Hollow

Hollows (虚 (ホロウ), Horō) are a race of masked spiritual creatures which are born from human souls who, for various reasons, do not cross over to Soul Society after their deaths and stay in the Human World for too long. They are corrupt spirits with supernatural powers which devour the souls of both living and deceased humans. Hollows settle in Hueco Mundo, but can cross over to the Human World and Soul Society. Hollows are the opposite of humans^[1] and the Japanese counterparts to London's Dragons.^[2] A Hollow that has removed its mask is referred to as an Arrancar.^[3]

Overview

Hollows are former Pluses (deceased human souls) who lose their hearts to despair or regret, or they remain in the Human World for too long. Any spirit who is not guided to Soul Society by a Shinigami via Konsō may eventually turn into a Hollow.^[4]

Transformation Process

The majority of ghosts peacefully move on to the Soul Society after their death. However, some stay in the Living World to fulfill certain goals, such as looking after a loved one, protecting a particular location, or pursuing a grudge from beyond the grave.^[5] However, with only limited abilities to interact with the living, and by definition tied to their goals, many ghosts find they are unable to cope when their loved ones move on or old enemies forget them. At this point, some will become dangerously obsessed with fulfilling those goals, even if the means to fulfill them renders the soul empty: for example, killing anyone who comes near a loved one in order to keep them from hurting that person. In doing so, the ghost warps into a Hollow and, ironically, often makes the focus of their obsession into their first victim, such as what Orihime Inoue's brother, Sora Inoue, does. This can be prevented if a Shinigami gives the soul a Soul Burial before it turns into a Hollow.^[6]

The process by which a Plus becomes a Hollow usually takes months to years to complete, reflected by the length of the soul's Chain of Fate, which usually resides in the center of their chest, and connects to their bodies, if present.^[7][8] The Chain of Fate slowly corrodes over time, coinciding with the degradation of the soul's ties to the Living World. The process can be accelerated by a special gas that can speed up the process to a mere 72 hours.^[9] When the chain completely decays, they become a Hollow when a hole opens up on their chest where the chain was attached, signifying they have lost their heart.^[10] When a Plus becomes a Hollow, it bursts into pieces and rearranges itself; however, if the mask coalesces while the body is still intact, it means the transformation is being resisted.^[11]

Tendencies

Once a soul becomes a Hollow, after devouring the souls of its family, it is driven by an eternal and insatiable hunger to devour other souls, living or dead, to fill the void caused by its descent and ease it pain.^[12] Some Hollows, such as Shrieker or Acidwire, are able to retain their intelligence, making them more dangerous than the average Hollow. While most Hollows are evil, or at the very least mindless, at least a few are not, as is the case with Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck and her Hollow companions. They are at least partly capable of camaraderie and loyalty, as seen with Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and his companions while they were still Hollows when Grimmjow's subordinates voluntarily sacrificed parts of their bodies for the sake of Grimmjow's growth.^[13] Hollows are attracted to Hollow Bait, a device used by the Quincy to lure them to other locations.^[14]

Appearance

"Hollow mask" redirects here. For the power in which one wears a Hollow mask to achieve a power boost, see Hollowfication.

All Hollows wear masks, which are formed from the hearts they had lost as humans.^[15] This mask protects the naked instinct which is left in a being after the loss of its heart, and obscures the original identity of the Hollow.^[16] The masks of different Hollows can differ greatly in shape and form, but are always white and skull-like. The mask can be shattered, temporarily allowing the Hollow to regain its original identity, but it will regenerate after a short period once the Hollow takes over again.^[17] According to Kūgo Ginjō, when a Hollow's heart is carved out by the hole in their chests, the lost heart becomes its mask and changes its outward appearance to what it looks like as a Hollow, contributing to their unique appearance and individual abilities. The powers a Hollow wields are manifestations of its heart.^[18] If a Hollow removes its mask, it becomes an Arrancar, a human-like Hollow.^[3] Hollows have widely varying physical characteristics and vary in size, though the various classifications of Menos tend to be the same size. In Hueco Mundo, some Hollows are no larger than common pets.^[19] Some Hollows, like White, are artificially created with the same material as Zanpakutō. These Hollows have the ability to enter a Shinigami's soul and fuse with their Shinigami powers, forming a new Zanpakutō Spirit with the abilities of both a Shinigami and a Hollow.^[20]

Destruction

Hollows are usually killed by splitting their mask and head in two,^[21] but most wounds which would be fatal for a human will effectively dispatch them. When this is done by a Shinigami's Zanpakutō, the Hollow is not truly killed; its spirit is purified of the sins it committed as a Hollow.^[22] This allows the spirit within to enter the Soul Society as a Plus. In cases where a Hollow committed great sins as a mortal, its purification will summon the gates of Hell, through which the soul is dragged to its punishment.^[23] When a Hollow is killed by a Quincy, it is destroyed, soul and all, which has potentially disastrous effects on the spiritual balance of the Three Worlds.^[24]

Powers

Like Shinigami, Hollows have a multitude of combat skills and abilities, most of which are usually unique to specific Hollows. The more powerful Hollows, however, have access to a range of similar techniques of greater power or use than their own unique skills. Hollows usually acquire energy to power their abilities by devouring souls, but smaller ones can ingest energy from the atmosphere when in realms with a high concentration of spiritual energy, such as Hueco Mundo.^[25]

• Soul-Body Separation: Two middle class Hollow, Shrieker and Acidwire, have used this ability. It allows a Hollow to forcibly extract a living spirit from their body. It is usually not used because Hollows tend to go after Pluses, who have no physical or living body to speak of. Acidwire used this on his younger sister, Orihime Inoue, so she could see and converse with him.^[26] Shrieker used it for more sinister means, causing the young boy Yūichi Shibata to be trapped within the body of a parakeet for three months while the Hollow chased him.^[27] The soul is still attached by the Chain of Fate and can be saved,^[28] but if it is broken (in Yūichi's case), the soul can prevent the encroachment so long as they are placed inside a soulless body or animal.

• Acidic Touch: Many Hollows, like Shrieker and Acidwire, have displayed this ability, although Rukia Kuchiki implies all Hollows possess this power. When a Hollow grabs a human with their hands, the spot where the person was grabbed is burned as if acid were poured onto it. This occurred when Orihime was grabbed by the leg,^[29] and when Chad's back was wounded.^[30] These wounds are quite painful to the victim, but can heal over time. It is unknown if this ability works on Shinigami or other spiritually powerful beings.

• Cero (虚閃 (セロ), Sero; Spanish for "Zero", Japanese for "Hollow Flash"; Viz "Doom Blast") is a spherical blast of spiritual energy used by Menos Grande, Arrancars, and Hollowfied Shinigami. Its power and charging time varies depending on the user, and while it is predominantly colored red, it may also be several other colors. Several Arrancars and Hollowfied Shinigami have developed unique variations of the Cero.

• The Garganta (黒腔 (ガルガンタ), Garuganta; Spanish for "Throat", Japanese for "Black Cavity") is the void that exists between the Three Worlds which Hollows and Arrancars can use to move to and from Hueco Mundo. Kaname Tōsen, Kisuke Urahara, and Mayuri Kurotsuchi have demonstrated the ability to use it for transportation as well. It tears open the dimensional fabric separating the Three Worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential Reishi which must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway.^[31]

• Kūmon (空門, Air Gate; Viz "Sky Ridge") is a Hollow ability that allows Hollows to tear through the barriers between the Three Worlds, thus creating a spatial distortion which opens a pathway to the other realms. Gillians typically use this method to travel to the Human World.^[32][33]

• Negación (反膜 (ネガシオン), Negashion; Spanish for "Negation", Japanese for "Counter-Membrane") fields are used to rescue fellow Hollows. Only the Gillian-class Menos have been shown using it.^[34] The Espada have a special cube-shaped device called Caja Negación (反膜の匪 (カハ・ネガシオン), kaha negashion; Spanish for "Negation Box", Japanese for "Negation of Counter-Membrane"; English anime Caja de Negación), meant to simulate Negación fields, which are used to trap and punish their subordinates if necessary.^[35]

• Sonído (響転 (ソニード), Sonīdo; Spanish for "Sound", Japanese for "Reverberating Turn") is a high-speed movement technique serving as the equivalent to the Shinigami's Shunpo and the Quincy's Hirenkyaku, which are roughly equal in terms of speed.^[36] While nearly all known users of Sonído are Arrancars, two none-Arrancar Hollows, namely Zangetsu^[37] and Ikomikidomoe,^[38] have been shown using it as well.

• High-Speed Regeneration (超速再生, Chōsoku Saisei; lit. "Ultra-Fast Regeneration") is an ability which allows a Hollow to heal most injuries very quickly, with the exception of the destruction of the head or vital organs. Ulquiorra Cifer states most Arrancars give up this ability for far greater strength.^[39]

Influences On Other Beings

Hollows may have various influences on other beings. Hollowfication is a phenomena in which a Hollow's soul is inserted into a normal soul, causing the destruction of the boundary between the two souls. This was originally meant to be used to strengthen a Shinigami's soul, but Soul Society did not have the means to control it.^[40] Those who have gained control of their inner Hollow gain the ability to manifest a unique Hollow Mask along with a drastic increase in Reiryoku and a Hollow's abilities.^[41] The Visored is a group of Shinigami who were empowered this way,^[42] leading them to be branded as criminals in Soul Society.^[43] To a Quincy, a Hollow's spiritual power is essentially poison, and would destroy their souls completely should it enter their bodies, with no chance of even Hollowfication to occur.^[44] Additionally, if a Hollow attacks an individuals' parents before they are born, the traces of the Hollows' power will remained in their mothers' bodies, leading them to become Fullbringers and develop special abilities.^[45]

Hollow Classifications

Demi-Hollow

A Demi-Hollow (半虚 (デミ・ホロウ), Demi Horō; lit. "Half-Hollow") is a Jibakurei, an earthbound spirit who is evolving into a Hollow. It usually takes a while for the earthbound spirit to fully transform into a Hollow, but this process can be sped up by forcing the hole in their chest to open. The Demi-Hollows are held down by chains, usually to a place they consider to be their territory. They are usually only seen when a human steps on their territory and cannot be easily sensed by Shinigami.^[46]

Huge Hollow

Huge Hollows (巨大虚 (ヒュージ・ホロウ), Hyūji Horō; Japanese for "Gigantic Hollow") are large Hollows that tower over human-sized individuals and buildings.^[47] Though they pose a grave threat to inexperienced Shinigami such as the students of Shin'ō Academy, captains of the Gotei 13 such as Sōsuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen can handle them with little effort.^[48] Apart from their size, they don't appear to be any different from an ordinary Hollow.

Menos Grande

Though most Hollows are simply transformed human souls, a sub-group of Hollows known as Menos Grande (大虚 (メノスグランデ), Menosu Gurande; Spanish for "Less Big" or "Big Minus", Japanese for "Great Hollow"), or simply Menos (メノス, Menosu; Spanish for "Minus" or "Less"), exist. Menos are conglomerations of hundreds of normal Hollows, resulting in a single composite entity of far greater strength than any normal Hollow.^[49]

Menos are created when the void within an ordinary Hollow's heart becomes so substantial human souls are incapable of sustaining it, at which point it begins devouring fellow Hollows. These cannibal Hollows are attracted to one another, and a mass inter-devouring follows, resulting in a Gillian. Following this transformation, the Gillian can evolve twice more, first into an Adjuchas and finally into a Vasto Lorde, provided certain conditions are met.^[50] Menos evolution is not only contingent upon the Menos eating other Hollows, but also upon the Menos' ability to avoid being eaten. If another Hollow succeeds in devouring even a part of their body, evolution becomes impossible for the one who was wounded this way.^[51] Menos-class Hollows pose such a grave threat that even a single Shinigami's abilities are insufficient to handle them, necessitating the intervention of the Royal Guard.^[49] There are three categories of Menos: Gillians, Adjuchas, and Vasto Lordes.^[52]

Gillian

Gillians (最下大虚 (ギリアン), Girian; Japanese for "Lowest Great Hollow") are the first and weakest of all Menos. In human terms, they would be considered foot soldiers. There are many of them, and they all look alike. In Soul Society, they are the "Menos" who are generally referred to in textbooks. Gillians are huge, but they are slow and have beast-like intellect; any captain-level Shinigami can destroy them with ease.^[53] Up to the point when Rukia Kuchiki meets Ichigo Kurosaki, she had only seen them in such textbooks, despite having been a Shinigami for many years.^[54] Gillians have immense Reiryoku,^[55] and are commonly seen attacking in groups. Gillians typically arrive in the Human World through the use of spatial distortions called Kūmon.^[56]

• Appearance: Gillians are huge monster Hollows at least 2-6 stories tall, easily dwarfing even the largest standard Hollow. They all have a white mask with an elongated nose. Their bodies are covered from their head to their feet with a black covering reminiscent of a cloak. Around their neck is a row of thin white spikes. They have large, pointed feet wrapped in white bandages. They have large white hands with long, sharp, white nails, but they are commonly hidden within their cloak, rarely revealed even in combat. They have long tongues capable of breaking a fellow Hollow's mask.^[57]

• Signature Skills: Cero, Kūmon, Negación.

• Evolution: Though Gillians usually have no personality to speak of, which makes them dangerous since they have no mind of their own, one of the many Hollows which comprise it might gain control over the newly formed entity, reflected in the unique mask it wears in comparison to a normal Gillian. Only these Gillian variants have the potential to evolve into Adjuchas-class Menos. The evolution is facilitated by the continued cannibalization of fellow Hollows, even other Gillians.^[58]

Aaroniero Arruruerie is the only member of the most recent generation of the Espada that was originally a Gillian-class Menos prior to becoming an Arrancar.^[59]

Adjuchas

Adjuchas (中級大虚 (アジューカス), Ajūkasu; Japanese for "Intermediate Great Hollow") are the second classification of Menos. They are smaller than Gillians and far fewer in number. They are much smarter and stronger than Gillians, and are often the ones who lead Gillians into battle.^[60] Adjuchas are commonly solitary creatures, rarely joining into groups.

• Appearance: Adjuchas can vary radically in appearance, anywhere from bulky humanoids to the jaguar-like form of pre-Arrancar Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez.

• Signature Skills: Cero, Garganta.

• Evolution: Adjuchas-class Menos are much smaller in population compared to the Gillian class, due to the rarity of any one Hollow being capable of overwhelming the many other Hollows which comprise the body of a Gillian. Furthermore, the Adjuchas must continue to devour Hollows, or its mind will be absorbed by the other Hollows comprising its form, and it will revert into a Gillian. The subsequent lack of an individual will prevent the reverted Gillian from becoming an Adjuchas again.^[61] If any part of an Adjuchas is devoured, they permanently cease evolving, but they also cannot devolve into a Gillian anymore.^[62]

Vasto Lorde

Vasto Lordes (最上大虚 (ヴァストローデ), Vasuto Rōde; Japanese for "Highest Great Hollow") are the third classification of Menos and the highest level of evolution. They are extremely rare, and it is said that their entire number within Hueco Mundo can be counted on one's hands. The combat capabilities of a Vasto Lorde are also said to be above those of the captains of the Gotei 13,^[60] to the point where Tōshirō Hitsugaya speculates that if Sōsuke Aizen were to acquire ten or more Vasto Lordes and turn them into Arrancars, the Soul Society would be doomed.^[64] Most of the Espada were Vasto Lordes.^[65]

• Appearance: Vasto Lordes are extremely small Hollows, roughly the same size and shape as humans.^[60]

• Signature Skills: Cero, Sonído.

• Evolution: The process for the creation of a Vasto Lorde is unknown. Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and his Fracción hypothesized that an Adjuchas can become a Vasto Lorde by devouring large amounts of Hollows; however, Shawlong Koufang and his group found this method to be ineffective.^[66] After devouring three thousand Hollows, Shawlong speculates that a Vasto Lorde is determined upon an individual's birth as a Hollow, or perhaps before that.^[67]

Arrancar

Main article: Arrancar An Arrancar (破面 (アランカル), Arankaru; Spanish for "To Tear Off", Japanese for "Ripped Mask") is a type of Hollow that has removed its mask, gaining Shinigami-like powers in the process.^[3] Arrancars are distinguished from typical Hollows by their humanoid form (though they retain Hollow holes) and superior intellect. Their abilities mimic those of Shinigami, including the use of Sonído, their version of Shunpo,^[68] and the ability to wield Zanpakutō. However, an Arrancar's Zanpakutō differs significantly from a Shinigami's in that it not only channels Hollow power,^[69] but also integrates their original Hollow abilities into their humanoid form.^[70] Unlike Shinigami, whose Zanpakutō have two main forms (Shikai and Bankai), Arrancars manifest a Resurrección (帰刃 (レスレクシオン), Resurekushion; Spanish for "Resurrection", Japanese for "Returning Blade"), which functions similarly to a Shinigami's Bankai.^[71]

Jigoku no Gaki

Jigoku no Gaki (地獄の餓鬼, Hell Preta; Viz "Beasts of Hell") are massive Hollows uniquely originating from Hell.^[72] While their appearances vary wildly, common visual motifs between them include large rings protruding from or comprising parts of their bodies and thick chain patterns on their skin.^[73] In addition to possessing great strength befitting their size, they do not emit any Reiatsu,^[74] allowing them to sneak up on even spiritually-aware Shinigami.^[75]

Trivia

• Tite Kubo has used a Spanish motif for Hollows and Arrancars throughout Bleach.
• Many Hollow names and related terms contain double letters. The words Hollow and Arrancar, as well as many Arrancar including all Espada and Privaron Espada, have this trait.
• Despite the plural form of the word being spelled as "Hollows," the title for Chapter 371 was spelled as "Kingdom of Hollowes" when the chapter first appeared. However, the title of chapter 371 was subsequently changed to "Kingdom of Hollows" when it appeared in Volume 43 - which was also called "Kingdom of Hollows."
• Though Hollows are usually depicted with holes in their chest, several Hollows and Arrancars have their Hollow holes in places other than their chests.
• While no known Hollow or Arrancar was confirmed to be a Vasto Lorde in the main manga, various supplementary materials and adaptations (such as the anime, databooks, and novels) establish that Baraggan Louisenbairn, Tier Harribel, Ulquiorra Cifer, Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, and Szayelaporro Granz were all Vasto Lordes.
• Ninny Spangcole describes Soul Society's killing of Hollows to contrast how the Wing Bind deals with Dragons in London.^[2]

Klub Outside Trivia

• According to Q&A #346 by Tite Kubo on his fansite "Klub Outside", Hollows can reproduce and create offspring conventionally.^[76]
• According to Q&A #512 by Tite Kubo on his fansite "Klub Outside", only infamous Hollows (such as Grand Fisher or Shrieker) are granted names by Soul Society. Others are merely given a numerical designation.^[76]
• According to Q&A #535 by Tite Kubo on his fansite "Klub Outside", when a Hollow becomes an Arrancar, the part of their mask that breaks off becomes their Zanpakutō.^[76] This corroborates Kūgo Ginjō's belief that a Hollow's mask represents their unique powers.^[18]

See also

• List of Hollows

References

Navigation

Hollow
Hollow Abilities	Cero • Kūmon • Negación • High-Speed Regeneration
Notable Hollows	Fishbone D • Hexapodus • Acidwire • Shrieker • Grand Fisher • The Demi-Hollow • Bulbous G • Numb Chandelier • Metastacia • Bawabawa • Runuganga • Ayon • Hooleer • White • Guardians of the Forest of Menos • Zonzain • Battikaroa • Michel • Tapeworm Hollow • Yōsuke • Ikomikidomoe
Notable Places	Hueco Mundo • Forest of Menos • Las Noches