Recaps

Ailin explained the limits of Soifon’s Zanpakuto and offered to help her improve through Shunkō instead of rushing into Bankai. Soifon chose strength training to better protect the Second Division, and Ailin took her to Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke’s underground base, where she questioned how he knew about it.

• Ailin explained that Soifon’s Bee Flower needed to form and overlap precisely to kill, and warned that her Bankai could carry severe restrictions if she forced its training too soon.
• Ailin offered Soifon a choice between learning Shunkō and completing Bankai training, and Soifon chose to improve her strength so she could protect the Second Division.
• Ailin told Haruko he and Soifon would be away for up to half a month, then used Shunpo to take Soifon to a hidden entrance.
• Ailin brought Soifon into Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke’s underground base and explained that they had treated Hirako Shinji and the others there before leaving for the Human World.
• Soifon excitedly recognized the base as Yoruichi’s secret place, then asked Ailin how he knew about it.

Ailin taught Soifon to develop wind-attribute Shunkō and Infinite Shunkō, then fought her during her captain assessment as the captains watched. Shunsui realized Aizen’s praise of Ailin might be meant to make Yamamoto wary of Ailin, while he continued pretending not to suspect Aizen.

• Ailin taught Soifon the principles of Shunkō and guided her in finding her own attribute, helping her master basic wind-attribute Shunkō in a week.
• Soifon completed Infinite Shunkō after six months of training with Ailin.
• Soifon challenged Ailin for a captain assessment, and they fought in Mugen Jigoku while the captains watched her display her strength.
• Aizen praised Ailin’s talent and teaching ability, while Shunsui considered whether Aizen’s words were meant to influence Yamamoto.
• Shunsui suspected that Aizen was plotting to make Yamamoto wary of Ailin and concealed his suspicions as he continued speaking with Aizen.

Ailin defeated Soifon in her captain assessment, and the captains approved her as Captain of the Second Division. Years later, after the Gotei 13 returned to peace, Jūshirō Ukitake summoned Ailin and brought up Ginjo Kugo, leaving Ailin waiting to hear what had happened.

• Ailin restrained Soifon with Bakudō and forced her to concede, after which the captains approved her appointment as Captain of the Second Division.
• Three years later, Yamamoto nominated Sajin Komamura as Captain of the Seventh Division, completing the Gotei 13's roster.
• Ailin lost a Go game to Haruko, then received a Hell Butterfly summoning him to meet Jūshirō Ukitake.
• Ailin hurried to the Thirteenth Division barracks and met Ukitake, Kiyone Kotetsu, and Sentarō Kotsubaki.
• Ukitake asked Ailin whether he remembered Ginjo Kugo and explained that Ginjo's Substitute Shinigami Badge could monitor him.

Ailin traveled to the Human World to investigate Ginjo Kugo after Jūshirō Ukitake reported that Ginjo had killed Shinigami. While searching, Ailin encountered Soma Yoshino, a Bount, and learned that the Substitute Shinigami Badge’s signal had vanished.

• Jūshirō Ukitake told Ailin that Ginjo Kugo had killed more than a dozen Shinigami and asked him to investigate.
• Ailin accepted Ukitake’s request, received a tracking Communication Device, and entered a Senkaimon to the Human World.
• The device led Ailin to a Hollow, where he saw Soma Yoshino summon her fire Doll, Hellfire Gate, and defeat it.
• Ailin recognized Soma Yoshino as a Bount and chose not to kill her after noticing she had not begun consuming human souls.
• The Twelfth Division told Ailin that the Substitute Shinigami Badge’s signal had disappeared and gave him its last known location.

Ailin found Ginjo Kugo hiding in Yukio Hans Vorarlberna’s Game Space and confronted him over his suspicion that Soul Society had monitored and betrayed his Fullbringer allies. Ailin promised to investigate who accessed Ginjo’s badge records and stayed in the Human World while Ginjo and Xcution awaited the results.

• Ailin tracked Ginjo Kugo’s Substitute Shinigami Badge to Yukio Hans Vorarlberna’s villa and deduced that Ginjo was hiding in Yukio’s Game Space.
• Ginjo attacked Ailin from behind, but Ailin caught his sword and threw him through a wall before recognizing him.
• Ailin explained that the badge stored monitoring data that was only supposed to be examined after a Substitute Shinigami’s betrayal, and Ginjo accused Soul Society of using it to target his Fullbringer allies.
• Ailin told Jūshirō Ukitake about Ginjo’s suspicions and asked him to investigate who had accessed the badge records and which division’s Shinigami Ginjo had killed.
• Ailin told Ginjo to keep the badge outside the Game Space and left the villa, after which Yukio Hans Vorarlberna, Kiriko Tsukishima, and Shukuro Tsukishima emerged from the Game Space.

Ginjo Kugo planned to gather other Fullbringers’ powers while Ailin studied the Fullbring power in Ginjo’s necklace and considered using him to draw out Ouhana Auhra. After Jūshirō Ukitake discovered that another faction was monitoring Ginjo, he urged Ailin to kill him and return his corpse to Soul Society.

• Ginjo Kugo told Kiriko Tsukishima that he trusted Teacher Ailin for now, while privately planning to absorb the powers of other Fullbringers.
• Ailin examined an identical cross necklace and concluded that Fullbring was an incomplete form of the Soul King’s power.
• Ailin considered using Ginjo Kugo to lure out Ouhana Auhra, then resumed drawing Zanpakuto cards.
• Jūshirō Ukitake told Ailin that the Shinigami records Ginjo had mentioned did not come from the Soul Technology Development Bureau and that another faction was monitoring him.
• Ukitake suspected Urahara Kisuke or Aizen Sosuke and urged Ailin to kill Ginjo Kugo before another faction could act, then bring his corpse back to Soul Society.

Ailin confronted Ginjo Kugo over his crimes and tried to take him back to the Seireitei, but Ginjo fought and was quickly overpowered. Yukio rescued Ginjo into his Game Space, where Ailin began invading, and Shukuro Tsukishima stabbed Ginjo’s hand to wake him.

• Ailin told Ginjo Kugo that the Seireitei had found evidence he was framed but still held him responsible for killing a Shinigami and demanded that he return for judgment.
• Ginjo rejected Ailin’s offer, activated Bankai, and attacked him with Cross Execution and Getsuga Tensho.
• Ailin crushed Ginjo’s Getsuga Tensho, struck him repeatedly, and prepared to bind him with Bakudō.
• Yukio used his Game Space to pull Ginjo away before Ailin could restrain him, then warned that Ailin was invading the space.
• Shukuro Tsukishima stabbed Ginjo Kugo’s left hand with his blade in an attempt to wake him.

Ailin broke free of Yukio’s Game Space and faced Ginjo Kugo, who revealed a powerful Hollowfied form and attacked him with a Cero. Shukuro Tsukishima’s interference let the blast hit Ailin, but he emerged unharmed and discovered Ginjo and the others had escaped.

• Ailin destroyed Yukio’s Game Space with his reiatsu after fighting through its creatures.
• Ginjo Kugo awakened and combined his Fullbring with his Zanpakuto, then revealed his Bankai: Second Stage form, which Ailin identified as Hollowfication.
• Ginjo charged Ailin and struck him with Cross Execution, but Ailin held his ground and blocked the attack.
• Ginjo fired a Cero while Shukuro Tsukishima used his ability to interfere with Ailin and attacked from underground.
• Ailin shattered the ground, grievously injured Shukuro, and was struck by Ginjo’s Cero, which destroyed Yukio’s villa and much of the mountain.
• Ailin walked out of the flames unharmed and realized Ginjo, Shukuro, Yukio, and Kiriko had escaped.

Ailin captured Ginjo Kugo’s body, then used Book of the End’s power to experience the memories Shukuro Tsukishima had inserted into his past. After reclaiming four years of his younger self’s training, Ailin resolved to spend the next hundred years perfecting the single sword strike his past self had practiced.

• Ailin collected Ginjo Kugo’s ruined body, extinguished the villa’s flames, and sat among the ruins to address Shukuro Tsukishima’s influence on his memories.
• Ailin summoned Book of the End from Unlimited Blade Works and discovered that it could insert its wielder’s existence into a person’s past.
• Ailin’s consciousness entered the memories of his ten-year-old self at True Zero Spirit Arts Academy, where he saw Shukuro Tsukishima as a classmate.
• Young Ailin decided to train in Zanjutsu alone so he could grow stronger before the memories of his future battle with Shukuro Tsukishima took hold.
• Over four years, Ailin practiced a single powerful slash, ignored the academy’s other subjects, and accepted occasional corrections from Shukuro Tsukishima without befriending him.
• Ailin recovered the memories of those four years and used Unlimited Blade Works to absorb his younger self’s training experience, resolving to perfect the strike over the next hundred years.

Ailin perfected the strike he had promised his former self to master, while Shukuro Tsukishima's Book of the End failed to reveal Ailin's life. After Ailin returned from the Human World with an unexpected benefit, he found Jūshirō Ukitake waiting for him in the Thirteenth Division courtyard.

• Ailin unified his strength and perfected a strike that split a wooden post, causing Shukuro Tsukishima's records and memories of Ailin's future life to disappear.
• Over the following years, Ailin defeated his classmates, kept training with a practice sword, and declined an Asauchi so he could imprint his strike into his blade.
• Shukuro Tsukishima told Ginjo Kugo that his ability had failed against Ailin and warned him to keep his distance.
• Ginjo Kugo decided not to return to Yukio's family villa for his body, and the others in Yukio's Game Space were relieved to avoid facing Ailin again.
• Ailin checked that no trace of Tsukishima's spirit particles remained on him, opened a Senkaimon, and returned to the Seireitei.
• Jūshirō Ukitake greeted Ailin in the Thirteenth Division courtyard and said his condition had recently improved.

Ailin let Ginjo Kugo escape so he could draw out Ouhana Auhra, then forged a Zanpakuto from the sword of his altered past. Later, Byakuya brought Hisana to the Kuchiki estate, where Ailin welcomed her and teased Byakuya.

• Ailin told Jūshirō Ukitake that Ginjo Kugo had escaped and asked the Twelfth Division to investigate, while secretly tracking Ginjo to lure out Ouhana Auhra.
• Ailin used Unlimited Blade Works to recreate the ordinary sword from his altered past and make it a Zanpakuto with Ittou Shura and Ittou Rasetsu as its releases.
• Ailin continued his peaceful life, occasionally fighting Zaraki as Zaraki's spiritual pressure grew stronger.
• Ailin sensed Byakuya at the Kuchiki estate during the day and was surprised when Byakuya arrived with Hisana, whom he introduced as a friend from the Rukon District.
• Ailin greeted Hisana and teased Byakuya for leaving her alone while he went to fetch a chair.

Ailin explained that Hisana’s lack of spiritual pressure meant living in the Seireitei beside Byakuya would gradually weaken her soul and kill her, while Byakuya learned Ailin could not save her as he had saved Haruko. The chapter left Hisana frightened by the danger but still determined to overcome every hardship to stay with Byakuya.

• Ailin questioned whether Byakuya and Hisana understood the challenges of marriage, and Hisana described their difference in status and the opposition Byakuya might face.
• Ailin revealed that Byakuya’s position as head of one of the Four Great Noble Houses and captain of the Sixth Division made clan opposition insignificant, shocking Hisana.
• Byakuya declared that he wanted to be with Hisana, but Ailin pointed out that she had no spiritual pressure and would be harmed by the Seireitei’s spiritual pressure.
• Ailin said he had used a uniquely powerful Zanpakuto to stabilize Haruko and had no second weapon capable of saving someone in the same way, leaving Byakuya uncertain about Hisana’s future.
• Hisana pledged to overcome the hardships of being with Byakuya, and Ailin warned her that her soul would weaken until she died within a few years.

Hisana chose to live with Byakuya despite having only a few years left, and Ailin reluctantly accepted their relationship while privately hoping to arrange a future between Byakuya and Rukia. At an izakaya, Ailin reunited with Shunsui Kyōraku and learned that Ise Nanao had neglected her training while searching for information about her father’s killer.

• Hisana told Ailin she would live with Byakuya even if she had only a few years left, and Byakuya held her as she reaffirmed her choice.
• Ailin accepted Hisana and Byakuya’s decision, then left the Kuchiki estate to drink with Captain Kyōraku.
• Ailin reflected on Hisana’s past abandonment of Rukia and resolved to oppose Byakuya adopting Rukia as his younger sister if Hisana died.
• Ailin met Shunsui Kyōraku and Ise Nanao at the izakaya, teased Kyōraku about bringing Nanao there, and asked whether he treated her well.
• Ailin criticized Nanao’s weak spiritual pressure, and Kyōraku explained that she devoted her time to intelligence work and searching for the person who killed her father.

Ailin urged Ise Nanao to stop investigating her father's assassination and focus on becoming stronger, offering to train her and hinting that he knew Shunsui Kyōraku had the Ise Family’s Eight Mirror Sword. After discussing Byakuya and Hisana with Haruko, Ailin explored the Rukon District and found the Shiba Clan’s estate.

• Ailin confronted Ise Nanao about her investigation, and she agreed to delegate it and devote herself to training.
• Ailin offered to teach Nanao at the Kuchiki Clan estate, then asked Shunsui Kyōraku whether she should also learn swordsmanship because the Eight Mirror Sword might return to her one day.
• Shunsui Kyōraku realized Ailin suspected he possessed the Eight Mirror Sword and indirectly confirmed it; Ailin told him that possessing a threat mattered even if it went unused.
• Ailin told Haruko he would not oppose Byakuya and Hisana’s marriage, and he decided to make Kuchiki Rukia his disciple when she entered True Zero Spirit Arts Academy.
• Ailin began searching the Rukon District for promising children and discovered the Shiba Clan’s residence, approaching its enormous cannon structures.

Ailin encountered Kaien Shiba and his siblings practicing Kido and urged Kaien to study at the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy and become a Shinigami. After Ailin left, Kukaku tried to dissuade Kaien, fearing she would lose her only remaining family.

• Ailin met Kaien Shiba, Kukaku Shiba, and Ganju Shiba at the Shiba Clan home, where the siblings were practicing Kido.
• Kaien identified himself and his siblings, and Ailin introduced himself as captain of the Eleventh Division and an acquaintance of their uncle, Isshin Shiba.
• Kukaku objected to Ailin’s criticism of the clan’s training, but Ailin explained that the Seireitei’s nobles—not Shinigami as a whole—had persecuted the Shiba Clan.
• Ailin warned Kaien that the clan needed strength to protect itself and urged him to attend the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy and become a Shinigami.
• After Ailin departed, Kukaku pleaded with Kaien not to listen to him, afraid her brother would enter danger and leave her alone.

Kaien Shiba persuaded Kukaku Shiba to let him enter the Seireitei and become a Soul Reaper so he could help restore the Shiba Clan. Ailin began training Ise Nanao in the underground base, while Kaien’s enrollment at the Academy drew attention for his exceptional Reiatsu.

• Kaien Shiba convinced Kukaku Shiba that joining the Seireitei was the best chance to rebuild the Shiba Clan, and Kukaku agreed to let him go.
• After Kaien left, Kukaku Shiba moved again with Ganju Shiba to keep the clan’s new residence hidden.
• Ailin took Ise Nanao to Urahara’s underground base and began planning her Kido-focused training, with Shunpo and swordsmanship as supplements.
• Ailin explained that Nanao’s family had guarded the lost Eight Mirror Sword and encouraged her to learn combat skills in case the artifact returned.
• Soul Reapers at the Academy discussed Kaien Shiba’s enrollment and his Fifth Rank Reiatsu.

Upper nobles plotted to seize the Shiba Clan’s inheritance and its Great Noble authority after Kaien Shiba entered the Seireitei, while Ailin trained Ise Nanao in a new sensory technique called Observation. The chapter ended with Ailin challenging Nanao to push him out of a circle for a chance to learn about her erased family.

• Several nobles discussed Kaien Shiba’s arrival and planned to determine whether he belonged to the Shiba main house so they could pursue its inheritance.
• Ailin considered the Five Noble Clans’ authorities and the Ise Family’s connection to the Eight Mirror Sword and the Spirit King.
• Ailin defeated Ise Nanao in their training match, praised her Kido, and taught her how to develop Observation using tracking Kido.
• Ailin told Nanao she could use any means to force him out of a circle within fifteen minutes, promising to reveal something about the Ise Family if she succeeded.

Ailin demonstrated how his Perception let him neutralize Ise Nanao’s Kidō and evade her Hakuda, encouraging her to keep training. While searching for Toshiro Hitsugaya and Momo Hinamori, he sensed a familiar spiritual pressure and flew toward it, where Aizen Sosuke was conducting another failed Hollowfication experiment.

• Ailin used Perception to analyze and neutralize Ise Nanao’s Kidō attacks while remaining inside the circle, then evaded her Hakuda until she admitted defeat.
• Ailin reassured Ise Nanao that Perception was one of his trump cards, and she hoped to learn it so she could avenge her father herself.
• Ailin searched Rukon District for Toshiro Hitsugaya and Momo Hinamori, then decided he might have to wait for M Matsumoto Rangiku to find Toshiro.
• Ailin sensed a familiar spiritual pressure and changed course toward it.
• In a forest, Aizen Sosuke, with Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen, watched a Shinigami lose his sanity after Hollowfication, and Aizen considered his research stalled despite his success creating Arrancar.

Ailin caught Aizen, Kaname Tōsen, and Gin Ichimaru conducting Hollowfication experiments and intervened to protect the Hollowfied Shinigami. He attacked the three with his weapons, and after Gin countered his Kido, Ailin warned his former student that drawing his blade meant accepting the risk of death.

• Ailin appeared as Kaname Tōsen tried to kill the Hollowfied Shinigami, and he accused Aizen of conducting Hollowfication experiments.
• Ailin struck Kaname Tōsen with Crimson Cannon and bound the Hollowfied Shinigami with Locking Chain Binding.
• Ailin sent thirty-two Zanpakuto after Aizen, Kaname Tōsen, and Gin Ichimaru; Kaname Tōsen was pierced, while Gin evaded and Aizen defended himself.
• Gin attacked Ailin with Shinsō, but Ailin caught the blade between two fingers and sent Tethering Lightning along it.
• Gin used Counter-Spirit Killing to neutralize Ailin's Kido, and Ailin acknowledged his growth before warning him about the danger of pointing a blade at an enemy.

Ailin defeated Gin Ichimaru and confronted Aizen, while Aizen’s letter prompted Yamamoto and several captains to investigate the accusations against Ailin. The captains arrived during the battle, and Ailin began reading the letter as Yamamoto demanded an explanation.

• Ailin struck Gin Ichimaru with Finger Gun, then turned to face Aizen.
• Aizen’s letter accused Ailin of conducting Hollowfication experiments and warned that he, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen might be killed.
• Yamamoto summoned the captains, and they agreed to investigate the location named in the letter.
• Yamamoto, Soifon, Byakuya Kuchiki, Zaraki, and Jūshirō Ukitake reached the Rukon District and heard Aizen accuse Ailin during their battle.
• Ailin defeated Gin Ichimaru and fought Aizen before the arriving captains separated them.
• Yamamoto gave Ailin the letter and threatened to detain him, while Ailin began reading its accusations.

Ailin read Aizen Sosuke’s letter accusing him of secretly restarting Hollowfication experiments and defended himself before Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto. Yamamoto was inclined to believe Ailin’s account, but the truth remained unresolved.

• Ailin read Aizen Sosuke’s investigation, which tied his past, Haruko’s illness, and Hisana Kuchiki’s condition to alleged Hollowfication experiments.
• Aizen’s letter claimed he, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen had investigated Ailin and warned that Ailin might turn them into experimental subjects.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto asked Ailin to defend himself and released his spiritual pressure after mistaking Ailin’s criticism of the letter for an admission.
• Ailin denied the accusations, said he had visited the Rukon District to find a child to adopt with Haruko, and accused Aizen of framing him.
• Ailin recounted finding Aizen conducting a Hollowfication experiment, stopping Kaname Tōsen from killing the subject, and defeating Tōsen and Gin Ichimaru when they attacked him.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto found Ailin’s explanation more convincing than the letter, though the suspicious coincidences left the matter unsettled.

Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto moved to detain Ailin, Aizen Sosuke, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen after Aizen accused Ailin of conducting the Hollowfication Experiment. Byakuya Kuchiki revealed that Ailin had saved Haruko with a Zanpakuto stronger than Flowing Blade-like Fire, and Yamamoto paused the arrest to investigate her condition; Aizen continued to present himself as having acted on faulty intelligence.

• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto ordered all four captains detained, but Ailin refused and Yamamoto prepared to force him into custody.
• Ailin proposed proving his innocence by showing that Haruko’s recovery came from a source other than the Hollowfication Experiment, and Byakuya Kuchiki revealed that Ailin had created a Zanpakuto surpassing Flowing Blade-like Fire.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto lowered his spiritual pressure and agreed to investigate Haruko’s condition, while Aizen Sosuke accepted blame if Ailin was proven innocent.
• Ailin treated Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen with Bakudo #73—Inverted Mountain Crystal and Healing Art.
• After Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen regained consciousness, Ailin challenged Aizen Sosuke for implying that Yamamoto had cleared them of blame, and Aizen claimed he had acted on incorrect intelligence.

Ailin exposed Aizen’s staged injuries and helped clear Haruko Kuchiki of suspicions of Hollowfication by revealing that Avalon had been preserving her condition. With Ailin’s innocence established, he challenged Aizen and Kaname Tōsen to explain their involvement in the Hollowfied Soul Reaper’s death.

• Ailin secretly stabbed Aizen twice while disguising his attack from the other captains, then returned with the group to the Seireitei.
• Retsu Unohana examined Haruko and found no trace of Hollowfication, discovering instead that a force periodically restored her weakened body.
• Ailin revealed that he had created Avalon, a time-type Zanpakuto that anchored Haruko’s condition and could restore her even after death.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto cleared Ailin of the Hollowfication Experiment suspicions, and Aizen apologized before Ailin rejected the apology.
• Ailin questioned Aizen and Kaname Tōsen about the Hollowfied Soul Reaper; Aizen claimed the Soul Reaper had attacked them, while Tōsen said he had acted under Central 46’s orders.

Ailin exposed Aizen Sosuke’s attempt to hide a Hollowfied Soul Reaper, then reassured Haruko Kuchiki that she mattered more to him than his weapons. Later, a clash between two Captain-level reiatsu erupted in the Eleventh Division, and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto ordered Ailin to investigate and apprehend whoever had released Bankai.

• Ailin reminded the captains that Aizen Sosuke had not explained why a Soul Reaper Hollowfied in front of him, forcing Aizen to restore the Hollowfied Soul Reaper to their sight.
• Ailin told Aizen that he had added him to his kill list, then took Haruko Kuchiki home and reassured her that she was more important to him than any weapon.
• The captains’ meetings grew tense as Soifon and Byakuya Kuchiki clashed with Gin Ichimaru, while Yamamoto continued demanding progress on the Hollowfication Experiment investigation.
• A powerful reiatsu erupted from the Eleventh Division, followed by a second burst and a clash between two Captain-level reiatsu.
• Yamamoto ordered Ailin to find out what had happened in the Eleventh Division and apprehend whoever had released Bankai first.

Umehari, a former Eleventh Division Vice-Captain, returned after more than two hundred years to challenge the imprisoned Jushiro Genpachi and demanded the division help free him. When Kiyone Shunjō refused, Umehari attacked the division, and Ikkaku Madarame's strike failed to cut him.

• Ailin sensed Kiyone Shunjō was struggling and headed toward the Eleventh Division after detecting Ikkaku Madarame release Bankai.
• Umehari broke into the Eleventh Division, wounded a Soul Reaper, and demanded to fight Jushiro Genpachi.
• Kiyone Shunjō explained that Jushiro Genpachi had been imprisoned and that Ailin was the current captain.
• Umehari demanded that the Eleventh Division help rescue Jushiro Genpachi, but Kiyone refused to endanger his members.
• Umehari attacked the Eleventh Division members, and Ikkaku Madarame's Kidōmaru strike sparked harmlessly against Umehari's body.