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The recent episodes ofBleach: Thousand-Year Blood Warsaw some of the greatest revelations of Bankai from some of the strongest Soul Reapers in the story, and there is more where it came from. The narrative still has a few characters left who are yet to disclose their Bankai, and sooner or later, fans will get to witness them.
Almost every Soul Reaper has revealed or will reveal their Bankai, except Sosuke Aizen. Aizen is the only Soul Reaper whose Bankai fans will never get to witness because Tite Kubo didn’t write it in a story. His Bankai was one of the most anticipated moments inBleach’shistory, and sadly it will never be revealed.
However, Aizen is not the only Soul Reaper whose Bankai was never revealed in theBleachnarrative. Kaien Shiba, the former lieutenant of the 13th Division under Jushiro Ukitake, was also one of the very few Soul Reapers who had the potential of unlocking their Bankai but never did so, making it another disappointing aspect of theBleachnarrative.
Kaien Shiba Was One Of The CoolestBleachCharacters
Bleachhas had a lot of cool characters, but very few of them have been as cool as Kaien Shiba. He was a member of the Shiba Clan, which is one of the Great Noble houses and is actually the brother of Kukkaku and Ganju. Kaien was a prodigy who was compared with the likes of Gin Ichimaru as he completed the six-year curriculum of the Shino Academy in only two years.
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He was approached by Ukitake himself, who wanted him to become his lieutenant, as he was also a member of the 13th Division. However, he rejected the proposal because he knew the limits of his strengths and wanted to work on them. And after working on himself for five years, he finally agreed to Ukitake’s proposal and took the role of lieutenant.
One of the main reasons why Kaien was believed to be a cool character was the fact that he had the potential to become the Ichigo Kurosaki ofBleach. He was quite strong and reluctant in his methods as he trained Kuchiki Rukia when she first joined the division. Sadly, his story was limited as he was killed by a Hollow that was employed by Aizen.
Kaien Shiba’s Bankai Was Never Revealed
Despite being a prodigy and a strong Soul Reaper, Kaien Shiba never got a chance to reveal his Bankai toBleachfans. As his narrative was limited,Tite Kubodecided not to give him a Bankai, which was potentially one of his biggest mistakes considering the popularity that Kaien earned even though he was a supporting character in the story.
As fans know, Bankai is the strongest form of any Soul Reaper’s Zanpakuto. It enhances their spiritual pressure and power to the next level and provides them additional strength to fight against their opponents. This is why whenever a Bankai is revealed withinBleach, it becomes an enticing moment within the storyline.
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Kaien Shiba already had a Shikai that allowed him to manipulate water and change it into waves that could easily defeat his opponents.
Thus, if he had been given a Bankai ability, it would have surely made it into one of the coolest moments in the history ofBleach. However, just like Aizen, he was also robbed of his best moment.
Bleachis available to watch on Hulu.
Tarun Kohli
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2958
Tarun Kohli is the Senior Anime Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,900 published articles. He currently specializes in critiquing One Piece and other Shonen anime. A passionate fan of the genre, his love for thoughtful analysis reflects his genuine appreciation for the art of anime. His deep understanding of anime culture has earned recognition from industry figures such as Adi Shankar and the creators of Blood of Zeus.
