Review Session: The Story So Far
Ichigo Kurosaki, age 15, is a resident of Karakura Town—a tall young man with strawberry-blonde hair, a tough scowl, and the ability to see ghosts and other spirits.
On one otherwise ordinary June night, he crosses paths with a diminutive woman by the name of Rukia Kuchiki, a type of spirit known as a Soul Reaper. When Rukia is then injured by a wild, soul-eating spirit called a Hollow after attempting to keep it from attacking Ichigo's family, Ichigo takes a portion of Rukia's powers to become a Soul Reaper himself and cut the Hollow down.
From here, the wheels of fate spin.
With her powers only partially drained, Rukia returns to Soul Society, the world of dead, non-Hollow spirits, after calling in assistance to conceal the damage done to Ichigo's home. Her report on the incident spurs the Soul Reapers' Gotei 13, their governing body and the military arm of the Soul Society, into action. Captain Byakuya Kuchiki of the Sixth Division and his lieutenant Renji Abarai are sent to Karakura to bring Ichigo before the Central 46, the lawmakers of Soul Society. Normally, giving giving powers to a human is a crime amongst Soul Reapers. However, the Central 46, recognizing the nature of the situation and acknowledging Ichigo's immense potential through Captain-General Genryuusai Shigekuni Yamamoto and Second Division Captain Soifon, sentence Ichigo to a form of "community service": he is to serve as a Soul Reaper for the remainder of his human life and the spiritual life that he lives afterward.
With Rukia as his direct supervisor, Ichigo is put through his paces, learning the ins and outs of becoming a real Soul Reaper. Along the way, he faces multiple challenges. His friends Orihime Inoue, Yasutora "Chad" Sado, and Tatsuki Arisawa are all menaced by Hollows. He's put through his paces in the four disciplines of Soul Reaper combat—learning the magic of Kidou from Captain Sousuke Aizen of the Fifth Division and Lieutenant Nanao Ise of the Eighth Division, the unarmed combat of Hakuda and high-speed Hohou movement from Captain Soifon, and a crash-course in Zanjutsu swordsmanship with Captain Kenpachi Zaraki and the members of the Eleventh Division. Eventually, he's forced to face off against the Hollow that killed his mother, and though he nearly dies in the process, he finally accesses his own power as a Soul Reaper, and obtains the name of his zanpakutou, the sword that symbolizes a Soul Reaper—Zangetsu (Slaying Moon).
The biggest challenge Ichigo faces, though, comes in the form of Uryuu Ishida, Ichigo's classmate and the last member of the spiritual warrior-monks known as the Quincy. Bearing a grudge against Soul Reapers because of their inaction and its personal effects on his life, Uryuu summons a horde of Hollows to Karakura with the use of special bait, intending to prove himself Ichigo's better by vanquishing all of them. With the help of the Gotei 13, the regular Hollows are repelled, and it is through the efforts of Fifth Division Lieutenant Momo Hinamori, Rukia, and Ichigo himself that the most dangerous Hollow that is pulled to Karakura Town, a gigantic Menos Grande, is purified.
In the process, Orihime, Chad, and Tatsuki all awaken to their own spiritual powers, which along with Uryuu's are all sealed away by the Soul Reapers in order to avoid any more undue influence on the living world. However, they are approached by the mysterious, spiritually-aware shopkeeper Kisuke Urahara, and with his guidance they manage to refine and master their powers enough to access them in spite of their restraints.
Things take a dangerous and dramatic turn for the worse in Soul Society, though, as after Ichigo proves his growth in a spectacular duel against Captain Kuchiki, Third Division Captain Gin Ichimaru murders Captain Aizen and grievously injures Lieutenant Hinamori. The fallout from the resulting manhunt causes the defection of another captain, Eighth Division's Kaname Tousen. On top of this, the Central 46 orders the Gotei 13 to capture Urahara and bring him to Soul Society. During the resulting confrontation, he reveals that Aizen, Tousen, and Ichimaru have played all of Soul Society for fools—the three of them have been colluding to fulfill some dark purpose, and Aizen's death was all part of the ploy.
The truth behind that ploy is revealed by none other than Ichimaru himself, in a letter written to the remaining captains. He states that Aizen has use of a mysterious artifact called the Hougyoku, which can be used to break the barrier between Soul Reapers and Hollows. To prove this, he leaves behind a video that shows Aizen using the Hougyoku to create a Hollow with Soul Reaper-like powers, an Arrancar.
Though suspicious of his motives, the Gotei 13 acknowledges that they have no other options but to try and prepare as if his information is accurate. With the end of the summer approaching, Ichigo is due to return to school soon, but he must do so with the knowledge that a war is on the horizon.