Ikkaku Madarame

Ikkaku Madarame (斑目 一角, Madarame Ikkaku), also known as Kenpachi Madarame (斑目 剣八, Madarame Kenpachi), is the former 3rd Seat of the 11th Division in the Gotei 13 under Kenpachi Zaraki. After Zaraki died, Ikkaku managed to obtain the title of 12th Kenpachi and reluctantly accepted the title of Captain of the 11th Division. His lieutenant is Yumichika Ayasegawa.

Appearance
Ikkaku is a bald man, and is in fact made fun of by a lot of people, especially the former 11th Division Lieutenant, Yachiru Kusajishi, who calls him either "cue ball", "chrome dome", or "pachinko-head" (as a result of her fondness for giving people nicknames or when he questions her direction skills). He often insists that he's not bald and his head is "shaven" while it is obvious that it isn't. As a result of the constant ridicule he gets, Ikkaku is very self-conscious about his baldness to the point where he will threaten anyone that points it out. Ikkaku's bald scalp is very reflective when seen under the sun, causing the members of the 8th and 11th Divisions to mistake it for a full moon in one of the omake segments, much to his chagrin. He also has distinctive small red markings at the outer corner of his eyes. Ikkaku has a scar running down the left side of his chest that he gained while fighting Ichigo Kurosaki during the Soul Society Arc. Unlike most Shinigami, Ikkaku doesn't wear tabi with his sandals on. The only other person who doesn't wear tabi is 8th Division Captain Shunsui Kyōraku. He wears the standard Shinigami robes instead of a captain's haori; this is because he reluctantly accepted the title of Captain.

Personality
In terms of his attitude, Ikkaku is a stereotypical 11th Division member — violent, fight-loving, and rude. This has been noted by Tetsuzaemon Iba, among others. He loves fighting so much that he is unwilling to travel anywhere without a sword, resorting to carrying a wooden one when posing as a student at Ichigo Kurosaki's school. However, Ikkaku does have a sense of loyalty and responsibility unlike many of the lower-ranked 11th Division members and was fiercely loyal to his former captain, under whose command he wishes to die.

Ikkaku shares many personality traits with his division's former captain, Kenpachi Zaraki, which explains why they seem to have so much respect for each another. Ikkaku considers fighting fun, just as his captain does, and tries to get as much fun as he can out of his opponents, so much so that he would take deadly risks to drag out the fight for as long as possible. He also shares Kenpachi's penchant for limiting his skills in order for fights to last longer (with the only difference being the fact that he chooses to do so by restricting the use of his Bankai whereas Kenpachi prefers the use of his power-sealing eye patch given to him by the 12th Division). Like Kenpachi, Ikkaku is seen constantly smiling when engaging in a fight with a formidable opponent. And like all 11th Division members, he considers the only honorable battles to be those that are fought one-on-one. Even the threat of death is not a reason to ignore this fact, as they believe that the winner is only to be determined when the other dies. He does consider surviving an otherwise lost battle good luck, as his former captain taught him, and is also sensible enough to carry a blood-clotting ointment in the hilt of his Zanpakutō.

History
Not much is known about Ikkaku's history. Ikkaku came from the streets of Rukongai. At some point, he met Yumichika Ayasegawa, and the two became friends. The two would frequently go from village to village looking for opponents for Ikkaku to face in combat.

They would later have an encounter with Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru Kusajishi before they entered Seireitei. Yachiru warned him that messing with Zaraki while he was in a good mood was a bad idea, but Ikkaku did not take the warning seriously. When face to face with Zaraki, he immediately became alarmed by his reiatsu, but was happy to finally have a real challenge. Zaraki attacked with enough force to crater the ground under Ikkaku, which somewhat alarmed Yumichika. Due to Zaraki's strength, Ikkaku was on the defensive holding off Zaraki's relentless strikes. The two continued to battle with Ikkaku trying to overwhelm Zaraki though not able to wear him down, only succeeding in Ikkaku receiving wounds while Kenpachi remained untouched by his blade. When Zaraki mentioned he was having fun, he decided to finish Ikkaku with one quick strike resulting in Ikkaku's loss of the fight. Ikkaku became mad that Zaraki would just walk away without finishing him off. Zaraki plainly told him that he had no interest in weaklings who cannot fight. He noted that he did not have any obligation to finish Ikkaku off. Ikkaku thought he was toying with him and demanded that Zaraki kill him. Zaraki lost his patience, grabbed hold of Ikkaku and asked him that if he loved to fight so much, then why was screaming for death. Zaraki explained to him a philosophy to follow for people like them. "Don't admit defeat and seek death, die first, then admit defeat. When you lose, but don't die it just means you were lucky. At those times, think only about survival. Survive and think only about killing the guy who failed to kill you". Zaraki then smiled at him and stated that it was not like he went easy on him, he was just lucky to escape death. He expressed that Ikkaku should live and come back to kill him. As Zaraki left, Ikkaku asked him his name and was told he is Kenpachi from Zaraki.

Afterwards, when he had rehabilitated from his wounds Ikkaku searched for Zaraki everywhere in order to challenge him but never could find him. Until one day when Ayasegawa came to him with some news, as he had heard that Zaraki had beaten the captain of the 11th Division of the Gotei 13 in a single blow, which made him the new captain of that division. Ikkaku was taken aback by this revelation as he saw that protecting others really was not Zaraki's style and set out to find his old opponent.

During an address to his division, Zaraki was greeted by Ikkaku and Yumichika, who had become Shinigami and joined the division. Ikkaku told Zaraki that he had come back just as he had suggested, which caused Zaraki to smile. Later they were present when the division battled a caterpillar-like Hollow. While initially the division lost several members, Ikkaku showed up to fight it but was stopped by Zaraki who decided to kill it himself. After the Hollow was dispatched, more came, which prompted Ikkaku and Yumichika to join in the fight. Though at first Zaraki was against it, he was persuaded upon realizing the two have similar fighting traits as him.

Sometime later Ikkaku, whilst walking around the 11th Division barracks is greeted by Renji Abarai a fresh transfer from the 5th Division. Renji asked that Ikkaku train him. The two battled and Ikkaku became impressed at his new student’s eagerness to excel. When he asked Renji why he wanted to become strong so badly, Renji explains that he has someone he wishes to surpass. They continue to train well into the evening, advancing as far as using their Shikai against each other. Ikkaku then tells Renji that they have finished training and if he wished to learn any more then he would have to figure it out on his own as Ikkaku did not want Renji to end up mimicking his style. Renji then asked him if he had Bankai and why he did not use it, to which Ikkaku commented that he had his reasons and he alluded that he was chasing someone as well. He then told Renji his name and instructs him to remember it as the next time they fight it will be to the death. He then explains to him why he gives his name to his opponent, as Ikkaku left, Renji thanked him.

Powers & Abilities
Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Despite being formerly ranked as a 3rd seat officer in his division, his rank did not reflect his fighting abilities, which are of captain-level and has further improved since he has become a captain. According to his lieutenant, Yumichika Ayasegawa, Ikkaku was the 2nd strongest man in the 11th Division under Kenpachi Zaraki, but with Zaraki removed, he is the strongest man in the 11th Division, and rightfully so. He uses a fighting style that is noted at being rough but powerful alongside the use of complex movements that allows him to lunge with his sword from the left and defend with his sheath at the right, though he is ambidextrous and can easily switch between the two techniques. He uses misdirection in his attacks and even though doing so allows for holes in his defense he is more than capable of making it up with surprise attacks. However, his mastery of this skill is great enough that Renji Abarai begged Ikkaku to train him.


 * Naginatajutsu Master: Ikkaku's Zanpakutō is a Naginata-type weapon while in Shikai form, Ikkaku uses it perfectly against other sword-type weapons.


 * Bōjutsu Master: Ikkaku's Zanpakutō is a Naginata-type weapon while in Shikai form, it can split apart into a three-sectioned staff and back into a Naginata. While in the split form he is highly proficient in the use of techniques similar in use to that of bo to take advantage of its versatility.

Flash Steps: Ikkaku has been seen using Flash Steps frequently, though he only uses it to keep up with stronger opponents; this way he can fight more.

Massive Spiritual Power: Though formerly only a 3rd Seat, now turned captain, Ikkaku boasts a high spiritual level and even as a 3rd seat, he had the spiritual power level of a captain of the Gotei 13. His spiritual energy is red. Even by a captain's standards, his Spiritual Pressure is absolutely monstrous, after becoming a captain. In fact, it is so great that Ikkaku can fight on par with several other captain-level opponents without using his full power, even when he is wearing his withholding his Bankai and his opponents release their Zanpakutō's Bankai. His spiritual energy has been shown to be powerful enough to affect entire areas to the point of disrupting energy attacks from enemies, and cause others from seemingly miles away to enter a state of paralysis and confusion.

Enhanced Strength: Ikkaku obviously possesses a high level of strength, as he was able to block a punch from Edrad Leones in his released state, even when severely injured. Several of his enemies also comment to the strength of his blows.

Enhanced Endurance: Ikkaku has been shown to have an incredibly high endurance. In his first fight against the Arrancar Edrad Leones, who had released his Zanpakutō, Ikkaku was losing with ease against an Arrancar even when the he uses his Shikai. Ikkaku is then told by the Arrancar to give up but he fights back and after using for the first time his own Bankai he won against the Arrancar. In another fight with Arrancar Choe Neng Poww, Ikkaku was losing poorly, even his Shikai was completely destroyed, yet he wanted to fight regardless.

Enhanced Durability: Despite taking on a lot of wounds, Ikkaku can continue to fight against great odds.

Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Before he became a Shinigami, Ikkaku was always roaming around looking for fights. He won against everyone he fought even when he did not use a sword. Ikkaku had to fight with his hands against his opponents since not all of them had a sword, and upon seeing his strength most people fled from him.

Zanpakutō
Hōzukimaru (鬼灯丸, Demon Light): It appears like any regular Zanpakutō when sealed. Madarame does hide a small vial of healing ointment in the base of the hilt, though. Hōzukimaru's cross guard is an oval, with what look like three small teardrops in relief on both the top and bottom end. Hōzukimaru's sealed form enables Ikkaku to employ it in battle as a normal weapon, with its sheath being wielded in his other hand to serve as a secondary weapon.


 * Shikai: Its Shikai command is "Grow" (延びろ, nobir; "Extend" in the English version). Hōzukimaru's Shikai is unusual in that Ikkaku slams Hōzukimaru's hilt (and sometimes its pommel) into its sheath to activate it when saying the command phrase. Once activated, Hōzukimaru takes on the form of what initially appears to be a naginata (spear) with a wax wood shaft. The pommel also has a red horsehair tassel. While able to deliver powerful blows, it is not very durable as it tends to break against particularly strong strikes.


 * Shikai Special Ability: Ikkaku uses the command "Split" (裂けろ, sakero; "Split apart" in the English dub) to separate his naginata into its true form which is a Sansetsukon (Three Sectional Staff), after which the sections can independently reconnect and separate again at will. This special ability surprises one's opponents when they first attack. These chains are also able to extend a fair length, allowing Ikkaku to swing his weapon like a flail for mid-range attacks.


 * Bankai: Ryūmon Hōzukimaru (龍紋鬼灯丸, Dragon Crest, Demon Light): It keeps the three-section theme but loses its naginata properties. Instead, it is merely three over-sized weapons connected by an equally large chain. To activate it during his battle with Edrad, Ikkaku slams the two broken pieces of his Shikai back into the spear-form and says Bankai. Ikkaku's two main weapons are a Chinese Monk's spade and a standard Guan dao. Both have a traditional horsehair tassel at the hilt and a long cylindrical weight for a pommel. The pommels are connected by a heavy chain to the center section, which resembles an axe-like blade with a parallel handle forged into the blunt end and a dragon crest on one side of the blade. Despite all three weapons being of near-ridiculous proportions, Ikkaku wields them easily. Ikkaku usually holds one blade in each hand and lets the central portion "float" behind him, though he will occasionally spin the entire configuration about using the center handle as a pivot.


 * Bankai Special Ability: Ikkaku's Bankai, like his Shikai, is quite unusual. Aside from the increase in power, his Bankai offers no special abilities and no special defense properties. It releases some reiatsu which starts to grow in strength. Ikkaku treats Hōzukimaru a lot different than others (as they just let theirs slumber and use it when they want to do Bankai). But if he forces it to awaken suddenly, cutting the enemy and not getting cut becomes a lot harder to handle than it should be. Thus Ikkaku's Bankai gets increasingly more powerful as the fight drags on. After he performs his Bankai, the dragon crest will slowly fill in with crimson dye as Ikkaku's Spiritual Pressure rises. It fills faster when he spins Hōzukimaru with the center handle. Ikkaku comments that his Zanpakutō is actually very lazy in battle (in stark contrast to Ikkaku himself) and needs to be woken up through causing or receiving injury; which would explain its ability to accumulate attacking power the longer the fight extends. When the crest is completely filled, Hōzukimaru is at its full power. However, the force of unleashing so much power can leave his Zanpakutō's edge brittle under excessive stress.