Ichigo and Ulquiorra's final battle properly gets underway with the two of them being more or less evenly matched. Ichigo is able to read his opponent's movements better than he could when they first fought, managing to wound Ulquiorra, if even slightly. Ichigo surmises that it is either he is becoming more like a hollow or his opponent is becoming more human, which angers Ulquiorra. Meanwhile, Yasutora "Chad" Sado and Renji Abarai struggle to fight a gigantic hollow in the desert of Hueco Mundo named Battikaroa, eventually claiming victory after discovering its weakness by blasting its head off after cracking its body. Back in a tower of Las Noches, Orihime Inoue manages to protect Ichigo from a near-lethal attack from Ulquiorra.