Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Word cruft, natter, gushing and conversational indentations, and entries shouldn\'t rely on entries elsewhere to make sense.. Me\'s A Crowd misuse. Flash Step are troped on the main work pages because so many characters fall under them.
Deleted line(s) 159 (click to see context) :
* FlashStep: She's one of the most proficient at it and quite possibly the fastest captain among the Gotei 13 (see the MesACrowd and SuperSpeed entries further down).
Deleted line(s) 170 (click to see context) :
* MesACrowd: During her confrontation with Aizen, she demonstrated the ability to create a minimum of 15 speed clones, despite showing no visible signs of movement. It seemed as if she and her clones were standing perfectly still, while each copy simply appeared out of thin air, as her movement was too fast to be seen. And did this while on the brink of exhaustion!
Deleted line(s) 183,186 (click to see context) :
* SuperSpeed: This is her primary advantage in any battle. She's repeatedly noted for it, and has some of the most impressive speed feats in the entire series:
** Her most impressive display of speed, by far, was when she intercepted [=BG9's=] machine gun fire by catching each shot before any of them could hit her lieutenant, Omaeda. Then ripped the mini-gun itself apart - all ''[[BeyondTheImpossible without being seen]]'', despite doing so in front of both of them. Neither of them realized what'd happened until she stopped moving and called for their attention.
** Ironically, she first demonstrated the ability when she intercepted both of Benin's arrows, to save Yumichika, near the end of ''"Memories of Nobody"''. As far as Benin could tell, both arrows had simply vanished, until Sui-Feng called out to her and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsCa6yfmXQE showed her she had them in her hand.]]
** Sui-Feng also showed she could kill with Suzumebachi by striking the victim front and back, faster than their eye could follow, and faster than their body could register that they'd even been struck. It was so sudden that, she had to tell Ggio Vega that [[YouAreAlreadyDead she'd already done it]] and surmised he had probably only felt one sting.
** Her most impressive display of speed, by far, was when she intercepted [=BG9's=] machine gun fire by catching each shot before any of them could hit her lieutenant, Omaeda. Then ripped the mini-gun itself apart - all ''[[BeyondTheImpossible without being seen]]'', despite doing so in front of both of them. Neither of them realized what'd happened until she stopped moving and called for their attention.
** Ironically, she first demonstrated the ability when she intercepted both of Benin's arrows, to save Yumichika, near the end of ''"Memories of Nobody"''. As far as Benin could tell, both arrows had simply vanished, until Sui-Feng called out to her and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsCa6yfmXQE showed her she had them in her hand.]]
** Sui-Feng also showed she could kill with Suzumebachi by striking the victim front and back, faster than their eye could follow, and faster than their body could register that they'd even been struck. It was so sudden that, she had to tell Ggio Vega that [[YouAreAlreadyDead she'd already done it]] and surmised he had probably only felt one sting.
Deleted line(s) 521 (click to see context) :
* FlashStep: His other specialty. Still can't beat Yoruichi at it, though.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 159 (click to see context) from:
* FlashStep: She's one of the most proficient at it and quite possibly the the fastest captain among the Gotei 13 (see the MesACrowd and SuperSpeed entries further down).
to:
* FlashStep: She's one of the most proficient at it and quite possibly the the fastest captain among the Gotei 13 (see the MesACrowd and SuperSpeed entries further down).
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 183 (click to see context) from:
* SuperSpeed: This is Sui-Feng's primary advantage in any battle, has repeatedly noted for it, and has some of the most impressive speed feats in the entire series:
to:
* SuperSpeed: This is Sui-Feng's her primary advantage in any battle, has battle. She's repeatedly noted for it, and has some of the most impressive speed feats in the entire series:
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
*FlashStep: She's one of the most proficient at it and quite possibly the the fastest captain among the Gotei 13 (see the MesACrowd and SuperSpeed entries further down).
Added DiffLines:
*MesACrowd: During her confrontation with Aizen, she demonstrated the ability to create a minimum of 15 speed clones, despite showing no visible signs of movement. It seemed as if she and her clones were standing perfectly still, while each copy simply appeared out of thin air, as her movement was too fast to be seen. And did this while on the brink of exhaustion!
Added DiffLines:
*SuperSpeed: This is Sui-Feng's primary advantage in any battle, has repeatedly noted for it, and has some of the most impressive speed feats in the entire series:
**Her most impressive display of speed, by far, was when she intercepted [=BG9's=] machine gun fire by catching each shot before any of them could hit her lieutenant, Omaeda. Then ripped the mini-gun itself apart - all ''[[BeyondTheImpossible without being seen]]'', despite doing so in front of both of them. Neither of them realized what'd happened until she stopped moving and called for their attention.
**Ironically, she first demonstrated the ability when she intercepted both of Benin's arrows, to save Yumichika, near the end of ''"Memories of Nobody"''. As far as Benin could tell, both arrows had simply vanished, until Sui-Feng called out to her and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsCa6yfmXQE showed her she had them in her hand.]]
**Sui-Feng also showed she could kill with Suzumebachi by striking the victim front and back, faster than their eye could follow, and faster than their body could register that they'd even been struck. It was so sudden that, she had to tell Ggio Vega that [[YouAreAlreadyDead she'd already done it]] and surmised he had probably only felt one sting.
**Her most impressive display of speed, by far, was when she intercepted [=BG9's=] machine gun fire by catching each shot before any of them could hit her lieutenant, Omaeda. Then ripped the mini-gun itself apart - all ''[[BeyondTheImpossible without being seen]]'', despite doing so in front of both of them. Neither of them realized what'd happened until she stopped moving and called for their attention.
**Ironically, she first demonstrated the ability when she intercepted both of Benin's arrows, to save Yumichika, near the end of ''"Memories of Nobody"''. As far as Benin could tell, both arrows had simply vanished, until Sui-Feng called out to her and [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsCa6yfmXQE showed her she had them in her hand.]]
**Sui-Feng also showed she could kill with Suzumebachi by striking the victim front and back, faster than their eye could follow, and faster than their body could register that they'd even been struck. It was so sudden that, she had to tell Ggio Vega that [[YouAreAlreadyDead she'd already done it]] and surmised he had probably only felt one sting.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
This is still zero context.
Changed line(s) 562 (click to see context) from:
YouHaveFailedMe: To Renji for losing to Ichigo in the Soul Society arc.
to:
* YouHaveFailedMe: To Renji for losing to When Ichigo in the invades Soul Society arc.Society, Renji abandons his position to confront him personally, and then loses. Byakuya commands that he be tossed into prison without first receiving vital medical care for his life-threatening wounds and then (according to Aizen) argues in a captain's meeting for Renji's demotion.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 562 (click to see context) from:
%% YouHaveFailedMe: To Renji. See KickTheDog.
to:
Changed line(s) 630 (click to see context) from:
to:
%%Image is too large.
Changed line(s) 714 (click to see context) from:
* TheWorfEffect: When Aizen was first revealed as the enemy, Komamura was used to established that Aizen's threat level was far beyond that of even a captain's. He also suffers this in the Zanpakutou Unknown Tales filler arc, being taken out by his zanpakutou spirit in the arc's first episode, then spends the rest of the arc [[ConvenientComa a coma because of it.]]
to:
* TheWorfEffect: When Aizen was first revealed as the enemy, Komamura was used to established that Aizen's threat level was far beyond that of even a captain's. He also suffers this in the Zanpakutou Unknown Tales filler arc, being taken out by his zanpakutou spirit in the arc's first episode, then spends the rest of the arc [[ConvenientComa in a coma because of it.]]
Changed line(s) 742 (click to see context) from:
to:
%%This picture is too large.
Deleted line(s) 750 (click to see context) :
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Trope misuse. Moved example to the correct trope which was listed but didn\'t have a proper example.
Deleted line(s) 66 (click to see context) :
* KillItWithFire: Yamamoto's entire power is centred around this and the zanpakuto generates a phenomenal amount of fire even at its weakest levels. His idea of holding back is to toast an enemy to within an inch of their life and then let them live.
Changed line(s) 80 (click to see context) from:
* PlayingWithFire: His zanpakuto is the most powerful fire based sword in existence.
to:
* PlayingWithFire: His zanpakuto Yamamoto's entire power is centred around this and his zanpakuto, the most powerful powerfuly fire-type weapon in Soul Reaper history, generates a phenomenal amount of fire based sword in existence.even at its weakest levels. His idea of holding back is to toast an enemy to within an inch of their life and then let them live.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Not examples of this trope, see Gotei 13 1 to 7 Discussion Page.
Deleted line(s) 347 (click to see context) :
* SenseFreak: She may look like a prim and proper lady, but she deeply enjoys fighting. [[spoiler:She learned Healing Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Grammar and Handling Spoilers. See Discussion Page.
Changed line(s) 347 (click to see context) from:
* SenseFreak: Though she doesn't look or act like one covertly, the "inner" Unohana is different from her outer persona. The truth is that she deeply enjoys fighting. In particular, [[spoiler:she says that she specifically learned Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
to:
* SenseFreak: Though she doesn't She may look or act like one covertly, the "inner" Unohana is different from her outer persona. The truth is that a prim and proper lady, but she deeply enjoys fighting. In particular, [[spoiler:she says that she specifically [[spoiler:She learned Healing Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 347 (click to see context) from:
* SenseFreak: Though she doesn't look or act like one covertly, the "inner" Unohana is different from her outer persona. The truth is that she deeply enjoys fighting. In particular, [[spoiler:she says that she specifically learned Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
to:
* SenseFreak: SenseFreak: Though she doesn't look or act like one covertly, the "inner" Unohana is different from her outer persona. persona. The truth is that she deeply enjoys fighting. fighting. In particular, [[spoiler:she says that she specifically learned Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* SenseFreak: Though she doesn't look or act like one covertly, the "inner" Unohana is different from her outer persona. The truth is that she deeply enjoys fighting. In particular, [[spoiler:she says that she specifically learned Kidou so that she could enjoy fighting longer and contrasts this with Kenpachi's WillfullyWeak approach, with both actions serving to prolong a battle as long as possible.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 725 (click to see context) from:
--> Voiced by: Rintarou Nishi (JP), Neil Kaplan (ENG)
to:
--> Voiced by: Rintarou Nishi (JP), Neil Kaplan Creator/NeilKaplan (ENG)
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Trope misuse.
Changed line(s) 191,192 (click to see context) from:
The slow and large cocky tough guy [[HugeGuyTinyGirl counterpart]] to Sui-Fon and her lieutenant. He comes from a rich family as well.
to:
The slow and large cocky tough guy [[HugeGuyTinyGirl counterpart]] counterpart to Sui-Fon and her lieutenant. He comes from a rich family as well.
Deleted line(s) 607 (click to see context) :
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: When seen together with Rukia he's about twice her height.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Linking to scanlations isn\'t recommended on this site. Removed fan interpretation.
Deleted line(s) 145 (click to see context) :
* AnimeChineseGirl: Though never explicitly stated, she's commonly believed to be Chinese due to the Piyin spelling of her name and her distinctly Asian appearance. But she subverts the trope as she typically dresses in {{ninja}} garb, rather than Chinese attire.
Changed line(s) 150 (click to see context) from:
* BlessedWithSuck: This is [[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-20/bleach/chapter-360.html her general opinion of her bankai.]] As she explained to Barragan, it's size makes it impossible for her to conceal it, the sheer weight of it makes it difficult for her to move, and the resulting explosion is big enough to be seen by the entire city. Which is why she was hoping she ''[[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-19/bleach/chapter-360.html wouldn't]]'' have to use it, but was left with no choice.
to:
* BlessedWithSuck: This is [[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-20/bleach/chapter-360.html her general opinion of her bankai.]] bankai. As she explained to Barragan, it's size makes it impossible for her to conceal it, the sheer weight of it makes it difficult for her to move, and the resulting explosion is big enough to be seen by the entire city. Which is why she was hoping she ''[[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-19/bleach/chapter-360.html wouldn't]]'' wouldn't have to use it, but was left with no choice.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 150 (click to see context) from:
* BlessedWithSuck: This is her general opinion of her bankai. As she explained to Barragan, it's size makes it impossible for her to conceal it, the sheer weight of it makes it difficult for her to move, and the resulting explosion is big enough to be seen by the entire city. Which is why she was hoping she ''wouldn't'' have to use it, but was left with no choice.
to:
* BlessedWithSuck: This is [[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-20/bleach/chapter-360.html her general opinion of her bankai. bankai.]] As she explained to Barragan, it's size makes it impossible for her to conceal it, the sheer weight of it makes it difficult for her to move, and the resulting explosion is big enough to be seen by the entire city. Which is why she was hoping she ''wouldn't'' ''[[http://www.mangapanda.com/94-7110-19/bleach/chapter-360.html wouldn't]]'' have to use it, but was left with no choice.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Sui-Feng is hardly a Combat Pragmatist. Despite what she told Omaeda, she routinely does the exact opposite; including habitually explaining how her shikai works. Aizen even lampshaded it, when she confronted him during the FKT arc.
*AnimeChineseGirl: Though never explicitly stated, she's commonly believed to be Chinese due to the Piyin spelling of her name and her distinctly Asian appearance. But she subverts the trope as she typically dresses in {{ninja}} garb, rather than Chinese attire.
Deleted line(s) 146 (click to see context) :
* AwesomeButImpractical: Her opinion on her Bankai. It's too big and unwieldy for an assassin and the explosion is so large it's hard for her not to get caught up in it. She also tries not to use it more than once every three days because of the strain it puts on her.
*BlessedWithSuck: This is her general opinion of her bankai. As she explained to Barragan, it's size makes it impossible for her to conceal it, the sheer weight of it makes it difficult for her to move, and the resulting explosion is big enough to be seen by the entire city. Which is why she was hoping she ''wouldn't'' have to use it, but was left with no choice.
Deleted line(s) 156 (click to see context) :
* CombatPragmatist: She believes that seeing a comrade getting killed before your eyes just provides a good opportunity to stab your opponent from behind. As a ninja, she fully supports the Academy training lesson that shinigami should fight to win, not for honour.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 377 (click to see context) from:
* HiddenBuxom: Hard to picture, but underneath that shihakusho is a really large, really nice bust.
to:
* HiddenBuxom: Hard to picture, but underneath that shihakusho is a really large, really nice large bust.
Changed line(s) 382 (click to see context) from:
* StatuesqueStunner: She's 187 cm tall, which is over six feet tall.
to:
* StatuesqueStunner: She's 187 cm tall, which is over six feet tall.just under 6'2.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Example correction.
Changed line(s) 206 (click to see context) from:
* {{Gonk}}: He's fat, ugly and taken seriously by no one.
to:
* {{Gonk}}: He's fat, ugly There's an ArtShift with Oomaeda to emphasise that he's respected by no-one, little more than comic relief and taken seriously by no one.fodder for enemies. It helps ram home Soifon's frustration in having someone so incompetent as her side-kick. When he does become serious or sympathetic, and more badass, the artwork changes accordingly to give him the appearance of a large, heavyset, but normal-looking man.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Namespace
Changed line(s) 574 (click to see context) from:
--> Voiced by: KinryuuArimoto (JP), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG)
to:
--> Voiced by: KinryuuArimoto Creator/KinryuArimoto (JP), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG)
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Changed line(s) 79 (click to see context) from:
* PetTheDog: A harsh man, indeed, but not one without his moments of compassion. See TookALevelInKindness below.
to:
* PetTheDog: A He's a harsh man, indeed, but not one without his moments man who used to be little more than a thug. Ichigo's compassion has had enough of compassion. See TookALevelInKindness below.an impact on him that he ordered the Gotei 13 to save Ichigo as repayment for the debt they owed him for unmasking Aizen's plot.
Changed line(s) 556 (click to see context) from:
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at the hands of [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for his Bankai. Later he proceeds to curb-stomp THREE Sternritter at once, one of whom shot out Kyoraku's eye.]]
to:
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at in the hands of first Vandenreich invasion, he retrains his power. The Quincies he fights in the second invasion cannot believe he's the same guy that was defeated the first time round. [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for stole his Bankai. Later he proceeds Bankai and left him so close to curb-stomp THREE Sternritter at once, one death, the Royal Guard intervened to save and train him. He then fights five Quincies alone and thrashes three of whom shot out Kyoraku's eye.them without taking a scratch, leaving the remaining two stunned.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Changed line(s) 556 (click to see context) from:
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at the hands of [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for his Bankai.]]
to:
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at the hands of [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for his Bankai. Later he proceeds to curb-stomp THREE Sternritter at once, one of whom shot out Kyoraku's eye.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* CameBackStrong: Was near-death when he was taken to the Royal Realm for healing. After soaking in the hot springs for four days and completing the Royal Realm Training, he took down three Stern Ritter with his Bankai, [[spoiler:one of them being the Quincy who shot Kyoraku's eye out.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Misuse of trope and not applicable here. The tropes that are relevant are already listed on this page.
Deleted line(s) 88 (click to see context) :
* StatusQuoIsGod: Probably his biggest character flaw. He doesn't like the idea of rocking the boat, and tends to overreact to those who do. It takes the events of the Soul Society arc before he even begins to change his tone.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* StatusQuoIsGod: Probably his biggest character flaw. He doesn't like the idea of rocking the boat, and tends to overreact to those who do. It takes the events of the Soul Society arc before he even begins to change his tone.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Not this trope. Wearing the helmet made people mistrust him, it didn\'t enhance his image. Helmets Are Hardly Heroic was a Discussed Trope in the story, and that example is already troped on the main Bleach pages.
Deleted line(s) 682 (click to see context) :
* CoolHelmet: The bucket he initially wore on his head before it was destroyed. [[spoiler:He later gets another cool one, which when destroyed reveals him to have taken human form.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Again, when the story first shows us his power, it appears as a major threat against melee-oriented characters.
Added DiffLines:
* AntagonistAbilities: See FlyingWeapon. During his brief time as an antagonist, Byakuya's zanpakutou ability was demonstrated as being extremely difficult to circumvent because of its ability to overwhelm an opponent from any angle. Even against Ichigo, the speed and multiple attack directions appeared to give him trouble...[[spoiler:until Ichigo knocked them all down with rapid slashes, something Byakuya's thought was impossible.]]
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
Antagonist Abilities misuse - it\'s supposed to describe how a villain has an unfair advantage.
Deleted line(s) 488 (click to see context) :
* AntagonistAbilities: FlyingWeapon: What makes his Shikai and Bankai so dangerous is that there are countless tiny blades fluttering around the battlefield with the ability to cut you from any angle and get around any defense. What's more, even if he concentrates all of them into a sword, when in Senkei, he can summon a new sword at any point he chooses.
Added DiffLines:
* FlyingWeapon: What makes his Shikai and Bankai so dangerous is that there are countless tiny blades fluttering around the battlefield with the ability to cut you from any angle and get around any defense. What's more, even if he concentrates all of them into a sword, when in Senkei, he can summon a new sword at any point he chooses.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
This is found in the general tropes since all of the cast experience this.
Deleted line(s) 421 (click to see context) :
* OutOfFocus: Ironically, despite being the first Soul Reaper to defect to help Ichigo, and the series' shift to ''focusing'' on the Soul Society, Hanataro has had no meaningful role outside of his introduction. Though given Kubo decided to make Orihime the TeamMedic, he would've been largely redundant.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
* OutOfFocus: Ironically, despite being the first Soul Reaper to defect to help Ichigo, and the series' shift to ''focusing'' on the Soul Society, Hanataro has had no meaningful role outside of his introduction. Though given Kubo decided to make Orihime the TeamMedic, he would've been largely redundant.
Is there an issue? Send a MessageReason:
None
Added DiffLines:
Characters that appeared in Tite Kubo's ''Manga/{{Bleach}}''. This page is for the present members of the '''first to seventh squads of Gotei 13 / 13 Court Guard Squads'''.
[[{{Characters/Bleach}} Back to the main character index]]
----
!Contains spoilers
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Squad 1
[[folder:Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yamamoto001_6945.png]]
->''"Get ready. Put the entirety of your spirit on the line and crush them here! Even if your flesh is torn asunder, be as a steel wall down to your last shard of bone!"''
Captain of the first squad and commander of the Gotei 13, he's one of the most powerful characters in the whole series. A sage-looking old man who doesn't speak a lot, he created the Soul Reaper Academy, founded the Gotei 13 and strongly believes in following the law.
His zanpakuto is named ''Ryujin Jakka'', rightfully reputed as the most powerful fire-type. His Bankai is ''Zanka no Tachi'', rightfully reputed to be the equivalent of a weapon of mass destruction, capable of instantly drying the air itself.
--> Voiced by: Masaaki Tsukada (JP), Creator/NeilKaplan (ENG)
-----
* AnimateDead [=/=] ArmyOfTheDead: Zanka no Tachi South: Kaka Juuman Okushi Daisoujin summons an army of corpses. [[spoiler: They're actually the corpses of those that have been killed by Ryūjin Jakka's flames.]]
* ArchEnemy: Yhwach and Yamamoto's enmity goes back a thousand years. The origin is a mystery but they are each other's nemesis.
* TheAtoner: He used to lead a far more violent and brutal Gotei 13 when he was younger. Yhwach claims the Quincy massacre forced Yamamoto to re-evaluate himself and his past. [[spoiler: However, a flashback to a youthful Kyouraku indicates Yamamoto's remorse goes back far further than Yhwach knows.]]
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Yhwach states the reason Yamamoto is in charge of the Gotei 13 is because he set up the original "13 Divisions", a group of powerful, terrible thugs, of which Yamamoto was by far the worse. While Yhwach states how Yamamoto has mellowed since then into "weakness", Yamamoto himself told Aizen that the reason as to why he was still captain-commander, is because no-one born in the last thousand years had been more powerful than him.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Yamamoto is by far the most powerful captain of the Gotei 13 and is in charge of even the other captains.
* {{Badass}}: He's the strongest fighter in the Soul Society, with the most powerful offensive Zanpakuto ever. As a result, his most dangerous opponents approach fighting him by negating his Zanpakutou first. Aizen seals it, but Yamamoto is so powerful he remains dangerously capable of unarmed and Kido combat. In the end, Aizen has to use Yamamoto's own power against him, and even then, Yamamoto still gets one last laugh by the name of Itto Kaso, which opens Aizen up for a slash by Ichigo. [[spoiler:Yhwach completely outdoes Aizen by baiting Yamamoto into wasting his Bankai on a decoy before stealing it and killing him off in ''one strike''.]]
* BadassBoast:
** Chapter 483, shortly after Luders notes the lax security of his office:
-->'''Yamamoto''': "I am here. ''There is no better security than this''."
** During his next fight:
--> '''Yamamoto''': Now that I've [[spoiler:unleashed my bankai]], think of both my body and blade as...[[ThePowerOfTheSun the embodiment of the Sun!!]]
** His release command is "All things in the Universe turn to ashes," and his bankai shows there is nothing hyperbolic about that sentence.
* BadassBeard: He has an extremely long, white beard. While normally it just looks like an old man beard, Yamamoto is actually extremely buff and aggressive.
* BadassGrandpa: Get off his lawn or he'll set your punk ass on fire. Seal his zanpakuto's powers and he'll tear you a new asshole with his bare hands.
* BaldOfAwesome: He's the oldest known Soul Reaper and the captain commander. He's bald because he lived long enough to lose his hair, but don't count his age against him. He's the most powerful Soul Reaper for a thousand years.
* BareFistedMonk: NEVER assume this man is harmless if you neutralize his sword.
* BerserkButton: He has ''a lot''.
** Defying the laws of Society by putting personal justice above society's justice. He was even willing to kill his favourite students when they did this.
** Never ''ever'' [[RantInducingSlight lose your]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking captain's haori]].
* BigGood: Fully graduates into one by the time of the Vandenreich invasion, though GoodIsNotNice by any means.
* BigOlEyebrows: He has massive, thin eyebrow that actually spill out across the side of his head and hang down.
* CallingYourAttacks: Like most Soul Reapers, he calls out the attack names of his Zanpakutou techniques, unarmed combat techniques and Kido spells.
* CaneSword: Ryujin Jakka's sealed form is hidden inside a walking staff. To enter shikai, the staff dissolves into nothing, leaving only the sword behind.
* CassandraDidIt: When Yamamoto confronts Mayuri about the steps Mayuri's taken to counter the Vandenreich's potentially world-unbalancing activities, he briefly tries to pin the blame for the extent of the problem on Mayuri and his division's competence level. Mayuri retaliates by [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech pointing out]] the only one to blame is Yamamoto himself for ignoring Mayuri's CassandraTruth well over two years beforehand as paranoia when it was Yamamoto's own fault for not killing the cause of the problem years ago. Yamamoto's forced to back down.
* CharacterDevelopment: When he met Hirako for the first time in the present storyline, he actually considers attacking the ex-captain for not pledging his support to the Soul Reapers (not that it stopped other Soul Reapers from helping the Visoreds anyway). After Aizen is defeated and everything calms down, Yamamoto switches his position entirely in the novel Death Save The Strawberry. He actually lifts the ban on the Visoreds (and the exiled ex-captains), rationalizing that they were not guilty due to their situations being influenced by Aizen's machinations, not their own intentions. Urahara is especially thankful.
* CoatCape: He wears it draped over his shoulders. It came as a surprise to many when he turned out to be extremely fit under that appearance.
* TheCoatsAreOff: When Yamamoto gets serious in battle, he tosses away the haori and even loses the upper half of his kimono to fight bare-chested.
* CombatPragmatist: When he was younger he was apparently a vicious fighter, though by the time Kyoraku and Ukitake were kids he had mellowed out.
* CoveredWithScars: Some of his scars have story-significant background to them, especially the scar that was inflicted by Sasakibe, which impressed him enough to change his name.
* DidntSeeThatComing: Yamamoto thrashed Yhwach with his Bankai, completely certain he knew everything there was to know about Yhwach's heart, abilities and limitations. He turned out to be wrong about all three. [[spoiler: Yamamoto was fighting a decoy which allowed Yhwach time to visit and try to recruit ''Aizen''. Yhwach's was then able to steal Yamamoto's Bankai and defeat him.]]
* DistressedDude: In the Zanpakutou {{filler}} arc, Muramasa held him prisoner behind a barrier that was being maintained by the Zanpakutou spirits of Kyouraku, Ukitake and Unohana's weapons. A significant portion of the arc is spent by the Soul Reapers and Ichigo trying to rescue him. [[spoiler: They didn't realise until too late that he had deliberately sealed himself from Muramasa to prevent Muramasa stealing his memories.]]
* EyesAlwaysShut: When he opens his eyes, his mood is usually incredibly dangerous.
* GoodIsNotNice: He is such a stern believer in justice that he almost killed his two favourite students for standing up for what was right instead of what was law. Ichigo is responsible for making him mellow out.
* GoodScarsEvilScars: His body is a network of scars. The scars on his forehead have stories that do get revealed in late in the manga.
* FlamingSword: The basic power of his zanpakuto.
* FounderOfTheKingdom: 2,100 years ago, he was the creator and head instructor of the "Genji School", an educational program meant to train prospective Soul Reapers, which operates outside the jurisdiction of Central 46. This would later evolve into the Spiritual Arts Academy, which included training sessions for cadets looking to get into the Stealth Force and the Kido Corps. A millennium later, he founded the Gotei 13, a military organization for the Soul Reapers and an agency that he has led since its inception.
* FourIsDeath: The "ei" in his previous nickname Eijisai (ノ字斎, referencing the shape of his scar) is the fourth kanji radical in the sequence. [[spoiler:It's revealed as part of the lead-in to the fight that ends with his death.]]
* GrumpyOldMan: He's never smiled, he's never laughed and he's never cracked a joke in his life. When he's not roaring at the top of his lungs, he has a stern, unimpressed expression that can easily turn to accusatory (e.g. the argument with Mayuri).
* HandicappedBadass: Loses an arm after casting a powerful kido spell against Aizen. This doesn't seem to have affected his ability to verbally tear three captains a new one over losing their captain's haoris. Ukitake even comments that despite having lost an arm Yamamoto's still the most powerful in Soul Society.
* HonorBeforeReason: Yhwach believed the only reason Orihime didn't restore Yamamoto's missing arm was because he was far too proud to rely on a human's help.
* HopeBringer: The Vandenreich have invaded the Soul Society and are swatting down Red Shirts left and right without much to stop them, and even the Captains aren't very effective against them due to the Vandenreich's ability to steal Bankai. Things look completely hopeless until Yamamoto steps in, after which the Gotei 13 gets a ''massive'' morale boost that's even Lampshaded by one of the Stern Ritter [[spoiler:though when he's killed, morale plummets.]]
-->'''Bambietta Basterbine''': ''"Hey hey, wait. You were about to die until a moment ago. What happened?"''
* ItsPersonal: The enmity between Yamamoto and Yhwach is very personal. When the Vandenreich ransack Soul Society, Yamamoto takes to the front line, something he rarely does. [[spoiler: The death of Choujirou exacerbates the situation, sending him gunning for Yhwach and launching straight into Bankai without much preamble.]]
* KillItWithFire: Yamamoto's entire power is centred around this and the zanpakuto generates a phenomenal amount of fire even at its weakest levels. His idea of holding back is to toast an enemy to within an inch of their life and then let them live.
* KnightTemplar: This guy generally means well, but he has HIGH respect for the laws of Soul Society, and will kick anyone's ass for daring to defy them. It's implied that his adherence to the law is his way of making up for his previous life as a warlord presiding over a lawless WretchedHive that was once (and largely still is) the Soul Society.
* LetThemDieHappy: Right before her execution, Rukia's last wish is for Ichigo and friends to be granted safe passage back home, Yamamoto agrees. Unohana claims that he did it so that Rukia may die peacefully, while Isane believes that it was ''such'' an obvious lie that she found it to be CruelMercy.
* MeaningfulRename: The "Genryusai" name is one that he adopted after getting his last scar from the fight in which Sasakibe showed him his Bankai. From "Eijisai", to "Juujisai" (referring to the cross-shaped scar Sasakibe gave him), and then "Genryusai" (to honor Sasakibe for injuring him). The actual translation of the name gives it even more meaning. Genryuusai (元柳斎) means "original willow sage" to his name because of this. In Chinese folklore, the willow is believed to ward off evil spirits; in Japanese, it's associated with ghosts and the afterlife. It's also a symbol of strength; geisha call their society the "flower and willow world": beautiful and requiring strength to endure.
* MundaneUtility: He uses Ryujin Jakka's flames to cook and bake.
* NotSoDifferent
** During his fight with Ukitake and Shunsui, he admits that while their methods are different and, at the time, conflicting with each other, their goals (upholding justice) are the same.
** During the Thousand Year Blood War arc, it's noted that Yamamoto used to be every bit as brutal as Yhwach, something that both sides know perfectly well but interpret differently.
* OhCrap: His fight with Yhwach ends in one of these faces when Yhwach catches him off-guard. [[spoiler: It's only when he inflicts a killing blow on Yhwach that he realises he hasn't been fighting Yhwach at all.]]
* TheOlderImmortal: By far the oldest Soul Reaper. Yamamoto is at least 2000 years old, potentially much older. There is an anime omake lampshading the fact that not only is he old-looking, he apparently has not aged since Kyoraku and Ukitake were young... er. In a manga flashback set during that period, though, he does look more middle aged during this time period.
* OneHitKill: How he ends most of his fights. Not even Aizen or Yhwach are brave enough to take a direct hit from Ryujin Jakka. Wonderweiss was developed just to stop this from happening.
* PapaWolf: To all of Soul Society. Yes, he's a GrumpyOldMan and all, but he will '''not''' stand for invaders.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: The sheer magnitude of his power means that he is a walking deathtrap for anyone around him. [[spoiler: His Bankai destroys all the moisture that exists for miles around -- not just in the atmosphere and in standing water but even within the human body itself. Unohana indicates Yamamoto's bankai will destroy the world just by being active for too long.]]
* PetTheDog: A harsh man, indeed, but not one without his moments of compassion. See TookALevelInKindness below.
* PlayingWithFire: His zanpakuto is the most powerful fire based sword in existence.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: His Bankai is incredibly powerful compared to even his Shikai's flames. [[spoiler: The heat he generates is equal to the Sun's core and if active for too long will destroy the world around him.]]
* RecruitingTheCriminal: Some of the captains have a history of severe criminal behaviour, such as Kenpachi Zaraki, or engage in criminal behaviour to do their jobs, such as Mayuri. [[spoiler: Captain Unohana is the worst criminal in Soul Society history.]]
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Averted. Yamamoto freely acknowledges to Aizen that if he's caught in his own flames, he'll die, too.
* RingOfFire: Jokaku Enjo, basically a cage of fire.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: Normally obeys the laws and judgements of Central 46 without question. However, even he agrees to repaying Soul Society's debt to Ichigo, regardless of tradition, to the extent of outright [[spoiler: '''ordering''' the Gotei 13 to aid in restoring Ichigo's powers.]]
* ShutUpHannibal During his fight with Driscoll who uses [[spoiler:Sasakibe's bankai]] against him. Driscoll goes on and on how powerful he now is. Yamamoto purposely takes the attack and is barely even affected by it. Driscoll doesn't realize this and keeps gloating until Yamamoto declares that [[spoiler:his former lieutenant's bankai]] wasn't ''that weak'' before flaying Driscoll with his shikai.
* SlasherSmile: When Aizen stabs Yamamoto, Yamamoto's grin is manic. It's precisely what Yamamoto wanted Aizen to do.
* SuperpowerLottery: With the arguable exception of [[spoiler:Mugetsu Ichigo]] he's far and away the most powerful character in the series, to the point that both Aizen and Yhwach needed to resort to dirty tricks to stand a chance. [[spoiler:[[TooPowerfulToLive Probably why he dies very soon after showing his full power]]]].
* TakingTheBullet: Part of the reason his fight with Aizen goes poorly for him is that he does this, taking his own attack to prevent it from destroying everyone and everything in the area.
* TakingYouWithMe: Attempted on Aizen, via Itto Kaso (a Kido spell that used his arm as a catalyst for an explosion). He tried one earlier by grabbing Aizen's arm (thereby dissipating the illusions from Kyouka Suigetsu) and declaring that they'll kill each other in short order, but Wonderweiss stepped in.
* TookALevelInKindness: From the days of the founding of the Academy, he significantly loosened up in comparison to the warlord he once was (and even then, he was still rather harsh). After the Quincy war, the Soul Society fell into the kind of peace that bred a softening of the heart, and once Ichigo appeared on the scene, Yamamoto's descent into kindness was cemented; he ordered the Gotei 13 to [[spoiler:restore Ichigo's Soul Reaper power and uses his judicial authority (an emergency power after Central 46 was BoardToDeath) to abolish the exile on Urahara's crew and lift the ban on the Visoreds. Yhwach claims that he could kill Yamamoto precisely because Yamamoto was no longer harsh and pragmatic enough to handle Yhwach.]]
* TranquilFury: Ever since [[spoiler:Sasakibe's death]], he's clearly simmering, but keeps it very low-key. It's rather frightening.
* TheUnfettered: Around the time of the war with the Quincies, it's very easy to presume that his behavior was close to that of a GeneralRipper.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: The reason he allows Mayuri to break the law in the course of doing his job is because he tends to agree that sometimes the ends do justify the means. [[spoiler:Yamamoto admitted that he would've ''allowed'' Kurotsuchi to kill those citizens in the Rukongai, had Kurotsuchi told him beforehand and the reason for it.]]
* WithUsOrAgainstUs: When confronted by Hirako over the Visoreds' intention to oppose Aizen, but not ally with the Soul Reapers, Yamamoto responds by unsheathing his sword, although Hirako leaves before Yamamoto could use it.
* WreathedInFlames: Ryuujin Jakka allows him to do this. [[spoiler: It's a Bankai power and makes him NighInvulnerable.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Chojiro Tadaoki Sasakibe]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sasakibe001_3715.png]]
->''"No. If I become your disciple, then I will just be imitating you. As your right arm, I want to make up for whatever you cannot do!"''
Lieutenant of the 1st squad and... not a whole lot besides that. Virtually everything we know about him comes from the Data Books; he's someone who stays in the background and almost never fights in the manga. The first time he came to notice was when Ichigo defeated Sasakibe, Kotetsu and Omaeda shortly after obtaining Bankai. He has the most unusual eyes in the manga: they're solid gold in color and lack both pupils and sclera.
His Zanpakuto is named ''Gonryomaru'', a traditional western rapier. His Bankai is ''Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū'', capable of calling down thunderstorms and bolts of lighting.
--> Voiced by: Taro Yamaguchi (JP), Creator/MichaelMcConnohie (ENG)
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: In the manga, his eyes are solid gold with neither pupils nor sclera. In the anime, he's given normal sclera and pupils, leaving him with golden irises.
* AllThereInTheManual: He's so much a part of the background in the manga that most of the information comes from the databooks. It's not until the final arc that we see flashbacks explaining his relationship with Yamamoto.
* {{Badass}}: That horizontal scar on Yamamoto's head was dealt to him by Sasakibe long ago.
* BarrierWarrior: Apparently. He's the one who guarded the barrier over Karakura and later opened it to let the Visoreds pull their BigDamnHeroes.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Accessorizes his right arm, but not his left.
* {{Foil}}: As his quote indicates, he became this to Yamamoto intentionally.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: He wears something that looks like a captains' haori, even though he's a lieutenant. He was actually offered several chances to become a captain, but he turned them down each time. It's revealed, much later, that [[spoiler:he possesses Bankai. In fact, he's had Bankai longer than Ukitake and Kyoraku had theirs. The only reason he never became a captain was because of his loyalty to Yamamoto, similar to Ikkaku's situation with his own Bankai.]]
* IWasQuiteALooker: He used to be a bishonen! No, really!
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: The first invasion of the Vandenreich ends with Choujirou being impaled by a giant Quincy lance. Yamamoto lets the Quincies go in order to save Choujirou. [[spoiler: Choujirou's wounds turn out to be fatal and he dies fairly quickly after being released from the lance.]]
* InformedAbility: He was captain-class, but he also never fought, so people only knew his strength by reputation. [[spoiler:He possesses Bankai but it's only revealed after his death.]]
* MinorMajorCharacter: He is the lieutenant of the prestigious first division, serving as the captain-commander's second. However, he almost never takes part in any fighting and has very few lines. He is very much Yamamoto's shadow; a role he worked hard to cultivate.
* OddCouple: The Databooks say him and his captain make an unstoppable team, but they have differing tastes in tea, which they argue about all the time. Tea isn't the only thing they argue over. Chojiro is a fan of Western culture (England mainly) and dislikes Japanese culture while Yamamoto prefers Japanese culture and disapproves of Western culture.
* PowerOfTheStorm: Like Hyorinmaru, his Bankai can manipulate the weather.
* RoyalRapier: His shikai transforms into a rapier.
* SatelliteCharacter: He's Yamamoto's lieutenant and little more.
* ShockAndAwe: Due to a lack of screentime where he fought, the ''Zanpakuto Unknown Tales'' filler arc was the first time where we got to see his Zanpakutō's ability, albeit in a non-canon situation. It wasn't until [[spoiler:Yamamoto's battle against Driscoll Berci who stole Sasakibe's Bankai]] that we finally get to see it in the canon storyline.
* UndyingLoyalty: In a similar vein to Ikkaku, it's mentioned that he could have been promoted to Captain, but he turned down the offer whenever there was a vacancy out of loyalty to Yamamoto.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 2
[[folder:Suì-Fēng]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Episode_366_Sui-Feng_9488.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see her pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/soifon001_2639.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"I have no interest in whether it is right or wrong. All I care about is executing orders as a captain of the Gotei 13. All who get in my way are my enemies. All enemies must be slain. That is all that matters."''
Real name '''Shaolin Fon''', is the overly strict captain of the 2nd squad and also a {{Ninja}}. Her speciality lies mainly with speed and unarmed combat. She has a history together with Yoruichi and [[BodyguardCrush respects her]] so highly it's used as a RunningGag. She may be [[ActionGirl super-efficient]] and [[TheStoic cold]] when it comes to her job, but when alone and subjected to anything Yoruichi (or black cats in general), she gets [[{{Tsundere}} googly]]-[[CovertPervert eyed]].
Her zanpakutou is named ''Suzumebachi'', an ornate gauntlet and stinger enveloping her middle finger. It allows her to instantly kill her enemy if she hits the same spot twice. Her Bankai is ''Jakuhō Raikōben'', an enormous battery housing a missile with enough destructive power to level a city block.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TomokoKawakami (JP, Episodes 24-182), Creator/HoukoKuwashima (JP, Episode 206+), Creator/KarenStrassman (ENG)
----
* ActionGirl: One of the most action-oriented ladies in Bleach.
* AnimalMotifs: The Japanese Giant Hornet, a subspecies of Asian Giant Hornet. Highly aggressive, a very capable killer, famous for its sting but far more famous for its physical prowess... is that the hornet being described or Soifon?
* ArmCannon: Her [[EmpathicWeapon zanpakutou]] brings her under this trope for short periods of time. In [[TouchOfDeath shikai]], her [[ImpossiblyCoolWeapon zanpakutou]] integrates with a finger on her right hand to turn her into the [[LightningBruiser ultimate two-hit kill warrior]]. However, in [[FinishingMove bankai]], her [[{{BFG}} zanpakutou]] becomes a [[NukeEm stinger]] [[StuffBlowingUp missile]] [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill launcher]] that is [[ArmCannon integrated with her entire right arm]] to turn her into the [[OneHitKill ultimate one-hit kill warrior]].
* AwesomeButImpractical: Her opinion on her Bankai. It's too big and unwieldy for an assassin and the explosion is so large it's hard for her not to get caught up in it. She also tries not to use it more than once every three days because of the strain it puts on her.
* {{Badass}}: She's quite a capable fighter and focuses on stealth and speed rather than raw power, so her flashy bankai annoys her.
* BadBoss: But only if her subordinates break the law.
* {{BFG}}: Her bankai is a damn '''missile-launcher'''!
* BlowYouAway: When Soifon activates Shunko against Yoruichi, she creates gusts of wind around herself to fight. [[spoiler: When she fights [=BG9=] she confirms that her Shunko form is Wind which allows her to create reiatsu tornadoes around her body.]]
* BodyguardCrush: She was one of Yoruichi's personal guards and came to worship her as a goddess.
* BraidsOfAction: Her hair is quite long, but it doesn't show up well because it's kept in very thin braids, presumably so it doesn't get in the way of fighting.
* CallingYourAttacks: "Nigeki Kessatsu!", various Kido spells.
* CloseRangeCombatant: The Onmitsukido specializes in unarmed combat and, as their Supreme Commander, Sui-Feng is the most proficient at it. The caption on pg.196 of ''The Official Character Book: Souls'' even states:
-->'''caption:''' "Soi Fon's close combat skills rival, or even surpass, those of Yoruichi's."
* CombatPragmatist: She believes that seeing a comrade getting killed before your eyes just provides a good opportunity to stab your opponent from behind. As a ninja, she fully supports the Academy training lesson that shinigami should fight to win, not for honour.
* CovertPervert: The anime likes playing up her subtext with Yoruichi and making her out to be pervert.
* DiscardAndDraw: During the Thousand Year Blood War, [[spoiler:her bankai is stolen]], forcing her to compensate. [[spoiler:She finally masters Shunko and appears to have the advantage at first, though the attack actually failed.]]
* ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy: Ggio Vega notes that her shikai would have a ''much'' higher success rate if she would stop doing that. [[spoiler:Then she kills him with it. Turns out she didn't explain everything.]]
* {{Fangirl}}: A few fans think that she isn't literally gay for Yoruichi, she's just a huge fangirl. Either way, it's funny.
* HairDecorations: The white ribbons she braids her hair with and the pair of gold rings at ends of them.
* InformedAbility: Soifon excels at stealth and covert operations and states she has great pride in her ability to do her job as an assassin. However, the story focuses mainly on the Gotei 13 which means she isn't seen operating as an assassin. Her personality is also very flashy which means her tactics tend to make her a HighlyVisibleNinja instead.
* {{Jerkass}}: Unless you're Yoruichi, she probably hates you.
* JerkassFacade: She intentionally treats her subordinates coldly to keep them always alert.
* KickTheDog: Like Byakuya, she had quite a few jerkass moves in the Soul Society arc, to the point she occasionally bordered on sadism.
* KindheartedCatLover: She's made her barracks cat-friendly and collects cat statues.
* ItsPersonal: God can she hold a grudge when it comes to personal matters, as Yoruichi found out.
* LifeOrLimbDecision: When Baraggan's power pretty much trashed her arm, she had Omaeda ''cut it off''. [[spoiler:It's restored after the battle.]]
* LightningBruiser: She's fast and tiny so on the surface, it looks like she's either a FragileSpeedster or that speed is her main strength. Neither are the case. Despite her insane speed, her best ability is actually her physical strength (confirmed in the Official Bootleg) which manifests in bankai as a ''nuke'' making her the Hard Hitting type of LightningBruiser.
* MagicEnhancement: [[SupernaturalMartialArts Hakuda]] trains a shinigami's body to the physical limit to become a weapon capable of extremely powerful unarmed combat. Soi Fon discovered Shunkou, a technique that allows [[FunctionalMagic kidou]] to be driven into the arms and legs to boost the body's Hakuda performance beyond its physical limit. Soi Fon was stunned when she discovered she wasn't the first person to have discovered this technique.
* MyMasterRightOrWrong: She dutifully follows orders of the Seretei never seeming to question if there's something off about them.
* {{Ninja}}: She is the leader of the special forces, an organisation made up of ninjas, and takes great pride in being one herself.
* NeverGotToSayGoodbye: To Yoruichi, when she became a FallenPrincess. And boy, is she upset because of that.
* PerpetualFrowner: Unless Yoruichi is around.
* PowerStrainBlackout: Using her bankai drains so much of her reiatsu, that it usually takes her three days to recover before she can safely use it again. Forcing herself to use it twice in one day, mere moments after the first shot, made her lose consciousness.
* ProfessionalKiller: She is the leader of the special forces, an organisation made up of ninjas. Their work is separate from that of the Gotei 13 military, and often classified.
* RunningGag: Obsession with Yoruichi and (as a result) black cats.
* ShortHairWithTail: Two tails, in fact, and the contrasting (independent versus dramatic) personality to go with it.
* SingleTargetSexuality: For Yoruichi. Probably.
* SkewedPriorities: [[spoiler:You got a powerful Arrancar about to kill you, even costing you an arm]] and you don't want help from one of the Visoreds till they agree to punish Kisuke out of some petty jealousy? ...Why?
* SmallGirlBigGun: In bankai mode only.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Her name was first translated to be Soi Fong, which sounded Chinese since [[AnimeChineseGirl she looks Chinese]], but some others still spell it as Soi Fon. Her name was then spelled as "Suì-Feng," but specifically for the Pinyin translation in Mandarin Chinese; it's still pronounced as "Soifon" in Japanese).
* TouchOfDeath: Nigeki Kessatsu effectively amounts to this, as Sui-Feng can administer both stings faster than even the well trained eye can follow; making it so the victim only feels one... assuming the victim feels anything ''[[YouAreAlreadyDead at all.]]''
* {{Tsundere}}: Type A. She's cold and harsh around most people, but ''melts'' whenever she's in Yoruichi's presence.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Marechiyo Omaeda]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/omaeda001_6460.png]]
->''"I'm not fat! I'm just plump! It's a symbol of affluence. It's not the same as a poor bastard like you who's just sloppily fat without any reason. That's what you are."''
The slow and large cocky tough guy [[HugeGuyTinyGirl counterpart]] to Sui-Fon and her lieutenant. He comes from a rich family as well.
His Zanpakuto is ''Gegetsuburi'', a large spiked flail.
--> Voiced by: Shoto Kashii (JP), Creator/LexLang (ENG)
----
* {{Acrofatic}} LightningBruiser: You'd expect that him being fat would make him slow, but there's a reason he's in the second squad.
* BigBrotherInstinct: He'll do anything to protect his little sister Mareyo. [[spoiler:He normally a coward, but when [=BG9=] attacks her, he goes absolutely ''berserk''.]]
* ButtMonkey: Nobody takes him seriously. Ikkaku has openly stated no-one cares about him and during the Gotei 13 Invasion arc, his Reigai imposter took an appearance upgrade because he didn't even want to look like his original. Later on in the story, it's indicated that Omaeda does use this to his advantage in battle, but it doesn't change how his allies treat him.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: He's not badass, but when pushed to action he's not the [[UpperClassTwit bumbling idiot]] he usually is.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 312 is an Omaeda focus episode where he pretends to be the Squad 2 captain.
* DeclarationOfProtection: A badass, heartfelt one in Chapter 548, to his little sister Mareyo.
* DumbMuscle: He's built quite heavily but is clearly not too bright.
* EpicFlail: Gegetsuburi's Shikai takes the form of a morning star.
* {{Gonk}}: He's fat, ugly and taken seriously by no one.
* InsistentTerminology: "I'm not fat, I'm full-figured!"
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He really DOES care about his family and Sui-Feng, despite coming off as a self-centered idiot at first.
* LetsGetDangerous: During the Fake Karakura Town battles, he reveals that he didn't get his position through family influence but rather genuinely earned it. He exaggerates his normal arrogant attitude to catch opponents off guard.
* MeaningfulName: "Omaeda" is phonetically cognate with a [[UsefulNotes/JapanesePronouns mildly rude way]] of saying "[[HeyYou It's you]]!" [[ButtMonkey And he receives about that much respect]].
* ObfuscatingStupidity: He uses an UpperClassTwit persona to make people ''think'' he's in the Gotei due to [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney family position]] while in fact, he's genuinely certified to be in his position. He really ''is'' stupid, but only when it comes to things other than combat, though.
* OverlyLongName: His full name is...* deep breath* ...Marechiyo Yoshiyamenosuke Nikkotaroemon Omaeda.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: His mom, dad, older sister, and younger brother all look like him. The only family member who doesn't share the resemblance is his youngest sister, Mareyo. Omakes reveal that Hisagi, Renji and Kira were all smitten by how beautiful she was, but Marechiyo says she's the ugly one of the family.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Rice crackers.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Sui-Feng. Despite being a DirtyCoward 95% of the time when push comes to shove he will put himself into danger if she's in trouble and after the Vandenreich invasion [[spoiler: he showed disappointment that she didn't bring him along when she went off training.]]
* UpperClassTwit: He loves to flaunt his status and gives the impression of being promoted entirely based on family prestige.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Marenoshin Omaeda]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/marenoshin001_4149.png]]
Father to Marechiyo and lieutenant to Yoruichi, Marenoshin retired from his position and fathered four children (two daughters; two sons), living in a luxurious lifestyle typical of aristocrats.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything we know about him was revealed in the ''Masked'' databook.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In an after-episode segment and manga omake, we get our first glimpse of Marenoshin when Marechiyo introduced the Omaeda family to Ichigo and Rukia. In particular, Marenoshin now has darker and curlier brown hair, along with a pair of sunglasses, extra weight and tons of jewellery.
* GenerationXerox: The Omaeda clan makes its living out of being members of the Stealth Force. Marenoshin was the lieutenant to the same division as his son. They even share the same birthday, height, weight and fashion sense (right down to the same purple collar in their Shihakusho, but Marenoshin had curly brown as opposed to Marechiyo's black.
* InformedAbility: Said to be stronger than his son.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 3
[[folder:Gin Ichimaru]]
Debuted as Captain of Squad 3, but had deserted [[LateArrivalSpoiler after revealing]] [[CoDragons his true colors]] in the Soul Society arc's final stage. For more information go [[Characters/BleachAizenAndHisCohorts here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Rojuro "Rose" Otoribashi]]
Current captain of Squad 3, he was also it's previous captain before being exiled a century ago. He later reprises his role after Aizen's defeat. For more information go [[Characters/BleachVisoredsAndExiledSoulReapers here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Izuru Kira]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kira001_1833.png]]
->''"Battle is not a stage for empty heroics and nor is it something to take pleasure in. Battle is filled with despair. Dark, terrifying. That is the way that it should be. That way, people learn to fear battle and to choose the path of non-violence where possible."''
Squad 3's lieutenant. He graduated the Soul Reaper Academy along with Renji and Hinamori and was later assigned under Gin Ichimaru. After Ichimaru's betrayal, he occasionally joins Matsumoto in [[DrowningMySorrows drinking sessions]].
His Zanpakuto is ''Wabisuke'', a strangely shaped katana which doubles the weight of anything it strikes.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TakahiroSakurai (JP), Creator/GrantGeorge (ENG)
----
* ADayInTheLimelight: Roughly half of the New Captain filler arc was told from his perspective.
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Once the reports come in from the patrols about the mysteriously dying Rukongai people, he quickly deduces the truth. [[spoiler: They were killed by Soul Reapers and Mayuri knows why.]]
* BadassAngster: Prone to self confidence and depression issues, but '''will''' butcher you when he sees the need for it.
* BerserkButton: Don't mention his former captain in his presence.
* CallingYourAttacks: Various Kido spells.
* CantHoldHisLiquor: You might see Rangiku and Shuuhei casually having a drink...and Izuru collapsed on the floor, foaming at the mouth.
* CharacterDevelopment: Chronologically speaking, Kira started off as a friendly and somewhat cocky cadet in the Spiritual Arts Academy. Come present time, although pragmatic in combat, he's gloomy, introspective, worrisome and indecisive, which leads to several areas of conflict between himself and his friends. Once we see him in the Blood War arc, he's far less moody and a lot more analytical, making him appear generally more leader-like amongst the other lieutenants.
* CombatPragmatist: Personal combat philosophy? [[WarIsGlorious War]] [[AvertedTrope isn't]] [[WarIsGlorious about honor and glory]]. [[WarIsHell War is a horrible thing and you should use whatever horrible means you can to make sure people fear it and avoid them at all costs.]] And there's no need for mercy, either. Nor for fighting a battle you know you can't win.
* ConflictingLoyalty: He was torn between his friendships and his loyalty to his captain. He ultimately chose to follow his captain, to the point of becoming bait over the BoardToDeath sequence. Once it turns out that Ichimaru was a traitor, Kira is understandably upset.
* DrowningMySorrows: Following his captain's defection, he is often seen drinking. His main drinking partner is Rangiku, but she's not his only one.
* ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy: Every single battle, but only when his opponent is already immobilized by Wabisuke's power.
* FatalFlaw: Loyalty. He's so dedicated to his captain that it led to him turning on such friends as Hinamori and Matsumoto, leaving him so conflicted that he became prone to self-loathing whenever he felt remorse over challenging his friends.
* GravityMaster: His Zanpakuto doubles the weight of anything it hits, every time it hits -- meaning, if he whacks a ball the weight of 2kg five times it weighs 64kg. This isn't limited to weapons; the gigantic wings of Abirama Redder were affected similarly, though he had to slash them repeatedly for it to kick in full.
* HeroicBSOD: Has one of these when he learns that Aizen and Gin are traitors and that his old friend Momo is on the verge of death.
* MartialPacifist: Similar to Hisagi, but with a different spin. He doesn't like fighting even when he has to, but while in a fight, he's cold and ruthless, because he believes that such tactics are necessary to ''discourage'' combat.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Calls himself a "monster" when he raises his sword against poor Momo.
* OddlyShapedSword: Probably the oddest of them all in this series.
* OhCrap: When he had Matsumoto beaten, she used Haineko to bypass Wabisuke's GravityMaster abilities, catching him off-guard (and resulting in his defeat). Some {{Red Shirt}}s found him and helped him up... just in time to learn that Ichimaru was a traitor, which led to ''another'' OhCrap from him.
* ParentalAbandonment: Shizuka, his mother, and Kagekiyo, his father, both died when he was young, although it's unknown if they died before or after he joined the academy.
* PeekABangs: His hair covers a large part of his face, usually including one of his eyes.
* PerpetualFrowner: Though he was more happy as an academy student, by the time he shows up in the story he tends to be pretty humorless and depressed. This ties in fairly well to the ability of his sword.
* PoseOfSupplication: The concept is played with in regards to his zanpakutou's special abilities. Anything he hits it with gains weight until the person can no longer stand and are forced into this pose, where he will then use Wabisuke's odd form to behead them.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive Guy to either Shuhei or Renji, especially when he was a cadet (and much happier than in the present storyline). Subverted, however, when he and Hisagi have to deal with an emotional Yumichika. Hisagi takes the sensitive route of trying to talk down Yumichika. Kira doesn't bother and [[InstantSedation tranqs]] Yumichika into unconsciousness instead simply because he disapproves of the way a fifth seat was talking to a lieutenant.
* SmugSuper: Back in the academy, he noted that Hisagi (his upperclassman) failed the entrance exam twice, and takes the time to brag how he passed at the top of his class and assumed that meant his talent was greater. He has since lost this type of confidence.
* UnwittingPawn: Kira was sent by Ichimaru to the Central 46 Compound, where Hitsugaya and Matsumoto were trying to figure out the identity of the Central 46's assassin. Hitsugaya and Matsumoto immediately decide to follow him, but he claims that he only just arrived as well. He lets it slip that Hinamori escaped her jail-cell and had been following Hitsugaya the entire time. When Hitsugaya turns tail to find Hinamori, Matsumoto stays to confront Kira, who reveals that Ichimaru sent him there to draw Matsumoto away from Hitsugaya and Hinamori (both of whom were subsequently slashed to near-death by Aizen).
* UsedToBeASweetKid: He was ''much'' friendlier when he was in the academy. By the time of the main storyline, he had become much more dour and pessimistic.
* TorsoWithAView: At one point he does take a nasty injury through the chest. [[spoiler:Bazz-B shoots a Heilig Pfeil at him, destroying a large portion of the right side of Kira's abdomen and right arm.]]
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: As a cadet in the Spiritual Arts Academy, Kira held this relationship between Renji Abarai and Momo Hinamori, although in a much more platonic portrayal than the typical example. Once things head into the Soul Society arc, all three end up into conflict with one another; Izuru tried to keep the peace while dutifully following his captain, who turned out to be a traitor, putting him directly at odds with Hinamori.
* WarIsHell: He's developed a strong belief in this, which stems either from his past experiences with Hollows (ala the Academy) and/or the death of both of his parents. This is in stark contrast to his opponent, Abirama Redder, who believes that WarIsGlorious. Kira counters this by lecturing him over the realities of war, and demonstrates his point by using Wabisuke to ''behead'' Abirama.
* WarriorPoet: Likes to write Haiku. Though they aren't very good haiku.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Chikane Iba]]
An elderly woman who was once Rose's lieutenant, serving her post since before Rose even became her captain. She is the mother of Tetsuzaemon.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything we know about her was found in the MASKED databook.
* BerserkButton: Death Save The Strawberry indicates that she ''hated'' Rose's music, so much that he had to hide his instruments from her.
* GenerationXerox: Her son made it his mission to become a lieutenant so he can please his mother, herself a long-serving lieutenant.
* GrumpyOldMan: The one picture we have of her involves her angrily shouting at Rose.
* {{Jerkass}}: To the point where her own son actually calls her a ''bitch-hag''.
* MultiColoredHair: She has dark hair with a large gray streak running along the top left side of her head.
* PetTheDog: As abrasive as she is, she's the one who pushed for Rose to become her captain, according to Rose himself in the Death Save The Strawberry novel.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 4
[[folder:Retsu Unohana]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/unohana001_310_290px_3641.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see [[spoiler: "Yachiru Unohana"]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/600px-Ch523_UnohanaScar_5106.png[[/labelnote]]]]]]
->''"The act of saving a comrade in need should require no thanks."''
Unohana is the gentle and motherly captain of the 4th Squad. She is one of the oldest Captains in the Gotei 13 and has been around since the beginning of the formation of the Gotei 13 as well as the most powerful despite leading a squad based entirely on healing. Because of this, she hides an extremely scary BattleAura that makes even the most {{Badass}} officers of the Gotei 13 go weak in the knees when imagining her wrath. This is even more evident whenever other squads start bullying her squad, whereas a slight glare is enough to send the bullies pissing their pants.
Being one of the senior captains, Unohana harbors great wisdom and perception, and prefers supporting from behind. In fact, she is the only one to notice that something amiss when Aizen 'died' and was able to catch up with him and correctly identify him as a traitor, which prompts him to reveal his trickery... and run off instead of taking her out.
Her zanpakuto and Bankai are both named ''Minazuki'' (肉雫唼 for Shikai, 皆尽 for Bankai) and are seemingly capable of various healing techniques.
--> Voiced by: Creator/AyaHisakawa (JP), Creator/KateHiggins (ENG)
----
* AcheyScars: Her front-braided hair hides a nasty chest scar. [[spoiler:Zaraki inflicted it on her when he was a child and it throbs whenever she hears his voice.]]
* ActionGirl: The databooks revealed early on that she was a power fighter specialist and expert swordsman, contrasting heavily with her role as the medic usually in the back lines. [[spoiler:She's the original Kenpachi and is brought forward by Kyoraku to help train Kenpachi Zaraki, who she proceeds to [[CurbStompBattle hand his ass]] to with minimal effort thus far.]]
* TheAtoner: She once destroyed the potential of a child to develop into the greatest fighter and has regretted that moment ever since. [[spoiler:The child was Zaraki who almost defeated her but sealed his power in terror at the thought of losing the first WorthyOpponent he had ever found. That moment was responsible for turning him into a warrior who holds back in battle to enjoy fighting.]]
* AxCrazy: When she finally lets her hair down to fight, she looks both creepy and crazy. [[spoiler:She views herself as only one step removed from a psychotic criminal, and that's exactly how she fights.]]
* {{Badass}}: Even Squad 11 is terrified of angering her. [[spoiler:She is the original holder of the title of Kenpachi, the strongest swordsman. During her training with Kenpachi, she's technically killed him. ''Many, many times,'' all with what seems to be minimal effort.]]
* BerserkButton: Bully her squad, and this is pressed. Though she still looks [[DissonantSerenity so damn calm]] [[TranquilFury when angry]]. Being forgotten? Shunsui worries about getting on her bad side when he forgets she's one of the original captains.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Acts nice but even slight annoyance on her eyes is said to scare the whole fight-happy Squad 11. Merely forgetting to mention her brings fear to even Shunsui and Ukitake, TWO senior captains. [[spoiler:After her reveal as Yachiru Unohana, [[AxCrazy it makes a whole lot of sense]].]]
* BloodKnight: She almost never fights, but when she does she certainly enjoys it. Kenpachi enjoys fights by doing his best to fight at his opponent's level, while Unohana [[spoiler:keeps herself and her opponent alive whilst her grotesque Bankai dissolves the flesh from their bones to keep enjoying it that much longer.]]
* BloodyMurder: A colour omake about the squads trying to invent a computer game suggests Unohana views killing via manipulating blood. [[spoiler:Her Bankai is a blade of blood that melts the flesh off of her enemies.]]
* BodyHorror: Unohana's command of Kido is so great she can use that power to enable this to happen. [[spoiler:Her Bankai appears to melt the flesh right off the bones, including hers. By using her healing Kido, she can keep the fight going for as long as possible without either party dying from the effects.]]
* CallingYourAttacks: Like most Soul Reapers, she calls her attacks, especially her Kido attacks.
* CombatMedic: She's quite the accomplished swordsman but by preference sticks to support roles. [[spoiler:When training Kenpachi, she combines the two by inflicting lethal wounds and then healing them with the implication that she's going to keep at it until he measures up.]]
* CombatPragmatist: In a series where everyone typically calls out their flashy attacks and explains their abilities, Unohana [[spoiler:[[CurbStompBattle immediately and effortlessly defeats]] Kenpachi with pure, brutal swordsmanship. She even lands a killing blow to his neck, only to revive him to continue his training. She also carries hidden weapons and views Kenpachi's conscious self limitations as extremely foolish.]]
* CovertPervert: In the BeachEpisode, Isane complains about being offered an extremely skimpy swimsuit. Unohana ''forces'' her to wear it, and Unohana's own swimsuit is just as skimpy.
* CreepyGood: Usually PlayedForLaughs, Captain Unohana is TheDreaded to everyone who threatens her ire. A smile from her sends chills down the spines of even the [[BloodKnight 11th Division]]. [[spoiler:When she fights, she lets down her hair and transforms into Yachiru, a truly [[EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette eerie]], blood-powered BloodKnight who was the original Kenpachi of the 11th division.]]
* DeadlyDoctor: She can use her medical knowledge in battle to maim in very effective ways. [[spoiler:She's capable of delivering fatal blows to Zaraki and instantly heal them to ensure he keeps training until he reaches a level she's happy with.]]
* DeathGlare: Inverted, she only smiles sweetly to anyone who annoys her while speaking in a very calm but firm tone. This actually makes it ''more'' unsettling to the people who know her and they quickly fall in line to avoid her wraith. Even Ichigo, during the one of the few times he interacted with her, found out quickly not to get on her bad side.
* DissonantSerenity: When she fights, her tranquility is at odds with her violence. [[spoiler:While fighting Kenpachi, she slices him apart without batting an eyelash and only raises her voice once.]]
* TheDreaded: A comedic example. This is the effect that she has on pretty much the whole of the Gotei 13. It has, as such, become somewhat of a RunningGag. Well, you can see her combat potential in the databooks from quite early on and her name does mean "violent." [[spoiler: After finding out just what she was like, it's entirely justified.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Her hair is bound when she's healing and unbound when she's fighting. [[spoiler:She plays the role of a YamatoNadeshiko when not fighting, but becomes an EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette when fighting. It's a deliberate change of persona on her part, she knows what images she portrays.]]
* FaceFramedInShadow: Once the decision is made to put Unohana on the battlefield, everything darkens into shadow, framing her face, making the decision seem very ominous. [[spoiler: She was the first Kenpachi and the worst criminal in Soul Society history. Putting her on the battlefield, even for training others, brings that personality back out of her. Her face remains framed in shadow for much of the fight because she's simply that dangerous and that creepy.]]
* FateWorseThanDeath: Even the Visoreds, when they were once Soul Reapers, say that her wrath is worse than Yamamoto's ''Bankai''. [[spoiler:Why? Because Unohana will keep healing you and not letting you die until she's had her fun. Even if she's melting you with ''her'' Bankai.]]
* FourIsDeath: The Fourth Division is the military healing squad giving it a "life and death" motif. As its captain, she leads the fight against death itself. [[spoiler: She was also a former Kenpachi and the most dangerous criminal the Soul Society has ever had.]]
* GiantFlyer: Her Shikai makes Minazuki transform into a gigantic, flying manta for transportation.
* HiddenDepths: The databooks indicate she's primarily a sword fighter rather than healer. [[spoiler:But they don't say she's an AxCrazy sociopathic Kenpachi underneath the polite veneer.]]
* InformedAbility: Up until the Vandenreich arc we never got to see her fight despite people cowering in fear of her. In filler, we've seen her in action against her reigai. While several characters have used Kido without incantation they're usually low level, Unohana can do it with kido in the 80's range!
* LettingHerHairDown: Inverted. You do not want to see Unohana with her hair down. [[spoiler: Because when she does, ''very'' bad things happen. Just ask Zaraki.]]
* LonelyAtTheTop: She knows the pain of being unrivalled when at the top of her profession and unable to find any equal to compare her skill with. [[spoiler:As the original Kenpachi, her swordsmanship was unrivalled. She wandered the Soul Society slaughtering criminals and trying to find a WorthyOpponent. Eventually she met her match in a young Zaraki.]]
* MamaBear: Go on, bully her squadmates when she's around.
* MasterSwordsman: The [[AllThereInTheManual databooks]] state she is one, having fully mastered sword fighting. [[spoiler: Also stated in the manga itself when it's explained she gave herself the name Yachiru as a result of having mastered all known sword styles.]]
* MeaningfulName: Retsu means violent in Japanese. Everyone fears her for one reason or another. [[spoiler: She [[MeaningfulRename renamed]] herself Yachiru in the past as a symbol of having mastered all known sword fighting styles before returning to the name Retsu.]]
* TheMedic: The captain of a whole squad of them.
* MyGreatestFailure: She once met a child with great potential, but handled the situation badly and destroyed that child's development. [[spoiler: They encountered each other at a time they both desperately wanted a WorthyOpponent. Zaraki was the stronger but was so afraid of losing his first enjoyable opponent that he unconsciously shackled his power. Unohana is deeply ashamed she handicapped him so badly.]]
* RavenHairIvorySkin: In-universe, Unohana appears to be, and is viewed as, the perfect example of the YamatoNadeshiko. She has raven black hair that is always neatly bound, pale, flawless skin and carries herself with quiet grace and dignity. WordOfGod has confirmed she is [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman Soul Society's most beautiful woman]]. [[spoiler: When she lets down her hair to unleash her inner AxCrazy BloodKnight personality she transforms into an EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette instead. WordOfGod indicated she was deliberately designed to display a shocking contrast between the two faces of her personality.]]
* ScarsAreForever: She hides a scar on her chest behind her front-plaited braid. [[spoiler:It's the only scar she's ever received and it cannot be healed.]]
* ShipTease: The anime has been known to tease her with Kyouraku in some omakes. [[spoiler:In the manga, there's very unfunny tease with Zaraki. They're both AxCrazy sociopathic Kenpachi-class fighters and she privately admits that this means Zaraki is the only man who ever made her happy.]]
* SilkHidingSteel: She's soft-spoken, kind, motherly. She's also got most of Soul Society terrified of getting on her bad side. [[spoiler:Because the "Steel" she's hiding just happens to be the Steel of the First Kenpachi and Soul Society's most brutal criminal in the same time.]]
* SlasherSmile: Once she lets her hair down she sports one of these [[spoiler: while training Kenpachi]].
* StepfordSmiler: As someone carrying a great shame from her past, she usually hides this under a sweet, approachable demeanour. [[spoiler:It hides a psychotic woman who is the cause of Zaraki shackling his power in battle.]]
* TeamMom: She definitely invokes this trope with her squadron, whom treats like her own children.
* TechnicallyASmile: She does look very cute, but she generally scares the life out of everyone when she does, especially if she's had to repeat herself.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: WordOfGod says she's the most gorgeous woman in all Soul Society.
* WouldHurtAChild: She was surprised to find she could enjoy fighting a child. [[spoiler: The child was Kenpachi Zaraki and he was already captain-class despite his young age.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: According to the [[AllThereInTheManual Bootleg]], she epitomizes the ideal Japanese woman. [[spoiler: Seems like this trope can be put down as [[PlayingWithATrope played with]], as it is suggested she intentionally evokes it to distance herself from her BloodKnight past.]]
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: People would rather take on Yamamoto's Bankai than anger her. Considering his Bankai's abilities from what we've seen, it says something. [[spoiler:Turns out she was the founder of Squad 11 and [[BloodKnight a criminal of unprecedented savagery]].]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Isane Kotetsu]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/isane001_9261.png]]
Isane is the lieutenant of Squad 4 and the older sister of Squad 13 third seat Kiyone Kotetsu. She is very conscious of her height.
Her Zanpakuto is ''Itegumo'', with its current abilities unknown.
--> Voiced by: Creator/{{Yukana}} (JP), Creator/StephanieSheh (ENG)
----
* AbsoluteCleavage: The skimpy bikini Kiyone and Unohana force her to wear during the BeachEpisode exposes her skin right down to her belly button.
* AttackAttackAttack: At one point, she charges the escaping Sosuke Aizen ''and'' Gin Ichimaru.
* BadDreams: For some odd reason, she has nightmares over... ''fish paste''.
* CallingYourAttacks: Various Kido spells.
* CombatMedic: Has no qualms about fighting despite her profession.
* CryCute: When Isane is upset, she will make it known via tears running down her cheeks, which stems from how she's more sensitive than either her captain or her sister. It's both endearing ''and'' hard to look at, and it's shown to make it clear that things have ''really'' turned dark. The first time occurred when she was at Unohana's office, standing by as her fellow Soul Reapers were slaughtered by the Stern Ritters. The only reason she chose not to take action was because Unohana told her to stay at the medical barracks, to keep Isane from getting ''herself'' killed.
** The second happened when Unohana gave her a letter prior to the fight with Zaraki. We're unsure of the contents, but it left Isane in tears as she clutched the letter to her chest.
* FashionableAsymmetry: She has long, thin hair braids with associated HairDecorations on one side of her head only.
* HiddenBuxom: Hard to picture, but underneath that shihakusho is a really large, really nice bust.
* HugeSchoolgirl: Shown to be a little sensitive about her height and cleavage in some of the omake.
* LeeroyJenkins: Demonstrates this by charging Aizen and Gin, knowing full-well that either of them could probably kill her without even trying.
* TheMedic: Well, Unohana ''is'' her mentor and leader, so she's bound to be pretty good herself.
* ShrinkingViolet: She's rather low-key, quiet and self-conscious, contrasting greatly with her more motherly[[spoiler:, battle-loving]] captain.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's 187 cm tall, which is over six feet tall.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Girly girl to her little sister Kiyone, and sometimes to Rangiku.
* ToplessnessFromTheBack: One shot of her swimsuit reveals that it doesn't cover her shoulders.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Seinosuke Yamada]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Seinosuke_Yamada_4630.jpg]]
Brother to Hanataro and the former lieutenant to Unohana, Seinosuke was reputed to have a "Bad character", but made up for it through his loyalty to Unohana. His current status is unknown.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: His rank, his name, his height, his weight and his birthday, along with his design, were all shown in the ''Masked'' databook.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Before we even learned of his existence, he made a very brief appearance in ''Turn Back The Pendulum'', standing behind Ginrei and Unohana during a meeting.
* {{Jerkass}}: Or so we're told.
* UndyingLoyalty: Towards Unohana, and it seems to be his one good trait.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hanataro Yamada]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hanataro_7442.png]]
A weak but dutiful 7th Seat, Hanataro met Rukia while she was imprisoned and they soon became friends. He later teamed up with Ichigo and Ganju Shiba as they headed to save her.
His Zanpakuto is ''Hisagomaru'', a katana that heals damage of instead of creating it when it cuts. Upon "absorbing" enough wounds, it transforms into a scalpel capable of launching powerful energy blasts.
--> Voiced by: KoukiMiyata (JP), Creator/SpikeSpencer (ENG)
----
* {{Adorkable}}: He's shy and clumsy.
* AwesomeButImpractical: His release is a massive attack considering his low power level, but he can only use it once and then he's forced to fight with a scalpel.
* ButtMonkey: Squad 4 is typically bullied by other squads, but only Hanataro is also bullied by ''other Squad 4 members.''
* CowardlyLion: Though he is weak physically, when Ganju refused to risk himself for his brother's killer in the Soul Society arc Hanataro began to head out to hold off Byakuya Kuchiki all on his own.
* {{Crossdresser}}: In ''Bleach: The Sealed Sword Frenzy'' he wears a womens' fast food uniform, and in the 23rd closing he wears a maid's uniform. Given his embarassed expression in both cases, it's likely [[ButtMonkey he was forced to do it.]]
* {{Dojikko}}: His clumsiness makes him a buttmonkey even to other squad 4 members.
* GenderBlenderName: Ichigo is not impressed at how the word 'flower' is in his name.
* HealingHands: As a seated member of squad 4 he has fairly good healing abilities.
* HealingShiv: His Zanpakuto is one in its sealed form. In fact, in order to actually release it, he has to do enough healing with it to fill up a gauge on the side of the blade. Upon release, it sends out a massive attack capable of nearly defeating a gillian by itself.
* HeroicSacrifice: He's all set to make one against Byakuya, but Ganju takes his place.
* HumanShield: Ichigo and Ganju attempt this with him in order to escape Squad 11; subverted when their opponents reveal that they hate Squad 4 and would view his death as a bonus.
* MeaningfulName: His name is based on the Japanese version of John Doe ''and'' Jane Doe[[labelnote:*]]Taro and Hanako Yamada[[/labelnote]].
* TheMedic: During the Soul Society arc he follows Ganju and Ichigo around healing their injuries on occasion.
* NonActionGuy: His combat abilities are almost nonexistent. At best, he can make one strong attack after doing a lot of healing.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: His actions throughout the Soul Society arc more or less amount to grand treason.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive Guy to BOTH Ichigo and Ganju
* YouShallNotPass: Plans to face Byakuya, whom he knows he has no chance against, to give Ganju and Rukia the chance to escape. Subverted when Ganju trades places with him.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 5
[[folder:Sousuke Aizen]]
Debuted as Captain of Squad 5, but had deserted [[LateArrivalSpoiler after revealing]] [[BigBad his true colors]] in the Soul Society arc's final stage. For more information go [[Characters/BleachAizenAndHisCohorts here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Shinji Hirako]]
Current captain who was initially exiled a century ago. He reprises his role as captain after Aizen's defeat. For more information go [[Characters/BleachVisoredsAndExiledSoulReapers Here]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Momo Hinamori]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/momo001_6895.png]]
->''"Please save Captain Aizen. What Captain Aizen is doing is bad, but I bet he has a good reason for it. Yeah, that's it... Surely Captain Ichimaru or someone is forcing him..."''
Lieutenant of Squad 5, and a childhood friend of Hitsugaya who apparently was raised with him. She's a sweet, determined, hard-working, enthusiastic and very popular girl.
Her zanpakuto ''Tobiume'' lets her launch fireballs.
--> Voiced by: Creator/KumiSakuma (JP), Creator/KarenStrassman (ENG)
----
* ActionGirl: In anime filler she tends to be given a much more active role and can be found fighting captains or hunting rebelling zanpakutou spirits.
* BadassBookworm: The data books says she's an accomplished artist and loves to read. She also can hold her own in battle, as seen in ActionGirl.
* BerserkButton: Mention Aizen's betrayal within earshot, and she'll attack ANYONE who said it, including her Zanpakutou that she formerly tried to convert kindly.
* BigDamnHeroes: Yes, she of all people pulls one by saving Matsumoto from three arrancar with her shikai, then creating a massive explosion using her kido abilities, although still not fully recovered from the deception of her captain.
* BreakTheCutie: First her captain is murdered after a FriendshipMoment with him, and then she attacks her allies in a blind rage convinced that they had something to do with it. Finally, said captain turns out to have been faking his death and stabs her [[KickTheDog despite having nothing to gain from doing so]]. After he has fully defected and left for Hueco Mundo, it turns out she has so much faith in him that she refuses to see him as the bad guy. [[spoiler:When she finally gets her shit together and recognizes him for what he is, she ends up getting attacked by all her allies and stabbed by her oldest friend.]]
* ChildhoodFriend: With Hitsugaya. They were both raised by the same old woman whom they call "grandmother".
* CombatPragmatist: Has no problem with [[spoiler: laying a Kido net around the battlefield before appearing, then ''setting it on fire '' when the enemy gets caught in it.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange[=/=]ImportantHairCut: She had GirlishPigtails as a youngster and an Academy student, {{Odango Hair}} as a Lieutenant. After the {{Time Skip}}, she's switched to a bob with [[HairDecorations a cute hairpin]].
* HeroicBSOD: Aizen's betrayal shattered her, especially after he manipulated her into turning her sword on Hitsugaya. WordOfGod has indicated the time-skip [[spoiler: (specifically Shinji resuming his position as fifth squad captain)]] has been good for her.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Twice. Once by Aizen, who stated he had preferred to manipulate others into stabbing her for him, but freely did so when he decided that wouldn't happen. [[spoiler:In the Arrancar arc, he got his wish when he manipulated Hitsugaya into stabbing her.]]
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: Light Feminine to Rangiku, due to Hinamori being girlier than the former.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: The Souls databook describes her relationship with Hitsugaya as "familial".
* NiceGirl: Spunkier, less willowy and shorter than the standard, but is still gentle and deeply devoted to her people. Unfortunately, this makes her easy to manipulate and causes her to snap during the Soul Society arc.
* TheOphelia: When at her lowest point she's an unstable nervous wreck.
* PlayingWithFire: Her zanpakutou power is to throw out explosive fireballs at the enemy.
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: She was a close friend to Renji and Izuru back in their academy days, to the point of becoming squad-mates under the tutelage of Captain Aizen (who recruited them straight out of the academy). This is where things turn more complicated -- Momo was the only one who stayed in her original squad, whereas Kira and Abarai became lieutenants in different divisions. When Aizen is assassinated, a grief-stricken Momo immediately pegs Ichimaru as the killer and attacks him, forcing Kira to protect his captain. Both were stopped by Hitsugaya, who ordered them incarcerated.
* UnwittingPawn: Aizen even lets Hitsugaya know that her admiration for him is precisely what made her such a good pawn. She never understood him.
* WeakButSkilled: Momo knows she's got no super strength or raw power, but uses what she already has (more exactly, her high efficency with kido) in rather versatile combinations. Which she's also able [[IndyPloy to whip out VERY fast in the middle of the battlefield.]].
* WhatTheHellHero: In both manga and anime, she calls out ''Byakuya Kuchiki'' over his treatment of Renji. Too bad he doesn't listen.
* {{Yandere}}: Once she's ''really'' mad and has a [[DullEyesOfUnhappiness blank stare in her eyes]], do NOT cross the girl's way. A good part of this comes from Aizen's decades of MoreThanMindControl over her.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 6
[[folder:Byakuya Kuchiki]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Episode_362_Byakuya_6160.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see his pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/byakuya001_490.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"Regardless of who or what they are, anyone who disturbs Soul Society will be cut down."''
Captain of the 6th squad and AloofBigBrother of Rukia. He's an all around [[TheStoic stoic]] {{Bishonen}}, whose stoicness is matched with his utter dedication to upholding the law and setting up a good example for the Kuchiki clan. Because of this, he rarely lets his true feelings show, which makes him initially appear callous, especially regarding Rukia, who he actually cherishes.
His zanpakuto is ''Senbonzakura'', a sword that scatters itself into a thousand pieces which resemble cherry petals that instantly skewer his enemies. His Bankai is named ''Senbonzakura Kageyoshi'', and lets him manifest a thousand large swords from the ground which then scatter into millions of "petals."
--> Voiced by: Creator/RyotaroOkiayu (JP), Creator/DanWoren (ENG), Creator/YuriLowenthal (ENG, Young Byakuya), Christian Strempler (Latin American Spanish)
----
* AchillesHeel: The Fullbring arc reveals he's been hiding a significant one that affects him in battle. [[spoiler:He doesn't allow his shikai or bankai within an 85-centimeter radius of himself. If push comes to shove, however, he can and will violate this safety bubble at high risk of self-injury.]]
* AdaptationDyeJob: Senbonzakura's petal and sword forms are pink in the anime. They're actually white in the manga. Only the Hakuteikan power retains its original white colouring from manga to anime.
* AintTooProudToBeg: After seeing the destruction the Vandenreich causes to Soul Society, he asks Ichigo, for the first time ever, to help Soul Society. [[spoiler:At death's door, having been unable to protect Rukia, Renji or his squad, Byakuya begs Ichigo in tears to help the people he's failed to save.]]
* AloofBigBrother: He ''does'' have deep feelings, but is trapped in so many honor codes that he can't show his love towards others as much as he'd like. [[spoiler:When afflicted with mystically induced irrational fear, his breakdown occurs due to his thoughts focusing on a gruesomely dead Rukia.]]
* AntagonistAbilities: FlyingWeapon: What makes his Shikai and Bankai so dangerous is that there are countless tiny blades fluttering around the battlefield with the ability to cut you from any angle and get around any defense. What's more, even if he concentrates all of them into a sword, when in Senkei, he can summon a new sword at any point he chooses.
* BadBoss: During the Soul Society Arc only. After Renji is heavily wounded in battle against Ichigo, he attempts to throw him in jail without medical attention [[KickTheDog fully aware]] that he might die of blood loss.
* BadassBaritone: In contrast to his [[{{Bishonen}} girly]] appearance, his voice is actually quite deep.
* BerserkButton
** Tradition is very important to Byakuya. When he realises Ichigo achieved bankai by flaunting those traditions, he becomes angry enough for his stoic mask to slip. [[spoiler: He resolves to kill Tsukishima because he views his ability to destroy the bonds between comrades as despicable. This fight actually cures him of the obsession with tradition-bound fighting that had defined his anger during the fight with Ichigo.]]
** He kills Zommari not because he's an enemy or because he's a soul eating monster, but because he threatened Rukia. [[spoiler:He has a breakdown due to As Nodt because of this weakness, however.]]
* BeCarefulWhatYouSay: Thanks to his two conflicting vows, Byakuya learned this lesson the hard way when Rukia was given a sentence disproportionate to her crime.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Once he ''does'' allow himself to show his love of his little sister Rukia, he will ''kill'' anybody who harms her.
* BigBrotherMentor: To Renji. He hid it behind a ruthless mask in the Soul Society mask, but their relationship is now much more relaxed thanks to CharacterDevelopment.
* BigFancyHouse: Byakuya's mansion is one of the most impressive residences in Soul Society. It's so impressive, the Society of Female Soul Reapers regularly attends secret meetings there, most of the time without Byakuya's knowledge, and always without his permission. Yachiru has built a series of hidden tunnels throughout the grounds to ensure they can come and go in secret.
* {{Bishounen}}: He's one of the prettiest captains in [[SpiritWorld Soul Society]], as voted for by the Soul Reaper's Women Institute itself.
* BloodKnight: Not only does he learn he's got this instinct, but he also learns he ''enjoys'' it.
* BrattyHalfPint: When he was younger, he was mouthy, he was wild and his temper was incredibly short.
* CallingYourAttacks: "Senkei", "Gōkei", "Shūkei: Hakuteiken", various Kido spells.
* CannotTellAJoke: When he tries to be funny it tends to either fail or scare people.
* CherryBlossoms: Senbonzakura breaks down into thousands or millions of tiny blades that reflect the appearance of cherry blossom petals floating on the wind.
* CloudCuckooLander: '''Seaweed Ambassador''' just can't be a coincidence.
* CombatPragmatist: Characterising his early appearances, a favourite opening tactic of his was "Senka", a technique which attacks the target's sources of spiritual power to strip them of their abilities completely and which more than qualified him for this. The last time he was seen using it, he used it as his ''closing'' attack against [[DrunkOnTheDarkSide Zommari]].
* TheComicallySerious: His stoic nature makes him an excellent straight man to characters like Yachiru in the omake. His unconsciously silly behavior can also be funny like with his omake obsession with the Seaweed Ambassador and his pride in his artwork... which is exactly like Rukia's.
* CulturedBadass: Byakuya presents the air of a cultured and dignified noble and his clan apparently traditionally holds the squad 6 captain's role.
* DeathByAThousandCuts: The end result of his shikai or bankai hitting a target.
* DefeatMeansFriendship: He can fight it all he wants, but he can't escape the truth that this is how things stand between him and Ichigo.
* DefrostingIceKing: After the Soul Society arc as a result of the conflict between his two vows being resolved.
* FakeDefector: In the Zanpakuto Tales anime arc, [[spoiler: he pretended to join sides with Muramasa, but only because he wanted to kill Muramasa's master Kouga Kuchiki who had disgraced the Kuchiki clan's honour.]]
* FamedInStory: The most famous captain of the current generation is Byakuya, even commoners in the Rukongai know who he is. Ginjou explains it's because his extremely high social rank combines with his extremely high military rank to make him far more well-known than any "normal" captain or high-ranking aristocrat would be by themselves. Byakuya himself once implies that this creates an enormous pressure on him to be the role-model that all Soul Society must look to.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Before the time-skip, he had a tendency to arrange his [[HairDecorations kenseikan]] in a way the ensured his hair was bound asymmetrically, flowing on the left side and held up on the right side.
* TheFettered: He has sworn to always follow the law after he broke family traditions twice, first marrying a commoner and then adopting her sister.
* FingerlessGloves: He wears white gloves that leave his fingers and thumb free. While he's also a badass, the overall intention appears to be to make him look more dignified.
* FlashStep: His other specialty. Still can't beat Yoruichi at it, though.
* FlowerMotif: Cherry Blossom symbolism is associated with aristocracy, samurai, and the transience of life. Byakuya is an aristocrat, military captain, and widower who likes to uphold the samurai ideal.
* GoodIsNotNice: Byakuya isn't a bad guy once he mellows out, but he can be pretty dickish nonetheless. The two can even be combined: During his fight with Zommari, he sneers that a hollow can never hope to match him.
* GrayEyes: He's the cold, strong willed type.
* HairTriggerTemper: He suffered from this into his teens before learning control and discipline. He still shows flashes of it underneath all that self-control.
* HesBack: After suffering [[spoiler:a crushing defeat at the hands of his own Bankai, which was stolen by Äs Nödt]], he recovers soon enough within Kirinji's hot springs during Ichigo's trip to the Royal Palace, and arrives in time to [[spoiler:save Rukia from Äs Nödt in his Vollstandig form.]]
* HeelFaceTurn: After the Soul Society Arc he loosens up a little, though he's more willing to look for loopholes.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: He values Rukia much more than he acts. Even after Soul Society, he does tend to be distant, but he is extremely angry at Zommari intending to kill her after [[PostVictoryCollapse she falls unconscious due to injuries from Aaroniero]].
* HighPressureBlood: Mainly when he took the bullet for Rukia against Ichimaru. The next time that happens, [[spoiler:Byakuya falls into a coma because of it.]]
* HotBlooded: As a child, he was this. The signs are that it hasn't gone away, he's just learned to [[SugarAndIcePersonality hide it better]].
* IgnoredEnemy: While in Hueco Mundo, both he and Kenpachi do this to Yammy because they claim they are more interested in fighting each other.
* IndyPloy: Byakuya is not only surprised to learn he's capable of doing this, but that he even enjoys it. [[spoiler:He's forced to use one to defeat Tsukishima since Tsukishima's power allows him to predict any traditional attack he'll make.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Acts pretty harsh, but actually values his sister and Ichigo quite highly.
* KickTheDog: Orders Renji to be imprisoned ''and'' refuses to let him be treated after he loses to Ichigo.
* KnightTemplarBigBrother: When Byakuya asked Zommari if he was the one responsible for bringing Rukia to the verge of death, Zommari confirmed that he was not, but he was planning on taking her life. That's all Byakuya needed to hear to toss away any pretence of duty and destroy Zommari for even thinking about pointing a blade at his sister.
* LoopholeAbuse: What he does to get Renji and Rukia to go to Hueco Mundo, after Yamamoto declared that Ichigo shouldn't.
* MarryForLove: What he did with Hisana, in defiance of his family.
* MeaningfulName: Part of his name means "white," and is often contrasted against the "black" Ichigo and the "red" Renji.
* MrFanservice: His design is that of the classic black-haired bishounen, but even in-universe the Society of Female Soul Reapers keep voting him the sexiest male Soul Reaper.
* NotQuiteDead: He's left comatose by the Vandenreich's first invasion.[[spoiler: It's revealed that Unohana won't be able to save him and that he's slowly dying. The Royal Guard, who possess an even more skilled healer than Unohana, intervene.]]
* NotSoStoic: It's a rare sight when he emotes, but when he does, it's a sight to behold. The manga also indicated that he has a very short temper beneath his stoic mask that he's learned how to hide but has never purged.
* OhCrap: When a character as stoic as Byakuya has one of these moments, it's an all-hell-breaks-loose situation. When Ichigo's inner hollow takes over, watching Ichigo and his Inner Hollow scream at each other while Ichigo fights for control briefly renders Byakuya speechless, panicked and incredibly confused. [[spoiler: He also has one when he realises he's underestimated Tsukishima and when the Vandenreich steal his Bankai.]]
* PetalPower[=/=]FlechetteStorm[=/=]StormOfBlades: Yes, his [[EmpathicWeapon zanpakutou]] really does fit all three tropes, sometimes achieving all three ''at the same time''.
* PillarsOfMoralCharacter: The reason why he can't show his feelings as openly as he'd like to. It's also the reason why he starts off looking like a villain which develops into looking like a Type III anti-hero but which is eventually revealed to be this type of character instead. See main entry.
* PowersDoTheFighting: Until Ichigo starts overwhelming him with his speed, Byakuya never even made an effort to use his powers and allowed them to move independently. He later doubles the speed with his hands, and then concentrates them into actual swords to fight with.
* ThePromise: Two of them and they were conflicting each other. Hanging around his neck (and Rukia's) like a noose until the were finally resolved by Ichigo. The vows still hold, it's simply the conflict between them that's been fixed.
* TheProudElite: A noble and a Captain, and he comes across as cold and arrogant. However, he has a deeply engrained sense of honor and cares passionately for those few people who make their way into his heart.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Byakuya Kuchiki is one of the highest ranked noblemen in the story, and has the classic looks to go with it: perfectly groomed raven black hair and pale, flawless skin. The Soul Reaper Woman's Institute regularly votes him as the MrFanservice of Soul Society.
* RedOniBlueOni: He's the Blue to Renji's Red.
* ScarfOfAsskicking: And it's '''VERY''' expensive.
* SoProudOfYou: He finally admits this to Rukia after [[spoiler:saving her from As Nodt and helping her regain her confidence to defeat him on her own.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: Although Byakuya and Hisana overcame the "love above one's station" issue when Byakuya defied his entire clan to marry her, they were only able to be married for five years before she died from an incurable illness.
* TheStoic: Outward persona. His inner persona is surprisingly HotBlooded. His is still a SugarAndIcePersonality as a result - at least as an adult. As a child, he hadn't yet learned to [[BrattyHalfPint control]] his [[HairTriggerTemper temper]].
* SugarAndIcePersonality: Aloof and stoic on the surface. Underneath, he's NotSoStoic, being very compassionate, having very deep feelings for the people he becomes attached to.
* TakingTheBullet: Famously did it to save Rukia from Ichimaru towards the end of the Soul Society arc.
%% TallDarkAndHandsome
%% TallDarkAndSnarky
* TerribleArtist: Just like Rukia. Everybody comments that they must really be siblings for having such similar ideas about art.
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at the hands of [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for his Bankai.]]
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Is surprisingly prone to this when it comes to humans, the first great example being Ichigo naturally when he acquired Bankai. The second example was when he fought Tsukishima, completely unprepared to find someone so dangerous in a mortal human.
* UndyingLoyalty: Not even 300 years of FakeMemories of being trained by someone is enough to get him to stop killing that person if they're an enemy of Byakuya's TrueCompanions.
* UptownGuy: Hisana was a commoner from one of the worst Rukongai districts while Byakuya was a noble from one of the four most powerful and highly ranked noble houses in Soul Society. The social inequality between them didn't bother Byakuya and Hisana, but the Kuchiki clan was appalled. Byakuya eventually won the fight to have Hisana as his wife, but she fell sick and died five years after they were married.
* WarriorPrince: Head of one of Soul Society's most revered noble clans and a textbook example of a CulturedBadass.
* WhatDoTheyFearEpisode: Gets his own personal one in Chapter 501. Byakuya's greatest fear is seeing Rukia's dead, mouldering face. [[spoiler:When confronted by this he breaks down and gets mauled.]]
%% TheWisePrince: A cold, but still damn effective, variation.
* YearsTooEarly: To Ichigo in Episode 55 over whether or not Ichigo could beat him.
%% YouHaveFailedMe: To Renji. See KickTheDog.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ginrei Kuchiki]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ginrei001_6498.png]]
->''"Those who have great power must know how to control their own power, and sometimes be controlled by that power. In order to truly create such a relationship, it is necessary to have a strong heart that keeps you away from becoming overconfident."''
The grandfather of Byakuya, the former captain of the 6th Division and the 27th head of the Kuchiki clan. He made his debut in ''Turn Back the Pendulum'', and re-appeared during the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales arc, but his current status is currently unknown.
--> Voiced by: KinryuuArimoto (JP), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG)
----
* TheMentor: Seems like one for Byakuya, and filled the bill for Kouga.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Renji Abarai]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Renji_Timeskip_6862.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see his pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/renji001_1468.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"Showing concern for a warrior's life on the battlefield is an insult to that warrior."''
Recently-promoted Lieutenant of Squad 6, former member of Squad 5 and former 6th Seat of the 11th Division. He is the childhood friend of Rukia and forms a very close friendship bond with her, also highly respecting the captain Byakuya and views him as an opponent he wishes to surpass. Brash, but dedicated to his beliefs and loyal to his friends. He is also notably the next Soul Reaper, after Rukia, who eventually considers Ichigo among his TrueCompanions. While he poses a very genuine threat in the beginning, he's usually one of the characters used by TiteKubo to establish enemy threat levels, thus fans often call him a jobber. Soon after his DefeatMeansFriendship, Renji becomes more or less part of Ichigo's group of friends and an important main character.
His zanpakuto is ''Zabimaru'', a large sword that can stretch out into a sort of whip. When first introduced, his Bankai is called ''Hihio Zabimaru'', a massive skeletal snake that fires energy blasts, though it was damaged before he could master it.
--> Voiced by: Creator/KentaroIto (JP), ReikoKiuchi (JP, As a child), Creator/WallyWingert (ENG), Creator/YuriLowenthal (ENG, As a child), Gabriel Flores (Latin American Spanish)
----
* AintTooProudToBeg: In the Soul Society arc, being defeated by Ichigo makes him break down and beg Ichigo to rescue Rukia because he cannot.
* AnimeHair: For some unfathomable reason, his hair is style in a way that makes it look like a pineapple. This case is lampshaded, as a few of the filler episodes in which Renji is seen out of uniform have him wearing a T-shirt with the phrase "Red Pineapple" on it.
* {{Badass}}: As a lieutenant, he can kick some major ass and look cool while doing it.
* BarbarianLonghair: His long hair is kept in a ponytail, reminiscent of a SamuraiPonytail, but still wild and spiky past that. His behavior is barely controlled by the strict rules of the Gotei.
* BarefootPoverty: While living in the poverty-stricken 78th district Renji, like other residents of the district, has no access to luxuries such as footwear.
* BerserkButton: Seeing Byakuya defeated drove Renji ballistic.
* BigDamnHeroes: In the final arc, his timely arrival allows him to save two Soul Reapers from being killed by Mask. [[spoiler: He actually saves Kensei and Rose from being killed.]]
* CallingYourAttacks: "Higa Zekkō!", "Hikōtsu Taihō!", various Kido spells.
* CardCarryingVillain: Mask's obsession with heroes versus villains allows Renji to parody this when they fight.
* ChildhoodFriend: He grew up on the streets with Rukia and they decided to enter the Soul Academy together.
* CoolShades: Except they get broken fairly early, and they're so expensive he's yet to be able to afford a new pair. Gets a new pair in the Vandereich arc.
* CurbStompBattle: He spends the time-skip using the bar Aizen set as his resolve to get stronger, allowing him to finally begin to curbstomp his opponents in battle. [[spoiler: He effortlessly defeats Jackie. Later, although initially thrashed by Mask, training with the Royal Guard allows him to return the favour.]]
* DefeatMeansFriendship: After being beaten by Ichigo he became one of Ichigo's closest Soul Reaper friends.
* FashionableAsymmetry: In bankai, he gains a mantle of fur that extends across his shoulders like a ruff and which extends down his right arm only.
* FieryRedHead: Renji tends to feel a lot of his emotions quite strongly as well as cycle between them easily.
* HotBlooded: He's rash, emotional and aggressive, picking up a lot of the worse parts of the trope, though he matures a little as time goes on.
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: When seen together with Rukia he's about twice her height.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He was a complete JerkAss in his first appearance, but his interactions with Rukia and later his deep devotion and possible romantic feelings for her endeared him to the fandom.
* LuminescentBlush: Whenever he gets to see something a little sexy -- such as Matsumoto unbuttoning her shirt. That and whenever Rukia voices just how much she cares for him or how much she appreciates him as a friend.
* ModestyShorts: Renji's flashback to how he first met Rukia during their poverty-stricken Rukongai days, show that he used to wear a very short kosode. Under that kosode he wears a pair of skin-tight shorts that are so long in the leg they come lower down his body than the kosode does.
* MrFanservice: Many a shirtless scenes feature him; one in particular has him with his hair down, with his tattoo-laden musculature revealed in full. Thanks!
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: The only one allowed to beat Ichigo or Byakuya, or so he thought.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Tries one on Ichigo when he initially gains the advantage in their first fight, but Ichigo manages to [[TalkToTheFist get a slash in while he's talking]].
* RedOniBlueOni: He's the Red Oni, Byakuya's the Blue Oni.
* ReverseShrapnel: Higa Zekkou, which he can only do when his sword is broken. In the filler, he can do it with his bankai, too, but it takes its toll on Zabimaru.
* RunningGag: His love of sunglasses, and inability to actually keep a pair intact.
* SecretKeeper: He has known Ikkaku had bankai for quite some time.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Manly Man to Ishida and Kira.
* SlipknotPonytail: His long red hair goes loose when seriously injured or beaten.
* TattooedCrook: Goes hand in hand with his {{Delinquent}}-like attitude. Tattooed [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverKill ALL OVER his body]] -- to the point that some fans wonder up to [[DoubleEntendre where]] does the ink spread... Even his [[UnusualEyebrows eyebrows]] are tattoos.
* TeamHandStack: After the heroes infiltrate Las Noches, Renji calls for a hand stack -- something he never got the stoic captain of his squad to do.
* TookALevelInBadass: During the final arc, he is taken to the Royal Realm to receive training from the Zero Division. It boosts his power and abilities enormously.
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: He befriended Hinamori and Kira in the academy, but things turned sour once the present storyline made it to the Soul Society arc. Renji first attempts to act like a lieutenant should, but later decides to ignore his orders and target Ichigo right off the bat. His defeat actually prompts Yamamoto to order a full-scale pacification of Ichigo's friends, with Byakuya ordering Renji incarcerated for his failure (the conflict between Hinamori and Kira technically started with their disagreement over Byakuya's act here). After everything gets shot to hell for Kira and Hinamori, Renji decides to defect to Ichigo's side.
* UnusualEyebrows: He has rather long, thick eyebrows and they're made to look even stranger with his tattooed forehead.
* WhipSword: Zabimaru's form.
* TheWorfEffect: He is usually one of the two main choices for Kubo to use to establish the power level of the enemy Ichigo and his companions are up against with the other being Chad. However, we get a justification for it, as [[WorfHadTheFlu Mayuri implies that his Bankai got weaker]] [[spoiler:[[WorfHadTheFlu since it was destroyed during the Soul Society arc and bankais never fully recover from the damage they take.]]]]
* WouldntHitAGirl: He loathes fighting women, and will not pick a fight with one. If a woman forces a fight with him, he'll hold back as much as possible and try to defeat her using the minimum amount of force possible to achieve victory.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Sojun Kuchiki]]
%%[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Sojun_8792.jpg]]%%
Son of Ginrei, father to Byakuya and the previous lieutenant of the 6th Division. Rumor has it that he was sick, but became a lieutenant out of a sense of duty. He was buried alongside his wife, and Byakuya swore an oath to uphold every one of the Soul Society's laws, in order to please his parents.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: His appearance, his height, his rank, his weight and his birthday were all found in the ''Masked'' databook.
* {{Bishounen}}: What else is there to expect, from the father of Byakuya himself?
* GenerationXerox: He looks '''exactly''' like his son.
* IllGirl: The sickness itself is unknown, though.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ginjiro Shirogane]]
He was the previous lieutenant to Byakuya, preceding Renji by an unknown number of years. He started up his own sunglasses shop as a part-time job during his time as a lieutenant, but he resigned from his position to run the store better, supposedly because he gained more of a profit from it. His daughter, Mihane, works as the 9th Seat of the same division, and she co-owns the store with her father. The Mens' Association get their sunglasses from Shirogane, as does Renji himself.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: The fact that he even ''exists''. We still don't know what he looks like.
* ChekhovsGun: Renji gets those sunglasses from his store. A specific pair that Ichigo later broke was outfitted with a built-in Reiatsu-detecting radar screen, which allowed Renji and Byakuya to find Rukia in Karakura.
* TheDeterminator: Shirogane once sent a pair of sunglasses to Byakuya, but his ex-captain sent them back, saying that he didn't want them. Shirogane doesn't seem to care; he keeps sending sunglasses to Byakuya, anyway.
* NiceGuy: Takes his ex-captain's indifference in stride, and even gave a discount to Renji, but it's subverted in the latter case. The prices of sunglasses are so high, that even with the discount, Renji still has problems getting the goggles that he wants.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 7
[[folder:Sajin Komamura]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/komamura001_3092.png]]
[[caption-width-right:265:[[labelnote:Click here to see [[spoiler: his human form]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/human_komamura_8265.png[[/labelnote]]]]]]
->''"Don't worry. I have no doubts. My loyalty lies only in my debt to Genryūsai-sama. He took me in when I was alone because people pushed me away due to my looks. I shall repay this debt, even if it means I will be shattered into pieces. I shall have no doubts. If his greatness says 'yes', then even in death, I say 'yes'!"''
Komamura is an anthropomorphic wolf and currently the captain of the 7th squad. Komamura is at first overly sensitive about his appearance which causes him to distance himself, until he meets Kaname Tousen, who is blind and doesn't mind his outer appearance. They became fast friends and enrolled and graduated in the Soul Reaper Academy together. Komamura is also indebted with Genryusai Yamamoto and vowed to dedicate his life for him with utmost loyalty. He constantly covers his body with gloves and his head with a mask, just so that his fellow officers do not ridicule his appearance, but eventually he abandons it. When Tousen betrays the Soul Society, Komamura swears to help him open his eyes to the fact that his betrayal is wrong.
His Zanpakutou is ''Tenken'', a large sword that is duplicated in a phantom-like form. His Bankai is ''Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō'', an enormous armored giant that mimics his every move.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TetsuInada (JP), Creator/KimStrauss (ENG, Episodes 51-63), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG, Episodes 99+)
----
* AFatherToHisMen: Cares immensely for his subordinates and often puts himself at risk to protect those are lower ranked and weaker than himself.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Why he wore a mask, and why he was so quick to form a friendship with Tousen. His shame in his appearance is the focal point of the friction between him and [[spoiler:his great-grandfather]], who scolds him for hiding it.
* AnimalMotifs: [[CaptainObvious Physically]], but also morally with his extremely loyalty.
* ArmorIsUseless: Zig-zagged. He's the only Soul Reaper to wear armor and often uses it to block attacks on others. However, because he frequently suffers from TheWorfEffect, enemies who are strong enough often easily destroy what armor he wears. [[spoiler:He later gets a new set that's much more up to the task, able to defend him from Bambietta's explosions to an extent.]]
* AwesomeButImpractical
** His bankai has signs of this. Tousen notes that it's primarily designed to kill in one hit, so issues arise when it doesn't. Particularly, damaging done to it is reflected on him, though anyone who is powerful enough to damage it could presumably damage him anyway. [[spoiler:It just takes a single attack from Tousen to blast a huge hole in his Bankai to bring Komamura down.]]
** A PlayedForLaughs variant in the preview for 340. Iba grows concerned about Komamura's use of Bankai, as it could end up exhausting 7th Division's repair budget. Made worse by the fact that since Komamura's bankai draws the most attention, the other Divisions will blame 7th division for ALL of the damage caused by the battles with the reigai, causing Komamura to grow concerned as well.
* BeatStillMyHeart: Komamura will protect others, even if he has to rip out his own heart to do it. [[spoiler: Ripping out his heart activates a special technique that brings Komamura to a [[BishonenLine human form]], vastly increasing his power.]]
* TheBigGuy: He's over nine feet tall and favors the brute force strategy of "Just smash the little bastard. Moving around is for chumps that can't take a hit."
* BigShutUp: Komamura gives one to the raging Soi Fong in the aftermath of the Vandenreich invasion [[spoiler: and Commander Yamamoto's death]], telling her that she is not the only one who wants to shout.
* BlindAndTheBeast: His friendship with Tousen is based on this. [[spoiler: So of course Tousen just [[KickTheDog has to call him ugly]] upon gaining sight. And then he apologizes before dying.]]
* CarpetOfVirility: Komamura has some pretty amazing chest hair. [[spoiler:His human form retains the fur on his chest.]]
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Prone to this.
** In #298, his response to Ichigo saying that Iba doesn't fit the image of the main character is that he didn't think the suit was designed as well as he thought it could have been.
** In #326, he responds to Zaraki to not worry, and he's tough. The problem here was Zaraki was pissed that he interrupted his fight.
** In the JUMP festival omake, Komamura's response to Iba asking him for advice on how to make the cute cartoony drawing of him look mighty and powerful is to recommend he add "woof"/"ruff" next to it.
* ConvenientComa: He stays in one for almost the entire Zanpaktou filler arc after he gets [=TKOed=] by Tenken in the arc's first episode.
* CoolHelmet: The bucket he initially wore on his head before it was destroyed. [[spoiler:He later gets another cool one, which when destroyed reveals him to have taken human form.]]
* CurbStompBattle: He defeats Poww, the fraccion who defeated Ikkaku. [[spoiler: He uses a single strike from his Bankai. The fight with Tousen reveals this is the purpose of his Bankai, to defeat enemies with a single strike.]]
* CursedWithAwesome: Tousen claimed the bond between Komamura and Tengen was a curse because damaging the zanpakutou automatically damages Komamura. [[spoiler: Mayuri later confirms that while it's true this is a big weakness, it also allows Komamura's bankai to heal making him the one true exception to the rule that a bankai can never be restored to its original form once broken.]]
* DangerousForbiddenTechnique: The secret of his clan is not something he's ever been allowed to know because it's literally both dangerous and forbidden. [[spoiler:He has to [[SoulJar rip out his heart]] to transform into human to gain great power and immortality. It's only temporary and the price is to transform him into a full canine animal with no power at all.]]
* DestructiveSavior: The Karakura Town fight is supposed to occur in a fake town to avoid damaging the real town but the destruction Komamura causes when defeating Poww causes so much damage to both the fake zone and the real town, the watching Soul Reapers discuss how much this will cost Komamura after the battle is over.
* DramaticUnmask: Loses his helmet saving Tousen's life when he tries blocking Kenpachi's sword with his arm bracers, but due to the force behind the blow the sword cuts into his helmet and breaks it apart. [[spoiler:Later happens again when he shows up for a rematch with Bambietta wearing a new helmet that obscures his face. When it gets destroyed, it's revealed Komamura has become [[LittleBitBeastly human in appearance]].]]
* FriendToAllChildren: During the Soul Reaper golden segment for Episode 83, it seemed he was about to let Yachiru draw on his face even though he just got his fur done.
* FurryConfusion: He is an anthropomorphic canine that owns a pet dog.
* GentleGiant: Owns a pet dog named Gorou, takes them out for walk in his free time, and is one of the more amiable Captains when it comes to arranging his squad. He also likes watching pet shows whenever he can. According to Hitsugaya, he personally pays for any collateral damage he or his subordinates cause. Though in the Chapter 328 volume sketch, he's seen commenting that he'll only be able to feed his dog Goro okara (soy pulp) for the month due to all the damage he caused during his fight with Poww, as well as apologizing to him for it.
* HypocrisyNod: In a CallBack to Tousen, after [[spoiler:Yamamoto dies]] Komamura becomes absolutely determined to avenge him at all costs [[spoiler:and sacrifices himself to do so, gaining a brief powerup and in return becoming a wolf after the power fades,]] lamenting only that even as he was consumed by the thirst for vengeance that marks his clan, [[spoiler:it didn't last him long enough to even get to Yhwach, let alone beat him.]]
* IOweYouMyLife: His source of devotion with Yamamoto. [[spoiler: Ichigo's intervention against Aizen also prevents Komamura going into a suicidal charge to avenge Tousen. He thanks Ichigo for it.]]
* IllPretendIDidntHearThat: When Iba lectures Ikkaku on hiding his bankai and the pair realise Komamura is standing right there, Komamura's response is to say his ears aren't working well enough to have overheard anything and walks off.
* ImplacableMan: He's a hulking, nigh-unmovable mass of fur and muscle against most people. This is best demonstrated during his battle with Soi-fon's clone, where pretty much just overpowers her with brute force (until she activates [[SuperMode Shunko]]). In his [[spoiler:human form, though, this goes to ridiculous lengths; he can withstand an explosion ''to the chest'' and barely flinch, and his bankai is pretty much indestructible.]]
* IronicEcho: He warns Tousen against revenge, and ironically he falls victim to it himself after [[spoiler:Yamamoto's death.]]
* LargeAndInCharge: Komamura is massive and one of the most physically powerful captains, matched perhaps only by the likes of Kenpachi.
* LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy: Despite his initial fears, nobody seems to care that he's a giant canine.
* LittleBitBeastly: Furry ears, heavy eyebrows, mutton chops and body fur. [[spoiler:That's his human form, which displays classic werewolf traits.]]
* MeaningfulName: His name translates to "The dog who guards the left flank of the hamlet." The left side is a particular significance to pre-industrial Japan as it would guard the lord's blind side. So when Lords would meet with their two bodyguards, the more trusted of the two would be to the left.
* NighInvulnerability: His clan's "secret technique", which makes him virtually unkillable as long as he's in human form. His body can still be damaged, and [[SoulJar his heart needs to be kept safe]], but he's technically an implacable walking corpse. His bankai is even worse -- in its second form, it's pure reiatsu with no life energy, meaning it can't be damaged ''at all''.
* NoSell: Pulls this on Bambietta by means outlined above: her explosions have no effect on his new Bankai.
* NotSoDifferent: Komamura based his friendship with Tousen on the belief that their hearts were similar enough for him to be able to guide Tousen back to a better path. [[spoiler: Later, he falls victim to his desires for revenge just like Tousen. Instead of dying, Sajin loses his humanity.]]
* OurGiantsAreBigger: His bankai is a giant {{Samurai}}, without a doubt one of the biggest if not the biggest bankai in the series.
* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: He's a humanoid wolf and sticks out like a sore thumb among the human members of the cast, so he used to hide his face with armor. [[spoiler:Turns out that he and the rest of his clan once possessed a human form but being banished to the [[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} Animal Realm]] trapped them in their animal form. A special technique allows them to temporarily regain human form, as shown in Chapter 556, though the costs of doing so are implied to be high.]]
* PettingZooPeople: He's a giant humanoid wolf.
* PuppetGun: Komamura's shikai summons disembodied gigantic limbs with the same movements as him, mostly a giant hand wielding a sword. His bankai brings forth the entire [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever giant]], which also follows his movements to devastating effect.
* PyrrhicVictory: Even Komamura can make the mistake of not weighing victory against the price of achieving it. [[spoiler:He destroys his humanity to defeat Bambietta, ending up trapped in true wolf form, unable to function as a Soul Reaper, his only future that of a vengeance-driven beast.]]
* RealMenWearPink: He likes... watching cute puppy dog shows?!
* RevengeBeforeReason: The destruction the Vandenreich invasion inflicts causes Komamura to enter this state. [[spoiler:After cutting down Bambietta, Komamura prepares to storm the Vandenreich's fortress and take on Yhwach by himself to avenge Yamamoto.]]
* RuleOfSymbolism: Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō is inspired by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom_King Fudou Myou-ou]], a divine being who brings [[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} enlightenment]] to those lost to hatred, vengeance and ignorance. The Bankai's {{samurai}} armour reflects Komamura's [[http://judoinfo.com/pdf/hagakure.pdf samurai code]], a form of "invincibility" gained through living as if already dead. [[spoiler: The ignorance of RevengeBeforeReason banishes his clan to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animals_in_Buddhism Animal Realm]]. When Komamura embraces it, his temporary invincibility leads to permanent transformation into an animal, i.e., the person who most needs Fudō Myō'ō's guidance is Komamura himself.]]
* RunningGag: He's a wolf but [[AllThereInTheManual characters in-universe]] always mistake him for a dog. The author and anime therefore associate him with dogs in constantly humorous ways.
* SecretKeeper: Seemingly overhears Tetsuzaemon and Ikkaku talking about the latter's Bankai but assures them that his "ears haven't been working well."
* SpeaksFluentAnimal: He can talk to dogs.
* SupernaturalGoldEyes: Komamura is an anthropomorphic wolf and his golden eyes reflect his supernatural, animalistic nature.
* UndyingLoyalty: Because Yamamoto saved his life at one point, he has utmost respect and devotion to the man.
* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: When he first appeared in the story, he had been wearing a mask to conceal his true nature. After it got cut off during the Soul Society arc, he decides to go around without it. According to the databooks, barely anyone gives a damn.
* TheWorfEffect: When Aizen was first revealed as the enemy, Komamura was used to established that Aizen's threat level was far beyond that of even a captain's. He also suffers this in the Zanpakutou Unknown Tales filler arc, being taken out by his zanpakutou spirit in the arc's first episode, then spends the rest of the arc [[ConvenientComa a coma because of it.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tetsuzaemon Iba]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/iba001_1460.png]]
->''"If yer gonna fight someone, then win, even if it kills you. That is called bein' rational."''
The lieutenant to Captain Komamura and the former mentor to Ikkaku. With the style of a {{Yakuza}} member, he joined the 11th Division as the 4th Seat under Zaraki, but transferred to the 7th Division in order to become a lieutenant. He is the stereotypical macho-man, believing that men have to be strong and courageous. He is president of the Soul Reaper Men's Association. His mother, Chikane Iba, was the lieutenant of the 3rd Division under Otoribashi; he calls her a ''bitch-hag''.
--> Voiced by: Rintarou Nishi (JP), Neil Kaplan (ENG)
----
* BigFancySword: His unnamed shikai takes the form of a large falchion with a spike protruding from it.
* BloodKnight: He used to be in the eleventh division and still duels Ikkaku from time to time. He only transferred out in order to become a lieutenant.
* ButtMonkey: The Soul Reaper Men's association frequently gets its budget cut and forced out of the meeting spaces it has.
* CombatPragmatist: Believes that the most important thing when fighting for one's division is winning, even if it involves running away or taking an opponent from behind.
* CoolShades: Wears a pair of big black sunglasses.
* {{Foil}}: To Ikkaku. Ikkaku would rather die than risk exposing his own bankai to others (thereby risking being forced to captain another division) and enjoys a good fight above all else. Iba chose to develop his kido and leave the 11th Division to become a lieutenant and please his mom, and is willing to run away or use underhanded tactics to carry out his orders.
* MasterOfNone: [[InformedAbility Is supposedly well-rounded]], but the manga hasn't actually properly let us see him fight to judge for ourselves.
* SecretKeeper: Regarding Ikkaku's bankai.
* SmokingIsCool: He's usually seen smoking.
* UndyingLoyalty: He's very proud to serve as Komamura's second. [[spoiler: When Komamura completely loses his powers after fighting and defeating Bambietta, Iba carries his captain on his back and promises to help him keep fighting to avenge Yamamoto.]]
* UnrequitedLove: The anime doesn't touch on it but it's AllThereInTheManual. Hisagi's not the only one with a crush on Rangiku Matsumoto. Iba's carrying a torch as well.
* WhatTheHellHero: Delivers a rather scathing one to Ikkaku, when his stubborn refusal to use his bankai results in an important pillar getting destroyed.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jin'emon Kotsubaki]]
%%[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Kotsubaki-Fuka-Taicho_8908.jpg]]%%
Father to Sentaro and lieutenant to Love Aikawa, he received a scar sometime after Urahara was promoted, but it's unknown if he was killed in action or retired from service, and we don't know what his current status happens to be. He also has a ponytail, reminiscent of an old-school {{Samurai}}.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything known about him was revealed in the ''Masked'' databook.
* CoolOldGuy: Appears to be in his late-forties, by the time he was Loves' lieutenant.
* CoolShades: Frameless red sunglasses, specifically.
* GoodScarsEvilScars: One runs along the left side of his face, from his forehead, through his eye and to his cheek.
[[/folder]]
----
[[{{Characters/Bleach}} Back to the main character index]]
----
!Contains spoilers
[[foldercontrol]]
!!Squad 1
[[folder:Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yamamoto001_6945.png]]
->''"Get ready. Put the entirety of your spirit on the line and crush them here! Even if your flesh is torn asunder, be as a steel wall down to your last shard of bone!"''
Captain of the first squad and commander of the Gotei 13, he's one of the most powerful characters in the whole series. A sage-looking old man who doesn't speak a lot, he created the Soul Reaper Academy, founded the Gotei 13 and strongly believes in following the law.
His zanpakuto is named ''Ryujin Jakka'', rightfully reputed as the most powerful fire-type. His Bankai is ''Zanka no Tachi'', rightfully reputed to be the equivalent of a weapon of mass destruction, capable of instantly drying the air itself.
--> Voiced by: Masaaki Tsukada (JP), Creator/NeilKaplan (ENG)
-----
* AnimateDead [=/=] ArmyOfTheDead: Zanka no Tachi South: Kaka Juuman Okushi Daisoujin summons an army of corpses. [[spoiler: They're actually the corpses of those that have been killed by Ryūjin Jakka's flames.]]
* ArchEnemy: Yhwach and Yamamoto's enmity goes back a thousand years. The origin is a mystery but they are each other's nemesis.
* TheAtoner: He used to lead a far more violent and brutal Gotei 13 when he was younger. Yhwach claims the Quincy massacre forced Yamamoto to re-evaluate himself and his past. [[spoiler: However, a flashback to a youthful Kyouraku indicates Yamamoto's remorse goes back far further than Yhwach knows.]]
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Yhwach states the reason Yamamoto is in charge of the Gotei 13 is because he set up the original "13 Divisions", a group of powerful, terrible thugs, of which Yamamoto was by far the worse. While Yhwach states how Yamamoto has mellowed since then into "weakness", Yamamoto himself told Aizen that the reason as to why he was still captain-commander, is because no-one born in the last thousand years had been more powerful than him.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Yamamoto is by far the most powerful captain of the Gotei 13 and is in charge of even the other captains.
* {{Badass}}: He's the strongest fighter in the Soul Society, with the most powerful offensive Zanpakuto ever. As a result, his most dangerous opponents approach fighting him by negating his Zanpakutou first. Aizen seals it, but Yamamoto is so powerful he remains dangerously capable of unarmed and Kido combat. In the end, Aizen has to use Yamamoto's own power against him, and even then, Yamamoto still gets one last laugh by the name of Itto Kaso, which opens Aizen up for a slash by Ichigo. [[spoiler:Yhwach completely outdoes Aizen by baiting Yamamoto into wasting his Bankai on a decoy before stealing it and killing him off in ''one strike''.]]
* BadassBoast:
** Chapter 483, shortly after Luders notes the lax security of his office:
-->'''Yamamoto''': "I am here. ''There is no better security than this''."
** During his next fight:
--> '''Yamamoto''': Now that I've [[spoiler:unleashed my bankai]], think of both my body and blade as...[[ThePowerOfTheSun the embodiment of the Sun!!]]
** His release command is "All things in the Universe turn to ashes," and his bankai shows there is nothing hyperbolic about that sentence.
* BadassBeard: He has an extremely long, white beard. While normally it just looks like an old man beard, Yamamoto is actually extremely buff and aggressive.
* BadassGrandpa: Get off his lawn or he'll set your punk ass on fire. Seal his zanpakuto's powers and he'll tear you a new asshole with his bare hands.
* BaldOfAwesome: He's the oldest known Soul Reaper and the captain commander. He's bald because he lived long enough to lose his hair, but don't count his age against him. He's the most powerful Soul Reaper for a thousand years.
* BareFistedMonk: NEVER assume this man is harmless if you neutralize his sword.
* BerserkButton: He has ''a lot''.
** Defying the laws of Society by putting personal justice above society's justice. He was even willing to kill his favourite students when they did this.
** Never ''ever'' [[RantInducingSlight lose your]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking captain's haori]].
* BigGood: Fully graduates into one by the time of the Vandenreich invasion, though GoodIsNotNice by any means.
* BigOlEyebrows: He has massive, thin eyebrow that actually spill out across the side of his head and hang down.
* CallingYourAttacks: Like most Soul Reapers, he calls out the attack names of his Zanpakutou techniques, unarmed combat techniques and Kido spells.
* CaneSword: Ryujin Jakka's sealed form is hidden inside a walking staff. To enter shikai, the staff dissolves into nothing, leaving only the sword behind.
* CassandraDidIt: When Yamamoto confronts Mayuri about the steps Mayuri's taken to counter the Vandenreich's potentially world-unbalancing activities, he briefly tries to pin the blame for the extent of the problem on Mayuri and his division's competence level. Mayuri retaliates by [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech pointing out]] the only one to blame is Yamamoto himself for ignoring Mayuri's CassandraTruth well over two years beforehand as paranoia when it was Yamamoto's own fault for not killing the cause of the problem years ago. Yamamoto's forced to back down.
* CharacterDevelopment: When he met Hirako for the first time in the present storyline, he actually considers attacking the ex-captain for not pledging his support to the Soul Reapers (not that it stopped other Soul Reapers from helping the Visoreds anyway). After Aizen is defeated and everything calms down, Yamamoto switches his position entirely in the novel Death Save The Strawberry. He actually lifts the ban on the Visoreds (and the exiled ex-captains), rationalizing that they were not guilty due to their situations being influenced by Aizen's machinations, not their own intentions. Urahara is especially thankful.
* CoatCape: He wears it draped over his shoulders. It came as a surprise to many when he turned out to be extremely fit under that appearance.
* TheCoatsAreOff: When Yamamoto gets serious in battle, he tosses away the haori and even loses the upper half of his kimono to fight bare-chested.
* CombatPragmatist: When he was younger he was apparently a vicious fighter, though by the time Kyoraku and Ukitake were kids he had mellowed out.
* CoveredWithScars: Some of his scars have story-significant background to them, especially the scar that was inflicted by Sasakibe, which impressed him enough to change his name.
* DidntSeeThatComing: Yamamoto thrashed Yhwach with his Bankai, completely certain he knew everything there was to know about Yhwach's heart, abilities and limitations. He turned out to be wrong about all three. [[spoiler: Yamamoto was fighting a decoy which allowed Yhwach time to visit and try to recruit ''Aizen''. Yhwach's was then able to steal Yamamoto's Bankai and defeat him.]]
* DistressedDude: In the Zanpakutou {{filler}} arc, Muramasa held him prisoner behind a barrier that was being maintained by the Zanpakutou spirits of Kyouraku, Ukitake and Unohana's weapons. A significant portion of the arc is spent by the Soul Reapers and Ichigo trying to rescue him. [[spoiler: They didn't realise until too late that he had deliberately sealed himself from Muramasa to prevent Muramasa stealing his memories.]]
* EyesAlwaysShut: When he opens his eyes, his mood is usually incredibly dangerous.
* GoodIsNotNice: He is such a stern believer in justice that he almost killed his two favourite students for standing up for what was right instead of what was law. Ichigo is responsible for making him mellow out.
* GoodScarsEvilScars: His body is a network of scars. The scars on his forehead have stories that do get revealed in late in the manga.
* FlamingSword: The basic power of his zanpakuto.
* FounderOfTheKingdom: 2,100 years ago, he was the creator and head instructor of the "Genji School", an educational program meant to train prospective Soul Reapers, which operates outside the jurisdiction of Central 46. This would later evolve into the Spiritual Arts Academy, which included training sessions for cadets looking to get into the Stealth Force and the Kido Corps. A millennium later, he founded the Gotei 13, a military organization for the Soul Reapers and an agency that he has led since its inception.
* FourIsDeath: The "ei" in his previous nickname Eijisai (ノ字斎, referencing the shape of his scar) is the fourth kanji radical in the sequence. [[spoiler:It's revealed as part of the lead-in to the fight that ends with his death.]]
* GrumpyOldMan: He's never smiled, he's never laughed and he's never cracked a joke in his life. When he's not roaring at the top of his lungs, he has a stern, unimpressed expression that can easily turn to accusatory (e.g. the argument with Mayuri).
* HandicappedBadass: Loses an arm after casting a powerful kido spell against Aizen. This doesn't seem to have affected his ability to verbally tear three captains a new one over losing their captain's haoris. Ukitake even comments that despite having lost an arm Yamamoto's still the most powerful in Soul Society.
* HonorBeforeReason: Yhwach believed the only reason Orihime didn't restore Yamamoto's missing arm was because he was far too proud to rely on a human's help.
* HopeBringer: The Vandenreich have invaded the Soul Society and are swatting down Red Shirts left and right without much to stop them, and even the Captains aren't very effective against them due to the Vandenreich's ability to steal Bankai. Things look completely hopeless until Yamamoto steps in, after which the Gotei 13 gets a ''massive'' morale boost that's even Lampshaded by one of the Stern Ritter [[spoiler:though when he's killed, morale plummets.]]
-->'''Bambietta Basterbine''': ''"Hey hey, wait. You were about to die until a moment ago. What happened?"''
* ItsPersonal: The enmity between Yamamoto and Yhwach is very personal. When the Vandenreich ransack Soul Society, Yamamoto takes to the front line, something he rarely does. [[spoiler: The death of Choujirou exacerbates the situation, sending him gunning for Yhwach and launching straight into Bankai without much preamble.]]
* KillItWithFire: Yamamoto's entire power is centred around this and the zanpakuto generates a phenomenal amount of fire even at its weakest levels. His idea of holding back is to toast an enemy to within an inch of their life and then let them live.
* KnightTemplar: This guy generally means well, but he has HIGH respect for the laws of Soul Society, and will kick anyone's ass for daring to defy them. It's implied that his adherence to the law is his way of making up for his previous life as a warlord presiding over a lawless WretchedHive that was once (and largely still is) the Soul Society.
* LetThemDieHappy: Right before her execution, Rukia's last wish is for Ichigo and friends to be granted safe passage back home, Yamamoto agrees. Unohana claims that he did it so that Rukia may die peacefully, while Isane believes that it was ''such'' an obvious lie that she found it to be CruelMercy.
* MeaningfulRename: The "Genryusai" name is one that he adopted after getting his last scar from the fight in which Sasakibe showed him his Bankai. From "Eijisai", to "Juujisai" (referring to the cross-shaped scar Sasakibe gave him), and then "Genryusai" (to honor Sasakibe for injuring him). The actual translation of the name gives it even more meaning. Genryuusai (元柳斎) means "original willow sage" to his name because of this. In Chinese folklore, the willow is believed to ward off evil spirits; in Japanese, it's associated with ghosts and the afterlife. It's also a symbol of strength; geisha call their society the "flower and willow world": beautiful and requiring strength to endure.
* MundaneUtility: He uses Ryujin Jakka's flames to cook and bake.
* NotSoDifferent
** During his fight with Ukitake and Shunsui, he admits that while their methods are different and, at the time, conflicting with each other, their goals (upholding justice) are the same.
** During the Thousand Year Blood War arc, it's noted that Yamamoto used to be every bit as brutal as Yhwach, something that both sides know perfectly well but interpret differently.
* OhCrap: His fight with Yhwach ends in one of these faces when Yhwach catches him off-guard. [[spoiler: It's only when he inflicts a killing blow on Yhwach that he realises he hasn't been fighting Yhwach at all.]]
* TheOlderImmortal: By far the oldest Soul Reaper. Yamamoto is at least 2000 years old, potentially much older. There is an anime omake lampshading the fact that not only is he old-looking, he apparently has not aged since Kyoraku and Ukitake were young... er. In a manga flashback set during that period, though, he does look more middle aged during this time period.
* OneHitKill: How he ends most of his fights. Not even Aizen or Yhwach are brave enough to take a direct hit from Ryujin Jakka. Wonderweiss was developed just to stop this from happening.
* PapaWolf: To all of Soul Society. Yes, he's a GrumpyOldMan and all, but he will '''not''' stand for invaders.
* PersonOfMassDestruction: The sheer magnitude of his power means that he is a walking deathtrap for anyone around him. [[spoiler: His Bankai destroys all the moisture that exists for miles around -- not just in the atmosphere and in standing water but even within the human body itself. Unohana indicates Yamamoto's bankai will destroy the world just by being active for too long.]]
* PetTheDog: A harsh man, indeed, but not one without his moments of compassion. See TookALevelInKindness below.
* PlayingWithFire: His zanpakuto is the most powerful fire based sword in existence.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: His Bankai is incredibly powerful compared to even his Shikai's flames. [[spoiler: The heat he generates is equal to the Sun's core and if active for too long will destroy the world around him.]]
* RecruitingTheCriminal: Some of the captains have a history of severe criminal behaviour, such as Kenpachi Zaraki, or engage in criminal behaviour to do their jobs, such as Mayuri. [[spoiler: Captain Unohana is the worst criminal in Soul Society history.]]
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Averted. Yamamoto freely acknowledges to Aizen that if he's caught in his own flames, he'll die, too.
* RingOfFire: Jokaku Enjo, basically a cage of fire.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: Normally obeys the laws and judgements of Central 46 without question. However, even he agrees to repaying Soul Society's debt to Ichigo, regardless of tradition, to the extent of outright [[spoiler: '''ordering''' the Gotei 13 to aid in restoring Ichigo's powers.]]
* ShutUpHannibal During his fight with Driscoll who uses [[spoiler:Sasakibe's bankai]] against him. Driscoll goes on and on how powerful he now is. Yamamoto purposely takes the attack and is barely even affected by it. Driscoll doesn't realize this and keeps gloating until Yamamoto declares that [[spoiler:his former lieutenant's bankai]] wasn't ''that weak'' before flaying Driscoll with his shikai.
* SlasherSmile: When Aizen stabs Yamamoto, Yamamoto's grin is manic. It's precisely what Yamamoto wanted Aizen to do.
* SuperpowerLottery: With the arguable exception of [[spoiler:Mugetsu Ichigo]] he's far and away the most powerful character in the series, to the point that both Aizen and Yhwach needed to resort to dirty tricks to stand a chance. [[spoiler:[[TooPowerfulToLive Probably why he dies very soon after showing his full power]]]].
* TakingTheBullet: Part of the reason his fight with Aizen goes poorly for him is that he does this, taking his own attack to prevent it from destroying everyone and everything in the area.
* TakingYouWithMe: Attempted on Aizen, via Itto Kaso (a Kido spell that used his arm as a catalyst for an explosion). He tried one earlier by grabbing Aizen's arm (thereby dissipating the illusions from Kyouka Suigetsu) and declaring that they'll kill each other in short order, but Wonderweiss stepped in.
* TookALevelInKindness: From the days of the founding of the Academy, he significantly loosened up in comparison to the warlord he once was (and even then, he was still rather harsh). After the Quincy war, the Soul Society fell into the kind of peace that bred a softening of the heart, and once Ichigo appeared on the scene, Yamamoto's descent into kindness was cemented; he ordered the Gotei 13 to [[spoiler:restore Ichigo's Soul Reaper power and uses his judicial authority (an emergency power after Central 46 was BoardToDeath) to abolish the exile on Urahara's crew and lift the ban on the Visoreds. Yhwach claims that he could kill Yamamoto precisely because Yamamoto was no longer harsh and pragmatic enough to handle Yhwach.]]
* TranquilFury: Ever since [[spoiler:Sasakibe's death]], he's clearly simmering, but keeps it very low-key. It's rather frightening.
* TheUnfettered: Around the time of the war with the Quincies, it's very easy to presume that his behavior was close to that of a GeneralRipper.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: The reason he allows Mayuri to break the law in the course of doing his job is because he tends to agree that sometimes the ends do justify the means. [[spoiler:Yamamoto admitted that he would've ''allowed'' Kurotsuchi to kill those citizens in the Rukongai, had Kurotsuchi told him beforehand and the reason for it.]]
* WithUsOrAgainstUs: When confronted by Hirako over the Visoreds' intention to oppose Aizen, but not ally with the Soul Reapers, Yamamoto responds by unsheathing his sword, although Hirako leaves before Yamamoto could use it.
* WreathedInFlames: Ryuujin Jakka allows him to do this. [[spoiler: It's a Bankai power and makes him NighInvulnerable.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Chojiro Tadaoki Sasakibe]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sasakibe001_3715.png]]
->''"No. If I become your disciple, then I will just be imitating you. As your right arm, I want to make up for whatever you cannot do!"''
Lieutenant of the 1st squad and... not a whole lot besides that. Virtually everything we know about him comes from the Data Books; he's someone who stays in the background and almost never fights in the manga. The first time he came to notice was when Ichigo defeated Sasakibe, Kotetsu and Omaeda shortly after obtaining Bankai. He has the most unusual eyes in the manga: they're solid gold in color and lack both pupils and sclera.
His Zanpakuto is named ''Gonryomaru'', a traditional western rapier. His Bankai is ''Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū'', capable of calling down thunderstorms and bolts of lighting.
--> Voiced by: Taro Yamaguchi (JP), Creator/MichaelMcConnohie (ENG)
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: In the manga, his eyes are solid gold with neither pupils nor sclera. In the anime, he's given normal sclera and pupils, leaving him with golden irises.
* AllThereInTheManual: He's so much a part of the background in the manga that most of the information comes from the databooks. It's not until the final arc that we see flashbacks explaining his relationship with Yamamoto.
* {{Badass}}: That horizontal scar on Yamamoto's head was dealt to him by Sasakibe long ago.
* BarrierWarrior: Apparently. He's the one who guarded the barrier over Karakura and later opened it to let the Visoreds pull their BigDamnHeroes.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Accessorizes his right arm, but not his left.
* {{Foil}}: As his quote indicates, he became this to Yamamoto intentionally.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: He wears something that looks like a captains' haori, even though he's a lieutenant. He was actually offered several chances to become a captain, but he turned them down each time. It's revealed, much later, that [[spoiler:he possesses Bankai. In fact, he's had Bankai longer than Ukitake and Kyoraku had theirs. The only reason he never became a captain was because of his loyalty to Yamamoto, similar to Ikkaku's situation with his own Bankai.]]
* IWasQuiteALooker: He used to be a bishonen! No, really!
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: The first invasion of the Vandenreich ends with Choujirou being impaled by a giant Quincy lance. Yamamoto lets the Quincies go in order to save Choujirou. [[spoiler: Choujirou's wounds turn out to be fatal and he dies fairly quickly after being released from the lance.]]
* InformedAbility: He was captain-class, but he also never fought, so people only knew his strength by reputation. [[spoiler:He possesses Bankai but it's only revealed after his death.]]
* MinorMajorCharacter: He is the lieutenant of the prestigious first division, serving as the captain-commander's second. However, he almost never takes part in any fighting and has very few lines. He is very much Yamamoto's shadow; a role he worked hard to cultivate.
* OddCouple: The Databooks say him and his captain make an unstoppable team, but they have differing tastes in tea, which they argue about all the time. Tea isn't the only thing they argue over. Chojiro is a fan of Western culture (England mainly) and dislikes Japanese culture while Yamamoto prefers Japanese culture and disapproves of Western culture.
* PowerOfTheStorm: Like Hyorinmaru, his Bankai can manipulate the weather.
* RoyalRapier: His shikai transforms into a rapier.
* SatelliteCharacter: He's Yamamoto's lieutenant and little more.
* ShockAndAwe: Due to a lack of screentime where he fought, the ''Zanpakuto Unknown Tales'' filler arc was the first time where we got to see his Zanpakutō's ability, albeit in a non-canon situation. It wasn't until [[spoiler:Yamamoto's battle against Driscoll Berci who stole Sasakibe's Bankai]] that we finally get to see it in the canon storyline.
* UndyingLoyalty: In a similar vein to Ikkaku, it's mentioned that he could have been promoted to Captain, but he turned down the offer whenever there was a vacancy out of loyalty to Yamamoto.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 2
[[folder:Suì-Fēng]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Episode_366_Sui-Feng_9488.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see her pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/soifon001_2639.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"I have no interest in whether it is right or wrong. All I care about is executing orders as a captain of the Gotei 13. All who get in my way are my enemies. All enemies must be slain. That is all that matters."''
Real name '''Shaolin Fon''', is the overly strict captain of the 2nd squad and also a {{Ninja}}. Her speciality lies mainly with speed and unarmed combat. She has a history together with Yoruichi and [[BodyguardCrush respects her]] so highly it's used as a RunningGag. She may be [[ActionGirl super-efficient]] and [[TheStoic cold]] when it comes to her job, but when alone and subjected to anything Yoruichi (or black cats in general), she gets [[{{Tsundere}} googly]]-[[CovertPervert eyed]].
Her zanpakutou is named ''Suzumebachi'', an ornate gauntlet and stinger enveloping her middle finger. It allows her to instantly kill her enemy if she hits the same spot twice. Her Bankai is ''Jakuhō Raikōben'', an enormous battery housing a missile with enough destructive power to level a city block.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TomokoKawakami (JP, Episodes 24-182), Creator/HoukoKuwashima (JP, Episode 206+), Creator/KarenStrassman (ENG)
----
* ActionGirl: One of the most action-oriented ladies in Bleach.
* AnimalMotifs: The Japanese Giant Hornet, a subspecies of Asian Giant Hornet. Highly aggressive, a very capable killer, famous for its sting but far more famous for its physical prowess... is that the hornet being described or Soifon?
* ArmCannon: Her [[EmpathicWeapon zanpakutou]] brings her under this trope for short periods of time. In [[TouchOfDeath shikai]], her [[ImpossiblyCoolWeapon zanpakutou]] integrates with a finger on her right hand to turn her into the [[LightningBruiser ultimate two-hit kill warrior]]. However, in [[FinishingMove bankai]], her [[{{BFG}} zanpakutou]] becomes a [[NukeEm stinger]] [[StuffBlowingUp missile]] [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill launcher]] that is [[ArmCannon integrated with her entire right arm]] to turn her into the [[OneHitKill ultimate one-hit kill warrior]].
* AwesomeButImpractical: Her opinion on her Bankai. It's too big and unwieldy for an assassin and the explosion is so large it's hard for her not to get caught up in it. She also tries not to use it more than once every three days because of the strain it puts on her.
* {{Badass}}: She's quite a capable fighter and focuses on stealth and speed rather than raw power, so her flashy bankai annoys her.
* BadBoss: But only if her subordinates break the law.
* {{BFG}}: Her bankai is a damn '''missile-launcher'''!
* BlowYouAway: When Soifon activates Shunko against Yoruichi, she creates gusts of wind around herself to fight. [[spoiler: When she fights [=BG9=] she confirms that her Shunko form is Wind which allows her to create reiatsu tornadoes around her body.]]
* BodyguardCrush: She was one of Yoruichi's personal guards and came to worship her as a goddess.
* BraidsOfAction: Her hair is quite long, but it doesn't show up well because it's kept in very thin braids, presumably so it doesn't get in the way of fighting.
* CallingYourAttacks: "Nigeki Kessatsu!", various Kido spells.
* CloseRangeCombatant: The Onmitsukido specializes in unarmed combat and, as their Supreme Commander, Sui-Feng is the most proficient at it. The caption on pg.196 of ''The Official Character Book: Souls'' even states:
-->'''caption:''' "Soi Fon's close combat skills rival, or even surpass, those of Yoruichi's."
* CombatPragmatist: She believes that seeing a comrade getting killed before your eyes just provides a good opportunity to stab your opponent from behind. As a ninja, she fully supports the Academy training lesson that shinigami should fight to win, not for honour.
* CovertPervert: The anime likes playing up her subtext with Yoruichi and making her out to be pervert.
* DiscardAndDraw: During the Thousand Year Blood War, [[spoiler:her bankai is stolen]], forcing her to compensate. [[spoiler:She finally masters Shunko and appears to have the advantage at first, though the attack actually failed.]]
* ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy: Ggio Vega notes that her shikai would have a ''much'' higher success rate if she would stop doing that. [[spoiler:Then she kills him with it. Turns out she didn't explain everything.]]
* {{Fangirl}}: A few fans think that she isn't literally gay for Yoruichi, she's just a huge fangirl. Either way, it's funny.
* HairDecorations: The white ribbons she braids her hair with and the pair of gold rings at ends of them.
* InformedAbility: Soifon excels at stealth and covert operations and states she has great pride in her ability to do her job as an assassin. However, the story focuses mainly on the Gotei 13 which means she isn't seen operating as an assassin. Her personality is also very flashy which means her tactics tend to make her a HighlyVisibleNinja instead.
* {{Jerkass}}: Unless you're Yoruichi, she probably hates you.
* JerkassFacade: She intentionally treats her subordinates coldly to keep them always alert.
* KickTheDog: Like Byakuya, she had quite a few jerkass moves in the Soul Society arc, to the point she occasionally bordered on sadism.
* KindheartedCatLover: She's made her barracks cat-friendly and collects cat statues.
* ItsPersonal: God can she hold a grudge when it comes to personal matters, as Yoruichi found out.
* LifeOrLimbDecision: When Baraggan's power pretty much trashed her arm, she had Omaeda ''cut it off''. [[spoiler:It's restored after the battle.]]
* LightningBruiser: She's fast and tiny so on the surface, it looks like she's either a FragileSpeedster or that speed is her main strength. Neither are the case. Despite her insane speed, her best ability is actually her physical strength (confirmed in the Official Bootleg) which manifests in bankai as a ''nuke'' making her the Hard Hitting type of LightningBruiser.
* MagicEnhancement: [[SupernaturalMartialArts Hakuda]] trains a shinigami's body to the physical limit to become a weapon capable of extremely powerful unarmed combat. Soi Fon discovered Shunkou, a technique that allows [[FunctionalMagic kidou]] to be driven into the arms and legs to boost the body's Hakuda performance beyond its physical limit. Soi Fon was stunned when she discovered she wasn't the first person to have discovered this technique.
* MyMasterRightOrWrong: She dutifully follows orders of the Seretei never seeming to question if there's something off about them.
* {{Ninja}}: She is the leader of the special forces, an organisation made up of ninjas, and takes great pride in being one herself.
* NeverGotToSayGoodbye: To Yoruichi, when she became a FallenPrincess. And boy, is she upset because of that.
* PerpetualFrowner: Unless Yoruichi is around.
* PowerStrainBlackout: Using her bankai drains so much of her reiatsu, that it usually takes her three days to recover before she can safely use it again. Forcing herself to use it twice in one day, mere moments after the first shot, made her lose consciousness.
* ProfessionalKiller: She is the leader of the special forces, an organisation made up of ninjas. Their work is separate from that of the Gotei 13 military, and often classified.
* RunningGag: Obsession with Yoruichi and (as a result) black cats.
* ShortHairWithTail: Two tails, in fact, and the contrasting (independent versus dramatic) personality to go with it.
* SingleTargetSexuality: For Yoruichi. Probably.
* SkewedPriorities: [[spoiler:You got a powerful Arrancar about to kill you, even costing you an arm]] and you don't want help from one of the Visoreds till they agree to punish Kisuke out of some petty jealousy? ...Why?
* SmallGirlBigGun: In bankai mode only.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: Her name was first translated to be Soi Fong, which sounded Chinese since [[AnimeChineseGirl she looks Chinese]], but some others still spell it as Soi Fon. Her name was then spelled as "Suì-Feng," but specifically for the Pinyin translation in Mandarin Chinese; it's still pronounced as "Soifon" in Japanese).
* TouchOfDeath: Nigeki Kessatsu effectively amounts to this, as Sui-Feng can administer both stings faster than even the well trained eye can follow; making it so the victim only feels one... assuming the victim feels anything ''[[YouAreAlreadyDead at all.]]''
* {{Tsundere}}: Type A. She's cold and harsh around most people, but ''melts'' whenever she's in Yoruichi's presence.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Marechiyo Omaeda]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/omaeda001_6460.png]]
->''"I'm not fat! I'm just plump! It's a symbol of affluence. It's not the same as a poor bastard like you who's just sloppily fat without any reason. That's what you are."''
The slow and large cocky tough guy [[HugeGuyTinyGirl counterpart]] to Sui-Fon and her lieutenant. He comes from a rich family as well.
His Zanpakuto is ''Gegetsuburi'', a large spiked flail.
--> Voiced by: Shoto Kashii (JP), Creator/LexLang (ENG)
----
* {{Acrofatic}} LightningBruiser: You'd expect that him being fat would make him slow, but there's a reason he's in the second squad.
* BigBrotherInstinct: He'll do anything to protect his little sister Mareyo. [[spoiler:He normally a coward, but when [=BG9=] attacks her, he goes absolutely ''berserk''.]]
* ButtMonkey: Nobody takes him seriously. Ikkaku has openly stated no-one cares about him and during the Gotei 13 Invasion arc, his Reigai imposter took an appearance upgrade because he didn't even want to look like his original. Later on in the story, it's indicated that Omaeda does use this to his advantage in battle, but it doesn't change how his allies treat him.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: He's not badass, but when pushed to action he's not the [[UpperClassTwit bumbling idiot]] he usually is.
* ADayInTheLimelight: Episode 312 is an Omaeda focus episode where he pretends to be the Squad 2 captain.
* DeclarationOfProtection: A badass, heartfelt one in Chapter 548, to his little sister Mareyo.
* DumbMuscle: He's built quite heavily but is clearly not too bright.
* EpicFlail: Gegetsuburi's Shikai takes the form of a morning star.
* {{Gonk}}: He's fat, ugly and taken seriously by no one.
* InsistentTerminology: "I'm not fat, I'm full-figured!"
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He really DOES care about his family and Sui-Feng, despite coming off as a self-centered idiot at first.
* LetsGetDangerous: During the Fake Karakura Town battles, he reveals that he didn't get his position through family influence but rather genuinely earned it. He exaggerates his normal arrogant attitude to catch opponents off guard.
* MeaningfulName: "Omaeda" is phonetically cognate with a [[UsefulNotes/JapanesePronouns mildly rude way]] of saying "[[HeyYou It's you]]!" [[ButtMonkey And he receives about that much respect]].
* ObfuscatingStupidity: He uses an UpperClassTwit persona to make people ''think'' he's in the Gotei due to [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney family position]] while in fact, he's genuinely certified to be in his position. He really ''is'' stupid, but only when it comes to things other than combat, though.
* OverlyLongName: His full name is...* deep breath* ...Marechiyo Yoshiyamenosuke Nikkotaroemon Omaeda.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: His mom, dad, older sister, and younger brother all look like him. The only family member who doesn't share the resemblance is his youngest sister, Mareyo. Omakes reveal that Hisagi, Renji and Kira were all smitten by how beautiful she was, but Marechiyo says she's the ugly one of the family.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Rice crackers.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Sui-Feng. Despite being a DirtyCoward 95% of the time when push comes to shove he will put himself into danger if she's in trouble and after the Vandenreich invasion [[spoiler: he showed disappointment that she didn't bring him along when she went off training.]]
* UpperClassTwit: He loves to flaunt his status and gives the impression of being promoted entirely based on family prestige.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Marenoshin Omaeda]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/marenoshin001_4149.png]]
Father to Marechiyo and lieutenant to Yoruichi, Marenoshin retired from his position and fathered four children (two daughters; two sons), living in a luxurious lifestyle typical of aristocrats.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything we know about him was revealed in the ''Masked'' databook.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In an after-episode segment and manga omake, we get our first glimpse of Marenoshin when Marechiyo introduced the Omaeda family to Ichigo and Rukia. In particular, Marenoshin now has darker and curlier brown hair, along with a pair of sunglasses, extra weight and tons of jewellery.
* GenerationXerox: The Omaeda clan makes its living out of being members of the Stealth Force. Marenoshin was the lieutenant to the same division as his son. They even share the same birthday, height, weight and fashion sense (right down to the same purple collar in their Shihakusho, but Marenoshin had curly brown as opposed to Marechiyo's black.
* InformedAbility: Said to be stronger than his son.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 3
[[folder:Gin Ichimaru]]
Debuted as Captain of Squad 3, but had deserted [[LateArrivalSpoiler after revealing]] [[CoDragons his true colors]] in the Soul Society arc's final stage. For more information go [[Characters/BleachAizenAndHisCohorts here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Rojuro "Rose" Otoribashi]]
Current captain of Squad 3, he was also it's previous captain before being exiled a century ago. He later reprises his role after Aizen's defeat. For more information go [[Characters/BleachVisoredsAndExiledSoulReapers here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Izuru Kira]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kira001_1833.png]]
->''"Battle is not a stage for empty heroics and nor is it something to take pleasure in. Battle is filled with despair. Dark, terrifying. That is the way that it should be. That way, people learn to fear battle and to choose the path of non-violence where possible."''
Squad 3's lieutenant. He graduated the Soul Reaper Academy along with Renji and Hinamori and was later assigned under Gin Ichimaru. After Ichimaru's betrayal, he occasionally joins Matsumoto in [[DrowningMySorrows drinking sessions]].
His Zanpakuto is ''Wabisuke'', a strangely shaped katana which doubles the weight of anything it strikes.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TakahiroSakurai (JP), Creator/GrantGeorge (ENG)
----
* ADayInTheLimelight: Roughly half of the New Captain filler arc was told from his perspective.
* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Once the reports come in from the patrols about the mysteriously dying Rukongai people, he quickly deduces the truth. [[spoiler: They were killed by Soul Reapers and Mayuri knows why.]]
* BadassAngster: Prone to self confidence and depression issues, but '''will''' butcher you when he sees the need for it.
* BerserkButton: Don't mention his former captain in his presence.
* CallingYourAttacks: Various Kido spells.
* CantHoldHisLiquor: You might see Rangiku and Shuuhei casually having a drink...and Izuru collapsed on the floor, foaming at the mouth.
* CharacterDevelopment: Chronologically speaking, Kira started off as a friendly and somewhat cocky cadet in the Spiritual Arts Academy. Come present time, although pragmatic in combat, he's gloomy, introspective, worrisome and indecisive, which leads to several areas of conflict between himself and his friends. Once we see him in the Blood War arc, he's far less moody and a lot more analytical, making him appear generally more leader-like amongst the other lieutenants.
* CombatPragmatist: Personal combat philosophy? [[WarIsGlorious War]] [[AvertedTrope isn't]] [[WarIsGlorious about honor and glory]]. [[WarIsHell War is a horrible thing and you should use whatever horrible means you can to make sure people fear it and avoid them at all costs.]] And there's no need for mercy, either. Nor for fighting a battle you know you can't win.
* ConflictingLoyalty: He was torn between his friendships and his loyalty to his captain. He ultimately chose to follow his captain, to the point of becoming bait over the BoardToDeath sequence. Once it turns out that Ichimaru was a traitor, Kira is understandably upset.
* DrowningMySorrows: Following his captain's defection, he is often seen drinking. His main drinking partner is Rangiku, but she's not his only one.
* ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy: Every single battle, but only when his opponent is already immobilized by Wabisuke's power.
* FatalFlaw: Loyalty. He's so dedicated to his captain that it led to him turning on such friends as Hinamori and Matsumoto, leaving him so conflicted that he became prone to self-loathing whenever he felt remorse over challenging his friends.
* GravityMaster: His Zanpakuto doubles the weight of anything it hits, every time it hits -- meaning, if he whacks a ball the weight of 2kg five times it weighs 64kg. This isn't limited to weapons; the gigantic wings of Abirama Redder were affected similarly, though he had to slash them repeatedly for it to kick in full.
* HeroicBSOD: Has one of these when he learns that Aizen and Gin are traitors and that his old friend Momo is on the verge of death.
* MartialPacifist: Similar to Hisagi, but with a different spin. He doesn't like fighting even when he has to, but while in a fight, he's cold and ruthless, because he believes that such tactics are necessary to ''discourage'' combat.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Calls himself a "monster" when he raises his sword against poor Momo.
* OddlyShapedSword: Probably the oddest of them all in this series.
* OhCrap: When he had Matsumoto beaten, she used Haineko to bypass Wabisuke's GravityMaster abilities, catching him off-guard (and resulting in his defeat). Some {{Red Shirt}}s found him and helped him up... just in time to learn that Ichimaru was a traitor, which led to ''another'' OhCrap from him.
* ParentalAbandonment: Shizuka, his mother, and Kagekiyo, his father, both died when he was young, although it's unknown if they died before or after he joined the academy.
* PeekABangs: His hair covers a large part of his face, usually including one of his eyes.
* PerpetualFrowner: Though he was more happy as an academy student, by the time he shows up in the story he tends to be pretty humorless and depressed. This ties in fairly well to the ability of his sword.
* PoseOfSupplication: The concept is played with in regards to his zanpakutou's special abilities. Anything he hits it with gains weight until the person can no longer stand and are forced into this pose, where he will then use Wabisuke's odd form to behead them.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive Guy to either Shuhei or Renji, especially when he was a cadet (and much happier than in the present storyline). Subverted, however, when he and Hisagi have to deal with an emotional Yumichika. Hisagi takes the sensitive route of trying to talk down Yumichika. Kira doesn't bother and [[InstantSedation tranqs]] Yumichika into unconsciousness instead simply because he disapproves of the way a fifth seat was talking to a lieutenant.
* SmugSuper: Back in the academy, he noted that Hisagi (his upperclassman) failed the entrance exam twice, and takes the time to brag how he passed at the top of his class and assumed that meant his talent was greater. He has since lost this type of confidence.
* UnwittingPawn: Kira was sent by Ichimaru to the Central 46 Compound, where Hitsugaya and Matsumoto were trying to figure out the identity of the Central 46's assassin. Hitsugaya and Matsumoto immediately decide to follow him, but he claims that he only just arrived as well. He lets it slip that Hinamori escaped her jail-cell and had been following Hitsugaya the entire time. When Hitsugaya turns tail to find Hinamori, Matsumoto stays to confront Kira, who reveals that Ichimaru sent him there to draw Matsumoto away from Hitsugaya and Hinamori (both of whom were subsequently slashed to near-death by Aizen).
* UsedToBeASweetKid: He was ''much'' friendlier when he was in the academy. By the time of the main storyline, he had become much more dour and pessimistic.
* TorsoWithAView: At one point he does take a nasty injury through the chest. [[spoiler:Bazz-B shoots a Heilig Pfeil at him, destroying a large portion of the right side of Kira's abdomen and right arm.]]
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: As a cadet in the Spiritual Arts Academy, Kira held this relationship between Renji Abarai and Momo Hinamori, although in a much more platonic portrayal than the typical example. Once things head into the Soul Society arc, all three end up into conflict with one another; Izuru tried to keep the peace while dutifully following his captain, who turned out to be a traitor, putting him directly at odds with Hinamori.
* WarIsHell: He's developed a strong belief in this, which stems either from his past experiences with Hollows (ala the Academy) and/or the death of both of his parents. This is in stark contrast to his opponent, Abirama Redder, who believes that WarIsGlorious. Kira counters this by lecturing him over the realities of war, and demonstrates his point by using Wabisuke to ''behead'' Abirama.
* WarriorPoet: Likes to write Haiku. Though they aren't very good haiku.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Chikane Iba]]
An elderly woman who was once Rose's lieutenant, serving her post since before Rose even became her captain. She is the mother of Tetsuzaemon.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything we know about her was found in the MASKED databook.
* BerserkButton: Death Save The Strawberry indicates that she ''hated'' Rose's music, so much that he had to hide his instruments from her.
* GenerationXerox: Her son made it his mission to become a lieutenant so he can please his mother, herself a long-serving lieutenant.
* GrumpyOldMan: The one picture we have of her involves her angrily shouting at Rose.
* {{Jerkass}}: To the point where her own son actually calls her a ''bitch-hag''.
* MultiColoredHair: She has dark hair with a large gray streak running along the top left side of her head.
* PetTheDog: As abrasive as she is, she's the one who pushed for Rose to become her captain, according to Rose himself in the Death Save The Strawberry novel.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 4
[[folder:Retsu Unohana]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/unohana001_310_290px_3641.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see [[spoiler: "Yachiru Unohana"]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/600px-Ch523_UnohanaScar_5106.png[[/labelnote]]]]]]
->''"The act of saving a comrade in need should require no thanks."''
Unohana is the gentle and motherly captain of the 4th Squad. She is one of the oldest Captains in the Gotei 13 and has been around since the beginning of the formation of the Gotei 13 as well as the most powerful despite leading a squad based entirely on healing. Because of this, she hides an extremely scary BattleAura that makes even the most {{Badass}} officers of the Gotei 13 go weak in the knees when imagining her wrath. This is even more evident whenever other squads start bullying her squad, whereas a slight glare is enough to send the bullies pissing their pants.
Being one of the senior captains, Unohana harbors great wisdom and perception, and prefers supporting from behind. In fact, she is the only one to notice that something amiss when Aizen 'died' and was able to catch up with him and correctly identify him as a traitor, which prompts him to reveal his trickery... and run off instead of taking her out.
Her zanpakuto and Bankai are both named ''Minazuki'' (肉雫唼 for Shikai, 皆尽 for Bankai) and are seemingly capable of various healing techniques.
--> Voiced by: Creator/AyaHisakawa (JP), Creator/KateHiggins (ENG)
----
* AcheyScars: Her front-braided hair hides a nasty chest scar. [[spoiler:Zaraki inflicted it on her when he was a child and it throbs whenever she hears his voice.]]
* ActionGirl: The databooks revealed early on that she was a power fighter specialist and expert swordsman, contrasting heavily with her role as the medic usually in the back lines. [[spoiler:She's the original Kenpachi and is brought forward by Kyoraku to help train Kenpachi Zaraki, who she proceeds to [[CurbStompBattle hand his ass]] to with minimal effort thus far.]]
* TheAtoner: She once destroyed the potential of a child to develop into the greatest fighter and has regretted that moment ever since. [[spoiler:The child was Zaraki who almost defeated her but sealed his power in terror at the thought of losing the first WorthyOpponent he had ever found. That moment was responsible for turning him into a warrior who holds back in battle to enjoy fighting.]]
* AxCrazy: When she finally lets her hair down to fight, she looks both creepy and crazy. [[spoiler:She views herself as only one step removed from a psychotic criminal, and that's exactly how she fights.]]
* {{Badass}}: Even Squad 11 is terrified of angering her. [[spoiler:She is the original holder of the title of Kenpachi, the strongest swordsman. During her training with Kenpachi, she's technically killed him. ''Many, many times,'' all with what seems to be minimal effort.]]
* BerserkButton: Bully her squad, and this is pressed. Though she still looks [[DissonantSerenity so damn calm]] [[TranquilFury when angry]]. Being forgotten? Shunsui worries about getting on her bad side when he forgets she's one of the original captains.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Acts nice but even slight annoyance on her eyes is said to scare the whole fight-happy Squad 11. Merely forgetting to mention her brings fear to even Shunsui and Ukitake, TWO senior captains. [[spoiler:After her reveal as Yachiru Unohana, [[AxCrazy it makes a whole lot of sense]].]]
* BloodKnight: She almost never fights, but when she does she certainly enjoys it. Kenpachi enjoys fights by doing his best to fight at his opponent's level, while Unohana [[spoiler:keeps herself and her opponent alive whilst her grotesque Bankai dissolves the flesh from their bones to keep enjoying it that much longer.]]
* BloodyMurder: A colour omake about the squads trying to invent a computer game suggests Unohana views killing via manipulating blood. [[spoiler:Her Bankai is a blade of blood that melts the flesh off of her enemies.]]
* BodyHorror: Unohana's command of Kido is so great she can use that power to enable this to happen. [[spoiler:Her Bankai appears to melt the flesh right off the bones, including hers. By using her healing Kido, she can keep the fight going for as long as possible without either party dying from the effects.]]
* CallingYourAttacks: Like most Soul Reapers, she calls her attacks, especially her Kido attacks.
* CombatMedic: She's quite the accomplished swordsman but by preference sticks to support roles. [[spoiler:When training Kenpachi, she combines the two by inflicting lethal wounds and then healing them with the implication that she's going to keep at it until he measures up.]]
* CombatPragmatist: In a series where everyone typically calls out their flashy attacks and explains their abilities, Unohana [[spoiler:[[CurbStompBattle immediately and effortlessly defeats]] Kenpachi with pure, brutal swordsmanship. She even lands a killing blow to his neck, only to revive him to continue his training. She also carries hidden weapons and views Kenpachi's conscious self limitations as extremely foolish.]]
* CovertPervert: In the BeachEpisode, Isane complains about being offered an extremely skimpy swimsuit. Unohana ''forces'' her to wear it, and Unohana's own swimsuit is just as skimpy.
* CreepyGood: Usually PlayedForLaughs, Captain Unohana is TheDreaded to everyone who threatens her ire. A smile from her sends chills down the spines of even the [[BloodKnight 11th Division]]. [[spoiler:When she fights, she lets down her hair and transforms into Yachiru, a truly [[EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette eerie]], blood-powered BloodKnight who was the original Kenpachi of the 11th division.]]
* DeadlyDoctor: She can use her medical knowledge in battle to maim in very effective ways. [[spoiler:She's capable of delivering fatal blows to Zaraki and instantly heal them to ensure he keeps training until he reaches a level she's happy with.]]
* DeathGlare: Inverted, she only smiles sweetly to anyone who annoys her while speaking in a very calm but firm tone. This actually makes it ''more'' unsettling to the people who know her and they quickly fall in line to avoid her wraith. Even Ichigo, during the one of the few times he interacted with her, found out quickly not to get on her bad side.
* DissonantSerenity: When she fights, her tranquility is at odds with her violence. [[spoiler:While fighting Kenpachi, she slices him apart without batting an eyelash and only raises her voice once.]]
* TheDreaded: A comedic example. This is the effect that she has on pretty much the whole of the Gotei 13. It has, as such, become somewhat of a RunningGag. Well, you can see her combat potential in the databooks from quite early on and her name does mean "violent." [[spoiler: After finding out just what she was like, it's entirely justified.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Her hair is bound when she's healing and unbound when she's fighting. [[spoiler:She plays the role of a YamatoNadeshiko when not fighting, but becomes an EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette when fighting. It's a deliberate change of persona on her part, she knows what images she portrays.]]
* FaceFramedInShadow: Once the decision is made to put Unohana on the battlefield, everything darkens into shadow, framing her face, making the decision seem very ominous. [[spoiler: She was the first Kenpachi and the worst criminal in Soul Society history. Putting her on the battlefield, even for training others, brings that personality back out of her. Her face remains framed in shadow for much of the fight because she's simply that dangerous and that creepy.]]
* FateWorseThanDeath: Even the Visoreds, when they were once Soul Reapers, say that her wrath is worse than Yamamoto's ''Bankai''. [[spoiler:Why? Because Unohana will keep healing you and not letting you die until she's had her fun. Even if she's melting you with ''her'' Bankai.]]
* FourIsDeath: The Fourth Division is the military healing squad giving it a "life and death" motif. As its captain, she leads the fight against death itself. [[spoiler: She was also a former Kenpachi and the most dangerous criminal the Soul Society has ever had.]]
* GiantFlyer: Her Shikai makes Minazuki transform into a gigantic, flying manta for transportation.
* HiddenDepths: The databooks indicate she's primarily a sword fighter rather than healer. [[spoiler:But they don't say she's an AxCrazy sociopathic Kenpachi underneath the polite veneer.]]
* InformedAbility: Up until the Vandenreich arc we never got to see her fight despite people cowering in fear of her. In filler, we've seen her in action against her reigai. While several characters have used Kido without incantation they're usually low level, Unohana can do it with kido in the 80's range!
* LettingHerHairDown: Inverted. You do not want to see Unohana with her hair down. [[spoiler: Because when she does, ''very'' bad things happen. Just ask Zaraki.]]
* LonelyAtTheTop: She knows the pain of being unrivalled when at the top of her profession and unable to find any equal to compare her skill with. [[spoiler:As the original Kenpachi, her swordsmanship was unrivalled. She wandered the Soul Society slaughtering criminals and trying to find a WorthyOpponent. Eventually she met her match in a young Zaraki.]]
* MamaBear: Go on, bully her squadmates when she's around.
* MasterSwordsman: The [[AllThereInTheManual databooks]] state she is one, having fully mastered sword fighting. [[spoiler: Also stated in the manga itself when it's explained she gave herself the name Yachiru as a result of having mastered all known sword styles.]]
* MeaningfulName: Retsu means violent in Japanese. Everyone fears her for one reason or another. [[spoiler: She [[MeaningfulRename renamed]] herself Yachiru in the past as a symbol of having mastered all known sword fighting styles before returning to the name Retsu.]]
* TheMedic: The captain of a whole squad of them.
* MyGreatestFailure: She once met a child with great potential, but handled the situation badly and destroyed that child's development. [[spoiler: They encountered each other at a time they both desperately wanted a WorthyOpponent. Zaraki was the stronger but was so afraid of losing his first enjoyable opponent that he unconsciously shackled his power. Unohana is deeply ashamed she handicapped him so badly.]]
* RavenHairIvorySkin: In-universe, Unohana appears to be, and is viewed as, the perfect example of the YamatoNadeshiko. She has raven black hair that is always neatly bound, pale, flawless skin and carries herself with quiet grace and dignity. WordOfGod has confirmed she is [[WorldsMostBeautifulWoman Soul Society's most beautiful woman]]. [[spoiler: When she lets down her hair to unleash her inner AxCrazy BloodKnight personality she transforms into an EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette instead. WordOfGod indicated she was deliberately designed to display a shocking contrast between the two faces of her personality.]]
* ScarsAreForever: She hides a scar on her chest behind her front-plaited braid. [[spoiler:It's the only scar she's ever received and it cannot be healed.]]
* ShipTease: The anime has been known to tease her with Kyouraku in some omakes. [[spoiler:In the manga, there's very unfunny tease with Zaraki. They're both AxCrazy sociopathic Kenpachi-class fighters and she privately admits that this means Zaraki is the only man who ever made her happy.]]
* SilkHidingSteel: She's soft-spoken, kind, motherly. She's also got most of Soul Society terrified of getting on her bad side. [[spoiler:Because the "Steel" she's hiding just happens to be the Steel of the First Kenpachi and Soul Society's most brutal criminal in the same time.]]
* SlasherSmile: Once she lets her hair down she sports one of these [[spoiler: while training Kenpachi]].
* StepfordSmiler: As someone carrying a great shame from her past, she usually hides this under a sweet, approachable demeanour. [[spoiler:It hides a psychotic woman who is the cause of Zaraki shackling his power in battle.]]
* TeamMom: She definitely invokes this trope with her squadron, whom treats like her own children.
* TechnicallyASmile: She does look very cute, but she generally scares the life out of everyone when she does, especially if she's had to repeat herself.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: WordOfGod says she's the most gorgeous woman in all Soul Society.
* WouldHurtAChild: She was surprised to find she could enjoy fighting a child. [[spoiler: The child was Kenpachi Zaraki and he was already captain-class despite his young age.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: According to the [[AllThereInTheManual Bootleg]], she epitomizes the ideal Japanese woman. [[spoiler: Seems like this trope can be put down as [[PlayingWithATrope played with]], as it is suggested she intentionally evokes it to distance herself from her BloodKnight past.]]
* YouWouldntLikeMeWhenImAngry: People would rather take on Yamamoto's Bankai than anger her. Considering his Bankai's abilities from what we've seen, it says something. [[spoiler:Turns out she was the founder of Squad 11 and [[BloodKnight a criminal of unprecedented savagery]].]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Isane Kotetsu]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/isane001_9261.png]]
Isane is the lieutenant of Squad 4 and the older sister of Squad 13 third seat Kiyone Kotetsu. She is very conscious of her height.
Her Zanpakuto is ''Itegumo'', with its current abilities unknown.
--> Voiced by: Creator/{{Yukana}} (JP), Creator/StephanieSheh (ENG)
----
* AbsoluteCleavage: The skimpy bikini Kiyone and Unohana force her to wear during the BeachEpisode exposes her skin right down to her belly button.
* AttackAttackAttack: At one point, she charges the escaping Sosuke Aizen ''and'' Gin Ichimaru.
* BadDreams: For some odd reason, she has nightmares over... ''fish paste''.
* CallingYourAttacks: Various Kido spells.
* CombatMedic: Has no qualms about fighting despite her profession.
* CryCute: When Isane is upset, she will make it known via tears running down her cheeks, which stems from how she's more sensitive than either her captain or her sister. It's both endearing ''and'' hard to look at, and it's shown to make it clear that things have ''really'' turned dark. The first time occurred when she was at Unohana's office, standing by as her fellow Soul Reapers were slaughtered by the Stern Ritters. The only reason she chose not to take action was because Unohana told her to stay at the medical barracks, to keep Isane from getting ''herself'' killed.
** The second happened when Unohana gave her a letter prior to the fight with Zaraki. We're unsure of the contents, but it left Isane in tears as she clutched the letter to her chest.
* FashionableAsymmetry: She has long, thin hair braids with associated HairDecorations on one side of her head only.
* HiddenBuxom: Hard to picture, but underneath that shihakusho is a really large, really nice bust.
* HugeSchoolgirl: Shown to be a little sensitive about her height and cleavage in some of the omake.
* LeeroyJenkins: Demonstrates this by charging Aizen and Gin, knowing full-well that either of them could probably kill her without even trying.
* TheMedic: Well, Unohana ''is'' her mentor and leader, so she's bound to be pretty good herself.
* ShrinkingViolet: She's rather low-key, quiet and self-conscious, contrasting greatly with her more motherly[[spoiler:, battle-loving]] captain.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's 187 cm tall, which is over six feet tall.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Girly girl to her little sister Kiyone, and sometimes to Rangiku.
* ToplessnessFromTheBack: One shot of her swimsuit reveals that it doesn't cover her shoulders.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Seinosuke Yamada]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Seinosuke_Yamada_4630.jpg]]
Brother to Hanataro and the former lieutenant to Unohana, Seinosuke was reputed to have a "Bad character", but made up for it through his loyalty to Unohana. His current status is unknown.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: His rank, his name, his height, his weight and his birthday, along with his design, were all shown in the ''Masked'' databook.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Before we even learned of his existence, he made a very brief appearance in ''Turn Back The Pendulum'', standing behind Ginrei and Unohana during a meeting.
* {{Jerkass}}: Or so we're told.
* UndyingLoyalty: Towards Unohana, and it seems to be his one good trait.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Hanataro Yamada]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hanataro_7442.png]]
A weak but dutiful 7th Seat, Hanataro met Rukia while she was imprisoned and they soon became friends. He later teamed up with Ichigo and Ganju Shiba as they headed to save her.
His Zanpakuto is ''Hisagomaru'', a katana that heals damage of instead of creating it when it cuts. Upon "absorbing" enough wounds, it transforms into a scalpel capable of launching powerful energy blasts.
--> Voiced by: KoukiMiyata (JP), Creator/SpikeSpencer (ENG)
----
* {{Adorkable}}: He's shy and clumsy.
* AwesomeButImpractical: His release is a massive attack considering his low power level, but he can only use it once and then he's forced to fight with a scalpel.
* ButtMonkey: Squad 4 is typically bullied by other squads, but only Hanataro is also bullied by ''other Squad 4 members.''
* CowardlyLion: Though he is weak physically, when Ganju refused to risk himself for his brother's killer in the Soul Society arc Hanataro began to head out to hold off Byakuya Kuchiki all on his own.
* {{Crossdresser}}: In ''Bleach: The Sealed Sword Frenzy'' he wears a womens' fast food uniform, and in the 23rd closing he wears a maid's uniform. Given his embarassed expression in both cases, it's likely [[ButtMonkey he was forced to do it.]]
* {{Dojikko}}: His clumsiness makes him a buttmonkey even to other squad 4 members.
* GenderBlenderName: Ichigo is not impressed at how the word 'flower' is in his name.
* HealingHands: As a seated member of squad 4 he has fairly good healing abilities.
* HealingShiv: His Zanpakuto is one in its sealed form. In fact, in order to actually release it, he has to do enough healing with it to fill up a gauge on the side of the blade. Upon release, it sends out a massive attack capable of nearly defeating a gillian by itself.
* HeroicSacrifice: He's all set to make one against Byakuya, but Ganju takes his place.
* HumanShield: Ichigo and Ganju attempt this with him in order to escape Squad 11; subverted when their opponents reveal that they hate Squad 4 and would view his death as a bonus.
* MeaningfulName: His name is based on the Japanese version of John Doe ''and'' Jane Doe[[labelnote:*]]Taro and Hanako Yamada[[/labelnote]].
* TheMedic: During the Soul Society arc he follows Ganju and Ichigo around healing their injuries on occasion.
* NonActionGuy: His combat abilities are almost nonexistent. At best, he can make one strong attack after doing a lot of healing.
* ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight: His actions throughout the Soul Society arc more or less amount to grand treason.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Sensitive Guy to BOTH Ichigo and Ganju
* YouShallNotPass: Plans to face Byakuya, whom he knows he has no chance against, to give Ganju and Rukia the chance to escape. Subverted when Ganju trades places with him.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 5
[[folder:Sousuke Aizen]]
Debuted as Captain of Squad 5, but had deserted [[LateArrivalSpoiler after revealing]] [[BigBad his true colors]] in the Soul Society arc's final stage. For more information go [[Characters/BleachAizenAndHisCohorts here]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Shinji Hirako]]
Current captain who was initially exiled a century ago. He reprises his role as captain after Aizen's defeat. For more information go [[Characters/BleachVisoredsAndExiledSoulReapers Here]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Momo Hinamori]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/momo001_6895.png]]
->''"Please save Captain Aizen. What Captain Aizen is doing is bad, but I bet he has a good reason for it. Yeah, that's it... Surely Captain Ichimaru or someone is forcing him..."''
Lieutenant of Squad 5, and a childhood friend of Hitsugaya who apparently was raised with him. She's a sweet, determined, hard-working, enthusiastic and very popular girl.
Her zanpakuto ''Tobiume'' lets her launch fireballs.
--> Voiced by: Creator/KumiSakuma (JP), Creator/KarenStrassman (ENG)
----
* ActionGirl: In anime filler she tends to be given a much more active role and can be found fighting captains or hunting rebelling zanpakutou spirits.
* BadassBookworm: The data books says she's an accomplished artist and loves to read. She also can hold her own in battle, as seen in ActionGirl.
* BerserkButton: Mention Aizen's betrayal within earshot, and she'll attack ANYONE who said it, including her Zanpakutou that she formerly tried to convert kindly.
* BigDamnHeroes: Yes, she of all people pulls one by saving Matsumoto from three arrancar with her shikai, then creating a massive explosion using her kido abilities, although still not fully recovered from the deception of her captain.
* BreakTheCutie: First her captain is murdered after a FriendshipMoment with him, and then she attacks her allies in a blind rage convinced that they had something to do with it. Finally, said captain turns out to have been faking his death and stabs her [[KickTheDog despite having nothing to gain from doing so]]. After he has fully defected and left for Hueco Mundo, it turns out she has so much faith in him that she refuses to see him as the bad guy. [[spoiler:When she finally gets her shit together and recognizes him for what he is, she ends up getting attacked by all her allies and stabbed by her oldest friend.]]
* ChildhoodFriend: With Hitsugaya. They were both raised by the same old woman whom they call "grandmother".
* CombatPragmatist: Has no problem with [[spoiler: laying a Kido net around the battlefield before appearing, then ''setting it on fire '' when the enemy gets caught in it.]]
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange[=/=]ImportantHairCut: She had GirlishPigtails as a youngster and an Academy student, {{Odango Hair}} as a Lieutenant. After the {{Time Skip}}, she's switched to a bob with [[HairDecorations a cute hairpin]].
* HeroicBSOD: Aizen's betrayal shattered her, especially after he manipulated her into turning her sword on Hitsugaya. WordOfGod has indicated the time-skip [[spoiler: (specifically Shinji resuming his position as fifth squad captain)]] has been good for her.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Twice. Once by Aizen, who stated he had preferred to manipulate others into stabbing her for him, but freely did so when he decided that wouldn't happen. [[spoiler:In the Arrancar arc, he got his wish when he manipulated Hitsugaya into stabbing her.]]
* LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine: Light Feminine to Rangiku, due to Hinamori being girlier than the former.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: The Souls databook describes her relationship with Hitsugaya as "familial".
* NiceGirl: Spunkier, less willowy and shorter than the standard, but is still gentle and deeply devoted to her people. Unfortunately, this makes her easy to manipulate and causes her to snap during the Soul Society arc.
* TheOphelia: When at her lowest point she's an unstable nervous wreck.
* PlayingWithFire: Her zanpakutou power is to throw out explosive fireballs at the enemy.
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: She was a close friend to Renji and Izuru back in their academy days, to the point of becoming squad-mates under the tutelage of Captain Aizen (who recruited them straight out of the academy). This is where things turn more complicated -- Momo was the only one who stayed in her original squad, whereas Kira and Abarai became lieutenants in different divisions. When Aizen is assassinated, a grief-stricken Momo immediately pegs Ichimaru as the killer and attacks him, forcing Kira to protect his captain. Both were stopped by Hitsugaya, who ordered them incarcerated.
* UnwittingPawn: Aizen even lets Hitsugaya know that her admiration for him is precisely what made her such a good pawn. She never understood him.
* WeakButSkilled: Momo knows she's got no super strength or raw power, but uses what she already has (more exactly, her high efficency with kido) in rather versatile combinations. Which she's also able [[IndyPloy to whip out VERY fast in the middle of the battlefield.]].
* WhatTheHellHero: In both manga and anime, she calls out ''Byakuya Kuchiki'' over his treatment of Renji. Too bad he doesn't listen.
* {{Yandere}}: Once she's ''really'' mad and has a [[DullEyesOfUnhappiness blank stare in her eyes]], do NOT cross the girl's way. A good part of this comes from Aizen's decades of MoreThanMindControl over her.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 6
[[folder:Byakuya Kuchiki]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Episode_362_Byakuya_6160.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see his pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/byakuya001_490.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"Regardless of who or what they are, anyone who disturbs Soul Society will be cut down."''
Captain of the 6th squad and AloofBigBrother of Rukia. He's an all around [[TheStoic stoic]] {{Bishonen}}, whose stoicness is matched with his utter dedication to upholding the law and setting up a good example for the Kuchiki clan. Because of this, he rarely lets his true feelings show, which makes him initially appear callous, especially regarding Rukia, who he actually cherishes.
His zanpakuto is ''Senbonzakura'', a sword that scatters itself into a thousand pieces which resemble cherry petals that instantly skewer his enemies. His Bankai is named ''Senbonzakura Kageyoshi'', and lets him manifest a thousand large swords from the ground which then scatter into millions of "petals."
--> Voiced by: Creator/RyotaroOkiayu (JP), Creator/DanWoren (ENG), Creator/YuriLowenthal (ENG, Young Byakuya), Christian Strempler (Latin American Spanish)
----
* AchillesHeel: The Fullbring arc reveals he's been hiding a significant one that affects him in battle. [[spoiler:He doesn't allow his shikai or bankai within an 85-centimeter radius of himself. If push comes to shove, however, he can and will violate this safety bubble at high risk of self-injury.]]
* AdaptationDyeJob: Senbonzakura's petal and sword forms are pink in the anime. They're actually white in the manga. Only the Hakuteikan power retains its original white colouring from manga to anime.
* AintTooProudToBeg: After seeing the destruction the Vandenreich causes to Soul Society, he asks Ichigo, for the first time ever, to help Soul Society. [[spoiler:At death's door, having been unable to protect Rukia, Renji or his squad, Byakuya begs Ichigo in tears to help the people he's failed to save.]]
* AloofBigBrother: He ''does'' have deep feelings, but is trapped in so many honor codes that he can't show his love towards others as much as he'd like. [[spoiler:When afflicted with mystically induced irrational fear, his breakdown occurs due to his thoughts focusing on a gruesomely dead Rukia.]]
* AntagonistAbilities: FlyingWeapon: What makes his Shikai and Bankai so dangerous is that there are countless tiny blades fluttering around the battlefield with the ability to cut you from any angle and get around any defense. What's more, even if he concentrates all of them into a sword, when in Senkei, he can summon a new sword at any point he chooses.
* BadBoss: During the Soul Society Arc only. After Renji is heavily wounded in battle against Ichigo, he attempts to throw him in jail without medical attention [[KickTheDog fully aware]] that he might die of blood loss.
* BadassBaritone: In contrast to his [[{{Bishonen}} girly]] appearance, his voice is actually quite deep.
* BerserkButton
** Tradition is very important to Byakuya. When he realises Ichigo achieved bankai by flaunting those traditions, he becomes angry enough for his stoic mask to slip. [[spoiler: He resolves to kill Tsukishima because he views his ability to destroy the bonds between comrades as despicable. This fight actually cures him of the obsession with tradition-bound fighting that had defined his anger during the fight with Ichigo.]]
** He kills Zommari not because he's an enemy or because he's a soul eating monster, but because he threatened Rukia. [[spoiler:He has a breakdown due to As Nodt because of this weakness, however.]]
* BeCarefulWhatYouSay: Thanks to his two conflicting vows, Byakuya learned this lesson the hard way when Rukia was given a sentence disproportionate to her crime.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Once he ''does'' allow himself to show his love of his little sister Rukia, he will ''kill'' anybody who harms her.
* BigBrotherMentor: To Renji. He hid it behind a ruthless mask in the Soul Society mask, but their relationship is now much more relaxed thanks to CharacterDevelopment.
* BigFancyHouse: Byakuya's mansion is one of the most impressive residences in Soul Society. It's so impressive, the Society of Female Soul Reapers regularly attends secret meetings there, most of the time without Byakuya's knowledge, and always without his permission. Yachiru has built a series of hidden tunnels throughout the grounds to ensure they can come and go in secret.
* {{Bishounen}}: He's one of the prettiest captains in [[SpiritWorld Soul Society]], as voted for by the Soul Reaper's Women Institute itself.
* BloodKnight: Not only does he learn he's got this instinct, but he also learns he ''enjoys'' it.
* BrattyHalfPint: When he was younger, he was mouthy, he was wild and his temper was incredibly short.
* CallingYourAttacks: "Senkei", "Gōkei", "Shūkei: Hakuteiken", various Kido spells.
* CannotTellAJoke: When he tries to be funny it tends to either fail or scare people.
* CherryBlossoms: Senbonzakura breaks down into thousands or millions of tiny blades that reflect the appearance of cherry blossom petals floating on the wind.
* CloudCuckooLander: '''Seaweed Ambassador''' just can't be a coincidence.
* CombatPragmatist: Characterising his early appearances, a favourite opening tactic of his was "Senka", a technique which attacks the target's sources of spiritual power to strip them of their abilities completely and which more than qualified him for this. The last time he was seen using it, he used it as his ''closing'' attack against [[DrunkOnTheDarkSide Zommari]].
* TheComicallySerious: His stoic nature makes him an excellent straight man to characters like Yachiru in the omake. His unconsciously silly behavior can also be funny like with his omake obsession with the Seaweed Ambassador and his pride in his artwork... which is exactly like Rukia's.
* CulturedBadass: Byakuya presents the air of a cultured and dignified noble and his clan apparently traditionally holds the squad 6 captain's role.
* DeathByAThousandCuts: The end result of his shikai or bankai hitting a target.
* DefeatMeansFriendship: He can fight it all he wants, but he can't escape the truth that this is how things stand between him and Ichigo.
* DefrostingIceKing: After the Soul Society arc as a result of the conflict between his two vows being resolved.
* FakeDefector: In the Zanpakuto Tales anime arc, [[spoiler: he pretended to join sides with Muramasa, but only because he wanted to kill Muramasa's master Kouga Kuchiki who had disgraced the Kuchiki clan's honour.]]
* FamedInStory: The most famous captain of the current generation is Byakuya, even commoners in the Rukongai know who he is. Ginjou explains it's because his extremely high social rank combines with his extremely high military rank to make him far more well-known than any "normal" captain or high-ranking aristocrat would be by themselves. Byakuya himself once implies that this creates an enormous pressure on him to be the role-model that all Soul Society must look to.
* FashionableAsymmetry: Before the time-skip, he had a tendency to arrange his [[HairDecorations kenseikan]] in a way the ensured his hair was bound asymmetrically, flowing on the left side and held up on the right side.
* TheFettered: He has sworn to always follow the law after he broke family traditions twice, first marrying a commoner and then adopting her sister.
* FingerlessGloves: He wears white gloves that leave his fingers and thumb free. While he's also a badass, the overall intention appears to be to make him look more dignified.
* FlashStep: His other specialty. Still can't beat Yoruichi at it, though.
* FlowerMotif: Cherry Blossom symbolism is associated with aristocracy, samurai, and the transience of life. Byakuya is an aristocrat, military captain, and widower who likes to uphold the samurai ideal.
* GoodIsNotNice: Byakuya isn't a bad guy once he mellows out, but he can be pretty dickish nonetheless. The two can even be combined: During his fight with Zommari, he sneers that a hollow can never hope to match him.
* GrayEyes: He's the cold, strong willed type.
* HairTriggerTemper: He suffered from this into his teens before learning control and discipline. He still shows flashes of it underneath all that self-control.
* HesBack: After suffering [[spoiler:a crushing defeat at the hands of his own Bankai, which was stolen by Äs Nödt]], he recovers soon enough within Kirinji's hot springs during Ichigo's trip to the Royal Palace, and arrives in time to [[spoiler:save Rukia from Äs Nödt in his Vollstandig form.]]
* HeelFaceTurn: After the Soul Society Arc he loosens up a little, though he's more willing to look for loopholes.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: He values Rukia much more than he acts. Even after Soul Society, he does tend to be distant, but he is extremely angry at Zommari intending to kill her after [[PostVictoryCollapse she falls unconscious due to injuries from Aaroniero]].
* HighPressureBlood: Mainly when he took the bullet for Rukia against Ichimaru. The next time that happens, [[spoiler:Byakuya falls into a coma because of it.]]
* HotBlooded: As a child, he was this. The signs are that it hasn't gone away, he's just learned to [[SugarAndIcePersonality hide it better]].
* IgnoredEnemy: While in Hueco Mundo, both he and Kenpachi do this to Yammy because they claim they are more interested in fighting each other.
* IndyPloy: Byakuya is not only surprised to learn he's capable of doing this, but that he even enjoys it. [[spoiler:He's forced to use one to defeat Tsukishima since Tsukishima's power allows him to predict any traditional attack he'll make.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Acts pretty harsh, but actually values his sister and Ichigo quite highly.
* KickTheDog: Orders Renji to be imprisoned ''and'' refuses to let him be treated after he loses to Ichigo.
* KnightTemplarBigBrother: When Byakuya asked Zommari if he was the one responsible for bringing Rukia to the verge of death, Zommari confirmed that he was not, but he was planning on taking her life. That's all Byakuya needed to hear to toss away any pretence of duty and destroy Zommari for even thinking about pointing a blade at his sister.
* LoopholeAbuse: What he does to get Renji and Rukia to go to Hueco Mundo, after Yamamoto declared that Ichigo shouldn't.
* MarryForLove: What he did with Hisana, in defiance of his family.
* MeaningfulName: Part of his name means "white," and is often contrasted against the "black" Ichigo and the "red" Renji.
* MrFanservice: His design is that of the classic black-haired bishounen, but even in-universe the Society of Female Soul Reapers keep voting him the sexiest male Soul Reaper.
* NotQuiteDead: He's left comatose by the Vandenreich's first invasion.[[spoiler: It's revealed that Unohana won't be able to save him and that he's slowly dying. The Royal Guard, who possess an even more skilled healer than Unohana, intervene.]]
* NotSoStoic: It's a rare sight when he emotes, but when he does, it's a sight to behold. The manga also indicated that he has a very short temper beneath his stoic mask that he's learned how to hide but has never purged.
* OhCrap: When a character as stoic as Byakuya has one of these moments, it's an all-hell-breaks-loose situation. When Ichigo's inner hollow takes over, watching Ichigo and his Inner Hollow scream at each other while Ichigo fights for control briefly renders Byakuya speechless, panicked and incredibly confused. [[spoiler: He also has one when he realises he's underestimated Tsukishima and when the Vandenreich steal his Bankai.]]
* PetalPower[=/=]FlechetteStorm[=/=]StormOfBlades: Yes, his [[EmpathicWeapon zanpakutou]] really does fit all three tropes, sometimes achieving all three ''at the same time''.
* PillarsOfMoralCharacter: The reason why he can't show his feelings as openly as he'd like to. It's also the reason why he starts off looking like a villain which develops into looking like a Type III anti-hero but which is eventually revealed to be this type of character instead. See main entry.
* PowersDoTheFighting: Until Ichigo starts overwhelming him with his speed, Byakuya never even made an effort to use his powers and allowed them to move independently. He later doubles the speed with his hands, and then concentrates them into actual swords to fight with.
* ThePromise: Two of them and they were conflicting each other. Hanging around his neck (and Rukia's) like a noose until the were finally resolved by Ichigo. The vows still hold, it's simply the conflict between them that's been fixed.
* TheProudElite: A noble and a Captain, and he comes across as cold and arrogant. However, he has a deeply engrained sense of honor and cares passionately for those few people who make their way into his heart.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Byakuya Kuchiki is one of the highest ranked noblemen in the story, and has the classic looks to go with it: perfectly groomed raven black hair and pale, flawless skin. The Soul Reaper Woman's Institute regularly votes him as the MrFanservice of Soul Society.
* RedOniBlueOni: He's the Blue to Renji's Red.
* ScarfOfAsskicking: And it's '''VERY''' expensive.
* SoProudOfYou: He finally admits this to Rukia after [[spoiler:saving her from As Nodt and helping her regain her confidence to defeat him on her own.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: Although Byakuya and Hisana overcame the "love above one's station" issue when Byakuya defied his entire clan to marry her, they were only able to be married for five years before she died from an incurable illness.
* TheStoic: Outward persona. His inner persona is surprisingly HotBlooded. His is still a SugarAndIcePersonality as a result - at least as an adult. As a child, he hadn't yet learned to [[BrattyHalfPint control]] his [[HairTriggerTemper temper]].
* SugarAndIcePersonality: Aloof and stoic on the surface. Underneath, he's NotSoStoic, being very compassionate, having very deep feelings for the people he becomes attached to.
* TakingTheBullet: Famously did it to save Rukia from Ichimaru towards the end of the Soul Society arc.
%% TallDarkAndHandsome
%% TallDarkAndSnarky
* TerribleArtist: Just like Rukia. Everybody comments that they must really be siblings for having such similar ideas about art.
* TookALevelInBadass: After he recovers from his defeat at the hands of [[spoiler:As Nodt, he retrains. When he returns, his Shikai has become so powerful that As Nodt mistook it for his Bankai.]]
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Is surprisingly prone to this when it comes to humans, the first great example being Ichigo naturally when he acquired Bankai. The second example was when he fought Tsukishima, completely unprepared to find someone so dangerous in a mortal human.
* UndyingLoyalty: Not even 300 years of FakeMemories of being trained by someone is enough to get him to stop killing that person if they're an enemy of Byakuya's TrueCompanions.
* UptownGuy: Hisana was a commoner from one of the worst Rukongai districts while Byakuya was a noble from one of the four most powerful and highly ranked noble houses in Soul Society. The social inequality between them didn't bother Byakuya and Hisana, but the Kuchiki clan was appalled. Byakuya eventually won the fight to have Hisana as his wife, but she fell sick and died five years after they were married.
* WarriorPrince: Head of one of Soul Society's most revered noble clans and a textbook example of a CulturedBadass.
* WhatDoTheyFearEpisode: Gets his own personal one in Chapter 501. Byakuya's greatest fear is seeing Rukia's dead, mouldering face. [[spoiler:When confronted by this he breaks down and gets mauled.]]
%% TheWisePrince: A cold, but still damn effective, variation.
* YearsTooEarly: To Ichigo in Episode 55 over whether or not Ichigo could beat him.
%% YouHaveFailedMe: To Renji. See KickTheDog.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ginrei Kuchiki]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ginrei001_6498.png]]
->''"Those who have great power must know how to control their own power, and sometimes be controlled by that power. In order to truly create such a relationship, it is necessary to have a strong heart that keeps you away from becoming overconfident."''
The grandfather of Byakuya, the former captain of the 6th Division and the 27th head of the Kuchiki clan. He made his debut in ''Turn Back the Pendulum'', and re-appeared during the Zanpakuto Unknown Tales arc, but his current status is currently unknown.
--> Voiced by: KinryuuArimoto (JP), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG)
----
* TheMentor: Seems like one for Byakuya, and filled the bill for Kouga.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Renji Abarai]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Renji_Timeskip_6862.png]]
[[caption-width-right:290:[[labelnote:Click here to see his pre-TimeSkip appearance]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/renji001_1468.png[[/labelnote]]]]
->''"Showing concern for a warrior's life on the battlefield is an insult to that warrior."''
Recently-promoted Lieutenant of Squad 6, former member of Squad 5 and former 6th Seat of the 11th Division. He is the childhood friend of Rukia and forms a very close friendship bond with her, also highly respecting the captain Byakuya and views him as an opponent he wishes to surpass. Brash, but dedicated to his beliefs and loyal to his friends. He is also notably the next Soul Reaper, after Rukia, who eventually considers Ichigo among his TrueCompanions. While he poses a very genuine threat in the beginning, he's usually one of the characters used by TiteKubo to establish enemy threat levels, thus fans often call him a jobber. Soon after his DefeatMeansFriendship, Renji becomes more or less part of Ichigo's group of friends and an important main character.
His zanpakuto is ''Zabimaru'', a large sword that can stretch out into a sort of whip. When first introduced, his Bankai is called ''Hihio Zabimaru'', a massive skeletal snake that fires energy blasts, though it was damaged before he could master it.
--> Voiced by: Creator/KentaroIto (JP), ReikoKiuchi (JP, As a child), Creator/WallyWingert (ENG), Creator/YuriLowenthal (ENG, As a child), Gabriel Flores (Latin American Spanish)
----
* AintTooProudToBeg: In the Soul Society arc, being defeated by Ichigo makes him break down and beg Ichigo to rescue Rukia because he cannot.
* AnimeHair: For some unfathomable reason, his hair is style in a way that makes it look like a pineapple. This case is lampshaded, as a few of the filler episodes in which Renji is seen out of uniform have him wearing a T-shirt with the phrase "Red Pineapple" on it.
* {{Badass}}: As a lieutenant, he can kick some major ass and look cool while doing it.
* BarbarianLonghair: His long hair is kept in a ponytail, reminiscent of a SamuraiPonytail, but still wild and spiky past that. His behavior is barely controlled by the strict rules of the Gotei.
* BarefootPoverty: While living in the poverty-stricken 78th district Renji, like other residents of the district, has no access to luxuries such as footwear.
* BerserkButton: Seeing Byakuya defeated drove Renji ballistic.
* BigDamnHeroes: In the final arc, his timely arrival allows him to save two Soul Reapers from being killed by Mask. [[spoiler: He actually saves Kensei and Rose from being killed.]]
* CallingYourAttacks: "Higa Zekkō!", "Hikōtsu Taihō!", various Kido spells.
* CardCarryingVillain: Mask's obsession with heroes versus villains allows Renji to parody this when they fight.
* ChildhoodFriend: He grew up on the streets with Rukia and they decided to enter the Soul Academy together.
* CoolShades: Except they get broken fairly early, and they're so expensive he's yet to be able to afford a new pair. Gets a new pair in the Vandereich arc.
* CurbStompBattle: He spends the time-skip using the bar Aizen set as his resolve to get stronger, allowing him to finally begin to curbstomp his opponents in battle. [[spoiler: He effortlessly defeats Jackie. Later, although initially thrashed by Mask, training with the Royal Guard allows him to return the favour.]]
* DefeatMeansFriendship: After being beaten by Ichigo he became one of Ichigo's closest Soul Reaper friends.
* FashionableAsymmetry: In bankai, he gains a mantle of fur that extends across his shoulders like a ruff and which extends down his right arm only.
* FieryRedHead: Renji tends to feel a lot of his emotions quite strongly as well as cycle between them easily.
* HotBlooded: He's rash, emotional and aggressive, picking up a lot of the worse parts of the trope, though he matures a little as time goes on.
* HugeGuyTinyGirl: When seen together with Rukia he's about twice her height.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He was a complete JerkAss in his first appearance, but his interactions with Rukia and later his deep devotion and possible romantic feelings for her endeared him to the fandom.
* LuminescentBlush: Whenever he gets to see something a little sexy -- such as Matsumoto unbuttoning her shirt. That and whenever Rukia voices just how much she cares for him or how much she appreciates him as a friend.
* ModestyShorts: Renji's flashback to how he first met Rukia during their poverty-stricken Rukongai days, show that he used to wear a very short kosode. Under that kosode he wears a pair of skin-tight shorts that are so long in the leg they come lower down his body than the kosode does.
* MrFanservice: Many a shirtless scenes feature him; one in particular has him with his hair down, with his tattoo-laden musculature revealed in full. Thanks!
* TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou: The only one allowed to beat Ichigo or Byakuya, or so he thought.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Tries one on Ichigo when he initially gains the advantage in their first fight, but Ichigo manages to [[TalkToTheFist get a slash in while he's talking]].
* RedOniBlueOni: He's the Red Oni, Byakuya's the Blue Oni.
* ReverseShrapnel: Higa Zekkou, which he can only do when his sword is broken. In the filler, he can do it with his bankai, too, but it takes its toll on Zabimaru.
* RunningGag: His love of sunglasses, and inability to actually keep a pair intact.
* SecretKeeper: He has known Ikkaku had bankai for quite some time.
* SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan: Manly Man to Ishida and Kira.
* SlipknotPonytail: His long red hair goes loose when seriously injured or beaten.
* TattooedCrook: Goes hand in hand with his {{Delinquent}}-like attitude. Tattooed [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverKill ALL OVER his body]] -- to the point that some fans wonder up to [[DoubleEntendre where]] does the ink spread... Even his [[UnusualEyebrows eyebrows]] are tattoos.
* TeamHandStack: After the heroes infiltrate Las Noches, Renji calls for a hand stack -- something he never got the stoic captain of his squad to do.
* TookALevelInBadass: During the final arc, he is taken to the Royal Realm to receive training from the Zero Division. It boosts his power and abilities enormously.
* TwoGuysAndAGirl: He befriended Hinamori and Kira in the academy, but things turned sour once the present storyline made it to the Soul Society arc. Renji first attempts to act like a lieutenant should, but later decides to ignore his orders and target Ichigo right off the bat. His defeat actually prompts Yamamoto to order a full-scale pacification of Ichigo's friends, with Byakuya ordering Renji incarcerated for his failure (the conflict between Hinamori and Kira technically started with their disagreement over Byakuya's act here). After everything gets shot to hell for Kira and Hinamori, Renji decides to defect to Ichigo's side.
* UnusualEyebrows: He has rather long, thick eyebrows and they're made to look even stranger with his tattooed forehead.
* WhipSword: Zabimaru's form.
* TheWorfEffect: He is usually one of the two main choices for Kubo to use to establish the power level of the enemy Ichigo and his companions are up against with the other being Chad. However, we get a justification for it, as [[WorfHadTheFlu Mayuri implies that his Bankai got weaker]] [[spoiler:[[WorfHadTheFlu since it was destroyed during the Soul Society arc and bankais never fully recover from the damage they take.]]]]
* WouldntHitAGirl: He loathes fighting women, and will not pick a fight with one. If a woman forces a fight with him, he'll hold back as much as possible and try to defeat her using the minimum amount of force possible to achieve victory.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Sojun Kuchiki]]
%%[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Sojun_8792.jpg]]%%
Son of Ginrei, father to Byakuya and the previous lieutenant of the 6th Division. Rumor has it that he was sick, but became a lieutenant out of a sense of duty. He was buried alongside his wife, and Byakuya swore an oath to uphold every one of the Soul Society's laws, in order to please his parents.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: His appearance, his height, his rank, his weight and his birthday were all found in the ''Masked'' databook.
* {{Bishounen}}: What else is there to expect, from the father of Byakuya himself?
* GenerationXerox: He looks '''exactly''' like his son.
* IllGirl: The sickness itself is unknown, though.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Ginjiro Shirogane]]
He was the previous lieutenant to Byakuya, preceding Renji by an unknown number of years. He started up his own sunglasses shop as a part-time job during his time as a lieutenant, but he resigned from his position to run the store better, supposedly because he gained more of a profit from it. His daughter, Mihane, works as the 9th Seat of the same division, and she co-owns the store with her father. The Mens' Association get their sunglasses from Shirogane, as does Renji himself.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: The fact that he even ''exists''. We still don't know what he looks like.
* ChekhovsGun: Renji gets those sunglasses from his store. A specific pair that Ichigo later broke was outfitted with a built-in Reiatsu-detecting radar screen, which allowed Renji and Byakuya to find Rukia in Karakura.
* TheDeterminator: Shirogane once sent a pair of sunglasses to Byakuya, but his ex-captain sent them back, saying that he didn't want them. Shirogane doesn't seem to care; he keeps sending sunglasses to Byakuya, anyway.
* NiceGuy: Takes his ex-captain's indifference in stride, and even gave a discount to Renji, but it's subverted in the latter case. The prices of sunglasses are so high, that even with the discount, Renji still has problems getting the goggles that he wants.
[[/folder]]
!!Squad 7
[[folder:Sajin Komamura]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/komamura001_3092.png]]
[[caption-width-right:265:[[labelnote:Click here to see [[spoiler: his human form]]http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/human_komamura_8265.png[[/labelnote]]]]]]
->''"Don't worry. I have no doubts. My loyalty lies only in my debt to Genryūsai-sama. He took me in when I was alone because people pushed me away due to my looks. I shall repay this debt, even if it means I will be shattered into pieces. I shall have no doubts. If his greatness says 'yes', then even in death, I say 'yes'!"''
Komamura is an anthropomorphic wolf and currently the captain of the 7th squad. Komamura is at first overly sensitive about his appearance which causes him to distance himself, until he meets Kaname Tousen, who is blind and doesn't mind his outer appearance. They became fast friends and enrolled and graduated in the Soul Reaper Academy together. Komamura is also indebted with Genryusai Yamamoto and vowed to dedicate his life for him with utmost loyalty. He constantly covers his body with gloves and his head with a mask, just so that his fellow officers do not ridicule his appearance, but eventually he abandons it. When Tousen betrays the Soul Society, Komamura swears to help him open his eyes to the fact that his betrayal is wrong.
His Zanpakutou is ''Tenken'', a large sword that is duplicated in a phantom-like form. His Bankai is ''Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō'', an enormous armored giant that mimics his every move.
--> Voiced by: Creator/TetsuInada (JP), Creator/KimStrauss (ENG, Episodes 51-63), Creator/JBBlanc (ENG, Episodes 99+)
----
* AFatherToHisMen: Cares immensely for his subordinates and often puts himself at risk to protect those are lower ranked and weaker than himself.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Why he wore a mask, and why he was so quick to form a friendship with Tousen. His shame in his appearance is the focal point of the friction between him and [[spoiler:his great-grandfather]], who scolds him for hiding it.
* AnimalMotifs: [[CaptainObvious Physically]], but also morally with his extremely loyalty.
* ArmorIsUseless: Zig-zagged. He's the only Soul Reaper to wear armor and often uses it to block attacks on others. However, because he frequently suffers from TheWorfEffect, enemies who are strong enough often easily destroy what armor he wears. [[spoiler:He later gets a new set that's much more up to the task, able to defend him from Bambietta's explosions to an extent.]]
* AwesomeButImpractical
** His bankai has signs of this. Tousen notes that it's primarily designed to kill in one hit, so issues arise when it doesn't. Particularly, damaging done to it is reflected on him, though anyone who is powerful enough to damage it could presumably damage him anyway. [[spoiler:It just takes a single attack from Tousen to blast a huge hole in his Bankai to bring Komamura down.]]
** A PlayedForLaughs variant in the preview for 340. Iba grows concerned about Komamura's use of Bankai, as it could end up exhausting 7th Division's repair budget. Made worse by the fact that since Komamura's bankai draws the most attention, the other Divisions will blame 7th division for ALL of the damage caused by the battles with the reigai, causing Komamura to grow concerned as well.
* BeatStillMyHeart: Komamura will protect others, even if he has to rip out his own heart to do it. [[spoiler: Ripping out his heart activates a special technique that brings Komamura to a [[BishonenLine human form]], vastly increasing his power.]]
* TheBigGuy: He's over nine feet tall and favors the brute force strategy of "Just smash the little bastard. Moving around is for chumps that can't take a hit."
* BigShutUp: Komamura gives one to the raging Soi Fong in the aftermath of the Vandenreich invasion [[spoiler: and Commander Yamamoto's death]], telling her that she is not the only one who wants to shout.
* BlindAndTheBeast: His friendship with Tousen is based on this. [[spoiler: So of course Tousen just [[KickTheDog has to call him ugly]] upon gaining sight. And then he apologizes before dying.]]
* CarpetOfVirility: Komamura has some pretty amazing chest hair. [[spoiler:His human form retains the fur on his chest.]]
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: Prone to this.
** In #298, his response to Ichigo saying that Iba doesn't fit the image of the main character is that he didn't think the suit was designed as well as he thought it could have been.
** In #326, he responds to Zaraki to not worry, and he's tough. The problem here was Zaraki was pissed that he interrupted his fight.
** In the JUMP festival omake, Komamura's response to Iba asking him for advice on how to make the cute cartoony drawing of him look mighty and powerful is to recommend he add "woof"/"ruff" next to it.
* ConvenientComa: He stays in one for almost the entire Zanpaktou filler arc after he gets [=TKOed=] by Tenken in the arc's first episode.
* CoolHelmet: The bucket he initially wore on his head before it was destroyed. [[spoiler:He later gets another cool one, which when destroyed reveals him to have taken human form.]]
* CurbStompBattle: He defeats Poww, the fraccion who defeated Ikkaku. [[spoiler: He uses a single strike from his Bankai. The fight with Tousen reveals this is the purpose of his Bankai, to defeat enemies with a single strike.]]
* CursedWithAwesome: Tousen claimed the bond between Komamura and Tengen was a curse because damaging the zanpakutou automatically damages Komamura. [[spoiler: Mayuri later confirms that while it's true this is a big weakness, it also allows Komamura's bankai to heal making him the one true exception to the rule that a bankai can never be restored to its original form once broken.]]
* DangerousForbiddenTechnique: The secret of his clan is not something he's ever been allowed to know because it's literally both dangerous and forbidden. [[spoiler:He has to [[SoulJar rip out his heart]] to transform into human to gain great power and immortality. It's only temporary and the price is to transform him into a full canine animal with no power at all.]]
* DestructiveSavior: The Karakura Town fight is supposed to occur in a fake town to avoid damaging the real town but the destruction Komamura causes when defeating Poww causes so much damage to both the fake zone and the real town, the watching Soul Reapers discuss how much this will cost Komamura after the battle is over.
* DramaticUnmask: Loses his helmet saving Tousen's life when he tries blocking Kenpachi's sword with his arm bracers, but due to the force behind the blow the sword cuts into his helmet and breaks it apart. [[spoiler:Later happens again when he shows up for a rematch with Bambietta wearing a new helmet that obscures his face. When it gets destroyed, it's revealed Komamura has become [[LittleBitBeastly human in appearance]].]]
* FriendToAllChildren: During the Soul Reaper golden segment for Episode 83, it seemed he was about to let Yachiru draw on his face even though he just got his fur done.
* FurryConfusion: He is an anthropomorphic canine that owns a pet dog.
* GentleGiant: Owns a pet dog named Gorou, takes them out for walk in his free time, and is one of the more amiable Captains when it comes to arranging his squad. He also likes watching pet shows whenever he can. According to Hitsugaya, he personally pays for any collateral damage he or his subordinates cause. Though in the Chapter 328 volume sketch, he's seen commenting that he'll only be able to feed his dog Goro okara (soy pulp) for the month due to all the damage he caused during his fight with Poww, as well as apologizing to him for it.
* HypocrisyNod: In a CallBack to Tousen, after [[spoiler:Yamamoto dies]] Komamura becomes absolutely determined to avenge him at all costs [[spoiler:and sacrifices himself to do so, gaining a brief powerup and in return becoming a wolf after the power fades,]] lamenting only that even as he was consumed by the thirst for vengeance that marks his clan, [[spoiler:it didn't last him long enough to even get to Yhwach, let alone beat him.]]
* IOweYouMyLife: His source of devotion with Yamamoto. [[spoiler: Ichigo's intervention against Aizen also prevents Komamura going into a suicidal charge to avenge Tousen. He thanks Ichigo for it.]]
* IllPretendIDidntHearThat: When Iba lectures Ikkaku on hiding his bankai and the pair realise Komamura is standing right there, Komamura's response is to say his ears aren't working well enough to have overheard anything and walks off.
* ImplacableMan: He's a hulking, nigh-unmovable mass of fur and muscle against most people. This is best demonstrated during his battle with Soi-fon's clone, where pretty much just overpowers her with brute force (until she activates [[SuperMode Shunko]]). In his [[spoiler:human form, though, this goes to ridiculous lengths; he can withstand an explosion ''to the chest'' and barely flinch, and his bankai is pretty much indestructible.]]
* IronicEcho: He warns Tousen against revenge, and ironically he falls victim to it himself after [[spoiler:Yamamoto's death.]]
* LargeAndInCharge: Komamura is massive and one of the most physically powerful captains, matched perhaps only by the likes of Kenpachi.
* LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy: Despite his initial fears, nobody seems to care that he's a giant canine.
* LittleBitBeastly: Furry ears, heavy eyebrows, mutton chops and body fur. [[spoiler:That's his human form, which displays classic werewolf traits.]]
* MeaningfulName: His name translates to "The dog who guards the left flank of the hamlet." The left side is a particular significance to pre-industrial Japan as it would guard the lord's blind side. So when Lords would meet with their two bodyguards, the more trusted of the two would be to the left.
* NighInvulnerability: His clan's "secret technique", which makes him virtually unkillable as long as he's in human form. His body can still be damaged, and [[SoulJar his heart needs to be kept safe]], but he's technically an implacable walking corpse. His bankai is even worse -- in its second form, it's pure reiatsu with no life energy, meaning it can't be damaged ''at all''.
* NoSell: Pulls this on Bambietta by means outlined above: her explosions have no effect on his new Bankai.
* NotSoDifferent: Komamura based his friendship with Tousen on the belief that their hearts were similar enough for him to be able to guide Tousen back to a better path. [[spoiler: Later, he falls victim to his desires for revenge just like Tousen. Instead of dying, Sajin loses his humanity.]]
* OurGiantsAreBigger: His bankai is a giant {{Samurai}}, without a doubt one of the biggest if not the biggest bankai in the series.
* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: He's a humanoid wolf and sticks out like a sore thumb among the human members of the cast, so he used to hide his face with armor. [[spoiler:Turns out that he and the rest of his clan once possessed a human form but being banished to the [[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} Animal Realm]] trapped them in their animal form. A special technique allows them to temporarily regain human form, as shown in Chapter 556, though the costs of doing so are implied to be high.]]
* PettingZooPeople: He's a giant humanoid wolf.
* PuppetGun: Komamura's shikai summons disembodied gigantic limbs with the same movements as him, mostly a giant hand wielding a sword. His bankai brings forth the entire [[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever giant]], which also follows his movements to devastating effect.
* PyrrhicVictory: Even Komamura can make the mistake of not weighing victory against the price of achieving it. [[spoiler:He destroys his humanity to defeat Bambietta, ending up trapped in true wolf form, unable to function as a Soul Reaper, his only future that of a vengeance-driven beast.]]
* RealMenWearPink: He likes... watching cute puppy dog shows?!
* RevengeBeforeReason: The destruction the Vandenreich invasion inflicts causes Komamura to enter this state. [[spoiler:After cutting down Bambietta, Komamura prepares to storm the Vandenreich's fortress and take on Yhwach by himself to avenge Yamamoto.]]
* RuleOfSymbolism: Kokujō Tengen Myō'ō is inspired by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wisdom_King Fudou Myou-ou]], a divine being who brings [[UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} enlightenment]] to those lost to hatred, vengeance and ignorance. The Bankai's {{samurai}} armour reflects Komamura's [[http://judoinfo.com/pdf/hagakure.pdf samurai code]], a form of "invincibility" gained through living as if already dead. [[spoiler: The ignorance of RevengeBeforeReason banishes his clan to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animals_in_Buddhism Animal Realm]]. When Komamura embraces it, his temporary invincibility leads to permanent transformation into an animal, i.e., the person who most needs Fudō Myō'ō's guidance is Komamura himself.]]
* RunningGag: He's a wolf but [[AllThereInTheManual characters in-universe]] always mistake him for a dog. The author and anime therefore associate him with dogs in constantly humorous ways.
* SecretKeeper: Seemingly overhears Tetsuzaemon and Ikkaku talking about the latter's Bankai but assures them that his "ears haven't been working well."
* SpeaksFluentAnimal: He can talk to dogs.
* SupernaturalGoldEyes: Komamura is an anthropomorphic wolf and his golden eyes reflect his supernatural, animalistic nature.
* UndyingLoyalty: Because Yamamoto saved his life at one point, he has utmost respect and devotion to the man.
* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: When he first appeared in the story, he had been wearing a mask to conceal his true nature. After it got cut off during the Soul Society arc, he decides to go around without it. According to the databooks, barely anyone gives a damn.
* TheWorfEffect: When Aizen was first revealed as the enemy, Komamura was used to established that Aizen's threat level was far beyond that of even a captain's. He also suffers this in the Zanpakutou Unknown Tales filler arc, being taken out by his zanpakutou spirit in the arc's first episode, then spends the rest of the arc [[ConvenientComa a coma because of it.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tetsuzaemon Iba]]
[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/iba001_1460.png]]
->''"If yer gonna fight someone, then win, even if it kills you. That is called bein' rational."''
The lieutenant to Captain Komamura and the former mentor to Ikkaku. With the style of a {{Yakuza}} member, he joined the 11th Division as the 4th Seat under Zaraki, but transferred to the 7th Division in order to become a lieutenant. He is the stereotypical macho-man, believing that men have to be strong and courageous. He is president of the Soul Reaper Men's Association. His mother, Chikane Iba, was the lieutenant of the 3rd Division under Otoribashi; he calls her a ''bitch-hag''.
--> Voiced by: Rintarou Nishi (JP), Neil Kaplan (ENG)
----
* BigFancySword: His unnamed shikai takes the form of a large falchion with a spike protruding from it.
* BloodKnight: He used to be in the eleventh division and still duels Ikkaku from time to time. He only transferred out in order to become a lieutenant.
* ButtMonkey: The Soul Reaper Men's association frequently gets its budget cut and forced out of the meeting spaces it has.
* CombatPragmatist: Believes that the most important thing when fighting for one's division is winning, even if it involves running away or taking an opponent from behind.
* CoolShades: Wears a pair of big black sunglasses.
* {{Foil}}: To Ikkaku. Ikkaku would rather die than risk exposing his own bankai to others (thereby risking being forced to captain another division) and enjoys a good fight above all else. Iba chose to develop his kido and leave the 11th Division to become a lieutenant and please his mom, and is willing to run away or use underhanded tactics to carry out his orders.
* MasterOfNone: [[InformedAbility Is supposedly well-rounded]], but the manga hasn't actually properly let us see him fight to judge for ourselves.
* SecretKeeper: Regarding Ikkaku's bankai.
* SmokingIsCool: He's usually seen smoking.
* UndyingLoyalty: He's very proud to serve as Komamura's second. [[spoiler: When Komamura completely loses his powers after fighting and defeating Bambietta, Iba carries his captain on his back and promises to help him keep fighting to avenge Yamamoto.]]
* UnrequitedLove: The anime doesn't touch on it but it's AllThereInTheManual. Hisagi's not the only one with a crush on Rangiku Matsumoto. Iba's carrying a torch as well.
* WhatTheHellHero: Delivers a rather scathing one to Ikkaku, when his stubborn refusal to use his bankai results in an important pillar getting destroyed.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Jin'emon Kotsubaki]]
%%[[quoteright:290:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/290px-Kotsubaki-Fuka-Taicho_8908.jpg]]%%
Father to Sentaro and lieutenant to Love Aikawa, he received a scar sometime after Urahara was promoted, but it's unknown if he was killed in action or retired from service, and we don't know what his current status happens to be. He also has a ponytail, reminiscent of an old-school {{Samurai}}.
----
* AllThereInTheManual: Everything known about him was revealed in the ''Masked'' databook.
* CoolOldGuy: Appears to be in his late-forties, by the time he was Loves' lieutenant.
* CoolShades: Frameless red sunglasses, specifically.
* GoodScarsEvilScars: One runs along the left side of his face, from his forehead, through his eye and to his cheek.
[[/folder]]
----
