Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-11003280-20130620163542/@comment-5657895-20130628171023

Like you said, he wasn't much a thinker, just a bundle of brute force and aggressiveness. Kensei and Mashiro are both physical people, the kind that don't really strategize, just beat you black and blue, and overcame both.

Against a more intelligent captain, or rather one who thinks things through and formulates a battle plan, like Unohana, Shunsui or Ukitake and maybe even Byakuya I doubt he would have provided as much of a challenge given that he thrives in slug tests and contests of force.

And it's not like he's slow. He surprised Urahara in battle in the Human World, and given that he's former 2nd squad, we can assume he's a quick guy.