Chapter Summaries

Mayuri returned to the Twelfth Division after the Captain-Commander ordered the captains to find the stolen Sōkyoku, which Mayuri knew had been consumed by Ren’s Shura Sword. Unable to contact Ren directly, Mayuri told Morgana about the crisis while Ren continued merging his soul and Spiritual Pressure into the Shura Sword to awaken it as a Zanpakuto.

• Soifon, Byakuya Kuchiki, and Retsu Unohana used Shunpo to obey the Captain-Commander's order, while Shunsui Kyoraku watched the other captains and Mayuri secretly panicked.
• Mayuri returned to the Twelfth Division and ordered Nemu Kurotsuchi to move the information and test subjects from the World of the Living to a secret base.
• Mayuri tried to contact Ren, but Soken Ishida answered and said Ren had forbidden anyone from interrupting his Zanpakuto studies.
• Morgana appeared and told Mayuri that Ren was in seclusion, so Mayuri could tell her what had happened.
• Ren continued pouring his Spiritual Pressure and soul into the Shura Sword, which was still an Asauchi and was beginning to evolve into a Zanpakuto.

Ren’s Shura Sword evolved into a Zanpakuto, and he entered its space to meet a masked figure who said the sword’s name and powers depended on Ren’s deepest Obsessive Thought. Ren could not identify that desire, so the figure remained masked and unnamed.

• Ren poured Spiritual Pressure into the Shura Sword, completing its evolution into a Zanpakuto and filling the palace with golden-red light.
• Kayle saw the light outside the palace and realized that Ren had succeeded.
• Ren entered a magnificent city in his Zanpakuto Space and watched a Divine Dragon transform into an empty throne.
• A masked figure appeared and questioned Ren’s desire to claim the throne, then made the city vanish and replaced it with a blood-soaked space.
• The figure explained that a Zanpakuto’s name, powers, and manifestation reflected its master’s deepest Obsessive Thought, and said Ren had placed the mask on him.
• Ren failed to uncover his true desire, leaving the masked figure’s name and face unknown.

Ren confronted his masked Zanpakuto spirit, learned that it reflected his Obsessive Thought, and explored the changing wills represented in his inner world. The chapter left Ren recognizing the loneliness beneath his pursuit of strength and conquest.

• Ren charged the masked man, but their clash showed that Ren's physical body gave him the advantage over the soul-bound spirit.
• The masked man explained that the immortal city and dragon throne represented Ren's desire to conquer worlds and rule them.
• The masked man transformed the scene into a Blood Sea, and Ren identified it with the slaughter he used to grow stronger.
• The space became dark and deathly still, and Ren recognized the loneliness of his path to strength despite having many women.
• Ren realized the changing scenes revealed his true inner heart, just as the dark space began to twist.

Ren discovered that his deepest essence and Obsessive Thought were plundering the Myriad Worlds, and his Shura Sword became the Plunder Sword, Heavenly Sin. He awakened its Shikai but learned that his Bankai required further growth, then returned to the palace and asked Kayle how much time had passed.

• Ren and the masked figure examined countless vortices showing worlds and Ren's past, and the figure explained that his Obsessive Thought was plunder.
• Ren accepted that his instinct to seize resources from different worlds defined his essence, and the vortices' light formed the Plunder Sword, Heavenly Sin.
• Ren released Heavenly Sin's Shikai and reflected on how his plunder used all living beings as nourishment for his growth.
• The masked figure told Ren that its mask would remain until he achieved Bankai, and it urged him to first understand Heavenly Sin's abilities.
• Ren emerged from the palace surrounded by golden-red radiance, and Kayle said he had spent only one hour exploring the Shura Sword.

Ren learned that his Shikai, Heavenly Sin, could plunder and use the Zanpakuto abilities of Death Gods he killed, though stolen abilities could not grow and imprisoned Zanpakuto could resist if their Spiritual Pressure exceeded his. As Ren went to see the cat Orihime had brought home, Morgana summoned him to hear that the stolen Sōkyoku had provoked the Captain-Commander, who ordered the Seireitei to find it within three days.

• Ren understood that Heavenly Sin grew stronger by plundering, and that it could steal Zanpakuto abilities while risking backlash from the imprisoned Zanpakuto.
• Kayle told Ren that Orihime had brought Yoruichi home in cat form, and Ren accepted keeping her as a pet.
• Morgana told Ren that Mayuri Kurotsuchi urgently wanted to speak with him about trouble in the Seireitei.
• Ren arrived and learned from Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Soken Ishida that the Captain-Commander had discovered the Sōkyoku was missing and ordered every Death God to find it within three days.

Ren reassured Mayuri Kurotsuchi after the Captain-Commander ordered a ruthless search for the stolen Sōkyoku, then discovered that Orihime was beginning to awaken her ability after bringing home Yoruichi in cat form. Ren realized that Orihime needed Hollow Spiritual Pressure to awaken as a Fullbringer and suspected Yoruichi’s aura had supplied it.

• Ren asked Mayuri Kurotsuchi whether he had left evidence when stealing the Sōkyoku, and Mayuri said his Spirit Particle Eliminator had erased every trace.
• Mayuri told Ren that the Captain-Commander had ordered any Death God obstructing the Sōkyoku search executed for treason, and Ren advised him to stay in the Seireitei and contact him if needed.
• Ren went to the courtyard and found Orihime playing with Yoruichi, who was disguised as a black cat; he recognized her and held her while stroking her fur.
• Ren noticed spiritual pressure flowing toward Orihime’s hairpins and realized that she was beginning to awaken her ability, so he ordered Kayle to take her to the healing palace for examination.
• Ren sensed a familiar aura from Yoruichi and concluded that Fullbringers needed Hollow energy as well as spiritual pressure, which explained why Orihime had not awakened before.

Ren discovered that Yoruichi had come to him disguised as a cat and captured her after draining the Spiritual Pressure she needed to return to human form. He left her locked in Morgana’s darkness cage, furious and unable to escape.

• Ren teased Yoruichi in cat form and discovered that she was female, while Yoruichi hid her identity and anger.
• Yoruichi clawed at Ren, but her attacks failed to harm his hardened body.
• Yoruichi revealed herself and tried to transform, but Ren absorbed her Spiritual Pressure with his dark-type Zanpakuto.
• Ren admitted he had recognized Yoruichi from the start and asked Morgana to create a cat cage.
• Ren placed Yoruichi inside the cage, and Morgana explained that its dense darkness would resist her claws.

Ren kept Yoruichi trapped in Morgana’s darkness cage and demanded the Shihōin Clan’s secret techniques in exchange for her freedom. Meanwhile, Urahara Kisuke and Tessai Tsukabishi brought Ashido back from Hueco Mundo and worked to seal the Hōgyoku, whose growing power threatened to attract Hollows and cause Hollowfication.

• Yoruichi failed to break Morgana’s darkness cage, and Ren offered her freedom in exchange for the Shihōin Clan’s Shunpo, Kido-infused hand-to-hand technique, and Man and Sword as One.
• Yoruichi stayed silent, so Ren left Morgana to watch over her and went to check on Orihime.
• Ashido killed Hollows surrounding the Urahara Shop, and Tessai Tsukabishi thanked him for protecting them.
• Urahara Kisuke and Tessai discussed Ashido’s five hundred years of fighting Hollows in Hueco Mundo and the strength he might eventually reach.
• Urahara Kisuke and Tessai used sealing Kido on the Hōgyoku as its absorbed Hollow energy made it grow, strengthened the Visored’s Hollowfication, and attracted Hollows.

Urahara Kisuke and Tessai Tsukabishi sealed the Hōgyoku and considered seeking Quincy techniques to strengthen the seal. Meanwhile, Orihime awakened a powerful Fullbring that let her reject things, and Ren began helping her understand her new abilities.

• Urahara Kisuke and Tessai Tsukabishi sealed the Hōgyoku, but worried their Sealing Kido would not hold for long.
• Urahara Kisuke proposed seeking Isshin Kurosaki’s and Ryuken Ishida’s sealing techniques to create a stronger seal.
• Orihime emerged from her Awakening with silver hair, a blue-and-white dress, and twelve small angels that formed her hairpins.
• Orihime discovered she could reject things and restored a Hollowfied experimental mouse to normal.
• Ren concluded that Orihime’s Fullbring used both her body and hairpins as mediums, giving her abilities beyond those in the original story.

Ren assigned Kayle to protect and train Orihime, though Orihime remained unable to fight. Meanwhile, Soifon continued searching the Seireitei for the missing Sōkyoku, and Mayuri discovered that Urahara Kisuke had already built a secret laboratory beneath the Central 64 Chambers.

• Ren told Kayle to protect Orihime and teach her to fight, but Orihime proved hopeless at combat.
• Soifon ordered the Second Division to secretly search the Seireitei, suspecting the Sōkyoku thief was hiding there and might be Yoruichi Shihōin.
• Nemu suggested that Mayuri hide a new laboratory beneath the Central 64 Chambers, and Mayuri eagerly adopted the plan.
• Mayuri and Nemu found an old underground laboratory beneath the Central 64 Chambers, already filled with obsolete research machines.
• Mayuri recognized the documents as Urahara Kisuke's and called Ren, but Soken Ishida answered the communicator and irritated him.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi told Ren that he had found Urahara Kisuke’s hidden laboratory beneath the Central 64 Chambers, along with the Hōgyoku’s earliest records. Ren welcomed the discovery but suspected Aizen had led Mayuri to it, and Mayuri produced a device powered by Morgana’s dark energy.

• Soken Ishida left Uryu Ishida to keep Mayuri Kurotsuchi company, and Uryu’s teasing use of “Uncle” made Mayuri furious.
• Ren arrived and heard that Soifon was still searching for the Sōkyoku, forcing Mayuri to move his secret base and dig beneath the Central 64 Chambers.
• Mayuri revealed that he had discovered Urahara Kisuke’s preserved laboratory, containing experimental equipment, samples, and unfinished reports concerning the Hōgyoku.
• Mayuri said he had found the Hōgyoku’s earliest records and believed he could use them and his own materials to create one.
• Ren warned that Aizen might have deliberately guided Mayuri to the laboratory, and Mayuri brought out a machine that emitted Morgana’s dark energy.

Ren planned to enter the Seireitei and ordered Mayuri Kurotsuchi to research the Hōgyoku, while Aizen revealed that he had maneuvered Mayuri into finding the hidden laboratory. Ren recognized Aizen's scheme and intended to use him for Hōgyoku information, then approached the caged Yoruichi with food.

• Ren told Mayuri Kurotsuchi to prepare Hōgyoku research materials while he planned a trip to the Seireitei.
• Aizen explained to Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tosen that he had planted Hōgyoku records beneath the Central 64 Chambers to lead Mayuri to the laboratory.
• Aizen revealed that he had previously guided Urahara Kisuke to create a Hōgyoku and hoped Mayuri would produce another one.
• Ren deduced that Aizen was supporting Mayuri's research and planned to use Aizen to obtain Hōgyoku information.
• Ren brought grilled Soul Beast meat to the caged Yoruichi and offered to feed her.

Ren prepared to enter the Seireitei, taking Yoruichi, Morgana, Kayle, and Orihime while leaving Soken Ishida and Uryu Ishida to manage the World of the Living. As Ren traveled through a portal, Yoruichi plotted to alert Urahara Kisuke and the Visored to her disappearance.

• Yoruichi refused to give Ren her secret techniques, so he kept her imprisoned in cat form and said he would take her to the Seireitei.
• Ren threatened to use Yoruichi to draw the Death Gods’ attention to himself, and she was left weak and collapsed in her cage.
• Ren entrusted the World of the Living to Soken Ishida and Uryu Ishida, then opened a passage to the Seireitei and departed with Yoruichi’s cage.
• Soken Ishida told Uryu Ishida to carry on as usual and keep someone by the communicator.
• While traveling on a Spirit Particle cloud, Ren offered to teach Yoruichi the technique in exchange for her Shunpo, and she refused while plotting to bring Urahara Kisuke and the Visored after him.

Ren brought Yoruichi and his allies into the Seireitei, where Mayuri Kurotsuchi revealed that the Hōgyoku required a large number of Hollow cores and an unpredictable accident to form. Ren rejected relying on luck and left the hidden laboratory’s research uncertain.

• Yoruichi feared that Urahara Kisuke and the Visored would lose if they confronted Ren, Morgana, and Kayle.
• Ren arrived in the Seireitei with Yoruichi, and Yoruichi accused Mayuri Kurotsuchi of revealing her cat form.
• Ren handed Yoruichi’s cage to Orihime, then asked Mayuri Kurotsuchi to take him to the laboratory.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi explained that he had paused his research after noticing the Second Division and Soifon had stopped searching for him, suggesting someone had guided him to the laboratory.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi reported that Urahara Kisuke’s Hōgyoku was made by combining at least one hundred Hollow cores, but the result depended on chance.
• Ren disliked relying on luck and considered how to obtain a Hōgyoku without surrendering control to chance.

Ren studied the Hōgyoku’s creation process and speculated that its complete form came from fusing Hollow and Death God energies. After arranging secret experiments and a way to gather Hollows, he left the Seireitei with his companions for Rukongai.

• Ren ordered Mayuri Kurotsuchi to keep experimenting until he could create a Hōgyoku, and Morgana agreed to contain dangerous explosions with her darkness.
• Ren examined the original Hōgyoku information and arranged for Kayle and Morgana to help gather experimental Hollows.
• Ren suspected that the Complete Hōgyoku resulted from combining Hōgyoku made from Hollow cores with one made from Death God cores.
• Morgana concealed the laboratory, and Nemu Kurotsuchi led Ren, Morgana, Kayle, Orihime, and Yoruichi through Mayuri’s secret passage out of the Seireitei.
• Ren and his companions emerged in an unnamed wilderness in Rukongai.

Ren and his companions entered Rukongai’s prosperous First District, where Nemu Kurotsuchi explained that Ren’s notoriety made a disguise advisable. They browsed shops run by Soul Reapers, met Gin Ichimaru at his dried-persimmon shop, and continued on toward a candy shop.

• Nemu Kurotsuchi warned Ren that Soul Reapers across the Seireitei knew him and might cause a commotion if they recognized him, but Ren concealed the group in white mist instead of wearing a mask.
• Ren and his companions arrived in Rukongai’s First District, where Nemu Kurotsuchi explained that divisions and nobles operated many of the shops.
• Orihime took eight dried persimmons from Gin Ichimaru without paying, so Nemu Kurotsuchi paid for them and Ren apologized to Gin Ichimaru.
• Gin Ichimaru felt that Ren seemed strangely indistinct, but he let the group leave without pursuing the sensation.
• Nemu Kurotsuchi explained that the Tenth Division ran a tavern and brewery after Rangiku Matsumoto turned Toshiro’s planned bun shop into a drinking business.
• Orihime spotted a candy shop with female Death Gods waiting in line and asked Ren to buy her candy.

Ren visited Rukongai with Nemu Kurotsuchi and Morgana, where they encountered Kenpachi Zaraki and several other captains gathering at a tavern. Ren kept his identity concealed as Retsu Unohana briefly sensed something familiar about him.

• Nemu Kurotsuchi explained how the Eleventh Division's failed fighting arena became a chain of candy shops run by Yachiru.
• Morgana sensed Kenpachi Zaraki and several other captains in Rukongai, and Ren followed Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru to a Tenth Division tavern.
• Ren and his companions took a secluded table upstairs, where Ren saw Rangiku Matsumoto drag Toshiro in and make him chill her alcohol while drinking milk.
• Morgana concealed their presence and conversation with dark Spirit Particles as Ren sampled the tavern's Spirit Particle-rich food and alcohol.
• Retsu Unohana arrived and briefly met Ren's gaze, then wondered why it felt familiar.

Ren attended a drinking gathering with several captains and lieutenants, but the Captain-Commander summoned the captains before he could meet Aizen. After the others left, Retsu Unohana approached Ren, and he teased her before reciting a mournful poem.

• Rangiku Matsumoto, Shunsui Kyoraku, and Kenpachi Zaraki drank heavily while Ren spoke with Nemu Kurotsuchi and watched the gathering.
• A Death God arrived with orders summoning every captain, and the captains left while Rangiku Matsumoto stayed behind.
• Retsu Unohana warned Rangiku Matsumoto not to drink too much, then approached Ren and asked his name because he seemed familiar.
• Ren claimed he was married to several beautiful wives and said he would have considered Retsu Unohana otherwise, making her angry.
• Ren stood and recited a poem about lovers born too far apart.

Ren recited a poem to distract Retsu Unohana after she questioned him, then drank with Rangiku Matsumoto as Soul Society’s nobles admired his verses. Meanwhile, the Captain-Commander ordered the captains to resume searching for the missing Sōkyoku after sensing its familiar aura, and Chojiro Sasakibe began explaining its connection to Ryujin Jakka.

• Ren recited an ancient poem to Retsu Unohana, leaving her stunned before she left in anger with Shunpo.
• Isane Kotetsu praised Ren and suggested he might win Retsu Unohana over, then hurried off when Retsu called for her.
• Noble Death Gods gathered at Ren’s tavern to admire his poetry, while Nemu Kurotsuchi warned that his actions would provoke Retsu and her admirers.
• Rangiku Matsumoto joined Ren for a drinking contest and encouraged him to keep pursuing Retsu Unohana.
• The Captain-Commander ordered the captains to continue searching for the Sōkyoku after sensing its aura through Ryujin Jakka.
• Chojiro Sasakibe began telling the captains that the Sōkyoku contained flames originating from Ryujin Jakka.

The Captain-Commander revealed that the Sōkyoku had returned to the Soul Society and warned that its flames could destroy it, prompting the captains to search for it and suspect Ren and Urahara Kisuke. Meanwhile, Ren competed in drinking and poetry with Rangiku Matsumoto, who kept drinking as he composed poems.

• Chojiro Sasakibe explained the connection between the Sōkyoku and Ryujin Jakka, and the Captain-Commander said he could sense the Sōkyoku vaguely in the Soul Society.
• Soifon and several other captains suspected Yoruichi Shihōin, Urahara Kisuke, and their associates, while Retsu Unohana also named Ren as a possible culprit.
• Kenpachi Zaraki welcomed the prospect of fighting Ren, but the Captain-Commander ordered the captains to retrieve the Sōkyoku before its flames could destroy the Soul Society.
• After the captains left, the Captain-Commander told Chojiro Sasakibe that he planned to use the search to expose nobles who coveted the Sōkyoku.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi failed to contact Nemu Kurotsuchi, while Toshiro learned that Rangiku Matsumoto was drawing a crowd by drinking and listening to Ren's poems.
• Ren promised to write ten poems for every jar Rangiku Matsumoto drank, and she continued drinking as the crowd urged them on.