Tite Kubo

Immediately after checking into the Kurosaki Clinic with a mysterious scar on his back, the muscle-bound Chad goes AWOL. Accompanying Chad is a talking parakeet imbued with the soul of a young boy named Yuichi. It doesn't take newbie Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki long to surmise that a Hollow must be involved. Ichigo is about to sidcover that not every soul is bound for the Soul Society, especially if it's tainted with innocent blood.

Ichigo Kurosaki was a little boy when his mother passed away. One rainy day, Ichigo, whose ability to see the undead is a blessing and a curse, tried to stop a young girl from drowning in a nearby river. His mother, Masaki, ran after them, frantically trying to rescue her only son. Then everything went black, and Ichigo awoke only to discover his mother dead and the little girl gone. It's the anniversary of Masaki's death, and the entire Kurosaki...

"A new reality-show craze is sweeping the nation, garnering legions of screaming fans (the majority of them being teenaged girls). But this program comes with a supernatural twist--the host, a media-savvy spiritualist, travels to local hotspots and performs exorcisms, live on national TV! Surly Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki has his doubts about this primetime prima donna, and his assumptions are about to be put to the test--the show is heading straight...

After a long struggle, Ichigo finally regains his Soul Reaper powers thanks to Rukia. But as the battle against Kugo Ginjo heats up, Ichigo learns a shocking secret behind his role as a Deputy Soul Reaper. With the truth finally revealed to him, what action will Ichigo take?

"Ichigo knows that to retrieve Rukia from the Soul Society, he'll have to enter that world himself. But his fight with Rukia's brother Byakuya showed, in no uncertain terms, that Ichigo still has a great deal of rigorous study and training ahead of him. Deep beneath Kisuke's Urahara Shoten, Ichigo practices his fighting and hones his spiritual energies, and now he must face the most daunting challenge of all: prevent his Chain of Fate from consuming...

Ichigo Kurosaki was born with the ability to see ghosts, and is now a Soul Reaper, dedicated to protecting the innocent and helping tormented souls find peace. In this volume, Ichigo is surprised when his friend Nel Tu reverts to her true form to shield her human protectors, and unforeseen changes put Ichigo and his friends at the mercy of the enemy.

"Ichigo's misson to rescue his friend Orihime from the Hollow world has turned into a struggle for survival against a succession of enemies, each one more powerful than the next. Now another vicious challenger has entered the fray, one that happens to know the startling truth about Ichigo's new friend Nel!"--Cover.

"While the Soul Reapers are entrenched in bloody one-on-one battles with the Espadas, their sworn enemy Aizen is preparing to make the next move in his elaborate plan. The battlefields of Hueco Mundo will soon give way to another battlefield where the price of losing will prove to be infinitely higher"--Publisher's web site.

Ichigo's recent battles with the Arrancars have proven that if he wants to protect his friends he must get stronger, and the only way to do that is to control his inner Hollow. Ichigo turns to the Vizoreds, ex-Soul Reapers who have been Hollowfied, to teach him. But before his training begins, Ichigo must do battle against his Hollow self--winner takes his soul.

The long awaited showdown between Ichigo and Byakuya Kuchiki has finally begun. Has Ichigo succeeded in mastering bankai, the highest level of power that a soul reaper can attain, to face Byakuya an equal? A long-awaited showdown between Ichigo "Strawberry" Kurosaki and Byakuya Kuchiki has begun. Has Ichigo succeeded in mastering bankai, the highest level of power that a Soul Reaper can attain, to face Byakuya as an equal?