Rukia Kuchiki

Rukia Kuchiki is the lieutenant of the 13th Division under Captain Jūshirō Ukitake. Rukia is the younger sister of Hisana Kuchiki, the adoptive sister of Byakuya Kuchiki and a friend of Ichigo Kurosaki.

Appearance
Short and petite, Rukia has pale skin, violet-colored eyes and black hair, with one strand of hair always hanging between her eyes. Byakuya has said to Rukia that she strongly resembles Hisana Kuchiki. As a Shinigami of the Gotei 13, Rukia wears a standard Shihakushō. As a lieutenant, Rukia has her hair cropped into a bob that hangs about her face. Her uniform's short arm-sleeves wears fingerless white tekkou that are similar to Byakuya's but extend to above her elbows.

Personality
Initially born into a lower class, Rukia retains her modesty even as an adopted member of the nobility. She is graceful and "clean", yet chooses to talk to ordinary people. However, her cool and lone demeanor often forces her to hide her personal troubles even from her friends. According to Ukitake, Rukia never opens up her heart and has difficulty making friends.Rukia is clueless about the ways of the modern Human World. She is an accomplished actress, being able to act her way through a number of tough situations, such as getting out of trouble with school teachers or convincing the Kurosakis to let her stay at their house.

Rukia always has trouble finding clothes that fit her, especially when inhabiting a Gigai in the Human World, leading to her stealing clothes from Ichigo's sister, Yuzu. She likes to climb to high places. Rukia also likes everything that is rabbit-themed or resembles a rabbit. People often have difficulty understanding her drawings, which are typically rabbit-like. Rukia's favorite foods are cucumber, eggs and rice dumplings.

History
Rukia and her older sister, Hisana, were brought together to Inuzuri, 78th District of Rukongai after they died in the Human World. Unable to live there while caring for a child, Hisana abandoned Rukia when she was still a baby. Rukia grew up on her own for a considerable amount of time. One day Rukia tripped an adult that was chasing Renji Abarai's group of friends and urged them to follow her to avoid losing the water they had stolen. Rukia joined their group, becoming their spiritual leader and they lived together as a family.

They all hated Inuzuri and the people there. Rukia exhibited some spiritual power during this time. Ten years after Rukia joined the group, with all of their friends dead, Rukia proposed that they become Shinigami and live in Seireitei, noting that she had heard it was pretty there. Renji agreed with her. As they were quite gifted with spiritual powers, they entered the Shinō Academy with ease, where they struggled to prove their worth among those from noble families. The night before the welcoming ceremony for the new students of the Academy, Renji slept in a tree, against Rukia’s advice. The following morning, he fell out of the tree and landed on a headstone where a startled Izuru Kira had been praying, for which Rukia scolds him.

Two months after entering the Academy, Renji scolded Rukia for still not fitting in and informed her that he was going to the Human World for field training to practice Konsō for the first time. Rukia complains about this being unfair, but Renji retorts that it is about talent and that he will get stronger. Rukia replies that she will show him that she is the stronger one, but trails off. One day, while meeting with Byakuya Kuchiki and his entourage, Renji entered the room to tell her that he had passed an important exam. Disappointed with the interruption, the nobles left and told Rukia that they were eager to hear her answer. After they had left, Renji asked her what they wanted. He congratulated Rukia when she told him that they want to adopt her into the Kuchiki family, have her graduate immediately and assigned to the 13th Division. Rukia thanked him and left. Rukia was told that Byakuya adopted her into the Kuchiki family due to her similarity to Hisana, whom he had married.

Rukia was admitted to the 13th Division without taking their entrance exam. On her first day in the Division, she is shown into a room by a fellow Shinigami, whom she tells to treat her like any other new recruit. After he leaves, she hears him and others talking about her and the favoritism shown to nobles. Rukia is disappointed that it is like that there as well. Lieutenant Kaien Shiba entered the room, introduces himself and scolds her for her weak reply. Rukia was deeply happy that she could have a normal relationship with her superior, rather than being treated as special. That evening, Rukia reported to Byakuya that her first day had ended peacefully and that she did not attain a Seated Officer position. Byakuya then told her to leave.

During her time in the 13th Division, she became friends with Kaien. One day, seeing that she was gloomy, Kaien told her that as long as she is in his Division, he would stand by her even if he died. They were interrupted by the drunk Kiyone and Sentarō Kotsubaki who tried to encourage her. Kaien mentored Rukia, teaching her how to fight. Their first training location was Mount Koifushi of Hokutan, the 3rd district of West Rukongai, where Kaien taught her about the concept of the heart. He was present when she learned her Shikai's first two "dances".

Rukia greatly admired Kaien's wife, 3rd Seat Miyako Shiba. She aspired to be like her one day. When Miyako was killed by a Hollow, Rukia, Kaien and Ukitake went to its lair. She offered to go first in order to scout out its abilities, but Kaien asked to face the Hollow alone. When its special ability destroyed Kaien's Zanpakutō, Rukia attempted to help but was stopped by Ukitake. He told her that Kaien's fight was one of honor rather than a fight for his life. If she were to help, Kaien's life would be saved but his honor would be forever damaged. After protesting about this, Rukia reluctantly obeyed his order. However, the Hollow entered Kaien's body and possessed him.

The Hollow attempted to attack Rukia, but Ukitake blocked it and sent Rukia away as he fought it. Afraid to fight it, she obeyed, but she came back because she wished to help Kaien and was afraid to face her cowardice in future. As it leapt at her, she noted that it was no longer Kaien. Unable to bear seeing him like that, she stabbed Kaien. He thanked Rukia and apologized for dragging her into it. Kaien then died in Rukia's arms. Rukia brought the corpse to the Shiba family estate but was afraid to apologize since she felt guilty about her role in Kaien's death.

Forty years after her adoption into the Kuchiki family, Kiyone and Sentarō informed Rukia that she had been assigned to the Human World. Rukia thought this was a transfer order, which Kiyone denied, reminding her of her previous mission to the Human World, which Rukia still failed to remember. Ukitake told her that she was being assigned to Karakura Town for one month, which should be easy for her. Rukia thanked him for telling her. Ukitake asked if she had told Byakuya about it, but she replied that he would not wish to be bothered with such a minor thing. Ukitake offered to tell him for her, for which Rukia thanked him.

Powers & Abilities
Expert Swordsmanship Specialist: Rukia knows the basic-levels of Zanjutsu, of which she seemed to have only mastered the rudimentary skills. By her own admission, she has less talent in swordsmanship than Kidō. However after much training by her former mentor, Kaien Shiba, her skill drastically improved. She has shown herself to be capable enough to hold her own in a battle, most notably defending herself from attacks from the 9th Espada, while he was using the expert swordsmanship skill of Kaien Shiba.

Kidō Expert: Rukia's greatest strength is her knowledge of Kidō, amongst her known skills are those for binding, healing and destruction. However, as she said herself, while her Kidō skill at the Shinō Academy were the highest of her class, the sheer power of them were just average when she joined the 13th Division. Through continuous training, she has greatly developed this skill, able to use a Hadō #73 without incantation. She is able to switch from Zanjutsu to Kidō without delay upon losing her Zanpakutō. She can use a high-level Kidō in rapid succession without incantations and still have considerable control and power. She has also shown great skill for using various spells in unique combination, even using multiple spells simultaneously, though she requires the incantation for high-level spells simultaneously.

Enhanced Durability: Rukia has a great amount of durability. She was able to withstand being impaled by Aaroniero's Nejibana, in conjunction with his Glotonería and finish him off before losing consciousness.

Enhanced Strength: Despite her size, she is actually powerful enough to defeat a superior opponent. Even without the aid of her Zanpakutō, she is still a considerable opponent. Her strength is displayed when Ritz is controlling her and she picks up Orihime with her own two hands, able to throw her in the air, despite her size.

Hakuda Combatant: She was also seen in a Gigai fighting enemies with her physical strength (kicking, punching, etc.). She is also capable of having hand-to-hand combat while in her Shinigami state, with augmented strength. During the Bount invasion, she showed herself capable of countering the swift and accurate attacks of Yoshi.

Keen Intellect: Repeatedly in missions, Rukia has shown herself to be very intelligent, as seen from her ability to compensate against stronger opponents with combination attacks. During her forced stay in the living world after losing her powers, Rukia proved herself very resourceful in assisting Ichigo with his new Shinigami duties. Rukia is also very knowledgeable, as shown from her knowledge of the Soul Society's history.

High Spiritual Power: Being a lieutenant of the Gotei 13, Rukia boasts a high spiritual energy and is capable of exerting large amounts of reiatsu when needed.

Shunpo Expert: Renji says that Rukia is also helpful and effective because of her high speed. During her battle against the Adjuchas of the Menos Forest, she skillfully dodged multiple attacks from several enemies.

Relationships
Rukia has encountered many characters in the series. The most prominent of these relationships are listed below:

Ichigo Kurosaki
Rukia has a unique, complex and dynamic relationship with Ichigo. Her attitude towards Ichigo varies: at times she is a bickering adversary and at other times, she worries about him and dispatches advice like a wise old sage. Despite their quarrels, the two have a deep understanding of each other. Rukia is able to help restore Ichigo's self belief following his inner Hollow's interference in his first battle with Yammy Llargo.

When Rukia is taken into custody and Ichigo is gravely wounded in an attempt to save her, she assumes that he dies of his injuries. Feeling that Ichigo's death would have been avoided had she never met him, Rukia loses her reason for living and resigns herself to her sentenced execution. Later on Renji tells her that Ichigo survived and is mounting a rescue attempt with his friends. While she is grateful that he survived and that he cares for her enough to risk his life to rescue her, she stubbornly refuses to accept his assistance as she doesn't want another one of her companions to die because of her. Ichigo, however, remains persistent and is eventually able rescue her. Although overjoyed at her rescue, Rukia refuses to thank Ichigo for his help. Rukia is surprised by Ichigo's acceptance of her decision to remain in the Soul Society.

Renji Abarai
Having grown up and joined the Shinō Academy together, Rukia has a strong relationship with Renji. However, their relationship changed when Rukia was adopted into the Kuchiki family, which forced their friendship to an end. After arresting her in the Human World, Renji visits Rukia in prison. He is horrified to hear that Byakuya will make no attempt to save her from her death penalty and they try to cheer each other up. Initially viewing Rukia's death sentence as Ichigo's fault, Renji fights him and after his defeat, he begs Ichigo to save Rukia as he cannot. After recovering from his wounds he turns against his fellow 6th Division members to save her. At the moment his reiatsu disappears, Rukia becomes distraught over his seemingly fatal loss. After her execution is stopped, Renji carries her to safety, promising not to let her go even if he dies, which causes him to be injured repeatedly by Aizen. Upon entering Las Noches, Renji berates Ichigo for expressing concern for Rukia's well being, as soldiers on the battlefield, this is seen as an insult to one`s abilities. This demonstrates Renji's confidence in Rukia, which is reciprocated.

Kaien Shiba
Kaien Shiba was the Shinigami who helped Rukia ease into the 13th Division. Rukia often felt overwhelmed and insecure about her standing as a Shinigami, but Kaien was the one who helped her find her footing. As a result, Rukia has great respect and adoration for Kaien. When Kaien was possessed by a Hollow, Rukia was forced to kill him in order to release his spirit, an action that Kaien showed his gratitude for.

Byakuya Kuchiki
Byakuya Kuchiki is Rukia's adoptive older brother. Byakuya's desire to protect Rukia leads him to prevent her from gaining a seated officer position, which would lead to more dangerous missions for Rukia. Byakuya's icy demeanor and strictness kept her emotionally distant from him, to the point that she was convinced that Byakuya would support her execution. In reality, Byakuya is very torn over what role he should play in Rukia's execution, due to his conflicting promises to his parents, to always abide by the rules and to his wife Hisana, to protect her beloved younger sister. Byakuya eventually saves Rukia from being killed by Gin Ichimaru, which shocks Rukia greatly. After this, she begins to be less wary of him and seems to have formed a genuine bond with him. During his fight with the Espada Zommari Rureaux, he indirectly refers to Rukia as his "pride".

Jūshirō Ukitake
Rukia's superior and captain of the 13th squad. During the Ryoka Invasion, he saves those who came to rescue her when they were found by Byakuya at the entrance to the Senzaikyū. Later it was stated by Yoruichi he did so because they came to save one of his subordinates, Rukia. Ukitake also acts as a mentor to Rukia, often advising her when she needs it and caring for her safety and happiness. Following the death of Kaien, knowing how much the guilt was tearing Rukia up inside, Ukitake went to Kūkaku and explained the entire situation to her and how it wasn't Rukia's fault. Along with Kyōraku, he helps to destroy the Sōkyoku to save her.

Orihime Inoue
Rukia and Orihime started their friendship soon after they first met and became significantly closer during the Arrancar Invasion. In preparation for the upcoming war, Rukia takes her to Soul Society and trains her for combat. While being a somewhat stern tutor, Rukia tells Orihime what mistakes she makes and how to correct them, earning a mutual respect of fighting ability between the two. When she returns to the Human World without her, she tells Orihime not to worry as she'd be on the other side waiting. When Aizen has Orihime kidnapped, Rukia openly states that she will not follow Captain-Commander Yamamoto's order to abandon her and she is among those that later go to Hueco Mundo to retrieve her. Rukia notes she knows what it is like to be alone, hoping her friends do not fall in battle and feeling a sense of helplessness and can relate to her more than anyone else in that situation.

Appearances in Other Media
Rukia appears in most Bleach video games. In Bleach: Soul Carnival and Bleach: Soul Carnival 2 she has a technique called where she creates an icicle while in the air and lets it drop down on an opponent on the ground.

Dark Rukia
Dark Rukia is an alternate form of Rukia that appeared exclusively in Bleach: Fade to Black. While in this form, instead of her own Zanpakutō, she has a gigantic, double-edged scythe that she easily wields with one hand. Her outfit appears to be completely different and she is also barefooted. Her deep black hair is now lavender, as well as her eyes. While in this alternate state, her powers have been augmented and she appears to fight differently, as opposed to her normal self. Dark Rukia also appears in Bleach: Heat the Soul 6 and Bleach: Heat the Soul 7 as a playable character.

Trivia

 * Wanting to draw a Shinigami in kimono, Tite Kubo drew Rukia - making her the first of the Bleach characters to be conceived.


 * According to Tite Kubo, Rukia's theme song is Wing Stock by Ashley MacIsaac.


 * Rukia is consistently the most popular female character in the series. In the 4th Shōnen Jump poll, she was ranked as the 2nd most popular character in Bleach.


 * Sode no Shirayuki, Rukia's Zanpakutō, is the 2nd most popular Zanpakutō in a recent Bleach poll.


 * In the Bleach best bout poll Rukia's fight with Aaroniero came in seventh place.


 * The soul-removing glove Rukia uses early in the series is colored light blue, gold, orange and white in the manga, while being colored red, black, dark blue and white in the anime adaptation.


 * Rukia's report on Ichigo titled the Substitute Shinigami Work Diary, along with her illustrations, are slatted for publication in the Seireitei Communication.