In the story of Bleach, Ichigo Kurosaki may be the shonen protagonist, but the entire plot was made possible when Rukia Kuchiki the Soul Reaper arrived and granted Ichigo her powers to defeat a monstrous Hollow. Rukia stuck around after that to fight by Ichigo’s side, and she became a proper hero in her own right.
Rukia has been through a lot in her lifetime, but her harsh experiences never broker her. Rukia remained true to her noble self from beginning to end, and she was wise enough and kind enough to always make the right decision, no matter how tough things got. Some of Rukia’s key decisions in Bleach were more consequential or exciting than others, but all of them help demonstrate Rukia’s remarkable character.
10 When Rukia Restrained Ichigo To Keep Him From Facing Fishbone-D
In hindsight, this action seemed like a bad decision, since the viewer knows that Ichigo is destined to become the strongest character in Bleach, and he needed to start fighting Hollows sooner or later. At the time, though, Rukia was not in the wrong to try and restrain Ichigo when they first met.
As far as Rukia knew, Ichigo was a fairly ordinary civilian who can’t survive a Hollow attack, and he was trying to get in Rukia’s way. So, Rukia restrained him with a simple kido spell, which any duty-bound Soul Reaper would have done. Rukia is quite professional.
9 When Rukia Ran Away To Keep Ichigo Uninvolved In Her Arrest
Near the end of Bleach‘s first season, Rukia was in trouble with the Soul Society, and Captain Byakuya Kuchiki had sent Renji to arrest her. Rukia knew that Ichigo stood no chance against them, so she ran away from the Kurosaki household one night to face them alone.
Rukia was being noble, trying to keep Ichigo out of her Soul Reaper business so Ichigo could resume his normal life and not get mixed up in all this. Still, Rukia was underestimating Ichigo’s loyalty to her, and for the plot’s sake, he really did need to get involved.
8 When Rukia Apologized To Kukaku Shiba For Kaien’s Death
Near the end of the Soul Society arc, Rukia had been rescued at last, but she had some unresolved business to take care of, and it couldn’t wait any longer. So, Rukia made her way to Kukaku Shiba’s home and made a heartfelt apology.
Due to trying circumstances in the past, Rukia had been forced to kill Kaien Shiba personally, and the guilt now led her to apologize deeply. That was gracious of her, and better yet, Kukaku had gotten over it by now and had no ill intent toward Rukia. Kukaku understood that it had to be done.
7 When Rukia Decided To Attend Ichigo’s School To Monitor The Situation
Bleach‘s first season had some reverse-isekai elements where Rukia was concerned, and early on, she decided to not only remain in Karakura Town but also pose as a student at Ichigo’s school. She mainly did this to watch out for nearby Hollows and keep tabs on Ichigo, which was a wise move.
This also gave Rukia an opportunity to study human society so she could blend in better, and attending school also allowed her to meet the Quincy Uryu Ishida and become familiar with him. They would be allies someday, so it’s a good idea to meet him and learn to get along with him.
6 When Rukia Took Ichigo Hollow Hunting To Clear His Head
Not long after the Soul Society arc ended, Ichigo returned home to Karakura Town, but he was not being himself. He was distraught over the rise of his inner Hollow and was losing focus on everything. He was no longer the hero everyone needed him to be, so Rukia took it upon herself to fix this.
Rukia’s decision paid off greatly, and she snapped Ichigo out of his moody daze by dragging him along on a Hollow hunt. Before long, Ichigo was back in shape, and he recognized Rukia as someone he could count on if he was feeling down. This actually made Orihime Inoue rather jealous, in fact.
5 When Rukia Exposed Aaroniero Arurruerie’s Real Face
During the Hueco Mundo story arc, Rukia went up against the 9th Espada, the gluttonous Aaroniero Arurruerie. Somehow, Aaroniero looked like the late Kaien Shiba and even had access to his shikai, Nejibana. This was psychological warfare, and it was working well on Rukia. Time for a little test.
Rukia used her kido spells to restrain Aaroniero and expose him to sunlight, and sure enough, his Kaien disguise was shed, exposing his real body. This gave Rukia the resolve she needed to fight Aaroniero with all her might and begin processing her guilt over killing the real Kaien.
4 When Rukia Did Her Duty & Killed Kaien Shiba
This particular decision was a difficult one that came at a high price, but that does not mean that it was the wrong decision. One night, Captain Sosuke Aizen had unleashed a special Hollow named Metastacia, and it fused with Kaien Shiba. There was no way to get Kaien back to normal.
Rukia, despite her horror at the situation, did her duty of killing Kaien and Metastacia together, to end the threat and bring back the peace. Besides, as Kaien had once told Rukia, he would live on inside her heart, so killing his body wasn’t something to feel too guilty for. Rukia would need time to process these feelings, however.
3 When Rukia & Renji Decided To Assist Ichigo In Hueco Mundo
During this point in the lore, Ichigo and the Soul Reapers were allies, but no one could agree on what to do about the kidnapped Orihime Inoue. Yamamoto refused to send a party to rescue Orihime, and Rukia and Renji were ordered to fall back to the Soul Society and wait for further orders.
Rukia was having none of this. She knew her duty, but she was also intensely loyal to Ichigo and Orihime. So, with Byakuya’s support, she and Renji snuck off to Hueco Mundo to help Ichigo’s three-man team rescue Orihime, showing what a noble and brave hero Rukia truly was.
2 When Rukia Decided To Become A Soul Reaper
Rukia was not born into a noble family, or even a regular household, so she didn’t have a family tradition of Soul Reaper service to live up to. Instead, she and Renji were desperate street urchins in the Rukongai district, until they met Miyako, the wife of Kaien Shiba. Miyako’s kindness was inspiring.
One day, Rukia resolved to follow Miyako’s example, make use of her kido talents, and become a full-blown Soul Reaper (and Renji followed suit). This totally changed their lives for the better, and in many ways, this made the rest of Bleach possible.
1 When Rukia Lent Her Soul Reaper Powers To Ichigo
This is one of the most pivotal scenes in all of Bleach, and from a narrative standpoint, this particular decision of Rukia’s set the entire story into motion. Rukia failed to restrain Ichigo when the Hollow named Fishbone-D arrived, and Rukia was injured in combat. Ichigo showed up to help, and Rukia made a fateful decision.
Rukia impaled Ichigo with her zanpakuto, lending him her powers and thus launching Ichigo’s career as a substitute Soul Reaper. Ichigo was forever changed, and so was the plot of Bleach. From that point forward, it was up to Rukia to train the world’s newest Soul Reaper and make sure he could reach his potential.
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