Jidanbō Ikkanzaka

is the gatekeeper of the to Seireitei, a position he has held for at least 300 years. He is the elder brother of the former 7th Division 4th seat, Jirōbō Ikkanzaka.

Appearance
Jidanbō is an extremely large, muscular man, who easily towers above most Shinigami. His hair is tied into a pony-tail, which extends down his waist. He has long sideburns, which continue down onto his neck and long enough to be tied up in small pony-tail like tufts. He wears armor on his left shoulder and upper arm, plus a red hat with tassels. The left side of his chest is left exposed by his uniform. He uses twin axes in battle.

Personality
Jidanbō lacks emotional stability, falling to pieces after Ichigo breaks his axes. He was taught the rules of Rukongai by Tōshirō Hitsugaya, with whom he is friendly, and sets out these rules to those that he encounters. He is kindly by nature, however, and the inhabitants of Rukongai who live around the West Gate think of him as a friend who looks out for them, as opposed to most Shinigami, whom they despise.

Soul Society arc
When Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends enter Soul Society, Jidanbō confronts them, musing that its been a while since he had to defend his gate from an invader. After attacking them, he demands that he duel them all individually as is fair ad per the rules of the Seireitei. Ichigo challenges him by himself and easily blocks his opportune attack, much to his surprise. Excited that he is fighting a tough opponent, Jidanbō unleashes several attacks he declares to be his best but Ichigo easily counters the attacks and destroys his axes.<

Jidanbō stands back up, ready to continue the fight but upon realising that both his axes have been broken, immediately becomes emotional and breaks down in tears. When Ichigo apologises to him, Jidanbō declares that they can pass through the gate in recognition of his defeat. Jidanbō uses his immense strength to lift the gate but they are immediately confront by Captain Gin Ichimaru of the Third Division. Gin disapproves of a gatekeeper opening the gate for invaders and immediately proceeds to cut off Jidanbō's left arm. When, despite his agony, Jidanbō is able to continue to hold the gate open, Gin is impressed but disagrees with Jidanbō's decision to let the Ryoka pass, deciding that if he lost the battle, he should die. Ichigo rushes forward and protects Jidanbō from Gin's second strike.

Along with the Ryoka, Jidanbō is knocked back through the gate when Gin uses his Zanpakutō Shinsō to throw them all backwards. After the gate closes again, the group is confronted by citizens of the Rukongai who come out of their homes and hiding places to see the Ryoka. They help repair Jidanbō's arm by working together to pull it back in place at his shoulder and allowing Orihime Inoue to heal him with her Sōten Kisshun technique. Jidanbō later accompanies Kūkaku Shiba into Seireitei. When Sōsuke Aizen appears on the Sōkyoku Hill, Jidanbō and Kūkaku fight the other gatekeepers, who have come to the aid of Aizen.

Bount arc (anime only)
Note: Events occurring in this arc are only in the anime and do not constitute canon material.

Gotei 13 Invading Army arc (anime only)
Note: Events occurring in this arc are only in the anime and do not constitute canon material.

The Thousand-Year Blood War arc
When the Wandenreich invade Seireitei, Jidanbō smashes through the walls of the SRDI with a vague gaze in his eyes. As he launches a follow-up attack, the Sternritter PePe Waccabrada laughs behind him.

Equipment
Axes: Jidanbō possesses two giant axes, which are several times larger than an average human, though he typically only uses one while in combat. The other, he keeps tucked inside of his shihakushō. The force caused by the impact of these axes is enough to create massive fissures in the ground. Both axes were broken and destroyed by Ichigo Kurosaki during his battle with Jidanbō.

Powers & Abilities
Enhanced Strength: Due to his immense size, Jidanbō possesses tremendous strength, able to easily wield two gargantuan axes and have enough strength to lift a gate to Seireitei, despite not having done so in over three centuries.

Enhanced Endurance: Along with his physical might, he also possesses great endurance. Even after losing his arm to Ichimaru's Shinsō, Jidanbō was able to continue holding up the gate despite the pain and blood loss.

Axe Expert: Jidanbō fights with a pair of axes. His skills with them are great enough that Jidanbō is reputed to have once killed 30 Hollows in a single swipe. With them, he has developed two known techniques;


 * : Jidanbō hits his foe several times with one of his enormous axes.


 * : Jidanbō's final special move, where he uses both of his axes to unleash devastating blows upon his opponent.

Appearance in Other Media
Jidanbō appears in Bleach: The 3rd Phantom as a playable character.

Censorship

 * When Gin scolds Jidanbō for letting Ichigo go through the gate, he cuts off his entire arm in the manga. In the anime, he only makes a small gash in his arm.

Trivia

 * Upon being defeated by Ichigo, Jidanbō's crying sounds like a siren.
 * Jidanbō seems to have poor math skills, as he struggles to count the number of axe strikes he makes during his Jidan 10-hit Festival attack.
 * Jidanbō's axes are decorated with 兕, the first kanji of his first name.
 * In the anime, the three guardians Aizen has summoned to Sōkyoku hill weren't shown. Instead, Kūkaku Shiba arrived with Jidanbō Ikkanzaka, and used Raikohō to attack Aizen, before he was subdued by Yoruichi and Suì Feng.

Quotes

 * (To Uryū Ishida and Orihime Inoue) "Your behavior sickens me. Are you from an uncivilized area? Listen, this city has rules. First, wash your hands when you come back home. Second, no eating food that has fallen on the ground. Third, duel is nothing else but one-on-one."


 * (To Ichigo Kurosaki) "Seems as if you are one of the uncivilized people. So disrespectful. I wasted my time waiting for you. You should be grateful!"


 * (To Ichigo Kurosaki) "You are such a great guy. You have such a generous personality. On the contrary, what am I doing? Crying like a baby only because of a broken axe! I lost completely! Both as a fighter and as a man, I was utterly defeated!"


 * (To Gin Ichimaru) "Because I lost. The guardian opens the door when he loses. It is only natural."

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