a fan theory i really want to share (SPOILER ALERT)
first of all i post my theory in reddit but i had some problems (the moderators removed it 🤨 ) so i will post it here
Theory: Does the way Shinigami died when they were humans affect the combat abilities of their Zanpakuto?
I started wondering about the abilities that manifest in a Zanpakuto after watching the entire Bleach anime, especially in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, in the episode where Ichigo went to Squad Zero and it was explained how Zanpakuto are formed. Also, after watching the first movie, when Ichigo asked Urahara if Shinigami could remember their past lives.
At first, I wondered about how Shinigami might have lived as humans. Then somehow the question came: what if the way humans die affects the soul of the Zanpakuto when they become Shinigami? Since their mission is to kill Hollows to maintain balance between worlds — basically to make souls "die."
As we know, humans die and their souls go to the Soul Society. Those with high spiritual power become Shinigami and forget their human memories, but they might remember their names if they were orphans or if they weren't reborn into new families that could name them — like Captain Byakuya and Ukitake, who were born into families.
Someone who died from freezing has an ice Zanpakuto.
Someone who died from burning has a fire Zanpakuto.
Someone who died from poisoning has a Zanpakuto that releases poison.
Explanation of what I mean
When I think about it, there seem to be many Zanpakuto with ice or fire abilities. That could be because Japan has cold areas, like Hokkaido, and also has forests where fires are common (wood burns easily), as well as active volcanoes. So the possibility of someone freezing to death or burning to death was very real and common.
Detailed explanation of my theory
Examples of unnatural deaths:
Kuchiki Rukia: the first Shinigami character we met. Her Zanpakuto has ice abilities that can freeze her opponent, and when she uses her Bankai, she herself freezes too. What if she and her sister Hisana, when they were humans, lived in a very cold place during winter, like Hokkaido, and during a snowstorm, they had no shelter because they were too poor — so they froze to death, and that became the power of her Zanpakuto?
Captain Yamamoto: with a fire Zanpakuto. I thought maybe he didn't die in an accident as a human — maybe he died by choice. For example, he was a warrior fighting in battle, and he acted as bait for the enemy. The enemy shot a flaming arrow at him, and he burned to death for the sake of his allies. I thought this because of his ability to resurrect the skeletons of those he burned and make them fight for him — as bait for his enemies.
Examples of other unnatural deaths:
Hisagi Shuhei: maybe in his past life he was an executioner. As we know, executioners don't usually feel guilt when executing others, and they also cover their faces. What if at some point Hisagi had to execute an innocent person, because he was ordered to do so, and he felt overwhelming guilt because he knew the person was innocent? And during the execution, someone who knew the innocent victim saw Hisagi's face (maybe because of "the wind") and killed him in revenge with something similar to the blades of Kazeshini in its Shikai form? That would explain why Hisagi hates his own Zanpakutõ's power, while Kazeshini itself thirsts for blood.
Other examples of unnatural deaths:
Matsumoto Rangiku: she has Haineko, a "dust cat." Maybe in her human life she lived with a family that neglected her, forcing her to live (or even be locked) in a dusty place, with a cat that scratched her. The wounds got infected, leading to complications, and she died because of it.
Shutara Senjumaru (Squad Zero member): her
Zanpakuto has sewing and weaving powers.
Maybe in her past life she was a princess or from a wealthy family that loved expensive fabrics and luxury clothing, while poor people around her were in need of clothes. She ignored them, living in a "Marie Antoinette-like" situation, until a rebellion rose against her and she was killed.
Clarification of some cases
For characters who were reborn into families in the Soul Society, maybe they died naturally, or they died before being born.
Examples of natural deaths:
Kuchiki Byakuya: his Zanpakuto manifests as a samurai warrior using sakura petals to kill opponents. But in real life, sakura petals aren't deadly. Since Byakuya was born into the Kuchiki family, maybe in his human life he was a samurai who loved cherry blossoms.
He reached old age and died naturally, maybe even among sakura trees.
Kyoraku Shunsui: also born into a family in Soul Society. Maybe he died naturally but lived his life indulging in pleasures, like going to geisha houses and playing games with them. That became his Zanpakutõ's ability — a woman and a girl who play children's games in deadly ways.
Unohana: I remember reading that her father gave her the name Retsu, which means she was born into a family in the Soul Society.
That suggests she died naturally. But her Zanpakuto is deadly. What if, in her human life, she was a killer who dissolved her victims in acid (like what happened to Zaraki when he fought her in the final arc), hiding their bodies so no one discovered her crimes, and she was never executed?
Shiba Kaien: born into the Shiba family. Maybe he was a sailor or whaler in his human life and died naturally. His Shikai looks like a spear as i remember , which matches.
Kira Izuru: I remember his Zanpakuto represents guilt and shame. We saw its manifestation appear like a criminal who feels so ashamed he cannot lift his head from the weight of guilt. What if, in his past life as a human, Kira committed a serious crime that made him feel guilt and regret - But no one found out and he died carrying his guilt with him to the grave.
Explanation of other cases where souls are reborn in Soul Society
This could happen before or after birth — especially during the pre-awareness stage of children, before they understand the importance of protecting their souls.
Ukitake Jushiro: born into a poor family in Soul Society, his Zanpakuto manifests as twins.
Maybe in his human life he was a fetus with a twin brother, but his twin consumed him (scientifically called "vanishing twin syndrome" — this even happened to a friend of mine, her mother told her she consumed her twin in the womb). So he died and was reborn into that family with twin-like Zanpakuto powers.
Sui-Feng: born into a family serving the Shihoin. Her Zanpakuto resembles a bee/ wasp with venom. What if, as a human child, she was stung by a wasp and died before reaching the age when she could protect herself? If she had still been in her mother's womb, her mother could have protected herself — so she wouldn't have died.
• Ise Nanao: when I remembered she never got her own Zanpakuto, I thought maybe in her past life she committed suicide. That became a punishment, since she didn't value her soul (and all religions agree on the importance of protecting the soul and rejecting suicide). As for her family curse — that they only give birth to girls and their husbands die — what if, in their past lives, these women were betrayed by their husbands and committed suicide out of grief? That became a curse, to prevent such pain again - their souls carried that trauma, making husbands die or preventing them from having sons (fearing that men would later betray their wives).
Special example: my favorite character (with another theory attached)
• Sasakibe Chojiro: we all know his Zanpakuto controls weather and summons lightning. Death by lightning is possible but rare, which makes his Zanpakuto unique and maybe rare as well. In the Zanpakuto Rebellion arc, his Zanpakuto spirit appears like something drawn from Japanese mythology: his outfit, the shadow over his eyes, carrying a long metal staff to summon lightning. Sasakibe himself is drawn without pupils in the manga — I think he's the only character like that.
My guess about his death:
It was never explained if he had a family in Soul Society. Most likely, he was an orphan. Maybe he came from a human family that believed the god of thunder/lightning would protect them if they showed loyalty — by sacrificing a family member with a certain trait, like eye color.
Sasakibe in the anime has yellowish-golden eyes, like lightning. He could have been chosen as the sacrifice, and the truth hidden from him so he wouldn't resist.
With the eye detail in mind, I imagined the sacrifice ritual like this: they gouged out his eyes and impaled his body with a long metal staff, letting lightning strike through it, electrocuting him. Or maybe they drove two metal rods into his eyes directly. He was sacrificed at an age of awareness (a child or early teen). He already had doubts about these"rituals," thinking they were blind loyalty to one god. He wondered: "What about the other gods
— wouldn't they be angry at us for ignoring them?" or "What about other families — don't they also worship the thunder god?" When faced with the truth that he was chosen, he felt betrayed by his family for sacrificing him so brutally. He died with both physical and emotional pain.
How this unconsciously shaped him as a Shinigami:
This reflected in his personality: he had loyalty to Yamamoto, but not blind loyalty. Deep inside, he hated blind loyalty because of what his human family did to him. That's why he chose Yamamoto rationally, not blindly.( and i wish that Kubo explained why exactly he decided to become the right hand for Yamamoto )
Why I think his loyalty wasn't blind, with further explanation of the related theory:
I remember someone mentioning this on Reddit ( a310gintoki mentioned a fan theory on a post called Sasakibe losing to Ichigo so easily does make sense). The idea was: in the early story, when Ichigo came to rescue Rukia and fought Sasakibe, Isane, and Omaeda - Ichigo defeated them easily. Maybe Sasakibe wasn't convinced about Rukia's execution, since it was ordered by Central 46 and Yamamoto trusted them blindly. But Sasakibe didn't want to betrayed Yamamoto by openly oppose his decision, like his human family betrayed him for blind loyalty to the thunder god. So he pretended to be weak against Ichigo, letting him pass to save Rukia.
If his loyalty were truly blind, he wouldn't have hesitated to use his Bankal, which he said was meant for Yamamoto's sake. That was the perfect chance to unleash it and stop Ichigo, or at least use his Shikai strongly - like firing lightning at Ichigo's heart, similar to what happened in the Zanpakuto Rebellion when Gonryomaru stopped Sasakibe's heart.( or that i thought it happened, it actually will make sense)
Supporting points for my theory:
Some might say Kubo didn't plan Sasakibe's abilities or role, which is why he was made weak for Ichigo to defeat. But I find that illogical: Sasakibe obtained his Bankai at a young age in just one month, and he had over a thousand years to master it. He must have become much stronger.
Another point: when he asked to be Yamamoto's right hand, he explained it as wanting to "complete what Yamamoto lacked." That means Sasakibe analyzed Yamamoto's abilities and his own, and rationally decided he was the right person to support him — not just blindly following him.
So my conclusion is that the way humans die affects the powers of their Zanpakuto when they become Shinigami, not just their personalities — as the series itself hinted. The cause or manner of death becomes the soul and ability of the Zanpakuto.
When applied to other characters:
• Rose: his Bankai looks like a theatrical performance, with him as the orchestra conductor and human flowers dancing.
Maybe in his human life, he was a successful orchestra conductor, famous for his shows.
He died naturally after years of success — or maybe a failed performance ruined his reputation, and he died from shock or alcoholism.
• Aizen Sousuke: his Zanpakuto creates illusions, deceiving people. In his human life, maybe he tricked people with illusion magic. He might have fooled them until his last day, or they discovered his tricks and killed him in revenge.
When Zanpakuto have more physical combat powers or kido-based abilities, maybe those souls died from illness, disability, or general physical/mental weakness.
• Madarame Ikkaku: | couldn't find anything in Hozukimaru's powers to reflect a death cause. But he was born an orphan. Maybe as a human, he was physically weak due to illness, and died from it.
• Shiba Isshin: born into the Shiba family. If he died naturally as a human, maybe he had a physical disability - since his Zanpakuto looks more like a kido-based weapon to compensate for the disability that his body lived with as a human
Note from me: I tried to find if someone had already published a theory like this, but I couldn't. If someone has, then I sincerely apologize. I would also love to hear your opinions about this theory, whether you support it or not, or if you have other examples to add.
And if you think this theory is silly because of something the author already explained or because of events in the series, please don't attack me. My sources were the anime and movies, and it has been a long time since I watched the beginning of the anime. More than a year passed after I stopped watching when Ichigo defeated Aizen, because I had to focus on studying. I only managed to finish it a few weeks ago.
Thank you for taking the time to read what I wrote.
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