Hanatarō Yamada

is the 7th Seated officer of the Gotei 13's 4th Division, where he is also the leader of the 14th Advanced Relief Team.

Character Outline
Hanatarō is very timid and nervous. His black hair is a bit long and his bangs frame his face. He tends to be clumsy and easily duped. Hanatarō's kind nature and nervousness results him becoming the victim of many bullies and practical jokes. In fact, he states that he is "the most bullied kid in the world." Hanatarō's Birthday is on the same day as Keigo Asano's, April 1, April Fools' Day. People spend the whole day tricking him as a result. According to Kon, he has a "boring but somehow popular with the ladies" look.

Despite Hanatarō's cowardly exterior, he is shown to be very bold at times. After hearing Rukia Kuchiki's story, he attempts to rescue her, despite her recent criminal record and noble heritage. After meeting Rukia's friend, Ichigo Kurosaki, Hanatarō decides to help Ichigo save Rukia, knowing that if he were to be caught he would be imprisoned for betrayal. After watching Ichigo fight for what he believes in, Hanatarō decides that he, too, wants to start playing a more important role rather than watching from the background, and begins to carry his Zanpakutō with him.

Hanatarō states when he introduces himself that his name is relatively easy to remember, though Ichigo says otherwise, stating that if his name was Hanako (a girl's name) or Tarō (a boy's name) it would be easy. The name Hanatarō, according to Ichigo, is just confusing.

Because the 4th Division's combat ability is very poor compared to the other divisions, they are often assigned to perform the chores of cleaning in Seireitei, such as sweeping the sewers and jail cells. Because of this, Hanatarō and other members of the 4th Division know the sewer system and other esoteric passageways very well and have access to the keys of most buildings.

Soul Society arc
Hanatarō first meets Ichigo and Ganju Shiba when they attempt to use him as a hostage to escape other Shinigami, but it failed because the Shinigami were from the 11th Division and Hanatarō is from the 4th Division, and the Eleventh Division scorns the Fourth as weaklings. After a lucky stroke of help from Chad, Ichigo and Ganju run away and accidentally bring Hanatarō with them during their escape. Learning that they want to save Rukia Kuchiki, he guides the two to Rukia and heals them after their battles. Hanatarō is later caught and imprisoned, despite the impassioned defense put forth by his sympathetic captors. He is later set free by his friend, Rikichi of the 6th Division, so he can heal Renji Abarai.

Bount arc
Later on, Hanatarō is sent to the world of the living to investigate the Bount invasion of Karakura Town. However, he ends up healing the wounds of those who encounter the Bounts. In this context, Hanatarō mostly appears in the omake segments alongside Kon as comic relief.

Hueco Mundo arc
Hanatarō accompanies Byakuya Kuchiki to Hueco Mundo and is annoyed when Byakuya uses Flash Steps to go on ahead, a skill Hanatarō is untalented in. When he finally catches up, he is tasked with evacuating Rukia, but is injured when Zommari Leroux uses his Zanpakutō's control ability to make her attack him. However, after the battle, he is healed by Isane Kotetsu who heals Rukia shortly afterwards.

Shinigami Items
4th Division Medical Pack: As a member of the 4th Division, Hanatarō possesses remarkable healing powers. Instead of his zanpakutō, he often carries around a 4th Division medical pack on his back. Presumably, it contains medical supplies, including a salve, bandages, and rejuvenation pills. One of the known items in this pack is Shinten, a green liquid which can knock out anyone with weak spiritual power with one drop, presumably for use as an anaesthetic. He is also known to carry a type of large pill with a skull symbol, which is a supplement exclusive to the 4th Division that restores stamina. While the pill given to other 4th Division members works as intended, Hanatarō's is merely a flour-filled placebo given to him as a prank by his upperclassman, although it appears to be genuine in the anime.

Powers & Abilities
Healer: As a Shinigami of the 4th Division, Hanatarō has almost no fighting powers, his only true weapon being his Zanpakutō in its released state. However, he is skilled with the healing techniques learned in the 4th Division.

Kidō Practitioner: He is proficient in healing Kidō.

Zanpakutō
Like all other Shinigami, Hanatarō possesses a Zanpakutō, even though he is rarely seen carrying it. Since his skills lean more towards medical support and not battle, Hanatarō tends to misplace his Zanpakutō as he rarely needs to use it.

. Hisagomaru is a Katana with a blue handle and a circular guard with a brown sphere or bag attached to it. Prior to its Shikai, Hisagomaru has a red gauge on its blade. Hisagomaru is strange in that it heals wounds instead of causing them. While this would seem to make attacking fairly pointless, doing so fills the gauge on the blade. The severity of the wound determines how much is filled.


 * Shikai: Hisagomaru's Shikai command is . . When the gauge is full, Hisagomaru automatically initiates its Shikai and transforms into . In this form, it takes the shape of a scalpel. Kon was able to fill up the gauge and use use Hisagomaru's special ability without even knowing the name (though, since it happened in an omake side story, this should be taken with a pinch of salt).


 * Shikai Special Ability: Akeiro Hisagomaru concentrates every wound it has absorbed into one massive attack that is usually initiated with a slashing movement that generates a stream of red energy somewhat similar to a Cero, powerful enough to deal a near-fatal wound to a Gillian-class Menos. Subsequent attacks also have the healing restriction lifted, allowing Hanatarō to attack normally after the transformation, though Akeiro Hisagomaru's form makes that difficult.


 * Bankai: Not Yet Achieved

Trivia

 * Both Hanatarō and his captain Retsu Unohana have "hana" in their name, which means "flower" in Japanese.
 * His Zanpakutō, Hisagomaru, is one of only two known Zanpakutō's with a healing ability, along with Unohana's Minazuki.
 * Hanatarō Yamada bears a striking resemblance to Rin Tsubokura.
 * Apart from Rukia, he is the lowest ranking Shinigami to be featured on a Bleach volume cover.
 * His Zanpakutō is one of two to have a gauge, and the only one to have it in both its sealed and released states, the other being Ikkaku Madarame's.

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