Who Would Win? Shaman King's Yoh VS. Bleach's Ichigo

Ban… kai! Both Shaman King and Bleach have had a return recently! The new Shaman King series, which follows the manga more closely, was just released on Netflix several weeks ago and the manga for Bleach has returned as well. Yoh… this sounds like a fun time for a new versus right?! How's about the two main characters from the franchise?

I'm talking Yoh Asakura and Ichigo Kurosaki in an all out spiritual battle between the two! Ichigo comes in as a substitute shinigami but with plenty in his arsenal against Yoh, including shikai and bankai forms. Yoh has the power of a shaman! And with his 600 old guardian spirit, Amidamaru, he is going to be a tough opponent for anyone! So who would win in a battle against both Yoh and Ichigo?! Lets find out!

Hey everyone! Leo Rydel here and I want to talk about who would win in a battle between Yoh and Ichigo! Spoiler warning: if you're not caught up on Shaman King or Bleach, I suggest getting caught up and coming back after Alright, lets jump in.

Could you imagine how intense a battle between these two would be? Both opponents have powers to do with spirits and beings beyond the dead, with similar yet drastically different characteristics So let's start with Yoh's abilities first and see what he has in his arsenal! Even with a goal as big and aspirational as becoming the Shaman King, Yoh is laid-back and carefree and chooses to make friends with most of the people he meets! Like most main characters in the shonen genre, he fights for his friends and would even die for them. In Shaman King, furyoku, called mana in the English dub, is essentially the “chakra” of Shaman King.

The ultimate form manifests in what's called an over soul, which is the way the ghost pairs with the shaman. Over souls have three different forms: spirit, weapon, and armor. Yoh's pairs with his spiritual partner, Amidamaru, and he uses different types of over soul forms with Amidamaru. Yoh takes his casual spirit into battle with him, having undergone intense training… so much so that he can even absorb the furyoku of others!

So let's have a look at all the abilities Yoh would have in his toolkit against Ichigo: As a shaman, Yoh has access to several different forms of oversoul with Amidamaru, including a sword type with various katana-based attacks, a spirit form where amidamaru fights with him, and a combined spirit/soul giant sword. Yoh also has various different shamanic spells that he can perform, although most we've seen haven't been for attacking it could still help in a duel with Ichigo. Yoh wields harusame, the personal sword of Amidamaru, and is a formidable swordsman And due to his exhausting and painful training, Yoh is able to battle with a very flexible and intuitive mind but is still able to remain calm and collected. He also wields the spirit of earth and is able to manipulate magnetism and alter gravity as well. So our boy Yoh is stacked up against Ichigo with a wide range of abilities that can be used for various purposes…

So let's catch up with Ichigo Kurosaki and talk a little bit about him… Unlike Yoh, who was a shaman, Ichigo is a substitute shinigami and not an actual shinigami. Ichigo is headstrong, determined, and has a complex sense of honor when it comes to fighting. He regularly fights for friends or those who were wronged and has the heart of a hero. Ichigo was given the power of shinigami by Rukia, kind of like how All Might passed on one for all to Deku. However, Ichigo's power transfer was the result of Rukia getting severely wounded and needing to lend her power as a shinigami.

Shinigami are guardians of souls they purify hollows who do evil in the world and ensure the safe passage of souls by giving them a proper burial. Each of them have a weapon called a zanpakuto. Each zanpakuto has two forms, shikai - an initial form, and bankai - a final form. Ichigo's process was a complicated one, where his true zanpakuto laid dormant inside of him for a good while in the series. But as he learns more about his past, his powers awaken themselves. Alright lemme stop right there before I get into too many spoilers.

So let's take a look at what Ichigo has in his toolkit against Yoh! Like a just stated he's got his zanpakuto which have a shikai and bankai form. He has increased speed, strength, and stamina and uses shunpo, which is a form of quick movement shinigami can perform. Ichigo's bankai allows for vastly increased speed, stamina, and strength and allows him to perform a special technique, getsuga tensho, which releases a blast of energy from the tip of his blade. Kinda reminds you of rasengan a little, right? Ichigo also has other abilities as a quincy, but they are more defensive techniques. He also has a hollow form too… which also helps his strength and abilities. I mean seriously… this is like god mod level 1000.

So who would win against these two shonen juggernauts? After some major consideration and thought… the W in this battle has got to go to… *drumroll* Ichigo.

While Yoh has an array of abilities as a shaman and is on the quest to be a Shaman King, Ichigo has a much larger library of abilities. He has shikai, bankai, hollow form, quincy abilities, I mean the dude is nearly unstoppable! Not that Yoh hasn't, but Ichigo has defeated enemies that would be damn near impossible for him to beat by awakening different forms… Which is so OP on so many levels. I mean seriously Ichigo has been saved by random bursts of power more than once and after a while it got old… While Yoh would make a formidable opponent, I think Ichigo in his hollow form, or maybe even just his bankai form, would be enough to put Yoh down for the count.

But let me know, how'd I do? Do you think I completely missed the mark? Could Yoh defeat Ichigo? He's got the earth spirit, Amidamaru, but guys, I just don't see that being enough! So who do you think would win in a battle between Yoh and Ichigo? Let us know your thoughts and who you'd think would win the battle down in the comments!

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