Bleach, Volume 23 by Tite Kubo

After trying to deal with Captain Aizen of the Soul Society, Ichigo Kurosaki, known as "Strawberry" for the natural red color of his hair, has returned home to recover. Coming back with him are several of the Soul Society, including Rukia, Rangiku, Yumichika, Toshiro And Ikkaku. But they aren't there to recover. They are there to deal with the Arrancars.

The Arrancars are Hollows who have gained enough spiritual powers to be as powerful as the Soul Reapers. And these ones want to take over Tokyo. They start out with an attack on any person in the city who has the slightest bit of spiritual power/pressure. Which means, of course, that all of Ichigo's friends, like Chad and Inouye, will be attacked that night.

Rukia is first to get wind of the attack, and she and Ichigo go out to save their friends. On the way, they are attacked by an Arrancar named D-Roy, who nearly kills Chad. Ichigo sends Chad to help Inouye, and decides to take on D-Roy by himself. But Rukia steps up and finally shows Ichigo why she attained her position in the Soul Society. She unleashes her Zanpaku-to, a completely white blade called Sode No Shirayuki, or "Sleeves of Snow". After easily taking out D-Roy (while Ichigo gets to deal with a holding spirit in her body named Chappy), they are then attacked by another Arrancar named Grimmjow.

Meanwhile, Ikkaku is ambushed by an Arrancar named Edorad, but he's enjoying himself, slowly bringing up greater and greater levels of his power to keep ahead of the Arrancar's attacks. He's enjoying himself because he rarely gets to let go like this. And even if he dies, at least he will die happy. As the battle rages on, Ikkaku lets his Zanpaku-to reveal its true form, and begin to awaken. His opponent also reveals his own power, and the two set out for a titanic clash. Can Ikkaku defeat the massive Arrancar? And can Ichigo and Rukia deal with the much more powerful than D-Roy Grimmjow?

Although this book is a series of battles, Tite Kubo manages to keep up the suspense and the tension so that the book never feels like *just* a series of battles, which is the main reason why I like this series so much. Even after 23 books, the series still feels fresh, but remains comfortable, too, so that returning to the story after time passes between books feels like you haven't been away at all.

The revelation of Rukia's powers and Zanpaku-to brings back a respect for the character that had been largely missing during the beginning series and the Soul Society arc.We begin to see her true strength, rather than her being someone who constantly needs to be rescued, or who is held in prison awaiting her own execution. And this was a very welcome change.

This is a long series, but it is more than worth it to read the entire thing. Though occasionally the battles may run on a bit too long, the story is what will keep you reading and coming back for more. Definitely worth it.