Creeping Limit

Warning Izuru Kira to flee far beyond the reach of the fight, Tōshirō Hitsugaya releases Hyōrinmaru, conjuring a vast dragon of ice and water and dragging storm clouds across the moon, a display Izuru recognizes as the strongest ice-type blade in Soul Society, able to bend the weather itself. The dragon bursts over Gin Ichimaru and freezes Izuru's arm solid, and Hitsugaya soon binds Gin's arm in chain and ice, declaring it finished. Gin answers by firing his own blade toward Hitsugaya's eye, then reveals it is truly aimed at the unconscious Hinamori. Rangiku Matsumoto flashes in and blocks the strike, having sensed Hyōrinmaru's power and returned, while Gin merely smiles as his frozen arm bleeds.

At dawn, Yoruichi Shihōin reckons that only two days remain for Ichigo Kurosaki to grasp Bankai. His combat skill has soared, she notes, yet his raw spiritual pressure has barely grown. Recalling how the execution date was slashed and how their passage through the Dangai had cushioned their schedule, she considers extending the training. But the method is Urahara's alone, who deemed more than three days perilous, and she cannot be sure Ichigo's soul could endure the strain. She resolves to gamble on the extra days if his energy shows no change. Inside her cell, Rukia Kuchiki is told her execution has been moved to the very next day.

Hitsugaya releases Hyōrinmaru and gains the upper hand before Gin threatens the unconscious Hinamori. Rangiku intervenes to save her. Yoruichi debates whether to extend Ichigo's risky training past three days. Rukia's execution is abruptly rescheduled to the following day.

The chapter is part of the sixteenth volume, NIGHT OF WIJNRUIT, in the Soul Society arc, and was adapted into Episode 48, Hitsugaya Howls. It debuts Hyōrinmaru's Shikai and tightens the clock on both Ichigo's training and Rukia's sentence.