220: Chapter 220 Tenderness Dismembered by Moonlight

The Human World, dusk, the training ground behind Mia's villa.

The setting sun dyed the training ground's lawn blood-red, and the air was thick with the metallic scent of rust.

Kurosaki Ichigo knelt in the mud, Zangetsu thrust deep into the ground. Blood seeped continuously from the wound over his right eye, and everything in his vision was covered in a pale red filter—yet at this moment, he was smiling. Across from him, Grimmjow was on one knee; the steel whip of the Panther King in his Resurrección state had snapped in two and was impaled in his own shoulder.

"Heh..." Grimmjow sneered, spitting out bloody froth. "It seems Lord Aizen was right..."

The sound of something cutting through the air suddenly came from behind his head.

Ichigo instinctively tilted his head, but the orange-yellow blade light of Tsubaki still plowed a bloody gash across his cheek.

As he turned, he saw the snowy white hem of Inoue Orihime's skirt brush past the treetops. A killing formation of eight short blades had already sealed off all paths of retreat.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Three short blades pierced his abdomen simultaneously, blood splattering onto Orihime's pale face. She wore a bone-like masquerade half-mask unique to an Arrancar, and the blade of her Arrancar zanpakuto was dripping with Ichigo's blood, drop by drop.

"Inoue..." Ichigo coughed up blood as he grabbed her wrist. "Why?"

His answer was the next blade thrust toward his heart—

Clang!

A ring blade suddenly interposed between the two. Tuaner, dressed in a red combat suit, cleaved through the twilight like a flame: "Hey, hey, sneak attacks are a no-go..."

Before she could finish, a strand of golden hair suddenly shot out from Orihime's sleeve, wrapping around Tuaner's neck in the blink of an eye. As she was pulled down, Tuaner was shocked to find that these hairs were devouring her [Qi]!

"A gift from Lord Aizen." Orihime's voice was as cold as a synthesized electronic tone. "Specifically for dealing with you... outliers!"

Boom!!

A pink torrent suddenly flooded their vision. Mia's zanpakuto, [Taotie], transformed into a giant wave that slammed Orihime onto the ground, its gelatinous substance frantically eroding her dress. As Ichigo struggled to crawl over, the last thing he saw was Orihime stubbornly reaching for his blade amidst the pink gel, and Mia's indifferent profile.

"No!!"

Kurosaki Ichigo's vision went black, and he passed out.

In the deep of night, the villa's bathroom was filled with steam.

[Paradise Lost System Reminder: To prevent Kurosaki Ichigo from completely Blackening, please acquire Inoue Orihime's identity as soon as possible to avoid the collapse of the dungeon. Please acquire Inoue Orihime's identity as soon as possible to avoid the collapse of the dungeon!!]

Listening to the system's irritatingly urgent prompts, Mia impatiently picked up a perfect human skin and stood before the mirror. Pink droplets continuously dripped from the edges of this skin, as if it had just been peeled off a human body, making it a hair-raising sight.

Mia frowned and carefully unfurled the skin. When she saw the back of it, her heart tightened—there was Orihime's characteristic light brown birthmark, and even the fine hairs at the cervical vertebrae were clearly visible, as if the skin were still alive.

Mia took a deep breath, steadied herself, and began to pull the skin onto her body. She stepped into the legs first, and the gelatinous substance immediately contracted and clung to her like it was alive, tightly wrapping around her legs. As her toes sank in, there was a faint "squelch," as if the skin were welcoming her arrival.

Next was the waist. Mia had to hold both sides of the skin with her hands and slowly pull it up. The skin seemed enchanted, automatically adhering to her real flesh without a single gap.

However, when the skin reached the rise of her chest, a brief rejection reaction occurred. Mia's breathing became somewhat rapid, and she had to adjust her breathing rhythm, hollowing her chest and inhaling, before the skin could smoothly fit onto her body.

Finally, Mia pulled on the head. In that instant, the face appearing in the mirror was actually Orihime's tearful face! Tears slid down her cheeks, as if Orihime's remaining consciousness was putting up a final resistance, or perhaps she felt deep remorse for stabbing Kurosaki Ichigo.

As the bathrobe slid off, an "improved version" of Inoue Orihime appeared before the full-length mirror. Her figure was taller than before, her waistline slenderer than the original, and the curve from her collarbone to her shoulders carried Mia's unique elegance. Even her breast shape had become Mia's fuller teardrop shape. Her facial contours became more like Mia's, filled with a three-dimensional mixed-race look. But when "she" brushed aside her long golden hair, the familiar [Shun Shun Rikka] could no longer be seen.

"The Paradise Lost System's twisted sense of humor..." Mia (in Orihime form) frowned at the mirror, her finger tracing the small of her "new body's" back. This body still retained the muscle memory of the Original Owner; when she unconsciously toyed with the tips of her hair, she suddenly performed this small gesture unique to Orihime.

Stumbling footsteps came from outside the door.

"It seems even fifty times gravity can't suppress Kurosaki Ichigo's lust. Truly, like father like son; the Shihou Family are all saps for love." The newly born, stark-naked "Inoue Orihime" pressed a hand to her forehead, hesitating whether to open the door for the fellow outside.

In the end, the fully dressed Mia (in Orihime form) opened the door for Ichigo...