Kisuke Urahara

Kisuke Urahara is a male anime and manga character who features in Bleach.

Biography

Origin

Kisuke Urahara in Bleach v1 #6.

Kisuke Urahara (Japanese: 浦原 喜助, Hepburn: Urahara Kisuke) was a male inhabitant of the Soul Society who grew up as a childhood friend of Yoruichi Shihōin. In his youth, he spent much of him time at the Shihōin Mansion in the Seireitei where he spent much time with both his best friends namely Yoruichi Shihōin and Tessai Tsukabishi. In his youth, he often came to spar with Yoruichi in a secret underground site under Sōgyoku Hill that they had constructed. Eventually, he came to join the ranks of the Gotei 13 at the same time as Yoruichi after joining the Onmitsukidō stealth force. Kisuke came to serve under Yoruichi and held the position of 3rd Seat within the 2nd Division where their duties saw them closely working with the Onmitsukidō. Urahara as part of his duties as one of the top five Seated Officers came to serve as the head of the Onmitsukidō's Detention Unit. Around 110 years ago, the 12th Division captain Kirio Hikifune was promoted to the Royal Guard leaving a spot vacant among the Gotei 13 with Yoruichi recommending Kisuke to be her replacement. Some in the Soul Society had doubts on whether Urahara was capable for his new responsibilities with Suì-Fēng being among their ranks. However, he took part in the captain's exam overseen by Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, Retsu Unohana and Ginrei Kuchiki where he passed the test. This saw him assume his new position as a captain in the Gotei 13 where he inherited his predecessor's lieutenant namely Hiyori Sarugaki. In this time, he came to be the founder and the first president of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute. He then went about recruiting noted prisoner Mayuri Kurotsuchi who had been captured and trapped in the Nest of Maggots with Kisuke looking to harness the man's scientific skill. Around 9 years later, Urahara was informed by Captain Shinji Hirako and his Lieutenant Sōsuke Aizen about a series of strange disappearances taking place in Rukongai. As a result, the 9th Division was dispatched with investigating the matter and uncovering the culprits.

Kisuke wanted to investigate the cause of the disappearances so he dispatched his lieutenant Hiyori Sarugaki to recover samples of the victims clothes. Soon afterwards, a report was sent to headquarters saying that the 9th Division captain, lieutenant, and vanguard were all involved in an accident and had sustained serious injuries. Fearing for Hiyuri's life, Kisuke pleaded with the captain-commander to let him go but was denied at first with Urahara deciding to go against orders. Before departing, Kisuke was confronted by Kidō Corps captain Tessai Tsukabishi who the captain-commander had sent to monitor him. Despite that, Tessai had offered his assistance and they both set out to the area. Kisuke managed to make a timely arrival at the scene just as Sōsuke Aizen was prepared to slay the people present at the scene in order to hide his involvement in the incident. Kisuke came to accuse Aizen of conducting experiments hollowification to which Aizen admitted his role in these incidents. In response, both Kisuke and Tessai launched an attack against him but failed to capture their quarry or his accomplices. Kisuke and Tessai brought the victims to Kisuke's laboratory where he unveiled the Hōgyoku which he attempted to use to cure them. However, before he could treat the victims' condition, Kisuke was arrested and convicted on charges of assault, kidnapping, and performing illegal experiments on fellow shinigami after being framed by Aizen. The Central 46 sentenced him to exile while the victims be treated as hollows and therefore executed. However, before officers could escort him away, Yoruichi rescued him and they fled. Taking the hollowified victims with them, Kisuke along with Tessai and Yoruichi escaped to the world of the living with them never returning to the Soul Society since then.

Agent of the Shinigami

After Rukia Kuchiki gives all her powers to Ichigo Kurosaki, Urahara gives her a special, untraceable Gigai of his own design, which is meant to slowly drain Rukia's Reiatsu and transform her into a Human, permanently hiding the Hōgyoku within her. Several days later, he welcomes Rukia to his store and tells her they have just received a shipment of goods from Soul Society. Rukia buys some maintenance material for her Gigai, despite Urahara's warning about its health effects. After Rukia declines the offer of an overhaul of the Gigai, Urahara asks about payment, and Rukia hands her Denreishinki to him, planning to pay with Bounty Points. Urahara finds she has received 5,000 Kan for the defeat of Shrieker. Urahara, telling her that her package has arrived, sends Ururu to fetch it, who returns and presents a Gikongan dispenser to Rukia. Urahara later discovers that Ururu brought the wrong box, which contains Kon. Stopping Jinta from punishing Ururu, he says it is his fault for not disposing of it. Ururu, blaming herself, apologizes and asks him if he is mad. Urahara, comforting her, says that they are a team and he will take care of it. The four set out to recover Kon. When they find Kon, Urahara removes the Mod-Soul from Ichigo's body, then proceeds to take back the 'faulty merchandise'. Rukia, snatching Kon back, says he is not defective and she is happy with the merchandise. Urahara stated that they will deny any involvement or affiliation if there is any trouble with Kon. He later erases the memories of Kon and the trouble he caused from the minds of the people who were confronted by him. Kisuke accompanies Tessai, Jinta, and Ururu to the abandoned hospital where Don Kanonji is filming his TV show. When Ichigo and Rukia are restrained by the security personnel, Kisuke, transforming Ichigo into his Shinigami form, tells him not to be distracted by dealing with the Earth-bound Plus. When Rukia asks what he is scheming, Urahara states he brought Ururu and Jinta to see the filming, as they love Don Kanonji's show, and that he ran over when he heard Rukia's shrieks. A security personnel asks Kisuke if he knows Rukia and Ichigo, prompting him to set off a memory erasing device in the guard's face. As they flee the scene, Rukia reprimands him for using Soul Society's tools so freely, but Kisuke states that he had no choice, as he did not want to get mixed up in her trouble. Kisuke, watching Ichigo's progress from the crowd, states it is both wonderful and terrible, just as he had thought, and ponders what should be done. When Ichigo drags Kanonji inside the hospital to draw the Hollow attacking them away from the crowd, Kisuke muses that he does fight as he had thought.

Some time later, Rukia shows up at the Urahara Shop, irate that Kisuke has not answered her calls. He apologizes, saying that they have been busy and the store has often been left empty. Rukia asks about the Quincy, which surprises him. Saying he has not heard of them for a long time, he proceeds to reveal their history to Rukia. After noticing the increasing amount of Hollows appearing in Karakura Town, Rukia rushes off, and Urahara goes in to attend to other business. When Orihime Inoue collapses after using her newly awakened Shun Shun Rikka, Urahara arrives on the scene with Tessai, who is carrying Yasutora Sado. Bringing the pair to the shop, Urahara tells them what has been happening, talks about the power that has awoken within them, and explains its connection to Ichigo. Trying to ease their fears and tension, Urahara states that they have a choice now where there was none, and it is up to them to choose to act or not. They are interrupted by Tessai, who states the Kuumon has begun its convergence, noting the preparations are complete. Urahara asks Orihime and Sado to come along, as he wishes to show them the world they are about to enter and the enemies they must fight. Upon their arrival, Urahara instructs Ichigo to focus on the Gillian-Class Menos Grande which is just about to force its way through the crack in the sky. As Rukia attempts to assist, Urahara stops her interference with a binding spell, telling her the battle will be important to both of them. After the battle, Urahara asks Tessai to repair the crack in the sky.

Soul Society

He along with the other members of his shop, giving Rukia Kuchiki some gikongan. Prior to this, Kisuke, offscreen, gives Rukia a special gigai that will slowly transform her into a human, locking the Hōgyoku inside her forever. Kisuke also plays a significant role by transforming Ichigo Kurosaki into his Soul Reaper state when Rukia is unable to, and also helps defeat several hollows and block Rukia from reaching Ichigo so Ichigo and Uryū Ishida can defeat a Menos Grande without interference. Urahara also transforms Ichigo into his Soul Reaper state when Byakuya Kuchiki and Renji Abarai appear to bring Rukia back to Soul Society, mainly so Ichigo would learn how outclassed he is, then trains Ichigo to regain his Soul Reaper powers and learn his zanpakuto's shikai afterwards. Kisuke also sends him, Uryū, Orihime Inoue, and Yasutora Sado to Soul Society along with Yoruichi Shihōin to rescue Rukia.

After Orihime was captured, Kisuke came to inform Uryū in Karakura Hospital about her kidnapping at the hands of Aizen's forces. At the time, Ishida was training in a secret location at the hospital with Urahara helping him leave along with acquiring some Seele Schneider for him. Later on, he opened a Garganta portal for Ichigo, Chad, and Uryū to enter Hueco Mundo in order to rescue Orihime. Shortly afterwards, he opened a Garganta to allow Rukia and Renji to travel to Hueco Mundo to help Ichigo. During Ichigo's absence, Urahara began to work on two projects given to him by Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai with the first being to create a portal that will allow some of Soul Society's forces to enter Hueco Mundo and the second being to prepare the remaining forces for Sōsuke Aizen's eventual invasion of Karakura Town.

Fake Karakura Town

With Aizen weakened, Kisuke's Kido spell came into effect where it began to seal him with Urahara arriving just then witness Sōsuke's defeat.

Overview

Personality and attributes

In appearance, Kisuke Urahara was a tall, lean man with light skin and gray eyes. Kisuke always wore traditional Japanese wooden sandals and a bucket hat, which had earned him the nickname Mr. Hat-and-Clogs (ゲタ帽子 geta-bōshi).

Around a century ago, he was shown to had originally been a quiet person who was easily flustered and tended to be nervous. This was to such an extent that some were surprised at his promotion to being a shinigami Captain as he showed no such traits of someone of that ranking. In that time, he was unsure of himself and lacked confidence in his ability to be a good leader. As a new Captain, he was occasionally confused on how to deal with matters in his own division. Though uncomfortable in his role, he was more at ease in his former position in the Detention Unit. Over time, he came to be harden his resolve and began to be more determined and serious.

He was generally a laid-back and jovial person although he can be absolutely serious when the situation warranted it. Despite his carefree attitude, his speech was always polite though it was sometimes sarcastic. Yoruichi Shihōin noted that he tended to go over the top with whatever he becomes passionate about and could not be dissuaded once he had his mind set on doing something. He once described himself as a being a mere honest, handsome, perverted businessman. During the Bount arc of the anime, when Ganju Shiba calls Kisuke an "old man," Kisuke replies that he is the same age as Ganju's sister, Kūkaku Shiba.

Kisuke could usually be found near the scene of an important event, most of the time when it's a bit too late, but will rarely step in to intervene, preferring to be in control from outside. After the event is over (e.g. the battle between Ichigo Kurosaki and Renji Abarai), he kindly pops up and helps the side he deems fit. Even though he is sometimes duplicitous when giving aid, his actions are always done for what he views as the greater good. He often knows more than he reveals and has had some form of relationship with most of the story's characters.

While he is a major driving force throughout much of the story, he is usually only the catalyst, getting others to do the work for him. Despite his appearance, Kisuke is an extremely skilled fighter, using a combination of powerful attacks and cunning deceptions, and has been capable of toying with Yammy, an Espada-level arrancar, with nothing more than his shikai.

As a combatant, he was shown to be a pragmatic person where he used any means necessary to secure his survival or victory in a life-and-death battle.

He also liked building large underground training spaces in secret. He built the first one under the Sōkyoku hill in Soul Society with Yoruichi for them to play in and later made it larger so they could keep up their training, and created a second one under his shop in the mortal realm for a similar purpose.

Aizen later noted that he despised Kisuke for his willingness to serve the Soul King and being content with a life of servitude.

Powers and abilities

Kisuke Urahara was a soul (魂魄, Konpaku) that were spiritual beings which came to reside in the afterlife of the Soul Society that possessed the ability to manipulate and channel spiritual pressure.

Aizen himself acknowledged that Urahara's intelligence surpassed his own immense intellect. The SRDI still held a great deal of respect for his talents even after he was exiled for a century.

As a former Captain, he possessed great amounts of spiritual energy that was intense enough to make even powerful opponents sweat with fear. Releasing his spiritual pressure could result in shockwaves strong enough to affect a considerable area and sent weaker individuals falling backwards. The 4th Espada Ulquiorra Cifer came to consider Kisuke to be highly dangerous and opted to avoid fighting him.

He came to receive considerable physical conditioning due to being a former member of the Onmitsukidō. This saw him being trained in unarmed combat by learning the art of unarmed combat namely Hakuda (白打, White Hits; Viz "Hand-to-Hand Combat") where he became proficient in it after fighting without weapons in the Nest of Maggots. As a commander of the Detention Unit, he was shown to had effortlessly stopped a punch from a giant man with a single hand.

Among the spells known to him included:

• Hadō #91. Senju Kōten Taihō (千手皎天汰炮, Thousand-Hand Incandent Heaven Culling-Sear; Viz "Thousand-Hand Bright Heaven Cannon") : an incantation spell whereby he generated ten pink energy points around themselves and fired them all at a target where their impact resulted in devastating explosions.
• Bakudō #99, Part 1. Kin (禁, Prohibition; Viz "Forbid") :
• Kyūjūrokkei Kakafūmetsu (九十六京火架封滅, Ninety-Six Capitol Fire-Suspended Seal Destruction) : a Kidō seal created by Kisuke Urahara specifically for use against Sōsuke Aizen where it activated on its when the target was weakened after which it pierced the enemy from the inside out causing several cross-shaped beams of light to emerge where they joined into a single star-shaped barrier that sealed the person inside of it.
• Keikaigi (繫界儀, World-Tying Rite) : a spell that connected the space tying the Human World and Hueco Mundo by creating portal to the Garganta. The opening was generated between two large wooden posts jutting out from two large rock formations

As a shinigami, Kisuke Urahara wielded a Zanpakutō (斬魄刀, Soul-Cutter Sword; Viz "Soul Slayer") with his taking the name of Benihime (紅姫, "crimson princess"). In its sealed form, the sword took the form of a shikomizue which was a blade hidden inside a cane. The shaft of the cane was able to separate a soul from a body. His Zanpakutō was one of the few spirit that were known to be female where it was originally sealed in an ordinary katana with a flower-shaped guard. The shikai command of Benihime is "awaken" (起きろ okiro).

In its shikai, Benihime's blade becomes wider than that of his sealed zanpakutō and the hilt curves, adding a crimson ribbon and other elaborate decorations around it. Benihime has two known special abilities, one for offense and one for defense, both of which are activated by the command "scream" (啼け nake, "sing" or "cry" in Japanese versions). Benihime's defensive ability forms a polygonal "blood mist shield" in front of Urahara. The barrier is able to block Ichigo's first use of his Getsuga Tenshō while only slightly eroding. Benihime's offensive ability fires a crimson-colored energy blast which is similar to a cero[9] as Urahara was easily able to cancel out the blast by the Espada Yammy by striking it head-on with this attack.[10] In the game Bleach: Blade Battlers, Urahara has a special skill/effect that when used, causes Benihime's bloodmist shield becomes an opaque golden pyramid that completely engulfs Urahara and even reflects projectiles. Benihime's energy blasts also become larger and more destructive. In Bleach: Dark Souls, Urahara's shield also possesses the ability to shatter on contact, trapping the opponent in the flying shards.

According to Yoruichi, Urahara had managed to learn bankai in three days using a special training method he invented. When Yasutora Sado comes to Urahara for training, he instead had given the task to Renji Abarai, remarking that Sado needs to face the strength of a bankai to improve. When Renji asks why Urahara, who also possesses one, does not train Sado himself, he states that his bankai is not fit for training others or lending power to them.

Having founded the research institute in Soul Society, Kisuke had developed a number of unique items. Among his notable creations inludd:

• Gikongan (義魂丸) : More commonly known as Soul Candy, this item is an artificial soul in the form of a green ball of candy. When ingested, it forces the user's soul out of their body. The artificial soul then operates in a preprogrammed manner while inhabiting a body. Its name was changed to "Soul Candy" after its creation because the Soul Reaper Women Organization complained that the name gikongan wasn't cute enough.
• Tenshintai (転神体, literally "transferred god body," translated in the English manga as "divine transfer body") : This item is a vaguely human-shaped, man-sized doll used to forcibly materialize the spirit of a zanpakutō into the real world when stabbed by the zanpakutō. In doing so, the user can subjugate the spirit and attain the bankai of their zanpakutō. The materialization lasts for about one day, after which the spirit reverts back into the doll that spawned it. Without this invention, achieving the bankai takes at least ten years, not to mention the many years of combat experience needed. This method, however, is very dangerous due to the fact that it forcibly materializes the zanpakutō's spirit. If used more than three times consecutively, it is possibly fatal to the user.
• Hōgyoku (崩玉, "breakdown sphere") : This item is a small orb that dissolves the boundary between a Soul Reaper and a hollow. It can allow a Soul Reaper to use hollow powers and vice-versa. It was created to strengthen souls, as hollowification is one method of accomplishing this. He uses it to stabilize the vizard affected by Sōsuke Aizen's own hollowification experiment. As Aizen reveals to Orihime Inoue, continued use of the orb while it is in a dormant state seems to weaken it [7]
• Gigai (faux bodies) : Having experimented with gigai at length, Kisuke has created at least two variations. The most notable one is an untraceable gigai which drains the user's spiritual power instead of restoring it, effectively making them human if used long enough. He also developed an inflatable gigai for use as a decoy in combat.

In addition, Kisuke has also developed several novel techniques throughout the course of his research as the captain of the 12th Division, most notably the technique to bury matter within a soul and later remove it without any damage to the bearer. This was used by Aizen to remove the Hōgyoku from Rukia.

Within the Soul Society, he originally came to serve in the ranks of the Onmitsukidō (隠密機動, Secret Tactics; Viz "Stealth Force") and thus had ties to the Second Division (二番隊, nibantai; "Squad 2" in the English Dub). Eventually, he joined the ranks of the Gotei 13 (護廷十三隊, Goteijūsantai; lit. "13 Division Imperial Guards"; Viz "Thirteen Court Guard Companies") and was appointed to the rank of captain of the Twelfth Division (十二番隊, jūnibantai; "Squad 12" in the English Dub). During that time, he came to be the founder and first head of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute (技術開発局, Gijutsukaihatsu Kyoku; lit. "Technological Development Department"). After being framed by Aizen, he came to lose his former status and exiled as a result.

During his exile, he came to operate a shop called Urahara Shōten (浦原商店, Urahara Shop) that served as his home in the world of the living.

Notes

• Kisuke Urahara was created by Tite Kubo where he featured in the setting of the Bleach universe.

In other media

Television

• In Bleach, Kisuke Urahara appeared in the setting of the anime television series adaptation where he was voiced by Japanese actor Shinichiro Miki and by English actor Michael Lindsay in the English dub until role was recast to Doug Erholtz. Once they return from the Soul Society, Kisuke plays a more active role in the series. In the anime, he sends three modified souls to train the four and Renji Abarai by pretending to be enemies battling them, and also reveals to the group the existence of the Bount, who plan on invading Soul Society. Kisuke also helps the group sneak into the Bount mansion, though he prefers to stay out of the battles. When the arrancar begin to terrorize Karakura Town, Kisuke and Yoruichi fight Yammy on two occasions, and he also lets Chad and Renji train in his shop. He also attempts to hide Orihime from Aizen's view so he won't attempt to kidnap her, though this fails. Urahara, noticing a shortage of a particular type of spirit particle, begins to think it has something to do with the Kasumiōji Clan. Some time later, Urahara presides over a Kemari tournament between Rurichiyo Kasumiōji, Ryūsei Kenzaki, Rusaburō Enkōgawa, Ichigo, and his friends, providing sponsorship and commentary. An injured Rukia is taken to the Urahara Shop, where Urahara explains that he has asked Yoruichi to look into what is happening in Soul Society. After Rukia regains consciousness, Urahara asks her to explain what happened. He, explaining the true nature of Zanpakutō, affirms Benihime too has a true form with which Urahara can communicate to gain more power. After hearing what Yoruichi has discovered in Seireitei, Urahara asks Ichigo if he noticed anything different about Zangetsu. When Ichigo responds in the negative, Urahara states he has had no issues with Benihime, but that he has been getting reports from Soul Society about Shinigami having issues communicating with their Zanpakutō. After Rukia returns to Seireitei, Ichigo asks Urahara to send him to Soul Society as well. Urahara agrees and opens a Senkaimon for Ichigo, sending him back with Yoruichi. Urahara is visited by Ichigo and Tōshirō Hitsugaya, who explain to him that the Tōjū are now in the Human World and that they must be stopped. During their conversation, Rangiku Matsumoto and her Zanpakutō Spirit, Haineko, enter the shop as well. They show everyone flirty pictures of them in phone booths, which Urahara enjoys. Rukia tells Urahara she has received orders to appear before the SRDI with Ichigo, but was unable to communicate with Soul Society to confirm the order. He asks about the status of the girl whom Kon found, and Ichigo tells him she is still asleep, and that he is contemplating going to Soul Society. Kisuke informs them Yoruichi went there three days ago and has not been heard from since, despite her intent to return immediately. He advises Ichigo against traveling, due to his condition, and reminds him to avoid overexerting himself, as it will quicken the loss of his powers. As they enter a Senkaimon, he tells them to be careful.[9] Urahara later joins everyone for a barbecue at his store.

Films

• In Bleach, Kisuke Urahara appeared in the setting of the live-action film adaptation where he was portrayed by actor Seiichi Tanabe.

Appearances

• Bleach:

External Links

• Bleach Wiki Entry
• Comicvine Entry

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