Mayuri Kurotsuchi

涅マユリ

Mayuri Kurotsuchi is Captain of the 12th Division in the Gotei 13 and 2nd president of the Shinigami Research Institute. He gained his position after Kisuke Urahara, the former captain and president, was sentenced into exile by Soul Society. His lieutenant is Nemu Kurotsuchi, his artificially-created “daughter.”

Mayuri’s appearance has a very skeletal look to it with a skull-like visage. His fingernails are blue and, with the exception of the fingernail on his right middle finger, are all short. The one long fingernail is as long as the finger itself. In the anime, Mayuri is revealed to have blue hair and yellow eyes when unmasked. He also wears a white hat with two ends that point to his right and a large purple scarf around his neck. He repaints his make-up every morning, as he always removes it before going to bed.

Mayuri’s left arm can extend out like a grappling hook. Mayuri is able to pull out part of his ear, which is Scythe like weapon attached to his body. He is able to blend himself with the environment with some sort of covering that flakes away once he reveals himself.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi is a researcher and personifies the stereotype of the mad scientist. By his early actions during the Ryoka Invasion, he is displayed as one of the most sadistic and cruel Shinigami. He sees everyone and everything not as a living being, but as an object to be researched—including himself. He has little respect or regard for most others, and was even willing to turn his own men (who were not aware of his plans) into human bombs in an attempt to capture Uryū Ishida and Orihime Inoue for experimentation. He also withheld vital information about the Bount from the other Shinigami in order to capture one as a research subject for himself.

It is known that Mayuri’s favorite food is pike fish, while he does not like onion. One of his free-time activities is reading every character published in Seiretei Communication. He himself publishes a serialization in the journal, titled “Effective Medication for the Brain,” which apparently contains detailed instructions on preparation of medicine and their application. Surprisingly it is highly popular among the readers.

In battle Mayuri likes to play with his opponent torturing little by little until they can hardly stand.

Master Scientist/Inventor: As the head of the Shinigami Research Institute, Mayuri is a talented inventor and scientist, having created a number of devices or techniques to aid him in battle or otherwise. As well Mayuri is a mad scientist embodied, he has no morals or empathy in everyday life and apparently his work is devoid of it as well, he will go to any length he feels is necessary to achieve his goals. He often takes no interest in issues of Soul Society and will rather engage in his research, unless personally requested by the General Yamamoto.

Master Strategist: Mayuri has a talent for being well prepared. He takes various precautions before engaging in personal combat with an adversary, usually studying them through his various methods in order to gain a clear advantage. He seems to always have a contingency plan if something doesn’t work out the way he expects.

Body Modification: It is implied that Mayuri has done extensive research on modifying bodies, and he has upgraded a variety of his own body parts to function as weapons or otherwise provide him with useful abilities. His left arm can extend like a grappling hook, and he is able to pull part of his ear out of his head to form a scythe attached to a rope-like ligament for use as a kusarigama. He can also blend into his environment with the aid of a topical camouflage which flakes away after he reveals himself. More impressively, he has demonstrated the ability to replace functional internal organs with false ones, a feat he performs on himself and his lieutenant to safeguard them from injury. This particular operation is conceived of and carried out in the span of less than an hour.

Master Chemist: Mayuri has otherwise been shown to be an adept chemist, manufacturing a drug that can slow down a person’s perception of time. It is able to make one second seem like 100 years for the unfortunate victim to whom it is administered. An undiluted dose of the drug causes the senses to speed up trillions of times while the relatively “slow” body fails to keep up, resulting in paralysis; on the other hand, it is implied that a diluted dose of the drug can greatly enhance the user’s reaction speed. Mayuri has also developed a “regenerative serum,” which can regrow limbs upon injection.

Environment Melding Technique: Another one of Mayuri’s abilities likely achieved scientifically is his ability to meld with the color and texture of the environment.

Little is known about the early history of Mayuri, except that he was the only prisoner in the Maggot’s Nest who was considered dangerous enough to necessitate confinement in a small prison cell, chained to the wall by his ankle. He was removed from confinement at the Maggot’s Nest was requested by Kisuke Urahara to become vice-captain to the newly thought of Research and Development Institute. Nine years later he became the third seat of the 12th Division. He later succeeded Kisuke Urahara in leading the Research and Development Institute as well as becoming captain of the 12th Division of the Gotei 13. He also experimented on Quincy, including Sōken Ishida, Uryū’s master and grandfather, in his studies. He believed that upon Sōken Ishida’s death the Quincy had been entirely wiped out, and was disappointed to learn that Uryū was a Quincy because he considered his study of the Quincy complete and did not want any further Quincy specimens.

Ashisogi Jizō’s Shikai command is “Rip” (掻き毟れ, kakimushire). In its Shikai, Ashisogi Jizō transforms into a deformed trident with curved, serpentine blades and a guard shaped like a baby’s head (as Ksitigarbha is depicted), all mounted on his sword’s normal hilt.

The baby’s mouth secretes a poisonous vapor in this form. The weapon works like the venom of a spider bite; when an opponent is stabbed by Ashisogi Jizō, it severs the brain signals controlling the neural impulses for movement in the limb’s of the victim, regardless of where they were struck. Unlike regular paralysis, the pain receptors and nerve endings are unaffected by the weapon, so the victim can still feel pain, even in a paralyzed limb. During the Bount arc, it is shown that healing the stab wound does not immediately remove the inflicted paralysis.

Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō (金色疋殺地蔵; Golden Leg-Cutting Jizō): returns Mayuri’s Zanpakutō to its sealed state and produces a giant caterpillar in a red cape with a grotesque baby’s head and a silver halo.

The creature breathes a poisonous derivative of Mayuri’s blood which is lethal to anyone who breathes it, aside from Mayuri and Nemu. Numerous blades can also extend from its chest, allowing it to run through and skewer opponents. Only Mayuri has a cure for its poison, though Nemu usually carries it around. Mayuri can change the composition of the poison, as well, ensuring that no foolproof antidote can ever be manufactured to cure it, and no immunity developed against it. Mayuri has physically modified Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō itself so that it will self-destruct and return to its sealed state if it were to attack him, implying that it is sentient as well as organic, reminiscent of Captain Retsu Unohana’s Minazuki.

Mayuri’s Zanpakutō also has the ability to transform Mayuri into a liquid when he stabs himself with its blade. Doing so doesn’t kill him, but instead simply leaves him unable to attack or be attacked, making it an effective escape tool. He reforms after a few days. It’s uncertain whether this ability is entirely the product of Ashisogi Jizō, since he specifically relates the ability to himself, not opponents. His various physical modifications may have something to do with the effect.