Ishida Uryu

↠THE PLAYER

Name: Belltrap

Over 18? Yes.


↠THE CHARACTER

Name | Alias: Ishida Uryu

Journal: shiro_megane_kun

Age: 17

Canon: Bleach

Canon point: Post-Chapter 685, Pre-Epilogue

History: Wiki Link

Personality: At first glance, it might be easy to mistake Uryu Ishida as the polar opposite of Bleach's protagonist, Ichigo Kurosaki. Indeed, Uryu is introduced as Ichigo's foil. Where Ichigo is brash and headstrong, a hotheaded personality with a tendency to handle problems with an overwhelming application of brute force, Uryu appears cold, almost icy, favoring his sharp intellect and careful application of precision. The distinct contrast in their approaches can be seen in their joint battle against a Menos Grande, a particularly menacing ghost, even when they are trying to work alongside one another - where Uryu comes up with a detailed strategy to take advantage of their individual strengths, Ichigo simply uses a straightforward application of his most powerful attack. Where Ichigo might be a butcher knife, Uryu is a scalpel.

Their approaches differ not only because of differences in personality, but also differences in background. Uryu comes from a centuries-old clan of exorcists, the Quincy, and has trained his whole life to hunt the soul-devouring ghosts known as Hollows. Ichigo, in contrast, has only recently become aware of Hollows, despite having seen ghosts for his whole life, forced by circumstance and chance, rather than birth, to become a Substitute Shinigami, a human who bears the Shinigami duties of a pscyhopomp,, responsible for guiding the dead to the afterlife and for purifying Hollows.

Uryu even draws this contrast himself, saying that where he has always striven to maintain his composure, to stay calm and poised, to weigh his actions carefully, where Ichigo simply decides to help someone and does whatever is necessary to achieve his end, no matter how foolish or ill-advised. At the same time, however, Uryu reveals that he can't help but follow Ichigo's lead, and admits that he would be happy, if Ichigo and their friends had started to rub off on him, suggesting that at his core, Uryu is not as different from Ichigo as he portrays himself to be (or as different as he believes himself to be).

Uryu, like Ichigo, is quite stubborn. He is somewhat antisocial, only really gaining a group of friends once he goes to Soul Society, the stronghold of the Shinigami in the afterlife, with Ichigo, Orihime Inoue, and Yasutora Sado. Also, much like Ichigo, Uryu's worldview has been shaped by the death of someone close to him when he was young. Just as Ichigo has lost his mother to a Hollow in his childhood, Uryu has witnessed the death of his grandfather, Sokken Ishida, the man who taught him how to be a Quincy.

Uryu takes great pride in being a Quincy. Uryu adheres to a code known as “the Pride of the Quincy”, presumably taught to him by his grandfather. The code resembles chivalry and has a strong moral element. Among its strictures is the protection of women, even enemy combatants — one of the reasons Uryu finds the Shinigami Mayuri Kurotsuchi, who abuses his female lieutenant Nemu Kurotsuchi verbally and physically in front of Uryu, particularly despicable. This may also be why his enmity for Shinigami tends to be more muted in regards to female Shinigami, such as Rukia Kuchiki and Nemu, and why he saves the life of the Arrancar Loly Aivirrne. (Arrancar are a subtype of Hollow.) Furthermore, as a result of his pride in being a Quincy, Uryu is frequently shown to have a preference for the dramatic, sometimes even to the point of impracticality. For instance, despite the danger his cape puts him in at one point during the invasion of Soul Society, Uryu immediately produces a spare and dons it once the original was lost. (Capes and mantles feature frequently in Quincy clothing and visually distinguish the Quincy look from that of the Shinigami.)

Shortly after his initial contact with Ichigo, Uryu begins to develop a willingness to compromise more often in order to achieve his goals. First Uryu cooperates with Ichigo in order to defeat a Menos Grande. Uryu later works with Ichigo once more, along with Orihime and Yasutora, to save Rukia Kuchiki. After losing his powers in Soul Society, Uryu strikes a deal with his father Ryuuken (despite their extraordinarily strained relationship) to restore his lost Quincy powers . Uryu even works with Mayuri Kurotsuchi, a Shinigami whom Uryu has deemed 'unforgivable' for what the Shinigami did to Sokken, in order to save Orihime and stop the renegade Shinigami Sosuke Aizen, the primary antagonist of the arc. In the final arc, Uryu even infiltrates the Vandenreich, antagonistic Quincy led by the very man responsible for the death of Kanae and Ichigo's mother Masaki, with the intent of stopping them from the inside.

Whatever his personal feelings are, Uryu consistently sets them aside for what he feels may be the greater good. This is a rather marked change from how he acts initially, prioritizing his vendetta against the Shinigami over the safety and well-being of Karakura, his and Ichigo's hometown; his time spent fighting alongside Ichigo and their allies in battles has changed him, and so has his contact with them as friends in their day to day lives. While endangering Karakura for the sake of his own personal vendetta is a mistake he made in the past, evidence suggests that it is not a choice Uryu would presently make again.

Uryu is, arguably, the most calm and rational of his friends and close allies, or at least the most outwardly calm and rational, and this is commented on by enemy combatants more than once (Ulquiorra Cifer and Jugram Haschwalth).

When fighting alongside others, from Ichigo, to Orihime in Soul Society, to Yasutora and Renji Abarai in Hueco Mundo (native realm of the Hollows), Uryu consistently demonstrates a talent for teamwork that belies his early deliberate efforts to appear as a loner. He shows considerable tactical acumen when assessing a situation to determine how best to use each individual's unique talents to defeat an enemy combatant.

Uryu swiftly deduces from a small amount of information - the existence of a substitute Shinigami badge - the possible existence of a prior substitute Shinigami, which neither Ichigo nor any of their human friends had considered. He further extrapolates that if the substitute Shinigami was known to be alive, Soul Society would have told Ichigo who they were, and if they were dead, Soul Society would have informed Ichigo why. Despite such information being withheld, Uryu arrives at the conclusion that it is possible that renegade substitute Shinigami is at large. When facing Yammy Llargo, Uryu uses an anti-Arrancar mine to great effect by not only luring the Arrancar onto the mine, but also weakening the pillars of every floor, causing the Arrancar to fall through the entire tower on the way down, effectively removing the Arrancar from the fight despite being unable to harm the tough Arrancar conventionally with his arrows.

However, it would be a mistake to say that he is more intellectual than emotional, or that he favors his head over his heart, though he may believe himself to favor rationality over emotion. While Uryu does approach problems from an intellectual perspective, however, there is a constant tension between his intellect and his emotions, in contrast to Ichigo, who frequently follows his heart, no matter how foolish or ill-advised.

Frequently, Uryu spares the lives of his opponents, notably Jirobo Ikkanza and Cirucci Sanderwicci, preferring to seal their powers, eliminating the threat they pose with nonlethal force. As previously noted, Uryu is even shown to have saved the life of Loly Aivirrne after her battle with Yammy Llargo, pinning her body to the side of a tower in Hueco Mundo to spare her from a fatal fall. Perhaps most notably, Uryu, despite having lost a hand in his battle against Ulquiorra Cifer, still makes an attempt to stop Ichigo, at this point more Hollow than human, from slaughtering a helpless Ulquiorra. Uryu states that Ichigo has already won and that if Ichigo goes that far, he will no longer be human, demonstrating visible distress as he tries to stop Ichigo. Fundamentally, Uryu is more merciful and compassionate than he might have others believe he is; similarly, he believes his allies and friends, including Ichigo, have that same fundamental compassion and mercy. When questioned as to why he took the side of Ichigo and betrayed the Quincy by Jugram Haschwalth, Uryu admits his decision wasn't made because it was right, or to extract any advantage – he chose Ichigo's side simply because of their friendship.

Out of Ichigo, Orihime, Yasutora, and himself, Uryu has the most experience hunting Hollows, having been trained since childhood to be a Quincy, where the others only learned of Hollows and their dangers in their freshman year of high school. Uryu is not only acutely aware of the existence of Hollows, but aware of Soul Society's seeming inability to prevent all Hollow attacks, as it was this failure on the part of the Shinigami that originated the Quincy clan. It is his responsibility as the last Quincy to destroy Hollows and protect the innocent, and it is a dangerous responsibility.

Perhaps that is why Uryu demonstrates a distinct lack of fear regarding his own injury or death bordering on recklessness. On more than one occasion, he risks his life to protect Orihime, once using himself as a human shield to protect Orihime from Mayuri Kurotsuchi. When battling Ulquiorra Cifer, despite being completely overwhelmed by the Arrancar and losing his hand (and thus, the ability to use his bow and arrows), Uryu draws a Seele Schneider and engages close combat to buy time for Orihime and Ichigo. Even when paralyzed and in mortal peril in his battle against Mayuri, Uryu seems more concerned about Nemu's abuse at the hands of the Captain than his own plight. In the end, Uryu's use of the Ransotengai technique to overcome his paralysis is not motivated by fear for his life, but by a blinding rage at the atrocities Mayuri inflicted on Uryu's beloved grandfather. While Uryu is willing to fight for his own life, as he did when attacked by incomplete Arrancars, Uryu consistently seems to value the lives of others more than his own.

While these actions belie the initial impression Uryu might give of being cold, Uryu is habitually brusque. In most cases, save his father and Ichigo, Uryu is highly formal and polite, almost to the point of coldness, always referring to individuals by their surname with the appropriate honorific. Even with Yasutora, whom he has fought for his life alongside, even with Orihime, arguably his closest friend, Uryu still persists in using surnames and honorifics, and even after the timeskip, having known them for more than a year and a half as friends, classmates, and comrades in battle. Ichigo, however, is one of two exceptions; while Uryu calls the Substitute Shinigami by his surname, Uryu does so without honorific, which could either indicate a closeness, or, more likely, given their rivalry and contrasting approaches, disdain. In fact, it actually conveys a mixture of both. The other exception is his own father, Ryuuken Ishida, whom he calls by given name rather than the proper word for 'father'. Not only is this considered rude in Japanese society - it is also a rejection of Ryuuken as his father, much as it might be in the West to cease to call a parent 'Father' or 'Mother' and use their given name instead.

Uryu's strained relationship with Ryuuken also reveals that Uryu is not especially materialistic. Ryuuken objects to Uryu's dedication to being a Quincy for a number of reasons, among them that being a Quincy makes no money, but Uryu is unmoved by this line of reasoning, even seeming to have some disdain for what he perceives as his father's greed.

What Uryu says is not always what he means, though Orihime seems to come to a better understanding of what he leaves unsaid. For instance, while Uryu often responds to gratitude from others with "It's nothing", Orihime intuits that what he really means is 'It's nothing special' or 'It's nothing worth thanking me for'.

Furthermore, he begins to open up to his friends the more time he spends with them. He demonstrates visible concern for Orihime in both Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, and goes so far as to try to offer her comfort when they finally reach her in Hueco Mundo. He is protective of Orihime when it seems as if a Shinigami is making advances on her, and likewise seems to despise it when Shinigami target her, taking her to be a weaker target. He goes so far as to note the clothing styles of his friends and sews new clothes for them when they recover in Soul Society, even making a sundress for the Shinigami Rukia. When Orihime is captured by Aizen, Uryu is immediately willing to invade Hueco Mundo on his own without any aid to rescue her, demonstrating no hesitation. Despite the friction in his relationship with Ichigo, even after the timeskip, Uryu seems to have come to care somewhat for him. When he witnesses Ichigo's despair and tears at losing his powers a second time, having them stolen by Kugo Ginjo, Uryu closes his eyes, unable to bear to watch his friend's despair. Thus, although Uryu is far from warm with strangers, he is nevertheless not quite so cold as he might seem at first, especially for those willing to take the time to get him to open up. Uryu can sometimes demonstrate kindness even towards those unfamiliar with him; it is known that while he will continue to be brusque with them even while he helps them, if anyone in his class should bring him a stuffed animal or plush toy, he will not hesitate to fix it for them.

Frequently in Bleach's earliest arcs Uryu claims that he is only helping the others because he wants to fight Shinigami or says that fighting against a common enemy doesn't mean they were friends. By Bleach's final arc, however, he demonstrates a marked change. Uryu explicitly apologizes to his friends when he does not go with them to fight in Hueco Mundo to protect the Hollows that live there. In this respect, Uryu demonstrates considerable growth. However, Uryu still tells Orihime not to tease him when she points out that Uryu really has become friends with Ichigo and that she likes that side of him.

However, that is not to say that Uryu is completely open with his friends and allies. In fact, more than once, he keeps secrets from them, albeit for different reasons each time. In the aftermath of the Soul Society arc, he keeps from them the loss of his Quincy powers, though Orihime is able to discern this on her own. In the Fullbringer arc, he is recalcitrant when questioned about his mystery assailant, due to being unable to deduce the nature of his attacker. He expressly states that he deliberately put distance between himself and the others following the attack in an attempt to keep them safe. Furthermore, it is revealed that since Ichigo was granted a substitute Shinigami badge, Uryu suspected the existence of other substitute Shinigami, possibly renegades, and for over a year, never mentioned the possibility to any of the others. Finally, in the final arc of Bleach, it rapidly becomes clear that Uryu has told his friends nothing about the aforementioned Vandenreich to his allies. Uryu nevertheless is not only aware of them, but sets out to infiltrate them. As part of his infiltration he even clashes with Ichigo and their friends without explaining himself until the last possible moment. This suggests that while Uryu is willing to help others with their problems, he is more reluctant to turn to others when he has information, especially if he feels that the information he possesses will not lead to a resolution on its own.

Furthermore, consciously or not, this secrecy indicates Uryu feels that he knows better than others do. This arrogance can be seen even in small ways. When sewing clothes for his friends at the end of their time in Soul Society, he makes modifications to the designs of the clothes which he says are "better" without consulting them on their individual preferences.

Uryu strives for excellence in everything he does. Academically, he is noted as being at the top of the freshman class. In that same year, not only was he already acting as the Last Quincy, but he was also President of the Handicrafts Club, despite it being his first year at Karakura High School. Furthermore, he is noted to be a prodigy compared to other Quincy that Mayuri Kurotsuchi has studied. (It should be noted that there is no information indicative of whether the Quincy that Mayuri studied were Echt or Gemischt.) It is implied by the Shinigami that Uryu is very young to have already become proficient in the use of Hirenkyaku, and the only Quincy capable of Ransotengai among 2661 Quincy that Mayuri experimented on. This dedication to excellence does not diminish over time, and in his senior year, after the time skip, Uryu is revealed to have become Student Council President at Karakura High School. In the epilogue, he is revealed to have become a doctor.

Canon neglects to spend time on Uryu and romantic relationships, quite possibly because there simply aren't any in his life. He has never expressed explicit romantic interest towards any other character, nor has any other character expressed romantic interest towards him. Given his responsibilities as a Quincy, a high school student, and his extracurricular activities, it is quite possible he simply does not have time or does not make time for romance, considering other matters to be of a higher priority. The one time that Uryu's affections are speculated on, Orihime believes him to have romantic feelings towards Rukia. On the same page, canon outright states that Uryu does not have romantic feelings towards the Shinigami. Uryu's closest relationship seems to be with Orihime herself - as mentioned previously, he is willing to face grave danger alone to rescue her from peril. Later, after they reunite, when Orihime asks him to take her to the top of Aizen's sanctuary, Uryu's internal dialogue reveals that he cannot bring himself to deny her what she asks of him, though he immediately regrets agreeing. However, their close friendship is never explicitly stated to be anything more.

Despite Uryu's calm even when his life is in mortal danger, his composure does fail when confronted with exposed female bodies. He demonstrates pronounced embarrassment when Orihime strips her shirt off in front of him as if it were nothing and when Nemu Kurotsuchi pins him down and smothers him with her bosom. Training his whole life to be a Quincy, to hunt down soul-devouring ghosts has prepared him to risk his life; it has done absolutely nothing to prepare him for a place like Lagunbiru.

Abilities and Nerfs: As a Quincy, Uryu has been able to perceive the spirits of the dead since he was born. He is able to detect the spirits of the dead and other spiritually aware individuals such as himself at a distance, and differentiate between their natures (Quincy, Shinigami, and Hollow, to name a few).

Beyond this ability, Uryu has the ability to manipulate spirit particles to achieve a wide variety of effects.

All matter in the material world is made of molecules. Souls and spirits are made of spirit particles. Just as there are ambient molecules in the atmosphere that are not part of what humans perceive as discrete structures (a tree or dog for instance), there are ambient spirit particles that are not part of any particular soul or spirit. Quincy like Uryu are able to manipulate these spirit particles.

Most commonly, Quincy use spirit particles to create bows and arrows. Uryu typically uses a Quincy cross, a silver cross roughly the size of a rosary, as a focus when manifesting a bow. Uryu once claimed to be able to fire 1,200 arrows simultaneously and has demonstrated his ability to fire 1,000 arrows simultaneously using a technique called Licht Regen (German for "Light Rain"). He can shoot arrows with sufficient precision to intercept attacks midair and negate them. He has also demonstrated sufficient precision to strike specific points on the anatomy of opponents to seal their supernatural powers. Furthermore, due to his ability to control spirit particles, Uryu has displayed the ability to change the course of his arrows mid-flight.

By using special devices shaped like the hilt of a sword called Seele Schneideren, Uryu is able to manifest an arrow with a blade's edge that can be used in close quarters combat as a sword, in addition to using it as an arrow. (It looks much like a lightsaber.) Spirit particles make 3 million round trips per second around the Seele Schneider's edge, not unlike a chainsaw, giving it remarkable cutting power. In addition, when used against something comprised of spirit particles, it loosens the bonds between the spirit particles, making it easier for Quincy like Uryu to control them and steal them from another.

In addition, Uryu has demonstrated the Quincy techniques Hirenkyaku and Ransotengai.

In practical terms, Hirenkyaku's basic form allows instantaneous movement, covering short distances faster than the eye can follow, what might colloquially be referred to as a 'flash step'. While using this technique, Ishida can use spirit particles to support himself in mid-air, effectively flying. Uryu has also demonstrated an advanced variation of Hirenkyaku, creating a platform of spirit particles which he can use to carry both himself and others through the air.

Ransotengai is a Quincy technique that allows a Quincy to continue to fight and move even when paralyzed or their body gives out by using threads made of spirit particles to puppet their own bodies.

Furthermore, Uryu was granted a unique power called 'Antithesis'. At any time, Uryu may designate two targets and reverse events that have happened. For instance, if Uryu was severely injured in combat with an enemy, he would be able to reverse the event so that his enemy was instead severely injured.

Finally, Uryu can use silver tubes called Ginto to store spiritual energy. When he temporarily lost his Quincy powers, only retaining the ability to perceive the spirits of the dead, Uryu was still able to use Ginto as catalysts for techniques. Ginto techniques can be used to gouge, blast, and bind opponents.

A Ginto technique of particular note is Sprenger, which requires the use of five Seele Schneideren. By creating a pentacle with a Seele Schneider at each corner and using Ginto as a catalyst, Uryu can generate a massive explosion within the borders of the pentacle. Despite its raw power, this technique is difficult to set up without an ally to distract enemies.

While Uryu's powers do make him considerably formidable in personal combat, on multiple occasions he uses nonlethal methods to prevail over his foes and once even goes so far as to save the life of an enemy. He is unlikely to use his powers in ways that would put innocents and civilians at risk. None of his powers would allow him to return home from Lagunbiru of his own power.

However, I would be interested in voluntarily nerfing Uryu's powers so that some of them may be listed as his 'Five Desires' (see below).

Inventory: One pair of glasses, one Vandenreich uniform, one spare cape/mantle, one Seele Schneider, one Quincy cross, one silver arrowhead, multiple Ginto, silver wire, chips from the Sanrei Glove.

Five Desires:
• Access to luxurious, high-quality textiles
• Four Seele Schneideren (completing the set of five)
• Regaining lost Quincy powers: As mentioned in the personality section, Uryu is not materialistic. However, being a Quincy is very much core to his identity, in the way that someone's aspiration to become an astronaut might be a core part of their identity. When his Quincy powers were lost before, Uryu endured a grueling trial to regain them. Should his powers be nerfed, regaining his Quincy powers would be a powerful incentive for him to step outside of his comfort zone.

I am very much open to dialogue regarding how much his powers are nerfed and how much he can regain. As a starting point, a proposed scale:
• Baseline: Nerfed to power level from Soul Society Arc
• Regain 1: Power level equivalent to Hueco Mundo Arc
• Regain 2: Power level equivalent to Fullbringer Arc
• Regain 3: Power level equivalent to Blood War Arc & Antithesis

Samples:
Sample 1
Sample 2