Ulquiorra Cifer

is the cuarta (4th) Espada in Aizen's recently-acquired army of Arrancar, and is one of the principal antagonists of the Arrancar, Hueco Mundo, and Fake Karakura arcs, being responsible for much of the conflict that transpires within all three story arcs, and is one of Ichigo Kurosaki's primary arrancar rivals, the other differentially being Grimmjow Jeagerjaques.

Appearance
Ulquiorra is a relatively short and slender, yet fairly muscular, male Espada with a melancholic appearance, short, messy black hair, silver skin, and green eyes with slit pupils. He has cyan lines that descend from his eyes, making it appear as if he is crying. His facial expression rarely changes, and he is near-constantly frowning. He also appears to be the youngest member of the Espada, next to Szayel Aporro Granz, Grimmjow, Neliel, and Cirucci. He wears typical Arrancar clothes: a white jacket, black sash, and a white hakama. They are somewhat similar to what Ichigo's inner hollow wears. However, his jacket seems to have longer coattails than others. Like most other Arrancar, he possesses remnants of his former life as a Hollow in his appearance. His Hollow hole has moved; it is at the base of his throat as opposed to his chest. The remainder of his hollow mask lies on top of his head, forming a broken helmet, much like that of the example silhouette of a Vasto Lorde. He is the fourth-ranked Espada, signified by the tattoo on the left side of his chest. It should also be noted that Ulquiorra's hollow hole seems to have moved since his first appearance, as it is now located somewhere near his sternum. This movement occurs in both the manga and anime.

Personality
Ulquiorra is a very cold, callous figure, hitting his comrade Yammy in the stomach with his arm on one occasion in an effort to get his attention. He's also rather dispassionate and rarely shows any sign of emotion, often appears depressed, and is rather aloof, brooding, and indifferent, willing to harm both his comrades and enemies should they ever disrupt his plans. He tends to call anyone he does not find interesting "trash", and therefore expendable. Despite this, he is not particularly violent, unlike most of his Espada comrades, and will only fight whenever provoked or ordered to by Aizen. Despite his almost constantly emotionless behavior, Ulquiorra briefly loses his cool during his second fight with Ichigo when the latter refuses to give up regardless of Ulquiorra's strength; he actually shouts at him that it is pointless.

As noted by Grimmjow Jeagerjaques, Ulquiorra has a habit of stabbing people in the same location as his hollow hole whenever he's particularly interested in a battle. Whether he is consciously aware of this habit or not is unknown. However, his speech to Orihime indicates that he is, as he speaks of never seeing the "human heart (emotions)" that living humans possess and understand, and reasons that if his eye cannot see them, then they are not real. These words, and much of Ulquiorra's overall behavior, can lead one to assume that he is a firm believer in the concept of subjective idealism. It would appear that as a result of his isolated life as a Hollow, Ulquiorra does not understand feelings and emotions as well as empathetic characters like Orihime tend to. His overall behavior towards his allies and enemies, as well as his apparently self-inflicted habit of stabbing people in the chest, may symbolize that fact.

Ulquiorra is perceptive, cunning, and analytical; during his and Yammy's first visit to the human world, he makes several remarks on the humans who confront them. He theorizes that Orihime Inoue's healing power is a temporal-spatial ability, which Aizen describes as the rejection of fate and comments on how Ichigo Kurosaki's Bankai can easily get through Yammy's defenses. He also notes Ichigo's power fluctuation, which varies between very weak and stronger than his own.

It would appear that Ulquiorra and Grimmjow, the 6th Espada, are not on good terms. While Ulquiorra allows Yammy to kill anyone he deemed as "trash", which includes Ichigo, Ulquiorra allows him to live based on his belief that Ichigo's power is so turbulent that eventually he will destroy himself. Grimmjow's conflicting viewpoint is that Ichigo should be destroyed outright, as he can overcome his weakness and grow even stronger. Despite Grimmjow's argument, Aizen trusts Ulquiorra's judgment. This disagreement leads to Grimmjow's unauthorized assault on the real world. Though Ulquiorra is of a higher rank than Grimmjow, Grimmjow is confident that Ulquiorra is afraid to fight him, for fear of them destroying one another.

Ulquiorra seems to be demanding as well, such as when he came to Orihime's chamber and ordered her to eat a meal a servant Arrancar brought in, claiming it was her "duty" to stay alive for Aizen's benefit. When Orihime hesitated, he threatened to force the food down her throat, or strap her to a table and feed her via an IV. This also implies that, while he prefers not to dirty his hands, Ulquiorra is fully capable of committing truly abhorred and inhumane actions, even more so than Aizen and the other Espada.

Arrancar arc
Ulquiorra first appears alongside Yammy when they arrive in Karakura Town to gain information on Ichigo Kurosaki. Ulquiorra retreats with Yammy once he finishes examining Ichigo's abilities, also taking note of Orihime Inoue's fate-manipulation powers. A month later, Ulquiorra sends a second group of Arrancar (not counting Grimmjow's rogue actions) to Karakura Town consisting of several Espada meant to distract the Shinigami while he captures Orihime. By threatening her friends' lives, he convinces her to come peacefully, allowing her to say goodbye to one person beforehand.

Hueco Mundo arc
Upon returning to Las Noches, Ulquiorra claims that he has trapped Orihime in a psychological prison from which her loyalty to Aizen is guaranteed, though this proves to be false when Orihime resolves to ruin Aizen's plans. Ulquiorra reappears to fight Ichigo, which ends in a sound victory for Ulquiorra. He leaves Ichigo alive but badly injured, suggesting to him that he should retreat if able. After discovering that Grimmjow has taken Orihime, Ulquiorra tracks them down and engages in a short battle with Grimmjow, ending with Grimmjow using a portable Negación field to temporarily trap Ulquiorra. He then escapes and is left in charge of Las Noches and is currently awaiting the arrival of Ichigo Kurosaki. While waiting, he questions Orihime if she feels any fear in knowing that she will die alone. She boldly answers no, and states she has confidence in her friends and Ichigo, and that she is not fearful because her heart is with them. Ulquiorra, unable to understand how she can harbor such feelings, presses her further. He asks her what a heart is, and reaches out to touch the area above her heart, asking where he can find it. But just as he is about to further interrogate her, Ichigo breaks in and is ready to battle. Ulquiorra then unsheathes his sword to eradicate Ichigo in order to protect Las Noches. They appear to be on even ground as of yet, with neither doing any major damage to the other.

Fake Karakura Town arc
As their battle continues Ulquiorra shoots his Cero at Ichigo, although he manages to withstand it. Ulquiorra then notes that Ichigo has gotten stronger, and asks him if it is because he has defeated Grimmjow, because he is trying to save Orihime, or because his friends are fighting down below them. Ulquiorra states that it doesn't matter either way because Orihime is already one of "us" and nothing can change that. Ichigo replies that isn't up for Ulquiorra to decide. After saying that, Ulquiorra finishes with saying that was Aizen's decision. As the two continued to fight, Ichigo gained the ability to to read Ulquiorra's movements, stating that either he was becoming more human in Ichigo's eyes or he himself (Ichigo) was becoming more Hollow. In response, Ulquiorra stepped up his tactics but he was stopped by Orihime's shield. He then questions her why she did not protect Ichigo when he started fighting him to begin with. Then he is able to get the hang of Ichigo's Bankai as they continue fighting. When Ichigo was about to attack Loly and Menoly who have grabbed Orihime while she stood back from the fight and threaten to pluck out her left eye if he advances on them Ulquiorra intercepts Ichigo and misdirects his Getsuga Tenshō. However, he tells Loly not to get the wrong idea about his actions and that he isn't helping her. He then continues blocking Ichigo's way to Orihime while monitoring the situation behind him and tells Ichigo that he will have to kill him in order to fight anyone else. Then he notices Yammy coming through the doors that Loly and Menoly entered from. During the lull in the fighting his entrance creates Yammy states that he's there to help him to which Ulquiorra replies he didn't ask for his help though he notices Yammy has recovered fully. Ulquiorra tells him his job elsewhere then suggests he should go back to sleep or fight the other Captains that are nearby but Yammy refuses. When questioned by Yammy about why the females are there Ulquiorra simply tells him to ask them, turning around to engage Ichigo once more and block his path to Orihime.

After Yammy defeats Menoly and Loly, he asks Ulquiorra if he is allowed to kill Orihime next, but Uryū Ishida arrives and uses a special landmine to critically injure him. After Yammy falls to the bottom of Las Noches, Ichigo finally dons his Hollow mask and he proves to be completely resistant to Ulquiorra's attacks, even managing to begin cracking his blade. Ulquiorra heads to the top of the dome of Las Noches and Ichigo follows him. As Ichigo notices their location, Ulquiorra explains to him that there are two things forbidden within Las Noches: the first that the Espada's Gran Rey Cero should not be used, and that the top four Espada are forbidden to release their Zanpakutō, as either has the potential power to destroy the city. He then subsequently proceeds to release his own Zanpakutō with the command "Bind", followed by "Murciélago".

After going into his released state, Ulquiorra warns Ichigo to stay focused and alert before using Sonído and attacking him with a spiked weapon. Ichigo defends himself with a Getsuga Tenshō reflexively, yet the upper-right portion of his mask is destroyed. Ulquiorra notices the reflex and says that if Ichigo had not done so, then his head would be lying at his feet. In his released form, Ulquiorra can easily keep up with Ichigo and goads him into using his Getsuga Tenshō. Angered, Ichigo releases the attack, but Ulquiorra is completely unharmed. The Curata Espada notes that Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō is similar to the his Cero. When Ichigo disagrees, Ulquiorra notes that he hasn't yet seen it, and thus demonstrates the Espada's fully powered Cero Oscuro.

The Black Cero critically injures Ichigo and completely destroys his mask. Ulquiorra tries to force Ichigo to give up, believing he's proved himself to be vastly stronger than Ichigo. When Ichigo tries to use Getsuga in defiance, Ulquiorra loses his calm and slices him with his spiked weapon. Ichigo declares he always knew Ulquiorra was strong, yet will still defeat him regardless. Hearing this, Ulquiorra decides to show Ichigo true despair by transforming into his second form.

Powers & Abilities
Ulquiorra is the Cuarta Espada in Aizen's army, meaning his abilities are fourth amongst all of the Arrancar and Hollow under Aizen's command. His might is great enough that even in his sealed form he can fight on even grounds with a full strength Ichigo while in Bankai form and withstand most of the impact from a black Getsuga Tenshō.

Expert Swordsmanship Specialist: He appears to be very efficient in swordsmanship, being able to fight on-par with Ichigo and even slice through his Getsuga Tenshō. Ulquiorra prefers to wield his sword with his right hand, leaving the other hand free though it usually remains in his pocket. He is quite adept at blocking while his offense is capable of great precision. He was able to fend off Ichigo using his Hollow mask-enhanced Bankai long enough to reach the top of Las Noches, though his Zanpakutō was nearly broken.

Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Though he hasn't shown the extent of his abilities in this field as of yet, Ulquiorra has shown to rely mostly on hand-to-hand combat, rarely drawing his sword at all. Ichigo speculates that he only draws his sword against opponents he considers "worthy". Ulquiorra also seems to prefer applying an 'off-the-ground' method of combat, often being seen attacking opponents from aerial standpoints, such as when he attempted to use his Cero on an offending Grimmjow by attacking him from the air above his head, or when he jumped upwards with a Sonído in an attempt to catch Ichigo off guard during their most recent confrontation.

Sonído Expert: One of Ulquiorra's more noticeable traits is his tremendously skillful speed. He has demonstrated the ability to catch up with Ichigo after kicking him from a tower in a few moments. He has also shown the ability to skillfully keep up with Ichigo's Bankai speed. In addition, his superior experience allows him to push Ichigo's reflexes to the limit.

Keen Intellect: In addition to his remarkable combat prowess, Ulquiorra is also gifted with great insight and understanding to situations at hand. His intelligence is such that even Aizen, a man arguably best-known for his intellect, has respect for as he sent Ulquiorra to investigate Ichigo's power and threat level. With his calm and collected nature, Ulquiorra has can be highly perceptive and analytical, allowing him to easily deduce the basic idea of his opponent's skills to figure out its strengths and weakness.

Cero: Ulquiorra has been shown using Cero from his fingers with very destructive power. His Cero is a green color instead of red, which is more common among Arrancar and Hollows.

Bala: The technique hardens the user's spiritual pressure and fires it like a bullet from their fist. Ulquiorra has not actually been seen using the technique, but it can be assumed that it would be green like his cero.

Hierro (鋼皮（イエロ）, Hiero; (Spanish for "iron"): refers to the hardened skin of the Arrancar, which is a result of their compressed spiritual power. He can deflect attacks of similar power barehanded. He is able to fight Ichigo in his Hollow form without unsheathing his sword, rendering Ichigo defenseless with two attacks and not sustaining injuries of any kind. He could also take a direct hit from Ichigo's Tensa Zangetsu with only a minor cut on his chest and in his released the attack seems to have no effect on him.

Enhanced Strength: Ulquiorra has proven to be deceptively strong for his build. He has shown the ability to physically discipline Yammy, an Espada known primarily for his strength, with no visible effort. He has also shown the ability to kick Ichigo a tremendous distance with one kick.

Garganta (黒腔（ガルガンタ）, Garuganta; Spanish for "throat"): Garganta is how Arrancar move to and from Hueco Mundo. Ulquiorra has the ability to use the technique. It literally tears open the dimensional fabric separating the worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential energy that must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway. In the video games, Ulquiorra uses this technique to generate make-shift vortices to draw opponents in, as well as teleport from place to place.

Instant Replay: Ulquiorra has the unusual ability to replay events he has seen to others by removing and crushing an eye, which then turns into dust and flows around those Ulquiorra intends to use it on. The dust shows images of what Ulquiorra has seen during his missions.


 * Regeneration: Ulquiorra appears to have regenerative powers as after he removed and crush one of his eyes, he is seen with two eyes again in his next appearance, and Yammy comments on it to that effect.

Vast Spiritual Power: His spiritual power is very high, comparing his own spiritual power to the likes of Ichigo. As one of the top four Espada, he is forbidden to release his Zanpakutō within Las Noches. That is because they are too powerful and such a release would cause great damage to the fortress. During his first meeting with Ichigo he comments that the Shinigami's energy fluctuates from being "trash," to stronger than his own.

Zanpakutō
. The handle is green and the guard has two curved extensions from its shorter sides, giving it an eye-like appearance. There also appears to be reason for this shape, as Ulquiorra places one of his fingers through a hole in the guard to fire his Cero.


 * Resurrección: First Form - Its release command is . Murciélago unleashes with a burst of spiritual energy that falls around Ulquiorra as black rain. In his released state Ulquiorra becomes bat-like. He gains giant wings on his back, his hair becomes longer and wilder on the left side of his head, and his Hollow helmet centers atop his head, with two large horns extending outward to the sides towards the front. The lines on his face become broader and more triangular and his fingernails lengthen. His Arrancar attire becomes more form fitting and closed at the top, becoming more like a robe towards the bottom. His overall appearance resembles that of a vampire. In this form he uses a spike-like weapon instead of a sword that can easily destroy a small part of Las Noches, along with part of Ichigo's mask.


 * Resurrección Special Ability: He is shown to have the ability to create elongated spike-like spears. His speed and endurance is greatly enhanced to the point that Ichigo's hollow mask-enhanced Bankai has difficulty keeping up, let alone damaging him. His Hierro has also vastly increased in strength to the point where a black Getsuga Tenshō with Ichigo's mask activated has no effect at all. Ulquiorra is also able to go into a more bestial version of his released form, similar to the transformation Ggio Vega went through during his fight with Soifon after unleashing his full power.


 * It is a black Cero, which Ulquiorra states is similar to Ichigo's black Getsuga Tenshō. Like many other Espada related techniques, this technique is only used by Espadas in their released state. Ulquiorra's Cero Oscuro is powerful enough to blast Ichigo's mask away and destroy a large part of the city-sized Las Noches' dome. Since there is no rule that forbids an Espada to use Cero Oscuro in Las Noches, the Gran Rey Cero may be stronger than it, since it has a restriction. Yet while Ichigo was in his Hollowification state he countered Grimmjow's Gran Rey Cero, the technique may differ in power between the Espada. It is also possible that it is only usable in the Espada's released state, meaning it is only forbidden to be used by Espada above Cuarta (3, 2, and 1). This however, would not include the Espada lower than the top four Espada from simultaneously releasing their Zanpakutō and performing Cero Oscuro. Ulquiorra also refers to it as "my Cero," so it may be exclusive to him.


 * Resurrección: Second Form - While he retains his black wings (which appear even more demonic), his long white coat is gone, revealing his chest where blood-like liquid seemingly flows out from his Hollow hole. The lower part is covered in something similar to black fur. His arms turn completely black; from the mid-biceps to the finger tips, and his fingers grow claw-like extensions. His white eyes turn black and the marks under his eyes are wider. The Hollow mask turns into the horns (The horns have a semblance to that of bat ears, potentially hinting at his true form as a hollow prior to undergoing shinigamification), and his number appears non-existent.

Appearances in other media
Ulquiorra is the first Arrancar to be featured in a Bleach video game, appearing in the Bleach: Heat the Soul 3 and Bleach: Heat the Soul 4 installments of the 'Bleach: Heat the Soul' series for the PlayStation Portable. He also appears in the Wii fighting game Bleach: Shattered Blade. He has a cameo and artwork in "Bleach: Dark Souls". He is also playable in the recent Bleach: Versus Crusade which he remains unchanged from the prequel.

Ulquiorra has his own character album as part of the Bleach Beat Collection 3rd Session. The two vocal tracks are entitled CRUSH the "WORLD" DowN and Our World.

Relationships

 * Sōsuke Aizen: He is quite loyal and obedient to Aizen. He fulfills all of Aizen's orders without question. However, it may be noted that he has occasionally been seen disobeying Aizen's orders in favor of his own, personal curiosities, such as when he purposely seeks Orihime Inoue out in order to question her about human emotions.


 * Ichigo Kurosaki: Initially, he referred to Ichigo as "trash" and not worthy of being killed, mostly because he believed that his unstable spiritual pressure would eventually destroy him in the long run, anyway. The next time they face in Hueco Mundo, Ulquiorra was able to provoke and in turn defeat him at full power without even unsheathing his blade; he also stabbed his hand through Ichigo's chest, leaving a hole resembling his own Hollow hole. Grimmjow stated he only does such to prey he finds particularly interesting. In their most recent encounter, he acknowledged Ichigo as an opponent worthy of killing, at the very least that is. Later when Yammy interrupts their fight Ulquiorra repeatedly reminds Ichigo that if he wants to fight anyone else, he'll have to kill him first. Being the analyst he is, Ulquiorra is presumably attempting to draw out all of Ichigo's power.


 * Grimmjow Jeagerjaques: It would seem that he is not on good terms with Grimmjow, because he prevents Grimmjow from carrying out his ideals. Grimmjow believes that he is stronger than him and is eager to prove this to him. He and Grimmjow have conflicting personalities and this may be the main reason of their bad relationship.


 * Orihime Inoue: He was placed in charge of abducting Orihime, and subsequently, taking care of her well-being until she was needed by Aizen for her powers. His relationship with her appears to be limited to the task of bringing her food and occasionally informing her of her friends' struggles throughout Las Noches. He refers to Orihime as "woman" ((女) onna), both in thought and conversation. It can be noted that Ulquiorra seems rather intrigued by the concept of the 'human heart', questioning her about how she is so easily able to wear her emotions on her sleeves. During their most recent fight, Ichigo mentions Ulquiorra may have 'become more human'. This could signify Orihime's empathic personality affecting Ulquiorra's own emotional capacity; this could also however just be a false inference on Ichigo's part as he was only recently strong enough to truly face Ulquiorra in combat.


 * Yammy: Yammy seems to respect Ulquiorra and take his words for granted. At some point, their relationship resembles more of an subordinate and superior instead of fellow Espada members. However, Ulquiorra did not refrain from using violence to get the attention of Yammy back in Karakura Town.

Quotes

 * (To Ichigo) "Long time no see, Shinigami"
 * "You know my name?"
 * "Rukia Kuchiki is dead."
 * (To himself, seconds before being overwhelmed by Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō) "Ridiculous!"
 * "My, my. I couldn't stop it even with both my hands. I'm a little surprised."
 * "Was that all you had? Apparently so. What a pity."
 * "You can never defeat me."
 * (To Orihime) "''You humans are always talking about hearts. It’s as if you have them in your hand. But my eye sees everything. Nothing can escape it. What it doesn’t see doesn’t exist. That’s how I’ve always fought. That's how I've always lived. What is a heart? If I rip open your chest, will I find it there? If I crack open your skull, will I find it there?"
 * (To Ichigo) "At the very least, I see you as someone who must be destroyed.''"
 * "Rescuing her... Is meaningless."
 * "You're trash..."
 * "I... have become more human...? ... I see..."
 * "That's right. Espadas above Cuarta...are forbidden to unleash their power within the dome."
 * "...Bind! Murciélago.''"
 * "Don't tremble. Don't break your stance. Stay aware of your surroundings. Don't let your guard down for an instant."
 * "Cero Oscuras."
 * "If you don’t know then I will tell you. This is the true form of despair."
 * "No matter how much you look like an Arrancar or how similar your moves are the difference between us is like Night and Day. It's natural that Humans and Shinigami should imitate Hollows in order to grow more powerful. But Humans will never be the equals of Hollows."
 * (To Ichigo, in anger for still fighting)"I'm telling you, it's useless!"

Trivia

 * He was recently voted the 10th most popular character in Bleach after receiving 3751 votes.
 * His first name comes from Patricia Urquiola, an architect, and his last from Father Hubert Schiffer, a survivor from the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, which is Tite Kubo's home town.
 * His name is possibly a reference to "El Que Llora" in Spanish, meaning "he who cries."
 * "Schiffer" means "boatman/sailor" in German.
 * Some fans speculate that Loly and Menoly are Ulquiorra's Fracción, since he is the only Espada seen giving them orders (and Grimmjow notes that they attacked Orihime when he wasn't around). However, in recent manga chapters, this doesn't seem to be the case, since Ulquiorra claims he isn't defending them from Ichigo, and he shows no concern when Yammy attacks both of them, likely due to his generally cold demeanor. Additionally, while Loly was trying to fight Yammy, she shouted that she would kill both Yammy and Ulquiorra, which leads one to assume that any supposed 'master/subordinate' bond either ends or is nonexistent.
 * It is possible that Ulquiorra has been an Espada during Nel Tu's time as the third Espada, due to the fact that she seemed to remember his name.
 * In his released state, his helmet-like mask fragment becomes reminiscent of the silhouette of a Vasto Lorde's head.
 * It is heavily impilied that the the top four Espada are Vasto Lordes because of the rule implied by Sōsuke Aizen for the top four Espada are forbidden to release their Zanpakutō within Las Noches.
 * To date in the manga, Ulquiorra is the highest ranking Espada to have released his Zanpakutō.
 * Ulquiorra is the first Espada to reveal a second more powerful state. However, he is not the first Arrancar to transform into a second state after releasing his Zanpakutō; that honor goes to Ggio Vega, a member of Barragan's Fracción.