Bleach is a smash-hit shonen anime series that, like its cousin Naruto, features a huge cast of iconic characters who have legendary friendships and rivalries. While the Naruto anime is renowned for its deeply personal Naruto vs Sasuke rivalry, Bleach features a highly thematic friendship and rivalry between protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki and his Quincy friend, Uryu Ishida.
In some ways, Ichigo’s and Uryu’s friendly rivalry mirrors that of Sasuke and Naruto, but there’s an extra layer to this rivalry in Bleach‘s story. The relationship between Ichigo and Uryu isn’t just personal – it also reflects the larger clash of Soul Reapers vs the Wandenreich, or the Quincy empire. Ichigo and Uryu thought they were best buds, but their respective sides are at war, and this will challenge them like never before as the Thousand-Year Blood War arc continues.
Ichigo Kurosaki & Uryu Ishida Broke Down Barriers In Bleach
When the Bleach story began, protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki didn’t know anything about Soul Reapers or Hollows until he met the Soul Reaper Rukia Kuchiki in Episode 1. From there, Ichigo became a substitute Soul Reaper who learned everything as he went, meaning he was ignorant of Soul Reaper history, culture, and even politics at the time. In Ichigo’s eyes, he and Rukia were the only Soul Reapers in existence, and he knew nothing of Quincy or Arrancars. This meant that when Ichigo’s tsundere classmate Uryu Ishida introduced himself as a closeted Quincy, Ichigo wasn’t sure what he was dealing with – and he had no biases against the Quincy tribe.
Ichigo saw Uryu the Quincy through fresh and ignorant eyes, which helped the two boys become friends rather than enemies. The Soul Society and Wandenreich are bitter enemies, and at first, Uryu tried to project that feud into Ichigo, too. However, Ichigo couldn’t reciprocate because for him, this was entirely personal, and he acted accordingly. Uryu didn’t comment much on it, but Ichigo’s personal response may have helped lessen Uryu’s feelings of tribal feuding, and perhaps Uryu even felt a bit silly projecting this large-scale feud on someone who didn’t understand or care about it. Uryu took the Soul Reaper vs Quincy feud seriously at first, but between Ichigo’s response and the fact that Uryu is a good person deep down, Uryu soon changed his tune.
Uryu Ishida and Ichigo teamed up against a massive Gillian-class Menos Grande when it interrupted their Hollow-hunting contest, and then they became allies and friends for the Soul Society invasion to rescue Rukia. Uryu even knew he was saving a Soul Reaper while working alongside Ichigo, but the way Uryu put it, he was simply rescuing a friend, which was Ichigo’s attitude, too. By rescuing Rukia Kuchiki and befriending Ichigo, Uryu abandoned his tribal feud, building bridges between these two antagonistic sides from a personal angle. Ichigo and Rukia reciprocated, as did Soul Reapers like Renji Abarai and even Captain Kurotsuchi, further breaking down the barriers between Soul Reapers and Quincy. Even if Uryu reminded Ichigo “we’re rivals from different tribes” after the Soul Society mission and his father Ryuken urged Uryu to abandon Ichigo, Uryu stubbornly stayed by his friend’s side, proving that friendship means far more than ancient tribal feuds.
Ichigo & Uryu’s Friendship Peaked In Hueco Mundo
While the Naruto vs Sasuke friendship deteriorated further in Naruto Shippuden, the Ichigo/Uryu friendship continued to grow and strengthen as new story arcs began. Uryu didn’t say so at first, but he deeply valued his friendship with Ichigo and the others as the Soul Society arc ended and the Arrancar arc began. Uryu even agreed to his father’s terms to break off ties with Ichigo and the Soul Society, but that was a lie, and Ryuken knew it. Uryu was fully committed to his friends as a fellow hero and fighter, regardless of anyone’s spiritual powers or tribal affiliation, and Ichigo felt the same way. When Ichigo vowed to visit the faraway world Hueco Mundo alone to rescue his friend Orihime Inoue, Uryu thought it was a matter of course that he join in, along with Chad. When Ichigo questioned this, Uryu and Chad responded with force to prove their worth as powerful allies of Ichigo’s, and off they went.
Ichigo and Uryu’s friendly rivalry reached its peak in the Hueco Mundo story arc, taking turns fighting hostile Arrancars while trusting one another to get the job done even if they split up. Ichigo and Uryu didn’t meet up again until the final battle with Ulquiorra Schiffer on Las Noches’ roof, but each of them fully trusted the other to rescue Orihime and survive to return home together. Uryu, for his part, protected Orihime from Ulquiorra, Yammy, Loly, and Menoly during that final fight, and he watched in horror as Ichigo died at Ulquiorra’s hands. Tellingly, the normally cool, rational Uryu flew into a rage and recklessly attacked Ulquiorra after Ichigo’s defeat, even if Uryu knew he stood no chance.
Ichigo and Uryu resumed their fight against supernatural threats early in the Thousand-Year Blood War and the short Xcution arc, with Uryu casually watching Ichigo beat up Asguiaro Ebern, fully confident that Ichigo could handle this threat. Uryu even relaxed and ate bread for comic effect since his trust in Ichigo was so high, but this peak friendship couldn’t last. The TYBW arc would finally drive a wedge between these friends in ways the Soul Society arc and Hueco Mundo arc never could.
The Thousand-Year Blood War Arc Will Truly Test Uryu & Ichigo’s Friendship
The Thousand-Year Blood War arc does not present Ichigo and Uryu with a mutual enemy or a common goal, setting it apart from Bleach‘s other story arcs. Instead of rescuing a mutual friend or fighting hostile Arrancars, Ichigo and Uryu are now on opposite sides, with the mighty Wandenreich launching an all-out assault on the Soul Society itself. For the first time, Uryu Ishida feels like he’s returning home, meeting hundreds more of his own kind, something he has always wanted. The Quincy king Yhwach has already warmly welcomed Uryu back into the tribe and has even named Uryu his successor, meaning Uryu has every reason to fight for the Wandenreich – even if that means turning on his Soul Reaper friends, including Ichigo and Rukia.
So far, the Bleach revival anime hasn’t shown Ichigo and Uryu coming face to face after this shocking twist, but it’s bound to happen soon. In a way, Uryu’s arc has come full circle, with his tribal allegiance truly meaning more to him than his friendships, and he is acting accordingly. No doubt Ichigo and the others will be horrified, and they’ll see this as Uryu’s declaration that their precious friendship is over. Now Uryu has fully become Bleach‘s own Sasuke Uchiha, abandoning the heroes for more power at the hands of villains. Ichigo can only hope that Uryu comes to his senses and changes his mind, or that this is some clever ploy on Uryu’s side to destroy the Wandenreich from within. For the sake of Uryu’s and Ichigo’s enduring friendship, a twist like those must come to pass, and soon.