Muso
|
|
Muso (Musō) is a character in the anime and manga series InuYasha. He was released from Naraku's body as a re-embodiment of the thief Onigumo, the human many yōkai consumed and fused with to become Naraku.
While most of Onigumo was consumed by the yōkai, his human heart remained. After the miko known as Kikyo (Kikyō) (whom Naraku had slain 50 years previous) was revived, she began causing problems and plotting Naraku's defeat. However, due to Onigumo's human heart which still lived inside Naraku, he was unable to slay Kikyo because Onigumo's feelings of desire for Kikyo remained.
In an attempt to rid himself of Onigumo's heart and his inability to slay Kikyo, Naraku created a detachment not entirely unlike Kagura and Kanna and attempted to discard it along with his still-human heart.
Muso took the form of a faceless man with a scar in the shape of a spider on his back. Muso slays various people in search of a face, eventually settling on the attractive visage of a monk, whose name (Muso) he also adopts. Satisfied with his new face, he proceeds to slaughter many other people, stealing things like clothes, weapons, and horses as he pillages several villages. A feeling of unease remains, however, and he begins making his way toward Kikyo's former village, though he does not know why at the time.
It is here he comes across InuYasha and his friends. He is immune from even the most powerful blows from InuYasha's sword, the Tessaiga, and repeatedly re-forms after being torn into pieces. After a few conflicts with the group, during which he recovers his memories of Kikyo and his lust for her, Naraku appears, having determined he has not completely purged himself of Onigumo and is not powerful enough to do so at this time. Muso is ultimately re-absorbed into Naraku's body, effectively dying.
Other uses
The term Muso is slang commonly used in Australia and England. It refers to a young musician, especially an annoying show-off one.