Chapter Summaries

Hirako Shinji read Aizen Sōsuke’s report accusing Siwei Yan of involvement in the disappearances and covert experiments, then brought it to Kyōraku Shunsui. The report raised suspicions, but Lisa volunteered to investigate Yan while Kyōraku and Hirako remained uncertain.

• Hirako opened the sealed box in the Kidō Corps barracks and found Aizen’s report linking Siwei Yan to unusual incidents and warning that Yan’s connections made reckless action dangerous.
• Hirako asked Tessai Tsukabishi and Hachigen Ushōda to keep the report secret, then went to consult Kyōraku Shunsui.
• Kyōraku’s lieutenant, Yadomaru Lisa, reported that Yan had returned to the Ninth Division barracks after being missing for nine days, though his movements remained unknown.
• Hirako showed Kyōraku and Lisa the report, and Lisa rejected its accusation against Yan while suspecting Aizen was trying to mislead them.
• Lisa asked to investigate Yan herself and persuaded Kyōraku to agree by revealing where he had hidden a jar of Spiritual Intoxication.

Aizen disguised as Urahara infiltrated the Research and Development Bureau to search its records and inspect the Soul Jade research. Mayuri uncovered the disguise and allowed Aizen to leave with the Soul Jade, then opened a concealed passage beneath the corridor.

• Aizen entered the bureau disguised as Urahara and searched its database for research on limits, evolution, and fusion, but found no matches.
• Mayuri tested the disguised Aizen by asking about the Soul Jade research, and Aizen agreed to obtain a Soul King Fragment from Yoruichi Shihōin.
• Mayuri explained that Urahara’s unusual wandering through the bureau had exposed Aizen, then offered no resistance to his taking the Soul Jade.
• Aizen left the Soul Jade secured inside the workstation and departed with Mayuri, asking how Mayuri had identified him.
• Mayuri released purple smoke in the corridor, opened a hidden stairway beneath a floor tile, and descended into it.

After returning to the Ninth Division following nine days away, Yan Si reassured his comrades and considered whether Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro would step into Soul Society’s coming conflict. The next day, Yan Si led a patrol with Lisa, Gin, and Rangiku toward a powerful Hollow Reiatsu he recognized as being near Shiba Kaien.

• Yan Si returned to the Ninth Division, where Kyunnan Shiro, Rangiku, Kensei, and the other members welcomed him after his nine-day absence.
• Yan Si asked Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro whether they wanted to take a role in Soul Society’s turmoil, then told Gin and Rangiku he was not leaving.
• Yan Si told Kurotsuchi Mayuri to prepare materials for a single-use Soul Jade using Soul King Fragments, and Mayuri confirmed that someone had taken the item Yan Si had arranged.
• Lisa asked Yan Si to join her patrol, and Kensei took Kyunnan Shiro while Yan Si formed a team with Gin and Rangiku.
• Yan Si’s patrol team sensed an immense Hollow Reiatsu in Rukongai, and Yan Si identified its source as the area where Shiba Kaien was.

Shiba Kaien fought Aaroniero Arruruerie, who used Kachōmaru Hidetomo’s appearance to distract him after killing the division members. Kaien unleashed Bankai and destroyed Aaroniero, then walked back toward the Seireitei carrying Hidetomo’s identification tag.

• Aaroniero impersonated Kachōmaru Hidetomo, and Shiba Kaien destroyed the false body after learning it had consumed Hidetomo and other division members.
• Aaroniero ambushed Kaien and tried to absorb him while revealing that Aizen and Kaname Tōsen had observed the fight to gather data.
• Kaien released Bankai, broke free from Aaroniero’s grasp, and struck him with Nejibana’s water-based attacks.
• Aaroniero offered to explain how he entered Soul Society, but Kaien killed him with a final water column that erased his remaining Reishi.
• Kaien took Hidetomo’s identification tag and headed toward the Seireitei as rain fell.

After Yan Si and his companions witnessed Shiba Kaien defeat Aaroniero, Lisa reported on Yan Si to Kyōraku, who discussed growing suspicions about him with Ukitake. The two decided Kyōraku should ask Yan Si directly, while they also recognized that someone had concealed the Hollow’s captain-level Reiatsu near Seireitei.

• Yan Si explained to Lisa that Kaien had hidden his Bankai because he had no interest in becoming a captain, then led the group back to patrol.
• Lisa gave Kyōraku her detailed patrol report, describing Yan Si as powerful, considerate, and attractive; Kyōraku warned her that Yan Si was likely involved with Yoruichi.
• Kyōraku brought Lisa’s notebook to Ukitake, and the two discussed Hirako’s concerns about Aizen, Urahara, and Yan Si’s connections.
• Ukitake urged Kyōraku to ask Yan Si directly whether he was involved, and Kyōraku agreed to speak with him.
• Ukitake and Kyōraku concluded that someone had concealed Aaroniero’s captain-level Reiatsu and noted that the Twelfth Division and Research and Development Bureau managed the area around Seireitei.

Aizen Sōsuke and Kaname Tōsen broke into the Kuchiki estate to awaken the sealed Kuchiki Kyōka with the Soul Jade and the power of ten thousand Hollows. Kyōka began transforming as alarms sounded across Seireitei, and Aizen left to see what he would choose.

• Aizen Sōsuke shattered the alarm crystal and disabled the seals protecting Kuchiki Kyōka’s hidden chamber.
• Aizen and Kaname Tōsen opened Kyōka’s coffin, where they encountered Muramasa guarding his master.
• Aizen offered to free Kyōka and abolish the nobility, and Muramasa agreed to hear what he wanted.
• Aizen tore away Kyōka’s Spirit Seal Bindings while Kaname poured Hollow power into him and Aizen placed the Soul Jade on his chest.
• The Soul Jade unleashed a pillar of light through the Kuchiki estate, and Kyōka’s reiatsu surged as a white mask formed over his face.
• Aizen retrieved the Soul Jade and left with Kaname, while Kyōka’s fingers twitched inside the open coffin.

Kuchiki Byakuya evacuated Hisana and Rukia from the Kuchiki Estate as Muramasa’s Hollow Reiatsu overwhelmed them, then confronted the transformed Kuchiki Kyōka. Kyōka emerged in a Visored form and rejected Byakuya’s warning, leaving the two poised for battle.

• Byakuya carried the unconscious Hisana to Rukia and sent both sisters through a shielded secret passage to the Ninth Division to find Yan Si.
• Byakuya dressed in the Kuchiki family’s insignia and his Captain’s Haori, released his Reiatsu, and confronted Muramasa in the estate courtyard.
• Byakuya activated Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, surrounding the courtyard with thousands of pink blades aimed at Muramasa.
• Kyōka called Muramasa back into the wooden house, then emerged wearing a Bone Mask and wielding a Hollowfied Muramasa.
• Byakuya told Kyōka that his sentence had thirty-three years remaining and threatened to eliminate him if he refused to return to the house.
• Kyōka roared in anger, unleashed a violent pillar of purple Reiatsu, and stepped toward Byakuya.

Kuchiki Byakuya fought Kuchiki Kyōka, but Kyōka’s Hollow abilities overwhelmed him. Kyōka stopped short of killing Byakuya when his wife pleaded with him, then fled into the night.

• Byakuya attacked Kuchiki Kyōka, but Kyōka’s Hierro deflected his strike and Muramasa wounded Byakuya’s leg.
• Byakuya used Gokei: Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, but the blades could not pierce Kyōka’s Hierro, and Kyōka wounded Byakuya’s shoulder with White Ray.
• Byakuya gathered his reiatsu and attacked with a powerful white blade, but Kyōka shattered the strike and impaled him with Muramasa.
• Byakuya unleashed a reishi storm while pinned on Muramasa, but Kyōka struck him with Cero and left him collapsed and barely breathing.
• When Byakuya’s wife begged him to stop, Kyōka lowered Muramasa and fled into the night, leaving her and Byakuya wounded in the courtyard.

Kuchiki Kyōka’s transformed reiatsu erupted over Seireitei, prompting Yamamoto to send Yoruichi’s Zanpakutō-free Punishment Force to capture him. As Yan Si prepared to use the chaos as an opportunity, Rukia brought her collapsing sister Hisana to him, and he hid her in a special Gigai before entering a secret passage.

• Yamamoto ordered the divisions to stay alert and sent Yoruichi and the Punishment Force to apprehend Kuchiki Kyōka.
• Unohana explained that captains could not confront Kyōka because his ability hypnotized Zanpakutō, while the Punishment Force did not use them.
• Kensei warned Yan Si to stay away from the incident, but Yan Si considered using the chaos to take something from the Noble District.
• Rukia brought Hisana, whose spiritual body was collapsing, to Yan Si for help.
• Yan Si placed Hisana in a special Gigai that stabilized her, then opened a hidden passage and entered it while Gin and Rangiku guarded the room.

Siwei Yan infiltrated the Tsunayashiro Clan’s Safe House as the clan elders gathered to escape Kuchiki Kyōka’s reiatsu. After Yan incapacitated four attackers, he revealed his intent to kill the clan head and appeared beside Motonari.

• Tsunayashiro Motoi ordered the clan’s senior members to withdraw to the Safe House and put the estate on Level One Alert.
• A disguised Siwei Yan followed the elders through a hidden passage into the Safe House, where they found Tokinada waiting.
• Motonari confronted Tokinada about killing Kakyō, slapped him, and rejected the elders’ suggestions to bring an outsider into the clan.
• Tokinada pointed out that an outsider had followed them, and the elders recognized Siwei Yan at the passage entrance.
• Motonari signaled his fighters to attack, but Yan stopped four charging Shinigami and knocked them unconscious without moving.
• Tokinada declared that Yan had come to kill the clan, and Yan suddenly appeared five paces from Motonari.

Siwei Yan watched Tokinada kill Motoi and the fleeing Tsunayashiro elders, then learned that the clan had stored vast reserves of Shinigami, Hollow, and Quincy reishi. Tokinada explained that the ancestors who divided the world sought immortality by making the Soul King the linchpin of the Three Realms, leaving Siwei Yan with the revelation that their balance depended on the Soul King's mutilated body.

• Tokinada stabbed Motoi, then killed the Tsunayashiro elders who tried to flee the hall.
• Tokinada showed Siwei Yan three rooms of stored reishi and said the clan had collected about a hundred million units of soul power over thousands of years.
• Siwei Yan questioned whether removing so much soul power could destabilize the Three Realms, and Tokinada challenged his understanding of the Soul King's nature.
• Tokinada revealed that the ancestors of the Five Noble Houses and Squad Zero had originally been human, and Siwei Yan deduced that they had divided the world to achieve immortality.
• Tokinada declared that the ancestors had dismembered the Soul King and used his body to anchor the Three Realms so they could live forever as Shinigami.

Yan Si learned Tokinada’s plan to replace the Soul King with Kūgo Ginjō and then destroy all of existence, so he refused to join him. Tokinada tried to copy Yan Si’s ability, but Yan Si revealed Sayafushi and killed him.

• Tokinada explained that the Soul King filtered souls to feed the nobles and Squad Zero, and said he planned to cut off their supply by replacing him.
• Tokinada named Kūgo Ginjō as his intended replacement, intending to give him Quincy power and then destroy the Three Realms and everyone in them.
• Yan Si refused to let Tokinada take part in his effort to solve the problem, and Tokinada released Enrakyōten to imitate Yan Si’s Zanpakutō.
• Tokinada realized Yan Si’s power was not a Zanpakutō ability, but Yan Si drew out Sayafushi and beheaded him.
• Yan Si left Tokinada’s corpse and walked toward the rooms filled with liquid Reishi.

Yan Si took the Tsunayashiro Clan’s hoarded Soul Power, Soul King Fragments, and Enrakyōten, then used the blade to unleash Ryūjin Jakka’s flames in the passage. Tokinada died when the flames destroyed the Safe House, and Yan Si left for the Ninth Division while Byakuya continued fighting Yoruichi’s forces.

• Yan Si compressed the Shinigami, Quincy, and Hollow Soul Power into beads and collected seventeen Soul King Fragments.
• Yan Si took Enrakyōten and transformed it into Ryūjin Jakka, sending a pillar of flame through the passage.
• Tokinada revealed how he had survived Yan Si’s slash and began activating a hidden Senkaimon leading to the Human World.
• The flames reached the Safe House, and Tokinada forced the Senkaimon to activate before the flames and spatial distortion triggered an explosion that killed him.
• Yan Si saw that Byakuya was still alive and fighting Yoruichi’s Punishment Force, then suppressed his presence and headed toward the Ninth Division.

Yoruichi and the Punishment Force fought Kōga, whose Hollow power let him overpower her, until a pillar of fire at the Tsunayashiro estate made him flee. Yamamoto clarified that the fire came from Enrakyōten, denied any intent to harm Yoruichi, and ordered the captains to a meeting.

• Yoruichi used Pòwàng and Shunko to crack Kōga’s mask, but he struck her down and began gathering power.
• A pillar of fire erupted over the Tsunayashiro estate, and Kōga suspected Yamamoto was exploiting the chaos to destroy the clan.
• Kōga retreated from Seireitei, deciding to master his new power and find whoever had manipulated him.
• Yamamoto told Yoruichi the fire was produced by Enrakyōten, not Ryūjin Jakka, and said he would not harm her because of her relationship with Yan Si.
• Yamamoto summoned the captains to a meeting, while Unohana helped Yoruichi recover and escorted her toward the center of Seireitei.

Yan Si left the Ninth Division after reassuring Rukia that Hisana had stabilized and Byakuya was alive, then went to the Research and Development Bureau to discuss the Soul King Fragments and soul power with Kurotsuchi Mayuri. Mayuri agreed to make single-use Soul Jades for Visored candidates, leaving Yan Si to decide who would receive them.

• Yan Si reassured Rukia that Hisana was recovering and that he could still sense Byakuya's reiatsu, then assigned Gin and the Ninth Division members to guard the barracks.
• Yan Si went to the Research and Development Bureau and told Kurotsuchi Mayuri that Kuchiki Kyōka had not used Muramasa after gaining Hollow power.
• Yan Si gave Kurotsuchi Mayuri three Soul Power Beads and seventeen Soul King Fragments, and Mayuri confirmed that new souls were continually being produced in the Human World.
• Yan Si asked why Mayuri still wanted to create life, and Mayuri said that creating life was meaningful in itself and represented the authority of a god.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri calculated that he could make twelve single-use Soul Jades, but requested two for his own experiments, leaving Yan Si with ten intended for Visored candidates.
• Kurotsuchi Mayuri began making the Soul Jades while Yan Si waited and considered who should receive the ten remaining doses.

At the captains’ meeting, Urahara Kisuke revealed that Kuchiki Kyōka had become a Visored through Hollowification experiments, and Hirako Shinji questioned Yan Si’s alibi. Yoruichi Shihōin claimed she had spent nine days and nine nights with Yan Si, deflecting suspicion for the moment, then urged Urahara to monitor the Fifth Division as the search for the mastermind continued.

• Kyōraku Shunsui reported that Kuchiki Kyōka had escaped his seal and that the Tsunayashiro Clan’s senior members were missing, while Yoruichi Shihōin and Kuchiki Byakuya confirmed they had fought Kōga.
• Urahara Kisuke explained that Kuchiki Kyōka had likely undergone Hollowification and that the disappearances and spiritual-body collapses were connected to clandestine experiments.
• Hirako Shinji challenged Kensei Muguruma about Yan Si’s whereabouts during Kuchiki Kyōka’s attack, and Kensei admitted Yan Si had been alone in a treatment room for part of the time.
• Yoruichi Shihōin declared that she and Yan Si had been intimate for nine days and nine nights, and the captains’ meeting ended with Yamamoto ordering level-one defense across the Seireitei.
• Yoruichi told Urahara Kisuke that the Hogyoku remained at her home, suspected someone was manipulating events, and asked him to monitor the Fifth Division before heading back toward the Second Division.

After Seireitei declared a level-one security alert, Yan Si organized the Ninth Division’s patrols and equipped them for emergency operations. At the Research and Development Bureau, Urahara Kisuke began setting up electronic surveillance and discovered that someone had altered the records, leaving him suspicious of Kurotsuchi Mayuri.

• Kensei told Yan Si that Seireitei was under level-one security and ordered the Ninth Division to follow Emergency Plan S.
• Yan Si organized five patrol teams, while Rangiku Matsumoto issued them Flash Grenades, incendiary bombs, and first-aid kits; Kensei then sent the teams out.
• Urahara Kisuke proposed making electronic surveillance equipment to monitor Seireitei, and Kurotsuchi Mayuri recognized that it could help expose intruders who fooled Reishi surveillance.
• Urahara assigned Hiyori and Akon to help build the equipment and began developing a central control system.
• Urahara examined the Research and Development Bureau’s records, found altered surveillance data, and suspected Kurotsuchi Mayuri of secretly covering something up.

Yan Si discussed Aizen’s plans for involving all three realms, then prepared Consumable Soul Jades for Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro to use in an emergency. He headed to the Fifth Division to have Hirako Shinji test one first as Aizen’s preparations neared completion.

• Yan Si decided to test Kurotsuchi Mayuri’s Consumable Soul Jade on Hirako Shinji before risking it on his allies.
• Aizen visited Yan Si, explained that he intended to involve all three realms, and said the preparations were nearly complete and it was time for the curtain to rise.
• Yan Si gave Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro wooden boxes containing Soul Jades and told them to swallow the contents if an emergency arose.
• Yan Si left Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro on patrol in northern Rukongai and headed toward the Fifth Division to find Hirako Shinji.

Yan Si visited Hirako Shinji in the Fifth Division, but an emergency summons and Gin Ichimaru’s report of Kyunnan Shiro’s Hollow mask sent him rushing toward the Ninth Division patrol. Earlier, Kyunnan Shiro had swallowed a Soul Jade in his sleep and transformed, and Kensei joined him in a destructive fight as Gin secretly watched with Aizen, Kaname Tōsen, and Kuchiki Kyōka.

• Yan Si visited Hirako Shinji and presented him with a gift, but the emergency meeting signal interrupted them before Hirako could take it.
• Gin Ichimaru told Yan Si that Kyunnan Shiro and Kensei were fighting and that Kyunnan Shiro was wearing a white mask, so Yan Si grabbed his Soul Jade supply and raced toward northern Rukongai.
• On patrol, Kensei found a Soul Jade that had fallen from Kyunnan Shiro’s clothes, but Kyunnan Shiro swallowed it while still asleep and erupted with Hollow-like Reiatsu.
• Masked Kyunnan Shiro attacked Kensei with a Cero and a Rider Kick, forcing Kensei to defend himself and draw the fight away from the patrol camp.
• Kensei swallowed another Soul Jade, gained a white mask and Hollow powers, and attacked Kyunnan Shiro as their battle tore through the surrounding wasteland.
• Gin watched the fight from hiding and contacted Yan Si while Aizen, Kaname Tōsen, and Kuchiki Kyōka observed from a nearby cliff.

Masked Kensei Muguruma and Kyunnan Shiro battled while Aizen sent Kuchiki Kyōka to attack the nobles he blamed for framing him. The captains organized a mission to capture and save Kensei and Kyunnan, as Urahara prepared an isolation room and Kurotsuchi Mayuri secretly concealed his role in creating the Soul Jades.

• Aizen explained that Kensei and Kyunnan’s Soul Jades amplified their Shinigami power, then sent Kuchiki Kyōka to kill the nobles he blamed for his imprisonment.
• Urahara reported Hollowification at the captains’ meeting, and Yamamoto ordered Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō, Hirako Shinji, Love Aikawa, and Hachigen Ushōda to capture Kensei and Kyunnan alive.
• Yamamoto approved Lisa joining the mission, while Urahara and Yoruichi left to prepare for the two Shinigami’s recovery.
• Hiyori kicked Urahara, then left to help with the mission and told him to prepare to restore Kensei and Kyunnan’s sanity.
• Urahara asked Kurotsuchi Mayuri whether he was involved, and Mayuri denied it despite having made the Consumable Soul Jades used on Kensei and Kyunnan.