The Headless Star

Long ago, an infant Yhwach grows into a young man by drawing power from the thousands who bind their souls to him. In the present he stirs on his throne, thanks the dead for another waking, and warns Uryū Ishida that there is no path back from what comes next. Below, the stone bastion Gremmy Thoumeaux built collapses now that he is dead, leaving only his brain in its capsule. Kenpachi coughs blood, guesses his organs are ruptured, and searches the rubble for his lieutenant, only to find Yachiru's empty uniform and badge on the ground.

The four Bambies close in. Candice Catnipp fries Kenpachi with lightning, Liltotto Lamperd devours ranks of Shinigami with a giant mouth, Meninas McAllon crushes others under a building, and Giselle Gewelle turns those splashed by her blood into obedient corpses. Even riddled with wounds, Kenpachi keeps swinging, but a final electrical blast leaves him prone and charred as the women argue over who gets to kill him. Rukia and Byakuya Kuchiki, along with the rest of the surviving squads, look up to see Ichigo tearing down toward the Seireitei.

Ichigo blows the Bambies aside with a massive flash step and plants himself between them and Kenpachi. He weathers Candice's Galvano Blast, revealing a second outfit once his Ōken garb burns away, and outfights all four even after they invoke their Vollständig forms and Sklaverei. When Candice unleashes Electrocution, Ichigo answers with Getsuga Jūjishō, tearing off most of her left arm. Bazz-B and more Sternritter arrive to claim the kill, and a blue pillar of light erupts from Yhwach's tower. Mayuri Kurotsuchi explains that Ichigo's Royal Guard garment punched a temporary hole in the barrier to the Soul King Palace. Renji and Byakuya hold off the enemy so Ichigo can charge the tower, but Uryū rains Licht Regen down on him until Sado and Orihime shield him. Uryū, Yhwach, and Haschwalth then ascend the beam and vanish.

Kenpachi discovers Yachiru has vanished, leaving only her clothing behind. Ichigo returns to the Seireitei and saves Kenpachi, resuming his clash with the Bambies. He severs Candice's arm with Getsuga Jūjishō, and Giselle rebuilds it from a dead Shinigami's flesh. Yhwach opens a route to the Soul King Palace, and Uryū departs with him and Haschwalth after firing on Ichigo one last time.

This installment adapts material spanning chapters 565 through 586, with the opening theme STARS and the ending Endroll. The adaptation reorders several beats from the manga, such as when Candice strikes Kenpachi and when Yhwach thanks Ichigo for enabling his invasion, and it expands Yhwach's origin, Ichigo's counterattacks, and Mayuri's explanation of the barrier. The header art and poem tied to the episode were shown during a recap billed as "Episode 20.5."