Tomato: Ulquiorra Cifer x Orihime Inoue, Part 2 (Ulquiorra Centric)
Fandom: Bleach
Pairing: Ulquiorra Cifer x Orihime Inoue (Abbr. UO)
Spoilers: Chapters 314 - 354
Updates:
7-05-2009, rewrote some parts so I don't sound insane
Introduction - Back with a lot more canon than crack!
I have to admit, as I start to write this, I'm still a little shocked at what happened with this pairing within the span of 2 years since I wrote the last manifesto about it. 2 years ago, I day-dreamed about Orihime drastically changing Ulquiorra, and about how they finally reach an understanding with each other. Today, I'm no longer dreaming.
Why the title? Well, if you cut open a tomato, it kind of looks like a certain organ very relevant to UlquiorraxOrihime, that and tomatoes are special to us. See end notes for why.
As usual, Ju-Ni scans are used because they're better at the translations, though I might quote differently. Also, the terror known as Red Text is back, and if you take those too seriously I will laugh at you, etc.
I want to thank many, many people, especially the UO Fanclub at Bleach Asylum and UO Baidu Boards (Chinese). I also dedicate this manifesto to every single one of the Ulquihime shippers out there, even to those who might not agree with me, because you guys just rock.
Note: If you have no idea who these two people are, or haven't thought about this pairing before, please read this manifesto before you proceed.
Since we went through all the basics about the two characters and background in the last essay, I'll just dive straight into the manga analysis, there's a LOT to talk about. Orihime really doesn’t get much development in these chapters, so my main focus will be on Ulquiorra instead.
Relevant Manga Chapters.
315: Back from the other dimension
316: A talk of hearts
317: A talk of hearts part 2
318: Rival's meeting
340: Start of the Epic Battle
341: Human? Me?
342: "I'm not doing it for your sake"
343: Interlude with Yammy. Then battle again.
347: Look! SO not face paralysis!
348: Ulquiorra: 100000 Ichigo: -100000
349: Heartless vs Heartless
353: "Am I frightening?" "No, you aren't."
354: This thing in my hand…is a heart.
Manga Analysis
Starting from chapter 314, Aizen, as all big baddies do, announced his “true” plan. In the midst of it, he mentioned that Orihime was no longer of any use to him, and that anyone could go and rescue her if they’d like. Yes, this is an important point. In 315 he left Las Noches in the care of Ulquiorra, who, never mind continuity problems, burst through Caja Negacion in the throne room. And no prizes to guessing what the first thing he decided to lay his eyes on was…
Without a word, Ulquiorra began strolling towards the girl, keeping eyes fixed on her the whole time. Within earshot, he told her that she had been abandoned by Aizen, that no one was going to protect her and she will die in Las Noches, alone. It all sounded so harsh…until he asked her if she was scared. Wait…so was all that talk before just hypothetical? No.4-sama, it would be wiser to just get straight to the point sometimes…
As Ichigo kicked off like a jet engine towards the fifth tower, Ulquiorra continued his interrogation. Orihime, with an expression that could be likened to a loving mother talking with a small child, told Ulquiorra that she was not afraid, because her friends were coming to rescue her, and her heart is with them. However, he doesn’t comprehend, and began to show signs of irritation by rambling. The infamous “rip open chest, crack open skull” speech was said, but underneath it all, Ulquiorra was indeed curious. He couldn’t understand the concept of the “heart” when he tried to apply his own logic. But all the hand-over-boob-hovering had to be cut short by the arrival of the ultimate mood-ruiner, Kurosaki Ichigo.
Ichigo told Ulquiorra to get away from Orihime, to which he replied that he intends to. (Though something tells me otherwise…) The Espada then went off on an explanation as to why Orihime was still left alive (he felt the need to explain, for some odd reason), which ended with something along the lines of “Aizen-sama hadn’t ordered her killed so I’ll keep her alive”. Oh, this is just great, Emospada. You totally convinced all of us that everything you do is for Aizen-sama. Especially when he said he didn’t care about the girl anymore mere minutes ago. *shakes head*
Then Ulquiorra, of all people, drew his sword and announced that he must destroy Ichigo to protect Las Noches. Las Noches? Ichigo’s one and only goal of coming to the fifth tower was to get Orihime, and Aizen-sama himself had given permission for her to be taken! What’s all the serious business about? Even Ichigo’s shocked! Or perhaps, the fact that Ichigo is here to take your woman away is exactly why you’re suddenly so serious?
After fighting for a while, Ulquiorra noted that Ichigo became stronger, and looked towards Orihime (Hmm, already speculating your woman and the rival's relationship? How possessive of you). He then stated that Orihime is already “one of us” and even if Ichigo takes her back, that fact won’t change (Ooh, putting your paws on the property already, eh). Ergo, there is no point in rescuing her. Whoa there, hold on. Didn’t Aizen-sama say otherwise? Who are you to assume she’s already a comrade of yours, Emospada? And…instead of destroying, you can’t possibly be trying to discourage Ichigo from rescuing Orihime…? Ichigo then yelled that it wasn’t for Ulquiorra to decide, to which Espada replied, “It’s for Aizen-sama to decide.”
………
I’m taking a break to say, that was an epic amount of contradiction you just spewed, Emospada. More than every chapter in the past added together. Can we still take you seriously when you say “Aizen-sama” now?
…anyways.
The fight continued, Ichigo finally scratched Ulquiorra, at the same time remarking that perhaps Ulquiorra had become more human. This induced much calm rage in the Espada, who showed off his power solely to prove to Ichigo he was different from humans. Oh, insecurity much? It wasn’t helped when Orihime interfered by casting her shield on Ichigo.
Ulquiorra, ignoring Ichigo completely, immediately stopped attacking and asked her why she did such a thing. (Aren’t we in the middle of a fight here, hello?) When Orihime couldn’t answer, he started to suggest his own thoughts but Ichigo cut him short, remarking how Ulquiorra was strangely chatty (remember what Grimmjow said as well?). No.4-sama, isn’t it bizarre that you’re always so talkative when matters concern that woman? And then it was back to fighting until the two arrancar girls got hold of Orihime.
Ulquiorra looked on with a strange pained expression as Lolly and Menoly beat Orihime. Ichigo, who also noticed, turned around (Ulquiorra could have killed him just then, if it weren’t for the fact that the Espada had his attention on Orihime as well) and started to charge up a Getsuga at Lolly, who was holding Orihime hostage. [Picture]
The Espada sonido’d in front of Ichigo just in time, blocking him. Lolly was shocked that Ulquiorra had saved them, but the Espada replied that he didn’t do it to save her. (Oh, I do wonder who else there is, No.4-sama…) Whilst blocking Ichigo, Ulquiorra was looking back at the 3 girls behind him (worried much?). Ichigo lost his temper at Ulquiorra’s refusal to budge. And to top all of it off, Yammy burst through the floor at that moment.
Yammy promptly polished off the arrancar girls and turned to Orihime, asking if he could kill her as well. But before Ulquiorra’s reply could be heard, Ishida arrived on the scene and sent the giant arrancar crashing down the floors in an explosion.
Ishida and Ichigo then bicker for a little, Ichigo entrusted Ishida to protect Orihime as he continued to fight Ulquiorra. (If I weren’t already a crazy Ulquihime shipper, I’d totally be an Ishihime shipper just by this scene, but I digress…)
Ichigo hollowfied, and the fight was taken to the roof, where Ulquiorra released his Zanpakutou in a shower of black rain. The Espada then proceeded to beat down on Ichigo bit by bit, showing the Shinigami the difference in their power. But Ichigo wouldn’t back down, and Ulquiorra finally lost his cool.
Seeing that our hero wasn’t about to give up no matter what, Ulquiorra decided to reveal his second release form, which drowns everything in despair with its reiatsu. Even before attacking, he asked Ichigo one last time if the fight should still go on.
But retreat is unbecoming of a shounen hero! And Ulquiorra was finally driven to do the drastic: he blew a hole in Ichigo right in front of Orihime. Then, Ulquiorra sonidos to the girl and prevents her from healing Ichigo (Notice how Orihime here just stares at him, not backing down or withdrawing). This set off Ishida attacking Ulquiorra recklessly and getting injured (...only injured?). Orihime broke down and screamed for help.
Hearing Orihime’s screams, Ichigo revived as a true hollow (with no conscious) and easily overpowered Ulquiorra. In his defeat, Ulquiorra asked to be killed. Hollow Ichigo then brutally maimed the Espada with a cero, and proceeded to carve the corpse when Ishida interfered. This resulted in poor Ishida getting stabbed and aimed at by a cero. Orihime screamed for Ichigo to stop, but the hollow couldn’t hear her...
That was when Ulquiorra leapt up from the dead and cut off one of Hollow Ichigo’s horns, causing the cero to explode and finally shattered the hollow mask. Ichigo collapsed, Orihime ran to his side as Ulquiorra looks on, a little forlornly…(You just killed Ichigo, aren’t you supposed to be happy? Why are you looking at her with that kind of expression?)
Ichigo turned out okay with some hax abilities. Ulquiorra then decided that the score must be settled and egged Ichigo to fight again, but this was cut short when Ulquiorra’s wing exploded into ash; he was dying. He again asked Ichigo to kill him, but of course the noble main character refused. Ulquiorra then turned to Orihime in his last moments, expressing his interest in humans and extending his only hand towards her…
“Am I frightening?” He asked her.
She was a little taken aback at first, but gathered herself and walked towards him.
“No, you’re not.” She answered.
“I see.” Ulquiorra said.
Before Orihime could grab hold of his hand, the Espada dissolved into the wind.
Meanwhile, the hearts conversation he had with Orihime relived in Ulquiorra’s mind, The girl’s figure blurred out front of his eyes. Before the last sentence of that conversation had finished replaying…
I see…
Orihime grabbed his hand but failed to hold on. She reached out again, even though his body was crumpling into ash. From between her fingers she saw him with an expression she never thought he was capable of...so gentle, longing, yet full of sadness. Then Ulquiorra faced away as his entirety disappeared…
This thing in my hand…
Is a heart.
And with the conclusion of chapter 354, many fans have recognized UO as a pairing with evidence. However, there are still those who do not think Ulquiorra had any feelings towards Orihime. The reasons for this denial is unknown, but following sections will deal with explaining Ulquiorra’s behavior in an UO context.
I’ve Always Been Watching You [Right from the beginning]
Kubo had devoted copious amounts of panels to Ulquiorra and Orihime just looking at each other, or sometimes Ulquiorra looking at Orihime. He observed her. He went to great lengths to make sure she wasn’t out of sight (remember when Grimmjow took her away). He protected her from Ichigo, whom even in good will would have killed her with Getsuga. Despite showing dislike towards her friends and especially Ichigo, he had always considered her as an equal (except for the first meeting, but that doesn’t count).
What does this mean? At the very least, he had an interest in the girl, and respected her for who she is. He had, after all, complimented her multiple times.This laid down the path for UO, where Ulquiorra began to have more than just a fleeting interest in that human girl…
I Wanted You To Stay With Me [Espada’s Contradictions, Part 2]
How do we explain the over 9000 contradictions Ulquiorra made in chapters preceding and up to the battle with Ichigo? Obviously, he had heard what Aizen said pertaining to Orihime, and he confirmed this himself. Yet in front of Ichigo, every sign showed that Ulquiorra was unwilling to relinquish Orihime despite the fact that Aizen had explicitly allowed anyone to take her. On top of that, “Aizen-sama” was gratuitously used as an excuse for this bizarre behavior. What’s going on there in your mind, Emospada?
Ignoring Aizen’s explicit orders, refusing to let Ichigo come near Orihime, there was only one thing he could hope to achieve, that is, to keep Orihime with him.
Ulquiorra never intended to kill Ichigo. He left Ichigo alive after the first battle (though barely), telling the shinigami to go home. He has had plenty of chances to royally fuck Ichigo over in this battle; he could very well have killed Ichigo in the first release state. Yet he took no advantages even when Ichigo was distracted. He released a second time just to let Ichigo experience true utter despair, and still tried to discourage Ichigo instead of just killing him outright. How perplexing for someone who vowed to “destroy”. Or perhaps, he did this because killing Ichigo would make Orihime sad?
All that trouble…what for?
Oh, Ulquiorra. You really…just didn’t want anyone to take her away from you…right?
In the end, he had no choice, because Orihime cared too much for the Shinigami. So much that she followed them through the dome. And Ichigo is too well endowed with the brilliant traits of shounen heroes to know when to give up. In between killing Ichigo and making Orihime sad, and not killing Ichigo but have him take her away. Ulquiorra had no choice but to go for the first, because Orihime is more important to him.
Overwhelmed by his desire to keep Orihime, Ulquiorra chose to be cruel and heartless. Perhaps...this is what the title "Lust" really refers to in this long, long battle.
I Wanted You to Be Like Me [Those Cold Words]
One of the problems people most often have with Ulquiorra is the brutality of his words. This causes some to simply conclude that Ulquiorra is manipulative or maliciously intends to hurt Orihime.
Aizen used sweet words to gain trust, and betrays all of it with his cruelty, that is true manipulation. Ulquiorra, on the other hand, had never shown a fake side of himself towards Orihime. Everything Ulquiorra had said echoes with what he believes.
But then, why is he so harsh, yet so honest with her?
As said in the first manifesto, he had tried to make her see things his own way. He truly wanted this girl to see and understand his worldview, bleak and nihilistic it may be. It was speculated that he was comforting her, or at least trying to make the defeat of one of her friends a more bearable thought (though we all know how that went). But from recent chapters, he postulates scenarios of despair and then asks if Orihime is scared under those circumstances. He wants to see what she thinks. He was obviously concerned about this.
Why are you even concerned, Emospada? She’s of no use to Aizen anymore; you have no duty to be caring for her anymore. Why do you care?
Despite Aizen's explicit orders, Ulquiorra did not want Orihime to leave. He wanted her to be 'one of them', and he tried to assimilate her into his world.
But You Made Me More Like You… [The Hollow Who Changed]
A slap. And we have a confused, and indignant look on the Espada.
At that point, he didn’t understand her thoughts, and she didn’t understand his. After Ulquiorra showed up from Caja Negacion, Orihime patiently explained to him about her heart being one with all her friends. The Espada became irritated at her mention of friends and hearts, which set off yet another one of his rants (my gosh, you do rant a lot when you're with her). But Orihime seemed to realize something then, that maybe Ulquiorra really has no idea…
Ichigo, of all people, noted that Ulquiorra is becoming more “human” during their battle, to which Ulquiorra responded with cold outrage. Yes, instead of making a human more like himself, he had been made more human! And who else would be the culprit of that except for the one person he hung around all the time? The emotionless façade of Ulquiorra’s began to peel off bit by bit after that…
Even with his body ripped in half, the sound of Orihime’s voice calls Ulquiorra to life as he knocks Ichigo out. If he hadn’t exerted that last bit energy, he could have lived thanks to superior regenerative powers. But nevertheless, Ulquiorra chose to sacrifice himself to save the “enemy”. The moment he killed Ichigo, Ulquiorra lost his "heart", but somehow, Orihime's presence always brings out the unexpected in the Espada...
In his final moments, Ulquiorra admitted his interest in humans. To Orihime, he reached out and asked for her acceptance. Finally, embracing the human “heart” he had dismissed previously, he disappears into the wind. But not before facing Orihime, whom he couldn’t even see clearly anymore, with a tender, regretful expression… It was, after all, her who had changed him in ways unimaginable.
How…very human of you, Ulquiorra.
Goodbye, My Sun…[Conclusion]
This manifesto finally comes to an end, what new conclusions have we drawn? As I read the manga chapters over and over again. I realized with a little surprise that, all along, Ulquiorra had wanted Orihime to be with him. This desire of his had regretfully led him to commit brutalities to her friends, also hurting her in the process. But in the end, Ulquiorra finally realized what he had done, thus the last "Am I frightening" question. That had been plaguing your mind much, hadn't it, No.4-sama?
Their first meeting and subsequent abduction was anything but romance (despite me babbling about it for the lulz in the last manifesto). Love at first sight is a dreamy, but sadly fantastical concept. It was only when Ulquiorra spent time with the girl (courtesy of Aizen-sama), that he began to become fascinated by her, cultivating his strong desire for her to stay with him even without Aizen’s orders. But she was a human, and he a hollow. As anti-arguments have pointed out, hollows and humans do not mix. Ulquiorra conveyed his own thoughts to her, hoping for her to see his ways, and become the same as him. But, ironically, by being interested in the human heart, he was the one that changed. As we can now see, that was how Kubo resolved this problem in the end...
As of writing this essay, we haven’t seen Orihime’s direct reaction to Ulquiorra’s death. In 354, she reached again and again towards him with strained, outstretched hand. No, this isn’t just merely compassion anymore. Maybe Orihime finally understood. Despite this Hollow’s cold exterior and brutal words, his deepest concern was still about her. He never wanted to hurt her, he couldn’t help it because of the way he was born, and he realized that himself as well.
Ulquiorra, you may have gained a heart…but I’d say you had one all along. Orihime had said in 317 that, one may not be able to understand others completely, but if you care for them deeply, you’ve put your heart a little closer to theirs. You did care for Orihime, much deeper than you had realized, deep enough to sacrifice yourself for her sake. And that was your redemption for losing your heart in the battle with Ichigo. As Kaien had so aptly put, when two people interact, hearts are born. Yours was born the moment Orihime had been placed in your care.
I won’t say UO is over now, as I am of the camp that believes Ulquiorra will return. But this is a nice place to leave off. Crack pairing in the past, semi-canon at this moment. Thank you Ulquiorra, for your devotion beneath that emotionless mask. Thank you Orihime, for understanding a Hollow’s yearn for a heart. Thank you Kubo Tite, for giving us everything Ulquiorra and Orihime.
Until We Meet Again…
Extended Reading
This section I’d like to reserve for links to essays other fans have written, whether they deal with Ulquiorra’s and Orihime’s character, or offer new interpretations to their scenes. Please send in links to your essays so I may put them here ^^!
Ulquiorra [Analysed] // DecSter's Ulquiorra Analysis (Bleach Portal)
Extremely in-depth chapter-by-chapter analysis of the character Ulquiorra Cifer. Worth a read for those who want to understand but still don't really grasp him.
Ulquihime: Sadistic Crack or Redemption, You Tell Me? //
bleach_od
Entertaining analysis on Ulquihime by BleachOD.
Message to fellow fans:
I may not know all of you, but I love you all so much. UO had been the best pairing fandom I have ever had the privilege to join. You guys are funny, you love UO with fierce passion but never take yourselves too seriously, you're peace-loving and rarely start shipping wars, and you're all so goddamn talented. I’m utterly smitten like a schoolgirl to be one amongst you. I confess. I wasn't a very good fan at all. I gave up Bleach during the tedious wait for Caja Negacion, and for a while I blamed Kubo for everything and turned my back on this pairing. It makes me very honored to have written this manifesto, yet I felt that I probably don't deserve such honor. I thank you all for reading to the end and I hope to hear your thoughts.
Message to anti-fans (whom I know won't be able to resist reading):
I should also thank you for reading this to the end, as much as you probably don't agree with everything, or indeed anything I say. I don't know what pairings you support, or if you just plainly hate Ulquiorra or Orihime. I wish you luck on your own fandoms. A bit of personal advice: making fanworks is always, ALWAYS the best way to support your fandoms. Everyone appreciates a good fic or fanart. So instead of starting ship wars or trying to convince people of how much a pairing sucks, please put more time into the thing you love. That is all.
Fandom Links
Bleach Asylum Bleach Fanclubs section - Look for our FC!
Ulquihime LJ Community
Capslock Ulquihime
Ulquihime Baidu Boards (Chinese)
And wondering why, of all things, tomatoes? Click here and here.
What should I say to wrap this up…hmmm…?
Until next installment…eat the tomato, woman!
Pairing: Ulquiorra Cifer x Orihime Inoue (Abbr. UO)
Spoilers: Chapters 314 - 354
Updates:
7-05-2009, rewrote some parts so I don't sound insane
Introduction - Back with a lot more canon than crack!
I have to admit, as I start to write this, I'm still a little shocked at what happened with this pairing within the span of 2 years since I wrote the last manifesto about it. 2 years ago, I day-dreamed about Orihime drastically changing Ulquiorra, and about how they finally reach an understanding with each other. Today, I'm no longer dreaming.
Why the title? Well, if you cut open a tomato, it kind of looks like a certain organ very relevant to UlquiorraxOrihime, that and tomatoes are special to us. See end notes for why.
As usual, Ju-Ni scans are used because they're better at the translations, though I might quote differently. Also, the terror known as Red Text is back, and if you take those too seriously I will laugh at you, etc.
I want to thank many, many people, especially the UO Fanclub at Bleach Asylum and UO Baidu Boards (Chinese). I also dedicate this manifesto to every single one of the Ulquihime shippers out there, even to those who might not agree with me, because you guys just rock.
Note: If you have no idea who these two people are, or haven't thought about this pairing before, please read this manifesto before you proceed.
Since we went through all the basics about the two characters and background in the last essay, I'll just dive straight into the manga analysis, there's a LOT to talk about. Orihime really doesn’t get much development in these chapters, so my main focus will be on Ulquiorra instead.
Relevant Manga Chapters.
315: Back from the other dimension
316: A talk of hearts
317: A talk of hearts part 2
318: Rival's meeting
340: Start of the Epic Battle
341: Human? Me?
342: "I'm not doing it for your sake"
343: Interlude with Yammy. Then battle again.
347: Look! SO not face paralysis!
348: Ulquiorra: 100000 Ichigo: -100000
349: Heartless vs Heartless
353: "Am I frightening?" "No, you aren't."
354: This thing in my hand…is a heart.
Manga Analysis
Starting from chapter 314, Aizen, as all big baddies do, announced his “true” plan. In the midst of it, he mentioned that Orihime was no longer of any use to him, and that anyone could go and rescue her if they’d like. Yes, this is an important point. In 315 he left Las Noches in the care of Ulquiorra, who, never mind continuity problems, burst through Caja Negacion in the throne room. And no prizes to guessing what the first thing he decided to lay his eyes on was…
Without a word, Ulquiorra began strolling towards the girl, keeping eyes fixed on her the whole time. Within earshot, he told her that she had been abandoned by Aizen, that no one was going to protect her and she will die in Las Noches, alone. It all sounded so harsh…until he asked her if she was scared. Wait…so was all that talk before just hypothetical? No.4-sama, it would be wiser to just get straight to the point sometimes…
As Ichigo kicked off like a jet engine towards the fifth tower, Ulquiorra continued his interrogation. Orihime, with an expression that could be likened to a loving mother talking with a small child, told Ulquiorra that she was not afraid, because her friends were coming to rescue her, and her heart is with them. However, he doesn’t comprehend, and began to show signs of irritation by rambling. The infamous “rip open chest, crack open skull” speech was said, but underneath it all, Ulquiorra was indeed curious. He couldn’t understand the concept of the “heart” when he tried to apply his own logic. But all the hand-over-boob-hovering had to be cut short by the arrival of the ultimate mood-ruiner, Kurosaki Ichigo.
Ichigo told Ulquiorra to get away from Orihime, to which he replied that he intends to. (Though something tells me otherwise…) The Espada then went off on an explanation as to why Orihime was still left alive (he felt the need to explain, for some odd reason), which ended with something along the lines of “Aizen-sama hadn’t ordered her killed so I’ll keep her alive”. Oh, this is just great, Emospada. You totally convinced all of us that everything you do is for Aizen-sama. Especially when he said he didn’t care about the girl anymore mere minutes ago. *shakes head*
Then Ulquiorra, of all people, drew his sword and announced that he must destroy Ichigo to protect Las Noches. Las Noches? Ichigo’s one and only goal of coming to the fifth tower was to get Orihime, and Aizen-sama himself had given permission for her to be taken! What’s all the serious business about? Even Ichigo’s shocked! Or perhaps, the fact that Ichigo is here to take your woman away is exactly why you’re suddenly so serious?
After fighting for a while, Ulquiorra noted that Ichigo became stronger, and looked towards Orihime (Hmm, already speculating your woman and the rival's relationship? How possessive of you). He then stated that Orihime is already “one of us” and even if Ichigo takes her back, that fact won’t change (Ooh, putting your paws on the property already, eh). Ergo, there is no point in rescuing her. Whoa there, hold on. Didn’t Aizen-sama say otherwise? Who are you to assume she’s already a comrade of yours, Emospada? And…instead of destroying, you can’t possibly be trying to discourage Ichigo from rescuing Orihime…? Ichigo then yelled that it wasn’t for Ulquiorra to decide, to which Espada replied, “It’s for Aizen-sama to decide.”
………
I’m taking a break to say, that was an epic amount of contradiction you just spewed, Emospada. More than every chapter in the past added together. Can we still take you seriously when you say “Aizen-sama” now?
…anyways.
The fight continued, Ichigo finally scratched Ulquiorra, at the same time remarking that perhaps Ulquiorra had become more human. This induced much calm rage in the Espada, who showed off his power solely to prove to Ichigo he was different from humans. Oh, insecurity much? It wasn’t helped when Orihime interfered by casting her shield on Ichigo.
Ulquiorra, ignoring Ichigo completely, immediately stopped attacking and asked her why she did such a thing. (Aren’t we in the middle of a fight here, hello?) When Orihime couldn’t answer, he started to suggest his own thoughts but Ichigo cut him short, remarking how Ulquiorra was strangely chatty (remember what Grimmjow said as well?). No.4-sama, isn’t it bizarre that you’re always so talkative when matters concern that woman? And then it was back to fighting until the two arrancar girls got hold of Orihime.
Ulquiorra looked on with a strange pained expression as Lolly and Menoly beat Orihime. Ichigo, who also noticed, turned around (Ulquiorra could have killed him just then, if it weren’t for the fact that the Espada had his attention on Orihime as well) and started to charge up a Getsuga at Lolly, who was holding Orihime hostage. [Picture]
![[Picture]](http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj102/shika-ko/uo-essay/lolimenoly1.jpg){kind=link}
The Espada sonido’d in front of Ichigo just in time, blocking him. Lolly was shocked that Ulquiorra had saved them, but the Espada replied that he didn’t do it to save her. (Oh, I do wonder who else there is, No.4-sama…) Whilst blocking Ichigo, Ulquiorra was looking back at the 3 girls behind him (worried much?). Ichigo lost his temper at Ulquiorra’s refusal to budge. And to top all of it off, Yammy burst through the floor at that moment.
Yammy promptly polished off the arrancar girls and turned to Orihime, asking if he could kill her as well. But before Ulquiorra’s reply could be heard, Ishida arrived on the scene and sent the giant arrancar crashing down the floors in an explosion.
Ishida and Ichigo then bicker for a little, Ichigo entrusted Ishida to protect Orihime as he continued to fight Ulquiorra. (If I weren’t already a crazy Ulquihime shipper, I’d totally be an Ishihime shipper just by this scene, but I digress…)
Ichigo hollowfied, and the fight was taken to the roof, where Ulquiorra released his Zanpakutou in a shower of black rain. The Espada then proceeded to beat down on Ichigo bit by bit, showing the Shinigami the difference in their power. But Ichigo wouldn’t back down, and Ulquiorra finally lost his cool.
Seeing that our hero wasn’t about to give up no matter what, Ulquiorra decided to reveal his second release form, which drowns everything in despair with its reiatsu. Even before attacking, he asked Ichigo one last time if the fight should still go on.
But retreat is unbecoming of a shounen hero! And Ulquiorra was finally driven to do the drastic: he blew a hole in Ichigo right in front of Orihime. Then, Ulquiorra sonidos to the girl and prevents her from healing Ichigo (Notice how Orihime here just stares at him, not backing down or withdrawing). This set off Ishida attacking Ulquiorra recklessly and getting injured (...only injured?). Orihime broke down and screamed for help.
Hearing Orihime’s screams, Ichigo revived as a true hollow (with no conscious) and easily overpowered Ulquiorra. In his defeat, Ulquiorra asked to be killed. Hollow Ichigo then brutally maimed the Espada with a cero, and proceeded to carve the corpse when Ishida interfered. This resulted in poor Ishida getting stabbed and aimed at by a cero. Orihime screamed for Ichigo to stop, but the hollow couldn’t hear her...
That was when Ulquiorra leapt up from the dead and cut off one of Hollow Ichigo’s horns, causing the cero to explode and finally shattered the hollow mask. Ichigo collapsed, Orihime ran to his side as Ulquiorra looks on, a little forlornly…(You just killed Ichigo, aren’t you supposed to be happy? Why are you looking at her with that kind of expression?)
Ichigo turned out okay with some hax abilities. Ulquiorra then decided that the score must be settled and egged Ichigo to fight again, but this was cut short when Ulquiorra’s wing exploded into ash; he was dying. He again asked Ichigo to kill him, but of course the noble main character refused. Ulquiorra then turned to Orihime in his last moments, expressing his interest in humans and extending his only hand towards her…
“Am I frightening?” He asked her.
She was a little taken aback at first, but gathered herself and walked towards him.
“No, you’re not.” She answered.
“I see.” Ulquiorra said.
Before Orihime could grab hold of his hand, the Espada dissolved into the wind.
Meanwhile, the hearts conversation he had with Orihime relived in Ulquiorra’s mind, The girl’s figure blurred out front of his eyes. Before the last sentence of that conversation had finished replaying…
I see…
Orihime grabbed his hand but failed to hold on. She reached out again, even though his body was crumpling into ash. From between her fingers she saw him with an expression she never thought he was capable of...so gentle, longing, yet full of sadness. Then Ulquiorra faced away as his entirety disappeared…
This thing in my hand…
Is a heart.
And with the conclusion of chapter 354, many fans have recognized UO as a pairing with evidence. However, there are still those who do not think Ulquiorra had any feelings towards Orihime. The reasons for this denial is unknown, but following sections will deal with explaining Ulquiorra’s behavior in an UO context.
I’ve Always Been Watching You [Right from the beginning]
Kubo had devoted copious amounts of panels to Ulquiorra and Orihime just looking at each other, or sometimes Ulquiorra looking at Orihime. He observed her. He went to great lengths to make sure she wasn’t out of sight (remember when Grimmjow took her away). He protected her from Ichigo, whom even in good will would have killed her with Getsuga. Despite showing dislike towards her friends and especially Ichigo, he had always considered her as an equal (except for the first meeting, but that doesn’t count).
What does this mean? At the very least, he had an interest in the girl, and respected her for who she is. He had, after all, complimented her multiple times.This laid down the path for UO, where Ulquiorra began to have more than just a fleeting interest in that human girl…
I Wanted You To Stay With Me [Espada’s Contradictions, Part 2]
How do we explain the over 9000 contradictions Ulquiorra made in chapters preceding and up to the battle with Ichigo? Obviously, he had heard what Aizen said pertaining to Orihime, and he confirmed this himself. Yet in front of Ichigo, every sign showed that Ulquiorra was unwilling to relinquish Orihime despite the fact that Aizen had explicitly allowed anyone to take her. On top of that, “Aizen-sama” was gratuitously used as an excuse for this bizarre behavior. What’s going on there in your mind, Emospada?
Ignoring Aizen’s explicit orders, refusing to let Ichigo come near Orihime, there was only one thing he could hope to achieve, that is, to keep Orihime with him.
Ulquiorra never intended to kill Ichigo. He left Ichigo alive after the first battle (though barely), telling the shinigami to go home. He has had plenty of chances to royally fuck Ichigo over in this battle; he could very well have killed Ichigo in the first release state. Yet he took no advantages even when Ichigo was distracted. He released a second time just to let Ichigo experience true utter despair, and still tried to discourage Ichigo instead of just killing him outright. How perplexing for someone who vowed to “destroy”. Or perhaps, he did this because killing Ichigo would make Orihime sad?
All that trouble…what for?
Oh, Ulquiorra. You really…just didn’t want anyone to take her away from you…right?
In the end, he had no choice, because Orihime cared too much for the Shinigami. So much that she followed them through the dome. And Ichigo is too well endowed with the brilliant traits of shounen heroes to know when to give up. In between killing Ichigo and making Orihime sad, and not killing Ichigo but have him take her away. Ulquiorra had no choice but to go for the first, because Orihime is more important to him.
Overwhelmed by his desire to keep Orihime, Ulquiorra chose to be cruel and heartless. Perhaps...this is what the title "Lust" really refers to in this long, long battle.
I Wanted You to Be Like Me [Those Cold Words]
One of the problems people most often have with Ulquiorra is the brutality of his words. This causes some to simply conclude that Ulquiorra is manipulative or maliciously intends to hurt Orihime.
Aizen used sweet words to gain trust, and betrays all of it with his cruelty, that is true manipulation. Ulquiorra, on the other hand, had never shown a fake side of himself towards Orihime. Everything Ulquiorra had said echoes with what he believes.
But then, why is he so harsh, yet so honest with her?
As said in the first manifesto, he had tried to make her see things his own way. He truly wanted this girl to see and understand his worldview, bleak and nihilistic it may be. It was speculated that he was comforting her, or at least trying to make the defeat of one of her friends a more bearable thought (though we all know how that went). But from recent chapters, he postulates scenarios of despair and then asks if Orihime is scared under those circumstances. He wants to see what she thinks. He was obviously concerned about this.
Why are you even concerned, Emospada? She’s of no use to Aizen anymore; you have no duty to be caring for her anymore. Why do you care?
Despite Aizen's explicit orders, Ulquiorra did not want Orihime to leave. He wanted her to be 'one of them', and he tried to assimilate her into his world.
But You Made Me More Like You… [The Hollow Who Changed]
A slap. And we have a confused, and indignant look on the Espada.
At that point, he didn’t understand her thoughts, and she didn’t understand his. After Ulquiorra showed up from Caja Negacion, Orihime patiently explained to him about her heart being one with all her friends. The Espada became irritated at her mention of friends and hearts, which set off yet another one of his rants (my gosh, you do rant a lot when you're with her). But Orihime seemed to realize something then, that maybe Ulquiorra really has no idea…
Ichigo, of all people, noted that Ulquiorra is becoming more “human” during their battle, to which Ulquiorra responded with cold outrage. Yes, instead of making a human more like himself, he had been made more human! And who else would be the culprit of that except for the one person he hung around all the time? The emotionless façade of Ulquiorra’s began to peel off bit by bit after that…
Even with his body ripped in half, the sound of Orihime’s voice calls Ulquiorra to life as he knocks Ichigo out. If he hadn’t exerted that last bit energy, he could have lived thanks to superior regenerative powers. But nevertheless, Ulquiorra chose to sacrifice himself to save the “enemy”. The moment he killed Ichigo, Ulquiorra lost his "heart", but somehow, Orihime's presence always brings out the unexpected in the Espada...
In his final moments, Ulquiorra admitted his interest in humans. To Orihime, he reached out and asked for her acceptance. Finally, embracing the human “heart” he had dismissed previously, he disappears into the wind. But not before facing Orihime, whom he couldn’t even see clearly anymore, with a tender, regretful expression… It was, after all, her who had changed him in ways unimaginable.
How…very human of you, Ulquiorra.
Goodbye, My Sun…[Conclusion]
This manifesto finally comes to an end, what new conclusions have we drawn? As I read the manga chapters over and over again. I realized with a little surprise that, all along, Ulquiorra had wanted Orihime to be with him. This desire of his had regretfully led him to commit brutalities to her friends, also hurting her in the process. But in the end, Ulquiorra finally realized what he had done, thus the last "Am I frightening" question. That had been plaguing your mind much, hadn't it, No.4-sama?
Their first meeting and subsequent abduction was anything but romance (despite me babbling about it for the lulz in the last manifesto). Love at first sight is a dreamy, but sadly fantastical concept. It was only when Ulquiorra spent time with the girl (courtesy of Aizen-sama), that he began to become fascinated by her, cultivating his strong desire for her to stay with him even without Aizen’s orders. But she was a human, and he a hollow. As anti-arguments have pointed out, hollows and humans do not mix. Ulquiorra conveyed his own thoughts to her, hoping for her to see his ways, and become the same as him. But, ironically, by being interested in the human heart, he was the one that changed. As we can now see, that was how Kubo resolved this problem in the end...
As of writing this essay, we haven’t seen Orihime’s direct reaction to Ulquiorra’s death. In 354, she reached again and again towards him with strained, outstretched hand. No, this isn’t just merely compassion anymore. Maybe Orihime finally understood. Despite this Hollow’s cold exterior and brutal words, his deepest concern was still about her. He never wanted to hurt her, he couldn’t help it because of the way he was born, and he realized that himself as well.
Ulquiorra, you may have gained a heart…but I’d say you had one all along. Orihime had said in 317 that, one may not be able to understand others completely, but if you care for them deeply, you’ve put your heart a little closer to theirs. You did care for Orihime, much deeper than you had realized, deep enough to sacrifice yourself for her sake. And that was your redemption for losing your heart in the battle with Ichigo. As Kaien had so aptly put, when two people interact, hearts are born. Yours was born the moment Orihime had been placed in your care.
I won’t say UO is over now, as I am of the camp that believes Ulquiorra will return. But this is a nice place to leave off. Crack pairing in the past, semi-canon at this moment. Thank you Ulquiorra, for your devotion beneath that emotionless mask. Thank you Orihime, for understanding a Hollow’s yearn for a heart. Thank you Kubo Tite, for giving us everything Ulquiorra and Orihime.
Until We Meet Again…
Extended Reading
This section I’d like to reserve for links to essays other fans have written, whether they deal with Ulquiorra’s and Orihime’s character, or offer new interpretations to their scenes. Please send in links to your essays so I may put them here ^^!
Ulquiorra [Analysed] // DecSter's Ulquiorra Analysis (Bleach Portal)
Extremely in-depth chapter-by-chapter analysis of the character Ulquiorra Cifer. Worth a read for those who want to understand but still don't really grasp him.
Ulquihime: Sadistic Crack or Redemption, You Tell Me? //
bleach_od
Entertaining analysis on Ulquihime by BleachOD.
Message to fellow fans:
I may not know all of you, but I love you all so much. UO had been the best pairing fandom I have ever had the privilege to join. You guys are funny, you love UO with fierce passion but never take yourselves too seriously, you're peace-loving and rarely start shipping wars, and you're all so goddamn talented. I’m utterly smitten like a schoolgirl to be one amongst you. I confess. I wasn't a very good fan at all. I gave up Bleach during the tedious wait for Caja Negacion, and for a while I blamed Kubo for everything and turned my back on this pairing. It makes me very honored to have written this manifesto, yet I felt that I probably don't deserve such honor. I thank you all for reading to the end and I hope to hear your thoughts.
Message to anti-fans (whom I know won't be able to resist reading):
I should also thank you for reading this to the end, as much as you probably don't agree with everything, or indeed anything I say. I don't know what pairings you support, or if you just plainly hate Ulquiorra or Orihime. I wish you luck on your own fandoms. A bit of personal advice: making fanworks is always, ALWAYS the best way to support your fandoms. Everyone appreciates a good fic or fanart. So instead of starting ship wars or trying to convince people of how much a pairing sucks, please put more time into the thing you love. That is all.
Fandom Links
Bleach Asylum Bleach Fanclubs section - Look for our FC!
Ulquihime LJ Community
Capslock Ulquihime
Ulquihime Baidu Boards (Chinese)
And wondering why, of all things, tomatoes? Click here and here.
What should I say to wrap this up…hmmm…?
Until next installment…eat the tomato, woman!