Itachi Rebirth: A Shinigami Tale

Harribel raised her blade and pointed it at Itachi. From her blade, she fired a yellow projectile of reiatsu at high speed. Itachi quickly sidestepped the projectile, as Harribel suddenly appeared in front of him.

Harribel slashes at Itachi, creating a large wave of yellow reiatsu that envelops him. Suddenly, the wave of reiatsu dispersed in front of her as an invisible wall of reiatsu was blocking the attack from making contact with Itachi. In response, Harribel quickly backed away as Itachi swung his blade, narrowly missing her face.

"Lord Aizen mentioned you were the one who took down Ulquiorra and Tousen. You're still holding back. Trying to save your strength for Aizen? Or perhaps you don't want to use your stronger attacks as your friends nearby may be caught in it." Harribel mentioned, referring to the lieutenants who were nearby and healing Rangiku after Toshiro managed to trap Ayon in a tower of Ice.

"The same goes for you…" Itachi said, referring to her three fraccion that were still bȧrėly alive but encased in ice. "It appears my previous ȧssumptions about the Arrancar were wrong and that there are some who understand camaraderie."

Without another word, both Itachi and Harribel vanished from their spots and reappeared at an emptier part of the city.

"It's quite a shame, Uchiha Itachi, that you are my enemy and that I will have to end you here with my full power." Harribel stated as she raised her blade in front of her.

"Destroy, Tiburon"

A fierce yellow reiatsu swamped the area as Harribel emerged in her changed form, with a heart shaped surge of water surrounding her. Her mask remnants were now mostly gone, with only a few remaining serving as a collar and partially covering her brėȧsts. Two shark fin-like spaulders were on her shoulders and her blade became massive and took the shape of a shark tooth.

A faint smile appeared on Itachi's face upon seeing Harribel's resurreccion. It was shark-like and reminded him of his previous acquaintance, Kisame. Yet despite the appearance, Harribel's and Kisame's philosophies were completely opposite of each other. To Harribel's surprise, Itachi began quickly weaving hand signs.

"Fire Style, Fireball Jutsu!"

"La Gota!"

The giant ball of flames collided with the dense shot of water, creating an explosion of hot steam that covered the area. From the steam, several more large fireballs emerged, all of which were shot down quickly by Harribel.

"This can't be all that you're capable of." Harribel commented with her blade raised in front of her to block more attacks.

"Hado 63: Raikoho!"

Suddenly a large blast of electricity traveled through the steam, its range greatly amplified by the steam's conductivity.

"Gahhhh!!" Harribel let out a yell as she was shocked by the attack. With her massive sword, she swung at the attack with her reiatsu, dispelling it and clearing the steam out of the area.

"Cascada!" Harribel raised her massive sword up above her. From the skies out of nowhere, a massive torrent of water fell towards Itachi.

Itachi looks up and quickly flash steps away from the water as it hits the ground below, destroying the buildings under them.

Itachi reappears behind Harribel but she swings her sword behind her in response. Itachi manages to parry the blow with his own blade but is sent flying back.

"Ola Azul."

Harribel continues relentlessly attacking Itachi, not giving him time to rest as she fires continues shots of reiatsu at Itachi, forcing him to keep dodging.

'I won't get anywhere with this. Her resurreccion is definitely stronger than Ulquiorra's first one but pales in comparison to his second…'' Itachi thought as he continued to flash step through her blasts with ease. From far away, Itachi could feel Soi Fon's reiatsu increase as she used her bankai against her opponent. 'I need to regroup with the others while saving my strength for Aizen…' Itachi vanishes from sight and reappears in front of Harribel, clashing swords with her.

"Why is someone like you serving under Aizen? Aizen is not the type of man who respects the sacrifices a comrade makes towards a cause." Itachi asked as they continued clashing blades.

"Hold your tongue shinigami. You do not understand Lord Aizen's ideals." Harribel responded angrily as she pushed Itachi away.

Itachi stood his ground and continued parrying and striking. 'I have to retain as much of my strength as possible.' Even though Itachi had a large quantity of reiatsu, most of his techniques took up too much energy for him to continuously use them. Without a zanpakuto, he had no way to harness his full strength. If he used up his strength, then he would just be a sitting duck in front of Aizen.

----

"Hmm...I think it's time." Gin commented as he watched the battles from afar. "Starrk seems to be doing okay and a blast like that shouldn't be enough to kill Barragan. But Harribel against Uchiha… he's still holding back isn't he? Trying to save his energy to fight you perhaps?"

"It does not matter. I do not expect Harribel to be able to defeat Itachi. Only stall for time as "he" comes in."

"Will he be able to defeat him?" Gin asked.

"No, but he is easily the strongest espada of all. I created and empowered him much more than the others. He was made especially to counter Uchiha. I want to see how far he will be able to push Uchiha." Aizen responded.

Gin remained silent. His face showed no emotion. 'In the end, this entire thing is simply a joke to Captain Aizen.' He suddenly became alert as he stared into the sky.

Aizen simply smiled as he looked up

"It's time."