The greatest heroes in Bleach's The Thousand-Year Blood War

Key things

• Ichigo's final effort to stop Yhwach makes up for his previous mistakes and shows true heroism.
• Orihime's role as a healer is invaluable and she showcases her abilities and heroism throughout the arc.
• Mayuri Korutsuchi proves to be a real MVP, saving lives, taking out key fighters and showing teamwork.

The Millennium Blood War is a conflict within Bleach series that pitted the captains and lieutenants of the Soul Reaper against their most formidable adversary, the Sternritter. This army of Quincies nearly wiped out all of Soul Society in their very first invasion, even stealing numerous Bankai abilities in the process.

Needless to say, their mission to wipe out the Soul Reapers almost became a reality; Fortunately, Ichigo and his allies managed to fend off the Quincy attack, with several key individuals playing a large role in the resistance.

These are Bleach characters who deserve all the credit for showing true heroism during the final story arc, as without them, who knows how the centuries-long climax between the Soul Reaper and the Quincy would have turned out.

Before you jump in, it will
major spoilers for the final arc of the series
including the ending as depicted in the manga.

8 Ichigo Kurosaki

Ichigo's last effort in stopping Yhwach makes up for some of his other blunders in this arc

• First appearance: Episode 1

Admittedly, Ichigo isn't exactly at his best in the final arc of the story and makes a lot of big mistakes along the way. However, the main character still manages to fend off Yhwach more times than anyone else, as well as take out several Bambis who were wreaking havoc on the other Soul Reapers a moment ago.

More importantly though, Ichigo's training with Squad 0 and realizing his true Zanpakut allowed him to take down Yhwach when it really mattered. Sure, he might have had some much needed help from Uryu in those final moments, but Ichigo was the only one at the time who was confident and strong enough to defeat Yhwach and end the war once and for all, and thus can be considered a hero.

7 Orihime Inoue

Orihime's role as a healer makes her an invaluable member of the Soul Reaper forces

• First appearance: Episode 2

It's hard to think that Orihime standing side by side with Ichigo in the Thousand-Year Blood War is the same character from the previous arcs. She no longer doubts her abilities and usefulness to the team, but instead emerges as a key team player, taking on the role of healer and saving many lives throughout the arc.

One particular moment where Orihime shines is after half of Ichigo's chest is shattered by one of Urya's arrows in the anime. While Orihime is able to repair him, it is unlikely that anyone else would be able to get to the Soul Palace fast enough to save him. She also manages to effortlessly heal Ichigo's injuries before attacking Yhwach in the Soul Palace, as well as protecting Ganja from being flattened by Gerard. Orihime has honed her skills to the point where she is not only a useful member of the team, but an underrated hero throughout the arc.

6 Ryuken Ishida

Ryuken may be absent for most of the arc, but he enters the fray at the most crucial moment

• First appearance: Episode 44

Ryuken is more of a hero who shows up in the last hour to do something big rather than play a big role in the entire arc. In fact, aside from a few conversations with Uryu at the very beginning regarding the history of the Quincy, Ryuken is largely absent throughout the war, not aligning with the Quincy but also seemingly not opposing the Soul Reapers.

In the last few moments, Ryuken manages to send his son Uryu a silver arrowhead containing the blood clot that killed his wife. Using the unique power in the arrow, Uryu was able to stop Yhwach's Almighty long enough for Ichigo to deliver the final blow. Whether this will be changed or altered in the anime remains to be seen, but there were several scenes that foreshadowed the creation of the arrow, indicating that Ryuken will likely still play an important role in those final few episodes.

5 Shunsui Kyoraku

The leader of the Soul Reaper army who took down a truly dangerous opponent

• First appearance: Episode 24

Kyoraku does an admirable job of pushing back the Quincy during their initial invasions of Soul Society, but it's really when the Soul Reapers enter the gate and move into combat with the enemy that he comes into his own. Kyoraku shakes off his laziness to assume the role of leader of the surviving forces and fills them with inspiration and courage for future struggles.

It was also Kyoarku who was able to take down Lille Barro, an opponent who at the time had a lot of Soul Reaper blood on his hands. If Kyoraku hadn't unleashed his Bankai to take down Lille, he probably would have taken out many more Soul Reapers from a distance, tearing the army apart one by one with his sniper rifle.

4 Zaraki Kenpachi

Kenpachi stopped the war from ending prematurely with a meteor

• First appearance: Episode 20

Kenpachi only appears a few times in the war against the Quincie, but when he does, he always shows off his immense strength by tearing through formidable foes. The biggest example of this is his fight with Gremmy, a Sternritter capable of turning anything he imagines into reality. Many other characters would be defeated by two concrete hands or trapped in a pocket of space, but Kenpachi's thirst for battle pushes him through each of Gremmy's grueling tests.

Of course, Kenpachi was also able to split the meteor in two, which in the manga even scares Gremmy's own friends. There's no doubt that this single attack could have ended the war right there and then, and it's unlikely that many characters, if any, would have the same power as Kenpachi that was needed to stop it before it reached the surface.

3 Kisuke Urahara

Urahara's work behind the scenes saved the slashing soul on more than a few occasions

• First appearance: Episode 6

While the Soul Reapers do what they can to fend off the Quincy on the ground, Kisuke is always working behind the scenes to support them, and it's fair to say he comes into the fold at many key points in the arc. At the start of the second invasion, Kisuke manages to revive several of the captains by restoring their Bankai, which he had made Hollowfied, giving them one last chance to fight back.

It also implies that Kisuke was the one who gathered Riruka and Yukio to create the box that Ichigo and the gang used to return to Yhwach in the Palace of Souls. Kisuke is also grateful for creating the gate to the Palace of Souls that he and hundreds of others used to launch the final invasion, even taking on a member of the Schutzstaffel. It's a good thing the Soul Reapers decided to put their grudge with Kisuke aside for just this case, because without him they would have been doomed from the start.

2 Jushiro Ukitake

Ukitake gives up his own life to ensure that the three worlds do not collide

• First appearance: Episode 9

Since the very beginning of the series, it has always been established that Ukitake, the captain of Unit 13, is suffering from some sort of illness. It would only be in the final arc va Bleach flashback, though fans learned that this was partly due to his association with Mimihagi, the right-hand man of the Soul King himself.

Once Yhwach forces Ichigo to cut the Soul King in two, all three worlds are thrown into disarray and the fear of them all collapsing into one almost becomes a reality. Ukitake manages to use his bond with Mimihagi to temporarily allow the Soul King's hand to repel Yhwach, buying precious time for his comrades to use to end the battle. At the cost of his own life, he maintained the balance and prevented it Bleach the universe before being thrown into guaranteed destruction.

1 Mayuri Kurotsuchi

From saving the lives of many of his allies to destroying an entire army of zombies, Mayuri was the true MVP of the Final Arc

• First appearance: Episode 24

Mayuri experiences a completely unique arc throughout the series Bleachbecause it is not technically him who is changing, but rather how the audience perceives him. When he first appeared to face Uryu in the Soul Society arc, his abuse of his subordinates and his terrible treatment of Nemu made him hated by many fans.

Fast forward to the Millennium Blood War and Mayuri's sick and twisted mind allows him to eliminate many key fighters while saving more than a few friends. Not only is he able to face and take control of Giselle's zombie army, but he is also the one to resurrect Hitsugaya, Rangiku, Kenpachi, and many other Soul Reapers who would have been either dead or zombified if not for him. The ability to take down one of the four Schutzstaffel, thanks in part to Nemo, also cemented him as a huge team player during the final war, along with his efforts to contain Aizen's power and help build the Gate of the Soul Palace.