The Cold War

After his chat with Shinji, Ichigo realizes that his inner Hollow is indeed becoming more than he can control. Meanwhile, two Arrancar (Yammy Riyalgo and Ulquiorra Cifer) 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 Jaegerjaquez 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 Jaegerjaquez 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 Kūfang and Nakeem Greendina fight Hitsugaya and Matsumoto, respectively; Di Roy Linker fights Chad; Edrad Liones fights Ikkaku Madarame; and Yylfordt Granz 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 Nakeem; 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. Yylfordt 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. Enraged, and shocked at having lost not only his left arm, but his rank/title as the sixth Espada, Grimmjow draws his sword, wanting to kill Tōsen for severing his arm. Aizen, however, "convinces" him not to, and states that he will kill Grimmjow should he ever "raise his sword against one of his superiors again". Annoyed, but realizing that he would die "in vain" at the current state he's in, Grimmjow reluctantly leaves the area, and gives them the finger, though neither seemed to mind. Gin Ichimaru is later seen jokingly chiding Aizen over his habit of "playing around with his subordinates".