"Ufufu... ufufufu... uhehehehe~"
The Garganta opened by the escort of Menos Grande Hollows. Through the pitch-black darkness all around, the delicate laughter of a girl echoed—completely out of place.
The joyful... happy voice of me, Hinamori Momo-chan, the most beautiful girl in the BLEACH world.
"M-Momo-chan? You're making a face girls shouldn't make, y'know?"
"Ufufu, ehehe... haa... haa..."
"Oh no, this girl ain't listening at all."
I'm out of breath, so a short break.
But when was the last time I felt happiness like this? Having experienced literally the ultimate ecstasy that could lift me to heaven, I replayed every detail of what just happened in my mind hundreds, thousands of times, determined not to forget even the smallest thing.
—HINAMO~RI!!
"Uhihihihihi HAHAHAHA!!"
"Ah, she's finally broken."
"...It must be blood loss driving her mad. Once we reach Las Noches, we'll need to treat her urgently or it could be bad."
"Ain't this just her true nature from the start, blood loss or not...?"
I hear something beside me, but right now I'm busy using this big white sheet to wipe the drool threatening my minimal feminine dignity. At least praise me for maintaining some decency by not using my Shihakushō.
But still...
—HINAMO~RI!!
Nhaaaaaa, it's the BEST~! Seriously the absolute BEST "Hinamori!!" All perfect scores! No complaints! Thank you Shiro-chan, my darling, I like you, I like you, I love you so much, I LOVE YOUUUU uhyahyahyahyahya!
...Whew.
I'm aware in the corner of my mind that I'm pretty broken, but I just finally achieved my life's ambition as the reincarnated Hinamori Momo, so please let me get a little excited.
Thanks to Shiro-chan properly training his lung capacity, even through the Negación barrier, he delivered a wonderfully tragic shout to my ears. I have no regrets left.
I was at such a peak of happiness that I seriously thought I could end my second life right here, wrapped in this nice-smelling white cloth.
"Now then. Can you walk yet, Momo?"
While I was high like that, suddenly my drool-rag spoke in a charismatic Aizen voice.
...The drool-rag spoke... what...?
"Dufuhehehe... hehe... he—ah, ah, Captain Aizen!?"
"Ah, welcome back."
When I raised my face, there was the close-up of the Soul Society's number one handsome man, Sōsuke Aizen, smiling broadly.
After exchanging blinks for a while, I alternated between looking at the drool-covered white sheet in my hands and Yon-sama's face, dimly sensing all my previous happiness drain away.
"Eh, ah, aaah Captain Aizen's captain's haori is ruined!"
"It's fine, Momo. That's something I no longer need."
"Th-that's not the point—wait, ah... I-I'm sorry, Captain Aizen! I'll get down right away!"
Flustered, I stood "whoops..." wobbling on the palm of the lowest-class Gillian Hollow. My legs trembled like a newborn fawn's, but hopefully my Shihakushō hakama hid it.
For a while I fidgeted with my back to the three men, somehow managing to straighten my immodestly disheveled collar and fix my posture properly.
Then Yon-sama nodded magnanimously and gave us instructions.
"Then Kaname, Momo. Tomorrow, gather all the Vasto Lorde-class Hollows to the throne room."
Oh, so we're immediately using Urahara's Hōgyoku for Arrancarification. Then I should deliver several Hollows to Yon-sama's lab for testing first. Gotta show I'm capable and helpful to dispel the drooling-Momo image...! (Too late)
After confirming we'd make detailed adjustments with DJ, newly appointed as Hueco Mundo Administrator, the four of us temporarily disbanded at Las Noches.
"Captain Aizen!"
But before that.
"What is it, Momo?"
Yon-sama turned around at my call. The terrifying spiritual pressure and cold smile that once made me shudder now felt more reassuring than anything.
I took two deep breaths and, with the best smile and bow I could manage, expressed my utmost gratitude to the man who'd become my true benefactor.
"Thank you so much!"
As I held my ninety-degree bow, I heard a chuckle, and Yon-sama left a single "Don't mention it" before departing into the palace depths.
Aah, what a debt I've incurred. With this plus the favor he'll grant me at the Battle of Karakura Town, how will I ever repay him...
✦ ✦✦
Now then, the next morning.
Though it was the kidō sun projected on Las Noches's dome, refreshed Momo-chan experiencing the best awakening of her life stretched with an "Nn~" in her private room, checking her body's condition.
"...Yep, no scars left. The Thread of Negación is impressive."
Last night I was too high on pain and ecstasy to remember clearly, but I do recall Harribel seeing my injuries and frantically calling Loly. Excellent work, Harribel and Loly.
"Lady Hinamori. It's Harribel."
Oh, speak of the devil. When I granted entry, the blonde busty woman in her armored diving suit quietly knelt beside the bed.
The Vasto Lorde-class Hollows—Harribel, Ulquiorra, and Starrk—were waiting to become Arrancars until Urahara's Hōgyoku could fuse with Yon-sama's, so their current status and power were low. The two males were sheltered in Tōsen's private quarters, while the female Harribel stayed in mine, attending me like a servant here in Hueco Mundo.
Well, both DJ and I were doing captain-class duties in the Soul Society during the day, and when we were here we only stayed in the lab or office, so we hadn't interacted much until now.
"Good morning. How are your injuries?"
"Good morning, Harribel. I'm perfect, thanks. I should thank Loly later too."
"I'll pass that along."
She bowed her head smoothly but seemed somewhat haggard. I wonder what happened—I'll ask later.
Anyway, I have no hobby of showing my sleepwear to others indefinitely, so I got out of bed to find a change of clothes.
...Hm, wait? My Shihakushō isn't here.
"Lady Hinamori, this way. We've prepared your attire."
"?"
Not understanding, I followed her to find two female Arrancars waiting.
"G-good morning, Commander..."
"Ah, Loly and Menoly! Good morning."
Kneeling while trembling fearfully were Arrancar No. 33 Loly Aivirrne and Arrancar No. 34 Menoly Mallia. The servant Hollows I'd sent to Yon-sama just yesterday had already become fully humanoid Arrancars like in the original.
Apparently, last night Yon-sama excitedly tested Urahara's Hōgyoku on them. Loly and the others would tend to me here for a while to get used to human form, then be reassigned there.
From what I could see, both had their proper canon appearances, so please do. Loly would be happier near Yon-sama anyway.
"Also, um..."
"Ah, yes. What is it?"
"...If possible, we'd like you to suppress your spiritual pressure like before..."
At Harribel's hesitant request, I realized. Oh right, I've been leaking spiritual pressure since Sōkyoku Hill. I hurriedly suppressed it. So that's why she looked pale—sorry, Harribel.
"By the way, where are my clothes?"
"Th-the wardrobe staff prepared them. Here they are..."
When Loly opened the adjacent dressing room, an incredible number of outfits were displayed on mannequins. Everything from the white Shihakushō version I'd shown Chad and Urahara to bizarre bikinis made of just white strings. What's with this unnecessarily wide selection?
"T-Tōsen-sama issued a directive to refrain from wearing Shinigami Shihakushō from now on. Please choose whatever you like from these..."
"...!"
Ooh, ohohoho!
I see, so this is that famous Arrancar army version Shihakushō costume change. My girl soul that accompanied me for one hundred fifty years, along with Tobiume-chan, is getting super excited at this fashion opportunity I rarely had during my Gotei days.
...But wait. This is an extremely important issue regardless of gender.
The Quincy faction's most stylish character, Brother Askin's famous quote: "A woman's value is whether she's fashionable"... I think this is a truth of the Bleach world.
As I mentioned before, Oshare Point Battles (OPB) add your own appearance to the victory formula.
In fact, Hōgyoku Yon-sama losing to Mugetsu Ichigo, Mayuri-sama defeating powerful enemies while repeatedly changing outfits, Rukia achieving results beyond her ability, and canon Hinamori-chan surviving multiple stabbings—all largely due to this visual evaluation score.
And this current event determines our Yon-sama faction's new outfits. We can earn more OSR points than the fixed Shinigami Shihakushō, but conversely, if we slack off here, our initial points could plummet to single digits. Especially as a female character where appearance is extremely weighted in evaluation, I want to choose carefully.
Which is why—
"VERY VERY PRETTY CUTE MARVELOUS! A perfect coordination without a single flaw, Commander♡"
I decided to consult the Arrancar army's number one maiden and fashion leader, Arrancar No. 20 Charlotte Chuhlhourne.
"Um, Charlotte...? That's, it's very lovely, but... isn't the b-back too open...?"
"No, Commander, that's exactly what makes it good! There is no jewel in this world greater than a woman's bare skin! If you maintain your skin properly with daily healing kidō as you do, Commander, it's absolutely best to maximize exposed surface area within tasteful limits!"
"I-is that so...?"
What she selected was a coordination combining a bare-shouldered backless fish-tail dress with hakama skirt—like mixing BraveSouls Valentine Spear-Mori-chan with Arrancar Orihime-chan.
My arms had elegant opera gloves and celestial maiden-like tasseled shoulder drapes for mystique. The black boots designed like sandal thongs were feminine and very stylish.
In the mirror, a modest yet slightly sexy Arrancar army version Hinamori-chan had descended.
A-am I going out in public like this...
"Unlike Shinigami Zanpakutō releases that can't integrate with clothing like our Resurrección, I made sure your Bankai could be incorporated into the coordination, Commander! Please wear this during the decisive battle with the Soul Society too~♡"
"Th-thank you..."
I can't keep up with the enthusiasm, but the Bankai coordination is genuinely appreciated.
The thing is, the Arrancar Shihakushō with black accents on pure white is complete as a standalone design, making it hard to match with my clothing-type Bankai. Imagine Ichigo wearing Tensa Zangetsu's black coat over white hakama to understand the coordination difficulty.
Charlotte did excellent work.
(...Yeah. A little embarrassing, but this suggestive upper body subtly gives off NTR vibes and could be Shiro-chan anguish points.)
Thinking that way, even the delicate design looks good. As expected of BraveSouls limited character costumes. It had some setting like "Knight outfit from Cacao Castle, joined despite childhood friend's objections"—an officially lewd costume like that.
And once fashion's done, there's one thing I must do as a girl.
"H-how is it? Captain Aizen..."
Though I really hesitated, I swallowed my shame and sought feedback from the story's number one style master, Sōsuke Aizen. More than Hinamori moves, getting this man's OK would guarantee +100 OSR points. I can't miss this.
And the result was—
"Ah, it suits you well."
"How generic..."
This fake Yon-sama keeping his usual cold smile unmoved, using template lines. Could you at least add some poetic opinion? I feel stupid for expecting a style bonus...
"Ugh, you were sickeningly smooth with words in the Fifth Division... why the non-reaction at crucial moments..."
"That's fine, I like it. Momo-chan's slender figure suits it well."
"...Thank you. Captain Ichimaru's white snake look is lovely too."
"Eh, is that a compliment?"
"Yes? It perfectly matches your image."
While Yon-sama was busy with Hōgyoku tinkering, Gin gave me a like! But before praising other women's outfits, first do something about Rangiku's getup—it's bad for Shiro-chan's education.
Incidentally, Charlotte's sense was highly rated among our Arrancar army women, receiving good reviews from Cirucci and Harribel's three subordinates too.
Though no one appreciates his Resurrección. Well, yeah...
And so, our Yon-sama faction begins new life in brand new outfits.
Two days since defecting from the Soul Society.
After finishing the triumphal ceremony we'll hold in the throne room, I'll send Grand Fisher and the merged Arrancar provided for Yon-sama's Arrancarification experiments to Karakura Town.
Now, the Arrancar arc begins...!
***
10 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon!
https://patreon.com/Well_being