At the Training Ground
Kazama Aoi lay nestled in a tiny chair Kanao had specially crafted for her, her eyes narrowed in utter contentment. In the center of the field, Kanao Tsuyuri was performing her daily sword drills.
Swish— Swish— Swish—
Her movements were clean, sharp, and entirely devoid of wasted effort. Every breath synced perfectly with the rhythm of her blade, exemplifying the absolute peak of a swordsman's aesthetic grace.
Just as Kanao finished a set of consecutive strikes and paused for a brief rest, the sound of commotion drifted over from a short distance away.
"Aya! Aoi-chan, you really did get tiny! How cute! You look just like a little doll!"
Mitsuri Kanroji's massive, star-filled eyes were nearly pressed right against Aoi's face. Startled by this sudden, close-quarters "ambush," Aoi instinctively shrank back, her tiny body almost completely sinking into the soft cushion of her chair.
"Ah, sorry, sorry! Did I scare you?" Perceiving her own bluntness, Mitsuri immediately took a half-step back, though her eyes—which practically screamed So cute, I want to snuggle her!—remained locked onto the smaller girl.
"I-I'm fine..." Aoi steadied herself and answered in a small voice.
"Wow! Even your voice got so soft and cute!" Mitsuri cupped her cheeks, letting out a blissful sigh.
Looking at the affection rolling off Mitsuri in waves, Aoi felt a tad helpless. Well, there's no helping it. I suppose I'm just too popular.
Right then, a low, slightly raspy voice came from behind Mitsuri. "Oh? So this is the one rumored to have been shrunk by a Blood Demon Art? Indeed... very interesting."
Aoi looked up to see Obanai Iguro standing there, arms crossed, observing her with interest. His little white snake, Kaburamaru, also poked its head out from his collar, its ruby-like eyes flicking its tongue as it stared curiously at Aoi.
Hiss, hiss...
"Ah, hello, Iguro-san!" Aoi hurried to greet him.
"Ara ara, Iguro-san, look at her! Isn't she super cute!" Mitsuri excitedly grabbed Obanai by the arm.
Being grabbed so suddenly, Obanai's cheeks instantly flushed a faint red, and even the tips of his ears began to burn. Kaburamaru seemed to sense his master's embarrassment; the snake hissed softly and gently rubbed its little head against the back of Mitsuri's hand, seemingly expressing nuzzling affection on his master's behalf.
"Cough..." Obanai cleared his throat, attempting to mask his predicament, though his voice remained slightly strained. "Y-yes, very cute." As he spoke, his gaze involuntarily drifted back to Mitsuri, the tenderness in his eyes nearly overflowing.
"Can we take her out to play? Kanao-chan~" Mitsuri turned back, looking at Kanao with pleading, starry eyes.
Kanao, having just wiped away some sweat, witnessed this scene. She walked over to Aoi's little chair, gently scooped it up, and took a deliberate step back, maintaining some distance between them and the two Love Hashira. She didn't say a word, but the action spoke volumes about her stance.
"Eh..." Mitsuri's shoulders slumped in disappointment.
Just as that happened, a voice that made Aoi's heart clench exploded without warning at the entrance of the training ground.
"What are you all gathered here for?! Don't you have training to do?!"
It was Sanemi Shinazugawa!
Aoi shuddered. She squeezed her eyes shut and prayed silently. Don't come over here, don't come over here.
However, things never went as planned.
In the next second, she felt herself go airborne!
Terrified, Aoi snapped her eyes open to find herself, along with her comfortable little chair, being held high in the air by a large, scarred hand with defined knuckles. And the owner of that hand was none other than the man she had just been praying would stay away: Sanemi Shinazugawa.
"What the hell is this?" Sanemi scowled, bringing Aoi up to eye level. His pale, violent eyes were filled with unhidden annoyance and... confusion.
[Ding! Forced Mission Triggered: Touch Sanemi Shinazugawa's abs for no less than three minutes.][Success Reward: Restoration to original form.][Failure Penalty: Permanently remain in current form.]
The System, which hadn't been online in ages, struck Aoi with a critical blow the moment it returned.
Touch... abs?! For three minutes?! How was this any different from asking her to commit suicide?! She had absolutely no doubt that if she dared to stretch out a hand, she'd be sliced in half in the next second!
Sanemi, seeing that she hadn't reacted for a long time and was only staring strangely at his body, impatiently poked her head.
The resulting sway left Aoi dizzy. She took a deep breath, looking as though she had made a monumental decision. Fine! I've already kissed him, what's touching his abs compared to that? Slowly, tremblingly, she stretched out her tiny hand, which was barely as long as one of Sanemi's fingers.
"You... what do you think you're doing?!" Perceiving her movement, Sanemi's scowl deepened, and he instinctively started to loosen his grip to drop her.
But Aoi's target wasn't his hand!
In that fleeting second of hesitation, Aoi seized the opening. Her tiny body lunged forward with explosive force, making a leap of faith!
With a soft splat, time seemed to stand still.
The stomach full of curses Sanemi had prepared died comically in his throat when he felt a faint, slightly cool, soft sensation on his abdomen. He snapped his head down.
There, the tiny figure that should have been dangling in the air was now clinging to him like an octopus. Her two little hands were pressed, without a centimeter of error, right against his abs.
[Mission begun. Countdown: 2:59]
Aoi could clearly feel the hard lines of muscle beneath her palms, as well as an astonishing amount of body heat.
"You fucking..." Sanemi finally found his voice, though it was incredibly hoarse, filled with ultimate shock and sheer embarrassment. "GET OFF ME!!"
He tried to use his hand to pry the suicidal little thing off his body. Aoi scurried around on his abdomen, dodging his grasp. This bizarre sensation caused Sanemi's brain to completely short-circuit. It was itchy, utterly unfamiliar, and... it made him feel strangely flustered.
[0:03][0:02][0:01]
[Ding! Mission complete! Reward issued. Restoring Host to original form...]
"Aya! Don't restore me right now!" Aoi panicked.
Following the System's notification, she felt a flood of warm energy instantly envelop her entire body. Her tiny form began to grow rapidly at a visible speed!
"Mmph?!"
Sanemi suddenly felt the weight of the "little thing" clinging to his stomach skyrocket. Instinctively, he cupped his hands beneath her to hold her up.
In the next second, a warm, soft, and fragrant body fell without warning into his arms.
Aoi had returned to normal size.
She was wearing a miniature uniform that was ill-fitting and now torn in several places from being stretched, and she was barefoot. Due to the impact and sheer exhaustion, she slumped limply in Sanemi's embrace. Her cheeks were flushed an unnatural crimson, and she was panting heavily.