Arturo Plateado (Kenji Hiroshi)

Arturo Plateado (アルトゥロ・プラチアド, Aruturo Purateado; Spanish for "Silver Arthur"), known under the alias Averian (平均者) for centuries, was an -based Battle Doll created by the real Averian to serve as his proxy shortly after his defeat at the hands of Garian Shinjo. He served Averian and The Outsider loyally until he fought with Kei Yume over Kagamino City, where he ultimately betrayed his creator and rebelled. Arturo, now active under his own name, wouldn't make an appearance again until sixteen years after the First Spiritual War, where he murdered Yoshiro Kazuki to steal the latter's power. He was engaged by Rōnin Kori who sought retribution for Yoshiro's murder, though whether or not Arturo succumbed to his wounds and died, survived in an injured state to be healed, or was resurrected outright by Averian, is unknown. Arturo would later become a member of Averian's Espada following The Collapse.

Appearance
Arturo is a lean but lanky man with turquoise hair and yellow eyes. When he appeared before Yoshiro Kazuki he was hooded and cloaked, but wore a white outfit similar to Aizen's Arrancar underneath. Following his admission into Averian's Espada Arturo now sports long white-coloured hair with a turquoise fringe.

Personality
For centuries Arturo's own persona was suppressed as he served as Averian's proxy; he was designed to be the magnet that drew attention following Averian's defeat at the hands of Garian Shinjo, thus allowing Averian time to regroup and recover his strength. In this vein he acted with the same mannerisms as his master; at times he was a complete gentlemen, whilst at others he was an amoral tyrant who served his own ends without second thought, but always answering to his masters whims. It was only after being promised a challenge to whet his appetite for power -- and finding said challenge inadequate -- that Arturo's own personality began to resurface, with his own persona being fully solidified per the conclusion of his extended clash with Kei Yume.

Arturo, in a gesture of goodwill by Averian, described Arturo to Kenji as "a ruthless warrior and calculating strategist with a degree of pride that borders on arrogance", which was something Kei also echoed during their battle. He attacked Nishiendo knowing that Yoshiro, as leader of the Ryū Order's forces in the area, would lead the resultant patrols which enabled him to ambush the Shinigami and kill him to obtain his power, which also made him stronger than the likes of Kenji and Kusaka. His pride was so extreme that he could not fathom anyone possessing more power than him; when Kenji and Kusaka pooled their power to fight as one entity he declared the strength of this fused being as impossible, and swiftly cursed him.

Following his revival by The Outsider, Arturo's freedom was stripped by Averian who once more bound him to his service, to the point that he would frequently possess Arturo and speak through him. This led Tadashi Kori to state that Arturo was a disgrace whilst Kaien discounted him out-of-hand as a farce.

History
Arturo was created as a Battle Doll by Averian to serve as his proxy following his defeat at the hands of Garian Shinjo, with the real Averian slipping into relative obscurity in the deepest recesses of the. Arturo would go onto fight both Garian himself and Anika Shihōin, and was familiar with those who made up the ranks of The Philosophers. He was believed by all those he fought to be the real Averian, but one man came close to seeing through the guise. Sōritsu Kuchiki was widely regarded as a man with the uncanny ability to see the truth of all he saw, and what he saw worried Averian; he was thus targeted, which resulted in the latter's death and conversion into a Battle Doll. Arturo would also be the one who fought against and was ultimately defeated by Jiro Kazuki and later Sousetsu Shiba. Sousetsu realised that he could not physically kill Arturo and thus opted to seal him instead, at the cost of his own life. Arturo was sealed beneath the and remained there for centuries.

Arturo, after centuries of imprisonment, was ultimately freed from his prison when the Sōkyoku was destroyed during the. By this stage the only Captain in the Gotei 13 with knowledge of Arturo's imprisonment was. He did not authorise the Sōkyoku's destruction; this event was brought about by Captains and  operating on their own and taking advantage of an opening created by  in order to potentially save the life of. Although Yamamoto was aware of Arturo's subsequent escape he was distracted by the actions of traitorous Captains, and , and Arturo thus escaped the  without incident. He would then return to Averian and The Outsider where he was promised a nourishing meal in the form of Kenji Hiroshi, should he help distract the Gotei 13 in Kagamino City.

Synopsis

 * Main article: Bleach (Kenji Hiroshi).

Part I

 * Main article -- Bleach: Sun and Moon Chronicles.

Kagamino City arc

 * Prelude to War!
 * The Weaver of Dreams and the Phoenix

Second Coming of Averian arc

 * Return of Arturo (Mentioned only)
 * Awakening the Storm
 * Two Become One: Fury Unleashed!

Part IV

 * Main article -- Bleach: Cataclysm.

Braving the Waves arc

 * Joining the Threads
 * Clash Upon the Sands

War on Two Fronts arc

 * War Upon the Sands

Powers and Abilities
Possession: Arturo appears to be more susceptible to Averian's control than his fellow Espada. He was repeatedly taken over by Averian during his battle with the alternate version of Kaien Shiba.

Its strength and quality was also identical to Averian's own; to the point neither Garian, Anika, Jiro or Sousetsu could tell the difference. During the he possessed power that was superior to Kenji's full-Hollow form, and was capable of matching the strength of Kei Yume. After his reappearance Arturo's power was further bolstered with the strength of numerous Ryū Order operatives, including Captain Yoshiro Kazuki, whose power he absorbed. Neither Kenji nor Kusaka where confident in their ability to defeat Arturo following this absorption one-on-one and instead opted to fuse before engaging him in combat. Following The Collapse, however, limits appeared to have been placed on Arturo's power by Averian, which put his base-state roughly on-par with the alternate world counterpart of Kaien Shiba when the latter released his Shikai. When he releases his Resurrección Arturo's usually white-coloured reiatsu becomes red and fiery.



Zanjutsu Mastery: Arturo is a dangerously skilled swordsman. He was capable of matching some of the strongest individuals in the history of the Gotei 13; he lost only to Jiro Kazuki and Sousetsu Shiba, but managed to kill the fiercely powerful Sōritsu Kuchiki. His skill enabled him to match Kei Yume whilst completely outmanoeuvring a younger Kenji, to the point only Kei's intervention prevented Kenji's death. Even when Yoshiro began wielding six blades at once in their battle Arturo was capable of later killing the Shinigami. Kaien opted to immediately release his when faced with the prospect of fighting an unreleased Arturo one-on-one which is an indication of his skill-level. Whilst Kenji and Kusaka both progressed their respective skills so that they could match Arturo and Averian by themselves, they opted instead to fuse to produce a superior advantage, as they where wary of Arturo possibly absorbing Yoshiro's skills as a swordsman.

Sonído Mastery: Arturo possess advanced mastery of high-speed techniques; he was notably fit to keep pace with the original Flash Goddess Anika Shihōin. He was fit to completely outmanoeuvre a young Kenji, keep pace with the likes of Kei Yume, and eventually kill a masterful Shunpo practitioner of Yoshiro Kazuki's level.

Hierro: Like all Arrancar Arturo possessed the ability of Hierro. It enabled him to weather the potent attacks of Kei Yume, including the latter's Yume no Kantsūha.

High-speed Regeneration: Arturo demonstrated the ability to rapidly heal his injuries though protracted battle seemed to stunt his healing factor. When Rōnin cut a deep slash into his shoulder the damage healed itself almost immediately.

Devourer of Souls (霊食い, Reikui; Literally meaning "Soul-Food"): although he has since lost the ability to absorb the strength, abilities and memories of those he slays following The Collapse, Arturo still retains the powers and abilities he stole whilst he did possess the ability. How many ability sets he retains is unknown; he does, however, retain the skills of both Sōritsu Kuchiki and the alternate on account of him killing both.

Zanpakutō
Fénix (不滅王 (フェニーチェ), Fenīche; Spanish for "Phoenix", Japanese for "Immortal King"). Arturo's Zanpakutō resembles a basic katana with an hourglass-shaped guard. Unlike the Zanpakutō of other, Arturo's possesses an ability even whilst sealed. Anyone slew by his Fénix has their spiritual power absorbed and transferred to Arturo, further bolstering his own reserves. This ability, however, was once more potent; particularly when Arturo still served as Averian's proxy. It resembled the version wielded by Averian himself which absorbed not only the slain victims spiritual power, but abilities and memories as well, which Arturo could then utilise as his own abilities. He retained only the ability to absorb spiritual energy after rebelling, and he lost the ability altogether following The Collapse. He did, however, retain the myriad abilities stolen whilst he still possessed the heightened state of the skill.


 * Stolen Abilities: Arturo still possess the myriad of abilities he has stolen over the years.


 * Ryūjin Jakka (流刃若火, Flowing Blade-like Flame). The various abilities boasted by the Zanpakutō of the alternate was granted to Arturo prior to his revolt.


 * Taiyō (太陽, Sun). The various offensive abilities boasted by the Zanpakutō of Sōritsu Kuchiki was stolen by Arturo when the latter killed Sōritsu and replaced him with a Battle Doll.


 *  (天照, Illuminating Heaven). The various abilities boasted by the Zanpakutō of Kentaro Shiba's father, who was an alternate version of Kenji Hiroshi, was utilised by Arturo. Considering Rōnin died shielding his son from the violent throes of The Collapse in their world it is thus far unknown how Arturo gained these abilities.


 * : Arturo releases his Zanpakutō with the command "Rise From the Ashes", which is followed immediately by a resplendent pair of yellow wings offset with jagged purplish tips bursting from Arturo's back.


 * Resurrección Special Ability: Arturo's Fénix is rather obscure; instead of an assortment of special abilities, Arturo is instead given access to sweeping physical and spiritual enhancements across the board.


 * : Arturo demonstrated the ability to produce what he referred to as a "real Cero", the strength of which proved dangerous even to Arturo when Kei directed it back at him. His Gran Rey Cero is fiery-red.


 * Enhanced Spiritual Energy: Kaien noted that Arturo's reiatsu had soared to whole new heights upon taking this form.


 * Enhanced Speed: Arturo's speed, reflexes and Sonído movement are all augmented tremendously; his wings likewise enable him to perform more intricate movements, as well as allowing him to generate greater momentum for his actions.


 * Enhanced Durability: Arturo was capable of taking a potent Reīssen-blast from Tadashi Kori post-Collapse with only superficial injuries.


 * Resurrección: Segunda Etapa: Arturo, unlike the majority of Averian's Espada, possessed the Segunda Etapa form before being forcibly recruited into the newest iteration of the organisation. He, like, achieved this state by his own means and like his fellow Arrancar rarely showcased the transformation. When he does release it Arturo's physical form is barely distinguishable from his standard Resurrección; all that changes is the colour of his wings which, instead of their prior colour, are now teal-green in colouration.


 * Cero Marfil: a technique unique to Averian's Espada usable only in their Segunda Etapa forms; Arturo himself describes it as the opposite to, whilst declaring it "Our Cero" in the same vein Cero Oscuras was the Cero exclusive to Aizen's Espada. It produces an ivory-coloured Cero. The Cero Marfil boosts far greater destructive power, range and firing speed than even the ; to the point of inflicting grievous damage on even fresh Captain-class combatants.


 * Beam Sabre: a technique that produces an additional blade when Arturo extends his fingers forward, which is formed from solidified spiritual power in the shape of a red-coloured sabre. Arturo can use this additional blade as a medium to produce potent X-shaped energy attacks, either at range as a projectile attack, or beneath his opponents feet like an eruption. Unlike most post-release techniques Arturo has access to this technique in his sealed state, albeit a weaker version similar in strength to a typical Shinigami's.


 * Resurrección: Tercera Etapa: Thus far Arturo is the sole Arrancar capable of performing a third release, which he pridefully declares as "his release" and his "true form". Whether or not it is a natural occurrence or a result of his nature as a Battle Doll is also unknown, but judging by his own comments on the subject a natural occurrence appears to be more likely. All that is known of this form is that instead of producing teal-green wings it produces a pair of vibrant red-coloured wings instead, whilst significantly increasing his spiritual and physical abilities across the board.

Other appearances

 * Main article -- Nanashi's World.

Arturo possessed a counterpart in Nanashi's World. This Arturo led no less than three invasions on the Soul Society before finally being defeated by the Gotei 13 in his third invasion. He was described by Yamamoto to be a powerful self-made who once waged war on the Soul Society, where he successfully killed roughly half of the Gotei 13 before being driven back. In this world Arturo overpowered and killed Yamamoto. This version of Arturo was then killed by the "prime" Averian, who thus stole Yamamoto's abilities. These abilities where then imparted to the "prime" Arturo prior to his final revolt and where retained by Arturo following The Collapse.

Behind the Scenes

 * This version of Arturo is a fan-work based on the portrayal of Arturo in the video game ', whilst including several references from '. This version of Arturo also possesses a counterpart in Nanashi's World; it was actually this world where the events of the aforementioned Bleach: The 3rd Phantom took place. The alternate version of Kaien Shiba served as the link between these two versions of Arturo through statements made regarding the "prime" Arturo's powers, abilities and attitude in War Upon the Sands.

References and notes
