Wizard and Deat Reaper: Hogwarts
Chapter 34's

The night that began to crawl up began to emit warm June air. However, slowly also the temperature is slightly lower, the result of condensation of hot air during the day. In plain sight, there was nothing wrong around the castle of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. That night looked calm, shaded by a blue sky of star-studded ink. But for the sharp senses of shinigami, their ability to track whereabouts shouldn't be there. Their natural enemies are known as hollows. But, this time it was not a group of ordinary hollows, but rather hollows that underwent their highest evolution. Being Arrancar.

The shinigami know, this is going to be a little troublesome work for them.

Well, maybe not a little bit too, with hundreds of students they have to protect.

"Is there any use for them to hide?" shinji said, scratching the back of his non-itchy neck. "They know we're here, and they know we know where they are."

"They're just trying to make their arrival a little impressive" Kensei said lazily. "It's not useful, anyway."

"Well, especially after Hitsu-chan had just bulldozed one of them without even face to face," Yoruichi said.

"Don't be arrogant, shinigami."

The figures began to appear. A number of forms that are foreign and familiar to the shinigami stand in empty air, against gravity with a haughty attitude. There were at least thirty Arrancar there. No one has reached the level of Vasto Lorde. But this arguably unbalanced amount can be a bit of a hassle, right?

"Have any of them been identified?" toushiro asked Shinji in a soft voice.

"Nothing" said Shinji, his tone lazy. "They hid their previous whereabouts during the investigation at Hueco Mundo very well. But judging from their reiatsu.hm. ten of those most powerful are likely the frontmen of the troops, the rest their fraccion."

"That's it," said Toushiro.

Ichigo pulls the Zangetsu on his back, as well as other shinigami. Their positions were immediately combat ready.

"Let's end this" Ichigo kalem said.

And he advanced first to strike the Arrancar closest to him. The arrancar swiftly repelled Ichigo's large-sized sword. However, the strength of the energy used by Ichigo made the Arrancar pushed back. Meanwhile, other shinigami have also faced enemies. Only Byakuya, Urahara, Shinji, and Yoruichi are still in place. They are obviously still observing the situation. And not all Arrancar also directly advanced into battle. About a dozen Arrancars still stand on the other side of Hogwarts' vast courtyard.

Meanwhile, inside the Great Hall.

The witches watched the battle that took place in the courtyard of Hogwarts with misgivings. The shinigami have indeed added protection around the castle with their kidou. Nonetheless, they could all feel an odd sensation that seemed to be pressing around them, making breathing even a little difficult.

"It's done!"

Fred, George, Sirius, Lupin, Mr. Weasley, and a few teachers entered the Hall with slightly relieved expressions.

"All the secret passageways have been blocked with magic spells" Sirius said.

"Also with the seal paper you gave me, Mr. Ukitake," Fred added.

"Thank you" said Ukitake. He looked around, especially at the pale faces of the Hogwarts students. Orihime who was also in the Hall was still staring at his friends who were fighting out there. The commander of the 13th Division felt that, unmistakably, the spiritual energy of his fellow shinigami began to affect these witches, He sighed. "We're really sorry, Dumbledore-san, for the battle that took place in this school."

"What else can be done from something that happens beyond expectation like this" said Dumbledore calmly. Despite this, Ukitake could see a faint unease in those blue eyes.

"Can't we send the kids out?" mcgonagall asked worriedly, glaring at the terrified-looking students.

"I'm sorry, Professor," said Ukitake, smiling gloomily. "I'm just as eager to keep these kids out of the range of battle. But the only way we have is through the yard, and it's impossible with that place to be a battleground at the moment. All that could be done right now was to keep them inside the castle until the battle was over."

"But" said Hermione, anxious instead of playing, "what if they lose?"

Ukitake smile. "We can only trust them, hm? Trust me, they're experienced with this."

"You really believe them" Kingsley said in a deep voice.

"I've known and fought with them for years. If I can't trust them, I can't trust anyone to protect Soul Sociaty and the Human World." Ukitake, once again, looked at the disciples, then at Dumbledore. "And I must also apologize for the effects of the battle seem to have already affected those children."

"You mean?" ask Flitwick.

"The Shinigami who came to Hogwarts are at the level of commander and lieutenant, two important positions in the ranks of the Gotei 13, Professor. And do you know what makes this position so important?"

The Master of Spell shook his head once.

"They occupied that position for several reasons. Their dedication, their loyalty, and the qualifications they possess are worthy of their commander and lieutenant. Of course, their abilities and strength also held an important role. Commanders and lieutenants are known for abilities that are well above the average regular shinigami. The amount of their spiritual energy, called reiatsu, has a huge quantity. This was the reason why the 'effects' happened during their fight."

"Effects?" ask Bill not to understand.

Ukitake nodded. "Actually, commander and lieutenant-level shinigami are very rarely deployed on missions to the Human World, except for the very bizarre types of cases."

"Mr Hitsugaya's…"

"really. What happened at Hogwarts is not an ordinary type of case. Pretty serious, obviously. Commander Hitsugaya's ability as a capable shinigami becomes the main capital to investigate what happened, as well as guarding Hogwarts, along with Kurosaki-kun, Kisuke-san, and Yoruichi-san. To my intended effect," Ukitake smiled faintly, "didn't I just say that the commander and lieutenant levels have a large number of reiatsu? That was the reason why the commander and lieutenant levels were rarely lowered. That great reiatsu could disturb ordinary humans, even humans who had more number of reiatsu like witches."

"How can you?" ask Lupin, still don't understand. "Disturbing how exactly?"

"In other words," said Ukitake, "what happens if the energy possessed by a witch becomes uncontrollable?"

"The magician will unleash his magic power without realizing it" Dumbledore said. "From my experience, that happens more in the direction of destructive things, whether done to the witch herself or to her surroundings."

"Absolutely. What I'm trying to say is, if a commander or lieutenant is near an ordinary human or even a witch, the reiatsu she has can give a stimulant to the spiritual energy that humans have. Unfortunately, that energy messes with human energy, which in fact is not as strong as the reiatsu commander or lieutenant. Their energy will be pushed down, suppressed. If this continues to happen, the worst chance that will happen is death."

"But Toushiro is here and there's nothing" said Ron.

"That's because he used a gigai. Oh, it's an artificial body that shinigami use when they're on a mission to the Human World and it requires interaction with humans; not all humans can see shinigami, right? Gigai also has another function, which is to press the shinigami reiatsu until it is almost undetectable, so even hollows will not be able to track them. In addition, any shinigami with the rank of – from the rank of twenty to the level of commander of – who came to the Human World would have partially sealed his reiatsu up to 80%."

"Eh?"

Many witches were shocked by this, except for Dumbledore and the members of the Order of the Phoenix who had heard this when they first met the shinigami.

"You mean.. Toushiro and Ichigo and the two men," said Lee Jordan, "their power is suppressed to only 20%?!"

"Yes. And still. Even all the shinigami who came here, including me, all got the Guardrail Seal. Otherwise, since we arrived you'll have suffered greatly."

"Are you guys," said Mr. Weasley, sounding a little uneasy, "it's okay with fighting without full force?"

"Well," Ukitake smiled faintly, "if something doesn't go smoothly, then they will be allowed to do Limit Release – seal release. But I hope, even if it's going to be very difficult with that number of enemies, they don't. It's bad enough your condition is even without them taking it off, right?"

From the big window in the Great Hall, the witches were watching the battles that were going on out there. The shinigami were in the sky illuminated by the stars and light of the castle. It was not too difficult to recognize who was fighting, except for those Arrancars.

Harry sees Ichigo darting away at an astonishing speed, confronting a long black-haired Arrancar man and a large body. A flash of sparks sprinkled as his oversized sword struck his opponent's katana. It was amazing for Harry, to see Ichigo's face so calm, not showing the excitement of facing his enemy.

Not far from the orange hair. The red-haired young man – Renji – also fought with his calm. His katana now changed shape into an odd sword that resembled pieces of thin metal blades connected to an elastic steel wire whose way of working was similar to a whip. His calmness was completely opposite to that of a blonde-haired Arrancar man so it just seemed a little panicked.

Calmness also appeared on Rukia Kuchiki's face. The little girl was not only calm, her katana swinging movement which now turned white – from the tip of the white ribbon that appeared on the hilt to the tip of her sword – was very graceful. Large-sized ice waves repeatedly formed as the girl slashed towards the two Arrancar who were her opponents. The two were still able to stand up after receiving the attack, looking wrathful at the 13th Division Lieutenant, who still remained calm.

Contrary to the calmness of the Kuchiki girl, the bald Ikkaku Madarame actually looks very enthusiastic, even arguably crazy. He laughed happily and grinned throughout the fight with a burly male Arrancar. The Third Division 11 bench had been injured in the upper left arm. However, it seems that the blood flowing in the wound did not have a meaningful effect, it made him more excited. Not far from him was his fellow 11th Division partner, Yumichika Ayasegawa. The young man was not as enthusiastic as Ikkaku, instead looking a little relaxed. He sighed many times seeing the bald man's over-excitement. His enemy, a young woman with black wavy hair and a vile face looked irritated. How not, shinigami who became his opponent since earlier commented on his hairstyle that he thought was outdated!

Harry also sees 9th Division Lieutenant and 3rd Division Lieutenant fighting together against four Arrancar at once. The Hisagi katana had turned into a weapon that resembled two scythe propped up by two black sticks, connected by a long black chain that could extend its range against the enemy. Katana Kira has changed too. The edge of the katana bends, forming like a square hook. Harry was astonished, what could be done with such a shaped weapon. But he immediately had to resist the urge to vomit once he knew what he could do. As Hisagi ensnared an Arrancar, Kira quickly moved behind the Arrancar, pointing her words under the enemy's neck and making an interesting gesture, beheading the Arrancar.

On the other hand, it looks like Kensei Muguruma is also fighting. For a moment Harry thought that the 9th Division Commander was empty-handed, until he saw a silver flash in both hands. It seemed like the weapon the man used was two daggers, which made him a close-combat type fighter.

The kind-faced 5th Division lieutenant looked to be fighting as well. Momo seemed determined, as seen by the use of her katana which changed shape; there were branches formed on both sides of her katana. The girl's ability turned out to be fire, sending huge balls of fire towards her opponent and making him explode countless times. Although Arrancar who became his enemy did not fall, it does not mean he gave up. Still on, like the element.

"The Arrancar are not as strong as previous generations" Ukitake said. "For now the new shinigami are fighting the fraccions, but they can handle it well."

"What is fraccion?" ask Mr. Weasley.

"In short, it is the follower of every strongest Arrancar," Ukitake said short. "When the Arrancars appeared in Winter War almost two years ago, all the shinigami who confronted them were quite overwhelmed, either fraccion or even Espada." Ukitake saw the confused looks of the witches. He smiles. "You don't need to know it's too detailed. The abilities of the shinigami in the current battle were the result of their past experience and learning."

"Will you fight?" ask Luna plain. "What...just stop this with a fight? What if... they... die because of that?"

Silence hung for a few seconds after Luna's question. Some teachers exchanged meaningful glances, while many students did not understand.

"I've seen a lot of fighting" Ukitake said softly. His dark gray eyes stared at the battle that was going on up there through the window of the Hall. "Battle me or my friends, or my subordinates, or even my superiors. They will fall, rise, fall again. Those who have enough willpower and strength will rise up and fight again until they win. Others will feel enough. Some will rise, but sacrifice themselves for others. They're shinigami. Ever since they chose this path, they already knew what the risks were. The price to pay for a shinigami title. It is an honor, and also a willingness to do all their duties as shinigami, to keep the balance of the Spirit World and the Human World. To die for it, is a great honor."

"Shinigami could die?" ask Flitwick wonder. "Aren't you spirits?"

"Soul Society is not a place of true immortality" Ukitake said slowly. "Shinigami are not immortals. We could die, of course."

This sets a wave of fear in Harry and several other witches who have known Ichigo, Toushiro, and Urahara – plus Yoruichi.

"But if a shinigami dies, there are four paths that one of them will encounter. Ke Hueco Mundo as Arrancar; this usually happens if a shinigami dies from encountering a hollow that swallows his soul (some witches shudder in horror), to hell; it is usually because a shinigami who commits a grave mistake that makes Hell claim it as its own, disappears as a reishi or spirit particle that houses Soul Society, or his soul will enter in the re-incarnation circle to start a new life with the possibility of a new identity without remembering the previous life.".

"Stay," said Mrs Weasley, looking grim, "most of the shinigami are so young. They've already accepted such a big task.It's too.it's not fair to them."

Ukitake looked at Mrs Weasley. He had heard about the mother of these Weasley children from Toushiro. He held a smile, remembering that while visiting the 10th Division Commander told him about Mrs Weasley's attitude towards him and Ichigo, regarding them only as children, forgetting the fact that they were more than that.

"It's not my right to determine what they want to vote for" Ukitake said calmly. Even though it sounded calm, the adult witches could feel the seriousness there. "It's not the right of anyone, me, you, even the Soul King, except them. Being a shinigami is their choice. They realize, once they know that they are not ordinary spirits, they must learn to control their powers, because it is their destiny or the desire of their heart. Their age is not a benchmark for what they choose."

"Even to Toushiro?"

"You still have a hard time accepting who Hitsugaya-kun is?" ukitake said, making Mrs Weasley speechless. The white-haired man showed nothing but calmness. "I understand this, since the day of his inauguration almost twenty years ago. More than half of the residents of Seireitei doubted his abilities, that the reason why he could become a commander was only his genius brain. They don't know what he's done to get there."

"What did.. he do?" ask Lupin doubtfully. Ukitake was almost certain the entire witch, alive or dead, who was in the Great Hall was listening to him now.

"Loud work is more than anyone else's," Ukitake said grimly. "He realized his strength was greater than anyone else's, when he was so young. He felt he had to control it if he didn't want anyone else to get hurt. When we were meeting to determine the position of the vacant 10th Division Commander, his name came up after we found out he had already taken control of his bankai."

"What is a bankai?" sela Sirius's.

"The final stage of the release of zanpakuto power," Ukitake said patiently. "When a shinigami unites himself with his zanpakuto spirit." Ukitake seemed to think for a moment. "This stage is very difficult for shinigami to achieve. All this time only commanders have achieved it, after training for a hundred years to achieve it. But, Shiro-chan managed to do it for less than ten years."

Many are shocked by it.

"But he kept it a secret for some time. We only found out when he was sent to lead a mission to a district in Rukongai. He used his bankai for the first time in front of several shinigami at a truly urgent moment. At that time his team asked Seireitei for help. I happened to be in the relief force, along with Commander Kuchiki and Commander Zaraki. Bankai's awesome, but he's using it to protect his comrades. He almost died because of it. His Reiatsu exploded uncontrollably at the last moment, making one district freeze within ten seconds. But fortunately, he was saved, and there were no casualties in the District due to his unbalanced reiatsu control. And next, we agreed that a responsibility would make him a little pushed to better control his power. To this day."

"You kind of understand it well" Kingsley said.

"No. No." Ukitake. "I could never understand it so well. Even all the years I've known her, she's still the same as the first time I've known her. Young man with frozen heart. Even though he's not as cold as he used to be, he's still the personification of ice."

"It's. complicated," murmured Sirius. "You still understand it."

Ukitake smile. "I've lived for almost a thousand years, Sirius-san." Again the children who gasped were shocked to hear this. "I've seen a lot of things happen during that time. About Soul Society, as well as a number of existing shinigami."

"Wow, you must be one of the oldest shinigami ever.." Tonks chirped in amazement.

Ukitake laughed. "Not really. But among the Gotei 13 that I am now is indeed one of the oldest, with the Supreme Commander Kyouraku."

"I remember the late Genryuusai telling me about his two favorite students, the two of you," said Dumbledore, his blue eyes sparkling. "I don't think any of you will come forward to replace him. And that's my Kyoura."

"Someone should lead us on the Gotei 13" Ukitake smiled. "My heart may seem careless and relaxed. "But in that last war he proved that he was capable of bringing victory. The present Gotei 13 is not as powerful as the Gotei 13 of the past in Yamamoto sensei's time, but we can prove that what he taught us, as well as his sacrifice to Seireitei, we can prove, it's not in vain."

In combat.

"Don't you think they're a little weird?" shinji said slowly.

"Know what you mean," said Yoruichi. "The Arrancar were clearly weaker than the latter, I guess that's why they increased their numbers. And when viewed from their attack pattern, they intended to perform the ultimate move at the end. Typical."

"Well, are you waiting for them to show it?" shinji asked, still with his Chesire cat grin.

"No," said Yoruichi, his golden eyes flashed. "I want to see it now."

In the next instant, the Shihouin noble's daughter had shunpo with a speed-near-to-light-speed. The woman had been in front of a slim-bodied Arrancar woman with pale blonde hair, who looked quite surprised at the sudden appearance of her opponent.

"Hello, Miss Arrancar. Ready to fight?"

"I never knew before that Urahara-sensei cats were shinigami like you, too" Hermione said. His brown eyes stared at the figure of the former Division 12 Commander who was still standing quietly on the sidelines, then looked at Yoruichi who had darted agilely against his opponent up there.

"Yoruichi-san is indeed like that," Ukitake said lightly. "'The little magic' he learned in order to transform into a cat became a precise camouflage that matched his talents as an Onmitsukido army."

"What's that?" ask Sirius.

"Sireitei special forces. He used to be the leader, as well as the Commander of Division 2. Since the beginning of Division 2 which doubles as Headquarters Onmitsukido which is a secret organization that is expert in infiltration, simply put, the work of ninjas. Usually this 2nd Division and Onmitsukido was under the leadership of the Shihouin Clan which was one of the four noble clans in the Seireitei. Yoruichi-san who was the eldest daughter of the clan who led them back then. But he left his post a hundred years ago. And from then on their control was in the command of Commander Soi Fon."

"Why did he leave?" ask Bill curious.

Ukitake smiled thinly. "That's. Rather than that, there's one thing that bothers me enough."

"And what is it?" ask McGonagall.

"The Death Eaters" Ukitake said seriously. "For those who intend to attack Hogwarts, it is quite strange that none of them appear, except the Arrancars." Ukitake stared through the window with narrowed eyes. "They're coming."

The members of the Order instantly whipped out their respective magic wands, followed by them the 13th Division Commander's line of sight; moody's Invisibility Eye was set in the same direction. Sure enough, black-robed figures appeared from another point of the castle boundary.

"It looks like it'll be fun" said Moody growling. "Azkaban would love to receive them back."

Harry was a little scared to hear that. It's not that Azkaban reminded him of Dementors, is it. But because the witch battle is about to take place. And he knew very well that part of the reason for the battle was himself. And what's more, he puts all of Hogwarts in danger, including his friends. And guardians.

"Sirius."

The last Black looked at Harry. He could see the anxiety in those green eyes. And he cursed it. This could be the first war that the eye sees firsthand. He held onto Harry's shoulders, trying to give him some understanding.

"You understand why this is happening, Harry. And it wasn't your fault."

"But…"

"I understand, Harry," said Sirius, smiling with concern. "It's not a good thing, but everything's gonna be okay."

And Sirius along with the members of the Order of the Phoenix and a few teachers came out of the Great Hall with a magic wand ready in hand.

How could war make everything okay?