The Arrancar Saga

The Arrancar Saga is the term used to refer to all the events that took place during the Arrancar, Hueco Mundo, and Fake Karakura arcs. The Saga centers on the burgeoning war between the Ryoka, led by Ichigo Kurosaki, the Shinigami, led by General Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai, and the Arrancar, led by ex-shinigami captain Sōsuke Aizen.

The Calm Before the Storm

After defeating the Bount Tribe and returning from Soul Society with his friends, excluding Rukia, Ichigo's life briefly returns to the relatively peaceful state at which it was before he left. This serenity is broken with the arrival of new student Shinji Hirako. Shinji, who reveals himself as a recruiter for the Vizard, approaches Ichigo and attempts to convince him to join his organization. Ichigo persistently refuses, even after being warned that his inner hollow will eventually take over and destroy everything in sight. In Hueco Mundo, the hollow Grand Fisher and another transform into imperfect arrancar and makes their way to the human world and attacks both Kon (inhabiting Ichigo's body) and Uryū. Uryū is rescued by his father, Ryūken Ishida, who reveals himself to be a Quincy, while Kon remains helpless against Grand Fisher. After rescuing Uryū from the arrancar attacking him, Ryūken offers to restore his powers provided he never again associates with the Shinigami. Meanwhile, Kon is still running through town in an attempt to evade Grand Fisher. Despite receiving help from Ririn, Kurōdo and Noba, he is eventually caught. Just as he is about to be killed, Isshin Kurosaki steps in to save him, dressed in shinigami clothing. Elsewhere, both Ichigo and Shinji become aware of a new presence, though neither are able to identify it as Isshin. Curious, Ichigo decides to leave in order to check it out, but not before turning down Shinji's invitation. After a short conversation between Grand Fisher and Isshin, during which Isshin makes it clear that he's been aware of Kon, Ririn, Kurodo, and Noba as well as Ichigo's shinigami activities, Grand Fisher transforms into a larger version of himself and draws his zanpakutō whilst mocking Isshin. Isshin casually identifies him as an arrancar and dispatches him in a single attack. With the death of Grand Fisher, Kisuke Urahara appears to have a short chat with Isshin. The two talk about the plans of both Aizen and the Vizard, more aware of the former than the latter. Both are aware of the Vizard's interest in Ichigo. After they sense Ichigo approaching, they depart to avoid being seen. Things in Soul Society are also becoming tense, though what is causing it is unclear. At school, Shinji is still following Ichigo. When Ichigo confronts him, Shinji admits that he won't give up until Ichigo agrees to join the Vizard. The offer is equally out of concern for Ichigo as it is for the Vizard. Shinji explains that Hollow Ichigo will eventually overpower him, destroying everything he cares about. Later on, Shinji is confronted by Hiyori Sarugaki, a fellow Vizard, about his lack of progress. They are interrupted by Chad and Inoue, who want to know what the two want with Ichigo. Hiyori states that it is none of their business, and prepares to kill Chad and Inoue. Shinji grabs her and runs away to prevent any such thing from happening. At the Karakura hospital, Uryū formally asks Ryǔken for his own Quincy powers, swearing not to further affiliate with the shinigami.

The Cold War

First Contact

After his chat with Shinji, Ichigo realizes that his inner hollow is indeed becoming more than he can control. Meanwhile, two arrancar (Yammy and Ulquiorra Schiffer) arrive in Karakura Town in order to locate and evaluate Ichigo's strength, making a spectacular crater at their landing site. When everyone comes to see what happened, Yammy begins sucking the souls from everyone in the immediate area. Only Tatsuki Arisawa survives, and is left nearly dead as a result. Chad and Orihime arrive to save Tatsuki, but are easily repelled by Yammy, whose strength is great enough to bat Chad away in a single attack and reduce Tsubaki (Orihime's attack spirit) to dust merely by blocking it. Before he can kill either of them, however, Ichigo arrives to save them. Upon seeing Chad injured, Ichigo starts his battle with Yammy using his bankai, blocking Yammy's first attack and cutting off his arm. However the fight is cut short when his inner hollow interferes, allowing Yammy to gain the upper hand. The arrival of Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi Shihōin forces Ulquiorra into strategic retreat. Ulquiorra returns to Aizen believing that Ichigo is a waste of his and Aizen's time. After his failure against the arrancar, Ichigo loses his will as a shinigami since he cannot protect his friends. This mood lasts until the arrival of Gotei 13's expeditionary force: six shinigami sent to the human world under the command of Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya. Rukia, who is among them, forces Ichigo to fight a hollow, all the while chastising him. This causes him to regain his spirit and reaffirm his commitment to protect his friends, the first being Orihime Inoue. Later that day, Ichigo discusses the growing arrancar threat with Hitsugaya's force and learns what the arrancar actually are: Menos-class hollow that have been transformed into (mostly humanoid) shinigami while retaining their hollow powers. Rukia is formally accepted into Ichigo's home, sleeping in the same room as his sisters. Finally, Ulquiorra and Yammy return to Hueco Mundo to report back to Aizen.

The Invasion of Karakura Town

Ulquiorra and Yammy are debriefed by Aizen and the other arrancar. Grimmjow Jeagerjaques questions their actions in regards to Ichigo, but Aizen trusts in Ulquiorra's judgement and does nothing, greatly annoying Grimmjow. That night, six arrancar under the command of Grimmjow Jeagerjaques invade Karakura Town, intending to finish what they view as an incomplete mission on Ulquiorra's part. They split up, seeking targets with spiritual power. Grimmjow's five arrancar head off to fight their opponents: Shawlong Qufang and Nakim fight Hitsugaya and Matsumoto, respectively; Di Roy fights Chad; Edorad Leones fights Ikkaku Madarame; and Ilfort Grantz fights Renji Abarai. Di Roy nearly deals Chad a fatal blow to the chest before Ichigo intercepts it with his hand. Upon being told by Ichigo he should stay back and not fight, Chad becomes greatly discouraged since he is no longer any help to his friend. Rukia then steps in and tells Ichigo she will take care of Di Roy herself. Unveiling her zanpakutō, Rukia easily kills the arrancar. She and Ichigo are then found by Grimmjow. Meanwhile, Keigo stumbles upon Ikkaku's fight with Edrad. Ikkaku fights Edrad, who is forced to release his zanpakutō. Ikkaku is overwhelmed, even with his shikai, and is forced to reveal his bankai. Meanwhile, Grimmjow easily dispatches Rukia as Ichigo prepares to face him. Ikkaku, now using his bankai, begins to overpower Edrad. Edrad comes up with a strategy to defeat Ikkaku, and the two clash at full power as the episode ends. Ikkaku falls from the sky, his weapons shattered. However, Edrad is missing a fair portion of his chest and his entire right arm. Edrad falls to his death and Yumichika congratulates Ikkaku for winning. With Ikkaku's battle over, the other fights are touched upon: Hitsugaya, using his bankai, can't manage to land a hit on Shawlong; Renji, doing the same, is equally outmatched by Ilfort; Matsumoto has seemingly been defeated by Nakim; and Ichigo's shikai can't even scratch Grimmjow, forcing him to use his bankai to keep up. Renji is granted a short reprieve by a sleep-walking Ururu, whose insane strength allows her to beat Ilfort to a pulp almost effortlessly. Ilfort counters this by releasing his zanpakutō, impaling Ururu on his newly-grown bull horns. Elsewhere, Shawlong has also released his zanpakutō, and effortlessly dodges or blocks Hitsugaya's attacks. All this time, however, Matsumoto has been requesting that they be able to lift their power limits in order to deal with the powerful arrancar, and now they finally have permission. With their power limits lifted, Hitsugaya, Matsumoto, and Renji easily dispatch their opponents. Meanwhile, Ichigo isn't doing so well against Grimmjow, who is able to block Ichigo's strikes barehanded. After a protracted battle, during which Ichigo can't land a single blow, Ichigo resorts to his "black" getsuga tenshō. The attack only manages to burn Grimmjow slightly, and allows Ichigo's inner hollow to begin surfacing. Ichigo is 'rescued' by Kaname Tōsen, who has arrived to take Grimmjow back to Hueco Mundo because he had disobeyed orders in orchestrating this attack, leaving an unsatisfied Ichigo to sulk in his apparent loss and worry over an injured Rukia. Grimmjow is taken back to Hueco Mundo by Kaname Tōsen, who asks Aizen for permission to execute Grimmjow. When this request is denied, Tōsen slices off Grimmjow's arm and destroys it.

Taming The Savage Beast: Ichigo's Vizard Training

With the arrancar threat over for the moment, Ichigo sets out to find the Vizard, aware that his inner hollow has become too powerful to control. Meanwhile, Uryu trains with his father under Karakura Hospital and Chad requests that Urahara train him as well. Back at the Vizard warehouse, Ichigo fights Shinji so he can force him into telling him how to control the inner hollow. Hiyori interferes and uses her hollow mask to fight Ichigo as a test to see if he's strong enough to join the Vizard. With her hollow mask, Hiyori is more than a match for Ichigo. She continues to goad him into using his hollow mask or bankai, neither of which Ichigo is willing to do. Ichigo eventually loses control to his hollow side once more, and nearly kills her. After being forced back into his shinigami state, Ichigo is informed that he cannot simply keep his hollow in check with his body or mind, but must force it into the very core of his soul. After a brief period of unappreciated training, Ichigo is told to confront his hollow side within his inner world. There, Ichigo squares off against his hollow self. Even after several exchanges, Ichigo is unable to damage the hollow, while badly injured himself. Ichigo and his inner hollow both use their bankai and commence fighting, but Ichigo is continually assaulted by inner manifestations of previous foes - Byakuya Kuchiki and Jin Kariya - and force him to refight their battles (Ichigo is defeated by both of them). Ichigo's inner hollow overpowers him and breaks his sword, then explains to him that he has no desire to serve someone with no instinct for battle. After another discourse with an inner manifestation of Kenpachi Zaraki, Ichigo realizes his trouble is that he lacks pure fighting spirit, instead needing reasons to fight his opponents. His spirit rekindled by this revelation, Ichigo is able to make a comeback, seizing the hollow's sword and impaling him on it. His hollow subdued for the moment, Ichigo fades back to reality. When he comes to, he learns that while he was fighting internally, his outer body had transformed into that of a powerful and berserk hollow and that the Vizard had taken turns battling this monster to keep it in check. Elsewhere, General Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryūsai speaks with Hitsugaya about Aizen's objective: he plans to obtain the royal key and overthrow the king of Soul Society. However, as Yamamoto is the only person who knows where the key is, Aizen will have to manufacture a duplicate using 100,000 human souls gathered in Karakura Town, and in doing so vaporize a large portion of the city. At Urahara's shop, Chad is fighting against Renji's bankai as training, while Ishida is still dodging arrows from his father under Karakura Hospital. Momo Hinamori wakes from her coma that was inflicted by Aizen, and is wishes to speak with Toshiro. Hinamori appears to still be in a trance, believing that Aizen is innocent and urges Hitsugaya to save him, which angers him. Throughout the town, various training sessions are taking place: Ichigo is training with Hiyori to lengthen the time he can use his hollow mask, Chad is training with Renji to make his arm stronger, and Uryū is training with Ryūken to regain his powers. Meanwhile, Orihime tracks down Ichigo to inform him of Aizen's plans. This comes as a surprise to the other Vizard, as she passes through the barrier with no effort. In his battle with Ryūken, Uryū finally loses his patience and goes on the attack, only to be shot through the chest. A pentacle-shaped scar forms at the point of contact, and Ryūken informs Uryū that his powers have been restored. With Orihime's attack spirit, Tsubaki, out of commission, Urahara tells Orihime that he doesn't want her to participate in the upcoming battle, as anyone who cannot fight would simply be a burden. Orihime is saddened by the decision, but understands it. After being taken back to the Vizard by Hiyori, however, Hachi is able to restore Tsubaki for her, which she could not accomplish on her own. Meanwhile, Yammy has his arm reattached, while Ulquiorra explains that Grimmjow lost his rank when he lost his arm.

The Cloning Arrancar

During what appears to be a common hollow attack, Matsumoto is forced to protect the foul-tempered spirit of a child from an armadillo-like arrancar that sings a strange tune. After Ikkaku dispatches the arrancar, they forgo sending him to Soul Society in order to interrogate him. The child, named Shōta Toyokawa, is quite insisitent that he has something to do before leaving the real world, but won't say what. Rangiku convinces Toshiro to wait a day before sending him to Soul Society. At night, Shōta attempts to steal Matsumoto's zanpakutō, but is caught by her. He reveals that he has to find someone, but is still evasive about just who it is. Before Rangiku can press the issue, the supposedly-dead arrancar shows up once more. While tracking the arrancar, Rangiku and Shōta discover that its song can force pluses to walk themselves into its jaws. Furthermore, it can multiply itself seemingly without limit, leaving dozens of copies of itself for Hitsugaya's team to dispatch. A researcher from the 12th Division later explains that another arrancar is creating the copies, hence their inability to die. Despite the large number of copies, they are no match for the Shinigamis and thus are quickly dispatched. Afterwards, Shōta finds the person he was searching for: his sister, Yui. Before they died, Yui liked to play the ocarina, the tune of which is reminiscent of the arrancar's. While Hitsugaya's team tracks any stray clones that may have escaped destruction, the clones mass yet another attack while a larger, more humanoid arrancar emerges to watch. During the confusion, Yui runs off to the park where she was originally found, where Shōta admits that he abandoned her out of fear. The arrancar is revealed to be able to disguise itself as the human souls it has devoured, which both increases its power and makes it impossible to find while disguised. Upon learning of the attack on Yui by the arrancar, Hitsugaya assumes she is one of the copies, something an attempted soul burial seems to confirm. Still unsure, Hitsugaya has Soul Society track the disguised arrancar while Yui is sealed within a barrier. The analysis confirms Yui is one of the clones, and also reveals the cloning power came from her in the first place. Shōta, being her brother, seems to have similar powers, and Yui uses him to break the barrier so she can lure him to the park and devour him. Though Yui is able to resist the arrancar and keep Shōta safe, the source body appears to devour her completely. However, it is little match for Rangiku and Toshiro, who arrive to defeat it. It manages to stall them by reminding them of Yui's trapped soul, allowing it to escape and create hundreds of copies to attack the town with while it hides behind a barrier. While the rest of the Shinigamis fight off the infinitely respawning clones, Rangiku, Hitsugaya, and Shōta track down the main arrancar through his clones, which link back to it through the song it sings. In order to break down its barrier, Hitsugaya uses his bankai, guided with some help from Yui. Revealed, the arrancar releases its zanpakutō, but is disabled by Hitsugaya and finally killed by Rangiku and Shōta together, releasing every soul it devoured in the process. With the arrancar gone, Rangiku performs a soul burial on Shōta to reunite him with his sister.

Patros' Rebellion

Be warned ! The following text is talking about an anime-only chapter, also called filler. This doesn't happen in the manga.

In Hueco Mundo, an arrancar named Patros and his two subordinates steal the Orb of Distortion, seemingly killing Ulquiorra Schiffer in the process. Patros is unwilling to continue taking orders from Aizen (a shinigami), and intends to make himself king by learning how to use the Orb. To this end, he heads for Urahara's shop, having heard that someone there can operate it. Kisuke, however, is out on business, so Renji battles him instead. Meanwhile, the other shinigami are kept busy by Patros' two subordinates. As the two sides battle, Ulquiorra appears in the real world, showing no signs of his previous injuries. In Las Noches, Ulquiorra's staged death and the theft of the Orb of Distortion are revealed to be a ploy by Aizen, engineered using his illusion-casting zanpakutō. The real Orb is safe, Patros having stolen an ordinary ball. Meanwhile, in the real world, Patros' two subordinates are defeated after some effort, leaving Patros alone. In addition, Renji reveals his bankai and lifts his power limit, forcing Patros to release his zanpakutō. This allows Patros to overpower Renji, but in doing so he reveals the secret of his attacks to Ririn, who has been watching the whole time. By having Kuroud grab Patros' arm, which now functions in the same manner as his sealed zanpakutō, Patros is unable to generate the energy to unleash his attacks, allowing Renji to destroy him. Back in Hueco Mundo, Ulquiorra reports to Aizen on Orihime, relating that her abilities would be useful to him. He also notes that she is not in the real world at the moment.

The Shinenju Affair

Warning ! The following text is talking about an OVA, this doesn't happen in the manga.

In Karakura Town, unidentifiable spirits begin appearing en masse. While attempting to deal with these strange souls, Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki meet Senna, a mysterious shinigami who wipes out most of them. Senna refuses to answer any questions, so Ichigo is forced to follow her while Rukia tries to find out what's going on.

Meanwhile, in Soul Society, the real world is suddenly reflected in the sky, so Tōshirō Hitsugaya and Rangiku Matsumoto are sent to investigate. They meet up with Ichigo and discuss the events at the Urahara Shop, where Kisuke Urahara explains that a dimension between Soul Society and the real world, known as the Valley of Screams, has expanded to the point that it is connecting the two worlds. The souls Ichigo saw earlier are known as "Blanks," souls that were lost in the space between the worlds and have been stripped of their memories. The Valley of Screams is composed of these Blanks, but they alone could not be responsible for the size to which it has grown. He goes on to explain that the lost memories of the Blanks will have formed into a single being known as the "Shinenju", and he has Ichigo track this being down. Senna is eventually revealed to be the Memory Rosary, and a fair amount of the Gotei 13 shows up to deal with the problem. However, a mysterious group appears, identifying themselves as the "Dark Ones," and set their sights on Senna. Despite Ichigo's efforts, they succeed in capturing her.

Within the Valley of Screams, the Dark Ones attach Senna to a device powered by the Blanks. As concurrently explained by both the Dark Ones and Mayuri Kurotsuchi, the Blanks are naturally attracted to memories, which they lack. Senna, being composed of nothing but memories, will attract the Blanks, causing a chain reaction that will collapse the entire dimension. This in turn will cause the real world and Soul Society to collide, potentially annihilating both. The Dark Ones explain that their actions are to get revenge on Soul Society: they were shinigami over a millennia ago, but were exiled and have since adapted to the Valley of Screams.

Unwilling to give up on Senna, Ichigo finds the portal into the Valley of Screams on the river. As he enters it, Rukia heads to Soul Society to get reinforcements. Since the only available portal into the Valley of Screams exists in the real world, and the process that will destroy both Soul Society and the real world will complete within an hour, General Yamamoto orders that the Kidō Cannon be fired at the dimension to obliterate it first. Yamamoto refuses to order a rescue mission with such a tight time frame.

Within the Valley, Ichigo finds himself overpowered by the sheer number of Blanks the Dark Ones have at their command. He is saved by the timely arrival of Kenpachi Zaraki, with lieutenant Yachiru Kusajishi on his back. Aside from Zaraki, Soifon, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Izuru Kira, Byakuya Kuchiki, Rangiku Matsumoto, Tetsuzaemon Iba, Shūhei Hisagi, Ikkaku Madarame, and Yumichika Ayasegawa have also arrived to help. The group makes short work of most of the Dark Ones, leaving Ichigo to battle their leader. Though it takes Ichigo longer and takes a larger toll on him, he is victorious as well. Despite having stopped the collapse of the Valley of Screams, the process is far enough along that the effect persists. Senna, now in control of the Blanks, sacrifices herself to use their power to push the two worlds apart once more since she did not want Ichigo to die, thus saving the inhabitants of both Soul Society and the real world.

Extremely weak, Senna asks Ichigo to take her back to the graveyard so that she can see her name on her gravestone. Though the gravestone does not have her name, Ichigo tells Senna that her name is on it. Content that she once lived in the town and assured of her own separate existence, Senna evaporates. Rukia explains that once the power of the Blanks has faded, their memories of Senna will fade along with them. However, after the credits, Ichigo seems to vaguely remember Senna when the red ribbon he bought her floats down from the sky to him, and a girl resembling Senna is seen running past him.

The Kusaka Endeavor

Warning ! The following text is talking about an OVA, this doesn't happen in the manga.

An artifact known as the "King's Seal" is stolen during transport from Soul Society by an unidentified shinigami and two arrancar girls who control fire and lightning. Tōshirō Hitsugaya seems to recognize the Shinigami, who stabs him in the stomach, and abandons his post to pursue him. Seireitei suspects him of treason and orders his immediate capture, with the possibility of disbanding the 10th Division should he be guilty.

Tōshirō is found unconscious by Ichigo, who knows that Soul Society is looking for him. Tōshirō refuses to explain what's happening, but Ichigo is attacked by the two arrancar before he can force the issue. Tōshirō continues to avoid capture, and things only look worse when the Shinigami thief, identified as Sōjirō Kusaka, uses Hitsugaya's Hyōrinmaru to injure Shunsui Kyōraku. Tōshirō's capture is made top priority, and his execution is approved if he resists.

Tōshirō eventually manages to track Sōjirō down, where it is revealed that the two managed to manifest the same zanpakutō. Because this is a taboo in Soul Society, they were forced to fight to the death. Tōshirō did not wish to but accidentally froze Kusaka in the fight. It was decided that Tōshirō was winner while Sōjirō was apparently killed, only to reincarnate in Hueco Mundo. Seeking revenge on Soul Society, he stole the King's Seal, which allows the user to freely manipulate time, space, and matter within a small space. Using it, Sōjirō teleports Tōshirō and himself to Soul Society, needing the power of Tōshirō's bankai to break the seal. When Tōshirō refuses, Sōjirō breaks the seal himself, becoming a dragon made of ice. However, because he lacks the control Tōshirō possesses, the power goes berserk and threatens to destroy Soul Society. With much help, Ichigo and Tōshirō manage to destroy Sōjirō's dragon form. Returned to his regular form, Sōjirō and Tōshirō have one last clash, ending in Sōjirō's defeat. Tōshirō is cleared of all charges and the King's Seal is restored, allowing Tōshirō to finally put his past to rest.

The Winter War

Luppi's Raid

A month later, Aizen orders Ulquiorra to from a team of arrancar for a special mission; to, once again, invade Karakura and engage the shinigami in a relatively short battle in order to distract them long enough for Ulquiorra to find and "convince" Orihime to come to Heuco Mundo with him. This team consists of Yammy, Grimmjow, Wonderweiss, and Luppi, Grimmjow replacement. Once word got out that the arrancar arrived in Karakura, Ichigo brashly heads off to fight Grimmjow even though he can only remain in his masked form for eleven seconds, while Hitsugaya does battle against Yammy, until a boastful Luppi requests that all four of the present shinigami face him at once. Luppi then releases his zanpakutō, which causes him to sprout eight enormous tentacles from his back. After knocking out Toshiro, he captures Rangiku, Ikkaku, and Yumichika. Luppi turns one of his tentacles into a mace and attempts to attack Rangiku, only to have it severed by an attack from Kisuke Urahara. Meanwhile, in Soul Society, Orihime Inoue prepares to cross into the real world. Orihime is escorted back there by two shinigami guards, only to be intercepted by Ulquiorra. He severely injures the guards and demands that she accompany him, lest her friends die at the hands of the Espada attacking them. As the battle with Luppi continues, Hitsugaya accomplishes a sneak attack with his bankai and defeats Luppi. Meanwhile, Urahara dodges Yammy's bala using a portable gigai, toying with the oafish Espada. Meanwhile, despite using his masked form and Grimmjow's loss of an arm since their last meeting, Ichigo is unable to defeat him within the eleven-second limit. His mask crumbles, and Ichigo is brutally counterattacked. On the brink of defeat and pinned to the ground, Ichigo is granted a short reprieve by Rukia. As Grimmjow recovers from Rukia's attack, Shinji Hirako appears and fights him until the arrancar retreat by order of Ulquiorra Schiffer. The mission, which was to bring Orihime to Aizen, had been completed. When tending to Ichigo's wounds, the Vizard Hachigen Ushōda reveals that Ichigo's spiritual power has been contaminated somewhat by Grimmjow's. Rukia then takes him back to the Kurosaki Clinic to recover.

"Good bye, halcyon days"

Orihime is given twelve hours to say goodbye to one person. Ulquiorra gives her a bracelet to make her invisible, which also allows her to pass through walls, in order to keep her from telling her friends anything. Orihime travels around town, watching her friends from a distance. She then visits Ichigo, who is recovering from the numerous injuries Grimmjow inflicted on him. She uses the chance to make a tearful love confession to a sleeping Ichigo. She comes close to kissing him but cannot bring herself to do it. Before leaving the human world, she writes a cryptic line in a notebook, "Good bye, halcyon days." Later, Ichigo wakes from a bad dream and realizes that the wound from his wrist is healed. Trying to sense by spiritual pressure who has healed him, he is visited by Hitsugaya, who tells him to come immediately for an emergency shinigami meeting. The meeting is held at Orihime's apartment where Hitsugaya and Matsumoto took up residence and done via a live-conference device connecting Soul Society and the human world. Captain Ukitake greets them and informs them Orihime was taken by an arrancar and might have been killed. Ichigo informs them that she visited him to heal him the night before, which leads Yamamoto to believe that Orihime has betrayed them. Renji requests permission to go to Hueco Mundo to rescue her but the request is denied, as Yamamoto believes that the death of one person and the death of the world are weighted on a scale, thus saving Orihime is not important overall. Ichigo asks to go save Orihime by himself, but Yamamoto once again denies the suggestion, stating that Ichigo is a significant asset to Soul Society. The shinigami are ordered to return to Soul Society to fortify their defenses, leaving Ichigo alone.

Ichigo's Response

Despite Yamamoto's decision, Ichigo decides to make preparations with Urahara to single-handedly retrieve Orihime from Hueco Mundo. At school, Tatsuki Arisawa confronts him about her sightings in which she becomes angry and violent over his reluctance to explain himself. She reveals to him that she is able to sense his and Orihime's spiritual energy, and can see Ichigo and other shinigami. She is restrained by Keigo and Mizuiro, while Ichigo walks away, cruelly telling his friends not to get involved. At Urahara's shop, Ichigo is joined by Uryu with his Quincy powers restored and Chad with a new more powerful right arm. After some convincing, the trio agree to help each other rescue Orihime and Urahara opens a gate to Hueco Mundo. Ichigo leads Chad and Ishida into Hueco Mundo but unknown to him, Tatsuki, Keigo, and Mizuiro had followed him and witnessed his departure. After being brought before Aizen, Orihime is asked to demonstrate her power by restoring Grimmjow's arm. Upon doing so, Grimmjow asks her to restore his tattoo. With that done, he quickly kills Luppi to regain his rank. Though worried that her actions might only cause more fighting, Orihime resolves to make herself useful until Soul Society has prepared for the upcoming war. Meanwhile, Ichigo, Sado, and Uryū make their way in Hueco Mundo. Along the way, Uryū reveals why he is breaking his promise to his father not to associate with shinigami; since Ichigo is a Shinigami substitute and has been abandoned by Soul Society, he doesn't consider Ichigo one of them.

Arrival In Hueco Mundo

As Ichigo, Chad, and Ishida enter Hueco Mundo, they are immediately detected by Aizen and attacked by two arrancar, Demōra and Iceringer. Ichigo is then told to stay back and simply watch as Chad and Ishida engage the two arrancar by themselves. Once they are victorious, the room and passageway collapses around them, forcing the trio to race outside where they see their destination, a castle in the middle of a barren desert. They see what looks to be a human being chased by three hollows. After Ichigo attacks the three, it is revealed that the 'human' is actually an arrancar named Nel Tu; the hollows are her two brothers and their pet. After becoming friends, the expanded group travels to the wall of Las Noches, where they are attacked by a sand-based hollow, Lunaganga. The hollow is immune to their attacks, but the group is saved by Renji and Rukia, the latter of which freezes Lunaganga in a circle of ice.

The Menos Forest

Be warned ! The following text is talking about an anime-only chapter, also called filler. This doesn't happen in the manga.

As Nel explains, Lunuganga has more than one body, thus killing one is not much of an impediment for him. When Rukia prepares to kill this new one, however, the preparations for her attack (stabbing her sword into the ground) end up injuring Bawabawa. Their struggle then allows Lunuganga to sink them beneath the sands. Rukia is thrown clear of the group as they fall in. Lunuganga's attack draws them underground, into what Nel describes as the Forest of Menos. It is here where most hollows reside, explaining why so few exist on the surface. Rukia, in a different location, finds herself confronted by an army of hollows. Furthermore, her attempts to escape only lead her to a group of Menos Grande. She is rescued by a Shinigami named Ashido Kanō, who is wearing clothing made from the masks of several different hollows. Despite rescuing her, he proceeds to attack her without provocation. Meanwhile, Ichigo and company soon find themselves surrounded by hollows and Menos Grande. Nel, Pesche, and Dondochakka are kidnapped by a hollow during the attack, and the arrival of more Menos prevents their rescue. Ashido's attack on Rukia is revealed to have been a simple test of her strength, and he decides to take her back to her friends. Along the way, he chooses to reveal both his face and past to Rukia, explaining how he came to be here. Shortly after, they are attacked by an adjuchas-class Menos, who in turns commands legions of gillians. Meanwhile, Nel and her friends are held captive by the other adjuchas, while Ichigo and his friends try to track them down. Theatrical attempts to use Nel's arrancar status as a bargaining chip fail. Though Ashido and Rukia easily destroy the first adjuchas, another sets up an ambush, then Ashido is injured while trying to protect Rukia. Ashido's mask absorbs the brunt of the adjuchas' attack, and to repay the favor Rukia kills it for him. They move on to meet with her friends once the gillians scatter. Meanwhile, Ichigo and the others manage to locate Nel, only to discover that they've been led into an ambush. Despite threats from the hollows to kill Nel and her friends, they easily dispatch their opponents. At a different place, Ashido and Rukia dispatch yet another adjuchas intent on preventing the two groups from meeting. Once everyone is reunited, Ashido leads them out of the forest, but a sudden attack by one of the remaining adjuchas crumbles the passage, leaving Ashido to go back and take care of the Hollow. Rukia laments not having given him the whole story, and promises to return for him. Back in Las Noches, Ulquiorra Schiffer informs Orihime that her friends have mounted a rescue.

The Espada Fights

After breaking into Las Noches and finding themselves at a five-way fork, Ichigo's group splits up and each takes one path. Nel chases after Ichigo, leaving Pesche and Dondochakka forgetting the direction in which she took, and end up taking different paths. Meanwhile, Ulquiorra makes Orihime swear her loyalty to Aizen. As he explains to Nnoitra Jiruga, several psychological traps set up beforehand will ensure she doesn't have the will to resist. However, Orihime quietly resolves to destroy the Orb of Distortion by erasing its existence, thereby derailing all of Aizen's plans.

Ichigo vs Dordonii Alessandro Del Socacchio - The 103rd Arrancar

Ichigo and Nel encounter the Privaron Espada Dordonii, and Ichigo engages in battle with him. Meanwhile, Uryū and Chad each encounter an arrancar while Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen look on. Though Ichigo and Dordonii are about even at first, Dordonii gains the upper hand by releasing his zanpakutō. Nel stumbles in on their fight, and the eyes of her hollow mask glow at the prospect of Ichigo's death. Ichigo's battle with Dordonii continues, with Ichigo proving no match for Dordonii. Dordonii continually pesters Ichigo to use his bankai, leading to a cero attack. Nel jumps in and swallows it whole, then fires it back at Dordonii. In retaliation, Dordonii strikes back at Nel, finally convincing Ichigo to use his bankai. Still not satisfied, Dordonii insists that Ichigo use his hollow powers, and attacks Nel once again to force the issue. Ichigo agrees and dons his mask. Before Dordonii can react, Ichigo disables him with a single strike. Nel heals Dordonii with her saliva at Ichigo's request, and Dordonii explains that he had hoped to regain his position by defeating Ichigo at full power. After becoming "healed", he takes the opportunity to attack again. Dordonii is struck down by Ichigo once again, and as thanks he remains to hold off the Exequias for Ichigo. One of Aizen's henchmen reports the news back to him, and Aizen asks who gave the order for the Exequias to move. Szayel Aporro Granz steps forward to take the blame, but Aizen lets him off the hook since it will help Szayel's research. Meanwhile, Uryū does battle with the arrancar Cirucci Thunderwitch and Rukia runs into the Ninth Espada, Aaroniero Arruruerie. Aaroniero takes off his mask, revealing the face of the deceased Kaien Shiba.

Uryū Ishida and Pesche Guatiche vs Cirucci Thunderwitch - The 105th arrancar

Uryū's battle with Cirucci continues. Watching from the shadows, Pesche decides to help. Using his Infinite Slick ability, he disables her zanpakutō and causes her to fall from the raised platforms. Annoyed, Cirucci releases her zanpakutō, transforming into a giant bird with bladed wings. Unable to counter her abilities with his arrows alone, Uryū pulls one of the tubes from his belt, which produces a powerful energy blade which easily slices through her winged blade attacks. With his energy sword, which he calls a Seele Schneider, Uryū is easily able to fend off Cirucci's attacks. Cirucci sheds her wings and focuses all her power into a single blade on her tail, but this too proves useless. Revealing that his "sword" is actually an arrow, Uryū fires it through Cirucci's chest, destroying the source of her spiritual power. As Uryū and Pesche leave, the Exequias arrive to finish her off.

Rukia Kuchiki vs Aaroniero Arruruerie - The Ninth Espada

Rukia converses with Aaroniero Arruruerie, who moves, speaks, sounds, and acts like the real Kaien. Kaien states that the hollow that infected him was transported back to Hueco Mundo, regenerating as his body, but his "good" mind was the one that gained control. He offers Rukia a way to "atone for her sin" by letting him kill her, and she accepts - providing she is able to rescue Inoue first. Kaien shrugs what he just said off as a joke, then offers her another method: kill all of her friends that followed her here. By this act, Rukia exposes him as an imposter. The two do battle, but Rukia cannot gain the upper hand, as Kaien was the one who taught her how to fight in the first place. Rukia continues to struggle against Aaroniero, and her situation only worsens when he reveals Kaien's released zanpakutō. When he finally disarms her, Rukia's desperate final attack with a kidō spell reveals a helpful fact: Aaroniero is afraid of the sunlight. Armed with this knowledge, she binds his movement and blows a hole in the wall, exposing him to the light outside. So exposed, Aaroniero's true form is revealed; that of a strange creature with two masks in a capsule for a head. He explains that he is the only gillian among the Espada; a position granted to him by his ability to devour other hollows and gain their power (this includes their physical bodies and memories). By eating the hollow that merged with Kaien, he gained Kaien's powers. To show Rukia just how outmatched she is, Aaroniero releases his zanpakutō, transforming his lower body into a giant, octopus-like form. Finally, Aaroniero explains to Rukia that he has absorbed 33,650 hollows, and with his zanpakutō released, she is now facing their combined might. Overwhelmed by Aaroniero's released form, as well as the realization that he possesses Kaien's actual body, Rukia is impaled through the stomach. She flashes back to her training with Kaien, where he told her about how a person's heart is held by those they are close to. Regaining her resolve, she uses her zanpakutō's third dance to impale the ninth Espada through his upper skull. The bottom face dies screaming in agony while feeling betrayed by Aizen's promise that he would never be in pain again, while the top face curses one last time before splitting in half. As Aaroniero dies, she compares Orihime's current situation to her own when she was a prisoner in Soul Society. Though she attempts to keep moving, her injuries get the better of her and she collapses.

Ichigo Kurosaki vs Ulquiorra Schiffer - The Fourth Espada - Round One

Ulquiorra tells Ichigo that Rukia has been killed, which Ichigo denies. Ichigo attempts to leave to save Rukia, reasoning that he and Ulquiorra have no quarrel and thus no reason to fight. Ulquiorra reveals that he was the one who kidnapped Orihime and successfully goads Ichigo into fighting. Though Ichigo starts out well, he proves to be no match for Ulquiorra, who explains that even if Ichigo managed to somehow win, there would be three other Espada who are stronger still, as Ulquiorra is the 4th Espada. Ulquiorra then impales Ichigo's chest with his hand. He leaves after telling Ichigo to leave Hueco Mundo if he's able to.

Chad vs Gantenbainne Mosqueda - The 107th Arrancar

Chad finds himself unable to harm his opponent, Gantenbainne Mosqueda. After many damaging blows, Chad realizes how to access his full power, transforming his arm into a giant shield, Brazo Derecha del Gigante. With his full power unleashed, Chad easily dominates Gantenbainne Mosqueda in their battle. When Gantenbainne releases his zanpakutō to match up, Chad reveals that his left arm also has armor: the right arm is only meant to defend. His left arm, meant for attack, is known as Brazo Izquierda del Diablo. Once again more than a match for Gantenbainne, Chad easily defeats him, and in return for helping him to realize his potential, he lets Gantenbainne live. However, his victory is short-lived as Nnoitra Jiruga arrives at the scene, seemingly unfazed by Chad's attacks. With a single attack, Nnoitra disables Chad. Bored with the ease of his victory, he heads for the next target. His loss is felt by everyone in Hueco Mundo. When Ulquiorra comes to visit Orihime, she insists he isn't dead. Ulquiorra notes that, regardless of his fate, her friends are doomed to fail because they rushed into battle without realizing the odds they were up against.

Renji Abarai, Uryū Ishida, Pesche Guatiche, Dondochakka Bilstin, and 12th Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi vs Szayel Aporro Granz - The Eight Espada

Renji and Dondochakka run into Szayel Aporro Granz. Renji learns of Rukia's spirit pressure disappearing through Szayel. He is initially disbelieving of Szayel when told that one of the Espada and one of his companions had killed each other off at the same time. However, when Szayel mentions that the shinigami was called "Kuchiki", Renji, using his shikai, immediately attacks Szayel. Despite Szayel saying that Renji would not be able to injure him with just his shikai, Renji manages to do so. Regardless, Renji cannot manage to duplicate the feat, and is saved by Uryū, who quickly ends up in the same situation. The two join forces to deal with Szayel's minions. In order to give Uryū an opening, Renji uses Zabimaru to tie himself and Szayel together, and then uses a kidō spell which injures them both. Szayel retreats, falling into Uryū's trap, a massive gintō-triggered explosion. Szayel survives the explosion, albeit with major injuries, and heals himself completely by eating Lumina. He then departs to replace his ruined outfit and formulate a new plan. Renji and Uryu try to find a way out of Las Noches because their main target was to retrieve Orihime, not fight an Espada. They should also plan to head to help Rukia and Chad. However, Szayel manipulates the corridors to make them come back to the same room. Szayel appears behind them, and releases his zanpakutō. As soon as the liquid from Szayel's release makes contact with Renji and Uryū, multiple clones of them appear. Szayel then informs them that the device used to restrict their spirit energy has been deactivated, and that they can now fight against their clones at full power. After some time Renji activates his bankai, causing all of his clones to activate their own. In doing so they destroy the room they are in and a now irritated Szayel disperses all of the clones of Renji and Uryu saying that he will show them the "true power" of his released zanpakutō. Szayel proceeds to use his wing to swallow Uryū, which spits out Uryū and making a miniature doll of him. He then hits the doll and reveals that he has control of all the five senses of Uryū. Despite Renji begging him to stop, Szayel rips the doll apart, but although Uryū didn't lose his legs, Szayel crushes the mini stomach organ inside the doll, injuring Uryū badly. When Renji attacks again, Szayel's zanpakutō swallows Renji, spits him out and creates a miniature doll of Renji. Szayel rips the doll Renji in half and crushes his achilles tendon, making him unable to walk. Just as he loses interest in them and is about to finish them off, Mayuri Kurotsuchi arrives to help them, as astonishing as it may be. Szayel attempts to use his zanpakutō's voodoo ability, but Mayuri negates it by using fake organs, having studied the technique beforehand using data from bacteria he implanted within Uryū during their last battle (much to Uryū's annoyance). Szayel takes Nemu captive, but Mayuri releases his bankai and devours Szayel with it. Szayel uses the rebirth power of his zanpakutō to recreate himself inside Nemu, but in doing so is affected by poisons contained in Nemu's body. Mayuri, disappointed at Szayel's lack of any further abilities, explains that by recreating himself inside Nemu, he is now dosed with a sense-enhancing poison. The poison increases Szayel's senses to the point that his body falls grossly behind and cannot move, and Mayuri stabs Szayel's heart with his zanpakutō, breaking off the blade as the ultimate torture and also as punishment for his zanpakutō going against him. He revives Nemu and has her dig out Szayel's laboratory, within which are a pair of bodies suspended from the ceiling.

Ichigo Kurosaki vs Grimmjow Jeagerjaques - The Sixth Espada - Round Three

Grimmjow brings Orihime to heal Ichigo before he can die, wanting to fight him at full strength. Ulquiorra discovers this and attempts to retrieve Orihime, but Grimmjow uses a portable negación field to temporarily imprison him, thus allowing the two to battle unimpeded. Much like Kenpachi before him, Grimmjow insists that Ichigo not battle for his friends, instead just wanting him to focus on killing him, and reveals that he kept the scar from their first battle as a reminder to fight and kill Ichigo to prove that he is stronger. The advantage shifts between the two combatants at random, with Ichigo donning his hollow mask while Grimmjow releases his zanpakutō, eventually ending in Ichigo's favor. Grimmjow, badly injured and reverted back to his unreleased state, tries one more attack, which Ichigo blocks bare-handed and incapacitate's him. Nnoitra Jiruga then attacks Ichigo, revealing that he is the fifth Espada, and is thus more powerful than Grimmjow, whom Ichigo barely defeated.

Captain Byakuya Kuchiki vs Zommari Leroux - The Seventh Espada

Byakuya later appears in Hueco Mundo to save Rukia from the 7th Espada, Zommari Leroux. He clearly shows anger at Zommari's statement about preparing to kill Rukia. The two begin their battle and Byakuya, reluctantly using a technique learned from Yoruichi Shihōin, manages to evade Zommari, who claims to be the fastest Espada. Zommari states that Byakuya's pride and arrogance will be the reason for Byakuya's defeat, while Byakuya retorts that simply the difference in their power will result in Zommari's loss. Zommari maintains that, as captain and Espada, the two are equal, but Byakuya denies that any Arrancar could be equal to him. To crush his arrogance, Zommari releases his Zanpakutō. Using its power, Zommari takes control of Byakuya's left arm and leg, causing Byakuya to promptly sever the tendons in each to prevent their movement. Zommari implies that he will next take control of Rukia's unconscious form and, enraged, Byakuya shields her with his body. Hanatarō Yamada follows Byakuya to the battlefield, but Byakuya orders Hanatarō back, warning him that in his rage, Byakuya's fighting may swallow up Hanatarō. Zommari succeeds in taking control of Rukia's head, thus taking control of her entire body, and after having her slash Hanatarō across the chest, warns Byakuya to drop his sword or Rukia will slit her own throat. Restraining Rukia with Binding Spell #61, Six Rods Prison of Light, Byakuya activates his bankai and crushes Zommari with the form Gōkei. Zommari survives this encounter by retreating into the lower half of his zanpakutō's released state and angrily shouts at Byakuya that shinigami are arrogant, taking an unnatural authority to proclaim Hollows as evil. Byakuya, impassive, states that he was not fighting Zommari because Byakuya is a shinigami, but because Zommari attacked Byakuya's pride and kills Zommari with a slash from the shoulder down. As he dies, Zommari shouts his praise for Aizen. Byakuya then instructs Kotetsu Isane to come out of her hiding place and take care of Rukia and Hanatarō.

Ichigo Kurosaki, Neliel Tu Oderschvank, and Captain Kenpachi Zaraki vs Nnoitra Jiruga - The Fifth Espada

Nnoitra appeared during Ichigo's fight with Grimmjow, silently watching the battle; studying Ichigo's attacks until they finished. He immediately "relieved" Grimmjow from the battle opting to finish him off but was saved by Ichigo. After berating Grimmjow from being saved by the enemy, Nnoitra returned his attention back to the weakened Ichigo and started fighting him. he fight between Nnoitra and an exhausted Ichigo continues. Attacks from Ichigo with his bankai are easily fended off by Nnoitra. Orihime is warned not to interfere by Tesla, who says her power belongs to Aizen who has allowed Tesla to destroy it if she attacks. Meanwhile, Tesla remembers that Ichigo's companion, the arrancar Nel, has gone missing. He locates the trembling Nel hiding behind a rock and exposes her. Nnoitra recognizes the terrified child immediately by her broken mask and facial mark and reveals that her real name is Neliel Tu Oderschvank, a former Espada. The fight between Nnoitra and Ichigo gets more desperate as Nnoitra is about to crush Nel's head. Ichigo saves her, but Nnoitra brutally throws Ichigo out of the way each time he attempts to stop him. Nnoitra's moves get more aggressive until he begins to break Ichigo's arm. The intensity of Nel's emotions unleash an unintentional transformation to her original adult form. Nel then reveals that she has the rank of the former 3rd Espada - Neliel tu Oderschvank -, and begins to overpower Nnoitra. Nnoitra, however, is not easily defeated, even surviving Nel's powerful Cero Doble technique, and reveals that while Neliel once outranked him, the Espada have grown more powerful in her absence. Afterwards, Nnoitra is still losing to Neliel, but they hesitate before they can deal each other fatal blows, and Nnoitra notes that he has despised Neliel even before her departure. Nnoitra then taunts Neliel in regards to their past. Neliel then releases her Zanpaktou, shouting "Declare...!". She releases her zanpakutō (which Nnoitra attempted in vain to thwart, knowing the tables will turn against him should Nel succeed) and overwhelms Nnoitra, but, just before finishing him, reverts to her child form. Nnoitra kicks Nel and an enraged Ichigo attacks again, only to be slammed into the ground.After getting bored with fighting Ichigo he commands Tesla to finish him off even forcing Orihime to watch him die. However at the last second Kenpachi Zaraki steps in to save them killing Tesla in the process. Nnoitra's lust for battle returned, he does battle with Zaraki although he holds the upper-hand because Kenpachi's sword couldn't cut through his hierro. However after Nnoitra accidentally slashes Kenpachi's eyepatch off he is hit with a devastating counterattack resulting in a slash across his chest. Nnoitra responds by finally releasing his zanpakutō and returns the favor by slashing Kenpachi across his chest critically injuring him. To his surprise once again, Zaraki gets up and slashes one of Nnoitra's arms off but reveals his two extra arms an once again turns the tide back in his favor. However Kenpachi rises again to unleash his Kendo technique which Nnoitra underestimates and is critically injured as a result. Kenpachi unwilling to give Nnoitra the finishing blow sparks Nnoitra's anger, and he briefly remembers a similar incident between him and Nel Tu which she was unwilling to finish off Nnoitra. Nnoitra's anger reaching its peak charges at Kenpachi only to be cut down. He dies on his two feet before his body touches the ground, the kind of death he always wanted.

The Battle of Karakura Town

The Beginning of the End

Kenpachi kills Nnoitra, and as he orders Orihime to heal him, Stark, one of the top three Espada appears, apparently reluctant as he snatches Orihime away to bring her to Aizen. Aizen makes an announcement to all of Hueco Mundo, stating that Orihime is in the fifth tower, should anyone want to retrieve her, and that he has closed the gargantas that the Captains used for entry into Hueco Mundo. He informs them that he is leaving to destroy Karakura and leaves Ulquiorra to take charge of Las Noches. Ichigo tells Kenpachi that his duty isn't to defend his town, but to protect his friends, and flies to rescue Orihime as Ulquiorra declares his challenge to Ichigo. Before soon, he is attacked by Captain Rudobōn and the Exequias, but is assisted by Renji, Chad, and Rukia, who take out a large portion of the Exequias. While waiting, Ulquiorra questions Orihime if she feels any fear in knowing that her friends will soon die. She boldly answers no, and states she has confidence in her friends and Ichigo. Ulquiorra then ridicules Orihime for having such feelings. He asks her what a heart is, and reaches out to touch the area above her heart, asking where he can find it. But just as he is about to further interrogate her, Ichigo breaks in and is ready to battle. Ulquiorra then unsheathes his sword and is now dueling with Ichigo.

Ants vs Dragons: Barragan's Fraccion vs. The Elites

Though the Soul Society is able to substitute Karakura Town for an abandoned facsimile, in order for the Gotei 13 to fight at full strength without damaging the city and killing the inhabitants, Aizen only muses that he will have to travel to the Soul Society to destroy the real town after he and his forces (Ichimaru, Tōsen, the top three Espada, and their Fraccion) defeat the remaining shinigami. Aizen is then trapped in Yamamoto's fire prison and is unable to fight. Nevertheless, he claims that such action is unnecessary, for that the power of the Espada alone will suffice to defeat the Gotei 13. Once Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tōsen are trapped in Yamamoto's shikai, Barragan Luisenbarn decides to give all orders and openly threatens the other Espada for the leadership. His comrade, Stark, lazily agrees, which earns him a kick from his Fraccion, Lilinette. Halibel and her Fraccion couldn't care less. Barragan's Fracción then pull out a throne for him to sit upon as he analyzes the situation. Yamamoto explains to his subordinates that he has set up four pillars that are keeping the real Karakura Town in the Soul Society. Should these four pillars be destroyed then the real Karakura Town would be exposed and open for an attack. Barragan quickly realises this and sends out his Fracción to obliterate the towers. This plan however, is quickly haulted by Izuru Kira, Yumichika Ayasegawa, Ikkaku Madarame and Shūhei Hisagi, who have been placed at the pillars to protect them. In response, Barragan sends four members of his Fracción (Pō, Findor Carias, Charlotte Cuuhlhourne, and Avirama Redder) to kill them. Charlotte is sent to do battle with Yumichika, Avirama is sent to do battle with Izuru, Findor is sent to do battle with Shūhei, and Po is sent to do battle with Ikkaku.

Initially, Cuuhlhourne's and Yumichika's somewhat similar personalities causes an argument in a comedic fashion, the fight quickly turns serious, with Yumichika getting overpowered by Cuuhlhourne's attacks. He provokes the arrancar to release his sword by slicing part of his hair after getting called his rival, greatly annoying himself. After Cuuhlhourne uses his ability "Rosa Blanca" to conceal the fighters, Yumichika activates his sword's ability "Sakikurue" and drains his spiritual energy. He is then seen without his powers and most of the clothes, and says how hiding something this big was unfair, thinking it was a bankai. Yumichika explains why he couldn't show this to anyone else, so as not to embarrass himself in front of his Eleventh Division comrades for having a kido-class zanpakuto. Cuuhlhourne gained some respect for him and dies.

Before engaging in battle, Avirama performs a "ritual" which consists of him screaming all the things he is going to do to his opponent, while demanding Izuru to do the same as a way to psyche each other out. He became quite agitated when Izuru refused and angrily scolded him. After discovering that Izuru once served under Gin Ichimaru, Avirama taunts Izuru and says Gin betrayed the Soul Society because of Izuru's cowardess, prompting Izuru to angrily slash his cheek. Avirama is satisfied with Kira's reaction and releases his Zanpakutō. In the ensuing battle, Redder held the upper hand due to his flying ability and being able to fight at a distance while Kira's attacks only work on close combat. Redder's overconfidence allowed him to fall in to Izuru's trap by getting close enough to be caught by Wabizuke. With both his wings having become to heavy for him to even stand up, Izuru beheaded him, explaining that war is "depressing" and that there's "nothing exciting about it", whereas Avirama believed war to be "fun and honorable".

After a short time of fighting, Hisagi notices Carias is only fighting at the level of a fifth seated officer. After making the statement, Findor becomes pleased that he passed his "test" and then starts breaking off pieces of his mask, becoming stronger every time. Shūhei eventually becomes tired, something that the arrancar finds odd, having precisely judged the strength of a proper lieutenant. He then decides to end the fight by releasing his resurrection. After a short fight with the arrancar having the upper hand, Shūhei releases his zanpakuto, evening the odds greatly. Shūhei then talks about fearing his sword, something that Findor does not grasp. As the fight goes on however, Findor breaks off another 40% of his mask (90% in total) which he claims to be the power of a captain. Despite this, Shūhei cuts his released form in half while criticizing his lack of fear for his power, a lesson that was taught by his former captain. Shūhei, now claiming Findor to be his equal, finishes him as he tries to run away.

Pō and Ikkaku briefly converse before beginning their battle, with Pō questioning Ikkaku if the shinigami have a god. Ikkaku admits that he '"hasn't prayed much" and agreed to pray to Pō's god. Ikkaku's unexpected defeat isn't shown on-screen and Pō destroys one of the Karakura pillars. Pō wonders if Ikkaku has any more "special abilities" to show him, while thinking he's dead. Ikakku then rises to continue their battle, at which time Pō threatens him to show any further power he has. After Ikkaku denies having any further abilities, Pō prepares to finish him off but is prevented by the timely arrival of 7th Squad Captain Sajin Komamura, who catches Pō off-guard and punches him in to the side of a building. Pō immediately gets back on his feet unscathed and is also unfazed by the captain being an animal. He then shows a "real punch" back to Komamura, sending him flying several miles. He releases his zanpkauto, calling it the "best punch". As he prepares to crush 7th Squad Lieutenant Tetsuzaemon Iba (with Ikkaku on his back), Komamura returns and blocks his attack, followed by Komamura throwing the massive arrancar over his head and in to the ground. Pō is unharmed and begins to "yawn", which is actually him building up a cero inside his mouth. Komamura then releases his Bankai and crushes him under the massive sword of his Bankai, killing him in the process. After the fight, Iba punches Ikkaku and scolds him for not going all-out against his opponent.

Soifon vs Ggio Vega

Barragan, furious, prepares to take action himself but is persuaded by Ggio, who pleads with him to leave the remaining Shinigami to him and his other unnamed Fracción. Barragan agrees. Soifon overhears this and rushes to challenge him, thus the two begin to battle.

Ggio's attitude somewhat mirrors that of his adversary, commenting on her lieutenant Marechiyo Ōmaeda losing ground against his companion, to which Soifon responded that she doesn't mind, and that Omaeda should learn from his loss. After Soifon pins him down with a binding spell, she releases her Zanpakutō, Suzumebachi, confident in victory and prepeares to finish him off. Ggio, however, calmly creates a cero, destroying the wall he was pinned to and uses sonído to get behind her. Ggio criticizes her for not simply flash-stepping and finishing him off quickly, something he states that he would have done. He then delivers a powerful kick, sending her crashing into a building below and, after correctly identifying her as the captain of the second division and special forces, releases his Zanpakutō (inadvertently killing or stunning his unnamed partner). His released form initially seemed to be too much for Soifon to take, and her lieutenant, Marechiyo Ōmaeda, attempted to intervene. When Ōmaeda grabs him to give his captain a shot, Ggio prepares to fire a Cero but is stopped by Soifon, who states that she was simply examining an Arrancar's released form in preparation for the fights against the Espada.

After Soifon prepares to fight him "for real", Ggio releases what he calls the "battle form" of Tigre Estoque, Tigre Estoque El Sable, and transforms into a larger beast. However, before he can do anything, he is killed when Soifon used Suzumebachi's nigeki kessatsu (Death in Two Strikes) ability on him. Although it appears as if she struck two different areas of his body (his chest and his back), she had pierced the same spot on his right lung from both sides of his body. This shows that Suzumebachi's ability takes effect not through point of entry but rather point of actual surface contact, referring to the part touching the tip of Suzumebachi when it stops moving inside the target. Strangely enough, Soifon didn't seem too happy about killing Vega. After the fight with Ggio is finished, Barragan finally gets up from his throne, and engages Soifon and Omaeda in battle.

Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya vs Halibel

Apache, Sun-Sun, and Mila-Rose vs. Lieutenants Rangiku Matsumoto, Momo Hinamori, Izuru Kira, and Shūhei Hisagi

Rangiku faces off against all three of Halibel's Fracción by herself while her captain takes on their leader, Halibel. Matsumoto gets into verbal warfare with Apache and Mila-Rose (as Sun-Sun criticizes them for taking her bait) before releasing. After cutting Apache's arm using Haineko's Shikai, Matsumoto attempts an ash twister to surround the Fracción trio, but they all use Cero to drive it away. She is then quickly pummeled down by Apache alone as she is too tired, though she tries to make Haineko attack from all angles, but she blocks it. However, the fight is interrupted when Apache is blasted by Momo Hinamori. Rangiku is surprised by her appearance and wonders if Momo is well, but Momo states that she wears her armband as the current leader of the 5th Division, not as Captain Aizen's subordinate. Rangiku and Momo decide to team up together to fight against Halibel's Fracción, but Rangiku is still worried about Momo, pointing out (in her thoughts) that she still referred to Aizen as "Captain". For all her warnings to Apache and Mila-Rose about keeping their cool, Sun-Sun opts for Apache's idea of rushing the two Lieutenants. Upon disclosing her method of sneaking up on Apache to Halibel's Fracción, namely through using her mastery of kidō to conceal her presence, Momo engulfs the three in an explosion caused by her applying Tobiume to a 'kidō net', however, Apache, Mila-Rose, and Sun-Sun survived by releasing their Zanpakutō and healed themselves. They then activate their Chimera Parca ability, which creates a new, chimera-like creature (which they named "Allon"). Looking into its eyes, Rangiku remarks that it is like staring down a bottomless hole. Seconds later, "Allon" charges at Rangiku, and she tries to use her zanpakuto to defend herself, but the creature is quick enough to strike Rangiku before she could defend herself, tearing off the right side of her abdomen. The blow is serious enough to incapacitate Rangiku, which Momo notes that it's a life-threatening injury. Momo tries to rescue Rangiku, but is also incapacitated, only being saved by the timely arrival of Izuru Kira and Shūhei Hisagi.

Captains Jūshirō Ukitake and Shunsui Kyōraku vs Stark and Lilinette

During the battle between the Soldiers and Barragan's Fraccion, Ukitake wonders if Yamamoto's swift, harsh actions were necessary. When the pillars are successfully defended, he quickly pairs himself up with Kyōraku and confronts Stark and Lilinette.

After an initial facedown, Kyōraku asks Stark if Lilinette could be taken somewhere else during the battle, as he would have problems fighting with a young girl nearby. Lilinette responds with furious disbelief, but Stark tells her to be quiet, using the statement as an excuse to try to avoid a fight. Captain Kyoraku takes notice of the fight between Rangiku, Momo and Halibel's Fraccion, asking Stark if they should "put on a show" as well. Stark was not amused at Kyoraku's attempt at humor, flatly declines, and states that neither one of them is fighting at full strength, as the others did. Stark then makes note of how Kyoraku's short sword was still sheathed. When Kyoraku explains why, Stark further notes that Kyoraku is obviously ambidextrous and that he's stronger with his left hand then his right, therefore Stark doesn't quite believe his excuse for his supposed lack of using his short sword. Kyoraku is somewhat amused at Stark's observations and comments on how he thought he had corrected his strength difference. Kyoraku then proceeds to attack Stark, which the latter then dodges. Kyoraku then surprises Stark by switching hands mid-attack and correcting his swing, making his right hand strength match his left. After Stark comments on the change, Kyoraku asks him whether he will "take the fight seriously" if he were to unsheathe his short sword. Stark comments that since Kyoraku is already "strong enough", he wouldn't want him using another sword. Kyoraku unsheathes it, anyway.

Ukitake then meditates atop one of the fake town's buildings, where Lilinette questiones him on why he isn't fighting as well. Ukitake tells her that a two-on-one fight wouldn't be fair. Lilinette response is that it doesn't matter and Kyoraku is "as good as dead", since Stark's "quite powerful". Ukitake smiles and assures her that he appreciates her concern and that he's "pretty sure" that Kyoraku will win, since he's "fairly powerful in his own right". Ukitake then tells her that she has no place in the battle given her child-like appearance. Seemingly insulted, Lilinette states that, unlike the shinigami, the arrancar "don't age", and now that they serve the Triads, they are all obligated to further their ambitions, which includes "protecting" them from their enemies, the Ryoka and the Shinigami. Ukitake stoutly refuses to take her on, as fighting against a "little girl" is "against his principals". He even tells her to "go home to play with a ball or something". Enraged, Lilinette unsheathes her Zanpakuto, which is one of the horns on her helmet like mask, and tells him she will fight him. Ukitake appears somewhat annoyed at this. Ukitake is appears somewhat annoyed at this. Despite her confidence, Ukitake barely needs to try to keep her at bay, even blocking her Cero with his bare hands. She is upset and stunned at how little she can do. Ukitake comments that Lilinette's powers (specifically, her Cero) are "immature" and lesser than Menos's ones, again begging her to "just go home" so he does not need to continue fighting her.

Ichigo Kurosaki vs Ulquiorra Schiffer - Rematch

This battle has actually not begin, we only saw Ulquiorra talking with Ichigo about the fact that Ulquiorra is drawing his sword to fight Ichigo, who consider that as "enough for" him.