Byakuya

Byakuya Kuchiki is the 28th head of the noble Kuchiki clan, one of the four noble families in Soul Society.[1] As such, Byakuya acts in an aristocratic manner — he is always serene and apathetic towards other people. In the ending of the second OVA, Sealed Sword Frenzy, he is even seen stepping out of a horse driven coach dressed in a suit, cane and top hat. Furthermore, the door is opened by a butler, showing his aristocratic status even when visiting the material world. He claims that life in general isn't supposed to be entertaining, and in one of the omake chapters, he even makes up an idea for a game that isn't meant to be amusing. In spite of his icy and regal manner, Byakuya cares for and protects those important to him.

Byakuya is popular among the female shinigami of Soul Society, and was voted number one in the "captain we desire to release a photo book for" poll taken by the Shinigami Women's Association. He likes Chinese bellflowers, night time walks, and spicy food.

Byakuya wears the standard captain uniform along with a white headpiece called a kenseikan (symbolizing his noble rank as the head of the Kuchiki family) and a white scarf made by the master weaver, Tsujishirō Kuroemon III. The scarf is made from silver-white windflower light silk (ginpaku kazahana no uzuginu) and is a family heirloom handed down through the generations to the head of the Kuchiki family. Ten large houses can be built for the cost of just one such scarf.

History

Little is known about Byakuya's early history, except that his senpai was Jūshirō Ukitake and he often played tag with Yoruichi Shihouin using flash steps, though he never was able to beat her, a score that upholds to the current time of the series.

Byakuya married Hisana, who was then a commoner; therefore, he broke the rules by accepting her into the noble Kuchiki family. Hisana died about fifty years before the main Bleach storyline and her last wish was for Byakuya to find and adopt her biological sister, Rukia, whom she had abandoned as a baby since she was unable to care for both herself and Rukia. She also made him promise that he would not tell Rukia about her real family, for she believed that by abandoning Rukia when she was younger she was not worthy to be called her sister.

One year later, Rukia entered the shinigami academy; shortly after, Byakuya found her and immediately adopted her into the Kuchiki clan. By adopting her Byakuya respected his wife's last wish, but had broken the rules of his clan again. He later swore upon his parents' graves that he would never break the rules again, no matter what. As a result, he, though entirely apathetic on the surface, is actually deeply conflicted with the matter of Rukia's execution: should he intervene, it would require breaking the promise to his parents and the rules again, but should he do nothing he would fail to fulfill the promise he made to Hisana to protect Rukia as his own sister.

While it is not clear, it is implied that Byakuya Kuchiki became captain of the 6th division less than 50 years before the main Bleach storyline (shortly before Rukia had entered the Gotei 13). Gin Ichimaru became captain of the 3rd Division at the same time.

Synopsis

Soul Society arc

Though Byakuya appears slightly before the Soul Society arc, critically wounding Ichigo while arresting Rukia, he doesn't get major attention until Ichigo and friends infiltrate Soul Society. He delivers the news of Rukia's execution to her, and later interrupts Ganju Shiba and Hanatarō Yamada's rescue attempt. Later on, when Renji Abarai attempts to do the same, he ends up victorious again, using the final release of his zanpakutō to show Renji the difference between achieving the form and mastering it.

When Ichigo succeeds in rescuing Rukia, he and Byakuya have an extended battle. Ichigo's final release proves to be a match for the initial form of Byakuya's final release, but Ichigo's inexperience with his version exhausts him quickly. This, coupled with Byakuya switching to a more powerful form of his final release, leaves Ichigo at a disadvantage. However, the temporary emergence of Ichigo's inner hollow evens the odds once more. Both fighters channel all their power into one final attack; Byakuya's sword is broken by the attack, Ichigo's is not. The battle changes his attitude about Rukia's execution, and he tells Ichigo that he can no longer attempt to prevent him from rescuing Rukia.

Later, when Sōsuke Aizen orders Gin Ichimaru to kill Rukia, Byakuya saves her by pulling her out of Aizen's grasp, taking the attack for her instead. As he is being treated in the aftermath of Aizen's treachery, Byakuya breaks his promise to Hisana and tells Rukia about why she was adopted. He then apologizes to Rukia and thanks Ichigo for helping him realize what he should do.

Bount arc

When the Bounts' threat to harm Soul Society becomes serious, General Yamamoto instructs Byakuya, as the head of the Kuchiki clan, which gathers and records the history of Soul Society, to search his records for any mention of the Bounts and their origin. Byakuya's search reveals the Bounts were created as the result of an accident by Rantao, a researcher in Soul Society.

When the Bounts invade Soul Society and Rukia is severely wounded by the Bount Yoshi, Byakuya comes to her aid and temporarily incapacitates Yoshi, who subsequently escapes. Byakuya then attempts to seek out the Bount leader Jin Kariya and finds him in a forest. The two battle for a short period, seemingly even in ability, but are interrupted by Ichigo and, later on, Rantao. Kariya retreats from the battle with Koga Gō, who recognizes that he is clearly outnumbered even though Kariya himself seems confident. Byakuya later watches as Ichigo fights Kariya, who had since absorbed enough energy to set off a chain reaction of explosions in Soul Society. When it appears as if Kariya is going to detonate himself, Yoruichi tries to get him to seal the energy with her, but he remains still, believing that Ichigo Kurosaki can defeat him.

Arrancar arc

Shortly after Orihime Inoue is kidnapped, Byakuya and Kenpachi Zaraki arrive in the human world to retrieve Tōshirō Hitsugaya's team on General Yamamoto's order. However, Byakuya secretly allows Renji and Rukia to return to the human world to assist in Orihime's rescue, but insists that he is acting on orders from another to give them aid.

Byakuya Kuchiki's zanpakutō is Senbonzakura ( A Thousand Cherry Blossoms). Its initial release is triggered by the command "scatter" .

In its initial release, Senbonzakura's blade scatters into a thousand tiny blades. While the blades are supposedly too small to see normally, they appear as cherry blossoms because of the way the light shines on them. Byakuya can control the blades at will, allowing him to shred opponents at a distance and break through almost any defense. While Byakuya can control the blades with his mind alone, using his hands allows him to do so more effectively, making the blades move almost twice as fast.

Senbonzakura's final release, second form.Byakuya's final release, named Senbonzakura Kageyoshi .(Vibrant Display of the Thousand Cherry Blossoms), is essentially a much larger version of Senbonzakura's initial release. To activate it, Byakuya drops his sword. The sword passes through the ground and two rows of giant blades rise up from the ground behind Byakuya. These then scatter into a million tiny blades. The number of blades is great enough that Byakuya can use them for defense as well as offense.

Byakuya's final release has two extra forms, achieved by arranging the blades in different patterns. They are activated by saying the name of the technique followed by the name of his final release. The first is "scene of a massacre", which unites the scattered petals into complete swords that form four rows around Byakuya and his opponent. While Byakuya can control these swords as he does his regular blades, he usually attacks with just one in hand. After immobilizing an opponent, he can call in the other blades to hit them while they're trapped. He can also use all the blades at once for one immensely powerful strike. The second form is "final scene", which condenses every tiny blade into a single sword to drastically increase its cutting power. The blade appears bright white, earning it the name "white imperial sword",.Byakuya also grows pure white wings and a halo-like circle in the back, both made of spiritual power. In the anime, dragon-like beings sprout out of Senbonzakura to create the wings. It is unknown whether these wings are merely a cosmetic effect or if they can be used to fly.