Bleach is a long-running shonen series with a huge cast of characters, and a few of them stand out as the series' true heroes. First and foremost comes Ichigo Kurosaki, the high schooler turned Soul Reaper, who's ready to face the forces of evil at swordpoint. Time and time again, he has saved the day, and everyone knows it.
Then there's Uryu Ishida, Ichigo's Quincy classmate and friend. Uryu declared himself a rival to Ichigo, but before long, Uryu established himself as a noble hero, and he has saved the day a few times, too. Here and there, Uryu actually eclipsed Ichigo as Bleach's star. Other times, though, Ichigo proves why he is indeed the #1 hero of the series.
10 Uryu Was The Star: When He Protected Orihime From Captain Kurotsuchi
Partway through the Soul Society arc, Ichigo's team split into a few smaller parties, and Uryu ended up partnered with Orihime Inoue, a dear friend of his. They tried to blend in, but Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi of Squad 12 cornered them and declared his intent to experiment on Orihime in his lab.
Uryu couldn't let that happen. Fueled by protective instincts and revenge for his grandfather, Uryu used every technique at his disposal to fight off Captain Kurotsuchi, and incredibly, he won. It was a thrilling victory, though Kurotsuchi would return as an ally much later.
9 Ichigo Was The Star: When He Fought Captain Kuchiki
The climax of the Soul Society arc arrived when Ichigo crossed blades with Captain Byakuya Kuchiki for the third and final time, right there at the execution site. Ichigo had a new Bankai to show off, and Byakuya soon unleashed his own.
Both parties gave it their all, and partway through the duel, Ichigo's bizarre Inner Hollow emerged, until Ichigo suppressed it. Byakuya stood down at last, and the coast was clear to rescue Rukia at last (or so it seemed).
8 Uryu Was The Star: When He Defied Ryuken's Orders To Help Ichigo
After Ulquiorra Schiffer kidnapped Orihime Inoue, Ichigo declared that he would storm the world of Hueco Mundo alone to rescue her. Not long before that, Uryu regained his powers thanks to his father Ryuken's training, but Uryu was ordered to never help the Soul Reapers again.
Uryu went behind Ryuken's back (or so he thought) and joined Ichigo anyway, determined to help rescue Orihime by any means necessary. This shows Uryu's incredible courage and loyalty, and not even the Quincy-Soul Reaper feud could sway him.
7 Ichigo Was The Star: When He Defeated Grimmjow In Las Noches
One of the great climaxes of the Hueco Mundo arc was when Ichigo faced Grimmjow Jaegerjaques in their third and final duel, right there in the great open space within Las Noches. Ichigo's heart wasn't totally in it at first, though.
Grimmjow kept taunting Ichigo until finally, Ichigo admitted to Grimmjow and himself that he really did want to fight Grimmjow to the death, and see who was stronger. This gave Ichigo the resolve to pull off a thrilling upset victory over the 6th Espada.
6 Uryu Was The Star: When He Nearly Defeated Szayelaporro With Renji
Elsewhere in Las Noches, Renji Abarai was struggling against the 8th Espada, Szayelaporro Grantz, until Uryu showed up to help. Uryu's arrows didn't work against Szayelaporro's countermeasures, so he devised a new plan.
Renji kept Szayelaporro busy and trapped him in one place, and Uryu prepared a huge, five-pointed rune on the floor. Once he set it off, a thunderous explosion rocked the room, and Szayelaporro was badly hurt, nearly defeated in fact. He only survived because he ate one of his fracciones to heal himself. Still, it was a brilliant move on Uryu's part.
5 Ichigo Was The Star: When He Defeated Ulquiorra
Ichigo pulled off an even greater upset victory when he went up against Ulquiorra, the 4th Espada, for the final time. Ichigo struck even against Ulquiorra at first, then suffered a crushing defeat once Ulquiorra showed off his released forms.
Uryu tried to continue the fight on Ichigo's behalf but was quickly struck down. Then Ichigo got back up with his Vasto Lorde form, and finally defeated Ulquiorra, right before Uryu's eyes. No one else could have pulled that off.
4 Uryu Was The Star: When He Won Over Jugram Haschwalth
Sternritter "B" is Jugram Haschwalth, the right-hand man of king Yhwach himself. Late in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, Haschwalth realized that Uryu was turning his back on the Wandenreich, and attacks him.
Uryu fights to the bitter end despite the difference in their power level, all for the sake of his friends and justice itself. Jugram is eventually weakened by Yhwach's power-stealing, and he urges Uryu to go out there and fight for his friends and do the right thing. Uryu's strength of spirit triumphed over Haschwalth's loyalty to Yhwach, which is saying a lot.
3 Ichigo Was The Star: When He Helped Defeat Sosuke Aizen
Defeating Sosuke Aizen was a group effort between Ichigo, Kisuke Urahara and Isshin Kurosaki, but arguably, Ichigo did the most work. It may have been Kisuke who dealt the final blow via a kido spell, but none of this would have happened without Ichigo.
After defeating Ulquiorra, Ichigo underwent further training, and faced Aizen with new powers and a new form, pushing the traitor Captain to the limit. Ichigo refused to be Aizen's unwitting pawn any longer and put a stop to him at last.
2 Uryu Was The Star: When He Fired A Silver Arrow At Yhwach
Uryu may have beaten Haschwalth, but Yhwach was a different matter entirely. Then he got some help from his father Ryuken, receiving a special silver arrow that could clot a Quincy's heart and weaken them. There was only one intended target: Yhwach.
Uryu took his chance and fired this arrow right at Yhwach's back, and sure enough, it hit Yhwach and took effect for just a few precious seconds. This paved the way for Yhwach's final defeat.
1 Ichigo Was The Star: When He Defeated Yhwach At Last
Ichigo and Uryu have to share credit for Yhwach's downfall and the world's salvation, but it was undeniably Ichigo who landed the final blow. Uryu did his part when he hit Yhwach with that arrow, and victory would have been impossible otherwise. But Uryu couldn't finish this alone.
Ichigo, as a true friend and hero, took this chance to show off his reborn zanpakuto and deliver the final attack on his dreaded enemy, ending him with a single slash. Yhwach's devastating plan for the world died with him, and every last Soul, Soul Reaper, human, and even Arrancar has Ichigo to thank for continued existence in a stable world.
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