Byakuya Kuchiki

Byakuya Kuchiki is the captain of the 6th Division in the Gotei 13. His lieutenant is Renji Abarai. He ranked 6th in the most recent popularity poll with 3,752 votes, edging out Yoruichi Shihouin by 8 votes.

Character outline
Byakuya Kuchiki is the 28th head of the noble Kuchiki clan, one of the four great noble families in Soul Society. As such, Byakuya acts in an aristocratic manner — he seems always serene and apathetic towards other people, even when he is actually deeply conflicted.

Byakuya strongly believes in law and order. As the head of one of the great noble families and as a captain in the Gotei 13, he always works hard for a peaceful society. He feels that if someone in his position doesn't follow the rules as a good example, then no one will follow them. He believes that to maintain the order, all law-breakers must be punished, even if that goes against his own wishes. In spite of his icy and regal manner, Byakuya cares for and protects those important to him.

Byakuya is popular among the female shinigami of Soul Society, and was voted number one in the "captain we desire to release a photo book for" poll taken by the Shinigami Women's Association. He likes Chinese bellflowers, night time walks, and spicy food.

Byakuya wears the standard captain uniform along with a white headpiece called a kenseikan (symbolizing his noble rank as the head of the Kuchiki family) and a white scarf made by the master weaver, Tsujishirō Kuroemon III. The scarf is made from silver-white windflower light silk (ginpaku kazahana no uzuginu) and is a family heirloom handed down through the generations to the head of the Kuchiki family. Ten large houses can be built for the cost of just one such scarf.

Byakuya seems to have a comedic side to himself as he not only attends the Vice-Captain's meeting when Renji Abarai is absent, but also attends the meetings of the Shinigami Women's Association when Rukia is absent. As he puts it, "part of a captain's responsibilities is to make sure the vice-captain's responsibilities are taken care of" which was spoken during the Shinigami's Illustrated Picture Book in episode 118, to which Renji asks him if he also goes to Rukia's meetings which is only responded by a smile. In the Shinigami Cup in episode 113, Byakuya jokingly remarks that he uses Senbonzakura to cut his hair. In one of the omake chapters, Byakuya claims that life in general isn't supposed to be entertaining, and even makes up an idea for a game that isn't meant to be amusing. It was also shown in an omake chapter that Byakuya has a similar drawing style to Rukia.

History
Little is known about Byakuya's early history, except that he often played tag with Yoruichi Shihouin using flash steps, though he never was able to beat her, a score that upholds to the current time of the series.

Around 55 years before the main Bleach storyline, Byakuya married Hisana, who was then a commoner from Rukongai; therefore, he broke the rules by accepting her into the noble Kuchiki family. Shortly before her death, Hisana asked Byakuya to find and adopt her biological sister, Rukia, whom she had abandoned as a baby. She also made him promise that he would not tell Rukia about her real family, for she believed that by abandoning Rukia when she was younger she was not worthy to be called her sister.

One year later, Rukia entered the shinigami academy; shortly after, Byakuya found her and immediately adopted her into the Kuchiki clan. By adopting her Byakuya respected his wife's last wish, but had broken the rules of his clan again. He later swore upon his parents' graves that he would never break the rules again, no matter what. As a result, he, though entirely apathetic on the surface, is actually deeply conflicted with the matter of Rukia's execution: should he intervene, it would require breaking the promise to his parents and the rules again, but should he do nothing he would fail to fulfill the last promise he made to his dying wife to protect Rukia as his own sister.

It is implied that Byakuya Kuchiki became captain of the 6th division less than 50 years before the main Bleach storyline (shortly before Rukia had entered the Gotei 13). Gin Ichimaru became captain of the 3rd Division at the same time, and Gin would commonly start pointless conversations with Byakuya during times they crossed paths.

Synopsis
Byakuya first appears on a mission with his lieutenant, Renji Abarai, to capture Rukia Kuchiki and kill Ichigo Kurosaki, though in the latter they only manage to remove Rukia's shinigami powers from him. Byakuya later interrupts Ganju Shiba and Hanatarō Yamada's attempt to rescue Rukia and, later on, Renji's attempt. When Ichigo succeeds in rescuing Rukia, he and Byakuya have an extended battle, where both use their bankai, though Ichigo's inexperience with his version and Byakuya switching to a more powerful form leaves Ichigo at a disadvantage, though the temporary emergence of Ichigo's inner hollow evens the odds once more. Following Ichigo's inner hollow's forced submission, both channel all their remaining power into one final attack, resulting in Byakuya's sword breaking and Byakuya forfeiting the match.

Later, when Sōsuke Aizen orders Gin Ichimaru to kill Rukia, Byakuya pulls her out of the attack and takes it instead. While being treated, Byakuya, breaking his promise to Hisana, tells Rukia about why she was adopted, apologizing to Rukia and thanking Ichigo. When the Bounts' threat to harm Soul Society becomes serious, Byakuya uses the Kuchiki Clan's records to gain information on the Bount for General Yamamoto. Byakuya, following aiding Rukia in her battle with Yoshi, attempts to seek out the Bount leader Jin Kariya, where the two have a battle interrupted by Ichigo and, later on, Rantao, and later watches Ichigo's battle with Kariya with full confidence in Ichigo.

Byakuya later reappears to retrieve Tōshirō Hitsugaya's team on General Yamamoto's order, and secretly allows Rukia and Renji to return to the human world to assist in Orihime's rescue, stating that he was only ordered to bring them back to Soul Society and that what they chose to do afterwards was none of his concern. Byakuya later appears in the Hueco Mundo arc to save Rukia from the 7th Espada, Zomari Le Roux. He clearly shows anger at Zomari's statement about preparing to kill Rukia.

Powers
Byakuya, as the 6th Division shinigami captain has advanced skills in all forms of shinigami combat. Byakuya is an expert in flash steps, although he could never beat Goddess of Flash Yoruichi Shihouin. One of Byakuya's favorite technique as described by Renji is senka, a flash step combined with a spin to quickly move behind the enemy, followed by a strike aimed to destroying the saketsu chain and the hakusui soul sleep with a single thrust. Byakuya has displayed his knowledge of high level kidō spells, able to cast several in quick succession without the incantation and with almost no effort. He even uses a low-level lightning spell to burn a hole through Ichigo's shoulder.

Senbonzakura
Byakuya Kuchiki's zanpakutō is Senbonzakura (千本桜, lit. A Thousand Cherry Blossoms). Its shikai is triggered by the command "scatter" (散れ, lit.'' chire). In the English manga, Viz is inconsistent as it once labeled the trigger command as "die", and the next as "scatter".

In its shikai, Senbonzakura's blade separates into a thousand slender tiny blades, which then fly away from the hilt. The release can be negated before it completes, such as when Yoruichi Shihouin wrapped the blade in cloth during Byakuya's short battle with Ichigo. While the blades are supposedly too small to see normally, they reflect light in such a way as to appear as cherry blossom petals. Byakuya can control the blades at will, allowing him to shred opponents at a distance and break through almost any defense. While Byakuya can control the blades with his mind alone, using his hands allows him to do so more effectively, making the blades move almost twice as fast.

Byakuya's bankai, named Senbonzakura Kageyoshi (千本桜景厳, lit. Vibrant Display of the Thousand Cherry Blossoms), is essentially a much larger version of Senbonzakura's shikai. To activate it, Byakuya drops his sword. The sword passes through the ground and two rows of giant blades rise up from the ground behind Byakuya. These then scatter into a million tiny blades. The number of blades is great enough that Byakuya can use them for defense as well as offense. He commonly forms them into large masses of blades to crush opponents.

Byakuya's bankai has two extra forms, achieved by arranging the blades in different patterns. They are activated by saying the name of the technique followed by the name of his bankai. The first is "scene of a massacre," (殲景, senkei, Viz: "annihilate") which unites the scattered petals into complete swords that form four rows around Byakuya and his opponent. While Byakuya can control these swords as he does his regular blades, he usually attacks with just one in hand. After immobilizing an opponent, he can call in the other blades to hit them while they're trapped. He can also use all the blades at once for one immensely powerful strike. He claims to have used this ability only twice in his life. The second form condenses every tiny blade into a single sword to drastically increase its cutting power. The blade appears bright white, earning it the name Hakuteiken (白帝剣, lit. "White Imperial Sword). Byakuya also grows pure white wings and a halo-like circle in the back, both made of spiritual power. It is unknown whether these wings are merely an aesthetic effect or if they can be used to fly.