Summary
The main protagonist ofBleach, Ichigo Kurosaki, is known for his orange hair, badass Bankai, desire to protect others, and seemingly ever-increasing power. Many fans have noted that Ichigo barely does any training. Still, his power grows exponentially in every fight, making him far beyond the captain-level Soul Reapers while not being an official member of the Gotei 13.
Ichigo’s immense power comes from his heritage, as Ichigo is a one-of-a-kind being in the world ofBleach. What makes Ichigo so different from other Soul Reapers and Humans? And why does that make him so powerful?
Ichigo’s Unique Heritage
A Perfect Hybrid
Ichigo Kurosaki was born a human from Isshin and Masaki Kurosaki. He could always see ghosts, meaning he was born with reiatsu greater than normal humans. Unbeknownst to Ichigo, his father Isshin was a former Soul Reaper captainusing a perfect Gigai that turned him human. And his mother Masaki was a pure-blood Quincy. Meaning, that while Ichigo was born human, he had Soul Reaper and Quincy heritage, immediately making him a unique human.
I’ll Fight For Myself. Thank You, Zangetsu. You Are Me.
Moreover, Ichigo’s mother held Hollow reiatsu in her, as years before Ichigo was born, Masaki was bitten by a Hollow called White. And he infected her with Hollow reiatsu. Isshin’s Soul Reaper reiatsu was linked to her, saving her life. Being born from Masaki, Ichigo inherited that Hollow reiatsu mixed with his father’s Soul Reaper reiatsu. And when he awakened his powers, his Soul Reaper powers manifested as a Hollow called White Zangetsu. Giving Ichigo latent Hollow powers.
Ichigo is a perfect mixture of human, Soul Reaper, Quincy, and Hollow. Making him a perfect hybrid of all the major races that exist in Bleach. Ichigo’s power manifests as aHollow side named White Zangetsuand a Quincy side named Old Man Zangetsu. Therefore, while Ichigo is mainly a Soul Reaper, he also possesses Hollow and Quincy powers.
Ichigo can use Quincy abilities such as Blut Vene. And especially Hollow powers such as High-Speed Regeneration, Sonido, Cero, and a one-time-seen Resurrección. Ichigo has more access to Hollow powers because not only is White Zangetsu his main Zanpakutou and power, but he never trained his Quincy powers, as he only discovered this side of him very recently.
Ichigo Kurosaki, A Potential Soul King
A Link Between All Worlds
Thousands of years ago, a mysterious man divided the world into three realms; The World of the Living, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo. This being was later known as Soul King. The Soul King is the link between the three realms. Therefore, he is a being that encompasses all four races.The Soul King is the highest life form in the world of Bleach. The Bleach world is divided and in conflict. A being that holds all of its aspects into one is a being of pure harmony and colossal power.
There’s only one other being similar to Soul King, the perfect hybrid, Ichigo. Ichigo holds all four races within him, and by the time of the Thousand-Year Blood War, he lives in perfect harmony with each side of him. He’s made peace with his heritage and both Zangetsu, allowing him to access all of his diverse powers at once.Ichigo lives as a Soul King without restraints, unlike the real one, and his immense power comes from this distinct existence.
Ichigo requires much less training than regular Soul Reapers for two reasons: he was born powerful due to his nature as a perfect hybrid, and Ichigo possesses the quality of improving through battle experience. The more Ichigo fights, the more he grows stronger due to his ability to quickly adapt and push himself further. Ichigo Kurosaki is unique, not just because of his heritage, but also by his innate battle instinct and adaptability.
