This is an interesting panel in the thousand year blood war. By the simple act of squaring up to a literal death god for Higel's sake, I think we can all agree that Kegu is a really solid dude and a lot of us would do well to have friends like him. Obviously if he wanted to, Kyraku could literally slap him out of existence, but the truly tragic thing about this scene and this is true is that while he half expected this reaction, if anyone was gonna grab onto his collar and stare him down so passionately, he'd probably want it to be Tatsuki. But now he has to deal with this pubescent piece of shiver water ludes most of us is a true meaning behind the words that got this reaction out of Kegu. Right now, Higu has gone to a place that is quite exceptional even within the Soul Society. He's talking about the soul king's palace. Believe me, I have every faith that he will return safely. What worries me though is the question of what mana of power he will have obtained when he does return. Everything on the nature of his new power, it's possible that it could have unwanted effects on the human world. If that does happen, we will not be able to permit him to return to this world. So what is this new power that could have unwanted effects on the world of the living? I think a lot of us at the time assumed it would be something similar to Izen after he fused with the Hogyoku when he would literally leave trails of dead bodies in his wake simply by having a stroll. And as if baiting us into relating Izen's situation to Kyraku's words, Kubo even craftily forced this assumption by having him say them to Kegou Mizuiro and Tatsuki, the three humans that witnessed Izen's power and lived to tell the tale. It's only after reading the novel that we understand the gravity of that one in 10,000 scenario that Kyraku was speaking of, courtesy of an exchange between him and Ichiba. A peculiar post-war conversation that reveals Ichibae considered Ichigo to be the back up to the soul king. In the event that Yuhabak's succeeded in killing the soul king, Ichibae would use his dominion over names, sealing Ichigo to the name, soul king. He reiterates that Ichigo never stood a chance against Yuhar, something we first hear him say in chapter 612 when an oddly spying chilling tone. However, the context he provides in the novel is significantly more appalling and ghastly than even Kyraku could have imagined. Expecting the soul king to fall at the hands of Yuhabak, the only outcome that would have been favorable to Ichibae would have been Ichigo's defeat. Why? Because it would make him easier to subdue and enshrine us in new soul king, also he conduct us in new linchpin to support the three worlds. And if you're wondering why did it have to be Ichigo, well at the time he confronted Yuhar the soul king's palace in chapter 613, he was the only known character to possess all the qualities required to be the soul king due to his mixed lineage. I say known because unbeknownst to most, Ginge was also a suitable candidate and he cornered basically a chimera of the different races would later be created exclusively for that role. But that's a whole kind of one for another day. So predicting that the soul king would die, Ichibae was resolute in his plan to sacrifice Ichigo all for the sake of the world. And in hindsight, reading what he says in the chapter is rather deceptively innocuous. You realize that in Ichibae's mind there's no room for sentiment when it comes to defending the stability of the three realms. Just a wide eyed deadpan face as he very calmly implies in the most cryptic monologue the horrors he loved resort to. Apparently that's what peace is all about. With the soul king dead that one in 10,000 scenario that Kira Kuhmenschen was looking really inevitable. But Ichigo did manage to dodge a bullet and ironically it's Yoha bark that he has to thank for that. Because when Yoha absorbed the soul king's power he effectively assumed the role of the new soul king. Consequently after his defeat it's his remains that are revered as a foundational balance of the three worlds in the current state. And just so we're clear if it did come to pass that Ichigo would serve as a new soul king. It's pretty much implied that his seal would render him unconscious. Maybe not as bad a treatment as his predecessor who endured chopping off the limbs and evisceration of his internal logons but he definitely be reduced to a helpless puppet straaddling the line between life and death for eternity. So to say the least Kira Kuhmenschen really downplayed the enormity of the disservice they would do to Ichigo. Ichibae's plan typifies the darkest hidden side of the soul society and to this day it terrifies me how fast they were willing to turn on someone they once called their savior also they could keep the wheels turning. Like with most aspects of the series it highlights this grey area of morality that the Shinigami constantly have hanging over their shoulders. The role of the soul king is the farthest thing from an enjoyable position. Kira Kuhmenschen rightly so that it would be the worst case for Ichigo which is why he takes it upon himself to be the bearer of bad news. But putting it into perspective you have to question what impacts the soul tickets for the pad. They are isolated they allow their user to travel freely between the world of the living and soul society so context aside Kira Kuhmenschen generally comes off as insane in the scene. But once in the soul society it's hard to imagine that let humans into the soul king palace just so they could pay a visit to a friend in a coma which is essentially how Ichiba would view their intentions. To begin with the zero squad is an autonomous organization operating outside the mandate of the central 46 so you'd think Kira Kuhmenschen's authority as Captain Commander wouldn't really hold any weight in the matter. In all likelihood the farthest they'd be able to get would be the serity and that's only if they were absolutely discreet. But I like Kira Kuhmenschen and I think he is sometimes a crafty son of a bitch in the most endearing way of course. I'm also inclined to believe he was looking out for Ichigo's best interests by handing the soul tickets to his friends. Kind of. So instead of viewing his gestures and empty token that wouldn't amount to much I'd like to think he was also owning up to it and taking responsibility for his actions like he mentioned in the chapter. Otherwise he wouldn't go out of his way to travel all the way to the world of the living for an affortence utility. Having said that it could just have been a preemptive plot to appease his family and friends if the worst case scenario did come to pass. It's hard to imagine Ishin would be okay with sacrificing his own son so there's also an element of Kira Kuhmenschen being proactive in preventing decent and potential rebellion by showing the soul society's sincerity in the matter. After all having witnessed Uha's villainy it wouldn't exactly be ideal to be sowing the seeds for a future war. If Ichiba's plan did come to fruition another thing Kira Kuhmens possibly banking on was the will of the soul king, decipherable only to those of the royal god. It's a reason why Ichigo was initially taken up to the soul palace and presumably what Kira Kuhmenschen had in mind when handing out the tickets. Because at the end of the day the will of the soul king at that point would essentially be the will of Ichigo and who's to say whether or not he would grant his friends and family entry. That being said seeing Ichigo in that state would surely have been cruel. Surely to Karina Newsu who Kira Kuhmenschen did also hand tickets to off screen but I'm guessing he figured they'd at least deserve the opportunity. If I'm looking at this scene objectively Kira Kuhmenschen is just covering all these bases to try and snuff out a potential uprising by Ichigo's bloodline. Because Ishin aside we still don't know what Karina Newsu are capable of. For all we know another right guidance they could grow up to be just as powerful as Ichigo and that's one scary proposition. Like Tozen you could say Kira Kuhmenschen has a propensity for choosing the path of the soul. But on the flip side knowing what we know of him while he can be an abasherdly devious to those who show hostility he is pretty forthright with his allies. In the same way it can be viewed as a calculating approach, handing out the tickets to Ichigo's friends is a matter of basic decency and consideration. One that violates the antiquated laws of soul society which is exactly why he does so without the knowledge of the central 46. So you do have to give him the benefit of the doubt. But let me know what you guys think in the comments. What do you think Ichigo would have reacted if you knew what Ichigo was planning? And at different circumstances Ichigo would be in all but name dead. And not by the hands of Anaisin or Aiyuha but by the very people he trusted. We were this close to losing our orange head protagonist. If you like this kind of content I'm thinking of delving a bit more into the novels and supplementing it with what we know from the canon manga. So leave a like on the video and subscribe for more bleach content because it does give me the push to do a bit more, a bit faster, a bit better. Thanks for watching guys until next time stay safe. Peace.