Connected Hearts! The Left Fist Prepared for Death!

'''Connected Hearts! The Left Fist Prepared for Death!''' is the two hundred sixty-seventh episode of the Bleach anime.

Ichigo struggles against Ulquiorra as Renji and Sado fight Battikaroa.

Summary
Ichigo has sustained a minor cut from Ulquiorra's sword. Ulquiorra stands put, waiting for Ichigo's charge. When the charge comes, the fight begins in earnest.

Back outside, near the ruined outer wall of Las Noches, Renji and Chad are busy fending off a horde of low level Hollows. Renji, who finds it difficult to fight alongside the uncommunicative Sado, asks him to warn him before launching his attacks. On the top of the wall, Rukia has finished off all of the Exequias. She now faces Rudbornn Chelute who informs her that defeating his subordinates doesn't mean a thing, as he releases his Resurrección, Arbol. Rukia is distracted by an explosion tearing through the wall of the tower where Ichigo and Ulquiorra are fighting.

Ichigo and Ulquiorra seem more or less evenly matched, but Ulquiorra shows better resolve and is able to maneuver Ichigo into a defensive position. Ulquiorra blocks Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō, he then uses Sonído to get behind Ichigo and after several missed jabs manages to pierce Ichigo through the shoulder and immediately shoots him with a Cero.

Ulquiorra's Cero blasts through the tower wall, distracting Chad from the task before him. When another Hollow attacks him, Renji is forced to dispose of it but Zabimaru bounces off the Hollow and hits Chad in the chest. Chad is apparently unscathed, as he gets up again and charges at the Hollows. Reminiscing about his training period with Sado, Renji considers the fact that they never actually fought together. But, he as he says, it shouldn't pose that much of a problem if they only have to fight low level Hollows like they have been. As if in response to Renji's words, the sand begins to tremble under their feet and soon a huge Sand Guardian Hollow emerges from beneath them. Renji and Chad immediately recognize the creature's resemblance to Runuganga and recall the latter's vulnerability to water, but since Rukia is not around Renji simply charges head on towards the huge Hollow and attacks him with his Shikai. Zabimaru's extendible blade lodges into the Hollow's body and begins to be sucked in by it, as if sinking into quicksand. The Hollow opens his enormous mouth and shoots a Cero at Renji, but fails to hit him since Chad protects him with his Brazo Derecha de Gigante's third form. The two manage to pull Zabimaru out of the monster's clutch, but are at a loss about finding a way to defeat him.

Ichigo is injured and visibly dizzy from the Cero hit, but Ulquiorra acknowledges that he was able to withstand it without using his Hollow mask. He notes that Ichigo is stronger and asks if it is because of his fight with Grimmjow, because of his friends or because of Orihime. Glancing at her, Ulquiorra says Orihime is one with the Arrancar now and that saving her would be pointless. Ichigo dismisses his words, saying he is not the one to determine that. Ulquiorra agrees, saying this decision is for Aizen to make.

In the desert, Chad tries El Directo to blast off the Hollow's hand, but he simply recreates it out of sand and punches Chad into Renji, he then tries to crush them both with his huge hand, but they get away in the nick of time. Realizing he has no choice, Renji releases his Bankai, Hihiō Zabimaru. In his Las Noches quarters, Yammy wakes up and mobilizes for action.

Ichigo finds himself on the receiving end again, dodging more blows than he is sending, but as he does he begins to realize that he can read Ulquiorra's attacks and moves much better than before. He focuses on Ulquiorra's hand movements and eventually manages to grasp his wrist, which he follows by a slashing attack to Ulquiorra's chest.

The sand Hollow seems to be blinded by the light of Renji's Bankai release. Renji drives the huge snake head of his Bankai through the Hollow's chest. The Hollow crumbles to the ground, but after mere seconds rises up again, unharmed. Sado and Renji notice that while the sand Hollow's Cero is closer in power to that of an Arrancar, his face is covered with a normal Hollow mask, which means he is susceptible to the basic weakness of Hollows: the breaking of the mask. Renji attacks again using Hikōtsu Taihō, which the Hollow blocks with a Cero.

Ichigo's attack left a long but shallow cut across Ulquiorra's chest. Ichigo asks if that is thanks to his Hierro, but remarks that he can now read Ulquiorra's motions much better, whereas during their first fight he couldn't read them at all. Ichigo wonders aloud if this is due to himself becoming more like a Hollow, or because Ulquiorra has grown more like him. This statement serves to aggravate Ulquiorra a great deal, manifested in him stabbing the ground with such force that it breaks and rises in two heaps to Ulquiorra's left and right.

Chad summons his Brazo Izquierda del Diablo and attacks the Hollow with La Muerte. The attack creates a huge crack for the base of the Hollow's body and rising nearly up to his mask. He whacks Chad away, forcing Renji to jump into the air to catch him. The Hollow heals himself, but while he does Renji thinks up a plan. He tells Chad to use his La Muerte while he will protect him from the Ceros. Chad agrees and attacks again, but the attack packs less punch than before, as the Hollow gloats in his victory and prepares to launch his Cero at Chad, Renji's true plan comes to light: he used Chad's attack as the distraction to position himself where he can easily attack the Hollow's head. Renji drives his Bankai through the Hollow's head, defeating him. He later apologizes for using Chad as a decoy without informing him first, but Chad says he knew Renji would pull something like that, since his fighting style is a lot like Ichigo's. Renji finds this hard to accept, but the minor Hollows renew their attack on the two, not allowing them much time to discuss the matter further. Ulquiorra tells Ichigo he seems quite content to be able to face him at such a low level. He increases his Reiatsu and attacks. Using three consecutive Sonídos, Ulquiorra manages to maneuver himself to a position behind Ichigo's exposed back, he strikes, but his attack is blocked by Orihime's Santen Kesshun, which subsequently cracks and falls apart.

Arrancar Encyclopedia
Gin intends to dedicate the segment to Rudobōn's Resurrección, Arbol. But Renji, Rukia and Chad each want him to speak about their powers. When he suggests learning about their foe's powers would be more beneficial, they shut him up angrily.

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * 1) Ulquiorra Cifer
 * 2) Ichigo Kurosaki
 * 3) Renji Abarai
 * 4) Yasutora Sado
 * 5) Rukia Kuchiki
 * 6) Rudbornn Chelute
 * 7) Battikaroa
 * 8) Runuganga (flashback)
 * 9) Orihime Inoue
 * 10) Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez (flashback)
 * 11) Yammy Llargo
 * 12) Kukkapūro

Fights

 * Ichigo Kurosaki & Uryū Ishida vs. Ulquiorra Cifer: Final Fight
 * Rukia Kuchiki vs. Rudbornn Chelute
 * Yasutora Sado & Renji Abarai vs. Battikaroa (concluded)

Powers and Techniques Used
Hollow techniques used Techniques used Zanpakutō released
 * (flashback)
 * La Muerte (魔人の一撃 (ラ・ムエルテ), ra muerute; Spanish for "The Death", Japanese for "The Strike of the Demon")
 * (flashback)
 * La Muerte (魔人の一撃 (ラ・ムエルテ), ra muerute; Spanish for "The Death", Japanese for "The Strike of the Demon")
 * La Muerte (魔人の一撃 (ラ・ムエルテ), ra muerute; Spanish for "The Death", Japanese for "The Strike of the Demon")

Shikai: Bankai: Resurrección used
 * Árbol (髑髏樹 (アルボラ), Arubora; Spanish for "Tree", Japanese for "Weathered Skull Tree")

Other powers