The Tragic Sword Fiend! Haineko Cries!

Sent to hunt stray Zanpakuto spirits in a canyon, Haineko discovers a blue-haired young man lying among red flowers and finds herself smitten despite insisting she prefers older men. Unable to strike him down, she instead tends his wounds, hides him in a cottage, and secretly brings him food and sweets. The Toju, named Narunosuke, explains that he is only a spirit who lost his cowardly master and clung to other Toju out of fear, and Haineko promises to persuade the Shinigami to treat him as a harmless spirit rather than a beast.

Rangiku Matsumoto rejects the idea, citing the Twelfth Division's research that every Toju eventually loses control. Haineko keeps Narunosuke concealed even as he suffers worsening headaches and a black snake stirs on his arm. When she finally tells him the truth, he resolves to leave, but his transformation accelerates and tentacles erupt from his back. Rangiku, who had followed Haineko, arrives and declares he must be destroyed.

Haineko shields the mutating Narunosuke and forces Rangiku to release their shared Zanpakuto against her. Reaching him with her words, Haineko briefly restores his senses, and Narunosuke thanks her before his form shatters into motes of violet light. Grieving, Haineko later admits her love to Rangiku and vows to give up younger men for a while, sticking out her tongue.

Haineko spares and hides the Toju Narunosuke after falling in love with him. Rangiku explains that all Toju eventually go berserk and refuses to make an exception. Narunosuke's condition deteriorates as he steals medicine and food and loses control. His full transformation into a tentacled Toju forces a confrontation, and Haineko protects him against Rangiku. Haineko's words briefly return his sanity before his Zanpakuto form is destroyed, and she mourns the loss.

This anime-only episode has no chapter basis and sits within the Beast Swords arc, airing as the series' two hundred sixty-second entry with the opening Anima Rossa and the ending Tabidatsu Kimi e. A closing Shinigami Illustrated Picture Book segment has Uryu Ishida design an English-gentleman outfit for Chojiro Sasakibe at Renji's request. The story concludes the conflict between Haineko and Narunosuke.