Suzaku Kawahiru

"What I once was, back then, is not who stands before you here today. That person was filled with hatred, and was deeply discontent with the world around him. He wished to solely crush the world with his darkness, and he desired to make all those around him feel the darkness he was in. But that person grew up. The one standing before you now is Kawahiru Suzaku! I no longer hate this world... I wish only to save it! To make it feel the warmth of peace... just as my father and my friends did for me! That is why I will not allow your darkness and hatred to spread even slightly further. As the son of "Silver-Hairs" Kawahiru Seireitou and the blue-haired maiden, Miyamoto Shiori... as the Captain of the Sixth Division... I, "Purple-Hairs" Suzaku, will crush you here and now!"

- Suzaku's declaration toward Mūkade.


 * "A heart that believes can pierce through the darkness searching for the place where it's soul slumbers with a sharp gleam burning in it's unblinking eyes." - Seireitou-shishō

Suzaku Kawahiru (朱雀川昼, Kawahiru Sūzakū) is the son of Seireitou Kawahiru and Shiori Miyamoto. He was first introduced as a student at Shinō Academy, and as a student, fought during the Summer War. In it's aftermath, Suzaku was appointed to be Lieutenant of the First Division, several months following the death of Chōjirō Tadaoki Sasakibe. In respect to his father and mother, he appointed himself the self-proclaimed moniker Purple-Haired Suzaku (紫色の髪朱, Murasakigami no Suzaku).

The death of his mother took its toll on Suzaku, influencing his antagonistic actions for a majority of the Hell Tournament and the final battles against Datara Kawahiru. Hearing the final wishes Shiori had for her son, Suzaku realized how misplaced his hatred toward his father was, turning sides once again; becoming an ally to his father's friend, Raian Getsueikirite. Following the two year timeskip, Suzaku was welcomed back into the Gotei 13. He is the current Captain of the Sixth Division, as well as the current Director of the Abakushin'ō. His Lieutenant, and subsequent Deputy Director, is Shirosame Asakura.

Appearance
Suzaku has shoulder-length purple hair with a silver tint (a combination of both Seireitou and Shiori's hair colors), which grows longer as the story progresses, and a mixture of pink and purple eyes. Raian always told Suzaku that he has his mother's beautiful hair but his father's fierce eyes. He has lighter skin than his uncle, Kamui, has. Like many other members of his family, his hair hangs over both sides of his face to roughly frame his cheeks, but is sometimes let loose to come down as bangs. A recurring theme in Suzaku's appearance is that he is considered quite handsome by almost all girls near his age. As a student of Shinnō Academy, Suzaku wore the traditional garb of Shihakushō. In the last stage of his studies, he wore a black, one-pieced version of this outfit with many small arm-belts adorning his right arm and left leg. It's known that Suzaku normally wore his Zanpakutō on his back.

Upon his defection, and his resurfacing in the Hell Tournament, his appearance and attire had changed drastically. Suzaku has grown noticeably taller over the years of defection. He was first shown wearing a black long-sleeved shirt which was open at the torso, ending in red cuff-links. The edges of the uniform was shown to be of a light purple material, which ended near the bottom in a unique design. Black lines ran down the sides of the uniform, curving down to fit his body shape. Suzaku seems to also wear a strange golden object around his left wrist, its purpose currently unknown. To keep his uniform together, he wears an obi that is decorated in golden lines. Similar to that of Ulquiorra Schiffer, his robe ends in long coattails, resembling the attire once worn by the Arrancar. Another noticeable trait is that, along with this new outfit, Suzaku began letting his hair hang over his eyes.

After seemingly killing his father, and left with nothing but guilt for his error, Suzaku changed sides once more. He reappears during Raian's battle with Sao Feng, sporting a new appearance. He had now worn a white kimono with red-laced armor around the sleeves. The edges are lavender, going around his collar. Underneath, Suzaku wears a loose dark-blue shirt which matches his more modern-looking hakama, with a light purple edge. His robe is kept together by a long red rope-belt, which keeps his Zanpakutō on his person.

As a Captain of the Gotei 13, Suzaku wears the same attire he wore before, with the white haori that bears the symbol of the Sixth Division.

Personality
"Suzaku is still a blank canvas... he can be easily dyed any color."

- Seireitou Kawahiru

Suzaku, being born of the Kawahiru, is unusual in his values and personality. These unique values and personality separate him from past generations of Kawahiru; as powerful as he is, he does not like fighting much. However, when he is forced to fight, he shows special interest in protecting his family and friends. Like his father, Suzaku has a pure and gentle heart. Besides concerning himself with his family (and his shinigami studies), Suzaku has a strong attachment with his mentor; his father's rival named Ryan Getsueikirite. Because he comes from the Kawahiru, Suzaku is usually shown thinking that only some things will matter and others probably won't (although he's usually right in the long term). This is shown in, at first, his resistance to do anything unless his father is present. As such, he is usually surprised at events he didn't expect. He is even (though very rarely) shown to be cocky, such as when he learns to use Shikai - but when he loses his seeming "advantage", this cockiness dissolves instantly. Molded from his dark lineage, he is very serious and is a determined fighter like his father. He is also the only Kawahiru that doesn't display a great craving for battle. In some cases, Suzaku displays a ferocious perverted attitude just like Seireitou, a trait he presumably inherited from his father.

After affirming his Rakkasen position, Suzaku's personality changed completely. He was now a rattled man, shaken by the death of his mother and consumed by the hatred of his father. He gained the power of darkness in the hopes of find a way to revive his mother, but as the series progressed, he soon strayed from this goal as he became obsessed with power and control. He became cold and unforgiving, unable to accept others as friends. Even his own teammates, by his own claim, are "mere pawns which will hopefully bring personal results." He shows a lack of emotion, save for anger when things don't go according to plan. Besides this occasional anger, he is normally very apathetic and callous. Suzaku seems to be demanding as well, such as when Koga refused to join his cause, the former resorted to cruel threats to get his way.

Due to the sudden change in views, Suzaku is shown being very serious and more aggressive than his former self, but does retain his calm and joking nature, much like his father. Suzaku is shown to be in quite a bit of pain and stress after all the years of regret, and has a sort of "do or die" attitude. However, numerous times he appears to hide it, let go, and just enjoy life for what it is worth. It is noted that Suzaku retains many of his former personality traits, including his cockiness and craving for battle.

Possibly carrying over from his father's traits, Suzaku will always assist someone in need, and subsequently, is extremely protective of his friends and family. This latter trait is the driving force behind most of his actions and almost all of the story arcs will have him rushing off to save someone close to him. However, and even his father has called him out on this, but Suzaku seems to not be aware that the reason he truly wishes to save others is that he cannot refuse a challenge, or even a chance to prove his strength over another.

Powers & Abilities
Devastating Spiritual Power: As a child, Suzaku is known to have within him a seemingly limitless dormant power, which at first only revealed itself when he experienced fierce rage. As he got older, he trained hard and gained access to a large portion of his power, and it was not until he was a young teenager that his power was fully awakened and he was able to use it all at his own will. He is powerful enough to fight off and defeat several Adjuchas-class Menos as well as fight on par with, and ultimately kill, a Vasto Lorde arrancar; using nothing but sheer reiatsu to hold them off. Suzaku's spiritual energy is personified by the element of lightning. Upon becoming a Rakkasen, his spiritual power vastness and control had increased to devastating ends. It became so immense, heavy, and thick, that Captain-level Shinigami would shiver in fear by his mere presence. Despite being young, many Seijin Masters had shown hesitation in facing Suzaku one-on-one, based solely on his level of spiritual power. Suzaku, without putting out any effort, easily incapacitated Renge, Koga, and Tōkaru with his Reiatsu just by facing the direction they were coming from. Koga has noted that Suzaku's reiatsu has gotten darker and colder than ever, more so than the corrupting influence of any form of Hollow or Demonic power. His assimilation of Datara Kawahiru's powers had raised his spiritual powers to vast levels, more so than most Seijin Masters. It had become so great, in fact, that Seireitou began taking Suzaku seriously as a threat. When accessing Datara's power, Suzaku's own power becomes even more foul than ever, attaining the shape of an unusual being when manifesting. Because of the corrupting influence of this power, Suzaku prefers to not rely on Datara's powers often. Even after abandoning the power of the Rakkasen, this dark power still dwells within him, but it seems that he has a higher degree of control over it, without losing out to the corrupt power.


 * Spiritual Element of Lightning: Suzaku was naturally born with a spiritual power that is aligned with the element of lightning. By releasing his spiritual energy in every direction, an electrical discharge flows from Suzaku's entire body, allowing him to affect multiple enemies. When using this manifestation of his reiatsu on a great number of enemies at once, it can effectively double as an instant defense. The body of the person touched by the reiatsu will misinterpret the lightning nature as "electrical signals from the nerves," making its muscles contract. This causes the body to involuntarily go stiff, while at the same time receives damage. This can also be channeled through the ground to increase the range of the attack, or even through Suzaku's Zanpakutō. When using Hadō, the Kidō is often enveloped in electric discharge.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Given his father's mastery of taekkyeon, Suzaku has shown to have a natural talent for martial arts. He reveals that his father has trained him somewhat in taekwondo; according to Seireitou, Suzaku has the fighting skill of a black belt. He can move swiftly, due to his medium height; he also seems to have a knack for striking pressure points to bring down an opponent. Suzaku was at least strong enough to incapacitate two third-seat Shinigami of the Gotei 13. As his personality darkened, his method of combat followed suit. He would deal more destructive strikes to the opponent, to ensure the maximum input of pain. Suzaku's increase in this skill has allowed him to easily defeat, without killing, hundreds of lower-ranked Seijin in a single battle without sustaining so much as a scratch to himself.

Expert Swordsmanship Specialist: Suzaku is highly skilled in swordsmanship techniques, having trained under Raian Getsueikirite. He has increased his strength and skill to allow him to become a seated Shinigami-level fighter. He fights with seemingly no effort behind his attacks. His ability to wield his combat skills was evident as an academy student. He easily defeated and killed one of the Seijin Masters, who by rank and age should have been more powerful and skilled than him. Suzaku was able to fight his father on-on-one, while still pushing the latter on his toes. He has shown the ability to use extreme speed mixed with a calm composure and precise attacks. He is prone to using same-slash attacks when provoked or enraged, which many times can cause the opponent to be effortlessly overwhelmed.

Flash Steps Master: Raian says that Suzaku is also helpful and effective because of his high speed. During his battle against the Adjuchas of the Menos Forest, he skillfully dodged multiple attacks from several enemies. Suzaku's already impressive speed saw a huge leap as he trained as a Rakkasen, allowing him to move huge distances in the blink of an eye as if using teleportation. He also greatly increased his speed at bladed combat, being able to do pull off many strikes in a blur. Assimilating Datara's powers within his body had also immensely increased his speed, being able to effortlessly contend with a Bankai-released Raian in terms of movement.

Enhanced Strength: During a fight against a massive Adjuchas, Suzaku had halted its punch with a single open hand, and throw the Hollow aside effortlessly. Later, by slashing downwards, Suzaku is able to cause enough force to generate a burst of wind, blowing all of the surrounding Menos several yards despite their massive size. Raian commented that he was using "brute force."

Child Genius: Perhaps the most astonishing trait of Suzaku is his brains and natural talent. Suzaku is established as a genius, even by the battle-excelling Kawahiru clan's standards, excelling at all that he does and finding little difficulty in more challenging tasks. During fights, he easily observes his opponent and accurately sees through their abilities without losing his calm state, then he correctly chooses the most effective means and techniques to counter them. Also, his resolution enables him to pick strategies in which he requires getting hurt in order to defeat the enemy, thereby showing tremendous endurance and willpower. Suzaku has also demonstrated tremendous knowledge in regards to human physiology, as displayed by his ability to affect a person's organ system.

Kidō Practitioner: He can also use kidō like most Shinigami. During his studies, his skill for it is rather poor, as he stated they constantly blow up in his face. Nonetheless, he has shown in times of peril, he is proficient enough to perform a Level 31 Kidō without incantation, not to mention with explosive power and rapid fire capabilities. Becoming a Rakkasen had allowed Suzaku to develop dark Kidō of his own design.

Zanpakutō
For the manifested spirit of Hannuliū that lives within Suzaku Kawahiru's soul, see Hannuliū (spirit). Hannuliū (하늘의딸들, "Son of Heaven"; pronounced Hanuerrū) is the name of Suzaku Kawahiru's Zanpakutō. Suzaku originally held Raikōhitonare, but through the transformation of Suzaku's reiatsu into a colder and corrupted state, he had attained a new Zanpakutō. Its sealed state appears as a regular katana, with an incantation written on the top-most edge, not unlike that of Seireitou's Hanullim. Its hilt is black with a silver cloth surrounding it, which Suzaku can utilize in the efforts of using Hannuliū like a flail. Suzaku, like his father, wears it on his left hip. When sheathed, Hannuliū can form a powerful spirit shield on a key part of Suzaku's body. When the attack hits the barrier, a pinkish hexagonal shape appears. Suzaku cast it on the back of his neck to protect his blind spot from attacks and it is powerful enough to withstand a point-blank black Zaiten Tenshō. It can form several shields at once, but can only withstand the force of one technique. If an attack hits consecutively toward the same shield, it will shatter. Should an attack make contact and inflict an injury upon Suzaku, Hannuliū's defensive influence carries over to high-speed regeneration. He can come out unfazed after being hurled into several buildings.


 * Shikai: Released by the command, "May you guide me, protect me, and finalize my usurpation. May the darkness cower in the divine light's presence, and forge the path to absolute dominance!" (あなたは、私を導く私を守って、私の侵奪を確定する. 月は闇神の光の存在下で、萎縮すると絶対優位へのパスを築く, Anata wa, watashi o michibiku gō watashi o mamotte, watashi no ōryō o kakutei suru. Tsuki wa yamishin no hikari no sonzai-ka de, ishuku suruto zettai yūi e no pasu o kizuku!); The silver cloth around the hilt grows in length, surrounding Suzaku completely as the cloth turns into a hardened crystal, which Suzaku breaks himself out of. His spiritual power extends outwards in a hexagonal formation, and can be felt for miles upon miles at the moment of its release.
 * Shikai Special Abilities: Hannuliū's power is Response to Change (応答に変更, Ōtō ni Henkō). This means that Suzaku's powers change and evolve based on changes in situations, making it similar in principle to his father's Hanullim. It is because of this that Suzaku's Hannuliū is considered the only Situational-type Zanpakutō. Essentially, it allows Suzaku to manipulate and create situations. Situations are particular conditions or a set of circumstances, meaning Suzaku is capable of designing the rules between himself and his opponent(s), and all those under his spiritual power's range must abide by those conditions. It is a power that responds to Suzaku's heart and mind, as Hannuliū explains. Not unlike Seireitou's Hanullim as well, Suzaku's Hannuliū grants him physical and spiritual benefits. Suzaku becomes strong enough to deal a massive blow to Coyote Starrk, as well as slash away the latter's Cero blasts effortlessly. He becomes quick enough to completely circle an opponent fast enough to form a small vacuum, making it seems as if he is moving like a bullet, rather then using a speed-enhancement technique like Flash Step.
 * Shikon Hisakiten (天国の炎の牙, Fang of Heaven's Flames; literally "root of the fangs, forefront of the heavenly flames"): It is a powerful energy attack that fires a concentrated, light purple-colored blast(s) of spiritual power in the shape of a crescent or fang. Shikon Hisakiten is a very potent technique, which can become more powerful when Suzaku expels more spiritual energy into it. While it was originally the adaption of Hanullim's technique, being held within Suzaku's Hannuliū, Suzaku's newfound powers allowed him to utilize the Shikon Hisakiten as his own technique.


 * Sābuiryoku, Hannuliū (守る天国の息子, "Serve my Will, Hannuliū"): Hanulliū molds Suzaku's spiritual energy into something mimicking a ribcage in appearance, along with his body being aflame with an aura, to which Seireitou referred to as a "demon shroud" (妖狐の衣, yōko no koromo). It was deemed similar to Seireitou's own unnamed technique that caused his spiritual energy to take on a somewhat familiar form, though Kamui addressed it as something different entirely. From its usage so far, Suzaku has only used this technique as a means of an absolute defense, and its other abilities are currently unknown.


 * Bankai: Jeojang Hannuliū (구속천국의아들, Redemption of Heaven's Son): In Bankai, Suzaku's hair turns into a lighter purple, almost mimicking the color of Kamui's hair. His entire attire changes drastically, fitting a similar type of clothing worn by Hannuliū's inner spirit, though paralleling a more traditional japanese attire. It consists of a purple kosode with black hakama, held together by a black obi that has purple jewel-like items hanging from the ends. Around his body, a strand of cloth surrounds him symmetrically on both sides, purple in color, with a sort of design on the outer surfaces. This cloth is shown to be over the light purple haori that is on top of his previously mentioned attire, having black kitsune fur around the collar. Above his head is a transparent light purple veil, similar in coloration to the one that is generated in Seireitou's Bankai, which completely covers the upper section of his head. In his first appearance, Suzaku's arms were hidden underneath the haori, and he defeated Yoshitsune instantly without revealing the appearance of his blade. When revealed in later fights, the blade is now much longer (roughly one-and-a-half the length of his Shikai) and more curved as it nears the tip, with three protrusions along the blunt end of the sword close to its tip. While retaining its manji-like shape, the tsuba becomes more curved and jagged. Jeojang Hannuliū developes a long chain that attaches to both the base of the sword's hilt and to inside Suzaku's cloak, forming a wide loop.
 * Bankai Special Abilities: Not Yet Revealed
 * Power Augmentation: While in this state, Suzaku's own Sōzōshin powers are supplemented by Datara's demoniacal Sōzōshin powers, giving him a vast increase in all his spiritual, physical, and mental capabilities. While Magatsuhi's powers did not carry over into Suzaku, the powers of Naohi Azusa had been assimilated as well.


 * Mountainous Spiritual Power: The addition of Datara's power to Suzaku's own raises his spiritual powers to almost shattering levels, as both Seijin and Demons are incapable of sensing his reiatsu, unless he voluntarily lowers his level and allows them to interfere. Raian Getsueikirite surmised that Suzaku's spiritual power can only be sensed by someone that is at the same level as him. It should be noted that it is seemingly impossible for a one-dimensional being to contend with Suzaku's Bankai, as seen that just by tapping the shoulder of a lieutenant, he caused it to burst from the immense energy. Carrying over from Hannuliū's Shikai, Suzaku's spiritual power can involuntarily harden as crystal, which is as strong as the amount of Suzaku's remaining spiritual power. Because it is used for his own protection, the reiryoku isn't used up, but instead recycled throughout Suzaku's body, doubling as a high-speed regeneration reagent.
 * Instantaneous Speed: Suzaku is capable of grand feats of speed, being able to effortlessly cut down several Seijin that stood in his way. Almost amazing in its own regard, Suzaku was capable of outstripping the Interaction ability of Seireitou's Bankai with mere speed. Suzaku was shown capable of also effortlessly outstripping Sao Feng completely in terms of speed.
 * Enhanced Strength: Suzaku has displayed that usage of his white mask grants him brutal physical strength; an example of this is when he ripped a Adjuchas-class Hollow in half, straight down the middle, using only a single bare hand. He was also able to cause the ground to tear open with the sheer force of his sword swing, even when the blow was blocked. With a simple flick of his blade, Suzaku was capable of splitting through sekki-seki. He was also able to cut through an entire mountain, from a considerable distance away. Suzaku, in addition, had enough strength to catch a massive blast produced by Yoshitsune's Bankai one-handed and then crush it. With only a swing of his sword, Suzaku is also able to make a huge shock wave.
 * Enhanced Shikon Hisakiten:

Quotes

 * (To Seireitou Kawahiru) "Disappointing... That is all that can describe you, Father. You stand before me, poised as you're ready to kill, and yet... all I can hear from your Zanpakutō is fear. Yes... your sword speaks to me of nothing but absurd fear. That is the flaw of those who 'protect others'. Ready to kill only those who have harmed your loved ones, but in-turn, remain powerless to raise your blade when faced with betrayal. Makes me almost... want to laugh."
 * (To Seireitou Kawahiru) "Father... it's too late, nothing you can say will change me! I'm going to kill you and every last person in Soul Society! It's time to make your choice! Kill me and become a hero, or die at my hand and become another one of my victims!"
 * (To Raian Getsueikirite) "The true winner is he who chose to focus on the future... and the real fight is about to begin. I fought that battle to gain access to his abilities. I am Kawahiru Suzaku! The man who obtained Kawahiru Datara's powers!"
 * "Sometimes, I used to dream of a wide opening in the forest... devoid of life, noise, or pain. The sun always stood adamant in the skies, shining its bright light upon this dreamland. However... every attempt I made to take a step forward, I tripped and fell on my face. Time and time again, until I could no longer get up. That's when I heard his voice... my father's voice, in a land of dreary silence, cheering me on. It made me realize something very important. Life will knock us down... but with the help of those who truly care for us, we can get back to our feet... and move forward once again."
 * (To Yoshitsune) "I don't understand why you would use such derogatory names for us Shinigami. The only things such terms show is your fear and ignorance. I guess name-calling is your only attack... because you're much too weak to challenge me in any other way."

Behind the Scenes
In my past works, I had focused on three child-age Shinigami; Kouhei Tandokuno, Seikyo Kawahiru, and this Suzaku. My first two were both ditched and were killed story-wise, respectively, because I had no clue how to add onto their stories and/or powers. I had decided to take Suzaku in a different approach, making him similar to Son Gohan from Dragon Ball Z, but then decided to take a somewhat Sasuke Uchiha-like approach. Suzaku's new personality was also influenced by Anakin Skywalker. I had given Suzaku, Muramasa, simply for two reasons: one, because I wanted to give Suzaku a main weapon besides his current Zanpakutō, for plot reasons; two, because I simply believed that the Zanpakutō Released Filler Arc didn't go too much in depth with Muramasa, and also didn't reveal his Bankai. I plan to add my own ideas and thoughts to Suzaku's usage of Muramasa. Suzaku was named for the The Vermilion bird, which is one of the Four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. According to Wu Xing, the Taoist five-elemental system, it represents the fire-element, the direction south, and the season summer correspondingly. Thus it is sometimes called the Vermilion bird of the South (南方朱雀, Nán Fāng Zhū Què) and it is also known as Suzaku in Japan and Jujak in Korea.

Before Hannuliū, Suzaku once held Raikōhitonare (雷つかい, lightning tamer). This was because I originally planned to have Suzaku wield lightning-based abilities. However, I began to think alittle bit more about the connection of Ichigo's Zangetsu and his father's Engetsu, and wanted to follow a similar format with Seireitou and Suzaku. Thus, Hannuliū was made to mirror Seireitou's Hanullim.

In this author's opinion, Suzaku's theme song is Naruto Shippuden OST II - Shiren.