THE SECRET BANKAI - Can Ikkaku EVER Use it Properly Again? | Bleach Discussion 

What did you think of Ikkaku's seldom seen Bankai? Is there any chance he can restore it to its former power? Let me know!

Really wished that his bankai was also properly repaired/reawakened like Ichigo and Renji. Can you imagine what his improved bankai would look like, it would be amazing.

He can still use it. It's just much weaker than it originally was. He seemed like a perfect candidate to go to the royal palace and get his zanpakuto reforged but that never happened

In my mind, Ikakku's bankai is delicate due to his lack of confidence/will to use it as much. He puts serving under Kenpachi over everything else, and would not do anything to sabotage himself out of the 11th division (revealing that he has achieved bankai and promoted to captain). Since a shinigamis zanpakuto is an extension of his spirit, it's no wonder that Ikkakus conflict of using his bankai or not, weakens it in a way. That's just my own theory of course, Kubo proved that he can write amazing stories or shitty ones throughout Bleach, so Ikkaku's bankai may be just something he didn't know how to utilize in the later arcs

Honestly, I assumed Ikkaku's bankai is a dud like Renji's was. I've always had a bit of headcanon that his Zanpakto never truly provided him with his real bankai due to his fixation of being below Kenpachi. I always wanted to see an arc where maybe he has to really step up and has to acknowledge that he needs to strive to surpass Kenpachi to be relevant, not serve faithfully under him. It might look something like him being beaten to a pulp, maybe apologizing to Hozukimaru for not living up to its expectations. Then having it note how pathetic Ikkaku is for being proud of being someone else's second fiddle, maybe even pointing out how Kenpachi has gotten over his roadblocks before Ikkaku did. After that Ikkaku would hopefully understand why his Bankai was so fragile, and the two forge a new pact to be the strongest, allowing him to activate his full power. It would parallel Yumichika's issue as well, as someone who's opted to hold themselves back for the sake of others. Both kind of blindly spent centuries idolizing and following a man who was also nerfed by himself.

One of the best bankai reveals we got because of how unexpected it was.

I kinda like how delicate this Bankai is, I think it speaks to Ikkaku's potential and how he squander it. If he fought in a more evasive, careful way it'd be a terror, raw power with little downside. But instead he'd rather just mimic Zaraki even if it destroys him.

Shame that we didn't see more of the bankai but it does show how much he respects Zaraki. It's pretty much the same loyalty that Sasakibe had for Yamamoto.

I HATE how Kubo decided to develop Ikkaku as someone with great potential but he always loses to weak goons and needs to activate the bankai he hates to use to win all his battles.

I hope that, when the War ended, the Zero Squad's bonds with the Gotei 13 improved, even if a little bit, to allow Oh-Etsu to offer Ikkaku the chance to repair his Zanpakuto. Since he knows every Asauchi, you could make him pull on Ikkaku's sense of loyalty by telling him something among the lines of "Not even a beast like Zaraki would want a self-mutilated hound like you by his side, yo. And I know Hozokimaru isn't the type to take joy from a fight he fought neutered". Maybe that way, in the Hell arc, Ikkaku can give us a new all-out battle.

If your bankai is damaged or destroyed, you should just be able to get a new asauchi. Then over time your “soul/shinigami powers” transfer into/imprint onto the new asauchi just like before, and your bankai is now fixed. I never understood how a bankai is permanently damaged or destroyed when it’s just a physical manifestation of your soul. It should just heal and regenerate back to normal once you reseal your zanpakuto.

Ikkaku's introduction was fantastic. He used the sheath which was already fairly unique but he also performed first-aid/medicine on himself. Something I wish was later reiterated upon by Kubo in the story. God Soul Society showed so much promise for the series.

The way he says bankai is forever memorable BANKAIYEAAAHH! I believe they should have reawakened his bankai, but Kubo was busy with other characters, there’s still room for development Also I believe he’s the best combat lieutenant, so regardless he’s still top tier

Definitely a huge reveal back then, and tells a lot about his training and discipline. Hoping to see more fights with this

The reveal in the anime is so iconic. BANKAIIIII!!! RYUMONNN HYOUZUKIMARU

Hope we get a Yumichika analysis sometime. I think his zanpakuto is so cool and I imagine his bankai would be insane if Kubo ever gives him one.

I think a light novel should be written for ikkaku and yumichika. Maybe they're in rukon district and get trapped and unable to contact SS and have to handle it alone. Or maybe a story where he prays to the sword god Oetsu Nimaiya everyday, and training until he appears before him and reforges his sword in some epic moment. I know it's not realistic for everyone to have a fully up to par zanpaktou but I just hate how handicapped forever he will be now. It is however realistic within the story, which makes it just so much more tragic in a way.

I believe Ikkaku was one of the few, if not the only person who was shafted so badly with the silly "broken Bankai can't be repaired" plot.

I think his bankai was incomplete like Renji's was. It was mentioned how fragile Renji's bankai was, but Renji was lucky that his was able to put itself back together. Ikkaku got shafted (pun intended) and never got the chance to receive a proper power up.

I love that Ikaku did become a 'captain' of sorts. He became the master of Renji and Rukia's daughter. Which I think has a lot to do with the trust that Renji has in him.

Honestly a more comedic reason for Hozukimaru needing to be woken up while in Bankai could be that its rare that he gets to go all out , he may feel Ikkaku’s path in life is too boring to really care for. I feel like there could’ve been an interesting arc for Ikkaku about not squandering his potential; it’d be interesting if Kenpachi found out about why he hides his Bankai, and gives him an earful because he’s pissed that he could’ve had another worthy opponent to fight. Leading Ikkaku to stop hindering himself by staying within his shadow and becoming the best he can be. Which could in turn also be set up for Ikkaku learning his Bankai’s true name and getting a proper amp. Hopefully we get something cool like this in the future.

I've wanted you to do a video on this and Yumichka for so long. Thank you. I'm so excited.

You know there's a very mind shaking revelation Because of this. Ikkaku and Yumichik Basically let Ichigo and Ganju win, It's very amazing how the captain and seat members of the most battle prone squad have more restraint than any other squad. Just because they want to fight longer battles or don't want to draw attention that will get them removed from their squad.

I became a real fan of Ikkaku Madarame. Mainly due to the fact that he trained Renji and that he surpassed him. They are both crazy for battle in their own way which is nice.

I always thought Ikkaku could have his zanpakuto reforged by Oetsu. He did it for Ichigo. I'm sure he could do it with Ikkaku as well.

The reveal of his bankai is one of my favourite panels in the entire series when his eyes get whited out and yeah it totally feels like a videogame weapon because it's reminiscent of the Unlabored Flawlessness from Ninja Gaiden Black

I love how in Bleach Abridged Byakuya told Renji everyone knew Ikakku had Bankai lol

Honestly, the more I look into Kubo's works, the more impressive it becomes. The guy really knows what he's doing and it shows. Whether everything was planned out so completely from the start is obviously up in the air. However, the fact that the few exceptions we see are also actual exceptions really says something. Renji's bankai had progressively gotten smaller compared to his initial unveiling against Byakuya. Obviously Ikkaku's is never seen again after the first fight. Mayuri has shown that he tweaks and "modifies" things. It's why he looks different every fight and has different abilities every fight, so him doing the same to his bankai is 100% believable. Even Komomura's bankai being the only one to actually repair itself is a fair comparison since it always came with a super steep cost that didn't seem to justify the power he got. Like, can we really argue that Kubo is trying to force square blocks in round holes if every exception makes perfect sense lore-wise?

I hope he uses it again in the TYBW against Mask. We know he loses ultimately, even with the help of Yumichika and Hisagi, but we also know Mask had to get amped by the Cheer to turn the fight around and win. A short but brutal showdown with the three working together against the lone Sternritter would be awsome. I mean, imagine Yumichika and Hisagi using their shikai to restrain Mask while Ikkaku goes in with Bankai.

I love that swirling effect behind him when he activates Bankai. Almost foreshadows part of its mechanics

He's been my fav ever since I 1st saw his bankai

Ikkaku: "I want to keep my bankai a secret" Meanwhile Byakuya: "Is that a spider on the wall? Bankai, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi!"

I hope he hasn't fully realized his bankai similar to renji and gets an upgrade fitting of it in the hell arc.

I think this shows 2 things, one that he has yet to master bankai and what happens if you use it without mastery, and two the type of person he is, he is willing to throw everything away in a fight, even things that may make him stronger in time, like imagine if his bankai was mastered and would be as hard as he is defensively, like he could just tank massive attacks to charge up the offense.

I used to watch tekking 101's bleach videos so I know literally everything you say in this video But I don't know what it is there's just something about the way you present yourself that makes me unable to stop watching. Keep up the great work

"Hallowed" is one of my fav OST songs. That song and Ikkaku's bankai reveal are forever intertwined in my mind.

was just wondering this the other day, great vid

I remember back in the day I was helping out with typesetting with one of the manga groups, and I typeset this chapter with Ikkaku - who was one of my favorite characters - revealing his secret bankai. Was very hype.

I like to think that, if Ikkaku's Bankai doesn't already have some sort of secondary ability, you could easily give it to the secondary ability like the sword Zabuza had in Naruto. It doesn't really do much except cut, except it just restores itself through absorbing iron from creatures it cuts via blood. Would work perfect for Ikkaku since it literally does nothing for him but keeps his weapons from being permanently broken beyond repair as long as he's fighting, and you can even draw parallels to him fighting as long as his weapons let him.

Lets gooooo, been wanting an Ikkaku Bankai video for some time

If I could change one thing about ikkaku in the tybw I would have him not get immediately knocked out after Mask De Masculine attacks. I think an alternate means to enhance his character is to have him witness, shuhei, rose and kensei lose. Not being able to move due to injuries ties back to his original desire of wanting to die in battle and to not be left to lose on the floor. I would also love it if potentially after kensei and rose lose if ikkaku due to that motivation attempted to get up and perform his weaker bankai (everyone around him being unconscious) only to still get smacked around. Having him during his pummeling recall his prior strength against Edrad and how his desire for a fight not only endangered his friends (tying back to fake karakura with iba) but also made him weaker (acting as a parallel to kenpachi's desire making him subconsciously weaker) I feel would be a great culmination of his character arc. The luckiest man suffers an unlucky strike due to his own actions of gambling his life, only to luckily then be saved by Renji, the man who was trained by ikkaku. This would tie up their narrative resolves to surpass their intended goals (being their respective captains) and culminate in a reunion that I think wouldve made renji's return even more awesome

excited for your reaction on episode 5!

Ikkakus bankai reveal was fucking awesome and one of the best things we didn't see it again

I like Ikkaku very much, he's such a great character. And his bankai is so cool, pure brute force - exactly like his personality. The fact that he keeps it secret makes so much sense, matches his personality. Great theme for an analysis 😊👍 Could you also do a video about Yumichika's Fujikujaku / Ruriirokujaku? I also think they have an interesting zanpakuto x personality relationship!

I remember seeing the scene in Op 14 when Ikkaku summoned the crimson dragon to attack Reigei Shunsui, thinking that it would’ve been cool to see if he gained a new ability training his Bankai. Too bad Kubo didn’t write Ikkaku to go to Oetsu to reforge hozukimaru.

Probably the favourite bankai design. I think its over the top nature is a perfect representation of why I love bleach. I love the over the top designs that feel really unique

Anyone: **breathes the wrong way** Hitsugaya: *BANKAI*

I find it awesome how in the anime ikkaku actually trained renji to reach vice captain status, and even declined to be one himself to stay with yumichika and kenpachi

it's not unthinkable that his bankai is somehow renewed, but he's keeping it a secret again in true ikkaku fashion

I know there's aspects of it we didn't know at the time but i remember espada 8 blew up renjis bankai and everything was honkey dorey

His blade breaking was probably a reflection of his willful stagnancy. Hozukimaru’s power is clearly reflective of it masters will to fight so his subconscious desire to stop himself from reaching his full potential, blunted the blade’s strength, and probably durability.

I like how after we learn that bankai can't be fixed, that it all adds up to why we never saw it again. As much as I would love ikaku to get it reforged. I actually think it's fine he doesn't, the thousand year blood war had a severe lack of consequences and I will forever say that's its greatest weakness as a story arc. Noone really died on 'the good side' , byakuya originally got pasted and shouldve died we even saw his zanpakuto fall apart which except for tousens friend is a certain sign they died. Ikakus bankai being permanently broken gave weight to the arrancar arc.

Another mistake in the manga is that when Byakuya first used his Bankai to shatter Renji's, and it is said that "the pieces that he has broken from prior battles are still broken", you can see that Bykakuya shattered the entire Bankai including the snake skull, so yeah I think Kubo only came up with the idea that a broken Bankai is permanent during the final arc. I'm not really sure how I feel about it cos on one hand, it justifies Ichigo and co. visiting the royal palace to get power ups but then at the same time, Ikkaku's fight with Edorad and how his Bankai got broken was soo cool and now every Bankai can't be broken without permanent repercussions which means less damage and less cool visuals from now on. Also, Kensei's Bankai was also broken by Mask when he got knee slam KOd.

Ikkaku’s bankai reveal was by far my favourite of the series, it was so unexpected and I think it’s a pretty cool looking design despite how frail it is. Looking forward to seeing Renji’s animated and also Komamura’s 🔥

What I love so much with ikaku is his flare as a fighter even under kenpachi he’s a very tactical fighter and he’s fighting style is so unique he’s just fight like captain lvl fighter and he’s just sick to watch

I have always assume that wanst the fist that broke the blade , but the atacks of the bankai are so strong that the bankai herself cant handle.

My headcanon was that this wasn't the first battle for this bankai. I am assuming it was used, potentially damaged, before resulting in a weaker bankai. We also have to remember that Ikkaku isn't captain strength either. Zabimaru suffered lots of damage in its false appearance while its user was also NOT captain level. Ichigo, by comparison, was always at an Espada level. Even if the old man was holding him back his bankai's durability reflects his actual strength.

Iirc one of the Klub Outside questions (#353) was about the healing salve Ikkaku used on himself & Ichigo after their initial fight. Kubo's response suggested that the salve was part of Houzukimaru's abilities. Maybe an improved version of his Bankai might be able to restore itself, or treat the wounds as an extra-long dragon crest? The bar filling from damage also raises the possibility of a connection to Hisagomaru, which absorbs damage to reach its terrifyingly powerful Shikai

True and i did laugh about how you mention Hitsugaya using his bankai in every fight buuut he -is labled a prodigy several times, so him using bankai like its no big deal makes some sense

Really awesome how Ikkaku's all about the fervor of battle like Kenpachi, and honestly this bankai would really fit his captain a lot more.

I feel like the whole "broken bankais stay broken" is a lie or misinformation, once we learn that the zanpakuto and soul realer are one. Maybe what gets broken is the soul reaper's confidence in their "full power," leading to a self-fulfilling prophecy. To that extent, i think that Bankai never stop changing, it just usually takes longer than Ichigo's or Mayuri's.

The Bankai has always actually been my favorite. I was very upset to find out it may not be usable after the first fight 😢

Ikkaku is more like a hardworking, self-sufficient type of person. He will find his own way of redeeming his new or true bankai without help from anyone but himself, training and fighting at its hardest.

im also impressed that he defeated edrad without needing his spiritual pressure seal released like the other members in their fights

now we need a top 10 bankais reveals

I wish it was one of them moments where we find out that it's not its true form like with Renji's bankai.

I like the idea that organic/living bankia can recover/change over time to overcome their "destruction" or any other damage. Would be cool to discover a way to reforge a broken inorganic bankai through a meditation that fuses your bankai's spirit to the weapon, or something like that. Impart the spirit's life upon the weapon to mend it, but at the cost of weakening your spirit and causing it's max power to be limited until the spirit could recover fully

10:00 Nothing super unique innit. It's basically Hitsugaya's reversed timer. Like snow peddles. And both bankai has to basically 'mature' before reaching full potential. Although cool bankai. One of more 'normal' martial arts looking and working.

So many main characters in bleach...this is honestly anime is my favorite of all time and we're getting more 😌

Coming back to this it makes me think that kubo might have ikkaku use his bankai again in the TYBW anime at some point probably toward the end, because they did leave the scene where ichigo finds out about ikkaku's bankai out of the anime, so there is hope we could see it again

I never thought about the three sections of his shikai being the same for his bankai wow and it makes since it's all just one sword since having two swords is rare as we learn in cfyow

One of the most iconic and fan favorite bankai

One of my favorite bankai and Bankai reveal. This is what has me believe this generation of gotei 13 is a lot more capable then previous. These vet Lt. are powerful.

Maybe since it spends so much time sleeping... we could make the leap that Ikkaku's Bankai recovers while slumbering? Issa stretch I know. Also I kind of feel like modularity is part of Ashisogi Jizo's power. It's like a crash test dummy.

Your videos butter my biscuits thank you

Theres some inconsistencies with that "destroyed bankais" rule especially given the "anatomy" of some bankai, Renjis bankai was seemingly destroyed against byakuya and even Mayuris bankai was damaged and i guess killed at one point so perhaps theres a heart or core of the bankai and that could be like the actual sword in ichigos case, even though his bankai is the entire outfit, so in ikkakus case the core could be the large middle blade and that being broken would mean the bankai was destroyed

Technically Tsukishima can also repair Ikkaku's bankai by cutting Ikkaku and changing the past to one where the bankai is never destroyed. Yeah, it's not a likely to happen scenario but it is possible.

I know it is not in the cannon manga, but I was happy to see his bankai a second time in the zanpaktu rebellion arc of the anime at least.

I love his design and his bankai, he's definitely one of the characters I'm sad does not have a strong track record of wins (kind of like kensei, Matsumoto, etc.) One reason I play the mobile game Bleach Brave Souls still is because you can collect some of the characters who did not canonically win a lot but that you might like a lot, and kick ass with them. I think there was a warriors-like hack and slash bleach game for Wii back in the day and several fighting games, hope the new arc being animated means we'll get some more bleach games down the pipeline and be able to play as these underpowered in the manga characters

Was really hoping to see it in the latest episode as a new original fight scene

After the whole thing with Renji's Bankai it made me think something similar for Ikkaku's. Since Ikkaku has the tendency to limit himself to not stand out so he's can't be forced into captaincy, Hozukimaru also limited the bankai. Not so much in the obvious way you pointed out but in the same way that Zabimaru did to Renji or even old man "Zangetsu" did to Ichigo. So it's not his true bankai or it's only a fraction of one or something. It could also be since he does hide his bankai and his true powers like Yumichika does, it has some sort of adverse affect on the bankai and possibly even the shikai. If he fully accepted his powers, then they might actually be stronger. It's not like he has to worry about it anymore with so many lieutenants with bankai or potentially with bankai and with the new wave of captains after the final timeskip he no longer needs to hide his powers. It's not like he's needed as a captain anymore. There's five former captains and one lieutenant out there still that could always come back too. And when Ichigo, Chad and Orihime die they all could be made captains as well. Hell, even Ginjo could be a captain. Tsukishima and Giriko could also train to become soul reapers as could any other Fullbringers who die. Ganju and even Kukaku are even more to think about since they are Shibas. The point being is that they're not hurting for potential captain candidates anymore so Ikkaku can finally stop limiting himself and maybe his Zanpakuto will do the same.

one of the most metal designs for a bankai, still one of my fav designs

13:55 personally I ignore the idea of a damaged Banki been unrepairable as nonsense, I’m not above telling the creator of a work their wrong especially if the thing they are saying dosnt make any sense, a bank is the physical representation of persons soul it’s something that’s already inside them. Also some Banki are destroyed by their very nature, Byakuya destroys his as part of it summoning and Ichigo has his outfit (that is part of his banki) torn to ribbons in every arc even though the pants never get ripped off which is odd 😅, kenpachi had his arm rip in half (I’m classing him to be part of the banki as he increased in size when it was activated) so personally I don’t think a banki can be permanently damaged, only for a short while as soon as the host has had time to heal up their Banki will soon be restored.

I like to think that his bankai breaks as an aspect to its whole "fight to your last breath" then it goes to sleep. Literally always there but sleeping till he has to wake it up again.

I think it's a slightly different ruleset for the type of bankai he uses same with ichigo. Their weapons transform and are used to fight directly where Komomura and Mayuri summon something that fight either alongside them or at their behest. Or that the sword itself has to be broken while bankai is active. Something that never happens to either of the captains swords(since they continue to hold them while the enemy contends with the effects)

My thought of Ikkaku's Bankai is that it is like the final getsuga in that he can only use it once. It seemed like it was more a, "I only want to use it against the Captain cause I only get the one chance" kinda thing and that he hasn't refined it to a point of being able to fight well enough with it.

The whole idea of the "broken bankai can never be fixed" really doesn't make sense to me. Zanpaktos ARE their wielder. "I am the bone of my sword"...wait, wrong series..."the sword is me" right? They are literally part of one and the same soul. The soul resides within the body and within the blade. The bodies can heal or be healed, even have entire parts replaced, but does that mean their soul is any different? If we can replace body parts like Ikkaku's arm and even have zombies running around now. It makes even LESS sense with Mayuri being able to essentially perform surgery on his zanpakto. And isn't EVERY shinigami's soul heavily linked to their zankpato? Isn't that EXACTLY how they obtain bankai in the first place!? So how does Komamura make sense but no one else can do the same?

In the anime this was so so hype to see

I love Ikkaku. One of the best side characters in the series. His Bankai reveal was up there with Hisagi’s shikai reveal probably better because it’s Bankai. Although the animation paired with that OST for Hisagi vs Findor was undeniably better. I would have loved to see his Bankai actually manifest a dragon 🐉 when it reaches full power.

I ADORE Ikkaku for reasons I cannot explain. He, Shinji and Renji have always been my top 3 soul reapers. His adrenaline junkie ready to brawl attitude, short tempered and brash, but somehow still holding maturity and swagger in a way that mirrors Kenpachi, but is still unique entirely in its own.

at this point all characters that got their bankai damaged had a different excuse for that rule to not apply to them, so i wouldn't be surprised if ikkaku fixed his by intense training or something like that

U should do espada resurrections too like your bankai vids.

I was literally just wondering this today 😅

Since Kubo did nothing with him in the final saga i always felt like he should have had one more fight where he used his bankai and got killed during the 1st invasion

While I acknowledge that it's rare for someone below captain/vice captain rank to have a bankai he's not the only one. Tosen had his bankai while 3rd seat too. Same goes for Hitsugaya I think. Definitely unusual but far from unique.

It’s one of the most well designed Bankai to me. It incorporates everything about the Shikai and its wielder, the tri-section blade, the berserker combat style, and even just the visuals seem just right

I feel like everyone knows to keep it secret🤣 (a known secret) where I got this feeling is in the karakura town fight, the words they chose when expressing their disappointment in him choosing to hide the bankai rather than chose to fulfill his task.

I feel like part of it also boils down to the type of Bankai that gets damaged/destroyed. Ichigos Bankai is already unique based 8n the fact that it condenses itself into a much smaller Katana, Byakuya calls this out on the first use, amd the cloak is actually a representation of Ichigos remaining spirit pressure. Having the Katana broken in the manner that eventually happens means that a large portion of of the Zanpakto is damaged. Byakuya conversely has so many shards in Senbonzakura that a few hundred could be destroyed and the Bankais overall effectiveness remains the same. Tenken has a similar effect due to how the damage is shared between Zapaktou and wielder.

i love the fact that his bankai is similar to his captains in the way that it gives him more power to work with an destructive force but just in a much weaker way than kenpachi's. it shows they have very similar souls. 😊

What makes this 3rd form really awesome for me, is that the word BANKAI in my native language is CORPSE it ties in with the theme of bleach very well