Once upon a time, Bleach was among what's considered the Big Three, making it one of the most popular shonen series of all time. It may not have the best story, but fans adore Bleach's power systems and action sequences, and it helps that the series features great characters. Many of Bleach's characters are Soul Reapers meant to keep the balance by purifying Hollows in the human world.
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Each Soul Reaper possesses a special katana called a zanpakuto, and each sword has the potential to have two release forms. Bankai is the second and most powerful release, and only the strongest and most skilled Soul Reapers can achieve it. Shikai serves as the primary release, and it is weaker than Bankai, but that does not mean that certain Shikai are not strong.
10 Ashisogi ji*zo Produces A Unique Form Of Paralysis
Mayuri Kurostuchi is easily one of Bleach's most iconic captains. This is because he possesses a unique and ever-changing appearance, and it helps that he is also the Gotei 13's mad scientist. His zanpakuto is called Ashisogi ji*zo, and its Shikai is a golden curved trident with a baby's face as its guard.
Poison secretes from the baby's mouth at regular intervals, but that is not what makes Ashisogi ji*zo so formidable. If someone is stabbed by this Shikai, they are left paralyzed because of its venom. The brain signals that control the neural impulses for movement are severed, but the victim's pain receptors are still active.
9 Suzumebachi Can Kill In Two Hits
Sui-Feng is the Captain of the 2nd Division and the commander of Stealth Force. She is one of the fastest characters in Bleach, and when that speed is combined with her Shikai, she becomes one of the most dangerous Soul Reapers.
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Her zanpakuto transforms into a black and gold gauntlet on her right hand, and she gains a stinger-like blade on her middle finger. If she stabs an enemy with Suzumebach's stinger, a butterfly-shaped stamp will appear on the point of impact. If she strikes the same spot a second time, venom will rapidly spread through her opponent's body, killing them.
8 Sakanade Causes Everything To Be Inverted
When Aizen was defeated, Shinji Hirako was reinstated as the Captain of the 5th Division. It was during the Aizen conflict that Shinji finally revealed his Shikai, and it allows him to manipulate his opponent's senses. In its Shikai state, Sakanade's pommel becomes a ring that allows the blade to rotate around Shinji's arm.
While rotating, Sakanade releases a pleasant-smelling pink mist, and those who smell it fall under an optical illusion that causes everything to become inverted. Up and down, and left and right get reversed. This makes battle very difficult because an opponent's perception is constantly being inverted to the point that they cannot react properly.
7 Minazuki Has Incredible Healing Capabilities
Captain Unohana was the first Kenpachi, which means that she was part of the original Gotei 13. Before becoming a Captain, she was considered the worst criminal in the history of Soul Society, which makes her Shikai an odd fit.
When released, Minazuki takes the form of a massive one-eyed manta ray-like creature. It has a large mouth which it uses to swallow allies, and it can hold up to six people in its stomach. Minazuki's stomach acids possess special medicinal properties which heal Unohana's allies.
6 Nozarashi Possesses Insane Cutting Power
When Kenpachi defeated Unohana, he was finally able to speak with his zanpakuto, which means that he could finally use Shikai. The zanpakuto is called Nozarashi, and when Shikai is activated, it takes the form of a massive blade that looks like a hybrid between a cleaver and a great axe.
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Kenpachi always had tremendous cutting power, but Nozarashi increases that cutting power exponentially. With this Shikai, Kenpachi can cut through a meteor as if it were made of butter. He can cleave through bodies effortlessly, and he can even cut through space itself.
5 Suzumushi Can Overload Someone's Hearing
Tosen may have been blind, but he was still a master swordsman with a very dangerous and effective zanpakuto. His Bankai eliminates most of his opponent's senses, but his Shikai mainly focuses on his enemy's hearing.
Suzumushi does not change in appearance, and when it is released from its scabbard, it releases a high-pitched tone over a wide area. This tone overloads the hearing of anyone in range, to the point that they are knocked unconscious. A secondary Shikai ability allows Tosen to create a trail of hundreds of blades that rain down on his opponents.
4 Hyorinmaru Can Instantly Freeze Opponents
Toshiro may be the youngest Captain, but he is also one of the strongest. The main reason for this is the Hyorinmaru, a zanpakuto of the ice-type, which is the strongest of its kind. When Shikai is released, Hyorinmaru's blade gets slightly longer, and a crescent-shaped blade attached to a metal chain appears on its pommel.
Toshiro can use some Bankai abilities with his Shikai, and the biggest difference between the releases is the amount of ice that Toshiro can control. Hyorinmaru's strongest Shikai ability involves creating an ice dragon that charges at an opponent and instantly freezes anything it hits.
3 Kyoka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis Is Very Effective
Many Bleach fans were surprised to see that Aizen was not the final villain, which is understandable since he possesses overwhelming spiritual pressure. Aizen has many powerful abilities at his disposal, but his Shikai makes him incredibly difficult to fight.
When Kyoka Suigetsu is released, it places its target under a form of complete hypnosis by taking control of all five of its senses. With this ability, Aizen can make anyone look like him, which comes in very handy during combat, Multiple people can be affected by this hypnosis at once.
2 Ryujin Jakka's Flames Can Incinerate Almost Anything
For centuries, Yamamoto was the strongest Gotei 13 Captain, which makes sense since he wielded Ryujin Jakka, the oldest and most powerful fire-type zanpakuto. Upon release, Ryujin Jakka's blade is engulfed in flames, and these flames can incinerate anything in their surroundings.
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Only the strongest opponents are capable of withstanding this Shikai's initial release. Yamamoto can use these flames to create literal firestorms and flame prisons, but its offense is truly scary. One slash was all it took to completely incinerate Driscoll Berci, a Captain-Level Sternritter.
1 Ichimonji Can Erase Other Powers
The Zero Division was introduced during the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, and Ichibe Hyosube serves as their leader. Ichibe is responsible for naming everything in Soul Society, which is why his zanpakuto takes the form of a caligraphy brush when it is released.
Ichimonji's blade releases blank ink, and this ink may be the most overpowered ability in the series. Anything this ink covers loses its name, and when this happens, an enemy loses their abilities. Ichibē can create a mausoleum that drains all the darkness from his opponent's body until there is nothing left.
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