Recaps

Madara forced the 12th Division captains to choose between submitting to the Underworld Bureaucracy or kneeling forever. They accepted, gained new authority over souls, and learned that their lives and conduct were now bound by the Bureaucracy’s rules.

• Madara used Yama's Edict to brand Yamamoto Genryūsai with a rune that kept him kneeling until he sincerely submitted.
• Madara gave the kneeling 12th Division captains three minutes to surrender, and Mayuri Kurotsuchi urged them to accept rather than endure endless humiliation.
• The captains, including Byakuya Kuchiki and Toshiro, declared their divisions willing to submit to the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Madara gave the twelve captains command tokens that took in imprints of their true spirits and granted them authority over souls.
• Madara assigned the captains to the Twelve Underworld Offices and warned them not to interfere with the living or neglect the dead.

Madara explained that the Underworld Bureaucracy could not interfere in the World of the Living and that its rulers answered to the human realm. The defeated Death God captains entered the Bureaucracy, learned what had become of Hueco Mundo’s Menos, and arrived at its center with a new understanding of its power.

• Madara rejected Shunsui Kyoraku’s suggestion that Death Gods intervene in the World of the Living, explaining that only the human realm could address threats there.
• Madara ordered the twelve division captains to return with him and report for duty, while Yamamoto Genryūsai silently hoped the Soul King Palace would come to his rescue.
• The captains entered the Underworld Bureaucracy and realized it resembled Hueco Mundo, leading them to suspect that the Bureaucracy had moved the entire world.
• Minato Namikaze told Shunsui Kyoraku that the Menos had been reshaped through reincarnation and that incomplete souls were recovering in the Nether Soil.
• The captains recognized that the Yamas wielded rules over death and that the Underworld Bureaucracy was beyond the Soul Society’s power to challenge.
• The Death God captains reached the center of the Underworld Bureaucracy and adjusted their attitudes before its imposing buildings.

Ichigo and his friends began a week of training before returning to the Soul Society, but Yoruichi reported that the Underworld Bureaucracy had already taken it over. At the Soul King Palace, Squad Zero lost contact with the Soul Society and set out to investigate.

• Ichigo agreed to accompany Rukia back to the Soul Society, and Urahara convinced the group to train for a week first.
• Yoruichi told Urahara that the Soul Society had become a deserted ghost city, split between eerie night and clear daylight.
• Urahara realized the Underworld Bureaucracy had taken the Soul Society in only three days and wondered what had happened at the Soul King Palace.
• Ichibē Hyōsube and Senjumaru Shutara discussed their lost contact with Yamamoto Genryūsai and decided Squad Zero must investigate.
• The five Squad Zero members boarded a cylindrical craft and descended from the Soul King Palace toward the Soul Society.

Squad Zero arrived in an empty Soul Society and sensed Yamamoto Genryūsai’s aura beneath the spreading darkness, while the Underworld Bureaucracy struggled to process the immense influx of souls. Aizen proposed ways to ease the backlog, and Byakuya grappled with the punishment of his clan as Soul Society’s corrupt nobles faced judgment.

• Squad Zero emerged from the Tenchūren, found Soul Society deserted beneath a divided sky, and Ichibe sensed Yamamoto Genryūsai’s aura under the dark clouds.
• The Underworld Bureaucracy faced an overloaded reincarnation system as its staff processed the flood of souls from Soul Society.
• Aizen proposed sending corrupt souls to Hell, recruiting worthy souls as enforcers, and using the measures to ease the backlog.
• Byakuya recalled how he had sent stubborn Kuchiki relatives to Hell, while other clan members were reincarnated or recruited as enforcers.
• The Underworld Bureaucracy judged Soul Society’s nobles, sending most to Hell or the Animal Path as the captains watched.

Aizen asserted his authority as a Yama, crushed Toshiro’s hopes of winning Momo’s affection, and left Toshiro questioning himself. In the Soul Society, Squad Zero found Yamamoto Genryūsai trapped in a strange posture, and Kirio Hikifune was afflicted by the same force when she tried to help him.

• The Sage of Six Paths approved Aizen’s proposal to handle the world’s fusion independently, while Aizen resolved to prove himself as a Yama.
• Toshiro confronted Aizen about Momo, and Aizen claimed he had become the person she admired before warning Toshiro to respect his rank.
• Momo overheard their exchange but refused to believe Aizen had acted cruelly and ran after him, leaving Toshiro devastated.
• Roger advised Toshiro to let go of Momo’s affection, and Toshiro vowed to surpass Aizen.
• Squad Zero found Yamamoto Genryūsai kneeling near the Demon Gate, and Kirio Hikifune fell into the same posture after touching him, losing control of her body and Reiatsu.

After the Underworld Bureaucracy emptied Soul Society of its souls, Ichigo and his friends headed there to seek Yama and rescue Byakuya Kuchiki, while Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi went to ask the Soul King Palace for help. The chapter left both groups beginning their separate missions.

• Yamamoto Genryūsai told Ichibe and Squad Zero that his strange bodily restriction was connected to the Underworld Bureaucracy, which had moved every soul in Soul Society into its gates.
• Kisuke Urahara told Ichigo, Rukia, and the others that Soul Society had been emptied and defeated.
• Rukia begged Ichigo to save her brother-in-law, Byakuya Kuchiki, and Ichigo promised he would.
• Kisuke Urahara sent Ichigo, Rukia, and the others to the Underworld Bureaucracy to find Yama, while he and Yoruichi returned to seek help from the Soul King Palace.
• Ichigo opened the Gates of Hell with the Netherworld Token and led the group inside; Kisuke Urahara then opened a rift and left for Soul Society.

Ichigo, Rukia, Renji, and their companions entered the Underworld Bureaucracy and found the Yellow Springs Road overwhelmed by souls rushing to reincarnate. They met Toshiro, who confirmed that Byakuya was safe but on duty in hell, and led them to help handle a vicious-ghost incident.

• Ichigo and his companions arrived on the crowded Yellow Springs Road and hurried to join the queue after an old man complained they were blocking the way.
• Ichigo, Rukia, and Renji struggled through the slow-moving crowd while worrying about how to reach Byakuya.
• Toshiro arrived with a group in black uniforms, recognized Rukia and Renji, and told them the Soul Society had lost and Byakuya was serving in the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Toshiro led the group past the crowd and said Byakuya was still rotating through hell, then ordered them to help deal with vicious ghosts.
• Renji questioned Toshiro about betraying the Soul Society, and Toshiro said its defeat was inevitable and Yamamoto was still kneeling in District 89.

At the 89th District, Squad Zero failed to remove the seals binding two of its members and met Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi, who were investigating the Land of Dark Night. Hashirama Senju confronted them at the Gates of Hell, swiftly captured Tenjirō Kirinji, and surrounded the area with a vast Netherworld Tree forest.

• Squad Zero failed to break the strange seals, and Ichibe decided they had to confront the Yama who placed them.
• Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi explored the Land of Dark Night, where Kisuke explained that its black energy nourished souls but could cause dangerous changes.
• Ichibe and the other Squad Zero members found Kisuke and Yoruichi, then led them to the Gates of Hell.
• Hashirama Senju introduced himself as the second Yama and invited Squad Zero to join the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Tenjirō Kirinji attacked Hashirama, who restrained him with powerful vines in a single second.
• Hashirama summoned a vast Netherworld Tree forest across the 89th District, leaving Squad Zero, Kisuke, and Yoruichi stunned by his power.

Hashirama rejected Squad Zero’s accusation that the Underworld Bureaucracy endangered the Three Realms and fought them when negotiations failed. He left Ichibe, Senjumaru Shutara, and Oetsu Nimaiya battered beneath the attacks of his True Several Thousand Hands.

• Hashirama argued that the Underworld Bureaucracy had restored order through reincarnation, but Ichibe and the others insisted it was their enemy and prepared to fight.
• Hashirama summoned a forest and attacked with its roots, while Senjumaru Shutara trapped what seemed to be Hashirama in a Reishi net and Oetsu Nimaiya cut off his head.
• The apparent Hashirama turned into a wooden log, and the real Hashirama appeared atop a gigantic Buddha formed from countless arms.
• Kisuke Urahara grabbed Yoruichi and fled as the Buddha advanced and its palms struck across the battlefield, stopping one blow above Kisuke Urahara.
• Ichibe, Senjumaru Shutara, and Oetsu Nimaiya unleashed their Bankai, but the Buddha shattered their defenses and pummeled them as dust and explosions filled the area.

Hashirama defeated Squad Zero and recruited Kisuke to help with the Underworld Bureaucracy’s paperwork. Yamamoto Genryūsai and Kirio Hikifune accepted that the Soul Society could not resist and chose to surrender, while Madara waited impatiently for Hashirama to return.

• Hashirama left Squad Zero gravely injured and grabbed Kisuke, insisting that he help with the Underworld Bureaucracy’s work.
• Hashirama explained that Yamamoto Genryūsai and his companion could have their edicts lifted if they sincerely acknowledged the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Kirio Hikifune urged Yamamoto Genryūsai to surrender, and their decision restored their ability to stand.
• Yamamoto Genryūsai and Kirio Hikifune headed for the Underworld Bureaucracy’s gates as Hashirama carried Squad Zero and escorted Kisuke.
• Madara processed a mounting stack of judgments while cursing Hashirama for being late.
• Hashirama explained the Underworld Bureaucracy’s reincarnation system to Kisuke, Yamamoto Genryūsai, Kirio Hikifune, and Squad Zero as they traveled.

Hane gained a soul-related law as the Underworld devoured the Soul Society, but he waited to reach its World of the Living rather than risk crossing the Disorder Universe's dangerous regions. The Empire announced the Emperor's wedding and a five-year adventurer contest, inspiring Ace, Luffy, Sabo, and young adventurers across the world to prepare for the competition.

• Hane gained a powerful soul law through the Underworld's devouring of the Soul Society and decided to wait for a passage to its World of the Living.
• Hane surveyed strange conceptual worlds in the Disorder Universe and resolved not to relocate his world until he understood their rules.
• In the sixth year of the Empire Era, the Empire announced that the Emperor would marry the Empress at the end of the first month.
• The Adventurers' Guild announced a five-year, five-person competition across Sky City and the Land of Gold, with the winning team earning the title of Hero and the Hero's Sword from the Emperor.
• Ace, Luffy, and Sabo decided to enter the contest and began considering how to strengthen themselves and find companions.
• Young adventurers throughout the Empire began searching for teammates and setting out in hopes of winning the competition.

Madara and Hashirama confronted Squad Zero and the Spirit Clan over the Soul King’s imprisonment, then Hashirama freed the Soul King and offered him friendship. As the Soul King reclaimed his scattered limbs, Yhwach realized he had revived and roared in disbelief from the Wandenreich.

• Madara condemned Squad Zero and the Gotei 13 for the Soul King’s fate, then ordered the Spirit Clan and Royal Family members taken to the Underworld Bureaucracy for judgment.
• Madara’s officials whipped a defiant Spirit Clan elder, and Madara returned to the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Hashirama struck the crystal and freed the Soul King, who awoke after more than ten thousand years.
• Hashirama told the Soul King that he was free and invited him to a world where they could be friends.
• The Soul King gathered his scattered limbs and their Reishi from across the Three Realms.
• Yhwach sensed the Soul King’s revival in the Wandenreich and roared in disbelief.

Madara led the Underworld Bureaucracy’s guests to Hane’s wedding in the Imperial Capital, where the Soul King and Death Gods joined the celebration. Uchiha Retsuyō greeted Madara and escorted the group toward the reception hall, leaving Madara impressed by Retsuyō’s time ability.

• The Sage of Six Paths assigned Madara to lead the Underworld Bureaucracy’s ghost gods to Hane’s wedding, and Madara found that both he and Izuna were named on the invitation.
• Three days later, Hane prepared for the wedding while the Uchiha Clan celebrated and Mikoto handed out wedding candy and red envelopes.
• Madara, Izuna, Hashirama, the Soul King, Naruto’s family, and the Death Gods arrived at the Imperial Capital for the wedding.
• The Death Gods surveyed the Empire’s World of the Living and found its buildings less impressive than the Soul Society’s modern cityscape.
• Uchiha Retsuyō appeared before the guests with his time ability, greeted Madara, and offered to escort them to the reception hall.

The Soul Society group attended Hane’s wedding in the Empire and learned that its Golden Guards possessed power rivaling the rulers of the Underworld. As the wedding began, an unknown evil force enveloped the Soul Society’s World of the Living and severed its connection to the Underworld, prompting the Sage of Six Paths to investigate.

• Uchiha Retsuyō brought the Death God captains into the crowded hall and stopped the powerful guests from escalating their aura contest.
• Garp boasted to Sengoku about his family, then argued with Whitebeard over whether Ace would become Whitebeard’s son.
• Madara told Aizen and the Soul Society group that the twelve Golden Guards were immensely powerful, with their commander-in-chief possibly stronger than the rulers of the Underworld.
• Hane arrived with his bride, and Hyuga Hiashi began the royal wedding ceremony.
• Senju Tobirama reported that an unknown chaotic, evil force had enveloped the Soul Society’s World of the Living and severed its connection to the Underworld.
• The Sage of Six Paths chose to investigate the Six Paths of Reincarnation before informing Hane.

The Sage of Six Paths discovered that the World of the Living had been severed from reincarnation after Roger was contaminated by a chaotic force. As the Witch found Subaru and vanished with him, her blood spread through the world, stripping Ichigo and his friends of their powers before a spider monster appeared in the street.

• The Sage of Six Paths rescued Roger from a chaotic force, then found that the World of the Living had disappeared from the reincarnation connection.
• A cloaked Witch spotted Subaru, teleported him away, and left her blood to evaporate into crimson gas across the World of the Living.
• Ichigo discovered that his Reiatsu and ability to see ghosts had vanished, while Uryu Ishida and Chad had lost their powers too.
• Orihime joined Ichigo, Uryu Ishida, and Chad after losing her Shun Shun Rikka, and they confirmed they could no longer contact the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• A man transformed into a spider monster and ate a bystander, so Ichigo fled with Orihime while Chad and Uryu Ishida faced the threat as ordinary people.

In a Gastrea-ravaged World of the Living, Ichigo cared for abandoned Cursed Children and prayed for the Underworld Bureaucracy to answer. Five days after Hane’s wedding, the Sage of Six Paths discovered that the World of the Living had been severed from Soul Society and contacted Hane for help.

• Lia and the girls returned to the sewer without food, and Grandpa Ichigo comforted them and told stories of his days as a Death God.
• Ichigo mourned his lost powers, his missing friends and family, and the suffering caused by the Gastrea outbreak before praying to the Underworld Bureaucracy with three command plaques.
• The plaques gave off a faint ghostly glow as Ichigo prayed.
• Back at the Underworld Bureaucracy, the Sage of Six Paths told the returning Death Gods that the World of the Living had been cut off and that contact with Ichigo and the other Netherworld Envoys had failed.
• The Sage of Six Paths ordered the ghost gods to manage the stranded souls while the Reincarnation Passage remained stopped, then used the Nine-Dragon Jade Seal to contact Hane.

Hane left his newlywed wife, Izumi, to investigate a crisis at the Underworld Bureaucracy, where the World of the Living in Soul Society had lost its connection to the afterlife. In a distant world, Ichigo’s token opened a gate, and he promised the Cursed Children that they would be saved.

• Adventurers launched toward Heaven’s Arena as its rising current lifted ships skyward, and many were thrown off course by the waves.
• Hane watched the competition with Izumi until a message from the Nine-Dragon Jade Seal summoned him to the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• The Sage of Six Paths told Hane that Soul Society’s World of the Living had been severed from the Underworld Bureaucracy and that an unfamiliar force had invaded.
• Hane followed the residual force through the Reincarnation Passage and used his Eye of Truth to locate a solitary world.
• A black force emerged from one of the tokens before Ichigo, who wept with relief and told the Cursed Children they would be saved.

Hane arrived from the Underworld Bureaucracy and explained to Ichigo that a force had displaced the World of the Living, causing fifty years to pass there while only five days passed in the Underworld. He restored Ichigo’s youth, leaving the Enjus watching in wonder.

• Enju and Lia feared the monstrous-looking gateway until Ichigo told them the visitors were coming.
• Hane emerged from the gateway and introduced himself as the Human Emperor, while Ichigo recognized himself as a former Netherworld Envoy.
• Ichigo explained that he had aged nearly seventy years while caring for the Enju children after the worlds lost contact.
• Hane told Ichigo that an unknown force had displaced the World of the Living, making ten years there equal one day in the Underworld Bureaucracy.
• Hane praised the Enjus’ eyes, comforted the girls, and used a flash of white light to restore Ichigo’s youth.

Ichigo regained his youth and Reiatsu, and Hane revived Uryu and Yasutora as spiritual bodies. In Osaka Area, Orihime risked herself to draw soldiers away from the Cursed Children she had sheltered, while the pursuers closed in on her.

• Ichigo recognized that he had become young again, and Hane used two tokens to restore Uryu and Yasutora as spiritual bodies.
• Ichigo reunited with Uryu and Yasutora, then asked Hane about Orihime and followed him through a transportation gate.
• In Osaka Area, soldiers searched the ruins for Cursed Children to use as experimental subjects on orders from a researcher and an officer.
• Orihime told Jianwan and the other girls to stay hidden, then left the cabinet and shouted to draw the soldiers away.
• Orihime ran toward an area with Gastrea, but her frail body slowed her as the soldiers pursued her.

Orihime was beaten by a government capture team while trying to protect the Cursed Children, until Ichigo and his companions arrived through a spatial rift. Enraged by what Orihime had suffered, Ichigo killed the research executive and brutally executed the fat officer.

• Orihime twisted her ankle while fleeing toward Gastrea territory, and the fat officer beat and tortured her as the capture team demanded the children’s location.
• The fat officer revealed that government troops had wiped out the nearby Gastrea and tricked the Cursed Children into killing one another, leaving Orihime despairing.
• Ichigo emerged from a spatial rift, recognized Orihime, and severed the fat officer’s legs with his black blade.
• Ichigo killed the armed personnel and beheaded the research institute executive after the executive ordered his men to capture them.
• Ichigo tortured the fat officer by planting him in the ground and carving away his flesh until he died.

Hane restored Orihime’s youth, allowing her to reunite with Ichigo and the children she had raised. After agreeing to rescue the children and Ichigo’s surviving relatives, the group found Jianwan protecting her younger sisters, and Hane recognized the world as Black Bullet and decided it would nourish the God Tree.

• Hane healed Orihime, who embraced Ichigo and stopped his attack on the fat man.
• Ichigo asked Hane to take the children to the World of the Living, and Hane agreed to help rescue all the children and any surviving relatives.
• Orihime led the group to the abandoned building, where Jianwan attacked her to protect the younger girls.
• Orihime recalled details of Jianwan’s childhood, proving her identity, and Jianwan reunited with her.
• Orihime promised to protect the children, while Hane recognized the world as Black Bullet and rejected merging it into his Inner Landscape World.

Hane established a base beneath the God Tree, brought Imperial Army troops and supplies through a passage from the Main World, and promised the rescued girls a new home. When Gastrea attacked, the troops overwhelmed them, and the approaching Tokyo Self-Defense Force helicopters witnessed the battle; Hane allowed them to land.

• Hane planted the God Tree in the wilderness near Tokyo and opened a passage to the Main World, through which Imperial Army soldiers and supplies arrived.
• The soldiers built wooden houses and set up camp while Hane promised the girls that the area would become their home.
• A swarm of Gastrea attacked, and the Imperial Army switched from ineffective gunfire to Ninjutsu and other attacks, destroying the monsters.
• Tokyo Self-Defense Force members arrived in Pisces Helicopters and watched the Imperial Army fight the Gastrea with overwhelming force.
• A soldier asked Hane whether to shoot down the unidentified aircraft, and Hane told him to let them approach.

An Imperial major confronted the Tokyo Self-Defense Force, demonstrated his overwhelming power, and warned Tokyo to stay out of the Empire’s affairs. After the Empire destroyed three Level IV Gastrea, the terrified soldiers fled back to Tokyo, where Seitenshi ordered an investigation.

• An Imperial major claimed the area for the Empire, disarmed the Self-Defense Force soldiers, injured their captain, and ordered them to warn Tokyo’s leaders.
• Three Level IV Gastrea appeared, and the Empire’s blue skeletal warriors swiftly cut them down.
• The Self-Defense Force soldiers fled to Tokyo with their unconscious captain while Ichigo, the others, and the relocated girls watched the battle in awe.
• Seitenshi questioned whether Tokyo’s Self-Defense Force could protect the city and told Tendo Kikunojou to investigate before President Saikyo Genshu’s visit.
• After Seitenshi left, Tendo Kikunojou ordered his subordinate to question the returning soldiers and obtain detailed intelligence.

Tendo Kikunojou showed Seitenshi and Tokyo’s council a Self-Defense Force video revealing the Empire’s overwhelming power and its defeat of three Level IV Gastrea. The video ended with Hane declaring himself Emperor and announcing that the Empire would take the Cursed Children.

• Tendo Kikunojou summoned an emergency meeting after reviewing the Self-Defense Force’s report and helicopter footage.
• Seitenshi and the council watched footage of the God Tree, the Empire’s soldiers fighting Gastrea, and the Empire’s major claiming Tokyo territory.
• The council members urged Seitenshi to attack the Empire or flee when three Level IV Gastrea appeared in the video.
• Five blue skeletal warriors killed the Level IV Gastrea, leaving the council and Seitenshi stunned.
• Hane appeared on the video, introduced himself as Emperor and ruler of the Inner World, and announced that the Empire would take the Cursed Children.

Hane rejected Tokyo’s plea for help, condemned its treatment of the Cursed Children, and announced that his Imperial Guard would establish an Imperial Shelter. He then turned from the chaotic conference call to comfort the girls in his care, whose Witch Wristbands suppressed their infection while preserving their abilities.

• Hane overwhelmed Tendo Kikunojou with his pressure, forcing him to his knees and crushing his legs when he fell.
• Hane told Seitenshi that Tokyo did not deserve saving because it mistreated the Cursed Children, then ended the meeting and announced the Imperial Guard would establish a shelter the next day.
• Tokyo’s councilors summoned medical help for the unconscious Tendo Kikunojou as the conference room descended into chaos.
• A crowd of girls rushed into Hane’s palace and clamored for a story, so he threatened to call Robin to quiet them.
• The Imperial Research Institute’s combined sealing techniques and technology produced Witch Wristbands that suppressed the girls’ infection while preserving their Authorities, though the bracelets slowed their growth.