Is Toshiro Hitsugaya dead in ‘Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War?’

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War and the Bleach manga.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War‘s episodes have been putting Toshiro Hitsugaya fans through the ringer. After his victory over Cang Du in episode 16, the character was absent from the anime until the end of episode 22, only to appear zombified. Could this have been the beginning of the end for Toshiro?

In a series with as much death as Bleach, viewers naturally feared the worst possible outcome for Toshiro, and as he battled Mayuri Kurotsuchi in episode 23, those fears only increased. According to Giselle, Toshiro’s mind died because she turned him into a zombie while he was still alive, which makes him easier to control. As if that bit of information wasn’t bad enough, Mayuri then proceeded to test some drugs on the Division 10 captain. When Toshiro collapsed, Mayuri impaled him with his Zampakuto and injected a drug into his neck, which caused the captain to scream out as his skin darkened.

The chances of surviving such a thing seem low, right? In real life, yes, they definitely would be, but in fiction, things can get a lot more complicated.

Did Toshiro Hitsugaya die in Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War?

Fans can rest easy, as Toshiro Hitsugaya does not die in Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War. In the manga, after Mayuri administers the drug, he takes his fellow Soul Reaper and places him into a special container, along with Rangiku. By doing this, the scientist is able to de-zombify both of them, breaking the control that Giselle has over them, and save their lives. Of course, something like this comes at a price, however, which means that to succeed, Mayuki ends up shortening both of their life spans.

Later, when Toshiro is freed from his container, he expresses gratitude to Mayuri for saving him, despite the consequence of having his life shortened. It’s troubling for Toshiro to have it cut down a fair amount, but in his eyes, it’s a price worth paying, so he decides not to complain about it. And in all honestly, if Mayuri hadn’t done that, Toshiro would’ve just lived as a zombie, never in control of his own body, so having a shortened life span was by far the better option.

There’s still a lot more to come before the end of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, and the anime will continue with new episodes on Disney Plus and Hulu.