as soul mates.

Divine Possession

Yato can possess other people’s bodies if there’s no soul within them, and control them against their will. Making all sorts of toomfolery, like with Hiyori, also boosting said human’s abilities to 100%.

Damage Negation

In Chapter 6 of Noragami: Stray Stories and OVA 1 of Noragami Aragoto. It’s stated that Yato can negate damage done to him by humans. As only Ayakashi, Gods and Spiritual entities can harm him. It doesn’t matter if he’s beaten to pulp or an arrow pierces his head, as long as it is done by a mortal he’ll just return fine.

Crimson Bloom

A move exclusive to Kazune in his Bow transformation. Crimson Bloom is a barrage of omni-directional flaming arrows that can phase through solid material, their fire power is such that they can cause explosions.

Cloudburst

In combination with the firefighting incantation, Kazune can essentially make arrows rain down in a rapid manner. This was a very useful move against Father.

Inuyasha

Hanyo Physiology

Son of a Daiyōkai father and a human mother, Inuyasha was born a Hanyo (Half Yōkai), as we’ve mentioned. Sharing both human and yōkai traits such as his ears, his life has never been easy, suffering discrimination from yōkai as he can’t really be as powerful as Daiyōkai (too much Yōki acts as venom to them) and stains their pride, but can’t be accepted by humans either. So his original mission was to achieve becoming a full yōkai by all means necessary by Shikon Pearl granting his biggest wish.

To be more specific Inuyasha has inherited traits from his dad Tōga, the Great Dog. So he’s naturally packed with natural weapons such as superhuman strength, claws, regeneration and a really powerful smell, eyesight and senses, being able to see souls for example. Another thing he shares with yōkai is his longevity, as going by the 3rd Movie, Inuyasha stands at over 200 years old. It’s unsure how much this could span, but comparing him to his brother Sesshomaru, millennia are nothing for them. As a Hanyo however, he’s limited by things like New Moon which turn Inuyasha into a human, strapping him from his insane strength and use of yōki.

His dogginess also shows in some funny ways sometimes.

Energy

All living things, human, animal and yōkai are given life by both Kon and Haku in the InuYasha verse. Kon being the definition for Soul, and Haku for Life Force, together they form Kokoro (Heart). This has been actually played a few times in the franchise, as there’s some yōkai who have been attached to inmobile bodies, because only their Kon resides. Or in contrast, some bodies can move and walk by Haku, but are pretty much dead mentally and with no soul.

In Inuyasha’s case, he has never been directly in danger with either. But it’s worth noting that strapping him out of either would be lethal, as Sesshomaru for example was only ever stopped in combat by Kirinmaru’s attack which constantly was draining his Haku, nearly killing him for good.

Yōki

Yōki is the energy all yōkai in InuYasha use as an opposition to Priestess Sacred Energy. The yōki is vital to determine their strength and endurance, and the reason Inuyasha for example can use all of his abilities and techniques, whether natural such as Soul Stealer, or activating Tessaiga in the first place. It’s normally seen projected as this glowing energy, but it can take elemental properties, such being the case of fire yōkai like Entei and Kinka, lightning such as Sesshomaru and his Azure Dragon Wave, or even air.

But yōki is not only energy the characters use to fight, it’s later on revealed that it’s part of their very life and draining them out of it is lethal. Most notably, all yōkai have something called Yōketsu (妖穴, "Vortex of Evil Energy”), a visual manifestation of yōki in the form of a whirlpool that appears behind a yōkai and is visible to just a few. This vortex can be cut and its effect is an instant-kill upon the yōkai whose yōketsu is being cut.

Claws

As a Dog Yōkai, Inuyasha possesses claws as his natural weaponry and they’re his main method of attacking when Tessaiga isn’t around or turns Pure-Yōkai. A single scratch from them is enough to obliterate fodder yōkai into pieces, as Inuyasha actually imbues them with yōki in a move called Soul Stealer (which doesn’t actually steal souls). 

But if we’re speaking claw techniques, by far the rawest has to be Blood Claws, which as you’d imagine he literally stabs himself and uses his own blood to attack as wave projectiles, this movement is so effective Inuyasha has actually gotten rid of several fodder yōkai with a single throw.

Regeneration/Endurance

Far superior to a human, Inuyasha has a really strong body and endurance as Hanyo. Having a regenerative factor, Inuyasha has healed in the span of a day or two from being stabbed or pierced across his body by Sesshomaru and a Mantis Yōkai, which even if the regeneration takes a while, it’s worth noting that this didn’t stop Inuyasha from fighting under these conditions, especially if he feels like protecting someone dear. He’s also recovered some minor things such as his teeth which can re-grow in less than a day, but perhaps the most impressive thing he has gone through is surviving Mt Hakurei’s barrier, composed of Holy/Spiritual energy which was actively hurting Inuyasha badly, but against all odds he powered through. He’s also able to keep himself awake and active way better than humans, not needing to sleep and rest for longer periods of time.

Smell

Like the good doggie boy he is, Inuyasha has an acute sense of smell which has proven to be key in many of his adventures. While it isn’t as great as his brother’s, it still has great range, as Inuyasha can identify specific organs, identify if someone is hurt, their bloodlust, to track enemies from outside a house, and weirdly enough he’s even able to differentiate Kagome’s blood scent from others even when she was in a different time period altogether (how the fuck?). He can easily differentiate between human and yōkai blood, which helps a ton against opponents who disguise themselves by transforming.

After undergoing training by Yoreitasei, Inuyasha’s smell has actually been improved a ton, being able to identify real yōkai, as Yoreitasei casted an illusion so powerful it made humans look and smell the same as normal yōkai. Inuyasha’s smell now allows him to identify the previously mentioned Yōketsu, which is practically invisible to anyone, even regular yōkai.

It’s worth noting however that smell can be backfired given how sensitive it is, as a really potent stench from an ogre’s blood has given Inuyasha a hard time, or Sesshomaru for example was once fooled by Byakuya (the Inuyasha one, Bleach fans), who had used Magatsushi’s smell and created an illusion by that. Inuyasha’s smell was also fooled by other enemies, but it’s usually under specific circumstances and not that easy to pull off.

Scar Wind

If Ichigo has Getsuga Tensho and Yusuke has his Spirit Gun, Inuyasha has his own signature move known as Kaze no Kizu (風かぜの傷), translated to Scar Wind. This technique, inherited from his father Tōga, consists in detecting the near invisible small opening between Inuyasha’s aura and his opponent’s, to slice across it with a powerful wind beam deriving from Inuyasha. Feared by the countless yōkai who have dared to get into his path, Scar Wind has the potential to slay over a hundred yōkai in a single swing, demonstrated by Sesshomaru who mercilessly cleaned a mountain full of them. Inuyasha has used it countless times to defeat his opponents, even Sesshomaru was a victim of this attack. After Tessaiga was updated by Totosai with Inuyasha’s tooth, he took a while to adjust to the sword's new weight, but when it happened, he became able to cast his move much easier and pretty much spams it.

Backlash Wave

Also known as Bakuryuha (爆流破), the Backlash Wave is the evolution to Scar Wind, but instead of finding the rift between auras, Tessaiga coats itself in wind creating a tornado which later Inuyasha uses to envelop his opponent’s yōki into this swirling energy and sends it back, essentially pulling a Uno-Reverse card on them. This movement requires Inuyasha to have a stronger ki than his opponent (this is barely explained besides not being yōki), even if their power difference is huge, such as the case of the yōkai Ryūkotsusei, who centuries ago killed Tōga, with Backlash Wave Inuyasha tore him apart. 

As powerful as it sounds, it’s worth noting that Bakuryuuha is not a guaranteed win against opponents, who somehow have managed to survive it or even overwhelm it, such as Takemaru or Naraku. Another specific requirement is the enemy to have yōki, otherwise it’d be rendered useless.

Adamant Barrage

 

Also known as Kongōsōha (金刚 枪 破), Adamant Barrage is a technique from Inuyasha’s Diamond Tessaiga which shoots multiple diamonds at high speeds at his opponent like an explosion. An incredibly dangerous ability with enough power to match Naraku’s second transformation. And nonetheless, considering diamond is one of the toughest materials in the natural world, surpassing even the shield from the Turtle Yōkai, Meijo . The deadliest usage of this ability comes from the 4th Movie, where he combined it with Bakuryuuha to defeat the fusion of the 4 Gods, creating a solid diamond tornado. 

Meido Zangetsuha

At last but not least is Inuyasha’s most lethal move called Meido Zangetsuha (冥めい道どう残ざん月げつ破は), translated to Dark Path of the Dawn Moon's Wave. A technique from the Daiyōkai Shishinki consisting in slicing across space to open a path to the Netherworld. Originally sealed deep within Tenseiga, Sesshomaru eventually found it and started to master it. As the name suggests, it resembles a moon in some way, which goes from a small crescent slash to full perfect circle depending on the user’s skill, Sesshomaru for example was able to expand it to overshadow mountains. By Yashahime, Inuyasha is capable of expanding the portal to such absurd sizes that it eclipses a large fragment of the Grim Comet, whose description in a guidebook indicates it should be of comparable sizes to a multi-kilometer sized extinction level meteor.

What makes this technique so deadly is the fact that after the portal has opened, it starts to drag anything inside it as a black hole– physical things such as mountain rock after making contact for a second with the portal are disintegrated. And it’s that the path to the netherworld in the manga it’s shown as a pitch black realm (in the anime it’s shown similar to outer space where several galaxies are held and destroyed by a big black and red circle), where after you get exposed to it for long your entire body and soul start to dissolve into nothingness, erasing you from existence. It’s impossible to escape it too, Inuyasha was only able to make his way thanks to Tenseiga which guided him to slice across the Meido and return to the normal world. 

In the final fight against Naraku, just to remind him of his essence however, Inuyasha gave the cherry top to complete Tessaiga and this movement. Turning it into a cutting ability, which translated into sending a barrage of Meido Waves, thrown at high-speeds. To understand how ridiculous this is, we have to understand Naraku at this point was fused with the Shikon Pearl, granting him an immortality that regenerated him from any physical attack or body destruction in seconds, the Meido Waves acting as a spamming move meant eventually Inuyasha was going to overwhelm him by sending every part of his being into Netherworld and erasing them from existence.

The only way a character has been able to get out of it, is breaking space directly to return to the world, such was the case of a yōkai in the Yashahime manga. Inuyasha can also use the Meido to travel between dimensions, especially one which Byakuya sent Kagome to after copying this same technique, being guided by Tessaiga’s light.

Forms

Yato

Beast Transformation

After suffering the last bits of Father’s manipulation, Yukine can now turn into this giant Ayakashi wolf. It doesn’t have any notable shenanigans outside that Yato can use him as a transport and his fangs can rip apart some of Izanami Father’s Ayakashi.

He also brought holy water to Yato in his jaws, an impressive thing considering his Ayakashi appearance.

Inuyasha 

Human Form

One of Inuyasha’s biggest secrets is that every time the New Moon hits, Inuyasha’s Yōkai Powers fade away until dawn, causing him to be fully human during that time lapse. While this is most notably a weakness considering he cannot activate Tessaiga, Fire Rob Rat or use Toki, Inuyasha can still defend himself through Tessaiga’s Scabbard and should be far more impressive than a regular human, withstanding being smashed by a heavy yōkai and parry attacks from Tokijin, who previously destroyed Tessaiga’s original form and Sango’s Boomerang Bone.

Full Yōkai

After the ogre yōkai Goshinki shattered Tessaiga into pieces with his jaws, so did the seal that held Inuyasha’s hidden power, in contrast to his human form it’s the Full Yōkai power, a transformation where Inuyasha loses all sense of control and gets him in an often bloodlusted state to such a point which prevents his opponent from being able to read his mind. The condition for this to happen is to be in a near-death state, and after becoming Full Yōkai Inuyasha becomes way stronger, being able to tear apart Goshinki into pieces with a single scratch, or hold his own against the Daiyōkai Ryūkotsusei, who was in the same level as Tōga. And as well grants him a major endurance boost to ignore attacks which could come as deadly or target his insides, such is the case of a venomous yōkai which was boiling his body. The only way to actually stop Inuyasha’s rampage in this state is his friends, and across the story Inuyasha has proven to fight against it, imposing resistance.

Resistances

Yato

• Illusions: Yato was able to slice through the illusion caused by an Ayakashi, albeit this took him a little bit to figure out.

• Physical Attacks: As mentioned before, Yato can essentially negate anything that a Mortal does to him. It doesn’t matter if he’s beaten to pulp or an arrow pierces his head, as long as it is done by a mortal he’ll just return fine.

• Mind Manipulation: His status as God allowed him to negate Kazuma’s Rouro, which forces opponents to speak the truth.

• Electricity/ Lightning: While not immune to it, Yato has withstood several deadly attacks from Oki, Takemikazuchi’s Shinki which summons cloud-to ground lightning strikes.

Inuyasha

• Extreme temperatures: Inuyasha’s Fire Rat Robes allow him to withstand the flames of his opponents, even when the fire can burn people to a crisp (760 to 982 °C). But he’s also seen doing fine enough against an ice yōkai’s cold beam that can flash freeze his surroundings (−48 °C).   

• Toxins (Aura/Miasma and Poisons): Beyond the assistance of Myōga, the Fire Rat Robe and the Dragon Tessaiga, Inuyasha is no slouch against such threats himself. Despite lacking complete immunity, as shown in instances like Sesshomaru’s highly potent poisonous claws piercing Inuyasha, his Half yōkai physiology consistently grants him significant resistance to poisons and acids, as well as having great resistances against corrosion from miasma.

• On numerous occasions, he is able to withstand powerful poisonous auras and acidic substances without being affected (sometimes even being stated to be immune to yōkai), most notably against Naraku’s poisonous corrosive miasma, which is powerful enough to destroy vegetation and turn soil infertile. 

• Even the most fodder yōkai that produces miasma is capable of completely melting vegetation and humans away

• The series clearly emphasizes that his human form lacks any comparable defense against it.

• Even in cases the poison is too much and is killing him, his Full Yōkai form can kick in and protect him from the effects of poison, nullifying its effects.

• Mind Reading (Full Yōkai Only): The yōkai Goshinki was able to read minds and track his movements as Hanyo, but after turning Full Yōkai Inuyasha’s mind couldn’t be read.

• Illusions: Naraku trapped Inuyasha into an illusion, and Inuyasha (with the power of love) managed to break out of it.

• Previously got out of Kikyo’s perception enchantment, which hid Kagome from his view and was manipulating him.

• Broke out of Naraku’s illusion via the scent of Kagome’s blood.

• Has a limit, as Yoreitaisei casted a spell across a whole town to fool Inuyasha’s senses and teach him to identify real yōkai scent.

• Using the power of love again, snaps out of vines which show him a perfect reality with Kikyo.

• Another Hanyo like him (Towa) was able to snap out of a mind controlling tree rot.

• In a similar instance, Kagome in Movie 1 despite being mind controlled for a fair amount of time, was able to snap out of one of Meinomaru’s mind control tools after lots of mental stress.

• Life Force Draining: While not immune to it, he survived a fair bit of Nikosen's tree branches which had the intent to kill him, and over the years he could absorb an entire forest’s life force.

• Even early on, he was also able to physically overpower Magic Beads that were sapping away his powers and strength, and would eventually kill him, so he could save Miroku.

• Possession: While not immune to it, Inuyasha was able to overcome Magatsuhi's possession with the power of love. Also while being helped by Dragon Tessaiga, who removed Magatsuhi out of his body.

Feats

Yato

General

• Became one of the Gods of War along Bishamonten, and gained the nickname of God of Calamity.

• Saved Hiyori from becoming a Full Ayakashi and from death.

• Slayed the Ma clan which turned into a giant Ayakashi.

• Defeated Rabo, Bishamon, Takemikazuchi and Father.

• Rescued Yukine from Divine Punishment and Father’s manipulation.

• Survived cutting his lifeline, thanks to people on the internet keeping him alive.

Power

• Slices apart an Ayakashi the size of a building with his former Shinki: Hanki which took the form of a small knife.

• A single kick from Yato sent Rabo flying to a stone construct, creating a small crater.

• Slices apart an Ayakashi the size of a City Block with relative ease.

• Pushes aside some of Father’s Masked Ayakashi wolves using a needle.

• Yukine cuts some trees with Line.

• Slices the Pacifier Ring from Heavens with his Zan, splitting some clouds in the process. (2.705 Kilotons of TNT)

• In an attempt to save Bishamon from getting killed, splits the heavens apart. (1.480 Kilotons of TNT)

• Almost killed Bishamon by mistake, and she would have died if it wasn't for his broken arm.

• Causes a small explosion with his fire arrows. 

• Causes a series of explosions after clashing with Father.

• His arrows cause several explosions in a bridge.

• Slices Father’s throat. 

Speed

• Disappears in an instant to slay an Ayakashi at FTE.

• Saves Hiyori before a train hits her.

• Cuts a bullet from Bishamon in half with Yukine.

• Kills Rabo fast enough to make rain seem stopped for a second. (Mach 3494.17)

• Blocks several bullets from Bishamonten.

• Dodges Heaven’s Arrows. 

• After an intense battle with Takemikazuchi, cuts through his lightning. (Mach 897 to Mach 1646)

• His arrows can travel across an entire town in seconds.

• Ayakashi Yukine saves Father from Yato 's Arrows.

Durability

• Survives getting shot by one of Bishamonten’s bullets and a bite from Kuraha.

• Crashes into a wall after Hiyori punches him. 

• Gets slammed against a column by Bishamonten’s whip.

• Gets punched super high in the air consecutively by Bishamon.

• Tanks a big fuck off lightning attack from Takemikazuchi.

• After slicing Oki, survives a massive explosion caused by him.

• Gets punched hard by Ayakashi Yukine’s dark energy.

• Gets pierced in the gut by Ayakashi Yukine. 

Inuyasha

General

• Has saved countless villages and castles in the Feudal Era.

• Defeated Ryukotsusei, Bankotsu, Sesshomaru, Meinomaru, Kaguya, Takemaru and The 4 Gods.

• Mastered Tessaiga to its fullest potential.

• Along with Kagome, gave an end to Naraku and the Shikon Pearl by making the correct wish.

• Fought and stalemated Kirinmaru.

Power

• Lifts and chucks down a tree.

• Blows up a hundred yōkai with Scar Wind.

• Kills Ryūkotsusei using Bakuryuuha, an ancient yōkai the size of a mountain and skin harder than steel.

• Lifts and slams one of Naraku’s hair yōkai.

• Able to lift a huge boulder with a single hand.

• Punches a giant catfish yōkai.

• After receiving an amp from Kagome’s Shikon Shard, Inuyasha slices across a cliff-sized ogre’s belly with Adamant Barrage.

• Destroys a portion of ground which acted as a yōkai’s lair.

• Blasts a bone eating yōkai through a building with Adamant Barrage. 

• Along Kagome, causes a huge impact on the Grim Comet.

• Using Sō'unga, destroys an entire village and causes a path of destruction 

• After combining Bakuryuuha with Sesshomaru’s Dragon Strike, clears a massive storm created by Sō'unga. 

• Using Adamant Barrage, blows apart the Cauldron of Resonance.

Speed

• Dodges lightning from Hiten.

• The anime version of the feat confirms tandem movement - (Mach 119 - 218.36)

• Quickly reacts to Taigokomaru’s sonic screech.

• Takes Miroku out of another attack from Taigokumaru.

• Evades a shot from a gunpowder cannon.

• Slices diamond spears from Housenki.

• Dodges light attacks from Gyoja kids, with urn cannons from Goryomaru - (3.22c, Debatable)

• Dodges light attacks from Hakudōshi, who absorbed Goryomaru’s attack - (1.96c)

• Dodges attacks from Meijou, a giant turtle yōkai.

• Blocks beams from Kanna's mirror yōkai.

• Catches up with a train with no issue.

• Saves Kagome from Meinomaru’s beam attack.

• Inuyasha is able to run on water.

• Blocks an arrows’ rain by part of an undead army.

Durability

• Resisted the pull of Yuna’s strings which could kill a man.

• Withstands the pull from Miroku’s Kazaana.

• Survives being impaled in the chest by Sesshomaru

• Gets smashed by a heavy yōkai in his human form. (0.068 Tons of TNT)

• Withstands an attack from the Water God.

• The water God was stated to be able to blow up a village.

• His power allowed him to summon rain clouds, tornadoes and was stated again to be able to destroy a village.

• The real water Goddess splits the skies open.

• Survives several gunpowder cannon explosions and dynamite.

• Has his body pierced several times by small diamond slivers.

• Has tanked Wind Scar after someone copied it from him.

• Survives a lightning strike caused by Ryura, one of the 4 Gods.

Weaknesses

 Yato

Despite being a God, Yato has his fair share of weaknesses. 

For one, Ayakashi can cause diseases in Gods, which can only be purified with holy water.

For the case of Shinki, if a Shinki commits several bad acts, the God in question will be infected to such a degree the only way to get rid of that disease is to do an Ablution which requires 3 Shinki to purify it. By casting a spell upon calling them their name, Shinki can also be put in restraining spells.

Shinki can also be sealed, like the instance where the Burier Vessel was cast inside a stone trap known as Divine Punishment from Amateratsu-no-Okami, and Yukine was almost a victim of this.

Finally, Yato can disappear if there’s no people that remember him. Killing Father at the end of the series almost made him fully disappear if it wasn't for some people registering him on the internet. 

Inuyasha

Despite his overwhelming power and abilities. Inuyasha has his fair amount of weaknesses. Starting with the fact he’s not really that smart, coming off as impulsive in most fights. As a Hanyo, we’ve shared the fact he’s not really as powerful as Daiyōkai, at least through normal interpretations, and New Moon is by far his biggest downfall as a human he’s vulnerable to many things he’d normally stand against, losing all his abilities, strength and endurance. Inuyasha’s smell, despite how good it is, can backfire due to being too sensitive. And even with a win against the Life-Force draining Nikosen, something that constantly eats away his Haku can be harmful for Inuyasha, such as Kirinmaru’s attack which puts Sesshoumaru in a near death state. Full Yōkai makes him a full-on brute, sacrificing his sanity and the usage of Tessaiga (albeit, this has changed over time). And Tessaiga itself can be countered hard by either draining it of its energy, or holy energies suppressing it (holy energy can turn Inuyasha into his human self). And despite his track record against illusions, he’s been mind controlled occasionally, like in Movie 3 where his power wasn’t enough to counter Sō'unga’s control. Last and definitely not least, Inuyasha is vulnerable to getting sealed as shown in the beginning of the story, but this should be taken with a grain of salt, as Kikyo’s priestess powers which allowed her to do this were huge. Being heavily related to direct power, as amps from Shikon Shards have gotten yōkai out of seals before. Oh and yeah, SIT BOY death barrage, don’t forget that.

Scaling

Yato

Hiyori

Even as a Full Ayakashi, Hiyori was still notably weaker than Yato who mostly held back for her sake.

• Hiyori KICKs an Ayakashi very hard.

• Dodges an electricity beam from Byakujo, a cursed weapon used by Aiha.

• Ayakashi Hiyori slams Yato from very high. 

Gods

Yato has fought different Gods, including Bishamon, Rabo, Takemikazuchi and even Ebisu, so he should generally scale to all feats performed by them.

• Bishamonten cuts a couple of trees with a single swing.

• Bishamonten destroys a giant wall with a swing of her whip.

• Rabo can create shockwaves by moving.

• Rabo cuts through a lot of stone with a single swing. 

• Tenjin strikes Yato and Veena with a thunder bolt.

• It’s stated that if Kofuku had a Blessed Vessel the whole country could be doomed.

• Takemikazuchi has control over the weather, spawning clouds near him and using lighting to attack. (13 to 17 Megatons of TNT)

• Takemikazuchi creates yet another storm in a few minutes.

• Size in Chapter 62

• Created them as a kid.

• His rampage caused a thunderstorm over a large area.

• Bishamonten blocks Takemikazuchi’s lightning in time before it hits Ebisu. (Mach 1979 to Mach 3630.)

• Takemikazuchi kills Ebisu with a massive explosion.

• Takemikazuchi dodges Yato 's Arrows.

• Kagutsuchi creates a strong pillar of fire.

• Okononushi can create strong earthquakes. (52 Teratons of TNT)

• This value is based on the magnitude from the strongest earthquake that’s been recorded in recent history. The 1960 Valdivia Earthquake.

• ”A stroke of a God’s hand and the mountains crumble, or the oceans roll back themselves.”

Father

Father and Yato never really had fought, until the very end of the series where the former was aided by Koto Fujisaki’s body. Showing to be evenly matched, even after Father gained Izanami’s powers, Yato killed him by using Hiyori as Shinki.

• Dodges one of Yato’s arrows.

• Breaks apart a lot of ground.

• Casually tears a crater in the ground with a tap of his weapon.

• Survives a massive attack from Yatagarasu which burns across a large terrain.

• After gaining a power similar to Izanami, Father was going to replace the world with his “own land” over time with the technique Creation. Creating black seas that destroyed everything on its path and brought Ayakashi to the Near Shore. (123.113 Teratons of TNT)

• The surface world won’t last till morning and will be swallowed.

Burier Vessel

While Yato couldn’t use her as Shinki himself, Bishamon managed to do so, and both Father and Yato fought her in that instance.

• Back as a Shinki for Arahabaki, attacked the heavens and cut part of the sun. (144. 954 Zettatons of TNT) (Debatable)

• The reason this feat could have problems is due how vague it is, we know for one that Shinki vary in power, abilities and name when they change master. And this specific feat was performed in the past when she was under Arahabaki’s control, with the only available source of seeing it as a single panel. However, it is worth remarking that Bishamon still seeks for her given this immense power, and Father in a similar instance was about to physically threaten Amateratsu-no-Okami, the strongest Goddess in Noragami which represents the Sun. And while embodying it is a thing and having the power is another, the panel specifically states she “sliced through the source of life”, which in this case given how Japanese mythology works is the sun. In any case it can only apply to AP, given the unknown timeframe or method.

• Bishamonten obliterates all the windows in Hiyori’s school with a single use of a Burier Vessel.

Inuyasha

Kagome

Both Inuyasha and Kagome have proven to be an excellent team across the story, and while Kagome’s priestess power is nothing to scoff at, in terms of destructive power or physical she’s not on Inuyasha’s level as a human.

• Kagome dodges Manten's lightning breath.

• One of her arrows breaks across a wall and Naraku’s body.

• After sending her arrows 500 years into the future, they were able to break across Osamu Kirin’s tree rots and pierce buildings.

• Survives a beam attack from Meidomaru.

• One of Meidomaru’s beams was able to break across a huge chunk of earth

Sango

In contrast to Kagome, even as a human Sango has proven herself to be able to stand at the level of yōkai as an exterminator herself, with her weapon Boomerang Bone. But all things considered she should be under Inuyasha in terms of power, or at best comparable.

• Throws her Bone Boomerang in the right time to block Housenki’s Diamond Spears from hitting Kagome.

• Blocks Naraku's chunks of flesh falling at high speeds.

• Using Black Bone Boomerang, destroys a whole army of yōkai making them explode. 

• One of her children, Hisui, blocks an attack from Meidomaru who can turn into lightning.

Sesshoumaru

While Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru have fought several times across the manga, it’s difficult to say whether Inuyasha is actually as strong as his brother due to his Hanyo physiology being consistently repeated to be under Sessh’s level, but there has been several instances where moves like Wind Scar or equipment like Tessaiga’s Scabbard have actually stood up against the Daiyōkai. At very least, Inuyasha should scale to most of the feats presented below, even if going by both Yashahime’s Anime and Manga endings it’s clear Sesshomaru remains as the strongest of the two.

• Kills the Nothing Woman.

• Slays an entire army of yōkai around a mountain while using Tessaiga.

• Kills his personal giant ogre.

• Dodges an arrow from Kagome.

• Using Bakusaiga, Sesshomaru slices across Naraku’s body sphere, which was about to destroy a village. - (223.185 Kilotons of TNT)

• Using Bakusaiga, Sesshomaru slices a fragment of the Grim Comet in half. - (346.451 Teratons of TNT; Mach 440.33)

• The episode synopsis in the Yashahime guidebook describes Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha destroying the fragment as them “saving the world/surface”. The fragment is visible from the surface while it’s still above the planet’s atmosphere, and is stated to be “a large fragment” compared to the full Comet, which happens to be over 100 km wide, making it reasonable to assume the fragment is at least 10 km in size (comparable to the Chicxulub impactor)

• His fight with Kirinmaru causes a storm, and he can move in tandem with its lightning strikes - (Mach 22.1 - 40.54; 99.52 - 182.52) 

• Resists Kirinmaru’s strongest attack physically with no issue to save Towa, Setsuna and Moroha at the expense of draining his Haku.

• As a teenager, Sesshomaru destroys a fragment from the Grim Comet.

• Reacts to Meidomaru’s attack, who can turn into real lightning. - (Mach 285.71 - 524

• Gives an end to Kirinmaru by slicing him in half.

• Causes a huge explosion in Horai Island after defeating Kyora.

Naraku

As Hanyo, Both Inuyasha and Naraku should hit similar levels of power shown in their many fights across the manga. With Inuyasha being resistant to most of his Miasma or Shoki attacks, and showing to be physically superior or similar to Naraku’s different transformations and amps with the Shikon Pearl, such as Mt. Hakurei’s fusion. And by the same logic Inuyasha should scale to any feats performed by Naraku’s children/ extensions, who are just a part of him at the end without the potential to actually kill the real Naraku, and who Inuyasha has fought regardless.

• On a way to achieve a new godly form, became one with the insides of Mt Hakurei, turning into the entire mountain. Depleting all the yōkai within and collapsing the mountain moments after - (193.821 Kilotons - 21.323 Megatons of TNT)

• After receiving his new transformation Naraku beheads Tekkei, the great bird Daiyōkai with his tentacles, who was the size of a cliff.

• Hakudoshi, one of Naraku’s children reacts to a light beam from Goryomaru - (Debatable)

• Moryomaru dodges lightning from Ginka and blitzes both Kinka and Ginka.

• Moryomaru’s power alone blasts across a giant cliff.

• Moryomaru and Naraku’s clash causes a whole forest to melt on Miasma.

• Moryomaru melts a mountain with his Shoki spears - (1.962 Gigatons of TNT)

• Description of the feat chapters later

• Naraku states that his remaining chunks of flesh are enough to destroy a village.

• Kagura (One of Naraku’s daughters) uses a wind technique called Dance of the Dragon, whose power is enough to break across several amounts of earth and Sango’s house.

Other Yōkai

Inuyasha has fought against several types of yōkai across the story and as Hanyo should be superior to practically all of them unless they’re specifically stated to be Daiyōkai.

• Meijou’s arrival caused a black storm. - (7.15 Kilotons of TNT) 

• Chokyukai forms a rotating storm cloud and a small tornado when he appears - (21.382 Kilotons of TNT)

• Entei’s awakening caused a whole mountain to crumble. - (109.5 Kilotons of TNT)

• Ginka and Kinka appearing summons a large thunderstorm - (138.862 Kilotons of TNT)

• Entei fired an energy blast that created a giant explosion bigger than the surrounding mountains and a large crater - (70.258 Megatons of TNT)

• A-Un’s arrival forms a massive thunderstorm - (1.496 - 341.46 Megatons of TNT)

• Gyoja kids behead Gakusanjin, a mountain sized yōkai with their light beams.

• Mizuchi’s whole presence damages the trees in his surroundings.

• Kinka can casually react to his brother Ginka’s lightning.

• Should be real, as Ginka’s spear is only a way to conduct it and not the source.

• Kinka once again reacts to Ginka's thunder in Yashahime - (Mach 97.37 - 178.575; 231.7 - 425)

• In his fight against a 3 headed Wolf Yōkai, Koga saves his clan from a huge fire blast which devastates a portion of ground

• Homura, a Fire God, burns part of a forest in an instant.

• Hachi dodges a light beam from the Tanuki's eye guardian - (0.251c)

• On top of being directly stated to be light by Hachi, a fellow Tanuki, the beam is portrayed as an actual spotlight beam, and the same paralyzing beam is portrayed as a flash of light when coming from the Tanuki painting

• Koga is at least 3 times faster than Moroha, Setsuna and Towa. 

Yashahime Cast

As the father of Moroha (A Quarter Yōkai/Shihanyō), and a Hanyo just like Towa and Setsuna, Inuyasha should scale to all feats performed by them with no issue considering his superior experience and having fought the same opponent in the story, Kirinmaru. It’s important to mention that cross-scaling the feats could be a major problem, as the Anime and Manga for Yashahime are drastically different. But even with this in mind, the feats presented below shouldn’t be that far-fetched for Inuyasha to scale.

Anime

• Setsuna's cyclone explosion can generate huge tornadoes.

• After getting revived by Towa and gaining a new Naginata, Setsuna obliterates an army of yōkai in a single swing, causing an explosion which disperses several clouds.

• Moroha gets trashed by Kirinmaru across a forest, leaving a huge trace of wasted ground.

• Riku, using his earring power, freezes a big part from the sea’s surface - (812.725 Tons of TNT)

• Yawaragi’s power was enough to clear the clouds in the horizon - (9.2 Kilotons of TNT)

• Moroha’s Crimson Dragon Wave can match Yawaragi’s technique.

• Towa catches Sesshomaru talking really fast and grabs Tenseiga - (Mach 291.5)

• Moroha’s Crimson Dragon Wave slices a moon in half - (64.38 Teratons of TNT to 15.38 Exatons of TNT )

• Towa dodges lightning from Ginka - (Mach 307 - 563)

• Moroha is capable of firing Purifying Arrows at the Grim Comet and clearing off its yōkai energy outside the planet’s atmosphere - (Mach 645.5 - 1701.75)

• Towa’s Shooting Star Azure Dragon Wave is capable of blasting the Grim Comet to shrink it, sending energy around it at incredible speeds - (Mach 2194.145)

• Setsuna and Towa shoot a duo energy attack at the Grim Comet, which clears the Miasma around it at very fast speeds - (Mach 5860.15)

• Setsuna reacts to the Bakusaisōha to protect Moroha, which are stated to be “spear-like beams of light” in Hanyou no Yashahime: Official Guide Book - (0.11c, Debatable)

Manga

• Moroha and Setsuna’s powers combined kill a yōkai, causing a massive explosion seen from another mountain.

• As a kid, Towa resisted the impact of a truck without any major issues.

• Zanseiken is a sword that came from the stars in ancient times.

• Setsuna, Moroha and Towa landed an attack on Grim Comet, which was over 400,000 kms of distance. (Inapplicable)

• It’s seen reaching outside the planet

• The girls finally slice apart the comet in half. (Inapplicable)

Kirinmaru

Going by the anime, Inuyasha has fought and stalemated Kirinmaru in a fight to protect his daughter, so that should put him at a higher level than Osamu Kirin at very least, a notably weaker version of the original Kirinmaru. Going by the manga it’s more difficult to tell, but going by the fact Kirinmaru is Tōga’s equal Inuyasha should at least scale in some way, and was part of the destruction of the Grim Comet which Kirinmaru was empowered by. Again, it’s important to mention that cross-scaling the feats could be a major problem, as the Anime and Manga for Yashahime are drastically different.

Anime

• Kirin reacts to Towa and Moroha’s attacks, blocking them in time and causing a massive crater. - (322.48 Tons of TNT)

• Kirinmaru dodges one of Moroha's arrows.

• Osamu Kirin (one of Kirinmaru’s children), using all of his power stops the Grim Comet from falling into the Earth and minutes after casually drags it towards a portal. - (3.9 Exatons of TNT; Mach 326.1)

• Grim Comet was stated to end humanity and is shown to be able to burn the planet.

Manga

• Kirinmaru’s fights with Inu No Taisho reshaped Japan.  - (628.165 Kilotons of TNT)

• Osamu Kirin controls tree rots spawned from Grim Comet that can mind control opponents and grow bigger than a school. 

• A single attack from Osamu Kirin (who has the same strength as regular Kirin) destroyed Towa’s school.

• Stated that he could make the city disappear. - (2.07 Gigatons of TNT)

• Stated that he can “tear the world in twain”.

• While this could be interpreted as a planetary statement, the original Japanese version doesn’t use any wording related to the world/planet, but a vaguer construction that could be more reasonably interpreted as affecting the ground or the landscape.

• Destroys the Windmill of Time with a sword slash.

Movie Antagonists

Inuyasha has fought and defeated all of the main antagonists from the movies through various meanings or along with someone.

• After breaking the seal from his father’s grave, Meinomaru absorbs all of Hyoga’s power causing the Tree of Ages to collapse along a massive  crater.

• Meinomaru is stated to be stronger than his father, who fought Tōga in the past, causing storms all over the zone.

• Meinomaru’s power causes the Tree of Ages to grow massively, to the point where it’s able to be seen from mountains afar.

• Meinomaru’s exponential growth of his power caused an ice age to occur on the planet 500 years into the future. (5.04 Teratons of TNT)

• Kaguya’s Mirror Dimension, sustained by her powers, holds a replica of a lake and a castle. The realm actually holds a moon too - (29.6 Exatons of TNT)

• Inuyasha and Kagome teaming up, actually defeat her, after that the dimension starts to collapse

• After Sō'unga possessed Takemaru, it held the power to erect several spikes and rots across a mountain, as well as flood it on red liquid. 

• Sō'unga’s power is enough to open to cause a tremor and open the gateways towards hell, creating a massive hole in the ground. 

• Jura can break the sound barrier with full power. 

• Gora’s repeated attacks with full power would have sinked all of Horai Island, causing one of the cliffs to fall.

Script

If you’re interested in seeing a portrayal of the fight with banter and funny interactions. Please read it! I’ve been meaning to do it in this format for a long time. Contains original art from your very own Giotto!

Verdict

Before going into detail about the winner, I should clarify that I’m aware of several of the Debatable things about Inuyasha’s side of things (Cosmology, Moon Slice and Light Feats), whomever I recommend to please read TGTQVS’s blog on Inuyasha vs Kurama, where I, along Kaiser and Flip explain about each of these points, so you can have an idea about where I sit Inuyasha in stats.

That being said, let’s start the rundown.

Skill and Experience

Starting with an easy category to determine, Inuyasha and Yato have fought against several types of threats across their media, and it helps a lot that their inhuman nature has allowed them to live for centuries to see all types of warriors and creatures. Both showing really good swordsmanship and strategies that center around finding weak spots or attack with millimetrical precision. However, while Inuyasha has received formal training from Yoreitasei to acute his senses to an absurd degree, finding Yoki Vortexes to end his opponents quickly. Said experience is actually not as impressive, because as it pains to say most of the opponents in the InuYasha universe tend to show off in terms of destructive power or tricky/ mischievous abilities like Sesshoumaru or Naraku. Which applies to Inuyasha, who tends to be a lot more reckless in his fighting style, coming off as impulsive, falling to his instincts and requiring Kagome to assist him. Yato in the other hand has only known his blade since he was born, killing dozens of humans and competing with Gods who live for the battle and are highly respected for it, such as Bishamon, Takemikazuchi and even Father who are nothing to scoff at, having lived for thousands of years for the sake of battle. Yato against all of his opponents tends to have a much more cold-headed nature and will always highlight his opponent’s minimum flaws to do something unexpected, even while badly injured.

And in terms of unexpected factors, Yukine and Kazuma are rightfully more educated and versed in their skills. The latter has been forming strategies and guiding Bishamon for centuries and his precision is such that he can guarantee to not damage the human world while fighting. Their tricks and brains combined could give a hard time to Inuyasha, who’s easy to fall for things like Shippo’s transformation antics or provocations. Yukine himself should also be a lot more specific than Inuyasha, in terms that he can choose what to cut and not, which is on a similar extend to Inuyasha’s Vortex Cutting, but at a much faster rate.

So nonetheless to say, Yato easily takes this category.

Stats

By their own, Yato and Inuyasha have proven to be really strong warriors. Yato’s Rends can match Heaven’s strength, slicing the Purification Ring in results of 2 Kilotons of TNT or slicing across several clouds summoned by them in the manga in results of 1.4 Kilotons of TNT. In general a very good range, but nothing that Inuyasha cannot achieve, such as his feat along Sesshomaru, that dispersed a large storm that expanded across mountains caused by Takemaru in Movie 3.

Speaking of storms, several Yokai’s arrivals can cause storms by just existing, be Ah-Un, Chokyukai, Ginka and Kinka, Meijou and Sesshomaru, all ranging from Kilotons to Megatons. And well, Noragami counts with his own storm summoner, Takemikazuchi easily enters the Megaton range as well with his crazy thunderstorms, and Yato fights him just fine.

But at their maximum potential, while Yato can hit the Teratons range thanks to Okunonushi and Father’s feat of drowning the surface world in darkness. Thanks to Yashahime and Movie 2, Inuyasha surpasses that tier pretty solidly, the Grim Comet and Moroha slicing that moon with her guardian spirit are a lot more impressive and direct than Father’s feat, hitting the Exatons mark. It only becomes worse when you factor Kaguya’s realm, which includes a moon on its own.

The only detail that could, theoretically save Yato from being weaker in strength, could be the Burier Vessel’s feat. Now we are unsure if it’s actually doing what the image suggests, or the specifics for Arahabaki’s Shinki. But we know her power can be deadly against heavens, including Amaterasu-no-Okami, Goddess of the Sun in Japanese Mythology. If you’re fine with this logic, this feat can get results of 144 Zettatons of TNT. Far stronger than anything in the InuYasha verse. But this is being generous with something that happens in a single panel off-screen, and whose closer feat is from Yato splitting the heavens, which only gets 1 Kiloton.

For Speed, it is easier to figure out. Yato can cut through bullets, it’s a lot faster than rain drops when he killed Rabo in the anime, and both him and Bishamonten have reacted to lightning from Takemikazuchi. The previous three feats have a range between Mach 1646 to Mach 3494. Very impressive indeed, but not only Inuyasha has reacted to lightning himself from pretty early on, but almost everyone in the InuYasha verse has done so. And while Bishamon’s numbers blow any of them out of the water in that sense, as most of the Lightning feats are reduced to Triple Digits, there’s a lot more feats that surpass the Mach 4000 such as Moroha’s arrows speed, which characters like Kirinmaru have reacted to. Or Towa and Setsuna’s feats when clearing the Grim Comet’s miasma.

 But perhaps the one that makes the most difference is Hachi’s feats, which can get 0.251 c, 25% the Speed of Light. A feat performed by the literal most bottom tier of the entire verse. Which already shafts everything in Noragami, and Yato would never match, even less the other hypothetical ends for Light feats such as Goryomaru’s beams taken by Hakudoushi that Inuyasha has reacted to, that get 3 times faster than light.

So by the end, Yato could potentially be stronger if you use the Burier’s feat. It’s jus that Inuyasha is a lot more consistent with his scaling and holds a definitive speed advantage. So the Hanyou Inuyasha takes Stats.

Abilities

As surprising as it may seem, the deciding factor lies here. Both Inuyasha and Yato have plenty of abilities thanks to Tessaiga and Yukine/ Kazune. And they just happen to get perfect counters for each other. Yato can create strong winds that cut through stuff? Inuyasha has Scar Wind to counter it, or Bakuryuuha to return his energy. Yukine and Kazune can create barriers that separate him from Ayakashi? Inuyasha has the Red Tessaiga which can slice through barriers. And while Yato’s Divine Possession might seem interesting, he specifically needs a body with no spirit to enter in, and even if Yato could do so, Dragon Tessaiga can easily take him out as it did with Magatsuhi. Hell, even Kazune’s fire arrows while transformed into a bow are literally useless, because Inuyasha’s Fire Rat Rob can withstand absurdly high or low temperatures that can make people dissipate into nothingness.

Kazune has a bunch of experience with spells and incantations that could prove to be difficult for Inuyasha, or rather tricky. Such as Rakusui that can place opponents to sleep, Bakufu that could restrain him in place or a feint with Body Decoy or Inko which can render Yato invisible. It’s just they aren’t something that Inuyasha wouldn’t overcome in one way or the other, the sleeping spell is something that can definitely affect Inuyasha, but Myoga has saved him and others from spells similar to this, Bakufu despite being deadly on its own, has been broken by brute force by Yukine, and Inuyasha has faced a similar situation before against the monk which restrained him with beads or the illusions he’s been against. And the Body Decoy or Inko? They are hard nullified by Inuyasha’s heightened senses, even if they turned invisible, Inuyasha’s smell would be able to tell the difference and track Yato no matter what, which doesn’t help that Yato’s smell is so particular.  

This rundown could make it seem like Inuyasha would just have a major upperhand, but there’s a small detail with Yato that makes it a lot more fair in comparison. And is that just as Hanyo can shrug off Yato’s techniques, so can Yaboku. And this is due his God’s damage negation, every single ability that Inuyasha can throw at him is pretty much meaningless, be Soul Stealer, Blood Claws, Scar Wind, Bakuryuuha, Kongosoha. None of them would be something Yato cannot simply shrug off in a matter of seconds. As cursed as it sounds, Inuyasha is still technically a resident of the mortal realm, and if something the series stated very blatantly is that Tessaiga can’t affect souls or spiritual entities, such as Gozu and Mezu which protected the path to Netherworld. The time he tried attacking them, it just did nothing. 

One could believe that Yoki may affect Yato, considering the latter has been affected by things like Stings from Yukine or Ayakashi, so wouldn’t Yoki can act as venom if there’s a high concentration of it, as it was stated before by Totosai? Well, as similar as Yokai and Ayakashi are, they have a major difference and is that Ayakashi are actually residents of the Far Shore, so pretty much spiritual in nature, meanwhile Yokai in Inuyasha are physical creatures. When Yato was poisoned by the mortal guy that tried to kill him, it did nothing in the long run. So with Yoki, it shouldn’t really be any different.

So if neither really have a way to capitalize in their abilities, what draws the difference?

And here is where Meido Zangetsuha enters the chat. Which is by far Inuyasha’s strongest move in the series, a spatial cutting ability that opens a portal to a realm where your soul and body are disintegrated into nothingness. Now, this isn’t really something that Yato can counter on his own, the situations where Yato has been in hellish sites such as Yomi, only calling his name has worked to escape it. But that’s blatantly just outside help. So what can he even do? Well, there’s one option that could be helpful, his Shrine can act as a way to travel to Takamagahara and escape right in time by saying Upward. But this is something that in a fight scenario, would be a one-time solution. 

Returning to the fight after saying Upwards, most definitely wouldn’t change anything, if anything it’d be worse. Because we have to remember that Black Tessaiga has two techniques derived from Meido, one is opening the moon portal, the giant circle that can drag even fragments of the Grim Comet. But the other is the Meido Blades, which if Yato was hit by any of them, not even if he had limitless Shrines would help him at all. Because it doesn’t become any regular BFR anymore, but rather sending several spatial cuts that send each part of your body into that portal. We have to remember that even if Yato can negate damage done by mortals, it still can hit him and he later recovers, the guy who tried to kill him tried bashing his head and piercing his head with an arrow, and it effectively happened, it didn’t phase, just that he returned later. But Meido Blades can essentially stop a regeneration as insane as Final Form Naraku, and Inuyasha can spam them as much as he wants.

Their abilities can cancel one to the other, but only Inuyasha has an ability as deadly as Meido. So the last advantage goes to the Hanyo, Inuyasha.

Note: While Sunder is a terrifying ability on its own, the way it interacts with Inuyasha is rather unclear and not a determining fact. Cutting the bonds with Tessaiga is impossible, considering Tessaiga was rebuilt from Inuyasha’s own fang, and overall is part of him (Yato has never tried this ability in Shinki so we can’t really take it as a standard combat tactic). And cutting bonds with Kagome is something super specific that requires him to know their relationship in the first place, in case it was sliced, Yato could potentially take advantage of this as Inuyasha would fall to his lower instincts and go Full Yokai. But afaik it wouldn’t mean much at a longer rate, since Yato still has no way to kill him. And it is debatable if their bonds specifically can be cut, because Yashahime’s manga has a harder emphasis than not even Amaterasu-no-Okami can sever then, and while this could be attributed to Yukari-no-Tachakiri’s ability (A weapon with an ability similar to Sunder) but different enough, what it did specifically was to connect them, not to strengthen them.

Summary

Yato

Advantages

• Way stronger if you use Burier Vessel’s Sun Feat.

• Yato can negate practically all of Inuyasha 's abilities and physical attacks….

• Has lived for way longer and is a lot more skilled.

Disadvantages

• Weaker if you don’t use the Burier Vessel’s feat.

• …. Barring Meido Zangetsuha.

• Shrine could potentially save Yato one time from the technique.

• Wayyyy slower.

• Inuyasha can counter several of his techniques, including most of Kazune’s incantations.

• Twitter.

Inuyasha

Advantages

• Stronger if you don’t use the Burier Vessel’s feat.

• Faster by a large margin.

• Can counter and resist several of Yato’s abilities and techniques with Tessaiga.

• Meido Zangetsuha it’s a guaranteed kill over time.

Disadvantages

• Weaker if you use the Burier Vessel’s feat.

• All of his physical abilities are practically useless, as Yato’s God status makes him immune to Mortal attacks.

• Nowhere as smart or skilled as Yato.

Yato was a really strong and skilled opponent that could definitely take Inuyasha really off-guard. And while The Burier’s feat was definitely impressive and could lead to Yato one-shotting him, Inuyasha had the most consistent scaling between the two. But as Inu-No-Taisho once said, strength isn’t everything, it really didn’t matter that Inuyasha was stronger if he couldn’ t take Yato down with the latter’s  resistance to mortal attacks. It was Inuyasha’s far superior speed and Meido Zangetsuha that truly made a difference. 

Winner

The winner is Inuyasha.

Credits 

All of Inuyasha’s research and Scaling Section images derive from the Inuyasha vs Kurama blog from TGTQVS, which I participated as a lead researcher for Inuyasha. All of the credit belongs to Kaiser and Flip for their several calculations and extra notes. Thanks for supporting me in the creation of this blog and yet another big thanks to Kaiser’s calculations for Noragami’s side, it means everything to me.

Final Words + Next Time

The current Wave 1 of Giotto’s Blogs is finished… I must admit, my releases have been a hot mess for the most part. Announcing supposed next times that actually never come to be. But it is part of my issue of knowing my priorities, still working around it. This blog was actually wild, as it was done in a single week. But is partly thanks to all the Year long research I did for Inuyasha back with Flip and Kaiser, I was already familiar with Yato since I watched both Anime seasons, and I always wanted to do a blog for him, the initial idea was to do it as a solo research, or I even considering placing him against another character I’m interested in doing something with. But I decided to listen to my heart and do the idea I always talked about, and see how interesting the discussion could be. And honestly it was a great surprise to see how cool this idea came to be, seeing all their abilities match and counter each other. I somehow wish people gave more of a chance to both series, specially Inuyasha which for being a classic is mad underrated in versus terms. 

This was moreso a personal project, so see this as the product of a dedicated nerd. Especially since I wanted to really wrap up the first stage of this blog, Shiro vs Eto was great but a season with only 3 ideas wasn’t fitting into my head, but 4… is cool, especially for a mostly independent fella like me. I’m glad if people can help me, but I’ve understood that sometimes, and just sometimes I need to do things on my own.

Enough yapping, wanna see what’s on next time for the freaking Wave 2 of Giotto’s blogs? I know you really want to. So peep this up!! And be ready.