Bleach mangaka Tite Kubo reveals that he has Yachiru Unohana's backstory written

Bleach Super Stage Ex concluded moments ago, leaving fans with a lot to think about. It was a fun affair, where the entire cast of Bleach, along with mangaka Tite Kubo, sat down for some QnA, gave insights on the behind-the-scenes stuff, and revealed upcoming plans for the Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War anime.

It was an enjoyable segment. However, the mention of Yachiru Unohana's backstory from Kubo created quite a stir in the fandom. Kubo described that to maintain the pacing of the anime, he had to trim down Yachiru Unohana's backstory quite a bit. This ensured that he kept the focus around the moments that she and Kenpachi Zaraki shared throughout the years so as not to break the immersion of their fight.

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Kubo confession to removing certain sections of Yachiru Unohana's backstory in Bleach leaves fans with several speculations

Unohana Retsu might seem like a kind-hearted captain of the 4th division, but she hides a dark past. She was formerly known as Yachiru Unohana and was the first "Kenpachi" or the captain of the 11th division. She was also one of the co-founders of Gotei 13 along with Yamamoto and was known throughout the Soul Society as the most notorious serial killer in its history.

At one point in the past, Yachiru Unohana fought a young Kenpachi Zaraki and was defeated by him in power. During their fight, the latter subconsciously sealed his powers to give them a chance to fight longer. While Unohana fought Zaraki again during the Thousand Year Blood War arc to unlock his full potential, she was slain by him, leading to the restoration of his strength and completing the Kenpachi succession.

Zaraki vs Unohana as seen in Bleach (Image via Studio Pierrot)

During the Super Stage Ex that was held on December 27, 2022, Kubo revealed that he had to make Yachiru Unohana's backstory more linear to that of Zaraki and their fight so as to not take away the immersion from their battle. As such, this information left fans wanting to see the detailed backstory that Kubo had planned for Unohana.

Yachiru's Bankai was another element of the manga that fans loved seeing animated with perfection. Her battle with Kenapchi Zaraki was a fight to witness. Her bloodlust even outmatched the latter's as she killed him and revived him with her healing Kidō to keep fighting him until he unlocked his sealed powers.

Moreover, as fans saw the fight between two strong characters and shots of their past, Yachiru admitted Zaraki was better than her, making it even more meaningful and emotional. As a result, the fandom is now curious about Yachiru's time as the captain of the 11th division, her fights against some strong of the opponents, and the origin of her powers. However, Kubo's confession of having trimmed much of her backstory leaves fans with a lot of speculations.

In addition, the other highlight of the Bleach Super Stage Ex was the cast present, who delivered fans with some exciting behind-the-scenes insights. Fans got to see the series' creator Tite Kubo and many voice actors from the franchise, such as Masakazu Morita (Ichigo Kurosaki), Noriaki Sugiyama (Uryu Ishida), Fumiko Orikasa (Rukia Kuchiki), Kentaro Ito (Renji Abarai), Ryutaro Okiayu (Byakuya Kuchiki), with Bleach TYBW's director, Taguchi.

A new key visual for the one-hour long finale episode, titled The Blade and Me, was also unveiled.

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The future is looking bright for Bleach and the anime will continue into 2023, as per the announcements. Besides, devoted fans of the franchise have waited a decade long for their favorite series to reclaim its position as one of the "Big Three" animes, and it looks like it is finally happening.