One Piece: The Living Devil

Chapter 766: Departure Briefing

[A Day Later, Squad 10 Barracks]

The afternoon sunlight slanted into the captain's office, and a faint tea fragrance drifted in the air.

Rosse leaned back in a wide office chair, his fingertips lightly rubbing a celadon teacup, his expression relaxed with a trace of someone in power's playful amusement.

The door was gently pushed open, and a fresh scent that didn't belong to the barracks slipped in.

Hikifune Kirio walked in at an unhurried pace.

At this moment, she had completely abandoned that loose Shinigami uniform and the Zero Division haori, even the white lab coat that symbolized her identity as a researcher was gone.

She was wearing a tight, casual outfit in a distinctly modern style.

On top was a well-cut dark gray cropped sports hoodie, the zipper pulled down just below the collarbone, faintly revealing smooth, pale skin. On the bottom was a pair of pure black high-waisted yoga pants, the fabric snug and elastic.

This outfit outlined her full, graceful figure to the fullest.

Her long legs were tightly wrapped by the yoga pants, the firm lines contrasting sharply with the pronounced curves above and the slender waist that could be grasped in one hand.

As she walked, that rhythm filled with the charm of a mature woman seemed to thicken the air itself.

Sensing Rosse's undisguised gaze, Hikifune Kirio didn't show any shyness. Instead, she stopped openly.

Tilting her head, hands in her hoodie pockets, she deliberately gave her body a slight shake.

That bold, proud outline rose and fell slightly. Her eyes curved with a smile, and her tone was playful, "Well? Commander-in-Chief? This outfit isn't something you get to see in Soul Society, you know."

"Today's outfit is quite good," Rosse set down the teacup, a hint of appreciation at the corner of his lips, "You could even say it's eye-catching."

"Hehe! I picked this up recently from studying the world of the living. Honestly, compared to the layered, old-fashioned, cumbersome clothes in Soul Society, modern outfits really do make you feel refreshed, physically and mentally."

Hikifune Kirio laughed and spun once. After all, she had lived for hundreds of years. She accepted this level of praise without hesitation, her bright face full of cheerful confidence.

"When it comes to modern outfits, Rangiku has quite a lot of insight. If you're interested, you could go ask her and exchange some ideas."

As Rosse spoke, he stood up and walked out from behind the desk.

He stopped in front of Hikifune Kirio and lightly snapped his fingers.

Buzz!

A wave of pure spiritual particles swept across his body like ripples.

His Shinigami uniform and captain's haori instantly dissolved and disappeared, replaced by a luxurious robe Hikifune Kirio had never seen before.

The robe was deep black as its base, traced with sleek, intricate dark blue patterns, with edges lined like a flowing starry sea.

It wasn't ordinary fabric. It felt more like something condensed from a higher form of energy, carrying a divine refinement and nobility.

The moment the Hollow King's attire was fully worn, Rosse's steady, playful aura was elevated.

A heavy, majestic, almost unapproachable sense of holiness surged forward, as if the one standing before her was no longer the Commander of the Gotei 13, but a creator descended from ancient myth.

Hikifune Kirio's relaxed smile faded slightly, a flash of shock passing through her eyes.

She stepped closer, her nose twitching slightly.

"This is Shutara's work?"

She could tell at a glance something about this robe was unusual.

Although Rosse's transcendent aura mostly came from shedding his disguise, the rule-based power contained in the robe itself was anything but ordinary.

As a top-tier researcher, she could keenly sense that even if she unleashed her full spiritual pressure and attacked with everything she had, this robe could probably reduce at least half the damage in an instant.

"According to her, this is the pinnacle of her life's work," Rosse spread his arms, letting her observe at close range.

"She actually surrendered to you?", Hikifune Kirio's expression turned strange. She couldn't help circling him once.

"I thought you just imprisoned her. That woman's personality… she wouldn't even necessarily respect the Soul King. And yet you managed to make her submit?"

In Zero Division, as fellow women, she understood Shutara better than anyone.

She was like a piece of iron harder and more aloof than black steel.

Rosse chuckled softly, his gaze deep.

"I gave her the chance to personally create this robe. A miracle capable of bearing my body. As a craftsman, shouldn't she submit?"

"That's true. That's the only thing she's ever really pursued."

Hikifune Kirio stretched out a finger, sensing the distorted spiritual pressure around the robe in the air, then nodded in approval.

She knew very well that Shutara had always wanted to create a divine garment worthy of truly matching the Soul King's level. Judging by the finished product on Rosse, she had clearly achieved her wish.

"Alright, enough small talk. How are we getting to Hueco Mundo?"

Hikifune Kirio looked a bit eager.

Not just out of curiosity about Shutara's condition, but as a researcher, she was filled with academic desire to see the current changes in Hueco Mundo.

She had a rough guess about Rosse's identity. But she judged actions, not motives. As long as Rosse was still protecting the world's existence, she didn't mind pretending not to know.

"Don't blink."

Rosse gave her a faint, amused smile and stepped forward. The distance between them shrank to the point where they could feel each other's breath.

A fresh floral scent slipped into Rosse's nose. It wasn't the chemical smell of a lab, but a sweet fragrance like she had just soaked in a bath of rare flower petals.

"Your figure really is something."

Hikifune Kirio showed no hesitation. Instead, she narrowed her eyes, and her slender, fingertip-like hand reached out playfully, poking lightly at Rosse's firm abs as if confirming their texture.

She had wanted to do that for a while.

With her insight, she could naturally see what kind of astonishing body was hidden beneath that exquisite robe.

Compared to it, Kenpachi Zaraki or Kensei Muguruma looked like mere showpieces in front of Rosse.

The moment she touched him, that unique texture startled her.

It wasn't like others, whose muscles were purely formed from spiritual particles. Rosse's body gave her a sense of reality she had never felt before.

"Your body… physical matter and spiritual particles have actually merged perfectly? And this is still Soul Society. How did you do it?"

Hikifune Kirio's nearly 1.8-meter tall figure still looked somewhat small and delicate in front of Rosse, who stood like a god.

She tilted her head up, her bright smile now filled with intense curiosity.

"Even someone like Kurosaki Ichigo, a hybrid, only has a physical body converted into spiritual particles. How did you make spiritual particles stably contain physical matter?"

"Isn't it possible...", Rosse leaned down slightly, his long fingers gently lifting Hikifune Kirio's moist chin with a faint hint of intrusion, the smile in his eyes deepening, "that it's physical matter containing spiritual particles?"

Faced with such teasing, Hikifune Kirio's pupils showed no trace of girlish panic. Instead, her curiosity-filled eyes stayed locked on Rosse's face, her mind seemingly racing through possibilities.

After a moment, she decisively shook her head.

"That's impossible. This is Soul Society. Physical matter is absolutely rejected here. That's a fundamental contradiction in the world's logic."

Compared to the quickening of her pulse caused by Rosse's charm, she was far more interested in analyzing his body's composition.

If she had to take Rosse to bed right now, she'd rather have him on her operating table, with her holding the scalpel.

"That only means their bodies aren't strong enough."

Rosse released her chin, his tone calm but carrying arrogance.

"When a body made of physical matter surpasses the limits of this world, the world no longer rejects it. It has no choice but to submit. So-called rules are always written for the weak."

He stepped back half a pace and snapped his fingers.

"Alright, we can discuss deeper theories after we get back. If you satisfy me, I wouldn't mind letting you study it."

"Now then, welcome to the Hollow King's Palace."

Snap!

The crisp sound echoed in the quiet office.

Hikifune Kirio didn't even have time to blink before the surrounding space seemed to be torn apart by some vast will.

She sharply sensed a grand power beyond her understanding descending upon them.

That power felt ancient, as heavy as if the Soul King himself had arrived.

'Soul King-level power?'

Having experienced the Soul King's might, Hikifune Kirio instantly recognized its value.

It was genuine Soul King-level power, yet it didn't originate from the Soul King.

That made it intriguing.

What shocked her even more was that this power didn't come from Rosse's body. It was something he had summoned.

She was certain of that.

After all, her body was almost pressed against Rosse's chest right now. Being so close, she could clearly feel that the energy within him was steady as a mountain, without the slightest fluctuation.

———

Space twisted and reassembled, dazzling light flowing for only a few seconds.

When the ground beneath her feet became solid again, the warm tea room had vanished.

In its place stood the interior of an immense white palace, filled with desolation and authority.

Hikifune Kirio looked around, a trace of lingering regret in her eyes.

"Too fast…"

She murmured softly. If that unprecedented spatial movement had lasted a few more minutes, she felt she could have observed much more of the truth.

"Too fast? Since when did you get so filthy-minded, Hikifune Kirio?"

Before the aftereffects of their arrival had faded, a cold, slightly hoarse voice, like ice cracking, echoed from the depths of the dim palace.

Hikifune Kirio followed the sound, and a strange, amused expression appeared on her bright face.

At the far end of her vision, on a throne carved from black crystal, symbolizing the highest authority of Hueco Mundo, sat a figure she knew all too well.

Shutara Senjumaru!

Normally, this Great Weaver would be dignified and aloof, like a needle-and-thread goddess seated among clouds.

But the Shutara before her now completely overturned that impression.

Her usually immaculate long hair was now loose and disheveled like spilled ink over her shoulders.

Her body had none of its usual layered garments. She wore only a thin crimson gauze robe, light as cicada wings.

Through that almost transparent fabric, Hikifune Kirio could clearly see the faint redness of Shutara's delicate skin, flushed from anger or shame.

What made Hikifune Kirio's pupils shrink even more was that beneath the gauze, Shutara's porcelain-like flawless skin was covered in striking red marks.

They were various pinch marks and finger imprints, densely trailing from her slender neck downward, passing over her curves and disappearing beneath the fabric near her ankles.

Under the cold moonlight of the palace, those marks carried a twisted, broken beauty.

"Hehe! And you have the nerve to talk about me? Senjumaru, I'd say your head and body are filled with nothing but that kind of thing now."

Hikifune Kirio's eyes held undisguised interest.

Without asking Rosse for permission, she stepped forward, her long, full legs wrapped in yoga pants swaying as she walked toward the throne. [T/N: The author is in his Yoga Pants arc now.]

"Hmph! I'm not like someone who shamelessly chose to surrender both body and mind."

Shutara snorted softly. Under Hikifune Kirio's penetrating gaze, she instinctively curled her small body, trying to use the limited gauze to cover those messy marks.

But the thin fabric, barely there, offered no real protection.

Instead, her movement made those red marks appear and disappear between folds, making her look even more like a branded possession.

"Tsk! Tsk! The way you look now, where's even a trace of Zero Division's presence? You look more like a little woman who's just been thoroughly spoiled and hasn't come back to her senses yet."

Hikifune Kirio stepped up the throne platform one step at a time, teasing her from above.

She reached out with her full, slightly warm hand, lightly pinching Shutara's pale yet flushed cheek with a mix of teasing and humiliation.

In truth, beneath Hikifune Kirio's lively exterior, her eyes were cold and precise, without any personal emotion.

Her gaze moved like a scanning instrument, examining every tremor of Shutara's body, using the temperature and muscle tension sensed through her fingertips to accurately assess her condition.

She quickly reached a conclusion.

Shutara was indeed imprisoned.

Rosse's power was like an invisible iron chain, pinning her firmly to that throne.

Without Rosse's permission, she probably couldn't even step down and walk.

Witnessing the condition of her former colleague with her own eyes, Hikifune Kirio felt neither sympathy nor anger.

If anything, this kind of extreme control and submission suited her understanding of the two of them better.

This was the Shutara she knew, guarding her pride to the end.

And this was the Rosse she knew, absolute control stripped of all disguise.

If these two came together without this kind of relationship of dominance and resistance, conquest and defiance, that would be strange.

However, something puzzled Hikifune Kirio.

Shutara's spiritual pressure wasn't sealed, and even the restraint from the throne wasn't truly unbreakable.

Even she could easily break through such a restraint. Shutara could do the same.

As long as Shutara wanted to, she could break free.

But she didn't.

That woman just curled up there, letting those humiliating marks remain on her body, not even repairing herself.

This unspoken understanding made Hikifune Kirio narrow her eyes slightly.

Still, unless it involved unknowns related to experiments, she had never been one to dig too deeply.

Especially when, between these two, it was likely more about… personal taste than anything else.

She had no interest in getting involved.

Confirming that Shutara was indeed herself and not replaced, and that nothing serious was wrong, she finally relaxed.

She quietly withdrew her hand and slipped both hands back into her hoodie pockets.

In an instant, she returned to her usual demeanor, teasingly sizing up the small figure wrapped in gauze, a spectator's smile hanging at her lips.

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