kubotits:

This has been bothering me for a while now, and thusly I feel the need to express myself on this issue because my priorities are stupid—but! Ever since the heart-wrenching Farewell Swords, people have been making graphics and such, as one does, and that’s all fine and dandy except I’ve been seeing a lot using the words “goodbye” or “sayonara,” when Ichigo bids Rukia adieu.

Let me straighten this out for you: if my memory suits me well, Ichigo has never said the word “sayonara” to Rukia at any given time. Both when he left Soul Society and when he lost his powers (and don’t forget the end of the anime!), he used “ja ne,” which essentially means “see ya.” It’s a very casual goodbye, whereas “sayonara” would give off the impression—at least in these situations—of a final farewell.

The reason I feel that this needs to be stressed is that by saying “ja ne,” Ichigo demonstrates that he never gives up hope of seeing her again, in both situations. He knows that he’ll see her again, that this isn’t the end, and that they’ll always find each other.