Disclaimer: I own neither Harry Potter, Naruto Uzumaki, nor Bleach.
Summary: Harry's the Master of Death now. But what does that really mean? Follow the adventures of the Boy-Who-Lived, thrown through space and Time to prepare him for a confrontation a spirit of Life who hasn't been doing a good job.
Harry
Kido class was a lot of fun, especially since he knew more about the properties of Reiryoku than his instructors. While the Shinigami of Soul Society had been around longer than Wizarding folk, Harry had a several thousands of years of refinement to draw upon, and Soul Society had stayed stagnant in Reiryoku theory until Yamamoto had founded the Gotei Thirteen and the Kido Corps.
"I'm sorry, sensei, but that's incorrect. Your flow of Reiryoku isn't cumulative but logarithmic. It will take more power to cast a Ninety Ninth Kido than ninety nine First Kido. We can't compare Reiryoku to a bucket of water."
Of course, that led to more than a little bit of resentment from most students, especially Kuchiki Masami. Harry was undeterred - he had made a promise to master all ninety nine Kido before he graduated to the Captain Commander himself, and he'd be damned if he let anyone hold him back.
He quickly learned that Class One students were exempt from taking classes that they didn't want to - they just had to show up for evaluations and training. As a result, after several lessons, Harry, Kirio, Retsu and Shihoin Yoruhiko were nowhere to be seen. The first three went off together, and the Shihoin trained alone.
The Kido training grounds were huge, comprising of as much space as District Seventy Three, and it was neatly sectioned off for safety purposes, into low, medium and high level training areas. Harry, Kirio and Retsu congregated every morning at Low Eight, which was a little more grassy than the other areas, and secluded, as the only students who used the Kido training grounds early morning were Fifth Year students spread about the Medium areas.
Harry mastered the first fourteen Kido in a day. While it was difficult to manipulate the elements with the use of Magic, it was very easy with the use of Reiryoku, and Harry's intimate knowledge of how use utilize Hado helped both Kirio and Retsu out.
"This is really easy", commented Retsu, and the Fourth Kido, Pale Lightning, lanced from her fingers. She twitched her fingers, and the lightning began to dance.
"I hate you two", Kirio glared as she concentrated and prepared the incantation for the Byakurai again. "Blue is the flash of fate, thunder crashes as the sky bellows and growls, and power comes to the North!"
A weak jet of lightning jumped at Harry, whose Reiryoku blocked it instantaneously, negating the demonic art.
"Oh, I wasn't aware that we were allowed to fire at Harry", Retsu grinned, and the lightning which taken the shape of dancers and was performing an intricate kind of tango rushed at Harry, who yelped and unraveled the lightning with his Hado Twelve: Void Blast, which slowly imploded on itself.
"Merlin, woman! Watch where you're aiming", Harry yelped again, and another Void Blast swallowed up a gout of flame that Retsu had sent his way. He spent the rest of the morning dodging and absorbing attacks, as well as lamenting the fact that he could have completed at least six more Kido.
Harry
As much of a genius as Harry was in Kido, he was a failure in Hoho. Despite spending an hour concentrating heavily in the special leather seat reserved for members of Class One, and hours of training by Retsu and Kirio, he was unable to use Shunpo. Retsu proved to be as much of a genius as she was normally, mastering it on her second or third try, but Kirio truly shined when it came to the Flash Step. She had known how to use Hoho instinctively when she fought, but after the teachers described it to her, she was able to move as fast as a Seated Officer.
Harry stared, entirely frustrated, on the eve of his third month at Shinigami Academy, having mastered eighty three destructive Kido, and the lowest level of Hoho - speeding up his punches and kicks. While he was able to wrap his arms and hands in Reiryoku, and project it to disrupt Retsu's use of Shunpo, he only ended up slowing Kirio down a little, and getting beaten to the ground.
But he had made progress, and Hakuda instruction was starting the next day, replacing Kido training - hand to hand combat and magic alternated every three months. Zanjutsu training and Hoho classes alternated every six months.
To celebrate three months of hard work, he was showing Kirio, Retsu, and, unknown to him, the Captain-Commander, his strongest Kido spell, for which he decided that a stabilizing incantation was a good idea.
"Hado Number Eighty Eight, Flight! The world immolating dragon that rears back for an attack! Enlightened attack, the sitting stream of power realized and not! The balance which holds the heavens in check to judge the pain of innocent lightning, the humility which holds the earth in suspense to understand the suffering of booming thunder, the chastity which holds the heart in refuge to love the destruction of shaking the heavens. Fly first, fast, far and obey the resolve of the Demon Arts!"
The Hiryugekizokushintenraiho, named as the Flying Dragon that Strikes the Striking Heavens: Thunder Cannon was normally a bolt of blue that resulted in a huge explosion, Harry's additions to it, the three-part phrase about the pain of lightning, the suffering of booming thunder and the love of destruction had converted it into a bolt of Avada Kedavra green that resulted in the utter annihilation of the high level training field before finally exploding with so much force that in half a minute, three captains were present, all of which were pointing their zanpakuto at Harry.
Yamamoto stepped from his hiding spot, making it seem as if he'd arrived via Shunpo. "What happened here, Potter-san?"
"Hado Number Eighty Eight, Captain Commander."
"It usually doesn't cause this much destruction. I was not aware that this much Reiryoku could be released without the use of the ninetieth set of Hado." The captains stared incredulously at the Academy student who claimed that he was able to utilize the eighty eighth Hado, and found themselves questioning whether or not the Captain Commander had become senile.
"So the original incantation, which I don't need, is Flight, the world immolating dragon that rears back for an attack, enlightened attack, et cetera, et cetera. Between the power realized and not, there is nothing. The attack clause, Fly first, follows immediately after the power not realized. In order to realize the power, I developed a three-part release sequence." Harry paused to make sure that everyone was listening carefully.
"The first is The balance which holds the heavens in check to judge the pain of innocent lightning, which increases the Reiryoku's efficiency by at least thirty percent, pushing it from the level of an Eightieth set to a Ninetieth set. I think that has the side effect of turning it green." Yamamoto nodded. That was logical.
"The second bit is The humility which holds the earth in suspense to understand the suffering of booming thunder. That allows the blast portion to act longer, vaporizing things that would only have been charred originally." This was new - he didn't expect such an innovation to what people believed to be one of the few complete Kido. But Harry wasn't done.
Harry's tone took on a slight edge of pride. "The final bit is the masterpiece, and I worked for nearly a month to come up with it. It is The chastity which holds the heart in refuge to love the destruction of shaking the heavens, a way to magnify the explosion sequence. Originally, I had leaned towards a command phrase that would extend the power, the strength, or the duration of the explosion, but it destabilized it and resulted in less power."
"Understandable. The explosion was a magnitude stronger than usual. Are you going to give away what your third command phrase does, or will I have to figure it out for myself?" the Captain-Commander smiled, looking anticipatory and encouraging, an expression that Harry would have fought to see on the face of Albus Dumbledore.
"Compression. The power of an explosion is the contained potential energy beforehand, and by holding it back, it agitates it just long enough that the explosion rips straight through the constraints even as they drop. It was most opportune that it comes after an elongated blast portion."
"Well, you learn something everyday. The captains and I will take our leave, the Kido corps needs to be informed of this innovation."
"Wait!" Harry shouted suddenly. "Tell them that it's really, really important to coat your hands in Reiryoku. I nearly flash-fried my blood when I was testing it the first time." Harry pointed to the raw-looking concentric circles on his palms. Yamamoto smiled. The boy was so very noble - he didn't even attempt to ensure that he got credit.
Harry
"Too slow." Harry's chest felt like it had been caved in with a sledgehammer. Kirio was a tad bit harder on him during Hakuda class than their normal training.
He supposed it was only fair. He was a right slavedriver when it came to teaching her Kido, and she seemed to have a need to humiliate him in front of Retsu. He wondered for a moment if the girl who called him outoto-chan knew he had his eyes on Retsu, then decided that she was too dim.
Kirio was quite intelligent, but more than a little bit lacking when it came to human interaction - it came from thirty years of living alone in District Fifty Eight.
The thing about the souls in Soul Society was that they aged very slowly, physically at least, and their general isolation meant that they matured just as slowly. Retsu, who had been in Soul Society for nearly sixty years, acted the same age as Kirio, most likely due to the fact that she spent thirty five years being ignored in the District Ten orphanage, and another twenty five years learning Kenpo.
Her skill with the sword, for a civilian at least, had peaked ten years ago, and she had been looking for someone to teach her Kido for just as long. Harry and Kirio were rather envious. She was so good at everything she did - sure, Harry's knowledge of Kido was easily deeper and stronger than anyone in Soul Society, but she picked up the things he had needed years to learn in days.
Harry worried about Retsu. She was a bit of a borderline psychopath - her cruelty was so very apparent when she sparred against their classmates. But she had designated Harry and Kirio as her anchors to human emotion and reality. Harry wondered what it was like, to be so good at everything that it seemed like a dream. In the three months that he had known Retsu, she had grown from looking like a sixteen year old to a woman in her late twenties, indicative of her mental growth.
Harry remembered that appearance of someone in Soul Society was much more symbolic than actual.
He snapped back to attention as the teacher began describing certain grapples.
Harry
Harry finally developed Shunpo five months from his enrollment into Shinigami Academy. He had received the innovation from watching Hakuda matches of hundreds of his fellow students, until he forced enough Reiryoku into his optic nerves to fry them. Aside from the fact that he leaked blood out of his left eye (which was more strained for some reason), he was able to track even Seated Officers using Shunpo easily. The Captain-Commander was still a flash made flesh, and the Shihoin boy, who spent all his time learning Shunpo variations could not be hit in their spars, though the Reiryoku skin that Harry used stopped him from dealing anything but glancing blows.
Reiryoku was more and more unlike magic, it seemed, as each day passed. Harry developed so many uses for it that he would have never thought possible with magic. Not only could his newly christened Spirit Skin deflect Sealed Zanpakuto, if he poured Reiryoku into his muscles, he was able to break rocks with his bare hands. But the most powerful use was that he could pump it into his brain, firing his neurons, and forcing them into overdrive.
He could use it to make himself smarter, though it increased his aggressiveness and threw his hormones (which were still produced) into a frenzy. It was how he had developed the refined Eighty Eighth Hado. He had recently stopped training Kido altogether - he had mastered all the Eightieth Hado, but he wasn't ready to move onto the Ninetieth set in his spare time. He opted to rest for a month before he engaged Hado Ninety, the Black Coffin, which was on a level of difficulty that was beyond that of the Thunder Cannon.
It was four days before Zanjutsu lessons in which Retsu sat him down and demanded that he teach her how to find her Zanpakuto.
"Right, Retsu-chan. I don't really know how I found my Zanpakuto, but I guess I can ask it for you."
He pulled the Wand, the Stone and the Cloak out of the Containment rune, and put them on, then laid his Veiled Spear on his lap. In an instance, he was
"Back again, Harry?"
He jumped. "Light. How do I help someone discover their Zanpakuto?" he immediately asked, before the Soul Splitting Spirit could get comfortable.
She looked at him for a moment, then smirked, and shifted into a perfect image of Retsu, then slowly began removing her Academy uniform. "Maybe you can convince me to tell you?"
She slid a hand over her-
"Light!" Harry barked, half-annoyed and half-aroused. "Can you not do this every time I-"
She shifted into an image of his mother again, and Harry began cursing a blue streak. Several minutes of curses that no seventeen year old, or seventy year old, for that matter, should have known, she sighed and shifted back to her original form.
"I want something for this. I am the Slytherin in you, you know."
Harry glared. "I'll never be as bad as you."
"Of course not, I am the extreme. You might, however, become as powerful as I am."
Harry stared for moment. "What do you mean by that?"
She looked contrite. "I'm tired of these games, Harry. I just want you to want me. I might be the Slytherin in you, but I'm also the part of you that craves acceptance. Why do you think you were ambitious to begin with? It was for the want of attention, of acknowledgement. Why are you so excited when Yamamoto compliments you, when you taught Dumbledore's Army. Why are you here to help Retsu, who will be competing with you for a job in the Gotei Thirteen, find her Zanpakuto? It's because of me. I'm the reason you're not a cold, detached Kido master, but a living, breathing inventor of spells. I'm the reason you're not lonely, the reason you love. I am-"
"The power he knew not. I can't in good conscience want you the same way you want me. We're in my mind. This is literally an MPD nightmare. I can't just have a relationship with one of my personalities, even if she's beautiful, or the reason I'm powerful."
"I see." Light pulled in a deep breath. "Any Shinigami exposed to the handle of my Shikai will be able to find their Zanpakuto. Make sure you clear it with Yamamoto first, he might have some misgivings. He's been watching you very carefully, you know."
"Really?"
"Silly boy, what would you do without me?" Light planted a kiss on Harry's lips, and-
Suddenly, he was in his room with Retsu and Kirio again.
"I need to speak with the Captain-Commander, Retsu, Kirio. Now." He jumped up and through the window, showcasing his newly discovered ability in levitation.
"Yamamoto-sama!" Harry shouted at the top of his lungs. "If you here, can you please come out, I have to talk to you!"
Nothing happened, and Retsu ended up dragging him back through the window, even as some of the Sixth Year students stared at him as if he were insane.
"I'm sort of unhappy. There's no way to get money here", Kirio groaned as she searched through Harry's nearly empty refrigerator. Without a clan, or even a family, no one sent any of them money, and they lived on the admittedly delicious school food, three meals a day.
Harry
It was two days before Light told him that the Captain-Commander was around. He seemed to be observing the Hakuda practices, so Harry shouted again. In less than a millisecond, Yamamoto's fist had crashed into his face. "Potter you idiot! The whole point of this observation is to be discreet!"
Harry groaned as his Reiryoku healed his split lip. "Right, So-Taichou. I was speaking to my Zanpakuto, and she's convinced that whoever touches her Shikai would be able to manifest their own Zanpakuto. Light told me to clear it with you before I summoned her First Release."
The Captain-Commander stared at the Academy student with no small amount of consternation. "You say that your Zanpakuto is the key to unlocking others? Well, I was never one to restrict the progress of my Shinigami. Go ahead."
"Light in the Heart of Man, Lance of Blood and Water!"
The radiance of the Unveiled Spear was always beautiful to behold. Retsu put her hand uncertainly on the silver shaft of the spear, and there was a flash of light. She was thrown back, and a sheathed nodachi appeared, stuck into the ground next to her head. She grabbed it, equal parts possessive and reverent, as if it would disappear.
Not to be outdone, Kirio repeated the process, and was left with a Wazikashi.
"You are a very special soul indeed, Potter Harry", said the pensive Captain-Commander.
Harry
Zanjutsu was annoying for Harry. It seemed that he had the only spear in the entirety of the Shinigami Corps, and while it was fun to have a rare weapon (that nobody could see), it wasn't very conducive to learning.
The problem was quickly solved, by Kirio, who, while meditating with her Zanpakuto, discovered that the there was no better teacher than the Spirit itself. Neither Kirio nor Retsu had been able to divine the name of their Zanpakuto yet, but they were able to learn skills far beyond what they originally possessed from their respective swords.
Light refused to teach Harry, citing that he his true power lay in wands and not Spears, annoying the boy to no end.
These were the conditions when the Captain-Commander gave them clearance for their first Hollow-killing trip.
