Aizen has abducted Orihime.
In order to save her,
Ichigo and his friends have marched into Hueco Mundo.
They break into Las Noches, the Arrancars’ hideout.
During his battle with Gantenbainne,
Sado awakens the power that had been resting within him.
But Nnoitora, one of the Espada, suddenly appears.
Sado is powerless before him.
Tsk!
Look at that. You really are weak.
Chad was defeated?! That's impossible!
Believe in him!
We vowed that we'd come back alive!
If I were you, I'd be angry that they were foolish enough to come to Hueco Mundo
without knowing the limits of their strength.
Meanwhile, Rukia is fighting Aaroniero. She too, was facing danger.
My ability is Glotoneria.
I devour dead Hollows
and make their abilities and Spiritual Pressure my own!
This is the power I received when I devoured Metastacia
when he came back in Kaien Shiba's body!
This body is Kaien Shiba's!
In his body, all of his experiences…
In his brain, all of his memories…
They're all there!
I just read his memories and experiences and acted accordingly!
It's over.
I'll show you an Espada's sword release.
Devour! Glotoneria!
That's a nice expression. You're scared, aren't you?
Become even more terrified!
This is the power of all the Hollows I have devoured!
Don't expect an Espada's sword release to be like that of a regular Arrancar!
My Glotoneria can display
all the powers of the Hollows I have eaten at the same time!
So far, I've eaten 33,650 Hollows!
This will be just like fighting an army of more than 30,000 Hollows by yourself!
Sir Kaien…
I'm very sorry.
It seems this is the end for me.
Your body has fallen into the hands of a Hollow because I killed you.
I killed you back then in order to save myself.
But even so…
Sorry about that, it must have been harsh.
Thanks to you…
I can leave my heart here.
I got Sir Kaien's body back from the enemy.
That's the one thing that I told myself had saved him.
But it seems even that
was also a mistake.
I don't have the strength left to swing my sword anymore.
I don't have any strength left
to swing my sword at your body, Sir Kaien.
Goodbye Sir Kaien.
Good…bye.
Kuchiki… Kuchiki…
Kuchiki!
Wh-What are you doing, Sir Kaien?!
You don't respond when I call you or nudge you!
What if I had gotten a crick in my neck?!
A crick in your neck?
Were you sleep-walking?!
Jeez… Stop daydreaming!
We're almost there!
This is…
You're going to get left behind, Kuchiki!
Y-Yes! Sorry!
The wind hits my forehead…
The forest opens out onto our path ahead…
The smell of the grass…
The sunshine…
The birds chirping…
Hey! Where are you going?!
I remember…this landscape.
Each tree…
This combined feeling of anxiety, excitement, and warmth.
This is West Rukon District, Area 3, North end, Mt. Koifushi.
This is the place where Sir Kaien first trained me.
So you're the new recruit!
I’m the Lieutenant, Kaien Shiba! Nice to meet ya!
Umm… Yes, sir.
“Umm… Yes, sir”?
What’s with that greeting?!
Your Lieutenant just introduced himself!
You're supposed to state your name and say,
“Pleased to meet you too, sir,” right?!
What’s your name, damn it?!
I’m R-Rukia Kuchiki, sir.
Oh?
And?
P-Pleased to meet you too, sir!
Good!
All right, Rukia!
An ordinary greeting, an ordinary yelling,
an ordinary subordinate-superior relationship…
I welcome you to Squad 13!
Our captain isn’t in the best of health,
so I’m pretty much in charge of things here!
So I wouldn’t mind if you sometimes call me “Captain Kaien” by mistake!
Umm, I'll think about it.
But that ordinariness was, without doubt,
just what I was seeking.
What's wrong?!
We're not finished yet, Kuchiki! Come on!
O-One more time, please!
A bird flies…
I'm distracted by the bird for a moment.
Sir Kaien deflects my sword From the bottom left
as I make my second strike.
I remember everything.
It's odd because I was caught up in the moment.
You want to eat, huh? All right…
You're extremely self-asserting.
I-It's not like that, Sir Kaien! That was…
Don't worry about it!
Whoa!
Wh-Wh-Wh-Whoops!
S-Sir Kaien! Don't toss a sword when it's unsheathed! It's dangerous!
Everyone gets hungry.
Don't be so embarrassed.
No… But…
At that time, there was one thing I was worried about.
Brother, the entrance ceremony went smoothly.
What Seat are you?
Oh…well…
My deepest apologies.
With my abilities, I’m afraid I couldn’t get an officer’s seat upon entry.
I see.
You may leave.
I never had a gift for sword-fighting.
Dig your claws into the wall of sinless dreams!
Hado 33: Sokatsui!
My kido received good grades
when I was at the Soul Reaper Academy.
But in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads,
it was average.
Should I really be here?
Where is my purpose?
Why am I here?
Huh?
Why am I here?
That's obvious!
To fight and defend!
Defend what?
“Defend what”?
All sorts of things all over the place!
That sounds like a rather crude answer.
Could you give me a slightly clearer answer?
A clearer answer, huh?
Kuchiki, have you heard our captain's theory?
No.
There are two types of battles.
There are battles to defend lives and battles to defend people's pride.
That is Captain Ukitake's theory.
But I think that, in the end, he's telling us to defend the same thing.
The same thing?
What would that be?
Our hearts.
What? That's so melodramatic.
Hey! I'm being serious!
Then…
Let me ask you, Kuchiki.
Where do you think that heart exists?
Huh?!
W-Well, umm…
I guess around here?
I think…
The heart is probably here.
Maybe...
When we come into contact with each other,
a heart is created between us.
The heart isn't within our bodies.
The heart is created when we think about something or someone.
If I were the only person in the world, I wouldn't have a heart.
That's right…
That’s exactly what Sir Kaien said.
There's nothing to worry about.
If you want to be here from the bottom of your heart,
then your heart is here.
If your heart is here, then that is your reason to be here.
Also…
But Kuchiki…
When you fight from here on, there is one thing that you mustn't do.
That would be…
To die alone.
Our bodies are made of souls.
If we die, our bodies will someday turn to dust
and become the reishi that makes up Soul Society.
But where do our hearts go?
Our hearts go to our friends.
They go to our friends…
If they go to our friends, our hearts can live on within them.
So don't die alone, Kuchiki.
Got that, Kuchiki?
Kuchiki…
Our hearts go to our friends.
You're still conscious?
Wonderful. No…
Or perhaps I should call you unfortunate.
No matter how long you hold on,
it doesn't change the fact that you cannot kill me.
You still have the strength to hold your sword?
I remembered.
What?
I don't know what you remembered,
but what do you plan to do with a broken sword?
You're an eyesore, go away!
S-Sanomai…
Shirafune.
Wha—?
What?
I remembered where my heart is.
Indeed, you have Sir Kaien's body within you.
But Sir Kaien is not in there!
I am holding onto Sir Kaien's heart!
Farewell, Espada!
It hurts! It hurts! Help me, Lord Aizen! Lord Aizen!
You told me that if I stayed with you, you'd free me from all suffering!
So what is this?!
It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! No!
No!
No, no, no, no, no!
No, no, no, no, no, no, no…no…
Crap!
I can't agree…with…this.
Don't die…
Don't die, Kuchiki.
Don't ever die alone.
I know loneliness.
The loneliness of being a prisoner.
I know happiness.
The happiness of seeing my friends coming to save me.
Hey!
And I know the terror of seeing a friend become injured and fall.
Don't worry, Inoue.
I'm coming right now.
Lord Nnoitora, the other day, you stuck your finger into the ground.
What was that?
Huh? It's how I inspect the Spiritual Pressure within Las Noches.
You can do that?!
All right. I'll give it a try!
– Let's go, Tesla. – Yes.
Hey, don't ignore me!
Illustrated Guide to Soul Reapers!
What? We don't have any more money?
SOUL REAPER WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION
Yes. We've used up all of our funds for this quarter.
You all wasted our money!
Madam Chairman, you used up most of our money!
Everyone, in order to gather some quick funds,
we're going to take pictures of famous people and sell them!
In the World of the Living,
professional photographers known as paparazzi make big money doing this!
We'll be targeting…
The stars of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads!
– What?! – What?!
Dismissed!