Soldier

A/N: According to Bleach Wiki, Hachigen relies more on his kido skills than on his zanpakuto and doesn't list his shikai or bankai. So I based his zanpakuto spirit off his hollow mask he wore during the Winter War.

Uruhara's zanpakuto was named Benihime (or in English dub 'Red Princess' ) and according to Urahara she is "not very nice."

Again, this is NOT a slash pairing.

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1. The kido spells are from Bleach movie 2: "The Diamond Dust Rebellion." Reviews are welcomed, flames are not.

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Chapter 9: Go Ahead

The month went by fast and Harry enjoyed every exhausting bit of it. He was learning so much living with the Kurosaki family. Isshin was just as crazy as Ichigo had warned him. He reminded Harry of Mr. Weasley, but Mr. Weasley was much, much calmer. . .

unless he was exploring 'Muggle artifacts'.

His training now included physical training with a group of people called the Visored. They were exiled Shinigamis that lived in the old warehouse Urahara had taken him to. Life was good, in Harry's opinion.

"GOOOOOD MORRRNINGGG! ICHIIIII. . .Goooooo!"

Harry peeked sleepily out of the closet to see Isshin in a flying leap heading for the prone teen, but before he landed Ichigo jumped up, planting a fist into the man's face. The blow sent him flying across the room and out into the hallway.

'Shades of Alistor Moody!' Harry thought groggily.

"GIVE IT A REST OLD MAN! Geeze why can't you be normal for once?" Ichigo shouted, standing there wearing only a pair of sweat pants.

Harry silently hexed Isshin's hair neon green as he exited the closet shouting, "Constant Vigilance!"

The first time Isshin pulled this stunt, it had frightened him so badly that he almost refused to leave the relative safety of his bed. Now, however, he was getting used to it. At least he didn't flinch at the loud fighting. This was different than the Dursley's, that was for certain.

Harry headed for the bathroom, leaving a very loud and angry Ichigo cussing out his green-haired old man.

After his morning routine Harry found Yuzu and Karin downstairs at the table. He quietly sat down, ignoring the huge poster looming over them.

Yuzu, the very quiet and shy sister, was the cook and housekeeper of the family. She reminded Harry a bit of Ginny Weasley who hung around him and Ron. He liked Yuzu better, at least she didn't give off fan-girl vibes.

Harry, ignoring Yuzu's protests that he was a guest, insisted on helping out with the household chores between his training sessions, despite her disapproval.

Karin was the tom-boy of the family. She frowned a lot, like Ichigo, but she was such a sports nut! She reminded Harry of the girls on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, especially Katie Bell. She was grateful that Harry wanted to help protect Yuzu from not only their father, but anyone wanting to bully the shy girl. It made points in Karin's book.

The strangest member of the family was a plushie lion named Kon. According to Ichigo, the toy contained a modified soul. Ichigo used it when he had to leave his body to fight hollows so that his body would not rot while he was away. After he caught the plushie reading a porn manga Harry's decided Kon was a pervert, a lot like Seamus Finnegan

Breakfast was great. It was the one meal that everyone sat around the table to eat together. Ichigo and his sisters were in school for lunch while Isshin took his lunch when he could between patients. Harry tended to eat with Hachigen, or with the rest of the Visoreds at the warehouse.

However, supper was hit or miss in the Kurosaki household. Everyone had different schedules, depending on homework, eating at friends homes, or just getting away from Isshin.

Although Harry normally had summers off, the three children of the Kurosaki family were still in the middle of their school year. Ichigo could only train in the evenings or on the weekends if he didn't have a ton of homework to do. For all of his violent and delinquent ways, Ichigo was very good in school and kept his grades up.

It was important to note that Ichigo cared who helped Harry train. That he knew his cousin didn't trust easily, and cared about what Harry was learning meant a lot to the English teen. No one had cared before. The Visoreds also cared how they trained Harry. He was still young, and most importantly, still alive.

After everyone left for the day, Harry made his way to Urahara's. He only had about two weeks of training left before he had to return to London.

"Ohayo gozaimasu!*" Harry called out as he entered the shop.

"Ahhh. Ohayo Harry-kun. Your instructor is waiting for you down in the basement," came Urahara's voice from his living area.

"Arigato Urahara-san!" Harry headed down stairs to the cavernous terrain below the shop. Waiting there for him as a large man with pink hair and mustache, wearing a green tuxedo and a yellow bow-tie.

"Ohayo, Hachigen-sensei!" Harry called with a small bow. He'd liked the large man from the start. In a way he reminded Harry of Hagrid, without the fascination for large, dangerous creatures. Tessai-sensei would, from time to time, test Harry, but for the most part left the teaching up to Hachigen.

"Ohayo Harry-kun. Come and let's begin!" Hachigen called, waving Harry over to him.

Harry spent the rest of that morning working on what he considered wandless magic. His current lesson was working on applying the kido training to his wizarding magic.

Kido was more akin to a ritualized chanting, but once he made the connection how it felt to perform it, he flew through the lessons.

Now that he had full access to his magical core, he rarely used his wand. It was disappointing that the lower levels of Kido were useless to him as he, like Ichigo, tended to over power them.

"Bakudo No. 62: 100 Steps Fence!" Harry shouted as he raised his hands, pressed them together before spreading them apart. As he did so, a shimmering shaft of light formed horizontally between them. He then threw it javelin style at the boulder some distance away.

As the javelin of glowing light flew through the air it split into several at once. They sailed, several falling to the ground, but the original one pierced the boulder while the others landed around it.

"Very good Harry-kun," Hachigen praised. "Now do Hado 33."

Harry winced. He would try. Hado always caused more damage than it should for him for some reason. Hachigen assured him that it only took practice.

"Hado 33: Blue Fire, Crash Down!" Harry chanted, holding out his hand, palm out as he spoke the incantation.

A ball of blue energy formed quickly in front of his palm before blasting forth. The wave of destruction was wide and devastating. It cut a wide deep swath towards the boulder with the light javelin sticking out of it. When the dust cleared, the boulder had been turned to gravel.

"Very good, Harry-kun!" Hachi praised. "Now, fix what you broke."

"Hai! Hachi-sensei," Harry said as he raised his hand and shouted. "Reparo!"

The damage done to the landscape suddenly started to repair itself—all except the boulder. It was too badly damaged and remained dust and rubble on the ground. By learning Kido, Harry had discover where his core was and how to access it. That discovery lead to finding out that his magic worked the same way as Kido, and he hadn't used his wand since.

"Very good Harry," came the voice of Muramasa as he appeared beside his wielder. "Release me."

Harry smiled as he held an arm out straight, level with his shoulder. "In the stillness of the night, comes a sound: Whisper Muramasa!" Harry chanted. In his out-stretched hand a Japanese katana appeared with a purple and silver hilt. Harry could feel the approval in the back of his mind.

Although he was born of another shinigami and was suppose to have died with him, Harry continued to learn everything there was about Muramasa. Something his former wielder, Kuga, failed to do. Muramasa, for his part, was starting to conform to Harry's pure soul.

In doing so, Harry made the zanpakuto his own. It was difficult for the simple reason Harry was not a shinigami, nor did he ever want to be one. With each training session the bond between them grew stronger. It helped they had the approval of all those involved in Harry's training. The positive energy helped strengthen Harry's new resolve and confidence. And it helped to stabilize his core.

For Muramasa, Harry reminded him of his beloved Kuga in so many ways, except Harry had a stronger need to protect the innocent and those that mattered to him. Kuga never saw his zanpakuto as anything but a weapon, a tool that he discarded once it failed to serve him.

Harry, however, saw Muramasa as the brother of his heart. Their bond was now firmly set in Harry's soul- stronger than a lover, stronger than family. While Harry may be his master, the young wizard was also his brother, his friend and this pleased Muramasa greatly.

The zanpakuto in Harry's hand pulsed once and standing before Harry was Muramasa with two spirits.

One was a tall, stately Japanese woman dressed in an Heien period red kimono and an elaborate black wig. The other was a male dressed as a kabuki actor.

"I love it! You're so cool, Muramasa!" shouted Harry, laughing happily at his companion. He could almost hear Muramasa purring in the back of his mind at Harry's happiness. This was another thing that the spirit loved about Harry; his childlike delight.

Ah, someone's very happy!" came Urahara's voice from the base of the stairs. "And I see that you even cleaned up the place. And who are these two?"

Harry grinned. "Why Geta Boshi . . . ." Harry had picked up Ichigo's irreverance for the shopkeeper. " . . . don't you recognize your own zanpakuto?"

The elegant lady slowly sank down, spreading her flowing kimono around her as she curtsied to the surprised shopkeeper. "Master."

The Kabuki Actor huffed and moved into a dramatic pose next to an equally surprised Hachigen.

Harry placed his zanpakuto on his shoulder, like he had seen Ichigo do with that huge meat cleaver of his. "So this is what your zanpakuto spirits look like?" he asked, grinning.

"So what do you plan to do now, Harry-kun? The last time zanpakuto spirits materialized they wrecked the Sereitei," Kisuke Urahara asked hiding his face behind his fan, watching his charge closely.

Harry looked over at the zanpakuto resting on his shoulder and said, "As cool as this is, he's right. I don't want to lose you." Harry sighed as some of the happiness left his face. "You're part of me now. Can you return them?"

Muramasa raised his hand. "Of course, Harry. I would not turn them on anyone like I did for Kuga. I am pleased that you are capable of summoning my techniques." The spirits returned to their master's, much to the relief of the two former shinigami.

"Well, that practice went well," Urahara said, clapping his hands. "It's time for lunch."

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Hachigen followed them up. He looked over the terrain of the pocket dimension that Urahara had set up for training decades ago and shuddered. That kid had as much power as Kurosaki Ichigo. He was also thankful both had a strong desire to protect, and not just those they cared about.

The large Kido Master didn't use his zanpakuto much, preferring Kido over actual fighting. It shook him to know what his Zanpakuto's spirit form looked like. It made sense though, he did wear a kabuki mask when he used his hollow powers. Hachigen wondered what other surprises his student would reveal.

Maybe he should ask Tessai. His young student had come far in the very short time he had been teaching him. Yes, he was very pleased with Harry.

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During lunch Harry was puzzling over a problem. "Uh. . .Urahara-san? Do you think I could send a letter to Kuchiki-sama? I would like to ask him something."

Urahara set down his cup of tea, pondering the question. "I don't see why not. What did you have in mind?"

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Captain Byakuya Kuchiki was sitting down for his evening meal when a hell butterfly landed on his finger and started its message:

"Uh Greetings Kuchiki-sama. . . " a young boy's voice started to speak hesitantly. Byakuya recognized it was the voice of that boy who bonded with his departed kinsman's zanpakuto. ". . . this is so weird, speaking like this. . . "

There was a clearing of the throat and the message continued. ". . . Uh, Kuchiki-sama, I would like to ask a favor of you, sir. I need lessons in noble etiquette and deportment. I was raised poorly and was unaware of my heritage until this summer. I have less than two weeks before I have to return to England. I. . .uh. . . need someone of your standing to direct me to the material to study. Also. . .uh. . . Muramasa wants to speak with you as well.. . Thank you for listening, sir. . . . uh how do I end this?. . . Oh. . .end message. " The message ended.

The clan lord closed his eyes in thought. At least the boy recognized he was in over his head and was polite about it. What he had seen in that brief first encounter had impressed him. Should he help the boy? An appeal like that was worthy of a response.

His evening meal forgotten on a tray beside him, the clan lord had work to do.

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Harry was working out with Ichigo in the underground lair beneath Urahara's shop that evening when a senkaimon opened. A black butterfly floated out with Kuchiki Byakuya trailing behind it.

"What are you doing here, Byakuya?" Ichigo demanded, bringing the spar to an end.

Harry placed a hand on his cousin. "I asked him to come, Ichigo-kun. Muramasa says I need training in how to be a noble. And since he was once part of the Kuchiki clan, he thought it would be best if I contact Kuchiki-sama." Harry turned and gave a slight bow. "Welcome, sir."

"As rude as ever, Kurosaki Ichigo, but Potter-san is right," Byakuya said as the gateway closed and disappeared behind him. He gave a slight nod of his head to acknowledge Harry before continuing. "I have come to teach him as he requested. It is an admirable trait to know when you are in need of training."

"Arigato, Kuchiki-sama," Harry said, politely as he sheathed his zanpakuto. "Muramasa has been tutoring me some and the goblins have given me research material on my family, as I never knew them. But it isn't enough. Besides, he also wants to speak with you. He won't tell me why," Harry pouted. It only showed how young the boy was.

"That is acceptable. I am here now," the clan lord said. "I will be coming here every night until you leave to go over what you have learned and to point out your mistakes. However, tonight, I will watch as you finish your sparring. I am curious to see how well you are progressing."

And so it began.

Harry and Ichigo return to sparring with their zanpakutos. Harry knew he couldn't defeat the taller and older teen but it was good practice. From the sidelines, Urahara and Yoruichi pointed out Harry's mistakes and offered encouragement. Byakuya was impressed that the lad could almost hold his own against so aggressive and powerful a fighter as Kurosaki Ichigo, even though everyone could see that the taller teen was holding back.

Yes, he had made the right decision to come. Maybe through this child the disgrace to his clan's honor will be cleared once and for all.

Muramasa appeared beside the Kuchiki lord. "A word while they are busy, Kuchiki-sama?"

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A/N: There is no pairing in this story except for the soul bonding of Muramasa and Harry and that is more brother/sibling pairing. We repeat there is no slash in this story. Thanks for all the reviews.

Until next time – GF and the Frau

*Ohayo gozaimasu! – formal way to say Good morning!

Ohayo – informal way to say Morning!

Arigato – thank you

-sensei – In general usage, it is used, with proper form, after a person's name, and means "teacher," and the word is used as a title to refer to or address teachers, professors, professional such as lawyers, CPA and doctors, politicians, clergyman, and other figures of authority.

Visored – a group of Shinigami who obtained Hollow powers. And no, Harry will not be obtaining this power.

Senkaimon - the gate used to travel between the two worlds, and is the only official and safe way to enter and leave Soul Society.