Cero

is a form of attack used by Menos, Arrancar and Vizard. It consists of firing a blast of concentrated spirit energy at the target. While in most cases it is fired from the mouth, some Arrancar and Vizard are capable of firing Cero from their hands, fingers and other parts of their bodies.

The power, force, speed, color, and blast area of a Cero is dependent on the strength and skill of the user (i.e., the stronger the user, the stronger the attack). High-level Hollows and Arrancar, most notably the Espada, are quite skilled with Cero and are capable of developing unique variations of the attack for combat.

Cero Double
is a variation of Cero performed by former third Espada Neliel Tu Oderschvank. Neliel swallows the Cero of an opponent, combines it with her own Cero and sends it back at them to greatly increase damage. This attack was seen used against Nnoitra Jiruga. . While in her child form, Nel is only able to return the Cero fired by her opponent as seen used against Dordonii Alessandro Del Socacchio.

Cero Sincrético
is a variation of Cero performed by Dondochakka Bilstin and Pesche Guatiche as a team, where they combine their Ceros together to produce a larger one. This attack was first seen being used against Szayel Aporro Granz. In the anime version, Pesche and Dondochakka are shown gathering several separate Ceros and fusing them into a swirling ball. Although it does not work on him, Szayel Aporro admits that it is a "marvelous technique", and that if they had used it at the beginning of the battle (before he had time to analyze their reiatsu) he would have been defeated. However, it does seem to greatly drain Pesche and Dondochakka---both are panting and on the point of collapse after performing it.

Gran Rey Cero


is a Cero that only Espada Arrancar are capable of using. It is performed by mixing an Arrancar's own blood with the Cero. The result is a Cero with a much greater attack power and speed as well as a change of color unique to the Espada. It is also many times more powerful than a normal Cero, capable of disturbing the fabric of space. Because of the destructive power of Gran Rey Cero, Aizen forbids Espada from using the technique within Las Noches, as it could damage or destroy the dome. The attack was first used by Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez in order to incite Ichigo Kurosaki into donning his mask.

Cero Oscuras
or more grammatically correct Cero Oscuro is an extremely powerful black Cero, used only by an Espada in their released form. When the attack strikes an opponent, it blocks out any and all light. So far, Ulquiorra Cifer is the only Arrancar shown to utilize this attack. He uses it to prove his point: that Ichigo's black Getsuga Tenshō is similar to this variation of Cero. It is not made clear whether Cero Oscuras is Ulquiorra's personal Cero variation or whether other Espada can utilize it. He told Ichigo "this is an Espada's fully powered Black Cero." Similar to Gran Rey Cero, Cero Oscuras is possibly an Espada-specific attack. However, Ulquiorra also referred to it as "my Cero" and is the only Arrancar shown so far to use it. The Cero Oscuras's range is vast, and its attack power is unknown, though it is powerful enough to shatter Ichigo Kurosaki's Hollow mask entirely, critically injuring him in the process, and strong enough to destroy half of the dome over Las Noches.

Multi-Colored Ceros
While most Cero are red or crimson, some Arrancar appear to have wide color variations in their Cero. After the Arrancar arc in the anime, all Ceros and Balas are portrayed as being colored red, even those of the Espada like Grimmjow and Ulquiorra. During the Hueco Mundo arc, Ceros begin to deviate in color, particularly the Ceros of the Espada. Ulquiorra's Cero is colored emerald-green and Grimmjow is shown to use both red and cyan-blue colored Ceros. Nnoitra's Cero is golden-yellow and Neliel's Cero Doble is magenta. In the Fake Kurakara arc of the anime, the Ceros of Fraccion Arrancar begin to vary widely in color. Findor Carias possesses a violet Cero, Charlotte Cuuhlhourne a bright-pink Cero, and Choe Neng Poww a green Cero. Mila-Rose's Cero is red-orange, Sun-Sun's is magenta, while Ggio Vega's is hot pink.