Blogs - OrochiGab

Anime Bleach

Series By Tite Kubo

Ulquiorra Schiffer

#4 Espada

Appearance

Ulquiorra is a slender, yet fairly muscular, male Arrancar of average height with a melancholic appearance, fairly short, messy black hair, grayish skin, a black upper lip, and green eyes with slit-shaped pupils. One of his bangs falls between his eyes, somewhat similar to Rukia Kuchiki, and he has distinctively thick eyebrows. He has teal lines that descend from his eyes, making it appear as if he is crying. His facial expression rarely changes, and he is almost always frowning. He wears typical Arrancar clothes: a white jacket, black sash, and a white hakama. They are somewhat similar to what Ichigo's inner hollow wears. However, his jacket seems to have longer coattails than others, and the collar is rather high. Like most other Arrancar, he possesses remnants of his former life as a Hollow in his appearance. His Hollow hole is located on his sternum where a heart would normally be (though initially for some reason, the hole was located on the base of his throat; a change that was seen in both the manga and anime). The remainder of his hollow mask lies on top of his head, forming a broken helmet. He is the fourth-ranked Espada, signified by the tattoo on the left side of his chest.

Personality

Ulquiorra is a very cold, callous, dispassionate figure, and is rather aloof, brooding, and indifferent, willing to harm both his comrades and enemies should they ever get in his way. He refers to anyone he does not find interesting as "trash" and treats them as expendable. Despite this, he is not particularly violent, unlike most of his Espada comrades, and will only fight when provoked or ordered to by Aizen.

Ulquiorra has a strange habit of killing victims he is particularly interested in by stabbing them with his bare hand in the same location as his hollow hole. Whether he is consciously aware of this habit or not is unknown. During a speech to Orihime, he claims he cannot believe in human emotions, which he refers to as the "heart", reasoning that if his eye cannot see them, then they do not exist. These words, and much of Ulquiorra's overall behavior, can lead one to assume that he is a firm believer in the concept of materialism, which also connects to his aspect of death as an Espada, nihilism. It would appear that as a result of his isolated life as a hollow, Ulquiorra does not understand feelings and emotions as well as empathetic characters like Orihime tend to. His overall behavior towards his allies and enemies, as well as his apparently self-inflicted habit of stabbing people in the chest, may symbolize that fact. In the last seconds of his life, he seemed to have finally found his own "heart" and understand feelings.

His cold demeanor allows him to stay completely calm and in control in most situations, and he is not easy surprised or caught off-guard. However, he does not seem to comprehend the human trait of fighting against all odds or the very concept of a human heart/emotions; during his latest battle with Ichigo, he completely overwhelms the Shinigami after releasing his Zanpakutō, yet Ichigo continues to fight on regardless. This briefly causes him to lose his cool, causing him to shout at Ichigo out of frustration that "to continue fighting is pointless". He then transforms into his Segunda Etapa form in an attempt to show him "true despair". He also seems to contradict himself, telling Ichigo that it's natural for humans to mimic hollow to become stronger, but they will never be the equal of hollows, though the Arrancar are doing much of the same by imitating Shinigami.^[2]

Ulquiorra is also highly perceptive, cunning, and analytical; during his and Yammy's first visit to the human world, he makes several surprisingly accurate remarks on the humans who confronted them. He theorizes that Orihime Inoue's healing power is a temporal-spatial ability, which Aizen later describes as the rejection of fate, and comments on how Ichigo Kurosaki's Bankai can easily cut through Yammy's defenses. He also notes Ichigo's power fluctuation, which varies between very weak and stronger than his own.

Ulquiorra seems to be demanding as well, such as when he came to Orihime's chamber and ordered her to eat a meal an Arrancar servant brought in, claiming that, for Aizen's benefit, it was her "duty" to stay alive. When Orihime hesitated, he threatened to force the food down her throat, or strap her to a table and feed her via an IV. This also implies that, while he prefers not to dirty his hands, Ulquiorra is fully capable of committing truly abhorrent and inhumane actions without feeling any shred of remorse or hesitation.

After Ichigo's hollow form overwhelms and strikes him down during his last battle, Ulquiorra still maintains his composure and calmly berates himself for being defeated by a "human-turned-hollow". Believing that he no longer has a purpose in life, now that he was quickly defeated by his opponent, he then demands that Ichigo kill him, and compliments Ichigo when he decides to use a point-blank Cero to kill his opponent, claiming that the lack of mercy was "rather Hollow-like". This is a marked departure from most of his fellow Arrancar, who mostly died cursing their enemies or with an abject fear of death.

Source --> Bleach.wikia.com

Powers & Abilities

Ulquiorra is the cuarta Espada in Aizen's army, meaning his abilities are fourth amongst all of the Arrancar and Hollow under Aizen's command. His might is great enough that even in his sealed form he can with a single hand deflect Kisuke's crimson blast, fight on even ground with a full strength Ichigo while in Bankai form, and withstand most of the impact from a black Getsuga Tenshō. It was revealed that Ulquiorra has a second state after his Resurrección, called Segunda Etapa, that supposedly even Aizen himself is unaware of.

Master Swordsmanship Specialist: He appears to be highly skilled in swordsmanship, being able to fight on-par with Ichigo and even slice through his Getsuga Tenshō. Ulquiorra prefers to wield his sword with his right hand, leaving the other hand free though it usually remains in his pocket. He is quite adept at blocking while his offense is capable of great precision. He was able to fend off Ichigo using his Hollow mask-enhanced Bankai long enough to reach the top of Las Noches, though his Zanpakutō was nearly broken.

Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Ulquiorra has shown to rely mostly on hand-to-hand combat, rarely drawing his sword at all. Ichigo speculates that he only draws his sword against opponents he considers "worthy". Ulquiorra also seems to prefer applying an 'off-the-ground' method of combat, often being seen attacking opponents from aerial standpoints, such as when he attempted to use his Cero on an offending Grimmjow by attacking him from the air above his head, or when he jumped upwards with a Sonído in an attempt to catch Ichigo off guard during their most recent confrontation.

Sonído Master: One of Ulquiorra's more noticeable traits is his tremendously skillful speed. He has demonstrated the ability to catch up with Ichigo after kicking him from a tower in a few moments.^[3] He has also shown the ability to skillfully keep up with Ichigo's Bankai speed. In addition, his superior experience allows him to push Ichigo's reflexes to the limit.

Keen Intellect: In addition to his remarkable combat prowess, Ulquiorra is also gifted with great insight and understanding to situations at hand. His intelligence is such that even Aizen, a man arguably best-known for his intellect, has respect for as he sent Ulquiorra to investigate Ichigo's power and threat level. With his calm and collected nature, Ulquiorra has can be highly perceptive and analytical, allowing him to easily deduce the basic idea of his opponent's skills to figure out its strengths and weakness.

Ulquiorra's green Cero. Cero: Ulquiorra has been shown using Cero from his fingers with very destructive power. His Cero can be charged and fired relatively fast and is a green color instead of red, which is the most common color of a Cero. He is shown able to fire it from either hand.

Bala: This technique hardens the user's spiritual pressure and fires it like a bullet from their fist. Ulquiorra has a red Bala, as seen in the kidnapping of Orihime.

Enhanced Hierro (鋼皮（イエロ）, iero; Spanish for "Iron", Japanese for "Steel Skin"): refers to the hardened skin of the Arrancar, which is a result of their compressed spiritual power. While not openly stated, it has been seen repeatedly that Ulquiorra's skin is highly durable even by Arrancar standards. He can deflect attacks of similar power barehanded. He is able to fight Ichigo in his Hollow form without unsheathing his sword, rendering Ichigo defenseless with two attacks and not sustaining injuries of any kind. The best example of his Hierro's might was shown from his ability to take a direct slash from Ichigo's Tensa Zangetsu with only a minor cut on his chest, while his fellow Espada Yammy lost an arm from the said opponent. Also, in his released form, Ulquiorra's Hierro appears to be even stronger, as Ichigo's strongest attacks seem to have no effect on him.

Enhanced Pesquisa: The Arrancar ability to sense spiritual energy. While any Arrancar can learn it, Ulquiorra has shown impressive skill with it. From a single glance at his opponent, Ulquiorra can immediately determine how powerful his opponent is. He is also able to comprehend the flow and concentration of the person's energy as shown from his ability to instantly notice Ichigo's energy was fluctuating due to his inner Hollow.

Enhanced Strength: Ulquiorra has proven to be deceptively mighty for his build. He has shown the ability to physically discipline Yammy, an Espada known primarily for his strength, with no visible effort or upturn huge portions of rock floor with a single strike at the ground. He has also shown the ability to kick Ichigo a tremendous distance with one strong kick.^[4]

Garganta (黒腔（ガルガンタ）, garuganta; Spanish for "Throat", Japanese for "Black Cavity"): Garganta is how Arrancar move to and from Hueco Mundo. Ulquiorra has the ability to use the technique. It literally tears open the dimensional fabric separating the worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential energy that must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway. In the video games, Ulquiorra uses this technique to generate make-shift vortexes to draw opponents in, as well as teleport from place to place. Ulquiorra using Garganta

• Garganta Broadcast: Ulquiorra has been shown able to create a visual broadcast , similar to a television screen, using individual Garganta portals. He does this in order to show the current predicament of Orihime's friends (Ichigo, Hitsugaya and Matsumoto) fighting their respective battles, stating he could kill them if she says anything other than "yes".^[5] It is unknown if he could create as many as desired, or if three broadcasts are his limit.

Enhanced Vision: According to Ulquiorra, his eyes have the power to see through any illusion or deception; to basically see and understand anything in his sight. He even goes as far as saying he can only not see what doesn't exist.

• Instant Replay: Ulquiorra has the unusual ability to replay events he has seen to others by removing and crushing an eye, which then turns into dust and flows around those Ulquiorra intends to use it on. The dust shows images of what Ulquiorra has seen during his missions.

High-Speed Regeneration: Despite having great attack power and speed, Ulquiorra's greatest strength is his regenerative power. It is first witnessed after he removed and crushed one of his eyes, then he is seen with two eyes again in his next appearance, and Yammy comments on it to that effect. This is displayed once more in his battle against Ichigo's evolved Hollow form where he regenerates the arm that was torn off. Ulquiorra states that it is his greatest power, one which most Arrancar give up in return for greater strength. He explains that he can quickly regenerate any part of his body except for his brain and Internal organs. However, this power also requires that he had sufficient spiritual energy.

Immense Spiritual Power: His spiritual power is immensely high, comparing his own spiritual power to the likes of Ichigo. As he one of the top four Espada, he is forbidden to release his Zanpakutō within Las Noches. That is because they are too powerful and such a release would cause great damage to the fortress. During his first meeting with Ichigo, he compared his levels to that of Ichigo, a Shinigami with exceedingly high spiritual energy, and he comments that the Shinigami's energy at its peak is higher than his own but fluctuates.

Zanpakutō Murciélago (黒翼大魔 (ムルシエラゴ), Murushierago; Spanish for "Bat", Japanese for "Black-Winged Great Demon"). Ulquiorra's Zanpakutō takes the form of a standard sized katana with a green handle and sheath. The guard has two curved extensions from its long sides, with a line going through both sides to give it an eye-like appearance.

Ulquiorra's first released form.

• Resurrección: - Its release command is "Bind" (鎖せ, tozase).^[6] Murciélago unleashes with a burst of spiritual energy that falls around Ulquiorra as black rain. In his released state, Ulquiorra becomes bat-like in appearance. He gains giant wings on his back, his hair becomes longer and wilder on the left side of his head, and the remains of his Hollow mask centers atop his head, with two large horns extending outward to the sides towards the front. The lines on his face become broader and more triangular and his fingernails lengthen. His Arrancar attire becomes more form fitting and closed at the top, becoming more like a robe towards the bottom. In this form, he uses an energy spear instead of a sword.

Resurrección Special Ability: He is shown to have the ability to create elongated spike-like javelins. His speed and endurance is greatly enhanced to the point that Ichigo's hollow mask-enhanced Bankai has difficulty keeping up, let alone damaging him. His Hierro has also vastly increased in strength to the point where a Getsuga Tenshō with Ichigo's mask activated has no effect at all. Ulquiorra also has the unique ability to enter a second released form, called Resurrección Segunda Etapa. Cero Oscuras

• Cero Oscuras (黒虚閃, (セロ・オスキュラス), sero osukyurasu; Spanish for "Dark Zero", Japanese for "Black Hollow Flash"): It is a black Cero, which Ulquiorra states to be similar to Ichigo's black Getsuga Tenshō. This Cero presumably can only be used while he is in his release state. Ulquiorra's Cero Oscuras is powerful enough to blast Ichigo's mask away and destroy a large part of the city-sized Las Noches' dome. Ulquiorra refers to it as "my Cero",^[7] so it may be exclusive to him. It is also possible that the Cero Oscuras is just a vastly powerful version of the Cero. Since the color of the Cero changes depending on who uses it, the "Oscuras" in its name may simply refer to the fact that his version is black.

Ulquiorra's second release

• Resurrección: Segunda Etapa (刀剣解放第二階層 (レスレクシオン・セグンダ・エターパ), resurekushion segunda etāpa; Spanish for "Resurrection Second Stage", Japanese for "Sword's Release: Second Level") Upon his transformation, Ulquiorra boasts that he is the only Arrancar among the Espada who has achieved a second Resurrección form, which supposedly has remained a secret from Aizen. Ulquiorra refers to his second state as "True Despair", both before and after its release, likely because the immensely dense spiritual pressure it releases instills despair upon those around him. While he retains his black wings, his long white coat is gone, revealing a more defined musculature with his chest bare and Hollow hole (which has become larger) dripping black, blood-like liquid. His waist becomes covered in something similar to black fur or cloth, which also covers his arms and legs. His fingers grow claw-like extensions and his feet become like talons. His irises of his eyes turn yellow while the sclera becomes green. The tear-like marks under his eyes increase and turn black. Ulquiorra's mask remains turn into two long horns, and the #4 Espada tattoo is no longer visible on his chest. He grows a very long and thin but powerful tail which is capable of being used as a weapon or to lift and strangle a victim.

• Overwhelming Spiritual Power: Ulquiorra's already vast spiritual power is significantly increased furthermore upon entering his second stage. Even being within the vicinity of his release instills despair on those who can sense it. Uryū Ishida, a Quincy who is an expert at sensing reiatsu, noted that the density of Ulquiorra's spiritual power was so vast that it could hardly be identified as reiatsu. "It's like no spiritual energy I've ever felt before...It's not just bigger or stronger. It's too dense and heavy to even be called spiritual energy. It feels like there's an ocean above the sky..." ^[8] It is likely the second release increases Ulquiorra's speed and strength.

• Instantaneous Cero Oscuras: In his second state, Ulquiorra can use a fully-powered Cero Oscuras without having to charge it. In addition, the blast travels very swiftly, with speed comparable to that of a Bala. The Cero retained its enormous power from Ulquiorra's previous form, being so powerful that it was able to blow a large hole through Ichigo's chest.

Ulquiorra charges up to use his Lanza del Relámpago.

• Lanza del Relámpago (雷霆の槍 (ランサ・デル・レランパーゴ), ransa deru reranpāgo; Spanish for "Lance of the Lightning", Japanese for "Lance of Thunder and Lightning"): Ulquiorra creates a javelin-like weapon using his spiritual power, which he can use as a projectile or as a physical weapon. When thrown, it produces an incredibly-destructive explosion on impact, which dwarfs the fortress of Las Noches in height. Ulquiorra prefers to not use the attack at close range, most likely because the resulting blast would damage himself as well as Las Noches. While he can use these spears in rapid succession, he has difficulty controlling their trajectory. Ulquiorra is also able to use this attack as a blade, which disintegrates material upon impact; as seen when he struck away his own amputated arm, that Hollow Ichigo had just thrown at him. The spear can also be quite effective at cutting, as seen when he used it to sever one of Hollow Ichigo's horns to prevent him from using a Cero on Uryū.

  Source --> Bleach.wikia.com