Números

The are the combat specialists in Sōsuke Aizen's army of Arrancar.

Overview
The Números are assigned a two digit number at birth from 11 to 99 to indicate their age (Número 11 is the oldest, Número 99 is the youngest). The basic Número uniform consists of a white-collared jacket and robes held with a black sash. However, the uniform is customizable, giving each Número a sense of individuality. The fighting ability of the Números is thought to be superior to all other Arrancar, except for the Espada (current and former). The strongest Números are chosen by the Espada to become their Fracción. Most of Grimmjow's Fracción have high numbers, implying that they were among the first Números created. Wonderweiss Margera is apparently one of the strongest and the youngest Números to appear in the manga and the anime.

Fracción
The (Fracciónes in the English dub; Spanish for "Fractions") are a subsection of the Números that directly serve a specific Espada. The number of fracción for any given Espada varies: Jiruga would seem to have just one, while Granz has at least a dozen. There are a few Espada that apparently prefer to fight alone, such as Yammy, Aaroniero Arruruerie, Zommari Leroux, and Ulquiorra Cifer, and chose not to have any fracción under their command. Also, Coyote Starrk's other half, Lilynette Gingerback, has a fracción-like relationship with the former, but cannot be considered an actual fracción due to that she was originally a part of an Espada. The fracción are all fiercely loyal to their respective Espada masters (such as Baraggan's and Harribel's), perhaps even more so than they are to Aizen, and will diligently follow any order their masters give them.

Fracción Relationships
Baraggan's Fracción are fiercely loyal to him - possibly more so than they are to Aizen - and willingly obey his every command. His Fracción treat him like a king (referring to him as "his majesty"), with Poww going even further and seeing Baraggan as a "god". Much like Baraggan himself, they are all very arrogant and boastful. Baraggan was angered when four of his underlings were killed, but out of anger for their failure rather than concern, and goes so far as to call them "trash". Contrasting the teamwork shown by Harribel's Fracción, Baraggan's Fracción are highly independent of one another, and are never shown speaking directly to each other during the fake Karakura Town battle. This disregard for their allies in battle is shown most notably by Ggio Vega, who knocks Soifon into his fellow Fracción, Nirgge Parduoc, apparently killing the latter and showing absolutely no concern for him (though in the anime, when Ōmaeda apparently defeated Nirgge, Ggio sounded surprised that the latter was beaten, though it was more out of shock and fear for his own safety than for that of his comrade's).

Harribel's Fracción respect her and take everything she says seriously. They themselves appear to have a strained, yet somewhat comical, relationship with one another. Despite this, they work quite well together, and are capable of using powerful combination attacks. Unlike most of the other Espada, Harribel actually genuinely cares about her subordinates and angrily assaulted Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya when they were defeated by Head-Captain Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto. She even commends them and acknowledges the fact they tried their best instead of scorning them for their loss.

Nnoitra's lone Fracción, Tesla, idolizes him and remains loyal to the end, despite Nnoitra's occasional mistreatment of him. Nnoitra himself cared for Tesla's well being enough to warn him of Kenpachi Zaraki's power and told him to run (though he insulted him while doing so). Tesla did not seem to have his admiration for Nnoitra while Nnoitra was the eighth Espada at that time; it is unclear what changed his mind. Tesla is shown shedding tears when Nnoitra is killed.

Grimmjow's Fracción are loyal and obedient, and were all members of a group of roaming adjuchas led by Grimmjow before they became Arrancar. They disregard their comrade, Di Roy, considering him the weakest of Grimmjow's five Fracción, and reluctantly accepting his 'assistance' during Grimmjow's assault on Karakura Town. Edrad Liones scornfully calls him 'an Arrancar in name only'. All of them are quite cocky, much like Grimmjow, and most appear rude and unwilling to even bother learning their opponents' names, with the exception of Shawlong, with Edrad going further by refusing to give his own name. After they were killed during their invasion of Karakura Town, Grimmjow showed no signs of anger or sorrow, just surprise at the fact that an entire squad of Arrancar (excluding himself) was eliminated by "a bunch of low-level Shinigami". Interestingly, none of them used honorfics while referring to Grimmjow.

Szayel's Fracción are more like drones than henchmen and he shows little to no concern over them, even going so far as to cannibalize them in order to replenish his strength and regenerate his wounds, as seen during his fight with Renji Abarai and Uryū Ishida. Szayel apparently treats them as mindless lab-rats whose only real purpose is to defend him from his enemies and for his experiments. Amongst the Espada, Szayel has by far the most Fracción.

Nelliel's Fracción are extremely close to her, to the point that they would worry if she did not show up for lunch on time. Nelliel herself regards Pesche and Dondochakka so warmly that she is only willing to attack Nnoitra with apparent intent to kill when he rips their masks off to provoke her. After her defeat and transformation into a child, the two take on the role of her brothers, devoting their lives to protecting the newly weakened Nel from her enemies and any pain or suffering that might befall her.

Trivia

 * Only Grimmjow's Fraccion has appeared in a game, Bleach: The 3rd Phantom. They last far longer than when they died in the anime, however this game is a complete spinoff.

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Números