Who is Rukia's love interest in Bleach? Explained

Modified Sep 24, 2024 10:30 GMT

Bleach: Who is Rukia's love interest? (Image via Studio Pierrot)

Bleach and its characters have always been a central part of the narrative, with Ichigo somehow finding himself genetically related to every known faction within the universe. Although Ichigo is the protagonist of the story, with Orihime being his love interest, Rukia is also seen as a potential love interest by a significant part of the fandom.

Rukia and Ichigo’s encounter, which began the entire story in the first episode of the series, and rescuing Rukia from her execution became a primary motivator for Ichigo to grow stronger. Although the relationship between Rukia and Ichigo was portrayed with romantic undertones in the anime, Rukia ultimately ended up with her childhood friend Renji Abarai and had a child named Ichika, as revealed in the Bleach one-shot.

Disclaimer- This article contains spoilers for the My Hero Academia series.

Rukia and Renji's relationship in Bleach, explained

Renji as shown in the Bleach anime (Image via Studio Pierrot)

Rukia and Renji's relationship was one of the key points highlighted during the Ryoka Invasion arc, with Renji's emotions and connection to Rukia motivating him to fight against Byakuya. Rukia was originally a denizen of the impoverished Inuzuri district of Rukongai, where she was later abandoned by her elder sister, Hisana.

Renji was also surviving in the district with his group of friends. Although Rukia managed on her own for a considerable time, she eventually helped Renji escape from the person he and his group had stolen water from, leading to her becoming part of Renji’s group.

Rukia Kuchiki as shown in the Bleach anime (Image via Studio Pierrot)

Years later, Renji and Rukia joined the Shinigami Academy, where Rukia was adopted by Byakuya into the Kuchiki clan at the final request of her long-lost sister Hisana, who was also Byakuya’s late wife.

Rukia rose through the ranks of the Gotei 13, while Renji solidified his resolve to catch up to her as a form of confession. Their romance has not been deeply explored in the series and is mostly used as background for their characters. The romance was concluded at the end of Bleach when Rukia became a Squad Captain and married Renji. While Ichigo marries Orihime in the end.

Why Rukia's love interest is not Ichigo

Rukia Kuchiki using her Bankai as shown in the anime (Image via Studio Pierrot)

Rukia and Ichigo's relationship, and the fact that they did not eventually end up together, has always been one of the most discussed topics within the series' fandom. Many might think that the romantic aspect of their relationship started off as genuine and later diverged into a storyline where Tite Kubo wanted Orihime and Ichigo to end up together, but their actual relationship was always meant to be platonic.

Rukia and Ichigo had well-defined love interests and relationships before they met each other. Their relationship was intended to be that of two platonic friends, with the "romantic" scenes mostly being anime-original content, which led to confusion within the fandom about "Who is Rukia's love interest?" Rukia and Renji's romance was a direct result of their backstories, with Ichigo simply being a very close friend to both Rukia and Renji.