Character Profile: Byakuya Kuchiki

Byakuya's attitude is just silent in general, he can be cold hearted at times but he sticks to his promises so he's loyal. He does have his soft spots... course, he won't show it. He's captain of the 6th division. His vice-captain is Abarai Renji and his adopted sister is Rukia Kuchiki.

Byakuya was married to Rukia's older sister, Hisana. Just before Hisana passed away, she asked Byakuya to do something... she asked him to find her little sister and bring her into the family. Well, he got lucky. He went to do his job as captain and came across Rukia (her and her sister look practically identical), so it was easy. And after that, Byakuya adopted Rukia as his little sister, without telling her the true reason why.

From Rukia's perspective, she was just an orphan living on the streets with Renji and they decided to join the Soul Society and become powerful soul reapers. Then, for a reason vague to her, the Kuchiki clan decided to adopt her. It appears that Rukia did not know or remember that she had a sister, and Byakuya never told her.

By the time Aizen betrays everyone, Byakuya ended up the one to save Rukia. Of course, he got pretty badly injured for it.

Byakuya Kuchiki is of Noble blood, belonging to the Kuchiki clan one of the Four Noble families of Soul Society. Byakuya's noble background is quite evident by the way he acts. He's always in a calm state, as well as apathetic to all of the people around him.

Along as acting noble, he also wears white headpiece called a kenseikan which shows his noble rank as the 28th head of the Kuchiki family. Along with the head piece he also wears a very elegant white scarf called ginpaku kazahana no uzuginu. This scarf is a family heirloom handed down through the generations to the head of the Kuchiki family. The price of the scarf is enough to buy ten large houses.

Along side his noble clothing, he wears the standard outfit of a Shinigami [Death God] Captain, which consists of a black and white Kimono, along sides a black hakama and zori sandals. He carries his sword besides him, which is tied to his waist by the help of his sash.

Byakuya is a very skillful Shinigami, which he proved when retrieving Rukia from the human world. While Renji had some difficulties fighting Ichigo off, Byakuya had interfered, attacking Ichigo in a blink of an eye. It never even seemed that he had drawn his sword at the time.

Though it seemed Byakuya is a very cold and apathetic man, he truly cares for Rukia. Rukia thought different, he had not tried to convince the counsel to save her life. She also pointed out he had never looked at her the day he adopted her into his family.

The true reason he had not tried to bend the rules to save his sister was because of a promised he once made. He promised to his parents' graves he would never break the rules any more. He had broken the rules before, marrying a commoner, none other then Rukia's older sister. As soon as she died, she had made one request for her husband... To find her sister and adopt her into the family, so he could protect her. Byakuya broke the rules, allowing Rukia to be adopted into the family. From there on he followed the rules.

In the end Byakuya may keep a calm expression, but he is very troubled. He made a promise to his late wife to protect Rukia, and yet another promise to never break the rules. In order to save Rukia he would have to break the rules, and order to keep his promise to his parents, he must be willing to break his wife's promise.