Ichigo Kurosaki & Uryū Ishida vs. The Menos Grande

Ichigo Kurosaki & Uryū Ishida vs. The Menos Grande is a battle that takes place in Karakura Town. In it, Ichigo the Shinigami and Uryū the Quincy fight a massive Hollow known as a Menos Grande.

Prologue
Wanting to prove that Shinigami are not needed in the world, Uryū challenges Ichigo to a competition. Ichigo refuses, telling Uryū that he does not know why he has a grudge against Shinigami, and that he has nothing to do with it. Uryū asks him if he plans to run away, but Ichigo dismisses this, saying that he will not be provoked and that Uryū is no match for him anyway. However, Uryū remarks that since Ichigo’s powers were given to him by Rukia Kuchiki, he cannot even lift a finger without her permission. This accusation prompts Ichigo to accept Uryū’s challenge; he pulls out Kon’s gikongan, which Rukia had given him earlier as a precaution, and swallows it, transforming him into his Shinigami form.

Uryū goes on to establish the rules of the contest, pulling a coin-shaped object out of his pocket, and explaining that it is Hollow bait. He states that once he crushes the coin, Hollows will begin to appear in Karakura Town. He declares that the person who kills the most Hollows within 24 hours wins. Ichigo objects to Uryū’s plan, arguing that it endangers everybody in the town. Uryū tells Ichigo to keep his morality to himself, and crushes the Hollow bait, saying that it will not be an issue, because he will kill every single Hollow. He tells Ichigo that if he is so worried about protecting everybody, then he should try his best to kill the Hollows as well.

A Hollow suddenly emerges from a crack in the sky, but shoots it with a spirit arrow, claiming the first kill. Ichigo grabs him by the shirt and slams him against a wall, demanding that he drive back the Hollows and return things to normal. However, Uryū tells him that the die is cast, and instead of grabbing him, he should focus on protecting as many people as possible. He then reminds Ichigo that Hollows have the tendency to target people with high spiritual power. Immediately thinking of his sister Karin, who is also able to see ghosts, Ichigo runs off to save her. Uryū attempts to stop him so he could say something, but Ichigo ignores his call. Uryū notes that Ichigo has not realized that his family members are not the only ones close to him with high spiritual power. He surmises that because of his failure to notice this, Ichigo would lose the competition, and die of disappointment.

As he runs down the street, Ichigo cuts off a Hollow’s arm and kills it, inadvertently saving a pair of Pluses. Ichigo remembers that Karin is usually out of school by that time, and that she usually plays outside before going home. However, he has no idea of where exactly she plays. His thoughts are interrupted by the sound of a Hollow, which Ichigo proceeds to rush after. He notes that his detection range is too small, and wonders how he found Hollows before. Suddenly, he remembers Rukia’s cell phone; he tells Kon to find her and retrieve it, but he refuses, and mocks Ichigo. Ichigo punches Kon’s head despite him being in his body, prompting him to comply with his request. Meanwhile, standing on an overpass, Uryū focuses on killing Hollows, having reached his eleventh one by then.

Later on, Ichigo kills another Hollow, thinking to himself that it was the last one between his house and the last place he saw Karin, guaranteeing that she would be safe. He resolves to make Uryū pay for the trouble he caused, and impatiently wonders what is taking Kon so long to get the phone from Rukia. Uryū kills another Hollow, but notes that it is getting harder to kill them with just one shot. He thinks to himself that far too many Hollows are showing up, and at that rate, he would not be able to keep up with them. However, he resolves to stop complaining to himself, still determined not to lose to Ichigo, and to avenge his master. He ends up running into Rukia and Kon, who recognize him as the one responsible for causing the Hollows to attack. Uryū confirms this, but once again asserts that he will not let a single person in Karakura Town die, even if Ichigo dies. Suddenly, a Hollow that had attacked Rukia and Kon before he had arrived gets back up, prompting him to pull out his spirit bow. However, Ichigo cuts it in half from behind, stating that he has finally found Uryū.

Ichigo starts to bicker with Kon, wondering why he never retrieved Rukia’s cellphone. Annoyed that Ichigo’s attention is diverted, Uryū fires a spirit arrow at him while his back is turned, reminding him that they are in a fight. Ichigo turns around and deflects it with his sword, impressing Uryū with his speed. Ichigo tells him not to bother telling him how many Hollows he has killed, saying that they are going to settle things there and then. However, Kon suddenly interrupts them, turning their attention to a massive spatial distortion forming in the sky. Uryū points out that all of the Hollows that he had lured into Karakura Town are gathering towards the point. Uryū promptly shoots one of the Hollows with a spirit arrow, but Ichigo protests, saying that they there are too many and that they need a strategy to beat them all. Uryū angrily retorts and runs into the group of Hollows, declaring that as the last Quincy, he is going to win their battle.

Wondering what Uryū meant by “last” Quincy, Ichigo is informed that the Shinigami were responsible for their kind’s destruction by Rukia. Hearing this, Ichigo rushes after Uryū, fighting through several Hollows to get to him. Ichigo brings up what he learned about the Quincies’ past, but Uryū tells him that this is old news, and that it isn’t the reason he despises Shinigami. He tells Ichigo that he hates Shinigami because their kind allowed his grandfather to be killed by Hollows, and tells him the story of his death as he fights the Hollows. However, Ichigo tells him that his story is too long, and reminds him that his grandfather’s wish was for Quincies and Shinigami to work together. He suggests that they work together to fight off the massive group of Hollows. Uryū questions Ichigo’s idea, still hesitant to work together with a Shinigami. However, as they each kill a Hollow, Ichigo informs him that his mother was killed by a Hollow, and that the only reason he became a Shinigami was to protect other people. As he shoots another Hollow, Uryū tells Ichigo that his story is also too long, but that he understands completely. He then reasons that if they get killed by the Hollows, then they’ll lose their chance to see who is stronger between the two of them.

However, just as they decide to set their differences aside, the Hollows abruptly stop fighting and look to the sky, as though they were praying to something. The spatial distortion in the sky cracks open, surprising Ichigo and Uryū; from it emerges the head of a massive Hollow. As they wonder how they could fight such a massive opponent, the other Hollows begin to close in on them. However, they are saved when Ururu Tsumugiya arrives and destroys several of them with a blast of her Senren Bakusatsu Taiho. Kisuke Urahara arrives as well, accompanied by Jinta Hanakari and Tessai Tsukabishi. As Ururu, Jinta, and Tessai fight off the Hollows, Kisuke tells Ichigo and Uryū that they should focus on fighting the massive Hollows, which Rukia identifies as a Menos Grande.

Battle
Emerging from the opening it tore in the sky, the Menos Grande shoots out its tongue, impaling several of the Hollows that Ichigo and Uryū had been fighting, then pulls them into its mouth and eats them. Seeing this, Ichigo determines that brute force is the only way to defeat the giant Hollow, and charges towards it with his blade above his head, much to Uryū’s chagrin. As the Menos Grande steps out of the opening, Ichigo swings his sword, inflicting a shallow wound onto its heel. However, seemingly unfazed by the attack, the Hollow simply kicks Ichigo away, sending him flying several feet. Chastising Ichigo, Uryū fires a spirit arrow towards the Hollow’s head, but does not inflict any damage. He then checks on Ichigo, who suffered a minor head wound, and asks what he was thinking when he attacked the Hollow head on. Ichigo explains that he thought that he could just cut off the Menos Grande’s legs and work his way up until its head fell to the ground. Uryū inadvertently grabs Ichigo’s Zanpakutō, telling him that they needed a more serious battle plan. Much to Uryū ‘s surprise however, grabbing the blade causes his bow to manifest, making it so powerful that it tears open small cuts on his arm.

Reflecting on how Quincies battle by using the spirit particles around them, Uryū surmises that Ichigo must be subconsciously releasing a large amount of spiritual power, and that his bow transformed as a result. Seeing that he could take advantage of this, he tells Ichigo that he has a plan to defeat the Menos Grande. Uryū straps Ichigo’s Zanpakutō to his head and has him hold it, while he prepares his transformed spirit bow. Ichigo ridicules the plan, but Uryū tells him that if he can harness his spiritual power, he could fire an enormous spirit arrow at the Hollow. He then tells him to max out his spiritual power, but Ichigo remarks that he has never been able to control his spiritual power before, and that it must be maxed out all the time if it is so powerful. Uryū is amazed by the idea that someone could be so at ease while their body is constantly emitting so much spiritual energy.

However, in the midst of their bickering, the Menos Grande looms over them, and prepares to fire a Cero. Uryū prompts Ichigo to touch him with his sword again, so he could power up his bow, but the latter just charges towards the Hollow again, much to Uryū’s chagrin. As Ichigo approaches the Hollow, it launches its Cero at him, but Ichigo raises his sword and repels the energy beam. As Ichigo blocks the attack, Uryū notices that the Shinigami’s spiritual power is rapidly increasing, and realizes that it had not been maxed out before at all; rather, it had been in its lowest possible state. Using his suddenly increased spiritual power, Ichigo slashes at the Menos Grande, severely wounding it with a massive vertical cut, and causing it to scream out in pain. Heavily injured, the Hollow retreats into the Kūmon it had used to enter Karakura Town.

Aftermath
Ichigo proclaims his victory and strikes a pose, but suddenly collapses. His Zanpakutō's shape starts to become distorted, which Uryū attributes to the former's inability to control his spiritual power. His body starts to emit a massive amount of spiritual power, causing Uryū's spirit bow to transform again, even though he isn't making contact with Ichigo. However, Uryū realizes that the bow is highly unstable, so he fires a large spirit arrow into the sky. As he does this repeatedly, he surmises that he can help Ichigo by absorbing his excess spiritual power and dissipating it as spirit arrows until it calms down.

Ichigo realizes what Uryū is doing and tells him to stop, noticing that the sheer power of the bow is causing the latter's arm to bleed profusely. However, Uryū tells him to be quiet, saying that he still hates the Shinigami, and that if Ichigo were to die, he would not be able to fight him any more. As Uryū continues to shoot spirit arrows into the sky, he reflects on how everything that had transpired was all his fault, having remembered that his grandfather never hated Shinigami, and silently asks for his forgiveness. After firing the last spirit arrow, he falls to his knees, distraught by his own thoughts. Seeing the expression on Uryū's face, Ichigo decides that there is no way he could fight him while he is in that state.

The next day, Byakuya Kuchiki mentions that Ichigo had scarred the Menos Grande, and that the Shinigami forces were able to destroy it because of the injury.