Chapter 202-203: Cat-astrophic
Chapter 202-203: Cat-astrophic
After arriving at the mansion, Kazuya decided to skip meeting Apacci and Cirucci, feeling a pressing urgency to see Yoruichi’s condition. His steps quickened as he followed Yoruichi’s scent through the familiar corridors.
Her scent took him to the basement, which no longer resembled his basement when he opened the door but Kisuke’s underground chamber. Tessai and Kisuke were in the middle of a heavy discussion, while sitting in front of a coffin.
“Tessai, you didn't witness what I did. Aizen casually cast a Level 90 Kidō spell with no chant. Kazuya was right. He isn’t just a Captain with a powerful Bankai — he is a disastrous threat to everything with his strength alone.”
“You guys,” he said in a condescending tone. “look so depressed.”
Kisuke turned toward him and revealed his signature cheeky smile. “Still in that body, eh? Yoruichi will be traumatized if she sees her favorite man… as a beautiful woman.”
Imagining Yoruichi’s shocked expression, he burst out laughing. Her exaggerated reactions were always amusing. “This is just temporary. I’ll change before I return to the Soul Society.”
His laughter faded as he remembered the urgency of his situation. He had to conclude his business quickly; if Isane or someone else noticed his absence and sent a search team, it would be more than just awkward. The thought of being reported missing after he himself had come to find Rangiku and Nanao was quite ironic.
{No, we have to punch Shinji for letting us down.}
He couldn’t sense Nanao, Lisa, or Izumi’s Reiatsu in the town. The only two locations with Reiatsu-concealing force fields belonged to the Visored and Kisuke. One was destroyed, leaving Lisa with only one place to heal Nanao.
‘She is also getting some scolding.’
{Don’t forget Momo.}
‘She is with Sung-Sun and Franceska.’
Kazuya used Sonído to arrive before the coffin in an instant. Inside the coffin, Yoruichi slept peacefully with her hands placed on her stomach. Her sleeping posture flooded his chest with a feeling of relief.
“Look at her sleeping like a vampire after that fierce battle.”
He vividly remembered his inner turmoil when he saw Aizen overpowering her in battle. If the battle went on for one more minute, he’d have certainly jumped in to help Yoruichi.
“I’m glad you didn’t,” Kisuke said with a reassuring hand on Kazuya’s shoulder. “Yoruichi-san would’ve cursed you for ruining the mission. She is like that.”
{At least we avenged her by slapping Aizen in the face.}
Kazuya nodded. “You already stabilized her soul with the Hōgyoku.”
Yoruichi had become a Hollow-Shinigami hybrid, much like Shinji, following the Hōgyoku’s stabilization of her Soul Boundaries. Kazuya possessed the power to remove her Hollow side with his Resurrección, but he resolved to wait for her permission before attempting such a drastic measure.
“Kazuya, how did your battle end? Did Aizen-san stall enough time for the Gotei 13’s reinforcements?”
Kazuya blinked, surprised yet impressed by Kisuke’s insight. “You predicted that too. As expected of the Founding Father of the S.R.D.I (Shinigami Research and Development Institute).”
Kisuke covered his face with his paper fan. “You knew Aizen’s strengths and weaknesses as you’ve worked with him before. I didn’t bet on you losing. I didn’t bet on you winning either… Aizen is such a troublesome enemy.”
“Yeah, he ran away with his tail tucked between his legs. The Old Commander saved him today, but I managed to destroy his Shikai.”
Kisuke narrowed his eyes, reflecting a dangerous intent hidden within. “It’s the best opportunity to take him down. We have to capitalize on this opening before he recovers his Shikai.”
Kazuya had never seen him so eager to get rid of Aizen. The former shopkeeper finally realized the danger Aizen posed to him and everyone else in the Soul Society. Unfortunately, Kisuke couldn’t enter the Soul Society until Gotei 13 removed him from the Senkaimon blacklist, or he’d have gone to fight Aizen himself.
“I’ll see if I can convince Captain Unohana about Aizen.”
Kisuke cast a skeptical side glance at him. “It’s only been, what, four months since you went to the Soul Society. Does Captain Unohana trust you enough to question a Captain’s integrity?”
“Trust? She is head over heels for me.”
Kisuke’s eyes widened. “Dai-Senpai who used to be one of the most feared people before the Soul Society’s establishment — I can’t imagine her falling in love, even with that voice of yours.”
“It was just a joke.”
“...”
“I’ll ask her if she felt something off about Aizen.”
Retsu wasn’t the most knowledgeable, but her instincts were possibly the sharpest among the Gotei 13. It’d be quite strange if she failed to notice incongruities in Aizen’s story.
‘I’ll slowly probe her.’
{With your dick—wait, you don’t have one right now!}
As he was about to retort, a sharp intake of breath drew his attention — Yoruichi’s eyes snapped open as she took shuddering breaths. Her heart pounded fiercely, a rhythm so strong Kazuya could hear it without focusing his senses.
He stepped toward her and ripped the Reishi bindings with his bare hand. Yoruichi slowly slumped into his arms, her body radiating a searing heat as if she was experiencing high fever.
She weakly wrapped her arms around him, her touch gentle yet trembling, as though caught in a dream-like state. “Kazuya… take me to bed…”
“Alright.” Kazuya rubbed Yoruichi’s back and turned to Kisuke. “She has a fever. Do you know something?”
“It could be a side-effect of her transformation. She’ll be fine after some rest.”
“Well, I’ll tuck her into the bed.”
He slipped his hands under her thighs and locked her legs around his waist tight. Then, he grabbed her butt, ensuring a secure yet gentle support for her. It seemed to be the comfiest way to carry her, apart from the princess carry.
‘She is stacked down there.’
{As one should be. Having no tits is fine, but having no meat on your ass is unforgivable! Thankfully, I’m packin’ everywhere.}
Nami seemed awfully proud of her figure.
Kisuke whistled. “I can’t see you as anything other than lesbian lovers. Somewhat erotic I’d say. Right, Tessai?”
Tessai maintained his serious expression. “I have no comment.”
“Lesbian…?” Yoruichi muttered, half-awake. “Soi Fon, you lesbian… idiot.”
He ignored the sluggish cat cursing a certain fervent Captain, and leaped toward the door. Opening the door, he saw Apacci, Cirucci, Tier, Menoly, Starrk, and Lilynette crowding the door. He noted that everyone, except Tier, seemed taken aback by his female form, which shouldn’t be the case. He had specifically instructed Tier to inform everyone about his change being temporary.
Tier averted her gaze and coughed softly. “They weren’t listening to me.”
{She learned mischief… Partner, Mommy is evolving.}
Cirucci covered her mouth, barely containing her laughter. “Leader, I didn’t know the Soul Society awakened a new fetish in you.”
She looked more lively than their last meeting — his experiment with cats succeeded in alleviating her negativity.
Apacci placed her hands on her hips, looking troubled. “Harribel wasn’t joking about it. My husband… became a lady. I don’t know how to feel about it… how are we going to have sex now?”
He barely caught her whispers with his keen senses. She seemed to be confused in figuring out the optimal sex position with his new form.
Lilynette mischievously patted his butt. “Wow… when will I grow these muscles?”
Starrk attempted to take Lilynette away, only for her to bicycle-kick his shoulder. Starkk didn’t even react to her absurd move, completely used to the physical abuse. “I was telling you he’ll be fine.”
Lilynette nodded before she took Starrk’s hand and led him away. “See ya later, Kazuya.”
Afterwards, Kazuya spent a few moments reassuring Apacci and Cirucci while Tier watched him with clear amusement in her eyes.
Finally, he addressed the fourth Arrancar in the room. “Menoly, I’ll talk to you later.”
She gave a firm nod. “Thanks…”
The small gesture earned her gratitude. It simply showed how much abuse she went through as Loly’s friend.
He turned to Apacci. “Don’t be mean to Menoly. She’ll be a part of our group from now on.”
Apacci flinched at the accusation. “I-I wasn’t mean to her. I just told her to not act rashly, or I’ll kick her out.”
She wasn't like Sung-Sun or Cirucci, who derives pleasure from emotional or physical pain.
Menoly hummed in agreement, trying to score some points from Apacci.
Kazuya placed a hand against Apacci’s face. “Thanks. Can you help her settle in?”
“Of course. Leave the odd jobs to me.”
Apacci took Menoly’s hand and dragged her through the corridors. He smiled at Tier before walking towards his room.
“Um… Kazuya… why do you feel so soft today…?” The sleepy kitten mumbled as he opened the door. “Did a dog steal all your muscles…? Those… sinful animals. Heavens purge them.”
{Hahahaha. She is hilarious.}
Carefully climbing into bed with Yoruichi, Kazuya gently lowered her down. She instinctively tightened her grip around his neck, her legs locking around him as if unwilling to let him go.
“Kazuya…” she whispered and licked his ear with her strangely dry tongue. “Pet…”
Accompanying her seductive gesture was an intense Reiatsu release — a Hollow’s Reiatsu. Alarms went off in his head, but it was too late — she exerted pressure on him and pushed him down on the bed.
“Kaz… uya.”
He gently pushed against her shoulders, seeking distance from her, but she clung to the bed sheet with a stubborn, almost childlike determination.
Hunched low against his stomach, she crawled forward, mirroring the predatory stance of a cat. Despite emanating the spiritual energy of a Hollow, she bore a striking resemblance to her regular self, except for the emergence of two pointed cat ears and a sleek black tail playfully swaying behind her.
Yoruichi had turned into a certified catgirl.
Her cat eyes gleamed with a predatory glint as she climbed over his chest and licked his face. “Pet… Kazuya…”
She hugged his chest and closed her eyes, clearly unbothered by her soft tits squishing against him. Her form relaxing against him was both innocent and intimate.
He cautiously reached out to touch her new cat ears. But in a swift reaction, her eyes snapped open, and she batted his hand away with a sharp hiss — a clear warning to keep his hands to himself.
“Pet…”
She rolled to the side and clung to his side. With a mewl, she nuzzled against his neck, planting gentle, dry kisses. She firmly placed her knee on his stomach, as if trying to prevent her hug pillow from moving. “Still… stay.”
{Yup, you’re the hug pillow now.}
The way she uttered words informed Kazuya about the origin of her new form. It was the fusion of her newly awakened Hollow with the instincts of her cat form — the very same instincts she displayed in her Flash War Cry: Thunder Beast Battle Form.
The amalgamation of these two aspects created an entirely new persona — a moody cat who only followed her instincts and saw him as her pet.
{It’s realistically impossible to remove her Hollowfication even with our Resurrección.}
In his Resurrección form, he could kill any specific aspect of his target once he drained their Reiatsu, but in this case, attempting to separate her Hollow from her beast form could be catastrophic.
Killing her Hollow would take away her cat form and possibly eliminate her strongest Shunkō form.
‘Damn it.’
His jaw clenched, but his anger melted in the face of the dark-skinned catgirl snoring softly on his side. He felt his head throb at the mere possibility of this animal permanently replacing Yoruichi.
‘She has to be in there…’
He refused to believe in the possibility of Yoruichi eternally relinquishing control of her body. She was too proud for that to happen.
{Only one way to find out… wait for her to wake up again.}
‘I don’t have the time.’
{Then use your Resurrección and kill her Hollow. It should wake her up from her slumber.}
He shook his head, opting for the patience route over the hasty one. After a few minutes of waiting, he attempted to gently lift her knee. She opened her eyes and glared at him.
She patted his chest. “Hiss… Pet.”
“...”
He only had two ways to get out of the sticky situation. First one was quite straightforward — using force against Yoruichi. He dismissed the idea as soon as he felt her dry tongue licking his face.
He was no saint, but he was no monster either.
So, he had to go with his second, more peaceful choice — seduction. He summoned his system and switched his gender through his focus. A viscous purple aura oozed out of his chest and began enveloping him.
Yoruichi sprang back like a startled cat, landing lithely on the edge of the bed. Her cat-like eyes, wide with a look of curiosity and caution, fixed on him. “Pet?”
When the flame-like aura dissipated, he found himself in his most comfortable Hollow form. Grinning, he beckoned the cat girl. “Come.”
His voice came out gentle yet demanding, filled to the brim with enchanting power. He fully utilized the power of his ability ‘Silvery Tongue’, even more so than his hypnotic session with Apacci.
Unable to resist the compelling suggestion directly implanted in her consciousness, Yoruichi slowly crawled towards him, a dazed expression on her face. She sat before him, her gaze still locked onto his.
“Kazuya…”
As Kazuya extended his hand towards her, she instinctively tried to retreat.
“Hold.”
The single word halted her movement, allowing him to gently pat her cat ears. She responded positively, leaning into his touch, her tail swaying contentedly.
“Good pet!” He scratched her ears, stroked her hair, and rubbed her face. After fully lowering her guard through intimacy, he approached her ears. “Sleep.”
The powerful suggestion made her quiver as if she tried to resist its influence.
“I said sleep.”
This time, the command took full effect, sending her into a deep, peaceful slumber.
He placed her on the bed and draped the blanket over her with tender care, his hand lightly caressing her face. “Sleep well… Yoruichi, I want to see you when I return.”
He shrouded himself in a few sound-canceling kidō spells and left the room.
Outside the room, Tier leaned against the wall, her arms crossed on her chest. “Did something happen to Yoruichi?”
“Tier…” Kazuya approached her and wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace, resting his chin on her shoulder. “I need to leave soon.”
He would have collapsed if not for the combination of his absurd regeneration ability and quick Reiryoku recovery time. The day’s ordeals had left him mentally exhausted, but his fatigue disappeared in her warm embrace.
“That’s not a reason to be depressed.” She stroked his back encouragingly, even though she was just as reluctant to see him leave. “Think about all the friends you made in the Soul Society. They’ll be worried if you don’t return to them soon.”
“Mhmm.”
“Do you want to lie down with me?”
He drew back immediately and shook his head. “I’m only lying with you when we take the next step.”
She stared at him, as if processing his words. Her cheeks flushed as she nodded with a soft smile. “I’ll leave the timing up to you.”
“I’ll see you later.”
Once Tier walked past him, his attention was drawn to a goth girl peeking around the corner. Before he could address her, she vanished using Sonído, retreating to her room.
{What was that?}
‘She wants to talk to me.’
{Anyways, let’s go check up on Momo. She must be so anxious for not seeing you for hours!}