I've seen my share of battlefields, thought Itachi as he surveyed the carnage and ruin, but this… this feels more like the floor of a charnel-house. Did all of these men really have to die here?
According to what Yoruichi had told the students on the way here, the battle that had just concluded had been fought between the forces of no less than four empires; the British, French and Ottoman Empires against the Russian Empire. None of these were nations that Itachi was familiar with, but that was hardly a surprise. After all, this was the first time that he and Jiraiya had been to the Realm of the Living known as Terra.
The battle had taken place just south of a river, and from what Itachi had learned, it had involved a total of over 90,000 men. Yoruichi had not told them who had won, and from the perspective of Soul Reapers that was really irrelevant. Their purpose was to contend with the aftermath of such a battle and guide all the lost souls that resulted from such bloody and tragic engagements onward to the Soul Society.
Next to him, he saw Jiraiya shaking his head as he looked at a group of corpses. "What a waste…"
Itachi nodded solemnly. "Agreed."
Strange uniforms clad the twisted and mangled bodies, while cold and dead hands tightly clutched strange weapons, but a battlefield was still a battlefield, and even if this one had more mangled and rotting cadavers lying about than many that Itachi had been to in his time, it was still the type of scene that he was used to and thus could maintain his composure. The same went for Jiraiya; while the Legendary Sannin might lament that so many men had met their cruel ends in a place like this, Itachi knew that the former student of the Third Hokage remained alert and ready for anything that they might face here today.
Unfortunately, the same could not be said for most of their fellow classmates. While life in the Soul Society prior to entering the Academy and the Seireitei in general wasn't exactly a picnic, it quickly became clear to Itachi that his fellow students had never experienced so much carnage and death in one place before. Even though the battle itself was over, there was still plenty of horror to be found in the aftermath. The stench of decay and rot could be overwhelming to one who was not accustomed to it, and Itachi could already spot more than a few queasy-looking students.
"By the Soul King…" he heard one mutter.
"I think I'm gonna hurl," groaned another.
"Why did they do this?" asked a third who sounded close to tears, "Why did they all have to kill each other like this? What… what was the point?"
"When empires play their games, their rulers don't care about the pieces that are consumed on the board," said Yoruichi grimly as she stepped forward, "The lives of their subjects mean little to them, save for what ground they can gain on the battlefield before they're cut down. Believe me, you will see plenty of this once you become a Soul Reaper. That is why we're bringing you here now; you are students of the advanced track, so it's better if you come to terms with the true nature of our work sooner rather than later."
"Never forget this," said Soi-Fon, giving the assembled students a cold glare, "The foundation of the role that Soul Reapers play is death. We may guide souls onward and protect them from Hollows, but the fundamental truth is that our sacred duties exist in the first place because everyone, whether high-born or low, is doomed to die."
Yoruichi nodded. "Many lives end peacefully enough, and in those cases the hands of Soul Reapers are normally not needed to bring the spirits of the dead home to the Soul Society. However, all too often, lives are cut short through violence, plague, nature's wrath, and more. It is much harder for a soul to pass on to the Soul Society on their own under such circumstances. The suddenness of death, the sheer sense of randomness and the purely arbitrary nature inherent in the demise, can shock the soul and cause it to lose its way. They wander the Realms of the Living in despair, cursing their fates… and eventually cursing all who are with them. That is why we must find them before they become Hollows in the anguish, or before a Hollow is drawn to their despair and feeds upon them."
"And we need to do it quickly," a new voice rang out, "We've got a lot of souls to attend to today!"
Itachi and Jiraiya turned around to see a tall and lean Soul Reaper approaching them. His complexion was a little on the pale side, and his messy light blond hair only served to accentuate that attribute. That was sharply contrasted, however, by his grey eyes, which had an edge to them that Itachi couldn't quite determine the true nature of. Was it simply the seriousness that came with where they currently found themselves, or was there more to it? That being said, he did seem to be relatively at ease with their present location, or at least didn't seem to be overly bothered by the fact that one couldn't take two steps without kicking a corpse. The Zanpakutō at his side had black hilt-wrapping and an oval-shaped tsuba with a snowflake designed embedded upon it, and from the way his hand hovered almost casually over the weapon's handle Itachi guessed that he was quite proficient with it.
The man seemed to take in the group of students at a glance, but his gaze lingered on Itachi and Jiraiya. He was clearly evaluating them, although to what end Itachi couldn't say. After a moment the man shrugged and smiled as he came up to Yoruichi.
"So, is this everyone?" he asked, "They should be enough, but we've got a lot of ground to cover."
Yoruichi nodded. "Indeed. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Kisuke Urahara, my Third Seat. He's also the Corps Commander of the Detention Unit, so if any of you boys and girls get on the wrong side of the law within the Seireitei, he'll probably end up paying you a visit… and you won't like it."
Several of the assembled students looked at Kisuke nervously. The class as a whole seemed even more on edge now that it had been before, so Yoruichi suddenly grinning and patting Kisuke on the back had a rather jarring effect on them.
"Come on, guys, lighten up!" she said, "Relax, Kisuke's a good guy! He's an old friend of mine, and he's pretty fun to hang out with off duty! He'll be helping me watch over you all today. Trust me, you're in good hands."
Kisuke smiled. "It's nice to meet all of you. Sorry it had to be under these particular circumstances, but you can't ask for a better place for a large-scale Konsō exercise than a fresh battlefield. The best part is that by the time you're done here, you'll be used to the smell of rotting corpses!"
Jiraiya chuckled. "This one's a real card, isn't he?"
"That's one way to put it," Itachi muttered.
"Before we get started, we need to know as much about what we're dealing with here as possible," said Yoruichi, folding her arms as her expression became serious, "Kisuke, what's on our plate today? Do you have a casualty figure for me yet?"
"Total? Best guess is about nine thousand," Kisuke replied, "They're scattered about the area, but it won't be too hard to find them. When we got here, we caught several Hollows munching on them, but we cleared them out quickly enough. There are plenty of souls left for everyone to get multiple opportunities for Konsō practice as long as they're willing to put in some legwork."
Yoruichi nodded. "Good. We'll get everyone split up into groups and under the supervision of active duty Soul Reapers. After that, we'll start tracking the souls down."
"We need to stay sharp," said Kisuke, "I've already caught one Hollow today hiding under corpses trying to ambush us, and there could be a few more still out there. I've got people sweeping the area to make sure we're secure, but we can't be too careful."
"Agreed," said Yoruichi as she turned back to the students, "All right, boys and girls, you heard him! This isn't a fun day-trip to the market; the battle may be over, but danger could still be lurking just out of sight. Stay on your toes and listen to whatever the Soul Reaper assigned to your group tells you, and you'll make it through today in one piece. Let's get to work!"
….
"So," said Kisuke with a smile, "are you two ready to do this?"
Jiraiya nodded. "You bet."
"Let's get going," said Itachi.
As the two top students in the advanced track, Itachi and Jiraiya had been assigned to a 'group' that was actually just the two of them with Yoruichi's Third Seat acting as their escort. Itachi had been slightly disappointed that the Captain of Squad Two herself wasn't taking that role instead, but he supposed that there was only so much favor that she could show him before drawing unwanted attention.
As the three of them began their walk through the field of rotting corpses and broken weapons, Itachi kept one eye on his surroundings and the other on Kisuke. He was surprised that the head of the Detention Unit was participating in a field operation when his official responsibility was supposed to be managing prisoners. Then again, Yoruichi wouldn't have given him this assignment without good reason.
She must be confident in his abilities, he thought, I wonder what he's capable of…
"I've heard quite a bit about the two of you," said Kisuke, "Especially you, Itachi. It's rare for Yoruichi to pay special attention to a student, but you seem to have caught her eye."
Itachi raised an eyebrow. "You're on a first-name basis with her?"
Kisuke nodded. "Yup. Didn't you hear her earlier? We're old friends. Besides, she's never really been one for formalities if she can avoid them."
"So we've noticed," Jiraiya replied, "Sounds like you're the same way."
Kisuke smiled. "That's right. Hope that doesn't bother the two of you."
Itachi shrugged. "Not particularly."
Kisuke's eyes narrowed as he once again studied Itachi. "I gotta say, I'm looking forward to seeing what you're capable of. It's not every day that Yoruichi decides to spar with a student, after all. You must really have some potential."
"I'll show you what I can do soon enough," said Itachi.
Kisuke then gestured to Itachi and Jiraiya's Zanpakutō. "By the way, how are things coming along with your swords? It's almost unheard of for students to awaken the spirits of their Zanpakutō so early."
"Well, we can both access our inner worlds easily enough," said Jiraiya, "Learning their names, on the other hand… well, that's not going so well."
"Neither of us can hear them when they say their names," Itachi admitted, "Lip-reading doesn't work either; there's some kind of distortion around their mouths that prevents it from being effective."
Kisuke nodded. "I know what that's like. Feels like a lifetime ago, but I was in your shoes once. Just keep at it and give it time. Based on how quickly the two of you have progressed so far, I imagine you two will unlock your Shikai far quicker than most Soul Reapers do. You'll have to let me know once you pull it off. It'll be fun to see what happens when that day comes."
Indeed, thought Itachi, but on the day that I unlock my Shikai, the first person I want to bear witness to it is Yoruichi.
Why am I not surprised?
She deserves to see it. It'll be a sign that the faith she has put in me has been rewarded.
The spirit of his Zanpakutō chuckled. You can't lie to me, Itachi. You're just looking forward to a chance to show off your skills to her. There's nothing wrong with that, mind you, but it'd be nice if you'd be just a little more honest with yourself.
I don't have time for this.
Indeed. It would seem that you have more pressing matters to attend to.
Looking ahead, Itachi saw that she was quite right. There was a soldier wearing a red jacket wandering aimlessly, and from how Itachi could see through him he could tell that it was a soul. Of course, the severed Chain of Fate coming out of their chest was a pretty big hint, too.
"That didn't take long," said Jiraiya.
"Your first catch of the day, so to speak," said Kisuke with a smirk, "So, who wants this one?"
Itachi stepped forward. "I'll handle it."
It took a moment for the soul of the dead soldier to notice Itachi's approach. The man froze in shock for a moment when he saw the Soul Reaper-in-training coming towards him before stumbling backwards, his legs quaking in terror.
"What the bloody hell are you?" the man cried out, "What manner of ghost has come to haunt me? Stay back, devil!"
Itachi shook his head in remorse. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that you're the ghost, not I. This is no longer your world; it is time for you to move on to the next one."
"Y-you're wrong!" the soldier stammered, "I-I'm not dead! I… I…"
Itachi sighed. "You must move past this denial. Look down at your chest; the Chain of Fate is proof enough that your mortal flesh has failed you. I know that this is hard to hear, but you are one of the dead, now."
The soul sank to his knees in despair. "No… I… I can't be… dead. I… I have a wife… a daughter and a son… they need me! I cannot leave them! Oh, why did fate curse me and drag me off to this damnable war? This is all wrong!"
Itachi knelt next to the soul and put his hand on his shoulder. "For what little it's worth, I agree with you completely. War is the very worst of mankind's curses, and one that it inflicts upon itself all too frequently. All men must die, but they should not be torn from life so cruelly as you and the others who fell on this battlefield have been."
The soul of the soldier began to openly weep. "Sarah, my love… I'm so sorry. I've abandoned you and our children… I've failed our family! Michael… Irene… I must return to them!"
The man then looked up at Itachi, a frantic and desperate light in his eyes. "Please, you must let me see them one last time! I… I just want to tell them that I love them! You… you're some sort of angel, aren't you? You must have the power to grant me this last request!"
Itachi shook his head. "I'm afraid I am no angel, nor do I have the power to grant your final request, regardless of how much I may sympathize with it. Your time in the world that they live in is over, now… but that does not necessarily mean that you will be parted from them forever."
"What do you mean?" asked the soldier, his voice cracking with fear and despair.
"I am a Soul Reaper," said Itachi, "It is my duty to help those who are no longer among the living pass on to the Soul Society; the realm of departed souls. Someday… and may it be long in the future, after your wife and children have lived full and healthy lives… you may meet them there."
"May?" the man croaked, "I may meet them there one day? Should it not be guaranteed? Is that not the promise of Heaven, that all who have loved ones in this life should eventually be reunited with them in the next?"
"The Soul Society is vast beyond your comprehension," Itachi replied solemnly, "I'm afraid it may be quite different from the 'Heaven' of the faith you held in life. That is why I will not make a promise that I cannot guarantee will be kept. Even when the rest of your family passes on to the Soul Society, it may be a long time indeed before they are finally reunited with you."
The soldier closed his eyes. "Then they are truly lost to me forever."
Itachi shook his head. "That is not for certain. What is certain, though, is that if you remain in this world, you will eventually become a threat to all others in it… including your family."
The soul's face paled. "How? I do not understand?"
"Surely you saw them, no?" Itachi asked, "Beasts with white masks that roamed the battlefield after you fell?"
The soul nodded nervously. "Yes… demons unlike any I believed existed. I ran and hid while… while they devoured others. It was terrifying!"
Itachi nodded. "I'm sure it was. If you do not pass on now, it will be your fate to either be devoured like those others… or worse. The longer you linger in this world, the greater the chance you will have of truly succumbing to anger and despair at your fate. When that happens… you will become one of them."
The soul shook his head. "No… that… that cannot be right!"
"I know it's hard to believe," said Itachi grimly, "but it is the truth. Those beasts are called Hollows, and they are born from souls who remain in the Realm of the Living for too long after they have died. Regret and sorrow from your demise will eventually turn you into one of them, and then all that will be left is your desire to feast upon the souls of others… including your family."
The soul's eyes widened in horror. "No… by the Lord Almighty, no!"
"If you do not pass on to the Soul Society now, that will be your fate," said Itachi, "You must believe me. Surely, you do not wish to become a threat to those that you hold dear."
The soul shook his head, resignation finally sinking in. "No… I do not. Very well, then… let's get on with this."
Itachi drew his Zanpakutō, causing the man to jump in fright. In order to reassure the soul, Itachi lowered and then redirected the blade so that only the bottom of the hilt was facing the soul.
"Don't be afraid," he said, "Death is not the end. Far from it; it is only the beginning. One life has ended, but another is about to begin. Trust me; I've been down that road myself… and I still walk it today."
The soul looked surprised. "Wait a moment… do you mean…"
Itachi nodded. "Yes. I died, and when I was reborn into the Soul Society I was given the chance to start anew. I chose the calling of the Soul Reaper, to help bring souls like yours through to the other side so that you may begin the same journey as I did. Who can say where your path in the Soul Society will take you? If you have courage, strength… and a little something extra… you may find the life of a Soul Reaper calling for you. My role is only to set you on the path; once you arrive in the Soul Society, where your journey takes you is your decision."
He then tapped the hilt of his Zanpakutō against the soul's forehead. "Ride the wheel and be reborn anew. Farewell."
A brilliant blue light engulfed the soul before it dissolved into a stream of tiny flakes of energy. As the fallen soldier passed on into the next life, Itachi heard his voice on the wind.
"Thank you…"
He was a bit surprised to hear clapping behind him; he'd gotten so wrapped up in helping the soul of the fallen soldier find peace that he'd completely forgotten about Jiraiya and Kisuke. Both men were smiling when he turned around, the light of approval clear in their eyes.
"Well done," said Kisuke, "As far as beginners are concerned, that was about as good as you could get. That little benediction at the end was a nice touch."
Jiraiya nodded. "Do you mind if I steal that one? I think it's as good a sendoff to give a soul as any other."
"Do as you will," Itachi replied.
"You'll get a chance for it soon enough, Jiraiya" said Kisuke, "Let's get a move on. There are plenty of souls left here that need to be put to rest, and it's our job to find them all and send them on their way."