Gathering at the Place of Fortune! The Man Who Makes His Move

 is the seventy-third episode of the Bleach anime.

Ganju Shiba and 4th Division 7th Seat Hanatarō Yamada help conclude the fight against Hō and Ban.

Summary
Having learned alongside Ichigo Kurosaki, Rukia Kuchiki, Orihime Inoue, Yasutora Sado, Uryū Ishida, 6th Division Lieutenant Renji Abarai, and the other Mod-Souls that it is currently raining outside of Karakura Hospital where they have escaped to, Kon screams in fright and runs in front of the group as he begins panicking, to their confusion. Upon being asked about what is wrong, Kon declares that he has realized something terrible and posits that someone in their group is attracting rain.

In response, Ichigo angrily stomps on Kon's face and asserts that this is not the time to distract them with superstitions, only for a concerned Renji to assure them that he is not the one attracting rain, prompting an annoyed Ichigo to instruct him to not pay attention to this story. When Kon begins panicking again, Ichigo admonishes him for being so persistent, but Kon directs his and his friends' attention to the parking lot in front of them, where two swirling masses of water form and rise up from the pavement as Guhl and Günther emerge.

With Kon terrified to see them again, Hō and Ban comment on how nice the rain is and reiterate their warning that Ichigo and his friends cannot run away from water, to Ichigo's chagrin. Kon demands to know why the other Mod-Souls did not notice this earlier, which leads Ririn to explain that the Dolls are difficult to track while they are merged with water as Kurōdo notes that they are troublesome opponents. Standing behind Guhl and Günther, Hō and Ban smirk and agree that it is time to attack before merging Guhl and Günther into a single mass of water that towers above them and Ichigo's group with dozens of water tendrils.

While Orihime and Sado express shock at Guhl and Günther merging and becoming bigger, Ichigo orders them to run away with Uryū, which they affirm as Kurōdo and Noba join them. Upon having several blasts of water fired at him and his friends by Guhl and Günther, Ichigo runs forward alongside Rukia and Renji to leap into the air and slash through four of the blasts with his Shikai, Zangetsu, while hurtling toward the top of Guhl and Günther. Cutting through one of the blobs of water containing the caps of the Dolls, Ichigo lands on ground behind Guhl and Günther and turns around to see the blob reforming without permanent harm.

Renji slashes through the other blob containing the caps as well, and though the body of water collapses and disperses, the caps simply form another body nearby, to Kon and Ririn's disbelief. When Rukia fires '''Hadō #31. Shakkahō at Guhl and Günther''', the body is blasted apart into hot water and steam that rains down on her and her friends, only to quickly return as tendrils of water surrounding them that envelop and begin drowning Ichigo and Renji. Startled by this, Orihime and Sado stop running and turn around as Rukia, Kon, and Ririn are also restrained and enveloped by the water tendrils, which writhe around in the parking lot.

Upon succeeding in partially swimming out of the water enveloping him, Ichigo instructs Orihime and Sado to continue running away, but Uryū pleads with them to simply leave him behind. However, Ichigo claims he has time to run away if he has time to complain and asserts they cannot allow everyone to be captured by the water before being covered by the tendrils again. Though a concerned Orihime moves to help Ichigo, Sado promises her Ichigo will be alright and points out how they need to protect Uryū, which Orihime reluctantly agrees with as she and Sado run off. Elsewhere, Yoshino Sōma stands in front of an antiques shop and looks at the display.

With Yoshino examining a female marionette doll with long hair and a bonnet while holding an umbrella above her head, Ryō Utagawa stands behind her and observes this marionette seems expensive, but Yoshino clarifies it is simply old and probably does not have any value. Utagawa informs Yoshino that Jin Kariya is worried and suggests she return to him, which prompts Yoshino to remind him she does not take orders from anyone. When Utagawa questions if she will not do so even when they come from the man she loves, Yoshino says even love grows old when it feels like one is being controlled, leading Utagawa to note Kariya is making his move soon.

Yoshino asserts she does not care since Bount are self-reliant and decides to let Kariya do what he wants. When Utagawa wonders why Kariya is so tolerant of her since she seems unworthy to him, Yoshino mocks him for being more naive than he looks, to his confusion, and states the world does not run on ambition alone before warning Utagawa that unnecessary ambition will destroy him, only for a smiling Utagawa to refuse to comment as Yoshino discovers he has vanished from her sight. Meanwhile, at the convenience store, 4th Division 7th Seat Hanatarō Yamada informs his manager that he is clocking out and Ganju Shiba promises to work hard starting tomorrow.

While Ganju comments on how nice the manager was to let him work here and to give him the remaining bento, Hanatarō inquires about the reason he came to the Human World, and when Ganju reveals that Kūkaku Shiba sent him here because she sensed a strange presence, Hanatarō details how his captain, Retsu Unohana, sent him here for the same reason, which leads Ganju to clap him on the back and cheerfully note that they both have it rough as a startled Hanatarō agrees. Suddenly, the two of them stiffen up in surprise upon sensing the Reiatsu emanating from the fight against Guhl and Günther, which they mutually recognize.

Back in the hospital parking lot, Ichigo and his friends continue to struggle within Guhl and Günther as Rukia fires another '''Hadō #31. Shakkahō''', causing the water to disperse around them. However, as Hō and Ban call out in concern to them, Guhl and Günther simply reform the water mass around Ichigo's group. After having Guhl and Günther close a gap created by a slash from Ichigo, Hō notes that Uryū will get away at this rate, which Ban confirms. Suddenly, Guhl and Günther fly out of the water mass, which collapses, leaving Ichigo, Rukia, and Renji to land on the ground as an astonished Kon and Ririn fall flat and shake themselves off.

Upon being asked by Renji why the water mass fell apart like this, Ririn reveals that Hō and Ban left and are headed after Uryū, to Ichigo's shock. In a different part of Karakura Town, Orihime and Sado run down the street with Uryū as Sado informs Orihime that they are headed to the abandoned factory where they trained their powers since Ichigo and the others should be able to meet them there. When Sado abruptly stops running, Orihime questions what is wrong, only for Sado to assert that Hō and Ban are coming as Guhl rises from the ground in front of them in a water tendril. With Sado realizing they have been outpaced, Kurōdo and Noba leap down to the ground.

Guhl sends water surging toward Orihime, Sado, Kurōdo, and Noba, who all leap into the air to avoid it. While Kurōdo evades a blast of water in midair by twisting, Orihime dodges two more blasts of water with her back against a nearby wall as Sado runs away from Guhl and the blasts toward Günther, only to trip and fall over when one of the blasts from Günther hits his left foot, sending Uryū sprawling across the pavement. Seeing this, Orihime runs in front of Uryū and uses Santen Kesshun to form a barrier in front of her hands that she protects Uryū from the subsequent water blasts with, though she is sent flying back by a larger one that shatters Santen Kesshun.

With Sado catching Orihime, Hō and Ban stand behind them and assert that there is no escape. Turning around to face them alongside Orihime, Sado instructs Kurōdo and Noba to take care of Uryū, leaving Kurōdo aghast that he expects the two of them alone to do this, and manifests his Fullbring, Brazo Derecha de Gigante, before firing an energy blast at the top of Guhl, only to be stunned alongside Orihime when it simply reforms. Hō and Ban assert that they always have a chance in this rain while Sado and Orihime have none, to their chagrin, before sending Guhl hurtling forward as a yelling Sado runs up and fires another energy blast at it.

Though Hō and Ban mock this as useless after Guhl recovers the water hit by the blast since their Dolls will always reform, Sado fires a third energy blast directly at them, prompting a shocked Ban to run away from Hō, who reminds him that they cannot separate from each other. Sado proceeds to fire a fourth energy blast at Hō's feet, sending him flying back on impact, and Orihime sees a wobbling Günther fall apart as Guhl follows suit, to Hō and Ban's astonishment. After picking up Uryū, Sado runs off with Orihime and the Mod-Souls as he admits that he does not know what happened when asked about it by a confused Orihime.

Elsewhere, Ichigo runs down the street with Rukia, Renji, Kon, and Ririn. With Rukia picking up on his pondering about Hō and Ban, Ichigo points out how they never attacked separately and that they seem to control Guhl and Günther by combining their powers, which leads Rukia to speculate that they are using the resonance phenomenon that twins are said to have as Renji observes that this must be why they can combine their Dolls and Ichigo concludes that they are complete when together. Meanwhile, at the Bount Mansion, Maki Ichinose sits on a couch in a dark room illuminated by a lantern and reads a book as a soaking wet Gō Koga enters the room.

When Koga removes his sunglasses and notes how dark it is, Ichinose assures him that he can still read despite this, which amuses Koga. Upon being told by Ichinose to dry his clothes so he does not catch a cold and that he will be served tea at 10 P.M., Koga dismisses this as unnecessary and wonders where the others are, prompting Ichinose to reveal that he is the first one. Within the abandoned factory, Kurōdo approaches a puddle of water on the floor and reminds Sado of his claim that this place would be free of water before proclaiming that it is leaking, which Sado apologizes for as Noba clarifies that it is still preferable to being outside right now.

Kneeling next to Uryū as he sits against a machine, Orihime informs Sado that he has a fever, leaving him concerned. Uryū once again pleads with his friends to leave him there, and though Orihime protests, Uryū asserts that he does not want to be a burden to them any longer and that there is a limit to how pathetic he can get. Suddenly, a laughing Hō and Ban invite Uryū to come with them in this case and promise that he will do so regardless of whether he wants to or not as Guhl hovers above the group and rains water down on them, forcing Sado and the others to the ground as Uryū is lifted high into the air by two tendrils of water connected to Guhl.

As he attempts to intervene, Sado is pushed aside by two blasts of water from Günther, whom he sees floating in a water tendril on his left side while Hō and Ban declare that they have a Quincy. Sado manifests Brazo Derecha de Gigante once more, but Hō warns him that he cannot use this anymore as Guhl begins constricting the water tendrils around Uryū, who cries out in pain. With Ban asking a stunned Sado if he cares about what happens to Uryū, Ichigo and the others enter the room and see what is happening to Uryū, leading a shocked Renji to observe that they are too late while Ichigo angrily demands that Hō and Ban let go of Uryū.

However, Hō simply questions why they would do so and Ban counters that Ichigo and his friends should run away if they value their lives. With Ichigo confused by this, Hō muses that they still have not displayed the true power of Guhl and Günther as Ban asserts that their Dolls want to kill Ichigo and his friends. When Günther fires dozens of water blasts at him, Ichigo slashes through them with Zangetsu, but the water reforms in midair and coalesces into a sphere that envelops Ichigo's face, to the shock of him and his friends, who have their faces covered by separate spheres of water as well before the water begins entering their mouths and nostrils.

Ichigo and his friends begin shimmering with light resembling that of a reflection in water and begin collapsing as they struggle to breathe, to the shock and concern of Kon and the Mod-Souls. Upon being asked what is happening, a laughing Hō reiterates that they can go anywhere there is water and Ban brings up how the Human body is 70% composed of water before they order Guhl and Günther to tear apart the bodies of Ichigo and his friends from the inside, resulting in an agonized Ichigo collapsing as Ririn calls out to him and tells Kon to do something. However, Kon counters that this is an unreasonable request since there is nothing he can do about this situation.

Suddenly, Noba has an idea and runs off with a perplexed Kurōdo, and as Hō and Ban note that this should be over soon if they get serious, Ban is suddenly teleported two meters away twice in a row by Noba, causing Ichigo and his friends to recover as the water in their bodies is freed from the control of Guhl. While Ban is teleported further away, Hō attempts to run after him, but is teleported back two meters and falls on his back as Ban suffers the same fate when trying to approach him. With Kon and Ririn cheering this on, Kurōdo asks Noba if he can teleport them any further away, but Noba asserts that this is the best he can do and that they just need a bit more distance.

Running up to Ban, who realizes that he is the source of this, Noba teleports him off a nearby ledge, causing a screaming Ban to fall several meters down and land on his head on a lower level of the factory. With this, Günther collapses onto a shocked Hō while Ichigo and his friends are able to spit out the water in their lungs and sit up. After Noba and Kurōdo run up to him, Ichigo praises Noba for saving them and details how Hō and Ban were controlling two Dolls by sharing their thoughts through resonance before concluding that neither of them can resonate and control their Dolls if one of them loses consciousness, which Noba affirms at Ichigo's prompting.

As he leaps down to the lower level and up to Ban, Hō pleads with him to wake up. Back on the upper level, Ichigo proclaims that this is their chance and runs up to Guhl before slashing through the water sphere containing its cap, resulting in the tendrils restraining Uryū bursting apart and allowing Sado to catch him when he falls. With a shocked Hō seeing Guhl collapse, Ichigo orders him to give up since he has lost, only for an angered Hō to declare that he can do this alone and summon Guhl, who proceeds to lash at Ichigo with water tendrils. Ichigo evades the tendrils as Rukia runs between them and fires '''Hadō #31. Shakkahō at Guhl''' once more.

However, Guhl evades the blast, which blows a hole in the roof above and behind it, and unleashes dozens of water blasts at Ichigo and his friends, who are forced to evade. When another '''Hadō #31. Shakkahō from Rukia only disperses a small part of Guhl, Ichigo insists that this is useless because they do not have enough firepower, but Rukia dodges another tendril and fires a third Hadō #31. Shakkahō''' that blasts through another section of the roof, leading Hō to mock her aim and laugh maniacally as he asserts that he can do this by himself. Suddenly, Ganju observes that they are close and uses Seppa on the wall of the factory, turning it into sand that flows inward.

The sand envelops Guhl, to Hō's astonishment, and Ichigo and Rukia recognize the technique as Ganju stands outside with Hanatarō and confidently states that he knew this had to be the place. With Ichigo shocked by their arrival, Ganju and Hanatarō greet him in turn, and as a stunned Ichigo questions why they are here, Ganju dismisses this as irrelevant and brings up Ichigo lamenting about not having enough firepower before proclaiming that this is a Shiba Clan patent, which prompts Ichigo and Rukia to realize that he is referring to his fireworks. When Guhl rises up next to them, Ichigo instructs Ganju to detonate an extra-large firework directly at it.

Acknowledging this, Ganju reaches for his pouch and warns his friends to stand back due to the likelihood of the resulting explosion causing a mess. With a sweating Hō screaming for Guhl to move, Ganju pulls out and lights a large, spherical firework that he throws directly into the water sphere with the cap of Guhl. Though Ichigo berates him for doing so since the fuse was seemingly doused by the water, a grinning Ganju simply tells him to wait as the fuse re-lights within the water and detonates the firework, blowing apart Guhl and releasing dozens of smaller fireworks that proceed to detonate in midair and evaporate the water while creating showers of sparks.

While Ichigo and his friends express slight pain at the heat of the sparks falling on them, a panicking Hō looks around and sees the cap of Guhl be set on fire by one of the sparks, causing him and Ban to clutch their chests and groan in pain as they begin rapidly aging, with specks of green light exiting their bodies while Ichigo and his friends watch in astonishment. Stumbling over to Ban, Hō collapses on top of him before the two disintegrate into ash that floats upward into the air, leaving only their clothes behind as Orihime gasps in horror and Sado wonders what is going on. When Ichigo echoes this, Renji notes that they have turned to ash.

Rukia theorizes that Hō and Ban were probably past their lifespans as Humans even though they looked like children and that losing their Dolls pushed them past this point. Suddenly, Orihime begins looking around in confusion, and when asked about what is wrong by Ichigo, Orihime wonders where Uryū is while Uryū slowly limps down the street outside. Meanwhile, at the Bount Mansion, Kariya is let into a room by Utagawa and stands before Ichinose, Koga, Yoshi, Mabashi, Ugaki, and Sawatari, where Ichinose welcomes him back and downplays Kariya's praise of his recent work as an unimpressed Utagawa mentally disparages Ichinose for this subservience.

Upon being asked by Kariya about the whereabouts of Hō and Ban, Utagawa reveals that they seem to have been defeated since their presence has disappeared, leading a grinning Kariya to laugh as his fellow Bount smile and Ichinose remains solemn.

Shinigami Illustrated Picture Book
3rd Division Lieutenant Izuru Kira and 9th Division Lieutenant Shūhei Hisagi lie on their backs sweating in pain, with Hisagi telling Izuru that he may not be able to go on before asking that Izuru take care of the Ninth Division if he dies. As Hisagi suddenly tenses up in shock, Izuru asks him what he is saying before tensing up as well as two Fourth Division nurses massage their feet while noting to their captain, Retsu Unohana, that Izuru and Hisagi's livers are weak from drinking too much sake.

Fights

 * Battle against Hō & Ban (concluded)

Powers and Techniques Used
Kidō Techniques:

Other Techniques:
 * Mod-Soul Teleportation
 * Mod-Soul Teleportation

Doll Techniques:
 * Localized Drowning
 * Body Infiltration

Fullbring:

Zanpakutō released:

Shikai:

Dolls summoned:

Other Powers: