Senen manga "Bleach" and the anime of the same name are extremely popular around the world. Although the anime series has already come to an end, and the plot of the manga has entered the final arch, millions of fans of the amazing world of shinigami, Quincy and the "empty" continue to admire the thoughtfulness of the exciting plot and the truly endless series of exciting adventures of the red-haired schoolchild Ichigo Kurosaki.
Like most works in the senen genre, the manga and the anime "Bleach" focus on the idea of confrontation. The protagonist does not even meet dozens - hundreds of enemies on his way to growing up and learning not only the world around him, but also himself. Who is Ichigo fighting with and are all enemies equally dangerous?
"Empty"
Throughout the plot of anime and manga, the so-called "empty" remain the universal enemies - the souls of the dead, who have lost human hearts and turned into manifestations of evil. They prey on good ghosts who have already left the body, but have not yet managed to lose their hearts. "Empty" are dangerous for the world of people, as they have supernatural powers and are invisible to the layman. From among living people, only mediums with special spiritual abilities have the opportunity to see the "empty" and fight with them.
Thus, from the very beginning of the series, it becomes obvious with whom Ichigo from the anime "Bleach" is hostile. Interestingly, the "empty" are divided into three classes. The strongest are the Arrankars - evil spirits who ripped off terrible white masks (according to the author of the story, replacing them with hearts) and acquired some shinigami abilities.
In turn, members of the Espada squad, elite fighters personally selected by Sosuke Aizen, are recognized as the strongest among the Arrancar.
Soul Society
Kurosaki gradually has new enemies, it becomes more difficult to answer the question of who Ichigo is opposed to. Rukia Kuchiki, the first of the Shinigami met by the red-haired schoolboy, explains to him some hidden details of the world order and gradually becomes the protagonist's girlfriend. But one evening after Rukia come the Shinigami from the Society of Souls and take her to the other world for trial and inevitable execution. Without even trying to delve into the vicissitudes of Shinigami politics, Ichigo Kurosaki rushes to the aid of his girlfriend, thereby rebelling against the entire Soul Society.
Shinigami turn out to be powerful opponents. The guy will have to go through fighters of all levels, from the weakest members of thirteen squads to captains who seem invincible. Although the shinigami are those with whom Ichigo is in this story arc, in subsequent chapters of the manga and anime series, the so-called soul guides recognize the teenage’s fighting and personal qualities, and even conditionally invite him into their ranks.
Sosuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, Kaname Tousen
Most of the Bleach storyline revolves around the heartbreaking betrayal of Sosuke Aizen and his allies (Gin Ichimaru, Kaname Tousen). As captains of elite Shinigami squads, three traitors take a chance and create real chaos in Soul Society.
Aizen gets an artifact of tremendous power and moves from the Shinigami monastery to the territory of the "empty" - to a kind of hell beyond the bounds of heaven. There he conducts terrible experiments on the "empty" and creates arrankarov. It is noteworthy that before this, Aizen conducted experiments right under the nose of the commander-in-chief of the Shinigami detachments, thereby creating wizards.
If the wizards are shinigami with the forces of the "empty", then the arrankars are the "empty" with the forces of the shinigami. At first, it’s hard to understand who Ichigo is at odds with, as the creatures of both species are not very friendly with other inhabitants of parallel worlds. Over time, it becomes clear: the wizards are trying to remain neutral towards Kurosaki and his friends, and the Arrancar are powerful opponents.
Quincy
On the one hand, at first it seems quite clear who Ichigo is at odds with. Orihime Inoue and Yasutor Sado, for example, from the first chapters of the manga and anime series are friends of the central character. But Uryu Isis instantly takes the position of confrontation: he is proud of his descent from the ancient family of Quincy mediums and is trying to destroy more “empty” ones than Kurosaki. At this point in the story, the difference between Quincy and Shinigami is explained.
However, despite many contradictions, Ichigo eventually manages to get Uryuu as an associate. The initial friendship, however, collapses when Isis enters Vandenreich, an organization of Quincy advocating for the superiority of purebred mediums. This story arc has not yet been revealed, so millions of fans around the world are still waiting for the continuation of the legendary senen epic.
Who is Ichigo fighting at the very end of the manga? We learn about this from the last chapters.