Abarai Renji Character Information
Character: Abarai Renji
Age: Renji's exact age has never been stated in the manga, and it's never been defined how aging works in Rukongai, etc. I would surmise he's probably a few centuries old, but I have no proof one way or the other. His listed age would be 27.
Sex/Gender: Male
Canon Role: Lieutenant and Best Supporting Badass.
"Real" Name: Kyle Brothers
History
Renji was born on August 31st of an unknown year. How he died is also unknown. Presumably this occurred at a very young age since he is first seen in Rukongai as a child and people seem to appear within the spirit realm starting from their age of death. He ended up in the 78th district of Rukongai, Inuzuri ("Dog Howling"); in terms of suffering and violence, only two districts in Renji's section of Rukongai were worse. In order to survive, he formed a gang with other children and stole food to survive. During one escapade he and his friends were chased by an adult wielding a katana; Rukia helped them escape. While Renji initially resented Rukia a little because she had high spiritual power like him (and thus he was no longer the unquestionable top dog) they became a very close-knit family and were inseparable. Over the next ten years, the other members of the gang were killed or died one by one until only Renji and Rukia were left, presumably protected by their superior spiritual strength. Together, they decided to apply to the Shinigami academy, in the hopes of escaping the abject squalor they'd grown up in.
While both Renji and Rukia did well in the Shinou Academy, to a certain extent Renji outstripped his friend. He received some of the highest marks on the entrance exams and was thus admitted into the top class (along with Kira and Momo) while Rukia was not. He proved to be extremely adept at zanjutsu (swordsmanship) and hohou (rapid movement such as shunpo) while much less competent at kidou.
While this is my personal extrapolation from the canon, I believe at this time Renji finally had the breathing space to realize he had feelings beyond brotherly toward Rukia. They were separated and both kept very busy, and despite efforts on both their parts their relationship did change. Renji constantly told Rukia about what he was doing and what he'd accomplished in his tests. Every time he achieved anything, he'd rush to tell her.
Before they graduated, Rukia had news of her own for Renji - Byakuya Kuchiki wanted to adopt her. And upon adoption, she would graduate immediately from Shinou Academy (ahead of Renji) and join the 13th Division. I feel that she plainly wanted Renji to tell her to say no to the adoption and stay with him, particularly in light of all the struggles they'd had trying to prove themselves to the members of the nobility in the Academy. However, Renji did tell her to go, deciding that it was important for her to have a real family and telling himself not to interfere. At that point they were separated and didn't really see each other again. From that time on, Renji trained with the specific goal in mind of being as strong as Rukia's adopted brother Byakuya Kuchiki. (A goal he still has not achieved because Byakuya is a scary, scary man.) It is my feeling that this is Renji's attempt to regain his primacy as Rukia's protector, and also to prove that he is worthy of her affection - something he needs to prove to himself, to Rukia, and to Byakuya since Byakuya could squash him like a bug. Renji often refers to himself as a "stray dog" - in particular a stray dog who howls at the moon but is too afraid to reach it. Renji is obviously very aware of the social distance Rukia's adoption put between them.
Renji began his career as a Shinigami in the 5th division. Proving to be rebellious and difficult, he was quickly transferred to the 11th division, which was renowned for its fighting prowess. The change suited Renji, and he quickly befriended Ikkaku Madarame, who helped further his development as one of the best swordsmen in Soul Society. Renji rose to the 6th seat of the 11th division; however, driven by the dual desire to prove that he was more than a stray, and a need to be close in some way to Rukia, Renji set his sights on the Sixth division, which was captained by Rukia's adopted older brother. In a stroke of delicious irony, he got his wish and was promoted to Vice Captain of the Sixth Division at nearly the same time Rukia disappeared while on a mission in the human world. Even more ironically, both Momo and Ikkaku had reminded Renji that his promotion was the opportunity to resume his relationship with Rukia, but he insisted that he wanted to surprise her with the news and would tell her only after the promotion was made official.
While searching for Rukia, he and Byakuya came across Ichigo; Renji intended to kill Ichigo until Rukia intervened - which lead to her capture. After Rukia's imprisonment, Renji allowed himself to be controlled by his anger and often spoke harshly to her from outside her cell. Eventually, he redirected his anger toward Ichigo, deciding that he was responsible for Rukia's bizarre actions. He was conflicted by his own outward attitude toward Rukia, Byakuya's treatment of his sister, and the death sentence she received for breaking the laws of Soul Society and sharing her powers with the human Kurosaki Ichigo.
When Ichigo and his friends arrived, Renji fought Ichigo and was defeated. This was the catalyst for Renji to admit his own desire to see Rukia rescued. Knowing that Ichigo was stronger than him - and technically stood a better chance against Byakuya though Renji was still convinced it was a useless fight - he begged Ichigo to rescue Rukia before collapsing. After his defeat at Ichigo's hands, Renji was imprisoned and his wounds were healed. He quickly escaped and hid so that he could train and master his zanpakuto Zabimaru's bankai.
In trying to rescue Rukia, Renji fought Byakuya and was again defeated, though Byakuya was impressed enough by Renji's effort that he chose to use his own bankai to defeat his Lieutenant. However, when Ichigo stopped Rukia's execution, Renji was there to take her in his arms and attempt escape despite his own severe injuries. Later, dragged back to the execution site by the treacherous Aizen, he and Ichigo were both critically injured and knocked unconscious.
Renji woke up at Landel's during the night shift. Generally displeased, he met Zexion, who gave him a short summary of the situation. Thanks to the forewarning, Renji didn't spend his first morning sedated. At breakfast he encountered Ichigo, and quickly learned that people seemed to come from different periods in time. He also met Nowe on his first day, and quickly developed a brotherly relationship with him. Due to his new friendship with Nowe, he was introduced to Sora, who he also quickly became friends with. In general, Renji tended to befriend the younger people in the institution - such as Claire, Kairi, River, Valyn, and eventually even Artemis Fowl. He felt a sort of big brotherly protective relationship toward them; adults he thought should be more able to take care of themselves.
During his third evening at Landel's, he encountered several small monsters and Pyramid Head while exploring with Sora, Nowe, and Ichigo. Renji was injured and Nowe took a serious head wound; the group minus Ichigo escaped. Renji was so concerned about Nowe's head wound that in spite of his own injuries, he healed the boy and then did his best to remain conscious while Sora went for help. This incident gave him a great deal of respect for Sora's resourcefulness and spirit.
The next day in the chapel, Renji used his powers to look for the Head Doctor's spirit thread, hoping that later he would be able to use this information to hunt the man down. Shortly after, Gin put in his first appearance, and Renji gave him a big Landel's welcome in the form of a nasty scuffle. Gin's appearance was the start of other Shinigami showing up at Landel's, including Rukia. This was eventually the start of the Arts and Crafts group, combining the new Shinigami with those Renji had already befriended. Calling the group Arts and Crafts was a way to leave messages for each other on the bulletin board, and to organize efforts at exploring the Institute.
Renji was stunned and upset to see Rukia, though also a little relieved since it meant that she had survived. He did his best to hide most of his concern and his feelings, though through a series of rather tortuous conversations they were able to reconcile their friendship. As icing on the woe cake of a very emotional day, Nowe disappeared completely from the Institute. Renji was extremely upset by Nowe's disappearance; it pointed out his inability to protect someone that had become important to him in their short time together.
At breakfast, Renji and Rukia met Adelheid when he came looking for healing; in exchange for Rukia fixing his feet, he promised to help Renji get a sword. In so doing, he indicated to Renji that Ed could use alchemy to make items. Renji gave Ed the specifications on how to make his sword, and promised to bring the metal to him. Renji acquired the metal with Valyn's help that night, by dismantling sinks in the bathroom. Ed was true to his word and transmuted the metal into a copy of Zabimaru's unreleased form. Over the next several days, Renji's primary task was to acquire more metal for weapons in this manner.
When Renji was already extremely weak from overusing his reiatsu, he met with his new doctor. Muraki took out his fascination with shinigami on Renji, using magic to incapacitate him and then molesting him. The feeling of utter helplessness was not something Renji handled well. That night, a lot of people were extremely concerned about him, but Renji attempted to keep up his facade and hide what had happened, getting into several shouting matches because of it. After, Arts and Crafts grouped up to go rescue Adelheid and Kairi, both of whom had been taken for MU. After defeating several monsters, Renji, Sora, and Artemis got Kairi out of the MU room and took her to safety.
The next morning, it was obvious that the MU experimentation had a bad effect on Kairi, to the extreme concern of Renji and Sora. During that breakfast, Ichigo put in a reappearance and upset Rukia - which made Renji lose his temper. Not for any particular reason, but mostly because he needed to vent emotion and Ichigo was a convenient target. Sora succeeded in calming him down a little and talking to him, at which point Renji admitted he was beginning to scare himself. Renji went to the showers then, where he met Daemon Sadi for the first time. Their conversation went well for a time, though Renji eventually punched Daemon in the face for asking the wrong questions. Despite this, the two became quite good friends. Hitsugaya forcibly gave Renji the night off because he was so clearly distressed. River tried to comfort Renji as best she could, by sharing her own troubled past with him.
That night, Gin was put on Special Counseling. The result was that River went looking for him - as Renji had requested earlier - and got the wrong end of that fight. Renji ran in to rescue her and both were seriously wounded before Renji used shunpou to escape. Daemon Sadi came to their aide, with Rukia on his heels. Afterward, Renji left with Rukia, to get her sword from the alchemists. They went back to Rukia's room; after being pushed by River earlier in the day to try to work past what Muraki had done to him, Renji tried to do just that. He and Rukia had sex on Kairi's bed, though thankfully Kairi never found out about that.
The next day, Byakuya arrived at Landel's. Kairi and Sora kept Renji calm by shamelessly manipulating him. Renji's major success for the day is maintaining his calm.
During the first field trip to Doyleton, Byakuya caught sight of Renji and Rukia napping on the bus and holding hands. Renji was upset and a little frightened when he realized that Byakuya had seen them together; he sought out Daemon so that he would have someone to talk to. Daemon and River managed to get Renji put back together and help him figure out how to deal with his Captain and the situation with Rukia. He also spoke with Artemis, and let the boy know that yes, someone (Renji) cared about him, and found out Artemis might be training with Farfarello. He discussed that situation with Hitsugaya, and concluded that he would be a better teacher than a sadistic assassin, and he would let Hitsugaya know if he was having a bad day with his "temper." This was an admission that cost him a lot of pride. At the end of the day he and Rukia had dinner together; he gave her a book that he'd earned by doing a little work for the woman at the book shop. A little message in the book asked her to let him stay by her side forever; she said yes. Even more stunning, he sat with Byakuya on the way back to the Institute, and Byakuya gave his blessing to their relationship.
That night, Daemon had Special Counseling; Renji fought Daemon, and it did not go well for him at all, though he tried to remind himself that what happened wasn't Daemon's fault. It did involve an extremely hot kiss, at least.
As if that incident wasn't difficult enough, the next day Renji had a visitor - Nowe. After Nowe left, Renji had to be sedated by the nurses, and he almost welcomed it; it was too hard to know that Nowe now believed the lies of the Head Doctor. While still a bit drugged, Renji talked with Daemon in the shower (of course) and they tried to find peace. Daemon suggested that they meet up at the beginning of the night and fight it out. Unfortunately that didn't work out as planned; Daemon's room was empty when Renji got to it and he was attacked by a spider instead. He beat the spider but was wounded; outside of Daemon's room he met up with Daemon and several of his friends, one of whom healed him. Once healed, Renji joined River and Ren. Together they went to the library, where they met Mr. Radio in person and spoke with him, though Renji found it a mostly frustrating experience. They made it down to see the basement before the night ended. The basement became a constant source of frustration for Renji until his death; while he eventually found out about the shield that needed to be coupled with the sword to open one of the doors, he was never able to really accomplish anything more down there.
The next night, he and Daemon finally had their dealing-with-issues fight. Renji won. However, Daemon ultimately won by then turning the situation around and flirting with Renji, who really didn't know how to handle it. After leaving Daemon, he met up with Artemis and Hitsugaya. They went to the basement; Renji "won" a sword from the armory, and was sorely disappointed by its poor quality.
One other thing that happened in the basement was Artemis' sudden announcement that he might be bisexual. At the time, Renji fled as quickly as he could from the situation. The next day, however, he made certain to talk to Artemis and give him the "it's okay to be gay" talk. Afterward, he had lunch with Daemon and Rukia, and got to play the part of the jealous boyfriend while Daemon flirted. The difficult part of that day was finally telling Sora about his meeting with Nowe during visiting hours; it was emotional for both of them, but Renji came out of their talk actually feeling better due to Sora's unwavering optimism.
The next afternoon he was taken to see Dr. Muraki, who promptly restrained him with a spell, then sedated him. Renji wasn't entirely certain what happened next; it involved a scalpel and a lot of pain. He was actually glad to see the orderlies who came to take him away. He was still fully in the grip of the sedatives when Lucivar came for him, hoping to get a fight. Lucivar helped Renji walk off the sedation, then they went outside to spar and engage in some male bonding.
During that night, Rukia went to the file room and taken some files - including her own. The file made her doubt the reality of her memories of being a Shinigami; she revealed this at breakfast the next morning, to Renji's utter dismay. He went to the showers, which meant it was time to have another naked chat with Daemon; Renji told his friend that Rukia seemed to be losing her grip on reality. Daemon told him to just keep talking to her, and reminding her of what was real.
It wasn't that easy. The next day, the patients were taken on a trip to Doyleton; this was the last time that Renji ever saw Rukia. That night he made another unsuccessful attempt to access the basement. When he woke in the morning, she was gone.
Renji went wild, attacking the orderlies as soon as the door to his room was opened. He had to be sedated and put in a strait jacket, then sent to solitary confinement, where he spent the rest of the day in hysterical rage. Hitsugaya and Artemis came to get him as soon as the night started; the group was immediately attacked by several nurse monsters. One injected Renji with a poisonous substance, while another attacked Artemis. Hitsugaya got the party to safety, but was then faced with the choice of either saving Renji's life or Artemis'. He chose to save Artemis - as Renji wanted - and shortly thereafter Renji succumbed to the poison and died.
Personality
Renji is a strong, determined, and incredibly competent warrior. He's fiercely loyal to his friends, and will drive himself past the point of physical endurance to protect those he cares about. He still refers to himself often as a stray dog, and is obviously very aware of his lowly origin, his continual struggle to be accepted by the nobility, and how much further he must go in skill and strength to match his Captain. He is also extremely social - he has a wide group of friends and enjoys partying with them, which often devolves into friendly fighting when the friends involved are so inclined. Generally his outward attitude can be described as a combination of cocky and cheerful with a less than helpful dose of extreme stubborness.
I think it's also very important to point out that he's in canon a lot smarter than he's often given credit for; he was admitted to the top class in the Shinou Academy on the strength of his test scores, which is no mean feat considering his humble origins.
Renji is, like many of us, his own worst enemy. He's tempermental, easily becomes bored (which in my mind is another bit of proof that he's quite smart), and will get distracted if he's not hyperfocused on a goal. He often speaks without considering the consequences of his words (thanks, temper) and will charge headlong into fights either without considering his chances, or willfully in spite of the odds. He also admits that he can be cowardly about his own feelings sometimes - he has admitted that he's a stray dog who howls at the moon but is too afraid to reach for it.
Renji has extremely high expectations of himself, and doesn't believe in setting small goals. He will never be satisfied until he has proven himself to be as strong as Byakuya Kuchiki, even though he occasionally admits that might never be possible - yet he still continues to train for that goal with single-minded intensity. Upon defeat, he tends to fall into black, depressive moods, which often require a lot of determined teasing from his friends - or the advent of a new challenge - to break.
During his time at Landel's, only a little of his most basic personality has changed. Circumstances have made him a little more quiet, a little more depressive because of the weight of constant defeat. His temper has also become more unpredictable due to the sheer stress. He spends a lot of time fighting to keep his cool, because he knows that it's important to those around him that he stays steady. He's had limited success in the past, but will be pursuing this tactic with renewed vigor going forward. Landel's has given him a real taste of helplessness, which he hasn't felt since he was a child, and he doesn't like it one bit. This has firmed his resolve to survive and triumph, but that doesn't mean the road ahead isn't going to be rough and he's not going to make a lot of mistakes. Going back into that survivalist mode will also make him more protective of his friends - and more reliant on them to watch his back and take care of him as he takes care of them.
Also, because of his encounters with the evil Dr. Muraki, Renji has developed an extreme dislike of being touched unless he is the one initiating the contact. He is also extremely afraid of being restrained. Both of these unreasoning fears frustrate him; he can't control how he feels, and it's lead to misunderstandings in the past. He has a desire to be in control of his physical environment more to compensate - and also an extreme desire for revenge on the man that did this to him.
All in all, he's a dangerous and determined protector hidden under a gruff, rough mask. He should be desired as a friend and feared as an enemy.
Physical description
6'2", 172 pounds, as ripped as a professional swordsman ever gets, bright red hair and a myriad of fascinating tattoos. (If you like tattoos, he'd be handsome, if not, you'd think he destroyed his good looks.) Renji occasionally wanders around in Soul Society in just his yukata, and apparently the ladies appreciate it and wish that it would happen more often, so the consensus seems to be he's a hotty.
General Abilities (applicable to Special Counseling)
Zanjutsu - Renji is considered to be a master swordsman; at this technical skill he is on par with many of the division Captains. This means that if he ever gets his hands on something even remotely sword like, he will be very dangerous. Also, considering his background as a street rat in Rukongai, I figure he's probably an accomplished brawler, particularly when it comes to fighting dirty.
Hohou - Fast movement using spirit power. The main technique of this power is the shunpo, which is running faster than the eye can see. Renji is considered an expert at shunpo, and can easily keep up with Shinigami Captains. He can also execute sophisticated techniques like senka, in which the shinigami appears instantly behind his opponent and attacking; this often occurs so fast neither victims nor observers can be certain from which direction the attack came.
Kidou - literally the spirit way. These are techniques that are equivalent to casting magical spells, powered by the Shinigami's reiatsu. Renji is not particularly good at kidou, but he was still obviously competent enough to graduate from the Academy. He is actually capable of casting kidou spells without speaking, though the results of these attempts range from pathetic to explosive in a bad way. A full list of known kidou spells can be supplied upon request.
Healing - I'm counting this as separate from kidou since it doesn't appear to normally require any kind of incantation. The Shinigami just seems to use their reiatsu to heal the wounds of others.
Zanpakuto - the zanpakuto are soul swords, which are literally part of the Shinigami's soul that manifests as a sword. They are capable of cutting through flesh and spirit simultaneously. Zanpakuto also have distinct and separate personalities and names, though normally a Shinigami can only communicate with the zanpakuto by doing a special sort of meditation. Renji's zanpakuto is named Zabimaru. Renji has also achieved both releases with his zanpakuto - shikai and bankai. Zabimaru's shikai form operates similarly to the whip-sword of Ivy in the Soul Caliber games. The bankai form turns Zabimaru into a massive snake-like creature of bone that Renji directs. When not released by shikai or bankai, Zabimaru looks like a normal katana. Zanpakuto have the ability to send normal ghosts to Soul Society, or purify negative ghosts (Hollows) so they can be sent along.
Spirit threads - Shinigami can visualize the thread of someone's soul, which allows them to track people across long distances.
Reiatsu - Generally Shinigami can sense how strong someone else's spirit happens to be. Also, anyone that can sense spirit energy should be able to tell that Renji is extremely strong, whether he's capable of using his power or not. When a shinigami at Captain or Lieutenant level is around mortals and does not have their power limited, they tend to make the mortals feel like they are being smothered by the weight of their spirit, sometimes to the point that the mortals can't actually move.
Nerfed Abilities
Renji has four spell slots that he can use per 24 hours. Using any one of the following abilities will use up one spell slot, though he can choose to use multiple spell slots up for one ability to multiply its effect. The only exception to this is shunpo; it can be used a maximum of once per 24 hours, and can only use a maximum of one spell slot. All of the abilities he can use have been weakened as specified below.
If Renji uses three spell slots he will be exhausted physically. Using four spell slots will cause him to pass out for the rest of the night.
Hohou
Shunpo: Can traverse the length of three hallways nearly instantaneously. May only be used once per 24 hours.
Senka: Allows Renji to move instantaneously to the rear of an opponent, unchanged from the series.
Kidou - Six spells total are available for his use
Healing - Healing would be enough to prevent someone from dying, but not enough to heal a critically injured person to healthy or even half-healthy
Create light - Creates a small ball of floating light that acts similar to a lantern, will last until Renji leaves the area.
(Bakudo)
4. Hainawa (這縄, Crawling Rope): An energy rope entangles the target's arms. Immobilizes an opponent for 20-30 seconds without injuring them. Time can be shortened it the opponent has strong "reiatsu" or is otherwise able to resist.
8. Seki (斥, Repulsion): Creates a round shield that seems to temporarily paralyze and repel whatever strikes it. Lasts for three minutes and must be actively maintained by Renji. Can withstand hits from weak monsters, would be demolished in 2-3 hits by nightshift only characters/special counseling subjects.
(Hadou)
1. Shō (衝, Clash) Pushes the target away from the caster. Pushes a target 10 feet back without injuring them unless Renji is clever enough to, say, push them out a window. Can be resisted by someone who is spiritually stronger than Renji.
31. Shakkahō (赤火砲, Red Fire Cannon) Fires a ball of red energy at a target. With the use of one spell slot causes some nasty bruising, potentially second degree burns depending on where it hits (bare skin as opposed to clothing, etc.)
Renji can no longer see spirit threads, though he can still sense reiatsu in the more generalized sense. ("I feel Daemon's spirit, he must be nearby" as opposed to "I can track down Daemon by following his spirit thread.") This means that he can tell if someone's spirit is exceptionally strong, and those able to sense "spirit" or "magic" would be able to tell that Renji is something of a 900-pound gorilla.
Renji does not have access to his zanpakuto.
Renji's sword/fighting/athletic skills are unaltered, as they are practiced, physical skills.
Renji's Direction
I think a Charles Remington quote from The Ghost and the Darkness has real significance here: "We have an expression in prize fighting: 'Everyone has a plan until they've been hit.' Well my friend, you've just been hit. The getting up is up to you."
Renji told Valyn once that he thought the worst thing Landel's did to any of them was made them incapable of protecting the people they love. That was a major theme during his first go round, and the point was only driven home with Rukia's disappearance. Originally, Renji was the man behind the Arts and Crafts group; he likes taking care of people and organizing them. That will continue, but I think now there will be a harder edge to him. After surviving death once, he's going to firm his mental position as the ultimate survivor. He did that as a child on the streets of Rukongai and he'll return to that mental place of survival for himself and his friends at any cost - thus changing his previous focus on duty to survival. He will also conclude that while self-sacrifice is still always an option, it has to be for the right reasons - it has to be in the service of your friends, NOT out of an unstated (and ultimately weak) desire to end ones own pain by that means.
Secondly (but not secondarily) he's going to be even more focused on finding out what happened to Rukia (and Nowe as well). We thought he hated everyone connected to the Institute before? He's ten times angrier now. However, I see this developing into more subtle (for him) tactics. After finding out that death did nothing but put him out of commission for a long time, he'll come quickly to the realization that a lot of his behavior previously was self-destructive, and destructive to his goals. While that's no guarantee that he won't get into fights and won't get sedated - he's still RENJI, after all! - he will be more outwardly cooperative and will make more of an effort to control his temper and consider the big picture.
I look at this as an interesting and difficult direction for Renji, because he is manifestly NOT a long term thinker, but he's being forced to acknowledge that his normal methods simply do not work. After a certain number of times being hit, so to speak, even someone as stubborn and impervious as Renji begins to get the message. Effectively, this could eventually even prepare him for a role as a Captain back in Soul Society. He's used to having other people do the long-term thinking for him, to just taking his orders and doing his job, then getting to go home. In a situation where that's no longer possible, he's going to be in a position where he either develops further and grows up, or unravels completely.
His suicidal day after the disappearance of Rukia was his attempt to unravel. Now it's time for him to try the other path and see how far it takes him.
Age: Renji's exact age has never been stated in the manga, and it's never been defined how aging works in Rukongai, etc. I would surmise he's probably a few centuries old, but I have no proof one way or the other. His listed age would be 27.
Sex/Gender: Male
Canon Role: Lieutenant and Best Supporting Badass.
"Real" Name: Kyle Brothers
History
Renji was born on August 31st of an unknown year. How he died is also unknown. Presumably this occurred at a very young age since he is first seen in Rukongai as a child and people seem to appear within the spirit realm starting from their age of death. He ended up in the 78th district of Rukongai, Inuzuri ("Dog Howling"); in terms of suffering and violence, only two districts in Renji's section of Rukongai were worse. In order to survive, he formed a gang with other children and stole food to survive. During one escapade he and his friends were chased by an adult wielding a katana; Rukia helped them escape. While Renji initially resented Rukia a little because she had high spiritual power like him (and thus he was no longer the unquestionable top dog) they became a very close-knit family and were inseparable. Over the next ten years, the other members of the gang were killed or died one by one until only Renji and Rukia were left, presumably protected by their superior spiritual strength. Together, they decided to apply to the Shinigami academy, in the hopes of escaping the abject squalor they'd grown up in.
While both Renji and Rukia did well in the Shinou Academy, to a certain extent Renji outstripped his friend. He received some of the highest marks on the entrance exams and was thus admitted into the top class (along with Kira and Momo) while Rukia was not. He proved to be extremely adept at zanjutsu (swordsmanship) and hohou (rapid movement such as shunpo) while much less competent at kidou.
While this is my personal extrapolation from the canon, I believe at this time Renji finally had the breathing space to realize he had feelings beyond brotherly toward Rukia. They were separated and both kept very busy, and despite efforts on both their parts their relationship did change. Renji constantly told Rukia about what he was doing and what he'd accomplished in his tests. Every time he achieved anything, he'd rush to tell her.
Before they graduated, Rukia had news of her own for Renji - Byakuya Kuchiki wanted to adopt her. And upon adoption, she would graduate immediately from Shinou Academy (ahead of Renji) and join the 13th Division. I feel that she plainly wanted Renji to tell her to say no to the adoption and stay with him, particularly in light of all the struggles they'd had trying to prove themselves to the members of the nobility in the Academy. However, Renji did tell her to go, deciding that it was important for her to have a real family and telling himself not to interfere. At that point they were separated and didn't really see each other again. From that time on, Renji trained with the specific goal in mind of being as strong as Rukia's adopted brother Byakuya Kuchiki. (A goal he still has not achieved because Byakuya is a scary, scary man.) It is my feeling that this is Renji's attempt to regain his primacy as Rukia's protector, and also to prove that he is worthy of her affection - something he needs to prove to himself, to Rukia, and to Byakuya since Byakuya could squash him like a bug. Renji often refers to himself as a "stray dog" - in particular a stray dog who howls at the moon but is too afraid to reach it. Renji is obviously very aware of the social distance Rukia's adoption put between them.
Renji began his career as a Shinigami in the 5th division. Proving to be rebellious and difficult, he was quickly transferred to the 11th division, which was renowned for its fighting prowess. The change suited Renji, and he quickly befriended Ikkaku Madarame, who helped further his development as one of the best swordsmen in Soul Society. Renji rose to the 6th seat of the 11th division; however, driven by the dual desire to prove that he was more than a stray, and a need to be close in some way to Rukia, Renji set his sights on the Sixth division, which was captained by Rukia's adopted older brother. In a stroke of delicious irony, he got his wish and was promoted to Vice Captain of the Sixth Division at nearly the same time Rukia disappeared while on a mission in the human world. Even more ironically, both Momo and Ikkaku had reminded Renji that his promotion was the opportunity to resume his relationship with Rukia, but he insisted that he wanted to surprise her with the news and would tell her only after the promotion was made official.
While searching for Rukia, he and Byakuya came across Ichigo; Renji intended to kill Ichigo until Rukia intervened - which lead to her capture. After Rukia's imprisonment, Renji allowed himself to be controlled by his anger and often spoke harshly to her from outside her cell. Eventually, he redirected his anger toward Ichigo, deciding that he was responsible for Rukia's bizarre actions. He was conflicted by his own outward attitude toward Rukia, Byakuya's treatment of his sister, and the death sentence she received for breaking the laws of Soul Society and sharing her powers with the human Kurosaki Ichigo.
When Ichigo and his friends arrived, Renji fought Ichigo and was defeated. This was the catalyst for Renji to admit his own desire to see Rukia rescued. Knowing that Ichigo was stronger than him - and technically stood a better chance against Byakuya though Renji was still convinced it was a useless fight - he begged Ichigo to rescue Rukia before collapsing. After his defeat at Ichigo's hands, Renji was imprisoned and his wounds were healed. He quickly escaped and hid so that he could train and master his zanpakuto Zabimaru's bankai.
In trying to rescue Rukia, Renji fought Byakuya and was again defeated, though Byakuya was impressed enough by Renji's effort that he chose to use his own bankai to defeat his Lieutenant. However, when Ichigo stopped Rukia's execution, Renji was there to take her in his arms and attempt escape despite his own severe injuries. Later, dragged back to the execution site by the treacherous Aizen, he and Ichigo were both critically injured and knocked unconscious.
Renji woke up at Landel's during the night shift. Generally displeased, he met Zexion, who gave him a short summary of the situation. Thanks to the forewarning, Renji didn't spend his first morning sedated. At breakfast he encountered Ichigo, and quickly learned that people seemed to come from different periods in time. He also met Nowe on his first day, and quickly developed a brotherly relationship with him. Due to his new friendship with Nowe, he was introduced to Sora, who he also quickly became friends with. In general, Renji tended to befriend the younger people in the institution - such as Claire, Kairi, River, Valyn, and eventually even Artemis Fowl. He felt a sort of big brotherly protective relationship toward them; adults he thought should be more able to take care of themselves.
During his third evening at Landel's, he encountered several small monsters and Pyramid Head while exploring with Sora, Nowe, and Ichigo. Renji was injured and Nowe took a serious head wound; the group minus Ichigo escaped. Renji was so concerned about Nowe's head wound that in spite of his own injuries, he healed the boy and then did his best to remain conscious while Sora went for help. This incident gave him a great deal of respect for Sora's resourcefulness and spirit.
The next day in the chapel, Renji used his powers to look for the Head Doctor's spirit thread, hoping that later he would be able to use this information to hunt the man down. Shortly after, Gin put in his first appearance, and Renji gave him a big Landel's welcome in the form of a nasty scuffle. Gin's appearance was the start of other Shinigami showing up at Landel's, including Rukia. This was eventually the start of the Arts and Crafts group, combining the new Shinigami with those Renji had already befriended. Calling the group Arts and Crafts was a way to leave messages for each other on the bulletin board, and to organize efforts at exploring the Institute.
Renji was stunned and upset to see Rukia, though also a little relieved since it meant that she had survived. He did his best to hide most of his concern and his feelings, though through a series of rather tortuous conversations they were able to reconcile their friendship. As icing on the woe cake of a very emotional day, Nowe disappeared completely from the Institute. Renji was extremely upset by Nowe's disappearance; it pointed out his inability to protect someone that had become important to him in their short time together.
At breakfast, Renji and Rukia met Adelheid when he came looking for healing; in exchange for Rukia fixing his feet, he promised to help Renji get a sword. In so doing, he indicated to Renji that Ed could use alchemy to make items. Renji gave Ed the specifications on how to make his sword, and promised to bring the metal to him. Renji acquired the metal with Valyn's help that night, by dismantling sinks in the bathroom. Ed was true to his word and transmuted the metal into a copy of Zabimaru's unreleased form. Over the next several days, Renji's primary task was to acquire more metal for weapons in this manner.
When Renji was already extremely weak from overusing his reiatsu, he met with his new doctor. Muraki took out his fascination with shinigami on Renji, using magic to incapacitate him and then molesting him. The feeling of utter helplessness was not something Renji handled well. That night, a lot of people were extremely concerned about him, but Renji attempted to keep up his facade and hide what had happened, getting into several shouting matches because of it. After, Arts and Crafts grouped up to go rescue Adelheid and Kairi, both of whom had been taken for MU. After defeating several monsters, Renji, Sora, and Artemis got Kairi out of the MU room and took her to safety.
The next morning, it was obvious that the MU experimentation had a bad effect on Kairi, to the extreme concern of Renji and Sora. During that breakfast, Ichigo put in a reappearance and upset Rukia - which made Renji lose his temper. Not for any particular reason, but mostly because he needed to vent emotion and Ichigo was a convenient target. Sora succeeded in calming him down a little and talking to him, at which point Renji admitted he was beginning to scare himself. Renji went to the showers then, where he met Daemon Sadi for the first time. Their conversation went well for a time, though Renji eventually punched Daemon in the face for asking the wrong questions. Despite this, the two became quite good friends. Hitsugaya forcibly gave Renji the night off because he was so clearly distressed. River tried to comfort Renji as best she could, by sharing her own troubled past with him.
That night, Gin was put on Special Counseling. The result was that River went looking for him - as Renji had requested earlier - and got the wrong end of that fight. Renji ran in to rescue her and both were seriously wounded before Renji used shunpou to escape. Daemon Sadi came to their aide, with Rukia on his heels. Afterward, Renji left with Rukia, to get her sword from the alchemists. They went back to Rukia's room; after being pushed by River earlier in the day to try to work past what Muraki had done to him, Renji tried to do just that. He and Rukia had sex on Kairi's bed, though thankfully Kairi never found out about that.
The next day, Byakuya arrived at Landel's. Kairi and Sora kept Renji calm by shamelessly manipulating him. Renji's major success for the day is maintaining his calm.
During the first field trip to Doyleton, Byakuya caught sight of Renji and Rukia napping on the bus and holding hands. Renji was upset and a little frightened when he realized that Byakuya had seen them together; he sought out Daemon so that he would have someone to talk to. Daemon and River managed to get Renji put back together and help him figure out how to deal with his Captain and the situation with Rukia. He also spoke with Artemis, and let the boy know that yes, someone (Renji) cared about him, and found out Artemis might be training with Farfarello. He discussed that situation with Hitsugaya, and concluded that he would be a better teacher than a sadistic assassin, and he would let Hitsugaya know if he was having a bad day with his "temper." This was an admission that cost him a lot of pride. At the end of the day he and Rukia had dinner together; he gave her a book that he'd earned by doing a little work for the woman at the book shop. A little message in the book asked her to let him stay by her side forever; she said yes. Even more stunning, he sat with Byakuya on the way back to the Institute, and Byakuya gave his blessing to their relationship.
That night, Daemon had Special Counseling; Renji fought Daemon, and it did not go well for him at all, though he tried to remind himself that what happened wasn't Daemon's fault. It did involve an extremely hot kiss, at least.
As if that incident wasn't difficult enough, the next day Renji had a visitor - Nowe. After Nowe left, Renji had to be sedated by the nurses, and he almost welcomed it; it was too hard to know that Nowe now believed the lies of the Head Doctor. While still a bit drugged, Renji talked with Daemon in the shower (of course) and they tried to find peace. Daemon suggested that they meet up at the beginning of the night and fight it out. Unfortunately that didn't work out as planned; Daemon's room was empty when Renji got to it and he was attacked by a spider instead. He beat the spider but was wounded; outside of Daemon's room he met up with Daemon and several of his friends, one of whom healed him. Once healed, Renji joined River and Ren. Together they went to the library, where they met Mr. Radio in person and spoke with him, though Renji found it a mostly frustrating experience. They made it down to see the basement before the night ended. The basement became a constant source of frustration for Renji until his death; while he eventually found out about the shield that needed to be coupled with the sword to open one of the doors, he was never able to really accomplish anything more down there.
The next night, he and Daemon finally had their dealing-with-issues fight. Renji won. However, Daemon ultimately won by then turning the situation around and flirting with Renji, who really didn't know how to handle it. After leaving Daemon, he met up with Artemis and Hitsugaya. They went to the basement; Renji "won" a sword from the armory, and was sorely disappointed by its poor quality.
One other thing that happened in the basement was Artemis' sudden announcement that he might be bisexual. At the time, Renji fled as quickly as he could from the situation. The next day, however, he made certain to talk to Artemis and give him the "it's okay to be gay" talk. Afterward, he had lunch with Daemon and Rukia, and got to play the part of the jealous boyfriend while Daemon flirted. The difficult part of that day was finally telling Sora about his meeting with Nowe during visiting hours; it was emotional for both of them, but Renji came out of their talk actually feeling better due to Sora's unwavering optimism.
The next afternoon he was taken to see Dr. Muraki, who promptly restrained him with a spell, then sedated him. Renji wasn't entirely certain what happened next; it involved a scalpel and a lot of pain. He was actually glad to see the orderlies who came to take him away. He was still fully in the grip of the sedatives when Lucivar came for him, hoping to get a fight. Lucivar helped Renji walk off the sedation, then they went outside to spar and engage in some male bonding.
During that night, Rukia went to the file room and taken some files - including her own. The file made her doubt the reality of her memories of being a Shinigami; she revealed this at breakfast the next morning, to Renji's utter dismay. He went to the showers, which meant it was time to have another naked chat with Daemon; Renji told his friend that Rukia seemed to be losing her grip on reality. Daemon told him to just keep talking to her, and reminding her of what was real.
It wasn't that easy. The next day, the patients were taken on a trip to Doyleton; this was the last time that Renji ever saw Rukia. That night he made another unsuccessful attempt to access the basement. When he woke in the morning, she was gone.
Renji went wild, attacking the orderlies as soon as the door to his room was opened. He had to be sedated and put in a strait jacket, then sent to solitary confinement, where he spent the rest of the day in hysterical rage. Hitsugaya and Artemis came to get him as soon as the night started; the group was immediately attacked by several nurse monsters. One injected Renji with a poisonous substance, while another attacked Artemis. Hitsugaya got the party to safety, but was then faced with the choice of either saving Renji's life or Artemis'. He chose to save Artemis - as Renji wanted - and shortly thereafter Renji succumbed to the poison and died.
Personality
Renji is a strong, determined, and incredibly competent warrior. He's fiercely loyal to his friends, and will drive himself past the point of physical endurance to protect those he cares about. He still refers to himself often as a stray dog, and is obviously very aware of his lowly origin, his continual struggle to be accepted by the nobility, and how much further he must go in skill and strength to match his Captain. He is also extremely social - he has a wide group of friends and enjoys partying with them, which often devolves into friendly fighting when the friends involved are so inclined. Generally his outward attitude can be described as a combination of cocky and cheerful with a less than helpful dose of extreme stubborness.
I think it's also very important to point out that he's in canon a lot smarter than he's often given credit for; he was admitted to the top class in the Shinou Academy on the strength of his test scores, which is no mean feat considering his humble origins.
Renji is, like many of us, his own worst enemy. He's tempermental, easily becomes bored (which in my mind is another bit of proof that he's quite smart), and will get distracted if he's not hyperfocused on a goal. He often speaks without considering the consequences of his words (thanks, temper) and will charge headlong into fights either without considering his chances, or willfully in spite of the odds. He also admits that he can be cowardly about his own feelings sometimes - he has admitted that he's a stray dog who howls at the moon but is too afraid to reach for it.
Renji has extremely high expectations of himself, and doesn't believe in setting small goals. He will never be satisfied until he has proven himself to be as strong as Byakuya Kuchiki, even though he occasionally admits that might never be possible - yet he still continues to train for that goal with single-minded intensity. Upon defeat, he tends to fall into black, depressive moods, which often require a lot of determined teasing from his friends - or the advent of a new challenge - to break.
During his time at Landel's, only a little of his most basic personality has changed. Circumstances have made him a little more quiet, a little more depressive because of the weight of constant defeat. His temper has also become more unpredictable due to the sheer stress. He spends a lot of time fighting to keep his cool, because he knows that it's important to those around him that he stays steady. He's had limited success in the past, but will be pursuing this tactic with renewed vigor going forward. Landel's has given him a real taste of helplessness, which he hasn't felt since he was a child, and he doesn't like it one bit. This has firmed his resolve to survive and triumph, but that doesn't mean the road ahead isn't going to be rough and he's not going to make a lot of mistakes. Going back into that survivalist mode will also make him more protective of his friends - and more reliant on them to watch his back and take care of him as he takes care of them.
Also, because of his encounters with the evil Dr. Muraki, Renji has developed an extreme dislike of being touched unless he is the one initiating the contact. He is also extremely afraid of being restrained. Both of these unreasoning fears frustrate him; he can't control how he feels, and it's lead to misunderstandings in the past. He has a desire to be in control of his physical environment more to compensate - and also an extreme desire for revenge on the man that did this to him.
All in all, he's a dangerous and determined protector hidden under a gruff, rough mask. He should be desired as a friend and feared as an enemy.
Physical description
6'2", 172 pounds, as ripped as a professional swordsman ever gets, bright red hair and a myriad of fascinating tattoos. (If you like tattoos, he'd be handsome, if not, you'd think he destroyed his good looks.) Renji occasionally wanders around in Soul Society in just his yukata, and apparently the ladies appreciate it and wish that it would happen more often, so the consensus seems to be he's a hotty.
General Abilities (applicable to Special Counseling)
Zanjutsu - Renji is considered to be a master swordsman; at this technical skill he is on par with many of the division Captains. This means that if he ever gets his hands on something even remotely sword like, he will be very dangerous. Also, considering his background as a street rat in Rukongai, I figure he's probably an accomplished brawler, particularly when it comes to fighting dirty.
Hohou - Fast movement using spirit power. The main technique of this power is the shunpo, which is running faster than the eye can see. Renji is considered an expert at shunpo, and can easily keep up with Shinigami Captains. He can also execute sophisticated techniques like senka, in which the shinigami appears instantly behind his opponent and attacking; this often occurs so fast neither victims nor observers can be certain from which direction the attack came.
Kidou - literally the spirit way. These are techniques that are equivalent to casting magical spells, powered by the Shinigami's reiatsu. Renji is not particularly good at kidou, but he was still obviously competent enough to graduate from the Academy. He is actually capable of casting kidou spells without speaking, though the results of these attempts range from pathetic to explosive in a bad way. A full list of known kidou spells can be supplied upon request.
Healing - I'm counting this as separate from kidou since it doesn't appear to normally require any kind of incantation. The Shinigami just seems to use their reiatsu to heal the wounds of others.
Zanpakuto - the zanpakuto are soul swords, which are literally part of the Shinigami's soul that manifests as a sword. They are capable of cutting through flesh and spirit simultaneously. Zanpakuto also have distinct and separate personalities and names, though normally a Shinigami can only communicate with the zanpakuto by doing a special sort of meditation. Renji's zanpakuto is named Zabimaru. Renji has also achieved both releases with his zanpakuto - shikai and bankai. Zabimaru's shikai form operates similarly to the whip-sword of Ivy in the Soul Caliber games. The bankai form turns Zabimaru into a massive snake-like creature of bone that Renji directs. When not released by shikai or bankai, Zabimaru looks like a normal katana. Zanpakuto have the ability to send normal ghosts to Soul Society, or purify negative ghosts (Hollows) so they can be sent along.
Spirit threads - Shinigami can visualize the thread of someone's soul, which allows them to track people across long distances.
Reiatsu - Generally Shinigami can sense how strong someone else's spirit happens to be. Also, anyone that can sense spirit energy should be able to tell that Renji is extremely strong, whether he's capable of using his power or not. When a shinigami at Captain or Lieutenant level is around mortals and does not have their power limited, they tend to make the mortals feel like they are being smothered by the weight of their spirit, sometimes to the point that the mortals can't actually move.
Nerfed Abilities
Renji has four spell slots that he can use per 24 hours. Using any one of the following abilities will use up one spell slot, though he can choose to use multiple spell slots up for one ability to multiply its effect. The only exception to this is shunpo; it can be used a maximum of once per 24 hours, and can only use a maximum of one spell slot. All of the abilities he can use have been weakened as specified below.
If Renji uses three spell slots he will be exhausted physically. Using four spell slots will cause him to pass out for the rest of the night.
Hohou
Shunpo: Can traverse the length of three hallways nearly instantaneously. May only be used once per 24 hours.
Senka: Allows Renji to move instantaneously to the rear of an opponent, unchanged from the series.
Kidou - Six spells total are available for his use
Healing - Healing would be enough to prevent someone from dying, but not enough to heal a critically injured person to healthy or even half-healthy
Create light - Creates a small ball of floating light that acts similar to a lantern, will last until Renji leaves the area.
(Bakudo)
4. Hainawa (這縄, Crawling Rope): An energy rope entangles the target's arms. Immobilizes an opponent for 20-30 seconds without injuring them. Time can be shortened it the opponent has strong "reiatsu" or is otherwise able to resist.
8. Seki (斥, Repulsion): Creates a round shield that seems to temporarily paralyze and repel whatever strikes it. Lasts for three minutes and must be actively maintained by Renji. Can withstand hits from weak monsters, would be demolished in 2-3 hits by nightshift only characters/special counseling subjects.
(Hadou)
1. Shō (衝, Clash) Pushes the target away from the caster. Pushes a target 10 feet back without injuring them unless Renji is clever enough to, say, push them out a window. Can be resisted by someone who is spiritually stronger than Renji.
31. Shakkahō (赤火砲, Red Fire Cannon) Fires a ball of red energy at a target. With the use of one spell slot causes some nasty bruising, potentially second degree burns depending on where it hits (bare skin as opposed to clothing, etc.)
Renji can no longer see spirit threads, though he can still sense reiatsu in the more generalized sense. ("I feel Daemon's spirit, he must be nearby" as opposed to "I can track down Daemon by following his spirit thread.") This means that he can tell if someone's spirit is exceptionally strong, and those able to sense "spirit" or "magic" would be able to tell that Renji is something of a 900-pound gorilla.
Renji does not have access to his zanpakuto.
Renji's sword/fighting/athletic skills are unaltered, as they are practiced, physical skills.
Renji's Direction
I think a Charles Remington quote from The Ghost and the Darkness has real significance here: "We have an expression in prize fighting: 'Everyone has a plan until they've been hit.' Well my friend, you've just been hit. The getting up is up to you."
Renji told Valyn once that he thought the worst thing Landel's did to any of them was made them incapable of protecting the people they love. That was a major theme during his first go round, and the point was only driven home with Rukia's disappearance. Originally, Renji was the man behind the Arts and Crafts group; he likes taking care of people and organizing them. That will continue, but I think now there will be a harder edge to him. After surviving death once, he's going to firm his mental position as the ultimate survivor. He did that as a child on the streets of Rukongai and he'll return to that mental place of survival for himself and his friends at any cost - thus changing his previous focus on duty to survival. He will also conclude that while self-sacrifice is still always an option, it has to be for the right reasons - it has to be in the service of your friends, NOT out of an unstated (and ultimately weak) desire to end ones own pain by that means.
Secondly (but not secondarily) he's going to be even more focused on finding out what happened to Rukia (and Nowe as well). We thought he hated everyone connected to the Institute before? He's ten times angrier now. However, I see this developing into more subtle (for him) tactics. After finding out that death did nothing but put him out of commission for a long time, he'll come quickly to the realization that a lot of his behavior previously was self-destructive, and destructive to his goals. While that's no guarantee that he won't get into fights and won't get sedated - he's still RENJI, after all! - he will be more outwardly cooperative and will make more of an effort to control his temper and consider the big picture.
I look at this as an interesting and difficult direction for Renji, because he is manifestly NOT a long term thinker, but he's being forced to acknowledge that his normal methods simply do not work. After a certain number of times being hit, so to speak, even someone as stubborn and impervious as Renji begins to get the message. Effectively, this could eventually even prepare him for a role as a Captain back in Soul Society. He's used to having other people do the long-term thinking for him, to just taking his orders and doing his job, then getting to go home. In a situation where that's no longer possible, he's going to be in a position where he either develops further and grows up, or unravels completely.
His suicidal day after the disappearance of Rukia was his attempt to unravel. Now it's time for him to try the other path and see how far it takes him.