Soul Reaper (Bleach)

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Soul Reapers (死神) are a fictional race of beings in the anime and manga series Bleach created by Tite Kubo.

Soul Reapers are enforcers and psychopomps who all share similar supernatural powers. They are based on the Japanese Grim Reaper concept, imported from Europe into Japan during the Meiji period. Because the concept is very recent and was never a part of Shinto nor of Japanese folklore, Soul Reapers in Bleach are quite different from those of other works of fiction.

Soul Reapers are departed human souls that have gained supernatural powers. As such, their bodies are composed of ectoplasm (霊子) and they can only be seen by other spiritually aware entities, which excludes most humans. In the series, Soul Reapers, as well as most other types of spirits, are quite capable of influencing their environment. Additionally, they can be injured and die like regular humans, though it takes considerably greater injuries for the latter to occur than it would in regular humans.

The most prominent power possessed by a Soul Reaper is their zanpakutō, a sword generated from the Soul Reaper's soul. Soul Reapers also naturally give off spiritual energy, which varies greatly in magnitude with the strength of a Soul Reaper. A zanpakutō is a physical manifestation of this force concentrated into a blade.

Soul Reaper operations are based out of Soul Society, which is the afterlife in Bleach. Travel between the human world and Soul Society is extremely limited and monitored, but some Soul Reapers are stationed in the human world to carry out their duties and therefore must often travel between the two. In addition, it is a crime for a Soul Reaper to remain in the human world longer than a certain time limit. A Soul Reaper's duties include leading Pluses (ghosts) to Soul Society in a practice called soul burial (konsō), and the cleansing of hollows (evil spirits). Later in the series, Soul Reaper duties are clarified further, and it is revealed that they are also responsible for governing the flow of spirits between the human world and Soul Society.

Training
The majority of training for individuals wanting to become a Soul Reaper is done through the Soul Reaper Academy, which was founded by Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai about 2000 years before the current Bleach storyline. It is a six-year academy, during which time its students learn to fight hollows and perform soul burial duties.

Combat
The Soul Reapers have four forms of combat: kidō, hand-to-hand combat, foot combat, and swordsmanship.

Kidō
Kidō (鬼道) is a type of sorcery used by Soul Reapers. It can be used for various purposes, such as healing, attacking, and restraining. Healing seems to be a more general skill, while attacking and binding require an incantation to be recited beforehand. Kidō spells are divided into two major categories: destructive spells (破道), used for direct attack, and binding spells (縛道), which are spells that restrain someone or have other effects. These forms of Kidō spells are performed by calling out a complicated and often long-winded incantation followed by its category, number and name, which causes an effect once the name has been recited. Lesser versions of the spells can be used by skipping the incantation, but their effectiveness is reduced based on individual skill.

Hand-to-hand combat
Hand-to-hand combat (白打) in Bleach is not elaborated upon. Special Forces troops, especially those of higher ranks such as Soifon, are known to be well-trained in this field.

Agility
Agility (歩法), like hand-to-hand combat, is not elaborated upon. Flash steps (瞬歩), a movement technique that allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow, is implied to be part of this category. Another skill, though not necessarily related, is the Soul Reaper ability to walk on air using spiritual power. By collecting and solidifying spiritual particles beneath their feet, Soul Reapers can gain traction on thin air to either freely move about or to stop themselves from falling.

Swordsmanship
Swordsmanship (斬術) is the most used form of combat among Soul Reapers. As the name suggests, it involves using a zanpakutō and its various special abilities to attack an opponent. In addition to its basic form, each zanpakutō has two enhanced forms: shikai (始解, initial release) and bankai (卍解, final release), which change the sword's form to unlock its potential and that of its user.

Mission aids
To aid in their missions, particularly when said missions involve more than simply dispatching a hollow, Soul Reapers have a number of unique items to assist them in their duties. In addition, it should be noted that all Soul Reaper captains and lieutenants have their spiritual energy reduced by about 80% when they enter the human world by use of a spiritual limit, represented by a seal resembling the symbol unique to their division, in order not to cause unnecessary influence while there. In extreme cases where their full power is needed, they can request a limit release.

Gigai
In certain circumstances, a Soul Reaper will need a way to stay in the human world for long periods of time, interact with the living, and/or recover their powers when the need arises, all of which they can't do in spirit form. Thus, the gigai was developed.

A gigai (義骸) is an artificial body that allows Soul Reapers to remain in the human world for an extended period, either due to temporary loss of powers or extended missions. While the body is synthetic, it functions and operates almost exactly like a natural one, including but not limited to blood flow and the like. Unlike the normal Soul Reaper body, a gigai is detectable by humans who are not spiritually aware.

Artificial souls
Artificial souls (義魂丸), as the name suggests, are souls designed by Soul Reaper scientists to separate a Soul Reaper's spirit from a gigai, should they be inhabiting one, or to evict stubborn spirits from their corpses if necessary. When ingested, it forces the soul out of the body and takes control of it, operating in a pre-programmed manner until removed by the Soul Reaper. It is commonly called Soul Candy, as the Soul Reaper Women Organization complained that the name gikongan wasn't cute and had it changed. To fit with the more informal name, Soul Candy is contained in PEZ-like dispensers with cartoon characters on top. The souls themselves apparently have personalities to match the cartoon character in question; for example, Rukia's favorite version, Chappy the Rabbit, is a hyperactive and overly affectionate character that tries to restrain Ichigo when given control of Rukia's gigai. It even speaks in a cutesy baby talk manner.

Modified souls
Because there are far more hollows than Soul Reapers, the modified soul (mod soul) project was born in an attempt to even the gap. Modified souls (改造魂魄) are artificial souls designed to enhance regular human physiology, making them capable of battling hollows equally. For example, one modsoul may be able to run many times faster than a regular human while another may be many times stronger than normal. Kon, a recurring modsoul, has enhanced leg-strength. The modsouls are condensed into tiny, candy-like orbs and placed into corpses to achieve their function as soldiers to combat hollows. They are also more independent to fit with their purpose.

The modsouls were exterminated after the experiment was halted due to ethical reasons, since they were intended to be used to reanimate human corpses to use as weapons against the hollows. Kon was somehow mixed into a batch of regular artificial souls (Soul Candy) and shipped to Kisuke Urahara's shop, where Rukia and Ichigo obtained him and unknowingly let him loose. Despite a standing order to dispose of all modified souls, they kept Kon and placed him into the body of a plushie. Rukia and Ichigo use Kon to possess Ichigo's body when his soul is expelled from his body to fight as a Soul Reaper.

Hell Butterfly
The Hell Butterfly (地獄蝶) is, as the name suggests, a small, black swallowtail butterfly which serves a number of purposes in Soul Society. They are created during the ritual of soul burial and guide the buried spirit to Soul Society. Likewise, Soul Reapers use Hell Butterflies to pass to and from Soul Society safely. Within Soul Society, Hell Butterflies also serve as a means of communication. Despite lacking any visible means of communication, they are able to record and relay messages to anyone simply by landing on the finger of the sender or recipient.

Senkaimon
Soul Reapers come and leave Soul Society by unlocking the senkaimon (穿界門, lit. world penetration gate). When guided by a Hell Butterfly, the senkaimon takes the form of a waiting room entered through a sliding door. Humans can also use such a gate through the use of reishihenkanki (霊子変換機, lit. spirit exchangers), which convert solid matter into spirit particles. A variant on this gate using four marked points can allow Soul Society to move entire towns into Soul Society, as is done to Karakura Town to prevent Aizen from destroying it.

Intruders can pass through the senkaimon in the same manner. While this method uses the same gate, the lack of a Hell Butterfly forces intruders to pass through the dangai (断界, lit. prohibiting world), a bordering dimension between the human world and Soul Society (not to be confused with Hueco Mundo). This is much more dangerous to do, as souls that cannot pass through before the gate to Soul Society closes are trapped there forever. It is possible for Seireitei to deactivate these mechanisms, allowing Soul Reapers or humans to traverse the dangai safely.

Memory replacement
In some cases, a human witnesses a Soul Reaper purify a hollow or affect his surroundings in a significant way. To keep the incident a secret, Soul Reapers perform memory replacement with an item called kikanshinki. In function, it operates almost exactly like the neuralizer in the Men in Black films. When used, a bird's head pops from the top of the device and produces a puff of smoke. The human it is used on is knocked unconscious and wakes up a while later with a new memory. However, the new memory that the human acquires is random and often based on the limits of what they themselves will believe. For example, Ichigo's family merely believed they slept through a truck crashing into their house when it was used on them. Conversely, Orihime Inoue, who has a much more active imagination, believed that her house was attacked by a gun-toting sumo wrestler (a Yakuza gunman in the manga).

Mobile phone
A vital tool for any Soul Reapers stationed in the human world, this variation on a mobile phone functions both as a regular phone and as a communication line with Soul Society. It receives information about the time and exact location of a hollow's emergence via Global Positioning System (GPS). A Soul Reaper's kills are also recorded in the phone and can be used as currency (according to the bounty placed on each hollow).

Government and law
Soul Society is ruled by a royal family, which is protected by a royal guard. The king and the royal family reside in a separate dimension in the very core of Soul Society, which can only be opened with a tri-pronged golden key fittingly named the Royal Key (王鍵). The location of this key is passed down verbally from one Gotei 13 general to the next, the current holder being General Yamamoto. The king's practical role is unknown, as the Soul Reapers are governed largely by the Central 46 Chambers, nor has the king been implied to participate in any of their deliberations. According to Rangiku Matsumoto, no Soul Reaper in the Gotei 13 has ever seen the king.

The main authority over the Soul Reapers are the Central 46 Chambers (中央四十六室), who serve the Soul Reaper royalty (the ruling class of all Soul Society). The Central 46 Chambers are made up of forty wise men and six judges. They are sealed into an enclave in Seireitei called seijōtōkyorin (清浄塔居林) which no one else may enter, regardless of their military or civilian status. The decisions of the 46 Chambers are final and unquestionable, regardless of what the decision may involve.

The only Soul Reaper forces which do not answer to the Central 46 Chambers are the Royal Guard (王属特務), also known as the Zero Division, which is said to have considerable power and tactical knowledge, and the Soul Reaper Academy.

Judiciary and legislation
The Central 46 Chambers act as the Soul Reaper judiciary and are responsible for judging and sentencing Soul Reapers who have committed serious crimes, such as murder or treason. Punishments for less serious crimes may be given by other authorities, such as Soul Reaper captains. It is implied that the Central 46 Chambers mostly deal with capital offenses. With their deaths at the hands of Sōsuke Aizen during the Soul Society arc, General Yamamoto has taken over their normal duties. There are several forms of executions in Soul Society, although only two have been revealed:
 * Spirit-sealing pit: The spirit-sealing pit is an ancient form of execution in which Soul Reaper criminals are thrown into a pit walled with deathstone – a type of stone that absorbs spiritual power, preventing those nearby from using their powers. Hollows are then thrown into the pit with the criminals as the means of execution. The practice was considered too barbaric and discontinued.
 * Sōkyoku (双殛): Sōkyoku is a form of execution usually reserved for those with extremely strong spiritual powers, namely Soul Reaper captains. The Sōkyoku is a giant halberd that utterly destroys a soul on contact. When released, Sōkyoku takes on the form of a phoenix, its true form, called Kikōō. The Kikōō has the destructive power of one million zanpakutō, and that power is multiplied by a factor of 10 at the moment it pierces its victim.

Army
The Soul Reaper army consists of three unique elements: the Gotei 13 (Thirteen Court Divisions), the Kidō Corps, and the special forces.

Kidō Corps
There is currently little information on the Kidō Corps (鬼道衆), except that it takes students from the Soul Reaper Academy that excel in demon arts and that its operations are executed in absolute secrecy. . Tessai Tsukabishi was the Corps' former captain, and Hachigen Ushōda was its former lieutenant.

The Kidō Corps are responsible for opening the senkaimon (穿界門) between the human world and Soul Society.

Special Forces
Also called the Secret Mobile Unit/Corps or Covert Ops, the onmitsukidō (隠密機動) has five divisions. The first division is the Executive Militia (刑軍), the second is the Patrol Corps (警邏隊), the third is the Detention Unit (檻理隊), and the fifth division is called the Reversal Counter Force or Correctional Force (裏挺隊). The 4th division's name or function is still unknown. There is little information about the operations of the special forces.

Originally, the special forces was completely separate from the Gotei 13. However, the head of the Shihōin clan, one of the Four Noble Clans, has traditionally inherited the title of commander-in-chief. Whenever the head of the Shihōin is promoted to a captain of the Gotei 13, these two groups become inextricably linked. Yoruichi Shihōin is an example of one such person when she was promoted to the captaincy of the 2nd Division. Due to this, the special forces were almost a part of the 2nd Division.

The Special Forces are currently run by Captain Soifon of the Gotei 13's 2nd Division. She succeeded Yoruichi Shihōin, who departed Soul Society 100 years before the start of the Bleach storyline.

Ranks
The head of the special forces is called commander-in-chief (総司令官). The leaders of each on the five divisions are ranked as corps commander (軍団長), the real-life equivalent being Lieutenant General. It is unknown how the ranks of the Special Forces are structured, with the exception of the commander-in-chief. Like the Gotei 13, the leader of the forces seems to hold that position ex officio, as he or she is also a corps commander and personally commands its top division, the Executive Militia. Unlike in the Gotei 13, the force commander has several bodyguards.

Uniforms
Although the general special forces uniform appears to be the standard Soul Reaper uniform, the Executive Militia uniform is different from the Gotei 13. Overall, it resembles a ninja uniform. It has no visible white undergarments and the sash is dark as opposed to white. A headpiece covers the bottom part of the face and sometimes the top, but not the eyes; they wear no sandals, but long tabi boots, and tight bands are on the legs and arms to keep the clothes from moving too much, which both are presumably for silence of movement. In the anime, members of the Executive Militia also wear their head covering on the top, not just the bottom and wear a black sash instead of a white one.

The leader of the militia wears the same uniform, except that the shoulders and back are exposed. The reason for the empty space is the shunkō (瞬閧) technique, an advanced technique that combines hand to hand combat and kidō and causes high spiritual pressure to accumulate at the shoulders and back, blasting away the fabric at the shoulders and back.

The Correctional Force uniform is radically different. The soldiers wear a white uniform, a long piece of headgear, and a backpack. 

Gotei 13
The Gotei 13 (護廷十三隊) is the organization which most Soul Reapers join. It is split into thirteen divisions (hence the name). In addition, there is a secret fourteenth division whose official name is the Zero Division, but they are also known as the Royal Guard. The Royal Guard's responsibility is to protect the royal family. Knowledge of its existence is generally only known to the captains of the Gotei 13. The Royal Guard's ranks are comprised of former captains who have been secretly promoted.

Several divisions have certain specializations: the 2nd Division's specialty is unknown, but the 2nd Division is currently tied to the special forces (onmitsukidō) since the ascendancy of Yoruichi Shihōin to captain; the 4th Division is the medical/supply division; the 9th Division has newspaper and magazine-related duties; the 11th Division is the melee combat division with a specialization in swords-only combat, forgoing the other arts of Soul Reapers; and the 12th Division is the research/scientific division. It is unclear if the other divisions are specialized and the extent to which these divisions are specialized.

As with any army, the Gotei 13 has ranks. There are 20 ranks for officers but no ranks for non-officers. The lower the number is, the more important. The ranks and their descriptions are below, from highest to lowest in terms of strength.

Commander-General
The sōtaichō (総隊長, lit. commander-general, dubbed as head-captain) is the leader of the Gotei 13 and the captain of the 1st Division; the implication is that this is an ex officio position. The current holder of this title is Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai.

Unit Commander
A Taichō (隊長), commonly referred to as Captain, are the leaders of the thirteen divisions (with the special case of the Commander-General). While "captain" is not an accurate translation of the rank, it's appropriate considering the size of the unit they lead. A single Gotei 13 'unit' (隊) is estimated at about 200-500 troops. Viz renders the units as 'companies' rather than 'divisions' because captains lead companies in real life. However, given that each Captain in Bleach leads a major part of a military wing or corps, they could be division commanders or Generals. Most literally, the name simply means 'unit commander', which could be practically any officer rank.

Captains are generally the most respected Soul Reapers in Soul Society, with the Central 46 Chambers, Demon Art Corps, and special forces leaders possibly being on equal status. With one exception (Kenpachi Zaraki), all captains are able to perform the bankai of their zanpakutō and are generally much more powerful than even their lieutenants. Knowing the bankai gives captains an average of five to ten times the strength of Soul Reapers who are unable to perform it. They have also extensively trained, if not mastered, their bankai, allowing them to actually use the enormous power effectively in battle. Most captains are also skilled in the use of shunpō, kidō, and generally have excellent knowledge of Soul Reaper history and battle tactics. All of these factors create a huge power-gap between captains and lower-ranked officers.

There are three different ways to become a Gotei 13 captain:
 * 1) To take the captain proficiency test (隊首試験), which requires the ability to perform the bankai. Presumably, most Soul Reapers become captains using this method. At least three existing captains, including the Commander-General, have to witness the test.
 * 2) To have personal recommendations from at least six captains and approval from at least three of the remaining seven.
 * 3) To defeat a captain one-on-one with at least 200 witnesses from the captain's division. Kenpachi Zaraki is the only known captain to have achieved his rank using this method.

Vice-unit commander
Fukutaichō (副隊長), more commonly referred to as Lieutenants, are the 2nd seated officers in each division. Because captain describes the unit commander, vice-captain is the most literally accurate translation some have used. The Viz manga translation renders the rank as the similar but somewhat longer "assistant captain", while the English dub of the anime uses the term "lieutenant". Although this does not apply to modern armies, in historical real-life armies the lieutenant has been the adjutant of the captain, as is the case for fukutaichō and taichō in Bleach. Therefore, lieutenant is a correct real-life equivalent of this rank. Holders of this rank in Gotei 13 have also been called adjutants.

Lieutenants function as executive officers for their division, taking care of or supervising day-to-day operations. They (along with their captains) are not assigned to one specific squad. They generally only know the shikai of their zanpakutō, but are still the second strongest in their division. In the case of a division captain's death, departure, or other circumstances making him unable to perform their duties, the lieutenant acts as the substitute captain until another can be assigned.

Seated officers
Sekikan (席官) are the remainder of the officers in the Gotei 13 who hold ranks at or below 3rd Seat. Captains have the rank of 1st Seat and lieutenants are 2nd Seat. Next to that, there are 18 more seats (3rd to 20th). These ranks are somewhat analogous to junior officers or non-commissioned officers in modern militaries. There seems to be a distinction between senior and junior seated officers, just like in real-life armies. In the Gotei 13, only one person can hold a senior officer rank (such as 3rd or 5th seat), but there are several holders of junior officer ranks (e.g. 20th seat). This may vary from division to division however, as there are two 3rd Seats in the 13th Division. Seated officers often lead subunits within each division (for example, Hanatarō Yamada is leader of 4th Division's 14th Advanced Relief Team).

Uniforms
Most Gotei 13 personnel wear the standard Soul Reaper uniform, called shihakushō (死覇装) - a white kosode (short-sleeved under-kimono), a black kimono and hakama, and a white obi sash. Lieutenants sometimes also wear an armband which carries their division symbol and its number, usually on their left arm. They are required to do this when they are summoned to a meeting but apart from this it seems that it is rarely compulsory; at the time the series takes place, the use of the armbands was noted to have fallen out of fashion.

Captains wear a white haori over the usual black Soul Reaper clothes, with the number of their division on the back, inside the Gotei 13 symbol (a rhombus). The Captain's haori comes in two styles: sleeve and no sleeve. Gotei 13 officers, particularly captains and lieutenants, often customize their personal appearance or that of their uniform. Some of these modifications include:
 * Captain Soifon of the 2nd Division wears a sleeveless and backless Soul Reaper outfit (when she's fighting) under her haori, which is standard issue for the head of the special forces. She also wears a yellow sash a layer above, but slightly lower than her white one.
 * Captain Retsu Unohana of the 4th Division wears an obi sash rather than a standard one.
 * Captain Byakuya Kuchiki of the 6th Division wears an extremely expensive scarf named ginpaku kazahana no uzuginu and a white ceremonial hairpiece symbolizing his noble lineage. His predecessor wore a similar scarf.
 * Captain Sajin Komamura of the 7th Division wears shoulder guards over his haori and large gloves which goes up to his arms. He also wore a helmet to hide his appearance. The helmet was eventually destroyed in a battle against Kenpachi.
 * Captain Shunsui Kyōraku of the 8th Division is probably the most flamboyantly dressed of the captains, always seen wearing a straw hat and a gaudily-colored haori over his uniform, including the standard white haori, as well as a colorful, flowery sash in place of the typical white one.
 * Captain Kaname Tōsen formerly of the 9th Division wears an orange scarf with his outfit, a sleeveless keikogi as well as white boots.
 * Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya of the 10th Division wears a green sash pinned with a star around his shoulder to hold his sword.
 * Captain Kenpachi Zaraki of the 11th Division wears a shredded edged (from combat) haori, which was taken from the previous captain.
 * Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi of the 12th Division wears a bloated purple cravat and various strange headpieces.
 * Lieutenant Chōjirō Sasakibe of the 1st Division wears a jinbaori over his shihakushō.
 * Lieutenant Shūhei Hisagi of the 9th Division wears a sleeveless keikogi and black choker.
 * Lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto of the 10th Division wears a top that is deliberately loose and hangs open to reveal her ample bosom. She also wears a pink scarf (or stole), and wears her lieutenant's badge around her waist with her sash, tied in a bow.
 * Lieutenant Nemu Kurotsuchi of the 12th Division has a very abbreviated outfit: the hakama is absent, leaving her with a mini-skirt version of the kimono that is belted at the waist. Former Lieutenant Lisa Yadōmaru wears a similar outfit.
 * Lieutenant Renji Abarai of the 6th Division has black tribal tattoos under his uniform and wears a white headband or expensive-looking glasses.
 * Former Captain Kensei Muguruma of the 9th Division wears a sleeveless haori over his sleeveless keikogi, and a pair of fighting gloves.
 * Former Captain Rōjūrō Otoribashi of the 3rd Division wears a white frilly garment under his uniform.
 * Former Lieutenant Mashiro Kuna of the 9th Division wears a keikogi with oversized sleeves, and wears a pink bandanna around her neck.
 * 3rd Seat Makoto Kifune of the 3rd Division wears a purple sweater under his uniform.

Insignia
Each of the 13 divisions in Gotei 13 have their own symbol that represents the division's primary role, which all seem to be based on flowers, as in the Japanese tradition of Hanakotoba. When a power limit is placed on a captain or lieutenant, their symbol appears on a certain part of their body until the limit is lifted. Each symbol also has a specific meaning.

Captain and lieutenant listings
Below are the names of all known captains and lieutenants, current and former, in the Gotei 13 in chronological order.