Sango (InuYasha)
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| Sango 珊瑚 |
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| Age | 16 |
| Race | Human |
| Weapons | Hiraikotsu (Both outfits), Katana, Hidden Sword, Poison Gases (Slayer Outfit) |
| First Appearance (Anime) | Enter Sango, The Demon Slayer |
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Sango (珊瑚, "coral") is a character in the manga and anime series InuYasha.
Sango is a highly skilled yōkai exterminator (妖怪退治屋, yōkai taijiya). She is a member of a group of exterminator trained to kill yōkai. Sango, like all other children of the village, had been training to master the art of yōkai extermination from a very young age. Her preferred weapon is a gigantic boomerang made of the bones of yōkai, and it is called the Hiraikotsu.
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[edit] Discovery of the truth
Naraku devised an elaborate strategy to destroy the demon exterminators and take their pieces of the Shikon no Tama. He first lured the five most skilled slayers of the village away to a castle. The castle was under the control of Naraku who had either taken the form of its young lord Hitomi Kagewaki or had been that person for many years. The slayers quickly killed a weak spider demon who they had been told was threatening the castle. Immediately after, another spider-demon in the disgised form of the castle's lord took control of Sango's younger brother Kohaku and had him attack the entire group of exterminators (including his own father). Sango was the only survivor. When she discovered the presence of the spider-demon controlling Kohaku, she turned to attack the demon. Kohaku stabbed her in the back with his kusari-gama (chain-sickle). Meanwhile, the spider-demon still disgised as the lord of the castle ordered his men to kill the "crazed" slayers. Sango and Kohaku were both shot full of arrows. Naraku, in the form of Hitomi Kagewaki, then appeared and killed the spider-demon. He orders that the bodies of the exterminators be buried with the exception of Kohaku which he takes away for other purposes.
While the slayers were fighting at the castle, Naraku sent his saimyōshō out to lead a large force of demons against the village of the slayers. All the villagers were killed in the battle and Naraku gained their pieces of the Shikon no Tama.
Before Sango is buried, Naraku has a piece of the Shikon no Tama inserted into her which kept her wounds from killing her. She digs herself out of her burial mound and afterward has her wounds briefly tended to by Naraku in the form of Hitomi Kagewaki (the young lord). In that form Naraku has his saimyōshō come to him. The saimyōshō (calling itself Naraku) tells Hitomi Kagewaki within listening range of Sango that her village was destroyed by demons under the leadership of a yōkai named InuYasha. Enraged at this "news", Sango demands her weapon and swears to kill InuYasha at all costs.
Sango meets InuYasha and the group not long after she left the castle. Immediately she engages in a battle that InuYasha does not want to fight in, and he thus holds back. Naraku was watching closely with a yōkai puppet and sends the saimyōshō to deter Miroku from using his Kazāna. It seems like Sango has the upper hand by using her poison gas to fend off InuYasha's attacks, but InuYasha easily discovers that if he knocks off her mask she would not be able to use such an effective defense. Having done so, InuYasha 'saves' Sango from her own poison gas after knocking off her mask. Puzzled as to why InuYasha, the yōkai who supposedly killed her entire village would save her, she stabs him in the arm with her Katana. InuYasha, after rather nonchalantly removing the katana from his arm, bluntly points out that Naraku was tricking her and that she was bleeding rather badly. Sango is shocked to see that he was right because she had felt no pain from her wounds, soon afterward she passes out. She awakens on InuYasha's back and only after assurances and explanations from Kagome does Sango feel as if she can "trust" InuYasha for the time being.
Naraku's Saimyōshō escape with the Shard of the Jewel he lent Sango and she loses consciousness due to blood loss. When she wakes up, they make it back to her village, where Sango finds out that they had already paid proper respects to all the villagers, who died defending the village without their strongest warriors from the onslaught of yōkai.
The group learns from Sango that the Shikon no Tama has close ties with her village, and Sango in time realized the true nature of Naraku and joins the group.
She is a valiant warrior in battle as she is the best yōkai exterminator from the village, and with her Hiraikotsu she is not an opponent to be taken lightly. Sango also has her fire cat demon companion, Kirara. She hopes to defeat Naraku and be reunited with Kohaku who was brought back from the dead by Naraku with a Shikon Shard.
She develops deep feelings towards Miroku and accepts his proposal that they should get married if they ever defeat Naraku, even though they both have doubts if his lecherous behavior will ever change.
[edit] Special attacks
(Kanji: 飛来骨, Hiragana: ひらいこつ, English:Hiraikotsu, Manga Boomerang Bone) - The name of Sango's giant boomerang, and also the name of the attack using it. It was made from the bone of a yōkai, and this makes it nearly unbreakable and powerful. 'Hi-' means 'flying', 'rai-' means 'return' and '-kotsu' means 'bone', so the name can also mean "bone that flies back." This weapon is effectively destroyed in Chapter 484 (Youdoku) of the manga. However, through a poison and medicine youkai called Yakurodokusen, the youkai that make up Hiraikotsu realize Sango's and Miroku's devotion for each other, and decide to fight together with Sango once more.
In Chapter 498, during her confrontation with Naraku, Sango finds that her weapon now has the ability to absorb his aura and body when she throws it at him. This newfound vulnerability prompts Naraku to flee for now. The full extent (and/or potential weaknesses) of this upgrade have not yet been revealed.
- Yōkai Paralyzing Poisons (毒分, dokufun) - Sango's knowledge of various poisons (particularly ones that affect only yōkai) is extensive, and she employs a few different kinds throughout the series. She wears a custom-fit gas mask to protect herself from some of the more potent ones.
- Dagger gauntlet - Hidden in the sleeve of her kimono is a retractable dagger, but she rarely uses it. In one episode she used it to free herself when she was tied up by villagers.
- Wakizashi - A weapon that she sometimes uses in close combat or if she loses Hiraikotsu, but she prefers her main weapon. Many believe that this weapon is a katana but a atana would be too long to hold. It is actually the wakizashi, or the ritualistic suicide sword.
- Chain- uses the chain as a whip and constrict foes.
- Kirara- her pet that aids her in battle and who she flies on.
[edit] Friends
- InuYasha - InuYasha doesn't really trust Sango at first, but quickly comes to realize her value as both a fighter and a friend. He worries about her and protects her but not as much as he does Kagome. Though Sango can generally take care of herself. Sango and he are commonly found saving one another from peril. Sango has stated that she doesn't have a preference for which form InuYasha is in and will stand by him no matter what. This statement is often part of the basis for fanfiction pairings between InuYasha and Sango.
- Kirara - Sango's "pet", who looks like a small two-tailed cat and can transform to a huge flying fire cat. Kirara is a nekomata demon. Kirara is fiercely loyal to Sango. It is hinted in the anime that Kirara was once the companion of Midoriko, creator of the Shikon no Tama, which would mean that Kirara is very old.
- Kagome - Sango turns to Kagome for the occasional advice on/or sympathy for the predations of Miroku. In and out of battles, they also share feelings about love interests and other important topics, such as the whereabouts of the Shikon Jewel Shards. In a word, Sango and Kagome are like foster sisters, with Sango being the older one and Kagome the younger. This means that Sango will always protect and help Kagome in any way she can.
- Shippo - One of her good friends and travelling companions, but Shippo is generally much closer to Kagome and Kirara.
[edit] Sango and Miroku
When addressing Miroku, Sango generally refers to him with the respectful term houshi-sama (houshi means Buddhist priest, and -sama is a respectful honorific), despite his rather perverted nature. Miroku, for his part, frequently gropes Sango when the opportunity arises, though she usually slaps or punches him for it. Despite this, Sango displays varying degrees of jealousy when Miroku pays attenton to other women, which is one of the series' main sources of humor. After he gropes her she usually calls him sukebe (pervert) but starting at episode 78 she smiles (sometimes) when he gropes her
Despite their "cat and mouse" relationship Sango and Miroku actually make an excellent pair in battle, and whenever the group splits up it's usually split between InuYasha-Kagome and Sango-Miroku. Curiously enough, with all his groping and innuendo, Miroku does not ask Sango to bear his child (as he does with every woman he meets) until she demonstrates jealousy over his asking other women and finally brings the subject to his attention. Surprised, Miroku naturally asked the question, and Sango gave him a typical response.
Near the end of the anime series (Episode #132) Miroku saves Sango from a poisoned egg which was causing her to repeatedly attack him. Unfortunately to do so, Miroku was required to defeat Sango in combat, causing physical injury to her. Guilty over his actions (his negligence led to her possession, he was required to hurt her to save her) Miroku gets Sango alone with him and asks her forgiveness. She replies that it wasn't his fault since she let her guard down. Mustering his courage, Miroku then lets his heart out to Sango and tells her that she is the only woman he has ever loved. He then promptly proposes marriage to Sango (also asking her to have at least ten or twenty children with him), and she tearfully accepts. However, she follows up her "Yes" with the request that he stop asking other girls to "bear his child". His failure to directly answer her receives a dirty look from her, but nothing else.
[edit] Trivia
- Sango possesses a resemblance to Ukyo Kuonji from Ranma ½. This rationale comes from the fact that they both have long hair, carry a large primary weapon on their backs and are even both voiced by Kelly Sheridan in the English dubs.
- Sango's English voice actor, Kelly Sheridan, also provides the voice of Barbie.
- Sango's mother has never been mentioned in either the anime, or manga, or even by Rumiko Takahashi.
[edit] Voice actress
Japanese Seiyū: Houko Kuwashima
English Voice Actress: Kelly Sheridan
German Voice Actress: Angela Wiederhut
Spanish Voice Actress: Liliana Barba
Hungarian Voice Actress: Bogdányi Titanilla
