Chapter Summaries

Yhwach awakened, abandoned the Wandenreich as he prepared to reclaim the world, and began his invasion. At the Spirit King Palace, Ichigo received his true Zanpakuto and rushed to the battlefield, while Nimaiya learned that his Bankai had been unsealed for the coming fight.

• Yhwach awoke with overwhelming power, ordered his remaining children to follow him, and condemned the Wandenreich to destruction.
• Haschwalth warned Askin and the others to remain calm as Yhwach’s group left the Wandenreich to reclaim what they believed was theirs.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya showed Kurosaki Ichigo his two newly forged Zanpakuto, and Ichigo drew them out, unleashing a surge of power.
• Akon told Ichigo that Yhwach had begun his invasion, so Ichigo left the Spirit King Palace to join the defense.
• Shutara Senjumaru told Nimaiya that the Eye Monk had decided he would fight if the first line of defense fell, and confirmed that his Bankai had been unsealed.

As the Gotei 13 and their allies assembled for the final battle, they learned that Yhwach had bypassed them and headed for the Spirit King Palace. Kyōraku Shunsui ordered the combined forces to defeat Yhwach’s Royal Guard quickly so they could rush to aid their allies.

• Soi Fon allowed frightened Squad Members to leave and gave Ōmaeda permission to go, but he chose to stay and fight for Soul Society.
• The assembled forces waited for Yhwach, while Mayuri Kurotsuchi tracked his movements and announced that the enemy was leaving the Dangai.
• Kurosaki Ichigo noticed that Arima Shizuya, Aizen, and Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni were missing, as Kisuke Urahara kept a plan to himself and Yoruichi Shihouin confronted him.
• Askin, Gerard, Pernida, Lille Barro, and Haschwalth emerged from the Dangai without Yhwach; Lille revealed that Yhwach was heading for the promised land and the Spirit King Palace.
• Haschwalth crushed the hidden device Mayuri Kurotsuchi had placed inside him, and Kyōraku Shunsui rallied the forces to defeat the Royal Guard and then pursue Yhwach.
• The combatants unleashed Bankai, Resurrección, and Vollständig as the final battle began.

Yhwach defeated Yamamoto and shattered Ryūjin Jakka, then advanced toward the Spirit King Palace as Arima Shizuya and Aizen followed. At the palace gates, Zero Division confronted Yhwach, who revealed that Lille Barro and Haschwalth had joined him and that he had foreseen their actions.

• Yhwach caught Yamamoto’s Ryūjin Jakka, rendered it powerless, and shattered it before knocking Yamamoto from the sky.
• Arima Shizuya caught Yamamoto, and Aizen and Arima told him to return while they continued toward the Spirit King Palace.
• Yamamoto asked whether they could stop Yhwach, and Arima said they would do their best.
• Aizen questioned Arima about anticipating Yamamoto’s defeat, and Arima explained that he had begun seeing fragmented events as something awakened within him.
• Zero Division confronted Yhwach at the palace gates and questioned why he had come alone.
• Yhwach revealed that Lille Barro and Haschwalth had emerged from spatial rifts and declared that his eyes had seen through their actions.

Askin activated his Vollständig Territory and spread his Deathdealing across the gathered forces, leaving many Shinigami, Arrancar, and Quincy incapacitated. As Tōshirō and Komamura Sajin attacked to reach Askin, Gerard’s giant clashed with their own towering opponents.

• Askin began charging his power, and Liltotto warned the others to stop him.
• Soi Fon fired her Raikoho, but Gerard’s giant caught and swallowed it, surviving its explosion.
• The Arrancar attacked Gerard, but Haschwalth blocked their Hollow Flashes and warned Gerard about Hollow toxins.
• Askin activated Vollständig Territory and spread Deathdealing across the assembled fighters, causing many to collapse in pain.
• Tōshirō sent an ice dragon toward Askin, but Gerard’s giant seized it, while Komamura Sajin summoned his Bankai and began fighting the giant.

The Shinigami seemed to be gaining ground against Gerard and Pernida, but Gerard returned stronger and Lille Balo overwhelmed Kenpachi Zaraki’s group. Pernida’s powers began moving again, forcing Mayuri Kurotsuchi to abandon his plan and activate a backup.

• Kuchiki Byakuya and Abarai Renji attacked Gerard, while Kyōraku Shunsui kept Haschwalth from helping him.
• Gerard regenerated as a gigantic form, and Tengen Myō'ō grappled with him while Tōshirō headed toward the other fight.
• Jūshirō Ukitake and Mayuri Kurotsuchi confronted Pernida, whose powers were briefly suppressed when it clashed with Ukitake.
• Lille Balo attacked Mayuri, Ukitake, and Pernida with a devastating blast, but Nemu Kurotsuchi dragged the captains out of its path.
• Pernida reassembled and resumed attacking, so Mayuri Kurotsuchi abandoned his plan and activated a backup.

Kisuke Urahara opened two passages to the Spirit King Palace, offering the Royal Guard a chance to reinforce Yhwach while the remaining fighters held them back. After Lille Balo and Haschwalth departed, Yoruichi Shihouin revealed that two more passages had been reserved for Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida.

• Kisuke Urahara opened two passages to the Spirit King Palace and explained that the Zero Division had prepared them to limit casualties and send reinforcements to Yhwach.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi defended the plan as a Zero Division instruction, and Kisuke Urahara said the defenders would have to do their best against the Royal Guard left behind.
• Gerard volunteered to go, but Lille Balo assigned Gerard, Askin, and Pernida to hold off the defenders while he and Haschwalth went to support Yhwach.
• Haschwalth verified that the passages truly led to the Spirit King Palace, and he and Lille Balo departed through them.
• Gerard and Pernida prepared to fight as Askin narrowed his poison sphere, while Yoruichi Shihouin stopped Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida and showed them two passages reserved for them.

Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida entered the sealed routes to carry out their missions while Kisuke Urahara shut the entrances behind them. At the Spirit King Palace, Ōetsu Nimaiya’s allies sacrificed themselves to unleash his true power, and he began his Bankai against Lille Balo.

• Uryū Ishida learned that his father had arranged the mission to settle the Ishida Family’s old grievance, while Kisuke Urahara refused to reveal Kurosaki Ichigo’s elders’ secret plans.
• Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida left through separate miniature openings, and Kisuke Urahara sealed the entrances, trapping the combatants in Soul Society.
• Lille Balo shot through Kirioji’s Zanpakuto and inflicted a devastating chest wound on Ōetsu Nimaiya, but Shutara Senjumaru restored him with spare cotton.
• Kirioji, Shutara Senjumaru, and Hikifune Kirio cut their own throats at Ichibei Hyōsube’s order, leaving Ōetsu Nimaiya as the surviving member of the Four Heavenly War Gods.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya endured Lille Balo’s bullets as his wounds healed, then released his Bankai, Indestructible Vajra: Exquisite Dharma Smithing.

Ōetsu Nimaiya revealed his Bankai, Indestructible Vajra: Exquisite Dharma Smithing, and used it to strip away Lille Balo and Haschwalth’s acquired abilities, equipment, and memories. He continued hammering at the Three Realms despite the immense strain, while Yhwach remained unaffected.

• Ōetsu Nimaiya activated his Bankai as Lille Balo and Haschwalth moved to protect Yhwach.
• Lille Balo attacked Ōetsu Nimaiya in Vollständig, but Ōetsu Nimaiya recovered from the bombardment unharmed.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya struck the air with an Artisan’s Hammer, causing Lille Balo and Haschwalth to lose their weapons, abilities, knowledge, and parts of their memories.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya explained that his Bankai returned people to their original selves by stripping away everything acquired beyond their true nature.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya’s fourth strike spread through the Three Realms, causing Royal Guard members to forget their techniques and Shinigami to forget their Zanpakuto names.
• Exhausted but still smiling, Ōetsu Nimaiya prepared to deliver a fifth strike, while Yhwach remained unchanged.

Ōetsu Nimaiya used Indestructible Vajra: Exquisite Dharma Smithing to break down Yhwach and the Three Realms, but Yhwach adapted, killed him, and reclaimed the power of his fallen subordinates. Yhwach then advanced toward Hyōsube Ichibei, Arima Shizuya, and Aizen Sōsuke, inviting them to face him together.

• Ōetsu Nimaiya’s hammering shook the Three Realms, returned weaker souls to spirit particles, and killed Haschwalth and Lille Balo.
• Kurosaki Ichigo sensed the upheaval, but Uryū Ishida urged him to hurry toward their objective before more people died.
• Ōetsu Nimaiya’s final strike unleashed a controlled tide of spiritual power that began dissolving Yhwach’s body and memories.
• Yhwach used his eyes to overcome the technique, restored his body, and destroyed the exhausted Ōetsu Nimaiya.
• Yhwach absorbed the power of the dead and the three Royal Guard members below, then challenged Hyōsube Ichibei, Arima Shizuya, and Aizen Sōsuke to fight him together.

Yhwach confronted Hyōsube Ichibei at the Spirit King Palace while Aizen Sōsuke and Arima Shizuya watched. After Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida arrived and Yhwach revealed he had foreseen Ichibei’s ultimate technique, Futen Taisatsuryō, he turned it against the monk and began destroying him.

• Aizen Sōsuke asked whether the group should attack together, but Hyōsube Ichibei insisted on facing Yhwach alone.
• Yhwach and Hyōsube clashed, and their Spiritual Power shook Soul Society as Ichimonji’s ink stained Yhwach.
• Yhwach urged Hyōsube to move aside and unleashed a vast wave of power, which the monk countered with Steel Needle Rain.
• Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida arrived, and Hyōsube taunted Yhwach for failing to account for their presence and Uryū’s Antithesis.
• Yhwach summoned Futen Taisatsuryō, revealed that he knew Hyōsube’s plan, and used the technique to make the monk’s body crumble.

After Ichibei Hyōsube was killed by Yhwach, Arima Shizuya recovered the memories he had lost and reunited with his Zanpakuto Spirit. He restored his power and confronted Yhwach by releasing Bankai.

• Yhwach extracted Ichibei Hyōsube's power and burst his body apart while Aizen Sōsuke kept him occupied.
• Arima Shizuya received a flood of memories, and Uryū Ishida told Kurosaki Ichigo that their contingency plan was taking effect.
• At Arima Shizuya's call, Ichibei Hyōsube resurrected from a shadow hidden in his mind and returned Arima's Zanpakuto.
• Arima Shizuya's Zanpakuto Spirit restored his century of memories, scolded him for leaving her behind, and reconciled with him.
• As Aizen Sōsuke welcomed him back, Arima Shizuya reunited with Sagara Dragon and released Bankai—Tianlong Babu Deva.

Arima Shizuya unleashed Tianlong Babu Deva, using his Zanpakuto to control reishi he had prepared across Soul Society, the Spirit King Palace, and part of Hueco Mundo. He opened his eyes with Double Pupils like Yhwach’s, leaving Yhwach panicked and asking how Arima could control that power.

• Arima Shizuya revealed Tianlong Babu Deva as the trump card he had prepared for Yhwach.
• Arima’s spiritual pressure surged as his Zanpakuto gathered power, and Yhwach sensed a familiar aura from him.
• Arima’s Zanpakuto Spirit explained that it had dismantled and reassembled reishi from Soul Society, the Spirit King Palace, and part of Hueco Mundo.
• Arima fully unleashed Tianlong Babu Deva and gained control over the prepared reishi.
• Arima opened his eyes to reveal Double Pupils, and Yhwach recoiled and demanded to know how Arima could control that power.

Arima Shizuya used his mastery of The Almighty to prevent Yhwach from escaping through time, while Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida joined him in battle. As Yhwach neared defeat, the fighting tore open the sky above the wounded, and those below sensed that the conflict was almost over.

• Arima Shizuya revealed that he had reached the same realm as Yhwach and fought him across past, present, future, and countless Timelines.
• Arima Shizuya called Uryū Ishida and Kurosaki Ichigo into the fight, and the three forced Yhwach to retreat.
• The Sagara Dragon told Arima Shizuya that he still had enough power from the Three Realms to finish the battle.
• Arima Shizuya blocked Yhwach's attempts to escape through Timelines, allowing Kurosaki Ichigo to wound him with his Twin Blades.
• Yhwach tried to persuade Kurosaki Ichigo to join him by offering to revive his mother and grant him the future Wandenreich, but Kurosaki Ichigo refused.
• The battle tore away the medical tent where Kotetsu Isane was treating the wounded, revealing four figures clashing in the sky as those below sensed the fight was nearing its end.

Arima Shizuya, Kurosaki Ichigo, and Uryū Ishida kept Yhwach under pressure despite his ability to restore himself by shifting Timelines. With Yhwach’s resolve crumbling, Arima prepared Uryū to deliver the Seeleschneider arrow that could decide the battle.

• Yhwach healed his wounds by shifting to a Timeline where he had not been injured, and Arima Shizuya restored himself in the same way.
• Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida renewed their resolve and coordinated their attacks with Arima, who used The Almighty to limit Yhwach’s freedom to change Timelines.
• Ichigo and Uryū struck Yhwach, then Arima feinted with Sagara Dragon and kicked him in the head, sending him hurtling toward the lower realm.
• Uryū confirmed that he still carried the arrow infused with Seeleschneider Silver and Seeleschneider Blood, and Arima urged him to use it when the timing was right.

Yhwach emerged battered and despairing after his defeat, surrounded by Soul Society’s leaders and the Quincy remnants he had betrayed. As the crowd pelted him with stones and he begged for help, a miracle answered his plea.

• Inner Courtyard Guard members discovered a figure crashed into the earth, but Kyōraku Shunsui arrived and ordered them to stand down and clear the area.
• Captain-class figures, Stark’s Hueco Mundo group, and Liltotto’s Quincy remnants gathered as Yhwach rose from the ground with a wound in his chest.
• Yhwach recalled his life and questioned the meaning of his existence as the Quincy remnants condemned him for abandoning them.
• Someone threw a stone at Yhwach, and more stones followed as he realized no one respected or supported him anymore.
• Yhwach pleaded for help, and a miracle happened.

Yhwach regained his confidence after sensing goodwill from the Soul King, whose power began obscuring the future and overriding The Almighty. Arima Shizuya and the others tried to stop Yhwach from reaching the Soul King, but the outcome remained unclear.

• Yhwach sensed the Soul King's goodwill, laughed, and repelled the group with his Spiritual Power.
• Arima Shizuya found that The Almighty could no longer clearly see the future, while Sagara Dragon confirmed its energy reserves remained sufficient.
• Arima Shizuya realized an external force was concealing the future, and Ichibei Hyōsube suspected the Soul King was responsible.
• Yhwach rose into the air and headed onward, prompting Arima Shizuya to order everyone to stop him.
• Kurosaki Ichigo attacked with Getsuga Cross Blast as Uryū Ishida fired Light Rain, while Arima Shizuya tried to observe the outcome through The Almighty.

Yhwach broke through Arima Shizuya’s Timeline blockade by replacing his injuries with alternate versions of himself, then advanced past Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida. He confronted Arima Shizuya and asked how far into the future he could still see.

• Arima Shizuya tried to strip away Yhwach’s Timelines but sensed that the ones he could perceive were rapidly disappearing.
• Yhwach let Kurosaki Ichigo’s Cross Strike wound him, then replaced the Timeline and restored his body, breaking through Arima Shizuya’s blockade.
• Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida attacked Yhwach, but he dodged their blows and recovered from their damage as he pressed onward.
• Yhwach passed Kurosaki Ichigo and Uryū Ishida, then stopped before Arima Shizuya and asked how far into the future he could see.

Yhwach shattered Arima Shizuya and escaped to the Spirit King Palace, whose collapse sent a devastating shock wave crashing over the battlefield. Arima reformed but remained unconscious as his allies examined him, and an unknown attacker struck at Kotetsu Isane while she prepared to use an experimental drug.

• Yhwach killed Arima Shizuya in an instant, then broke through the others' defenses and headed for the Spirit King Palace.
• The Spirit King Palace began collapsing, and Kyōraku Shunsui warned everyone before a massive blast wave swept across the battlefield.
• Kurosaki Ichigo used a gentle wave of light to protect himself, Arima, and Uryū Ishida as they fell safely to the ground.
• Kuchiki Byakuya hurried to Arima, and Hinamori Momo and Kotetsu Isane examined him after he reformed but failed to wake.
• Kotetsu Isane demanded the Eleventh Division's untested drug, then an unknown voice shouted as azure lightning slashed toward her hand.

Kotetsu Isane and Candice Catnipp fought over Arima Shizuya as he woke, while Aizen Sōsuke and Ichibei Hyōsube revealed they had brought him away from Yhwach. Arima asked Ichibei what the Soul King intended, and Ichibei said the Spirit King no longer wanted to live.

• Kotetsu Isane’s medicine shattered when Candice Catnipp arrived and demanded to know what she was injecting into Arima Shizuya.
• Kotetsu Isane and Candice traded jealous accusations and insults until the others tried to restrain them.
• Arima Shizuya woke amid the commotion and asked Hinamori Momo what was happening.
• Aizen Sōsuke appeared and said he had brought Arima down, while Ichibei Hyōsube stepped out from behind him.
• Arima asked Ichibei what the Soul King was planning, and Ichibei answered that the Spirit King no longer wanted to live.

Arima Shizuya confronted Ichibei Hyōsube over the Soul King's apparent desire to die, then heard Ichibei's guesses about the king's motives. The chapter left the group reeling at the possibility that Yhwach was meant to become the next anchor of the Three Worlds.

• Arima Shizuya angrily accused Ichibei Hyōsube of betraying them on the Soul King's orders.
• Ichibei offered his life as repayment, explaining that he and the other members of Zero Division would lose their ability to resurrect if the Soul King disappeared.
• Arima Shizuya set aside his anger and asked Ichibei to explain what was happening.
• Ichibei said the Three Worlds needed an anchor and insisted the Soul King would not allow them to be destroyed.
• Kyōraku Shunsui acknowledged that old records described the Three Worlds' collapse after the Soul King's death.
• Ichibei guessed that the Soul King intended Yhwach to become the next anchor, shocking the assembled group.