Ichigo Kurosaki

**Ichigo Kurosaki** is the master of Assassin in an alternate version of the Fifth Holy Grail War in *Stitches* by Farmer Kyle.

"*...If fate is a millstone, then we are the grist. There is nothing we can do. So I wish for strength. If I cannot protect them from the wheel, then give me a strong blade, and enough strength... to shatter fate.*" — Ichigo Kurosaki

## Profile

### Background

Ichigo Kurosaki is a young Quincy with the powers of a Shinigami. Years after the death of his mother, Ichigo uses his innate spiritual awareness to help local ghosts, and unlocks his potential as a Shinigami when Rukia Kuchiki comes along in pursuit of a Hollow.

### Personality

When he was younger, Ichigo considered his mother to be the center of his world, always smiling when he was with Masaki and regularly holding her hand. Despite crying whenever he lost in a match at the dojo he attended, Ichigo started to smile again as soon as he saw Masaki when she came to pick him up. At a very young age, Ichigo heard his father saying his name means "to protect one thing," which instilled in him a desire to protect his mother. When his sisters were born, he began attending a dojo for the sake of protecting them. Since then, the number of people he wishes to protect has continued to grow, causing Ichigo to risk his life to protect both the people close to him and complete strangers.

As a teenager, Ichigo is stubborn, short-tempered, strong-willed, and impulsive. Despite claiming not to care about what other people think about him, he attempts to maintain a detached and "cool" image. He generally keeps his face set in a near-permanent scowl, with his eyebrows drawn together. His outspoken, hot-headed demeanor is a trait Ichigo himself has acknowledged, and if somebody picks a fight with him, he cannot help fighting back. He coldly refers to his teachers as "instructors". He is genuinely compassionate and empathetic towards others, promising to bring a Plus flowers and a toy plane, or soothing others when they become upset.

Ichigo is a capable student, ranked 23rd in his year at school, who studies regularly and does not neglect his schoolwork. He works as hard as he does to overcome the misconceptions many have about him based on his hair color and fighting. Ichigo hates fortune telling, horoscopes, feng shui, psychics, and anyone whose trade involves taking money from people for things they cannot see. He has difficulty remembering people's faces and names. However, Ichigo can remember the names of noticeable individuals even when they did not directly tell him their names. Ichigo becomes extremely shy and uncomfortable around nude or immodestly dressed women, a fact both Yoruichi Shihōin and Rangiku Matsumoto have teased him for. Ichigo is often disrespectful when talking to those older than himself, calling Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto "gramps" and referring to several of the Shinigami captains by their given names without using honorifics.

When it comes to fighting, Ichigo has a complex sense of honor; he regularly seeks to exact revenge for the cruel actions of his opponent, such as instilling the fear of being murdered in
Shrieker and cutting off the right arm of Yammy Llargo in retaliation for him ripping Yasutora Sado's right arm off. He often taunts and belittles his opponents when fighting, sometimes attacking without warning. Ichigo has a strong desire to win his fights, but in what he views as a legitimate manner. To this end, he has often refused the aid of his inner Hollow, even when knowing it would allow him to win. Ichigo's resolve in battle can waver at times, which can impede his fighting prowess, and goes into a state of depression and self-loathing when he loses a major battle or lets a friend down.

Ichigo despises those who mistreat their allies in any way, even if they are his own enemies. He was disgusted when Yammy calls Ulquiorra Cifer, Nnoitra Gilga, and Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez "trash".

## Role

### Stitches

For a history project, Ichigo travels to Fuyuki City to gather local information after an awry Hollow attack destroys the school. He heads to Ryuudou Temple to learn of its history, only to stumble into a secret war that has been waged for almost two centuries. This is the story of a boy trying to find his place in the world, and the girl who stitches the pieces back together.

## Abilities

Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Physically, Ichigo's Human body is in top form. Ichigo has been trained in martial arts since he was a small child, both professionally and by his father. He has repeatedly shown great agility and coordination in his attacks. In addition to having powerful kicks and punches, Ichigo is proficient in counterattacks, takedowns, and body locks. He has repeatedly caught an opponent's weapon strikes with a single hand. He effortlessly defeats multiple bullies and gangsters on a regular basis, and is a better martial artist than
Tatsuki Arisawa, who is ranked the second strongest girl in all of Japan despite her fighting with a broken arm. Combined with his speed, he effortlessly knocked out three lieutenants in rapid succession, while bare-handed, with a single strike each before the first lieutenant even touched the ground. While he has stopped training, constant attacks from bullies and his father keep his skills fresh.

Enhanced Strength: Even while not in his Shinigami form, Ichigo is deceptively strong, smashing a man's head through a concrete road with a single kick, and later kicking Asguiaro Ebern from his bedroom into the street without injuring his leg from the man's Hierro.

Enhanced Speed & Reflexes: Even before learning Shunpo, Ichigo is a very fast and agile fighter. Ichigo possesses great reflexes, dodging a strike with no wasted effort and immediately counterattacking. He can strike quickly, without warning, and in rapid succession. His speed allows him to follow the movements of faster opponents to better analyze their movements, and block otherwise fatal strikes. Even when struck by surprise by Tenjirō Kirinji, who is fast enough to outpace Suì-Fēng, Ichigo counterattacked and injured said attacker without anybody else noticing. Ichigo managed to dodge a surprise point-blank shot to the head and attempt to perform a counter against Robert Accutrone, who was fast enough to match and pressure a fast Captain such as Shunsui in terms of speed.

Enhanced Durability: While only a teenage Human, Ichigo is a highly resilient young man, safely breaking free from a binding spell (albeit a low-level one) and withstanding an assault from a large Hollow.

Advanced Growth Rate: According to both Aizen and Urahara, Ichigo's most astounding ability is his growth rate; he grasps the basic control of advanced techniques in days where it would take several years for even the most gifted Shinigami. Shortly after gaining Shinigami powers and with no previous training, he began learning advanced spiritual energy sensing techniques by sheer instinct. While it takes most Shinigami at least 10 years to achieve Bankai, he did so in two-and-a-half days (albeit with the assistance of a special device invented by Urahara which was originally intended for three days). He gains considerable experience in the use of Shunpo while training with Yoruichi, which was done over the same period as his Bankai. Besides his improvements in his Shinigami abilities, Ichigo greatly increased the time he could maintain his Hollow mask, from eleven seconds to considerably longer amounts of time. During his first fight with Ulquiorra, he is instantly incapacitated by one Cero blast, even with his Hollow mask (which broke within a second), but only a few hours later, he withstands another Cero from Ulquiorra without undergoing Hollowfication, and can analyze Ulquiorra's movements much better than before, when he had "felt like [he] was fighting a machine or a statue" and failed to predict and counter his attacks. His latent abilities have been recognized by the Wandenreich as potent enough to make him one of the Special War Powers of Soul Society.

Keen Intellect: Despite his somewhat punkish attitude, Ichigo is analytical, perceptive, and deductive. In his high school, Ichigo's grades are almost always near the top, despite his work as a Substitute Shinigami. Aside from that, Ichigo can determine the pattern of his opponent's battle methods and form a proper counter-strategy to defeat his opponent's attacks.

Immeasurable Spiritual Power: Ichigo has been noted on several occasions to have tremendously vast levels of spiritual energy, well beyond most other Shinigami. His spiritual power is noted to be heavy, which surprised Renji Abarai. Ichigo constantly gives off Reiatsu at the level of a captain. Even when worn-out in battle, he can continue fighting effectively while still using
Getsuga Tenshō or unleashing and maintaining his Bankai. Even at less than half strength, his spiritual energy is comparable to a captain-level fighter. His energy is strong enough to hold back the Sōkyoku, a halberd with the destructive force equivalent to one million Zanpakutō combined, using only his Zanpakutō. Even before his Dangai training, he could sense Aizen's increased Reiatsu as a result of his Second Fusion with the Hōgyoku while fighting Gin from a considerable distance away, despite his father, Urahara, and Yoruichi, all former Gotei 13 Captains, not being able to do so themselves while fighting him directly. His Reiatsu is light-blue in color. After his training at the Soul King Palace, Ichigo was able to overwhelm four Sternritter simultaneously and then calmly fight on par with a Sternritter using Quincy: Vollständig using just his Shikai and eventually overpower his foe.

Novice Reiatsu Control: Ichigo's spiritual energy is rather difficult for him to control, as he has no formal training in controlling it, and upon Hollowfication, his Reiatsu fluctuates wildly, with it being unreadable at its lowest point and at its highest point greater than that of the fourth Espada Ulquiorra Cifer. Due to this, and him having far more spiritual energy than his body can consciously contain, it leaks out constantly, preventing him from hiding it and effectively making stealth impossible when dealing with other spiritually-aware beings. He has learned how to harden his spiritual energy and enhance the strength of his attacks, or use it as a barrier to reduce the impact of attacks on him, if not negating them completely. He possesses some skill in channeling his spiritual power, as he was able to destroy the Arbor of the Sōkyoku, a seemingly impossible feat which surprised the Gotei 13, by channeling his spiritual power through his sword into the execution stand. According to
Kirio Hikifune, Ichigo has gained control over his fluctuating Reiatsu after his training in the Soul King Palace, and it is now so powerful that it automatically becomes visible when Ichigo is preparing to battle.

Spiritual Awareness: Since he was a child, Ichigo has had an innate ability to clearly see spiritual beings and sense their presence. After becoming a Shinigami, his senses have continued to improve with time, learning various advanced sensing techniques, such as using a spirit ribbon to find Yūichi Shibata (in bird form). Even from a considerable distance, he can detect the condition of a being with spiritual power. During his intense fight against Kenpachi Zaraki, he clearly sensed and recognized Sado's energy signature even as it weakened, despite the considerable distance between them.

Master Swordsman: In terms of fighting style while in his Shinigami form, Ichigo relies mainly on swordplay. Aside from his initial training with Urahara, he is essentially on a "learn as you go" training regimen; thusly, his skill has developed by fighting rather than formal instruction, becoming even more capable with every fight. His overall skill allows him to fight evenly against sword masters of Byakuya Kuchiki and Kenpachi Zaraki's caliber. While usually fighting right-handed, Ichigo appears to be ambidextrous, as he is proficient in wielding Zangetsu in his left hand. Since attaining the true form of Zangetsu, he has displayed great skill at wielding both blades at once without any trouble.

Zanpakutō-
Shikai: After his Bankai's sword is broken, Ichigo discovers he does not possess a true Zanpakutō, but instead wields one formed from his inherited fusion of his Shinigami/Hollow powers. Later, Zangetsu is personally reforged by Ōetsu Nimaiya, using an actual Asauchi. In his inner world, Ichigo, coming to terms with his heritage and powers, gains access to his true Zanpakutō, which had been suppressed all this time. His actual Zanpakutō takes the form of two separate, purely black[592] blades. One is the size of his previous sword, once again in the shape of a khyber knife, with the grip at the base of the blade and a handle extending back from this about roughly the width and length of Ichigo's forearm. There is a thin, hollowed-out portion running along the back edge of the blade from the base to the middle of the blade. The second blade is relatively small, about the size of Ichigo's arm, and is similar to the first blade, but resembles a trench knife more than a sword. Unlike its counterpart, it has an enclosed handle, with a portion acting like a hand guard. Both blades represent a different facet of Ichigo's powers: the larger blade represents his inner Hollow (the manifestation of his Shinigami/Hollow powers) and the smaller blade represents "the old man" (the manifestation of his Quincy powers). After gaining his new Zanpakutō, Ichigo wraps the hilts of both swords in cloth, and now carries the larger blade on his back and the shorter blade on his right hip.
Shikai Special Ability: Zangetsu's Shikai is largely used for melee combat, but possesses two known special abilities.

Getsuga Tenshō (月牙天衝, Moon Fang Heaven-Piercer; "Piercer of Heaven" in the English anime): At the instant of the slash, Zangetsu, absorbing Ichigo's spiritual energy, releases highly condensed spiritual energy at the tip of the blade, which, magnifying the slash attack, flies forward. This slash takes the form of a crescent moon or the shape of a wave. Ichigo uses this ability without knowing its name several times, but masters the technique later on during his Bankai training. As stated by Zangetsu, knowing the name of an attack heightens its power compared to its strength when the wielder does not know its name. The Getsuga Tenshō is a powerful technique with great force, capable of causing large-scale damage and destruction. Ichigo has used this technique in several different manners, such as striking the ground, creating an omnidirectional blast which knocks away incoming attacks, or slashing at the ground, upturning it and crushing everything in its path. After Ichigo regains his Shinigami powers for the second time, his Getsuga Tenshō is noticeably larger and stronger than it was before he lost his powers. A single strike from it cleanly cut off the top portion of Tsukishima's mansion and dispersed an entire rainstorm. After gaining his true Zanpakutō, Ichigo can fire a Getsuga Tenshō by simply pointing his smaller sword at the enemy and making a small slash with it. He can also fire a Getsuga Tenshō with his larger sword; this version is completely black, and is powerful enough to blast a large hole in the Soul King Palace and knock someone as powerful as Yhwach several meters back.

Getsuga Jūjishō (月牙十字衝, Moon Fang Cross-Shaped Piercer): By firing a Getsuga Tenshō with each blade of his true Shikai, Ichigo can fuse them into a large, cross-shaped blast of energy. It is powerful enough to disperse Candice Catnipp's Electrocution technique and completely destroy her left arm on contact.

Bankai: Tensa Zangetsu (天鎖斬月, Heaven Chain Slaying Moon): To activate his Bankai, Ichigo places the two blades of his Shikai side by side, causing a surge of energy to engulf him and the swords. Tensa Zangetsu takes the form of a khyber knife variation; the smaller black blade comprises the inner part of the sword and has the handle fixed to it, while the base of the sword is slanted and the blade continues with a section jutting out from the underside as a guard, with a chain attached to it that loops over the top and attaches right before the point of the blade. After Yhwach tries to destroy Tensa Zangetsu a second time during his final battle with Ichigo, only the outer white portion of the sword breaks off instead, revealing a blade matching the original form of Ichigo's Shikai, Zangetsu, underneath.

Bankai Special Ability: While the power of the true Tensa Zangetsu is currently unknown, a Soul King-empowered Yhwach considered it dangerous enough to necessitate immediately breaking Ichigo's Bankai following its activation during their battle.

Enhanced Getsuga Tenshō: Ichigo can fire a massively powerful, golden-colored Getsuga Tenshō. When this technique was used against a Soul King-empowered Yhwach, Ichigo bifurcated him with the force of the blast and would have killed him were it not for The Almighty allowing Yhwach to reverse his own death.

Hollowfication-
Merged Hollow Form: After Ichigo learned the truth about the source of his Shinigami powers and reforged his Zanpakutō, his Hollow and Quincy came into balance with one another; however, should Ichigo's inner Hollow be woken by large amounts of Quincy Reiatsu, this balance will be disrupted, and Ichigo can meld with his inner Hollow, resulting in a powerful transformation. In this form, the left side of Ichigo's face and neck change to resemble the form his inner Hollow took on while fighting Ulquiorra Cifer, as well as his former Hollowfication; his left eye inverts in color with a black sclera and yellow iris, he has dark marks running down his face and along his neck, and he gains a long, forward-pointing horn on the left side of his head. While in this form, the larger blade of Zangetsu turns white.

Power Augmentation: As with his Hollow mask, Ichigo's merged Hollow form drastically increases his combat capabilities and overall power.

Enhanced Speed: While in this form, Ichigo's speed is noticeably enhanced; after entering it behind the protection of Orihime's Santen Kesshun, Ichigo near-instantaneously moved in front of the barrier and a considerable distance away from Orihime, who was unable to fathom how quickly he had gotten there. Shortly afterward, when Yhwach formed his Reishi broadsword in preparation for close-range combat, Ichigo managed to restrain his sword arm while readying an attack before Yhwach could even react.
Enhanced Strength: While battling Yhwach in this form, Ichigo not only restrained Yhwach's sword arm with one hand, but destroyed a large chunk of the tower they were fighting in with the force of his subsequent slash.
Enhanced Spiritual Power: Upon exerting his Reiatsu, Ichigo leveled the entirety of Silbern at the top of Wahrwelt, leading Yhwach himself to call his power "magnificent".

Quincy Powers & Abilities-
Blut (血装 (ブルート), burūto; German for "Blood," Japanese for "Blood Guise"): A Quincy ability which gives one inhuman defensive & offensive capability.

Blut Vene (静血装 (ブルート・ヴェーネ), burūto vēne; German for "Blood Vein", Japanese for "Stilled Blood Guise"): One of two Blut abilities, Blut Vene is the defensive Blut. Ichigo's imprisonment by Quilge Opie transferred some of Quilge's Reiatsu to Ichigo, which awakened the memories within his Reiatsu left by his mother, who was a Quincy. This has given him access to the defensive Blut. He has used it to survive an attack from Yhwach's sword, which only left a small cut. This power can also be used to aid Ichigo against critical wounds that have already been inflicted, able to stop the severe loss of blood that would be caused from said wound.

# References

https://bleach.fandom.com/wiki/Ichigo\_Kurosaki

https://hero.fandom.com/wiki/Ichigo\_Kurosaki

https://vsbattles.fandom.com/wiki/Ichigo\_Kurosaki\_(Pre-Timeskip)

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8637591/1/Stitches