Chapter Summaries

Yan Si visited Byakuya and Rukia, encouraged Rukia to complete her Academy training, and gave Byakuya a Soul Jade for emergencies. He then discussed Hisana’s limited lifespan and the Humanization Technique with the couple, leaving Byakuya asking her to give him more time.

• Yan Si considered how to distribute his remaining Soul Jades and went to the Sixth Division’s barracks with one for Byakuya.
• Yan Si supported Byakuya’s wish for Rukia to spend the full six years at the Academy, explaining that she needed more experience with Rukongai.
• Byakuya voiced concern about facing Unohana, and Yan Si gave him a Soul Jade to carry in case of an emergency.
• Yan Si told Byakuya that Hisana could not safely use a Soul Jade and explained that the Humanization Technique would leave her with only a few years to live.
• Hisana asked to undergo the Humanization Technique sooner so she could have a child with Byakuya, and Byakuya asked her to give him some time.

Yan Si brought the sealed Vasto Lorde Szayelaporro to Kurotsuchi Mayuri and traded him for two pieces of Soul Jade. After leaving Szayelaporro in Mayuri’s hands for study, Yan Si reflected that the third piece of his plan was nearly complete.

• Yan Si carried Szayelaporro, sealed in ice and hidden with Spirit-Sealing Cloth, to the Research and Development Bureau.
• Akon told Yan Si that Kurotsuchi Mayuri feared the Quincy might emerge from shadows, and Mayuri showed how he had spotted a shadow moving in surveillance footage.
• Yan Si offered Szayelaporro, a Vasto Lorde, in exchange for Mayuri’s two remaining pieces of Soul Jade.
• Mayuri accepted the trade, handed Yan Si the Soul Jade, and warned that he could not yet spare any Spirit-Eroding Fluid.
• Yan Si left Szayelaporro with Mayuri and cautioned him about the Hollow’s parasitic ability before departing.

Yan Si visited Urahara’s research institute and discovered he had secretly sold seven Gigai modeled after him for a large profit. Yan Si demanded a share and commissioned Urahara to build a fully human body within three years, then thanked the unseen Amatsuyu Takuru outside.

• Yan Si found Urahara and the institute’s researchers severely sleep-deprived from working on research related to the Wandenreich.
• Yan Si carried Urahara to the merchandise room and found three display models of himself, including an adolescent, young adult, and middle-aged version.
• Urahara admitted he had sold seven Yan Si Gigai for forty million Kan, and Yan Si demanded seventy percent of the proceeds as a licensing fee.
• Yan Si ordered Urahara to create a fully human body that replicated his likeness, and Urahara estimated it would take up to three years.
• Urahara prepared to contact Yoruichi Shihōin but sensed someone watching him and put away the secret communicator.
• Yan Si left the institute and quietly thanked the unseen Amatsuyu Takuru.

Yan Si brought Tōshirō to the Secret Base and used a Tenshintai to help him confront Hyorinmaru. Tōshirō earned his Zanpakutō’s true name, Daiguren Hyōrinmaru, then collapsed into Yan Si’s arms as the power awakened.

• Old Iron welcomed newly graduated Shūhei Hisagi, Izuru Kira, Renji Abarai, and Momo Hinamori as seat officers while Yan Si encouraged him to assign their duties.
• Yan Si carried Tōshirō away from the Ninth Division courtyard and took him to the Secret Base, where he explained that a Tenshintai could materialize his Zanpakutō.
• Tōshirō touched the Tenshintai, and Hyorinmaru appeared and challenged him to prove himself worthy.
• Tōshirō fought Hyorinmaru despite his exhaustion and demanded to know his true name.
• Hyorinmaru revealed the name Daiguren Hyōrinmaru and merged into Tōshirō’s sword, filling him with power.
• Tōshirō collapsed, and Yan Si caught him and carried him out of the Secret Base.

Yan Si visited the Eleventh Division to arrange a future fight with Kenpachi Zaraki in Muken and warned him that fighting at full strength would make Yachiru disappear. He then found Yachiru at a Shinigami Women's Association gathering, where she reaffirmed her wish to help Kenpachi fight to his heart's content.

• Yan Si arrived at the Eleventh Division, where Kenpachi Zaraki eagerly attacked him and welcomed the prospect of a fight.
• Yan Si told Kenpachi Zaraki that he had requested a fight in Muken and warned that Yachiru would disappear if Kenpachi fought with all his strength.
• Kenpachi Zaraki accepted the risk and said he only wanted to fight to his heart's content, while Yan Si promised to arrange the match soon.
• Yan Si entered the Kuchiki estate through a hidden passage and found Yachiru at the Shinigami Women's Association with Unohana Retsu, Isane Kotetsu, Nanao Ise, Lisa, and Rangiku Matsumoto.
• Yan Si asked Yachiru whether she still wished for Kenpachi to fight freely, and she confirmed that she did and trusted Yan Si to help make it happen.

Yan Si finished preparing to leave Soul Society and asked Yoruichi to accompany him to the Human World without becoming human herself. Yoruichi challenged his selfish plan, but accepted his vow to protect her as they stayed together in the darkened room.

• Yan Si visited the Second Division courtyard, where Hachi Saaya attacked him with Suzumebachi, but his spiritual pressure shattered the Homonka before she could strike twice.
• Yan Si told Hachi Saaya that she would no longer need to protect Yoruichi because he would take on that responsibility, then went inside to see Yoruichi.
• Yoruichi revealed that she had learned of Yan Si's plan to use a prepared human body and was hurt that he had not discussed it with her.
• Yan Si asked Yoruichi to leave for the Human World with him without becoming human, knowing she would have to abandon her position and relationships in Soul Society.
• Yoruichi questioned how Yan Si could protect her with a human lifespan, and Yan Si vowed to protect her with his life; they continued talking as the candles went out.

Yan Si brought Kenpachi Zaraki to Muken, where he and Unohana Retsu faced the two Kenpachis in a battle meant to test Yan Si’s resolve and open the plan. After Yan Si’s terrifying power pushed both fighters to the brink, Kenpachi Zaraki released Nozarashi and demanded a second round.

• Yan Si told Yoruichi about his plan to fake his death and leave for the Human World, while Hachi Saaya struggled with the prospect of no longer serving at Yoruichi’s side.
• Yan Si met Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru, then led them to the Central Great The Jail as Soul Society’s captains and Yamamoto worried over the danger and the test of Yan Si’s resolve.
• At Muken, Yan Si found Unohana Retsu and Chiziro Kenpachi waiting, but Unohana and Kenpachi Zaraki immediately prepared to fight each other.
• Yan Si drew Sayafushi and released a presence that made both Kenpachi Zaraki and Unohana Retsu feel the fear of true death, then fought them together.
• Yan Si repeatedly wounded the two fighters with powerful techniques as their healing slowed, until Kenpachi Zaraki released Nozarashi and called for round two.

Yan Si defeated Kenpachi Zaraki’s first form and helped him awaken through the Soul Jade, while Retsu Unohana evolved after swallowing another Soul Jade and broke through Chiziro Kenpachi’s attacks. The chapter ended with Zaraki’s new form charging Unohana and the two beginning to fight.

• Yan Si and Kenpachi Zaraki clashed while Unohana challenged Chiziro Kenpachi, who used his puppet bodies and Ittō Kasō to wear her down.
• Chiziro Kenpachi gave Unohana a Soul Jade, and she swallowed it, healing her wounds and gaining enough power to withstand his attacks and destroy his Black Coffin and Five Dragon Destruction.
• Yan Si defeated Zaraki’s transformed Bankai form by cutting off one of his horns, then gave him a Soul Jade that awakened a new white form.
• Zaraki’s new form charged Unohana, and she met his attack as they began fighting each other.

Yan Si used Night Terror to weaken White Demon Gremmy and Blood Demon Retsu Unohana, then let Kenpachi Zaraki kill him so the two Kenpachi would postpone their duel until after the Wandenreich was defeated. Kenpachi Zaraki and Unohana emerged carrying Yan Si’s apparently dead body, triggering a clash with Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro; an emergency captains’ meeting followed, where Yamamoto’s Reiatsu froze the gathered lieutenants.

• Yan Si forged Night Terror with a future of godslaying and threw it through White Demon Gremmy and Blood Demon Retsu Unohana, weakening them until their transformations faded.
• After the three fought each other, Yan Si was impaled through the heart by Kenpachi Zaraki, and he secured promises from Zaraki and Retsu Unohana to delay their duel until after the Wandenreich was defeated.
• Kenpachi Zaraki carried Yan Si out of Muken with Retsu Unohana, and Unohana revealed that Yachiru had always been his Zanpakutō, prompting Zaraki to accept fighting alongside her.
• Kensei and Kyunnan Shiro attacked Kenpachi Zaraki after he said he had killed Yan Si, but he defeated both before leaving; Retsu Unohana healed them.
• The emergency captains’ meeting gathered the captains, while the lieutenants waited outside and Rangiku tried to reach Gin after sensing his Reiatsu.
• Yamamoto released his Reiatsu from the meeting room, freezing Rangiku, Shiba Kaien, and the other lieutenants in place.

At the captains’ meeting, the Gotei learned that Siwei Yan had died in Muken, prompting Gin Ichimaru to attack Kenpachi Zaraki and Yoruichi Shihōin to challenge Retsu Unohana over the cost of Yan Si’s plan. Yoruichi lost their duel and resigned her posts, leaving the captains’ meeting ended and the aftermath of Yan Si’s death unresolved.

• Captain-General Yamamoto appointed Hirako Shinji as Fifth Division Captain, and Sasakibe announced that Siwei Yan had fallen in battle in Muken.
• Gin Ichimaru used Bankai to poison and pierce Kenpachi Zaraki, but Zaraki activated White Demon and Yamamoto stopped the confrontation before either could continue fighting.
• Rangiku learned from Gin that Big Brother had died in battle and fainted, while Yoruichi resigned as Second Division Captain and commander of the Punishment Force.
• Yoruichi challenged Retsu Unohana, who used Bankai-Minazuki; Yoruichi’s lightning attacks failed to overcome Unohana’s instant healing, and Unohana wounded her until she withdrew.
• Sasakibe halted the fight, Yoruichi left with Omaeda, and Retsu Unohana departed with Isane as the captains’ meeting ended.

After Soul Society believed Siwei Yan had died in battle, his allies mourned and several captains prepared to take on new roles, while Chiziro Kenpachi’s decoy kept the deception intact. Aizen later visited Yan Si, who was alive in Karakura Town, and the two old friends quietly read together in a bookstore.

• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto tested the apparent corpse with flames, confirmed it was truly Siwei Yan, and ordered a division funeral after the fighting with Aizen and the Wandenreich.
• Chiziro Kenpachi and Amatsuyu Takuru revealed that the corpse was an Enrakyōten puppet consuming the Soul Jade, which could maintain the illusion for another fifteen years.
• Old Iron told Tōshirō Hitsugaya that Siwei Yan had died in battle and asked him to become Captain of the Ninth Division; Tōshirō accepted and unleashed Bankai as snow fell over Soul Society.
• Ōmaeda gave Hachi Saaya the Second Division Captain's Haori, while Kuchiki Byakuya prepared to use the Soul Jade and Kyōraku Shunsui, Hirako Shinji, and Ukitake Jūshirō mourned Yan Si together.
• Aizen learned of Yan Si's reported death, checked on the Espada's evolution, and traveled through the Dangai to Karakura Town.
• Aizen met the living Yan Si at his bookstore, where Yan Si offered him a novel and the two sat reading in silence.

Aizen visited Yan Si’s bookstore, discussed a story about a planned hero, and left to watch how its ending unfolded. Yan Si reflected on his short human lifespan and his growing desire to live, then shared oden with Yoruichi as the Hogyoku briefly stirred.

• Aizen asked Yan Si how the monkey in Dark Journey to the West might end if he rebelled against the gods, and Yan Si said different people would imagine different outcomes.
• Aizen agreed that the human world was pleasant, then left the bookstore to see how the monkey’s story would end.
• Yoruichi asked whether Aizen was plotting against Yan Si, and Yan Si explained that Aizen would see him only as a spectator now that he was human.
• Yan Si admitted that sensing time pass had made him appreciate everyday life and fear dying, while Yoruichi comforted him.
• Yan Si and Yoruichi closed the bookstore and ate oden together, and the Hogyoku’s inner nebula briefly sped up.

Tōshirō Hitsugaya and Soi Fon were appointed captains as Soul Society prepared for threats from Hueco Mundo and the Wandenreich. After the meeting, Gin Ichimaru chose to share the Soul Jade with the still-unconscious Rangiku Matsumoto, leaving their fate uncertain.

• Captain-General Yamamoto appointed Tōshirō Hitsugaya captain of the Ninth Division and Soi Fon captain of the Second Division.
• Urahara Kisuke reported that the Wandenreich could not be located unless it made contact with another world, while Kurotsuchi Mayuri estimated that Hueco Mundo had several powerful Hollows.
• Yamamoto ordered the Thirteenth and Tenth Divisions to help the Twelfth Division install Spatial Transfer devices at Reishi Concentration Points in the Human World and told the captains to strengthen themselves.
• Gin Ichimaru returned to Rangiku Matsumoto, who remained unconscious, and wrestled with whether to keep her safe or let her share the danger ahead.
• Gin took the Soul Jade from its hidden box and passed it into Rangiku's mouth, then held her hand and waited.

Yan Si met with Urahara, learned that Rangiku had recovered and discussed how to locate the Wandenreich, using a powerful young Quincy as a possible lead. After Yoruichi wore her custom Gigai and wore Yan Si out, Yan Si encountered Masaki Kurosaki and watched her head toward Shiba Isshin’s fight with a Hollow; the chapter ended with Aizen joining Yan Si for oden and liquor.

• Urahara delivered Yoruichi’s Gigai, reported that Rangiku had awakened and reached Visored-level strength, and asked Yan Si how to find the Wandenreich.
• Yan Si reasoned that the Quincy King’s scattered power might be among living Quincies, and Urahara left to follow and protect Masaki Kurosaki after she revealed her Captain-level strength.
• Yoruichi entered her Gigai, and she and Yan Si spent the night together until his human body could endure no more.
• Yan Si saw Shiba Isshin fighting a powerful Hollow, while Masaki Kurosaki ran toward the battle and Urahara followed her.
• Yan Si went to an oden shop, where Aizen joined him for food and liquor as the distant battle continued.

Yan Si and Aizen realized they might be manipulated by a power beyond them and agreed to join forces with Hueco Mundo, the Human World, and Soul Society to overturn the balance of power. A year later, Masaki Kurosaki returned to Yan Si’s bookstore, read his story about the Quincy, and began questioning her people’s origins while living alongside Shiba Isshin and Ryūken Ishida.

• Yan Si and Aizen discussed the natural-born Vasto Lorde, suspected that their choices had been influenced, and agreed that they needed to become Transcendents to challenge the powers above them.
• Yan Si proposed that Aizen’s forces locate Yhwach when he reclaimed his power, then have Hueco Mundo, the Human World, and Soul Society attack together; Aizen accepted the plan.
• Masaki Kurosaki returned a book to Yan Si, and he gave her a new story about Husky Bach, a Quincy-like ancestor who shared and reclaimed spiritual power while seeking to escape death.
• Masaki finished the story and received a protective charm from Yan Si; afterward, she went shopping with Shiba Isshin, who declared that he would always protect her.
• Masaki, Isshin, and Ryūken Ishida shared dinner, and Masaki asked about the Quincy ancestor and whether he could take back the powers he had given them.
• Ryūken said he would ask his father about the Quincy records, while Isshin and Ryūken argued over Shinigami strength and Isshin’s defeat by the Hollow.

Yan Si reunited with Kūgo Ginjō and assured him that the Fullbringers could focus on protecting Karakura Town while he handled the coming conflict. As Ginjō learned of the Quincy king and the Wandenreich, Yan Si and Urahara Kisuke prepared a plan to move the coming battle to Hueco Mundo, while the Hogyoku began reacting to Yan Si’s surging emotions.

• Kūgo Ginjō and Tsukishima met Yan Si at his bookstore, and Ginjō explained that Yan Si’s human form made him hopeful for the Fullbringers’ safety.
• Ginjō and Tsukishima encountered Ryūken Ishida, who later learned from Ishida Sōken that the sealed Quincy king could not reclaim the Ishida Family’s powers and that the king planned to rule the world in nine days.
• Tsukishima told Ginjō that the Quincy remained active, and Ginjō went to Yan Si, who confirmed they were powerful and warned that their allegiance might not represent humanity’s interests.
• Yan Si reassured Ginjō that the Special Dispatch Bureau should keep protecting Karakura Town, while he and Urahara Kisuke continued preparing to redirect the war to Hueco Mundo using Space-Transfer Stones.
• Yan Si returned to Yoruichi in their bedroom, and as their emotions surged, the Hogyoku began spinning faster.

Yan Si spent months using his desires to strengthen his body, then discovered that fear was the final instinct needed for the Hogyoku to complete his evolution. After Isshin Kurosaki told him that Masaki had given birth to Ichigo, Yan Si found the newborn’s immense Reishi was endangering the other babies and carried him toward the hospital’s top floor.

• Yan Si told Yoruichi that indulging his desires had awakened the Hogyoku, then competed in a glutton contest and let Kūgo Ginjō win the Golden Hamburger.
• Yan Si ate his way through Karakura Town with Yoruichi for half a year, while the Hogyoku shrank and merged into his body.
• Yan Si concluded that genuine fear of death was the last instinct he needed to awaken, but his strength made it impossible to feel threatened in the Human World.
• Isshin Kurosaki told Yan Si that Masaki had given birth to Ichigo, and Yan Si went with him to the hospital to examine the baby.
• Yan Si saw that Ichigo’s powerful Reishi was suppressing the other newborns, so Isshin removed Ichigo from the nursery and Yan Si carried him toward the top floor.

Yan Si stopped extracting Ichigo’s power after the Soul King warned him about Hell, and he let Ichigo choose his own future. Six years later, Masaki lost her Quincy powers while protecting Ichigo from a Hollow, and Urahara Kisuke suspected her life force had been drained as well.

• Yan Si asked Isshin Kurosaki whether he wanted Ichigo’s power removed, but Isshin returned after consulting Masaki and asked Yan Si to make Ichigo an ordinary person.
• The Soul King warned Yan Si that Hell threatened the Three Realms and said Kazui might offer hope, so Yan Si stopped absorbing Ichigo’s power and returned him to Masaki.
• Yan Si left Ichigo’s future choice to him, and the Kurosaki family later visited Yan Si’s bookstore with Ichigo, Yuzu, and Shirley.
• Yoruichi asked Yan Si to have a child with her, but he refused because war was approaching and he feared her strength would fall if she became human.
• Six years later, Masaki’s Quincy powers were drained as Ichigo ran to save a child by the river, who revealed itself as a Hollow.
• Masaki used Yan Si’s charm to destroy the Hollow and was badly injured, while Urahara Kisuke concluded that she had also lost life force and saw a Garganta briefly open in the clouds.

Soul Society and Hueco Mundo prepared for war as Aizen arranged to draw the Shinigami and Quincy into a battle in Hueco Mundo. Yan Si helped save Masaki Kurosaki and Katagiri Kae, reunited with the captains in the Human World, and faced Aizen’s invasion before Ulquiorra revealed the Wandenreich; Yamamoto recognized Yhwach.

• Kurotsuchi Mayuri reported that the Research and Development Bureau had detected energy fluctuations from Hueco Mundo and the Wandenreich, so Yamamoto ordered captains and lieutenants to garrison Karakura Town while the rest guarded Soul Society.
• Aizen showed the Espada footage of Yhwach draining Masaki Kurosaki’s power and announced that Ulquiorra would bring both the Quincy and Shinigami to Hueco Mundo.
• Yan Si examined Masaki and Katagiri Kae, then helped Isshin Kurosaki and Ryūken Ishida replace their blood and remove the silver substance threatening their lives.
• Yan Si reunited with Shiba Kaien, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, and Kuchiki Byakuya in his bookstore, explained why he had faked his death, and warned them not to reveal that he was alive.
• Aizen and the Espada invaded the Human World, but the Shinigami activated Spatial Transfer and brought Yamamoto and the other captains to confront them.
• Ulquiorra tore open a passage revealing the hidden Wandenreich, and Yamamoto identified its ruler as Yhwach.

The Wandenreich, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo faced one another as Yhwach tried to recruit Aizen and revealed the Wandenreich’s Special War Powers. Urahara activated Yan Si’s contingency plan, transporting the battlefield to Hueco Mundo, where Aizen unleashed the Hollows and the three factions began a chaotic war.

• Yhwach led the Wandenreich into Soul Society, where Yamamoto and the Shinigami forces gathered to meet them.
• Yhwach named Aizen Sōsuke, Urahara Kisuke, Kenpachi Zaraki, and the deceased Siwei Yan among the Special War Powers, then invited Aizen to join him against Soul Society.
• Aizen asked Urahara about his preparations, and Urahara revealed a red button tied to Yan Si’s plan; Yamamoto approved its use.
• Urahara’s device transported the forces to Hueco Mundo, where Aizen welcomed them and summoned an enormous Hollow army from around Las Noches.
• Giselle Gewelle killed three of Baraggan’s Arrancar subordinates and had the wounded Choe Neng Pow attack the last before Baraggan’s decay ability killed them all.
• Yhwach resisted Baraggan’s decay and ordered the Quincy to attack, while Yamamoto sent the Shinigami into battle; Shinigami, Quincy, and Hollows fought in a bloody three-sided melee.