Chapter Summaries

Arima Shizuya and Aizen Sōsuke arrived at the Spirit King Palace, where the Zero Division revealed that the Spirit King had requested an audience with Shizuya. Shizuya agreed to go ahead without Aizen, and Ōetsu Nimaiya escorted him toward the palace while discussing the Zanpakuto spirit Shizuya had chosen.

• Arima Shizuya and Aizen Sōsuke passed through the passage to the Spirit King Palace and were surrounded by four members of the Zero Division.
• The Zero Division explained that the Spirit King had summoned Arima Shizuya and allowed Aizen to accompany him only as far as the palace entrance.
• Arima Shizuya chose to meet the Spirit King alone, and Aizen Sōsuke accepted his decision while urging him to stay safe.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya escorted Arima Shizuya over the Spirit King Palace’s towns and explained that its residents served the Spirit King and lived longer because of the dense Reishi.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya told Arima Shizuya that his Zanpakuto had once seemed troublesome and thanked him for choosing and nurturing it.
• Arima Shizuya’s Zanpakuto spirit appeared behind him, teased Ōetsu Nimaiya, and the group continued toward the Spirit King Palace.

Arima Shizuya met Ichibei Hyōsube at the Spirit King Palace and learned that the Spirit King had ordered Zero Division to summon him. Ichibei led him toward an audience with the Spirit King, while Aizen Sōsuke remained outside with the Four Heavenly War Gods; Shizuya arrived at the Forbidden Approach.

• Arima Shizuya asked Ichibei Hyōsube whether he had sealed his Zanpakuto, and Ichibei admitted he had done so because he feared its power could cause trouble.
• Ichibei told Arima Shizuya that Zero Division had planned to kill him after he defected, but the Spirit King ordered them to change their plans and summon him.
• Arima Shizuya asked what would happen if he refused to meet the Spirit King, and Ichibei urged him to come along rather than put him in a dishonorable position.
• Arima Shizuya left Aizen Sōsuke with the Four Heavenly War Gods and followed Ichibei into the Spirit King Palace.
• Aizen Sōsuke mocked the Four Heavenly War Gods, and Ōetsu Nimaiya stopped Kirioji from attacking him while they waited for Shizuya's audience to conclude.
• Ichibei brought Arima Shizuya to a rain-soaked, narrow path and identified it as the Forbidden Approach.

Arima Shizuya learned that the Forbidden Approach tested whether he had the potential to become the Spirit King, and Ichibei Hyōsube revealed that the Spirit King wanted to meet him because he knew about Yhwach. Arima entered the path and endured its crushing pressure, where his Shinigami and Hollow powers began to merge.

• Ichibei Hyōsube told Arima Shizuya that the Forbidden Approach examined candidates for the potential to become the Spirit King.
• Ichibei explained that Arima’s knowledge of Yhwach had drawn the Spirit King’s interest and warned that changing small events might not alter the overall flow of the future.
• Arima agreed to meet the Spirit King and entered the Forbidden Approach barefoot after Ichibei described it as a form of training.
• As Arima advanced through the muddy path, its pressure overwhelmed his Shinigami and Hollow powers and forced him to his knees.
• Arima’s azure and black-red spiritual pressures began blending, and he rose from the mud transformed as Ichibei reached the final page of his scroll.

After leaving the Forbidden Approach, Arima Shizuya met the Spirit King and learned of a future in which Yhwach destroyed the Three Realms. The Spirit King offered him a chance to resist that future, but warned that failure would erase him completely.

• Arima Shizuya emerged from the Forbidden Approach with his Shinigami and Hollow powers fused, and Ichibei Hyōsube led him to an audience with the Spirit King.
• The Spirit King transmitted memories and information directly into Arima Shizuya’s mind, revealing possible futures and a vision of a bloodied man approaching the Spirit King Palace.
• Arima Shizuya asked whether a Timeline in which Yhwach destroyed the Three Realms existed, and Ichibei Hyōsube confirmed that the Spirit King had revealed a future course to him.
• Ichibei Hyōsube explained that the Spirit King’s plan involved allowing terrible losses so the Three Realms could return to the proper path, but Arima Shizuya objected that his efforts had been meant to prevent them.
• Ichibei Hyōsube offered Arima Shizuya a choice: accept the Spirit King’s plan or follow his own beliefs after first obeying the Spirit King’s arrangements.
• Ichibei Hyōsube warned that if Arima Shizuya’s plan failed, he would lose the right to reincarnate, enter Hell, or return to the Three Realms, and would disappear completely.

Arima Shizuya chose to follow his own plan to stop Yhwach, and the Soul King and Ichibei Hyōsube agreed to support it under strict secrecy. After they erased their memories of the plan, Ichibei attacked Arima and publicly branded him an enemy, forcing him and Aizen Sōsuke to fight Zero Division.

• Arima Shizuya chose his own path and outlined a plan to defeat Yhwach, which the Soul King approved through Ichibei Hyōsube.
• Ichibei Hyōsube warned Arima Shizuya that he could reveal the plan to no one, then said he and the Soul King would erase their memories of it.
• Ichibei attacked Arima Shizuya and announced that Zero Division would capture him for supposedly threatening the Soul King.
• Aizen Sōsuke stood beside Arima Shizuya, trusted that he had not acted irrationally, and urged him to focus on the coming fight.
• Aizen Sōsuke told Arima Shizuya that they should not seek approval from others, declaring that they stood at the highest peak of the Three Realms.

Aizen Sōsuke stood with Arima Shizuya against Zero Division, choosing their alliance over the chance to pursue his former ambition. After Aizen distracted the Four Heavenly War Gods with his new Kidō Eight Methods and concealed illusion, Arima prepared to unleash his Bankai.

• Ichibei Hyōsube gave Aizen Sōsuke the chance to abandon Arima Shizuya, but Aizen chose to stand beside him and asked him to trust their strength.
• Aizen Sōsuke attacked Zero Division with the Kidō Eight Methods: Foolish Blind Dragon, and Ichibei Hyōsube countered with Reverse Destructive Spell: Third Method: Iron Wind Kill.
• Aizen Sōsuke explained that Arima Shizuya had helped him develop the Kidō Eight Methods, then revealed the Hōgyoku embedded in his chest and his completed assimilation with it.
• Aizen Sōsuke used his illusionary abilities to draw Zero Division's attention away from Arima Shizuya.
• Arima Shizuya finished preparing and released Bankai: Tianlong Babu: Ashura.

Arima Shizuya revealed Ashura’s ability while fighting the Four Heavenly War Gods, cutting down Kirio Hikifune and then severely wounding Ōetsu Nimaiya. As Aizen Sōsuke kept Ichibei Hyōsube occupied, the ability’s exact mechanism remained unclear, but it proved to be a countermeasure Arima had trained to overcome the Four Heavenly War Gods.

• Kirio Hikifune attacked Arima Shizuya with Konjikiasogi, but Arima dodged and countered with Ashura’s power, cutting open Kirio Hikifune’s throat.
• Aizen Sōsuke attacked Ichibei Hyōsube with the Kidō Eight Methods: All-Poison Fire Wind, summoning a massive dark-green Phoenix that kept Ichibei occupied.
• Shutara Senjumaru healed Kirio Hikifune, who recalled that he had inexplicably moved into Arima Shizuya’s blade despite feeling able to dodge.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya charged Arima Shizuya to test the strange ability, but Arima struck him across the neck before he could react.
• Aizen Sōsuke recognized Ashura as the absolute measure Arima Shizuya had trained to use against the Four Heavenly War Gods.

Arima Shizuya used Ashura to manipulate the futures available to his opponents, defeating Ōetsu Nimaiya and then striking down the remaining War Gods. All Four Heavenly War Gods fell at the Spirit King Palace, leaving Arima standing alone as he prepared to move forward.

• Arima Shizuya explained that Ashura captured and pruned observable timelines, forcing opponents into futures where they could not escape his attacks.
• Arima pierced Ōetsu Nimaiya through the chest, leaving him unable to resist or share what he had learned.
• Arima used Ashura to compress the remaining War Gods' countless possible timelines, exhausting his Spiritual Power as he prepared a simultaneous strike.
• Arima severed Kirioji's head, cut Hikifune Kirio in two, and stabbed Shutara Senjumaru through the chest.
• Arima withdrew his blade and sheathed it after all Four Heavenly War Gods had fallen.

After Kirinji Tenjirō revived the fallen Zero Division members, Shutara Senjumaru unleashed her Bankai against Arima Shizuya. Her cloth-covered domain began to weave Arima’s fate, while the battle’s immense spiritual pressure shook the Three Realms.

• Ichibei Hyōsube revealed that Zero Division could revive as long as the Soul King remained, and Kirinji Tenjirō restored himself and Shutara Senjumaru.
• Shutara Senjumaru confronted Arima Shizuya and announced that she would show him her true ability.
• Hirako Shinji helped Hinamori Momo and other exhausted Shinigami escape the ground splitting apart, as tremors and spiritual pressure spread across the realms.
• Shutara Senjumaru activated Bankai: Shatakala Corpse Thorn Labyrinth, darkening the sky and declaring that she controlled light, flesh, and thoughts within it.
• Shutara Senjumaru vanished between two pillars of light and sent overwhelming cloth toward Arima Shizuya, which draped over him.

Shutara Senjumaru used her Bankai to unravel Arima Shizuya’s past, abilities, and identity, then led him toward a new destiny as her divine weapon. The chapter ended with him following her through a star-filled world to the Death Exiting Six-Colored Floating Weave Machine.

• Shutara Senjumaru trapped Arima Shizuya in her Bankai and began rewriting his fate by stripping away his past and abilities.
• Senjumaru distorted Arima Shizuya’s memories of Guiganjo Kenpachi, Yamamoto’s dojo, Kensei Muguruma, and Soi Fon as he passed through the first four skeins.
• Senjumaru warped Arima Shizuya’s memories and identity through the fifth skein, then used the sixth to erase his remaining heart, soul, and strength.
• Senjumaru offered Arima Shizuya a new name and the role of her divine weapon, and he took her mechanical hand.
• Senjumaru led Arima Shizuya through an ash-gray world to the Death Exiting Six-Colored Floating Weave Machine and told him it was his future.

Arima Shizuya defeated Shutara Senjumaru inside her Bankai with help from the Sagara Dragon and memories tied to the Spirit King. He rejoined Aizen Sōsuke, but Ichibei Hyōsube blocked their path and began their final battle.

• Aizen Sōsuke attacked Ichibei Hyōsube with Kidō Eight Methods Stirring Yaksha, and Hyōsube countered with Reverse Destructive Spell, Fourth Way Carp Tail.
• Shutara Senjumaru emerged from her Bankai fatally wounded, and Arima Shizuya returned as the victor.
• Arima Shizuya explained that the Sagara Dragon and the Spirit King's memories had helped him recover his memories and escape Senjumaru's Bankai.
• Ichibei Hyōsube declared the boundary to the Spirit King's Sleeping Quarters and challenged Arima Shizuya and Aizen Sōsuke.
• Aizen Sōsuke suggested retreating, but Ichibei Hyōsube attacked and called out, "Dyed Black! Ichimonji!"

Ichibei Hyōsube used Ichimonji to strip away Aizen Sōsuke’s power and sever Arima Shizuya from his Zanpakuto, leaving Arima cornered. Arima activated a new release by giving his Zanpakuto Spirit another name, restoring her presence as Sagara Dragon.

• Ichibei Hyōsube revealed that Ichimonji erased names and Spiritual Pressure, then struck Aizen Sōsuke and sent him crashing into Li Palace.
• Ichibei Hyōsube pressed Arima Shizuya with Ichimonji, gradually stripping away his Zanpakuto’s name and leaving him unable to use its power.
• Ichibei Hyōsube inked Arima Shizuya’s left hand, robbing it of sensation and function as he continued his assault.
• With Ichibei Hyōsube’s next attack closing in, Arima Shizuya used his Simulated Release and called out, “One Calamity.”
• Arima Shizuya’s nameless Zanpakuto Spirit broke through the barrier and appeared beside him under the new name Sagara Dragon.

Arima Shizuya and Sagara Dragon fought Ichibei Hyōsube, and Arima used One Calamity to adapt to Ichibei’s attacks and land a devastating punch. Ichibei recovered, revealed White Brush Ichimonji, and used its authority to make Sagara Dragon disappear, leaving Arima facing him alone.

• Sagara Dragon manifested beside Arima Shizuya, and their linked souls let Arima use One Calamity to adapt to Ichibei Hyōsube’s speed and attacks.
• Ichibei covered Arima’s eyes with ink and stripped away his ability to see, but Arima anticipated the attack and struck Ichibei with his own evolved Hakuda technique.
• Arima’s punch sent Ichibei crashing into the Spirit King Palace, though Arima remained blind and knew he had reached the limit of the future he could predict.
• Ichibei recovered and revealed True Strike White Brush Ichimonji, explaining that it could grant new names after Ichimonji stripped them away.
• Ichibei used his authority to turn Sagara Dragon into air, leaving Arima without his Zanpakuto.

Ichibei Hyōsube used White Brush Ichimonji to strip Arima Shizuya of his powers and cast him into Soul Society as the Sinner. As the Gotei 13 tended to their casualties, Matsumoto Rangiku and the others saw a figure falling from the sky.

• Ichibei Hyōsube covered Arima Shizuya in ink, overwrote him, and named him Sinner.
• Ichibei Hyōsube stripped the Sinner of his abilities and sent him falling toward Soul Society.
• Matsumoto Rangiku, Kotetsu Isane, and HInamori Momo coordinated the wounded and discussed the battle's casualties and damage.
• Kira Izuru returned with an injured person and said he was recovering from his past depression.
• Matsumoto Rangiku noticed a huge hole in the sky and a figure plummeting toward the ground.

A month after the battle, Chōjirō Sasakibe led the First Division’s new members into the first regular Gotei 13 meeting in the rebuilt Seireitei. The Captains argued over Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni’s absence, learned how grave his injuries were, and heard that he was arriving.

• Chōjirō Sasakibe reassured the new First Division members and led them into the unprecedented gathering of Captains, Vice-Captains, and seated officers.
• Komamura Sajin demanded to know how Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni was recovering, and Kuchiki Byakuya rebuked him for interrupting the meeting.
• Komamura Sajin slammed the table and accused Kuchiki Byakuya of treasonous talk, while Mayuri Kurotsuchi complained about the spilled tea.
• Kyōraku Shunsui calmed the room with a joking promise to reduce his drinking, then asked Retsu Unohana to explain Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni’s condition.
• Retsu Unohana revealed that Arima Shizuya had inflicted severe injuries on Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni, and footsteps outside announced the Captain-Commander’s arrival.

Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni announced his resignation as Captain-Commander and revealed that the Gotei 13 had been granted authority to judge Aizen Sōsuke and Arima Shizuya. The meeting began Aizen’s trial, where he mocked the assembled Shinigami as defeated underlings and remnants of the old era.

• Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni entered the Gotei 13 meeting in a severely weakened state and kept the agenda brief.
• Yamamoto confirmed Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō, Hirako Shinji, and Kensei Muguruma as returning captains, warning them not to use Hollow Power in the Seireitei.
• Yamamoto announced he would resign as Captain-Commander, showed the wound that had nearly killed him, and explained that his spirit could not be restored.
• Yamamoto said the Forty-Six Chambers had given the Gotei 13 sole authority to judge Aizen Sōsuke and Arima Shizuya, prompting Kuchiki Byakuya to demand the death penalty.
• Kyōraku Shunsui unveiled Aizen Sōsuke, brought into the meeting under heavy Kidō Corps restraints, and asked whether he regretted his crimes.
• Aizen Sōsuke looked over the assembled Shinigami and called them defeated underlings and remnants of the old era, saying their sight was utterly revolting.

Aizen Sōsuke faced the Gotei 13 as they discussed his execution, dismissing Kira Izuru’s questions and claiming he felt nothing for the Third Division. When Aizen’s growing spiritual pressure injured a Kidō Corps member, Kyōraku Shunsui maintained that the restraints still prevented Aizen from attacking.

• Kyōraku Shunsui calmed the Gotei 13 and called for anyone opposed to Aizen Sōsuke’s execution to speak, but no one responded.
• Kira Izuru stepped forward to ask Aizen whether he had ever cared about the Third Division, and Aizen said he had no feelings for them and regarded them as worker ants.
• Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō comforted Kira, urged him to look ahead, and helped him return to the Vice-Captains’ ranks.
• Aizen’s spiritual pressure shattered his restraints and ground down the hands of a rushing Kidō Corps member; Retsu Unohana and Kotetsu Isane treated the injured man.
• Aizen said his power kept growing after he fused with the Hōgyoku, while Kyōraku asserted that Aizen had reached his limit and could not break through the Bakudō to attack.

The Gotei 13 approved transferring Aizen Sōsuke to Mayuri Kurotsuchi for study and discussed asking Yoruichi Shihouin and Kisuke Urahara to aid them in a future crisis. They then brought Arima Shizuya before the council to face judgment, where Kuchiki Byakuya cut his throat.

• Kyōraku Shunsui asked Mayuri Kurotsuchi whether he could separate the Hōgyoku from Aizen Sōsuke, and Mayuri said he could analyze Aizen and make use of him.
• The Kidō Corps reinforced Aizen Sōsuke’s restraints, silenced his warning, and carried him away in the Paper Sedan.
• Kyōraku Shunsui asked Hirako Shinji to pass a message to Yoruichi Shihouin and Kisuke Urahara, asking them to fight alongside the Gotei 13 if the Three Realms faced another crisis.
• The Gotei 13 brought Arima Shizuya into the meeting room to face judgment for betraying Soul Society and attacking its leaders.
• Kuchiki Byakuya accused Arima Shizuya of manipulating everyone and slashed his throat before retreating.

Kisuke Urahara, Yoruichi Shihouin, Isshin Kurosaki, and Uryū Ishida revealed to Kurosaki Ichigo that Soul Society had sentenced Arima Shizuya to execution and cut Ichigo off from contact with it. They explained Arima’s secret plan to use a recreated Kinnara and Ichigo’s Yaksha power to restore Arima’s memories and begin a war against the Wandenreich.

• Kurosaki Ichigo met Yoruichi Shihouin at the ruins and discovered Isshin Kurosaki, Uryū Ishida, and Kisuke Urahara were waiting there too.
• Isshin Kurosaki and Kisuke Urahara told Kurosaki Ichigo that they had blocked his contact with Soul Society.
• Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi Shihouin revealed that Aizen Sōsuke was confined in Muken Hell and Arima Shizuya had been sentenced to execution.
• Kisuke Urahara explained that Arima Shizuya had become an ordinary person and had prepared a contingency plan before his defeat.
• Kisuke Urahara presented Kinnara, a recreated ability made to evade Yhwach’s observation, and explained that the group planned to use Kurosaki Ichigo’s Yaksha power to give it Arima Shizuya’s memories.
• Kisuke Urahara declared that Arima Shizuya’s planned war against the Wandenreich was beginning.

Isshin forced the powers inside Kurosaki Ichigo to emerge, and Arima Shizuya’s power took humanoid form before awakening as a formidable Quincy-linked being. In the Wandenreich, Yhwach recognized the awakening as his son’s birth and prepared to see how far the new power could reach.

• Isshin overwhelmed Kurosaki Ichigo with spiritual pressure and summoned the powers hidden inside him.
• Uncle Zangetsu and Arima Shizuya agreed to act, and a figure bearing Arima Shizuya’s appearance formed from Ichigo’s power.
• The clone symbolizing Kinnara awakened and began drawing reishi from the Ishida family.
• Arima Shizuya’s power surged into an azure pillar and formed a five-pointed star, creating a connection to Quincy fate.
• Yhwach told Haschwalth that the bell marked his son’s awakening, then expressed interest in the strength the power would attain.