Chapter Summaries

Haruto negotiated with Jūshirō Ukitake to join the Thirteenth Division as its Fourth Seat in exchange for access to advanced Kidō. After the meeting, several fifth-year students discussed Haruto’s strength and considered asking him to keep teaching them.

• Ukitake offered Haruto several advanced Kidō, including Kuyō Shibari, Fūsatsu Kakei, Shisō Kekkai, and Ittō Kasō, along with the possibility of asking Yamamoto for secret techniques.
• Ukitake proposed that Haruto become the Thirteenth Division’s lieutenant, but Haruto refused and accepted the Fourth Seat instead.
• Haruto and Ukitake agreed to work together, with Haruto choosing the division partly because its missions could take him to the World of the Living and away from Aizen’s notice.
• After the ceremony, Gyōkaku Kumoi, Togakushi Riku, and Gori Takezuna discussed Haruto’s reported victory over an Adjuchas and his Captain-level strength.
• Togakushi decided that the fifth-years should ask Haruto to continue teaching them, while Gori wondered what Haruto would gain from doing so.

After a drunken celebration, Haruto woke beside Isane and used his new Zanpakuto, Seisen, to clean the room before sneaking out to shower. The liquor had boosted his Reiatsu and healed the group, while Byakuya remained asleep; Haruto was interrupted by A-Qing at the bathroom door.

• Gyōkaku Kumoi agreed to ask his father for Soul Gold and try Togakushi’s suggestion for reaching Captain-level strength.
• Haruto and his friends celebrated at the dormitory with liquor Byakuya brought from his family cellar, and most of them became heavily drunk.
• Haruto woke beside Isane, recalled her drunken kiss, and realized they had spent the night together.
• Haruto used Seisen to clean the bedroom and noticed the liquor had increased his Reiatsu and healed the others.
• Haruto found Byakuya still asleep in the living room, then headed to the bathroom, where A-Qing appeared at the door.

Haruto and Ayaka shared a playful morning and toasted their teacher before Haruto attended a Thirteenth Division meeting. He learned how badly the division had been depleted and was told to familiarize himself with its work and library.

• Ayaka teased Haruto about the previous night, then persuaded him to be intimate with her before they returned to the living room.
• Ayaka urged Haruto to celebrate life and the future of Soul Society, and they toasted their teacher and the present.
• Haruto attended a Thirteenth Division meeting in his new uniform and found only Captain Ukitake and Sixth Seat Kajōmaru Hideasa there with him.
• Ukitake explained that the division's lieutenant was confined and several senior officers were dead, away on missions, or occupied with other duties.
• Ukitake told Haruto to familiarize himself with the division and gave him access to its library, prompting Haruto to wonder which seniors' writings it contained.

Haruto began his work as the Thirteenth Division's Fourth Seat and headed to its training ground to study advanced Bakudō. After testing Kuyō Shibari on a Giant Hollow, he destroyed it while trying to send it away.

• Haruto told Ukitake that he planned to study Kidō in seclusion and could receive assignments by Hell Butterfly.
• Haruto met Kanemitsu and Gonshida and asked them to take him to the Thirteenth Division's captured Hollows.
• Haruto brought a Giant Hollow to the training ground and examined the metal net used to contain it.
• Haruto used Kuyō Shibari to bind the Giant Hollow and assessed the Bakudō's ability to restrain Hollows.
• Haruto released the Giant Hollow and urged it to leave, but it burned to ashes after he pointed Byakurai at its mask.

Haruto tested powerful Kidō at the Thirteenth Division and was confronted by Soi Fon’s Stealth Force for using a high-ranked spell in the Seireitei. After clearing up the misunderstanding, he decided to visit Yoshiwara in the Rukongai, but Ayaka arrived before he could leave.

• Haruto tested Fūsatsu Kakei on a bear Hollow and vaporized it with a fraction of the Bakudō’s power.
• Haruto demonstrated Byakurai, Raikōhō, and Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō in the Thirteenth Division’s training ground.
• Haruto restrained his eager Zanpakuto, Seisen, when six Stealth Force members surrounded him.
• Soi Fon accused Haruto of breaking the Seireitei’s restrictions, and Haruto explained that he had used number eighty-eight Hadō and aimed it toward the Rukongai.
• Haruto decided to visit his business partner in Yoshiwara, but Ayaka arrived from the Eighth Division and called out to him.

Haruto caught up with Ayaka, learned about several Soul Reapers’ new posts, and met Yayahara Yuyu before the two left for the World of the Living. He declined Ayaka’s invitation to join them and traveled to Yoshiwara to train, where he noticed that the area’s Plus population had sharply declined.

• Ayaka told Haruto that Nanao had become Sixth Seat, Isane had become Fifth Seat, and Kiyone was assigned to sanitation work in the Fourth Division.
• Ayaka introduced Yayahara Yuyu, who said Haruto seemed like someone who had killed many people and was not her type.
• Ayaka and Yuyu left for the World of the Living to gather intelligence on the Quincy, while Haruto declined to accompany them.
• Haruto left a letter for Captain Ukitake and traveled to East Rukongai to train his Kidō and develop Seisen’s abilities.
• Haruto reached Yoshiwara and sensed that its Plus population was far lower than before, prompting him to wonder whether Hollows had attacked the area.

Haruto sensed something wrong in Yoshiwara and moved toward the establishment while Naa Ichihara confronted Twelfth Division Shinigami trafficking Pluses for experiments. Naa challenged their newly appointed Vice-Captain, Sakai Shukugo, and attacked him as he insulted Kirio Hikifune and Hiyori Sarugaki.

• Haruto quietly used Shunpo to reach the top floor of the establishment in Yoshiwara.
• In a forest warehouse in East District 46, Sakai Shukugo accepted a shipment of more than two thousand captive Pluses from a frightened old man and demanded another delivery.
• Naa Ichihara arrived, killed the old man by setting him ablaze, and learned that the Shinigami leader was Sakai Shukugo, the Twelfth Division's newly appointed Vice-Captain.
• Naa confronted Sakai over the captive Pluses and mocked his claim to authority, while he defended the Shinigami's power over Rukongai and insulted Kirio Hikifune and Hiyori Sarugaki.
• Naa vanished as Sakai spoke, and her pipe became a sword hilt as she began her attack.

Naa Ichihara fought Sakai Shukugo, whose Zanpakuto countered her illusions and drained Reiatsu until its poison took effect. Just as Sakai moved in to finish her, Haruto arrived, severed Sakai’s arm, and began restoring Naa’s Reiatsu.

• Naa Ichihara’s Black Swallowtail put the surrounding Soul Reapers to sleep, but Sakai Shukugo resisted the dream and revealed he had prepared to counter her Zanpakuto.
• Naa Ichihara and Sakai exchanged Kidō attacks, with Sakai’s Shuten Shuten toxin accelerating her Reiatsu consumption and eventually making her cough blood.
• Sakai explained that his toxin would kill anyone whose Reiatsu dropped below one-fifth of his, then approached Naa with his blade.
• Haruto appeared beside Naa, cut off Sakai’s sword arm, and used his Reiatsu to suppress the toxin inside her.
• Naa greeted Haruto, who teased her about calling him “young man” before she remarked that they had shared a life-or-death situation.

Haruto confronted Sakai Shukugo, a Twelfth Division officer responsible for experimenting on Pluses, after rescuing Naa Ichihara. Haruto rejected Sakai’s attempt to bargain and challenged him to fight, leaving Sakai reaching for a hidden weapon.

• Haruto severed Sakai Shukugo’s arm and leg, then learned from Naa Ichihara that Sakai claimed to be the Twelfth Division’s vice-captain.
• Haruto identified Sakai as the Fourth Seat of the Twelfth Division and learned he had used another officer as a pawn while conducting experiments on Pluses.
• Sakai regenerated his limbs with a Flesh Supplement and revealed his resentment that Kirio Hikifune had become captain of the Twelfth Division.
• Haruto introduced himself as Haruto, Fourth Seat of the Thirteenth Division, and considered Sakai’s offer of Twelfth Division resources.
• Haruto demanded that Sakai show his real ability and threatened to leave no whole corpse if the fight failed to entertain him.
• Sakai rejected Haruto’s threat and drew a metal syringe from his sleeve.

Haruto battled Sakai Shukugo after he transformed into Tsuchigumo, a giant spider built from ten thousand Pluses and capable of recovering from devastating attacks. Haruto unleashed multiple Senju Kōten Taihō, but Tsuchigumo survived and began restoring its Reiatsu.

• Haruto exposed Sakai Shukugo's syringe as a pretense and watched him transform into the spider monster Tsuchigumo.
• Sakai Shukugo explained that Tsuchigumo was made from ten thousand Pluses and could recover from attacks that did not destroy it in one blow.
• Haruto provoked Sakai Shukugo by revealing Kirio Hikifune's Second-Class Spiritual Pressure, then struck Tsuchigumo with Senju Kōten Taihō.
• Tsuchigumo regenerated the damage from Haruto's first blast, and Sakai Shukugo explained that it could spend souls to recover from attacks.
• Haruto fired six Senju Kōten Taihō at once, devastating the forest but leaving part of Tsuchigumo alive as its Reiatsu began to recover.

Haruto immobilized Tsuchigumo with Seisen’s newly revealed stillness ability, then crushed it with Kurohitsugi. He stopped Sakai Shukugo’s escape, sealed his Soul Reaper powers, and trapped him in Tōzanshō.

• Sakai Shukugo recognized that Haruto’s captain-level techniques overwhelmed Tsuchigumo and planned to flee after answering Haruto’s question.
• Haruto used Seisen to freeze Tsuchigumo and prepared a new Kidō while the blade’s stillness began to falter.
• Haruto cast Kurohitsugi, grinding Tsuchigumo and Sakai Shukugo inside its black shell.
• Sakai Shukugo escaped the shattered coffin with Shunpo, but Haruto struck him with Shisō Kekkai and drove a second blood spear into his Saketsu.
• Haruto sealed Sakai Shukugo’s powers and confined him inside a miniature Tōzanshō.

Haruto defeated Sakai Shukugo, saving the people of Yoshiwara District, and negotiated with Naa Ichihara over how to protect the district. Naa Ichihara offered something connected to Ura Hadō and revealed that her origins matched Haruto’s suspicions, leaving Haruto eager to learn what she could provide.

• Haruto told Naa Ichihara that Sakai Shukugo’s tsuchigumo had been barely Third-Class Reii and accepted her thanks as a matter of business.
• Haruto agreed that Sakai Shukugo could serve as a witness against the Twelfth Division, but warned Naa Ichihara that other powerful groups might target her operation.
• Naa Ichihara offered Haruto the Yoshiwara District, women, information, and herself, but Haruto demanded more in exchange for Thirteenth Division support.
• Naa Ichihara raised Ura Hadō as a possible offer, and Haruto challenged her to prove she could use it.
• Haruto pressed Naa Ichihara about her origins, and she confirmed they were the same place he suspected before promising an offer that would satisfy him.

Haruto helped Naa Ichihara reach a hidden chamber in Yoshiwara, where she revealed her family’s descent from Soul King Palace guardians and the secret they had protected for generations. The chamber held the Soul King’s Hakusui, leaving Haruto stunned by the significance of the relic.

• Haruto lit a signal rocket to summon nearby Thirteenth Division Soul Reapers, concealed Sakai Shukugo, and went with Naa Ichihara to her family’s hidden sanctuary.
• Naa Ichihara opened a concealed door protected by complex Kidō and led Haruto into a chamber filled with sealed spiritual tools.
• Naa Ichihara explained that her ancestor had been among the Soul King Divine Soldiers who failed to stop Ikomikidomoe and Baraggan, leading the royal family to banish the clan to Soul Society.
• Naa Ichihara told Haruto that she was the last member of her clan and had decided to use its guarded heirloom as a way to survive.
• Haruto opened the hemp-bound box and saw the Soul King’s Hakusui, a living organ kept on a square tray.

Haruto took possession of the Soul King’s Hakusui but could not determine whether he could use it, and chose to bring it to the Twelfth Division rather than trust Aizen or Kisuke Urahara with it. At the Seireitei Research Institute, he got directions to Kirio Hikifune’s laboratory and prepared to meet her.

• Haruto learned that Naa Ichihara could not fuse the Soul King’s Hakusui with her soul and accepted the sealed organ and the responsibility for it.
• Haruto decided not to entrust the Hakusui to Aizen or Kisuke Urahara, concealed it, and chose to visit the Twelfth Division to consult Sakai Shukugo.
• Haruto told Naa Ichihara that the Thirteenth Division would take responsibility for the Yoshiwara District and left without accepting her invitation to stay.
• Haruto visited the Seireitei Research Institute and asked Hikifune Sae to see Captain Hikifune in his capacity as a seated officer.
• Hikifune Sae gave Haruto a card and directions to Kirio Hikifune’s laboratory, warning him to swipe it and ring the bell to avoid a trap.

Haruto consulted Kirio Hikifune about the Heavenly Bedding Pill and learned that its Vasto Lorde ingredient came from Ikomikidomoe. Kirio Hikifune discovered that the pill was still releasing an abnormally strong effect in his body and grew eager to investigate further.

• Haruto entered Kirio Hikifune's laboratory, where she recognized the Heavenly Bedding Pill's influence in his Reiatsu.
• Kirio Hikifune fed Haruto an enormous meal while he reported the pill's effects and the peculiarities that appeared after he learned Bone Strike.
• Kirio Hikifune confirmed that the pill's Vasto Lorde ingredient came from the creature later made into the Zanpakuto Ikomikidomoe.
• Kirio Hikifune explained that the Seireitei Research Institute preserved knowledge dating back to Shutara's time and warned Haruto against spreading what he knew.
• Haruto admitted that he had taken the pill without Captain-level Reiatsu to purge the Hollow's residual instincts.
• Kirio Hikifune revealed that the pill was still releasing power comparable to its initial dose inside Haruto, contrary to its intended gradual nourishing effect.

Haruto learned that fragments of Hollow Reiatsu within his soul had caused his body to age, and Kirio Hikifune advised him to develop the power rather than fear it. He revealed Soul King Hakusui and asked Kirio to fuse it into his soul, and she prepared to begin the procedure.

• Kirio Hikifune explained that Haruto's aging had resulted from his inability to control Hollow Reiatsu already fused with his soul.
• Haruto declined Kirio Hikifune's offer to examine him and wondered whether he had been a Fullbringer before he died.
• Kirio Hikifune noticed the cuff Haruto had concealed and criticized his Bakudō for failing to hide it.
• Haruto showed Kirio Hikifune Soul King Hakusui and asked her to fuse it into his soul.
• Kirio Hikifune warned Haruto that others might forcibly take Hakusui and injure or kill him, but Haruto accepted the risk.
• Kirio Hikifune told Haruto to bring out the soul inside the Tōzanshō, which he had kept fresh with Shisō Kekkai.

Kirio Hikifune removed a surviving fragment of Tsuchigumo and turned it into a meatball intended to help Haruto fuse with the Soul King Hakusui. After explaining the risks and agreeing to replenish his Reiatsu in exchange for two conditions, she asked him to support Hiyori and the Twelfth Division while she was away, then began stating her second condition.

• Haruto told Kirio Hikifune that the Twelfth Division had been left without anyone managing it, and she panicked upon learning Hiyori was still in the World of the Living.
• Kirio Hikifune pulled a miniature surviving fragment of Tsuchigumo from Sakai Shukugo and explained that Kidō could not truly destroy the souls that formed it.
• Kirio Hikifune spent half an hour using her Zanpakuto to turn the fragment into a meatball that could help Haruto fuse with the Soul King Hakusui.
• Kirio Hikifune warned Haruto that fusion would greatly increase his reproductive urges and that the sealed organ needed a large amount of Reiatsu to reactivate.
• Haruto asked Kirio Hikifune to replenish his Reiatsu, and she agreed on the condition that he help Hiyori and the Twelfth Division while she was away; she then began to state her second condition.

Haruto ate the Soul King Hakusui Kirio Hikifune had prepared, enduring its intense hunger as it merged with his soul and raised his spiritual pressure. He demonstrated its strange abilities to Kirio by firing Kidō from his eyes and mouth, leaving her eager to learn more.

• Haruto agreed to do his best to help Kirio Hikifune return to Soul Society if she disliked her new research environment, and she said the agreement would be engraved into his soul.
• Kirio presented the Soul King Hakusui, and Haruto consumed it, causing it to merge with his soul and trigger overwhelming hunger.
• Haruto devoured the feast, then learned that the Reiatsu he had absorbed equaled the reserve of an ordinary person with Second-Class Spiritual Pressure.
• Kirio asked Haruto to demonstrate the Soul King Hakusui's abilities, and he agreed, using a candy puppet as a target.
• Haruto cut the candy puppet in half by firing Byakurai from his eyes, then destroyed it with Shakkahō fired from his mouth.

Haruto demonstrated how the Soul King's Hakusui let him release Kidō from anywhere on his body and absorb Reishi, then Kirio Hikifune assessed the abilities’ potential. The chapter left Haruto asking whether their conversation was protected from the Great Spiritual Arts Corridor as he considered investigating the Soul King's Saketsu and Soul Society's current affairs.

• Haruto explained that the Soul King's Hakusui let him release Reiatsu from parts of his body such as his mouth and eyes, surprising Kirio Hikifune with its combat potential.
• Haruto absorbed the Reishi from half of Kirio Hikifune's candy puppet in seconds, but explained that his Saketsu still limited how much of it he could convert into Reiatsu.
• Haruto revealed that the Hakusui could compress his Reiatsu to third-class concentration and that, with enough time to prepare, he could build reserves that would make him formidable in a prolonged fight.
• Haruto said he could replenish his compressed Reiatsu to his previous quantity in about seven days, while Kirio Hikifune noted that the Hakusui's capacity could allow him to grow further.
• Haruto considered seeking the Soul King's Saketsu and checking records about Ginjo and the Tsunayashiro Clan, then asked Kirio Hikifune whether the Great Spiritual Arts Corridor had encrypted their conversation.

Haruto left Kirio Hikifune’s laboratory after she took most of his belongings as payment, but he gained powerful abilities from the Soul King’s Hakusui and confirmed that his new Zanpakuto power was Fullbring. Half a month later, he found that the Tsunayashiro Clan had already hunted down Kūgo Ginjō’s Fullbringer companions, while Aura Michibane might be under Tsunayashiro Tokinada’s influence.

• Kirio Hikifune reassured Haruto that searching the Great Spirit Book Gallery for her laboratory’s work would take a long time, then charged him for her services and kept most of his possessions as collateral.
• Haruto returned to Hikifune Sae’s counter shirtless, gave her a dubious explanation for his condition, and learned that his Heat Haze Edict had originally been made by Kirio Hikifune for Ginrei Kuchiki.
• Haruto reflected that the Soul King’s Hakusui had greatly increased his strength, but rejected gaining power by hunting humans or Pluses.
• Haruto manifested a faint image of a second Zanpakuto and concluded that its power was Fullbring, forged from a soul from another world rather than through Ōetsu.
• Half a month later, Haruto’s research in the Thirteenth Division library revealed that the Tsunayashiro Clan had hunted Kūgo Ginjō’s Fullbringer companions and that Aura Michibane might already be in Tsunayashiro Tokinada’s care.
• Haruto concluded that Tokinada had little influence within the Tsunayashiro Clan because he was a disgraced, distant branch-family member.