Ikiryō Kuragari/Pseudo-Canon

Ikiryō Kuragari is an exiled Shinigami and a former member of the 2nd Division of Gotei 13. He served briefly as a lieutenant under captain Suì-Fēng, being succeeded by Marechiyo Ōmaeda.

Appearance
Kuragari is a tall and slender young man with a toned physique. He has a rather pale skin, relatively short, unkempt black hair and pale blue eyes. There is a prominent, deep scar on the left side of his face. It severs his upper lip, goes upward through the cheek, splits the eyebrow and goes through forehead to end somewhere beyond the hair line. It is unknown where and why he sustained it, but it appeared after his exile from Seireitei.

During the early years of Academy he used to have much longer, braided hair and short eyebrows, which denoted his descent from nobility.

He wears a short-sleeved variation of the standard Shinigami uniform which is also less spreading than normal. After his exile he has removed the lieutenant's badge from it.

Personality
Ikiryō was initially quite cheerful and talkative, if a rather arrogant person. He came from a minor noble family and his pompous and overly elegant mannerisms were mocked by many of his peers at the Academy, which caused him plenty of frustration.

Over the years spent training and on the missions, he has changed substantially. He has become focused, serious and sometimes even sardonic, with his polite tone now often marked with sarcasm. Most of the time he has a grim expression on his face and his stare is piercing and somewhat unsettling. He stays level-headed even in dire situations.

One of his most prominent traits is reluctance to obey authorities, as he has had difficulties following orders even of people whom he respected. This repeated disobedience was a major factor in his eventual exile from the Soul Society.

He has a habit of addressing most people with the -san honorific. He refers to the captains, both former and current, with the -dono suffix. Notable exceptions include Yoruichi-sama and Suì-Fēng-chan.

It is known he has had some sort of rivalry with Suì-Fēng, and he did not take well the fact he ended up as her lieutenant and not the other way around. Additionally, he seems to have some feelings toward Yoruichi Shihōin, but he is extremely secretive about this.

History
Ikiryō hails from a minor noble family. He has no siblings and as such his father had a specific plan for him to fulfil, yet Ikiryō decided to enlist to Shinō Academy against his wishes.

Even though he had good results and became well-known amongst the concurrent students, due to his pompous attitude he often ended up as the object of ridicule to his peers. Their mockery had a substantial impact on the development of his personality, which gradually changed to that of a ruthless, intimidating warrior. People who had once laughed at Ikiryō ended up hastily getting out of his way.

Eventually, he became one of the top students in his class, and soon afterward he was recruited to the 2nd Division. After achieving his Shikai he quickly rose up through the ranks and became a high-seated officer within a short timespan.

Around 110 years ago he served as the 4th seat officer of the 2nd Division, and succeeded Kisuke Urahara on the 3rd seat post following the latter's promotion to captain.

After the hollowfication incident and Yoruichi Shihōin's exile around 100 years ago, he was left severely chagrined at his captain's departure. Anyway, he saw an opportunity to fulfil his dream and become a captain himself, as multiple higher-ranked posts have been left vacant.

He had been not ready yet, however. Whilst he succeeded Marenoshin Ōmaeda as the next lieutenant of the 2nd Division, Suì-Fēng achieved her Bankai before him and became the new captain soon afterward. Sorely embittered, Ikiryō lost almost any semblance of discipline and started acting violently.

Though the immediately following events are not fully known, it is certain that his considerable disobedience resulted in an intervention from the higher-ups, which ended up in a major scuffle that saw Kuragari ultimately exiled from the Seireitei.

After some time wandering in the outer districts of the Rukongai, Ikiryō somehow entered Hueco Mundo. He most likely achieved his Bankai not too long afterward, as by the time of the Battle of Fake Karakura Town he has already worked on it extensively since several decades.

Powers and Abilities
Expert Swordsmanship Specialist: Even though Ikiryō managed to become quite good in swordfighting, according to himself he has never achieved a satisfactory level. His style is characterised by the focus on offence and flurries of rapid cuts and jabs. It is greatly reminescent of Iaijutsu.

Hakuda Master: As a former member of the 2nd Division, Kuragari has been extensively trained in hand-to-hand combat. After achieving his Shikai, he spent even more time to develop his skill, eventually becoming a master-level Hakuda combatant.

Master Assassin: Since the 2nd Division became very closely affiliated with Onmitsukidō during his time, Ikiryō has been extensively trained in the art of assassination. Using his Shikai and Kidō he becomes a true master of silent elimination, capable of imperceptibly killing even vigilant opponents. That skill earned him the moniker "Spectre".

Enhanced Strength: Because of the importance of hand-to-hand combat in his profession, Kuragari has trained his physical strength enough to surpass an average level by far. He is capable of sending lesser opponents through walls with single punches.

Enhanced Endurance: He is characterised by a great resistance to pain. He can completely ignore light injuries and is capable of fighting practically unhindered even after suffering significant damage.

Kidō Expert: Due to his burning ambition and the desire to develop comprehensively, Ikiryō zealously trained Kidō in order to diversify his combat techniques. He can effectively use mid-level Hadō and Bakudō without incantations. His favourite spells are Bakudō #26: Kyokkō and Hadō #32: Ōkasen, and he frequently makes use of 60s-level Bakudō spells to immobilise his adversaries. He is capable of using even higher level spells, up to Hadō #73: Soren Sokatsui, but only with full incantation.

Shunpo Master: Ikiryō is incredibly fast. Even though he himself stated he is neither of his former captains' equal, he still can easily outmanoeuvre lieutenant-level enemies and even outpace most captains. He knows several advanced Hohō techniques.

Great Spiritual Power: As a lieutenant, he had a high level of spiritual energy. After achieving his Bankai it has increased severalfold, reaching average captain level. Normally of indigo colour, it becomes almost black and "cold" whilst in Bankai.

Zanpakutō
Shi no Hōyō (死の抱擁, Embrace of Death): When sealed, the Zanpakutō resembles a wakizashi which has a hollowed, circular tsuba with a spiral ornament inside and a dark purple hilt. Its spirit is female.
 * Shikai: Its release command is "Fade Away into Nothingness" (虚空に消えていく, Kokū ni Kieteiku). Ikiryō grasps the scabbard with his right hand and makes a rapid, horizontal cutting motion with the sword in his left hand. Then the scabbard and the sword each become a separate, black-and-silver armoured gauntlet with sharp claw-like fingers.
 * Bōrei (亡霊, Spectre): A technique which temporarily renders the body immaterial, making it completely invulnerable to attack. It allows him to phase through obstacles and to avoid powerful attacks, but it can be used only once in about half a minute. Additionally, Kuragari himself cannot attack either whilst it is in effect.
 * Bunkatsu Genjitsu (分割現実, Reality Split): A mid-range attack, which instantaneously cuts almost everything in its way. Ikiryō utilises it by making a sudden cutting motion with one of his gauntlets, which results with the eponymous "split in reality" that is up to three metres long. It may be resisted with spiritual pressure.
 * Yami no Ibara (闇の茨, Thorns of Darkness): An offensive technique which consists of shooting condensed reiatsu projectiles from the tips of the fingers. It has a long range, decent attack power and piercing capability, but it can be deflected with a Zanpakutō's blade or neutralised by 30s-level Kidō.


 * Bankai: Sonzai no Yūgure (存在の夕暮れ, Dusk of Existence): Black-purple reiatsu emitted during the activation rises to the sky in the form of a thick pillar, creating a vast dome of spiritual energy around Kuragari (Hoshi no Nai Yoru, Starless Night). The sky becomes black and featureless, the world inside is rendered colourless and silent, and the shadows become dense and wide. Ikiryō's gauntlets are substantially enlarged, and he himself is covered with a black, light armour. Moreover, he is surrounded by a spreading and torn cloak made from dense reiatsu. Even though Kuragari has already spent decades mastering his Bankai, it is still slightly unwieldy and its power tends to slip out of his control when overly exerted.
 * Enhanced Bunkatsu Genjitsu: By making a sweeping motion with his hand, Ikiryō can "split" up to over a dozen metres of reality, destroying practically everything in the attack's path.
 * Enhanced Yami no Ibara: When used in Bankai the projectiles are several times larger than normal, which translates directly into greater attack power.
 * Shōkyo Taihō (消去大砲, Eraser Cannon): A powerful technique in the form of an invisible beam which disintegrates virtually everything in its path. Seconds before it takes effect the air within its range starts visibly undulating. Afterward, it destroys everything inside almost immediately. However, it may be resisted with strong spiritual pressure.
 * Yami no Shokushu-shin (闇の触手の神, Tentacle-God of Darkness): Ikiryō's most powerful technique, it allows him to freely manipulate the darkness and shadows he is surrounded with. He uses it to attack with extendable shadow tentacles, which can change into large spikes on a whim, or to defend himself with a shroud of darkness. Extended use taxes Kuragari significantly and due to the semi-physical nature of the darkness used, it can be countered with strong Zanpakutō and Kidō techniques.

Trivia

 * His name means roughly "Gloomy Wraith".
 * Though his exact age is unknown, he is slightly older than Suì-Fēng.