Squad 13 Zankensoki Headquarters

Spoiler:

Welcome to the headquarters of Squad 13. Our division is mainly based on Zankensoki, which is split into the ways of battle. Hakuda, Hohō, Kidō which has Hado and Bakudo, and Zanjutsu.


First, we have Zanjutsu, which means Art of the Sword. It is the most common battle style used by the shinigami of the gotei 13. As the name suggests, it involves using a Zanpakutō and its various special abilities to attack an opponent. In addition to its basic form, each Zanpakutō has two enhanced forms: Shikai (始解, Initial Release) and Bankai (卍解, Final Release), which change the sword's form to unlock its potential and that of its user.

As Arrancar also possess a form of Zanpakutō, the skill to wield one is similar to that of a Shinigami. Like a normal Shinigami's Zanpakutō, in addition to its basic form, its release allows the Arrancar another form termed Resurrección, which unlocks the sealed Hollow form of the wielder.

Then, we have Hakuda. Hakuda literally means hand to hand combat. It is not elaborated amongst shinigami. Physical strength and skill is determined by this class. It seems to be a combination of several martial arts. The foremost practitioners of this technique are those assigned to the Onmitsukidō.

Now, we have HoHo. HoHo is Fast Movement, or Step Method. It is an important skill for most Shinigami, and is very similar to the Sonído used by Arrancar. Though never stated clearly it most likely relates to the Shinigami ability to walk on air using spiritual power. By collecting and solidifying Reishi beneath their feet, Shinigami can gain traction on thin air to either freely move about or to stop themselves from falling.

Shunpo (瞬歩, Flash steps), a movement technique that allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow.. The focal point that determines the bases of this technique is speed. As speed is the main point of the technique the method is best characterized by how fast one can get from point A to point B in the least amount of steps. Training and skill are what determines how fast a user of Shunpo can move; those of little skill in the technique or those who haven't used it an extended amount of time would obviously be out of practice, causing those individuals to be considerably slower, which requires the use of more steps to move the same distance and become winded far easier in a shorter amount of time.
Senka (閃花, Flash Blossom): a special Shunpo technique where one moves to their opponents back. Directly attacking and sealing one's "Saketsu" and "Hakusui" in one strike. The movement is so fast that an opponent may not be able to tell whether he was attacked from the front or the back and even an outside observer may find it impossible to tell what the movements are .

Way of Onmitsu, 3rd of the Shihō
Utsusemi (空蝉, Cicada, referencing their molting): It allows for a movement at great speed leaving an afterimage behind. The afterimage may even appear to have taken damage.

The agility and speed of Hohō can be enhanced and improved through mastery of it, concentration, and training. The foremost practitioners of this technique are those assigned to the Onmitsukidō.

Those in this category possesses no skill for Hohō and instead rely on walking to get where they need to be or have trained extensively to enhance their natural speed to a level allowing them move considerably fast though decidedly under that of Shunpo.

Then there's Kido. Kido is one of the four basic shinigami combat forms. Kidō is the technique that Shinigami use to focus their Spiritual Energy into magic spells of various powers. These spells serve a wide variety of uses such as healing, defense, or combat.
The Kidō Corps is a branch of Soul Society's military which excels in the mastery of Kidō.

Each spell is graded on a scale from 1 to 99, the latter being the most powerful and the most difficult to perform. The scale is a measure of difficulty, as there can be multiple spells which share the same level. To use Kidō, a Shinigami must recite the specific incantation for the spell, which is often long and requires a few seconds to speak.
This weakness can be negated by Shinigami capable of using Eishohaki, a technique that releases Kidō without a spirit chant. While it decreases the time needed to release the Kidō, it drastically weakens the spell While anyone well versed in Kidō can use this technique, it is most effective when done by a skilled practitioner, otherwise the spell could utterly fail. The most skilled experts are capable of using this technique to amazing effect.
The power of a spell relies on the power of the user, as even a low-level spell can be utterly devastating when utilized by a high-class Shinigami.

Kidō Types
There are three main types of Kidō: binding spells, destruction spells, and healing spells.
Bakudō (Binding spells): are a broad category of defensive spells which block or repel attacks or freezes enemies in place.
Hadō (Destructive spells): refer to offensive spells which harm an enemy or cause damage to things.
Healing spells: do not have known names, numbers, or incantations to cast, and simply heal the target. As the user holds his hands above the patients wounds, his/her palms glow with green spiritual energy to facilitate healing. For the mechanics of healing, the patient's Reiatsu is replenished first. Then the body's Reiatsu works with the healer's Reiatsu to heal the patient's body.

Kidō Combat
Though Kidō is commonly used by Shinigami in combat, it has several weaknesses that make it difficult to use for that purpose. All of the spells have fairly long incantations and require concentration; because of this, the person using the Kidō leaves themself open to attack during the duration of the incantation. In addition, if an opponent is familiar with Kidō, there is the possibility of them identifying the spell by its incantation before it can even be used. However, highly skilled Kidō users can use various techniques to counter these weaknesses, such as Eishohaki and "Double Incantation", which involves mixing the incantations of two or more Kidō spells together to save time and confuse ones opponent. A rarer use of Kidō is mixing various spells (such as Bakudō and Hadō together) for unique effects, which is the mark of skilled user. Kidō is commonly seen used in instances of surprise attacks rather then all out assaults, being most effective when one's opponent doesn't see it coming.