Oath Under The Rose

As Charlotte's thorn prison melts away and his release fades, Yumichika plucks one of the blossoms grown from the arrancar's spiritual power and heals himself with it, thanking his fallen foe for the loan. Charlotte, marveling at how devious he is, asks whether that was a Bankai, and Yumichika corrects him: Ruri'iro Kujaku is simply his Zanpakutō's real name. The blade, he confides, is a peculiar spirit that adores the color azure and loathes wisteria; Fuji Kujaku is a nickname it despises, and out of spite it performs only a fraction of its shikai under that title. Pressed on why he would handicap himself so, Yumichika explains that in the Eleventh Division a Kidō-leaning Zanpakutō marks its wielder a coward, and he cannot bear for anyone from that division, least of all his captain or Ikkaku, to witness his true strength. That is why he was grateful when Charlotte veiled him from sight, for without that cover he would have died rather than release his full power. Charlotte, genuinely impressed, offers his praise as Yumichika walks off.

Across the battlefield, Hisagi asks Findorr why he vowed to fight at a lieutenant's level when he wields only a fifth seat's strength. Answering "Exacta," Findorr reveals he had been testing Hisagi at that lower tier, and Hisagi passed; had Hisagi been unable to gauge his real power, matching him at lieutenant grade would have meant nothing. Confirming that he can throttle his own strength, Findorr strips away pieces of his mask to climb from fourth seat, to third, to lieutenant level, then attacks. Meanwhile, Kira flees across the rooftops with Abirama in pursuit, casting Bakudō number thirty-nine, Enkōsen, to shield himself. Unfazed, Abirama belittles him but concedes it is understandable against his Águila, explaining that its plumes are no ordinary feathers but blades of steel that crush all they touch, and he sends them showering down around Kira.

Yumichika heals with a bloom fed by Charlotte's stolen power and confirms he is dead. He reveals Ruri'iro Kujaku's true name and why he hides its Kidō nature from the Eleventh Division. Findorr sheds his mask piece by piece to rise from fifth seat to lieutenant strength against Hisagi. Kira blocks with Enkōsen as Abirama unleashes his steel feathers.

Closing volume 37, the chapter deepens Yumichika's backstory and the macho code of the Eleventh Division. Its events were adapted in episode 218 of the anime, Kira, The Battle Within Despair.