Espada
Kanji	十刃, (エスパーダ)
Romaji	Esupāda
Organization
Headquarters	Las Noches, Hueco Mundo
Affiliation	Sōsuke Aizen Arrancar Army
Purpose	Unknown

The Espada (十刃, (エスパーダ), Esupāda; Spanish for "Sword", Japanese for "Ten Blades") are the top-ranked Arrancar in Sōsuke Aizen's army of Hollow-Shinigami hybrids; they are the most powerful Hollows under Aizen's command, and they are the main rivals of the Gotei 13.

Contents 1 Outline 2 History 3 Notable Members 4 Demotion 4.1 Privaron Espada 5 Espada exclusive Powers & Techniques 6 Trivia 7 References 8 Navigation

Outline

The Espada are composed of ten Arrancar with exemplary strength. Members of the Espada are given a number 0-9^[1][2] Each Espada has a tattoo with their number somewhere on them, such as Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, whose is on his lower back,^[3] and Coyote Starrk's is on the back of his left hand^[4] Along with Sōsuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen, the Espada as a group possess comparable strength to Soul Society's Gotei 13 Shinigami captains.^[5]

Their immense amount of power and leadership status among the Arrancar also grant each Espada the authority to exert command Aizen's other forces within Las Noches: the Números, the Exequias^[6], and their own Fracción, chosen by them from the Números. Similar to the power gap between captains and lieutenants in the Gotei 13, the strength of the Espada far surpasses that of the average Número. Aizen himself is confident enough of his Espada's abilities to send them out on potentially hazardous missions, such as gathering information in the Real World, fighting Shinigami captains inside Las Noches and Karakura Town by themselves ^{[7] [8]}, and searching for the Vasto Lorde^[9].

Being Aizen's most direct subordinates (not counting Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen), the Espada are privy to several of Aizen's plans and most intimate secrets, such as his goals of destroying Karakura Town and creating the Ōken, and the location of the Hōgyoku within Las Noches^[10]. Aizen's respect for the Espada's abilities is reflected on his manner of addressing them, often referring to them as "my dear Espada" and sitting at the head of the same table with them, while discussing the events around Hueco Mundo.^[11][12] According to Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio, Aizen treats them as tools to do his bidding, but nonetheless, he wanted to take back his position as an Espada to once again be close to Aizen.^[13] In accordance with this, Aizen is not at all distressed over the deaths of the Espada and calmly congratulates the intruders in Las Noches for their victories against the Espada as he leaves for Karakura Town.^[14]

There seems to be a sort of hierarchy among the Espada; a higher-ranked member apparently can give orders to lower-ranked members. This is demonstrated when Aizen orders Ulquiorra Cifer to kidnap Orihime Inoue and Ulquiorra takes a team of lower ranked Espada with him.^[15] Various missions usually involve one or more Espada operating together, with the most senior member exercising command over the others.^[16] While the lower-ranked members usually have little restraint in taking their own initiative (thus exceeding their orders), higher-ranked members usually stick to Aizen's commands, and are often the first to bail the others out of trouble, because in Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck's own words, they wish to, "prevent the Espada from losing one of their own."^[17] However, Aizen's attitude toward the offending Espada members seem to be one of leniency, officially forgiving them (though not without severe sanctions) on the grounds that they are merely advancing his own wishes.^[18]

Aside from regularly appearing in Aizen's throne room and the debriefing room, the Espada are known to have their own quarters within Las Noches. Those that have been seen appear to have been modified to suit the specific Espada's taste. Szayelaporro Granz, for instance, possesses a large building that he refers to as his "palace", complete with a hidden, indestructible laboratory and a changing room.^[19] Zommari Rureaux has been shown on one occasion to await orders inside a meditation room.^[20] Coyote Starrk's room is designed along the lines of a lounging chamber^[21] and Aaroniero Arruruerie's tower, accessed via a hanging bridge, effectively keeps out sunlight and contains nooks and crannies for hiding cushions and other implements whose purpose is to make his shape-shifting abilities more convincing.^[22]

According to Ulquiorra, any Espada ranked 4th or higher are not allowed to release their Zanpakutō within Aizen's palace, as their Resurrección's released powers are powerful enough to destroy the majority of Las Noches.^[23]

History

The creation of the Espada has long been one of Aizen's most important preoccupations. While it is not specified when the Espada were first brought together as a group, the original Espada were already in existence sometime before Aizen's defection from the Soul Society and acquisition of the Hōgyoku. Since then, the composition of the Espada has changed, both in membership and position.

At some point in the past Nnoitra Gilga was the 8th Espada with Nelliel as the 3rd Espada and Szayelaporro Granz was not a member at all. During this time Aizen frequently sent the Espada out to search for the Vasto Lorde-class Menos.

Before his death, Aaroniero Arruruerie was the sole member of the current Espada who was also part of the first-generation Espada. He was also the only Arrancar from Gillian-class Menos stock to attain a position among the Espada.

Notable Members

Espada
Rank	Name	Zanpakutō	Tattoo Location	Aspect of Death
0	Yammy Llargo (Post-Release)	Ira	Left Shoulder	Rage
1st	Coyote Starrk & Lilynette Gingerbuck (Post-Release)	Los Lobos	Back Side of Left Hand (Starrk only)	Solitude
2nd	Baraggan Louisenbairn	Arrogante	Unknown	Aging (Time)
3rd	Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck	Gamuza	Mid Back	Unknown
3rd	Tier Harribel	Tiburón	Left side of right breast	Sacrifice
4th	Ulquiorra Cifer	Murciélago	Left pectoral muscle	Emptiness
5th	Nnoitra Gilga	Santa Teresa	Tongue	Despair
6th	Luppi Antenor	Trepadora	Right Hip	Unknown
6th	Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez	Pantera	Right side, mid back	Destruction
7th	Zommari Rureaux	Brujería	Unknown	Intoxication
8th	Szayelaporro Granz	Fornicarás	Unknown	Madness
9th	Aaroniero Arruruerie	Glotonería	Top head: 3/4 of head Bottom head: 1/2 of head	Greed

Demotion

Privaron Espada
Kanji	十刃落ち
Romanji	Puribaron Esupāda
Additional Information
Primary Power	Resurrección
Notable Members	Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio, Cirucci Sanderwicci, Gantenbainne Mosqueda

An Espada may be demoted from the group either when they lose strength or cease to be useful to Aizen, such as Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez after his left arm was cut off by Kaname Tōsen. In most cases, they will be demoted to the Privaron Espada (十刃落ち (プリバロン・エスパーダ), puribaron esupāda; Spanish for "Deprived Sword", Japanese for "Ten Fallen Blades"), who are former Espada that have officially lost their rank and are assigned a three-digit number.

Privaron Espada

The Privaron Espada are former Espada who have officially lost their rank and are assigned a three-digit number. Being former Espada, they are far stronger than the normal Números. They reside in Tres Cifras, which translates literally from Spanish as "Three Digits". As mentioned by Dordoni, these former "naturally created" Espada were rendered obsolete after Aizen began artificially creating Arrancar to meet his own standards.^[24]

Privaron Espada
Rank	Name	Zanpakutō	Tattoo Location	Aspect of Death
103rd	Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio	Giralda	Unknown	Unknown
105th	Cirucci Sanderwicci	Golondrina	Unknown	Unknown
107th	Gantenbainne Mosqueda	Dragra	Unknown	Unknown

Espada exclusive Powers & Techniques

• Caja Negación (反膜の匪 (カハ・ネガシオン), kaha negashion; Spanish for "Negation Box", Japanese for "Anti-Membrane of Negation") is a variant of the Gillian-exclusive ability Negación used to punish Arrancar subordinates by trapping them eternally in an alternate dimension. However, should the Caja Negación be used on an Espada, the Espada will eventually break out of the alternate dimension (usually within a few hours), due to their large amount of Reiatsu.

• Gran Rey Cero (王虚の閃光 (グラン・レイ・セロ), guran rei sero; Spanish for "Grand King Zero", Japanese for "Royal Hollow Flash") is a very strong Cero. To perform this potent variation of the Cero, the Arrancar first draws blood from the Cero-generating appendage using their Zanpakutō, then charges the Cero while mixing the blood with it. The result is a Cero with a much greater attack power and speed, as well as a change of color unique to the Espada. This attack was first used by Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez in order to incite Ichigo into donning his Hollow mask. Grimmjow refers to it as, "the ultimate Cero". According to Ulquiorra, it is forbidden for any of the Espada to perform Gran Ray Cero within Las Noches, as it would destroy most of the building.

Trivia

• While he is not an Espada, Wonderweiss Margela is classified with Espada-level spiritual energy by Soul Society.

References

1. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 209, page 4-5
2. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 354, pages 16-17
3. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 240, page 15
4. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 339, page 16
5. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 197, page 17
6. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 255, pages 7-10
7. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 297
8. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapters 231-232
9. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 312, page 12
10. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 229, page 13
11. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 244, page 17
12. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 245, page 1
13. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 254, page 7
14. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 314, page 6
15. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 229, page 11-17
16. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 191, page 9
17. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 312, pages 12-15
18. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 213, pages 9-16
19. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 276, page 13
20. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 269, page 8
21. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 269, page 9-11
22. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 266, page 19
23. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 345, pages 7-9
24. ↑ Bleach manga; Chapter 254, page 1

Navigation

v • d • eEspada
Current Members	3rd: Tier Harribel • 6th: Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez
Former Members	0: Yammy Llargo (Post-Release) •1st: Coyote Starrk / Lilynette Gingerbuck (Post-Release) • 2nd: Baraggan Louisenbairn • 3rd: Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck • 4th: Ulquiorra Cifer • 5th: Nnoitra Gilga • 6th: Luppi Antenor • 7th: Zommari Rureaux • 8th: Szayelaporro Granz • 9th: Aaroniero Arruruerie
Privaron Espada	103rd: Dordoni Alessandro Del Socaccio • 105th: Cirucci Sanderwicci • 107th: Gantenbainne Mosqueda

e · d · v	Hollow
Arrancar:	Números · Espada · Exequias
Abilities:	Cero · Bala · Hierro · Negación · Garganta · Sonído · Gonzui · Pesquisa · High-Speed Regeneration
List:	List of Hollows · List of Arrancar · Resurrección
Notable Hollows:	Fishbone D · Hexapodus · Acidwire · Shrieker · Grand Fisher · The Demi-Hollow · Bulbous G · Numb Chandelier · Metastacia · Bawabawa · Runuganga · Guardian of the Forest of Menos · Zonzain · Ayon · Hooleer · Battikaroa · Michel · Tapeworm Hollow · Yosuke · White
	Related Articles
Events:	Arrancar Invasion · Invasion of Hueco Mundo · White Invasion · Rise of the Vandenreich · Vandenreich vs. The Arrancar · Return to Hueco Mundo · Ayon vs. Quilge Opie
Places:	Hueco Mundo · Forest of Menos · Las Noches

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