Sorata Nekoi

"Vision... We rely on what we see as truth. This truth, however, can effortlessly be shrouded by a veil of deception and ill-will. Can we trust what we see? You pity me for my lack of sight, and yet... I pity you for your ability to fall for these visible deceptions. Trust with your heart, see with your mind, value with your soul. Seijin must learn to never rely on the sense of sight. For to rely on such an easily manipulated ally, is to willingly give yourself up to dishonor and death."

- Sorata Nekoi to the Seijin Initiates


 * "Gazing into the Sun, a Purifying Vision." - Seireitou-shishō

Sorata Nekoi (空田猫井, Nekoi Sorata), also known by his Seijin Moniker as the Mōmokushi (学者盲目の, Scholar of Blindness), is of Master rank in the Seijin Council. He was once a fellow professor alongside Sōsuke Aizen, albeit being the latter's senior. Next to the Grandmasters, Sorata is heralded as the strongest of the Seijin Masters.

Appearance
Sorata, ironically, has an appearance somewhat similar to Sōsuke Aizen. He has wavy black scholarly hair, that is parted down the middle. He has a light black fuzz, located around his chin area. Seireitou commented that Sorata has a droopy, depressed look to his facial expression, despite his personality strongly contradicting this claim. In order to somewhat conceal his eyes of blindness, he wears glasses in order to prevent opponents from noticing this (though this fails from time to time). Making reference to his moniker, Sorata wears a white robe kept on by scroll-like obi that go down his shoulders; the entire attire almost like that of a japanese noblemen.

Personality
Coincidencially, Sorata is exactly the same in personality as he is seen through appearance. Being one of moral practice, Sorata strives to uphold his own "personal justice" as well as the justice of the Seijin Order. Evident from his past of teaching, he is steadfast in the Seijin tenets, and is disguisted by the act of treason and betrayal. Furthermore, Sorata serves as a teacher to younger Initiates and even many newly-promoted Masters. To his students and fellow teachers during his days as a professor, he was the humble Sorata-sensei. Contrary to Seijin General Nanako Ōmura's beliefs, Sorata does not credit the idea of survival of the fittest; rather believing that if one is to worry about only oneself, in times of peril where one's skill is not enough, they will be damned to defeat, or worse, death.

Sorata is often shown as serious and calm, but with a friendly air about him. He is not above breaking the tense atmosphere in order to promote prevention of provacation, this being shown most often in battle. He will, at times, attempt to talk his way out of a fight, but will fight when said opponent(s) insult or spit upon his morals or beliefs. In some ways, Sorata can be considered similar to Kisuke Urahara. However, unlike the latter, Sorata is soft-spoken, and would rather sit out situations. Stemming from his lack of anger, Sorata is usually seen in a comic light. Often making light-hearted jokes in conversations to lighten the mood. Because of this trait, he is usually not affected by thoughts of hatred and discontent. Despite coming off as a man of equality and justice, Sorata is a Shinigami with traditional views on Hollow. He believes that one who is seduced by the power of the Hollow, such as the Vizard, are forever destined to walk in the shadows. Sorata had warned Aizen of preforming Hollowfication research, saying that "once you start down this path, it shall forever dominate your destiny."

In reference to his surname, Sorata is an avid lover of felines. This is seen as a somewhat foil to Seireitou, the latter being fearful of cats. Sorata often mocks Seireitou playfully about this, usually getting into hilarious situations with the latter.

Powers & Abilities
Monstrous Spiritual Power: Recognized as the strongest of the Seijin Masters, next to the Grandmasters, Sorata possesses tremendous spiritual power. As stated by Koga Tensei, a fellow Seijin, his very presence is absolutely overwhelming. He is sometimes noted to have devastating spiritual pressure that comes in waves. In coloration, Sorata's spiritual power is seen as a darkened gray. It was powerful enough to send a shockwave across the Seireitei, being the result of a mere glare on Sorata's part. In many cases, Kamui has claimed that Sorata's spiritual power is as great as Seireitou's, albeit lacking the overwhelming density that the latter possesses. Despite this, his spiritual power is thick and strong enough to suffocate lower-ranked seated Shinigami merely by being in the general area.
 * Overcoming Blindness: Using spiritual pressure, Sorata overcomes his blindness by using reiatsu to make out out objects and persons. He treats his pressure as a blanket, and everything that makes creases and bumps in the blanket are figures and objects. Despite initial difficulty with this, in his years as a Seijin Master, it came as second nature to him. However, as a fail-safe to this method, he also uses his reiatsu in a manner similar to water displacement.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Even unarmed, Sorata is a capable fighter using martial arts. He is capable of fighting several armed Seijin Masters without the use of his Zanpakutō. When fighting unarmed, Sorata uses the ground or even air below him to sense out his opponents. He calls this being "one with reiatsu", one of the tenets that are valued most in the Seijin Order. He had used a unique form of technique involving locks and flips, being enhanced in usage when using his legs for the same purpose. However, he can switch to a style which would appear to be an entirely kick-based martial art similar to savate. Sorata was able to effortlessly knock out several Arrancar guards stealthily with a single strike each.

Genius Intellect & Analyst: Evident from his professorship background and arguably his most fearsome attribute, Sorata is an unrivaled intellectual. He is privy to many things in both history and in current events, knowing things that even the wise Junsui did not possess prior knowledge to. Sorata has a talent for analyzing everything, to the point where he claims that nothing surprises him anymore. He is quick to perceive a person's true nature and abilities simply by watching them for a mere minute, and ends up being perfectly correct almost every time. In battle, he will use a style of trickery and comic provacation to confuse his opponents, and use his massive reserves of physical and spiritual abilities to finish off said opponents. He takes various precautions before engaging in personal combat with an adversary, usually studying them through his various methods in order to gain a clear advantage. He seems to always have a contingency plan if something doesn't work out the way he expects.

Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Sorata shows immense skill in swordsmenship, evident from being able to take on Zacarias Donato, the Segunda Espada, without even using Shikai. He is a highly adaptable combatant as his two swords have allowed him to become ambidextrous, meaning that he is able to switch hands between the two swords. Sorata usually swings with more strength in his right hand then his left; however, he can easily switch or balance the strength between his two hands, much to the surprise of his opponent. His attacks have much strength behind them, giving his opponents more difficulty to counter. The force is strong enough that it can cut buildings into from a mile away.

Flash Step Master: Sorata possesses tremendous skill in flash step, being able to appear in two places at once. He is shown to move so fast, one does not even preceive his existence until after his physical being comes into visibility. Being able to pick apart an army of Gillian-class Menos in a mere handful of seconds is a testament to his immense speed. Sorata appears to possess knowledge of the Arrancar's Sonìdo as well as the Quincy's Hirenkyaku, confusing opponents by switching between his multiple speed enhancement techniques. He seems to sometimes leave a trail of afterimages when moving. His proficiency in this ability is so great that he was able to get next to Kento Tensei and lightly tap him on the shoulder, while the latter could only react with confusion at what just transpired.

Immense Strength & Durability: In terms of physical strength, Sorata is immensely powerful. He was able to actually catch and break Kento's Getsuga Tenshō with his bare hand. Sorata has the ability to survive seemingly unscathed from devastating attacks after taking on Seireitou Kawahiru, whose Zanpakutō is the most devastating in all of the Seijin Order in terms of destructive power. After taking a direct hit from Koga Tensei's Bankai-enhanced Zaiten Tenshō, and crashing into the town below, he was next shown lying practically unharmed amongst the rubble while uttering only a half-hearted "ow" in response to the attack.

Kidō Master: While not his preferred style of combat, Sorata has high prowess in Kidō combat. During his battle against, he was able to effortlessly launch his opponent several yards away with a seemingly small blast from his finger similarly to the Kidō spell Shō. He also aids in the opening of the Senkaimon for the Seijin Council. He is able to perform advanced high-level spells without incantation, and he can easily use Kidō in battle, such as when he used Danku against Renge Yamato.

Zanpakutō
Shitekīn (歴史的なマーク, historical mark; idiomatically "making a mark on history") is the name of Sorata Nekoi's Zanpakutō. It is often seen as a regular katana, with a simple cross guard, which is a simple open frame, much like a four-pane window. It has a light gray handle and white sheathe. Despite being sealed, Shitekīn is durable to withstand a direct Cero Piadoso from Almayo Vinas, with showing signs of even being weakened whatsoever.


 * Shikai: It is released by the command, "Resonate" (共鳴する, tōshin; literally "respond"); when releasing, it emits a pulse from its blade, reaching a considerably far distance. Its name hints at its involvement with history and the past; one must not let the past rule them, but merely allow it to become part of who they wish to become. It is a chinese saying that tells people not to rue what occured in the past and let those regrets take over their life, teaching people about living in the present, not in the past.
 * Shikai Special Ability: Shitekīn's Shikai ability is Kankei Sangai (への接続、過去, connection to the past). It allows Sorata to switch out events and areas in the present, with those in the past. This can be used for devastating applications, as this power extends over to his own abilities. He can even preform this on an opponent's entire being. However, it appears that Sorata can access powers and abilities from that person's past memories, anything that is recorded within their past. Going further with this, he can even change events within a person's history, which can have tremendous effects on the present. These effects seem to remain, even after Sorata reseals his Zanpakutō. Unless Sorata wills it to, the effects shall remain unless the affected opponent(s) is killed or dies.


 * Bankai: Not Yet Revealed. Kamui warned Sorata not to release his Bankai where "others can see."

Shiro Nagare
Shiro Nagare (白流れ, White Current) is the term used to describe the applied use of seijō reiryoku. Once a Seijin can access this power, he or she can shape it into various techniques that extend their Shinigami powers to the maximum, essentially creating "Perfect Shinigamification." This is achieved through a Training Method known as Control (管轄, Kankatsu). Even after learning how to access seijō reiryoku, a Seijin cannot fully control it, therefore it leaks out profusely. With meditation and practice, a Seijin can better control seijō reiryoku, effectively mastering it, though this require several years of work. Carrying over from his skill in "seeing with reiatsu", Sorata is a master of Shiro Nagare. It provides him with the following enhancements;
 * Telekinesis: The most common use of Shiro Nagare practices among the Seijin is the power to lift objects according to concentration and move them, hovering the items in any direction. With it, Sorata can attract objects to them or repel objects with devastating effects, even to the point of neutralizing some energy techniques. He can also use it to call his Zanpakutō back to his hands wherever he may be.
 * Enhanced Reiryoku Sensing: Through the use of Shiro Nagare, Sorata can sense reiatsu and reiryoku from all four dimensions; Soul Society, the Spirit King's dimension, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living. He can also sense presences hidden by kidō, zanpakutō, or even other Shiro Nagare-enhanced techniques. With this style, his ability to "see with reiatsu" is enhanced to a point where the differences between this and actual vision become blurred.
 * Enhanced Flash Steps: By combining the practices of Shiro Nagare with Flash Steps, Sorata can reach speeds that dwarf those of the Shinigami in Onmitsukidō as well as most of the Shinigami within the Order.
 * Telepathy: Using Shiro Nagare practices, Sorata, like all Seijin, can communicate with other seijō reiryoku users via mental telepathy. This comes in handy during combat, and also for conveying battle strategies without the opponent getting none the wiser.


 * Ryushiro Hyōmenka (白龍の破壊, "breaking of the white dragon") is a technique created by Sorata, that brings manipulation of seijō reiryoku to its greatest reachable form. By rotating reiatsu around his body as a flow of reiryoku, appearing like a white ribbon that is being wrapped around Sorata's body. The ends of the flow appear as a dragon's head and a dragon's tail, respectively. This dragon can be related to the appearance of chinese dragons, instead of european dragons. Through hand gestures, or even through mental orders, this white dragon can be sent to attack the opponent. Its destructive capabilities are almost frightening, as it was strong enough to best a Shikon Hisakiten from Seireitou, while still carrying out its path of destruction. Even after being launched, Sorata is able to control the movements of the dragon by the same means of sending it out for attack. Furthermore, when it wraps around Sorata, it can serve as a powerful barrier which can resist assault from all but the most strongest of techniques.

Quotes

 * (To Koga Tensei) "Remember well, Koga. Loyalty is the action furthest away from dependence."
 * "If your strength is small, don't carry heavy burdens. If your words are worthless don't give advice."

Trivia

 * Sorata's first name is a pun on Sonata, which is a piece of written music played as opposed to Contata, a piece that is sung. This was meant to make reference to Sorata's scholarly persona.
 * Nekoi (猫) means "cat", refering to his love of kittens.