Kenpachi Zaraki
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bleach character | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Kenpachi Zaraki | |
| Occupation | Shinigami captain of the 11th Division |
| Birthday | November 19 |
| Height | 202 cm (6' 7½") |
| Weight | 90 kg (198lbs)[1] |
| Zanpakutō | Unknown |
| Theme song | Superpredators by Massive Attack |
| Seiyū | Fumihiko Tachiki |
| Voice actor | David Lodge |
Kenpachi Zaraki (更木 剣八 Zaraki Kenpachi ?) is a supporting anti-hero from the manga and anime series Bleach. He is the captain of the 11th Division within the Gotei 13. His lieutenant is Yachiru Kusajishi.
Contents |
[edit] Character outline
Kenpachi has a wild and aggressive appearance, fitting with his personality. He wears his captain's jacket sans sleeves, and with a more ragged look to it (he acquired his captain's jacket from the previous 11th Division captain, whom he defeated and killed in a duel). He styles his hair into spikes with bells at the tips and wears a special eye patch created by the 12th Division to absorb the bulk of his power (it's actually a living being that eats spiritual energy). Both of these are meant to give enemies an advantage so that he can have even fights with weaker opponents. He is also one of the tallest characters in Bleach, towering at 202 cm (approx. 6 ft 7½ in). This is slightly taller than the giant Chad and almost double the height of his lieutenant, Yachiru Kusajishi (furthermore, in the anime, he appears to be more than twice her height).
Kenpachi lives for battle (evidenced by his method of attaining his rank) and enjoys a good fight more than anything. He even weakens himself in an effort to make any fight last longer. He also claims that injury and death are nothing but the price one pays for a good fight. Despite his group being the most bloodthirsty of the Gotei 13, they have a code of ethics, though different from the set rules of Soul Society.
Despite his seeming disregard for any strategy in his fights and his self-admitted aversion to thinking during battle, Kenpachi is adept at finding and exploiting weaknesses in his opponents' techniques, such as in his battle with Kaname Tōsen. He also has shown little in terms of kudo, footwork, or other techniques. He fights very much with direct brute force. One area in which he has demonstrated skill is in counter-reiatsu. he can use his spirit energy to counter the attacks, both Zanpakto, which Ichigo found out during their first battle, and spell-based, of others. While he admits to having no sanity or common sense, Kenpachi is actually very perceptive and notices traits in people that others wouldn't notice. For example, he correctly singles out Kaname Tōsen and Gin Ichimaru as the only captains who are afraid to die.
Kenpachi seems to play the role of the comical anti-hero in Bleach: though self-centered, his actions tend to be for the best and his relationship with his division and others is always portrayed comically. Because he has no sense of direction, he relies on his lieutenant to lead him to places. Unfortunately, she has no sense of direction, either, so the two are always shown running into dead ends and moving in the opposite direction they intend to. Every time he sees Ichigo, he gives him chase in an attempt to fight him. Also, he gets creeped out by Yumichika Ayasegawa, especially when he preaches about beauty. In fact, his entire team is made up of unusual characters and he responds to them rather comically, like a father who raised oddball children.
Though he literally lives for battle, Kenpachi has shown human emotion and caring for two things: his lieutenant Yachiru (who is possibly the only person he cares for) and his name, which he gave himself. Following his battle with Ichigo, in a rare moment of sorrow, Kenpachi talks about the pain of not having a name (as he lived his childhood and early adult years without one), and feels guilty that his sword isn't acknowledged by its name.
[edit] History
Zaraki's last name comes from the district he once resided in, Zaraki, which is district #80 of the North Alley of Rukongai. District #80 is the worst, most lawless region of Rukongai, full of thieves and murderers (whereas area #1 is the most orderly and law-abiding). While residing in District #80, Kenpachi was nameless. During that time, he became proficient in swordsmanship and killed numerous enemies.
At some point during his travels outside of District #80, he found a small girl and named her Yachiru (八千流) after she showed no fear of his sword. The girl came from area #79, Kusajishi (草鹿), where her parents were murdered. The two events were apparently quite close. On that day, he also took on a name, Kenpachi, the title bestowed upon the strongest swordsman, the one who has killed the most. The two developed a father-daughter-like relationship.
Also, at some point (before he became a captain), he fought and defeated Ikkaku Madarame; for this reason, Ikkaku pledged to serve under Kenpachi from there on out (Ikkaku doesn't actually get the chance to do so until he joins the 11th Division), but Ikkaku would still jump at the chance to fight Kenpachi to the death.
After some time had passed, Kenpachi found his way to the Court of Pure Souls (Seireitei). He defeated and killed the previous captain of the 11th Division (currently unknown) and gained his seat in the Gotei 13 in this manner. In the anime, his assumption of the captain's seat caused Maki Ichinose to leave Soul Society. According to the anime, it is also what convinced Ikkaku and Yumichika to join the shinigami.
[edit] Subordinates
Kenpachi Zaraki's 11th Division has been explored more in-depth than any other division in the Gotei 13. A number of former members include:
- Tetsuzaemon Iba, who left the division to become the lieutenant of the 7th, under Sajin Komamura. It's not certain that he served under Kenpachi at all, but quite likely since he is friends with Ikkaku and Yumichika. It was mentioned by Ikkaku that he 'changed ship' to the 7th division because he could not be a Vice-Captain in the 11th squad.
- Renji Abarai, who transferred from the 5th Division to the 11th as its 6th Seat before moving on to become the 6th Division lieutenant under Byakuya Kuchiki. During this period he was trained by Ikkaku.
- Maki Ichinose, who left shortly after Kenpachi killed the former 11th Division captain (anime only)
The other 11th division members who get somewhat of an important role are:
- Yachiru Kusajishi, Kenpachi's lieutenant.
- Ikkaku Madarame, 3rd seat and very good friends with Yumichika and Renji.
- Yumichika Ayasegawa, 5th seat and very good friends with Ikkaku. Yumichika tends to confuse Kenpachi because he always returns from battle unharmed.
- Makizō Aramaki, a fairly cowardly shinigami whom Yachiru likes to call "Maki Maki" or "Moustache Face." He has been in the 11th Division for 10 years.
[edit] Synopsis
[edit] Soul Society arc
After Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends arrive in Soul Society, Kenpachi is told about Ichigo by Ikkaku, who was defeated by Ichigo. Kenpachi sets out looking for Ichigo after realizing his potential strength. He opened his battle against Ichigo with some kind of reiatsu, apprently generated with and increased by using more of the bells in his hair to generate it. This appeared to mimic an intense gravity field. During their fight, Ichigo becomes enough of a challenge that Kenpachi removes his eye patch, thus releasing the extra power it has been devouring. In order to match up with Kenpachi's strength, Ichigo borrows as much power as he can from his zanpakutō, Zangetsu, to compensate. The battle ends in a climactic clash between Ichigo and Kenpachi with their overwhelming spiritual pressures manifesting themselves as glowing auras during their charge. Ichigo's aura is that of his hollow mask while Kenpachi's is that of a skull. The battle ends in a draw, with Ichigo falling first and Kenpachi shortly after, both admitting defeat.
Changed through their battle, Kenpachi begins his search for his zanpakutō's name, so that he can once again challenge Ichigo. He also begins to search for Ichigo after he recovers, leading to conflicts with his fellow captains. He also assists Ichigo's friends in their rescue of Rukia Kuchiki in order to find Ichigo, assuming that Ichigo would undoubtedly arrive at the same place. This alliance proves vital in their journey through Soul Society, clearing the way for the next battles that follow, allowing Orihime Inoue and the others to find Ichigo.
While searching for Ichigo with his friends in tow, they find themselves headed off by Kaname Tōsen, Sajin Komamura, and their lieutenants. While Kenpachi initially wants to fight all four at once, Ikkaku and Yumichika draw the other two away, leaving Kenpachi to fight just the captains. After a few failed attacks, Tōsen attempts to use his sense-dulling final release to defeat Kenpachi. Though effective for the most part, Kenpachi still has his sense of touch, and it alone allows him to overwhelm Tōsen with a bit of strategy. Sajin Komamura steps in to save Tōsen, also using his final release, but abandons the battle after sensing that Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai is fighting.
[edit] Bount arc
During the Bount arc of the anime, Kenpachi remembers Maki Ichinose, a former member of the 11th Division who defected after the former captain's defeat. Maki tried to duel Kenpachi beforehand, but only succeeded in getting himself injured. After the Bounts begin invading Seireitei, Maki Ichinose tries to stop Ichigo Kurosaki, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Yasutora Sado, Orihime Inoue, Renji Abarai, Rangiku Matsumoto, Uryū Ishida, and the modified souls from getting in the way. He is about to finish them off, until Kenpachi appears and blocks an attack which would have otherwise hit Chad. They proceed to fight, but Kenpachi has the upper hand throughout most of the battle. Kenpachi only has trouble when Maki tries to crush him with a condensed ball of light, merely taking off his eyepatch for a split second to dispel it. After mocking Maki's reasons for fighting for the beliefs of others and not his own, he finishes the battle with a final sword clash, both shattering Maki's sword and leaving him on the verge of death from a slash across the chest.
[edit] Arrancar arc
Kenpachi makes a short appearance after Orihime's kidnapping, where he and Byakuya Kuchiki bring back Hitsugaya's team of shinigami under the orders of General Yamamoto.
[edit] Zanpakutō
Kenpachi Zaraki's zanpakutō has no known name, even to its owner. Kenpachi is the only captain of the Gotei 13 who doesn't know the name of his sword, nor can he use his final release as a result. Even though Kenpachi doesn't know the name of his sword, his zanpakutō is constantly released.[2] The sword's appearance is a reflection of Kenpachi's own practice of weakening himself to fight: it is a seemingly worn-down and dull blade with a guard that extends inward from its center. The blade is much longer than that of a standard zanpakutō. Despite its appearance, it is quite capable of cutting through most objects thanks to Kenpachi's immense amount of spiritual power. This is demonstrated when Kenpachi stabs straight through Ichigo's zanpakutō.
It appears that after his fight with Ichigo Kurosaki, Kenpachi wishes to learn at least the name of his zanpakutō, because he wants to become stronger and can identify with the pain of not having a name. However, even then, he is not yet capable of communicating with his zanpakutō, and it is implied that he continually tries to learn from his zanpakutō so that he can achieve a new tier of power. Ichigo's zanpakutō, Zangetsu, notes that Kenpachi's disharmony with his sword causes the two to damage each other's power.
[edit] Trivia
- Zaraki hates natto, or fermented soybeans. He can never eat it because he can't cut the sticky threads. There is nothing in particular that he likes to eat.
- In one of the "Shinigami Cup" specials after Bleach episodes, Kenpachi is shown attaching the bells to his hair, which apparently takes quite a while to accomplish. The highest bell in particular takes him several hours to attach, as the tip of his hair is just beyond his reach. Occasionally, Yumichika will offer to do it, but Zaraki usually refuses because he thinks that it is weird for someone else to style his hair. Tite Kubo has remarked that Zaraki's hair is the most difficult to draw tied with Kaname Tōsen's.[3]
- During Ichigo's fight with his inner hollow, Zaraki was the form that Ichigo's instinct and desire to win manifested themselves in, explaining to him that they were both the type of people who lived to fight battle after battle.
- Zaraki could easily be ambidexterous, seeing as how, in different episodes, he has used his sword in both his left and right hand. However, this may only be another way to make the fight more challenging for himself.
- In an interview Tite Kubo noted that he would like to go more into depth about Zaraki.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Bleach Official Character Book SOULs; page 140.
- ^ Bleach Official Character Book SOULs; page 258.
- ^ Weekly Shonen Jump interview, year 2004, issue 42.
- ^ Kubo Tite x Morita Masakazu Interview
