Unagiya Ikumi, the woman you are. truly my favourite adult in Bleach. and by adult I mean a character that’s kind of like Ichigo’s parental figure (e.g. Isshin, Kisuke, Yoruichi). for those who don’t remember: Unagiya is Ichigo’s boss.
she’s the only adult that reads like this normal, responsible grownup. perhaps it is because she’s a civilian with no knowledge of the spirits, Soul Society and so on. between her and Isshin I’d say she’s much more of a parent to Ichigo than he ever was. which fucking sucks, because she’s his BOSS, they are related through work only, yet she’s so caring and gentle with Ichigo. she is likely the only adult, or the only person period, that sees Ichigo for what he is: a kid. Unagiya is the one to tell him that “Kids like you... are meant to be able to rely on us adults!”, “You can come 'cause you're lonely... 'Cause you're having a hard time... Or even just 'cause you happened to be in the area... Helping out kids like you is what us grown-ups are here for!”.
Unagiya sees him struggling and she cares, she wants to help, demands that Ichigo let her help. she’s the one he goes to after being kicked out of Squad 0 training. I truly think she would be the only adult that Ichigo would see as an authority figure. and, ironically, he’d feel safest with her. more than that, he’d feel protected, which is a whole different, and harder thing to achieve. a woman with no greater powers than the strength her body has, makes him feel protected, while characters with immense power and skill, fail to do so.
so yes, she is very dear to me, and I would love to see them together more.
also, the fact that Ichigo feels safe and protected with her becomes an even greater surprise, considering I see him as being a paranoid person, especially after the Tsukishima debacle.
another character I think Ichigo would feel safe with is Grimmjow (doesn’t matter if we interpret this as platonic or romantic). of course that only happens post-canon after they become friends. which is also really fun and ironic, because while Unagiya is just a random civilian who’s only ever wanted the best for Ichigo, Grimmjow is a whole ass reformed villain, who actively hunted and tried to kill him. but yes, that’s the one.
he just knows that Grimmjow, despite seeming like an irrational, aggressive killing machine, is not only highly intelligent, but also honest and honourable, in a way. also possessive and prideful. meaning he won’t attack an unsuspecting or sleeping Ichigo. pride comes into play when others fight Ichigo, because “that’s my prey, get yourself your own”.
