In Bleach, Ichigo Kurosaki becomes a Soul Reaper, setting out on a supernatural adventure that sees him defending humanity from evil spirits and helping departed souls find their way to the afterlife. The show wonderfully blends its action and adventure with martial arts, making for a series that is full of impressive fights as Ichigo takes on truly formidable foes with incredible powers.
Perhaps the strongest ability in all of Bleach is The Almighty. This incredible power is insanely rare and comes with a connection to one of Bleach's most mysterious godlike entities, and the two characters who have wielded The Almighty have proven to be truly terrifying forces in Bleach's lore, with the ability making them nearly invincible as well as all-knowing and all-powerful.
What is The Almighty?
The Almighty is a powerful ability in Bleach that allows those who use it to perceive and even alter the future. It appears to only be accessible to the Quincy race, the spiritual beings who are on the opposite side of Bleach's protagonist Shinigami. The Quincy could detect Hollows and were exterminated by the Shinigami centuries ago, with only a few survivors remaining.
This leaves The Almighty a very rare ability that the villainous characters have at their disposal. The Almighty allows its user to see into the future, and one of its wielders has been shown using The Almighty to alter the future to their liking. When The Almighty is used, the Quincy's irises and pupils split into two and their eyes become red, allowing them to tap into the ability's far-reaching power.
With much of the Quincy race wiped out, only two Bleach villains have demonstrated the power to wield The Almighty. In addition to its ability to see into the future, The Almighty also has a mysterious link to a godlike entity in the series, who appears to innately possess powers of The Almighty himself.
Who are the Wielders of The Almighty?
Two members of the Quincy race in Bleach have shown that they can wield The Almighty: Yhwach and Jugram Haschwalth. Between the two, Yhwach appears to be the more adept user of The Almighty's powers; there are things that Yhwach can do with the ability that Haschwalth appears to be unable to do on his own, such as changing the future instead of just seeing it.
Yhwach is the emperor of Wandenreich and the progenitor of the Quincy race, and his epithet is that of his signature ability: The Almighty. He is over 1,200 years old, and his villainous mission of attacking all the worlds makes him worthy of being the final villain of Bleach. He uses The Almighty in his quest to always have the upperhand, making him as slippery to pin down as he is deadly.
The other user of The Almighty, Jugram Haschwalth, is Yhwach's subordinate and a fellow Quincy. He is the Wandenreich's Sternritter Grandmaster and has served as Yhwach's imperial adviser. When Yhwach sleeps, Haschwalth is his substitute in the role of emperor, wearing the Mask of Ruler and being able to tap into some of the powers of The Almighty on his own.
The Powers and Limitations of The Almighty
When Yhwach or Jugram Haschwalth activate The Almighty, their eyes change, and they are able to see the future, possibly even changing it to their liking. This makes the two villains seemingly omnipotent, with even Bleach's strongest characters struggling to be able to truly defeat the terrifying villains.
The full range of The Almighty's power includes:
With the power to see any future and choose the one that best fits their motives, Yhwach and Jugram appear nearly indestructible, with very few limitations on their power. Most terrifying of all, The Almighty is not the only power that Yhwach and Haschwalth have, making them two of Bleach's strongest villains of all time.
The Almighty's Connection to Bleach's Godlike Soul King
In Bleach, the mysterious Soul King and the Soul Society have great influence over the world. The Soul King is a god-like humanoid who has been sealed away, with his existence tied to the Soul Society, the human world, and the plane of existence where the Hollows live. He never interferes with the Soul Society, but the Soul King is revered by the Shinigami, with his purpose believed to be regulating the flow of souls.
The Soul King is Yhwach's father, and he has high levels of spiritual power, allowing him to foresee the future like his son. However, the Soul King himself is immune to the abilities of The Almighty; Yhwach cannot see him in his visions when using the ability, even if the two are in the same room. The connection between the Soul King and Yhwach adds an interesting twist to The Almighty, but the Soul King's refusal to interfere in the future allows Yhwach and Haschwalth to have the upper hand as they wield The Almighty for their nefarious purposes.
The Almighty is Not Entirely Invincible
With so much power tied to one ability, it is difficult for any of Bleach's antagonists to even come close to taking down Yhwach — but luckily, The Almighty has its weaknesses, too.
Despite offering its users total control over the future, there are plenty of creative ways to counter The Almighty's powers. Past manipulation is one of the more effective counters, but unfortunately, it still gives The Almighty the upper hand; characters like Tsukishima and Uryu are forced to react to Yhwach's destruction rather than being able to proactively limit The Almighty's powerful reach. With Yhwach able to see the future and avoid anyone who may stand in his way, he is pretty much invincible — but if Ichigo's journey in Bleach is indicative of anything, it's that the powerful Soul Reaper always finds a way to save the day in the end.
