Bankai is the greatest weapon that a shinigami has within their arsenal. It is the trump card that is only used when they face an exceptionally strong opponent. That is why most shinigami striveto obtain and polish their bankai. After all, mastering a bankai is often seen as the one thing that differentiate between the strong and the average.
Just like the Shikai, Bankai ability is also differentfrom one shinigami to the next. The one thing that is usually the same is the fact that a Bankai ability is usually an improved version of the Shikai ability. But just like everything else in life, there is always an exception to the norm. In this case, the exception would be Jakuho Raikoben, a bankai that deserves to be called the worst bankai in the series. Here’s the reason why.
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Not A Suitable Weapon For Its Bearer
Generally speaking, a bankai is an enhanced version of its users innate shikai ability. That is whyHitsugaya’s bankai is a much stronger version of his ice techniqueand Byakuya bankai is an enhanced version of his Senbonzakura. But there is one particular bankai that is not only different from the inherent skill and personality of its user, it is actually the exact opposite of the user’s fighting style. As mentioned earlier, this terrible bankai is called Jakuho Raikoben, and this bankai belongs to the captain of the 2nd Division of the Gotei 13, Soifon.
As the captain of the 2nd division, who happens to be the intelligence and special ops branch of the Gotei 13, Soifon is an expert assassin and a master in stealth attacks. Silently delivering the killing blow before the opponent realizes her existence is pretty much her preferred fighting style. Because of that, she is granted with a shikai that can take full advantage of her abilities.Soifon’s shikai is called Suzumebachi, a metallic sleeve that wraps around her right arm and a sharp claw-like blade that covers her middle finger. This claw can cause a deep piercing wound to her opponent while injecting a lethal dose of poison at the same time. If stabbed at the same place twice, death is pretty much guaranteed.
Unlike the subtle shikai, however,Soifon’s bankai sticking out like a sore thumb. When she released Jakuho Raikoben, the sleek sleeved turned into a massive gauntlet, wrapped around her right shoulders and all the way to the tip of her fingers. Sticking menacingly to the gauntlet is a massive spike-like object that is thicker than her arm and longer than her body. Unlike Suzumebachi, Jakuho Raikoben is a projectile weapon that launches at high speed and explodes on contact, sort of like a massive RPG, or a portable missile. Needless to say, it is not a weapon that is suitable for a master assassin.
Trading Agility For Decent Fire Power
Due to its massive size, and Soifon’s petite body, she needs to stand still and carefully aim the target. This means not only will she expose her position, she will also be vulnerable to enemy attacks whenever she takes aim. So as you’re able to imagine, not an ideal situation for somebody who dedicates her whole life to be a master at stealth attacks.
That being said, while Soifon’s bankai force her to lose her agility, she gains firepower in exchange. So in a way, it is sort of a fair trade, right? Well, not quite. Jakuho Raikoben’strue nature is much more complex than that. You see, while it’s true that this bankai does enhance Soifon’s firepower greatly, it is still not a reliable weapon against a super strong opponent. The explosion that it causes may be able to totally annihilate low-level opponents, like above average hollow or Quincy’s foot soldier. But when a commander-level enemy appears, then it is pretty much useless.
The first time Soifon reveals and uses her bankai isduring the Arrancar arc. She used it against Baraggan Louisenbairn, the 2nd Ranked Espada. And even at a point-blank attack, she only managed to badly wound Barragan. Not to say that the attacks are not powerful, because it is, but Jakuho Raikoben won’t be able to finish off high-level opponents, which she would be bound to face considering her position as one of the captains of the Gotei 13. It makes you wonder whether it is worth it to trade the hyper movements and agility that she spent her whole life perfecting in exchange for a weapon with a decent firepower.
Limited Usage
Another crucial weakness ofSoifon’s bankaiis the number of times that it can be used. Due to its massive firepower, Jakuho Raikoben drains a lot of spiritual energy and stamina to use. Firing it once is enough to tire Soifon out. Which is why, based on Soifon’s current condition, she can only fire Jakuho Raikoben once every three days. She did use it twice in a row when she fought against Baraggan, but it put an extreme burden on her body. She nearly passed out after firing that second missile.
So not only Jakuho Raikoben is the furthest thing possible to Soifon’s fighting style, using it also puts her in a vulnerable situation, and forces a heavy burden on her stamina and spiritual energy. Not only that, the huge amount of firepower that she got in exchange for her agility is not enough to finish offa second-ranked Espada. Add to that the fact that she can only use it once every three days and if she forces herself to use it more than that, then she will basically be incapacitated for a while. So based on that information, it’s safe to say that Jakuho Raikoben is the most useless bankai in the series.
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