Shueisha made a couple of announcements related to Bleach during Jump Festa 2024, and one of them is available immediately. The first announcement covered the launch of an audiobook based on a 2016 Bleach novel that covered the marriage of Rukia Kuchiki and Renji Abarai. The second one revealed a new rock musical show that will appear again after an eight-year hiatus.
The novel audiobook brings voiceovers and sound effects to a part of Bleach: We Do Knot Always Love You. Shueisha originally published the novel in Japan physically in December 2016 and digitally in January 2017. It features new voices by Fumiko Orikasa, Kentaro Ito, and Ryotaro Okiayu, who reprised their respective roles as Rukia, Renji, and Byakuya. Ayako Kawasumi also provided narration for the audiobook.
The Bleach Rukia and Renji audiobook, which runs for almost sixteen minutes, is available to view on YouTube:
At the same event, Shueisha also announced that the Rock Musical Bleach ~Arrancar the Beginning~ stage show will appear in 2024. The Rock Musical Bleach series launched in 2005 with over ten shows released across the years, but the last show before this announcement was held in 2016. The rock musical show series will thus make its return after an eight-year hiatus.
A teaser trailer for the new rock musical show is also available on the series’ YouTube channel:
The original Bleach manga concluded in August 2016 after a fifteen-year run that started in August 2001. However, its anime adaptation is still in ongoing production to catch up with the manga’s storyline. Studio Pierrot is working on the third part of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime, which will air in 2024.
