InuYasha: A Heart in the Hand (InuYasha, #38) by Rumiko Takahashi

InuYasha: A Heart in the Hand (InuYasha, #38) Reviews

• 
  AℳY♔Queen of Fat cats♔민윤기's fiancé

  *SOBS*
  Why? Why?
  Read the worst of it 2 days ago and I'm still mourning. I swear I had to cut classes to go and cry all by myself.
  
  
  
  I cried so much!! I thought I was over it and then I made that gif and I was crying so so much. I can't stop thinking about it.
  My favorite ship is dead!!!
  
  But it was so beautifully done!!! I'm debating between a 1 star because I hate it or a 5 star because that's the most touched I've felt in a while.
  
  I am the wind. As free as the wind....
  Kagura
  
  This is genious!!! I hate it but it was so touching!!!
  
  Sayonara Kagura-sama!!! I love love love love you!!
  
  
• 
  Lady Flo

  I was intending to give it 5 stars from start, but after reading it, I guess, it really deserves 5 stars.
  Kagura, I'll miss her. That was the most touching part, I can even dare to say, in the whole series so far. Kagome offering her to join them, Inuyasha promising to get her heart back. And Sesshomaru appearing just before her passing away, and he came knowing it was Kagura. Damned Naraku! Why he couldn't give up the heart peacefully? Kagura is wind and she is free, that's what she wanted.
• 
  Lilah

  I can't stop crying please make this pain go away 😭❤
  
  Kagura you will forever remain in my tiny human heart
• 
  ☣Lynn☣

  Such a sad volume.
• 
  Andrea Vega

  Este volumen fue un constante sufrimiento por Kagura y Kohaku. ;_; LOS QUIERO MUCHO A LOS DOS. Y FGADFSFGDGD. Voy a ir a llorar.
• 
  Vanessa

  *This review is for the series as a whole with 4.5 out of 5 stars*
  
  This series is absolutely the longest series I’ve ever read so far, with a total of 56 volumes containing 559 chapters. Yeah right? I grew up watching anime and when I stumbled to this one, I instantly got hook. I’m so in love with this anime that I have the complete anime series in my possession. Yep! It occupy mostly the memory of my external drive haha sucker I know. And it’s just now that I finally had the courage to read its manga. I started reading this last December but had a 1 week off because of the Holiday until finally I finished it!
  
  This story is about this modern Japanese girl, Kagome, that was pulled from her own time and went to feudal Japan. It is where she met the half yokai (supernatural monster in Japanese folklore) or also called Hanyou, Inuyasha. Two opposite personalities that were forced to travel together because of the Shikon Jewel or the Jewel of Four Souls.
  
  Kagome (female lead) is so much fun and a wonderful heroine. If she’s a real person, she could be my hero. And Inuyasha on the other hand is such an awesome badass that thinking about him hurts. And as a couple, they sure are mind blowing. After writing this review, I’ll definitely re-watch the anime hehe.
  
  
  
  Speaking of which, Inuyasha is a bad boy. But he’s the awesome kind of bad boy with humor and with a touch of dumbness at the same time. When he first met Kagome, I swear he could really be a great pain in the ass and is a straight-up a-hole. And as the story progresses, he became this kind of awesome person without losing his bad boy image ofcourse. And when it comes to Kagome, he sure is kind of protective and I love their usual bantering. It could get annoying sometimes but mostly entertaining lol, especially when Kagome really gets angry at him.
  
  
  
  His character is so realistic too. Behind the bad boy image is the guy who lost his first love and when she returned, he’s torn between her and Kagome. Which to be honest, made me kind of mad at him. Well, I’m 100% with Kagome and I totally hate Kikyou. But after reading the manga, I still don’t like her, but she is kind of likeable now especially when she saved Kohaku. And also Inuyasha’s inner battle with his demon blood and his human heart, and you know what’s awesome about it? It’s because it’s only Kagome who can make him back to his senses, isn’t that just sweet?
  
  (I was a bit teary-eyed when the Spider youkai were after them and he got bitten while he’s in his human form. And speaking of human form, he sure still rock it even with black hair minus the cute doggy ears. Then he lay on Kagome’s lap and told her that he love her scent even if he told her otherwise before. They’re in the middle of a dangerous situation but because of that, it became kind of romantic and unforgettable scene for me.)
  
  Kagome on the other hand is a typical female lead. She started as a helpless girl until they found out about her being the reincarnation of Kikyou which was Inuyasha’s first love and the strongest Miko in the feudal Japan. I love how she became badass as the story progresses. Kikyou may be the first woman Inuyasha loved, but it is Kagome who really changed Inuyasha as a person. Plus, did I tell you how many times she saved Kikyou? Also, even how many times she got hurt because she’s Inuyasha’s first love, her heart remains pure.
  
  I have to be honest, there’s some point in this series that totally got my nerve and made me flipped. That’s mostly about Inuyasha being torn between Kikyou and Kagome and how many times he chose Kikyou over Kagome. I mean, that’ quite of cruel really. But even that’s the case, I learn to outgrow it simply because he still travels with her, plus, once in a while they have their own moments. And speaking of moment, I need to step ahead and point out the lack of kissing scenes between them. In anime there’s quite a lot, but in manga, almost none. Yeah right?
  
  As they travel, their group of two grows into a group of 6 where they met the kitsune Shippou, the monk Miroku, cool Sango and her cute Kirara.
  
  Shippou is a cute Kitsune (fox) yokai that specializes in making pranks which he mostly use to Inuyasha lol. At first, they both hate each other and argues which is kind of funny lol. But as they both travels together, their relationship improved. He is really adorable and so attached to Kagome.
  
  Miroku – A playboy and pervert who loves caressing women’s butt. But his proposal to Sango was pretty sweet.
  
  Sango – a really tough cookie. I love her character and the fact that she can man handle guys. And her relationship with Miroku was so kawaii.
  
  (Quite cliche eh? Inuyasha and Kagome fell in love with each other and Miroku, Sango with each other too. Well, IDC haha. I just love their group.)
  
  Kirara – is a cute yokai that transforms into a ferocious beast during battles. Plus, he flies!
  
  With a very long series, a long list of character isn’t a surprise at all. But what’s really hard with manga or anime is to get familiarize with the character’s names. But as for my favorites or the ones that totally got my attention here’s my list. (I’m being mean today, so I’m not going to add Kikyou in my list, blee)
  
  1. Number one in my list is Sesshoumaru. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m one of those really annoying fangirls who love him. Deym! When I first saw him in the anime, I’ve got to say that there’s something dangerous about him. Inuyasha has this bad boy image, but Sesshoumaru is on the highest level. I really hate him at first. Unlike Inuyasha, he really is living the bad boy life. He’s rude, full of pride and all things bad. I specifically hated how he keeps on stealing their Father’s memento, Tessaiga, that is originally given to I But everything changed when he met Rin, and then we got to find out about Tenseiga and everything about it. Then, it just happens, I love Sesshoumaru. And then I came to the part about Meidou Zangetsuha, I feel so sorry for him. Huhu, and then after that my admiration for him intensified. He made me feel so many emotions, I almost cried because of him. It will take too much writing if I’ll enumerate the things that made me love Sesshoumaru so I’ll just let these images speaks for itself.
  
  
  2. Well, obviously, it’s Rin. I love her character simply because she’s the reason why Sesshoumaru became compassionate, which is also the reason how he was now able to use his healing sword T And I love her teasing with Jaken. I love how the boring team of two grows and became lively because of her.Honestly, at first, I’m one of those fans that ships Rin to Sesshoumaru. But after I read the manga, I realized how absurd that is. I don’t know, but I think Jaken is right. Sesshoumaru is like a father to Rin in a strange way, and he sure is a great one.
  
  3. Kagome’s family, her mother, younger brother Shouta, grandpa including their cat Buyo. I thought it’s going to be a big shocker when they met Inuyasha, but end up petting him like a pet dog lol. They’re all touching Inuyasha’s ears haha. Well, that couldn’t be help lol especially if he has that adorable doggy ears.
  
  
  4. Kouga – The moment he was introduced in this series, I can’t stop laughing. He’s the third party between Inuyasha and Kagome and I can’t really stop laughing whenever I remember the scene where he boldly said that he loves Kagome and he’s determine to make her his woman. Well, after what Kagome went through because of Kikyou, I can’t help but send Inuyasha a dirty sign. Blee!
  
  5. Miyouga – The coward flea. He’s some sort of the guy who knows it all, well, not totally all but mostly about Inuyasha and his father. I wish this series was able to show something about the past especially about Inuyasha’s father and mother. Well, it did actually in the anime.
  
  6. Totosai – The swordsmith who forged Tessaiga and Tenseiga due to Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru’s father’s request. I would have love it more if they included a back story of him too.
  
  7. Kaede – Kikyou’s younger sister. A strong lady who would probably live another 50 years the way she’s going.
  
  8. Kohaku – The younger brother of Sango. For a young age, he’s been through a lot. But I’m happy how he was able to regain or fight for his humanity after what Naraku did to him.
  
  9. Jaken – Originally, I didn’t have the intention of adding him in this list but looking back, I have to say that he made my whole reading experience so enjoyable too. He’s Sesshoumaru’s companion. He’s arrogant and even pitiful sometimes especially when he receives death glare or punches from Sesshoumaru when he’s pissed but he is mostly funny especially when Rin joined the group.
  
  10. Naraku – For the ultimate cunning supervilain, I guess he quite deserve to be in this list lol. He’s a hanyou like Inuyasha. He’s the reason why Kikyou died 50 years ago and is the reason why Kikyou and Inuyasha had a rough past.
  
  When I think about it, this is obviously a typical adventure anime/manga. For an adventure stories, the idea of different set of individuals forming a group while traveling is quite cliche too, let alone falling in love with each other! But what sets this story different from others is on the adventures each characters went through. When I though it’s the end and the ideas are already sucked out dry from the author, we then introduced to a new unexpected scene. I’ve been watching anime and they all gave me the same reaction. And what is that? It’s astonishment. We might already encountered the story’s plot before, but the twists and turns, the scenes, the lines are so unique. I can’t count how many times I said out loud “I didn’t expected that!” while reading this series.
  
  All we’re covered too. I love that each characters has their own background covered, so we all got the chance to really know more about them and where they come from. I love that each characters have the chance to stand out and we’ve got to see how they matured with each chapters. As the title goes, without watching the anime, I really thought this series would only revolves around Inuyasha, well, it kind of does since each characters have a connection with Inuyasha. But what I like to say is that the author didn’t made a selfish decision to just make Inuyasha the hero all the time. We’ve got the chance to see the weaker side of him, the annoying one, the part where others from the group became the hero and saved him, and ofcourse the funny and dense Inuyasha which is my favorite.
  
  As I said, this series has a total of 559 chapters so it will absolutely take us a lot of time if I talk about the adventures the group encountered one by one. So to make it short, I’ll just “kind of share” my favorite chapters from this series. Before I decided to read this manga, I have a lot of favorite scenes from the anime, mostly? Well, all of them we’re from Kagome and Inuyasha. But after reading the manga, I have to say that my favorite scenes were from Sesshoumaru (Inuyasha’s youkai brother). The first one was when he met Rin (human girl) and resurrected her. I really love how little by little he changed from this full mean badboy image to a compassionate one. He’s still a badboy but when he’s with Rin, dayum, I just can’t help but squeal in delight. And another favorite scene was when he went inside the meidou (a place where the living are not suppose to go) to save Rin. It’s also the most touching scene ever because of how he discarded his sword tenseiga (his father’s memento) because it can’t save Rin. Like dang! (just zoom the image to read the lines)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  For my rating, I’m detracting a half star. It really is painful but I guess I really need to. It’s because even with the 559 chapters, it failed to tell us an introduction of what really is a yokai or hanyou or everything about those so-called monster. I mean, it’s been 50 years after that the story resumed but Sesshoumaru look as fabulous as ever and so is Inuyasha. I mean, if Inuyasha and Kagome will live together as man and wife, Kagome will age and Inuyasha would still be looking the same? The slowness of the villains too is quite so-so but I understand that to make this series long. Also, about crossing time through the well, in its first few chapters, we’ve got to find out that it’s the Shikon Jewel that connects the two worlds, but I remembered after Naraku seized all the shards of the Jewel, Kagome was still able to go back to her world. That really is kinda confusing though. And lastly, the epilogue. Dang! Sango and Miroku had their three little angels, how come Inuyasha and Kagome didn’t have atleast 1 son or daughter?! Oh well, I guess you can’t really have all.
  
  You might be wondering which one of the two I love, manga or anime, I have to say that I love both. All the scenes from manga can be seen in anime, but what’s great with anime is that there’s some new scenes added to it. So if you’re planning to read the manga, I would highly recommend watching the anime too.
  
  I would highly recommend this series, if you’re down for a good solid adventure and a kickass heroine with a sexy demon badboy. It’s often hilariously funny and the drawing is so lovely. It’s just simply awesome.
  
  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  
  
  Read my full review post
  
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• 
  Annabel

  I swear as I read every chapter, I’m thinking what episode each chapter is equivalent to, and smokes when it got to this volume, I knew we’ll bid farewell to Kagura. In the manga it’s more surprising to see Sesshomaru appear out of nowhere, but having seen the anime, I knew it was coming. Still Kagura’s death left me feeling sympathetic for her, for her freedom that she wanted could only be granted by her death.
• 
  Khari

  神楽かわいそう。泣いちゃった。
• 
  Julie theriault

  good book
• 
  Fernanda♡

  Just tears. Damn it.
• 
  Bee (BacchusVines)

  KAGURA 😭😭😭
  
  Also, dirt-hag refuses help from the gang and still sucks. At least she ain't trying to get in Inuyasha's pants.
• 
  Jennifer

  200 pages of beautifully drawn heartbreak. Poor Kagura!
• 
  Kurtis Burkhardt

  Really love the anime and the manga is really good so far! Really love the characters and story😻👌❤️
• 
  Alexis

  The Japanese do love their tragedy, but I always found Kagura's story to have an extra vein of agony to it... living your whole life a slave, and the moment you gain freedom is your last.
• 
  Serena 胡婷婷

  My favorite book in the series; I’ve probably re-read it at least four times. Although Kagura wasn’t my favorite in the series, I really wanted to see her be free like the wind. It was interesting to see how far Sesshomaru’s character has grown throughout the series and to this period of time. Kudos to Rin for that, honestly.
• 
  Joti

  Hakudoushi’s going to take Kagura with him & kill her but she tells Inuyasha & co everything; the baby’s in Mouryoumaru, & Hakudoushi & Mouryoumaru want to replace Naraku - & Hakudoushi also adds that they must strengthen Mourouymaru to protect the heart & that Naraku needs his heart to live so he’ll have to protect it & won’t be able to reach it if the while doc Mouryoumaru’s body is stronger - the poisonous insects leave: Naraku’s going to let Hakudoushi die & even takes away the barrier he has - the little brat tries killing Kagura but Miroku sucks him up - Hakudoushi’s dead then.
  Kagome offers to let KAgura join them but Naraku’s got her heart & she turns them down & Inuyasha promises they’ll get her heart when they get Naraku & she goes of but runs straight into Naraku & he offers her her heart back & REALLY GIVES IT TO HER BUT INSERTS MIASMA INTO HER SO SHE’S FREE BUT DYING - WHAT AN ASSHOLE
  MEANWHILE while chasing after Kohaku, Sango finds Mouryoumaru & he starts attacking her & Kohaku sees her & goes to save her & Mouryoumaru almost kills him till Inuyasha drives him off -& Kohaku’s about to leave again but Sango confronts him & confesses he’s got his memory back & Inuyasha smells Kagura’s blood & they all go to save her, Kohaku included.
  Kagura’s dying poor girl - she’s actually a great character - evil but wanted her freedom so she tried to do anything to get it & helped out her ‘creator’s enemies, who end up becoming more her ‘friends’ than anything - And Sesshoumaru shows up & says he knew it was her here - I DON’T LIKE THIS LITTLE THING BETWEEN KAGURA & SESSHOUMARU - SHE SEEKS HIM OUT ALL THE TIME & NOW HE COMES TO HER. NO SESSHOUMARU. NO. I think he would’ve used Tenseiga on her but he knows it can’t save her - then Inuyasha & co arrive but Kagura’s just happy she got to see Sesshoumaru & turns into wind & petals & stuff, free, & SHE’S DEAD. I THOUGHT SHE’D SURVIVE. :O Inuyasha asks Sesshoumaru if she was suffering & Sesshoumaru says she was smiling & leaves.
  Inuyasha & co go to Midoriko’s cave (the Miko whose soul with a lot of others’ makes up the Shikon no Tama) & there’s a hole in her chest & some chrysalis-like thing is growing there & Inuyasha watches over it but it becomes one of Kikyou’s soul thingies & Inuyasha chases after it & it leads him to Kikyou & her wound from Narkau hasn’t fully healed & she has to use Midoriko’s soul to save herself & the wound heals - Kohaku Shikon fragment leads him somewhere where the others can’t follow; into some barrier - Kikyou reveals that Naraku’s soul must be destroyed to kill him; that Inuyasha can’t kill him with Tetsusaiga & only the Shikon no Tama can kill Naraku - & kikyou says she’ll wait until Naraku has the completed jewel & then try to purify him & the Shikon no Tama & Kohaku overhears this & is ready to go & he’ll sacrifice himself & inuyasha tries to stop him, not believing that Kikyou would let Kohaku die - Kohaku gives Inuyasha some hair to give to Sango.
  Kluge runs into a man of the Orochi tribe whose people have been slaughtered & the guy dies too & reeks of Mouryoumaru whose killing youkai for their energy & power. Inuyasha & co head for Kouga, assuming that Kikyou with Midoriko’s soul will try to take his 2 Shikon fragments as well.
• 
  Jenna

  I'm not sure, what to think about Kagura's death. Somehow she should have had freedom and a change to show Sesshoumaru how she really felt about him. On the otherhand Sesshoumaru and Kagura couldn't cope with each other in a relationship. Kagura's death and her final freedom was beautiful. She became really free, her wind-spirit finally broke free.
  Why can't they get Naraku killed? This serie is really dear to me, but it's started to spin around the same subjects. Just let Kikiyo deal with Naraku, and everything will be normal again. Everyone gets their happy ending, Inuyasha can choose Kagome, Miroku's curse will end and he can finally marry Sango and Shippo... well, he can grow up.
  Volume 38 brought us some clues about the ending, but this still aint the end of it - unfortunately. Hopefully the amazing serie will lift it's tale and create a wonderful, heartbreaking and unbeliavable ending!
• 
  Holly Letson

  What I hated about this one was that Kagura had to die. After she had helped so many, those she had helped were wanting to help her in return. But, even Inuyasha and friends were too late. At least, Kagura died in peace, and became one with the wind.
  She was so happy to have just gotten to see Sesshoumaru one last time. I felt like she must have been in love with him.
  -------------
  After Kagura's sad passing, we are shifted to a storyline involving Kikyo. I don't like her much, and she seems really self-centered. But, she has become one with a spirit of ol' times that has the same objective as her, which is to restore the all the shards into a whole jewel that they'll destroy as Naraku takes it.
  ---------------------------
  This volume was provided to me by VIZ Media, via Edelweiss, as a part of an omnibus manga. It was presented in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
  
• 
  Starbubbles

  Kagura really got interesting. She made a friend and defended him, Kohaku, and had a love interest, Sesshomarru. Even better, he kind of seemed to return her interest. aw! Such a bittersweet story!
  
  Then Kikyo annouces that it's time to make a final stand. This is going to be the longest stand ever. :/ But I guess any faster and it would seemed rushed when you compare it to the pace of the rest of the series. Plus, Kikyo and Inuyasha's talks don't seem like former lover talks anymore. It's more like they only talk shop and strategy. It's even better that no one believes that's all they talk about, and push Kagome into yelling at Inuyasha. *sigh* I always forget how addicting this story is.
• 
  Lauren

  What first drew me to this series was the romantic historical aspect. I loved how a modern day girl gets pulled back into the past. I don't know what it is about those stories that attract me so much, maybe it is the difficulty for the girl of fitting in and having to rely on the guy so much to be able to get along in the world.
  
  I also really liked the group aspect to this series and the corresponding relationships that affect each of the characters.
  
  I would really recommend this series to fans of Red River, it has a lot of the same concepts.
• 
  Caroline

  After being annoyed at it feeling like there's no real consequences to the central cast of characters, I was actually a bit surprised to see someone actually permanently eliminated from the story. For a series that's supposed to be so serious, it's honestly a relief in some ways.
• 
  Bine

  Sehr schön mit Kagura und auch Sesshomaru und auch die Story geht gut voran. Und wie gesagt, ich mag eben die Intrigen momentan, hihihi. Naja, trotzdem ist der Fokus noch sehr auf Kohaku, den ich ja gar nicht leiden kann :/
• 
  Galion Public Library Teens

  Review by K.K.: "Any action lover would like Inuyasha. In this one we find out that Sesshomaru actually might have been in love with Kagura, and was sad when he couldn't save her with Tenseiga. Sad face.
• 
  The Third Place A Teen Library

  F TAK v.38
• 
  Lulu

  Such a moving moment when Kagura died.
• 
  David H.

  Retroactive Review (13 Sep 2021): Please see my review of the series
  here under the first volume.