Kaito Kawahiru

Kaito Kawahiru (カいとカわひる, Kawahiru Kaito) is the youngest surviving member of the Kawahiru family and is the current captain of the Kido Corps. Unlike his two uncles, Seireitou and Kamui, Kaito isn't considered a fugitive and is currently the only member of his family still affiliated with the Gotei 13. Due to his uncles' fugitive statuses he is considered the 4th Head of the Kawahiru Family.

Appearance
Kaito is a tall man, with dark greenish-blue hair, which he wears in an unkept manner and teal eyes. He has a large scar running from his left eye down to the middle of his chest. Like all Kido Corps captains, Kaito wears a long blue jacket, though, he uniquely wears it open, exposing much of his chest. He also wears khaki pants, and a brown belt. His zanpakuto is worn differently than others. It is sheathed, and tied on his right shoulder.

Personality
Kaito Kawahiru is the 4th head of the once noble Kawahiru clan, also formerly one of the four great noble families in Soul Society. As such, Kaito acts in an aristocratic manner — he seems always serene and apathetic towards other people, even when he is actually deeply conflicted. He is also extremely calm, even in battle, and is very seldom surprised by even the most drastic of actions. However, when he was younger, he was quick to surprise and almost always smiled, as noted by his two uncles. Due in part to his status in Soul Society, he generally acts indifferent, bordering on arrogance, to most situations that he is faced with as seen from how he rarely views his opponent worth his time. Despite this trait, Kaito is a very perceptive man and is fully aware of the limits of his abilities and usually anything he states in comparison to an opponent is justified.

Kaito strongly believes in law and order, due to his uncles' villainous actions. As the head of one of the former great noble families and as a captain in the Kido Corps, he always works hard for a peaceful society. He feels that if someone in his position does not follow the rules as a good example, then no one will follow them and society will descend into darkness. He believes that to maintain the order, all law-breakers must be punished, even if that goes against his own wishes. In spite of his icy and regal manner, Kaito cares for and protects those important to him. After the events of the Ulquiorra incident, he admitted that law isn't perfect and became more lenient, as well as more protective, of Ryan and his allies.

Having descended from noble stock, Kaito is easily offended if his name is not used properly. As such, he seems to view Ryan Getsueikirite in disdain for always referring to him improperly, although he has never said anything to him to change that. Ryan and his friends seem to be the only ones to refer to Kaito very informally (even his mother referred to him as "Kawahiru Kaito-sama"). Kaito has shown open disdain for those who have been disgraced or who he finds to be annoying or overconfident. This is shown when he uses unnecessary force against his uncle Kamui in their younger days, whom he viewed little to no threat to him, just because he was a oldest of the formerly noble Kawahiru family. He also shows that he bears a grudge toward his uncle Seireitou for being better then him at Shunpo as well as annoying him by constantly rubbing his face in it, with this particular grudge spanning some hundred years. This goes even as far as him even disliking having to use techniques taught to him by Seireitou.

History
Kaito Kawahiru was born into the Kawahiru Family via Zashiki Kawahiru and an unnamed Shinigami man. For most of his young life, he was raised as a noble by his two uncles, Seireitou and Kamui, whom he loved very much. He learned all about his zanpakuto and kido from Kamui, and everything about hand-to-hand combat and shunpo from Seireitou. Several hundred years later, he became a Captain of the Kido Corps, just as Seireitou became the Eighth Division's captain. His mother and his uncles were very proud of him and he used this to fuel his success.

A few decades after that, Kamui became responsible for the deaths of most of the Kawahiru family. He even used Forbidden Kido on Kaito, causing his soul to begin to erode, before leaving. He is saved by Seireitou, who is able to reverse the process before Kaito could become a Hollow. Kaito then pleads with Seireitou not to go after Kamui. Seireitou ignores this and defects from Soul Society, leaving Kaito the last Kawahiru in Soul Society.

Powers & Abilities
Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Though he has a personal philosophy that would question the need for violence. Kaito Kawahiru is highly proficient in the use of his Zanpakutō. During his days as merely the mere student under his two uncles, he was able to fight at a captain's level as shown when facing Kamui in their sparing session. Kaito's swordsmanship mastery is even further emphasized by his being able to hold his own against Ryan Getsueikirite, one of the Human world and Soul Society's foremost experts in swordsmanship, even if it was only for a short time. In combat, he doesn't seem the least bit taken back by the abilities of his opponent, even when they seemingly have an advantage. He fights with seemingly no effort behind his attacks. His ability to wield his combat skills was evident even when he was a child. He is also commonly seen using his Zanpakutō's special ability.

Flash Step Master: Kaito has demonstrated highly proficient skill in Flash Step, famous for being able to keep on equal footing with any captain in the Gotei 13, even a captain of Onmitsukidō such as Nyan Kanagaki, one of the most skilled masters. In battle, Kaito has shown great enough reflexes to dodge point-blank sword attacks unscathed, though he is noted to be somewhat slower than his uncle Seireitou.

Kidō Master: As the current captain of Soul Society's Kidō Corps, Kaito is extremely skilled in this regard. He has demonstrated the ability to use various high-level Kidō at full power with complete control, including a level 99 Bakudō and level 89 Hadō spell, both without incantation, the latter of which caused tremendous destruction to a large part of the Seireitei that it was fired in, despite having the majority of its power blocked by Ryan's defensive Kidō. He has also shown very extensive knowledge of forbidden techniques such as time and space manipulation. He has also demonstrated highly proficient skill in healing Kidō, as seen from repeatedly healing Ryan and his friends when battle-worn, even saving people from otherwise fatal injuries as shown from healing Matthew after he was impaled.

Immense Spiritual Power: As are all Kawahiru, he is capable of exerting a vast Spiritual Pressure, which, in league with his already admirable combat skills and finesse, makes him one of the most formidable captains. His spiritual pressure is so great it can be felt from a great distance and it has the tendency to make people perspire in fear.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: As the leader of the Kido Corps and a captain-level fighter, he is required to be highly proficient in hand-to-hand combat, which he had been training in ever since he first obtained his shinigami powers. He is most likely one of the most proficient hand-to-hand combatant in all of Soul Society, being able to fight evenly, and gain the upper hand, against his mentor Seireitou. He can sufficiently block and attack others and is hard to actively lay a hand on unless he allows it.

Enhanced Strength: Kaito is strong enough to take on bigger opponents despite his slim stature. Easily overcoming those four times his size. He has shown himself capable of lifting large slabs of concrete debris that he was buried under with little or no effort.

Zanpakuto
Sasinwang (死王, Korean for, "Reaper King", Japanese for "Death's King") is a standard katana with a slightly wider blade than most normal katana. It sports a silver, eye-like hand guard and a dark blue hilt. It is worn on his right shoulder, in a scabbard the same color as the hilt.
 * Shikai: Kaito's zanpakuto is released with the command, Cut through the soul (刈露路魂, kari roji za tama). It then changes form into a scythe-staff hybrid weapon. The hilt becomes longer, with two bone-like protrusions sticking out of it's base and a ruby-colored gem situated between them. The blade has become several scythe-like blades, six on each side.
 * Shikai Special Ability: Sasinwang can cut into the souls of enemies, sealing off their connection with their zanpakuto. When this ability is activated, Sasinwang will glow light blue. If Kaito is able to make contact with an opposing Shinigami's zanpakuto or body while it is active, the connection between that shinigami and zanpakuto is cut, preventing them from releasing or using special abilities for some three days. It also appears that the jewel at the end of Sasinwang's hilt can enhance Kaito's kido vastly when fired from it.


 * Bankai: Yeonggwang Neundaepo (偉績怪死加農砲, Korean for "Glorious Shell, Reaper Cannon", Japanese for "Glorious Smashing Death Cannon"): Its appearance is that of a protective armor that encases Kaito's entire right arm and comes all the way above his shoulder to form a giant shell-like cannon that he uses both as a shield and as a javelin in regular combat. There is also a giant red gem at the back of the shell, seeming to be where reiatsu is focused, as well as a a small bone-like cage around the top part of his left arm. Before he activated his Bankai, Kaito tore off his jacket, in preparation for the attack's massive recoil and the resulting powerful explosion. He uses his Bankai so rarely that it has remained largely unseen by the members of Soul Society; even his own uncles comment on having never seen it before. Kaito explains that his bankai is his secret weapon and his most prized attack, as it maximizes his performance as the Kido Captain.
 * Bankai Special Ability: Kaito explains that he can only use his bankai once per-day. It gathers immense levels of reiatsu in the giant red gem on it's base and fires a large reiatsu beam from it's tip. It is packed with enough spiritual power that it can effectively destroy a building the size of Las Noches, but it's true danger lies in it's ability. Any zanpakuto the beam touches is instantly destroyed beyond repair. His Bankai can then be used to fire off regular Hado spells at vastly increased power-levels. For this reason it is considered the strongest Kido-type zanpakuto in Soul Society.
 * Bankai, Second Form: In Kaito's bankai's second form, the shell-weapon is completely encased in a sapphire-like stone. It is also now far taller than before and radiates kido energy from the back tip. Despite it's size, Kaito can use it in combat quite well. Being a ranged weapon of the artillery sort, the second from of Kaito's bankai has the ability to launch the a large blast of destructive kido energy from it's tip. To do so, Kaito must first raise and aim the huge shell-like weapon. Once targeted, electricity encircles the entire weapon, before it is fired. After a successful hit, the blast creates a powerful and massive explosion. The burst of explosive energy after the detonation is powerful enough to not only blow away Kaito and his lieutenant, but also rip the steel off a nearby building, despite both of them being a long distance away from the explosion. Kaito is capable of firing more than one blast at the same level of power. This attack has a normal limit of firing no more than one blast every three days; doing so more often taxes him noticeably.