Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-31283382-20140611172614

Zangetsu is easily the one most mysterious character in Bleach Universe. And I ain't just talking about the 'Old Man', but of true Zangetsu and the sword itself.

Old Man: So, he is aspect of Yhwach that resides in Ichigo's soul. He has been suppressing Zangetsu for the time that Ichigo was a Death God. And now, he ceased suppressing Ichigo's true potential and vanished... WHAT THE HELL!?!?! What happened: is he truly gone; does that mean Ichigo has his Quincy powers no more? Or is he just dormant in some corner of Inner World, but still present?

Hollow: Being Ichigo's Soul Slayer, he is neither Hollow nor Soul Slayer, but something lost in between. Until Dangai Training, he was suppressed by Old Man, and could not reach his full power, and even then he had it for a very short time. He gave Ichigo most of his current power, and saved his life multiple times, albeit for selfish reasons. Nevertheless, it is due to him, that Ichigo reached his full potential and power (at least at that time). Since Ichigo's final battle with Sosuke, he has not manifested himself even once, and he was not shown during forging of Zangetsu. Ichigo acknowledged both him, and Old Man to be Zangetsu. However, Old Man vanished during forging of Zangetsu: does that mean that Zangetsu has the power all for himself; is he dormant but still present; or did he merge with Old Man becoming the Zangetsu?

For the end, two deepest mysteries: True Zangetsu has ben forged using real Asuachi (unlike the one that Ichigo possessed most of the time). So, what happened to Old Man and the Maniac; did Asuachi banish them, taking upon the mantle of Zangetsu. Maybe he united them into single entity, or maybe he now exist as the third entity in Ichigo's soul, a Death God along with Hollow and Quincy?

During fight with Byakuya, Hollow stated that he has no name, and during forging of Zangetsu, Old Man admitted that he lied about his name, leaving as with a question: What is the true name of entity known as Zangetsu? 