BLEACH: TYBW Part 3 — How Did Kira Survive?

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This section includes plot twists from the latter part of BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3 – The Conflict, which can be streamed on both Hulu and Disney+.

Summary

  • Thousands of Shinigami died as Wandenreich attacked, early casualties including Chо̄jirо̄ Sasakibe & Izuru Kira.
  • Kira returns as living corpse, saved by genius Mayuri Kurotsuchi, with horrific injuries patched up.
  • Kira’s survival remains mysterious, metal rods support his torso, indicating a unique form of living corpse.

In the initial stages of “BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War”, the overwhelming power of the Wandenreich became strikingly evident as numerous Shinigami met their end in a sudden offensive launched by Yhwach’s newly formed army. Among these fallen were esteemed and skilled combatants such as Chо̄jirō Sasakibe, the first lieutenant of the 1st Squad, who was the first casualty five days prior to Soul Society’s attack. Upon the arrival of all Sternritter in Soul Society, countless Shinigami perished within minutes, with Izuru Kira, the lieutenant of the 3rd Squad, being among them, instantly felled by Bazz-B’s Burning Finger as soon as the Quincies materialized.

In the final episode of the recently wrapped up “BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3 – The Conflict,” I found myself witnessing an extraordinary scene where Izuru Kira, seemingly deceased, made a startling return. His chest, a chilling reminder of his past injury, remained gaping open. How on earth did this character manage to defy the apparent certainty of death?

Kira’s Horrible Death

Sniped Early On By Bazz-B

In a nutshell, if the entire Thousand-Year Blood War between the Wandenreich and Soul Society was compressed into a 24-hour period, Sasakibe would die at midnight, followed by Kira Izuru’s death just before 3am. This underscores how early in the conflict Kira was incapacitated. The first Wandenreich invasion, which occurred five days after Sasakibe’s demise, brought an unparalleled level of devastation and loss to the Soul Society, with thousands of Shinigami perishing in minutes. During this “March of the Starcross,” we first witnessed the power of Sternritter H – The Heat, Bazzard “Bazz-B” Black before even seeing his face, as he emerged from one of the numerous Reishi pillars that dotted the Seireitei landscape.

Kira couldn’t catch a glimpse of his attacker as the assailant shot a Burning Finger from a Reishi pillar. The officers of the 3rd Squad, seated nearby, were swiftly defeated by Sternritter O – The Overkill, Driscoll Berci. Kira suffered severe injuries, losing a large part of his chest and his right arm, which still held onto his Zanpakutо̄ in its damaged state. This type of injury would be lethal for most characters in the series, and since we don’t see Kira at all during this arc (except for his surprising reappearance later on), it was evident that he died from those wounds.

What a screechy bunch of birds. So annoying, it makes this new hole ache.

A Dead Man Walks

Mayuri Kurotsuchi’s Awful Genius Saves Another

In the last episode of Part 3, Kira made an appearance, and it was unmistakable that he was far from alive, as he himself put it – “a corpse”. His arm had been reattached, yet his chest cavity still gaping, held together by a collection of rods. The once lean figure now bore a ghostly complexion and an air of morbidity that surpassed his previous demeanor. Moreover, he demonstrated a newfound strength, effortlessly dismantling the remnants of Lille Barro’s second Quincy: Vollständig.

The tale of Kira’s miraculous survival bears striking resemblance to the narrow escape experienced by Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya, Lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto, and later themselves, when they were turned into zombies by Sternritter Z – Giselle Gewelle. Much like them, Kira owes his life to the inquisitive mind, prodigious intellect, and disregard for conventional values of 12th Squad Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi, whose research portfolio expanded significantly during the “Protection of the Soul King Great War”. Similar to Hitsugaya and Matsumoto, Kira’s wounds were mended by Kurotsuchi. Given the severity of his injuries, it is plausible that only Orihime Inoue with her Shun Shun Rikka’s rejection ability could have offered aid in such a critical situation.

In the anime “BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 2 – The Separation,” an episode titled “Marching Out the Zombies” showcases a battle between Giselle Gewelle’s power to create zombies and Kurotsuchi’s “Corpse Unit.” This unit consists of reanimated Arrancar like Charlotte Chuhlhourne, as well as characters from the novels “Can’t Fear Your Own World” written by Ryohgo Narita, such as Cirucci Thunderwitch, Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio, Luppi Antenor, and even Quincies like Candice Catnipp (Sternritter T – The Thunder) and Meninas McAllon (Sternritter P – The Power). Regarding Kira, while other characters are revived throughout the series in various ways, Kira appears to be the only one who has truly died. His body is sustained by thick metal rods, suggesting he may be a unique type of living corpse. However, there isn’t much information on how exactly Kira survived.

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2025-01-06 22:33