Cloning Arrancar Threat

The  is an event taking place during the Arrancar Invasion in Karakura Town, revolving around the Shinigami Strike Team discovering the existence of a self-replicating Arrancar who is pursuing a young Soul named Shōta Toyokawa.

Prelude
One day, Shōta Toyokawa, Yui Toyokawa, and their parents laugh as their car drives along a highway road on the edge of a hill. When Yui begins playing a tune on an ocarina, her perplexed parents brush it off and return their attention to the road while Yui inquires if Shōta thinks it is a nice sound, only for Shōta to brazenly assert that it is just a lot of noise and express amusement when Yui denies this. However, as Yui continues to play the tune that she devised on the ocarina, a large truck going the opposite way on the road swerves in front of the car, to the shock of Shōta and Yui's parents, and crashes into it, killing the entire family instantly.

Later that day, Shōta walks through Karakura Town with Yui as Souls following their deaths in search of their parents, who disappeared after the car crash. Continuing to search for their parents all over the city and in the pouring rain for several days with the Humans around them unable to perceive them, Shōta and Yui are unable to locate them and fall asleep beneath a tree in a forest one night. Some time later, Shōta wakes up and discovers that Yui is missing.

After realizing that Yui left to look for their parents by herself, Shōta frantically runs through the forest and repeatedly calls out to her. Upon hearing Yui scream in fright, Shōta rushes toward her location and sees her sitting in a clearing, only to stop in fright upon entering the clearing and being confronted by the original Hollow form of the Cloning Arrancar. With the Hollow glaring at Shōta through his jaws and roaring, a terrified Shōta begins inching back despite Yui's pleas to save her and eventually flees, leaving Yui to collapse and beg Shōta to come back as the chuckling Hollow approaches her from behind.

The next day, in the Study Chamber underneath the Visored warehouse, a masked Hiyori Sarugaki repeatedly slashes at Ichigo Kurosaki, who has donned his own Hollow mask and blocks her attacks with his Shikai, Zangetsu, prior to Hiyori engaging him in a blade lock and infusing her Zanpakutō with Reiatsu to send Ichigo flying back with a powerful blast. Skidding along the ground, Ichigo recovers just in time to block a flying kick from Hiyori with the side of his free arm.

However, Hiyori simply kicks Ichigo in the face with her other foot, resulting in him crashing into a nearby rock formation with enough force to crater it and sliding down to the ground below as Hiyori lands before him, pushes her mask to the side of her head, and notes that his time is up. When Ichigo suddenly reappears in the air behind and above her with Shunpo while preparing to come down on her with a slash, a startled Hiyori turns around and blasts him with a light-blue Cero from her open palm, causing Ichigo's mask to shatter.

Ichigo falls on his back as Hiyori points out how dangerous it was for him to not inform her of the time he can maintain his Hollow mask getting longer, and when Ichigo counters that she is the one who did not warn him and who instructed Ichigo to keep his mask on for as long as possible, Hiyori dismisses this as the wrong time to be complaining and instructs Ichigo to start again, which prompts Ichigo to don his Hollow mask once more by pulling his hand across his face in a ripping motion prior to blocking a strike from Hiyori when she leaps forward. With Hiyori criticizing him as too slow and continuing to spar with Ichigo, Kensei Muguruma and Mashiro Kuna watch.

Upon being approached from behind by Shinji Hirako and asked about how Ichigo is doing, Kensei reveals that his mask's duration has extended by half a second, and with Shinji sarcastically calling this a great development, Mashiro expresses shock at this being the result after Ichigo has trained so much and muses that he must not have the talent for it before concluding that it is surprising that the Visored have not gotten tired of him yet. In response, Shinji admits that they do not have a choice and must continue while Ichigo clashes several more times with Hiyori, separates from her by leaping back, and runs forward with a yell.

Meanwhile, at the Kurosaki Clinic, Yuzu Kurosaki tearfully claims that Ichigo is never coming back as she sits at the dinner table with Karin Kurosaki, who asserts that it does not matter and that Ichigo will come back when they have forgotten about him. With Yuzu indignant at the idea of Karin forgetting Ichigo every time he leaves, Karin clarifies that this is just a figure of speech before Isshin Kurosaki joins them and assures Yuzu that there is no need to worry because it is natural for people to want to rebel against those around them and get out of the house at Ichigo's age, though Yuzu is uncertain of what exactly he is referring to.

Isshin elaborates that he considered the whole world to be his enemy and left home in his youth to visit his high school at night and run to the beach to let out a youthful scream. When Yuzu inquires about the idea of Ichigo doing this as well, Isshin declares that he is probably looking at the ocean in an area long since left behind by summer and fulfilling his heart's desires during mating season, only for Karin to remind him that he means to say adolescence instead. Despite Yuzu remaining unconvinced by this, Karin concludes that Ichigo will be alright regardless of whether or not this is true and invites Yuzu to finish eating dinner, which the latter happily accepts.

Suddenly, Isshin demands to know why Rukia Kuchiki also is not coming home, prompting Karin to punch him in the face for being more worried about her than he is about his own son and inform Yuzu that Rukia told her she would be staying over at Orihime Inoue's apartment since she is busy with school work. As Isshin sobs over having lost what he thought was another daughter, an irritated Karin tells him to shut up and eat dinner. Elsewhere, in a park in Karakura Town, 10th Division Captain Tōshirō Hitsugaya learns from his lieutenant, Rangiku Matsumoto, that 6th Division Lieutenant Renji Abarai will be staying with Kisuke Urahara for the time being.

While 11th Division 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame and 5th Seat Yumichika Ayasegawa stand with them, Rangiku confirms this and notes that Renji has made up an excuse for why he is staying at the Urahara Shop, which she theorizes means he has become accustomed to it since it is the second time that he has stayed there as a freeloader, prior to revealing that he is training Yasutora Sado. With Yumichika observing that Renji might be enjoying himself after all, Hitsugaya muses that the strength of the Arrancar means that they can never have enough fighting power, and when Ikkaku asks him about what they will be doing, Hitsugaya questions if he really needs to ask.

Hitsugaya asserts that they will not win this battle if they do not strengthen themselves as well, which Yumichika concurs with due to how annoyingly powerful the Arrancar are, and when Ikkaku welcomes this since it will allow him to have fun battles, Rangiku comments on how this is something he would like, but Ikkaku points out how she will not return to Soul Society alive if she does not improve her techniques. Claiming to already know this, Rangiku notices what time it is and laments how she will not get enough time to pick out what she wants to buy if she does not hurry due to the shop rapidly filling up with many customers.

With Hitsugaya picking up on her mention of a shop, Rangiku explains that she will be checking out the town for things to buy, only to correct herself and claim that she will instead be keeping an eye out for anything strange due to always needing to be attentive to her surroundings despite an annoyed Hitsugaya reminding her of what she just said, and runs off as she bids him farewell, leaving Hitsugaya to note that she does not listen to what others say at all. Soon afterward, at a local mall, Rangiku comes to the display window of a clothing store and tells herself that she needs to enjoy the time she is spending in the Human World.

Enamored by the outfits she sees in the window, Rangiku runs inside the store and enters the dressing booth to try on seven different outfits, though she does not know which one to pick since she finds all of them appealing. After making her decision, Rangiku calls out to the store assistant struggling to hold up all the clothes and announces that she will be buying all of them, to the assistant's bewilderment. Some time later, Rangiku walks down the street with over a dozen clothing bags in her arms and expresses appreciation for the Human World having lots of fashionable clothes that are much cheaper than they would be in Soul Society.

Upon noticing an accessory shop nearby, Rangiku decides to look in there as well and enters to drop all the clothing bags on the floor, to the astonishment of the cashier inside. While commenting on how many options there are here, Rangiku notices an ocarina-like stone on a necklace in front of her and finds it cute up close, which leads her to bring it to the cash register to buy. Stopping the cashier from bagging the necklace since she does not think it is necessary, which the cashier thanks her for, Rangiku hands him a 10,000 yen bill, which he rushes out of the store to get change for, leaving Rangiku to examine the necklace further.

However, when she blows into the ocarina and produces a high-pitched noise, Rangiku is shocked to hear an eerie melody play in response and looks around for a source, which she cannot find, before pulling out her Denreishinki to see that there is spiritual activity on North Block 11 of Karakura Town, indicated by a blinking red dot on her screen. On a different street, Hitsugaya wonders if the activity on his own Denreishinki is a Hollow and hears the melody as well, to his confusion, as Ikkaku and Yumichika examine the latter's Denreishinki at a ramen bar and decide to let Rangiku respond if it is just an ordinary Hollow.

Despite this, Ikkaku stops eating his ramen to observe that it has been noisy today as both he and Yumichika hear the same melody, which prompts Yumichika to wonder what it is. Back in the accessory shop, Rangiku laments being the closest to the activity, and when the cashier runs back inside with her change, Rangiku tells him to wait until she comes back, to his confusion, and exits her Gigai before telling Momone to handle it as she departs in a gust of wind. With the cashier questioning what just happened, Momone assures him that it was nothing and that he just imagined it as she flirtatiously grasps his hands and leans in despite his protests.

The Strange Arrancar and the Stubborn Boy
Later, after Shōta confronts an Arrancar clone in a park and demands to know where Yui is, Rangiku leaps across several rooftops, but is startled mid-jump when the melody fades and lands on a telephone pole as she, Hitsugaya, Ikkaku, and Yumichika look around in bewilderment. Suddenly, a nearby structure is destroyed by a powerful impact, leading Rangiku to move down to the ground and attempt to find out what caused this as two more structures are destroyed and Shōta is sent flying out of the resulting cloud of dust with a cry of pain. Upon seeing Shōta's Chain of Fate when he lands on the ground before her, Rangiku realizes that he is a Soul and watches the Arrancar clone emerge as well.

While Rangiku draws her Zanpakutō, Shōta gets to his feet and challenges the Arrancar clone to fight him, which prompts a bewildered Rangiku to grab his shoulder and question what he is doing. In response, Shōta demands that she let go since she is getting in the way as an old lady and frees himself from her grasp to run off, leaving Rangiku to express shock at being called old prior to jumping into the air in irritation. When the Arrancar clone roars at an approaching Shōta, Rangiku comes down on it with a slash while holding her Zanpakutō in a reverse grip, only for the Arrancar clone to leap out of the way at the last second and land on a nearby hill.

Upon seeing this, Shōta frantically runs over to a climbing wall leaning against the hill and begins scaling it, and when a concerned Rangiku moves above and in front of him with Shunpo, Shōta angrily tells her to get out of the way because she is interfering, only for Rangiku to counter that he is not making sense and cannot handle the Arrancar clone, who looms over the edge of the climbing wall prior to Rangiku flipping her Zanpakutō around in her hand, leaping up to the Arrancar clone's level, and fiercely slashing at it. In turn, the Arrancar clone bites down to catch Rangiku's blade between his teeth and begins exerting a powerful orange Reiatsu.

In astonishment, Rangiku determines that the Reiatsu she is experiencing belongs to an Arrancar like Nakeem Grindina rather than a Hollow while the Arrancar clone beneath her throws Rangiku into the air with a flick of its head. When Rangiku stops herself with Hohō and wonders what the Arrancar clone is since its Reiatsu is notably murky, the Arrancar clone orders her to stay out of the way and not interrupt his meal. With the Arrancar clone looking down at an intimidated Shōta and opening its mouth to reveal two glowing eyes within, Rangiku tells Shōta to run away, but he stubbornly refuses to and instead begins climbing up toward the Arrancar clone.

Aghast at Shōta's response, Rangiku moves down to him with Shunpo and grabs him with her free arm prior to moving away from the climbing wall and down onto the ground with another Shunpo bound. As the Arrancar clone roars and leaps toward them with his hands outstretched, Rangiku hops back right before he crashes into the ground where she was standing and begins running away while continuing to carry a protesting Shōta. When the Arrancar clone pursues them on all four legs, a chuckling Ikkaku falls out of the sky with his Shikai, Hōzukimaru, and smashes into the ground in front of the Arrancar with a strike that forces the latter to stop and evade.

A grinning Ikkaku jumps up and spins Hōzukimaru around prior to leaping higher into the air when the Arrancar clone attempts to grab him with a swipe of its left hand. While Rangiku stops in surprise at his arrival, Ikkaku continues spinning Hōzukimaru and responds to the Arrancar clone swinging its long spine-like tail at him by cutting off a large chunk of his tail at the tip with a slash of Hōzukimaru, causing the Arrancar clone to roar in pain and rush toward Ikkaku, whom he promises to make pay for this. However, Ikkaku simply swings Hōzukimaru upward and slices through the Arrancar clone's mask, resulting in his body disintegrating.

With Ikkaku landing on the ground and lamenting how this was not even a warm-up exercise for him, Yumichika stands behind Rangiku with Hitsugaya, both now out of their Gigai as well, and observes the Arrancar clone seemed to be no match for Ikkaku as Hitsugaya notes they rushed over after sensing the Arrancar clone's Reiatsu pattern suddenly change and berates Rangiku for letting her guard down too much. Before Rangiku can relay what happened with him, a smirking Shōta comments on an old hag like Rangiku being scolded by a child, which prompts an aggravated Rangiku to smother him between her breasts while refusing to be called something like that.

Once Rangiku lets Shōta breathe again and puts him back under her arm, Ikkaku confirms Yumichika's assumption that he was fighting an Arrancar and muses on its murky Reiatsu indicating that it was not fully mature, though Hitsugaya asserts that they should assume Sōsuke Aizen sent him intentionally since he was still an Arrancar regardless of his level and decides to contact Soul Society immediately. In turn, Rangiku states that she will be performing Konsō on Shōta, and when the latter questions what this is as he rudely calls her an old lady once again, an annoyed Rangiku reminds him that she did not say he could call her an old lady.

However, Hitsugaya stops Rangiku and requests that she perform Konsō after he asks Shōta about the Arrancar clone, which a confused Rangiku agrees to. After Hitsugaya affirms that he is a captain, Shōta cheekily claims that he cannot believe it since they are almost the same age, leading Hitsugaya to note that they might need to perform Konsō now after all. That night, back at the accessory shop, Momone claims to have heard that physical contact is important in the Human World and continues to flirt with the blushing cashier, who insists that they cannot do this in the shop and collapses while questioning what Momone's catchphrase means.

Walking into the shop with Shōta and the other Shinigami, who have returned to their Gigai, Rangiku promises to get her own Gigai right now, but is shocked alongside them to see Momone crouching over and kissing the motionless cashier. As Momone states that she came back at a good time, Rangiku pulls her off the cashier and enters her Gigai prior to thanking the lipstick-covered cashier, who focuses on Rangiku's lips and immediately leaps toward her while claiming that they are very naughty, only for Rangiku to casually incapacitate him with an elbow to the throat and excitedly run over to her clothing bags, leaving the others exasperated.

Meanwhile, in an outdoor hallway in the Seireitei, 13th Division Captain Jūshirō Ukitake is shocked by the news of a new Arrancar being sent to the Human World, prompting his 3rd Seat, Kiyone Kotetsu, to clarify that Hitsugaya wants them to determine whether that is what actually happened. With Ukitake musing that this would mean Aizen is making a move, Kiyone question what they should do, leading Ukitake to assert that analyzing the report comes first and that he will do it from here, which Kiyone acknowledges. Back in Karakura Town, at Orihime's apartment, Shōta sits next to the monitor with Hitsugaya, Rangiku, Ikkaku, and Yumichika.

When Shōta belligerently states that he does not understand the ramblings of old men about Soul Society and Konsō, Yumichika is aghast at being called old and Ikkaku warns him to not take it personally since it just means he seems old to children, but Yumichika refuses to forgive Shōta for this since being called an old man does not sound beautiful. Upon being addressed by Ikkaku, Shōta claims that the former's baldness is blinding him and tells Ikkaku to put on a wig, prompting an enraged Ikkaku to put Shōta in a chokehold and demand to know why he is being so abusive when Ikkaku has done nothing to him as Rangiku tells them to be quiet.

After Ikkaku lets Shōta go, Rangiku requests that he be good and answer the questions they have for him, though Shōta merely scoffs and looks away, prior to promising that he will go to Soul Society once they are done. In turn, Shōta declines to go there, and when Rangiku reassures him that it is not a scary place, Shōta proclaims that he is never going there and responds to Rangiku insisting that these are the rules by reiterating his refusal and noting that he still has things to do here. While Rangiku recalls Shōta challenging the Arrancar to battle earlier, Hitsugaya asks him if he heard a whistle-like melody when the Arrancar appeared.

Ikkaku remembers that he heard the melody while Shōta reluctantly confirms that he did as well, leading Hitsugaya to question whether the Arrancar clone told Shōta anything when he appeared. Once Shōta asserts that the Arrancar clone just growled at him and attacked, to Hitsugaya's disappointment, Ikkaku observes that they will not learn anything even if they ask Shōta more questions and Yumichika muses that they seem to have just happened to have met there by chance. Affirming this, Hitsugaya decides to perform the Konsō and gets to his feet as he grabs his Zanpakutō despite Shōta's continuing protests, which startles Rangiku.

With Hitsugaya unsheathing his Zanpakutō while admonishing him for being so stubborn and Shōta maintaining that he does not want to go as Ikkaku and Yumichika hold him in place, Rangiku suddenly interjects and suggests that they wait through the night to send Shōta to Soul Society since he is probably confused by what just happened. Following Rangiku reacting with irritation to a surprised Shōta calling her an old woman once more, to his intimidation, Hitsugaya sheathes his Zanpakutō and agrees to leave this case to Rangiku, pleasing her while Ikkaku comments on how weird she is acting, before noting they still do not know what Aizen's goal is.

After vowing to not let their guard down at Hitsugaya's behest, Ikkaku and Yumichika depart as Shōta stares at Rangiku's sealed Zanpakutō. Later that night, once Hitsugaya and Rangiku go to bed, Shōta, who had been lying in a sleeping bag beside them, quietly grabs Rangiku's Zanpakutō and slowly sneaks out of the apartment, where he begins running down the street and contemplating what he could do with the Zanpakutō. However, Rangiku interrupts him and wonders what he is planning to do while stepping out behind a shocked Shōta, who stops in his tracks and looks at her prior to frantically attempting to flee, only for Rangiku to grab him by the shoulder.

Rangiku berates Shōta for taking someone else's belongings without permission and yanks her Zanpakutō out of his hands, and when Shōta claims that she is stingy as he once again calls her an old woman, Rangiku painfully pinches his cheek to lift him into the air and introduces herself before ordering Shōta to address her properly instead of rudely. Following Shōta's agreement to this, Rangiku drops him and inquires about what he was planning to do after taking her Zanpakutō, but Shōta states that it does not concern her. In response, Rangiku counters that it does concern her because it is her job as a Shinigami to protect Souls like him.

As she explains that a Zanpakutō is as important to a Shinigami as their life is, Rangiku presumes Shōta would not be happy if she took something important from him without permission, which he reluctantly confirms, and instructs him to apologize, to his astonishment. With Rangiku detailing how he is supposed to apologize when he does something wrong and threatening to pinch his cheek again if he does not, Shōta meekly apologizes and formally addresses Rangiku in doing so at her insistence, which she is pleased by. While the two of them walk back to Orihime's apartment, Rangiku asks Shōta what his name is and where his family is, though he does not answer.

After Shōta fails to respond to her questioning what he was doing in the park, Rangiku laments his silence and inquires about what he wants to do while he is still in the Human World. Coming to a halt, Shōta reveals that he is looking for someone and asserts that they have to meet, but does not elaborate further despite Rangiku being curious about who he is referring to, which leads her to crouch down in front of Shōta with her hand on his shoulder and warn him that Karakura Town is not safe right now due to him not knowing when more monsters like the Arrancar from earlier will appear and not having the slightest chance of defeating them if they do.

Upon seeing Shōta staring at her in fright over this, Rangiku pleads with him to at least tell her his name, prompting Shōta to finally introduce himself, to her relief. Suddenly, the two of them hear the eerie melody again, and as another Arrancar clone stands on top of a building with his mouth open and chuckles, a startled Rangiku realizes that his Reiatsu is the same murky type as that of the Arrancar she fought before. Rangiku tells Shōta to hurry back to Orihime's apartment by himself, but Shōta asserts that he is coming too, exasperating Rangiku with his bravado before she realizes that the Arrancar clone could have allies nearby and agrees.

Shortly after the two of them depart, a male Soul dressed in a business suit and carrying a briefcase runs frantically down a street elsewhere in Karakura Town as a shadow looms behind him and electricity crackles up a nearby streetlamp, causing it to go dark while the whistle-like melody begins playing. With the Soul coming to a halt and turning around in fear, the Arrancar sits behind him and cackles as he exerts his red Reiatsu. Against his will, the Soul begins slowly walking toward the Arrancar and holds up his briefcase in front of him while begging someone to help him. Suddenly, Rangiku appears nearby and demands that the Arrancar stop.

The Arrancar stops exerting his Reiatsu and the Soul falls back in fright, which leads Rangiku to wonder what is going on here since this Arrancar is identical in both Reiatsu and appearance to the one she fought before. Looking at Rangiku, the Arrancar notices the Soul attempting to flee and pounces forward to catch and devour the Soul with his jaws, to Rangiku's horror, prior to leaping up onto a nearby rooftop. After telling Shōta to wait here, Rangiku follows the Arrancar up to the rooftop, where the Arrancar gloats about how much stronger he feels and begins crackling with red electricity-like Reiatsu that coalesces into an aura around him.

When Rangiku questions if this Arrancar clone and the one that Ikkaku destroyed are look-alikes, the Arrancar declines to answer and roars as he rears up on his hind legs. However, the two of them are interrupted when Shōta begins angrily throwing rocks at the Arrancar, who glares at him in annoyance and fires a red energy blast from his mouth that explodes and sends a screaming Shōta flying into the air on contact, to Rangiku's concern. Before Shōta can hit the ground, Hitsugaya moves into the air with Shunpo, catches Shōta, and sternly indicates that Rangiku should finish the fight by nodding slightly at her.

In response, Rangiku affirms this and runs forward to slash at the Arrancar, who evades to the side. Once the Arrancar dodges two more of her strikes and leaps into the air, Rangiku releases her Shikai, Haineko, turning her blade into ash that surges into the air and slams into the Arrancar. As the Arrancar screeches in pain and crashes down onto the ground below, Hitsugaya appears next to him with Shunpo and holds his Zanpakutō to the Arrancar's face while telling the latter that it is over and instructing Rangiku to capture him alive. Despite this, the Arrancar simply begins chuckling, prompting Hitsugaya to question what is so funny.

Attack of the Clones
With the Arrancar wondering if Hitsugaya believes they have captured him, Hitsugaya and Rangiku see a third and fourth Arrancar identical to the first one land on the ground next to him, and while the Arrancar declares that there are more, several more identical Arrancar appear on the rooftop nearby, which leads Rangiku to conclude that there really are duplicate Arrancar. Upon seeing one of the Arrancar leap off the roof and another on the ground begin chasing after Shōta, who flees in panic, Rangiku releases Haineko once again and slashes through those two and four more Arrancar to protect Shōta, whom she has get behind her.

However, one of the Arrancar proclaims that it does not matter how many of them Rangiku defeats and glows with red Reiatsu prior to spawning an identical clone of himself from his body, to Hitsugaya's shock. In turn, Rangiku is contacted by Yumichika, who reveals that he and Ikkaku are battling more identical Arrancar after detecting the Reiatsu of the Arrancar that they encountered earlier and following it, though he is confused by the Arrancar surrounding him and Ikkaku being identical in appearance to the Arrancar that Ikkaku destroyed earlier, before Rangiku has Hitsugaya join the conversation to explain this.

Hitsugaya informs Ikkaku and Yumichika that the Arrancar can clone themselves and that they must destroy all of them to end the fight, which Ikkaku observes makes things much simpler as he leaps into the air and begins cutting through the Arrancar clones with his sealed Zanpakutō with a smile. Back at Shōta's location, Rangiku slashes four more Arrancar clones with Haineko and Hitsugaya bifurcates a fifth with his sealed Zanpakutō, only to note with irritation that things will never end on at this rate. After telling Shōta to hold on tightly to her, Rangiku begins running down the street with Hitsugaya away from the Arrancar clones, who begin their pursuit.

When Hitsugaya asserts that they need to lure the Arrancar clones into a wide space so they can be destroyed all at once, Rangiku questions what area fits this requirement, which leads Shōta to suggest the park that they encountered the first Arrancar clone in. With the Arrancar clones closing in, Hitsugaya has Rangiku run ahead and stays back to begin attacking the clones. Upon reaching the park and moving under a large tree within, Rangiku sets down Shōta and sees that the Arrancar clones are surrounding them while one of them declares that the two of them have nowhere left to run and are finished, prompting Rangiku to pull Shōta close to herself.

Suddenly, Rangiku calls out to Hitsugaya, who leaps over the climbing wall nearby and announces that the clones are the ones who are finished before releasing his Shikai, Hyōrinmaru, creating a massive ice dragon that repeatedly slams into the horde of Arrancar clones, creating a massive field of ice stalactites that shatter in a burst of light and energy to leave nothing behind. In the aftermath, Rangiku joins Hitsugaya with Shōta, who expresses intimidation at what he just saw, and praises his performance as Ikkaku and Yumichika approach them as well, which leads Rangiku to ask them if they are alright.

In response, Ikkaku tells Rangiku to not underestimate them and claims that the Arrancar clones were no trouble at all, though Yumichika admits that their numbers posed a problem. With Hitsugaya lamenting being unable to capture at least one of the Arrancar clones alive, a somber Shōta walks away, but stops in shock upon seeing Yui sitting on a bench far away under a streetlight. When Shōta frantically runs over to Yui, a concerned Rangiku joins him and watches as Shōta kneels before an unresponsive Yui and repeatedly shakes her by the shoulders out of worry prior to informing Rangiku that this is his sister, to her surprise.

Soon afterward, in the early morning, an unconscious Yui lies in a bed on the floor of Orihime's apartment, where Rangiku looks over her and observes that she seems to be an ordinary Soul with nothing amiss. With Hitsugaya acknowledging this, Shōta tries to rouse Yui and assures her that they are in a safe location, and when Hitsugaya deduces that Shōta was trying to find his sister when he said that still had something to do in the Human World, Shōta looks down pensively. Upon being asked about what happened by Rangiku, Shōta somberly explains that he, Yui, and their parents were in a car traveling to an amusement park.

After revealing a truck crashed into their car and killed them, Shōta concludes that he woke up to discover the Chain of Fate on his chest and his parents missing prior to confirming this is why he was searching for Yui when Hitsugaya deduces it. Suddenly, Yui regains consciousness and opens her eyes, prompting a delighted Shōta to inquire about whether she recognizes him and express relief when she identifies him as her older brother. Standing nearby, Hitsugaya wonders why she suddenly appeared in the park and questions if Shōta has any ideas, but Shōta does not provide an answer and Rangiku realizes he is still withholding information from them.

Suddenly, the monitor in the room switches on to reveal Ukitake, who addresses Hitsugaya and notes that he seems to be having some trouble before revealing that they have new information to share about the Arrancar clone fought yesterday. With Ukitake stating that he will be letting someone from the Shinigami Research and Development Institute explain these findings, the screen pans over to 12th Division 3rd Seat Akon, who introduces himself. After Ukitake brings up an Arrancar clone having been encountered once again tonight, Hitsugaya affirms this and relays the former being able to duplicate himself.

Once Hitsugaya admits that he does not believe the battle is over even though he and the other Shinigami destroyed all the Arrancar they fought, Akon confirms that it is likely not over yet, and when Rangiku wonders what he means, Akon recounts how the record of the Reiatsu in the area matched that of all the Arrancar clones, meaning that they are a single colony rather than separate entities when split apart. When Hitsugaya realizes that this means they share a single consciousness, Akon continues that their findings indicate the Cloning Arrancar uses several clones at once in order to consume as many Souls as possible.

As Rangiku compares the clones to worker ants, Akon agrees and concludes the real Cloning Arrancar is hiding somewhere and giving orders to the clones, leading Rangiku to question if there is a way to determine where the real Cloning Arrancar is. Akon admits it is difficult to pinpoint and details how the appearance of an Arrancar clone is always accompanied by a whistle-like melody, which Rangiku confirms they have heard whenever one appears prior to relaying how it is used to restrain and control the Arrancar clones' victims. With Akon promising to analyze this sound so they can pinpoint when the Arrancar clones will appear, Hitsugaya acknowledges this.

While the monitor turns off, Hitsugaya ruminates on how complicated things have become as Ikkaku and Yumichika return to the apartment with bento, which they set up on a nearby table outside the monitor room. When Ikkaku expresses amazement at how convenience stores carry these in addition to onigiri even at nighttime, Rangiku opens the door behind them, welcomes Ikkaku and Yumichika back, and invites Hitsugaya to eat with them before they come up with a plan. After the four of them finish eating and Ikkaku declares that he is full, Hitsugaya sets down a cup of tea and finishes relaying their information about the Cloning Arrancar.

Once Hitsugaya asserts that they will need to spread out over a large area and prepare to quickly deal with various situations, Yumichika confirms his understanding of the situation and Ikkaku observes that this will keep him from getting bored while Hitsugaya decides that they will take turns watching Karakura Town and assigns Rangiku to stay with Shōta and Yui, which she agrees to. Despite Shōta and Yui's confusion and concern, Ikkaku suggests that they perform Konsō, only for Hitsugaya to conclude that they can do this later, which leads Yumichika to note that he is very kind since this will allow Shōta and Yui to stay together for a while.

With Rangiku touched by this, Hitsugaya dismisses Yumichika's statement and orders him and Ikkaku to head out. Some time later, with the three of them having left their Gigai, Hitsugaya stands on top of a telephone pole to observe the area around him, Ikkaku leaps between several rooftops, and Yumichika looks around the streets below before moving elsewhere with Shunpo. As the sun begins to set, Yumichika looks out over the city from the upper floor of a building and Shōta sits with Yui in Orihime's apartment, where he is startled by a sleeping Yui calling out to him. Later that evening, Rangiku finishes taking a bath.

While Rangiku grabs a carton of milk from the refrigerator and relishes in how good it feels to take a bath before work, she notices Shōta solemnly standing nearby and asks him about how Yui is doing. After Shōta notes that she is still asleep, Rangiku notices his expression and inquires about what is wrong due to him finally getting to see Yui. When Shōta simply nods at this, Rangiku wonders if he is still hiding something because he was behaving strangely when Hitsugaya asked him about what happened in the park with the first Arrancar clone. Though Shōta is reluctant to answer, Rangiku clasps his shoulders and encourages him to tell her.

However, Shōta insists that it is nothing and does not concern Rangiku, who is left staring at him in shock, before the two of them are interrupted by a loud noise coming from the monitor room where Yui was sleeping. Upon opening the door to the room, Rangiku and Shōta discover that the window is open and Yui is missing. Outside, a female Soul in a school uniform walks down a street while the whistle-like melody plays, only to look up in confusion as an Arrancar clone glowing with red Reiatsu stands before her. With the Soul continuing to approach him and wondering why she cannot control her movements, the Arrancar clone chuckles and steps forward.

Hearing the Soul's scream of fright, Hitsugaya, Ikkaku, and Yumichika immediately begin heading toward its origin point, but the latter finds himself confronted by the Arrancar clone and two others on the rooftop of a building. As he sees the leftmost clone devouring the Soul, Yumichika calls him repulsive and rushes forward with his Zanpakutō drawn, only for the three Arrancar clones to leap into the air and begin running across the sky. Though he follows them into the air, Yumichika quickly loses sight of the three clones and is joined by Hitsugaya and Ikkaku, the former of whom orders them to split up and follow the clones, which they do.

In the air above where Hitsugaya, Ikkaku, and Yumichika were standing, a swirling cloud of black miasma forms and expands to reveal the real Cloning Arrancar, who laughs in amusement. Simultaneously, at the park, Rangiku follows a frantically running Shōta and demands to know why he thinks Yui is at the park again. Before Shōta can answer, Rangiku senses the Arrancar clones' Reiatsu once again and rushes to keep up with Shōta. Elsewhere in Karakura Town, Hitsugaya pursues one of the Arrancar clones across rooftops and through the streets below until he loses sight of it amidst several alleyways, at which point he lands on top of a telephone pole.

Once he pulls out his Denreishinki and does not see a Hollow indicator on its screen, Hitsugaya closes it and looks around to see a male Soul wearing glasses huddled in one of the alleyways. After assuring the scared Soul that he is not an enemy, Hitsugaya asks him if he saw a monster, and when the Soul shakes his head, Hitsugaya promises him that it is alright now, though the Soul continues to tremble in fear. Annoyed by this, Hitsugaya walks away, leaving the Soul to smile maliciously behind him. Back in the park, Rangiku catches up to Shōta and warns him that they have to go back to the apartment since it is dangerous here, but Shōta denies this.

Despite Rangiku assuring him that they can look for Yui together later, Shōta insists that he has to protect Yui himself, to Rangiku's surprise, prior to expressing shock upon noticing Yui sitting on a swing behind him. Though Rangiku does not understand when Yui got there, Shōta rushes over to her and questions what she was doing here, leading Yui to admit that she was not doing anything and just wanted to come to this park. With a sighing Rangiku joining them, Yui asserts that she is alright and not afraid of anything now that Shōta is here, but Shōta curses at this and reveals to Rangiku that he left her here and ran away after they died, to her astonishment.

Shōta recounts how he and Yui searched Karakura Town for their parents after their deaths, only to encounter the Cloning Arrancar in his Hollow form, whom Shōta abandoned Yui to in fear the day before he met Rangiku, and concludes that he was trembling on the ground far away from the park when he regained consciousness that night before calling himself despicable for running away and abandoning Yui to her fate while crying into his sleeve. When Rangiku questions what happened next, Shōta asserts that he deeply regretted what he did and gathered up the courage to return to the park, but did not find Yui there when he did.

After explaining how he found the Arrancar clone there and demanded to know where Yui was, which resulted in the Arrancar clone attacking him when Shōta threw a rock at him for simply laughing at this question and led to Rangiku saving him from the Arrancar clone when she arrived in the park shortly after this, and states that he abandoned Yui as he points out how Yui still has faith that he will protect her. Suddenly, a sympathetic Rangiku puts her hand on his shoulder and kneels as she observes that it must have been hard for him and wipes away the tears from his eyes when he begins sobbing once more.

Rangiku reminds Shōta that Yui was saved and was reunited with him even though she does not know what to make of the situation, meaning that it is not too late for him to protect Yui. However, with Shōta acknowledging this, Rangiku ruminates on the true reason that Yui encountered one of the Arrancar clones prior to being contacted by Hitsugaya, who informs her that he lost track of the Arrancar clone he was pursuing. Upon being asked about where he is, Hitsugaya details how he is taking care of a Soul who was attacked by the Arrancar clone, though he seems to be too terrified to say whether or not he saw anything.

Suddenly, while Hitsugaya and Rangiku agree to return to Orihime's apartment, the Soul behind Hitsugaya glows with red Reiatsu and transforms into an Arrancar clone, alerting Hitsugaya right before he attacks the latter with his fist and causes Hitsugaya to drop the Denreishinki as he leaps out of the way at the last second, to Rangiku's alarm. Drawing his Zanpakutō and facing the laughing Arrancar clone, Hitsugaya curses and deduces that he can transform into a Human Soul in order to stay hidden and attack other Souls. When the Arrancar clone lunges toward him, Hitsugaya swiftly cuts off its right arm.

After clutching the stump of his arm in pain, the Arrancar clone transforms back into his Soul form, now missing an arm as well, and frantically runs into an adjoining alley connecting to the street nearby, where Hitsugaya follows him and discovers that he has vanished. Hitsugaya moves to the top of a construction site with Shunpo and realizes that he cannot detect the Arrancar clone's Reiatsu in this form either. Following this, Yumichika appears next to Hitsugaya with Shunpo and explains that he came to make sure Hitsugaya was okay after receiving a concerned call from Rangiku just moments ago about his condition.

In response, Hitsugaya notes that things have become troublesome and promises to tell Yumichika everything once they return to Orihime's apartment. Shortly afterward, with Hitsugaya, Rangiku, Yumichika, Shōta, and Yui back in the apartment, Hitsugaya assures Rangiku that he is fine and just dropped his Denreishinki because he let his guard down. Once Yumichika notes that 11th Division 3rd Seat Ikkaku Madarame is currently monitoring Karakura Town, Rangiku reveals that she has been wondering about something potentially related to the appearances of the Arrancar clones, which Hitsugaya decides to hear her out on.

The Mystery of Yui
With Shōta and Yui standing silently against the wall, Rangiku details how the date and time of Yui's confrontation with the Arrancar clone means that there is a high probability of her being the first Soul that the Cloning Arrancar encountered. However, Rangiku is unable to tell an inquisitive Yumichika of how Yui survived since it does not even seem like the latter remembers this event. While Yui apologizes for this, Yumichika asks Hitsugaya what he thinks, but Hitsugaya remains unresponsive and continues staring at Yui, to Rangiku's confusion, before realizing what is going on and telling the others that he has figured something out.

Affirming to Yumichika that it has something to do with the matter at hand, Hitsugaya relays the Arrancar clones' ability to transform into Human Souls, which allows them to conceal their Reiatsu and escape the notice of Soul Society so they can approach other Souls in this guise and absorb their Reiryoku in order to multiply further. As he elaborates that the Arrancar clones can absorb many souls at once and gather an incredible amount of power in a short period of time by duplicating themselves, a shocked Rangiku deduces that this means Yui might be a disguised Arrancar clone, prompting a protective Shōta to insist that Yui has nothing to do with this.

With an apologetic Rangiku asserting that they have to proceed carefully since they do not know this for certain, Hitsugaya stands up and draws his Zanpakutō prior to sidestepping Shōta when the latter rushes toward him. However, Hitsugaya simply presses the hilt of his Zanpakutō against Yui's forehead and attempts to perform Konsō, only for the light to fade without anything happening to Yui, to the astonishment of Rangiku. While Shōta rushes over to Yui, who tearfully tells him that she does not know what is going on, Hitsugaya sheathes his Zanpakutō and determines that the Cloning Arrancar has definitely done something to Yui.

Hitsugaya concludes that they do not know when Yui will show her true form and that she is definitely dangerous before instructing the others to have Soul Society examine Yui's Reiatsu immediately. Some time later, in the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, Ukitake and Akon stand behind Rin Tsubokura in front of the Seireitei's monitor as Akon informs Hitsugaya, who is sitting in front of the monitor in Orihime's apartment, that they now have all the necessary Reishi samples, leading Hitsugaya to request that they hurry while Yumichika types on a computer that has several cables hooked up to Yui.

With Rangiku adjusting a monitoring headband onto Yui's head, Akon admits that he never expected the Arrancar clones to become the Souls that they consume, which prompts Ukitake to muse that they are increasing their power this way and waiting for the right time to come, though Hitsugaya vows that they will find and destroy the Cloning Arrancar himself before this happens. Once Ukitake acknowledges this, Akon promises to contact Hitsugaya as soon as he gets the results from the analysis and ends the transmission, leaving Hitsugaya to declare that he is going to have Yui stay within a Kidō barrier until they get those results.

Though Shōta protests this because of how sorry he feels for Yui, Rangiku reminds him that this is for Yui's own protection due to the Cloning Arrancar having done something to her or possibly even pursuing her right now, which means that this is a way they can protect her. After concluding that the Cloning Arrancar cannot get to her while she is within the barrier, Rangiku assures Shōta and Yui that they will defeat the Cloning Arrancar in the meantime and asks them to believe in the Shinigami. When Rangiku asks her to endure this for a little while, Yui states that she is a bit scared, to Shōta's concern and Rangiku's sympathy.

Suddenly, Rangiku has an idea and gives the ocarina necklace that she was wearing around her neck to Yui, who is delighted even though Rangiku admits that it is not quite the same as the one that she had before she died. With Yui now agreeing to stay inside the barrier and Shōta reluctantly going along with her, Rangiku thanks her as Yumichika gets up and announces that he is going to trade places with Ikkaku, only for Hitsugaya to assert that he will trade off with Ikkaku instead and order Yumichika to go to the Urahara Shop so he can inform Renji of the situation while Rangiku looks after Shōta and Yui.

As Shōta watches them intently, Hitsugaya warns the others to not let their guard down because they do not know what the Cloning Arrancar is planning. Outside, the Cloning Arrancar appears in a cloud of black miasma once more and chuckles before observing that his power is almost at its peak. The next day, Shōta sits outside the Kyōmon set up by Hitsugaya and watches Yui sleep inside while recalling their search for their parents across Karakura Town following their deaths. When Yui awakens and sits up in her bed, Shōta asks her if she slept well, which leads Yui to confirm this prior to expressing a desire to go outside.

In turn, Shōta admits that he cannot let Yui out even though he wants to, and with Yui wanting to see their parents, Shōta begins to sadly tell her that this is not likely to happen. Suddenly, Yui asserts that it is alright and that she can get out of here with his help, to Shōta's confusion. Standing up, Yui has Shōta do the same and walks over to the Kyōmon, which she places her hand against with a request for Shōta to do the same. Once Shōta places his hand on the other side of the Kyōmon in the same place Yui's hand is, he is startled to see the barrier dissolve outward from the point of contact and wonders what this is.

With Yui inviting Shōta to come with her, Akon approaches his technicians in the Shinigami Research and Development Institute and inquires about their findings, which prompts Hiyosu to invite Akon over to his terminal and see the composition of Yui's Soul matches their suspicions. Back in Orihime's apartment, Rangiku drops her bag of groceries in shock upon seeing that Shōta and Yui are missing from the monitor room and questions where they could have gone. After Hitsugaya enters and asks her about what is wrong, Rangiku alerts him to the Kyōmon disappearing, leading Hitsugaya to examine Yui's bed and note there are still Reiatsu traces present.

When Hitsugaya wonders how the Kyōmon was broken, Rangiku theorizes that Shōta and Yui did it, though Hitsugaya admits that he is not sure, and asserts that they need to look for the children prior to the monitor flickering on to display Ukitake and Akon. After Ukitake informs them that he has the test results they requested, Hitsugaya tells Rangiku to go out and look for Shōta and Yui while he hears what Akon has to say and joins her afterward. While Rangiku acknowledges this and runs off, Akon reveals that Yui is a clone created by the Cloning Arrancar, to Hitsugaya's disbelief, and that she must have had strong Reiryoku as a Human.

Akon elaborates that this began when the Cloning Arrancar encountered Yui as a Hollow and absorbed her Reiryoku by chance, explosively boosting his own power and giving him the ability to create self-replicating clones that could amass more power for his main body, which he did in a short amount of time by consuming a large number of Souls. Despite Hitsugaya pointing out how Yui seemed to be moving of her own accord, Akon counters this and asserts the Cloning Arrancar is controlling her, meaning there is a high probability of her personality being an act, before concluding alongside Hitsugaya that destroying the Cloning Arrancar will cause her to disappear.

Simultaneously, Yui leads Shōta to the park that Ulquiorra Cifer and Yammy Llargo crashed down into weeks ago, where Shōta asks Yui where they are going, only for Yui to slyly smile and tell him to follow her, which Shōta reluctantly complies with. Back at the apartment, Hitsugaya questions if Shōta has high Reiryoku like Yui does, Akon muses that there is a possibility of relatives having the same level of Reiryoku, which allows Hitsugaya to deduce that Yui used Shōta's power to break the Kyōmon and that the Cloning Arrancar is after Shōta's Reiryoku. Elsewhere in Karakura Town, Rangiku leaps between several rooftops and wonders where Shōta went.

Upon seeing Shōta and Yui in the park below from the top of a telephone pole, a startled Rangiku moves down and calls out to them as she questions how they broke the Kyōmon. In response, Shōta scoffs and claims that it was easy to dissolve the barrier, and when Rangiku begs him to come back instead of going any further, Yui tersely tells her to not interfere and begins emanating flame-like red Reiatsu, to Rangiku's surprise, prior to turning around with red eyes. With Shōta unnerved and Rangiku wondering what this Reiatsu is, Yui's Reiatsu intensifies in strength and creates a powerful wind that sends Shōta and Rangiku flying back.

Several growling Arrancar clones begin appearing around Shōta and Yui while Ikkaku senses what is happening from atop a building and leaps into the air in excitement, with Yumichika musing that they seem to be prepared and leaping down to the ground below from a railing. As Hitsugaya races across Karakura Town with Shunpo, Yui invites a hesitant Shōta to come to her, though Rangiku warns him against doing so, and the eerie whistle-like melody begins to play, causing Shōta to begin walking toward Yui against his will, to his shock. When Rangiku rushes toward him in turn, one of the Arrancar clones attempts to strike her, but Rangiku leaps into the air.

Drawing her Zanpakutō after evading the Arrancar clone's attack, Rangiku comes down on it with a slash that cuts him in half and begins running toward Shōta. While Rangiku cuts two more Arrancar clones in half with separate slashes and calls out to him, Shōta continues approaching Yui, and when a fourth Arrancar clone lunges toward her in midair after she leaps toward Shōta, Rangiku steps on his head and jumps over his body, only for the Arrancar clone to whip its tail around and strike her in the back with enough force to send her flying across the park away from Shōta, though she manages to recover and land on her feet following a long slide.

Suddenly, as Shōta frantically and repeatedly calls out to her, Yui's eyes change from red to her normal blue and her Reiatsu aura fades, resulting in Shōta falling back and collapsing. A swearing Yui begins trembling and addresses Shōta while the Reiatsu aura briefly appears and disappears around her. With a concerned Shōta inquiring about what is wrong, Yui tearfully demands that he not come any closer and screams in pain before becoming engulfed in a surge of red Reiatsu that fills the air above her. Nearby, Rangiku is startled by this, only to find an Arrancar clone poised to attack her and slash through it in turn.

Final Confrontation
After running forward and destroying another Arrancar clone with a second swing, Rangiku stops and releases Haineko, turning the blade into a cloud of ash that obliterates a third Arrancar clone and moves past Yui, who ducks instinctively and is blown forward by an explosion of force from behind while her Reiatsu stops surging. With a concerned Shōta running to Yui's side to make sure she is okay, Rangiku sees the dust cloud behind Yui clearing to reveal the massive Cloning Arrancar, who glares down at Shōta. Suddenly, Yui panics and shoves Shōta back right before the Cloning Arrancar slams his hand into where Shōta was standing.

As the cursing Cloning Arrancar withdraws his hand, leaving a sizable crater behind, Yui begs Shōta to run away, but Shōta refuses to abandon her ever again, and while the Cloning Arrancar roars behind Yui, Rangiku realizes that he is the main body. Tears form in Yui's eyes and slide down her cheeks to her chin as she expresses relief that the Cloning Arrancar did not devour Shōta, who is confused and reiterates that he is going to protect her, before telling him that it is too late and screaming in pain when her red Reiatsu begins surging once more, forcing Shōta to the ground and leaving him shocked at his inability to move his body against its pressure.

Behind Yui, the Cloning Arrancar admits that he never expected Yui to still have the will to defy him, only to declare that it ends here while his eyes glow white and an Arrancar clone bloodily bursts out of the body of Yui, who disappears within his mouth prior to him leaping into the air alongside the other Arrancar clones in the park and turning into red energy that enters the body of the Cloning Arrancar. With Shōta collapsing in despair at Yui being lost, the Cloning Arrancar reaches for him, prompting Rangiku to move between them and fire '''Hadō #4. Byakurai''' through the center of the startled Cloning Arrancar's chest.

As the Cloning Arrancar reels back, Rangiku kneels at Shōta's side and tells him to focus, and when a stunned Shōta tells her that Yui was absorbed, Rangiku furiously acknowledges this and refuses to forgive the Cloning Arrancar, who grasps his own Zanpakutō and laughs at this since he has become so powerful after consuming Yui prior to drawing and slashing his Zanpakutō through the ground between them, creating a strong wind that prompts Rangiku to shield Shōta with her own body. Proclaiming that Shinigami are nothing compared to the power he has stored up, the Cloning Arrancar brings his Zanpakutō down onto Rangiku in a powerful slash.

However, Rangiku easily blocks the slash by bracing her right sword-wielding arm with her left hand and calmly pushes the massive Zanpakutō upward with her own, shocking the Cloning Arrancar while she demands to know if he does not know who she is and exerts her own white Reiatsu in a tall column that forces the Cloning Arrancar to disengage and leap back. Once Rangiku introduces herself and instructs him to not underestimate her, the Cloning Arrancar expresses appreciation for her being a lieutenant because he now looks forward to consuming her before the two of them leap high into the air and begin repeatedly clashing with their Zanpakutō.

When the Cloning Arrancar performs a wide horizontal slash, Rangiku leaps over him, criticizes his slow speed, and cuts open the back of his right shoulder, which leads the annoyed Cloning Arrancar to turn around and slash at her again. Evading this with Shunpo, Rangiku reappears above the Cloning Arrancar and comes down on him with a strike that generates blue electricity-like energy when the Cloning Arrancar blocks it and ultimately creates a shockwave that sends him crashing into and sliding along the ground below. With Rangiku attempting to finish him off with Haineko, the Cloning Arrancar generates three Arrancar clones from his blade.

Rangiku's initial movement of Haineko destroys the first three Arrancar clones, but she is forced to dodge the subsequent three Arrancar clones with Shunpo and returns the ash of Haineko to her Zanpakutō's hilt in order to reform the blade, where she discovers that the Cloning Arrancar has disappeared. Upon seeing the three Arrancar clones chasing down Shōta below, Rangiku attempts to move down and help him, but is forced to block a powerful surprise attack from the Cloning Arrancar that sends her flying back through the air. Once she regains her footing, Rangiku finds the Cloning Arrancar moving to her and rapidly slashing with his Zanpakutō.

As Rangiku stands in place and holds up her Zanpakutō with both hands to withstand this barrage, the cackling Cloning Arrancar concludes his attack with a downward strike that breaks through Rangiku's defense and pushes her back with a wound on her right arm. Though battered by this, Rangiku responds to the Cloning Arrancar questioning whether he should consume her or Shōta first by declaring that she is not done prior to Hitsugaya telling her to step aside and falling onto the Cloning Arrancar from much higher in the air while releasing Hyōrinmaru to create an ice dragon that crashes into the Arrancar clones.

With the ice dragon freezing the Arrancar clones solid on impact, the shocked Cloning Arrancar finds a second ice dragon slamming into him from the side and biting into his left arm as it pushes him through the ground below in a surge of ice. At Hitsugaya's urging, Rangiku joins Shōta on the ground and hugs him while Hitsugaya lands nearby and notes that the Cloning Arrancar is breaking free of the ice. After shattering the ice encasing him with a flex of his body, the yelling Cloning Arrancar glares at Hitsugaya with part of his mask damaged and demands to know who he is, only to be further astonished when Hitsugaya identifies himself as a captain.

Hitsugaya deduces from the Cloning Arrancar not knowing that the Shinigami Strike Force was in the Human World that he is not working for Sōsuke Aizen and must have become an Arrancar naturally from absorbing a Human's Reiryoku prior to Rangiku declaring that this is it for the panicking Cloning Arrancar, who inquires if they are alright with this since his death will mean Yui disappearing as well, mortifying Shōta. Despite this, Hitsugaya merely observes that this matches the results of the testing performed by the Shinigami Research and Development Institute and begins to assert that such threats will not work against them.

Suddenly, Shōta runs in front of Hitsugaya and Rangiku with his arms outspread and begs them to stop due to Yui still being alive and able to speak. Though Hitsugaya states that he cannot weigh one Soul on the same scale as all of Karakura Town, he is startled when Shōta rushes forward and restrains his sword arm, giving the amused Cloning Arrancar enough time to leap back into the air while Hitsugaya throws Shōta to the ground and follows the Cloning Arrancar into the sky. Before Hitsugaya can slash him, the Cloning Arrancar disappears into a cloud of black miasma, leaving Hitsugaya to attack empty air, and chuckles maliciously.

After mocking Hitsugaya for wasting his best chance at victory, to the former's confusion, the Cloning Arrancar explains how he cannot be found as long as he is within the pocket dimension accessed through the miasma, but is still able to conceal his Reiatsu, attack Souls, and create as many Arrancar clones as he wants to. With the Cloning Arrancar demonstrating this by creating hundreds of Arrancar clones in the air around Hitsugaya, Ikkaku and 5th Seat Yumichika join Hitsugaya in the air with their respective Shikai, Hōzukimaru and Fuji Kujaku, already released and held in battle stances in front of them.

While Ikkaku expresses surprise at how many Arrancar clones there are and Yumichika muses on this being the reason they kept appearing no matter how many fell, the Cloning Arrancar boasts that his duplication speed becomes 16 times faster each day, something they took too long to realize, and that it will be impossible to prevent him from creating more Arrancar clones with this many already in existence before noting that he will have to start consuming Humans soon now that he has devoured most of the Souls in this town and having the Arrancar clones turn around to leap outward toward different areas of Karakura Town surrounding the park below.

Though Ikkaku attempts to follow them, Hitsugaya stops him and points out how they will never end this by cutting down all the Arrancar clones, only for Ikkaku to counter that they cannot be left alone, to Hitsugaya's surprise, and remind him that the Eleventh Division is a battle squad, leaving them better suited for crushing the Arrancar clones until they run out of Reiryoku rather than formulating battle strategies. Once Yumichika concludes that he can think of a way to deal with them in the meantime, Hitsugaya agrees to let them go to the city, prompting Ikkaku and Yumichika to leap away as Hitsugaya descends to the park below.

With Shōta sobbing on his hands and knees nearby, Hitsugaya contacts the Shinigami Research and Development Institute to inform 12th Division 3rd Seat Akon of the Cloning Arrancar being found and managing to escape. Akon asserts that they are tracking him right now when Hitsugaya inquires about the possibility of doing so, but Hiyosu angrily slams his hand on his keyboard after a negative sound plays from his monitor and reveals that they are unable to track the Cloning Arrancar, with the technicians next to him admitting that he cannot provide support and that the team has lost sight of the Cloning Arrancar with no sign of any distortions.

However, before a cursing Akon can apologize to Hitsugaya, Rin Tsubokura is alarmed by something on his own monitor and tells the others he has pinpointed the origin point of the whistle-like melody used by the Cloning Arrancar to control Souls. When pressed for clarification on this by Akon, Rin elaborates that the Cloning Arrancar himself produces the melody and the Arrancar clones simply act as speakers, creating a bond similar to a wireless connection between the two that is likely also the method by which Reiryoku is transferred from the Arrancar clones to him, meaning they can find the Cloning Arrancar by looking at the distribution of the Arrancar clones.

As Rin meekly concludes his explanation by wondering if he is correct, Akon, Hiyosu, and the other technicians immediately return to their own monitors and begin typing rapidly to have their systems analyze the distribution of Reiatsu in the area, resulting in their screens displaying the locations of all the Arrancar clones, prior to ordering Rin to send the coordinate data to Hitsugaya. Back in the park, Hitsugaya closes his Denreishinki and looks at Shōta, who stands while Rangiku places her hands on his shoulders and informs him that the Arrancar whom they are fighting were originally Hollows, who are fallen Souls.

Rangiku details how Souls who still have attachments to the world after death become corrupted and lose their hearts, enabling their transformation into Hollows, before noting that Shinigami exist to save Hollows in addition to Souls by cleansing Hollows of their sins with a cut from a Zanpakutō and sending them to Soul Society, which is necessary in order for them to be born anew. Admitting that they could not protect Yui, Rangiku proclaims that they can still save Yui's Soul, and with Shōta touched by this, Rangiku asserts that it is his turn now and pulls out her sheathed Zanpakutō to set down sheath-first before Shōta.

While telling Shōta to hold on tight, Rangiku concludes that they will save Yui's Soul together, leading Shōta to nod and grasp Rangiku's Zanpakutō by the handle as Hitsugaya asks them if they are done talking and states that they will be moving out. Elsewhere, an Arrancar clone duplicates itself and roars alongside its clone before a grinning Ikkaku slashes through it with Hōzukimaru and destroys three more Arrancar clones behind him with a spinning horizontal slash. Nearby, a smiling Yumichika evades strikes from an Arrancar clone and dodges the lunge of a second while noting that they will not be able to hit him with such moves.

With the two Arrancar clones being wounded and destroyed by Yumichika's subtle counterattacks, several more Arrancar clones approach the Urahara Shop and are confronted by Renji, who presumes they are the multiplying Arrancar and exits his Gigai in order to cut down one with his Shikai, Zabimaru, though he is alarmed by the crowd of Arrancar clones before him as Ginnosuke takes control of his Gigai and claims that his chores will have to wait, leading Renji to reprimand him for trying to slack off. Simultaneously, Rangiku carries Shōta across the rooftops of Karakura Town with Hitsugaya.

In the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, Rin observes that he was right about the Arrancar clones not being spread out across too wide of an area and that calculating the location of their source by analyzing the distribution of the Arrancar clones' appearances points to the eastern part of Karakura Town near the river. Back in Karakura Town, with Shōta still on her back, Rangiku runs along the riverbank with Hitsugaya and wonders how they are supposed to find the Cloning Arrancar. In response, Hitsugaya relays Akon's explanation that the Cloning Arrancar is just concealing his Reiatsu since he still needs to communicate with the clones.

Having been told by Akon that there is consequently no possibility of the Cloning Arrancar hiding in a realm completely cut off from the Human World like Hueco Mundo, Hitsugaya theorizes that he is hiding within a special barrier, which they should be able to break by blasting it with their Reiatsu. Though Rangiku offers to do this, Hitsugaya asserts that he will instead since they need a proportional amount of Reiatsu to pry the Cloning Arrancar out of his protective space, meaning that Rangiku and Shōta will be dealing with him when he emerges. With Rangiku affirming this, Hitsugaya activates his Bankai, Daiguren Hyōrinmaru.

After flying underneath the bridge ahead and skimming the surface of the river, Hitsugaya surges upward, creating a waterspout from the river and freezing the surrounding water and grass on the adjoining banks solid while the sky darkens and his Reiatsu surges. Nearby, the Cloning Arrancar peers out of a cloud of black miasma in alarm at what is going on and realizes it is Hitsugaya who has come this far, but he mocks the latter as not being able to hit him by exerting his Reiatsu so recklessly. While the waterspout continues to spiral into the sky and one of the petals behind Hitsugaya begins to crack, Renji slays another Arrancar clone.

Upon noticing the waterspout in the distance, Renji recognizes Hitsugaya's Reiatsu and questions what he is doing prior to shoving Zabimaru into the chest of an approaching Arrancar clone and lamenting how there seems to be no end to their forces. Inside the waterspout, Hitsugaya continues exerting himself and watches the petals of his Bankai disintegrate as he sweats. In the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, Rin asks Akon if Hitsugaya will be alright, only for Akon to muse that Hitsugaya should have applied for a Gentei Kaijo. Back in Karakura Town, Hitsugaya lets the waterspout disperse and pants heavily.

With Rangiku expressing concern for Hitsugaya, Shōta runs to the edge of the ice formation on the ground and repeatedly calls out to Yui while Hitsugaya summons another waterspout and begins exerting his Reiatsu with a yell once more. Inside the pocket dimension, the Cloning Arrancar berates Hitsugaya for doing this again and claims that it is useless to try to destroy his space with Reiatsu even if the latter is a captain. Suddenly, the Cloning Arrancar is startled by the sound of an ocarina playing within the pocket dimension and demands to know what it is as Rangiku and Shōta realize that it is Yui when they hear it outside.

The Cloning Arrancar wonders how this can be possible when he should have completely absorbed Yui while Rangiku asks Shōta if he knows where the sound is coming from, which leads Shōta to walk toward the waterspout and point to a spot in the air to the right of it. After being notified of this by Rangiku, a roaring Hitsugaya summons another ice dragon and sends it crashing into the air in front of him, with the resulting cloud of frozen air rolling off an invisible surface, to Rangiku and Shōta's surprise. In the aftermath, the Cloning Arrancar stands in midair and draws his Zanpakutō in a crackle of red electricity-like Reiatsu around his sheath.

As a smiling Hitsugaya observes that he has been discovered, the infuriated Cloning Arrancar refuses to forgive him for this and activates his Resurrección, Dientes, transforming his arms into long and wide pads with sharp teeth jutting out of them while gaining a massive tail jutting out of a large mouth emblazoned with the upper half of his mask that is floating behind his back. When Hitsugaya rushes forward with his Zanpakutō, the Cloning Arrancar blocks the strike by arching tail over and in front of his body and emerges from the clash unscathed, prompting him to inquire about whether this is the best that Hitsugaya can do.

With a cursing Hitsugaya realizing that he released too much of his Reiatsu, the Cloning Arrancar attempts to slam his long tail into the former, only for Hitsugaya to evade at the last second with Shunpo and decide to finish this all at once before initiating Ryūsenka and flying toward the Cloning Arrancar, who responds by sending his mouthed tail to meet Hitsugaya in midair, resulting in an explosion of bright light. Following this, Hitsugaya comes to a halt in midair as the Cloning Arrancar boasts that his Hierro is equivalent to that of an Espada, only for Hitsugaya to note that this just means the attack did not harm him.

At Hitsugaya's suggestion, the Cloning Arrancar looks up and is shocked to see his mouthed tail encased in an enormous cross of ice that proceeds to shatter, raining frozen shards around him and Hitsugaya. Frightened and confused by this, the Cloning Arrancar drops down into the frozen river below in an attempt to escape, but quickly finds himself stuck in the ice that grows over and encases his lower body, which leads Hitsugaya to order Rangiku to finish him off. Acknowledging this, Rangiku has Shōta grip the handle of her Zanpakutō once more so he can save Yui and leaps high into the air above the Cloning Arrancar, who refuses to be defeated.

However, the Cloning Arrancar finds himself immobilized further when the sound of Yui's ocarina begins playing once more, and as Shōta sees that Yui's first ocarina is embedded on one of the Cloning Arrancar's hair strands, with Yui's spirit briefly appearing over it to smile at him, he and Rangiku pierce the Cloning Arrancar's head with Rangiku's Zanpakutō, causing a large fountain of blood to gush out while the Cloning Arrancar screams and disintegrates, with all the Souls that he consumed rising into the sky to pass over to Soul Society and the Arrancar Clones around Karakura Town vanishing after turning blue, to the confusion of Ikkaku and Yumichika.

Aftermath
On the roof of the Urahara Shop, Renji and Jinta Hanakari, who is wielding his Muteki Tekkon, stop fighting the Arrancar clones as they disappear as well, with Ginnosuke commenting on this in response to Renji wondering what happened. Back at the river, Rangiku watches the Souls disappear into the sky and looks down to see Shōta digging through the ground in front of her with his hands while Hitsugaya lands behind her. Upon finding Yui's ocarina, Shōta sniffles and gets to his feet while asking Rangiku for confirmation that Yui went to Soul Society and can thus be reborn, which a smiling Rangiku readily confirms and vows to be true.

Pleased by this, Shōta asserts that he has to follow Yui right away, and with Rangiku agreeing, the two approach each other, where Shōta tearfully admits that saying farewell hurts. After hugging Shōta, Rangiku performs Konsō on him and watches the accompanying Jigokuchō fly away alongside Hitsugaya.