Bleach: Gin Ichimaru's Betrayal Of Soul Society, Explained - CBR

At first, Tite Kubo’s Bleach seemed like a series where the line between bad guys and good one was fairly clear. But, as the series went on, characters continuously proved that this was not the case at all.

Bleach's characters toe this line again and again, betraying fans' perceptions of them, sometimes literally. Among these characters is fan favorite Gin Ichimaru who, along with Kaname Tosen, betrayed Soul Society as well as his original "good guy" image. What motivated Gin Ichimaru's betrayal?

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Why Gin Ichimaru Became a Soul Reaper

Gin defected from Soul Society to follow Aizen, however, there is more to his betrayal than just that. In reality, it was simply a cover so he could achieve his true purpose. Since they were children, Gin and Soul Reaper Rangiku Matsumoto always had a very close relationship with each other – until Aizen came into their lives. One day, while out gathering wood, Gin stumbled upon Aizen and some other Soul Reapers scheming over the Hogyoku...and Rangiku's limp body. They had used the Hoguoku to steal a portion of Rangiku's soul and Gin, enraged, decided that he'd become a Soul Reaper himself and destroy Aizen for what he did to her.

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Why Gin Betrayed Aizen In Bleach

After becoming a Soul Reaper, Gin decided the best way to kill Aizen would be to get as close to him as possible. He gained Aizen's trust by killing one of his Soul Reaper comrades and stayed in the villain's good graces using his snake-like personality. Gin hated Aizen but followed his orders, playing the role of the faithful minion right up to the point of betraying Soul Society entirely — including Rangiku, the person he was avenging.

Through the years he spent with Aizen, Gin carefully analyzed his behavior and powers, eventually learning a crucial weakness of his master’s zanpakuto. Gin finally made his move when he and Aizen entered the real Karakura Town in Soul Society. There they were confronted by Rangiku, who Gin offered to fight in Aizen's stead. He lied about killing her, before at last attacking Aizen, creating a hole in his heart. This, however, wasn’t enough to stop Aizen. He healed the hole in his chest and killed Gin.

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Bleach's Gin Ichimaru Betrayed Soul Society to Save It

Aside from personal revenge, Gin likely had an yet another reason for following Aizen. When he attacked Aizen, Gin mentioned that he was the only one who could kill Aizen, as only he knew the Reaper's weakness. Perhaps Gin knew right from the start that Aizen would become a much larger threat to the world and nobody would be prepared when the time came. To that end, Gin spent years getting up close and personal with Aizen, learning things about him until the right moment came to strike. However, when his plan ultimately failed, he found that he was forced to leave the rest to Ichigo, who'd recently gained new abilities.

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In the end, Gin had good intentions, but took his approach to the furthest extreme. He betrayed Soul Society in order to save it – but found himself facing down death in the end.