Inuyasha Plus

Inuyasha Characters: Jaken

Name: Jaken (邪見) Means: Wicked Perspective AKA: Age: 3,000 years? Race: Kappa Demon Weapons: Staff of Heads (人頭杖, nintojo) First Appearance: Manga: Volume 2 Anime: Episode 5 Seiyuu: English: Don Brown Japanese: Nagashima Yuuichi

Despite his role in Inuyasha as comic relief and ambulatory punching bag, Jaken was originally a great lord of his own people in the Musashino area of Japan. In episode 59 of the TV show, we see the origins of Jaken, or at least the origins of how he came to follow Sesshomaru. Jaken's people were at war with a rival demon clan, and the episode shows Jaken being carried into battle on a palanquin at the head of a huge army. To make a long story short, Jaken fought a particularly nasty female demon who not only defeated him, but was going to kill him. Luckily for Jaken, Sesshomaru was passing through, and as he often does, Sesshomaru commanded everyone to move out of his way. As often happens as well, the female demon refuses to move. Sesshomarukills her without any effort using his whip attack from his fingers, and then proceeds to kill her army. In awe, Jaken commands his people to clear a path. As Sesshomaru walked through them without a word, Jaken jumped up and ran after him. Telling his people to forget him, he followed Sesshomaru in order to become his servant and repay his life-debt. Jaken continued to follow Sesshomaru without any sort of recognition that he was there. After an unknown amount of time, Sesshomaru came to a waterfall. After considering the waterfall for a while, Sesshomaru reached in and when he withdrew his hand, he was grasping the Staff of Heads. He then through the staff to Jaken and told him that he would be allowed to serve him if he is able to use the staff. Obviously he could, although it was never addressed if only certain people could use it, or only one certain person could use it. In fact, nothing about that has ever really been explained as far as I can tell. We have no idea if Sesshomaru was storing the staff there until he needed it, if he had b een searching for it, or if he just happened upon it.