Akon

is the 3rd Seat of the 12th Division and Vice-President of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute.

Appearance
Akon is a tall man with short, spiky brown hair, which has a jagged, hairless area running through it. He has three small horns protruding from his forehead. He wears a laboratory coat over the standard Shinigami shihakushō. 110 years ago Akon has more of a child appearance he also did not have the three horns on his forehead and did not have that hairless area.

History
101 years ago, a young Akon acted as one of Mayuri Kurotsuchi's assistants in the Shinigami Research and Development Institute. When the captain of the 9th Division, Kensei Muguruma, needed a Shinigami researcher to investigate the possibility that a pathogen is causing souls to break down, he sent Izaemon Tōdō to retrieve one. Upon receiving the news, Captain Kisuke Urahara decided to send the division's lieutenant, Hiyori Sarugaki. She complained about the assignment, asking why he does not give the assignment to somebody less important, such as Akon. Akon retorts that all she does is complain, and that she should just give up the lieutenant rank if she hates its duties so much. Hiyori attempts to kick his face for the remark, but he effortlessly avoids it.

He, alongside his captain Mayuri, Hiyosu and two other Shinigami, experimented on Quincy, including Sōken Ishida, Uryū's master and grandfather.

Soul Society arc
Akon arrives at the Research and Development Institute to deliver Rukia Kuchiki's Gigai to Hiyosu, so that they can study it. When one of his colleagues mentions that he cannot identify the Gigai's creator, another asks Akon if he built it. However, he remarks that he does not remember it at all. When he takes a closer look at it, he becomes startled, and comes to the conclusion that none of them, let alone someone in the Soul Society, could have designed it. One of his colleagues asks him why, to which he states that a Shinigami with the skill to create a Gigai of its kind would surely have been exiled from Soul Society.

Arrancar arc
When Ulquiorra Cifer and Yammy Llargo first come to the World of the Living, Akon enters the research room when his team, especially Rin Tsubokura, have detected the Reiatsu belonging to the Arrancar. He inquires as to what is happening before Hiyosu informs him that they have arrived, greatly shocking Akon. When Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez takes his group of Fraccion and carries out another invasion, Akon helps to gain permission for those stationed there, Rangiku Matsumoto, Tōshirō Hitsugaya and Renji Abarai, to lift the limiters placed on them to allow them to defeat their enemies.

Akon's team once again detects the arrival of Arrancar, ensuring that the limits can be lifted ad alerting the rest of Soul Society that Espada have once again invaded Karakura Town. When Akon's Captain gives him the option of sending someone from his team to the World of the Living to do a survey on the Arrancar, he is shocked to see Rin volunteer for the job. Although surprised, he approves his request before giving him two molars to replace those Ikkaku Madarame lost during his battle with Edrad Liones. Akon later repaired Ikkaku's destroyed bankai, but could not return it to its full strength.

Fake Karakura Town arc
Ten days after Aizen's defeat, a member of the Twelfth Division looks for Mayuri Kurostuchi at the division's compound. However, Akon informs him that the captain has went off to Hueco Mundo again to carry on his research. When the Shinigami mentions that Rangiku Matsumoto has arrived to visit Momo Hinamori, who is receiving an organ regeneration treatment, Akon goes off to speak to her. However, by the time he gets there, Rangiku is already gone.

Gotei 13 Invading Army arc (anime only)
Note: Events occurring in this arc are only in the anime and do not constitute canon material.

Tōshirō Hitsugaya and Shunsui Kyōraku visit Akon in the SRDI. Hitsugaya tells him that he has not been able to contact Nanao Ise and Rangiku since they stated that they were returning from the Human World the previous evening. The captain requests to see if there is a record of them passing through the Dangai. Akon requests a record of traffic through the Dangai from Inaba, who reveals that there is no record of the pair returning through the Dangai. Later, when Hiyosu receives a message from Rukia, tells him to ignore it. Inaba enters the room and Akon directs him to lead Byakuya Kuchiki, Renji Abarai and Hitsugaya through the Dangai as part of the study to identify the cause of a time gap that has been discovered. Contact is established with Mayuri in the Dangai, who explains that the cause is man-made. Mayuri asks if Byakuya and the others are ready to enter the Dangai and Akon informs him that they are about to enter.

Akon later meets with Kyōraku and Akon apologizes, saying their resident expert on the Dangai is out surveying. Kyōraku says it is alright and Akon goes on to say that they recorded reiatsu in the Dangai earlier and asks the captain if he wants a comparison made to Ichigo Kurosaki's reiatsu but Kyōraku says it will not be necessary. Akon works in his office later and wonders who in the S.R.D.I could possibly have planned this, as Kagerōza Inaba enters his office. Akon greets him, noticing the strange apparel he is wearing, as Inaba walks towards him dauntingly. Akon later arrives to the confrontation with Inaba unconscious, being carried by Isane Kotetsu.

The Thousand-Year Blood War arc
At the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, a Shinigami reports to third seat Akon that Hollows keep disappearing. He makes a comment on the barrier between Soul Society and the World of the Living, but is cut off by Akon. He sends the reporter away since his intel has already been reported. Akon informs the captain that it is the work of an unstated group. . Later, he informs Ryūnosuke Yuki of the infiltration by the Vandenreich and of Chōjirō Sasakibe's death. He subsequently attends a meeting of the captains where he delivers a report on the situation.

Seven minutes after the invasion of Soul Society by the Stern Ritter and Yhwach, Akon detects enemy Reiatsu in at least sixteen places, while Shinigami reiatsu is disappearing, probably due to battles. He supposes people of the Reiatsu Investigation Team died before being able to send information. He also notes that Izuru Kira's Reiatsu, along with other three seated officers in his team, has also vanished. While another researcher tells him that more Shinigami are dying in certain areas, Akon concluded over a thousand Shinigami have already been killed and that this is too much, and that there is no way they can win. When the Stern Ritter steal the Bankai of four captains, Akon orders a subordinate to contact Ichigo Kurosaki. When he comments about obtaining the captain's permission, Akon states that it will be hard to contact him while he is on the front lines and that he will take responsibility.

His colleagues attempted to contact Ichigo via his badge, only for them to realize that he's nowhere near it; upon closer inspection, they learn that his spiritual particles are coming from Hueco Mundo, baffling the staff as to why he might be there. Upon learning that Urahara is with Ichigo, Akon is instead connected with Urahara. After being annoyed by the former captain's usually nonchalant attitude towards the situation, Akon is shocked to learn that the Quincy has already invaded Hueco Mundo and that Ichigo is already fighting the enemies, prompting him to think that the substitute Shinigami may have foreseen the Quincy's attack before Soul Society did and now acting in response to the situation without their knowledge; he muses that Ichigo is "unpredictable". He is even more shocked that Ichigo is able to overwhelm one of the Quincy, who is unable to seal his Bankai. After the Quincy is defeated, Akon begins to inform Ichigo of the situation.

Akon provides details of the extensive casualties, number and description of the enemies and ability to steal Bankai to Ichigo. After the Gotei 13 is notified that Ichigo is coming to Soul Society, Akon comments that it's strange, saying that Ichigo's Reiatsu in the Garganta has vanished. Understanding that something had gone wrong, Akon orders his subordinates to send a team to investigate before the Research and Development Institute falls under attack from an enemy-controlled Jidanbō. Amongst the chaos however, Akon is able to reopen the Garganta from within the Research and Development Institute before falling to the Stern Ritter, Shaz Domino. It's his actions that allow Ichigo to escape and continue fighting in Soul Society.

Powers & Abilities
Expert Scientist: Akon is an exceptional scientist, particularly in dealing with gigai, as he constructs them for use by Shinigami being sent to the Human World. He is highly skilled in the field, being able to tell that Rukia's gigai was of profound craftsmanship, well beyond the capabilities of his and any of his colleagues. He was able to further postulate that the scientist that did create it was most likely exiled from Soul Society.

Trivia

 * Tite Kubo's sketches reveal that Akon can be seen in the Nest of Maggots, tinkering with something in the background.


 * At the request of Captain Jūshirō Ukitake, Akon and his staff produce a life size figure of Captain Hitsugaya as a birthday gift. Ukitake also requests one of Byakuya Kuchiki.


 * He is shown smoking in omakes.


 * In chapter 498 in the Viz release of volume 56, Akon is mistakenly called a lieutenant.

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