Yūken Ōyanagi

"The stalwart who is blessed from the moon. A hollow heart now filled with the rays of midnight"

- Mewtwo

Yūken Ōyanagi (凹柳 夕剣 Ouyanagi Yuuken Literally meaning; Evening Sword, Hollow Willow) is the current lieutenant of the in the Gotei 13 under Shiroi Yoake. Additionally; he is the Corps Commander (軍団長, gundanchō) of the and fulfills his job splendidly. As the current heir of the lower-noble house, the Ōyanagi Clan, Yūken is burdened with much responsibility from his duties. Appearing as apathetic and uncaring to the surrounding world, he is known by the Gotei 13 as, Yonagi (夜凪 Evening Calm).

Background
Yūken was born to two high-ranking members of the Ōyanagi's council, Kenshī Ōyanagi (凹柳 圏示威 Ouyanagi Kenshii) and Anya Ōyanagi (凹柳 闇夜 Ouyanagi Anya). Upon his birth, it was found that he would be subjected to much responsibility as to become the new heir of his clan, merely due to the potential he exerted at a young age.

He was primarily given teaching in the arts of Kidō and Hohō from his mother, whilst his father taught him the skills of Hakuda and Zanjutsu. Consequently, Yūken had never lived a childhood that other children had lived, and because of this, was considered rather anti-social from a young age. It seemed that he would frequently give into anxiety, and in several stages of his youth he would be succumbed to depression.

Soon enough he was admitted into the to further his education. His reputation would be that of a genius who distrusted everything and everyone around him. He would ace all of his classes with no apparent struggle, and instructors would constantly compliment his skills. Yet his attitudes were a problem for everyone and would constantly be brought up to his parents.

Yet both Kenshī and Anya had known that they wouldn't be able to do much about this personality of his, and decided that they needed to try and be less strict on him. As such, they attempted to pacify the elders of the clan. Yet they hadn't cared, for Yūken was a tool to allow them to rise in the eyes of the nobles and attain greatness among their position in the Onmitsukidō.

Upon graduation, it seemed that Yūken had awoke his zanpakutō's Shikai state and been able to commune with the spirit. It was this brief communication that allowed Yūken to finally express his emotions with less strain, and finally be able to converse with the outside world.

His immediate family was pleased with this development, and his parents began to treat him with less harshness and placed less burdens on Yūken as a result. Soon enough, he would enter the Gotei 13 as a member of the Second Division, but would accelerate through the ranks with surprising speed and soon became the Lieutenant of the Division, along with obtaining the position of Corps Commander.

Appearance
Yuuken is a relatively tall young man of peak physical fitness and quite a lean, almost scrawny frame. His facial features are quite sharp and defined, but he generally is thought to be a very effeminate young man, much to his disdain when the topic is brought up. He has deep black eyes, and generally bears a dispassionate facial expression. Additionally; he possesses long black hair that goes down to his upper-back, and is kept in a single ponytail, with two bangs of different lengths caressing his face.

He tends to wear a modified form of the shinigami's shihakusho in order to easily be able to disguise himself when the time comes. He wears a long black trenchcoat with golden lining at the collar, over a short-sleeved white dress shirt, a pair of tight black jeans and a pair of black sneakers. His zanpakutō is kept strapped to his waist on his left side.

Synopsis
Main Article; Bleach: Roaring Conflict

Powers and Abilities
Resulting from this, Yūken has displayed levels of energy far above what would be expected of him from his childhood. At present, Yūken's level of energy warrants caution from other lieutenants from the Gotei, and even causes captains to take him seriously in a battle situation. It is exerted as a dark blue aura that cloaks him, and its full magnitude can cause the earth around him to tremble slightly.

Swordsmanship Aptitude: Yūken has shown a considerable amount of skill in swordsmanship. Though he would normally utilize hakuda in a confrontation, he isn't afraid of brandishing steel when necessary. He calmly utilizes swift strikes with pin-point accuracy to cause injury to his opponent whilst his defense revolves around circular motions used to direct an opponent's force elsewhere. He accompanies both his offense and defense with his skills in Hakuda to bring about his full potential.

Hakuda Expert: Displaying a level of proficiency that most lieutenants wouldn't be inclined to train their hakuda skills in, Yūken is a formidable close combatant due to his years spent within the Onmitsukidō and 2nd Division. As a result of his experience, Yūken is able to swiftly and expertly employ his entire body in combat. He utilizes swift and fluid motions, employing dexterity and agility. He tends to employ his hands and feet in combination, employing devastating combination attacks in conjunction with his swordsmanship in order to create confusion and pummel his enemies with little effort.

Hohō Expert: Not solely limited to the arts of Shunpo, the Ōyanagi are noted to be a clan who employ Hohō to its highest extent. They are capable of exceptional movement and agility, to the point in which they are considered Hohō Masters of an ability that almost rivals that of the Shihōin Clan. Yūken himself exploits agile and a heightened pace of movement that allows him to evade a number of onslaughts unto his being. Furthermore, he is capable of employing acrobatics with exceptional skill, avoiding devastating blows within a battle whilst responding appropriately and effectively.

Kidō Aptitude: Yūken has practiced the art of Kidō for a significant duration of time, from childhood to his current status as a Corps Commander. He has shown to be able to cast spells up to #60 without incantation, and even utilize certain combination Kidō for deadly effect. He has mastered his clan's unique illusory Kidō, and employs it quite skilfully in battle.
 * Tsuru Tamagushi (吊る玉串 To be hanged by the branch of a sacred tree) is a spell in which Yūken causes the spiritual particles in the surrounding area to be in a temporary stasis. As his enemy attempts to move in to attack, Yūken causes the energy to form into invisible tendrils that wrap around the victim's neck, arms and legs, leaving them restrained entirely, unless a large surge of spiritual energy allows them to escape. Additionally, using this technique, Yūken can suffocate his opponents and kill them outright.

Keen Intellect:

Zanpakutō
Nakiyū (泣き有 Lamenting Existence) is the name of Yūken's zanpakutō. When sealed, it takes the form of an elaborate and ornate katana, and is said to be one of the most beautiful zanpakutō in existence. The katana itself is slightly longer than the norm, and is always seen with a slight blue hue surrounding it. The blade itself is ornate with several unique carvings, which read Tears (涙 Namida). The hilt is a dark blue, with the guard having an almost rectangular-shape, and has a lighter blue tear-pattern etched onto it. The sheath is a very dark blue, almost similar to that of a midnight shade, with gold etchings that resemble a Yin-Yang symbol and an elaborate statue of a maiden. Yūken remarks that wielding Nakiyū is very difficult because of her emotional personality.
 * : To release his sword; Yūken sheaths it in a particular manner, by holding the sheath and blade upside down, he slowly sheaths it until the guard of the blade and the sheath clasp together. From here, he chants the command, A life is lived thousand times...yet the burden of your unfulfilled desires stabs your heart. Earn your wishes! (寿命が千倍に住んでいます...まだ満たされていない欲望の負担はあなたの心を刺す. あなたの願いを手に入れよう！Jumyō ga sen-bai ni sunde imasu... Mada mitasa rete inai yokubō no futan wa anata no kokoro o sasu. Anata no negai o te ni ireyou!) at this moment, Yūken draws his sword in a horizontal manner whilst exerting a large amount of spiritual energy which coats around his blade until the pressure of such energy causes it to shatter entirely. The fragments of the blade then recollect and create a replica of the original sealed state but forged almost entirely out of energy. This blade is far more powerful than the original, and has shown to cut through almost any substance in Yūken's path. Additionally, Yūken has shown the ability to regenerate the blade if it is cleaved through simply by adding spiritual energy to its form.


 * Shikai Special Ability: The ability of Nakiyū can only be used sparingly because of her tendencies to be exceedingly emotional regardless of the time. However, because of this, very few have seen Nakiyū's entire ability in action. However, from what has been seen, Nakiyū has shown the ability to grant Yūken the ability to create countless orbs of spiritual energy which are capable of being manipulated in any way Yūken wishes. Upon contact, they are known to explode severely and then recompose themselves into multiple orbs, which have less explosive power.
 * Hiwa (緋輪 Scarlet Ring) is a technique in which Yūken surrounds himself in multiple rings of scattered orbs, allowing him to survive continual onslaughts by gathering them at a focal point when an attack is used against him.

Sōyū (創有 Creation of Possessions) is the true ability of Nakiyū. When she is shown to be in a stable emotional state, Yūken is capable of commanding this ability as a last resort. In his entire career as a shinigami, only his Captain has seen this ability and lived, all others have died, hinting at its great power. Sōsei provides Yūken three small fragments of his own soul and allows him to place them into any medium he wishes, allowing him to create entire existences upon a whim. These existences have shown to be sentient beings who possess a direct link with Yūken as they are all derived with him. They are most commonly viewed to be humanoid beings with a midnight-blue hue surrounding them, and a deep purple core being the soul fragment they are made out of. These beings possess almost limitless fighting capabilities, but can only stay alive for as long as their soul fragment fuels them. After around ten minutes, the core loses its ability to independently gather spiritual energy and returns to Yūken, along with the inability to access this ability for over two months.