Rangiku Matsumoto

"A voluptuous beauty with an adult charm in the Gotei 13 Squads. With her broad-minded personality, the chances of guys in the 13 divisions who say no to her... do not exist." - Tite Kubo[1]

Rangiku Matsumoto (松本 乱菊, Matsumoto Rangiku) is the lieutenant of the 10th Division of the Gotei 13, serving under Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya.

Appearance
While she was lieutenant under Isshin Kurosaki, her hair was shoulder length, and she wore a scarf, tied into a knot on her left shoulder.[3]

Rangiku has long and wavy blond hair, blue eyes, full lips, and a beauty mark located under the right side of her mouth.[4] She is well known for her curvaceous figure; her most distinctive feature of it is her very large breasts. She dresses in the garb typical of Shinigami, though she lets her robes hang loose for her ample bosom to be revealed. She wears a thin golden necklace tucked between her cleavage and a long pink scarf over her shoulders. In addition, her lieutenant's armband is worn on her uniform's sash, as opposed to around the arm. She carries her Zanpakutō behind her back. While in her Gigai in the Human World, she has been shown to dress either very provocatively or stylishly. She wears the school uniform with several buttons undone so that she can reveal her ample bosom as she usually does in the Soul Society with her Gotei 13 uniform.

Seventeen months after Aizen's defeat, Rangiku sports a new hairstyle. It is shorter, stopping short of her shoulders and curling near her chin, the left side of which hangs over her face.[5] Her shihakushō also has a split in it, which runs along the length of her right leg.

Soul Society arc
When 5th Division Lieutenant Momo Hinamori has a short conversation with 6th Division Lieutenant Renji Abarai, Rangiku interrupts them. She details that the reason that there are so few in attendance at the emergency lieutenant meeting is due to all the captains and lieutenants being scattered around Soul Society on their respective missions. She notes that it will take at least half a day to unite everyone. Rangiku then mentions that she can't find her captain anywhere, which prompts Renji to ask who is her captain.[18] When the report is made that intruders have invaded the Seireitei Rangiku is among the others gathered at the meeting who are informed of those missing in action. When 7th Division LieutenantTetsuzaemon Iba notes that the 4th seat of his division is also missing in action, Rangiku asks him if that isJirōbō the Kamaitachi, to which Iba states that it most likely is.[19]

Rangiku and all of the other lieutenants are alerted when Momo lets out a scream, causing them all to rush to the scene. She then bears witness to the dead body of 5th Division Captain Sōsuke Aizen impaled to the wall of a building with his own sword.[20] She is also the one who restrains Momo after her brief fight with Izuru Kira, when her captain, Tōshirō Hitsugaya orders them arrested.[21]

She later comes and gives a letter from Captain Aizen to Momo while the latter is being kept in a 5th Division cell. Rangiku makes note that had her captain not found it the letter would have been taken in as evidence and Momo would have never seen it. Rangiku explains that she doesn't know what is in the letter but as a lieutenant she thinks it is a great honor to be a receiver of a captain's final words.[22]

Later, when Hitsugaya faces off with 3rd Division Captain Gin Ichimaru, she stops Ichimaru’s blade from killing an unconscious Momo, thus saving her life. Rangiku apologizes, stating she was going to head back as Hitsugaya had instructed, but she felt the spiritual release of Hyōrinmaru and turned back around. She then tells Gin to put away his sword, as if he doesn't, she will be his opponent.[23] After Gin retreats, she wonders where Ichimaru will go from there. While thus occupied with their own thoughts, a message comes via a Jigokuchō for them stating that the execution of Rukia Kuchiki was being pushed forward. Hitsugaya, determined to get to the bottom of the matter, realizes that the only way to do so would be to stop the execution.[24]

Upon arriving at the Central Underground Assembly Hall Hitsugaya and Matsumoto discover all 46 members are dead. Hitsugaya surmises they have been dead for at least 2 days, but he is concerned about when as Soul Society has been under martial law and their Headquarters had been locked down since Renji's defeat. Further than that, the 13 seals of protection were still active and there were no signs of intrusion. Then Hitsugaya realizes the only possible scenario is that they were killed before they were sealed in and that all the recent orders have been in fact false. It is then that he realizes that such a plot would be far too elaborate for Gin to carry out by himself. He then is interrupted by Izuru and he and Matsumoto give chase. Asking Izuru if he was behind the Central 46's death, Izuru tells him no and that he arrived just after he did. He also informs Hitsugaya that instead of chasing him, he should be protecting Momo. He then goes on to explain that she escaped the 10th Division Barracks and how she accomplished it. Realizing now that Hinamori has been following him and Matsumoto the entire time he turns back and orders Matsumoto to handle Izuru.[25]

When Izuru realizes that Rangiku is now after him and Hitsugaya has gone he stops running. When Rangiku asks him if he was done running, he explains that he has a mission to keep her there. When she asks who gave him that mission he tells her that Gin did. Rangiku tries to reason with him, but Izuru refuses to answer her further. He then tells her that the reason he refuses to answer her is because she is about to die. He then releases his Shikai.[26] He asks Rangiku if she knows about his Zanpakutō's special ability. Rangiku plainly tells him that she doesn't and she assumes no one does as he has never spoken about it. Izuru explains that in fact his former classmates Renji and Momo know of it, but he assures her she will now know it as well. The two face off and Rangiku realizes that her Zanpakutō has become too heavy for her to hold up. Izuru explains the power of his Zanpakutō and tells her how it has affected hers. He notes that she can't carry around that weight. Rangiku explains that if her Zanpakutō is too heavy she just won't carry it. Rangiku then reveals that his weight-affecting Zanpakutō is rendered useless by her Zanpakutō's ability to dissolve into ash.[27] After their fight, Rangiku hears from 4th Division Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu via Bakudō #77 "Tenteikūra" that Aizen, Gin, and Kaname Tōsen are traitors. Rangiku then runs off to find Hitsugaya.[28]

When she arrives at the Sōkyoku, Aizen is captured. Before Gin can act, Rangiku appears behind him and grabs hold of his arm and places her Zanpakutō at his neck, asking him not to move and effectively placing him under arrest.[29] When the Gillian’s Negación field comes down to save Ichimaru, however, she releases her hold upon him. Ichimaru then expresses his regret that she could have held onto him a little longer. He then bids her farewell and apologizes.[30]

One week later, Izuru visits Rangiku in the 10th Division barracks to apologize. The two get drunk and comment on how they don't need Gin in an effort to remove the feeling of betrayal that they both felt, the events of the week before most likely forgiven.[31]

Arrancar arc
Rangiku, along with Yumichika Ayasegawa, Ikkaku Madarame, Renji Abarai, and Rukia Kuchiki are part of the advanced force led by her captain to defend Karakura Town against the threat of the Arrancar. To aid in their mission they dress as students at Ichigo Kurosaki's school.[37] She later stops Ikkaku from beating up Keigo Asano by slapping him in the head and warning him that if he doesn't stop she will tell his lieutenant, Yachiru Kusajishi, to which he immediately apologizes. Asano becomes enamored with Rangiku's bosom and states the obvious restrictions of her school uniform, to which she smashes him in the face leaving him sprawled across the floor as she walks away.[38]

While Ichigo speaks to Rukia in his room, Rangiku and the 3 others pop out of a ceiling light and make their way into the room much to Ichigo's displeasure. Kon also becomes enamored with Rangiku's bosom and goes running towards her, but she knocks him away, prompting Ikkaku to ask Ichigo if the reaction is some kind of trend in his world, to which Ichigo states that it is just the way Kon is.[39]

When asked where they will stay as Ichigo explains that they cannot all stay at his house, Rangiku tries to win him over by using seduction (revealing more of herself to Ichigo), but it doesn't work and she resigns herself to going to Orihime's to see if she can stay there.[40]

When the 6th Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez leads an attack on the Human World, Rangiku makes her way to the roof of Orihime's building to meet Hitsugaya. He asks her where Orihime is and she tells him that she has her looking after her Gigai so that she will be out of harm's way. He then tells her to prepare for battle as two of Grimmjow's Fracción, Shawlong Koufang and Nakeem Grindina greet them.[41] As Hitsugaya faces off against Shawlong, Rangiku takes on Nakeem only to be easily defeated by the large Arrancar.[42] Rangiku then proves to be faking her defeat as while she is down and Nakeem distracted by Hitsugaya's fight she takes out her communicator allowing her to get confirmation that the limit release she had previously requested has been approved. She gets up just before Nakeem attempts to step on her, but she easily holds him off with one hand. She then tells the others that the limit release has been approved, causing her, Renji and Hitsugaya to remove their seals.[43] When Nakeem asks what the limit release is she explains its function to him. When he goes to punch her Rangiku simply blocks it with her forearm and tells him that he is slow and states that upon his arrival he showed great speed, she then asks that he do so again. He then disappears and appears behind her and states that it is called Sonído as he launches an attack at her, but before he can land a hit she disappears and reappears behind him and states that around there they call it Shunpo. Before he can react he is dealt a large slash wound on his back. She then releases her Zanpakutō and finishes off the Arrancar.[44] Upon the battle's completion Rangiku runs to Hitsugaya's aid as he has sustained many wounds and she calls for Orihime's assistance to heal him.[45]

Days later while Rangiku is training to attain Bankai, she gets into a small altercation with Ayasegawa about how similar the personalities are between Shinigami and Zanpakutō, they are summarily yelled at by Hitsugaya.[46] She is alerted along with the others of the arrival of an invasion force lead by Grimmjow's replacement, Luppi Antenor. She tries to face off against Wonderweiss Margela but upon seeing his personality mannerisms wonders if it's even okay to fight him.[47] Luppi becomes bored and insists that they all fight against him 4 on 1 as he is going to release and take them all on as a group.[48] Rangiku is surprised when Luppi's release gives him 8 tentacles to control and screams out to her captain when Hitsugaya is attacked by them all at once.[49] Luppi attacks Rangiku, Ayasegawa, and Ikkaku all at once beating them up a good amount before taunting them.[50] Rangiku is eventually ensnared along with the others by one of Luppi's many tentacles. The Arrancar then takes notice of her, taking note that she has a nice body. Detailing that it is so nice and sexy, he asks if he should fill it with holes as he reveals his tentacles' ability to manifest spikes as he proceeds to skewer her on them. But before she can be done in by the attack the tendril is cut off from Luppi by a blast of energy by Kisuke Urahara.[51] Luppi recaptures her while Urahara takes on Yammy, allowing Luppi to taunt her for being so careless, prompting Rangiku to state that he talks too much and she hates guys that talk too much. Luppi threatens her, but is surprised as his other tentacles are frozen by Hitsugaya, who then uses his Sennen Hyōrō technique to crush the Arrancar.[52] Luppi escapes death due to Negación, having only been incapacitated by the ice.[53]

Upon learning that Orihime has followed the Arrancar back to Hueco Mundo, Rangiku and the rest of her team return to Soul Society to help in the preparation for the war against Aizen.[54]