Mabashi

is a character in the anime-exclusive Bount arc. He is a male Bount, one of the antagonists of the Bount arc.

Appearance
Mabashi is unique in his overall appearance. His orange-red hair is messy and long on the right side, but clean and cut short on the left. He wears shorts and a sleeveless shirt (both sporting a black trim). The red necklace he wears is used to connect his doll's sealed form.

Personality
Originally, Mabashi did not seem to care if his views went against Kariya's, as he refused to drink the bitto's elixir. He is a staunch defender of the rule that Bount should not drink living souls. But after Kariya forced him to, his personality changed. He seems to be overconfident and facetious. Against Soifon, he didn't even find it necessary to fight her, suggesting that he is not a very perceptive fighter who leaves the heavy duty work to his doll, Ritz. Mabashi cares for the doll with his life, seen when his doll is defeated, and gets mad that she was hurt. He also comment during her "playtime" with Orihime, Rukia, and Kurōdo that she was cute.

He has a nasty side, liking to be sadistic when he pitted Rukia against Orihime. He is shown to be laid-back, evident when he allows his doll to control his opponent while he gives orders from the sidelines. Mabashi takes joy in sitting back and watching his doll mess with people. He is also an instigator who likes to antagonize others, be they enemies or allies. He is disrespectful to the people higher than himself, especially Yoshi. Though he only appears a few times, he has his ways to make himself be known well. He apparently does not have a good relationship with Yoshi, whom he frequently insults and calls her "old and ugly", leading to both verbal and physical clashes between the two.

Synopsis
Kariya killed a fellow Bount, Yoshino Sōma, in order to create the bitto. These new dolls drew pure, concentrated souls from humans. Being against the laws of their tribe, Mabashi refuses to drink it. Kariya, however, forces him to drink it after tossing him around the cave. Doing so makes him lose sanity and become addicted. After calming down, he interrupts the fight between Yoshi and Rukia Kuchiki.

He attacks Yoshi with his doll and she leaves the fight to him, but not before warning him to watch his back. Mabashi commands his doll, Ritz, to toy with Rukia, Orihime Inoue and Kurōdo. He then orders Ritz to take over Rukia's body and begins to attack Orihime. Kurōdo tries to talk Orihime into attacking, but she refuses to fight her friend. With Rukia under his command, he has the Shinigami attack the other two. Shūhei Hisagi appears and defends Orihime and Kurōdo. The 9th division lieutenant attempts to attack Mabashi, but he uses Rukia as a human shield. Hisagi decides that in order to defeat Mabashi, Rukia must be killed. However, Orihime convinces him to let her save Rukia. Using Sōten Kisshun, Orihime is able to reject Ritz's influence over Rukia and remove the doll from her body. Mabashi orders his doll to possess Orihime but she is struck down by Hisagi. Angered by the fact that Hisagi defeated Ritz, he attempts to attack the 9th division lieutenant but is stopped by Ichinose, who uses his sheath to knock him unconscious. Ichinose retreats with Mabashi on his back.

Mabashi is later seen by the gate, created by Koga and Ichinose. Koga instructs Mabashi to watch the fight between Kariya and Ichigo, telling him that this is how a Bount fights. When Uryu fires an spiritual arrow at the gate, it becomes stabilized and the Bount are able to go to Soul Society.

After coming to the Soul Society, Ritz has gained the ability to multiply. They take over several groups of low-level Shinigami, including the Punishment Force. Mabashi commands one of the possessed Shinigami to attack. As Soifon gives her troops orders, she is stabbed in the back by a bitto. She retreats to find the person responsible. Mabashi shows up, after sensing her spiritual pressure. He explains that he was the one who poisoned her. They engage in hand-to-hand combat, where Soifon releases her Zanpakutō. She manages to stab him once, implanting the Hōmonka. Afterwards, her body collapses and Mabashi decides to relax and watch as she dies.

However, the higher-level Shinigami begin knocking out the bodies Ritz possessed. Mabashi then decides to take control of Soifon, as she is too strong to incapacitate. He finds her and tells her of his plan. Then, Soifon's security guard shows up and helps Soifon to get on her feet. However, Mabashi reveals that he has Soifon's men under his control. She is held down by her subordinates, who are also control by his doll. Soifon then knocks them back with her spiritual power and stabs Mabashi on the Hōmonka. She explains that she had already counteracted the poison and only pretended to be weakened to get close enough to kill him with her second attack. Foolishly, he commands Ritz to attack the captain but instead she attacks Mabashi. Nigeki Kessatsu takes effect and Mabashi begins to rot until he turns to dust. After he dies, the Shinigami return to normal.

Powers & Abilities
Expert Hand to Hand Combatant: Mabashi was able to match Soifon in hand-to-hand combat for some time.

Enhanced Endurance: After drinking souls, Mabashi became so durable he could remain standing and fighting for a short time after being stabbed twice by Soifon's Suzumebachi.

Doll
is Mabashi's doll. When sealed, she is a small seed Mabashi keeps on his necklace. When the seed is dropped into the ground, a small flower sprouts into Mabashi's hand, looking similar to a mouse. Ritz speaks with a very high pitched voice and often states in which direction she is going, much like a elevator operator. Ritz is voiced by Asami Sanada in the Japanese version and by Sandy Fox in the English adaptation.


 * High Speed: Ritz can move at high speeds at any angle. Her high momentum can allow Ritz to drove through solid materials, sometimes with explosive results.


 * Tunneling: Ritz is able to return to a flower like form, enter the ground, and tunnel through it, usually unseen only until she reappears at another place.


 * Possession: Ritz's most used power is possession. She does this by entering the body of the victim and completely taking over their nervous system. When in Soul Society, the high concentration of spirit particles increased her control. In Soul Society, when she enters a body, their eyes become dark. When trying to gain more control of the host body, they can sprout a flower in the center of their chest, reminiscent of her true form. A downside to this power is, if the body she controls is knocked unconscious, she is unable to attend to Mabashi's orders.


 * Multiplication: While in the Soul Society, Ritz gained the ability to multiply, allowing her to possess more then one victim at the same time.