Recaps

Umehari devastated the Eleventh Division and broke into Central 46’s underground prison to challenge Souya Jōshirō for the title of Kenpachi. Ailin healed the surviving Shinigami, vowed to avenge the dead, and arrived at Central 46 as prisoners escaped.

• Umehari defeated Ikkaku Madarame and Kiyone Shunjō, leaving the Eleventh Division with thirty-two dead Shinigami.
• Ailin arrived, used Void Bandage to restore the barracks and heal the wounded, then told Kiyone Shunjō and Fifth Seat Madarame to prepare the fallen members’ funerals.
• After learning Umehari’s identity and past, Ailin set off to pursue him and avenge the Eleventh Division.
• Umehari smashed through Central 46 and entered the underground prison, calling out Souya Jōshirō to accept his challenge for the Kenpachi title.
• Ailin reached Central 46 just as prisoners escaped from the underground prison after its guards were knocked down.

Ailin confronted the Shinigami prisoners escaping the underground prison and slaughtered those who refused to return. He entered the prison to hunt down further escapees, leaving the remaining prisoners in terror and recalling an earlier murderous Eleventh Division captain.

• Ailin blocked the escaped prisoners and warned them to return to the underground prison or face death.
• More than a dozen prisoners charged at Ailin, and his golden lightning killed them.
• Nearly a hundred prisoners attacked or tried to flee past Ailin, but he unleashed waves of golden lightning that killed them and drove the survivors back into the prison.
• Ailin entered the underground prison, set up a barrier, and killed prisoners he encountered trying to escape.
• The remaining prisoners hid in their cells and compared Ailin's bloodlust and Eleventh Division haori to a murderous swordsman from a thousand years earlier.

Umehari challenged Souya Jōshirō in Mugen Jigoku, using his ability to absorb spiritual pressure to overcome Jōshirō’s defenses. As their confrontation escalated, Ailin arrived and revealed himself as the person who had taken the title of Kenpachi from Jōshirō.

• Umehari found Souya Jōshirō in Mugen Jigoku and attacked, but Jōshirō initially dispersed his blades and let his punch pass harmlessly through him.
• Umehari absorbed the spiritual pressure Jōshirō had fused into the air, then struck him hard enough to injure him.
• Umehari explained how he had fused with his Zanpakuto to absorb spiritual pressure, then activated Bankai and transformed his body into metal blades.
• Umehari demanded that Jōshirō fight him for the title of Kenpachi, but Jōshirō said someone else had already defeated him and claimed the title.
• Ailin entered Mugen Jigoku, identified Umehari as the attacker who had injured hundreds of Soul Reapers and killed thirty-two, and revealed that he was the one who had taken Jōshirō’s title.

Ailin, the Ninth Kenpachi, fought Umehari after revealing that he had defeated Souya Jōshirō. He pushed Umehari to his Bankai’s absorption limit, then overwhelmed him with Shunpo and Zanjutsu before striking at him with a punch.

• Ailin identified himself as the current Kenpachi, and Umehari challenged him to reclaim the title.
• Ailin used Wind Scar to destroy Umehari’s storm of blades, while Umehari absorbed the spiritual pressure and grew stronger.
• Ailin deliberately pushed Umehari to the limit of his absorption, leaving him in his strongest golden form.
• Umehari attacked with golden blades, but Ailin evaded them with afterimages and blocked his all-direction blade attack with a broken blade.
• Umehari fled from Ailin, who appeared beside him and punched toward him as Umehari tried to block and absorb his spiritual pressure.

Ailin crushed Umehari in battle, then healed him so he could kill him thirty-two times for the Eleventh Division members Umehari had slain. Meanwhile, Shunsui Kyōraku investigated the attack on the Eleventh Division and found hidden traces in the incident.

• Ailin battered Umehari through Mugen Jigoku while Souya Jōshirō watched and recognized the vast gap between their strength.
• Ailin severely injured Umehari, who praised him as worthy of the Kenpachi title before Ailin healed him and vowed to kill him thirty-two times.
• Shunsui Kyōraku reviewed reports of the Eleventh Division attack and prepared to report it to Captain-Commander Yamamoto.
• Ise Nanao asked Shunsui about the Eleventh Division, and he reflected on how its members had been left vulnerable during the Captains' Meeting.
• Shunsui discovered hidden traces connected to the attack.

Shunsui Kyōraku told Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto that former Eleventh Division Vice-Captain Umehari’s attack may have been enabled by someone manipulating others’ perceptions, and named Ailin as a suspect. He connected Ailin’s growing Zanpakuto abilities to the King’s Seal and wondered whether something in the underground prison or Mugen Jigoku had drawn him there.

• Shunsui Kyōraku reassured Ise Nanao that Ailin had restored the Eleventh Division’s wounded and buildings, though the fallen Soul Reapers’ bodies might disperse without their souls.
• Shunsui Kyōraku visited the Eleventh Division, saw its restored barracks and the fallen Soul Reapers laid out for funerals, then went to meet Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
• Shunsui Kyōraku reported that Umehari had not entered the Seireitei through any of its gates in over two hundred years and that records suggested Umehari and Ailin had been seen in different places at the same time.
• Shunsui Kyōraku suspected that a Soul Reaper had altered everyone’s perception to conceal Umehari’s entry and attack, and he named Ailin as one of two suspects.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto confirmed that Avalon’s rank exceeded Flowing Blade-like Fire, while Shunsui Kyōraku argued that Ailin’s abilities could include illusions and might have grown after the King’s Seal incident.
• Shunsui Kyōraku suggested that something in the underground prison or Mugen Jigoku could have attracted Ailin, citing spatial ripples around Ailin that resembled the King’s Seal.

Shunsui Kyōraku warned Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto that Ailin might have stolen the King's Seal and that Aizen Sosuke’s Kyoka Suigetsu could hypnotize the entire Seireitei. Ailin killed Umehari after a day of brutal fighting, then realized Aizen’s spiritual pressure had likely driven Umehari to attack the Eleventh Division.

• Shunsui Kyōraku told Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto that he suspected Ailin had stolen the King's Seal, but admitted he had no proof.
• Shunsui Kyōraku revealed that Aizen Sosuke’s Kyoka Suigetsu was an Illusion-type Zanpakuto capable of Complete Hypnosis, and Yamamoto ordered Kyōraku to watch both Ailin and Aizen.
• Ailin defeated Umehari for the thirty-second time, killed him, and incinerated his remains with Hadō #96—One-Hit Kill: Funeral Pyre.
• Ailin presented Umehari’s head to the Eleventh Division and smashed it before the division’s members to honor the thirty-two fallen Soul Reapers.
• Ailin recognized Aizen’s spiritual pressure in Umehari and questioned why Umehari had attacked the Eleventh Division to challenge Souya Jōshirō, who had been imprisoned for over a century.

Ailin decided to kill Aizen after realizing he posed a danger to the people he cared about, then confronted him in the Fifth Division and trapped him in his Bankai. As an ominous disturbance spread through Soul Society, its leaders feared the Spirit King was enraged.

• Ailin used Shadow Blade to create a weaker clone from his severed left arm, then secretly headed for the Fifth Division barracks.
• Ailin confronted Aizen in his captain's office, where Aizen revealed he had planned to force Ailin out of Seireitei before beginning his Hollowfication experiments.
• Aizen tried to use Kyoka Suigetsu to make others witness Ailin killing him, but Ailin activated Bankai and transported them both into his Inner World: Unlimited Blade Works.
• Dark clouds and fierce winds unsettled Soul Society, and Jūshirō Ukitake and the heads of the Five Noble Clans feared the Spirit King might destroy the world.
• Shunsui Kyōraku considered letting Ise Nanao wield a sword if the Spirit King broke free of his seal.

Ailin sensed that the Soul King's Will had turned against him after his actions changed the future, so he contacted the Soul King from the Seireitei. The Soul King's Will stabilized, and Ailin's clone reached the Fifth Division with a green-hilted Zanpakuto.

• Shunsui Kyōraku recalled Ailin's past offer to teach Ise Nanao swordsmanship and wondered whether Ailin had anticipated the upheaval.
• Ailin unleashed his spiritual pressure through the barriers to the Soul King Palace, where the Royal Guard recognized that he had reached a realm defined by the concept of the sword.
• Ailin contacted the Soul King's Will and conveyed what he intended to do, calming its violent fluctuations.
• The dark clouds over the Seireitei dispersed, and Jūshirō Ukitake and the other Soul Reapers wondered what Ailin had done.
• Ailin's clone arrived at the Fifth Division captain's office carrying a green-hilted Zanpakuto.

After absorbing the memories of Aizen Sosuke’s Kyoka Suigetsu, Ailin learned about Aizen’s Hollowfication experiments and schemes involving Kaien Shiba, then began directing Aizen’s plans while posing as him. He ordered Kaname Tōsen to abandon a planned confrontation and supply more Shinigami test subjects for the experiments.

• Ailin synchronized with Aizen Sosuke’s Kyoka Suigetsu and learned that Aizen had sent nearly a hundred self-aware Gillian-class Menos into Soul Society to study Hollowfication in Shinigami.
• Ailin read a report revealing that Miyako had been planted by nobles to approach Kaien Shiba and investigate his connection to the Shiba Clan’s inherited treasure.
• Ailin suspected Aizen had used Aaroniero Arruruerie to attack Miyako in order to gain Kaien’s trust, and decided to watch Miyako and warn Kaien if possible.
• Ailin concluded that he needed to continue the Hollowfication experiments and cultivate White Hollow to create a Soul King Candidate capable of killing the Spirit King.
• Kaname Tōsen reported that he had positioned fourteen Shinigami to help escalate a conflict, but Ailin ordered him to remove those arrangements and avoid the Eleventh Division and the Kuchiki Clan.
• Ailin told Kaname to arrange for more Shinigami to die in battle so they could serve as test subjects for his experiments.

Ailin discovered that the Hogyoku had helped him create the first White Hollow, while Hisana Kuchiki’s illness worsened despite his efforts to keep her alive. As Byakuya prepared for her funeral, Ailin told Hisana that Rukia had appeared and asked whether he should bring her into the Kuchiki Clan.

• Haruko blamed herself for Ailin losing his arm, and he told her he had wagered it on the future and expected to recover it within a hundred years.
• Ailin realized that the Hogyoku had helped him create an early White Hollow, killed the Hollowfied Shinigami, and planned to let Aizen take the next part of the work.
• Hisana’s health deteriorated, and Byakuya stayed by her side while she apologized for being unable to walk with him any longer.
• Ailin arrived and used Void Bandage to stabilize Hisana, then sent Byakuya to prepare for her funeral.
• Ailin told Hisana that Rukia, who resembled her, had entered the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy and asked whether he should take her as his disciple and bring her to the Kuchiki Clan.

Ailin reassured Hisana that he would take Rukia as his disciple and arrange for Byakuya to teach her, while keeping Rukia’s identity secret until she and Byakuya grew close. Hisana faced her approaching death with hope for the people she loved, and Ailin later joined Shunsui Kyōraku and the others at an izakaya, where he told them she would not survive the night.

• Hisana was relieved when Ailin promised to take Rukia as his disciple and said Byakuya would teach her in his stead.
• Ailin explained that he could not promise Rukia would receive the Kuchiki name, and he and Hisana agreed not to tell Byakuya about her yet.
• Byakuya hurried back and caught Hisana after Ailin withdrew the Void Bandage and left the couple alone.
• Ailin went to his usual izakaya and joined Shunsui Kyōraku, Matsumoto Rangiku, Tetsuzaemon Iba, and Shuhei Hisagi.
• Ailin told the group that Hisana was unlikely to survive the night, and Shunsui recalled meeting her years earlier.

At a drinking gathering, Ailin told Rangiku and the other Shinigami how Gin Ichimaru had sacrificed part of his soul to heal Rangiku when they were children. Rangiku realized Gin had never abandoned her and had secretly protected her all along.

• Rangiku asked Ailin to tell them about his history with Gin, and Ailin agreed.
• Ailin recounted finding a cloaked figure harvesting part of a Rukon girl's soul and killing the Shinigami who stood guard, while the cloaked figure escaped.
• Ailin discovered the girl’s soul was damaged, and Gin offered part of his own soul to help heal her.
• After saving the girl, Ailin urged Gin to become a Shinigami, trained him in the Eleventh Division, and let him visit her secretly.
• Ailin revealed that Gin later escorted the girl to the Seireitei when she wanted to attend the Academy, and Rangiku realized the girl had been her.
• Rangiku wept as the others praised Gin for protecting the person he loved.

Ailin warned Iba and Hisagi that powerful enemies still lurked in Soul Society, then went with Kyōraku to the academy to take Rukia as a disciple. Kyōraku recognized Rukia's resemblance to Hisana Kuchiki and learned that she was Hisana's younger sister, separated from her for twelve years.

• Ailin told Iba and Hisagi that Gin still searched for the Shinigami who had harmed his childhood friend and that dangerous enemies remained hidden in Soul Society.
• Ailin urged Iba and Hisagi to train, then left with Kyōraku to take another disciple at the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy.
• Iba told Hisagi how Ailin's guidance had helped him rise in the Eleventh Division, and the two left the izakaya to train together.
• Rangiku discovered that her companions had left her with the bill and called Captain Shiba to bring money.
• Ailin and Kyōraku found Rukia practicing Kido, and Ailin explained that she was Hisana Kuchiki's younger sister, separated from her for twelve years.

Ailin and Shunsui Kyōraku watched Rukia and Renji Abarai train, then Ailin gave them advice on their fighting. Impressed by Rukia’s potential in Kido, Ailin offered to make her his third disciple, and she accepted.

• Renji Abarai defeated Rukia in a Zanjutsu match at the training grounds.
• Ailin and Shunsui Kyōraku approached the pair, and Ailin praised Renji’s instincts and Rukia’s humility.
• Ailin demonstrated the flaws in their techniques and gave both students guidance.
• Ailin identified Rukia’s talent in Kido and offered to take her as his third disciple.
• Rukia accepted Ailin’s offer, while Renji congratulated her.

Ailin accepted Rukia as his disciple and brought her to the Kuchiki Clan estate to begin training, while encouraging Renji to pursue strength in the Eleventh Division and believe he could achieve Bankai. Rukia learned that Ailin saw her as a gifted Soul Reaper, leaving her deeply moved by his recognition.

• Ailin told Renji that he was better suited to the Eleventh Division’s fighting style and could aim to master Bankai, prompting Renji to renew his resolve to stand beside Rukia.
• Rukia agreed to withdraw from the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy and train under Ailin, while Shunsui Kyōraku left to return to Ise Nanao.
• Renji watched Rukia leave for the Kuchiki Clan estate and vowed to grow stronger through the Eleventh Division and Bankai training.
• At the estate, Ailin asked Rukia what she thought of him and explained that understanding her teacher would help her make sound choices.
• Ailin told Rukia she was a genius whose talent was no less than Byakuya Kuchiki’s, and Rukia was moved by his recognition after recalling her difficult childhood and struggles at the academy.

Ailin brought Rukia to the bedside of the dying Hisana Kuchiki, allowing the sisters to reunite and speak before Hisana’s final moments. He then revealed to Haruko that he hoped to nurture a future relationship between Rukia and the widowed Byakuya.

• Ailin encouraged Rukia to trust her talent and promised to save her if she ever faced mortal danger.
• Ailin took Rukia to Hisana’s bedside, where Byakuya left them alone after Hisana fell unconscious.
• Ailin used Void Bandage to stabilize Hisana long enough for her to awaken and recognize Rukia.
• Rukia and Hisana reunited, and Rukia thanked Ailin after sharing a final conversation with her sister.
• Ailin arranged for Rukia to stay at the Kuchiki residence, then explained to Haruko that he hoped Rukia and Byakuya would eventually fall in love.

After Hisana’s death, Ailin trained Rukia in Kido and arranged for Byakuya to teach her Zanjutsu, bringing the two together beneath a cherry blossom tree. Ailin then entered Hueco Mundo, where Ulquiorra greeted him in Las Noches.

• Hisana died smiling in Byakuya’s arms, and the Kuchiki Clan honored her wish by holding no grand funeral.
• Ailin trained Rukia in Kido, and she learned to cast Hadō #31 with Kishōtenketsu.
• Ailin asked Byakuya to teach Rukia Zanjutsu and told him to bring her an Asauchi.
• Byakuya met Rukia beneath the cherry blossom tree and mistook her familiar face for Hisana’s.
• Ailin used the Hogyoku to strengthen his left-arm clone, then opened a Garganta and entered Hueco Mundo.
• Ulquiorra greeted Ailin at Las Noches as the chapter described Aizen’s plans and the Hollows’ fears of Hell.

Ailin convened the Espada in Las Noches and discovered that Nieniel was missing after Nnoitra attacked her. He ordered Nnoitra and Szayelaporro to find a Vastolorde-class Hollow within three years or leave Las Noches.

• Ailin ordered Ulquiorra to summon the Espada to Las Noches.
• Grimmjow arrived, spoke disrespectfully about Ailin, and was forced to kneel under Ailin’s spiritual pressure before submitting.
• Ulquiorra reported that the Espada had assembled, and Ailin noticed that the Third Espada, Nienyell Ghiaccius, was absent.
• Ailin concluded that Nieniel had escaped after Nnoitra shattered her mask, while Grimmjow suspected she had betrayed them.
• Ailin gave Nnoitra and Szayelaporro three years to find a Vastolorde-class Hollow or leave Las Noches.

Ailin punished Nnoitra for attacking Szayelaporro and warned the Espada to prepare for a coming war, then told Ulquiorra to find replacements for the weakest Espada. In Ailin’s Inner World, nine Zanpakuto revealed forms resembling the Espada, and the imprisoned Aizen recognized their abilities.

• Szayelaporro explained that he and Nnoitra had tested what happened when Arrancar masks were shattered, and Nnoitra attacked him after Szayelaporro exposed his role.
• Ailin hurled a golden spear through Nnoitra, then declared that Espada who weakened his forces would be punished unless they brought stronger replacements.
• Ailin warned the Espada that a major transformation and war would come within a century, dismissed them, and ordered Ulquiorra to find replacements for the Ninth and Tenth Espada.
• Ailin entered his Inner World with Blade Zen, where nine Zanpakuto transformed and embedded themselves in Sword Hill.
• The imprisoned Aizen recognized that the nine Zanpakuto’s abilities matched those of the Espada and wondered why Arrancar Resurrección abilities had appeared there.

Ailin’s sword-forging raised his power to the level of Yhwach and Ichibei Hyosube, while Aizen watched from within Unlimited Blade Works. Ailin explained why he had allowed Aizen to grow and why he had no desire to change Soul Society, leaving Aizen to consider how little the world’s corruption mattered to someone with Ailin’s strength.

• Ailin forged more Zanpakuto, increasing his reiatsu beyond the Soul Reaper limit and into the realm of Yhwach and Ichibei Hyosube.
• Ailin considered Mayuri Kurotsuchi’s inventions and planned to study his Reiatsu Amplifier and Reiatsu Suppressor after the Thousand-Year Blood War.
• Ailin told the sealed Aizen that he had watched him grow because he wanted to fight him at his peak, but acted when Aizen threatened the people he cared about.
• Aizen asked why Ailin accepted the world despite knowing its secrets, and Ailin replied that he cared only about the people around him and could deal with anyone who troubled him.

Ailin discussed Aizen’s view of power and betrayal, then encouraged students at the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy and demonstrated Kyoka Suigetsu. He had agreed to Aizen’s proposal but kept him sealed, planning to release him later rather than take his place in Mugen Jigoku for eighteen thousand years.

• Aizen argued that Ailin needed to show the Seireitei he was willing to use his power, while Ailin said Aizen’s hidden intelligence network let him stop threats before they could act.
• Ailin comforted first-year students by explaining how their studies and strength would develop through later years at the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy.
• Ailin demonstrated Kyoka Suigetsu, enveloping the students in white mist and observing Renji Abarai’s combat instincts.
• Ailin dispelled the hypnosis, praised the students’ potential, and ended the lesson with encouragement to protect the Seireitei in the future.
• Ailin agreed to Aizen’s proposal but kept him sealed in Unlimited Blade Works until a later time, partly to avoid being sealed in Mugen Jigoku for eighteen thousand years.

Ailin raised his spiritual pressure with the Hogyoku clone and went to the Rukon District, where he found young Toshiro Hitsugaya and discovered that Toshiro’s presence was making his grandmother suffer from the cold. Ailin told Toshiro that leaving for a while would allow his grandmother to recover, leaving Toshiro facing a separation from her.

• Ailin’s clone used half of the Hogyoku to raise his spiritual pressure, while Ailin considered how his strength compared with powerful figures such as Yhwach and the Royal Guard.
• Ailin used Kidō #58—Grasping Cicada to locate a source of unusual spiritual pressure in the Rukon District.
• Ailin found Toshiro Hitsugaya and his grandmother in two ruined houses, then used Binding Path #26—Bending Light to shield the grandmother from the cold.
• Toshiro Hitsugaya ran into Ailin’s barrier while trying to reach his grandmother, and Ailin removed it to reveal her house.
• Ailin explained that Toshiro’s grandmother was suffering because of the cold surrounding him and said she would recover if Toshiro left for a while.

Ailin explained that Toshiro Hitsugaya’s uncontrolled ice spiritual pressure was harming his grandmother and persuaded him to become a disciple so he could learn to control it. Toshiro agreed to train in the Seireitei while remaining able to visit his grandmother, and Byakuya continued teaching Rukia Zanjutsu.

• Ailin told Toshiro and his grandmother that Toshiro’s spiritual pressure caused her illness and warned that it could eventually kill her.
• Toshiro’s grandmother agreed to let Ailin take him, but Toshiro refused to leave her or become Ailin’s son.
• Ailin offered to train Toshiro as his disciple and promised he could return to visit his grandmother after learning to control his spiritual pressure.
• Toshiro accepted Ailin as his teacher, and Ailin decided to teach him the basics himself before sending him to the True Zero Spirit Arts Academy later.
• Byakuya sensed a brief wave of malice and suspected Ailin, then resumed training Rukia and criticized her Zanjutsu.

Byakuya criticized Rukia’s poor performance in combat despite her diligent training, while Ailin taught Toshiro to control his powerful spiritual pressure. Toshiro awakened Hyōrinmaru and drew his Zanpakuto before completing Blade Zen, then arrived with Ailin at the Seireitei after having to train his control again.

• Byakuya questioned Rukia’s inability to bring her strength into battle, and she apologized before continuing their practice.
• Ailin took Toshiro from District Thirty-Four toward the Seireitei and taught him to control the spiritual pressure that released cold air whenever he lost focus.
• Toshiro learned to consciously control his spiritual pressure in less than half an hour, though he still struggled to maintain control when distracted.
• Hyōrinmaru’s power erupted, drawing Toshiro into his inner world, where he learned its true name and drew his Zanpakuto before completing Blade Zen.
• Toshiro’s spiritual pressure surged and his control worsened, so he trained again before Ailin brought him through Byakudōmon into the Seireitei.