Chapter Summaries

Rei obtained Urahara’s Hōgyoku through a contract and returned to Las Noches while the Captains and Espada began fighting. When Rei tried to fuse the two Hōgyoku, a spell put him to sleep, leaving the fusion underway and his awakening uncertain.

• Rei accepted Urahara’s genuine Hōgyoku, agreed to a contract, and freed the Visored before leaving through the Garganta with several Espada.
• The Gotei 13 arrived, and Yama-jii ordered the Captains to capture Urahara’s group and show no mercy to the Arrancar.
• Nnoitra attacked Hirako, Picaro fought several Visored, and Grimmjow battled Kensei before Zaraki joined the fight.
• Rei had Ulquiorra rescue Urahara, Tessai, and Yoruichi, then began studying the Hōgyoku in his training room at Las Noches.
• A spell invaded Rei’s hand and made him fall asleep as the two Hōgyoku liquefied and began fusing.

While Rei slept, Urahara and Kyōraku exchanged intelligence during their staged fight and arranged to use Nangong Ling’s sleep-triggering Hōgyoku to draw out Soul Society’s hidden enemy. The Visored escaped Yama-jii’s Flame Walled Prison through Urahara’s Bankai, while the other Captains remained behind.

• Soi Fon chased a black cat that promised to reveal Yoruichi Shihōin’s location if she could catch it.
• Urahara told Kyōraku that the Hōgyoku he gave Nangong Ling contained a Sleep-Type Kidō that would put him to sleep if he opened it himself.
• Kyōraku agreed to let news of the sleeping Nangong Ling and his Hōgyoku reach the suspected mastermind, hoping to draw that enemy out.
• Tessai Tsukabishi and Hachigen Ushōda’s Barriers failed against Yama-jii’s Ryūjin Jakka, so Urahara released his Bankai and carved an escape tunnel for the Visored.
• Yama-jii’s Flame Walled Prison closed around the Visored, but they escaped through Urahara’s tunnel, which he stitched shut behind them.
• Yama-jii realized the Visored had escaped using Bankai after the flames vanished and the enclosed area was left empty.

Kyōraku persuaded Yama-jii that Urahara’s account of the Hōgyoku pointed to traitors within the Gotei 13, and Soul Society prepared to invade Hueco Mundo. Meanwhile, the Hōgyoku kept Rei asleep, separated Yanis from him, and began trying to take control of Rei’s body as the Gotei 13’s forces assembled.

• Kyōraku told Yama-jii that Urahara had revealed the Hōgyoku’s sleep Seal and suggested using Rei’s apparent sleep to attack Hueco Mundo.
• Yama-jii began suspecting Aizen, Tōsen, Gin Ichimaru, and Amagai Shūsuke, then ordered preparations for an attack while seeking evidence to clear Urahara.
• Inaba Kage directed his technicians to prepare transport support for Aizen’s group and keep track of their location.
• Szayelaporro woke after more than six months, learned Rei had gone into seclusion, and headed to the laboratory to investigate Mayuri Kurotsuchi’s toxins.
• The Hōgyoku kept Rei asleep and separated Yanis from him, then attacked Yanis when he tried to wake Rei.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi stabilized the Garganta near Soul Society, and Yama-jii gathered the Captains and Vice-Captains to invade Hueco Mundo.

The Gotei 13 invaded Hueco Mundo, where Ulquiorra organized the Arrancar’s defense while Rei remained in seclusion. After the Captains fought through a Gillian army and reached the surface, Retsu Unohana used Minazuki to carry them toward Las Noches.

• Twenty-six Gotei 13 fighters entered the Garganta, while Haschwalth sent Sternritter to hunt Arrancar and avoided a future that would awaken Yhwach early.
• Hueco Mundo redirected the invading fighters toward the Menos Grande Forest, and Ulquiorra ordered the Arrancar to hold their positions in Lord Nangong’s name.
• The Captains fought through more than a hundred Gillians and other Hollows, killing most of the defending Arrancar and finding a route to the surface.
• The Soul Reapers reached the surface and spotted Las Noches, then Yama-jii ordered them to capture or kill Nangong Ling.
• Retsu Unohana released Minazuki and prepared to carry the group toward Las Noches, swallowing the injured fighters to treat them.

The Visored learned that Soul Society still considered them criminals, while Urahara warned that Aizen might use the Hueco Mundo operation to target Nangong Ling. In Hueco Mundo, the Gotei 13 reached Las Noches and began fighting the Espada as Yama-jii headed for a powerful Reiatsu detected at the top of the castle.

• Hirako explained that the Visored and Soul Society were cooperating out of mutual interest and that the Visored's names had not been cleared.
• Urahara told the Visored that Aizen might make a move against Nangong Ling, and he considered how Yama-jii's involvement had changed his plan.
• Byakuya used Bankai to protect Minazuki from swarms of flying Hollows as the Soul Reaper Captains approached Las Noches.
• Ulquiorra and the Espada confronted the Captains, and Yama-jii ordered the Gotei 13 to attack; Grimmjow and Kenpachi Zaraki began fighting immediately.
• The Captains engaged their assigned opponents while Unohana and Isane prepared a nearby treatment site, and Yama-jii watched Aizen for suspicious movements.
• Nemu Kurotsuchi located a powerful Reiatsu at the top of Las Noches, and Yama-jii used Shunpo to head there.

Aizen used Kyōka Suigetsu to turn Baraggan’s Fracción against one another while Soi Fon engaged Baraggan, and the escalating battles elsewhere showed the Espada rushing to protect Nangong Ling. On the Sky Cover, Yama-jii trapped Starrk in flames, prompting Starrk and Lilynette to use Soul Division as their fight intensified.

• Aizen hypnotized Baraggan’s eight Fracción into fighting each other, while Soi Fon broke through their ranks and confronted Baraggan.
• Ulquiorra abandoned his duel with Kyōraku to pursue Yama-jii, but Kyōraku caught up and fought him into Las Noches.
• Ulquiorra released another, more powerful form after sensing Starrk’s Reiatsu, while Kyōraku realized he could no longer hold back.
• Yama-jii overwhelmed Starrk’s Cero with Ryūjin Jakka and trapped him inside a fortress of flames.
• Starrk and Lilynette began Soul Division, summoning a pack of spirit wolves to attack Yama-jii.

Yama-jii and Starrk fought amid explosions that cracked Las Noches’ Sky Cover, while Ulquiorra drove Kyōraku to use Bankai. As Maki reached Rei’s training room, Aizen entered and struck him down, leaving Rei’s fate unknown.

• Yama-jii endured the Soul Wolves’ explosive attacks while Starrk unleashed more Wolf-Shaped Cero, and their battle widened the damage to the Sky Cover.
• Ulquiorra battered Kyōraku across Las Noches, and Kyōraku activated Bankai after luring him far enough from the main battlefield.
• Maki climbed toward Rei’s training room as the fighting shook the structure, then began removing its layered barrier when no one answered his calls.
• Aizen appeared behind Maki, passed him into the training room, and revealed that he had used Maki’s access to enter unnoticed.
• Maki transformed and attacked Aizen, but his strike hit himself instead, leaving him bleeding and losing consciousness.

Aizen fought the Hōgyoku-controlled Rei, but Rei awakened and revealed his Bankai as Yama-jii arrived with Zanka no Tachi. Aizen’s Kyōka Suigetsu tricked Rei into a devastating clash with Yama-jii, while Kyōraku’s Bankai began afflicting Ulquiorra with reflected wounds and black bleeding.

• Aizen bound the Hōgyoku-controlled Rei with Kidō and removed the Hōgyoku from his chest.
• Rei awakened, broke Aizen’s restraints with Bankai, and confronted him as Yama-jii entered and activated Zanka no Tachi.
• Rei struck Aizen down and severed his arm, but Aizen used Kyōka Suigetsu to mislead Rei and Yama-jii.
• Yama-jii’s Tenchi Kaijin cut Rei in half, and Rei’s red spider lilies met the follow-up strike in an explosion that destroyed the Sky Cover.
• Kyōraku confronted Ulquiorra with Bankai, reflected wounds Ulquiorra had inflicted on him, and caused black spots to spread across Ulquiorra’s body.

Kyōraku and Ulquiorra were both left near death after their Bankai clash, while a catastrophic blast destroyed much of Las Noches and left Nangong Ling’s fate uncertain. As the Soul Reapers and Espada assessed the wreckage, Harribel withdrew and Picaro turned on Baraggan, driving the Espada into open conflict.

• Kyōraku used the second and third acts of his Bankai against Ulquiorra, and Ulquiorra detonated Lanza del Relámpago, gravely wounding both of them and destroying much of eastern Las Noches.
• Yama-jii defeated Starrk, and their combined attacks brought down a large section of the Sky Cover; a charred figure was buried in the rubble as powerful Reiatsu clashed above the ruins.
• Nanao Ise ran toward Kyōraku, but the western wall collapsed, while Nel’s spear melted against Yama-jii’s Bankai and Amagai attacked her before a toadlike Arrancar carried her away.
• Isshin urged Harribel to retreat rather than sacrifice her subordinates, and she left with the Three Divine Beasts as Yama-jii searched the Garganta for signs of Nangong Ling.
• Picaro learned that Nangong Ling’s Reiatsu had vanished and abandoned Gin Ichimaru, then joined the battle against Baraggan, who had already badly injured Soi Fon.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi pulled Soi Fon away from Picaro and Baraggan’s gathering Cero, laughing as the Espada’s infighting threatened to consume them.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi analyzed Nangong Ling’s residual Reiatsu and concluded that he might be dead or transforming, while the surviving Soul Reapers gathered after the battle. Elsewhere, Szayelaporro captured two wounded fighters, and Kenpachi Zaraki and Grimmjow continued their fight in the Menos Grande Forest.

• Mayuri offered to save the limbless Soi Fon in exchange for using her as experimental material, then collected Nangong Ling’s residual Reiatsu at Yama-jii’s request.
• Ulquiorra searched for Kyōraku and Starrk but found neither; Nanao Ise had hidden Kyōraku with Kyōkkō.
• Szayelaporro found two powerful, badly injured fighters in an underground laboratory and prepared to leave with them.
• Mayuri concluded that Nangong Ling was either dead but dissipating unusually slowly or undergoing a transformation, and Yama-jii assembled the surviving Soul Reapers.
• Unohana killed Nnoitra after he attacked the wounded Komamura and forced her to fight.
• Kenpachi Zaraki and Grimmjow fought through the Menos Grande Forest until Ulquiorra found them among the Mushroom Hollows.

Ulquiorra rescued the defeated Grimmjow as Hueco Mundo fell into chaos after Las Noches was destroyed and Rei’s fate remained uncertain. Meanwhile, Aizen withdrew into hiding, and Rei drifted helplessly through the Garganta after being caught in his own attack.

• Ulquiorra struck Kenpachi Zaraki to intervene, but Kenpachi recovered and Grimmjow lost his arm before collapsing; Ulquiorra carried Grimmjow and the severed arm away.
• As word spread that Rei and the Espada had fallen, Arrancar began hunting one another, while Baraggan reclaimed the ruins of Las Noches and declared himself king.
• The Soul Reapers returned to Soul Society, where Gin Ichimaru recalled Aizen’s instruction to surrender to Central 46 and clear Kisuke Urahara and the others.
• Aizen recovered at his base with Kagerōza Inaba’s help and decided to leave Seireitei and operate from the shadows.
• Rei’s Pagoda Red Lotus Blast sent him into the Garganta, where the Hōgyoku fused with him again and he drifted through the chaotic currents without a foothold.

Gin was sentenced to three hundred years in Resurrection, while Soul Society restored Shinji Hirako and two others to their Captain positions. Meanwhile, Rei fell into the Sixth Valley of Screams, where Aizen’s team discovered him and chose to watch from afar.

• Gin told Central 46 about Aizen and Tōsen’s roles in the old experiments, but Central 46 stopped him from discussing the Tsunayashiro Clan’s grievances.
• Central 46 sentenced Gin to three hundred years in Resurrection and ordered his Zanpakuto destroyed; Rangiku Matsumoto visited him, and Kyōraku tried unsuccessfully to learn whether Aizen was dead.
• After Yama-jii and the great clans pressured Central 46, Shinji Hirako and the Ninth Division Captain and Vice-Captain returned to their former posts, while the other Visored declined to return.
• A Ragged Hollow fell through the Dangai toward the Valley of Screams, disintegrated near Rei, and stirred him awake after more than half a year.
• Rei descended into a Valley of Screams, found wandering souls called Blanks, and began investigating the strange place.
• Aizen’s team detected Rei in the Sixth Valley of Screams, and Aizen ordered them to observe him without alerting him.

Rei used the Hōgyoku to accelerate the growth of the Sixth Valley of Screams while studying its Blanks, and Aizen realized Rei might escape through it. Aizen ordered an attack, but Rei retaliated with powerful Ceros, while Aizen continued feeding Blanks to his own Hōgyoku.

• Rei discovered that his strong soul body and the Hōgyoku prevented the Sixth Valley of Screams from consuming him, then used his Hollow power to devour Blanks without gaining strength.
• Rei asked the Hōgyoku to help him escape, and it accelerated the Sixth Valley's growth until it began drawing in souls from across the Dangai.
• Aizen learned that the Sixth Valley could form a Memory Rosary in three years and one month, and ordered Kagerōza Inaba to fire the New World's Kidō Cannon at it.
• Rei used artificial souls and Kidō to make Blanks crave Modified Souls, then defended himself from the Kidō Cannon and fired giant Ceros at the New World.
• Aizen's New World lost a fifth of its area to Rei's attacks, and Aizen continued using a Memory Rosary to draw Blanks into his defective Hōgyoku.

After more than a decade trapped in the sixth Valley of Screams, Rei mastered the Blanks and turned their space into the Great War Spear, which carried him back to Hueco Mundo. Meanwhile, Soul Society prepared for future threats as Rukia joined the Kuchiki family, and Aizen entered Hell with Kaname Tōsen.

• Rei spent years researching control over Blanks, then drove the Valley of Screams upward and reshaped it into the Great War Spear.
• Kagerōza Inaba learned that Rei was rising toward the Garganta, and Aizen anticipated his return while directing Kaname Tōsen to open a gate to Hell.
• Soul Society expanded its Soul Reaper ranks, and Hisana and Byakuya arranged to adopt Rukia into the Kuchiki Clan.
• Rukia told Renji Abarai about the adoption; Renji urged her to accept, and she left in tears as he resolved to rise in status.
• Hisana confessed to Rukia that she was her sister, and Rukia forgave her; later, Rangiku Matsumoto brought a gifted white-haired boy to the academy.
• Rei emerged from the Dangai into the World of the Living by mistake, redirected the Great War Spear, and broke through into Hueco Mundo.

Baraggan ruled Las Noches with a growing force of Arrancar, but Rei returned to Hueco Mundo with overwhelming power and demanded that Baraggan join his assault on the Soul King Palace. The chapter ended with Ulquiorra sensing Rei’s return and raising his Reiatsu to draw him toward the group.

• Baraggan learned that his forces had recruited one hundred and twenty Arrancar, including three Blade-level Arrancar, and planned to eliminate Picaro.
• Rei’s terrifying presence reached Las Noches, and he arrived above Baraggan’s throne after flying from the ruins of the Sky Cover.
• Rei erased nearby Arrancar with his Reiatsu and forced Baraggan to his knees when Baraggan tried to activate his Resurrección.
• Rei gave Baraggan the choice to join the campaign against the Soul King Palace or die, and Baraggan agreed to go with him.
• Yanis, Grimmjow, and Ulquiorra sensed Rei’s return in the Menos Grande Forest, and Ulquiorra raised his Reiatsu as a signal.

Rei returned after mastering the Hōgyoku, gathered the surviving Espada and Arrancar, and set plans in motion to attack Soul Society and the Soul King Palace. Three months later, an Adjuchas appeared in the Shin'ō Spiritual Arts Academy, interrupting Rukia's assessment.

• Rei reunited with Ulquiorra, Grimmjow, and Yanis, then learned which Espada had died, survived, or gone missing in the battle.
• Rei found Picaro in the Menos Grande Forest and brought him back to the ruins of Las Noches, where the surviving Espada and Nel's alliance assembled.
• Rei announced his plan to send Nel with an army of Arrancar and Adjuchas against Soul Society while he and the other Espada attacked the Soul King Palace using the Great War Spear.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi learned from Dordoni's memories that powerful Quincy had invaded Hueco Mundo decades earlier, and the Captain-Commander ordered the Research and Development Institute to locate them.
• Renji Abarai and Izuru Kira earned excellent marks in their Zanjutsu assessment, while Rukia Kuchiki completed her own test without Renji coming to congratulate her.
• An Adjuchas tore through space and appeared at the Shin'ō Spiritual Arts Academy, filling the training ground with its Reiatsu and terrifying the students.

Rukia, Renji, and the other Soul Reapers fought a Hollow assault on the Seireitei before a gigantic Mushroom Hollow and more enemies appeared. Rei used Blanks to turn Baraggan into an Ōken, and Baraggan broke through the first barrier protecting the Soul King Palace, allowing Rei and his companions to enter.

• A clown Adjuchas killed the proctor and attacked the students, but Rukia saved Gin Miyu from its Bone-Blade Shuriken.
• Renji stepped in to protect the injured Rukia, and Byakuya arrived and destroyed the clown Adjuchas with an incantationless Kidō blast.
• A vast Garganta opened, releasing Gillians and a gigantic Mushroom Hollow that took root in the Seireitei and created more Gillians.
• Yama-jii ordered the Captains into battle and sent Chōjirō Sasakibe to fight; Sasakibe unleashed his Bankai as Yama-jii realized Rei was targeting the Soul King Palace.
• Rei explained that Blanks could substitute for souls in creating an Ōken, then used a spirit art to turn part of Baraggan into one.
• Baraggan passed through the first barrier protecting the Soul King Palace, and Rei and the others followed him inside.

Rei and the Arrancar reached the Soul King Palace and attacked the members of Zero Division at Omotesandō. Ōetsu Nimaiya killed Pasako and Tier Harribel with his Zanpakuto, while Ulquiorra fought him and Rei secretly used a red energy on Harribel’s corpse.

• Yama-jii told four Captains to prepare to aid Zero Division, while Ayon defeated Chōjirō Sasakibe and Sajin Komamura entered the battle.
• Rei led Grimmjow, Baraggan, Harribel, Ulquiorra, and other Arrancar through the barriers to the Soul King Palace, where they confronted Zero Division.
• Grimmjow attacked Tenjirō Kirinji, while Baraggan, Picaro, and Pasako fought the divine soldiers; Ōetsu killed Pasako with a single strike.
• Ōetsu cut through Harribel’s hollow sword and killed her, then used Demon Void to trap Baraggan as his deathly aura attacked.
• Ulquiorra released Segunda Etapa and resumed his fight with Ōetsu, while Rei examined Harribel’s wound and sent red energy into her corpse.

Grimmjow, Ulquiorra, Leiluo, and Modier fought the Zero Division across Omotesandō, while Kirio Hikifune's cage and Tenjirō Kirinji's healing and draining waters hindered the attackers. Ōetsu Nimaiya recovered from a severe wound and prepared to face his three opponents again, while Picaro released his Resurrección against Senjumaru.

• Tenjirō Kirinji used Kirio Hikifune's Life Barrier to trap Grimmjow, whose Cero and Gran Rey Cero only made the cage grow; Grimmjow then released Pantera and fought Tenjirō through the draining white water.
• Rei ordered Modier to help Leiluo, and the pair froze and attacked a Second-Class Divine Soldier until Ulquiorra's Cero shattered him.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya cut off Ulquiorra's arm, but Ulquiorra regenerated and wounded him; Modier and Leiluo joined Ulquiorra and severely injured Ōetsu Nimaiya.
• Tenjirō Kirinji's white and red waters healed Ōetsu Nimaiya, who recovered and promised to make his opponents unable to dodge.
• Senjumaru trapped Picaro's feet with needles and threads, prompting Picaro to release his Resurrección.

Rei used the Hōgyoku to restore and empower his allies, turning the battles against the Zero Division in his favor as he advanced toward the Soul King's Inner Palace. He reached the palace’s concealed barrier, where Ichibē Hyōsube confronted him with a sweeping brush.

• Ōetsu Nimaiya killed Modier and Leiluo by drawing them into his spatial Zanpakuto, then vanished with Ulquiorra to continue their fight.
• Kirinji steadily drained Grimmjow with his spring water, while Picaro broke through Senjumaru’s defenses until Kirio Hikifune intervened.
• Rei shared the Hōgyoku’s power with Grimmjow and Picaro, restoring their strength and greatly enhancing them.
• Rei revived Tier Harribel and empowered her, then completed the evolutions of Baraggan and Ulquiorra as the battles continued.
• Ulquiorra survived severe injuries and cut off Ōetsu’s left hand, while Baraggan’s death aura destroyed Kirio’s Life Barrier.
• Rei sensed the Soul King watching him, reached a concealed barrier before the Inner Palace, and dodged a brush attack from the wide-eyed monk guarding it.