User blog comment:Udarsha45/Bleach Takes A Break For 2 Weeks!/@comment-29449108-20120802124137/@comment-1248963-20120804092732

Actually, Kubo doesn't really get ill that often. This is just the second time Bleach goes on break due to him being ill this year, and I think last year he got sick less than three times.

Besides, he's gone back to tweeting about food he likes and some online game he's obsessed about, so I guess he's feeling a lot better now. It's a bit weird, but I'm confident the break he'll get with Obon will contribute to him regaining his strength.

Also, from the note left by the Shonen Jump staff, Kubo has already drawn chapter 503, but it didn't get published because they didn't get some corrections on time or something like that, which is the editor's job.