Recaps

Duan Mu prepared to train with Unohana Retsu while worrying that he lacked enough experience to endure her instruction, then encountered a troubled Orihime Inoue in Seireitei. He reassured her about her importance to Ichigo Kurosaki and offered to escort her back to the Human World, hoping to prevent Aizen from using her as bait.

• Duan Mu taught Soul Reaper Academy students about Kido and reassured Ryūnosuke that he could find a suitable Gotei 13 division.
• Duan Mu told Man'ya Ori that he would be away for an extended period to receive Zanjutsu instruction from Unohana Retsu.
• Duan Mu worried that his remaining experience would not let him last long enough in training to satisfy Unohana Retsu.
• Duan Mu met Kuchiki Rukia and Orihime Inoue shopping in Seireitei and realized Urahara Kisuke had discouraged Orihime from fighting.
• Duan Mu reassured Orihime that she was indispensable to Ichigo Kurosaki and offered to escort her back to the Human World.

Duan Mu visited the Comprehensive First Aid Station, where Konai recalled how his drunken behavior had once seemed unusually genuine. After treating a wave of injured 11th Division Soul Reapers, he reunited with Kotetsu Isane and invited her to dinner.

• Konai told Duan Mu that, while drunk, he had stubbornly waited outside Captain Unohana’s door and seemed more emotionally candid than usual.
• Duan Mu learned that Isane was absent because Captain Unohana had been handing over her duties, and that Unohana and Isane had also completed arrangements with the Soul Reaper Pharmacy.
• A large group of injured 11th Division Soul Reapers arrived, and Duan Mu organized their treatment and personally handled the seriously injured.
• The 11th Division Soul Reapers explained that their captain’s sparring had caused more injuries because Ikkaku and Kiyone were away in the Human World and Isane had not been there to stop the fight.
• After finishing the treatment, Duan Mu met Kotetsu Isane, heard that her handover was complete, and invited her to eat with him.

Duan Mu spoke with Kotetsu Isane about training under Unohana and then encountered Hinamori Momo, who was struggling to accept Aizen's defection. He reassured Hinamori that Aizen's past contributions and her good memories did not need to be erased, and her favorability toward him rose to 60.

• Kotetsu Isane told Duan Mu that he reminded her of Unohana and worried that he would keep risking himself against Aizen.
• Duan Mu received an unexpected increase in Kotetsu Isane's romance value, then left the Comprehensive First Aid Station and wandered through Seireitei.
• Duan Mu encountered Hinamori Momo, whose favorability toward him had recovered to 38, and she asked whether Aizen had seemed unusual before defecting.
• Duan Mu rejected Hinamori's belief that Aizen was innocent and listened as she described her admiration for him and her inability to move on.
• Duan Mu told Hinamori that Aizen's defection did not erase his contributions or make her good memories false, raising her favorability to 60.

Duan Mu began Zanjutsu training with Unohana Retsu, who forced him into combat and exposed the deadly indifference beneath his controlled demeanor. After Duan Mu was overwhelmed by her first strike, Unohana attacked again, intent on killing him.

• Duan Mu met Unohana Retsu beneath Sokyoku Hill, where she said her instruction would consist of relentless combat rather than conventional teaching.
• Duan Mu formed a Kido Blade and entered a feral combat state as Unohana attacked him with a technique modeled on someone who had once defeated her.
• Unohana's first strike sent Duan Mu crashing through an artificial mountain, despite their reiatsu being equal.
• Duan Mu recognized Unohana's strength and unleashed a gray mist and a darker, deadened presence, while explaining that his frenzy ultimately returned to calm.
• Unohana said Duan Mu's indifference toward life reminded her of herself and disgusted her, then vanished and struck at him with killing intent.

Duan Mu endured Unohana Retsu’s relentless, deadly Zanjutsu training as his skills and spiritual pressure transformed, while Unohana grew increasingly eager to see what he would become. Near death, Duan Mu entered his mental world, encountered a small white dog that seemed connected to his Zanpakuto, and was abruptly forced back into combat.

• Unohana Retsu repeatedly slashed Duan Mu, driving his Zanjutsu from advanced to supreme as he studied the styles she used.
• Unohana’s murderous intent intensified, and she recognized that Duan Mu’s spiritual pressure and newly reforged Zanpakuto were undergoing a transformation.
• Unohana continued pushing Duan Mu toward death because she wanted to witness the monster he might become, even if one of them died.
• Duan Mu fell into a gray forest in his mental world and encountered a small white dog with purple eyes.
• The dog reacted fearfully to Duan Mu, and the space suddenly darkened before he was thrown back into battle and formed the Kido Blade.

Ichigo Kurosaki and the Visored discussed Duan Mu’s strength and unusual history before Ichigo recognized him on the cover of a Human World photo book. The Visored discovered the image was from a seven-year-old news report about a naked man who fell from the sky, leaving them wondering how Duan Mu had appeared there.

• Ichigo trained with Hiyori Sarugaki and reflected on how he had learned to control the Hollow power inside him with the Visored’s help.
• Shinji Hirako told the group that Duan Mu was not a Shinigami, had fought Aizen, and seemed powerful and unsettlingly similar to Aizen.
• Ichigo explained that Duan Mu had saved him and his mother when he was young, and that he trusted him because of it.
• Ichigo recognized Duan Mu on the cover of Lisa’s photo book and insisted it was impossible for him to be pictured in the Human World.
• Lisa found a seven-year-old news report saying Duan Mu had appeared naked from the sky and vanished, becoming known as “The Saint Who Fell From the Sky.”

Duan Mu finally reached his newborn Zanpakuto, a frightened white dog that revealed its name as Same and Different Together in Darkness. After he awakened from his training, he found Seireitei in turmoil, saw Rukia’s Sode no Shirayuki shatter, and realized Orihime Inoue was missing.

• Duan Mu caught the white dog in his mental world and struggled to communicate with it until it revealed the name Same and Different Together in Darkness.
• The dog’s name filled the mental world with purple mist and gave Duan Mu an insight into the distinctions between sameness and difference and the alternation of life and death.
• Duan Mu awoke at the training ground beneath Sokyoku Hill and sensed numerous Soul Reapers fighting across Seireitei.
• A pale-purple-haired woman holding a copy of Rukia’s Zanpakuto fell into the training ground, and Unohana Retsu cut her in half.
• The woman turned into ice dust that merged into Rukia’s broken Sode no Shirayuki, and Duan Mu asked where Orihime Inoue was.

Duan Mu arrived at the Ninth Division and subdued the corporeal Zanpakuto attacking Seireitei, then ordered their masters to defeat them and restore them. He told Shuhei Hisagi to accompany him to the Thirteenth Division's rear-mountain training grounds.

• Saane Aya organized the Ninth Division members to hold off the attackers until Captain Duan Mu arrived.
• Shuhei Hisagi confronted Wind Death, whose Zanpakuto could not be released, and learned that it had left his body after hearing a voice urging it to follow its instincts.
• Duan Mu restrained the attackers with enormous hands made of soil and explained that the Zanpakuto were being provoked and controlled by another enemy.
• Shuhei Hisagi killed Wind Death, restoring his Zanpakuto and freeing Wind Death from the control.
• Duan Mu ordered the Ninth Division members to search for and defeat their own Zanpakuto, then took Shuhei Hisagi to the Thirteenth Division's rear-mountain training grounds.

Duan Mu rushed to the Thirteenth Division to find Orihime Inoue, but Aizen appeared and revealed that he had come to personally recruit him. With the area isolated and Shuhei Hisagi behind him, Duan Mu faced Aizen as the chapter ended.

• Duan Mu told Shuhei Hisagi that the Onmitsukidō was containing the Zanpakuto rebellion and explained why its members were less dependent on their Zanpakuto.
• Duan Mu hurried to the Thirteenth Division to check on Orihime Inoue, while Wind Death helped Shuhei Hisagi keep pace.
• Duan Mu found Orihime Inoue treating the wounded, but a strange shriek sounded in his mind and he pulled Shuhei Hisagi out of the barracks as a slash struck him.
• Aizen appeared in the emptied, darkened Thirteenth Division, and Duan Mu recognized him as the former captain of the 5th Division.
• Aizen said he had come to invite Duan Mu personally and explained that Captain Commander Yamamoto had been drawn away by the Zanpakuto rebellion.
• Duan Mu questioned Aizen's plans, and Aizen revealed that no distress signal could escape the isolated area.

Duan Mu faced Aizen and refused his offer to join him, then fought back with his lightning and earth abilities. Aizen’s newly elevated spiritual pressure overwhelmed him, leaving Duan Mu struggling to find a way to survive.

• Duan Mu warned Shuhei Hisagi not to intervene, since Kyōka Suigetsu could make him attack the wrong person.
• Aizen appeared beside Duan Mu at tremendous speed, and their blades collided with enough force to shatter the ground and throw Shuhei Hisagi into the air.
• Aizen offered Duan Mu greater power and a new world, but Duan Mu rejected the offer and unleashed Flash Cry and his earth-controlling ability.
• Aizen countered Duan Mu’s earth attacks, dispersed his Raikōhō, and used a Super Spiritual Pressure Wall to withstand his punch.
• Duan Mu’s lightning dragon failed to stop Aizen, who struck him repeatedly and cracked his Kido Blade with his overwhelming strength.

Duan Mu risked his life to pierce Aizen’s Super Spiritual Pressure Wall and apparently defeat him, but the Hogyoku rose to Aizen and encased him in a glowing cocoon. Duan Mu was left gravely wounded and unable to stop Aizen’s evolution.

• Shuhei Hisagi remained trapped at the battlefield’s edge and watched as Aizen’s attacks overwhelmed Duan Mu.
• Aizen drew on the Hogyoku’s power, prompting Duan Mu to abandon defense and unleash a devastating combination of lightning, flames, and Kidō.
• Duan Mu’s blade pierced Aizen’s barrier after Duan Mu used Soul Combination Exchange, and the two unleashed their full power in a final clash.
• Duan Mu survived with his experience points exhausted, while Aizen stood gravely wounded with much of his right side missing.
• A transparent orb rose from the ground and enveloped Aizen in a cocoon, leaving the powerless Duan Mu to watch as the Hogyoku began his evolution.

Duan Mu’s attack disrupted Aizen’s evolution but left him gravely injured, and Aizen nearly killed him before Kurosaki Isshin, Urahara Kisuke, and Yoruichi intervened. Aizen withdrew to adjust his incomplete transformation, while Urahara treated Duan Mu and prepared for the next response.

• Duan Mu realized the Hogyoku had fully merged with Aizen, leaving Aizen transformed but incomplete, and Aizen questioned how Duan Mu had achieved Soul Combination Exchange.
• Aizen deduced that Duan Mu could predict events through observation and inference, then decided to kill him and preserve his corpse for later study.
• Kurosaki Isshin blocked Aizen’s strike, and Yoruichi moved the helpless Duan Mu beside Shuhei Hisagi as Urahara Kisuke joined them.
• Urahara Kisuke, Kurosaki Isshin, and Yoruichi confronted Aizen, who withdrew through a black hole after Urahara pointed out that his evolution was unstable and the group was unprepared to fight.
• Urahara Kisuke gave Duan Mu a restorative pill, explained that Duan Mu had disrupted Aizen’s evolution, and said he would revise his preparations while they waited for help to arrive.

Duan Mu lay gravely injured and searched for a way to restore his damaged spiritual core, concluding that he might need to develop a new healing Kido inspired by Orihime Inoue’s power. He then considered asking Komamura Sajin to let him study the Humanization Technique, leaving his recovery plan pointed toward Komamura.

• Duan Mu examined his system status and realized his existing experience points and near-maxed physique could not repair his Core of Spiritual Pressure, Sekketzu, or Soul Sleep.
• Duan Mu decided that a new form of healing Kido might restore his vital spiritual functions and considered Orihime Inoue’s ability as a reference.
• Duan Mu ruled out experimenting on large numbers of Soul Reapers because it would cause casualties and attract Captain Commander Yamamoto’s wrath.
• Duan Mu recognized Komamura Sajin’s connection to the wolf-men clan and considered studying his Humanization Technique as a possible route to recovery.

Duan Mu, unable to use Spiritual Pressure despite recovering from his wounds, planned to find Kuchiki Kyōka by letting Muramasa’s scheme succeed. He left the Fourth Division and mobilized his Rukongai network to search for Muramasa and the rebellious Zanpakuto.

• Duan Mu confirmed that his body had healed but his Spiritual Pressure and spiritual abilities remained damaged.
• Duan Mu identified Kuchiki Kyōka as a potential source of spiritual power and reasoned that Muramasa would lead him to the sealed Soul Reaper.
• Duan Mu left the hospital, traveled through the eastern gate, and teleported to the Yorozuya’s main branch in District 38.
• Duan Mu ordered his people to search Rukongai for several targets, keep their distance, and report any sightings of Muramasa or the Zanpakuto.

Duan Mu located the deserter Zanpakuto and revealed that he had lost his Soul Reaper abilities, prompting him to prepare for a purge of disloyal villains in Rukongai. When his powerful allies arrived covered in blood after killing large groups, he tested Golden Horn and Silver Horn’s cultivation in the rear courtyard.

• Duan Mu ordered his subordinates to watch the cave where the Zanpakuto were hiding and explained that he wanted them to achieve their objective, not be destroyed.
• Duan Mu told the tavern that he had lost his Soul Reaper abilities after fighting Aizen, and he noticed several villains reacting with hostile interest.
• Duan Mu stopped Diao Ao from pursuing the suspicious villains and quietly prepared to deal with them while sharing drinks with his companions.
• Uzuki recounted how Duan Mu had arrived in Soul Society unable to use most of his limbs and had practiced smiling and speaking to people.
• Habutae, Nishijin-ori, and Takahashi arrived covered in blood after killing groups of villains, and Golden Horn and Silver Horn arrived after apparently doing the same.
• Duan Mu dragged Golden Horn and Silver Horn into the rear courtyard and tested their strength, leaving the others relieved when they heard Golden Horn scream.

The captains discussed the purge in Rukongai after Duan Mu returned there, while Duan Mu prepared to study spiritual bodies to restore his powers. Muramasa visited the Yorozuya and forced Duan Mu’s Zanpakuto to materialize, revealing it as a gigantic white fox.

• Ukitake Jushiro reported that most ordinary Zanpakuto had been restored, while Ichigo Kurosaki asked where Duan Mu was.
• Soi Fon reported that Duan Mu’s subordinates had slaughtered thousands of rebels in Rukongai, and Kyōraku Shunsui warned the captains against interfering in Duan Mu’s domain.
• Duan Mu told Habutae that he needed to study spiritual bodies to heal his Core of Spiritual Pressure, then said the group should focus on the rebellious Zanpakuto.
• Muramasa arrived at the Yorozuya and said he intended to take Duan Mu’s Zanpakuto, which he believed should no longer belong to someone who had lost his Shinigami abilities.
• Duan Mu allowed Muramasa to use his power, and Kyokui materialized as a colossal white fox whose murderous intent had driven it into the world.

Muramasa departed with Duan Mu’s rebellious Zanpakuto, whose struggle with the little white dog left Duan Mu uneasy. While the Gotei 13 attacked Muramasa’s hideout, Duan Mu used the Pícaro to open a Senkaimon to the Human World, unaware that a pair of purple eyes watched him leave.

• Muramasa calmed the enormous fox and left, and Duan Mu held Nishijin-ori and the others back from pursuing him.
• Soi Fon, Ichigo Kurosaki, and Shihoin Yoruichi arrived; Duan Mu explained Muramasa’s plan and sent Golden Horn and Silver Horn to assist Soi Fon.
• Over the next two days, Golden Horn and Silver Horn reported to Duan Mu while the Onmitsukidō searched Rukongai; Duan Mu grew concerned when his Zanpakuto failed to appear.
• As the Gotei 13 fought Muramasa’s group near Captain Commander Yamamoto’s seal, Duan Mu ordered his allies to withdraw and watched crimson flames rise on the horizon.
• Duan Mu summoned five Pícaro and had them open a Senkaimon to Karakura Town so he could pursue his plan to turn Kuchiki Kyōka into an external Spiritual Void Crest.
• After Duan Mu entered the Senkaimon, a pair of purple eyes condensed in the air and watched him leave.

Duan Mu reached Muramasa’s unsealing site near Karakura Town, seeking Kuchiki Kyōka’s power to restore his Shinigami abilities. Byakuya agreed to let Duan Mu take Kyōka alive after their battle, and Ichigo and Rukia stood down as Muramasa neared the end of the unsealing.

• Duan Mu arrived at the lake with the Pikaro and raced ahead toward the clash of spiritual pressure.
• Muramasa advanced toward the sealed Kuchiki Kyōka while Senbonzakura fought Ishida Uryū and Yasutora Sado.
• Duan Mu and Kuchiki Byakuya agreed that Byakuya would defeat Kyōka and leave him on the verge of death so Duan Mu could use his power.
• Muramasa’s chant cracked open the tree around Kyōka’s coffin, and Ichigo Kurosaki and Kuchiki Rukia arrived through a Senkaimon.
• Ishida Uryū explained Duan Mu’s plan, and Ichigo and Rukia stopped before attacking Muramasa as Senbonzakura explained the rebellion.

Duan Mu helped Kuchiki Byakuya defeat Kuchiki Kyōka, then turned Kyōka into a Spiritual Void Crest that restored some of his spiritual pressure. After returning to Soul Society, Duan Mu learned that his Zanpakuto had swallowed Uzuki, Soi Fon, and many women from Rukongai.

• Kuchiki Kyōka awakened, stabbed Muramasa, and fought Kuchiki Byakuya while Duan Mu questioned Muramasa about his missing Zanpakuto.
• Muramasa's despair released more than a hundred Gillian, but Duan Mu's Píkaros friends appeared and sent the Hollows back to Hueco Mundo.
• Without the Hollows sustaining him, Muramasa disappeared, and Kuchiki Byakuya defeated Kuchiki Kyōka and left him alive for Duan Mu.
• Duan Mu and the Píkaros transformed Kuchiki Kyōka into a Spiritual Void Crest, allowing Duan Mu to use spiritual pressure again.
• Duan Mu returned to Soul Society with Ichigo Kurosaki, Kuchiki Byakuya, Kuchiki Rukia, Ishida Uryū, and Yasutora Sado, intending to address urgent matters.
• At Yorozuya, Habutae and Golden Horn told Duan Mu that his Zanpakuto had swallowed Uzuki, Soi Fon, and many women from Rukongai.

Duan Mu learned that Jūmei had swallowed many of his female friends, including Captain Soi Fon, but realized they were alive and that Jūmei could borrow their strength. With Jūmei and Unohana Retsu missing, he warned the others that all his female friends were targets and considered using Habutae and Rukia as bait.

• Ishida Sōgen and the others told Duan Mu that Jūmei had appeared after he left, swallowed several women, and escaped after Habutae evaded it.
• Golden Horn and Silver Horn reported that Jūmei had swallowed Soi Fon with overwhelming speed and strength, leading Duan Mu to suspect it grew stronger by containing his friends.
• Duan Mu reasoned that Jūmei was connected to the favorable feelings of his female friends and could not harm the people whose emotions had formed it.
• Silver Horn and Golden Horn said Unohana Retsu had chased Jūmei out of Seireitei, and Duan Mu inferred that Isane had likely been swallowed.
• Duan Mu assured everyone that the swallowed people were alive, explained that all his female friends were Jūmei’s targets, and considered using Habutae and Rukia as bait.

Duan Mu learned that Kumei had swallowed many women connected to him, though Kurotsuchi Mayuri confirmed they were safe inside its gray forest. Suspecting Kumei was heading for the Shiba Clan, Duan Mu rushed there, where Kumei ambushed him inside a strange domain.

• Omaeda confronted Duan Mu over the people his runaway Zanpakuto had swallowed, and Duan Mu learned that Kurotsuchi Mayuri had confirmed they were unharmed.
• Omaeda asked Duan Mu to mobilize Rukongai residents to help Seireitei search for Kumei, and Duan Mu agreed to apologize to the victims’ families later.
• Duan Mu suspected Kumei would head for the Shiba Clan to grow stronger, so he hurried there at high speed.
• Kumei ambushed Duan Mu in the mountains and engulfed him in a gray domain that blocked his senses and made movement heavy.
• Duan Mu charged into Kumei’s enormous descending claw and shattered it, then warned his Zanpakuto that such an attack could not kill him.

Duan Mu fought Jùmíng after it revealed its Bankai, whose purple-eyed analysis let it predict and counter his attacks. Duan Mu discovered that Jùmíng could analyze and undo spiritual rules, and used Kuyō Shibari to draw in approaching threats as the battle continued.

• Jùmíng appeared in the mist in the form of a boy and revealed a Zanpakuto Duan Mu recognized as its Bankai.
• Jùmíng used its speed and uncanny analysis to bypass Duan Mu’s defenses and repeatedly wound him.
• Duan Mu inferred that Jùmíng’s purple eyes analyzed his reactions, then suppressed his instincts and fired hundreds of Hollow Bullets at it.
• Jùmíng tapped each Hollow Bullet with its blade, converting the spiritual pressure back into spirit particles and shocking Duan Mu with its ability to analyze rules.
• After being blinded and knocked down, Duan Mu cast Kuyō Shibari, whose nine spheres drew in attacks and anyone approaching him.

Duan Mu defeated Jueming but realized that killing it could make the people it had devoured disappear, so he chose to let them return instead. After Jueming’s true form vanished and everyone gathered, Duan Mu collapsed as they emerged from the strange world.

• Duan Mu exploited Jueming’s hesitation, seized its neck, and explained that it wanted to kill his current self and restore the person he had been before.
• Duan Mu stopped himself from killing Jueming because he feared losing the people it had devoured and admitted that he valued his relationships with them.
• The blood mist cleared, returning Uzuki, Isane, Soi Fon, Granny Shuiyue, Brewing Granny, the Nagano family, Omaeda’s mother and daughter, and others to a forest beneath a bright sky.
• Duan Mu recognized the little white dog as Jueming, his Zanpakuto’s core, and the Zanpakuto’s world used its sunlight to make the little boy disappear.
• The group emerged beside Shiba Kūkaku, Shihoin Yoruichi, Ichigo Kurosaki, and the others, and Duan Mu collapsed just after Soi Fon greeted Yoruichi.

After repairing Seireitei from the Zanpakuto rampage, Duan Mu remained without spiritual pressure and avoided Kurotsuchi Mayuri's experiments. He recognized that his body's Reishi would need to recover and found a possible lead in his Zanpakuto.

• Duan Mu finished rebuilding Seireitei in a week while Iwao and the criminals neared completion of repairs in Rukongai.
• Captain Commander Yamamoto covered the repair costs and paid Duan Mu a commission rather than punishing him for Jumei's rampage.
• Omaeda brought Duan Mu snacks and asked about his recovery, learning that Duan Mu still had no way to restore his spiritual pressure.
• Duan Mu reflected that his spiritual body had collapsed while the Reishi portion of his body sustained him, and rejected Kurotsuchi Mayuri's help because he feared being experimented on.
• Duan Mu glanced at his Zanpakuto and realized he had found a lead on how to treat himself.

Duan Mu refused Omaeda's request to persuade Ichigo Kurosaki not to enter Hueco Mundo, while Soul Society prepared for the possibility of war. In Las Noches, Loly threatened Orihime Inoue, but Tier appeared and stopped her.

• Onmitsukidō members showed Duan Mu unusual warmth, and Omaeda explained that Gotei 13 remained on alert as Hueco Mundo grew active.
• Omaeda told Duan Mu that Ichigo Kurosaki had escaped surveillance and might go to Hueco Mundo to rescue Orihime Inoue, but Duan Mu refused to persuade him to stay away.
• Duan Mu recalled that he had promised to escort Orihime Inoue and admitted that his unrecovered spiritual pressure would leave him vulnerable to Aizen.
• In Las Noches, Lujia Paramia cared for Orihime Inoue in the room of a Ten Blades member while the owner was away.
• Loly and Menoly confronted Orihime Inoue, and Loly blamed her for Aizen's absence from public view.
• Roga blocked Loly from reaching Orihime Inoue, then Tier appeared behind Loly and threatened her while Menoly tried to excuse their behavior.