Chapter Summaries

The captains debated how to assess students seeking early graduation, including two exceptional first-year students. Kurotsuchi Mayuri proposed sending them to Akita Prefecture to purify Hollows after abnormal spiritual pressure and a surge in Hollows were detected there.

• Captain Commander Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni asked the captains to carefully consider this year's graduation assessment because two gifted first-year students had applied.
• Kyoraku Shunsui suggested making the trial easier, while Gin Ichimaru recalled his own dangerous graduation assignment in Hueco Mundo.
• Kenpachi Zaraki argued that early graduates should prove they could fight Hollows independently, and Yamamoto agreed that the trial should test their resolve.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri reported that Hollows had doubled in Akita Prefecture and proposed making their purification the students' assessment.

The captains debated whether students should be assessed by purifying Hollows in the Living World, and Yamamoto asked Jushiro Ukitake to judge the plan’s suitability. Ukitake said Akita Prefecture’s increased Hollow numbers should still pose little danger if experienced Shinigami accompanied the students.

• Kenpachi Zaraki argued that Hollows in the Living World were too weak to make a meaningful assessment.
• Aizen Sōsuke called it inappropriate to assign students duties belonging to Ukitake’s Thirteenth Division, and Gin Ichimaru challenged Aizen over his earlier assessment.
• Komamura Sajin told Gin to stop quibbling and follow the Captain Commander’s instructions.
• Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni asked Jushiro Ukitake whether students could be assessed by purifying Hollows in the Living World.
• Jushiro Ukitake said the Hollow threat in Akita Prefecture should not be serious if experienced Shinigami protected the students.

Yamamoto approved Kurotsuchi Mayuri’s proposal for Kurotsuchi Nemu and Kotetsu Kiyone to accompany the early graduation assessment and protect the examinees. After the meeting, Aizen summoned Gin Ichimaru and Tōsen Kaname to his study, leaving his purpose unrevealed.

• Kurotsuchi Mayuri proposed that Kurotsuchi Nemu lead the team for the early graduation assessment.
• Gin Ichimaru mocked Lin Feng’s special treatment, and Yamamoto reprimanded him for making an issue of it.
• Yamamoto approved Mayuri’s proposal and assigned Nemu and Kotetsu Kiyone to protect the examinees.
• Aizen told Mayuri to ensure Nemu protected the students, and Mayuri dismissed his reminder.
• Aizen dismissed Hinamori Momo, entered his study, and summoned Gin and Tōsen Kaname from the shadows.

Aizen took an interest in Lin Feng and ordered Tōsen Kaname to ensure the Akita Prefecture examination revealed his strength. As the early graduation candidates prepared to enter the Living World, Kurotsuchi Nemu and Kotetsu Kiyone arrived at the academy.

• Aizen said Lin Feng was likely hiding his strength and hoped he would display it during the examination, while Tōsen promised to carry out Aizen’s wishes.
• Nagano Yakumo and the other students resented Lin Feng and Asai Reiko’s early graduation and hoped Hollows would kill them in the Living World.
• Six upper-grade teachers briefed the examination candidates on purifying Hollows, their assigned groups, and the dangers of traveling through the Dangai.
• Kurotsuchi Nemu and Kotetsu Kiyone arrived at Shinigami Academy, drawing a commotion from the students.

Lin Feng and the other students traveled through the Dangai and arrived in the Living World for their assessment. He was assigned to a team with Asai Reiko and the fifth-year student Takakura Kensho, who hoped to graduate by surviving the team-based test.

• Kurotsuchi Nemu caught Lin Feng's attention, but he told Asai Reiko that Nemu was not a real person because Kurotsuchi Mayuri had made her.
• Six teachers opened the World Crossing Gate, and the students followed a Hell Butterfly safely through the dangerous Dangai.
• Lin Feng reached the Living World for the first time with the student group.
• Lin Feng and Asai Reiko were teamed with Takakura Kensho, who realized that surviving the assessment with the two geniuses could earn him graduation.

Asai Reiko volunteered to fight the Hollows during the graduation exam, while Lin Feng agreed to let her handle the combat. Kurotsuchi Nemu joined the exam to observe Lin Feng, and the chapter ended as his group encountered their first Hollow.

• Asai Reiko asked Lin Feng to let her handle the exam's Hollow fights, and he agreed.
• Takakura Kensho overheard them and became hopeful that he would graduate.
• Kurotsuchi Nemu and Kotetsu Kiyone split up to protect the examinees, with Nemu heading toward Lin Feng's area.
• Kurotsuchi Nemu ignored ordinary Plus Souls because she had no sword and wanted to collect Lin Feng's combat data.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri had secretly created extra Hollows to give Lin Feng a chance to fight at full strength.
• Lin Feng, Asai Reiko, and Takakura Kensho found a Hollow, and Takakura Kensho trembled in fear.

Asai Reiko defeated a Hollow with her released Zanpakuto while Takakura Kensho watched in shock. Lin Feng advised her to fight weaker Hollows without releasing it to improve, and Reiko sensed Vice Captain Kurotsuchi Nemu nearby.

• Asai Reiko released Kurama and used Kidō, Flash Step, and a sword strike to kill the charging Hollow.
• Takakura Kensho was stunned by how easily Reiko defeated the Hollow despite being a first-year student.
• Lin Feng praised Reiko’s performance but advised her to fight without releasing her Zanpakuto so she could improve against stronger opponents.
• Asai Reiko told Lin Feng she sensed Vice Captain Kurotsuchi Nemu in the distance and asked if he had sensed her too.

Asai Reiko, Lin Feng, and Takakura Kensho discussed which Division to join after graduation while Kurotsuchi Nemu followed them. Their conversation revealed that Lin Feng and Takakura mainly chose Divisions based on the women in them, and Nemu remained focused on Lin Feng.

• Lin Feng told Asai Reiko that Kurotsuchi Nemu had been following them, then joked that Nemu might be attracted to him.
• Takakura Kensho warned Lin Feng and Asai Reiko not to act recklessly toward Vice Captain Kurotsuchi Nemu.
• Takakura asked which Division Lin Feng planned to join, and Lin Feng considered the 2nd, 8th, 10th, and 12th Divisions.
• Takakura said he planned to join the 10th Division because he preferred Vice Captain Matsumoto Rangiku, and Lin Feng approved of his taste.
• Asai Reiko realized the two men were choosing Divisions based on the women there, while Kurotsuchi Nemu continued following the group and paid particular attention to Lin Feng.

Lin Feng’s team faced three stronger Hollows, and Asai Reiko defeated them after a difficult fight while Lin Feng watched. With five Hollows slain and one more needed to complete the mission, Lin Feng sensed a much larger wave approaching.

• Lin Feng sensed three Hollows approaching, and Asai Reiko chose to fight them without his help.
• Asai Reiko defended herself with Kidō and evaded with Flash Step, sustaining minor injuries as she learned the Hollows’ abilities.
• Asai Reiko killed all three Hollows, and Lin Feng praised her tactics while pointing out that she had wasted Spiritual Power.
• Lin Feng counted five Hollows defeated and sensed a large wave of Hollows approaching.

Lin Feng used Chidori to incapacitate five powerful Hollows that Kurotsuchi Nemu had sent after him, then let Asai Reiko and Takakura Kensho finish purifying them. As Kurotsuchi Nemu wondered how to gather more combat data, a Menos Grande appeared over Akita Prefecture.

• Lin Feng suspected Kurotsuchi Mayuri had arranged for the Hollows to attack and collect data on him.
• Five stronger Hollows surrounded Lin Feng, Asai Reiko, and Takakura Kensho, and Lin Feng released Chidori to strike them with lightning.
• Asai Reiko and Takakura Kensho finished off the incapacitated Hollows while Takakura Kensho marveled at Lin Feng's strength.
• Kurotsuchi Nemu worried that Lin Feng's brief fight had provided too little data for Kurotsuchi Mayuri.
• A terrifying spiritual pressure appeared above Kurotsuchi Nemu and elsewhere in Akita Prefecture, revealing that a Menos Grande had arrived.

Five Menos Grandes appeared in Akita Prefecture during the examination, and Lin Feng recognized the danger as Kurotsuchi Nemu came under attack. He saved Nemu from a Cero and struck down a Menos Grande with his Zanpakuto, leaving the threat facing the examinees unresolved.

• Kotetsu Kiyone sensed five Menos Grandes appear in Akita Prefecture and was alarmed by their sudden arrival.
• Lin Feng recognized the creatures as Menos Grandes and suspected Kurotsuchi Mayuri or Aizen Sōsuke might be behind their appearance.
• A Menos Grande fired a Cero that caught Kurotsuchi Nemu off guard and left her injured.
• Lin Feng shielded Nemu from a second Cero with an incantationless Dankū barrier.
• Lin Feng used Chidori Sharp Spear to pierce a Menos Grande's mask.

Lin Feng killed a Menos and learned that Aizen Sōsuke might be targeting him, while Kurotsuchi Nemu asked him to protect the other examinees. As Menos attacked the remaining Shinigami Academy group, Kotetsu Kiyone and Teacher Yamada decided to regroup with Nemu.

• Lin Feng easily killed a Menos and checked on the injured Kurotsuchi Nemu.
• Kurotsuchi Nemu asked Lin Feng to support the other examinees while she watched over two others.
• Lin Feng suspected Aizen Sōsuke had arranged the attack and worried that getting involved with him would complicate his plans.
• Teacher Yamada urged Kotetsu Kiyone to evacuate the students while he held off two Menos.
• Kotetsu Kiyone told Teacher Yamada that one Menos had disappeared and proposed joining Kurotsuchi Nemu to fight the rest.

Lin Feng arrived as Kotetsu Kiyone and another Shinigami fled from Great Hollows, then used lightning to destroy their pursuers and help end the attack. After Captain Kyoraku failed to discover the cause of the disturbance, Aizen decided to let Lin Feng develop freely unless he became an enemy.

• Kotetsu Kiyone used Red Smoke Escape and fled with another woman while Great Hollows pursued them.
• Kotetsu Kiyone warned Lin Feng to run, but he surged past them in a storm of lightning and blasted apart two Great Hollows.
• Lin Feng fought the remaining Great Hollows and killed six, while the incident left Shinigami Academy with seventy percent of its examinees and five substitute teachers lost.
• Captain Kyoraku investigated the Akita Prefecture disturbance but returned without finding its cause.
• Aizen praised Lin Feng's abilities and told Gin Ichimaru he would let him develop freely, but would kill him if he became an enemy.

After the Menos attack in Akita Prefecture, Yamamoto ordered Kyoraku to investigate and discussed the possibility that Hueco Mundo was behind it. They also considered Lin Feng’s hidden strength and the prospect of appointing him as the Thirteenth Division’s Vice Captain.

• Yamamoto told Kyoraku that the Akita Prefecture incident demanded a serious investigation after the battle cost many students their lives.
• Kyoraku agreed to investigate the Menos and asked how Yamamoto would respond if Vasto Lorde Menos from Hueco Mundo were responsible.
• Yamamoto said the Soul Society could not let Hueco Mundo Hollows run amok if they were plotting an attack.
• Kyoraku reported that Lin Feng was a rare genius who might already rival the captains, though he appeared to be holding back.
• Yamamoto proposed appointing Lin Feng as the Thirteenth Division’s Vice Captain once his background was confirmed, with Ukitake guiding him.

At Urahara Shop, Kisuke Urahara and Tessai Tsukabishi discussed Lin Feng’s remarkable strength and compared his talent with Kurosaki Ichigo’s. Kisuke revealed his belief that Ichigo could fuse three powers and become a king comparable to the Spirit King.

• Kisuke Urahara and Tessai Tsukabishi discussed reports that Lin Feng had cast Danku without an incantation and defeated a Menos Grande with ease.
• Tessai said Lin Feng’s talent might surpass Kurosaki Ichigo’s, but Kisuke insisted Ichigo would surpass Lin Feng within months.
• Kisuke explained that Ichigo carried a bloodline capable of breaking the boundaries between Shinigami, Hollows, and Quincy.
• Kisuke recalled creating the Hogyoku and secretly sealing it within Rukia because he feared its power could endanger the Soul Society.
• Kisuke said he had recently discovered that Ichigo could break the Quincy boundary as well as the boundaries between Shinigami and Hollows.

After graduating from the Shinigami Academy, Lin Feng entered the Gotei 13 and faced a full captains' meeting to determine his placement. Captain Commander Yamamoto asked the captains for suggestions, leaving Lin Feng's future role undecided.

• Kisuke Urahara continued seeking ways to combine Shinigami and Hollow powers and became fascinated by Kurosaki Ichigo's potential to unite Shinigami, Hollow, and Quincy powers.
• Three days after the Akita Prefecture incident, the Shinigami Academy held a graduation ceremony for the survivors who had passed the early graduation examination.
• Lin Feng entered the Gotei 13 with his homeroom teacher and attended a formal meeting with all the captains in the 1st Division Barracks.
• Captain Commander Yamamoto dismissed Teacher Suzuki and asked the captains to recommend a placement for Lin Feng.

The captains debated which division should recruit Lin Feng, with Jushiro Ukitake offering him the Thirteenth Division's vacant Vice Captain post. Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni asked the remaining captains for their suggestions, leaving the decision unresolved.

• Jushiro Ukitake invited Lin Feng to join the Thirteenth Division as its Vice Captain, citing the vacancy left by Shiba Kaien's death.
• Kenpachi Zaraki urged Lin Feng to join the 11th Division and said he could become captain by defeating him.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri offered Lin Feng the 12th Division's Vice Captain position, saying he would dismiss Kurotsuchi Nemu.
• Kyoraku Shunsui declined to compete for Lin Feng because he did not want to replace Ise Nanao.
• Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni asked the other captains whether they had further suggestions.

Lin Feng considered the captains’ invitations and chose to honor Jushiro Ukitake’s earlier offer to fight alongside him. He left the choice clear by expressing his intent to join Ukitake’s Thirteenth Division.

• Captain Commander Yamamoto invited Lin Feng to choose any division after Kenpachi, Kurotsuchi, and Ukitake offered him positions.
• Aizen offered Lin Feng a Third Seat position in the Fifth Division, while Gin Ichimaru mocked the offer and Aizen politely suggested Gin’s Third Division instead.
• Lin Feng decided the Thirteenth Division suited him because Ukitake had offered him the Vice Captain position and its duties would let him travel to the Living World.
• Lin Feng thanked the captains for their interest and reminded Ukitake that he had once invited him to fight shoulder to shoulder.

Lin Feng accepted Jushiro Ukitake’s invitation and was officially appointed Vice Captain of the Thirteenth Division. After the meeting, Kyoraku Shunsui asked whether Lin Feng had encountered a red-haired swordsman, and Lin Feng denied remembering him.

• Lin Feng accepted Ukitake’s offer to join the Thirteenth Division as its Vice Captain.
• Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni confirmed Lin Feng’s appointment after the captains raised no objections.
• Lin Feng left the 1st Division Barracks with Ukitake, and Kyoraku Shunsui congratulated them.
• Kyoraku Shunsui asked Lin Feng whether he had met a red-haired swordsman in the South 80th District, and Lin Feng said he had killed too many wandering swordsmen to remember.

Lin Feng joined the Thirteenth Division as its new Vice Captain after Kyoraku Shunsui probed him about the Red-Haired Killing God. Ukitake introduced him to the assembled division members and explained their duties, while Lin Feng noticed that Rukia Kuchiki was absent.

• Kyoraku Shunsui questioned Lin Feng about an expert in South 80th District, but Lin Feng denied knowing him and offered to meet the expert.
• Lin Feng followed Jushiro Ukitake to the Thirteenth Division barracks and received a Shinigami Uniform and Vice Captain badge.
• Ukitake introduced Lin Feng to the assembled Thirteenth Division members, and Kotetsu Kiyone welcomed him.
• Lin Feng looked for Rukia Kuchiki and noticed she was not present.
• Ukitake explained that most Thirteenth Division members were in the Living World on Soul Burial and Hollow-purification duties, and said he would arrange for Lin Feng to visit them.