Chapter Summaries

Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin’s spar nearly turned lethal as she pressed her advantage, forcing Chiba Makoto to intervene. He unveiled a vast wooden Buddha and called it “Bankai: Tree Realm Birth,” leaving the gathered captains—and all of Seireitei—staring at his apparent Bankai.

• Soi Fon used Shunkō to overpower Ichimaru Gin, smashing aside Shinso and driving him back with her attacks.
• Ichimaru Gin prepared to unleash Bankai as Soi Fon charged at him, but Chiba Makoto appeared between them and warned them not to treat their spar as a fight to the death.
• Chiba Makoto covered the training ground with grass and giant trees, separating Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin.
• Chiba Makoto merged into a tree, announced “Bankai: Tree Realm Birth,” and formed a colossal wooden Buddha surrounded by countless arms.
• The wooden Buddha rose above the First Division buildings, drawing attention across Seireitei.

Chiba Makoto revealed his Bankai, Tree Realm Birth, and presented it as a formidable form born from a healer’s resolve. While most Captains accepted his explanation, Unohana Retsu and Aizen Sōsuke doubted it, and Makoto offered to test Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin next.

• Chiba Makoto released Tree Realm Birth, manifesting a colossal Buddha seated above a vast forest and towering over the Seireitei.
• Chiba explained that his Bankai sacrificed healing and agility for overwhelming offense and defense, prompting the Captains to praise his resolve.
• Aizen Sōsuke suspected that the Bankai did not suit Makoto, while Unohana Retsu recognized that it had no connection to his transformed spirit body and chose not to expose him.
• Chiba offered to fight Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin to test their qualifications for becoming Captains.
• Soi Fon bristled at the implication that she needed Makoto’s help, while Ichimaru Gin called Makoto’s gentle, pitying manner detestable.

Chiba Makoto used Bankai: Tree Realm Birth · Thousand Blooming Trees to overwhelm Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin, forcing them to stop holding back. Ichimaru Gin pierced the Great Buddha with his Bankai, while Soi Fon revealed a massive new weapon as the fight continued.

• Chiba Makoto unleashed thousands of giant Buddha palms against Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin, leaving the observing Captains stunned by his strength.
• Soi Fon used Shunkō to block the palms while Ichimaru Gin extended Shinso to evade them, but both were eventually smashed into the ground.
• Chiba Makoto told them that damaging the Buddha palms would not hurt him and challenged them to show their resolve to become Captains.
• Ichimaru Gin released Bankai: God Killer Spear and pierced the Great Buddha's chest at extraordinary speed.
• Ichimaru Gin turned toward Soi Fon and saw that Suzumebachi had transformed into a huge golden, whip-like missile secured to her arm and body.
• Soi Fon stomped the ground, spreading the weapon's golden structures outward like a launch platform.

Soi Fon finally unleashed her Bankai, Kōkō Sendan, after decades of training inspired by her devotion to Chiba Makoto and his story about becoming the sun. She fired its missile at the giant Buddha, leaving Makoto alarmed by the attack’s power.

• Soi Fon recalled how Yoruichi’s disappearance had devastated her and how Makoto’s kindness had warmed her heart.
• Soi Fon remembered Makoto telling her that someone could touch the sun by becoming the sun, and sharing a story about two suns bringing peace.
• Soi Fon completed her Bankai training and released Kōkō Sendan, forming a massive golden launcher that fixed her in place.
• The captains questioned the strange Bankai, while Kurotsuchi Mayuri watched with interest and Chiba Makoto feared its destructive power.
• Soi Fon aimed Jakuhō Raikōben at the giant Buddha and launched the missile toward its chest.

Soi Fon’s first use of Bankai: Kōkō Sendan unleashed a nuclear-like explosion that threatened her and the captains in the training ground. Chiba Makoto drove the blast into the sky and shielded Soi Fon, leaving the Seireitei damaged by the explosion’s aftereffects.

• Soi Fon’s Jakuhō Raikōben erupted with extreme light and heat, overwhelming the Giant Buddha’s palms and leaving her unable to move.
• Chiba Makoto released All Things in Nature and used his enhanced Reishi Control to contain the blast with the Giant Buddha’s many palms.
• Chiba Makoto pushed the sealed explosion through the shattered Kidō barrier and into the sky above the Seireitei, where it burst and tore open the Soul-Covering Membrane.
• The explosion’s shock wave and heat destroyed the training ground, and Chiba Makoto stood in front of the helpless Soi Fon to protect her.
• Soi Fon apologized to Chiba Makoto for her reckless first use of Bankai, and he reassured her that everything was all right.

After Soi Fon’s Bankai unleashed a devastating explosion, Chiba Makoto saved her and treated her in the First Division. He diagnosed severe side effects that would leave her unable to recover Reiryoku or use her Zanpakuto for at least a month, while Ichimaru Gin waited outside to speak with him.

• Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni diverted the explosion’s remaining shockwaves, but the blast wrecked the First Division training ground and damaged the surrounding barracks.
• Chiba Makoto emerged from the smoke carrying an almost uninjured Soi Fon, while the battered Ichimaru Gin followed him.
• Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni ended the Captain promotion assessment and ordered Chiba Makoto to treat Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin.
• Chiba Makoto examined Soi Fon in a temporary treatment room and warned her that she had used power she could not understand or control.
• Chiba Makoto told Soi Fon that she would be unable to recover her Reiryoku or use her Zanpakuto for at least a month, then found Ichimaru Gin waiting outside.

Chiba Makoto reassured Ichimaru Gin that he trusted him and warned that Aizen Sōsuke was likely behind the changes in Hueco Mundo. He explained that Gin was better positioned to become a captain, leaving Gin to consider the risks of joining the Expeditionary Force.

• Chiba Makoto told Ichimaru Gin that he had trusted him for more than fifty years and thanked him for his desire to protect him.
• Chiba Makoto warned Ichimaru Gin that Aizen Sōsuke was dangerous and would likely join the Expeditionary Force.
• Ichimaru Gin worried that he could not become a captain if Aizen joined the force and Gin remained his vice-captain.
• Chiba Makoto explained that the vacant Second and Third Division captaincies made Soi Fon and Ichimaru Gin the likely candidates, while his own Bankai made him less suitable for the Third Division.
• Chiba Makoto congratulated Ichimaru Gin in advance, then expressed concern that Gin might become one of the Expeditionary Force captains.

The captains chose Ichimaru Gin to lead the Third Division after Unohana Retsu argued that Makoto was not yet ready for captaincy. Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni then formed an Expeditionary Force to investigate the dangerous abnormalities in Hueco Mundo, naming Aizen Sōsuke commander and assigning Makoto as a vice-captain.

• Soi Fon secured the Second Division captaincy, while the captains debated whether Makoto or Ichimaru Gin should lead the Third Division.
• Unohana Retsu objected to Makoto's promotion because his training was incomplete, and Yamamoto appointed Ichimaru Gin as Third Division captain.
• Yamamoto announced an Expeditionary Force of three captains and one thousand elite Soul Reapers to address the dangerous situation in Hueco Mundo.
• Zaraki Kenpachi, Komamura Sajin, Tōsen Kaname, Kuchiki Byakuya, Aizen Sōsuke, and Shiba Isshin volunteered for the mission.
• Yamamoto appointed Aizen Sōsuke commander, with Tōsen Kaname and Ichimaru Gin as captains and Chiba Makoto among the vice-captains.

After the captains finalized the Expeditionary Force, Kyōraku Shunsui and Ukitake Jūshirō discussed its leadership and warned their subordinates to rely on Chiba Makoto if danger arose. Chiba learned he would lead the medical unit and suspected Aizen Sōsuke planned to use the expedition to take control of Hueco Mundo and advance his experiments, so he resolved to prepare a contingency.

• The captains concluded plans for a thousand-member Expeditionary Force, with Aizen Sōsuke commanding and Tōsen Kaname and Ichimaru Gin assisting.
• Kyōraku Shunsui told Ise Nanao to stay close to Chiba Makoto if trouble arose, then accidentally revealed that he had visited an izakaya and fled when she confronted him.
• Ukitake Jūshirō advised Shiba Kaien that Chōjirō Sasakibe and Chiba Makoto would be reliable if the expedition encountered danger.
• Unohana Retsu informed Chiba Makoto that he would join the Expeditionary Force and lead its medical unit, and he accepted the assignment with curiosity about Hueco Mundo.
• Chiba suspected Aizen Sōsuke had used Kyōka Suigetsu to create the apparent rise in Adjuchas numbers and planned to weaken Barragan while taking control of Hueco Mundo.
• Chiba concluded that Aizen’s Hollowification experiments had advanced and decided to prepare a backup in case Aizen turned against him.

As the Expeditionary Force assembled, a Great Hollow attacked Shin'ō Academy students during their first Soul Burial field training, leaving Kuchiki Rukia and her classmates trapped in the World of the Living. Chiba Makoto and Kuchiki Byakuya rushed to respond, while the students' hiding place was discovered before rescue arrived.

• Chiba Makoto learned that Kuchiki Byakuya planned to adopt Rukia before marrying Hisana, but a servant reported that a Great Hollow had attacked Rukia's training group.
• Kuchiki Byakuya and Chiba Makoto hurried to Shin'ō Academy, where they learned the Senkaimon to the training grounds had been destroyed and Aizen Sōsuke had gone to lead a rescue.
• Chiba Makoto recognized Rukia, Abarai Renji, Kira Izuru, and Hinamori Momo among the endangered students, while the Great Hollow hunted them in an abandoned steel factory.
• Kira Izuru realized that the Great Hollow could sense the students' spiritual pressure, and Rukia tried to reassure her companions that reinforcements would come.
• The Great Hollow tore open the sheet metal hiding Rukia, Abarai Renji, Kira Izuru, and Hinamori Momo, declaring that its food had gathered together.

Rukia and her friends faced a powerful Great Hollow, and Rukia used the high-level Bakudō Rikōjōgō to save Hinamori Momo. Afterward, Renji and Kira questioned where Rukia had learned the spell, leaving her worried that revealing her connections to powerful Soul Reapers would drive her friends away.

• Rukia pulled Hinamori Momo clear as the Great Hollow struck the ground, then the Hollow swiftly cut off the group’s escape.
• Rukia told Abarai Renji, Kira Izuru, and Hinamori Momo to stall for time while she prepared a powerful Bakudō.
• Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru attacked the Hollow while Hinamori Momo hit it with Crimson Fire Cannon, apparently stopping it.
• Aizen Sōsuke watched Hinamori Momo and considered her a useful potential pawn.
• The Great Hollow attacked Hinamori Momo from behind, but Rukia trapped it with Kidō #61: Rikōjōgō.
• Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru asked Rukia where she had learned the high-level spell, and she worried that telling them the truth would change their friendship.

Rukia’s Kidō failed to restrain the Great Hollow, and Hinamori Momo nearly became its next victim. Chiba Makoto rescued her and confronted Aizen Sōsuke while the enraged Hollow prepared to attack.

• Rukia exhausted her spiritual pressure using Kidō #61: Rikōjōgō, but the Great Hollow began breaking free.
• Hinamori Momo charged the Great Hollow, but her Asauchi could not pierce its mask.
• The Great Hollow shattered Rukia’s binding and moved to swallow Hinamori Momo.
• Chiba Makoto appeared, saved Hinamori Momo, and blocked the Great Hollow’s attack.
• Chiba Makoto and Aizen Sōsuke exchanged remarks about the rescue, while Chiba grew more wary of Aizen.
• The Great Hollow roared at Chiba Makoto and Aizen Sōsuke.

Chiba Makoto effortlessly destroyed the Menos and treated the injured Shinigami, impressing Hinamori Momo, Abarai Renji, and Kira Izuru. Rukia realized her friends had all been won over by him and vowed to expose his true nature.

• Aizen Sōsuke suggested Chiba Makoto deal with the Menos, while Rukia warned Makoto that it had broken free of Kidō #61: Rikōjōgō.
• Chiba Makoto refused Aizen Sōsuke's offer of help and killed the Menos with a single unseen slash.
• Rukia recalled that Makoto had tricked her into believing she could not resist Bakudō #61 and became embarrassed and angry.
• Hinamori Momo scolded Rukia for insulting Makoto, then blocked her view of him.
• Chiba Makoto treated Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru while deliberately winning their admiration, and Rukia saw that all three had been charmed by him.

After the Menos Grande attack, Aizen Sōsuke confronted Chiba Makoto about his secret research and revealed that Kyōka Suigetsu had deceived Urozakuro. He left Chiba Makoto stunned by threatening to report the research to Central 46 and suggesting the Zero Division might recruit him.

• Aizen Sōsuke directed the Soul Reapers handling the aftermath while asking Chiba Makoto why he did not comfort the surviving first-years.
• Aizen Sōsuke implied that he had been watching Chiba Makoto and named mid-June twelve years earlier, when Chiba Makoto had modified Hisagi Shūhei using Spirit Body Layering.
• Chiba Makoto realized that Aizen Sōsuke had known about his research and asked when Urozakuro had fallen under Kyōka Suigetsu.
• Aizen Sōsuke said Urozakuro had been under Kyōka Suigetsu from the beginning and explained how he had overcome her ability.
• Chiba Makoto prepared to fight Aizen Sōsuke, but Aizen Sōsuke instead teased him about reporting his research to Central 46 and the possibility of his recruitment into the Zero Division.
• Chiba Makoto nearly choked at Aizen Sōsuke's suggestion.

Chiba Makoto realized Aizen Sōsuke intended to continue their conflict in Hueco Mundo, then joined a massive expeditionary force as its medical Vice-Captain. As Makoto entered the Garganta, he spotted Unohana Retsu among those seeing the force off.

• Aizen Sōsuke told Makoto to look forward to their trip to Hueco Mundo, while Makoto suspected their confrontation had only begun.
• Makoto encouraged Hinamori Momo and the other students, then met Kuchiki Byakuya, who said the matter with Rukia had been resolved.
• More than a thousand elite Soul Reapers assembled to enter Hueco Mundo, with Makoto leading Fourth Division medical support and Yamada Hanataro as his assistant.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri opened a Garganta, and Aizen Sōsuke led the expeditionary force through it.
• As Makoto entered the Garganta last, he noticed Unohana Retsu among the people seeing them off and murmured, “Teacher Unohana...”

Chiba Makoto entered Hueco Mundo with the Expeditionary Force and helped establish a secure camp before Aizen Sōsuke called a meeting about their mission. When Makoto proposed a cautious plan to protect the camp while investigating the Adjuchas anomaly, Tōsen Kaname condemned him as a coward.

• Unohana Retsu silently told Chiba Makoto she would wait for his return, and Makoto waved and replied that he would come back.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri urged Makoto to enter the Garganta, and the Expeditionary Force crossed the Dangai into Hueco Mundo without serious casualties.
• Aizen Sōsuke ordered the force to purify nearby Hollows and establish a secure camp with Kidō barriers.
• Aizen Sōsuke called a meeting to discuss eliminating Adjuchas and investigating their abnormal numbers, making Makoto suspect Aizen was involved in the anomaly.
• Makoto recommended protecting the camp, expanding outward cautiously, and capturing intelligent Adjuchas for questioning.
• Tōsen Kaname angrily accused Makoto of cowardice and challenged him to take responsibility for preserving the balance of souls.

The Expeditionary Force debated how to handle Hueco Mundo’s growing Hollow population, and Aizen Sōsuke endorsed a cautious strategy while winning the vice-captains’ approval. As the force began rotating teams through patrols, Chiba Makoto had time to study Hueco Mundo and reflect on what he knew of the world’s origins.

• Chiba Makoto warned Tōsen Kaname that he could arrange a secluded exchange with Unohana Retsu, making Tōsen fall silent.
• Chōjirō Sasakibe argued that the Expeditionary Force had to curb the Adjuchas population to protect the balance of souls and prevent Vasto Lorde-class Hollows from emerging.
• Aizen Sōsuke agreed with Chōjirō Sasakibe but stressed that he had to keep his comrades safe, and Tōsen Kaname immediately supported him.
• Aizen Sōsuke arranged for the three captains to lead rotating teams, with one captain available for support and another remaining at camp.
• Chiba Makoto left Yamada Hanataro in charge of the Medical Relief Squad and spent his free time exploring the camp and studying Hueco Mundo.
• Chiba Makoto pondered Hueco Mundo’s barren landscape and recalled what he had learned about the Soul King, the Royal Guard, and Yhwach.

Chiba Makoto visited Ise Nanao at night and asked her to inspect the camp’s Kidō barrier with him. Ise agreed, and they began patrolling the perimeter together.

• Chiba Makoto recalled Unohana Retsu’s account of the battle a thousand years earlier and worried about Aizen Sōsuke’s suspicious normalcy.
• Chiba Makoto went to Ise Nanao’s tent and asked her to patrol the camp’s Kidō barrier with him.
• Ise Nanao initially said her regular inspections had found no problems, but agreed to accompany Chiba Makoto.
• Ise Nanao changed into her Shinigami uniform and led Chiba Makoto around the camp perimeter, where he admired her intricate barrier work.

Ise Nanao explained the Kidō barrier’s hidden passages to Chiba Makoto, who memorized her instructions. In Hueco Mundo, Barragan Louisenbairn ordered his forces to attack Tier Harribel, while the blindfolded Tōsen Kaname wandered near Las Noches, unable to sense any Great Hollows.

• Ise Nanao detailed the Kidō barrier’s back doors and ways to pass through it, and Chiba Makoto memorized everything she said.
• An Adjuchas reported to Barragan Louisenbairn that Soul Society had sent another expedition and that Great Hollows in one area had vanished.
• Barragan learned that his messengers to Tier Harribel had not returned and killed two Adjuchas with his aging power as he left his throne.
• Barragan ordered the Great Hollows of Las Noches to surround and suppress Tier Harribel before attacking the maggot who had provoked him.
• Tōsen Kaname passed near Las Noches and wondered why he could not sense any Great Hollows or find the stronghold.

Tōsen Kaname returned late from his mission, and Chiba Makoto offered him a one-percent chance of restoring his sight after practicing eye transplants on Hollows. Aizen Sōsuke learned that Tōsen had failed to find Las Noches and suspected Chiba was connected to the unexplained changes in Hueco Mundo.

• Tōsen Kaname returned to camp late, and Chiba Makoto asked whether he had gotten lost.
• Chiba Makoto told Tōsen Kaname that he had a one-percent chance of restoring his sight and suggested practicing transplants on Adjuchas-class Menos.
• Aizen Sōsuke suggested that Hollows could serve as practice patients, and Chiba Makoto agreed that Adjuchas-class Menos might work.
• Tōsen Kaname privately told Aizen Sōsuke that he had not found Las Noches and had encountered only ruined walls with no spiritual pressure above the Adjuchas level.
• Aizen Sōsuke connected Tōsen Kaname’s report with the unusual Hollow activity and suspected Chiba Makoto had made hidden arrangements in Hueco Mundo.