Summary
Within theBleachuniverse,Shinigami often carry out missionsin the human world to battle Hollows and protect humans from spiritual threats. However, as spiritual beings, Shinigami can normally only be seen and interacted with by other souls with high reiatsu. To blend in and carry out tasks among ordinary humans, Shinigami typically utilize a unique item known as a Gigai.
Gigais play an indispensable role in allowing Shinigami to function effectively within the human world. It is through these artificial vessels that Shinigami are granted the ability to blend in, move about, and directly engage with regular humanity while pursuing their duties. So what exactly is a Gigai, and how do these artificial bodies help Shinigami function in the human world? Let’s take a deeper look.
What is a Gigai?
Artificial Bodies for Spiritual Beings
A Gigai is an artificial body that allows Shinigami to interact with humans and remain in the human world. Gigais have been used for various purposes by Shinigami within the World of the Living. It is unknown exactly when the first Gigai was created or by whom. However, it is known that Gigais existed at least 101 years ago,as Kisuke Urahara was experimentingwith different versions of Gigai for several reasons.
A Shinigami might use a Gigai if they lose their powers, as only with their powers canthey return to Soul Society. However, while remaining in the World of the Living, they are targets for Hollows, and so they choose to reside within a Gigai and begin to behave like humans to blend in and avoid being hunted. They may use a Gigai if it is required for their mission to interact with humans or to reside among them to search for threats and to blend in while doing so.
Gigai Creation and Hosting
How Gigais Allow Shinigami to Blend In
While being created, Gigais can be designed with specific attributes to make jobs easier depending on their purpose. During the creation stage, they have a generic muscular human appearance with no unique characteristics or features.When hosted by a Shinigami, the Gigai will take on the appearance of that Shinigami and can now be seen by humans around them while in the Gigai. However, the Gigai does not take on the clothes of the Shinigami, so they must obtain modern clothes to blend in with humans.
Souls can leave Gigais by a variety of methods, but the fastest appears to be using a Gikongan to replace the soul within, allowing it to leave the Gigai freely; inthe case of a Shinigami, this is done so they may fight at their full strength while ordering the replacement soul to keep the Gigai out of harm’s way. It seems leaving the Gigai without this method can be troublesome for a Shinigami.
Variations of Gigai
Specialized Gigai Types for Different Missions
There are different types of gigais that serve various purposes. The standard Gigai is used for the single purpose of harboring the soul of a Shinigami while they carry out prolonged missions within the World of the Living. Shinigami who have lost their powers use standard Gigais as they await their powers to return so they can go back to the Soul Society. Many Shinigami have used standard Gigais during the Bount Incident and between the numerous invasions ofKarakura Town by Arrancars.
Before his exile, Urahara was experimenting and attempting to create a special Gigai. At the time, souls within the Rukongai were simply evaporating under mysterious circumstances. Urahara aimed to develop a Gigai that would help souls remain in human form instead of disappearing. The incidents were a result ofexperiments being done by Aizenand his colleagues. Before Urahara could make use of this gigai in the way he intended, he was exiled. However, he was forced to use this technology to help more victims of these experiments.
The Reiatsu Concealing Gigai was developed 101 years ago by Urahara so he, Tessai,and the Visored couldescape from Soul Society and live, undetected, within the Human World. During this time, Urahara aimed to find a way to reverse their hollowfication as a result of Aizen’s experiment, which saw them condemned to death.
Urahara also developed the Portable Gigai. This Gigai was meant to be used as a decoy in battle. It was seen being used against Yammy Llargo during the third Arrancar invasion of Karakura Town. This Portable Gigai provedeffective enough to fool Aizenwhen the two faced off during the Battle of Fake Karakura Town.
Rukia’s first Gigai appears to be unique in that, instead of just allowing the soul to recover in the human world like a normal Gigai, this one progressively lowers the host’s Reiatsu until they become a regular human with no spiritual powers. It was designed to keep the user’s Reiatsu hidden from any other souls that may be searching for them. Urahara Kisuke gave this special Gigai to Rukia to permanently seal the Hogyoku within it.The Hogyoku is an object of immense power, so sealing it inside the Gigai kept it out of Sosuke Aizen’s control. Even Akon, a skilled member of the SRDI, noted that this was such an advanced Gigai that nobody in their current research division was able to recreate one like it. After Aizen captured Rukia, he made sure to destroy this Gigai so he could retrieve the Hogyoku sealed within.
Another specialized Gigai created by Urahara was called the Human Shell. Urahara created the Human Shell Gigai for the purpose of helping Hollowfied Quincy souls. If a Shinigami enters this Gigai, they become a hybrid of Shinigami and humans. With the help of a special Reishi string that binds the souls, they can enter Quincy’s inner world to protect themfrom the Hollow inside. However, there are side effects like an inability to leave the Gigai or use Shinigami powers at all. Additionally, there is a huge risk of losing Shinigami powers entirely. This Gigai allows its user to reproduce as a normal human, as demonstrated by Isshin having three children after entering the Gigai.
A Gigai Like No Other
In Bleach: Memories of Nobody, the heroine Senna used a unique Gigai that, unlike others, she could freely exit from. Upon leaving, her gigai would disappear until needed again.
Bleach
Cast
Based on Tite Kubo’s battle shonen manga, Bleach centers around Ichigo, a high school student who is dragged into the world of Soul Reapers. The original anime ended in 2012, but it was revived in 2022.
