Koga

**Kōga** (鋼牙, こうが, "Steel Fang") is the young leader of the eastern yōkai-wolf tribe, or the Yōrō clan,[2] which is nearly wiped out by Kagura and Naraku. He first meets Inuyasha as an opponent in battle,[3] but later becomes a reluctant, occasional ally despite maintaining a strong sense of rivalry with the 'useless mutt' about their relative combat strengths, as well as Kōga's persistent courtship of Kagome.

Although Kōga often flirts with Kagome, it is later revealed that he has promised Ayame, another wolf demon, to make her his wife. Later, Kōga tries to get Ayame to give up her pursuit by saying he will only marry someone who can sense sacred jewel shards. These events don't happen in the manga because Ayame is an original character made especially for the anime. Kōga married Ayame and became the new chief of the wolf demon tribe.

Kōga is introduced in the series with three Shikon shards in his possession; two embedded in his legs and one in his right arm. He loses the shard in his arm during a fight with the leader of the Birds of Paradise,[4] and the shards in his legs are eventually taken away from him by Naraku, gravely weakening him. After Kikyō's death at Naraku's hands, Kōga decides to parts ways with Inuyasha, Kagome, and the rest of the group, leaving the battle with Naraku up to them. He also tells Kagome that she may leave Inuyasha and come to him at any time.

## Personality

Kōga is almost always completely straightforward and his simple and clear demeanor bears no shadow of Magatsuhi. Initially, he had no human feelings, such as sympathy or having concern for the weak, shown in his first appearance when he let his wolves kill the villagers of the village where a betraying wolf demon ran to. He changes his ways due to Kagome for her acts of kindness. Gradually, he develops a sense of compassion towards humans due to his exposure to Inuyasha's party, mostly through Kagome's influence. His attitude is mostly wild and he is only concerned with survival. Much like an actual wolf is, he is keenly in tune with his instincts and will not hesitate to follow them (such as running away when the situation is not in his favor).

Kōga is the young leader of the Wolf-Demon clan. He has complete trust in his comrades, and will always protect his pack regardless of the danger he faces on the front-lines. He will punish anyone that hurts his pack, regardless of who they are. However powerful an enemy may be, he will swear revenge. With his pride as a Wolf-Demon clan member, his conviction is unwavering. Kōga hurried to the castle to save his comrades after learning they'd been slain.

The relationship between Kōga and Inuyasha is sometimes that of collaborator. Since they met, they have been rivals for the love of Kagome. They each realize the power of the other but refuse to admit it. It is just like a cat and dog relationship, but they grow to trust each other little by little. They pursue the same enemy, Naraku, and sometimes exchange information. In a serious crisis, they cooperate with each other.

Kōga rarely makes battle plans. His actions are basically animalistic hit-or-miss. But he sometimes exhibits surprising strategies with his naturally sharp instincts.

As long as he likes something, he is not concerned with the feelings of others. He simply proceeds in one direction. Kōga aggressively told Kagome that she would be happy if she were with him. He approached Kagome forcibly even though they had just met. His expression of love is pure and he goes to meet Kagome wherever she may be. If a woman that he likes relies on him, he becomes elated, forgetting all about combat.[9]

## Physical description

Kōga has blue eyes and black hair that is always tied up into a ponytail with a brown cord. He is of average height. He wears a brown wolf pelt as a loincloth. He has a tail that is like a bushy wolf's tail, which is the same shade of brown, though it is in fact part of his body. Kōga has a brown wolf fur head band, black hair, and wears a silver and black cuirasse (torso armor). Kōga also has brown wolf fur as shoulder plates and as shin guards. He carries around a sword, entirely for decoration, however he does use it once as a last resort. His ears are pointed and resemble those of Sesshōmaru and other demons. He is also usually seen with his posse of wolves and wolf demons, namely Ginta and Hakkaku. Like Inuyasha, his canines are fangs and his nails are claws, though his claws are slightly less prominent than Inuyasha's.

## Powers & Abilities

* **Whirlwind:** Kōga's method of transportation. Whenever on the go, he is enveloped in a high-speed tornado. Despite its effectiveness, Kōga never actually uses it in battle; it simply develops as a result of his sheer speed, and is not a combat technique. He usually outruns Ginta and Hakkaku due to his impatience and the fact that he is so much faster than they are, even without his shards.
* **Strength:** In his battle with the Wolf Guardian, Kōga could easily lift the body of the Goraishi Guardian and throw it. Also he has proven to scuffle with Inuyasha, who is very strong, in mere fist fights. In *The Final Act*, he was also able to hold Inuyasha's Tessaiga with little effort despite being greatly hurt.
* **Jewel Enhanced Abilities:** Kōga originally possessed three jewel shards: one in each leg and one in his right arm. These allowed him to run at exceptional speeds and increased the strength of his right arm. He eventually lost all three shards throughout the series, losing the 1st one from his arm.[4]
* **Stamina:** Being a full-fledged demon, Kōga has incredible stamina. He states that he can run three days non-stop and he can fight for a long time even when he is wounded. His jewel shards further enhance this ability.
* **Endurance:** Being a demon Kōga has enhanced endurance. Even when he is seriously wounded he can still fight. In the battle with Ginkotsu and Renkotsu he defeated them even though his legs were badly injured. Further proof of his endurance is then Naraku impales Kōga in the legs and drags him into his own body. While trapped within Naraku, his miasma that could melt forests and mountains failed to melt or even severely injure Kōga.
* **Sharpen Instincts:** Kōga has extreme sharp instincts in battle. This was first shown when Inuyasha was about to use the Kaze no Kizu on Kōga on their first encounter but Kōga sensed something dangerous was coming and retreated. The second time this was shown was during his confronting Bankotsu when he sensed he was somehow different from the rest of the Shichinintai, which was later revealed by Kagome to be the result of him having three shards in his body, unlike the rest of his team, which only have one.

### Weapons

* **Goraishi:** A claw that Kōga earns from his ancestor spirits so that he can avenge the deaths of his comrades and destroy Naraku. It creates energy blasts that are equal to that of a fully-powered Wind Scar. The claw shields him, barely, from Naraku's corruption of the jewel but it was only able to protect him once. The Goraishi have literally become a part of Kōga.
* **Sword:** Kōga has a long sword he carries at his hip, but he has never used it during the series. This is because his Wolf-Demon instincts do not rely on weapons. However, he did use the sword once when he first encountered Mōryōmaru. He states that he stole it from a human by choice, though it was mentioned that is was merely a decoration, not for self-defense.[10]

## Quotes

**Kōga**: "*You're gonna be my woman!*"
**Kagome**: "*Heke?*"
―Kōga first claiming Kagome as his woman[src]
"*Prepare to die, in the name of my comrades!*"
―Kōga[src]
**Inuyasha**: "*Wha—?! Did you just call me a mutt?!*"
**Kōga**: "*You're right, that'd be an insult to canines. You smell much worse!*"
―One of Kōga and Inuyasha's many arguments[src]
"*Hey! Nyah Nyah to all of you! Even if you ran on your hands you'd never catch up with my legs!*"
―Kōga[src]
"*What's goin' on? Something's different about you. You don't smell like a mutt, did you take a soak in the river or what? Hey! Don't get so close to my Kagome! Let... her... go!*"
―Kōga[src]
"*Pft. It'd be no fun winning against a wounded little pup!*"
―Kōga[src]
"*And just who do you think I am? No one can outrun me, don't you know that?*"
―Kōga[src]
"*You mean you got that close to Naraku... and you let him get away from you?! How stupid can you get?! I don't believe this, if I'd been there Naraku would be dead and gone by now!*"
―Kōga[src]
**Jakotsu**: "*That little loincloth is awfully cute.*(sigh)*Too bad you're not my type.*"
**Kōga**: "*Huh? What's this fool talking about?*"
―Kōga and Jakotsu's first encounter.[src]
"*You are despicable, Inuyasha! Kagome's hands feel much colder than they usually do. And her beautiful cheeks, which are usually so rosy, are pale like a fish's belly! I can tell you put Kagome's life in terrible danger! Well I would never let anything like that happen to her!*"
―Kōga[src]
"*One day I'll make you my wife, Ayame.*"
―Kōga[src]
**Wolf demon graveyard protector**: "*Foolish child... You chose your companions over the treasure?*"
**Kōga**: "*Hear this! Why do you think I need the Goraishi? To avenge the wolf-folk slaughtered by an enemy! You honestly think I'd allow **more** of our tribesmen to die just for that? Go to hell!*"
―Kōga displays his loyalty for his comrades.[src]
## TMNT X Pokemon

Koga and the Yoro Clan became allies of the Turtles after they helped them defeat the Foot. During missions, Koga works with Himari and Toko/Genocide Jack.

## Trivia

* Despite being a main character, Kōga does not appear in any of the four *InuYasha* movies.
* Kōga's love for Kagome is one-sided. He constantly tries to woo Kagome, but to no avail.
* It was Kōga's wolves that originally killed Rin.
* The scent of dog gives Kōga heartburn.[12]
* In *The Holy Pearl*, a Chinese television series which is heavily influenced by *InuYasha*, Shi You Ming is based off of Kōga.
* Kōga is similar in appearance to Ryōga Hibiki from Rumiko Takahashi's previous series *Ranma ½*, who is also romantically interested in the female protagonist and has a similar name that in part means "fang".
* Because he is a full-blooded demon it's quite possible that he is much older than he looks and likely has semi-immortality.
* It's quite possible that Kōga might be able to shift into a wolf form but it is never shown in the manga or the anime.
* All of the wolf demon tribe members wear wolf fur because it is a way to respect and remember comrades who have died.
* None of the wolf demon tribe members have tails except for Kōga.
* Despite wanting revenge against Naraku, Kōga was not present for the final battle.
* Kōga is one of the two main characters to never see Inuyasha in his demon form (the other one being Kikyō).
* He never draws his sword in the battles.