Chira Tendou

Chira Tendou (天道=チラノ, Tendō Chira), also known as the "Legendary Dark Knight" (伝説の魔剣士, Densetsu no Makenshi) is a powerful Visored; now Masato Nagareboshi's right-hand-man. If Masato is the shadow which paints a negative light upon Gai Nagareboshi's character, then Chira is the light which counters Gai's darkness. Calm, sophisticated, polite, and a caring figure to all that happen across him, Chira is and always will be hailed as a saviour even after his defection from Soul Society. Chira is known as a hero who unified the warring clans of Soul Society under his command. He believes that the strong should protect the weak, and only wishes for the prosperity of the people of Soul Society. Despite being Masato's right-hand-man, Chira is more of a neutral character due to being unfamiliar with his superior's plans.

Appearance
Just the rest of his design, Chira's rugged, tall, and handsome figure is meant to contrast Gai's slender, short and pretty figure. While Gai's brunette hair is rapunzel-esque and elegant, Chira's raven hair is short and messy, curving out slightly horizontally with several clumps framing his forehead and running down to his nose. His hair is cut like it's a bother, leaving it somewhat uneven as if he doesn't care. His gaze is stern; though it is not without the caring aura that he exudes in every action. His skin is slightly darkened, and his eyes are a fierce golden, which are said to bore into the souls of everyone he stares at.

Personality and Traits
Chira is a man who sticks to his code of honour no matter the circumstances. He refuses to dabble in immoral acts, and will never stoop so low as to harm those weaker than him. More than that, however, he refuses to kill unless it is absolutely neccessary, and will go to extreme lengths to make sure that his foe remains alive. However, he will never back down from a fight, and will accept all challenges unconditionally to make sure his honour is intact at the end of the day. He believes that the strong should protect the weak, and without power, nothing can be done about the state of Soul Society. Gai even points out that doing so is suicidually foolish in this day and age, somthing that Chira does not deny.

Despite his obsession with his honour, Chira is a noble and kind man with a soft spot for children and animals, much like his archrival. Nika even points out that Chira Tendou and Gai Nagareboshi are so alike that they could be related, a fact that both Chira and Gai both comically blow up at. He is often seen in the slums of Rukongai, helping those less fortunate with their troubles even if it sucks up all of his time, though he sees this as an prime oppertunity to learn more about the people he is protecting. Chira has a professed love of Rukongai, to the extent of creating its mascot in his childhood. He would do anything to help Rukongai, though unfortunately this leads to him joining Masato, unaware of his true intentions.

Like his rival Gai, Chira harbors a deep hatred of Shinigami, but instead of just killing the Shinigami before him in a blind push, Chira is strategic and utilitarian; he is always crafting plans to put the hurt to Diavolo, and is willing to do anything and sacrifice anyone, Shinigami or human, to accomplish his goal. Despite his ruthlessness, he has a true love for "Master Masato", and wants to work together with Gai as per Masato's last wishes.

However, despite his disgust at Diavolo's treatment of humanity, Chira does not believe that humans should have absolute freedom. After being exposed to the people of Earth, he realized it was not only the Shinigami, but a great deal of humanity that was corrupted, and as a result became disgusted with humanity and sought out to change their ways. Chira sees them as weak and ignorant children who are to be watched over, and is even blind to all of Vittoria's accomplishments due to her humanity; in fact, Gai compares his plans to those of Diavolo, and the sole difference between the two seems to be that where Diavolo would gleefully exploit and torture his charges, Chira plans to coddle them.

On the other hand, it is arguable that Chira's "evil" persona was only a front in order to accomplish his real objective: a final match with his rival, Gai, over the death of Masato. This is evidenced when Chira authorized Mizuho Electronics to provide a psychic frame to Gai's Juggernaut Overdrive, which had previously been exclusive to Chira's own Legacy Armour, all for the purpose of establishing an equal playing field between himself and Gai. If this is the case, then Chira has become just as corrupt as those he reportedly fought against, as it meant he was willing to do permanent damage to the Earth as well as slaughter billions upon billions for one selfish desire.

Powers and Abilities
Master Swordsmanship Specialist: With his Zanjutsu, Chira is capable of unleashing extremely accurate blows and quick maneuvers before his opponent can react that are much swifter than other swordsmen in the main cast; in fact, Gai even compares Chira to an actual samurai in their first fight; something that not even most common Shinigami are classified as due to their reliance on other fighting styles. The speed and precision of Chira's strikes are able to inflict a lethal blow on his opponent without staining the blade with blood, and even slice open the head of a large Hollow. It should be noted due to his odd position as neither dead nor alive in Broken Mirror, all of Chira's sword strikes have the ice-element imbued within them, which Chira refers to as the "Chills of the Underworld" (黄泉の冷気, Yomi no Reiki).
 * Iaidō (居合道, Way of Iai): Most of the time, Chira uses Iaidō, a sword style where the user quick draws the blade extremely fast to strike, then re-sheathing it after every attack. Chira's speed is so fast that he prevents opponents from reciting Kidō incantations and releasing their Zanpakutō making it highly effective against Shinigami and Kidō specialists, however, if one has no need for incantations or have short release commands, then they could hamper Chira's advantage. Chira is able to strike so fast that the opponent does not realize they have been cut until he sheathes his weapon.
 * Orion Devastation (三翼竜・白光斬 (オリオン・デバスタシーオン), Orion Debasutasīon; Japanese Three Winged Dragon: Slash of White Light): A special technique of Chira's; where he slashes the opponent at such high speeds that it seems as if he did not even launch an attack; to those witnessing the attack, it seems as if Chira merely walked past his foe. Only when a few moments pass—which is the time when Chira walks ten feet away from the foe, does the victim realize that Chira has attacked. The actual attack itself however, is never seen clearly in any of its appearances because of the speed utilized in its workings. The technique is highly versatile, since with it, Chira is capable of slashing multiple targets at once and, if he desires, the damage that he inflicts can be as fatal or as incapacitating as he wishes.
 * Aurora Execution (吹雪・牙重斬 (オーロラ•エクスキューション), Ōrora Ekusukyūshon; Japanese Fanged Successive Slash of the Blizzard): A variant of Orion Devastation; where he uses the Chills of the Underworld to decrease the air temperature to -273.15 ° C (absolute zero), which he coats upon his blade. There, he performs the same movements as Orion Devastation; however, here, he sheathes his sword from top to bottom and the streak mark he creates with his Zanpakutō coated in absolute zero freezes the opponent's blood.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant:
 * Ryūsenkō (竜戦吼, Battle Roar of the Dragon): Chira's signature technique when he is not utilizing his blade; it enables him to unleash blasts of intense spiritual power to devastate all that is in front of him. In order to utilize the attack, Chira takes upon a pose in which he crosses his arms, concentrating his spiritual energy in this position, before thrusting his palms forward at high speeds, releasing his spiritual energy in the form of an extremely devastating shockwave that has the potential to obliterate everything in a five meter radius before the foe can react; instantly after, his hands return to their original position. It has been explicitly stated that Ryūsenkō is based on the sheath-and-strike sword art of Iaidō, which Chira utilizes in a normal situation with his blade, drawing the blade with the proper speed to attack or counterattack before the foe is able to properly react.

Shunpo Master:

Kidō Master: How much skill Chira actually has in the art of Kidō is unclear; though he has been shown utilizing quite a number of highly powerful self-made Kidō spells.
 * Geneiken (幻影剣, Phantasmal Swords): Geneiken are magically generated blades resembling Chira's former Zanpakutō; which he manifests with Kidō, which are capable of piercing while paralyzing his foe simultaneously. When Chira uses Geneiken, it is not uncommon to see a flurry of swords materializing out of thin air and disappearing just as quickly, flying and attacking rapidly from many angles at once; overall overwhelming the foe; or at least, placing tremendous pressure upon them, forcing them to keep their defenses up lest they be struck by a sword—causing hundreds of other blades to perforate them in a matter of moments.

Immense Strength:

Enhanced Speed:

Notable Durability:

Immense Spiritual Power:

Zanpakutō
Rakkakyōryū (落下恐竜, "Falling Dinosaur") just as Chira is the light to Gai's darkness, his Zanpakutō is the darkness to Kōshinhōō's light; it could be said that the Zanpakutō are twins, though in truth Rakkakyōryū was reverse-engineered through analyzing what makes Kōshinhōō so powerful, and applying that knowledge to Chira's Zanpakutō through an unknown method. However, as the evolved bird eventually beat out its predecessor, the dinosaur in the evolution scheme of things, it should be known that the rising phoenix would eventually triumph over the falling dinosaur, as indicated by their names. As a contrast to Kōshinhōō's European theme, Rakkakyōryū remains firm in the roots of the Zanpakutō- keeping a distinctly Japanese theme. The ōdachi is over three meters long, with a slightly serrated appearance to it when it comes to the blade. It shines a distinctly illustrious golden, with a claw-like tsuba and pommel. The hilt is a deep red.

Shikai: Unleashed with the invocation, "Let's go!" (行きましょう！, "Ikimashou!"), Rakkakyōryū transforms into a larger, more fearsome version of its sealed state. Ironically, it bares more similarities to Kōshinhōō in this form, contrasting these weapons and their wielders have, symbolic that deep down, Gai Nagareboshi and Chira Tendou have more in common then they would care to admit. It should be noted that in Shikai, Rakkakyōryū possesses a trigger, which when pressed, causes the blade's tip to open, revealing it to be a sort of bazooka, which can fire missiles of explosive spiritual energy. This is Chira's most common method of finishing off an opponent that has irked him or done some grave injustice. However, this form has a somewhat slow rate-of-fire, leaving these exceedingly powerful shots rather easy to dodge, but near impossible to deflect or shield oneself from. Other this, Rakkakyōryū possesses no other unique features, other than the blade is constantly bathed in a crimson aura of spiritual energy which somehow auguments its cutting power.

Shikai Special Abilities: Just as Kōshinhōō is the Zanpakutō of the Sky, Rakkakyōryū is the Zanpakutō of the Earth. Opposing and clashing, intertwining and embracing their dual destiny, these twin blades would struggle for the title of the ultimate weapon. Created from the same desire, the Rising Phoenix and the Falling Dinosaur share the same basic powers, though Chira is significantly craftier in their application; giving him the ability to manipulate, but not alter or replace memories, giving Chira amazing memory capacity, being able to memorize anything and everything about his opponent, thus making every and any strategy, approach, or ability essentially null and void. This ability is set up in the release, where spiritual energy erupts from Chira's blade in a web pattern, which shoots to the sky and covers the area for three kilometers. All that touches the thin strings is linked to Chira's ability, though everything out of it is free. In addition, Chira can modify the memories of upto and including inanimate objects, which he can alter to achieve his goals or place traps or bombs in the objects that his desires, which could possibly make any area that Chira is in a total minefield. In theory, Rakkakyōryū could manipulate memories of living beings, but due to Chira's noble nature, he could possibly be simply choosing not to. Bankai: Onmyōseijin no Rakkakyōryū (陰陽聖者の落下恐竜, "Shadow-Light Saint of the Falling Dinosaur"): Upon activation of the fabled second release, Rakkakyōryū becomes engulfed in Chira's spiritual energy, the feeling of which causes it to split into twin blades. There is little to differientate between the Shikai version and Bankai state of Rakkakyōryū, though the blades are considerably thicker and longer. However, Chira's attire changes considerably, becoming clad in a glistening silver draconic armour, with his pauldrons shaped like the head of a dragon. The entire armour has a prominent Christian motif with an abundance of crosses as decorations littered upon the armour, and the edges are gilded an illustrious golden colour. In addition, he wears a crimson cape which flutters in the wind. The end result of such a transformation is a very gallant and awe-inspiring transformation that strikes fear into the hearts of his foes and brings hope to his allies. It should noted, that Chira prefers to only whip out his Bankai in dire situations, as he believes in making sure his foes remain in one piece.
 * Nijūshin (二重身, "Doppelganger"): Using the spiritual threads which are scattered throughout the area upon releasing and the foe's memories of his figure, Chira manifests a near perfect figure borne from his own image, whose body is sustained by Chira's spiritual energy. This duplicate moves, acts, and thinks as if it was Chira himself, though it can be told apart by the gray spiritual energy it exudes. This doppelganger attacks with no fear, with its strikes inflicting real damage upon his opponent, and it is almost completely impervious to physical attacks; as when struck by anything other than tremendous force, it waves like a hologram and continues to fight. It should be noted that Chira can communicate through these doppelgangers.
 * Sakayume (逆夢, "A Dream Which Is Contradicted By Reality"): Another ability of this webs is the power to look into the dreams of Chira's foes, as dreams are merely a castoff of memories. Delving into their fantasies and fears, Chira can draw out whatever he wishes to use against his foe. Once a idea has been grasped, Chira can utilize Rakkakyōryū's own power and mix it with his own spiritual energy to conceptualize and manifest that which he wishes into the physical plane. At first, this is thought to be a mere illusiory ability, though as it turns out, these dreams made reality are more real than they ever were. Chira often uses this ability to instill fear into the hearts of his foes, who are often left speechless at facing that which they desire or their greatest nightmare. If a creature is manifested, then it will have the exact same powers as it had when the foe had imagined it. Of course, this ability isn't limited at fabricating dreams and nightmares; if the foe has imagined an ability, then Chira will have access to it to turn against them.
 * Mōsō Shin'on (妄想心音, "Delusional Heartbeat"): A truly sly and coldhearted ability, Mōsō Shin'on allows Chira to muddle the memories of his foe and someone significant to them, and allows him to regulate the distance between the hearts of those two, essentially forcing someone in the vicinity or even himself to have the same heartbeat as someone significant to the foe. Depending on the circumstances, the foe will have different reactions; this is shown when Chira utilizes it in his first battle with Gai, changing his own heartbeat to that of Hizashi Yoshi's, causing Gai to cease fighting Chira, even though he objectively knew that Chira and Hizashi were two different people. However, depending on the people affected, the result will be different without fail, and some people, when being forced to do battle with their dearest person, there will always be some people who will feel betrayed and display murderous rage, meaning that Chira has to be wary of applying this ability.
 * Insei Hakaimono (隕星破壊者, "Falling Star Destroyer"): Insei Hakaimono is Chira's main offensive technique, and as expected, like the rest of the man's abilities, is almost without peer. Utilizing the webs of spiritual energy which coat the area, Chira pinpoints his foe's location using the memories he has aquired related to them, thus giving them no means of escape. These webs constrict further, narrowing the area that the foe has to make a quick getaway. Immediately afterward, Chira flares up his spiritual pressure to its utmost limit, which Rakkakyōryū resonates and reacts with, causing his weapon to become engulfed in an immesurable inferno of spiritual energy. This energy is almost unbearable to be in close vicinity to, so to rid himself of such an horrendous feeling, Chira swings his blade forward with all of his might. This spiritual energy transfigures into a cascade of shining beams reminiscent of shooting stars, which lock-on to his opponents no matter their position, chasing after them. They can dodge obstacles in their way, unless it is not physically possible, never ceasing their hunt until they catch their prey. Impacting upon their opponent, these shining beams detonate with great force, enough to level a city block.