Recaps

After the Sizhuzhai incident, Yexing Hu recovered and resolved to save the 27 captured survivors, while Fon Shaoling decided to oversee his Demon Examination and personally arrange his Kidō training. Cilian suspected Fon Shaoling had another purpose for her trip to Bamboo Creek Plain, and she ordered him to keep it secret.

• Cilian reported that the Sizhuzhai incident had caused heavy casualties, with 137 people captured and only 27 still alive, and described Yexing Hu's ability to separate Hollows from Pluses.
• Cilian told Fon Shaoling that Hu had recovered but still needed guidance, and she decided to oversee his Demon Examination herself.
• Hu reported that he was ready to resume training and asked to save the 27 captured survivors; Fon Shaoling agreed once a shelter and safety measures were ready.
• Fon Shaoling told Hu that his Kidō training would begin the next day with a special instructor, while Hu planned to continue Shunpo practice.
• After Hu left, Cilian questioned Fon Shaoling about her trip to Bamboo Creek Plain, and she ordered him not to tell anyone about the matter.

Fon Shaoling vowed to uncover the truth behind the Hollow incident and ordered Sakiro to push Hu through Shunpo training before his assessment. As Hu continued training with Jiku'a, Cilian considered using an experimental treatment to restore his lost arm and eye so he could protect Fon Shaoling.

• Fon Shaoling reviewed the report of 137 captured Hollows, concluded the Garganta incident was deliberately mishandled, and resolved to expose whoever was behind it.
• Fon Shaoling told Sakiro that Hu had to cover 300 meters in Shunpo within two days, and arranged to borrow Kidō training equipment for him.
• Sakiro trained Hu across increasingly distant and narrow posts, and Hu reached a maximum distance of 247 meters by evening.
• Cilian reminded Hu to practice Zanjutsu meditation, and Hu began meditating with Jiku'a despite his exhaustion.
• Cilian reflected on Fon Shaoling's determination to resolve the incident Yoruichi and Urahara had failed to settle, then studied an experimental treatment that could restore his lost arm and eye.

Hu began Kidō lessons with Fon Shaoling and endured Sakiro’s demanding walking assessment, finally reaching the three-hundred-meter post and earning a pass. The chapter left him exhausted but encouraged by his progress and the people supporting him.

• Fon Shaoling woke Hu and took him to the Kidō Practice Room, where she revealed she would teach him and assigned him to study marked sections of its many books.
• Hu spoke with Fon Shaoling about gradually feeling that he belonged in Soul Society and learned that Shimizu was recovering.
• Sakiro raised Hu’s walking-training target to three hundred meters and made him repeat the plum-blossom-post course after each failure.
• Hu refused Sakiro’s offer to pass by using Shunpo on flat ground and tried again, thinking of Shimizu, Cilian, and Fon Shaoling’s expectations.
• Hu controlled his Reishi and landed securely on the three-hundred-meter post, prompting Sakiro to applaud and formally pass him in the walking assessment.

Hu learned the Concentration technique from Jiku'a and practiced maintaining it while studying Kidō with Fon Shaoling. After visiting the recovering Shimizu, Hu returned to his room, while Cilian used an experimental injection in the Seireitei to try to regenerate his missing limbs and damaged organs.

• Jiku'a taught Hu that Concentration involved compressing Reiatsu and eliminating wasted movement, and Hu tried to maintain it after leaving his Inner World.
• Fon Shaoling noticed Hu's changed breathing, explained that she would monitor him during Kidō class, and helped him memorize three chapters of Basic Theory of Hadō.
• Hu visited Shimizu in the medical room, met Keiko, and told them that he had passed the walking assessment.
• Hu struggled through afternoon Kidō class, then returned to his room and wondered where Cilian had gone on leave.
• Cilian entered his squad's training hall, injected himself with an experimental flesh supplement, and silently endured its intense pain.

Hu learned that Jiku'a’s Phantom Blade required Kidō skills, so Fon Shaoling accelerated his studies and assigned him more books. Cilian adapted to his restored right arm and left eye by retraining and spent the day testing the Second Division’s members, leaving the training hall in ruins.

• Hu told Fon Shaoling that focus meditation had improved his learning and recounted how Jiku'a taught him to summon the Phantom Blade in their Inner World.
• Jiku'a explained that Hu needed to master Kidō techniques for materializing energy before he could use the Phantom Blade in reality.
• Fon Shaoling connected Phantom Blade to Hu’s broader fighting style and gave him three additional Kidō books to study.
• Cilian began retraining with his restored right arm and practiced sword swings until his movements grew smooth.
• Cilian visited the Second Division training ground, fought its members and other prospects throughout the day, and declared that they had neglected their training.

Ten days after returning to the Seireitei, Cilian reviewed the Training Corps’ progress, confronted his former student Marechiyo Ōmaeda, and agreed to rest for the remainder of his leave. Meanwhile, Hu began practical Kidō training, and Cilian read the captain’s report on Hu’s Zanpakuto abilities as he looked ahead to training him.

• Cilian found that the reserve forces’ training had slowed because their instructors had lowered his standards, then set out to visit the Training Ground.
• Marechiyo Ōmaeda ordered Cilian to rest, admitted he had grown badly out of shape, and passed along the captain’s concerns about Cilian’s punishing training and information about Hu.
• Cilian agreed to rest for the remaining five days of his leave and asked Marechiyo Ōmaeda to bring him the information on Hu.
• Fon Shaoling switched the Kidō Practice Room to Practice Mode and had Hu begin casting Kidō; Hu successfully used Byakurai on his first attempt, though his aim was far off.
• Cilian read a report on Yexing Hu’s Zanpakuto Jiku’a and its known techniques, then concluded he would need to see Hu’s abilities himself before deciding how to train him.

Hu learned that his Reishi’s sharp nature made Kaidō difficult and practiced emergency bandaging under Fon Shaoling’s instruction. After Shimizu invited him fishing and Fon Shaoling agreed, she planned to use the fish as practice subjects for Hu’s Kaidō training.

• Fon Shaoling explained that Hu needed to deactivate his Reishi’s distinct nature to use Kaidō normally, then taught him emergency bandaging techniques.
• Hu met Shimizu, who had recovered and returned to duty, and agreed to go fishing with him the following afternoon.
• Hu repeatedly bandaged a practice dummy, correcting mistakes under Fon Shaoling’s supervision, then practiced Hadō and Bakudō.
• Hu told Fon Shaoling about the fishing trip, and she encouraged him to catch plenty of fish.
• Fon Shaoling planned to use the fish for Hu to practice Kaidō and learn the dangers of careless healing.

Hu and Shimizu went fishing at a river where a rumored monster had driven away the fish. After Hu’s rod snapped, he struck the water with Byakurai, revealing a huge Hollow that now faced them on the riverbank.

• Shimizu brought Hu to a fishing spot and told him about Tosaya, who had once helped him endure a harsh period in Bamboo Creek Plain.
• Hu and Shimizu caught only a few small fish before two men warned them that a large creature haunted the river at night.
• Hu persuaded Shimizu to stay and fish after dark, and something powerful dragged Hu’s line before snapping his rod.
• Furious, Hu tried to cast Kidō at the river, but Shimizu covered his mouth until Hu released Byakurai anyway.
• The lightning filled the river with dead fish and forced a huge otter-like Hollow onto the bank, where it confronted Hu and Shimizu.

Hu and Shimizu encountered an otter-shaped Hollow while fishing without their Zanpakuto, forcing Hu to fight barehanded and flee until Shimizu ran for help. With Jiku'a's advice, Hu used Kidō to hold the Hollow off and finally formed a stable Phantom Blade, which withstood the Hollow's attack.

• Hu and Shimizu realized they had left their Zanpakuto behind when an otter-shaped Hollow confronted them by the river.
• Hu's punch barely affected the Hollow, which slapped him away, so he grabbed Shimizu and fled with Shunpo.
• Shimizu warned that they could not lead the Hollow toward a settlement, and Hu sent him to ring its emergency bell while he stayed behind.
• Jiku'a explained that Hu's power was limited without Shikai and advised him to use numbered Kidō, so Hu fought the Hollow with Hadō and Bakudō.
• Jiku'a encouraged Hu to practice forming a Phantom Blade, and after several failed attempts Hu created a stable blue sword that withstood the Hollow's blow.

Hu used the Phantom Blade to defeat a Hollow and discovered that he could imbue the sword with Kidō, then carried the unconscious creature away for the Fon Clan to investigate. After Hu left, Captain Aizen and Gin Ichimaru revealed that the Hollow was an old experimental subject and discussed Hu’s unusual sword.

• Hu fought the Hollow with the Phantom Blade and learned to imbue it with Bakudō and Hadō, strengthening his sword strikes.
• Hu broke the Hollow’s mask and knocked it down, but the exposed man cried about being enslaved and transformed into a monster.
• Hu subdued the Hollow with Bakudō and decided to take it to Fon Shaoling so the Stealth Force could investigate.
• Two stationed Soul Reapers tried to claim the Hollow, but Hu refused and carried it away from the riverbank.
• After Hu left, Gin Ichimaru addressed the bespectacled Soul Reaper as Captain Aizen, and they revealed the Hollow was an old experimental subject.
• Aizen explained that Hu’s ability to combine different Kidō through the Phantom Blade was unusual, while Gin Ichimaru wondered about the sword’s strange aura.

Hu brought a Hollow that had regained its humanity to the Fon Clan, where its account of being transformed in Soul Society alarmed Fon Shaoling and Sakiro. After Hu blurted out that he liked Fon Shaoling, she planned to question him and begin separating the twenty-seven Hollows already in custody.

• Hu met Shimizu on the road and learned that he and Keiko had bought a house, then carried the Hollow onward to the Fon Clan.
• Hu wandered the Fon Clan grounds searching for the Onmitsukidō until Sakiro found him and led him to their underground chamber.
• Hu told Sakiro that the Hollow had said it became a Hollow in Soul Society, and the Onmitsukidō confined it for Fon Shaoling to investigate.
• Hu worried aloud that Fon Shaoling was in danger, admitted that he liked her, and Sakiro advised him to get stronger and stand beside her.
• Sakiro reported the incident to Fon Shaoling, who linked it to the renewed Hollowfication Experiment and the people who had driven Yoruichi away.
• Fon Shaoling decided to question Hu and begin separating the twenty-seven Hollows the next day, while Sakiro offered to speak with him first.

Sakiro sent Cilian a letter after stopping Fon Shaoling from torturing a Hollow for information, fearing that the Hollowfication incident had reopened Shaoling’s old wounds. She told Hu about Shaoling’s past and urged him to speak honestly when Shaoling came to him for help, leaving him anxious about their coming conversation.

• Sakiro watched Fon Shaoling violently question the newly captured Hollow, then stopped her before she could push him beyond recovery.
• Sakiro sent Cilian an emergency letter, hoping he could help restrain Fon Shaoling’s anger and distress.
• Hu brooded over his confession to Sakiro and his ruined Zanjutsu meditation before Sakiro came to speak with him.
• Sakiro recounted Shaoling’s childhood, her losses in the Hollowfication incident, and the burdens she had taken on as head of the Fon Clan.
• Sakiro explained that Shaoling would need Hu’s ability to distinguish Hollows from Pluses and had heard his confession, so he might be able to reach her.
• Sakiro warned Hu that Shaoling might say hurtful things and asked him not to give up on his feelings; Hu wondered what he would say when she came.

Hu realized he was a stray cat longing for Fon Shaoling, whom he saw as a flower on a high peak. When Shaoling tried to use his feelings to persuade him to separate the Hollows for information, Hu confronted her, and she ran away after insisting she could never love him.

• Hu compared himself to Renji Abarai, seeing himself as a stray cat and Fon Shaoling as a flower on a high peak.
• Fon Shaoling visited Hu dressed and made up unusually, recalled their time together, and told him she had received his feelings.
• Hu remembered Shakiro's warning and questioned Shaoling's darkened eyes when she asked him to separate the Hollows.
• Fon Shaoling offered to be Hu's girlfriend if he separated the Hollows so she could obtain their information.
• Hu accused Shaoling of using his love and abandoning her own dignity, then urged her not to let grief and hatred consume her.
• Shaoling wept, told Hu he knew nothing and that she could never fall for him, then ran from the room.

After Hu rejected Fon Shaoling’s attempt to make their feelings a bargain, he struggled with the pain of seeing her cry and received advice from a Soul Reaper named Shi. Cilian later urged Hu not to give up on Shaoling, explaining the significance of the hair ornaments she had worn to see him.

• Fon Shaoling ran from Hu’s room in tears, called Sakiro a traitor, and shut herself in her office.
• Hu gathered and cleaned Shaoling’s scattered golden hair ornaments, then wandered outside and spoke with the Soul Reaper Shi about unrequited love.
• Hu returned to the Fon Clan and noticed the attendants treating him coldly after Shaoling’s tearful exit became gossip.
• Cilian confronted Hu over the hair ornaments, thanked him for stopping Shaoling, and warned him that he would hold him responsible for making her cry.
• Cilian told Hu that Shaoling’s ornaments were precious keepsakes and encouraged him to keep them safe and try again once she had sorted out her feelings.

Hu found a way to save the twenty-seven Pluses through the Phantom Blade and returned to Fon Shaoling with the solution. Fon Shaoling’s allies pledged to support her as they prepared to pursue the Hollowfication Experiment.

• Hu consulted Jiku'a in his Inner World and learned that the Phantom Blade could unite Hollow and Plus Reiatsu, allowing the twenty-seven Pluses to survive with some Hollow powers.
• Hu returned to Fon Shaoling’s office and told her he liked her for who she was and had found a way to save the twenty-seven people.
• Cilian brought intelligence documents from Marechiyo Ōmaeda and explained that Soi Fon and several divisions were prepared to help investigate the Hollowfication Experiment.
• Cilian, Sakiro, Hu, and the Onmitsukidō pledged to stand beside Fon Shaoling and help uncover the people behind the experiment.
• Fon Shaoling thanked them and stood ready to face the struggle with their support.

Cilian, Sakiro, and Hu completed their assignments and located the Hollowfication testing grounds in Withered Bamboo Hamlet, where at least 103 Completed Forms were gathered. Fon Shaoling ordered an all-out surprise attack for the following night, declaring it the decisive battle.

• Cilian assembled intelligence from Bamboo Creek Plain and traced the enemy's testing grounds to Withered Bamboo Hamlet.
• Sakiro's squad hunted down escaped experimental subjects and learned that at least thirty remained inside the hamlet, including powerful Completed Forms.
• Hu trained with Cilian, passed the Kidō examination, and completed the separation of all twenty-seven rescued people without any deaths.
• At the Day 15 briefing, Cilian reported at least 103 Completed Forms in Withered Bamboo Hamlet, while Sakiro confirmed the surrounding threats had been cleared.
• Fon Shaoling rallied the assembled forces and ordered a surprise attack the next night to defeat the enemy and capture the hamlet's leader alive.

Fon Shaoling explained that the Twenty-Four Chambers Alliance within Central 46 had orchestrated the Hollowfication Experiment, then assigned the assault on Withered Bamboo Hamlet while keeping Hu at the Fon Clan. Elsewhere, Byakuya confronted Ōmaeda over the Sixth Division being excluded, as Aizen revealed that he had moved his important assets to Hueco Mundo and planned one final operation.

• Fon Shaoling told Cilian, Sakiro, Tessai, and Hu that the Twenty-Four Chambers Alliance had pursued Hollow-based military power and caused the Hollowfication crisis, while Kisuke Urahara had only made a prototype and was not involved in the experiments.
• Fon Shaoling assigned Sakiro to capture the experiment’s technical staff and supervisor, Tessai to fight the test subjects, and Cilian to command the battlefield and interrogate captives; she ordered Hu to remain with her at the Fon Clan.
• Cilian teased Hu about staying behind with Fon Shaoling, and Hu agreed to guard the rear after realizing they would be alone together.
• Byakuya Kuchiki questioned Marechiyo Ōmaeda about why the Second Division had not informed the Sixth Division of the investigation, then told him to pass his complaint to Soi Fon.
• Gin Ichimaru asked Sōsuke Aizen why he was abandoning Central 46, and Aizen said his important assets had been transferred to Hueco Mundo and proposed one final plan before the operation ended the next day.

Hu trained with Cilian, then patrolled Bamboo Creek Plain to monitor suspected spies as the Fon Clan prepared an operation against Withered Bamboo Hamlet and Central 46. After spotting a returned man whose behavior seemed suspicious and noticing many staged-looking reunions, Hu grew uneasy until Kaki appeared behind him.

• Hu sparred with Cilian, showed improved control of Jiku'a, Beowulf, Phantom Blade, and Kidō, and received advice about making his attack patterns less predictable.
• Cilian assigned Hu to monitor marked lookouts around the settlement and report changes with a signaling device while the other squads prepared for the operation.
• Hu visited Shimizu's new clothing shop and met Tosaya, who said he had escaped from the noble families and recently returned.
• Hu completed his first patrol and reported that the spies' positions and numbers were normal.
• During his second patrol, Hu noticed a scout limping despite no such detail in the records, then saw numerous people reuniting with relatives after supposedly being missing.
• Hu's unease grew as he watched the reunions, and Kaki appeared behind him and warned him not to let his feelings give away that he was watching someone.

Hu and Gin Ichimaru uncovered a group of spies possessed by Parasitic Hollows and fought them in a bamboo grove. After Hu’s Zanpakuto destroyed the Hollows, an explosion at the Fon Residence sent him rushing toward Shaoling, while Sōsuke Aizen revealed that he had created the Hollows and suspected Jiku'a could separate them from their hosts.

• Gin Ichimaru warned Hu that spies were following them and led him into a bamboo grove to confront them.
• The spy Hu had been watching transformed into a host for a Parasitic Hollow, and more Hollow-possessed spies closed in around Hu and Gin.
• Hu released Jiku'a and cut down the Parasitic Hollows, whose bodies dissolved into Reishi after his strikes.
• An explosion erupted at the Fon Residence, and Hu rushed toward Shaoling while Gin stayed behind to speak with Sōsuke Aizen.
• Aizen examined the remains and concluded that Hu’s Zanpakuto could separate the Parasitic Hollows from their hosts.

Keiko found Shimizu unconscious after Tosaya attacked him, and Shimizu resolved to stop his old friend from harming the Fon Clan. At the Fon Clan grounds, Soi Fon confronted Tsuchimikado Kōmei as he transformed into a Completed Form, while Shimizu arrived at the gates to face Tosaya and his followers.

• Keiko found Shimizu unconscious outside their shop; after he woke, he explained that Tosaya had attacked him over his praise of the Fon Clan.
• Shimizu retrieved the sealed Asauchi Cilian had given him and set out to find Tosaya, asking Keiko to hide.
• Tsuchimikado Kōmei confronted Fon Shaoling, who revealed herself as Soi Fon and drew Suzumebachi.
• Hongming transformed into a Completed Form covered in insect-like armor and challenged Soi Fon to fight.
• Tosaya gathered a dozen Completed Forms at the Fon Clan gate and prepared to attack, but Shimizu arrived and demanded to know what he intended to do.

Tosaya revealed how he gained his Hollow power and attacked the Fon Residence, while Shimizu refused to join him and held him off. Hu arrived and rushed to defend the residence, leaving Shimizu to face Tosaya as strange whispers rose with the sound of the tide.

• Tosaya urged Shimizu to join the Completed Forms, then transformed into a lava-armored Hollowfied warrior and ordered an assault on the Fon Residence.
• At the Temporary Outpost, Cilian questioned the captured researcher, who explained that Completed Forms came from Parasitic Hollow symbiosis experiments and that an unknown source supplied the Hollows and research data.
• Tosaya repeatedly knocked Shimizu down and tried to make him surrender, but Shimizu stood firm and defended the Fon Clan and Hu.
• Hu arrived between Tosaya and Shimizu, but Shimizu insisted that Tosaya was his fight, so Hu hurried into the Fon Clan to confront the invading Completed Forms.
• Shimizu and Tosaya charged at each other again as Shimizu heard the sound of the tide and faint whispers calling his name.

Soi Fon fought Hongming while Hu cut through the Completed Forms invading the Fon Residence, until Hongming strengthened the survivors and forced Hu into a harder battle. Outside the gates, Shimizu awakened his Zanpakuto Daku and released its Shikai against Tosaya, leaving their final confrontation underway.

• Soi Fon used Suzumebachi and Kidō against Hongming, but his Nether Abyss Insects replenished themselves by devouring the residence, while an explosion announced the invasion at the main gate.
• The Fon Clan's attendants slowed the invading Completed Forms with traps, but Hu arrived and rapidly killed several of them with Jiku'a.
• Hongming's insects strengthened the remaining Completed Forms, whose coordinated attacks and regeneration forced Hu to draw a Phantom Blade and keep fighting.
• Tosaya melted Shimizu's Asauchi, but Shimizu refused to yield and awakened his Zanpakuto, Daku.
• Shimizu released Daku's Shikai and faced Tosaya as Hu and Soi Fon continued fighting inside the Fon Residence.

Shimizu fought Tosaya with his newly awakened Shikai while Hu battled the Completed Forms attacking the Fon Residence. At Withered Bamboo Hamlet, Sakiro and Tessai halted the enemy’s advance, but Cilian learned that Tsuchimikado Kōmei had taken elite forces elsewhere and ordered the Onmitsukidō to seize the hamlet quickly.

• Shimizu used Daku’s water to counter Tosaya’s lava and forced their clash into another exchange.
• Hu fought through waves of Completed Forms with Phantom Blade, Jiku'a, Kidō, Space Slash, and Judgment Cut, but the enemies coordinated and his stamina dwindled.
• Sakiro changed the Onmitsukidō’s formation and used her Shikai to confront a fast Completed Form, while Tessai attacked a massive foe with his prayer beads and sealed Kidō.
• A researcher told Cilian that Tsuchimikado Kōmei could strengthen Completed Forms and link their senses and memories through Nether Abyss Insects.
• Cilian realized Hongming had taken elite forces elsewhere, likely toward the Fon Clan, and ordered the Onmitsukidō to execute Hammerfall Tactics and capture Withered Bamboo Hamlet.

Tessai completed his preparation and used Hammerfall Tactics to destroy the enormous Completed Form, while Sakiro and the Onmitsukidō held the line. Shimizu recovered his resolve through Daku, and Gin arrived at the Fon Residence to let Hu continue toward Shaoling.

• Cilian ordered the Onmitsukidō to execute Hammerfall Tactics as Tessai prepared the unnamed technique he had developed with Soi Fon.
• Sakiro defeated one Completed Form with her shadow weapons, then exhausted herself protecting Tessai from the enormous one.
• Tessai activated the prototype of Shunkō, seized the enormous Completed Form, and pierced its chest with his prayer beads before announcing phase two of the tactic.
• Shimizu refused to give up against Tosaya, spoke with Daku in a vision, and returned to the fight after reclaiming Daku with water.
• Hu struggled against the Completed Forms inside the Fon Residence until Gin Ichimaru arrived, killed an attacker, and told Hu to go check on Shaoling.

Shimizu defeated Tosaya but failed to save him, while Tessai’s forces wiped out the Completed Forms at Withered Bamboo Hamlet. At the Fon Residence, Hu learned that Fon Shaoling was Soi Fon and struggled to fight beside her as Hongming gathered the Nether Abyss Insects for a final attack.

• Shimizu used the steam he controlled to weaken Tosaya, then defeated him with a powerful water blade; Tosaya died in Shimizu’s arms after telling him to live well.
• Tessai and the Onmitsukidō destroyed the Completed Forms at Withered Bamboo Hamlet, and Cilian headed back to the Fon Clan after learning Hongming had disappeared with some of them.
• Hu arrived at the Fon Residence and realized that Fon Shaoling was Soi Fon, then joined her fight against Hongming’s insects.
• Hu’s shock caused him to make repeated mistakes in battle, and he argued with Fon Shaoling while they fought off Hongming’s swarm together.
• Hongming summoned Nether Abyss Insects from the battlefields to himself as Gin and Aizen prepared to watch the final act.