Jūshirō Ukitake (Ty-Rai)

"Friends are a good thing, even if they tread a different path"

- Jūshirō Ukitake

Jūshirō Ukitake (浮竹 十四郎, Ukitake Jūshirō) is the current Captain of the 13th Division in the Gotei 13. His lieutenant is.

Appearance
Ukitake is a tall man with a somewhat emaciated appearance, caused by an illness which occasionally causes him to cough up blood. Because of his illness, he often spends his time recuperating at Ugendō, his family's estate. During one of his attacks when he was much younger, his hair turned white over a three-day period. This is why his eyebrows are black, the color his hair used to be.

110 years ago he wore his hair in a long ponytail. Currently his hair is worn long, almost reaching his waist. He wears it parted on the left side with one long piece that tends to fall over his right eye. He has green eyes. Ukitake wears the common Shinigami uniform with a long sleeved captain's haori, and a crimson lining. He wears a narrow white obi, in which he secures his Zanpakutō.

Personality
Ukitake's favorite food is Ohagi. In his free time he feeds the carp in the lake of Ugendō's garden and also trims the bonsai there, despite lacking the artistic sense necessary for the latter. He also writes a novel series in the Seireitei Communication titled, in which the lead character, Sōgyo, fights evil and saves innocent villagers. Sōgyo's catchphrase is and is hugely popular among the children in Seireitei. The serial is frequently on hiatus but when it is in the magazine, it ranks in the top three features.

Ukitake is well-respected and highly honorable, and always treats those around him with respect, even those who are weaker or not as highly ranked as he is. As a result, he can be easily approached by other members of Soul Society who seek favors or advice from the captain. Due to his high moral code, Ukitake will never let any harm come to either his underlings or those who attempt to protect them. He refuses to give up when he believes something is wrong and will break a rule to do what is right. He is also quite perceptive, as seen when he analyzes the various disturbances caused in Soul Society, and has the ability to correctly judge people's character, as noted by Yamamoto, and knows when they are lonely. He observes that, before meeting Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends, Rukia often had trouble opening up about certain things and was very lonely, but sees a difference in her when she spends time training with Orihime Inoue.

Ukitake has on occasion given people strange or unwanted gifts for no apparent reason, particularly Tōshirō Hitsugaya because of their similar sounding names and hair color.

Due to his long-standing position with the Gotei 13, Ukitake is one of the most proficient combatants in Soul Society and always maintains a level of honor and integrity when engaging in battle, much like his best friend Shunsui. He refuses to fight in the presence of a child or even with a child, even if that child is an Arrancar. He always maintains a semblance of respect for his opponent and is polite in combat situations. He also has a high measure of mercy, never taking the chance to kill Lilynette, but rather actually try to teach her how to be a better fighter, even though she was an enemy.

Powers and Abilities
| Master Swordsmanship Specialist: While hating the concept of having to engage in a fight, Ukitake is presumably one of the most proficient swordsmen in all of the Soul Society, as demonstrated from his ability to hold his own against Yamamoto. The unique shape of his sword's Shikai and it's corresponding abilities make his form of fighting unconventional amongst the Shinigami forces, but shows the skill of his abilities in this art.

| Kidō Master: As a captain, Ukitake is shown to have above-average knowledge of Kidō, as displayed when he assists in the resealing of the Jōkaishō. He also aids in the opening of the Senkaimon. He is able to perform fairly high-level spells without incantation, and he can easily use Kidō in battle, such as when he used Seki against Lilynette Gingerbuck.

| Shunpo Master: He is masterful in the art of Flash Steps as a captain. He is able to gain sufficient ground when trying to put distance between himself and Captain-Commander Yamamoto when being chased through Soul Society.

| Immense Spiritual Power: As one of the strongest and oldest Captains in the Gotei 13, it is safe to assume that Ukitake has tremendous spiritual power. He alongside his best friend Shunsui Kyōraku are said to possesses Reiatsu unmatched by their peers or predecessors. He is not overwhelmed by the spiritual pressure of Captain-Commander Yamamoto as most people would be in the situation.

Enhanced Durability: Ukitake has shown himself able to hold his ground in battle. He was able to remain relatively unscathed despite taking devastating attacks from Captain-Commander Yamamoto, whose Zanpakutō is the most devastating in all of Soul Society in terms of destructive power. He has also shown to effortlessly block Lilynette's Cero with his bare hand, even though he himself admits it was not even of Gillian-level power.

Zanpakutō

 * Ukitake's Zanpakutō resembles an average katana with a rectangular bronze cross guard and dark red handle.


 * Shikai: Its Shikai command is . Once he completes the incantation, he grasps the single blade with two hands. The blade then transforms slowly and begins to form two blades, as the blades peel apart, a large red rope-like chain at the base of the hilt lengthens and silver metal square charms attached to the chain begin to fall until all five present themselves. The blade is now somewhat thinner than the sealed Zanpakutō and the tsuba now extends part way up the blade. About half way along the length of the Zanpakutō, a second blade juts out from the inside of the main blade and extends back towards the hilt, running parallel to the main blade. The cutting edge of the second blade faces inward instead of outward.


 * Shikai Special Ability: Sōgyo no Kotowari is able to absorb an opponent's energy attacks through the left sword and directs the attack through the connecting rope where the five charms on the rope strengthens and accelerates the attack faster than it was originally fired and reverses its original course firing the same attack from the right sword, making it much more difficult for the opponent to dodge. The entire process happens so fast that the attack looks as if it originally came from Sōgyo no Kotowari.


 * Bankai: Not Yet Revealed.