Two other things: Yachiru apparently didn't have a chance to fight anybody, again. Will we ever get to see her fight, aside from head biting mode? Or is she just a simple comic relief? And the company of friends didn't meet Renji and Rukia, which means they had already cleared the stairs. I wonder where they are heading... So, Rukia is still separated from her original saviors. But based on what Ishida said, there might be still more fights to settle, before Rukia can be secured a future without the fear of being hunted down again.

Interesting times. And the pause sucks... But fortunately the pause didn't happen in the middle of this battle.