Shinigami Faction

[Tsumuro]

Shinigami Overview

Shinigami (死神, "death god(s)"; Viz "Soul Reaper(s)") are a race of spiritual beings that act as enforcers and psychopomps who all share similar supernatural powers. They are souls with a high level of innate Spiritual Energy, recruited from the ranks of the residents and nobility of the Soul Society. Like all spirits, they cannot be detected by normal humans. Shinigami use their Zanpakutō, supernatural swords that are the manifestation of their owners' power, to perform soul burials on Pluses. Shinigami also use their Zanpakutō as well as magic known as Kidō to fight their arch-enemies, the Hollows.

Shinigami are souls that have supernatural powers. As such, their bodies are composed of Spiritrons (spirit particles) instead of atoms. This means that just like most other types of spirits, they can only be seen by other spiritually aware entities, which excludes most humans. Nevertheless, they are quite capable of influencing their environment. When souls with exceptional spiritual energy train their bodies, they reach the level of Shinigami. The most talented of them become affiliated with various organizations like the Thirteen Court Guard Companies and the Stealth Force. Sometimes, a Shinigami is born among the residents of the Rukongai, and in some rare cases from Seireitei.

Shinigami are the personification of death. Their job is to send spirits to the Soul Society (the afterlife) in order to maintain a balance of souls between it and the material world, and to exorcise evil spirits. Because of their duties Shinigami possesses supernatural abilities such as:

-Longevity: While they can age and die of natural causes or as a result of physical injury as regular humans, Shinigami have extended life-spans and it is not uncommon for one to live for thousands of years.

-Enhanced Endurance: While they can be injured and die like regular humans, it takes considerably greater injuries for the latter to occur than it would in regular humans.

-Reiryoku: Shinigami also naturally give off Spiritual Energy, which varies greatly in magnitude with the strength of a Shinigami. Additionally, unlike humans, they do not have to eat anything to sustain themselves, though they engage in the act none the less as Shinigami and other spiritual beings only become hungry when they used too much Spiritual Energy within a short amount of time.

-Kidō: The technique that Shinigami use to focus their Spiritual Energy into magic spells of various powers.

-Hohō: A variety of techniques associated with movement, including jumping and shunpo (flash step).

-Zanpakutō: The most prominent supernatural power possessed by a Shinigami is their Zanpakutō, a supernatural sword (commonly in the form of a katana) generated from the Shinigami's soul. A Zanpakutō is a physical manifestation of this force concentrated into a blade.[2]All Shinigami have a Zanpakutō, but not all of them carry one with them.

Shinigami operations are based out of the Soul Society, where departed human souls reside. Travel between the human world and Soul Society is extremely limited and monitored, but some Shinigami are stationed in the human world to carry out their duties and therefore must often travel between the two.

It is also implied that Shinigami receive salaries, like workers in the real world.

Appearance

Most Shinigami appear like Humans, a notable difference being their mostly old-fashioned garments by 20th-21th century standards (see Gotei 13 Uniforms and Onmitsukidō Uniforms), and their Zanpakutō which is in most cases tied to their obi sash.

There are, however, a few Shinigami who are less Human-like in appearance. For example it seems that between Shinigami there are much greater variations in body-sizes than between Humans, as there are real giant-like entities (e. g. the four guards of the four gates to Seireitei) and also ones with extremely small stature among them (e. g. Yachiru Kusajishi). This variation seems to occur not just between Shinigami, but also between regular dwellers of Soul Society, too.

Variations do not just occur in size but in overall appearance, too, the most notable example being Captain Sajin Komamura, who appears like an anthropomorphic canine.

Duties

-Soul Burial (魂葬, konsō): the process by which a Shinigami sends wandering Pluses (souls) in the living world and send them to their respective place. Either Soul Society if they are good in life, or to Hell if their life was full of evil acts (such as murders, theft, etc). Soul Burial is performed by using the hilt of the Shinigami's Zanpakutō, tapping the soul on the head and transporting them to the afterlife.

-Hollow Cleansing: When a Shinigami slays a Hollow (evil spirit), with their Zanpakutō they cleanse their sins. Once this takes place a Hollow will return to its former state as a Plus and is led into Soul Society. This is called sublimation. Souls that live in the Soul Society are reborn again into the human world. Not all Hollows are sent to the Soul Society. Since Zanpakutō are only capable of cleansing sins committed after becoming a Hollow, Hollows that committed serious crimes when they were still Human are sent to Hell when they are slain.

Also, if they are destroyed by a Quincy, Hollows are completely vanquished and cannot ever return to the Soul Society.

-Soul Governance: Shinigami are responsible for governing the flow of spirits between the Human World and Soul Society. This is commonly carried out by balancing the total number of souls by moving and managing them in the human world. All of the soul-related jobs are under their authority.  

[Kazei Hitari]

Shinigami Techniques

The following basic Techniques are available to all Shinigami, providing they have met the requirements. Shinigami are versed in the theory and execution of these skills as part of the curriculum at the Central Spirit Academy.

[ Gigaihyou ] - "Righteous Corpse Possession"
Also known as a "Gigai" in short. An important survival skill taught to all Shinigami, which entails the utilization, maintenance, and protocols concerning Gigai. This also includes the usage of all developed tools that accompany the use of a Gigai, such as the Gikongan.

Requirements: None

[ Konsou ] - "Soul Burial"
One of the Shinigami's inherent skills. Konsou entails the liberation of a Plus soul by stamping the kashira of the Zanpakutou upon his/her/its forehead, whereby the said Plus soul will be safely transported to Soul Society.
Requirements: None

[ Reiatsu Noukan ] - "Spiritual Pressure Perception"
The heightened ability of a Shinigami to sense Reiatsu. Its potency and maximum range grows as the user’s Shinigami level rises, and may become advanced enough that he or she may be able to single out the signature of a single entity within range. A target may choose to mask their signature, making their exact location difficult to ascertain. However, the presence of a strong fighter in combat is unmistakable.
Requirements: None

[ Reiraku Takan ] - "Spiritual Thread, Deep Perception"
A special sensory skill reserved only for Shinigami whose capabilities have matured markedly. Reiraku Takan allows the Shinigami to deeply focus upon the spiritual signatures of all surrounding entities within a certain area and manually compress them all into different-colored "threads." The maximum range of this ability is the same as the Shinigami's highest Reiatsu Noukan range. This technique only identifies race, unless the target is within Reiatsu Noukan's range for precision.

Colors are as follows:

White : Normal soul, Plus soul, Quincy
Red : Shinigami, Unmasked Vizard
Black : Hollow
Dark Red : Arrancar, Masked Vizard

[ Chikaihou Shinou ] - "Earthly Law Mastership"
Being dead is far different than living as anyone in Soul Society can attest to and one can sometimes bypass the physical laws of movement that one is normally accustomed to. However, the full extent to which laws can be bent or broken takes quite a bit of experience to fully realize, especially when returning to the world of the living. Examples of this phenomenon include walking on air, phasing through walls in the land of the living and other reality bending feats. True understanding as to what one can and cannot get away with is gained through experience.
Requirements: 3 missions on Earth

[ Reiki ] - "Spiritual Healing"
The most basic form of healing available to Shinigami. This technique is simply a method of flooding injuries with Reiatsu directed through the hands, stimulating the regeneration and repair of damaged tissue. While it is quite effective for small scratches and cuts, healing more serious wounds in this manner is extremely draining and time consuming. Cannot be used in battle.
Requirements: Division 4 Seated Member

[ Eishouhaki] - "Revocation of the Recited Poem"
Allows the user to bypass of the chanting of a Kidou spell and simply state the name. However, this also results in a drop in the efficacy of the bypassed Kidou.

[ Shunpo ] - "Instant Step" a movement technique that allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow.[2]. The focal point that determines the bases of this technique is speed. As speed is the main point of the technique the method is best characterized by how fast one can get from point A to point B in the least amount of steps. Training and skill are what determines how fast a user of Shunpo can move; those of little skill in the technique or those who haven't used it an extended amount of time would obviously be out of practice, causing those individuals to be considerably slower, which requires the use of more steps to move the same distance and become winded far easier in a shorter amount of time.

[ Fuubi ] - "Overpower"
When a shinigami is restrained or bound and has been left with no other alternative, they can try to force their way out through sheer strength and raw reiatsu. This is dangerous for the user's soul, particularly against the demon arts.


[ Senkaimon Koshutsu ] - "World-piercing Gate Summoning"
The skill of opening, safely traversing through, and closing the Senkaimon allows the user to travel between Seireitei and the Living Realm. This entails drawing one's Zanpakutou, contracting it with an existing Senkaimon in Seireitei, and thrusting the weapon slowly through the air. A spatial distortion will appear where the Zanpakutou is "inserted," whereby the Shinigami will rotate the weapon like a key, hence opening up the Senkaimon. Note that in most circumstances, a personal Jigokuchou is required to safely travel through the Dangai. While the gates may appear anywhere in the living world as the user wishes, the gates within Seireitei are limited to specific fixed locations.
Requirements: must currently be 3rd seat in a division or above

[ Reiraku Takan ] - "Spiritual Thread, Deep Perception"
A special sensory skill reserved only for Shinigami whose capabilities have matured markedly. Reiraku Takan allows the Shinigami to deeply focus upon the spiritual signatures of all surrounding entities within a certain area and manually compress them all into different-colored "threads." The maximum range of this ability is the same as the Shinigami's highest Reiatsu Noukan range. Colors are as follows:

White : Normal soul, Plus soul, Quincy
Red : Shinigami, Vizard [Unmasked]
Black : Hollow
Dark Red : Arrancar, Vizard [With Mask]

[ Shirei Hatsuri ] - "Command Bypass"
After achieving Ban Kai, the release phrase for Shikai is no longer necessary. This Technique allows the user to simply release his or her Shikai instantaneously through a higher bond achieved with his/her Zanpaku.
Requirements: Bankai

Kai Information

Shikai- Shikai gives a character 10% bonus to reiatsu automatically while activated. One doesn’t have to choose this, it is an inherent bonus. When a character reaches Bankai, this Shikai bonus increases to 20%.

A Shikai release is attained when a Shinigami learns the name of his or her zanpakutou. At that point the release is capable of changing the zanpakutou's form and acquiring abilities or attacks. An ability is usually some passive quality or passive effect whereas an attack is directly offensive in nature.

Most Shikai are limited to three abilities or attacks. Abilities or attacks might be accompanied with a change in form, or may all be in one form. Kai with multiple abilities sacrifice power for flexibility. Note that some forms double as abilities. If the form has a measurable effect on the battlefield it counts as both an ability and a form.

Manifestation- A shinigami’s bond with his zanpakutou is so strong that he is able to manifest his zanpakutou spirit into the world. This signifies his readiness to begin training for Bankai.

Bankai- Generally, Bankai is a form of release when the Shinigami brings the power of the zanpakutou's spirit out onto the real plain as a large manifestation, usually in relation to the zanpakutou spirit's form.

Bankai gives a character 40% bonus to reiatsu automatically while activated. One doesn’t have to choose this, it is an inherent bonus. Bankai differ from Shikai in that they may only have one ability and form, but they are mostly allotted three different attacks.

 

[Tsumuro]

Shinigami Houses

From the lofty direct relatives of the king, to the lowliest dregs clinging to meaningless titles in outer Rukongai, the legacy of the feudal system still lingers in Soul Society.

This thread is to serve as an overview to the nobility in the RP as well as a listing of who’s who among the upper-echelons of Seireitei.

First of all, there are two different kinds of people in Soul Society; those who live in Seireitei and those who don’t. If you are a shinigami, you are already quasi-nobility simply by virtue of being a citizen of Seireitei. While your character might be little more than a street-rat snatched out of Rukongai and thrown into the Academy, there is a certain amount of status that living in the court gives you.

With that in mind, let’s get into the details.


What is a noble?

A noble is, in the most basic sense, someone who owns land. Where the land is located, how much of it there is, and how much the land is worth varies from family to family. What does matter is the influence they have on the land they own.

Who are the nobles?

The biggest noble of all is the king. As the monarch, the king has dominion over all of Soul Society. Obviously, he can’t run the entire world, so has entrusted families with titles to plots of land. Usually, these are people who have done a great service to Soul Society in some fashion to prove their trustworthiness.

Note that the king himself does not award titles anymore. That is now one of the functions of the Central 46, although they don’t need to exercise it much.

So how does one become a noble?

There are several ways it can happen. You can be given the title by the Central 46. This is a rare occurrence in modern times, and requires some sort of great act for such an honor to be bestowed.

You can also marry into a title. If a spouse has a title, that title is shared once they become married. Noble houses often marry with each other to strengthen the power of their united house. Sometimes dashing upstart nobles manage to slip in there too.

On a side note, you have the choice of inheriting the title of the head of the house or merely be another heir within their ranks. Rarely do newcomers into the family immediately ascend into the top position.

Also remember, when a head of house dies, his land is divided between his children. Some houses prefer to simply appoint a new head of house and keep the family united rather than fracturing it. Traditions vary from house to house. Either way, when a title-holder passes away, that title has to go somewhere. Getting into a succession crisis like this is probably the number one cause of noble fatalities. Things can get downright nasty when all that power is on the line. This is especially true the higher up the noble ladder you climb.

What kind of nobles are there?

The nobles are classified into three categories: the Four Noble Houses, the High Nobility, and the Low Nobility.

What are the Four Noble Houses?

The four houses are the houses among the High Nobility that are closest in the line of succession to the king. While they Four Noble Houses are technically no different than the High Nobility, they enjoy far more prestige than the mere rabble pretending to be important below them.

Traditionally, the Four Nobles were in charge of overseeing land in a particular cardinal direction, with the Ashanti to the south, the Kikuchis to the east, the Fausts to the west; with the Yoshishige having their personal holdings in the north. After millennia of infighting and complicated affairs of inheritance, the Yoshishige have opted to give away their land to independent houses to focus on their royal duties, while the other three houses have had their holdings change considerably.

Even so, the families still tend to have their bases of power in those directions, and their vassals tend to be located in these areas too.

What is the High Nobility?

The High Nobility control land in Seireitei. Lower houses among the High Nobility have land in Rukongai in addition to their stately manors in the city, but the more refined houses prefer to leave their plots outside the bloodstone walls to their vassal houses.

High Nobles are fairly famous and anyone with breeding would at least know the names of the prominent members of the twelve families of the High Nobility.

Members of this class are extremely rich, extremely powerful and extremely dangerous to cross. The blood runs thick in these families and many famous shinigami come from these clans.

How do I determine my rank as a High Noble?

It’s complicated again. Families with direct holdings in Rukongai are lower, while families with a lot of vassals are higher. Families who are vassals of one of the Four Noble Houses might enjoy a lot of prestige, but be viewed by other independent families as lapdogs for bigger houses.

Lower Noble houses can get away with a lot more ambiguity, but when tons of riches and power are on the line as they are for the High Nobility, things get a lot stickier.

What is the Low Nobility?

The Low Nobility owns land in Rukongai. Rukongai sucks and the further out you go, the more it sucks. Thusly, the further out your land is, the lower your rank tends to be. Once you get past about District 20, the difference between the nobility and your average citizen is purely cosmetic.

Who cares if your dad owns a slum? A slum is still a slum.

The Low Nobility tends to either be really well grounded compared to the rest of the snobbish court, or really ambitious. Neither trait earns them much respect among the upper echelons.

Folks in this class are rarely recognized except in the immediate area where they live. You are strictly local government. All the federal guys live in Seireitei.

The blood in these families is pretty thin. If there were a bunch of strong prodigies in the family, why are they still wasting their time in the rough neighborhoods?

Many talented individuals in Rukongai are eagerly scouted by local nobles hoping to ride a prodigy’s coattails into high society, but most are too savvy to be used in such an obvious ploy.

Many families in the Low Nobility are vassals of High Nobles. This is a beneficial arrangement for both parties as the Low Nobles gain the resources and influence of the High Nobility, while still being able to focus on their immediate affairs. Meanwhile, the High Nobility gains a lot of influence by proxy and can extract incomes from profitable areas.

How do I determine my rank as a Low Noble compared to other Low Nobles?

Well that’s the trick, isn’t it? A vassal house of a great family would obviously enjoy a lot of prestige, but if he was in a terrible district that would serve to diminish it. An independent family in a nice district might have less influence than a vassal house of a lower one if that family were of a high ranking.

Basically, there isn’t a set and dry way to doing it. Welcome to the nobility. Names are everything and no one can agree on anything.

How about ancestral titles like the stewardship of the Onmitsu Kidou? Can my house have one?

As the years have passed, official titles in the armed forces such as these have been gradually phased out. The Onmitsu Kidou title itself was held by House LaSalle which has since fallen, so the fate of this title is in limbo.

If you think about it, having a title like that is pretty dumb. A given house can expect to have one bankai capable individual every few generations and if that gap in generations happens to be big, then the whole military branch suffers. With that in mind, don’t expect your house to have some special title as odds are there was some dark period in your house that screwed it all up.

What kind of powers do the nobles enjoy on their land?

The Central 46 is the government in lieu of the king, so their law is absolute and the nobles must obey their mandates first and foremost. Beyond that, nobles can enforce the law on their lands and collect taxes. Many families make extra rules about living and working on their land and some can be quite strict.

So within certain boundaries set forth by the government, nobles have a lot of free will to govern their own land how they want. The degree to which this is exercised really depends on the house itself. Trying to enforce strict standards on outer Rukongai citizens is usually a recipe for disaster, however.

I thought the Central 46 was the government. Why would they let nobles keep doing their feudal system thing?

Well point 1, Soul Society is kind of old fashioned. There are a lot of super old people running the place and they still have the sensibilities of old times.

Beyond that, when you have a bunch of rich, powerful nobles, there is a question of how one would take that power away. If the Central 46 were to try to completely dissolve the system, there might be an outright civil war. Considering they just had to deal with one 500 years ago, I doubt they are going to want to do that.

Why wouldn’t people just live on non-noble controlled land? I wouldn’t want some rich fruit telling me what to do.

That’s a good question! The main reason is that Rukongai sucks.

The way Soul Society is set up, there is a big central city and as you get further out, the power of the central government grows weaker and weaker. Nobles on the other hand, have their power based on their land. This creates little islands of influence where there is money and peace. It’s true that some people opt to live free on their own, but not everyone is strong enough to do that.

Beyond the stability and money issue there is also one of protection. I would think there are some normal people police run by the Central 46 to try to keep things in order (especially in the higher districts) but the moment some jerk with reiatsu comes along, all those guys are useless. How would you deal with a group of thugs who are bulletproof, stab-proof and capable of launching demon fire by uttering a few words?

The best chance would be by living on noble lands. As the blood is thicker among the elite, they are likely to have their own demon fire spouting good guys who won’t take kindly to someone trying to make trouble on their turf.

That might make you ask what the real difference between a reiatsu talented gang and a noble family really is out in Rukongai. The answer is… not much at all really.

This all seems kind of…non-canon.

Well, Bleach is about fighting really so it really isn’t going to go into too much depth about politics. This is probably a good thing. Would you really want an episode about a filibuster in the Central 46?

We’re in an alternate universe anyway, so we’re allowed to be a little different.

If canon throws a big monkey wrench into things, I’ll have to modify it. It’s pretty nerdy to have to make this whole system in the first place. If you think this is bad, don’t even get me started on the economics of Soul Society.

Okay, so how do I get in on this?

Submit your house to a mod via PM. There are several criteria by which we are going to evaluate your noble family:

1) Which level you are trying to join?

The higher level you apply for, the lower the chances of your application being accepted. As it stands now, no applications for the Four Noble Houses will be accepted, the High Nobility will probably not be accepted, and the Low Nobility depends on other criteria below.

2) Do you plan on making them NPCs or will your RPC actually join them?

If you are planning to just have them as NPCs, don't read past this paragraph. Your application will be denied. We already have several, more established, NPC-controlled nobles.

3) Does your family/Will your family be vassals to other nobles?

Nobility is a drama-filled, struggle for power. For the most part, those families that stand alone are less likely to survive throughout the ages. It is important to have RPers who are willing to accept your family as their vassals or equals (more on this later) in order to stay in power.

4) Do others who control noble families accept your application as plausible within the realm of the noble society?

This criteria is weighted less heavily. It basically ensures fairness ensues. If the overwhelming majority believe your family does not meet the criteria, I will take another look at your application. Likewise, if I do not believe your family meets criteria but they do, I will reevaluation your application.

In the end, it is my decision; however, I am human and I do make mistakes. In the name of fairness, this criteria exists.

5) How well does your family fit within plot?

This is kind of a catch-all. It exists to give me power to accept or deny your application for any reason.

6) How many noble families exist and how many are active?

If you are submitting your family for low nobility approval and there are 20 active families already (they will never be that many between active and non-active combines), then common sense dictates that its less likely for me to accept your application.

If you believe you meet the criteria above, here is the format you should use in your application:

House (insert family name)
Location: Where within Seireitei/Rukongai is your family's plot of land
Rper: Your Gaia Name
Head of House: (Your Character or NPC's name)
Crest: Whatever manly/fruity/artistic/lame thing you come up with
Members: Your family members (make special note of any heirs and their distance from the Head of House position [Primary Heir, Secondary Heir, Tertiary Heir, etc.)
Vassals: If you have lower houses whether by marriage or whatever, list them here
Rivals: If you have houses that hate you or push you to achieve greater heights, list them here.

After that give me a brief history of your family, including any major plot events throughout history that they may have been involved in. This can be really dry and boring if you want it to be. Most nobles are really dry and boring, but the history is important to them at least. Even some hicks from Rukongai have pride.

Any tips on making a family?

1) If you intend to make a family, you had better be intent on sticking with it. Every single RPer in the nobility has to work their histories around yours and the more important that you make your house, the more they have to work around it. If you are a d**k and make a family only to have cold feet and abandon it, then you screw every RPer on this list. I will not be happy. They will not be happy. And we will make sure you are not happy. Think before you do this.

2) Noble families are RPCs only. If you want to be a high noble, it had better be a house your RPCis in.

3) your family is not all powerful nor are they the most important. Limit the amount of strong NPCs in your family. If you're an RPC who demanded that members of your house be among the highest ranking people in the Kidoushuu, Onmitsu Kidou as well as the Central 46, don't even try. That is a bad move.

4) Make controlling a noble family mean something. If you are going to go to all this trouble to make all this stuff, then you ought to use it (but don't abuse it, ya dig?)

5) Make sure you know the other families and work with them. The higher rank you are, the more responsibility you have in knowing who’s who in Seireitei. If you don’t know who the others are as of reading this, you’d better figure it out. If you don’t, you are going to be called an uncultured swine next time you collab with a noble who does.

6) Talk to the other folks on this list and figure out your history as it relates to them. Every family has a base of power somewhere so if your family has land in East Rukongai district 6, then you might want to talk to me to work out a connection with a vassal. You might want to even be a vassal yourself. Who knows? Families are often connected in the weirdest ways.

Anything else?

Congratulations if you actually read all of this. *claps*  

[Endorph]

Gotei 13 Division Duties

Division One
Gotei 13 Headquarters

First Division's Headquarters are by far the largest insofar as space allotted of all the Thirteen Court Squads' and for a twofold reason it is so. The first being that as First Division has the largest acting force of messengers and general guards it requires the most space in order to address and give orders to the platoons of Shinigami, both seated and not of all Divisions, so while First Division's extensive space allows for the assistants to First Division's operations to live and work without having to constantly move through crowded streets, the main purpose of the large area is in order to house the Division being given orders on a large-scale basis.

The Headquarters itself though is comprised of two sections, the first being the Captains meeting chamber, where the Captains of each Divisions and on occassion their Lieutenants, though the latter is only under rare circumstances and usually only when the Captains themselves are absent. This "Meeting Room" is a long space, empty but for at the door at one end and a high-backed slotted chair for the Captain of First Division to seat themselves during long meetings. Adjoining from this room is the secondary building and acts as the So-taicho's personal Headquarters, and is much like other Captain's Headquarters save for along the Western wall the space is empty and leads out to a Balcony overseeing the Duelist's "stage" far below as well as a majority of the Seireitei and Rukongai beyond.

Division Two
Secret Mobile Corps

Notorious amongst the Thirteen Court Protection Squads, second Division's chief responsibility is to locate and eliminate specific targets set in opposition to the Gotei 13 namely assassins, the Secret Mobile Corp also acts as a detainment Division and is charged with the keeping and holding of individuals known to be hostile to the Thirteen Court Protection Squads, due to the fact that prisoners are stripped of rank and weapon, weapons are not allowed on the warden's person as a result nearly the entire Division is fully capable of handling themselves with naught but their bare hands. Secret Mobile corps are allowed the freedom to make in-field decisions as commander-in-chief over every other division as their work entails the greatest amount of importance in detail. However; at the same time the Division is severely restricted by this very freedom, as the acting commander-in-chief on the field, Second Division's Captain will face the praise or condemnation of their actions, however; the entire squad is dealt the same punishment, making the teamwork in this squad exceptionally good.

Division Three
Rear Guard

True to its name, Division Three tends to get the afterwash of most battles. As the acting "Wall" of the Thirteen Protection Squads, Squad three is well-renowned for its defensive abilities and maneuvering tactics to shield both themselves and the front lines, Third Division's primary duty is to "Stand and Solidify" That is, to back up the main army as well as provide safe passage for medical care as well as guard a retreat to prevent a route, a secondary obligation though of Third Squad is to fortify locations, in the case of off-site battles from the Seireitei, Third Squad has "watch" duty and is in charge of defending and watching against surprise attacks or ambushes, given their defensive posture on a field of battle this makes that responsibility easy to comply with.

Division Four
Reverse Combat

Considered to be the "Healing" and "Maintenance" Division, Fourth Squad is in fact responsible for the development of techniques and training of virtually all members of the Gotei 13, no Shinigami employed directly under the Thirteen Court protection squads can avoid spending at least some time in this Division. Known primarily for the recovery abilities, Division four is while very complacent and willing debate ably the most important of all the Squads, to be accepted into Division four an individual must be self-driven and motivated, they must possess a high-intellect and must be able to act well under pressured circumstances. They also must have a very intimate knowledge of souls both Shinigami and Hollow alike, in a much shorter version, Fourth Squad members are vital to the vitals of the Thirteen Court Protection Squads. Placed in the R&D court for a multitude of reasons, it's existence as a "passive" squad has notably decreased the number of uprisings from that district, secondly it has a responsibility to tend to subjects experimented upon in Twelfth Division's laboratories and for closeness' sake the first to respond to an emergency should one occur on Earth and as such next to Seventh Division, they are first to know.

Division Five
Control Resources

As a Court squad charged with the "Law" Court's defense and management, Division Five is in charge of passive defense, in short they're chief responsibility is in dealing with Uprisings both in Rukongai and in the Courts themselves. Acting as a sort of "Police Force" the Fifth Division has responsibilities to "deter and subdue" without inflicting permanent harm, Division Five has permission to use non-lethal force when dealing with un-armed targets, but may use all available resources to deal with the task set before them. Fifth Squad is given first priority upon arrival on Earth as well as near-immediate seal release. A result of this "freedom" though is a strict observation of rules in this Division, members admitted to the Fifth Court Squad are oftentimes hand-selected by the So-taicho themselves or are considered to be very trustworthy.

Division Six

Strategic Maneuvering

As the "Lead" Combat squad, Division six is well-known for its skilled combat fighters as well as intellectual fighting style, rather than simply overpowering an enemy, Division Six's members are thoughtful in their actions and the reactions to those actions. Division Six's chief responsibility is to act as the "field" commander in an emergency or war-time situation. The "Commander" Squad as it's more widely known as, Sixth Division directs the other combat squads on the field and is only second to Division Two's Captain on a special circumstantial instance such as an emergency assassination or by the Captain Commander themselves, otherwise, Sixth Division has commanding priority in a combat situation. A secondary duty of this Division is to plan ahead for battles and as a result works closely with the Investigation Courts in order to gather information about the place of battle as well as any potential threats of position or circumstance on the field.

Division Seven
Combat Improvement

As the objective analysts over combat development and improvement, it's very necessary for Seventh Division to both partake and view the battles around them, demanding a great deal of both strength and intellect. Chief among Division Seven's responsibilities are to insure that in the ever-evolving battle against the Menos army that their fellow Shinigami are properly prepared for the conflict by means of kido seals and other devices meant to maintain the balance so precariously balanced in the Shinigami way of life while keeping them at a state capable of battling their most frequent type of foes, namely the hollow. Given the high-responsibility, especially over the seals placed on Earth-placed Shinigami, Seventh Division is carefully chosen for their insightful abilities and their detached state-of-mind.

Division Eight
External Investigation

Set in charge of criminal matters both in the many districts of Rukongai as well as those committed on Earth, Division Eight's chief responsibility is to build cases based on out-of-line scenarios, given that Rukongai and Earth's system of collateral justice is less specific on matters of crime, this makes the External Investigation Team's duties very specific and members of this squad are very carefully selected for their ingenuity and adaptation to specific given scenarios. Substitute Shinigami and Vizard fall under Eighth Division's watchful eye as well as Quincy and other humans with powers related to a spirit-like nature. As an un-mentioned duty, Division Eight is also placed in charge of the monitoring and control of these powers and is usually the first to be deployed in an Earth-related incident.

Division Nine
Judiciary Squad

Outside of the Council 46, Division Nine has supreme Judiciary control over the committed crimes of Shinigami and Ryoka alike. Primarily created to look after the affairs of state concerning the extensive districts of Rukongai, the number of Squad individuals in comparison to the sheer number of residents makes the cases that eventually make it to the Ninth Division of a high priority and in sheer volume Division Nine remains one of the busiest of all the Divisions, in court, this division is granted the freedom to strip any Shinigami so long as the presiding Captain is present of rank, freedom, sword and life, with such a heavy responsibility and tasks to weigh, members of this squad are chosen carefully, the Captain in-particular has to be very conscious of his or her actions directly involving his fellow Shinigami, while Captain and Vice-Captain executions have to be agreed upon and send to Council 46 for approval, un-seated members may be executed so long as their respective Captain agrees to the execution itself.

Division Ten

Internal Investigation
Placed in charge of the discreet and public investigation of criminals within the Seireitei as well as their ensuing crimes, Tenth Division's chief responsibility is to ensure the peace of the Court of Pure Souls is maintained via use of texts and offenses, acting as an "archive" squad, Division Ten also has responsibility to retain all texts concerning past offenses both convicted and pardoned. Division Ten is first of the three Court Squads requested in an investigation concerning those in the Seireitei, they are also informally the "interrogation" squad and is responsible for the interrogating and assigning of criminals to the separate courts as well as providing an adequate case before the Judicial squads, as such Division Ten is well-renowned for having the most amount of paperwork to sort through as a Shinigami's trial is based upon their background and specific status and both must be researched thoroughly before an official appeal to the courts can be issued.

Division Eleven
Forward Guard

Unlike its name, Eleventh Division is in no sense of the term a "guard" Following the philosophy that the best defense is a good offense, Division Eleven has nearly always been notorious for its love of combat and its reputation for turning out capable and competent soldiers, however; due to its fierce reputation and lack of ability to follow orders, Eleventh Division isn't charged with very much responsibility, only with new recruits as a secondary "basic" training squad, Eleventh Division is usually chosen for newly graduated Academy Students in order to familiarize them with fighting and coordination with other Shinigami as Squad Eleven has the highest level of group-dependence of any of all the Thirteen Squads.

Division Twelve

Research and Development

Considered to be the "darker" side of Shinigami developments both in and out of combat, Twelfth Division members are kept in line by an intrigue in their work as well as a sense of fear. Twelfth Squad is placed in charge of hollow, namely to experiment upon, Twelfth Division's primary responsibility is to extract as much data about hollow without actually killing them. Much of Twelfth Division's work is conducted in secret from the general public. Within the dark confines of Division Twelve's headquarters the greatest minds of Soul Society are put to work on the most daunting of tasks, the ending to a war held for as long as Hollow and those with the ability to combat them have existed. While most squads have charge of fighting this war, Twelfth Division's purpose is to end it, acting not only as strategists, these Court members have access to classified files and may use them liberally so long as a valid purpose in ending and preventing war between Shinigami and Hollow can be communicated, namely an eradication of Hollows and the various means of how to do so are considered to be Division Twelve's task.

Division Thirteen
Capital Punishment

Otherwise known as the "Execution" Squad Thirteenth Division's border is set against the Judicial border for a specific reason as the coordination between law and punishment must be a thin one, Division Thirteen is as its name suggests in charge of executions performed both with ceremony and without. Shinigami crimes are usually carried out with ceremony when convicted and sentenced to death, the ceremony itself though is dependent upon the rank and circumstance of the Shinigami and the crime he or she committed while crimes in Rukongai, while not normally deserving of the Death penalty are usually carried out on the field or are executed privately and without ceremony. A secondary obligation of the Thirteenth Division is to oversee court sentencing and members of this division are usually asked to sit-in on "popular" cases and act as a "defendant's" attorney to serve both the cause of justice by adding a non-judicial squad to the courts as well as familiarize the defendant with their executioner if the crime is serious enough, though it's a common practice to avoid personalization in an execution by replacing the "defendant" squad member with an unaffiliated member.

 

[Tsumuro]

Royal Special Task Force

The Royal Special Task Force, known commonly as the Royal Guard or Zero Division, is the most powerful militant force in all of Soul Society. An organization made up of former Captains of the Gotei 13 who were promoted to this level, the Royal Guard serve as the personal bodyguards of the Spirit King and the royal family. Only captains of the Gotei 13 know of their existence, though others have been known to discover them. As former elite captains of the Gotei 13, the members of the Royal Guard have considerable power and tactical knowledge. They are the highest class of Shinigami and only answer to the King: not even the Central 46 Chambers or the Grand Sovereign Council have authority over them. While the Royal Guard is a single force, it is made up from five smaller divisions, known as the Royal Ring of Five Guards.

Ranks

Similar to the Gotei 13, the Royal Special Task Force has ranks. However, the ranks in the Royal Guard function differently than that of the Gotei 13. Unlike the twenty reserved ranks for officers, and the the existence of non-ranked Shinigami, the Royal Guard consists of five smaller divisions known as the Ring of Five, have only two separate leader-appointed ranks, and because all members of the Royal Guard were former captains, there are no major gaps in power between individuals.

Supreme Commander
The Supreme Commander (Soudaishou; Supreme-Commander) is the head captain of the Royal Special task Force, and the true personal bodyguard of the Spirit King. The Supreme Commander also holds the position of being the head of the First Ring of the Ring of Five. The Supreme Commander is said to be the most powerful member of the Royal Guard, as well as being the wisest and most experienced.

High Marshal
A High Marshal (Kunshi gensui; High-Marshal) is the leader captain of one of the Rings of Five (excluding the special case of the Supreme Commander). Unlike in the Gotei 13, where captains are generally the most respected and powerful Shinigami, the position of High Marshal merely reflects one chosen for responsibility and experience in leadership. Also unlike in the Gotei 13, where captains are chosen though several means, the positions of a High Marshal are unquestioned and unchallenged. Chosen directly by the Supreme Commander, High Marshals and almost never removed or replaced.


Captain
A Captain (Taichō; Captain) entirely make up the Royal Guard, including the High Marshals and the Supreme Commander. The title of captain exists in every one of the Ring of Five, and functions very differently than in the Gotei 13. The title of captain is simply an extension from their time in the Gotei 13. Because of this, there are no true superior ranks - in the sense of power - within the Royal Guard. The closest existence to division in power or ability are the classes of the Royal Ring of Five Guards, which seperate the captains by their ring. Captains are divided by "levels", which are according to their ring.

Five Royal Rings

Ring of One

The Ring of One is the closest division to the royal family, and acts as the royal family's direct bodyguards. The leader of the Ring of One, the Supreme Commander, acts as the Spirit King's personal bodyguard. The Ring of One consists of the Royal Guard's wisest, most experienced and most loyal captains. The Ring of One is also the only division of the Royal Guard that is merged with the Spirit King's advisory council. The members of the Ring of One have access to the innermost areas of the Spirit King's palace. Along with the Ring of Two, the Ring of One are the only captains actually allowed to see the Spirit King or the royal family.

Ring of Two

The Ring of Two are the directly chosen successors to the members of the Ring of One. Chosen for their devotion, wisdom and potential, the Ring of Two serve the Spirit King under the direct guidance of the Ring of One. As such, the Ring of Two guard the royal family and the Spirit King from inside the palace. Unlike the Ring of One, the Ring of Two do not have immediate access to the personal chambers of the royal family and are not part of the Spirit King's advisory council.

Ring of Three

The Ring of Three are the third tier of security in the Royal Guard. Unlike the Ring of One and the Ring of Two, the Ring of Three have minimal access to the palace of the royal family. The Ring of Three primarily guard the outer and inner courtyards of the royal palace and must call to the Ring of Two to pass information to the Ring of One. The Ring of Three are virtually the same as the Ring of Two, save for the fact that they were not chosen to be successors to the Ring of One. Also unlike the Ring of One and the Ring of Two, the Ring of Three have never seen, and will never see, the Spirit King nor the royal family.

Ring of Four

The Ring of Four are unique to the in that they share some of the responsibilities of the Ring of Three and the Ring of Five. Like the other Royal Ring of Five Guards, The Ring of Four are powerful, but less experienced or inadequate to higher position due to personal flaws, such as brashness or impulsiveness. Like the Ring of Three, the members of the Ring of Four are not authorized to enter the royal palace, to see the royal family, or to see the Spirit King.

Ring of Five

The Ring of Five are the guards of the outermost areas of the Spirit King's palace. Unlike the other Royal Ring of Five Guards, the Ring of Five are not even authorized to enter the palace grounds. Instead, the Ring of Five patrol the palace grounds from the outside, and are generally seen as the sentinels and watchmen of the Royal Ring of Five Guards. In order to send their reports, the Ring of Five must pass information through the other Rings. Nearly all Shinigami captains began in the Ring of Five, and it is where newly appointed captains are often placed. After observing their qualities, captains will either stay in the Ring of Five, or be transferred to higher rings.

Uniforms

The uniforms of the Royal Guard are both similar and different from those in the Gotei 13. Like in the Gotei 13, High Marshals and the Supreme Commander have distinguished uniforms. Like the lieutenants of the Gotei 13, the High Marshals have armbands with a crest-plate of the Royal Guard's insignia and their ring (the Ring of Three has three rings in their insignia, while the Ring of Five has five rings in their insignia). The Supreme Commander also has a silver tomoe medallion, which distinguishes him as the head of the Royal Guard. The rings are also divided by color, albeit subtly. Like the captains of the Gotei 13, the captains have their haori from their time as a captain in the Seireitei. However, the edges of their haroi are lined with one of five different colors; Ring of Five is amethyst, Ring of Four is cerulean, Ring of Three is crimson, Ring of Two is viridian, and Ring of One is gold.