The Hōgyoku in BLEACH: Unveiling its Mysteries

Highlights

The Hōgyoku is a crucial plot element in BLEACH, with the series antagonist Aizen using it to transcend the boundary between Shinigami and Hollow.

Urahara and Aizen collaborated in creating the Hōgyoku, however, Aizen's version carried more significant ambitions as he employed it to compel influential Shinigami to undergo Hollowfication.

Similar to the Behelit in Berserk, the Hōgyoku possesses the capability to materialize the wishes of individuals in its proximity. It played a crucial part in transforming Aizen and orchestrated various occurrences within the BLEACH universe.

The Hōgyoku, a mysterious and crucial element in the BLEACH universe, holds immense significance for its impact on the primary plot developments and thematic explorations. It is primarily associated with the series antagonist, Sōsuke Aizen, who relentlessly pursues and eventually employs the Hōgyoku to surpass the barrier between Shinigami and Hollow. Throughout the BLEACH series, much of the narrative revolves around Aizen's relentless pursuit of this artifact.

Initially concealed within the soul of Rukia Kuchiki during the early stages of the Substitute Shinigami arc, the Hōgyoku becomes the focal point of Aizen's plans. He manipulates events in the Soul Society arc in order to extract it from Rukia through her execution with the Sōkyoku. However, the exact reasons behind Aizen's desperation to obtain the Hōgyoku and the true nature of this artifact remain shrouded in mystery.

Background

The Hōgyoku is a concept developed by Kisuke Urahara and Sosuke Aizen, aiming to surpass the limitations of a soul and transcend the boundaries between Shinigami and Hollow. Roughly 101 years before Aizen's defection, Urahara and Aizen created their own versions of the Hōgyoku, but they were incomplete. Aizen, being more ambitious, conducted extensive research by feeding countless souls in Rukongai and fellow Shinigami in order to understand its properties. During his research, he discovered Urahara's work and devised a plan to steal the second Hōgyoku and merge it with his own in order to perfect it. Aizen conducted an experiment using the power of the Hōgyoku to forcefully transform Shinji Hirako and other high-ranking Shinigami into Hollows.

At that time, Urahara was the Captain of the 12th Squad, which focused on research and development. He attempted to use his incomplete Hōgyoku to reverse the Hollowification but was unsuccessful. Aizen took advantage of this opportunity and framed Urahara for the experiment, painting his victims as criminals seeking forbidden power. With Urahara's assistance, they escaped Soul Society and formed a group of Hollowfied Shinigami known as "the Visored." In the World of the Living, Urahara tried to destroy his Hōgyoku but failed, so he decided to conceal it within the Gigai of an unsuspecting Rukia Kuchiki. In a desperate move, he deactivated the Hōgyoku and buried it deep within Rukia's soul without her knowledge. He provided her with a special Gigai that gradually transformed her into a regular human soul, hoping that the Hōgyoku would remain hidden forever. Unfortunately, Aizen had already betrayed Soul Society long before anyone realized what was happening.

Treachery

Aizen discovered that Urahara had hidden the Hōgyoku in Rukia, as he had planned for her to be sent to Karakura Town and become entangled with Ichigo. Aizen wanted Rukia to return to Soul Society and stand trial as a criminal. To manipulate the situation, Aizen killed the Central 46, the governing body that represents the will of the Soul King, and used his Zanpakutō Kyōka Suigetsu to impersonate them. This allowed him to control the trial concerning Rukia's violations of various laws, particularly the forbidden transfer of power from Shinigami to Human. Aizen demanded her execution by Sōkyoku, a weapon capable of evaporating the target's soul through intense heat. His plan was to retrieve the Hōgyoku embedded within Rukia and merge it with his own. Despite the failed execution attempt, Aizen managed to extract the Hōgyoku from Rukia using a device invented by Urahara himself.

Having retreated to Hueco Mundo, Aizen used the Hōgyoku to create powerful Hollows called Arrancar by infusing them with Shinigami-like powers. He accomplished this by applying the Hōgyoku to highly evolved Menos-class Hollows. Aizen classified the strongest of these Arrancar as "Espada" and assigned them single-digit numbers. Recognizing that the Hōgyoku deteriorates with use, Aizen kidnapped Orihime Inoue to take advantage of her Shun Shun Rikka ability, which can repeatedly restore the deteriorated Hōgyoku. He then combined his own Hōgyoku with Urahara's and implanted the "complete" Hōgyoku into his own body. As a result, Aizen underwent transformations during his confrontation with the Gotei 13 in the fake Karakura Town, created to prevent him from sacrificing the souls of its residents to create an Ōken, a key to the palace of the Soul King.

Manifestation

Both Aizen and Urahara initially had a misunderstanding about the Hōgyoku. They believed it was a magical artifact that could break down the limitations between Shinigami and Hollows. However, they actually created an object that can manifest the desires of those around it, as long as they have the ability to make those desires come true. The Hōgyoku's power was never directly tied to reconciling the existence of Hollows and Shinigami into one entity, but rather it acquired this ability due to Urahara's research. It has similarities to the Behelit in Kentaro Miura's Berserk, as it can select a master depending on the circumstances. Various characters, willingly or not, have influenced the Hōgyoku and the events in BLEACH. Aizen even speculated that Rukia's guilt over Kaien Shiba's death led her to unintentionally give all her Shinigami powers to Ichigo. The abilities manifested by Ichigo's friends Chad and Orihime are also believed to be influenced by the Hōgyoku. The Hōgyoku allowed Aizen to briefly transform into a transcendental being before being defeated by Ichigo's Final Getsuga Tenshō. However, the desire manifestation properties of the Hōgyoku have limitations, and it is merely a guiding force that brings about miracles according to its chosen will.

BLEACH: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 2 – The Separation is available to stream on Hulu and Disney+.