Bleach’s Creator Knows the Perfect Spinoff for Ichigo, But He’s Not Telling Anyone About It

Bleach creator Tite Kubo frequently answers fan questions via his exclusive platform, Klub Outside. What’s less frequent is an answer providing as much insight as his latest question does.

Kubo may or may not be actively working on manga at the moment, but at the very least, he’s kept in touch with fans through Klub Outside and often answers questions about Bleach lore, clarifying details that never came up in the manga. That doesn’t just include Bleach, though; Kubo occasionally answers questions about his spinoff series, Burn the Witch, as well, and the overlap between the two is often a particular focus of fans, given just how the two series are tied together.

Tite Kubo Hints at a Bleach/Burn the Witch Crossover

Kubo’s Latest Question and Answer Was Particularly Valuable

On the Klub Outside platform, which is both exclusive and primarily in Japanese, one fan asked a very interesting question: “If adult Ichigo goes to London for work, could there be an unexpected transformation into a Shinigami or a conflict with Wing Bind?” This is referencing a previous answer that Kubo gave, stating that Ichigo learned English and became a translator after spending some time in London following Thousand-Year Blood War. Kubo answered, “I’m keeping it a secret, as I might tell that story someday.”

Related

“I Can’t Help But Worry”: Bleach Creator Reveals a Surprising Anime Fear Ahead of the Show’s Return

Tite Kubo voiced a surprising concern about Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War part 4, but the potential problem could turn out to be a good sign.

Burn the Witch is primarily set in London, or more accurately Reverse London, the magical “other side” of the city which was described in the series as the Western branch of the Soul Society. Thus, Ichigo’s world and that of Burn the Witch coexist, so if Ichigo went to London, then there’s a very real possibility that he ran into Ninny and Noel and had some kind of adventure exploring this bizarre alternative to the Soul Society he’s familiar with. It seems Kubo has already been thinking of this, and has apparently even considered writing a Bleach/Burn the Witch crossover some day.

Will Fans See Ichigo Again After Thousand-Year Blood War?

Bleach’s Heroes May Yet Appear Even After Their Story Ends

With only one final part of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War left to go, Ichigo’s story is finally coming to an end. Still, fans can’t help but wonder if this big finale will be the last they see of Ichigo and his friends, or if there might be more ahead for them. There is the anniversary manga, No Breathes from Hell, which could still be adapted, although it doesn’t have a firm ending. If Kubo is considering a Bleach/Burn the Witch crossover, then that would be a fantastic new opportunity to see Ichigo again, although it would probably just be Ichigo in London, not the rest of Bleach‘s cast.

While Kubo often doesn’t give the straightest answers on Klub Outside, this one leaves little room for interpretation. Kubo has clearly had a Bleach crossover in mind for a little while, and although that’s no guarantee he’ll make it, it means that he doesn’t want to see the last of Ichigo and friends, either. All this makes the idea of a crossover between Burn the Witch and Bleach even more exciting than before, and hopefully something actually comes of it.

Bleach

Release Date

2004 – 2023-00-00

Network

TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC, BS TV Tokyo

Showrunner

Tite Kubo

Directors

Mitsutaka Noshitani, Junya Koshida, Hodaka Kuramoto, Yasuto Nishikata, Hiroaki Nishimura, Kazunori Mizuno, Akira Shimizu, Rokou Ogiwara, Kazunobu Shimizu, Akane Inoue, Hikaru Murata, Tomoko Hiramuki, Kazuo Nogami, Taiji Kawanishi, Shigeki Hatakeyama, Eiko Nishi, Takushi Kimura, Koji Aritomi, Ogura Shirakawa, Kiyomu Fukuda, Yukio Okazaki, Mitsue Yamazaki, Yasuhiro Matsumura, Eitarou Ano

Writers

Masahiro Okubo, Masashi Sogo, Kenta Shimoyama, Genki Yoshimura, Kazuyuki Fudeyasu, Rika Nakase, Michiko Yokote, Natsuko Takahashi, Kento Shimoyama

• Masakazu Morita

  Ichigo Kurosaki (voice)

• Fumiko Orikasa

  Rukia Kuchiki