Hōzukimaru (Zanpakutō spirit)

This article is about the manifested spirit of Ikkaku Madarame's Zanpakutō. For his Zanpakutō and its abilities see Hōzukimaru.

is the manifested spirit of Ikkaku Madarame's Zanpakutō that is seen during the anime-exclusive Zanpakutō Unknown Tales arc.

Character Outline
Hōzukimaru's spirit is that of a large man resembling an oni with dark brown skin and orange hair. He is shirtless and wears a white robe in the form of a skirt, revealing a tattoo on his shoulders in a design similar to the dragon symbol on Ikkaku's Bankai. He also appears to have red markings under his eyes, similar to Ikkaku's. Hōzukimaru seems to be just as lazy as Ikkaku described: when first seen, he is the only one sleeping.

Synopsis
When Hōzukimaru first appears, he is assembled with the other Zanpakutō spirits who are waiting for Muramasa's return. He later joins Sode no Shirayuki and Tobiume in attacking Shinigami in Seireitei. As he is fighting, Sode no Shirayuki tells him that they are being summoned. Hōzukimaru moves out of the way as Sode no Shirayuki releases a blast of ice from her hands, incapacitating the Shinigami he was fighting. He is then seen along with the rest of the Zanpakutō spirits before the Shinigami who have gathered on Sōkyoku Hill. Later, Hōzukimaru and Ruri'iro Kujaku appear with Senbonzakura overlooking Sōkyoku Hill. Ruri'iro Kujaku fails to interact with Senbonzakura but Hōzukimaru calms him, saying they'll kill the Shinigami soon enough.

After hearing that Muramasa was forced back by Ichigo Kurosaki, who also regained his Zanpakutō partner, Hōzukimaru decided to take action. He later bumped into his former partner Ikkaku, who wasn't sure if he was really who he said he was. To prove it, the two of them did their "lucky dance" together. The two then went into battle, where Hōzukimaru quickly began to overwhelm Ikkaku, only for the fight to be interrupted by the Onmitsukidō, making Hōzukimaru retreat.

He later appears at the 6th Squad Barracks, only to find himself surrounded by the Onmitsukidō and other Shinigami. Ikkaku appears and they engage in battle again. As their battle proceeds, Ikkaku is able to release his Shikai and overwhelms the Zanpakutō spirit. Hōzukimaru unleashes his Bankai and gains the upper hand. Then he releases his full power once the dragon crest is red. He and Ikkaku clash, releasing an enormous amount of Reiatsu. Hōzukimaru congratulates Ikkaku for an excellent fight and falls to the ground defeated.

Powers & Abilities
At any time, Hozukimaru can manifest the three-segment staff form of his former Shikai self.


 * Bankai: : It keeps the three-section theme but loses its yari properties. Instead, it is merely three over-sized weapons connected by an equally large chain. To activate it, Hōzukimaru slams the two broken pieces of his Shikai back into the spear-form and says Bankai. The weapon's two main weapons are a Chinese Monk's spade and a standard Guan dao. Both have a traditional horsehair tassel at the hilt and a long cylindrical weight for a pommel. The pommels are connected by a heavy chain to the center section, which resembles an axe-like blade with a parallel handle forged into the blunt end and a dragon crest on one side of the blade. Despite all three weapons being of near-ridiculous proportions, Hōzukimaru wields them easily. Hōzukimaru usually holds one blade in each hand and lets the central portion "float" behind him, though he will occasionally spin the entire configuration about using the center handle as a pivot. Hōzukimaru has shown to be able to wield just one of the blades for combat, wielding it as if it was a sealed Zanpakutō.


 * Bankai Special Ability: Hōzukimaru's Bankai, like his Shikai, is quite unusual. Aside from the increase in power, his Bankai offers no special abilities and no special defense properties. While quite capable of injuring opponents, the weapons are easily damaged. To make up for this, Hōzukimaru's Bankai gets increasingly more powerful as the fight drags on. After he performs his Bankai, the dragon crest will slowly fill in with crimson dye as Hōzukimaru's Spiritual Pressure rises. It fills faster when he spins Hōzukimaru with the center handle. When the crest is completely filled (on either the blade or Hōzukimaru's tattoo, as they both fill up), Hōzukimaru is at its full power.

Master Spearman: While lazy by nature, Hōzukimaru has shown himself highly proficient in wielding his three-segment spear, able to keep his former partner Ikkaku on his toes during their fight.

Enhanced Strength: Hōzukimaru is shown strong enough to easily force back multiple Shinigami at once.

Enhanced Speed: Hōzukimaru showed great speed during the initial attack on Soul Society.

Enhanced Endurance: During his fight with Ikkaku, Hozukimaru willingly let Ikkaku strike him repeatedly to better gauge his power, and did not seem to take notice of most of his injuries he received.