Ichigo Kurosaki & Izuru Kira vs. Gō Koga

Ichigo Kurosaki & Izuru Kira vs. Gō Koga is a battle that takes place in Karakura Town. It initially involves Ichigo fighting Koga alone, but eventually Lieutenant Izuru Kira arrives and helps out Ichigo.

Prologue
In Karakura Town, A Human is killed by several bitto that attack him. Several Onmitsukidō members suddenly arrive and they state that they were too late. They then try to attack the bitto, but are unsuccessful and one of the Onmitsukidō are seriously injured. The bitto then leave and the Onmitsukidō call for assistance. Meanwhile at Karakura High School, Ichigo wonders what the Bount are after but Rukia tells him to stop asking the same question. Sado mentions that on the news it said that a lot of people have gone missing, and he speculates that the monsters that the Bount released may be behind this. Ichigo then states that Ririn isn't able to find the location of the Bount and he wonders where they can possibly be. Ichigo asks Renji if he has any new information but Renji tells him that he doesn't. Sado asks if there is any way for them to find the Bount and Rukia states that Urahara is currently making a stronger sensor. Orihime then wonders if Uryū is doing all right since he hasn't looked right since Yoshino died, but Renji simply mocks Uryū for falling in love with one of the Bount. Ichigo and Renji begin to argue because of this, but Rukia tells them to be quiet since they shouldn't argue at a time like this.

Inside a cave, the Bount are shown to be gathered together. Kariya tells them not to dwell on the fact that they're beginning the final phase of their plans in a place where they lost many of their comrades. He informs them that Soul Society has already begun to move against them, but that they shouldn't fear them because the ore in this place shields all reiatsu. He continues to explain that the newly formed dolls should contain plenty of this ore and that they should let themselves be fully strengthened by this ore. Kariya then decides to show them the full extent of their research and calls one of the bitto to him. He explains that bitto absorb the souls of Humans and bring it back to this cave and that they were created by both him and Ugaki. Sawatari asks how this is any different from attacking Humans and absorbing their souls themselves, but Kariya explains that the spirit energy that the bitto collect are highly purified, as well as being concentrated and that because of that they are now able to begin absorbing the souls that have been forbidden to them until now. He states that their powers will now dramatically increase and that he will be the first to obtain this power. Kariya opens up the bitto and takes out a vial stored in it and he pours the contents of the vial into a glass. He then begins drinking from the glass and his power begins to increase, causing his veins to begin popping from his skin. After finishing, Kariya tells his subordinates that there is neither pain nor regret from doing this and that all you feel is superiority.

The Bount agree to do this, with the exception of Mabashi who argues with the other Bount and explains that absorbing the soul of a Human is forbidden and that they'll be major side effects from doing this. Kariya goes up to Mabashi and tells him that he isn't wrong for insisting on his opinion, but states that he doesn't care and punches Mabashi into a wall. As Mabashi tries to breathe from the attack, Kariya goes up to him and kicks him, forcing him further into the cave walls. He then picks up Mabashi and throws him onto the ground and begins stomping on his head. Kariya tells him that the next time that he tries to insist on his point of view, then he should prepare to lose his life and he kicks the Bount into the air, causing him to slam into another wall. He then looks at the other Bount and explains to them that the Bount new law is him.

At Soul Society, Hitsugaya informs several Shinigami that the Onmitsukidō were killed, as well as some Humans by the bitto. Kira asks what their objective is but Hitsugaya tells him that he isn't in charge of the information. Hitsugaya then tells Kira, Rangiku, Hisagi, and Yumichika that he's sending them to the Human World. Yumichika tries to object since he doesn't want to do such a dirty job, but Hitsugaya tells him that he was informed by Zaraki that he had the most free time. He then tells them that he's counting on them because they can't just rely on Ichigo and Renji.

At the Urahara Shop, Suì-Fēng talks with Urahara and gives him a message from Yoruichi Shihōin. She states that Yoruichi will be staying in Soul Society for now to investigate, and that Urahara should be wary of the Bount movements. Suì-Fēng then decides to leave but then remarks on the condition of the Urahara Shop and states that it's terrible that Yoruichi has to live in a place like this. She then tells Urahara that if something happens to Yoruichi, she'll make him regret it. Suì-Fēng then leaves, and Urahara tells Ururu and Jinta that he wants them to go out for him. Ururu then runs somewhere but before she can leave she see's Uryū and she tells him that he should go back to his room because he's being targeted right now. Uryū thanks her, and Ururu asks if he's all right. He states that he is, and then tells Ururu to hurry along because Urahara needs her. Outside, Ichigo and the others are gathered and Rukia states that they'll be splitting up, and Ichigo states that they need to increase their reiatsu to alert everyone else if they come in contact with a Bount. Ririn suddenly notices that Kurōdo and Noba are in Gigai's and she begins to get annoyed by the fact that she isn't in a Gigai. Ichigo simply tells Ririn not to worry about it.

At the Bount cave, the Bount begin drinking from the vial, gaining a huge increase in power and Kariya asks them how it was. They all remark on how great a feeling it gave them and Kariya explains that if they keep doing this, a truly magnificent world will open before them. Kariya then goes over to Mabashi, who continues to go against the idea of using the bitto and Kariya tells him that there's nothing to be afraid of. As Mabashi continues to be stubborn, Ichinose asks if he can heal his wounds but Kariya tells him that there's no need as they will be healed in a moment. Kariya grabs Mabashi by his hair and calls for a bitto to come over. It does so and Kariya forcibly opens Mabashi's mouth and puts the contents from the vial into his mouth. As Mabashi drops to the ground shocked from the new power he has gained, Kariya welcomes him to the Bount new world.

Ichigo and Rukia are shown together, and Ichigo asks Ririn if she's able to locate any of the Bount, but she states that she can't. Rukia then wonders when Urahara will be finished with his invention. Meanwhile, Orihime and Kurōdo talk with each other and Kurōdo wonders what a conversation between Sado and Noba would be like since they're so quiet. Sado and Noba are then shown and they simply communicate with each other with body gestures. As this happens, Kon tries to find Ichigo but he ends up finding Renji instead. Renji asks him what he's doing outside but then deduces that Kon must be lonely. A kid suddenly screams because he's being attacked by the bitto and Renji goes to the kids location and releases his Zanpakutō to help him. This causes everyone to react to Renji's increase in reiatsu.

At the Urahara Shop, Urahara asks Uryū if he's going out to get revenge for Yoshino, and he tells him that he needs his Quincy powers back in order to do that. Urahara then remarks on the situation because before the Bount wanted the Quincy, but now they do not, and he asks Uryū which one he thinks is true. Uryū asks what Urahara thinks and Urahara tells him that he doesn't know. Urahara then asks Uryū if he thought what could happen if he got back his Quincy powers, and Uryū states that if he had them then Yoshino may not have died. Uryū then leaves the shop. Meanwhile, Renji begins cutting down bitto with his Zanpakutō, and at the Bount cave Ugaki informs Kariya of what's happening to the bitto. Kariya simply says that he'll learn what will happen to people who hurt the bitto. Renji cuts down the last of the bitto, but more of them arrive and Renji is forced to fight again.

Renji is shown struggling against the huge amount of bitto in front of him and he eventually collapses onto the ground. In another location, Ichigo and Rukia sense Renji's reiatsu disappear but before they can do anything about it they're confronted by both Jinta and Ururu. They tell them that Urahara finally made the new Bount sensors but Ichigo doesn't want to use it because the Bount sensor is the headband he used during Urahara's training and he has to activate it with the same phrase he used on it before. Despite this, he reluctantly puts the headband on and shouts out "''"Take the power of Justice! The Armor and Headband of justice! Protect yourself!''" Rukia is shocked that Ichigo would actually say that, causing Ichigo to begin arguing with her. However, before he can do anything he begins to move in a random direction and Jinta tells him that he'll eventually reach one of the Bount because of this. Rukia yells to Ichigo that she's going to find Renji but before Ichigo can fully respond to this he crashes into a fence. He then jumps over the fence and continues his search for the Bount. Jinta remarks that he can't sense Renji's reiatsu either and wonders if he's dead, causing Ururu to remark that Jinta must care about Renji. This causes Jinta to angrily hit Ururu and he states that he doesn't care about him. He then runs towards Renji's location.

Meanwhile, Keigo leaves a convenience store with some food and as he walks home he wonders why he wants to eat junk food in the middle of the night. Keigo suddenly notices some bitto in front of him and they charge after him. Keigo runs away and eventually escapes from them. He wonders if he's dreaming and he decides to immediately head home and get some sleep. However, before he can do that he is stabbed in the heart by a bitto and eventually collapses onto the ground. As this happens, Ichigo arrives on the scene and notices several bitto now surrounding Keigo. Ichigo begins to fight off the bitto and he tells Keigo to hang on. Ichigo is suddenly attacked by Koga and Ichigo asks him what he did to Keigo. He states that he isn't going to explaining anything to him and he summons his doll, Dalk.

Battle
The doll fires off a metal ball at Ichigo, who blocks the attack with his Zanpakutō. Ichigo stops the metal ball and it falls to the ground, but he feels his hand go numb; causing the doll to notice that she has gotten stronger. The metal ball on the ground then turns into several, much smaller metal balls. The metal balls attack Ichigo again and he blocks the attack with his Zanpakutō but as he does this Dalk attacks the Shinigami. Ichigo dodges the attack and he goes into the air only to fend off more of the metal balls. His headband eventually breaks and he falls back to the ground. As Ichigo remarks that Dalk has gotten stronger than before, Koga tells his doll that their investigation is over. Ichigo suddenly tells them that he's not going to lose and that he's going to save Keigo.

Ichigo fends off more of the metal balls sent after him but he is eventually overwhelmed by them. Koga tells his doll that her bad habit is that she always plays with her prey. However, Dalk states that when in a life and death battle you should let your prey feel the ultimate pain and fear, as it would be a tragedy if the prey never got to feel those feelings. Ichigo gets back up to battle and Dalk begins sending a barrage of metal spikes towards Ichigo and Keigo. Ichigo protects Keigo and he tells Dalk not to mess with him, but as he does this Keigo spots Ichigo, who is shocked that Keigo can actually see him in his Shinigami form. Koga remarks that the reason for this is because most of his soul has been sucked out of his body and he informs Ichigo that he can't save him now; but Ichigo isn't convinced that this is the case. Ichigo asks Koga why he's using the bitto to collect souls and Koga informs him that the bitto gives the Bounts further strength and this helps them further achieve their goals. Keigo suddenly tells Ichigo to run away and he passes out, causing Ichigo to angrily fire off a Getsuga Tenshō at Dalk, with the attack splitting the doll in half. Ichigo then goes to take care of Keigo but Dalk suddenly stretches her arm around his Zanpakutō and immobilizes it. Dalk then stretches more of her arms around Ichigo and immobilizes him as well. She then begins to tighten her grasp on him, but Ichigo is able to pull out enough strength to free himself.

Ichigo is then shown that he was able to escape from Koga's sight due to Ririn's illusions. Ririn warns him that they have to hurry and escape, but Ichigo tells her that he has to save Keigo first. Ririn tries to convince Ichigo not to, but Ichigo tells her that if he can't save Keigo then he can't save anyone, including himself. Koga suddenly appears with his doll and tells Ichigo that he's correct in thinking that he can't save anyone and that thinking otherwise would be a foolish illusion. Dalk tells Ichigo that she won't forgive him if he tries to escape in the middle of battle and she creates a metal spider web around Ichigo so he can't leave. Ichigo fires off a Getsuga Tenshō at Dalk but she dodges the attack and Ichigo tells her that he wouldn't run away. Ichigo's Zanpakutō is suddenly immobilized by Dalk's arm again and he realizes that he himself is stuck on the web. Dalk suddenly uses her stretched out arms as a whip and begins hitting Ichigo, causing him to kneel down and drop his Zanpakutō. She then takes Ichigo's Zanpakutō and begins to thrust it towards the Shinigami to finish him off, but Ichigo easily catches the Zanpakutō to the surprise of Koga and Dalk. Ichigo then takes his Zanpakutō back and throws Dalk away.

Ichigo is suddenly shown to have been taken over by his inner Hollow again and Koga asks him who he is, only for the Hollow to answer with "I'm me". Koga remarks that he thought he was only a Shinigami but the Hollow tells him that Ichigo is the Shinigami, not him, and that he isn't as naïve as Ichigo. The Hollow then remarks that as much as he'd like to say that Ichigo isn't a part of him, it would be bad for him if Ichigo were to die. Dalk doesn't think Ichigo can fight anymore and she begins to attack her opponent, but "Ichigo" easily dodges and thrusts his Zanpakutō through Dalk's chest. He then splits Dalk in half and he begins to laugh madly, but his arm is suddenly put on his Hollow mask and begins to rip it off. The Hollow realizes that Ichigo is the one doing this and he advices Ichigo against this, but his words do nothing and the Hollow mask is ripped off; causing Ichigo to come back. Ichigo collapses onto the ground and Koga tells him that a strong heart is needed to control a strong power, but that he lacks that strong heart. Koga tells him that because of this he'll destroy himself in the near future, but before that happens he'll finish him off himself and he calls for his doll to come back. Dalk wonders what happened and Koga tells her that the battle is over now. He then tells her not to make him suffer too much.

Ichigo gets back up to fight and he tells Koga that he won't let him use Keigo's life for that. Koga tells Dalk to finish Ichigo off but before she can the lieutenant of the 3rd Division, Izuru Kira, arrives to save Ichigo. Ririn regains consciousness and notices that Ichigo and Kira are about to battle with Koga and his doll. Ririn wonders what she should do and decides to run towards somewhere. Ichigo asks Kira what he's doing here and Kira explains that Hitsugaya sent him and three other lieutenants here. Kira then tells Ichigo to stand back and that he'll take care of this. Koga's doll attacks Kira but he dodges her attacks and tells her that the Soul Society has declared that the Bounts must be stopped, which is what he came to do. Kira then releases his Zanpakutō, Wabisuke, and fights against the doll, and the doll eventually notices that her body is beginning to feel heavier. Kira explains that his Zanpakutō's powers is to make whatever it cuts feel twice as heavy, and he tells the doll that she should no longer be able to handle her body's own weight.

Kira yells to Ichigo that this is his chance to take Keigo back to the Urahara shop, but before he can he is confronted by Koga. Ichigo prepares to fight against him, but hesitates because he realizes that while his opponent is a Bount, he's still Human. Koga tells him that if he won't attack, then he'll go first. He begins swinging a steel beam towards his opponent. Ichigo is able to cut the steel beam in half, but Koga uses this opportunity to drag Ichigo into the ground. Koga asks Ichigo if he's so shocked that an unarmed human could be so powerful. He explains that since he's immortal he was able to become so powerful, and that what he sees before him is a human's true potential. Koga's doll sacrifices several of her arms in order to battle Kira, and she is eventually able to get a hold of Kira's Zanpakutō. As this happens, Koga holds Ichigo by his neck and pushes him into a wall, but Ichigo is able to free himself. Ichigo tells him that he'll defeat him no matter what, and Koga begins to remember Cain. Ichigo asks him what's wrong and Koga explains that he has lived for far too long. Koga suddenly notices that his doll has been defeated, when he is suddenly attacked by Kira. Koga dodges the attack and decides to end the battle, resealing his doll. Koga then leaves the area and Ichigo yells at him to come back.

Aftermath
Ichigo and Kira run towards the Urahara Shop to help heal Keigo, but Ichigo eventually kneels down from the wounds inflicted on him with his battle with Koga. Kira suggests to Ichigo that he should be the one to hold Keigo but Ichigo explains that since Keigo is his friend, it's his responsibility to help him. Ichigo remarks that it isn't fair that Keigo had to be caught up in this, but Kira tells Ichigo that he shouldn't feel responsible since the Bount are picking humans at random. However, Ichigo tells him that it's still his responsibility and he begins yelling at Kira. Kira tells Ichigo that he isn't his enemy and that it would serve no purpose for the two of them to argue. Kira tells him that since he lost someone who was close to him, he knows how he feels. Kira then picks up Keigo and tells Ichigo that if he really intends to save his friend, it doesn't matter who holds him. Ichigo realizes that he's correct and gets back up. Ichigo and Kira enter the Urahara Shop and Kira introduces himself to Urahara. Ichigo suddenly collapses on the ground and Urahara has both Ichigo and Keigo lay down on a bed. Hanatarō states that Keigo's reiatsu is low, but that they might be able to save him if they give him some of Ichigo's reiatsu. As Hanatarō has Tessai get the equipment for doing this transfer of reiatsu, Urahara informs Kira that Renji is being held in the next room as well. Tessai suddenly comes back and gives Hanatarō the injections.