Tia Harribel

Tia Harribel (ティア・ハリベル, Tia Hariberu), called Tia Hallibel in the English dub, is an Arrancar in Sōsuke Aizen's army, and is Espada Tres (Three). She is currently the only female Espada.

Appearance
Harribel has dark skin, green eyes, blonde eyelashes, and messy short blonde hair which has three braided locks. She wears a variation of the Arrancar jacket that covers the lower part of her face downward, while baring a good portion of the lower half of her large breasts. The jacket, unlike that of other Arrancar, has a zipper running along its entire length that is opened from the bottom upwards (in the anime, this outfit is extended to fully cover her breasts, a black stripe showing where the original cut of the jacket was). The jacket's sleeves completely envelop her arms, terminating in black glove-like extensions at her extremities, which slightly gives her fingers the appearance of a cat's paws. Harribel carries her Zanpakutō horizontally across her back (similar to Soifon). The sword itself is notably broad and short compared to others, and has a western-style guard.

The remnants of her Hollow mask consist of the sides of her face and her mouth, as well as an extensive area below and around her neck extending down to, and also covering, her nipples; she usually hides these Hollow remnants from view with her jacket (in the anime, the remnants are extended to cover the underside of her breasts due to censorship). Harribel's mask fragment give her a similar appearance to Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, at least in regards to the teeth. To date she has the most intact mask of any Arrancar not including the incomplete Grand Fisher (though the mask is removed upon her Zanpakutō's release). Her Espada tattoo is oddly placed on the left side of her right breast. The location of her Hollow hole is currently unknown, despite the fact that her release form reveals most of her body.

Personality
Harribel rarely speaks, and when she does, she's fairly serious. An example would be when she tells her Fracción that being afraid of an Espada's released form is a natural reaction. She calculated the battle between Ichigo Kurosaki and Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez was more of a fight between two Espada than anything else. She tends to cross her arms when not engaged in combat.

Compared to her fellow Espada, who are usually arrogant, boastful, impulsive, battle-hungry, bloodthirsty, and egotistical, Harribel is composed, receptive, analytical, and prefers not to engage in combat; she is content on silently observing both parties until the fighting reaches its conclusion, and actually fights only when she is challenged and attacked by an opponent or commanded to fight by her superiors (though she appears reluctant to take orders from a higher-ranked Espada). However, when she is betrayed by Aizen, Harribel angrily attacks him, showing that, when provoked, Harribel is quite aggressive and brutal, something that wasn't present during her previous fights with Hitsugaya, Lisa, and Hiyori. Harribel's gender and associated rank in the Espada often draws the unwanted attention of other people; Nnoitra Jiruga attempts to provoke her into attacking him with a sharply-worded comment during the Espada meeting. She also catches the eye of Captain Shunsui Kyōraku, even to the point of him mentioning his (rather positive) opinion of her abilities to his opponent.

Before Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends broke into Las Noches, Harribel is seen in the company of Aizen and her fellow Espada - in Aizen's throne room, the debriefing room, and the room which houses the Hōgyoku. However, she, like the other Espada, has her own quarters. Whenever she is present, Aizen usually greets the group with words such as "ladies and gentlemen of the Espada" or "brothers and sisters", apparently for her exclusive benefit, as she is the only female. She views Aizen and his powers in high regard, which is reciprocated by Aizen to a certain extent, as he seems unconcerned with the prospect of his top three Espada fighting a numerically-superior force led by six Shinigami captains without his aid.

Strangely, Harribel seems to show some concern for her enemies. This was hinted when she observed Ichigo's fight with Grimmjow and was finalized when she asked Hitsugaya about his fluctuating reiatsu during their fight. Unlike most of her comrades, Harribel does care for her Fracción, as she is noticeably upset when she senses their presences fading, and later angrily assaulting Hitsugaya seconds after their defeat at the hands of Captain-Commander Yamamoto.

Powers & Abilities
Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Harribel has demonstrated tremendous skill in swordsmanship, being able to fight on even grounds with Hitsugaya, a captain-level Shinigami as well as famous prodigy of swordsmanship. Harribel is ambidextrous and can switch her sword from her right to left. She is even capable of defending herself from a Shinigami captain and two Vizard simultaneously.

Cero: Harribel has been shown to charge her Cero using her sword and being able to fire it in a very wide ranging form, following the arc of her subsequent sword swing.

Sonído Master: Harribel has demonstrated incredible speed in battle, initially able to outmaneuver Hitsugaya to the point of forcing him almost completely on the defensive.

Garganta: Garganta is how Arrancar move to and from Hueco Mundo. Harribel has the ability to use this technique. It literally tears open the dimensional fabric separating the worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential energy that must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway. She is seen using one to travel to the Fake Karakura Town.

Immense Spiritual Power: Being one of the top four members of the Espada, Harribel is forbidden to release her Zanpakutō while inside the dome of Las Noches. If she were to do so, her immense spiritual power would be enough to demolish the fortress. Her spiritual power is yellow.

Highly Perceptible Combatant: While a person of few words, Harribel has shown herself to be an intuitive person. She is easily able to see through a person's demeanor to determine what they are thinking about. During the battle between Ichigo and Grimmjow, she noted how similar the two were, especially in terms of energy signatures. Her keen intellect and intuition is later seen in the initial fight with Hitsugaya, being able to see through his icy demeanor and identify his concern for his Lieutenant. She was able to sense a small wavering in Hitsugaya's Spiritual Pressure after the arrival of Hinamori concerned him.

Master Tactician: Harribel was able to hold her own in a fight against Hitsugaya who used counter abilities to her own, taking advantage of his attacks to use for her own purposes.

Zanpakutō
Tiburón (皇鮫后 (ティブロン), tiburon; Spanish for "Shark", Japanese for "Imperial Shark Empress"). In its sealed state, Harribel's Zanpakutō, while not particularly long, is unusually wide and has the distinction of being completely hollow in the middle, essentially consisting of nothing more than the edges of what would otherwise be a normal sword. Its handle is purple and its guard is as wide as its blade, with three small holes on either end that Harribel uses to unsheathe it. Oddly, the sword is longer than its sheathe. It is worn horizontally on her upper back.


 * Ola Azul (波蒼砲 (オーラ・アズール), Ōra Azūru; Spanish for "Blue Wave", Japanese for "Blue Wave Gun"): A technique in which Harribel pulls her sword back as it gathers yellow spiritual energy within the hollow portion of her blade and launches it towards her opponent, in the form of an energy blade projectile. She has also demonstrated the ability to keep the energy concentrated within the hollowed out portion of the blade and unleash it in the form of a ribbon when attacking.

Halibel_Resurreccion_004.jpg

 * Resurrección: Its release command is "Attack" (討て, ute). When releasing her Zanpakutō, she holds it in an outstretched arm in front of her with the blade pointing down and declares the release command. She is then completely enveloped by a heart-shaped surge of water that closes around her to form a cocoon-like cyclone which Harribel then cuts herself out of. In this form, all of her clothes are gone, as well as her Espada tattoo. The Hollow fragments she has in her sealed state become a collar with extensions that cover her nipples, in addition to spaulders on her shoulders with two ribbon-like protrusions on her back that bare a resemblance to shark fins. A thin, spine-like structure also forms on her stomach, spanning from her waist to the underside of her breasts. Harribel now wears a mini-skirt consisting of bones that appear to surround a dark undergarment. She wears a pair of knee-length boots and elbow-length gloves as well. Her weapon takes the form of a broad pata, which resembles an elongated shark tooth, featuring an unusual hilt with a hand guard that completely covers her hand. The sword also possesses what appear to be gill markings along either side of the blade. Harribel loses her three braids, making her hair become messy, and gains two lightning bolt markings on both sides of her face.


 * Resurrección Special Ability: In this form, Harribel's speed and strength increase immensely.


 * Water Manipulation: Her primary ability in this form is the creation and manipulation of water. The water used for her attacks is generated by the gill-markings on her blade.


 * Hirviendo (灼海流 (イルビエンド), irubiendo; Spanish for "Boiling", Japanese for "Burning Current"): Harribel points her blade out and instantly boils any form of water that comes close to it, including ice, and deflects it around her.


 * Cascada (断瀑 (カスケーダ), kasukeda; Spanish for "Waterfall", Japanese for "Cutting Waterfall"): Harribel launches a rushing surge of water at her enemy. The torrent of high pressure water is large enough to cover several town blocks.


 * La Gota (戦雫 (ラ・ゴータ), ra gota; Spanish for "The Drop", Japanese for "War Drop") Harribel is able to condense large amounts of water around her blade before firing it as a blast that resembles a shark tooth. She has also demonstrated the ability to fire multiple blasts in rapid succession with relative ease. The blasts strike with enough force to demolish houses.

Fracción
Harribel's Fracción consists of three female Arrancar, all presumed dead or incapacitated at this time. She seemingly holds them in high regard as she wishes to avenge them.


 * Apache (アパッチ, Apacchi) is a tomboyish Arrancar with heterochromia, one sky blue and one amber eye; the latter has a red ring around it. Apache's mask fragment is on the top of her head with a horn in the middle much like that of a unicorn. Apache's Zanpakutō are the bracelets strapped to her arms.


 * Mila-Rose (ミラ・ローズ, Mira Rōzu) is a dark-skinned Arrancar who dresses like an Amazon warrior. Her mask fragments form a three-sectioned crown around her head and a thick necklace. Her Hollow hole is positioned midway between her navel and breasts. Her Zanpakutō is a western style longsword.


 * Sun-Sun (スンスン, Sunsun) wears a long white dress, with sleeves that extend well past her hands. She also has two belts criss-crossing each other on her waist. Sun-Sun has long, flowing green hair and three dots below her right eye. Her mask remnants create three hair clip-like extensions on the right side of her hair. Her Hollow hole isn't visible. She seems to be the most mature of Harribel's Fracción, advising Apache and Mila-Rose to stop arguing, as it makes them look weak, then chiding their angry responses. Her Zanpakutō resembles a sai.

Trivia

 * Harribel's aspect of death is Sacrifice.
 * Harribel introduces herself as Tres (three) Espada, instead of Tercera (third)