Tessai Tsukabishi

is a tall, muscular man who is a good friend of Kisuke Urahara and works for him in his store, the Urahara Shop. Like Urahara, he used to be a Shinigami who was once the captain of the Kidō Corps, was forced into exile, and is currently hiding with Urahara in untraceable gigai while helping out in his shop.

Appearance
Tessai Tsukabishi is a large, muscular, dark-skinned man wearing square-shaped glasses, and having a braided hairstyle and an enormous handle-bar mustache, as well as being seen in a white shirt with a blue apron. During his earlier years in Soul Society, however, he sports an ornate dark robe over the standard Shinigami garb and styles his hair in the form of little horns on his head.

Personality
Tessai is a quiet, stern, and level-headed man who often acts as a source of discipline to Jinta Hanakari's michievous behavior, but does have a sentimental side. He is very loyal to Kisuke Urahara and takes meticulous care of the shop, actually bursting into joyful tears if anyone compliments his work. Conversely, his instant reaction is extreme irritation when someone snubs it. He is also known to buy TV-displayed medicines, which don't always work or have pleasant side affects, much to Urahara's chagrin. In addition, He is among the few who find Orihime Inoue's strange food ideas tasty, the other being Rangiku Matsumoto.

History
Before he became a captain in his own right, Tessai lived at Yoruichi Shihōin's mansion along with his future employer, Kisuke Urahara.

Approximately 110 years ago, Tessai held the position of Captain of the Kidō Corps in Soul Society. Although he was rarely seen in public, he was called in, along with his lieutenant, Hachigen Ushōda, by Captain-Commander Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto to help with the investigation of the missing 9th Division captain and his squad. Although Yamamoto was going to send both him and his lieutenant, 8th Division Captain Shunsui Kyōraku convinced the Captain-Commander to send only Hachigen instead. As Tessai began to leave, he caught an expression of worry on Urahara's face, as the latter had previously sent his own lieutenant to the site in question and was told that he couldn't pursue the investigation team.

Later that night, Tessai confronted Urahara as the latter sneaked out of Seireitei to make an investigation of his own. Tessai complimented Urahara on the unique aspect of his cloak (which hid his spiritual energy), while the latter was taken aback by the sudden appearance of the Kidō Corps captain. In Tessai's presence, Urahara asked if he was there to stop him. Tessai noted that he had seen the look on Urahara's face earlier and knew what he would do. He also reassured a stunned Urahara by telling him that he couldn't let him go alone by accompanying him to pursue the investigation team.

Tessai and Urahara arrived at the site just in time for Urahara to stop then-5th Division lieutenant Sōsuke Aizen from dispatching his captain. Following the course of events, they learned that Aizen was behind the disappearances and the current state of the investigation team. Tessai was then taken aback by the phenomenon of "Hollowfication", as he himself had never heard of it. When Aizen and his subordinates attempted to vacate the area, Tessai yelled for Urahara to move as he casted Way of Destruction #88 (Flying Dragon-Striking Heaven-Shaking Thunder Cannon). To dissolve Tessai's blast, Aizen countered it with Way of Binding #81 (Splitting Void) without incantation, completely stopping his attacker's Kidō. As a result, Tessai was surprised by how a lieutenant was capable of using that level of spell with no incantation, while still retaining the ability to entirely stop his own spell.

But upon realizing that the investigation team needed help, Urahara explained to Tessai that he could possibly fix what had happened in his lab. With that epiphany, Tessai decided to bring them all in to the 12th Division barracks by using forbidden Kidō, namely the Spatial Displacement and Temporal Stasis Spells.

As the duo later arrived in the barracks, Tessai was shown the Hōgyoku by Urahara, as the latter elaborated that this creation of his could possibly save Shinji and the other victims. Tessai found the invention unbearable to be around as its very presence disturbed him.

The next day, Tessai and Urahara were arrested under the orders of the Central 46 Chambers. They were put on trial with Tessai sentenced to life imprisonment in a Level 3 detention area for "using forbidden Kidō techniques" and Urahara sentenced to become a human and be exiled in the human world due to "committing crimes against researching and invoking forbidden phenomenon" and "deceiving and inflicting grievous injury to fellow Shinigami". With the swift intervention of Former 2nd Division Captain Yoruichi Shihōin, both escaped their unjust punishments and fled with their Hollowfied comrades to the real world, where they would find a way to undo the Hollowfication process.

Tessai has apparently held his position among the Shinigami for quite some time, at least 200 years, since he has informed Rukia Kuchiki that the word "Quincy" "brings back memories".

Agent of the Shinigami arc
Tessai is first seen as the largest employee in Urahara Shop, but later reappears performing high-level Kidō spells, when Ichigo Kurosaki is seen training at the shop. He performs Binding Spells 99 Parts 1 and 2 (the highest level of Kidō seen so far in the series), forcing Ichigo to find his inner Shinigami abilities and get the strength he needs to rescue Rukia Kuchiki.

He often helps Kisuke Urahara with the tasks at hand, even fighting Hollows with his bare hands.

Powers & Abilities
Kidō Master: As the former captain of Soul Society's Kidō Corps, Tessai is extremely skilled in this regard, as he has demonstrated the ability to use at full power and completely control a level 99 binding spell and level 88 destructive spell without incantation, the latter of which caused tremendous destruction to a large part of the forest it was fired in despite having the majority of its power blocked by Aizen's own defensive Kidō. He has also shown very extensive knowledge of forbidden techniques such as time and space manipulation. This was shown when teleporting the Vizards to Kisuke's lab and freezing time around them to halt the hollowfication process. He has also demonstrated proficient skill in healing Kidō as seen from repeatedly healing Ichigo and his friends when battle-worn.

Keen Intellect: Tessei has shown to be a very intelligent man. As the former captain of the Kidō Corps, he has advanced knowledge and understanding towards the flow of spiritual energy. He is also very knowledgeable of past and present events such as with the events of the Quincies' demise.

Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: While specializing in kido, Tessai has shown himself a capable physical fighter, as shown from his ability to fight off countless Hollows unarmed.

Enhanced Strength: He is also shown to have great physical strength, made apparent by his ability to smash a Hollow's head to pieces with only a single, open-palmed thrust.

Enhanced Durability: In addition to his tremendous strength, Tessai has shown himself to be a highly resilient man. When Rukia kicked him from behind, she only succeeded in hurting herself while Tessai barely registered her presence from it. Also when he was overwhelmed by Ichigo's awakening of his Shinigami powers, he emerged unfazed and merely complained about his glasses being damaged. Jinta commented that he is like a monster in this way.

Great Spiritual Power: As a former Kidō Corps Captain, Tessai boasts a great amount of spiritual energy.

Zanpakutō
He has not been shown to carry a Zanpakutō, but he did carry a shakujō during his time in Soul Society. It is possible that his Zanpakutō is sealed within that in much the same way as the ones of Kisuke Urahara and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto. It is also possible that the shakujō is the Shikai of his Zanpakutō. There is a possibility that his blade is a Kidō-Type since he was the Kidō Captain.


 * Shikai: Not Yet Revealed


 * Bankai: Not Yet Revealed

Trivia

 * Interestly enough, Tessai makes minor appearances in most bleach games, usually with Kisuke Urahara to perform some attacks. But it is notable that he is a playable character in Bleach: Heat the Soul 6. His appearance is that of his time in Soul Society with his dark robe and his shakujo.

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