Battle against Ryō Utagawa

The  is a battle taking place during the Bount Invasion, consisting of Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends facing off against Ryō Utagawa after discovering the latter devouring living Humans in Karakura Town.

Prelude
After Kisuke Urahara briefs Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends on the threat posed by the Bount, Kurōdo and Noba, two Modified Souls with Bount-detecting capabilities, sense Ryō Utagawa in Karakura Town and alert Orihime Inoue and Yasutora Sado to his presence, prompting them to depart. Shortly afterward, Orihime and Sado stand outside a deserted factory as Orihime asks Kurōdo if the Bount is here, which prompts him to warn her and Sado to be careful since the Bount may be nearby. Suddenly, Noba hops down from Sado's shoulder and runs into one of the warehouses, where the curious Orihime and Sado follow.

Upon joining Noba, who raises his arm to stop their advance, Orihime and Sado see a man in a suit and tie slumped over against the far wall who disintegrates into dust from the head down, causing his clothes to fall down in a heap onto the resulting mound of dust. As Orihime, Sado, Kon, Noba, and Kurōdo approach the remains, Kurōdo notes that they were too late while Orihime admits that she did not think someone could disappear without leaving a trace like this before they see a man's shadow moving next to their own and turn around to see Ryō Utagawa standing on a walkway above. After glaring down at Orihime, Sado, and the Mod-Souls, Ryō greets them.

Pointing up at Ryō with his left ear, Kurōdo demands to know if this is his doing, only for Ryō to claim that he was simply finishing up a meal. When an angered Kurōdo tells him to stop joking, Ryō asserts that he would never do something so rude and that he always pays his respects to his food in order to convey how grateful he is for it. Though he observes that Orihime, Sado, and the Mod-Souls seem very tasty, Ryō casually states that he is full for the day and bids them farewell before leaping down to the ground outside while Sado tells him to wait. Kurōdo observes that he is a different Bount than the one Yoruichi encountered since she was a woman as Noba lets the dust run through his hand.

After Orihime and Sado meet up with Ichigo, who had just encountered Utagawa and his Doll, Fried, he brings them and Rukia Kuchiki, who has just returned to Karakura Town, to his house under the pretense of studying for an upcoming test. While Yuzu Kurosaki welcomes them, the three walk past a stunned Isshin Kurosaki and Ichigo, who orders Isshin to not try to come into his room even if he is bringing snacks. Suddenly, Isshin grabs Ichigo by the collar and throws him against the wall at the other end of the hallway. While Yuzu expresses concern for a bewildered Ichigo, a laughing Isshin asserts that Ichigo did not feel pain from this because this is a dream.

Though Isshin concludes that this would be like multiple holidays occurring on the same day, Ichigo angrily kicks him in the back and demands to know if this feels real to Isshin. Shortly afterward, Ichigo sits with his friends in his bedroom and sees Kon dreaming about Rukia on his bed, prompting him to wonder how he can be so carefree. Dismissing this as she sits on the bed next to Orihime and Kurōdo, Rukia wonders what they will be doing now. Ichigo observes that there is no guarantee that the Bount will be willing to talk with them even if they can be found by the Mod-Souls or that they can be captured if fought, which Sado affirms as he sits nearby with Noba.

With Rukia asserting that the problem posed by the Bount is their strange powers and trickery, Kurōdo concurs and points out how their powers seem to be various and unique to each of them just like those of Ichigo and his friends, which prompts Ichigo to recall how he was unable to harm Goethe with his attacks and admit that he is not sure what the power of Fried is. However, Orihime reminds him that someone else will have their Soul devoured if they do not do something, and as he and his friends agree that they will simply have to find a way to fight the Bount, Ichigo asks Rukia if Soul Society knows anything about the Bount and posits that this is why she was sent here tonight.

Rukia reveals that she was not told anything and that tonight's encounter was the first she had ever heard of the Bount, which came as a surprise. While Ichigo acknowledges this, Rukia's Denreishinki begins beeping, leading her to pick it up and answer it. On the other end, 6th Division Lieutenant Renji Abarai expresses shock and excitement at Rukia actually being in the Human World, which he was informed of by his captain, Byakuya Kuchiki, and promises to come over right away despite Rukia's protests before crashing through a window on the first floor of the house and subduing Isshin with a partial Gedo Clutch pin when the latter accosts him.

With Yuzu staring in fright at this and Ichigo and his friends having entered the room to stare in astonishment, Renji looks up from Isshin and greets Rukia. A few minutes later, Renji sits against the closet with Ichigo and his friends in the latter's bedroom as Ichigo attempts to resume the discussion from where they left off, only for a bored Renji to yawn loudly. Irritated by this, Ichigo clears his throat and concludes that the Bount are a threat despite the mystery of their powers and objectives, but Renji simply questions if he is an idiot and claims that anyone who can battle someone else and learn nothing in the process must be an idiot, further angering Ichigo.

When Ichigo counters that he does not want to be told this by a fool who would break a window in order to enter a house, Renji demands that he stop trying too dodge the subject, but Ichigo refutes that he is doing so as he and Renji begin arguing. Behind them, Rukia ponders the situation and states that something is odd. With Orihime and Sado requesting clarification, Rukia details how a single Shinigami is normally assigned for every 50,000 Humans in a given area and points to her, Ichigo, and Renji all being here as likely being a response to the problem of the Bount. While Orihime and Sado affirm this, Ichigo stops fighting with Renji to wonder what they will do tomorrow.

In response, Rukia simply states that they have no other choice. The next day, at Karakura High School, Rukia stands beside Orihime in a school uniform and greets Keigo Asano and Mizuiro Kojima in their classroom, prompting Keigo to return the greeting as Mizuiro praises Rukia for looking as pretty as ever. Suddenly, Chizuru Honshō leaps toward Rukia and attempts to wrap her arms around the latter while calling Rukia the object of her affections. Upon being grabbed by the collar by Tatsuki Arisawa, who questions this, Chizuru asserts that she has missed Rukia's serenity despite seeing her and Orihime's chests every day, which Rukia decides to take as a compliment.

Watching this in stunned silence, Ichigo loudly pulls Rukia outside and demands to know why she and the other students are acting like they parted yesterday and met once again this morning, prompting Rukia to affirm that this is exactly what happened in their minds as she pulls out a Kikanshinki Deluxe and reveals that it has the power to freely alter memories, which has allowed her to make the students believe she is a recent transfer student who has only just begun to adjust to the class. As an exasperated Ichigo notes that this means anything goes now, a startled Uryū Ishida approaches them and asks Rukia why she is back at the school.

When Keigo opens the classroom door with Mizuiro and inquires about what is wrong, Uryū adjusts his glasses and claims that it is nothing while Ichigo admits that he forgot to tell Uryū about this. At lunchtime, Orihime brings out a tray of French onigiri filled with custard and assures her friends that there is enough for all of them, though Tatsuki declines due to being on a diet. After taking one of the onigiri and biting into it, Rukia informs Orihime that they are delicious and praises how the custard is squeezed out between the grains of rice. A few meters away near the fence, Ichigo sits against a tree as Keigo marvels at Mizuiro's tickets for Don Kanonji's next broadcast recording.

With Keigo deciding to take Mizuiro's offered tickets and go since the recording is open to the public, Mizuiro thanks him for this because he cannot go himself with the date he has planned for the same day, prompting Keigo to scoff at him before asking Sado if he is going as well since this will allow them to have fun together. As his friends continue chatting, Ichigo looks at them and leans further back against the tree as he observes that it is like the events of their battle to save Rukia in Soul Society never happened. Suddenly, Ririn pops out of Ichigo's shirt pocket and admonishes him for this because one of the Bount is here, shocking him and his friends.

Ichigo, Rukia, Orihime, and Sado begin running off together as Ichigo tells his other friends that he forgot something and will be back. While Keigo is left aghast at Rukia and Orihime accompanying Ichigo in addition to Sado, Ichigo tells Uryū to not exert himself when the latter attempts to follow his friends and Rukia bids them all farewell, leaving Keigo to frantically wonder why they are being left behind, only to become irritated when Mizuiro claims that it is likely due to Keigo being himself as Tatsuki expresses concern for Orihime. Soon afterward, Ichigo and his friends run through downtown Karakura Town, with Ichigo in his Shinigami form, as he asks Ririn where they are headed.

Upon being asked by Ichigo which Bount it is, Ririn concentrates for a few seconds and determines that it is Utagawa. Though Ichigo presumes that the Bount only become active after nightfall, a laughing Kurōdo admits that this must not be true since their detection ability is very accurate. At a nearby supermarket, 4th Division 7th Seat Hanatarō Yamada, now wearing Human clothes, is surprised by his money not being accepted, and as he assumes that Hanatarō is trying to make a fool of him, the store owner throws him out the door and onto the sidewalk, where Hanatarō lays on the pavement with his kan and compares the owner to the men in the Eleventh Division.

However, Hanatarō is forced to duck down and shield his head when Ichigo and his friends run down the street and leap over him, leaving Hanatarō to call out to Ichigo in astonishment as he disappears into the distance. Ichigo notes that Hanatarō seemed familiar somehow, but is urged by Ririn to pay attention, which he acknowledges. Elsewhere, in a parking lot, a truck worker's body crumbles to ash, leaving his clothes sprawled across the ground, as Utagawa restrains a woman in a dress and sun hat as he assures her that her body will not feel any pain. Suddenly, Ichigo demands that Utagawa wait and enters the parking lot with his friends while expressing anger at the sight.

Calling this rude, an irritated Utagawa lets go of the woman, who faints and collapses. When Ichigo declares that he has some questions for him, Utagawa permits him to inquire, and upon being asked by Ichigo if he is a Bount, a smiling Utagawa confirms this. Despite this, when asked about what happened to Yoshino, what his objective is, and if he has a plan which he cannot talk about, Utagawa declines to comment and in turn asks Ichigo if he knows whether a Human Soul or a Shinigami Soul is tastier as he licks his lips. Further angered by this, Ichigo puts his hand on the handle of Zangetsu, prompting Utagawa to hold out his pocket watch and summon Fried.

Battle
The chain on the pocket watch rapidly lengths and thickens before lashing into the ground multiple times, forcing Ichigo and his friends to evade it as it leaves gouges in the concrete. With Ichigo questioning if Utagawa's ability consists of this strange whip as he assumes a battle stance with Zangetsu, Utagawa clarifies that this is only the beginning and continues to whip the chain around him before it fully transforms into Fried, whom Utagawa expresses slight surprise at being ready so soon. Upon being told by Fried that her summoning was easy this time, Utagawa orders her to show Ichigo and his friends her strength, which she affirms.

As the eyes of Fried glow red, the gouges in the concrete begin emitting blue energy, leading Uryū to warn his friends to watch the ground as he reaches the parking lot. When the energy emission intensifies, Ichigo and his friends retreat to where Uryū is standing and watch in disbelief as gray snakes begin rising out of the gouges. Revealing that Utagawa's direct attack was a trick and that he was laying a trap while seeming to pursue Ichigo and his friends, Uryū theorizes that Fried turns everything it touches into snakes. However, Fried denies this and elaborates that everything Utagawa focuses his mind on can be turned into a snake.

To demonstrate, Fried turns the strap holding Kurōdo on Orihime's shoulder into another gray snake, which falls to the ground and hisses at Kurōdo while the latter panics due to his fear of snakes. Suddenly, Noba kicks the snake off of Kurōdo and Ririn instructs him to flee with them instead of babble, which Kurōdo complies with. With Fried turning ropes, hoses, and other nearby objects into snakes that slither toward him and his friends, Ichigo fends them off with Zangetsu and Sado punches two away with his Fullbring, Brazo Derecha de Gigante, while Orihime repels two more with Santen Kesshun, causing them to return to their original forms of rope and rocks.

While Uryū evades two other snakes and moves next to the truck parked at the loading bay, Utagawa questions if he cannot do anything to fight back, and as a startled Uryū falls on his rear and looks up, an unimpressed Utagawa looks him over and realizes who he is, which leads him to comment on how unexpected it is to run into Uryū here as he attempts to bind him with Fried, only for Ichigo to move between them and deflect Fried with Zangetsu as he tells Utagawa to leave Uryū alone. Refusing to do so, Utagawa points out how Uryū is the weakest and most defenseless of the group and reminds Ichigo that taking advantage of another's weakness is an established tactic.

Additionally, Utagawa asserts that he would like to find out what a Quincy's Soul tastes like, leaving Uryū disgusted. While Ichigo, Rukia, and Uryū face down Utagawa and the snakes produced by Fried, from the front of the parking lot, Orihime and Sado run around the two trucks flanking Utagawa and crouch behind him, prompting a smirking Utagawa to claim that a five-against-one battle seems cowardly. However, Ichigo simply tells him to shut up and instructs Uryū to stay close. At Utagawa's command, Fried forms more snakes out of the gouges in the concrete, and when Ichigo moves to attack, Utagawa cautions him against doing so.

As one of the larger snakes wraps itself around the unconscious woman lying next to Utagawa and lifts her into the air, Utagawa observes that they are now five-against-two, though he still does not consider this to be even. Angered by this, Ichigo calls Utagawa a coward and points out how he and Fried should count as two. Utagawa counters that he and Fried are of one mind and body and that this would be akin to counting Zangetsu as a separate member of Ichigo's group, though he claims to be willing to tally up the numbers again in this cases. When Rukia demands to know what he intends to do with the woman, Utagawa asserts that he would never kill her.

However, Utagawa threatens to have the snake cover her skin with countless cuts and permanently disfigure her with its poison if Ichigo and his friends make the wrong move. Watching this from afar, Kurōdo declares that this is a stand-off and that their only option is to give up, only for Ririn to punch him in the back. With Ririn admonishing Kurōdo for suggesting such a thing at a time like this, Uryū gets to his feet and observes that he is the one Utagawa is after before proposing that Utagawa take him instead of the woman. As his friends express shock at this, Uryū states that they have no other choice since they cannot get innocent people involved, which Ichigo cannot argue against.

After praising Uryū's intelligence, Utagawa instructs him to come closer, but Uryū requests he release the woman first, leading Utagawa to wonder if he seems untrustworthy. Though offended by this, Fried has the snake holding the woman slither toward Ichigo and his friends while Uryū approaches. Uryū stands before Utagawa as the snake holding the woman releases her and wraps itself around him, to his surprise. While Utagawa tells Ichigo and his friends to not move, Rukia informs Ichigo that their chance will come when Utagawa moves to devour Uryū's Soul, which Ichigo and the others acknowledge. Suddenly, the snake holding Uryū slams him head-first into the concrete, causing a pool of blood to begin spreading from his temple.

The snake lifts Uryū back up as Utagawa explains that Fried is realistic and never trusts anyone, with Fried claiming in turn that he is an idealist, before asserting that Humans are delightfully whimsical creatures. As Utagawa licks some of Uryū's blood off his finger, Ichigo questions if he is not going to devour Uryū's Soul, which prompts Utagawa to clarify that he occasionally needs some entertainment in order to enjoy his main dish while chuckling maliciously. Suddenly, a fireball hurtles toward Utagawa, who turns around with a grin and forms Fried into a circular shield in front of his hand that he uses to block the fireball, dispersing it all over the parking lot and starting an intense blaze that separates Ichigo and his friends from Uryū while Yoshino Sōma picks the latter up.

With Ichigo and his friends astonished to see Yoshino again, Utagawa inquires if she has snuck out once more, and as the fire covering him clears to reveal Fried shielding him by coiling around his body, Utagawa warns Yoshino that she will not be given special treatment forever. Upon being ordered by Yoshino to take care of things here, Goethe acknowledges this and unleashes a torrent of flames as Yoshino leaps away with Uryū despite the protests of Ichigo and his friends. When Goethe throws two fireballs at him, Ichigo slashes through the first with Zangetsu and backhands the other one into the truck on the right side of the parking lot, which is knocked over by the force of the projectile.

An irritated Utagawa narrows his eyes while Goethe disappears within the rising flames. Next to the toppled truck, the flames clear to reveal Orihime shielding herself, Sado, the woman, and the Mod-Souls with Santen Kesshun, which disperses as Ichigo and Rukia run over to them. After Orihime confirms that she is okay, Rukia looks at the unconscious woman and expresses relief that they were able to save at least one person. When Ririn reveals that she can still sense Yoshino and that the latter has not moved very far with Uryū yet, Ichigo and his friends begin running out of the parking lot in the indicated direction, only to be confronted by Utagawa once more.

Though Ichigo grips Zangetsu and demands that he move because there is no time to waste on him, a stern Utagawa asserts that he is not in a very good mood right now. When asked by Fried if she can attack, Utagawa permits her to do as she wishes, leading Fried to transform nearby ropes and barricades into large snakes that encircle Ichigo and his friends before attacking. While Ichigo decapitates two snakes, Sado rips apart a third with his bare hands, and Rukia vaporizes a fourth with Kidō, Orihime turns around and uses Koten Zanshun to decapitate four more as Ichigo slashes through the rest and regroups with his friends in a different area of the lot.

Chuckling, Utagawa spins the whip end of Fried around and promises that they have not see anything yet as he gouges into the pavement and slashes through power lines above them to create more snakes. With Ichigo bemoaning how there is no end to the snakes, Utagawa orders the snakes to attack. However, before the snakes can reach Ichigo and his friends, they are blasted apart by Ururu Tsumugiya's Senren Bakusatsu Taihō, forcing Utagawa to shield himself, as Ururu stands next to Renji, with Jinta Hanakari and Tessai Tsukabishi climbing over the fence behind them while Tessai observes that they arrived just in time.

With Renji apologizing for keeping them waiting and Jinta ordering her to fire, Ururu unleashes another barrage that destroys the remaining snakes despite Utagawa's attempt to have them attack her, leaving Utagawa to wrap Fried around himself for protection. As the smoke clears to reveal that Utagawa has vanished, Renji and the others run over to the area where he was standing and determine that he has escaped, and while Kurōdo proclaims that they will let Utagawa off easily today, only to be startled when Noba reminds him that he did not do anything, Ichigo asks Ririn about Yoshino's Reiatsu and is left expressing concern for Uryū when Ririn informs him that she is gone.

Aftermath
Later, at the Urahara Shop, Ichigo and his friends sit in the back room. While Urahara and his employees sit in the room with him and his friends, Ichigo recalls Uryū being wounded and abducted, leading him to stand up and declare that they cannot wait around here as he asks Urahara where Yoruichi Shihōin is. When Urahara reveals that she has not yet returned, Ichigo laments her absence at a time like this, and while Rukia asserts that having more people improves their odds of success, Orihime, Sado, and Renji all agree to join in the search and prepare to leave alongside Ichigo and Rukia, only for Urahara to request that they wait, to Ichigo's disbelief, as he inquires if they have a destination that they are heading to.

Though Ichigo asserts that they can find Uryū if they split up, Urahara cautions him against doing so since they still do not know the objective of the Bount and points out how Utagawa might come after someone who is alone like he did yesterday, stunning Ichigo. Urahara concludes that the Dolls wielded by the Bount seem to have powers surpassing those of Zanpakutō and that Ichigo and his friends will be playing into their hands if they proceed without a solid plan, leading Ichigo and the others to reluctantly sit back down. Suddenly, when Ichigo sits down on his cushion, a loud farting noise is heard, shocking everyone in the room into silence.

Kon triumphantly reveals that this was his doing and recounts how he placed a whoopee cushion underneath Ichigo's seat before observing that they got a nice sound out of him, only to find an enraged Ichigo looming behind him, which leads him to claim that he was simply trying to ease the tension in the room before being hurled through the nearby set of doors and out of the window into the distance by Ichigo, leaving considerable property damage in his wake. Elsewhere, Uryū regains consciousness to find himself bandaged and staring at Yoshino as he lies on a couch within a desolate, abandoned house, causing him to back up instinctively.

Clutching his head from the ensuing pain, Uryū sees that Yoshino is sitting still and wonders why she saved him, only to assume that dead Souls do not taste as good. When asked by Yoshino if he is a Quincy, Uryū notes that he is being asked this again and that his Soul must smell very different compared to that of an ordinary Human, which Yoshino confirms as she describes it as not smelling very tasty, especially when it has lost all of its Quincy powers. With Uryū commenting on her bluntness, Yoshino inquires about how he lost his powers, prompting Uryū to recall activating the Quincy: Letzt Stil to defeat Mayuri and his Bankai, Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō.

Uryū describes this as the result of his lack of training combined with reaching the limits of his capabilities, only to be startled when Yoshino questions if self-pity is a common Quincy characteristic, causing him to blush. Upon hearing Yoshino muse that she should have found another Quincy, Uryū reveals that he is the only Quincy left, to her surprise and melancholy. After reiterating Uryū's statement of there being no other Quincy, Yoshino moves onto the couch and begins to lean down toward Uryū, who is left sweating in fear. Back at the Urahara Shop, Urahara admits that he had been debating whether or not to reveal something to Ichigo and his friends.

As he details how they decided to research the Bount because of a special substance that was found inside their Reishi residue sample, Urahara elaborates that while this substance is nothing to worry about in small quantities, it becomes capable of affecting space in larger quantities, leaving Ichigo confused while Rukia holds up a notebook and requests more detail. With Urahara clarifying that this substance allows two mutually exclusive spaces to be connected with a tunnel-like construct, Rukia begins sketching out this scenario in her notebook, and despite Ichigo's protests, Rukia finishes her drawing and shows it to a flabbergasted Urahara.

When Urahara moves on and concludes that this would make it possible to connect the Human World with Hueco Mundo, a shocked Rukia asserts that this would cause many living beings to be sucked into Hueco Mundo and illustrates this on her drawing. Affirming this, Urahara points out how Soul Society uses the time that it takes Hollows to enter the Human World from Hueco Mundo to determine how they will position Shinigami and begins to ruminate on the consequences of Hollows being able to move between the two worlds instantly, with an astonished Renji concluding that they would not be able to stop the Hollows even if they stationed every single Shinigami here.

After confirming this, Urahara describes this scenario as being akin to a Soul buffet for Hollows, but assures the others that this is only a possibility. However, when Sado asks him how big the possibility is and Urahara holds up all five fingers on his right hand, Ichigo presumes that this represents a 5% chance, only for Urahara to tell him to not joke around as Rukia pushes Ichigo aside and expresses horror at Urahara's gesture meaning 50%, which Urahara confirms as the others stare in shock. Suddenly, Tessai slides open the door to the room and informs Ichigo and his friends that they have been contacted by Uryū, further surprising them.