Recaps

Kimura Keiichi proposed using Masaki Kurosaki as bait to draw out Shūkurō Tsukishima, and she agreed after arranging to visit Tokyo Tower. She brought Isshin Shiba along to meet the Shinigami captain leading the war.

• Kimura Keiichi explained that Shūkurō Tsukishima might investigate if he heard that a Fullbringer had been captured for research, and Masaki Kurosaki agreed to the plan.
• Masaki Kurosaki asked Kimura Keiichi to take her to the Shiba Clinic so she could tell her companion, and she explained the Shinigami, Hollows, and recent attacks to him on the drive.
• Masaki Kurosaki told Isshin Shiba about the plan, and he decided to accompany her to Tokyo Tower.
• Kimura Keiichi drove Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shiba to Tokyo Tower, where Masaki Kurosaki revealed that they were there to meet the Shinigami captain leading the war.

Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shiba met Shiraishi at Tokyo Tower and received his approval to proceed with their plan. Shiraishi returned to training his Bankai and spoke with Isane Kotetsu about the war, its casualties, and her fears before she went back to Soul Society.

• Masaki Kurosaki searched for Shiraishi at Tokyo Tower, and Isshin Shiba suggested she gather Reishi to draw his attention.
• Shiraishi appeared, heard Masaki's plan, and promised to support them if anything went wrong.
• Shiraishi returned to the top of Tokyo Tower and resumed practicing the archery technique for his new Bankai form.
• Isane Kotetsu brought Shiraishi lunch and told him Hanatarō was hospitalized after drinking a poisonous concoction prepared by Lieutenant Yamada.
• Isane worried about the growing casualties and admitted she feared Aizen's war, while Shiraishi encouraged her and said he would protect her.
• Isane hurried back toward the Senkaimon, and Shiraishi settled down to continue his Bankai training.

Shūkurō Tsukishima, Kūgo Ginjō, and Kiriko Tazawa used Tsukishima’s ability to make Prime Minister Hosokawa Ma and two powerful cabinet officials believe they had served the Fullbringers for centuries. They pressed the officials for the location of the institute holding a captured Fullbringer and finally received information about it.

• Hosokawa Ma returned to the prime minister’s residence, where Kayoko introduced him to Kūgo Ginjō, Kiriko Tazawa, and Shūkurō Tsukishima.
• Tsukishima stabbed Hosokawa with a blade that became a bookmark, restoring Hosokawa’s memories of being indebted to the Fullbringers.
• Tsukishima asked Hosokawa where the captured Fullbringer was held, and Hosokawa admitted he did not know before naming Secretary-General Ozawa Taro and Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeda Masayoshi as the most powerful cabinet members.
• Tsukishima explained that he had inserted a vast organization and three hundred years of fabricated history into the officials’ memories, while Ginjō and Tazawa discussed taking control of the country.
• Hosokawa brought Ozawa Taro and Takeda Masayoshi to the reception room, where Tsukishima stabbed them and made them believe they were loyal to the Fullbringers.
• Tsukishima asked the two officials to locate the research institute holding a captured Fullbringer, and they made several calls until they obtained information.

Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shiba prepared to defend the Third Research Institute after Kimura Keiichi refused an order to transfer the Fullbringers. When Jackie Tristan arrived to take control, Masaki attacked her, and the chapter ended with Masaki launching Tristan into the air and firing a Heilig Pfeil at her.

• Kimura Keiichi told Isshin Shiba and Masaki Kurosaki that he had refused the order to transfer the Fullbringers and expected them to come to the institute.
• Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shiba took positions to meet the visitors, while Kimura Keiichi wondered whether the government leaders were being controlled.
• Jackie Tristan arrived in an official car with documents claiming she would manage the institute, but Masaki Kurosaki split the car in half with a punch.
• Tristan attacked Masaki, whose Blut Vene let her withstand a powerful kick that shook the institute.
• Masaki Kurosaki grabbed Tristan's foot, restrained her with a whirlwind, threw her into the air, and fired a Heilig Pfeil at her.

Masaki Kurosaki defeated Tristan without killing her, and Kūgo Ginjō led the other Fullbringers to the Third Research Institute after learning Tristan had not arrived. Masaki faced the group and told them that the recent nightly clashes between Shinigami and Hollows were happening because of them.

• Masaki Kurosaki caught the unconscious Tristan after defeating her with a controlled Heilig Pfeil, then had her taken inside for treatment and a sedative.
• Kimura Keiichi received a call from the chief cabinet secretary, who revealed that Tristan was supposed to take over the Third Research Institute.
• Kūgo Ginjō suspected something had happened to Tristan and ordered the Fullbringers to travel together to the institute in three helicopters.
• Riruka spotted a figure on Tokyo Tower during the flight, but Kiriko Tazawa dismissed her claim.
• Kūgo Ginjō and the other Fullbringers landed at the damaged institute courtyard, where Masaki Kurosaki identified Shūkurō Tsukishima and asked to talk.
• Masaki Kurosaki told Kūgo Ginjō that the Fullbringers were the reason Shinigami and Hollows had been fighting every night.

Kūgo Ginjō told Masaki Kurosaki that the Shinigami had betrayed him and killed his original X companions, making her doubt her alliance with them. As night fell, Shinigami and Hollows entered Tokyo, and Loly found Ginjō.

• Kūgo Ginjō explained that the Shinigami had used his Substitute Soul Reaper Badge to monitor him and killed his X companions, leaving Tsukishima alive.
• Masaki Kurosaki told Ginjō that the scientists at the institute were safe, then admitted she was a Kurosaki and accepted his offer to join forces against the Shinigami.
• Kimura Keiichi pressed the call button, and Shiraishi answered a report that Ginjō was at the Third Research Institute before crushing his phone and preparing to go there.
• Night fell, Garganta and Senkaimon opened across Tokyo, and Shinigami stepped into the World of the Living as Negación Threads located the Hollows.
• Loly opened her eyes after the threads found Kūgo Ginjō.

Ulquiorra attacked Kūgo Ginjō and the Fullbringers in the World of the Living, killing most of them before Shiraishi intervened. Shiraishi rescued Riruka after Ulquiorra escaped, and she wept over her companions’ deaths.

• Loly detected Ginjo and the others’ movements and passed the information to Szayelaporro and Ulquiorra, who sent Gillians to Tokyo.
• Gillians appeared above Tokyo and prepared to fire Ceros as Shiraishi and Renji Abarai sensed the growing Reiatsu.
• Ulquiorra arrived at the Third Research Institute, where Kūgo Ginjō and the Fullbringers attacked him while Masaki Kurosaki escaped with Isshin Shiba.
• Ulquiorra killed Kiriko Tazawa, Shūkurō Tsukishima, Kūgo Ginjō, Yukio, and Tristan, then tried to kill Riruka before Shiraishi arrived.
• Shiraishi stopped Ulquiorra from killing Riruka, but Ulquiorra escaped through the closing Garganta, leaving Riruka to grieve for her companions.

Ulquiorra brought Kūgo Ginjō and four other Fullbringers to Las Noches, where Aizen revealed that Fullbringers were fragments of the Soul King and offered Ginjō power in exchange for his help. Ginjō agreed to cooperate without becoming Aizen’s subordinate, while Aizen ordered his Arrancar to pause their operations in the World of the Living.

• Ulquiorra told Kūgo Ginjō that he was dead and led him and the other Fullbringers from the Forest of Menos toward Las Noches.
• Aizen explained that Fullbringers were fragments of the Soul King and said he wanted to study Ginjō’s ability to take and grant power.
• Aizen offered to help Ginjō grow stronger, and Ginjō agreed to cooperate while refusing to become his subordinate.
• Aizen sent Nelliel to take the Fullbringers to rest and praised Ulquiorra for bringing five of them back despite Yammy’s death.
• Aizen told Szayelaporro and Loly to stop their operation in the World of the Living and let the Shinigami enjoy a brief period of peace.

Shiraishi rescued Riruka after an Espada attack in Tokyo and brought her to Soul Society for protection. At the Captains' Meeting, he clashed with Mayuri Kurotsuchi as the captains turned to Aizen's next move.

• Shiraishi comforted the crying Riruka, kissed away her tears, and watched her faint from the shock of her ordeal.
• Masaki Kurosaki returned, and Shiraishi told her he had saved Riruka but could not save the others; he then left for Soul Society after receiving a Captains' Meeting summons.
• Shiraishi met Renji Abarai in Karakura Town, brought Riruka through the Senkaimon, and sent her with Renji to the Fourth Division for protection.
• At the First Division barracks, Mayuri Kurotsuchi accused Shiraishi of failing to protect Kūgo Ginjō and questioned his motives for saving Riruka.
• Shiraishi mocked Mayuri Kurotsuchi and urged him to summon Kisuke Urahara for advice, until Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto ordered the captains to focus on what Aizen would do next.

Mayuri Kurotsuchi explained that Aizen planned to use Kūgo Ginjō as a test subject on the path to becoming the Soul King, and the captains decided Shiraishi should assassinate Ginjo and retrieve his body. Shiraishi accepted after negotiating a lavish reward, then went with Mayuri to prepare for the mission in Hueco Mundo.

• Mayuri Kurotsuchi explained that Ginjo possessed human, Shinigami, Hollow, and Soul King Fragment powers, and that the Hōgyoku could supply the missing Quincy power to make him an Artificial Soul King.
• Mayuri said Aizen intended to study Ginjo before pursuing the Soul King's power for himself, so the captains needed to kill Ginjo and recover his body.
• Shiraishi refused to risk his life for his current salary, but accepted after Shunsui Kyōraku offered to triple his pay, provide a residence, and grant him three unrefusable orders to two captains.
• Mayuri Kurotsuchi agreed to the terms, and Yamamoto ordered Shiraishi to prepare for departure to Hueco Mundo.
• Mayuri described the Cloak of Lies, communication device, space capsule, and Reishi Detection Rod that Shiraishi would use during the mission.

Shiraishi used Mayuri’s equipment and a Hollow disguise to infiltrate Hueco Mundo and reach Las Noches, where he confronted Tier Harribel. He left Harribel facing his demand for obedience while planning to question her about Kūgo Ginjō.

• Mayuri gave Shiraishi a Cloak of Lies, a Space Capsule, a communication device, and a Reishi Detection Rod, and explained how to use them.
• Shiraishi activated Bankai: Crimson Moon, equipped the tools, and followed a Hollow through a Garganta into Hueco Mundo.
• Shiraishi entered Las Noches and killed Rudbornn Chelute to delay word of his arrival reaching Aizen.
• Shiraishi went to the Fourth Espada’s palace, seized Tier Harribel, and ordered her three Fracción to leave.
• Shiraishi told Harribel she had forgotten how to address her master and considered how to get Kūgo Ginjō’s whereabouts from her.

Shiraishi tortured Tier Harribel to learn where Aizen’s Fullbringer test subjects were being held, but she refused to betray Aizen. Apache revealed their location and offered to guide him, hoping to help Harribel escape.

• Shiraishi sent Apache, Sun-Sun, and Rose away, then questioned Tier Harribel about recent events in Las Noches.
• Tier Harribel revealed that Loly had brought three Fullbringers to Hueco Mundo for one of Aizen’s experiments, but refused to disclose where they were held.
• Shiraishi beat Tier Harribel until she lost consciousness, then threatened her with his sword when Apache rushed in to defend her.
• Apache told Shiraishi that Nelliel had settled the Fullbringers in a secluded room on the second floor of Aizen’s royal palace and offered to show him the way.

Nelliel confronted Baraggan over Rudbornn’s death, but Kaname Tōsen intervened before their fight could continue. Meanwhile, Shiraishi infiltrated the royal palace and killed Kūgo Ginjō, though Aizen appeared immediately afterward.

• Nelliel accused Baraggan of killing Rudbornn, and they fought until Kaname Tōsen stopped them.
• Gin Ichimaru arrived and explained that Loly’s Negación Threads monitored the royal palace corridors.
• Shiraishi knocked Apache unconscious, entered the royal palace, and used a ruse to reach the Fullbringers’ room.
• Shiraishi killed Kūgo Ginjō and crushed the space capsule, after which a ball of white light carried Kūgo Ginjō away.
• Aizen appeared in the room.

Shiraishi rescued Kūgo Ginjō and fought Aizen, but escaped after changing Bankai forms when the Espada and Nelliel surrounded him. Aizen let him go and ordered Loly to send him the data gathered by the Negación Threads.

• Aizen noticed Kūgo Ginjō's Reiatsu vanish, found Shiraishi taking him away, and stabbed Shiraishi through the heart.
• Shiraishi severed Aizen's arm, then clashed with him outside Las Noches and refused to hand over Kūgo Ginjō's corpse.
• The Espada arrived, and Nelliel placed her sword against Shiraishi's neck to stop the fight.
• Shiraishi changed into his Nightbringer Dream Dragon form, slipped past Starrk, and used Steel Tempest to escape.
• Aizen stopped Kaname Tōsen from pursuing Shiraishi and told Loly to send him the data collected from Kūgo Ginjō.

Aizen returned to his experiments while Tier Harribel misinterpreted Nelliel's explanation as evidence that Shiraishi liked her. Shiraishi returned safely to Soul Society and warned Kisuke Urahara that Aizen had fused with his Zanpakuto and might be impossible to defeat.

• Aizen received Loly's information on Kūgo Ginjō and returned to the royal palace laboratory to continue his experiments.
• Tier Harribel healed her injuries with her Resurrección and questioned Nelliel about her relationship with Shiraishi.
• Nelliel concealed her relationship with Shiraishi, and Harribel mistakenly concluded that he liked her.
• Apache returned largely unharmed, strengthening Harribel's belief that Shiraishi had spared her subordinates out of affection.
• Shiraishi returned through a Garganta and told Kisuke Urahara that Aizen had fused with his Zanpakuto and might have placed him under Kyōka Suigetsu.
• Urahara maintained that sealing Aizen remained possible, while Shiraishi dismissed the encouragement and entered the Research and Development Institute to obtain clothes.

Shiraishi returned from his mission and took Retsu Unohana to her private residence, where he tried to take charge of their encounter with a series of teasing surprises. The chapter ended with Retsu bound and suspended while she continued to challenge him.

• Retsu Unohana reviewed rising expenses in the Fourth Division before Shiraishi arrived and said he had quickly completed his mission to take care of Kūgo Ginjō.
• Retsu assigned her work to Kiyonosuke and Isane, then led Shiraishi to her private residence in the First Division District.
• Shiraishi blindfolded Retsu, dressed her in stockings and a cow outfit, and wrote on her with a washable pen.
• Shiraishi bound Retsu with rope, suspended her from an overhead beam, and sat on her back while she refused to surrender.

Kisuke Urahara launched the Spearhead Tactic to send Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto through a Garganta toward the Royal Palace, but a warning revealed that their plan had been exposed. Aizen had anticipated the attack, and Shiraishi found himself facing Szayelaporro and the others in a transformed World of the Living.

• Kisuke Urahara prepared the sealing Kidō while Shiraishi activated Bankai and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto released Zanka no Tachi.
• Kisuke Urahara opened a Garganta, and Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto entered it to attack the Royal Palace.
• Akon told Kisuke Urahara that an unknown spirit wave had been sent from Seireitei to Hueco Mundo, prompting Kisuke Urahara to order an emergency alert.
• Aizen crushed Kisuke Urahara's Reishi Detection Rod and praised Szayelaporro for detecting the surveillance device.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and Shiraishi emerged into a prepared scene, where the space transformed into a World of the Living landscape.
• Shiraishi discovered that Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and Aizen were absent and faced Szayelaporro and the others.

After spending the night with Retsu Unohana, Shiraishi went to Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto to arrange protection for her and several others before Aizen’s coming attack. Yamamoto revealed formidable Reiatsu, but Shiraishi remained unconvinced that he could defeat Aizen, and Yamamoto began preparing the captains for war.

• Shiraishi and Retsu Unohana continued their intimate contest until midnight, then slept, and she left early for work the next morning.
• Shiraishi packed the costumes from the previous night and went to the First Division barracks to speak with Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
• Shiraishi asked Yamamoto to order Retsu Unohana, Soi Fon, Isane Kotetsu, Nemu Kurotsuchi, and Kūkaku Shiba to protect the Kūkaku Cannon at the Shiba Clan’s grounds when the next month began.
• Shiraishi warned Yamamoto that Aizen’s power made him a grave threat, but Yamamoto demonstrated Reiatsu comparable to Aizen’s and insisted that he had not shown his true power.
• Shiraishi doubted Yamamoto could defeat Aizen and reminded him to carry out the order; Yamamoto arranged for Shiraishi to be taken to the captain’s residence and decided to prepare the captains for battle.

Shiraishi persuaded Soi Fon to visit his new home, where he revealed that his invitation was for a meal involving her as the serving dish. The chapter ended with Soi Fon feeding him soup, meat, and vegetables with her feet.

• Soi Fon received Yamamoto's order to hand administrative duties to the Central 46 Chambers and told Ōmaeda to focus the squad on training.
• Shiraishi intercepted Soi Fon and invited her to his new residence, and she agreed to go with him.
• Shiraishi took Soi Fon to the bathroom, washed her, and carried her to a special serving basin in the hall.
• Shiraishi poured soup, meat, and vegetables into the basin around Soi Fon and explained that he planned to eat from it.
• Soi Fon used her feet to feed Shiraishi and reminded him to drink all the soup and restore her right foot afterward.

Soi Fon trained with Shiraishi to refine her new wind-based Shunkō technique, while Shiraishi tried to spend time with her before their next separation. She left without having dinner with him and continued studying Hakuda techniques, falling asleep thinking of him.

• After showering, Soi Fon asked Shiraishi to help her train at her training ground.
• Soi Fon showed Shiraishi her unfinished wind-based move, and he advised her to use softness to overcome hardness.
• Soi Fon developed a gentle rotating vortex around her fist and trained with Shiraishi until evening, when her Reiatsu was nearly exhausted.
• Shiraishi offered Soi Fon water and wiped her sweat, but she stopped him and refused his invitation to dinner.
• Soi Fon returned to the Second Division, ate while studying Hakuda techniques, and went to bed late at night.

At a Captains' Meeting, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto announced a direct strike on Aizen in Hueco Mundo and assigned Shiraishi to accompany him. The other captains received defensive and interim leadership duties as Shiraishi agreed to the risky plan.

• Soi Fon went to the First Division after Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto summoned her to a Captains' Meeting.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto announced the Spearhead Tactic, a surprise attack on Aizen's Royal Palace using Kisuke Urahara's Garganta technology.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto assigned Shiraishi to accompany him to Hueco Mundo, relying on Shiraishi's Hollowfication to withstand his Bankai's flames.
• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto tasked Retsu Unohana with guarding the Kūkaku Cannon and appointed Shunsui Kyōraku temporary Captain-Commander during his absence.
• Shunsui Kyōraku warned that Aizen might use Kyōka Suigetsu, so Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto explained that they would wound Aizen with a wide-area attack and seal him using Kisuke Urahara's Kidō.
• Shiraishi agreed to accompany Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and attempt the attack on Aizen.

Kisuke Urahara sent Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto through a Garganta to launch the Spearhead Tactic against Aizen, but a warning revealed their surveillance had been detected. The attack arrived in a prepared trap, where Shiraishi faced Szayelaporro and Aizen’s allies.

• Kisuke Urahara applied a sealing Kidō to Shiraishi’s Zanpakuto while Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto prepared his Bankai.
• Kisuke Urahara opened a Garganta, and Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto entered it on their way to the Royal Palace.
• Akon told Kisuke Urahara that an unknown spirit wave had been sent from Seireitei to Hueco Mundo, prompting Kisuke Urahara to order an emergency alert.
• Aizen crushed Kisuke Urahara’s Reishi Detection Rod and praised Szayelaporro for detecting the surveillance and warning him.
• Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto emerged into a prepared scene, where Szayelaporro and Aizen’s other allies awaited them.

Shiraishi revealed his new Bankai form, Western cowboy, and unleashed a massive machine-gun barrage against Szayelaporro and the others. The barrage killed every enemy, leaving the battlefield restored to Hueco Mundo.

• Szayelaporro explained how Aizen's power had evolved him and how the group had prepared to counter Shiraishi.
• Shiraishi transformed into his Western cowboy Bankai form and revealed Gun Storm, which controlled 99,999 machine guns.
• Shiraishi's spirit bullets overwhelmed Tsukishima, who was blasted apart while charging forward.
• Loly's Negación Threads failed to block the barrage, and she accepted that she would die.
• Szayelaporro fought the bullets until they overwhelmed him and destroyed his body.
• Shiraishi stopped firing after every enemy's Reiatsu vanished, and the space returned to Hueco Mundo.

Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto fought Aizen in Las Noches, where Aizen demonstrated mastery of both Cero and Quincy powers. Shiraishi joined Yamamoto’s assault and struck Aizen with karmic fire, but they were left unsure whether Aizen had been defeated or was still using Kyōka Suigetsu.

• Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto challenged Aizen, and they clashed with Zanka no Tachi and Kyōka Suigetsu, destroying much of Las Noches.
• Aizen fired a Cero and a Heilig Pfeil at Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, who split the arrow with Zanka no Tachi, East: Kyokujitsujin.
• Aizen attacked Yamamoto from behind, but Yamamoto’s flames burned Kyōka Suigetsu to ash and left Aizen with cracked skin despite his Blut Vene.
• Shiraishi appeared above Aizen and fired a vast barrage of spirit bullets while Yamamoto pressed the attack.
• Yamamoto used Tenchi Kaijin to cut off Aizen’s lower body, and Shiraishi followed with Steel Tempest, cleaving Aizen and engulfing him in karmic fire.
• Shiraishi questioned whether Aizen was truly defeated, and Yamamoto called to him from a distance to ask if Aizen was dead.

Aizen completed his evolution by fusing Shinigami, Hollow, and Quincy powers, then trapped Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto in Hueco Mundo while he went to Seireitei. He arrived amid the invasion and met Aura Michibane as the fighting spread across the city.

• Aizen emerged from his burning body in a new form and explained that Shiraishi and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto had helped him temper and fuse his powers.
• Aizen used a prepared phantom to distract Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, then struck him with a fully incanted Kurohitsugi; Shiraishi escaped its attack by hiding in another dimension.
• Aizen vanished, and Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto deduced that he had gone to Seireitei; Shiraishi discovered Aizen had sealed Hueco Mundo against Garganta travel.
• Shiraishi searched for Hollows to keep trying to open a Garganta while Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto anxiously attempted to contact Seireitei.
• Aizen reached the ruined Research and Development Institute, surveyed the battles between the Espada and captains, and met Aura Michibane.
• Aizen praised Aura Michibane, criticized Central 46, and cast Tenteikūra.