#rooting for Aizen

[azumasoroshi]

i think an incredibly funny part of the aiichi dynamic is that at least one of them has to be traumatized and/or possess incredible worldly exhaustion in order to even consider the other as a romantic love interest

like they need to go through decades and time loops of war and hopelessness and death and destruction in order to be like huh maybe this guy isn't so bad

of course this doesnt go for every fic (academy blues my beloved) but. a lot of them do and it's SO funny

[keikakudori]

❝ --- how charming. it seems tonight shan't be so quiet after all. it's rather entertaining, isn't it, to see beasts showing their claws and fangs. ❞

[feralthembo]

five comfort characters, five tags

making a new post bc the one @chosoyukiism tagged me in was ten miles long and i dont play that game 😂 in no particular order bc the intensity of my fixations varies day to day, moment to moment. im not sorry for how long this got.

ok so basically half the jjk cast for different reasons but i really focus on gojo bc we have the same mental illness frfr (i hit him with the cluster b hammer so hard yall dont even know) anyway this one is like 6 guys in one plus gojo as the actual pick

krobus (stardew valley). hes just a guy with no discernable gender and you can shack up with him aro style its great im having a blast.

speaking of characters that hit me in the trauma disorders: Diva (blood+) is the epitome of god forbid eternal girlchildren women do anything

in this same category of blorbo is a twofer because they share the same name and hit the same issues of the paternal variety. claudia from interview with a vampire and claudia from the dragon prince. theyre so mecore it hurts and i dont need to elaborate, anyone whos been around for more than 5 minutes knows whats up here

ok yeah i would be straying too far from my roots if i didnt mention izuru kira from bleach ive been insane about him since forever thats my emotional support corpse cyborg

honorary mention to sasori and deidara from naruto, shizuo and izaya from durarara, and fucking.... aizen??? from bleach??????? i will not be elaborating on that last one anymore than i already have.

anyway people i know love chances to talk about blorbo (you dont have to be as verbose as i was): @renthony @seeveekat @fractoluminescence @criminal-sen @seasparrow

[my-my-my]

Aizen, Calligraphy and Poems (?)

In addition to getting into fountain pens, I have also started to read waka poems, which are Japanese poems. While I’m personally not interested in calligraphy as a hobby, reading about the historical aspects of Japanese calligraphy and waka poems made me curious about Aizen’s relationship with calligraphy, and by extension - poetry. We don’t know much about him in relation to those two things other than:

Aizen enjoyed Japanese calligraphy/considered it a hobby

He was so good at calligraphy that he was teaching it at the academy

Hinamori began to practice calligraphy during his captaincy and he held monthly calligraphy sessions for his squad

Aizen had a column in the Sereitei Communication called “The Yin of the Pine Needle”

Japanese calligraphy is a subject often taught to children in elementary school, but it has even older historical roots tied to professional warriors of the bushi rank (samurais are a part of this ranking system). These warriors were trained in bujutsu – were bu means war, and jutsu means technique, and budo. Budo doesn’t quite have a direct translation, but some describe it as the “martial ways to peace.” Even within budo, there were two “emphasis” students needed to focus on: 1) bu which were war and combat strategies, and; 2) bun which were Japanese literature and fine arts. Warriors of the highest ranking were expected to learn all of this, and some students were even expected to learn the flute (shakuhachi), Noh dancing (shimai) and flower arrangement (kado – which was one of Unohana’s hobbies!).

Japanese calligraphy, known as shodo was considered a vital part of a warrior’s training – so it is of no surprise that the Soul Academy, would incorporate it in their curriculum as a class, in addition to kido and sword fighting training.

But why is shodo so important to a warrior’s learning?

Well to many warriors, if sword fighting was considered a reflection of one’s mind (see my post here about Aizen and Kyoka suitgetsu), then shodo is the physical representation of the artist’s spiritual force. Shodo is more than just writing – it is a visible way to sense a warrior’s mental and physical condition. For centuries, leaders in Japan were expected to be strong calligraphers, and some of the best sword fighting masters in history, such as Miyamoto Musashi, were also regarded as some of the best calligraphers of their time.

Each brush stroke must be precise and unwavering – there isn’t room for corrections. An artist must be decisive once the brush hits the paper. The same can be said for sword fighting. You do not swing your sword “hoping” you will get a strike; you swing your sword because you are certain you will strike. Just like in any of the combat arts Shinigami must learn, mistakes are ultimately final in shodo.

Just like handling a sword, holding a brush is also a particular skill. Some teachers in shodo will grab brushes out of their students hand to check their grip. But the trick is that you can’t have too tight of a grip, as your brushstroke becomes rigid and your writing becomes static. Thus, you must be concentrated, but also relaxed. Shodo has an emphasis on balance and flowing, dynamic characters, just like with sword fighting. It’s why there’s often difficulty in painting a straight line, because your mind and body must work together as a unit. Once your brush hits the paper, your hand must paint without hesitation – your thoughts are free as they are focused on the “here” and “now” of painting. Aizen, who had a strongly concentrated mind, was also relaxed – his fight with the Gotei 13 in Fake Karakura Town is an example of this.

I already talked about this in a previous post, but Kyoka suigetsu acts as a metaphor for visualizing before striking. Shodo has a similar concept as well. Skilled artists should be able to visualize the kanji they’ll paint, and then make the decision for the first brush stroke. It would not surprise me if the Soul Academy then made calligraphy an elective because for students to be relatively decent at calligraphy, it would be a safe assumption that they would be good with a katana. Both require accuracy and skills to be effective.

Aizen was already a master sword fighter, so it is then, of no surprise, that his calligraphy skills were also unparalleled. While it’s a shame we don’t see any of Aizen’s calligraphy work, he was recognized in his skill in it that he became a teacher. I also wouldn’t be surprised if this was his way to “vibe check” students as potential conspirators with him, because of the underlying assumption that brush, katana and mind are one.

Calligraphy is just one aspect though; some calligraphers were also talented poets! One specifically that comes to mind is Sugawara no Michizane. To be honest, Aizen kind of reminded me of an evil version of him lol. Sugawara no Michizane was a poet, scholar and politician employed to the Emperor of Japan. Long story short, a political conflict arose, where two other clans working for the emperor made comments that suggested Sugawara was trying to usurp power from the Emperor. As such, Sugawara was exiled from the imperial court.

Another fun fact about Sugawara no Michizane, he had a favourite plum tree in the imperial garden! So much so that on the day of his exile, he wrote a poem for it: When the east wind blows/ let it send your fragrance/ oh plum blossoms. / Although your master is gone/ do not forget the spring. The legend goes that Sugawara missed this tree so much that it flew to him during his exile. This gave the plum tree the name: tobiume.  

Sugawara died not long after his exile, but the imperial palace, and those who wronged Sugawara, experienced dreadful things. Specifically the Emperor’s palace was destroyed through a fire… which was triggered by lightning. Such as the fall of the Sereitei during the first invasion of the Quincy after Aizen’s defeat (Sasikibe dying and Yamamoto burning Squad 1). While Aizen is indeed alive, the imperial court were incredibly superstitious and made temples in honor of Sugawara. And we have Shunsui (temporarily) releasing Aizen for the war (I admit, this connection is a bit of a reach!)

As for poetry, I again, wish we had an example of some of the things Aizen wrote, but the Yin of the Pine Needle is an interesting title for a reoccurring column! He wrote 50 volumes for it. (For context, Unohana’s column had 1041 volumes.)

In Japanese flower language, pine needles (matsuba) symbolize harmony. The “yin” in Aizen’s column’s title, is a bit more ambiguous, because yin can mean different things in this context. Yin can represent assimilation, quietness, sluggishness, psychological or spiritual work, it can also be interpreted as suppression when yin is associated with emotions. Regardless of what exact meaning Aizen’s column was meant to be, it would be a safe assumption that Aizen was publishing something that was could have been a critique, commentary or something where he’s pointing out the “harmony” either within Soul Society or something more ambiguous lol, is not what it seems.

Here are my rambles, thanks for reading! Would love for Kubo to write more Aizen, but alas! I'm always going to overthink the crumbs we get of Aizen's character lol.

[bleachbleachbleach]

In addition to zanpakutou are cool, I will also add that Ichimaru, individually, is also very cool. He just like, saunters his way into the story, speaking Kansai, dismembering people, and demonstrating very specific knowledge of Ichigo's hair color:

I think this sounds less bananas in Japanese than it does in English, because that's just what that color is called in Japanese, but the phrase has roots in Genji and to me it still feels like the equivalent of someone using Crayola colors to reference things ("burnt umber" instead of "reddish brown"). Amazing, for multiple reasons: That Ichimaru would describe Ichigo thusly, in this moment; that he's referencing official Gotei intel that likely also called Ichigo daylily-colored.

I say official Gotei intel and not just secret Aizen intel, because I think Ichimaru might be referencing the same Onmitsukidou report that Byakuya talks about in Chapter 54:

[Bleach 054]

(Did Byakuya need to be that specific about this information? Did he need to bring it up at all? No he did not, but Byakuya be Byakuya-ing. Anyway--)

After Byakuya and Renji's encounter with Ichigo, the Gotei is able to put a name to a face, and maybe even gain additional insight into the nature of Rukia's crimes. I'd never really thought about it before, but if Rukia's High Crimes (overstaying her welcome in gigai/in the Living World and sharing her powers with a human) have the real, tangible impact of some weird daylily-colored guy showing up to invade the Seireitei, I could see an argument being made for her execution/her accelerated execution. I don't think most of the people who go off to meet the Ryoka Invasion have put all of these things together or really care to (but maybe I'll be proven wrong on re-read; guess I'll sit tight until Chapter 81 to see what our very first CAPTAINS' MEETING, MY BELOVED has to say), but that actually does make some sense to me. I'm not saying I agree with the justification for Rukia's execution, lol, but like, yeah, that could track?? I see it??

It also makes me think about why Ichimaru shows up in Chapter 65 to poke Byakuya. I've always figured it was just to poke him, because "I just wanted to poke Byakuya" is very relatable and convincing in itself. But in addition to the whole Rukia Thing, and Aizen et al being involved in the Rukia Thing, Ichimaru's comments make me also feel like he was looking for more information about Ichigo, specifically, seeing as Byakuya recently experienced him first-hand. Presumably, Byakuya just finished writing his report. Did Ichimaru want that info before it even went to press, fresh from the horse's mouth? Or maybe he wanted to intercept the mail so he could be the first to read it.

[gallusrostromegalus]

So...uhh, you mentioned that tousen is the one captain who zaraki "if you don't fight with both joy and intention to kill you are a bitch" kenpachi actually respects because he punches WAYYYYY above his weight class, and you also mentioned that even if he is very skilled with it, suzumushi still isn't his sword. My questions are: In the event tousen gets his sword, what happens to suzumushi? he now has two zanpakuto? he can use both? can he actually do bankai with both? At the same time? My my second question is: If he gets his own zanpakuto, he will be able to punch SO MUCH HIGHER above his weight class, and with who it would actually be a fair fight with him at that point? because my man has both skills and absurd power now, so most captains can't top that. If you cannot respond to either of those questions because spoiler spoiler, just give me a "yes.", please and thank you

Short, minimal-spoilers responses:

Suzumushi dies. This is apparent from the second Kaname picks her up- she should have died with Kakyo and is living on stolen time.

The reason Kaname is so weak compared to the other captains is that, since Suzumushi is not *his* Sword, she takes A SHITLOAD of energy for him to keep alive, let alone use. The Curse he has in the fic does not help this situation! Suzumushi also changed her attacks to make working with Kaname easier, so even with all the added energy, her output is bad. Their partnership is generally wildly inefficient, but still a miracle- what he's doing should be, at most, only theoretically possible.

Suzumushi dies *in the middle* of Kaname's fight with Aizen, and my favorite scene in the drafts folder is him manifesting his own Zanpaktou in the middle of the fight to continue.

Which is another Only Theoretically Possible thing, and it evaporates when Kaname collapses

Eventually, he is sent to visit Oetsu to Actually Properly Forge his Zanpaktou (and uh. Update the royal guard on the everything that's been happening), but he does not get a second sword.

Because Koumori is not a Sword :)

Without going into too much detail, Kaname can now use his Zanpaktou properly and yes, it's very Rock-Lee-Dropping-the-Training-Weights. He has now properly entered his weight class, AND all that time working with Suzumushi is paying dividends.

Kenpachi is at first, DELIGHTED that Kaname can kick his ass even harder.

Then SPECTACULARLY DISAPPOINTED, Because Koumori is not a weapon for fighting, but a tool for stopping fights in their tracks, and particularly Noxious to Kenpachi, whose first life was as a sword.

Sure, he probably could beat Kaname and Koumori, and it'd be a hell of a struggle, but it would not be FUN. It would be the opposite of fun. He'd rather go get a root canal than fight that Fucking Thing.

[writerswhy]

do you think hinamori can forgive aizen? he manipulated and used her from the beginning. i dont see why she has to forgive.

Disclaimer: none of this is meant to be apologia, nor am I trying to speak for others. I work in medical, adjacent to law enforcement/legal, and have personally experienced intimate violence. Just trying to let you guys know where I’m coming from. Thank you <3

Also, this is technically part 2 to anon’s question. I feel like I did a better job at elaborating on Hinamori’s character here.

You know, this comes up a lot in both fandom and real-life—this talk of forgiveness and redemption, getting “over” it—and it’s not something that necessarily interests me because of how it’s typically presented. I think it’s pretty reflective of the space and language we lack to explore conversations outside this model of punitive justice and its by-products.

I like to think that for someone like Hinamori who has a solid moral code and tends to shoulder responsibility for a lot of things—her people, her position, her friends, even the work she does for the academy—she’d subscribe to models like transformative justice or restorative justice. 

I think she believes that Soul Society can one day be a better place but also acknowledge that the expression of it is imperfect and not a one-size-fits-all solution. As someone who actually puts in the work, a path forward can manifest in two ways: one for Lieutenant Hinamori and the other for Hinamori Momo.

Hinamori plays an active role in the institution. She’s on the inside of this whole thing. In the aforementioned post I said that Hinamori can choose to bury her head in the sand, rage and follow in Aizen’s footsteps, grow bitter and alienate parts of herself, or hold onto this moral vision of hers and learn to work in and outside the Seireitei for a better Soul Society. We’ve seen her reclaim her lieutenancy on her terms, so I don’t think she’ll have much trouble there. And we know she has no problem challenging authority. I think she can learn to make the system work for her and her cause. I imagine that on the outside she would start some community outreach program to improve the lives of the Rukongai denizens. 

Internally though, it’s complicated. I’m not going to get into it here but I think Hinamori and Aizen have a lot more in common than either would admit and I think a big part of their relationship was almost like a response to the roles they both had to play within the Seireitei, roles they didn’t necessarily agree with. 

While writing this I kept thinking: who would Hinamori be if she had not joined the gotei (and if Soul Society had other avenues for souls like hers)? I think she would still retain her moral compass and ambition, but what would that look like on the outside? Maybe in direct opposition to the Seireitei, participating in or even leading an upheaval? And that’s a hard pill to swallow, that if circumstances were just a little different, she could find herself on the other side. (Not in the same way though, for obvious reasons.)

I think Hinamori would agree with the following: that violence has history, and crime—instead of a law broken—can be seen as a relationship that has been damaged. A relationship between people, between communities, between systems, a relationship of trust. (I mean, isn’t that what the Soul Society arc was about? Isn’t that what Aizen preyed on?) 

I think Hinamori knows that the cause of Aizen and co’s defection was rooted in the history of the underbelly of the system they uphold. I think this goes back to how they lack the language and space to acknowledge this reality and engage in meaningful and productive dialogue to the betterment of the institution, the perpetrators (because they are and have to be a part of this conversation), the victims and community. 

So, do I think Hinamori could forgive Aizen? As lieutenant, I think she would have to come to terms with and understand the greater “why” of his defection to proceed responsibly. For models like restorative and transformative justice, the victim has to be the one to initiate the conversation and it has to be mutually agreed upon. Interestingly, she was not given that choice when the Wandenreich invaded. It may sound defeatist, but I think this is something that must be continuously processed: for as long as she works for the gotei, Aizen becomes more a concept than a person. Every once in a while, when a new enemy rises or when she hears the whisper of a wandering ghost, she’ll remember his words.

For Hinamori Momo, someone who feels deeply and values greatly, I don’t think it’s as simple as to forgive or not forgive (maybe it’s something beyond that). Aizen had a great impact on her and I’m sure some of the knowledge she gained she still believes in and incorporates into her work. I don’t want to take that away from her, nor do I think that means she’s still holding out hope to one day pick up where they left off. It’s not denying his violence or solely championing the good times, it’s about recognizing that in some ways she valued his mentorship and guidance. That he took up a major space in her life that cannot be taken up by another nor can she wave it away like it never happened. It’s a transformative process, taking something and crafting it into your image, and sometimes that’s the hardest path to take.

But like I said, I don’t think their society has the tools to facilitate this type of conversation without alienating another (like, I don’t think the gotei questions her being there, but maybe every once in a while, when she messes up on something they’ll attribute it to her trauma, which can be pretty damaging. It’s a cycle—she’s off her game for whatever reason —> they’ll think it’s because of Aizen —> that makes her even more anxious and resentful because is it? How is she to know if no one wants to openly talk —> so on and so forth). I said I see Hinamori as someone who is always asking herself “am I feeling this right?” and this is definitely one of those instances. 

-----------

I don’t think this answers your question, anon, but I hope you see where I’m coming from! Thank you so much for the ask. I had a lot of fun thinking it through<33

[brittscafe]

Masterlist 1

Dividers @cafekitsune​

Request Page

Gotei 13 male captains and lieutenants:

Cuddles HC

How they kiss you HC

Reactions to finding you asleep. Includes: Renji, Byakuya, Kisuke, Shuhei, and Ichigo.

Reactions to finding you crying: Jushiro, Shunsui, Kenpachi, and Byakuya.

Spin the bottle pt 1: Shuhei, Izuru, Ikkaku, and Renji.

Spin the bottle pt 2: Ichigo, Tensa Zangestu, Uryu, Kisuke, and Isshin.

Thunderstorms pt 1: Shuhei, Renji, Izuru, Ikkaku, and Ichigo.

Aftermath of TYBW

During the invasion of TYBW

How the male lieutenants kiss you

Byakuya, Shunsui, and Jushiro arranged marriage sc

Hueco Mundo Males and TYBW males:

How they react to you falling asleep on them headcanons 

Confessing to you. Includes: Aizen, As Nodt, Mayuri, and Szayel.

Falling in love and confessing to you. Includes: Aizen, Gin, Mayuri, and Shinji

Confessing to you. Includes: Gin, Shinji, Yumichika , Nnoitira and Ulquiorra.

Dealing with periods

Shunsui Kyōraku 🌸

SFW and NSWF HC

SMUT first time 

Jealously Drabble

Getting back together (fluff/angst)

Missing you (fluff)

Panic attack (fluff)

Jūshirō Ukitake 🤍

SFW and NSWF HC

Fluff blurb 

SMUT first time with Jushiro

Let me adore you (Smut)

Fluff blurb

Morning after (smut)

First time wedding night (smut)

Disagreements (smut)

Taking care of him (Fluff)

Interrupted (fluff)

Confessions (fluff)

Panic attack (fluff)

Jushiro with a human s/o HC

Hell jailer Jushiro x reader HC

Ichigo Kurosaki 🍓

SFW and NSFW Headcanon

Ichigo with a bratty s/o headcanon 

Ichigo’s birthday! (fluff)

Tōshirō Hitsugaya 🧊

First kiss (fluff)

Nightmares (fluff)

SFW and NSFW HC

Jealously (fluff)

Kiss me (smut)

Adult Toshiro and reader’s first time (smut)

Touch yourself (smut)

Toshiro with a s/o like Isane pt 1.

Toshiro with a s/o like Isane pt 2.

Rōjūrō Otoribashi 🎸

Renji Abarai ❤️

Sit on my face (smut)

Renji with a human s/o HC

Kisuke Urahara 💚

SFW and NSFW headcanon

Taking care of you after you’re injured

Love in the dark (mini fanfic. Kisuke Urahara x reader) ch.1

NSFW HC

Byakuya Kuchiki

Cherry Blossoms pt.1     Cherry Blossoms pt.2

SFW and NSFW HC

Touch yourself (smut)

Byakuya with a human s/o

Zangestu

SFW and NSFW headcanon

Familiar (fluff)

Kenpachi Zaraki ⚔️

SFW and NSFW HC

Jealously Drabble

Love at First Sight

Weak or Not (angst/fluff)

Shinji Hirako 🎭

SFW and NSFW headcanon

Edging Shinji NSFW

Reunion Fluff and smut

Finding you crying (angst/fluff)

Mayuri Kurotsuchi

Falling in love with a childhood friend

Ikkaku Madarame 🗣️

Face sitting NSFW

SFW and NSFW HC

Cuddling with Ikkaku (fluff)

Sōsuke Aizen 💜

SFW and NSFW HC

Walked in on having sex NSFW

Ruined (smut)

enemies to lovers 

Tamed (smut)

Possessive HC

Aizen with a human s/o

Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez 🐱

SFW and NSFW Headcanon

Rooting for the antihero (fluff)

Kiss me (smut)

One bed trope (fluff)

5 more minutes (fluff)

Ulquiorra Cifer 😐

SFW and NSFW HC

First time (smut)

Not so scary (fluff)

Coyote Starrk 😴

Gin Ichimaru 🤍

SFW and NSFW HC

Cockwarming NSFW

Gin with a bratty s/o

As Nodt 😶

SFW and NSFW HC

Not so scary (fluff)

Nnoitra Gilga

Tease (smut)

Szayelaporro Granz

Taking care of him after he gets injured

[littleeyesofpallas]

Bleach’s Issue with Queer characters (1/3)

So, someone recently(when i started this draft anyway) left a kind of incoherent rant on one of my posts.  It wasn’t actually related to anything I’d said in the post, and just came across as disjointed babble, so it didn’t warrant a direct reply at the time.  But it did bring up a subject I would actually like to talk about:

How Kubo handles gender queer characters.

I think it’s a little easy to look at the most glaring cases, come to the conclusion that he doesn’t handle representation well, and leave it at that.  That’s valid.  And he’s clearly not well versed or tactful in how he portrays these characters, and it’s really not that unreasonable to judge him for it.  But I also think there’s more going on with it than that really accounts for, so let’s pick at it a little...

By and large what Kubo does is some pretty by-the-books queer-coding villains, and what amounts to casting effeminate men in adversarial roles.  In the big picture, it’s not a good trope to be falling back on: it comes from a bad place historically, and even if Kubo doesn’t mean anything bad by it (and I’ll get into why I think he genuinely doesn’t) it contributes to the momentum already behind it that other, less well intentioned creators and readers inevitably stand to do more direct harm with.

The earliest case of this is actually from Zombie Powder.  Very early episodic villain, Ranewater Calder is a youthful and even girlish looking man who is actually an old man sustained by a youth restoring drug.  He’s a villain of the week type, so the fact that he’s pretty and evil is literally all there is to him.  Moreover, his fixation on youth, his vanity, and his deception (he pretends to be a frail, dainty victim at first) all link directly to his moral character.  Although Calder is himself never made out to be gay, the archetype he's clearly based on is a pretty classically homophobic characterization at face value

But even here it’s not totally black and white...  

There’s a snag in that Kubo’s not writing some 1950s American pulp novel where the perils of homosexuality spell self-destruction or divine/dramatic irony on the loathesome villain; he’s writing a shounen action manga, and it operates on the Rule-of-Cool first and foremost.  Calder isn’t a vehicle for moral preaching by religious conservatives, he’s a highlight character taking up valuable print space in a popular comic.  He’s attractive, he has a cool name, he has a cool weapon with a unique fighting style, and even his vanity and deception aren’t there to make him unappealing, they’re there to make him compelling.

And herein lies the root of Kubo’s problem.  He just likes having cool characters, and he crams them in where ever he can fit them, and that often means in villain roles.  Moreover, although some characters get more vilified than others, even within the scope of villain roles, not all of them get to stick around long enough to be developed as either something other than queer and villainous, or to get the full turn around.  After all...

Yumichika was a villain at first.

And you’ll noticed I hesitated just now at calling it a “turn around” and not a “redemption” or “turning over a new leaf” because frankly, the Shinigami never actually changed alignment.  They were circumstantially the villains of the Soul Society Arc until Aizen turned on them to be the bigger "real” villain.  Technically it was Ichigo & co. that changed alignments from fighting against the Gotei13 to fighting with them.  But relatively aside, Yumichika became a good guy and his favorable portrayal got to outweigh his villainous introduction.

Speaking of which, there’s not a whole lot to go over with it, but Yumichika’s original appearance pretty closely mirrored the profile of Ranewater Calder’s bit in Zombie Powder: a kind of “sissy” prettyboy is obsessed with his looks, and other than just being a guy with a sword pointed at the established heroes making him a villain, that vanity and narcissism make them mean, judgy and vindictive.

But Yumichika came back, and stuck around, and frankly became something of a fan favorite.  And I think this particular development says a lot about how Kubo looks at these situations.  You’ll notice, he didn’t actually have to change Yumichika’s character much to shift him from villain to hero.  Yumichika gets a little less prickly, but he’s still vain and it’s not even something that anyone ever frames as a problem he needs to work on.  In fact, the introduction of his shikai brought into play a new facet of his vanity: Deception.  So we’re back to that Ranewater Calder framework, where the prettyboy has something to hide with his looks, but in Yumichika’s case it’s shown as an almost endearing quality.  He hides his sword’s powers, a reflection of his true self, to fit in.  But this isn’t shown to be a thing to pity, his willingness to sacrifice a part of his own identity is portrayed as a kind of noble restraint.

Now, granted, I don’t think those elements all play nicely together. (In fact, the nobility of his self-restraint is a very dangerous thing to uphold as a virtue) But when it comes to trying to draw a line between message and intent, I think the most pertinent thing to consider as context isn’t actually the villain or hero dichotomy, or even your own personal feelings about the themes in play, it’s the attitude ("attitude" as different from “intent,” mind you) of the creator towards his creations: Kubo seemed to enjoy making Yumichika.

He had fun with his design (the feathers and the weird sweater collar thing) He had fun with the sword, with giving him a secret power.  He had fun writing his vanity rants.  He didn’t have to have Yumichika, he didn’t have to bring him back, and he didn’t have to add to his character, but he did.  He invested his own time and effort and space on the page to him and to making him interesting to have around.

But like I said, Yumichika’s the lucky one.  He came in early, got to have a comeback, and had time to stick around.  But consider that when Kubo was floundering around trying to figure out how to salvage the mess that was the late TYBW arc, he didn’t need to bring back Arrancar, and he didn’t need to bring back the ones he did. (in fact, only the Privaron even make sense in-world, Luppi and Charlotte weren’t convenient choices, they were just Kubo’s personal picks.)  And when he did finally get around to cleaning up the Sternritter?  Bazz-B was an obvious choice to keep, sure (following that Renji/Grimmjow mold of the hotblodded rival who bucks his own organizations rules) but Giselle and Lilttoto?  That was Kubo playing favorites.

Luppi was so short lived, it’s hard to really say anything about him.  He was basically just reusing notes from Yumichika’s first appearance, which again also refer back to Ranewater Calder in Zombie Powder for basic aesthetic and demeanor.  (It’s actually kind of weird that Yumichika never really had any kind of dynamic with Luppi when they fought.)

Side note here, but Kubo really loves to build some of his recurring character types around a certain kind of scene or dynamic.  Byakuya and Ulquiorra both do this thing where they’re supposed to be the stoic unflinching types, but they actually get shocked and surprised almost constantly.  Kubo seems to be going into it with the mentality that he thinks it’s cool when the character who predicts everything and always has everything under control, can’t predict something and doesn’t have it under control, and just reverse engineers a stoic person for the purpose of having them “break character” later.  In this vein Kubo seems to have a real love of very pretty characters shifting into a kind of sinister “ugly mode.”  It wouldn’t serve his purpose to just have them ugly or obviously meanspirited all the time, the ugliness has to be served up in its reveal as that “breaking character” moment, even though that “breaking” moment is itself the core of the character.

Not to get too heady about this little observation, but it honestly feels like something that applies even to Kubo’s broader writing habits; wanting the payoff of a twist, and planning said twist first but then reverse engineering the supporting ruse only as a matter of course.  Just a silly little thought...

[1][2][3]

[wri0thesley]

oughhhh natttt,,, crocodile and aizen,,, yeah. you’re so right,,, now i need to yap about aizen bc while he’s not my main bleach fav,,, he just tickles something so Right.

if we’re talking yandere, aizen is such a good candidate. because he pulls the whole “i was secretly the one orchestrating the downfall of our society” and an extensive betrayal no one (and i mean no one) saw coming. he’s introduced as this kind, gentle, and wisened guy everyone looks up to, but turns out that was all a facade because he’s actually this cold, (mostly) unfeeling dude who makes most famously manipulative characters look tame (aka the whole “everything was a part of my plan” bit). and the whole reason he does what he does (try to become a god) is because, ego aside, he thought that the old regime was rotten to its core and needed to be eradicated and reset. but then, boom boom, when he’s beaten, turns out that because of how powerful he was, he always harbored a deep-rooted lonliness and desperation for an equal, be it by making them as powerful as him or by sacrificing his own power.

but back to yandere bc i got distracted - i think aizen having a darling who is someone normal and lives among the masses (as opposed to the many flashy powerhouses) is probably the most appealling - especially since theyd likely meet while he was undercover. and i think him luring them in (whether intentionally or unintentionall) with such a kind demeanor; as someone they could admire for always knowing what to say and to believe that he’d have their best interests at heart. they virtually hand their heart to him on a silver platter and he ultimately devours it. i honestly can’t see him choosing his darling over his goals - so i see him either continuing to string them along while he plays god, even when they know who he truly is until it ultimately destroys them, but they may be able survive with a shattered heart; or, he decides to cut any potential losses early and grants them what he considers a mercy by not allowing anyone else to ever have a chance at their heart or body ever again.(if it remains canon-compliant, he and darling will inevitably be torn apart whether willingly or not - but i’ll never say no to aus,,, :3). but later, while it’s no redemption, once he’s defeated and has millenia to reflect on his actions, he begins to maybe realize his own lonliness and recognize the gaping hole in his own heart he attempted to fill with darling. but ultimately it’s too late, and whether darling survived or not, he’s left clinging to the memories of the closest thing that came to love for him like a madman as he lives out the rest of his days in perpetual darkness.

aldnsndldmsks that turned into a whole aizen character analysis through yandere, my bad. i’m so sorry if none of that made sense but he’s just so so interesting i couldnt help it fskjdnd :””

no anon i deeply appreciate the ask!!! i do not think i have the moral fibre to watch bleach because 366 episodes is a LOT for my tiny brain (see also my lack of moral fibre to watch hunter x hunter or one piece, also!) but it is ALWAYS nice to hear people talk about things they love or are passionate about or they have thoughts about! (and i will not lie that i have been persuaded to watch and read things on the strength of fellow bloggers and writing i've really enjoyed!).

"as he lives out the rest of his days in perpetual darkness" what the heck happens to this poor man fgbnkjbgfkjn

[infernalodie]

𝐈 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐲𝐬 || 𝐈𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐨 𝐊𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐢

“𝘐 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴, 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘩 𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯, 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘩 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘐'𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯, 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯“

Inspo: NF - I Miss The Days Chase Atlantic - Consume

Pairing: Ichigo Kurosaki x Kurosaki!Male!reader

Summary: All he wanted was to have you return...

Warnings: Just angst

Words: 1601

When you left, Ichigo hated you. No one understood why you felt obligated to serve in the military, but you did. You up and left without another word. Being the oldest siblings, Ichigo always thought you would stick around. Be there to see him grow up and be the father figure he needed when your guy’s dad was acting like an idiot. But you left and it created a general resentment in the family that could be felt on all sides.

And even when you supposedly died, Ichigo hated you for it. Through all the years of him growing up to now being an adult and holding so many responsibilities with the Soul Society and your guys’ family, he never stopped hating you. Maybe it was the fact that you made him feel neglected when he needed you most. To teach him everything you knew and to just be an older brother to him. The thin line of what he had wanted from you was so blurry.

But he missed when he could smile knowing you would walk him to school. He missed when you would find a way to make his anxiety simmer with a simple smile and hug. And he missed the days you would hold him as he cried into your shoulder. Reflecting on all the bullying he got because of his orange hair. Those days were so simple, yet, so sweet that he wanted nothing more than to have them back. He wished for you to hold him once more as he let out every pent-up emotion.

But now, seeing you here, standing by Aizen’s side, he didn’t know what to feel. Because, behind the hollow mask that covered your face, he could see the orange tips and black roots along the edge. He knew no one else to hold those features besides you.

“Go have some fun, Y/n.” Aizen’s order was followed by you teleporting with a shimmer. Appearing behind your brother and kicking him hard enough to send him flying down to the streets below of Karakura Town.

Smoke filled the air from the impact of Ichigo’s body as he slowly stood to his feet. Grunting in annoyance as you appeared ten feet away. Still emotionless with your sword in hand as you watched Ichigo stand to his feet. “Alright.” He rolled his shoulders in an attempt to relieve the growing ache he was experiencing. “If this is how it’s going to be, then so be it.”

Gripping his sword tightly, he held it in front of him, ready to fight. But you raised two fingers and whispering, “Rapture.”

Everything around quickly flashed to white, a yell falling from his lips as he tried to block it out. But when it faded, he was invited to the sight of some sort of realm. A large box you two were trapped inside, with black lines perfectly lining the floor, walls, and ceiling.

Ichigo turned his attention back to you, seeing you lower your hand and rest by your side. Those familiar e/c eyes stared back at him. So familiar yet clouded with whatever was hidden beneath. Was it even you? Was this Aizen’s trick to get inside his head? Nothing was to be sure of, but Ichigo knew those eyes from everywhere. How they gleamed with happiness whenever he smiled. Or how much sadness you were able to hold back and mask behind a bright smile and glimmering eyes.

“You can’t escape unless you kill me or I kill you,” you told him, voice distorted to a gruff and almost hollow-like tone. Eyes sharpening, now glowing aqua blue with your sword being engulfed in blue flames. Raising your sword, pointed toward him as his knuckles paled, gripping the handle of his very own tightly. “But I won’t allow you to win.”

Faze stepping, body shimmering, you attacked Ichigo without a moment’s hesitation. The flames of your sword caused him to wince, the heat causing his eyes to squint. Ichigo pushed his own sword against yours to create some form of distance. But you only leaned your weight into your blade and pushed him back. Knocking him off guard for you to slash at his thigh. “Fight me, Ichigo Kurosaki!” You yelled, anger beginning to bubble to the surface.

“Y/n. Y/n, it’s me. Ichigo,” the orange-haired boy said. “Stop fighting and listen to me.”

He watched as you placed a hand on the side of your head. Finger tensing on the mask as you growled, faze stepping towards the boy and beginning to attack mercilessly. The strength and speed of your attacks did make Ichigo go on the defensive, but it never stopped him from trying to break through your Perfect Hollow Form. A mixture of his Vasto Lorde form and Fullbring.

“You’re a Kurosaki, Y/n Kurosaki. You have to remember.”

“Shut your mouth, child!” You release your full strength, sending Ichigo flying through the air and colliding with a wall. The sheer force caused him to cough up blood as he tried to find his footing in the air. “Show me the respect of a fight!”

Kneeling, Ichigo panted as he stared at your distant figure. “You left for the army 20 years ago. You died in a firefight. You’re my brother, Y/n!” He yelled, moving out of the way when thrust your sword at him.

Aizen, who watched from above, smiled in amusement. “You can’t get through to him, Kurosaki. I made sure that his hollow has full control and won’t survive-” Aizen could barely get a word out before a beam was shot directly at him, sending him out of the box. The hole he was taken out of healing over within seconds. Ichigo could only watch in shock as you lowered your hand, head bowed as you twitched.

Before Ichigo could comprehend anything, he watched your finger hook at the bottom of the mask. A scream tore at your throat as you ripped at the mask. Ichigo ran over, already knowing and having a feeling as to what might happen. “Y/n, stop!” He yelled.

But it was too late, with one final yell, you ripped the mask from your face. Releasing the power of your hollow and fullbring form at once, aiming themselves at Ichigo. He dodged and slashed at the burst of energy before thrusting his sword forward at the last. But was shocked to find you, his sword impaled through you.

A cough fell from your lips, blood leaking from the corner of your lips as you looked up at Ichigo. His eyes quivered, his mouth parted with his hands frozen to his handle. “Ichigo…” Your voice shook him from his thoughts, eyes began to tear up as he looked at you. Yet, you let a smile appear, hands placing themselves over his. “It’s good to see you, kid.”

There you were. You were finally here and he could finally see the light within your eyes. The same big brother he remembered. A laugh fell from Ichigo’s lips, tears finally beginning to fall as he held your face. “Y/n.” His lips quivered, trying to show you that he wasn’t the same little kid you had sadly left. But your softening eyes made it hard for him to try and impress you. And the idea of you dying right here in front of him after he finally got you back, making it only harder. “I don’t know what to do!”  He cried.

“Hey. Hey, hey, hey.” You pulled his head to rest against your forehead. “You know exactly what you need to do. Although you may be a bit dense at times, you already know what has to be done.” Ichigo shook his head as you pressed a kiss to his head. “You gotta let me go.”

“I-I can’t! I just got you back!” He shook his head. “I know someone that can help you. We can get you fixed up and I-I-” Before he continued, you firmly grasped the side of his neck and made him look at you. Your finger’s digging into his flesh, but nothing hard enough to make Ichigo wince. But your gaze was stern as you stared back at him intently. A layer of content within your eyes as you sniffled.

“I fucked up a lot when I left you, Yuzu, Karin, and Dad,” you muttered. “I regret leaving and I wish could take back everything I did after that. But we can’t change the past, Ichigo. We have to accept it so we can move forward.” Ichigo watched as your breaths began to grow shallower as you allowed a twitch of a smile to form on your lips. “But no matter where you go and what you do, I’ll always be there, kid.” A tear slid down your cheek with your lips quivering. “I’ll always love you.”

Ichigo stared at you in shock, watching you grab the handle of his sword and begin to pull the blade from your body. Groans fell from your lips as you pulled the final length from you and fall onto your side. Seeing the box surrounding the two of you began to crystalize with your lips quirking into a smile. “Ichigo, find me in our next life,” you said aloud, a shaky smile taking its place on your lips. “I’ll make up for the time lost.”

And before he knew it, your body exploded into pure blue energy. Surrounding Ichigo and embedding itself into Zangetsu. Three small blue jewels glow brightly on the face of the sword.

Ichigo smiled faintly.

“I will.”

[randomreadingtimewithtsuki]

hello dear I hope you are fine , can you please write Ichigo x reader , Reader and Ichigo are best friends and Reader is an alternative Soul Reaper like him and she is extremely powerful like Ichigo She loves Ichigo but knows that he has a crush on Orihime, during a fight yhwach They and Aizen were able to defeat him, but before he died yhwach kill reader and she dies. I hope you write the reaction of others as well, especially Rukia upon hearing the death of her best friend

I apologize for my long request, and I also like your page very much. I always encourage you

Hello!

Thank you for requesting!

I am doing ok, with another tendinitis issue ( that's why requests are slow , sorry :c) how about you?

I truly appreciate your support! Thank you so much <3 and don't worry about long requests!

I hope this is of your liking! Please let me know what you think!

TW: Death mention, injury, blood mention.

Tsuki's Note: I did not read the manga so this might be a bit bs-tery! Sorry!

Tsuki's Note 2: I hope i remembered everyone?

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

This was the final battle against the Quincy's. The battle against their king. You were a very powerful Shinigami despite being only a substitute shinigami. You have been to so many battle with your friends and crush, Ichigo.

You two always battled side by side. You were a great duo and each and every fight made you fall harder for him. But you knew this was an unrequired loved - he loved Orihime - the man himself has admitted that to you.

You cannot lie this broke your heart, but you also knew - like many others- Orihime also liked him, so he had a big chance and you rooted for them.

At this time, once again, you were sid by side with ichigo and.. well, Aizen. Despite everything you needed his help to defeat Yhwach. The fight was tough, there were several moments you thought you would lose.

That thought became true, for you at least. At some point, the three of you were sent blasting away by Yhwach. While you blinked away the fogginess of your eyes, you heard and saw Yhwach silhouete aiming an arrow at the body next to you.

You could feel the reiatsu of the man next you belong to Ichigo, he wouldn't be able to dodge it or to defend it. So you moved. You moved by instinct.

You shielded Ichigo being hit yourself, you could see his despair in his eyes and hear his sorrow by how he yelled your name. You took a deep breath and smiled:

"You fool! What are you sitting there for? Move! Go catch him! I will be fine!"

The man didn't even try to argue with you, you were right he had to move. But as he passed by you, Ichigo whispered:

"If you die i will kill you, got it?"

You laughed. But you did not answer him, you knew were not gonna make it - your liver was injured, it was matter of minutes until you died.

You could not let Ichigo know, so you did your best to attack long range for as long you could. Until your vision turned black, the world became quiet, every presence faded. All you could see was the immense white ahead.

--------------

When the battle was over and Aizen was arrested, again, a sense of relief reached everyone. Ichigo went looking for you, the place where he could last feel your presence. Upon arriving there he called for you, once... twice... thrice.... nothing.

He started yelling desperately. At this point Chad, Rukia, Renji, Yoruichi and Ishida came to help looking for you. The one who found you was Rukia. She called the boys and Orihime. asking her to heal you.

Orihime tried once, but failed. She tried again and yet, nothing. On her third attempt she was stopped by Yoruichi. It was no use, you were long gone.

Ichigo fell to his knees next to you. His expression was blank, Orihime and Rukia started crying and were comforted by Yoruichi and a devastated Renji.

Chad placed a trembling hand to Ichigo's shoulder and Ishida fell silent, regret and sorrow flashing on his face.

Yoruichi carried your body back to Soul Society so you could have burial.

All of your friends were upset by your loss, some were numb than others - this war took many lives. But Ichigo took it harder. You were his best friend, his partner in crime, the one to fight with him through and through and now a piece of him was gone.

It took him several days to recover from your loss. Sometimes, when they were all hanging out he would call out your name if you were not coming along, only to turn and see nobody, no answer.

Every anniversary of your death, he would bring your favourite snack to your grave and update you on his life events. He did this every year until the end.

Rukia still remembered how brave and courageous you were. She kept all the kind others you have said to her, close to her heart.

Whenever she visited you, she would bring a ribbon. Each time a different color.

Renji also held close all the fights you fought together. How strong you were.

He visited your grave with Rukia and would whisper some old memories of you then.

Orihime also took a long time to recover from the loss. But she noticed she had to toughen up a bit for Ichigo. She still packed extra food for you every now and then.

She visited your grave alone, because Ichigo liked to go alone, she respected that. She would leave a sweet for you and update you on her life. Ask you Advices just like she did when you were alive.

Chad was also greatly affected. He Kept mostly to himself, but he was oddly quiet.

Whenever he visited your grave he took the time to clean it thoroughly. He leaved it squeaky clean.

Ishida felt a lot of guilt. He felt like it was partially his fault, even if everyone told him he could not have possibly foreseen this. It took him a long time to come to terms with your death, but he eventually accepted it was not his fault.

Whenever he visited you, He would briefly talk to you and update about everyone and just a bit about himself. At first he apologized to you over and over, but with time that was replaced by reassurance - he would let you know if everyone was really happy or not.

You passed away holding the secret of the unriqueried loved.

You never told anyone and you tried your best to hide it.

You were gone hoping your friends would live a happy, long life.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you for reading!

I hope this was of your liking!

[godkilller]

out of character. Begging someone with a Bleach OC/verse that has a therapist-y muse to try their hand at helping Gin out because boy would that be a fun one. He'd probably start light with deflection but switch into lying, manipulating, and gaslighting pretty quick. Just thinking about the Good Will Hunting montage of therapists all quitting because he was so insufferable to them. Gin needs someone to yank him by the ear and tell him 'listen here you little shit' who isn't Aizen Sousuke, the root of his problems, or Rangiku, the reason he represses his problems.

[2dboisloyal-devotee]

i decide to post something and as my first post, it's about my first husbando.

>)~ONESHOT

This Wish I Hold (Yandere Toshiro Hitsugaya x GN reader)

Please make sure you're at least 16+ and proceed with caution, well the yandere jazz and all that is more apparent in the end anyway

Warning: fluff, manipulative behaviors, angst, reader's death

Momo Hinamori; the name of your savior from a dire situation and since then you had been trying to return the favor. By becoming good friends, you got along well with her.

It wasn't long around that time too when she brought you two together. Despite Momo calling him cheerfully in a nickname of 'Shiro', you met the renowned child prodigy, otherwise known with the 'cold as ice' alias.

White short spiked hair and a sharp turqoise eyes complement his striking appearance all the more besides just looking like a literal child. He narrowed his eyes. “...Captain Hitsugaya from the 10th division of Gotei 13. Nice to meet you.” The way he brought upon himself in a levelheaded manner made you quickly mutter an apology before introducing yourself....to which he just nodded at.

He soon excused himself, bringing Momo to block his way. “Geez, Shiro! That's not how you treat my friend!”He sighed. “What more do you want, Hinamori...? I'm busy already right now and it's not helping at all since I'm also doing the job she's supposed to do!” While he grumbled about someone named Matsumoto, you realized you would try to be good friends with him too as you thought it would be proper since he was a childhood friend with Momo, along with some other reasons rooted from curiousity.

And what better way to do that than helping with what was he frustrated about?

At first, Momo was a bit hesitant leaving the two of you alone because you just knew each other but after hearing your reassurance, she then left to take care of her business from Aizen. Arriving in his office, you were told not to be trusted on managing the important documents. He simply reasoned that he didn't want to have more incoming headache from it.

So you just stood there while thinking what could you possibly do before suggesting to buy his favorite drink to cool off or considering his instruction to do something about his useless lieutenant.

“Just do as you like without causing trouble,” he ordered sternly. His eyes were now focusing on the paperwork with furrowed eyebrows as if they were already a permanent part of his expression. So you followed what he said, getting to know many more people along the way and being friends with them. That still included you getting closer with Momo and Captain Hitsugaya.

You spent many breaks with them by eating lunch or snacks together, being told many stories from Momo about their childhood including the embarrasing parts which Captain Hitsugaya liked to get worked up over.

There was a tiny difference you noticed too. After gradually having spent time with them, Captain Hitsugaya's anger was only a flustered one most of the time. And that one was more warm to witness than his usual serious demeanor.

You were tidying up the paperwork on his table to a neat stack while he was stretching and you affirmed at the same time. “You're actually quite a warm person huh, Captain.”

He fell down along with his chair. “WHAt—”

“Uh sh—... Sorry, Captain. Are you alright?” Your hand was outstretching, but he already stood up so fast without sparing a moment to let you see the scene longer.

“I'm! Of course I am! That was because—and, what were you thinking, huh!? Saying something like...” He glared while blushing more apparent. Then he cleared his throat. “At any rate, that was rude to a Captain so don't say stupid things like that again.”

Whether he heard your explanation that you just wanted to say the truth as a praise or appreciation, he still turned around and replied. “Fine, I'll only let this one slide. And... Thank you.”

Momo often says Captain should change the way he acts around people because he could be rude sometimes, but you thought that he was fine as he was. Though, maybe you would save those words for another time as he seemed already agitated enough just by walking near you.

As days passed, you had to watch out for the right situation and even asked for permission if it was okay for you to say some stupid things like before. “Just say what you want. And you don't need to always say that, I won't let your words bother me that much anyway.”

It was becoming a fun routine for you and possibly him, judging by the subtle smiles you catched upon his relaxing face from time to time.

He was willing to loosen his creased eyebrows and smile even if that meant Matsumoto also got the chance to saw it herself then teased him for it, added with Momo who tried to play a matchmaker. He had tried not to let it show in public but failed many times and instead gave punishments of adding work to whoever teased him or you.

Bit by bit from fun to a fulfilling routine, you adapted quite pleasantly. It was overall rewarding. The Captain trusted you on many jobs. Yet he still managed to be considerate in his own way by taking breaks together every so often. It became a fact that he was getting more comfortable in your presence with how often he rested his head on your shoulder or lap and fell asleep.

Although because of the work schedule becoming busier, you had less time to meet Momo and even Captain Hitsugaya needed to remind you to rest. One time, your body still ended taking a toll so he stayed by your side almost the whole day. After few scoldings, he had taken care of you until you were back in good health. “Don't fall ill again, at least for a while... I don't enjoy seeing you like that.” He sighed.

It seemed like you couldn't fulfill those words. You got carried away and was too nonchalant of the world that could be in danger anytime.

Laying down on his lap, you coughed and came along a sharp pain in your chest as you tried to breath. “...will you end my suffering, Captain...?” Your trembling hand reached to his cheek with a pained smile.

“Stop.” He gritted his teeth. Toshiro knew that he would not be as capable as you said once you die. He wouldn't be able to forgive himself.

A ragged breath was let out from you before a choked gasp for the ache you felt. You spoke again. “..plea..se? I know, only you can numb the pain... Even thou—..gh you, such warm, person...” Toshiro quickly clutched your outstretched hand with a firm grasp as he voiced his rejection. “I refuse, and please, stop talking, (Y/n)! This isn't the time for ... Just—hang in there!!”

Deep down he knew that there wasn't any choice he could do anymore even after going through all sort of methods, left only a last resort for who knew how long. You were the one who gave those words a meaning and warmth to make him thought he was actually a warm person even after he had gone used to those ignorant rumors of him. He was in fact fine with you to be the one whom melted the guard he had built up like a chilling, rigid ice for years.

You should have taken responsibilities for making him feel this way. “Sor..ry.. honestly... I, want it to be, you..  who end..s it, please. Don't let it... end this way..” you responded. Your energy had been sapped away to every words and effort trying to keep your grip, then your eyes drooped...

At that second, your moment had become frozen in time. None other than in the eternally graceful ice he made himself, despite your words and self had gone cold. Finally he could do it using the reason you wished yourself. He will do anything it takes to have you keep your words true again.

He makes sure that you'll return.

[gojoest]

And this one:

Aizen or Gojo 😈

he will always win bc i will always choose him, my deepest rooted mental illness 😔

[blue-dream-rhapsody]

Spoilers for the end of the TYBW manga! If you’re only watching the anime, this will be in like the last two episodes of the whole show, so look away!

This is gonna sound like me being biased again (and I definitely am, don’t get me wrong) but I think I have a universally true argument here.

Renji was a weird choice to have go with Ichigo to the last clash with Yhwach.

To be clear, I’m very fond of Renji. I also think the conversation he and Ichigo have on their way there was a fantastic moment in their friendship, and want to keep it intact as much as possible. It’s just that, when I think of the magnitude of this particular moment, the literal last battle at the end of the series, it just feels odd for Renji of all his friends to have this pretty prominent spot.

Who is Ichigo teaming up with here? Aizen, the major antagonist for basically half the series. Uryu, the enemy-turned-friendly rival-turned-fake enemy-turned-genuine ally just acting as an infiltrator all along because he’s got roots in this battle. And… Renji. The Guy.

Like seriously, I’m trying to pinpoint exactly what narrative function Renji’s presence here serves, and for every one I can find, there’s just someone who does a better job? Like, okay, say he’s serving as the presence of a Soul Reaper. Except Rukia would also do that, down to the rank they have, and given her meeting Ichigo is how the series began, it would additionally be a natural bookend for her to be fighting alongside him at the end. (And obviously I am deliberately ignoring bullshit like power levels or whatever, because of the four in this alliance Ichigo’s ridealong contributes little more than a distraction while Aizen tanks the damage, Uryu fires the arrow, and Ichigo makes the cut.)

Rukia is also the member of his friend group Ichigo probably interacts with the least in this whole arc who isn’t Uryu Away For Plot Reasons Ishida (or maybe Chad, who I’ll talk about in a moment too), whereas he and Renji go through a chunk of the Royal Palace stuff together. So it seems like that final battle would be the chance to actually give her a meaningful interaction with him as, again, a mirror to the start of the series.

(Disclaimer: I don’t mean this in a shipping sense in any way, shape, or form, though you can certainly take it as you like. That’s not the only way their bond can be relevant, though. My point is simply that Rukia has more narrative importance to Bleach itself than Renji does, compared to how little time she spends interacting with the series’ protagonist in the final arc compared to him.)

So as far as all of that stuff is concerned, Rukia carries more weight, but let’s say Renji was chosen as Ichigo’s closest guy friend or something along those lines. Um. Chad??? My beloved Yasutora Sado??? Like of course Kubo seems allergic to giving Chad anything significant to do at any point past his introduction, but come on! He’s supposed to be Ichigo’s best friend! Again, I’m ignoring power levels. Maybe the combination of Aizen and Yhwach’s presence would’ve been too much for him to withstand given Fullbringer scale, but I still think he’d make more narrative sense than Renji, and that should be what matters more.

Friendly rival? Well that’s Uryu who is already there, and has a way larger stake in this than anyone in Ichigo’s friend group regardless. Less that he doesn’t meet the criteria if we can’t count Uryu, choosing Renji for this reason would just be doubling down on the same thing.

You could also argue Orihime should’ve been the one, as the one Ichigo eventually ends up with (although she at least was with him at the fight just before this, so it being someone else this time doesn’t bother me). And Renji is just, not that!

Renji goes with Ichigo because it’s in character for him, and I don’t disagree with that by any means. But this is the conclusion of the entire 74-volume narrative and I’m struggling to explain why he specifically is the one chosen by Kubo to be a part of this battle if anyone had to be at all. It’s like he went out of his way to choose the least impactful character possible to fulfill this role.

So okay, Kubo, I can play hardball. You want somebody who isn’t Rukia, Chad, or Orihime? I can do that. I’ll even give you someone who’s already right there so you don’t have to make them come running up at the last moment!

You know who should’ve gone with Ichigo to that very last confrontation? Kugo Ginjo, obviously!

Don’t leave, hold on, let me explain myself.

First is the kind of obvious thing, which is that while it was on a smaller scale than they were, Ginjo was an arc villain just as much as Aizen and Yhwach were. He’s the mastermind and the climactic battle of The Lost Agent. So wouldn’t it be fun if Ichigo had the help of the first two arc villains in defeating the third?

The quartet of Ichigo, Kugo, Aizen, and Yhwach is also interesting because they all have connections to the Reio in some form, being either candidates for the role inherently, or having attempted to become or usurp him. There’s really no one else who approaches this (barring Urahara, for the hogyoku).

But wait, you may be saying, why would Ginjo fight on the side of Shinigami if his whole thing is that he hates them? To which I say—he wouldn’t! But I think he would be willing to fight to help Ichigo. Maybe not for everything ever, but maybe for the time where if Ichigo loses, everything will very clearly fall apart, including for the people he obviously still cares about in Xcution. (Also, does he know about Soul King stuff at this point, including that the both of them are candidates to replace it? Preventing that being necessary for both their sakes might be good.)

Not to mention, this would be the first time Ichigo and Kugo can fight together consciously as Deputies. It would give us a more concrete picture of how they feel about one another now that the Lost Agent conflict is over, seeing as this gets very little resolution on either side—and give Ichigo back what it was that Kugo had almost given him during that arc, a “big brother” figure he can rely on in a desperate situation, instead of having to be that figure himself.

Plus… fixing Ichigo’s sword was really kind of just Tsukishima’s repayment, wasn’t it? Ginjo shows up and says four lines, (and probably a fifth on the way there that was “Tsukishima do the thing”) and that’s what exactly? Is that supposed to make up for the extremely personal betrayal? Is that a sufficient expression of gratitude for the respect of taking his body back from the Court Guards’ grasp? He still had to say something about paying Ichigo back because debt’s about all the obligation Tsukishima would ever respond to, but what’s his contribution other than holding that “leash”?

Also for the three of them being revealed alive like a hundred chapters ago, that sure is a whole lot of no payoff. Like for Tsukishima it’s great payoff, but for Ginjo? What was the point of the training they all did with Ganju? Was it really about Ganju getting stronger? And we never got an answer why Kukaku took them in in the first place, could that really have just been chance?

If I want to put on my conspiracy cap—I half suspect Ginjo was meant to go from the time of their reappearance, and more of his backstory was supposed to come to light/he was supposed to get some additional development. But as Kubo’s health deteriorated and he got toward the home stretch, just like it would’ve been difficult to give Rukia the proper due if she’d gone, it became too much for him to do Ginjo justice, or maybe to set up for his role in CFYOW, so he decided to not do it altogether, rather than half-ass it. (This is what I tell myself, anyway). He already has a completely justifiable reason to show up at the last minute with the need for Tsukishima’s ability. He’s been training, supposedly. He owes Ichigo something and acknowledges it. He’s thematically fitting, he’s been absent for so much time after being teased, we know he was doing something because he went looking for Ukitake, it really just makes too much sense.

I doubt Kubo is planning any out-and-out rewrites of anything significant as the anime proceeds, but if he were to tweak the ending at all, I certainly think this would be reasonable.

Anyway, we’ll see what part 2 brings. CFYOW content is getting teased for sure, so who knows what’s in store!