Quincy Archer Hates You

At another false alarm, Ichigo vents his frustration on a cowardly ghost cowering in an alley, since no Hollow is present yet again. He wonders aloud whether a rival Shinigami is clearing the monsters first, but Rukia dismisses the idea, citing strictly assigned patrol territories. The trembling ghost saw nothing, having shut his eyes in terror, and Ichigo performs a soul burial on him while an unseen Uryu watches from a nearby rooftop.

Later, exam results reveal a surprising fact: Ichigo has placed eighteenth out of the school's several hundred students. He explains that his orange hair invites constant trouble, older boys itching to fight him and teachers assuming the worst, so he studies hard to keep the faculty off his back. He also admits he has been avoiding Rukia on campus, since the pair spark rumors about their relationship, gossip that traces back to Mizuiro. When Rukia bursts in with yet another Hollow warning and drags him off, Ichigo braces for a third empty scare.

As the alert again turns up nothing, Uryu Ishida steps forward, greets them by name, and calmly states that Ichigo can perceive spirits. He announces that a Hollow is approaching just as Rukia's device confirms it, then chides Ichigo for calling himself a Shinigami while failing to sense it. Producing a Quincy Cross, Uryu gathers spirit particles into a great bow and looses a massive arrow of energy that streaks across town and obliterates a flying Hollow's head in a single shot. To the astonished pair he introduces himself as a Quincy who hates Shinigami.

This is the title chapter of the fourth volume and the true debut of Uryu Ishida as a combatant, introducing the Quincy and their spirit archery. It was adapted into the anime's eleventh episode, The Legendary Quincy. The Viz title matches the original. An author's note in this volume records Tite Kubo's amusement at the wrong numbers he received after moving and changing his phone number.