Recaps

Ye Yang and the captains rescued the Shin'ō students after the giant Hollow attack, and the injured were treated by the Fourth Division. The survivors were stabilized and returned to Soul Society, where Ye Yang checked on Renji, Kira, and Hinamori before leaving.

• Ye Yang arrived first and destroyed many giant Hollows, while Aizen and Gin joined the fight and rescued the exhausted students.
• Hinamori admired Aizen after he comforted her, while Renji, Kira, and Shūhei continued to regard Ye Yang as their rescuer.
• Ye Yang challenged Aizen and Gin over their late arrival, then took the injured students through a Senkaimon as the captains searched for survivors.
• Isane Kotetsu and the Fourth Division treated the students, and Aizen and Gin returned with around ten additional survivors.
• Retsu Unohana confirmed that no students were in danger, and Ye Yang visited Renji, Kira, and Hinamori after their conditions stabilized.

After the Hollow attack, the captains debated how to respond while Ye Yang and Shūhei described how the Hollows had appeared without detectable Spiritual Pressure. The meeting ended with punishments and new student arrangements, while Ye Yang suspected Aizen but found no proof and warned him that Soul Society was now on guard.

• Yamamoto convened a captains' meeting to address the heavy losses from the Hollow attack, and the captains argued over an expedition and the Twelfth Division's failure to detect the threat.
• Ye Yang asked Shūhei to recount the attack, and Shūhei said a giant Hollow had appeared without any detectable Spiritual Pressure before killing his companion.
• Kurotsuchi suggested that someone else had concealed the Hollows' Spiritual Pressure, prompting Soi Fon and the captains to consider whether someone had controlled the attack.
• Yamamoto arranged for the surviving Class Two students to join Ye Yang's Class One, fined Kurotsuchi three years' pay, and ordered him confined for a year while divisions increased patrols.
• Ye Yang privately told Aizen that he could find no evidence against him, then sent Shūhei to recover and check on Renji and the others.

After the Hollow incident, Ye Yang trained the new students and learned that Renji and Tōshirō both wanted to become stronger to protect the people they cared about. Tōshirō chose to leave his grandmother and study under Ye Yang, who took him to the Second Division.

• Ye Yang trained the nine new students, and two noblewomen quit while the others endured the difficult session.
• Hinamori told Ye Yang that Tōshirō wanted to meet him, and Ye Yang agreed to visit the next day.
• Renji pushed himself during sparring and told Ye Yang he wanted to become strong enough to protect his companions and her.
• Ye Yang told Tōshirō what had happened to Hinamori, and Tōshirō asked him to teach him to become stronger.
• Tōshirō's grandmother encouraged him to leave, and Tōshirō agreed to go with Ye Yang after sharing a meal.
• Ye Yang set off with Tōshirō for the Second Division.

Ye Yang brought Tōshirō to the Second Division, where Soi Fon welcomed him as her student and agreed to look after him. After discovering that Tōshirō’s Spiritual Pressure had reached the level of a higher-ranked Seated Officer, Ye Yang began teaching him combat skills, starting with Zanjutsu.

• Ye Yang introduced Tōshirō to Soi Fon and arranged for him to stay at the Second Division barracks rather than attend Shin'ō.
• Ye Yang told Tōshirō to call him Teacher and Soi Fon Teacher's Wife, and Soi Fon agreed to help with his training.
• Ye Yang planned for Tōshirō to study for a month before joining the Punishment Force, and Tōshirō accepted the plan.
• At the training ground, Tōshirō released his Spiritual Pressure, which rose to nearly the level of an ordinary seventh or eighth seat and formed frost around him.
• Ye Yang cautioned Tōshirō not to rely on talent alone, then began training him in the four major Soul Reaper skills, starting with Zanjutsu.

Ye Yang taught Tōshirō Kidō, and Tōshirō quickly learned to cast spells with and without incantations. The lesson ended with Ye Yang escalating Tōshirō’s already exhausting training after Tōshirō called him a violent maniac.

• Ye Yang taught Tōshirō Byakurai and Shakkahō, and Tōshirō cast both successfully on his first attempts.
• Tōshirō used Incantation Abandonment to cast Shakkahō without learning the technique from Ye Yang, then asked how to make it stronger.
• Ye Yang explained that abandoned incantations could only approach, never equal, the power of fully chanted Kidō, and Tōshirō improved his next attempt through practice.
• Tōshirō asked about Ye Yang’s skills, and Ye Yang said he was best at Hakuda and was also good at Zanjutsu.
• After Tōshirō called Ye Yang a violent maniac, Ye Yang announced triple training for the afternoon, and Tōshirō protested.

Over three years, Tōshirō became a respected Punishment Force prodigy while Ye Yang’s students prepared to graduate and chose their divisions. After Hisana Kuchiki and Ginrei Kuchiki died on the same day, Ye Yang went to comfort a devastated Byakuya and helped him reflect on Hisana’s brief but meaningful life.

• Tōshirō learned Kidō, Shunpo, and Hakuda from Ye Yang and Soi Fon, joined the Punishment Force, and achieved a mission success rate of ninety-nine percent.
• Renji, Hinamori, and Kira prepared to graduate, with Renji choosing the 11th Division and Hinamori and Kira choosing the Fifth Division.
• Ye Yang learned that Hisana Kuchiki and Ginrei Kuchiki had died, leaving Byakuya as the Kuchiki Clan’s head and grieving both losses.
• Ye Yang visited Byakuya beneath the cherry tree and stayed with him as he mourned Hisana and considered the meaning of life.
• Ye Yang compared cherry blossoms’ brief bloom to a life lived without regret, and Byakuya wondered whether Hisana had been like those blossoms.

After Hisana and Byakuya’s grandfather died, Ye Yang comforted Byakuya as he grieved and urged him to keep living with strength. At the joint funeral, Byakuya formally entered Hisana as his wife in the Kuchiki family register, then gave Ye Yang a letter his grandfather had left for him.

• Ye Yang asked Byakuya about Hisana’s last words and encouraged him to care for Rukia.
• Byakuya led Ye Yang to see his grandfather’s remains in the Kuchiki ancestral hall.
• Under the cherry blossoms, Byakuya cried and confided his grief to Ye Yang, then resolved to carry on.
• At the joint funeral, Byakuya overruled the elders and entered Hisana’s name in the Kuchiki family register as his wife.
• Rukia attended the funeral beside Byakuya, while Ye Yang and Soi Fon prepared to leave.
• Byakuya gave Ye Yang a letter marked for him that had been found in his grandfather’s room.

Ye Yang and Soi Fon read Ginrei Kuchiki’s final letter, then Ye Yang attended the graduation ceremony for his students, where Yamamoto appointed him vice-principal of Shin'ō. The chapter ended with Yamamoto asking Ye Yang to teach his training methods to the other instructors in exchange for accepting the post.

• Ye Yang and Soi Fon read Ginrei Kuchiki’s letter asking Ye Yang to look after Byakuya and ensure Hisana was entered into the Kuchiki family register.
• Ye Yang’s students graduated, demonstrated their abilities, and chose their divisions, with Renji joining the 11th Division and Kira and Hinamori joining the Fifth Division.
• Yamamoto announced Ye Yang’s promotion to vice-principal of Shin'ō, and Ye Yang accepted the appointment.
• Yamamoto invited Ye Yang to the First Division and offered him a light workload in return for teaching his training methods to the other instructors.
• Ye Yang suggested the other teachers’ students had failed because they were too exhausted to continue training, and Yamamoto realized the method could not be copied without understanding how Ye Yang applied it.

Ye Yang explained his training method to Yamamoto and celebrated New Year with Soi Fon and his disciple, Tōshirō. At the festival, Kaien and Kūkaku mistook Tōshirō for Ye Yang’s son, then welcomed him into their gathering.

• Ye Yang told Yamamoto that his students trained by gradually surpassing their limits, and Yamamoto said he would consider applying the method at Shin'ō.
• Yamamoto asked why Ye Yang had taken a disciple, and Ye Yang said Tōshirō would soon enter Shin'ō and prove his talent.
• Yoruichi and Urahara celebrated New Year's in the World of the Living, where Yoruichi learned Ye Yang had become Shin'ō's vice principal and wished him well.
• Ye Yang, Soi Fon, and Tōshirō went to the New Year's festival, where Kaien mistook Tōshirō for their son before Ye Yang introduced him as his disciple.
• Kūkaku hugged Tōshirō, leaving him red-faced and gasping for air, while Kaien told her to put him down.

Ye Yang took Tōshirō Hitsugaya out to celebrate the New Year, where several acquaintances mistook his young disciple for Ye Yang’s son and teased him. The group agreed to meet at the Shiba Clan’s home at ten to watch the fireworks, while Tōshirō ended the outing fuming after Rangiku teased him.

• Kūkaku, Kaien, and Ganju met Ye Yang, Soi Fon, and Tōshirō, and Kūkaku teased Tōshirō for acting like an adult.
• Shunsui, Ukitake, and Isshin joined them, and Shunsui mistakenly asked whether Tōshirō was Ye Yang’s son before Ye Yang introduced him as his disciple.
• Kaien invited the group to watch the Shiba Clan’s fireworks, and Ye Yang arranged for everyone to meet there at ten after strolling through town.
• Rangiku and Nanao met the group, and Rangiku mistook Tōshirō for Ye Yang’s son before Ye Yang clarified that Tōshirō was his disciple.
• Rangiku and Tōshirō argued after she touched his head, but Ye Yang separated them and Soi Fon invited Rangiku and Nanao to the fireworks.

Ye Yang and his companions met Byakuya and Rukia during the New Year’s Festival, then encountered Hinamori and her captain, Sōsuke Aizen. Tōshirō apologized to Byakuya and quietly distrusted Aizen, while Ye Yang invited Byakuya to watch fireworks at the Shiba Clan.

• Ye Yang, Soi Fon, and Tōshirō met Byakuya and Rukia, and Tōshirō hastily clarified that he was Ye Yang’s disciple, not his son.
• Tōshirō apologized for snapping at Byakuya, who introduced his younger sister Rukia and showed a small sign of warmth toward the boy.
• Ye Yang invited Byakuya to watch fireworks at the Shiba Clan, and Byakuya agreed to come.
• Hinamori arrived with Aizen and agreed to go home with Tōshirō the next day to visit their grandmother.
• Tōshirō introduced himself to Aizen but remained wary of him, while Ye Yang asked Aizen about Hinamori’s adjustment to the Fifth Division.

Ye Yang and his companions celebrated the New Year's Festival with fireworks at the Shiba Clan, where Kaien introduced Miyako Aoki as his romantic partner. As midnight approached, Shunsui proposed that Ye Yang could provide a more interesting activity than the festival’s usual dance.

• Ye Yang asked Tōshirō what he thought of Aizen, and Tōshirō admitted he could not see through him.
• Kaien told Kūkaku to begin the fireworks, and Ye Yang held Soi Fon close as everyone watched.
• Kaien introduced Miyako Aoki, a Third Seat of the Thirteenth Division, and admitted he wanted to marry her.
• Miyako and Kaien teased Ye Yang and Soi Fon about their relationship, and the group joined the other captains.
• After everyone rejected Shunsui’s suggestion to go drinking, he hinted that Ye Yang could offer them something more entertaining.

Ye Yang played the guqin for the gathered Soul Reapers, dedicating “A Phoenix Seeks His Mate” to Soi Fon and revealing the depth of his affection for her. Aizen and Gin heard the performance from the Fifth Division, but Aizen forbade Gin from involving Soi Fon in their plans.

• Shunsui and Soi Fon reminded everyone that Ye Yang had once been renowned as the Guqin Emperor, and Kūkaku brought out the guqin he had made for her years earlier.
• Ye Yang adjusted Kūkaku’s guqin and announced that he would play a piece for Shaoling, then performed “A Phoenix Seeks His Mate” while reciting its meaning.
• Soi Fon blushed as the listeners understood the piece was Ye Yang’s romantic courtship of her, and the music carried to nearby Soul Reapers, including Yamamoto, Aizen, and Gin.
• Aizen explained Ye Yang’s musical reputation to Gin and warned him not to involve Soi Fon in their plans or provoke Ye Yang.
• After the performance ended, the listeners gradually emerged from their trance; Soi Fon gazed at Ye Yang affectionately, while Du, Rangiku, and Byakuya were reminded of their own loves.

Ye Yang and Soi Fon celebrated the New Year with friends, who surprised Ye Yang with a birthday celebration. The gathering ended with Ye Yang and Soi Fon reaffirming that they would wait for Yoruichi to return before marrying, while Kaien announced his wedding plans.

• Ye Yang dedicated a song to Soi Fon, and she embraced him as the others gave them privacy.
• At midnight, Soi Fon and the group surprised Ye Yang with a birthday celebration and a cake delivered by Tōshirō using a Tenshiken.
• Soi Fon kissed Ye Yang, and he thanked everyone for their heartfelt wishes and said his home was with them in Soul Society.
• Kaien asked Ye Yang and Soi Fon about their wedding, and they said they would wait until Yoruichi could attend.
• Kaien invited them to his wedding to Miyako on the thirteenth day of the new year and said Rukia Kuchiki would join his division.
• Ye Yang and Soi Fon held hands beneath the stars as the group celebrated together.

Kaien and Miyako celebrated their wedding with friends and guests from across Soul Society. After the festivities, Ye Yang and Soi Fon returned to the Second Division barracks, where an accidental fall led to an intimate moment that ended with Ye Yang noticing Soi Fon crying.

• Kaien and Miyako held a modest wedding attended by many captains, officers, friends, and residents of Rukongai.
• Guests celebrated with fireworks and drinks, and Kaien drank until Miyako had to support him.
• Ye Yang promised Soi Fon that he would give her an even grander wedding someday, then left with her for the Second Division barracks.
• Unable to use the converted vice-captain's quarters, Ye Yang accepted Soi Fon's offer to sleep in her room.
• Soi Fon tripped, and Ye Yang caught her; they fell together and began kissing.
• Ye Yang became intimate with Soi Fon, then stopped when he noticed her tears and asked what was wrong.

Ye Yang let Soi Fon rest, handled her division paperwork, and discussed Tōshirō’s powerful Zanpakuto, Hyōrinmaru, and upcoming year at Shin'ō. Three days later, Rukia joined the Thirteenth Division and found a warm welcome from Lieutenant Kaien Shiba.

• Ye Yang let Soi Fon sleep in, handled her simple paperwork, and asked Marechiyo Ōmaeda to review some documents in exchange for a meal.
• Ye Yang told Soi Fon that Tōshirō had awakened Hyōrinmaru and was strong enough to graduate from Shin'ō within a year.
• Ye Yang and Soi Fon agreed that Tōshirō should attend Shin'ō despite his strength so he could gain the experience.
• Byakuya arranged for Rukia to join the Thirteenth Division without an entrance assessment, prompting other squad members to gossip about her.
• Kaien Shiba introduced himself to Rukia, corrected her greeting, and welcomed her to the Thirteenth Division.

Tōshirō Hitsugaya rapidly advanced through Shin'ō and applied to graduate after only ten months, prompting Yamamoto to personally set and conduct his assessment. Tōshirō began the match against Yamamoto with Shunpo, a sword strike, and Hadō, but Yamamoto calmly blocked his attacks.

• Tōshirō entered Shin'ō at the top of his class, skipped ahead to the sixth year, and remained among its strongest students.
• After six quiet months, Tōshirō applied to graduate, and Yamamoto arranged a personal assessment for three days later.
• Ye Yang told Tōshirō to show all his abilities and suggested he might need to use Subjugation of the Heavens against Yamamoto.
• Yamamoto announced that Tōshirō would pass if he demonstrated his abilities to Yamamoto's satisfaction, as captains and other spectators watched.
• Tōshirō opened the assessment by attacking Yamamoto with Shunpo and his Zanpakuto, but Yamamoto blocked the strike with his cane.
• Tōshirō followed with Hadō #33: Sōkatsui, which Yamamoto stopped with the tip of his cane.

Tōshirō Hitsugaya faced Yamamoto in his graduation examination, revealing Hyōrinmaru and a series of increasingly powerful ice techniques. After Tōshirō fainted from unleashing his unfinished ultimate move, Yamamoto declared that he had passed, and the captains marveled at his potential.

• Tōshirō used Kidō against Yamamoto, then released his Zanpakuto, Hyōrinmaru.
• Tōshirō used ice attacks to trap Yamamoto briefly in an ice formation, but Yamamoto escaped unharmed.
• With Ye Yang's permission, Tōshirō summoned a huge ice dragon and unleashed Ice Dragon Breath.
• Yamamoto released Ryūjin Jakka, and its flames overcame Tōshirō's frost after Tōshirō fainted and Ye Yang caught him.
• Yamamoto declared Tōshirō had passed his graduation examination, while Shunsui and Ukitake praised his future potential.

Tōshirō joined the Tenth Division, where Rangiku teased him, and quickly earned the Third Seat. Ten years later, Ye Yang watched events in Soul Society and resolved to protect Kaien and his wife from the danger he believed Aizen posed.

• Ye Yang let Tōshirō choose his division but ruled out the Second Division, and Tōshirō joined Isshin's Tenth Division.
• Rangiku welcomed Tōshirō by teasing him and pulling him into her arms, leaving him embarrassed and unable to resist.
• In his second month, Tōshirō defeated the former Third Seat and claimed the position.
• Over the next ten years, Renji became the 11th Division's Sixth Seat, Kira became the Third Division's Third Seat, and Hinamori fell under Aizen's influence.
• Ye Yang suspected Aizen was connected to Kaien's future death and Isshin's departure, and vowed to save Kaien and his wife.

Ye Yang rushed to rescue Shiba Miyako and found her near death after the Hollow defeated the scouting party. Kaien confronted the Hollow alone, but it possessed him; Ye Yang sealed and separated most of the Hollow from Kaien, then sought help to save him.

• A wounded Punishment Force member told Ye Yang and Soi Fon that the Hollow had overwhelmed the Thirteenth Division's scouting party, so Ye Yang hurried to the scene.
• Ye Yang found the party slain and could not locate Shiba Miyako's Zanpakuto, then realized she might still be alive and rushed to the Thirteenth Division.
• Kaien left with Ukitake and Kuchiki to face the Hollow, and Ye Yang had temporarily sealed Miyako in suspended animation to preserve her life.
• Kaien's Zanpakuto shattered when he touched the Hollow's antenna, and the Hollow entered his body while he fought it barehanded.
• Ye Yang restrained the possessed Kaien with Kidō, took him and Miyako to the Shihoin Clan, and used his Bankai and Spatial Seal to separate and kill most of the Hollow's spirit body.
• Ye Yang healed Miyako's injuries but could not fully remove the Hollow's fused spirit from Kaien, so he sought help to save him.

Ye Yang brought Kaien and Miyako to the World of the Living so Kisuke Urahara could treat Kaien, whose spirit was merging with a Hollow. Urahara completed the treatment, and Ye Yang joined him and Yoruichi in visiting Hirako and the Visored so Kaien could learn to control his inner Hollow.

• Ye Yang told Soi Fon that Aizen had caused Kaien’s Hollowfication and that only Kisuke Urahara could treat him.
• Ye Yang took Kaien and Miyako to the World of the Living and found Urahara at his shop with Yoruichi.
• Urahara examined Kaien, treated him with the Hōgyoku, and said Kaien would need help controlling his inner Hollow.
• Ye Yang, Urahara, and Yoruichi traveled to the Visoreds’ hiding place, where Hiyori greeted Urahara by throwing a slipper at him.
• Ye Yang stepped forward and greeted Hirako and the other Visoreds.

Ye Yang sought the Visored's help for Kaien, then returned to Soul Society and arranged to hide Kaien and Miyako's survival. He reassured Soi Fon that he would stay with her, and they spent the night together.

• Ye Yang told Hirako and the Visored that Aizen had created a Hollow that could make Zanpakuto disappear, and asked them to help Kaien; Hirako agreed.
• Ye Yang updated the Visored on Soul Society's captains and left for Soul Society before his absence was discovered.
• Ye Yang told Ukitake that Kaien and Miyako had survived but that Kaien still carried part of a Hollow, so Ukitake agreed to report them dead in action.
• Ye Yang told Kūkaku what had happened and asked her to keep Kaien's survival secret.
• Ye Yang returned to Soi Fon, reassured her that Kaien was safe and promised he would never leave her; they went home together and spent the night together.

After spending the night together, Ye Yang and Soi Fon faced his parents’ enthusiastic approval and their questions about marriage. They agreed to get engaged first and wait to hold the wedding until Yoruichi returned from the World of the Living.

• Ye Yang’s mother discovered that Soi Fon had spent the night in his room, learned they had become intimate, and took over making their lunch.
• Ye Yang woke Soi Fon, and they got dressed and joined his parents for the meal.
• Tsukiyo asked Soi Fon to call her and Seigen Dad and Mom, and Soi Fon did so.
• Seigen and Tsukiyo urged Ye Yang and Soi Fon to marry soon, but Ye Yang said they would wait for Yoruichi to attend their wedding.
• Ye Yang’s parents proposed an engagement as a middle course, and Ye Yang and Soi Fon agreed.

After Kaien and Miyako died, Ye Yang’s life continued through an engagement, Isshin’s disappearance, and Tōshirō’s rise to captain. Twenty years of peace ended as Rukia was assigned to the World of the Living, setting events in motion.

• Gin told Aizen that part of the Hollow remained fused with Kaien and that Urahara might help Ye Yang, while Aizen said Kaien’s fate would not affect their plans.
• The Thirteenth Division held Kaien and Miyako’s funeral, leaving Rukia devastated by Kaien’s death.
• Six months later, Ye Yang and Soi Fon held an engagement banquet attended by captains and noble houses.
• Five years later, Isshin disappeared from Soul Society, and Tōshirō passed his captaincy test after revealing his Bankai, Daiguren Hyōrinmaru.
• After twenty years of peace, Renji was poised to transfer to the Sixth Division, but Rukia received an assignment to spend a month in the World of the Living.

Ye Yang visited Urahara and then the Kurosaki family after arriving in the World of the Living on assignment. He left Isshin’s home when he sensed Rukia nearby and headed for the Urahara Shop.

• Rukia accepted a Gigai from Urahara because Ichigo had absorbed nearly all her Spiritual Power, leaving her too weak to return to Soul Society.
• Ye Yang met Urahara, explained that he had come to see Isshin, and declined to use Urahara’s new Gigai product.
• Ye Yang visited Isshin and met Karin and Yuzu, then discussed Ichigo’s growing Spiritual Power with Isshin.
• Ichigo returned home and introduced himself to Ye Yang, whom he recognized from the street that morning.
• Ye Yang sensed Rukia nearby, left the Kurosaki home, and headed for the Urahara Shop.