Sōsuke Aizen

Sōsuke Aizen
The gaze into the sun.

Sōsuke Aizen (藍染 惣右介, Aizen Sōsuke) is the former captain of the 5th Division in the Gotei 13, he later leaves Soul Society with his followers, Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen. His Lieutenant was Momo Hinamori.

During his service he secretly conducted research together with his two accomplices on achieving new heights of power by combining the powers of Shinigami and Hollows. When Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends invade Seireitei to rescue Rukia Kuchiki from execution, he manages to lay hands on the Hōgyoku with an elaborate plan involving Rukia's execution and the attempts to rescue her, manipulating most of the other Captains of Soul Society according to his will. After obtaining the Hōgyoku, he declares his intentions openly.

The principal antagonist of the series, he currently resides in Hueco Mundo together with Ichimaru and Tōsen, commanding an army of Arrancar and Hollows, his ultimate goal being to overthrow Soul Society along with the Soul King and take his place as god of the world. The Arrancar, and by extension Aizen as well, is currently at war with the Shinigami.

Appearance

Prior to his departure from Soul Society he appeared as a mild-featured man with brown scholarly hair enhanced by square glasses.

However, during his ascent to Hueco Mundo, he removes his glasses and swept a hand through his hair, revealing menacing eyes and a very different hairstyle (swept back hair with a strand hanging in his face). As he had previously revealed to Renji Abarai the Aizen they all knew never existed, this would seem to be a visual representation of that claim.

Aizen is later shown in Hueco Mundo wearing clothing similar in style to the Arrancar; he is also seated on a throne, implying that he has some level of political power.

Personality
Despite his current villainous status and former position of authority, Aizen is a surprisingly polite, soft-spoken intellectual, often addressing his subordinates by their given names. He rarely shows any sign of alarm or distress and often has entire situations planned out well in advance.

Aizen initially appeared to be a very kind, well-respected Captain and was looked up to by many, especially his Lieutenant Momo Hinamori. This however was just a mask to disguise his true manipulative and very dangerous nature. In truth, he cares very little for his underlings (both past and present), and is willing to use almost everyone around him as pawns in his twisted game of "chess". In his own words, Aizen claims to be unaffected by any form of morals or ethics, which he views as a mere restriction on his potential. He is, therefore, willing to stop at nothing to further his selfish ambitions, including manipulating or killing anyone if he deems it necessary. He is fond of long, complicated, and somewhat convoluted plots, many of which do not have any real reason until he reveals them, and frequently appears to toy with his underlings for amusement.

During his time as a Captain, he was known to like tofu, while he disliked boiled eggs. In his free time, he often read and he also gave a special lecture of calligraphy at the Shinigami Academy, given that he excelled in this branch of arts. This optional course was immensely popular among the Shinigami students, and many of them felt great sorrow for Aizen's "sudden departure".[1]

As the current commander of his recently-acquired army of Arrancar, Aizen controls his new minions either through acquired respect or fear. Ulquiorra Cifer, one of his noticeably loyal subordinates, revealed in a conversation with Orihime Inoue that they are all "here to further Aizen's ambitions". For more rowdy individuals like Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, he keeps them in line through intimidation and mind games. The only one who appears to see through them is the equally-manipulative Gin Ichimaru. The Arrancar Iceringer also claims that they follow Aizen because he has no fear, something which beings born from fear and despair find inspiring. Other Arrancar occasionally follow Aizen for reasons unique to themselves, such as Szayel Aporro Granz, who follows Aizen with the hopes that he will eradicate the world of all non-Hollows.

Aizen's true objective is to overthrow the king of the Soul Society. As he and his fellow traitor Captains departed the Soul Society, he told Jūshirō Ukitake that "no one has stood on the top of the world", not even the gods, but he aspires to "stand in the heavens and end the unbearable vacancy on the world's throne". To do this, he needs the Royal Key (王鍵, ōken), a tri-pronged golden key that opens a portal to the dimension that the Soul King resides in. While the location of the key is known only to General Yamamoto, Aizen knows how the original was created and how to manufacture another. To do this, 100,000 souls need to be gathered together (which will kill all the entities used) and vaporize a significant portion of the area used in its forging. His sights are therefore set on Karakura Town, which has an unusually large concentration of spirit particles.

History
Little is known of Aizen's past, except that he spent much of his career in the 5th Division, eventually becoming its Lieutenant under the former Captain, Shinji Hirako. Shinji kept Aizen under his view during this time because he felt there was something dangerous about him. Also, during that time, Aizen met Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen, and somehow managed to lure them to his side.

100 years ago from the current time, Aizen engaged in early experiments on Shinigami/Hollow hybrids which involved using an unknown device to cause spirits to transform into Hollows. He is responsible for turning his former Captain Shinji and 7 other Shinigami into Vizards in the first place.

Aizen became Captain of the 5th Division later on, and Gin eventually became his Lieutenant and right hand man. Gin and Tōsen later became Captains of the 3rd and 9th Divisions, respectively, but remained loyal only to Aizen. According to Aizen, even when Hinamori was his Lieutenant, he thought of no one but Gin as his subordinate.

At some point, he also saw the potential of Momo Hinamori, Izuru Kira, and Renji Abarai, and took them all into his division. While Kira and Hinamori were obedient and loyal, becoming the Lieutenants of the 3rd and 5th Divisions under Gin and Aizen, respectively, Renji proved to be too rebellious and was transferred to the 11th Division (and later to the 6th, where he too became a Lieutenant).


Aizen as Shinji Hirako's Lieutenant

Powers & Abilities
Aizen is an extremely potent combatant, well above the standard of most Captain-level Shinigami. While the full extent of his power remains unclear, he implies that he has reached the limit of his potential in all four forms of Shinigami combat: swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, footwork, and Kidō. In addition, his strength and speed are phenomenal and he often makes use of his Zanpakutō's illusionary powers as diversions or distractions. He goes on to state that the only way for him to advance beyond that would be to gain and master Hollow powers.

High Intellect: Arguably the most fearsome trait of Aizen is his tremendous intellect. He is well versed in the history, strategy, tactics of Soul Society. He is privy to knowledge that was unknown to many such as knowing of the existence of the Royal Key, as well as the obscure method in which to make one. He also for over 110 years had been engaging in experiments that involved unique and highly dangerous manipulations of spiritual energy and spiritual particles- destroying the victims while leaving behind their clothes in the same manner they were worn. His most startling experiment involves the Hollowfication of Shinigami, something unseen before and as yet not known to have ever taken place again.

Master Manipulator: Throughout the series since first revealing his true self, he has shown himself to be a very crafty and cunning man. The most noticeable trait is his ability to deceive and manipulate others around them in multiple manners. For years, he effectively was able to convince everyone around him that he was a kind-hearted man with the best intentions for Soul Society while still performing horrific actions. He has a great talent for analyzing and observing everything in his presence, allowing him to quickly understand a person's pattern of thinking to better manipulate them and seemingly always be aware of any danger.

Master Strategist: He has also shown himself as a powerful strategist, capable of formulated well thought-out plans several steps ahead of others. These plans are so involved and detailed and are planned out with the long term in mind. His most well known plan spans over 110 years, a great accomplishment given that it required moving people around like pieces on a chessboard, as well as making sure they played the role he had planned out for them. He is masterful when it comes to plans within plans. His second was kidnapping Orihime allowing him to trap the Ryōka and half the Captains left after the departure of Gin, Tosen and himself, in Hueco Mundo, making it easier for him to accomplish the ends of his first plan.

Master Tactician: He has also shown himself as a powerful and flexible tactician, capable of adjusting seamlessly to any given combat situation. Though it can be said that majority of his tactics rely heavily on his Zanpakutō's special ability. As what better tactic is there than to manipulate all the senses of your opponents, making it easier for one to attack.

Kidō Master: Of particular note is his skill in Kidō and he is capable of using very high ranked spells (even Black Coffin, ranked 90 and Splitting Void, ranked 81) without incantation, and even though he did not control it entirely, utilizing only a third of the spell's original strength, it was sufficient to disable fellow Captain Sajin Komamura. He has even used Kidō of such a high level to block another Kidō attack by Tessai Tsukabishi, who was Captain of the Kidō Corps at the time and reasonably the most proficient Kidō master in Soul Society at the time, while he himself was only a Lieutenant.

Enhanced Strength: He is powerful enough to stop Ichigo’s Bankai with just one finger and then almost cut him in half with a single swing. He also stopped Renji’s Shikai with his bare hand and broke it with one swing, injuring Renji as well. He was even able to stop Komamura's blade with his bare hand, proving his strength was more than enough to combat someone of his same level.

Vast Spiritual Power: A hint to his actual level of spirit power is given when he turns Wonderweiss Margera into an Arrancar. When preparing to activate the Hōgyoku, he states that despite its half-awakened state, it can be fully activated when temporarily fusing with someone with twice as much spiritual power (referring to himself) as an average Captain-level Shinigami. The force of Aizen's spiritual power is also great enough to, without any visible effort, bring the 6th Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, to his knees. He has commented that it takes a lot for him to not crush an ant (referring to Renji) in his path.

Master Swordsmanship Specialist: By his own claim he has mastered his potential in this area though whether he means in just his potential or that of those in Soul Society as a whole is not yet known.

Flash Steps Master: By his own claim he has mastered his potential in this area though whether he means in just his potential or that of those in Soul Society as a whole is not yet known. He is perceived to be so fast that one cannot discern even being attacked by him until after it has taken place. Though its questionable if he is as fast as Yoruichi or Soifon who are both the most masterful in this form, especially seeing as they both caught him before he was able to unsheathe his sword to engage in battle before his escape from Soul Society.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: By his own claim he has mastered his potential in this area. He has demonstrated on more than one occasion the ability to effortlessly catch his opponent's flying blades with a single hand. Though its questionable if he is as good as Yoruichi or Soifon as they are both the most masterful in this form.

I LOVE THIS GUY SO STRONG I THINK HIS BANKAI IS THAT ROSE THOUSAND STUFF LOOKS HECKDIK

It this guy from bleach?

DID YOU EVEN READ IT JOI MAI

the thousand rose thing is another guy
this guys bankai is far more godly