Bleach: Uryu's Betrayal and the Reason Behind it, Explained (2024)

As the mysteries of Bleach's "Thousand-Year Blood War" arc continue to unravel, the story grows more complicated. Fans are left with a lot of questions about Uryu Ishida's shocking decision to join the deadly Yhwach and become a Sternritter. Of Ichigo Kurosaki's many friends, Uryu is among the most powerful and the most intriguing. The series shows his tremendous growth in every arc, making him all the more likable. In terms of strength, Uryu is Ichigo's only friend who can regularly fight side-by-side with him.

However, Uryu's apparent betrayal in the recent anime suggests he will become Ichigo's enemy. As a Sternritter, Uryu has gained an extraordinary ability and is now stronger than ever. It would only add to the protagonist's problems if such a close ally were to turn against him. Here's a full explanation of Uryu's true intentions — and whether he achieves what he's aiming for.

Updated on August 30, 2023, by Ajay Aravind: Shonen anime like Bleach consistently center around a single male protagonist, although the main character's friends are just as important. In fact, each of Bleach's four overarching storylines revolves around one of Ichigo Kurosaki's pals.The Thousand-Year Blood War arc is about the Quincy and has everything to do with Uryu Ishida, which leaves fans wondering if Ishida betrays Ichigo.

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Ishida's Betrayal in Bleach Was Neither Random Nor Unexpected

Uryu Ishida begins acting uncharacteristically right at the start of the "Thousand-Year Blood War" arc, and Bleach drops a few hints that something will happen between him and Ichigo. Orihime, for example, points out that she's glad Ichigo and Uryu are close friends now. During his battle with one of the Quincy, Ichigo himself remarks that he hasn't been attacked with Uryu's arrow for a long time, setting the possibility for a future clash between the two. However, Uryu suddenly declines to go to Hueco Mundo to help Dondochakka, saying that the Quincy exist to defeat hollows.

Considering Uryu didn't hesitate to work with Hollows in the past, this rejection seemingly comes out of nowhere. He'd also previously fought alongside Pesche, Dondochakka, and Nel to save Orihime. Despite how much he loathed the Soul Reapers in the "Soul Society" arc, Uryu was genuinely worried about Nemu being mistreated by Mayuri Kurotsuchi. The young Quincy has always tried to help those in a weaker position, therefore it was all the more confusing to see him refuse to help a former comrade.

Uryu never previously distinguished among races and, despite being rather aloof, always did his best to help those in need. This time, however, the rest of the team left him behind and went to Hueco Mundo, separating from him for a long time. The next time they meet Uryu is when they're on opposing sides. Whether intentional or not, Bleach had never once portrayed Uryu as evil. After joining the Sternritter, however, his true intentions soon became clear.

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Why Uryu Ishida Betrays His Friends in Bleach

After his separation from the group, Uryu insists on learning about the history of the Quincy — despite his father's countless efforts to stop him. His research turns up a rather shocking piece of information regarding his mother's death. Though she supposedly died from some sort of illness, she actually passed away because of Yhwach's Auswählen (Holy Selection). Incredibly, Ichigo and Uryu both lost their mother on the same day because Yhwach decided to steal their powers for himself.

As a result, Masaki Kurosaki died from a lack of power in her fight with Grand Fisher. Kanae Katagiri, who always had a weak body, died from her sudden loss of energy. Therefore, Uryu joined the Sternritter and even became Yhwach's successor in a plot to infiltrate the Wandenreich Empire and act as a double agent for the Soul Society.

To prove he really was on Yhwach's side, Uryu attacked his "former" friends head-on, declaring he would deal with them before Yhwach woke up. In truth, Uryu had deduced a key weakness in Yhwach and learned the villain is not invincible as everyone had believed. As long as Yhwach shares his Almighty ability with Jugram, he could potentially be defeated. Through this discovery, Uryu did achieve the initial goal behind his supposed betrayal.

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Why Yhwach Chose Uryu as His Successor

Yhwach choosing Uryu as his successor was even more surprising to Bleach fans than the latter joining him in the first place. The mighty villain is a shrewd character who thinks of his subordinates as mere tools, never trusting anyone except his right-hand man Jugram Haschwalth. By many counts, Jugram — the strongest Sternritter and the one who shares Yhwach's ultimate power — should be the successor. Yhwach is impressed by Uryu as well, however, especially considering he's the only "impure" Quincy to have survived the Holy Selection nine years prior.

Therefore, Yhwach declares Uryu as his successor in front of his entire army and even bestows the letter "A" on him, giving immeasurable powers to the young Quincy. The letter stands for "Antithesis," which literally translates to "Perfect Anti-Setup". With this power, Uryu can reverse anything that happens between any two targets. For example, if he is injured by an opponent in battle, he can easily transfer his condition to that person, simultaneously healing himself.

Though Yhwach never outright explains why he chose Uryu as his successor, Jugram is perceptive enough to see his intentions. He explains that Uryu only received the honor so he'd be in a position where everyone else could keep an eye on him. Yhwach is by no means a gullible individual, so he probably saw through Uryu's "betrayal" from the start. Instead of directly killing his descendant, however, Yhwach decides to put him on a pedestal and give his subordinate Jugram a chance to deal with him. In the end, however, Uryu didn't betray Ichigo.