Any cool shonen action anime will have its own combat system, and some of them have certainly stood the test of time. In the world of One Piece, a person can eat a devil fruit to gain unique powers. The ninjas in Naruto are known for all kinds of jutsu. Meanwhile, in Tite Kubo's Bleach, zanpakuto (soul-exorcising swords) and kido spells define the combat system that Soul Reapers use.
For the most part, the many zanpakuto and their abilities take center stage during Bleach's action scenes, from Byakuya's Senbonzakura to Toshiro Hitsugaya's ice-cold Daiguren Hyorinmaru. But kido spells are a vital part of any Soul Reaper's arsenal, and they can change the tide of any battle, as some characters have demonstrated. What are ten facts about kido spells and kido-like abilities found in Bleach?
10 Two Main Categories
Overall, kido spells can be divided into two very broad categories: Hado spells, which are designed to deal damage to a target, and Bakudo spells, which do all kinds of things but don't generally deal damage.
A Hado spell might shoot fire or light beams that can vaporize a target, and many Bakudo spells are known to immobilize a target, such as Riku Jokoro (one of Byakuya Kuchiki's favorite kido spells). This allows for a flexible arsenal of skills.
9 They Can Heal
But there is a third major use for kido spells: healing. This is the primary function of Squad 4, whose members are not dedicated to fighting. Captain Retsu Unohana is the finest healer around, though all her subordinates are properly trained and can do a fine job, too.
This is known as Kaido, and the user can hold their hands over the victim's injuries and allow green spirit energy to glow there. The healer may also use spells to restore the victim's own spirit energy, and it to augment the healing process.
8 Wordy Incantations
Rukia isn't a kido master, but she's quite proficient in the use of kido, and she used a Bakudo spell on Ichigo in Bleach's first-ever episode. She's actually better at kido than swordplay, as opposed to her childhood friend Renji.
She is often seen speaking the full incantations of kido spells, to get the most power and control while using them. All kido spells have a unique incantation, each of which resembles a few lines of poetry.
7 Incantations Can Be Omitted
This is Sosuke Aizen, a traitor Captain who can use kido to an incredible degree. He likes using kido spells, and he never seems to speak the wordy incantations for them, either. How can get away with just saying the spell's name?
Powerful Soul Reapers like him (and Byakuya, too) have the option to omit the incantations for brevity's sake, and fire the spell right away. This comes at the price of reducing the spell's potency somewhat, but for a high-level user, the effects are still formidable. And quick.
6 The Ranking System
In this dazzling screenshot, Kisuke Urahara is using a Hado spell in the 90s to deal damage to Sosuke Aizen during the final battle. Kido spells are all numbered, from 1-99, and the higher the number, the more advanced the spell.
Simple kido, such as Hainawa, are in the single digits, while Riku Jokoro is in the 60s, and the devastating Kurohitsugi is in the lower 90s. Take note that even low-ranked kido are devastating when powerful users are casting them.
5 The Kido Corps
Meet Hachigen Ushoda, a former member of the Kido Corps. Given how powerful and varied kido spells are, it is only natural that an entire corps exists for the regulation, use, and research of all things kido.
This organization is hardly ever seen on-screen, but in a flashback, Hachigen and Tessai were high-ranking members who assisted in the battle against Aizen's scheme. This corps also opens senkaimon gates and activates the Sokyoku for executions.
4 Some Kido Are Forbidden
It only makes sense that a powerful and flexible magic system like kido would involve a few spells that relevant governing bodies don't like. It's common in fantasy series for there to be a forbidden spell or two, and Bleach has some, too.
A forbidden spell may be too risky to use for the casters, and it may easily get out of control or cause a lot of collateral damage. Some high-ranking kido are indeed forbidden, such as those that demand a sacrifice from the user or manipulate space and time. Anyone caught using them may face prison time.
3 Double Incantations
It was mentioned earlier that a kido spell requires an incantation to use correctly, and that high-level users can omit the incantation at a small cost of the spell's potency. But what if two incantations are used instead?
Being a skilled kido user, Rukia demonstrated the ability to speak two different incantations of kido, weaving them together during her battle with Aaroniero (pictured). This allowed her to use Riku Jokoro, then immediately fire a destructive Hado without delay. And it worked.
2 Some Zanpakuto Imitate Kido
He tries to keep it a secret, but Yumichika Ayasegawa of Squad 11 (pictured) has a kido-type shikai. In fact, many shikai are kido-type, such as Momo Hinamori's, and the abilities of these shikai vary as widely as kido do.
This contrasts with melee-type shikai, such as Renji's Zabimaru or Izuku Kira's Wabisuke. In Yumichika's case, Ruri Iro Kujaku can create vines that absorb an enemy's spirit energy and stored it in bud-like growths. This is highly unusual for a member of Squad 11, though, and Kenpachi and Ikkaky wouldn't like it.
1 Restricted Use
So far, it is evidently clear that Soul Reapers are the only users of kido spells. Not even substitute Soul Reapesrs like Ichigo, regardless of their power, can wield kido. Ichigo never even tried to learn any kido spells.
Based on their Japanese names, it's quite likely that kido spells are inedeed unique to the Soul Reapers, since the arrancars have a Spanish naming convention and the Quincy have a German naming system. But some ressurecion abilities, as Byakuya noted, are rough analogs for kido, such as Zommari's released state.