Recaps

Byakuya and the Kuchiki family were stunned when Hisana returned alive and explained how Aozumi and Jun Shimizu had saved her using Hollowfication and a special Zanpakuto. She revealed a secret arsenal beneath her room, including powerful swords created for the Kuchiki Clan, and Byakuya discovered the supreme-grade Ink-Dyed Cherry Blossom.

• Byakuya and Rukia met with Sōjun and Kuchiki Ginrei, who told them to avoid causing more trouble after Jun's betrayal.
• Hisana appeared at the Kuchiki residence, and Byakuya confirmed that his wife had truly returned.
• Hisana explained that Aozumi had secretly given her Soul Reaper power and used Lord Shimizu's Zanpakuto, State of Mind, to cure her illness through Hollowfication.
• Hisana revealed that a hidden room beneath her bed contained research on Hollowfication and more than thirty Zanpakuto made for the Kuchiki Clan.
• The family entered the hidden basement, where Byakuya read the abilities of the supreme-grade Ink-Dyed Cherry Blossom.

The Kuchiki, Shiba, and Ise Clans discovered hidden basements containing Jun’s swords, research, and Kidō knowledge, which he had left as a legacy. Jun’s final messages urged his friends and descendants to build families, leaving Jing, Kyōraku, Nanao, and Jūshirō embarrassed after Shinren delivered them.

• The Kuchiki Clan examined thirty-three swords and a vast collection of martial arts, Kidō, and secret research left by Jun.
• Ginrei read Jun’s note, accepted the legacy, and praised the younger generation as the key to the Kuchiki Clan’s future.
• Kūkaku showed Kaien and Miyako the Shiba Clan’s newly appeared basement, and Kaien ordered the family to study and protect its contents.
• Shinren led Jing, Nanao, Kyōraku, and Jūshirō to the Ise Clan’s hidden basement and delivered Jun’s teasing marriage advice to them.
• Shinren exhausted her Spiritual Power, turned into a sword, and left the four Soul Reapers embarrassed.

Jun met with the Fullbringer leaders and agreed to let their organization become independent, while setting limits on how they should use their powers. He left them to live their own lives, warning that future battles were beyond the reach of living humans.

• Jun brought his forces to the World of the Living and found that the Fullbringer organization had grown into an international group led by eight people, including Yukio.
• Jun and his companions met the eight leaders, and he chatted with them in Chinese, English, and Arabic-related historical topics before discussing the organization’s future.
• Jun agreed to the Fullbringers’ independence because they were living humans and his forces were dead, and he reminded them that the organization had been created to protect Fullbringers and prevent antisocial violence.
• Jun told the leaders to maintain stability, avoid creating Fullbringers artificially, and never use their powers to exploit others.
• Mizube asked whether the Fullbringers could help Jun, but he said future battlefields were no place for living humans and departed, telling them they would meet again after they died.

Jun brought a force of Undead, Fullbringers, Visored, and researchers from the World of the Living to Hueco Mundo after arranging the evacuation of Karakura Town. There, they witnessed the birth of a new antelope Arrancar, whom Oka subdued and began teaching.

• Jun gathered seven Fusion Warriors and twenty-one violent Undead, while allowing one Fusion Warrior to withdraw, and recruited three more Undead from offices across Japan.
• Jun ordered the research facility closed and told Aijima that Karakura Town would become Aizen’s battlefield within a few months.
• Mizube and more than a dozen Fullbringers volunteered to join Jun, and Aijima converted their bodies for travel to Hueco Mundo.
• Jun brought eighty-four people, along with Coco and Dolu, through the Forest of Menos to the Endless Sea, where they met Zegrod and the Arrancar.
• A new female antelope Arrancar emerged at the Hatching Area and struggled to move in her unfamiliar body.
• Oka caught and subdued the frightened Arrancar, then covered her with Spiritual Power and began teaching her to control herself.

Jun Shimizu explained his goal of building a peaceful society through exploration and organized a joint expedition before leading a team to the Bottomless Abyss. The team reached the vast chasm and prepared to descend after Jun’s light vanished among the Hollows inside its walls.

• Jun argued that Soul Reapers and Hollows had no inherent reason to hate one another and said Soul Society’s hostility perpetuated conflict.
• Jun set exploration as the group’s future direction and scheduled a three-month expedition ahead of Aizen’s expected final plan.
• The group formed eighteen teams, with Oka assigned to protect Jun and Gezeli unable to lead a team because she was still unstable.
• Jun chose the Bottomless Abyss for the expedition, suspecting it might be Ulquiorra’s homeland, and explained how Biersen had discovered it.
• Jun’s team reached the abyss entrance, saw that Hollows were concealed in its walls, and prepared to descend along the rock face.

Jun's group explored a vast cave in the Bottomless Abyss, captured a Vasto Lorde bat, and recruited it to guide them through Hueco Mundo. Meanwhile, Ichigo struggled with White and, unable to find Aijima, finally called one of Jun's offices for help.

• Jun's group entered a huge cave, and Oka explained Hollow territorial auras while helping Ge Ze Li learn to control hers.
• Jun sensed an Adjuchas, and the team explored nearly thirty kilometers of cave passages before encountering a Vasto Lorde bat.
• Ge Ze Li kicked the bat into a lower level, broke one of its wings, and subdued it as the group pursued.
• Jun healed the bat's injured wing and made it agree to guide the group to other powerful beings and connections to other worlds.
• Ichigo returned to Karakura Town, found Jun's group and the offices gone, and called one of the offices after struggling with his growing fear of White.

Ichigo called the Undead Tokyo General Office for help with White and learned that Aizen might attack Karakura Town within months. At the Urahara Shop, Shinji Hirako demonstrated his mask and took Ichigo away to help him control it.

• Ichigo learned that Hollows entering Karakura Town came from Hueco Mundo and that Aizen might send Arrancar, including potentially seven lost Original Arrancar.
• The Undead Tokyo General Office explained that Ichigo and his siblings were born with Soul Reaper, Hollow, and Quincy potential, but Ichigo's future growth beyond his current spiritual-power threshold was uncertain.
• Ichigo went to the Urahara Shop, where Urahara and Yoruichi heard that Shimizu Jun had directed him to Urahara for help with White.
• Ichigo told Urahara that White challenged him for control and had gone easy on him during their fights.
• Shinji Hirako arrived, showed Ichigo how to summon his mask, then put away his Mod Soul and told Ichigo to follow him.

Ichigo trained with Hirako at the Visoreds’ villa, where White took control during their fight and criticized Ichigo’s reliance on Bankai and poor combat instincts. After White returned his body, Ichigo insisted on continuing, but Hirako quickly defeated him again, leaving him wondering why he was weaker.

• Hirako brought Ichigo to the Seaside Villa, explained that its training ground used Space Kidō, and challenged him to fight while both wore their Hollowfication Masks.
• Hirako overwhelmed Ichigo with superior swordsmanship and strength, while White mocked Ichigo’s urge to rely on Bankai and took control of his body.
• White explained that Ichigo had been outmatched by Byakuya and needed White’s help, then described how focused attacks could make better use of Zangetsu’s strength.
• White returned control to Ichigo, and Hirako offered to pause, but Ichigo insisted on continuing the fight.
• Hirako knocked Ichigo down after two exchanges, ended the training session, and left Ichigo questioning why he was weaker.

Hirako and an unknown caller tried to force Ichigo Kurosaki to think for himself by mocking his dependence on others and revealing how Aizen had planned events around his life from birth. Ichigo was left dazed, still concluding that he could simply find someone else whenever he faced a problem.

• Hirako told Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi that he had made Ichigo shut down, then reported the success to the caller.
• The caller asked Ichigo whether he was satisfied with the help and mocked him for shutting down instead of thinking for himself.
• The caller told Ichigo that Aizen had observed his birth and planned around White, while Ichigo's meeting with Rukia had also been part of a design.
• The caller accused Ichigo of being a pawn who relied on others for his powers, training, and solutions, then urged him to stop thinking and ask for instructions.
• After the call ended, Ichigo remained stunned but reasoned that he could keep seeking help from people whenever he had a problem.

Jun used the Mod Soul to help Ichigo identify his goal and regain his determination, then Ichigo trained rapidly with the Visored. Meanwhile, Uryū trained with Ryūken and witnessed his father’s extraordinary Quincy techniques, leaving him surprised by Ryūken’s strength.

• Jun explained that he wanted Ichigo to think for himself and pursue goals beyond serving Soul Society.
• The Mod Soul helped Ichigo realize he wanted to defeat White by reaching and surpassing his power threshold, and Ichigo resumed training.
• Shinji Hirako and the other Visored sparred with Ichigo as his abilities and spiritual stats rose sharply.
• Orihime and Sado arranged for Mod Souls to attend school while they went to train with the Fullbring organization.
• Ryūken tested Uryū’s awareness, demonstrated how to kill distant Hollows with refracting arrows, and asked whether he had used Spiritual Power Erasure.
• Ryūken vanished before Uryū could sense him, leaving Uryū stunned by his father’s strength.

Ichigo defeated Kirishiki with Shikai but learned that the Arrancar’s Bankai could make him a dangerous opponent outside the Training Ground. With Arrancar appearing in Karakura Town and training suspended, Ichigo entered his inner world, where White challenged his control over his body.

• Ichigo knocked Kirishiki unconscious after exhausting his Spiritual Power in their Training Ground fight.
• Tentozaemon explained that Kirishiki’s Bankai could spread mist over ten kilometers, making him a formidable opponent in an unrestricted fight.
• Shinji Hirako announced that an Arrancar had appeared and said Ichigo was the only one who could face Aizen without falling under Kyōka Suigetsu.
• Hirako canceled Ichigo’s sparring so the Visored could patrol Karakura Town, and Ichigo struggled to train on his own.
• Ichigo entered his inner world and clashed with White, insisting that he was the master of his body and consciousness.

Ichigo fought White in his inner world, learned to adapt to its shifting gravity, and regained control of his identity and Hollow mask. After Hirako glimpsed a terrifying eye in the Training Ground and later confirmed Ichigo had seemed normal, Ichigo thanked the Visored and left their base.

• White kept Ichigo falling through his inner world until Ichigo understood how to find gravity on the buildings and began fighting back.
• Ichigo and White clashed recklessly, destroying the inner world, and Ichigo tore at the mask covering his face before declaring that he was Ichigo Kurosaki.
• Ichigo asked where White was, and the question brought White back and restarted their battle.
• Hirako saw a huge blood-red eye in the Training Ground doorway, but found only Ichigo when he returned to investigate.
• Ichigo ate with the Visored and told them he had his mask under control, then thanked them and left their base.

Ichigo returned home and realized that fusing with White had restored feelings and instincts he had suppressed for years, leaving him unsure of who he was. At school, he explained the change to Uryū and admitted that he now loved Rukia and wanted her as his lover.

• Ichigo went home, joked and fought with Isshin as usual, then reflected on feeling unfamiliar with his family and himself.
• Ichigo questioned whether he was himself, White, or a fusion of the two before falling asleep.
• Ichigo returned to school after more than half a month away and discovered that Mod Souls were standing in for Sado and Orihime.
• Ichigo spoke with Uryū on the roof and said he had fused with the Hollow inside him, restoring feelings and instincts he had handed over as a child.
• Ichigo told Uryū that he still wanted to save Rukia and now wanted her as his lover because he loved her.

Ichigo defeated an Arrancar and met Jun, who entered his Inner World to discuss Ichigo’s unstable fusion with White and his fear of being controlled. Jun explained his ties to Ichigo’s family and challenged him to look beyond himself; Ichigo decided to train with Hirako.

• Ichigo killed the Arrancar after questioning it about Aizen’s orders, then Jun appeared and praised his slash.
• Jun entered Ichigo’s Inner World, stopped Ichigo’s attack, and asked about Zangetsu, White, and their unstable fusion.
• Jun told Ichigo he was his uncle, described his history with the Shiba Clan, and urged him to consider why he distrusted Jun.
• Jun recounted Hanazawa E’s influence on himself and Aizen, then questioned Ichigo about Soul Reapers’ neglect of Rukongai.
• Jun advised Ichigo to see more of the world and keep training instead of dwelling on his identity.
• Ichigo called home to say he would not return that night, then called Hirako to ask for a ride to train.

Ichigo trained with Hirako and learned about Soul Society’s long history of injustice and the Visored’s divisions. Hirako’s account left Ichigo questioning the Soul Society he had once admired.

• Ichigo returned to train, and Hirako advised him to focus on improving Getsuga Tenshō because he lacked fundamentals and had little patience for traditional training.
• Hirako challenged Ichigo to think carefully about his practice, then told him that powerful Soul Reapers could live for centuries; Ichigo admitted he had feelings for Rukia.
• Hirako explained that Kakyō TACHIKAWA had taught Rukongai children how to become Soul Reapers, and that she was assassinated for challenging the powerful.
• Hirako said Jun Shimizu revealed Kakyō TACHIKAWA had been his disciple, prompting Visored members to join Jun’s organization and deepening the group’s divisions.
• Hirako recounted how a member killed a comrade who wanted to leave, splitting the group; Ichigo condemned the killing and reconsidered Soul Society.

After learning of Ichigo’s completed Arrancar training, Jun returned to Hueco Mundo while Ichigo told Uryū he wanted to marry Rukia. Renji challenged Ichigo over his confession, but Ichigo left to fight him and soon returned to class, unaware that someone with emerald-green eyes was watching him.

• Jun returned to Hueco Mundo after confirming Ichigo had completed his fusion and continued exploring the Bottomless Abyss with his team.
• Ichigo told Uryū that he wanted Rukia to come to the World of the Living and marry him, and Rukia overheard the confession.
• Renji confronted Ichigo about pursuing Rukia, and Ichigo insisted he would marry her even if he had to become a Soul Reaper.
• Ichigo and Renji left school to fight, while the others stayed behind; Ichigo soon returned to class after casually killing an Arrancar.
• A pair of emerald-green eyes watched Ichigo from a few kilometers away.

Soul Society struggled with unrest in Jun’s Expedition as Arrancar attacks grew more dangerous in Karakura Town. After Byakuya arrived to help, Ichigo declared that he wanted to marry Rukia, and Byakuya gave them his approval while warning that Soul Society would oppose them.

• The Expedition’s more than seven hundred members largely sided with Jun, whose military organization and support for abandoned Soul Reapers had left Soul Society wary and divided.
• Aizen pursued the Hōgyoku’s power and relied on Orihime’s Sōten Kisshun to test its effects, while keeping his objectives in Karakura Town hidden from everyone but Jun.
• Half-Arrancar attacks increased, and the Soul Reapers struggled to keep up until the Visored helped them fight.
• A humanoid Arrancar nearly killed Ikkaku, but Kensei Muguruma arrived in time to save him.
• Byakuya came to the World of the Living and helped Ichigo and Rukia defeat a partially humanoid Arrancar.
• Ichigo told Byakuya that he wanted to marry Rukia, and Byakuya approved while warning that Soul Society would try to stop them.

Byakuya and the other Soul Reapers rushed to face Aizen’s forces after a Garganta opened over Karakura Town, where both sides had assembled thirty fighters. Byakuya wounded Luppi and forced him to flee, but two Soul Reapers had already been defeated as the battle continued.

• Byakuya and eight other Soul Reapers saw the Garganta open above Karakura Town and charged toward the enemy.
• Hirako’s group and Muguruma’s group also headed to the battlefield, while Uryū realized he was the only one missing from a deliberate thirty-on-thirty matchup and ran to join the fight.
• Byakuya’s group met nine Arrancar, and eight of his companions followed their opponents into one-on-one battles.
• Luppi introduced himself as the seventh Espada and charged Byakuya, who cut his cheek with Senbonzakura and forced him to use Resurrección.
• Byakuya released Bankai and struck Luppi’s tentacles with high-intensity blades, badly wounding him and making him flee with Sonído.
• Byakuya could not pursue Luppi, and he learned that two Soul Reapers had already been defeated.

Hirako toyed with Yammy while Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi struggled against the Eighth Espada, Grado Bendom. Ōtoribashi turned the fight around with Kinshara, but Grado escaped after losing both hands, leaving Ōtoribashi wondering what kind of creature he was.

• Hirako dodged Yammy’s attacks and Cero, keeping the fight going because he did not want to finish it and aid Soul Society.
• Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi’s Kinshara repeatedly slipped off Grado Bendom’s whip, and Grado redirected Ōtoribashi’s Isshin Don to cut his shoulder.
• Grado changed his whip’s shape to strike Ōtoribashi with a hammer-like blow, then pursued him as Ōtoribashi retreated.
• After noticing Hirako’s smile, Ōtoribashi stopped retreating and sprang a trap using the invisible threads attached to Kinshara’s spikes.
• Grado escaped the closing thread cage but left both hands behind; Ōtoribashi retrieved his whip and realized it might have been Grado’s tail.

Ichigo and the Soul Reapers fought a group of Arrancar, but Feilisi Luxin and Nnoitra proved overwhelmingly powerful. After Feilisi announced that their mission was complete, the Arrancar withdrew through the Garganta, leaving the defenders behind.

• Ichigo defeated Rabonne Zhamu, while Rukia, Renji, Ikkaku, and Yumichika finished their fights against other double-digit Arrancar.
• Uryū warned Ichigo that two Arrancar were far stronger than usual, and Ichigo hurried toward the Garganta as Kensei Muguruma and Love Aikawa fought Feilisi Luxin.
• Feilisi overwhelmed Muguruma and endured Love's Bankai, then disappeared from their senses.
• Nnoitra caught Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō and blocked his masked attack, while Feilisi returned and told him the mission was complete.
• Feilisi gathered the injured Arrancar, and Nnoitra and the others withdrew through the Garganta as Byakuya regrouped with Hirako and the others.

Orihime and Sado returned from the Fullbring House and joined the effort to help Ichigo, but Ulquiorra later came to Orihime’s apartment and ordered her to go to Hueco Mundo. After Orihime repaired her Mod Soul pill, she agreed to leave with him, and Ulquiorra opened a Garganta.

• Yukio accepted Sado and Orihime’s decision to return, and Sado promised he would come back to the Fullbring House.
• At the Urahara Shop, Orihime and Sado insisted on joining the others because Ichigo had joined.
• Ulquiorra visited Orihime’s apartment and said Aizen needed her in Hueco Mundo.
• Ulquiorra showed Orihime visions of Arrancar attacks and promised the deaths and injuries would stop if she went with him.
• When Ulquiorra crushed Orihime’s Mod Soul pill, Orihime slapped him and used Sōten Kisshun to repair it, insisting that the Mod Soul was her sister.
• Orihime agreed to go with Ulquiorra, who opened a Garganta and took her away.

Ichigo and Sado discovered that Orihime had been taken to Hueco Mundo, and the group gathered to plan a rescue while Ichigo struggled with the decision to keep the battle away from Karakura Town. In Hueco Mundo, Ulquiorra brought Orihime to Las Noches, where Grimmjow and Hai'erdosi appeared before she was taken to meet Aizen.

• Ichigo and Sado found Orihime absent from school and discovered she had vanished from both her apartment and her family home.
• Ichigo learned that Aizen had taken Orihime as part of his plan and that rescuing her would move the battle to Hueco Mundo; Uryū, Rukia, Renji, Ikkaku, and Yumichika joined the group at Urahara Shop.
• Ulquiorra transported Orihime to Las Noches, where Grimmjow inspected her and warned her not to approach him.
• Ulquiorra and Orihime met Felix and Hai'erdosi at the entrance, and Hai'erdosi refused to serve Aizen before departing.
• Ulquiorra introduced Felix as the Fiftieth Espada and took Orihime to meet Aizen.

Soul Society’s reinforcements entered Hueco Mundo, where Kenpachi Zaraki challenged Grimmjow to a fight. Grimmjow used his speed and explosive attacks against Zaraki’s Bankai, leaving Zaraki on the verge of losing control while he waited for an opening at a distance.

• Soul Society sent Kenpachi Zaraki, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Yūmi, Ichigo, and other fighters into Hueco Mundo to pursue Aizen and Orihime.
• Grimmjow attacked a Soul Reaper who insulted him, then challenged the four captains to fight him together.
• Kenpachi Zaraki stayed behind to face Grimmjow alone, and their opening clash sent Grimmjow flying with a powerful blow from Nozarashi.
• Grimmjow used bursts of speed to strike Zaraki repeatedly, prompting Zaraki to unleash Bankai: Nozarashi Ashura King.
• Grimmjow evaded Zaraki’s powerful attacks and waited for his body to recover between bursts, while Zaraki began losing control of his Bankai.

Grimmjow discovered Kenpachi Zaraki had lost consciousness in Bankai and secretly infused him with dark blue Spiritual Power to create a Hollowfication Mask. Inside his Inner World, Zaraki defeated the masked Blue Oni and awakened a conscious, controlled form of his power, though the blood-red demonic aura still overpowered it.

• Grimmjow approached the motionless Kenpachi Zaraki, tested how his aura reacted to Spiritual Power and killing intent, and realized Zaraki was attacking anything directed at him without awareness.
• Grimmjow suspected Zaraki was trapped in his Inner World and poured his blood, which contained pure Spiritual Power, into Zaraki’s demonic aura to give him a Hollowfication Mask.
• Inside his Inner World, Kenpachi Zaraki fought through demons and reached the Blue Oni stage as dark blue energy transformed the landscape and separated a masked Blue Oni from him.
• Kenpachi Zaraki defeated the masked Blue Oni, absorbed its dark blue power, and charged the Red Oni while wearing a leopard-shaped mask.
• Kenpachi Zaraki awakened in Hueco Mundo, briefly released dark blue power before the blood-red aura overwhelmed it, then consciously changed his aura and mask to blue and concluded he had become stronger.

Gin Ichimaru fought Tōshirō, who charged at him recklessly after Momo Hinamori’s death, and defeated him while sparing his life. Byakuya protected the unconscious Tōshirō from Felix and moved toward Ikkaku Madarame after sensing his Reiatsu weaken.

• Gin Ichimaru met the Soul Reapers with three Espada, their Fracción, and several Tres Cifras, and Tōshirō immediately attacked him in a rage.
• Gin Ichimaru exploited Tōshirō’s reckless swordsmanship and taunted him about Momo Hinamori, driving him to activate Bankai and charge forward.
• Gin Ichimaru pierced both of Tōshirō’s shoulders and used Yasakani no Magatama to shatter his ice, wound him, and destroy his wings, leaving him unconscious.
• Byakuya protected Tōshirō with Senbonzakura and observed that Felix vanished whenever he withdrew from the petals he touched.
• Byakuya sensed Ikkaku Madarame’s Reiatsu weaken while his opponent’s Reiatsu disappeared, and he moved to respond.