Soul Society (Bleach)

The Soul Society is a place that features in Bleach.

History

Soul Society (尸魂界 (ソウル・ソサエティ), Souru Sosaeti; Japanese for "Dead Spirit World") was an afterlife that existed in the universe that consisted of Shinigami.

Sosuke Aizen came to learn that Hōgyoku was placed within the soul of Rukia Kuchki who was now trapped within the human world. To secure her capture, he killed everyone at Central 46 and used his powers to create an illusion of them still be alive. This allowed him to orchestrate fake orders that called for Rukia's arrest and her to be executed for her crimes in breaking the laws of Soul Society. In reality, this was because Sosuke wanted the Hōgyoku to be freed from her soul through the execution and arranged for events to ensure this outcome. This included secretly placing orders to station guards at locations to prevent Rukia's human friends from rescuing her. In addition, to accomplish his plans he arranged it so that it appeared he was assassinated when in reality Aizen was hiding within Central 48 to maintain his illusion.

The execution was interrupted by the arrival of Ichigo Kurosaki where he managed to stop the firebird and freed Rukia. This event was further disrupted when more Captains started acting in opposition to the execution with these now including Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku.

Seemingly captured, it was then that a tear occurred in the sky of Soul Society where Menos Grande arrived to take Aizen along with his followers to their realm. The shinigami were unable to stop him as he took his prize with him to the realm of the Hollows.

After the emergence of the Arrancar, the Soul Society decided to send operatives to investigate the creatures influence on the Human World with Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya dispatched with a team to investigate the matter.

The investigation into Aizen's activities led to the discovery that Sōsuke was looking to create an Ōken in order to gain entry to the Soul King's Palace and to kill the ruler of the Soul Society. During an attack on the human world by the Espada, the human Orihime Inoe was sent back to her realm but during the journey she was attacked by the Arrancar Ulquiorra Cifer. He badly wounded her shinigami guards to force her to travel to Hueco Mundo with him where they threatened to kill all her friends unless she joined Aizen. To save her loved ones, she agreed leading to the Soul Society to believe that she had joined the enemy and Captain-Commander Yamamoto declaring her a traitor and an enemy. He then recalled all forces in the world of the living who were ordered to return to the Soul Society to defend it against possible attack from Aizen's forces. This was because the Captain-Commander determined that Aizen's true goals was to acquire an Ōken and to assault the domain of the Soul King. Crafting the key required the sacrificing of an entire area rich in spirit energy with it being determined that Aizen intended to target Karakura Town. To stop him, the Gotei 13 made preparations to counter him with this involving working with Kisuke Urahara who firstly helped stabilise a portal into Hueco Mundo for a counterattack and secondly helped move Karakura Town into the Soul Society. All its inhabitants were placed in a slumber whilst a fake empty version of Karakura Town was maintained in the world of the living to trick the Arrancar. Meanwhile, several shinigami captains were sent into Hueco Mundo to rescue Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends who were in the process of rescuing their comrade Orihime Inoue. These three captains became stranded in Heuco Mundo as Aizen activated his trap just as sent his Espada to the mortal world to sacrifice Karakura Town. They arrived in the fake town only to be confronted by the remaining Gotei 13 in order to prevent any invasion of the Soul Society.

To prevent Aizen's intervention, Captain-Commander Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto used his zanpakto to separate the traitorous shinigami from their Espada forces. It was then that both sides battled one another in the fake town with the Gotei 13 looking to protect the pillars that maintained the real Karakura Town within the Soul Society. Many of the Arrancar were defeated but this came at great cost to the shinigami forces. The arrival of the Visored helped turn the tide but by this point Aizen and his lieutenants were able to directly take part in the battle. By this point, Ichigo had managed to return to the world of the living to help fight off the attackers. Yamamoto joins in the battle and allows himself to get stabbed by Aizen so he can trap him and reveal his Ennetsu Jigoku technique that he was preparing while Aizen battled his subordinates. However, Wonderweiss, now in his Resurrección, appears behind Yamamoto and gets rid of the technique. Aizen reveals that his Resurrección is called Extinguir and that his sole purpose is to get rid of the flames of Ryūjin Jakka. Yamamoto resorts to using his bare hands and decides to show Aizen why he's the Captain Commander of the Gotei 13. He battles with Wonderweiss and is able to smash him into pieces with Sōkotsu. However, because of the flames already sealed inside of Wonderweiss, he blows up and Yamamoto is forced to take the full force of the explosion to protect everyone. Aizen goes up to Yamamoto, believing him to be defeated, but Yamamoto is able to use the Kidō spell Ittō Kasō against him. Aizen gets out of the attack with slight burns, but is immediately confronted by Ichigo with his Hollow mask on. Ichigo attacks him with a Getsuga Tenshō and is able to hurt him, but Aizen regenerates himself and reveals that he implanted the Hōgyoku in his body. Aizen then decides to tell Ichigo everything he knows about him and reveals that he has known him since the day he was born, and that all of his battles have gone the way he desired. Just as Aizen is about to tell him who he is, Isshin Kurosaki appears in between his son and Aizen, exclaiming that he has said too much. After Ichigo gets used to the fact that his father is a Shinigami, he goes and fights Gin while Isshin fights with Aizen. After Gin and Ichigo talk about when they first fought, Gin activates his Bankai, Kamishini no Yari, and uses its long length and destructive force to destroy the surrounding buildings. However, Ichigo is able to block the Bankai and counterattack against Gin. This forces Gin to decide on fighting normally and the two battle each other. Ichigo is still able to overcome Gin's Bankai, and reveals that he knows that its true power is really in the immense speed of its contractions. Isshin is able to slow Aizen down, but his opponent reveals that he was only able to overcome his Shinigami form.

Overview

Locations

In appearance, the Soul Society was an other-dimensional realm that was a spiritual afterlife that some claimed to be paradise.

Places within Souls Society included:

• Seireitei (瀞霊廷, Court of Pure Souls) : Protecting the gates into the Seireitei were the Four Great Seireimon Gatekeepers (四大瀞霊門門番, Shidai Seireimon Monban) who served as guardians.
• Rukongai (流魂街, Wandering Soul City) :
• Daireisho Archive : also known as the Great Spirit Record or the Great Spirit Book Gallery that contained records on all events and information taken place throughout the Soul Society. It was located in the lower levels of Central 46 with access being highly restricted with only a few captains able to enter into it.
• Nest of Maggots (蛆虫の巣, Ujimushi no Su) :
• Sōkyoku Hill (双殛の丘, Sōkyoku no oka) :
• Soul King Palace (霊王宮, Reiōkyū) : located in a separate dimension that was kept suspended above the Soul Society that served as the official residence of the Soul King and its Royal Guard.

The dimension was rich in Sekkiseki (殺気石, Spirit Reducing Stone; Viz "Lethal Presence Rock") that was a mineral capable of repelling all Reiryoku spiritual power.

Entry and exit from the Soul Society was achieved through the Senkaimon (穿界門, World Penetration Gate; Viz "Tunnel World Gate") that was a doorway between dimensions.

Society

The leaders of the Soul Society.

A key component that formed spiritual bodies of Shinigami was Reishi (霊子, Spirit Particles). Trained Shinigami abilities was linked to the spiritual sensitivity and willpower with this being called Reiryoku (霊力, Spiritual Power).

Within Soul Society were the Four Noble Families (四大貴族, Yondai Kizoku; lit. "Four Great Noble Families") that carried influence over government and other institutions. The military were said to hold no authority to act against the noble family without any evidence that their actions were treasonous to Soul Society. Both the Shihōin Clan and the Kuchiki Clan were noted to be among their ranks. It was said that common shinigami had rarely encountered members of the royal families. A lower ranking noble family were the Kasumiōji Clan (霞大路家, kasumiōji ka; lit. "Misty Great Road Clan") who had a secret talent for crafting powerful swords that allowed them a degree of acting with impunity in the Soul Society. Thus, they segregated themselves and did not get involved in the affairs of the Soul Society with them not being among the ranks of Central 46.

Key individuals of Soul Society were the Shinigami (死神, death god(s); Viz "Soul Reaper(s)") who served as guardians of the souls that were going through the circle of transmigration. To them were known a number of combat techniques that included; Zanjutsu (斬術, Swordsmanship; Viz "Art of the Sword"), Hohō (歩法, Step Method; Viz "Fast Movement"), Hakuda (白打, White Hits; Viz "Hand-to-Hand Combat") and Kidō (鬼道, Demon/Spirit Way; Viz "Demon Arts").

Certain individuals could be classified as a Substitute Shinigami (死神代行, Shinigami Daikō) with these people people that gained the power of a shinigami's power from another or went through a process to transform themselves in one of their kind.

A judiciary body known as Central 46 (中央四十六, Chūō Shijūroku) served the Shinigami royalty that was made of 40 wise men and 6 judges which were selected from all of Soul Society. An institution operated by the Society was the Shinōreijutsuin (真央霊術院, Spiritual Arts Academy) that was an academy which trained Souls with spiritual powers for each of the three military arms of the Soul Society.

It enforced the rules of the Soul Society which were:

• The ultimate law was to maintain balance.
• It was against the law for a Shinigami to give their spiritual power to Humans.
• It was against the law for a Shinigami to use forbidden Kidō.
• It was against the law for any citizen of Soul Society to create weapons of a dangerous nature not sanctioned by the feudal government with any such act being considered treason.

Another of the three branches of Soul Society was the Onmitsukidō (隠密機動, Secret Tactics; Viz "Stealth Force") who were a covert ops organization. It consisted of several divisions that included the Executive Militia (刑軍, keigun; lit. "Punishment Force"), the Patrol Corps (警邏隊, keiratai; lit. "Security Force"; Viz "Expedition Unit"), the Detention Unit (檻理隊, kanritai; lit. "Management Force"; Viz "Confinement Unit") and the Inner Court Troop (裏廷隊, riteitai).

A separate branch of the military were the members of the Kidō Corps (鬼道衆, Kidōshū; Viz "Kidō Troops") who consisted of skilled practitioners of the art of Kidō.

One of the most elite divisions included the Gotei 13 (護廷十三隊, goteijūsantai; 13 Division Imperial Guards) that consisted mostly of Shinigami warriors. The true power of Soul Society laid with the captains of the Gotei 13 who served as leaders of the military. At full strength, Soul Society was said to be safe and almost unbeatable whilst they were vulnerable if the Gotei 13 were either broken or if their strength dwindled.

It was noted that there were three different ways for a person to become a captain of the Gotei 13. The first was them passing the Captain Proficiency Test (隊首, taishu) that included a demonstration of the persons Bankai with the test overseen by three existing captains including the Captain-Commander. It was said that this was the most common means for one to become a captain in the Gotei 13. The second was through a personal recommendation from at least six captains with this requiring the approval from at last three of the remaining seven. The third involved a trial by combat where a contender battled one of the captains in a one-to-one fight with this being witnessed by 200 members of the captain's division. It was said that this was a very rare means for one to become a captain in the Gotei 13.

A position beneath the captain was that of the Lieutenant (副隊長, fukutaichō; Viz "Assistant Captain"; vice-unit commander, often translated as vice-captain) who was the 2nd seated officer in the division. They served as executive officers that took care of their division and supervised its day-to-day operations.

Above the Gotei 13 were the Royal Guard (王属特務, Ōzokutokumu; translated as "Royal Special Task Force" in the English dub, literally translated as "King Subordinate Secret Service") who served as the personal protectors of the Soul King. They were regarded as a secret organisation whose existence was not commonly known.

Information was given to the Soul Society's inhabitants through a magazine called Seireitei Communication (瀞霊廷通信, Seireitei Tsūshin; lit. "Court of Pure Souls Correspondence").

Soul Society was noted to be capable of tracking all shinigami and Gigai including those within the human world.

Technology

Despite their seemingly feudal outlook, Soul Society had developed highly advanced technology and were able to mix it with organic components. This saw them create creatures able to do tasks from detecting spiritual energy signatures to allowing humans to see a spirit without the use of Gigai. Information was held in touch-screens and databases with files as well as historical documents being stored within the Daireishokairo (大霊書回廊, Great Spirit Book Gallery) that contained all the knowledge and history of Soul Society.

Communication was achieved through the use of Jigokuchō (地獄蝶, Hell Butterfly) that resembled black butterflies and were used to send messages. In addition to their role as messengers, they were also used as a way for Shinigami to reach the world of the living. Though when on assignment in the Human World, Shinigami were provided a Denreishinki (伝令神機, Divine Messenger Machine; Viz "Soul Pager") that were inter-dimensional electronic communication devices. Another information tool was the Zajiku (座軸, Set Axis; Viz "Target Axis") that was a scroll-like object which listed a Shinigami's targets and instructions for their mission.

To interact with the human world, the shinigami of Soul Society were known to use Gigai (義骸, Faux Body) that were an artificial body for their soul to inhabit.

Shinigami scientists came to develop Gikon (義魂, Artificial Souls; Viz "Substitute Souls") that were souls designed to separate from a Soul Reaper from their Gigai when they were inhabiting one or used to evict stubborn spirits from their corpses. This involved the injection of foreign Reiatsu into the body and the individual turning that power into their own. Upon ingesting the pill, the soul inside was forced out of the body and allowed the artificial soul to take control of it in a pre-programmed manner until it was removed by the Shinigami. Gikon could be used in a body with no soul such as a corpse or inanimate object or even a stuffed animal. The artificial souls were noted to possess their own personalities that could be designed to fit the users specifications.

An outgrowth of artificial soul development was the creation of Modified Souls (改造魂魄, Kaizō Konpaku) that was made from research made by Project Spearhead (尖兵計画 (スピアヘッド), Supeaheddo; Japanese for "Vanguard Plan"). This was part of an attempt of evening the gap between Shinigami and a Hollow who generally outnumbered the inhabitants of Soul Society. To achieve this, scientists looked to create artificial souls able to enhance regular human physiology thus allowing them to battle Hollows more equally. Mod-Souls varied in their abilities and could be defined by their different types with some being faster than humans whilst others were stronger. Research into this work was later halted due to ethical concerns over the use of Mod-Souls.

Within Soul Society, Shinigami scientists developed the Reigai (霊骸, Spirit Body) that were artificial and spiritual bodies which could house an artificial soul to maintain their physical form within Soul Society.

In the human world, special measures were made to protect mortal existence from the release of great spiritual pressure. Thus, Shinigami Captains and Lieutenants were required to have a spiritual limiter placed on them that reduced their power by as much as 80%. Once engaged, they were allowed to enter the Human World and engage in various activities though this made them vulnerable against powerful opponents unless the seal was removed. The seal itself was called the Gentei Reīn (限定霊印, Soul-Limiting Symbol; Viz "Spirit Restriction Seal") that was a symbol unique to the Shinigami's Division and prevented them from dealing a high degree of damage. In extreme cases, the seal could be released but a request had to be made to the Soul Society where once it was provided then the command for the spiritual limiter release was the words Gentei Kaijo (限定解除, Limiter Release; Viz "Restriction Removal").

In Soul Society, the scientists of the Seireitei maintained the Jōkaishō (浄界章, Emblem of Buddhakṣetra) that was a massive and powerful device that controlled the generation of Reishi where it served as a reactor that powered their experiments.

A special tool of the Soul Society was the Ōken (王鍵, King's Key) that was a special key that allowed access to the dimension where resided the Soul King's Palace. It was forged from the use of 100,000 souls and a Jūreichi (重霊地, Important Spirit Ground; Viz "Concentrated Spirit Zone") with a radius of half a spirit-mile that consumed everyone within it. The key was then bonded to the bones of the Royal Guard where it was modified by the power of the Soul King. Within the Soul Society, the only person who knew the details of the Ōken was the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13 who passes it down orally.

Another weapon created within that realm was the Bakkōtō (獏爻刀, Baku-Crossing Sword/Fused Tapir Sword) that were made by the Kasumiōji clan. These swords were created in secret through forbidden techniques and were very different from the Zanpakutō used by the Shinigami. The Bakkōtō was more parasitic in nature where they used the spirit energy of the wearer to grow more powerful unlike the Zanpakutō which had a more symbiotic relationship with their wielder.

The Gotei 13 were known to use the Sōkyoku (双殛, Twinned Punishment; Viz "Execution Instruments") as a tool for execution with this being a large halberd used to kill those Shinigami that had severely broken the law.

Inhabitants

• Soul King :
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto :
• Shunsui Kyōraku :
• Suì-Fēng :
• Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi :
• Isane Kotetsu :
• Shinji Hirako :
• Byakuya Kuchiki :
• Tetsuzaemon Iba :
• Lisa Yadōmaru :
• Kensei Muguruma :
• Tōshirō Hitsugaya :
• Kenpachi Zaraki :
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi :
• Rukia Kuchiki :
• Rurichiyo Kasumiōji :
• Gyōkaku Kumoi :

Notes

• Soul Society was created by Tite Kubo and featured in the setting of the Bleach universe.

In other media

Television

• In Bleach, the Soul Society appeared in the setting of the anime television series.

Films

• In Bleach: The Diamond Dust Rebellion, the Soul Society appeared in the setting of the non-canon anime film. A relic belonging to the Soul Society's Royal Family was the Ōin (王印, King's Seal) that provided the user complete dimensional control allowing them to control space, time, energy and matter.
• In Bleach, the Soul Society made a brief appearance in the setting of the 2018 live-action film.

Appearances

• Bleach:

External Link

• Bleach Wiki Entry
• Comicvine Entry

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