Recaps

After a mysterious truck killed him, Xin transmigrated to a rural Japanese setting and learned swordsmanship from his older cousin, who turned out to be Miyamoto Musashi. Half a year into his training, bandits attacked his village, and Xin discovered his confidence might exceed his abilities.

• A suited man killed Xin with a Dayun truck, then vanished with the street, leaving Xin to awaken in another world.
• Xin met his new father and waited for his older cousin, who arrived on horseback as a white-haired swordswoman.
• Xin agreed to learn swordsmanship from his cousin and quickly copied most of her movements during three days of lessons.
• Before leaving, his cousin gave Xin a book bearing the name Shinmen Musashi-no-Kami Fujiwara Genshin, and Xin recognized her as Miyamoto Musashi.
• Xin trained for half a year, then charged at bandits when they attacked his village, only to realize something was wrong as their blades clashed.

After Yoruichi brought the amnesiac Fujiwara Genshin to the Shihoin estate, he accepted her offer to take the Shihoin name before her father intervened. When Genshin later wandered into Yoruichi’s training ground, his body instinctively blocked her lightning-fast strike, revealing the combat instincts buried in his soul.

• After Shin died fighting bandits, he awoke in a desolate place as a child with no memories, retaining only dual-blade swordsmanship and the name Fujiwara Genshin.
• Near death from hunger and thirst, Genshin collapsed and was found by Yoruichi, who ordered her attendant to take him back to the Shihoin estate.
• Shihoin Seigen allowed Genshin to stay after the Stealth Force confirmed he was an ordinary wandering soul, while forbidding Yoruichi from trying to make him take the Shihoin name and marry into the family.
• When Genshin woke, Yoruichi proposed that he become Shihoin Genshin, but a guard interrupted them with Seigen’s summons and food; Yoruichi left him her family token and promised to revisit the name change.
• After days of boredom, Genshin got lost and entered Yoruichi’s training ground, where she tested him with a sudden hand chop.
• Genshin instinctively blocked Yoruichi’s attack, and Seigen recognized that his response came from deep-seated combat muscle memory.

After Seigen recognized Xuanxin’s exceptional potential, the Shihoin family trained and supported him while Yoruichi tried to keep him close and eventually get him into Shin'ō Academy. Two years later, Xuanxin prepared to enroll, and Yoruichi gave him two swords before her servant interrupted another attempt to persuade him to take the Shihoin name.

• Seigen ordered the Shihoin family to lift restrictions on Xuanxin and let him join Yoruichi’s lessons and training after his examination revealed remarkable Reiatsu reserves.
• Yoruichi’s presence with Xuanxin kept her attending lessons, while Seigen refused to let Xuanxin enroll at Shin'ō Academy and instead kept him training at the estate.
• Yoruichi brought Xuanxin and Kisuke Urahara to dig a hidden base beneath Sōkyoku Hill, and she repeatedly beat Kisuke after discovering he had tricked Xuanxin into doing the labor.
• After two years of training, Xuanxin prepared to enroll at Shin'ō Academy, and Yoruichi gave him two tachi from the Shihoin family treasury.
• Yoruichi tried to use Xuanxin’s gratitude to persuade him to take the Shihoin name, but her personal servant interrupted her.

Xuanxin reported to Shin'ō Academy through the Shihoin family's special channel, corrected his registration name to Fujiwara Genshin, and received permission to take two Asauchi. Yoruichi's efforts to tie him to the Shihoin failed, while Kisuke Urahara was left at her mercy again.

• Xuanxin thanked Yoruichi outside Shin'ō Academy, and she guided him to the noble students' registration channel instead of the long queue.
• Kisuke Urahara arrived bandaged and on crutches, but Yoruichi intimidated him into claiming he had injured himself while practicing Shunpo.
• Yoruichi threatened Kisuke Urahara after Xuanxin went to register, then vanished with him when he approached her again.
• The registration instructor found the name Shihoin Genshin on Xuanxin's application, but Xuanxin identified himself as Fujiwara Genshin and had the record corrected.
• Xuanxin asked for two Asauchi, and the logistics instructor made an exception because of the Shihoin family's recommendation.

Xuanxin began his studies at Shin'ō Academy, excelled in most of the freshman assessment, and drew Shigekuni Yamamoto's attention because he carried two Asauchi. After their schedules kept him and Yoruichi apart, she decided to use the Cat Transformation Technique to spend more time with him.

• Xuanxin entered Class One, where the noble students treated him with caution after recognizing his connection to the Shihoin family and the crest on his uniform.
• Xuanxin attended the basic Soul Society lesson respectfully, while his teacher noticed his two Asauchi and worried that using both could hinder his Jinzen.
• Xuanxin earned an A in Kidō, an academy-record S+ in Zanjutsu, an A- in Shunpo, and a B in Hakuda during the afternoon assessment.
• Shigekuni Yamamoto read Xuanxin's report and ordered Chōjirō to place Fujiwara Genshin on the highest-priority watch list so he could observe the boy's two swords.
• Xuanxin became Class One's representative, while Yoruichi found their school schedules left them few chances to meet and resolved to use the Cat Transformation Technique.

Xuanxin struggled to choose between one-handed and two-handed swordsmanship until Yoruichi urged him to train each hand until he could wield two swords with overwhelming strength. During his first Jinzen meditation, he entered his inner world and encountered a white-haired figure and a mysterious old book, but felt an unmistakable sense of rejection.

• Xuanxin tested one-handed and two-handed strikes, saw the difference in their power, and wrestled with how to wield his two Asauchi.
• Yoruichi encouraged Xuanxin to strengthen each hand until dual-wielding became an advantage, then offered to give him private Hakuda lessons.
• Yoruichi teased Xuanxin, kissed his cheek, and secretly watched him from outside before deciding to prioritize the Cat Transformation Technique.
• Xuanxin began Jinzen at the academy, crossed the mental barrier with unusual ease, and entered a meadow in his inner world.
• Xuanxin noticed an old book calling to him beside a white-haired figure, but felt a subtle rejection as he tried to approach.

Xuanxin discovered that his soul was damaging ordinary Asauchi and that he could not communicate with the Divine Gift Armaments, so Yoruichi took the swords to Kisuke Urahara to have them fused. The next day, Xuanxin accepted Marenoshin Ōmaeda’s invitation to a gathering, but asked that the entire class be included.

• Xuanxin confirmed that repeated Jinzen attempts widened cracks in his Asauchi, while the Divine Gift Armaments resisted communication.
• Xuanxin noticed a resonance between the four swords and decided Kisuke Urahara might be able to combine them.
• Yoruichi took the swords from Xuanxin, then pressured Kisuke Urahara to fuse them within five days using Shihoin family resources.
• Xuanxin reviewed his Jinzen sessions and recalled sensing rejection in his Zanpakuto’s world, but could not determine its cause.
• Marenoshin Ōmaeda invited Xuanxin to a weekend gathering, and Xuanxin agreed on the condition that the whole class be invited.

After realizing that his own detachment kept him from connecting with his Zanpakuto, Xuanxin accepted the name Fujiwara Genshin and began trying to join the world around him. He attended a class gathering, brought Yoruichi grilled fish, and received the reforged pair of Asauchi just before Jinzen class.

• Xuanxin recognized that his soul rejected the world and that this prevented his Zanpakuto from recognizing him.
• Xuanxin remembered Yoruichi and Kisuke Urahara as ties to Soul Society, then wrote Fujiwara Genshin and declared that he would no longer be a spectator.
• Ichibē Hyōsube sensed that a Zanpakuto whose name he could not see was close to awakening.
• Xuanxin attended Marenoshin's class gathering, left early, and ordered grilled saury after spotting a black cat.
• Xuanxin brought the grilled fish to Yoruichi at their training base, and she privately resolved that he should change his surname.
• Yoruichi delivered two reforged Asauchi to Xuanxin during Jinzen class, leaving the teacher alarmed when he saw Xuanxin take up a sword in each hand.

Xuanxin entered his Zanpakuto world after Kisuke Urahara upgraded his swords, then endured a brutal sword-intent trial to reach an ancient book. After the sword spirit challenged him to a duel, Xuanxin abandoned his dual-sword style and prepared to fight one-handed.

• Xuanxin broke through the barrier into his Zanpakuto world and found a motionless, faceless sword spirit beside an ancient book.
• Invisible sword intent slashed Xuanxin as he reached for the book, causing matching injuries in the classroom; the Fourth Division Seated Officer struggled to heal him with Kaidō.
• Xuanxin endured the sword intent and pressed his bone-exposed hand onto the book, making the blades vanish and allowing him to open it.
• The sword spirit stopped Xuanxin from turning the page and fought him with techniques identical to his own, leaving him at a disadvantage.
• Xuanxin realized he needed to break beyond Niten Ichi-ryū, planted his secondary sword in the earth, and switched to one-handed combat.

Xuanxin’s Jinzen trial grew more dangerous when his sword spirit learned Kidō and wounded him, forcing Yoruichi Shihōin and Kisuke Urahara to take him to the Fourth Division. Retsu Unohana healed him and learned about the trial, which left Xuanxin facing repeated visits to the hospital as he continued battling the spirit.

• Xuanxin defeated the first-stage sword spirit with Bakudō #1: Sai, healed from his injuries, and gained some Reiatsu, but the next page summoned a stronger spirit.
• The second-stage sword spirit bound Xuanxin with Bakudō #4: Hainawa and slashed him out of Jinzen, leaving him with a serious chest wound that the Kaidō teacher could not heal.
• Yoruichi Shihōin and Kisuke Urahara arrived, and Xuanxin explained that his injuries came from Jinzen rather than Kisuke Urahara’s sword modifications.
• Yoruichi Shihōin and Kisuke Urahara brought Xuanxin to the Fourth Division, where Retsu Unohana examined his wound and noticed its sword intent.
• Retsu Unohana healed Xuanxin while asking about his trial, then warned that his unfinished ordeal could bring them together again.
• Xuanxin continued fighting the second-stage sword spirit every few days, returning to the Fourth Division with wounds that required Retsu Unohana’s treatment, while Yoruichi Shihōin checked on him.

Retsu Unohana tested Fujiwara Genshin in a Zanjutsu lesson and pushed him to abandon academy forms for his lethal instincts, then left him eager for another fight. At the Fourth Division Barracks, she imagined how formidable he could become if he combined Shigekuni Yamamoto’s skill and strength with the instincts of the boy from Zaraki District.

• Retsu Unohana secretly arranged for Fujiwara Genshin to have no sparring partner and took him on herself.
• Retsu Unohana overwhelmed Genshin with a killing strike and urged him to stop suppressing his instincts.
• Genshin took up two wooden swords and fought with an unorthodox, lethal style until Retsu Unohana knocked him down again.
• Retsu Unohana praised Genshin’s swordsmanship and left the dojo, while his classmates regarded him as the genius of the Shihoin family.
• Yoruichi Shihōin transformed into a black cat and entered Genshin’s dorm room unnoticed.
• Retsu Unohana recalled her past defeats and imagined Genshin combining Shigekuni Yamamoto’s strength and skill with the instincts of the boy from Zaraki District.

Xuanxin spent the weekend with the black cat, unaware that she was Yoruichi, and brought her to Kisuke Urahara’s underground base. After returning to his dorm, Xuanxin’s post-training bath triggered Yoruichi’s transformation back into human form, leaving them both embarrassed.

• Yoruichi reacted excitedly when Xuanxin asked what she had been doing, but he soon took the cat to visit Kisuke Urahara.
• Kisuke Urahara nearly identified the cat as Yoruichi, then quickly pretended to believe Xuanxin had found her at night.
• Xuanxin shared lunch with Kisuke Urahara, discussed Kidō theory, and returned to his dorm with the black cat.
• Xuanxin completed his physical training and went to bathe while Yoruichi watched him, becoming so overwhelmed that her nose bled.
• When Xuanxin examined the bleeding cat, Yoruichi transformed into a naked woman in his hands.
• Xuanxin turned away and threw Yoruichi his pajamas, and she recovered enough to speak to him in a sly, teasing voice.

After Yoruichi left Xuanxin the Cat Transformation Technique, Captain-Commander Yamamoto summoned him, tested his beliefs about fighting, and accepted him as a disciple. Yamamoto then tried to assess Xuanxin’s Hakuda, but Xuanxin’s punch came out like a sword-drawing slash, so Yamamoto abandoned the test and turned to his swordsmanship.

• Yoruichi changed back into a black cat, took Xuanxin’s signed blank papers, and left him alone in his dorm.
• Xuanxin found the Cat Transformation Technique manual and Yoruichi’s signed note, then spent three months advancing his Jinzen while repeatedly facing Retsu Unohana as his substitute teacher injured the Zanjutsu instructors.
• Chōjirō Sasakibe summoned Xuanxin to the First Division, where Yamamoto asked whether instinct or reason mattered more in combat.
• Xuanxin argued that reason should control instinct, and Yamamoto offered to make him his disciple.
• Xuanxin accepted Yamamoto as his master, but his Hakuda punch turned into an awkward sword-drawing motion, so Yamamoto called off the unarmed-combat test and asked to see his swordsmanship instead.

Xuanxin prepared for and began his attempt to achieve Shikai under the protection of Yamamoto and several captains. Inside Jinzen, he fought his sword spirit while Retsu Unohana began treating his injuries in the outside world.

• After three years of training, Xuanxin reached the final stage before Shikai, drawing the attention of Soul Society's upper ranks and enemies of the Shihoin family.
• Seigen advised Xuanxin to attempt Shikai in the First Division, and Yamamoto approved the plan.
• Shihoin Stealth Force members escorted Xuanxin safely back to the Shihoin household through several ambushes and skirmishes.
• Three days later, Xuanxin arrived at the First Division with Yoruichi and Kisuke Urahara, where Retsu Unohana, Shunsui Kyōraku, and Jūshirō Ukitake had gathered to support him.
• Yamamoto ordered Xuanxin to begin, and Xuanxin entered Jinzen with his two Asauchi.
• Xuanxin fought the sword spirit as Retsu Unohana began treating him in the outside world, allowing his wounds inside Jinzen to heal.

Fujiwara Genshin fought his sword spirit with Retsu Unohana healing his real-world wounds, while Yamamoto and Shunsui guarded him from assassins. Genshin finally won by forging a sword strike of his own, but his sword spirit said she did not know the Zanpakuto’s name and revealed herself as a boy resembling Genshin’s previous-life self.

• Fujiwara Genshin relied on Retsu Unohana’s Kaidō so he could fight the sword spirit without holding back during Jinzen.
• The sword spirit added Hadō to her blade, healed herself with Kaidō, and continued battling Genshin.
• Noble death warriors tried to enter the First Division Barracks, but Shunsui Kyōraku killed infiltrators and Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai crushed others with his Reiatsu.
• Genshin realized he had to move beyond imitation and struck the sword spirit with a natural technique of his own, defeating her.
• The sword spirit admitted she did not know the Zanpakuto’s name, then shed her disguise and appeared as a boy who looked like Genshin in his previous life.

After Xuanxin’s false sword spirit merged back into him, he learned his Zanpakuto’s Shikai names and joined the Gotei 13’s recruitment discussions. He demonstrated his swords by destroying Yamamoto’s treasured pines, leaving him alone with the furious old captain as a pillar of fire erupted from the First Division.

• The black-haired youth revealed that he was Xuanxin’s own divided self, then dissolved into him and urged him to turn to the final page of the swordsmanship book.
• Xuanxin reached the last page and learned that his Shikai was Mumyō and Shingon, then emerged from Jinzen with his body and soul in harmony.
• Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku invited Xuanxin to their divisions, while Yoruichi Shihōin insisted that the Second Division had already claimed him.
• Xuanxin released his two Zanpakuto for the gathered captains and explained their names, then tested Shingon and Mumyō on Yamamoto’s ornamental pines.
• Xuanxin burned one pine to charcoal and cut the other down to a toothpick, prompting Retsu Unohana and the others to flee as Yamamoto’s Reiatsu filled the courtyard.
• Shunsui Kyōraku escaped with Jūshirō Ukitake, Yoruichi Shihōin, and Kisuke Urahara, and a towering pillar of fire erupted from the First Division behind them.

Xuanxin recovered from the fire incident, attended a banquet where Shunsui and Kuruyashiki lent him political support, and became the focus of a dual-wielding craze at the academy. He then traveled with the graduating students to the World of the Living for his Soul Burial assessment, while a Tsunayashiro plot against the Shihoin family began unfolding.

• Yoruichi laughed at Xuanxin's scorched hair and missing eyebrow, then used waterproof makeup to restore it before taking him to Shunsui's celebration banquet.
• Kuruyashiki Kenpachi and Shunsui discussed how the banquet would show noble factions that Xuanxin had powerful allies protecting him.
• Xuanxin's dual-blade Shikai sparked a craze at Shin'ō Academy, which the principal curbed by imposing strict conditions on students seeking a second Asauchi.
• Yamamoto ordered Xuanxin to complete a Soul Burial assessment in the World of the Living before officially joining the Gotei 13, and Xuanxin departed through the Senkaimon with Yoruichi and Kisuke.
• The graduates received instructions to perform Soul Burials, watch for Hollows, and return before sunset, while an unseen figure watched their departure with satisfaction.
• A Tsunayashiro subordinate reported that the students had reached the World of the Living, and an old clan leader explained that the Shihoin family was the Tsunayashiro Clan's true rival.

Xuanxin, Yoruichi, and Urahara fought through an unnatural Hollow horde and regrouped with other academy squads at the Senkaimon. They discovered the gate could neither return them to Soul Society nor contact it, leaving the students stranded in the World of the Living.

• Xuanxin, Yoruichi, and Urahara fought off waves of Hollows while retreating toward the Senkaimon.
• Xuanxin and his companions encountered several battered squads and joined them in retreating to the clearing.
• The students and instructors found that the Senkaimon had been affected and could no longer be used to return or communicate with Soul Society.
• Yoruichi shouted down the panicking students and ordered them to stop crying.

Xuanxin and the defenders rebuilt their position after a Gillian emerged from the forest, then prepared to attack it with Shakkahō. The chapter left the battle poised to begin as the Kidō squad aimed at the Gillian.

• A newly born Gillian appeared at the edge of the forest, leaving the battlefield stunned.
• Xuanxin grabbed Yoruichi and ordered everyone to tighten the defenses, evacuate the wounded, and prepare to fight.
• A teacher rallied the others to follow Fujiwara Genshin's plan and rebuild the Reishi barrier.
• Xuanxin and the surviving teachers quickly restored a smaller defensive position before the Senkaimon.
• Xuanxin and Yoruichi returned as the Kidō squad finished chanting Shakkahō and aimed at the Gillian.

Xuanxin used the sword spirit’s mysterious technique to kill the newborn Gillian, but two more Gillians appeared as he collapsed. Just as the survivors faced certain death, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi and the 11th Division emerged from the Senkaimon to save them.

• Xuanxin and the teachers fought the newborn Gillian while he replenished his strength by killing ordinary Hollows.
• Xuanxin saw the sword spirit demonstrate a mysterious sword strike and used its path to shatter the Gillian’s mask, killing it.
• Two more Gillians emerged, leaving the exhausted Xuanxin and the survivors with little hope.
• Kuruyashiki Kenpachi arrived through the Senkaimon and called the 11th Division to join the battle.

Xuanxin recovered in the Fourth Division while learning that some of the students and teachers who went to the World of the Living had died, and Kisuke Urahara warned him that the attack was likely tied to a powerful clan. The investigation ended publicly, but the Shihoin and Tsunayashiro Clans fought in secret before the academy held a memorial for the fallen at its graduation ceremony.

• Retsu Unohana told Xuanxin that the rescued teachers and students were out of danger, but others had died in the forest.
• Kisuke Urahara told Xuanxin that Yoruichi was searching for whoever had tampered with the Senkaimon and suggested that only a few clans could have arranged the attack.
• Seigen revoked the Stealth Force’s public search authorization, while a hidden investigation connected the teacher who had protected Yoruichi to a noble under the Tsunayashiro Clan.
• After the mole’s family was found dead, Central 46 closed the case, and the Shihoin and Tsunayashiro Clans clashed secretly until a Tsunayashiro rising star was killed in Rukongai.
• At the Shin'ō Academy memorial, Xuanxin and his two companions laid white flowers at the monument on behalf of the graduating class.

After joining the Second Division, Xuanxin handled Yoruichi’s administrative workload while Kisuke Urahara pursued research and Yoruichi avoided paperwork. Shihoin Seigen feared Xuanxin’s influence might threaten the clan’s name, while Xuanxin continued grueling training under Retsu Unohana.

• Kisuke Urahara worked in a private laboratory arranged by Yoruichi, while she and Xuanxin rotated through the Second Division’s departments.
• Xuanxin reviewed the division’s reports and stamped them with Yoruichi’s seal while Yoruichi licked her fur nearby.
• Shihoin Seigen learned that Xuanxin had handled the paperwork and worried Yoruichi might someday change the Shihoin Clan’s name to Fujiwara.
• Xuanxin spent weekdays handling Second Division affairs and weekends training at the Fourth and First Divisions.
• Retsu Unohana cut Xuanxin down in their sparring session, leaving him gravely wounded against the dojo wall.

Xuanxin joined the 11th Division’s expedition to Hueco Mundo to seek a breakthrough in his swordsmanship, with Yoruichi insisting on accompanying him. After fighting their way to camp, Xuanxin reflected on the dangers of Hueco Mundo and the hidden dangers he had already faced in Seireitei.

• Yamamoto sent Xuanxin on a Hueco Mundo expedition with the 11th Division to help him overcome a swordsmanship bottleneck.
• Yoruichi caught up with Xuanxin at the Senkaimon and refused to let him leave for Hueco Mundo without her.
• Kuruyashiki Kenpachi led the group into Hueco Mundo, where Xuanxin and Yoruichi joined him at the front to fight Hollows.
• Xuanxin and Yoruichi fought through the Hollows and earned the 11th Division’s respect before reaching the planned encampment.
• Kuruyashiki joined Xuanxin beneath Hueco Mundo’s moon and asked whether Hueco Mundo or Seireitei was more dangerous, prompting Xuanxin to recall past deaths and betrayals.

Kuruyashiki Kenpachi led the 11th Division’s Hueco Mundo expedition, splitting the squad between clearing ordinary Hollows and hunting Menos Grande. Xuanxin and Yoruichi joined Kuruyashiki’s elite group, and after watching him defeat an Adjuchas, Xuanxin felt his breakthrough barrier begin to loosen as the squad advanced toward its next target.

• Kuruyashiki explained that the expedition aimed to reduce the unusually high number of Hollows and divided the squad between clearing ordinary Hollows and hunting Menos Grande.
• Xuanxin and Yoruichi chose to accompany Kuruyashiki into the more dangerous territory, while the Third Seat stayed behind to lead the Hollow-clearing group.
• Kuruyashiki led the elite group deeper into Hueco Mundo, where they encountered an Adjuchas, and charged ahead to fight it.
• Xuanxin and the others watched Kuruyashiki overpower the crocodile-like Adjuchas and cleave its Cero in two before killing it.
• Kuruyashiki rallied the squad toward their next target, and Xuanxin felt his breakthrough barrier loosen as the group prepared for battle.

Xuanxin trained under Kuruyashiki Kenpachi in Hueco Mundo, grew stronger, and sensed that his Bankai was close, but he remained unable to reach the final breakthrough. Believing he needed to face genuine danger, he asked to leave the group and hunt alone, leaving Yoruichi and the others stunned.

• Xuanxin and Yoruichi teamed up to defeat a Gillian, then improved their combat skills under Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's strict instruction.
• Kuruyashiki used the hunt to spur the 11th Division's Seated Officers into competing with Xuanxin and Yoruichi, and the group cleared the Gillians before returning to base.
• Xuanxin practiced Jinzen and sensed changes in his sword spirit's world and a loosening barrier, suggesting his Bankai was near.
• After several days of training without achieving a breakthrough, Xuanxin recalled Retsu Unohana's words about breakthroughs emerging between life and death.
• Xuanxin told Kuruyashiki that he wanted to leave the group and carry out the cleanup mission alone, and Yoruichi challenged his decision.