Zabimaru (Zanpakutō spirit)

This article is about the manifested spirit of Renji Abarai's Zanpakutō. For his Zanpakutō and its abilities, see Zabimaru.

is the manifested spirit of Renji Abarai's Zanpakutō that is seen during the Zanpakutō Unknown Tales arc.

Character Outline
Zabimaru's spirit takes the form of a fully grown woman attached to a small boy by a black chain around her waist and a collar on his neck. The female has green fur covering most of her body, save for her inner abdomen and chest and resembles the Arrancar Apache in her Resurrección. She has green eyes, long, tan hair that falls to the ground with markings on her hair (similar to Renji's tattoos) and a beauty mark located on her left breast. The boy has blue eyes, jaw-length pink hair and wears a robe that reveals much of his stomach, with long sleeves that extend well past his hands, similar to a priest. He has a snake's tail which he can balance on to hang in the air. The two are shown to have fangs and a tendency to argue with each other, with the woman calling the boy "Snakey" and the boy calling her "Chimpette."

Synopsis
They first appear when several Zanpakutō spirits are in a cave waiting for Muramasa's return. They are then last seen along with the rest of the Zanpakutō spirits appearing before the Shinigami that have gathered at the Sōkyoku Hill. They seemingly end the main skirmish by appearing in Bankai form and using Hikōtsu Taihō.

Later on, the two appear while Renji is searching for Byakuya Kuchiki. After having to introduce themselves as Renji did not automatically recognize them, they engaged in a brief fight with Renji (and at times each other.) When asked why they are fighting, the two explain that they heard a voice telling them to act based on their instincts, which for them is to fight. They seem to switch positions and hurl each other at the enemy with each exchange of the zanpakutō. During the fight Zabimaru seems to hold the advantage over Renji, that is until Renji releases his zanpakutō's Shikai much to their amazement.

Trivia

 * Given the fact that Zabimaru had previously appeared in the series as a nue (a Japanese chimera in the form of a baboon with a snake's head for a tail), it is unknown what this dual, humanoid manifestation implies. The female represents the baboon part, as she is covered in fur, while the young boy represents the snake, as his face appears similar to the snake tail of Zabimaru's nue form. In a recent episode, Renji appears confused as to why the two are in human form instead of the ape-like form previously seen, implying that the human form of a Zanpakutō might not be usually seen.
 * Zabimaru's appearance is similar of an omake from both the anime & the manga, when Mayuri Kurotsuchi gave out a pamphlet to Renji & Hisagi to alter a Zanpakuto. One of the choices involved changing the Zanpakuto's gender, to which both were amazed & to which Renji comically asked Mayuri to do. In the background a pair of large breasts covered somewhat by a green coat with a name tag on it with Zabimaru appeared during the final screens of the omake. However, it was assumed that this change never happened, as Renji does not recognize Zabimaru upon seeing her and is also confused as to how Zabimaru took a human form when it was originally a baboon with a snake tail.