Cain stared at the scene before her, completely dumbfounded.
When she bought the camera, she had admittedly planned to preserve a few embarrassing pictures of Sanji.
But Uta was taking photograph after photograph of this horrifying display without the slightest hesitation.
If those pictures ever spread, Sanji's reputation would be utterly destroyed.
As Cain considered that, she noticed the camera lens suddenly swing toward her.
"Wait—"
Cain hurriedly raised a hand to cover her face.
The abrupt movement nearly made her drop the Visual Den Den Mushi in her arms, but Ivankov caught it in time and aimed the camera toward Sanji lying on the floor so Pudding could see her.
"Uta… you!"
Cain had no attention to spare for anything else.
She turned toward the person holding the camera—the girl… no, the boy?
Uta finally lowered the camera, showing no remorse whatsoever.
Instead, he smiled and pointed toward the unconscious Sanjiko.
"Don't forget why we're here, Cain."
"Stop using that as an excuse to change the subject!"
Cain paused.
"Though admittedly, this is more important."
Realizing that she could do nothing about Uta, Cain turned toward Ivankov and asked seriously,
"What exactly is wrong with Sanji?"
Ivankov delivered his diagnosis.
"Severe dehydration and anemia, malnutrition, and extreme physical exhaustion."
"It's fortunate we arrived when we did. Otherwise, she really might have died."
He lightly nudged Sanji with the tip of his shoe.
"What in the world did Sanjiko-chan do to herself to end up like this?"
Ivankov rested his chin on one hand and studied her thoughtfully.
"Still, her constitution is surprisingly strong. Most people would have died long before reaching this state."
Cain fell silent.
Sanji was ultimately the product of Germa technology, no matter how much he himself hated acknowledging it.
His physical foundation was fundamentally different from an ordinary person's.
Even before awakening any special abilities, surviving this degree of self-inflicted abuse was not something a normal human could accomplish.
"Can you change him back immediately?" Cain asked.
Ivankov examined Sanji's paper-white face and checked her pulse. After a moment of consideration, he shook his head.
"In her current condition, she probably couldn't withstand another hormonal transformation."
He paused before explaining further.
"This isn't as simple as giving someone another injection."
"Reconstructing a body that has already been altered by hormones consumes far more energy than you imagine."
"She's severely dehydrated and anemic. If I forced the change now…"
Ivankov left the sentence unfinished and gave Cain a meaningful look.
Cain understood.
Ivankov's Devil Fruit abilities came with a physical price, and Sanji's current body could not afford to pay it.
"Then we'll have to wait until he wakes up."
Cain sighed and looked at the unconscious cook.
Unfortunately, that meant Pudding had joined the call for nothing.
Cain glanced toward the Den Den Mushi Ivankov had placed nearby.
Pudding continued watching quietly from the screen, her large eyes fixed upon Sanji's current appearance. Her lips were slightly pursed, and no one could tell what she was thinking.
"Um… Pudding," Cain said awkwardly. "It seems we brought you into this for nothing today."
Pudding blinked.
"It's all right."
"I'm already happy that I got to see such a lovely big sister."
Cain paused.
"Really," Pudding repeated, shifting her gaze from Sanji to Cain.
"No matter what form my big sister takes… this version of you really is… very cute."
Cain's mouth twitched, and she did not know how to answer.
Uta immediately perked up beside her.
"I wouldn't call Cain cute right now. She's more sexy, don't you think?"
"I-I only said it casually!"
Pudding's face turned bright red.
"Don't misunderstand! I was making an objective observation!"
"I understand. With a big sister like this, it would be difficult not to adore her."
Uta darted behind Cain, cupped the softness on her chest with both hands, and gave them an experimental bounce.
Becoming a man seemed to have reduced Uta's jealousy considerably. Instead, he had developed an intense interest in teasing Cain.
Watching their strange and intimate interaction through the screen, Pudding hurriedly covered her eyes in embarrassment.
"I-I'll end the call now! Contact me again once Mr. Sanji wakes up!"
…
Sanji was taken away for emergency treatment.
After Pudding disconnected, Cain and Uta were shown to a guest room of their own.
The instant the door closed, Uta slowly advanced toward Cain, his eyes shining with eager anticipation.
"Uta… you aren't seriously planning to do that, are you?"
Cain's voice carried unmistakable nervousness.
"What do you think?"
Uta blinked, a playful curve forming on his lips.
"I finally got the chance to become a man. Of course I want to experience it properly!"
"You didn't act like this when you were inside my body before—"
"That was different."
Uta interrupted and moved closer.
"Trying to do anything while looking at my own face was a little…"
His voice dropped lower as the distance between them disappeared, his breath almost brushing Cain's skin.
"Uta, actually, I don't feel well!"
Cain desperately searched for an excuse and began moving toward the door.
"Could we maybe—"
"Don't even think about running."
Uta grabbed Cain's arm and lightly bit her ear, sending a tingling shiver through her body.
His other hand moved slowly down her waist and abdomen—
Then his fingertips touched something damp.
Uta stopped.
He looked down and saw faint traces of blood on his fingers.
His entire body stiffened.
Panicking, he immediately tried to unfasten Cain's belt so he could examine her personally.
Cain's mind also went blank when she noticed the blood.
'No wonder my stomach has been aching since earlier. I started my—'
'Wait, why would I even have one?!'
"Cain! What's wrong?!"
Uta's voice was filled with obvious panic.
Seeing how terrified he looked, Cain found the situation both touching and absurd. She quickly caught his hand.
"Calm down. I'm fine."
"What do you mean, fine?! You're bleeding!"
"It isn't an injury…"
Cain's ears grew warm.
"It's… um… a natural bodily function."
Uta froze.
His hand stopped moving as he stared blankly at her. Several seconds passed before understanding finally arrived.
"You mean…?"
Cain turned away and gave a complicated nod.
Uta's expression shifted from shock to confusion, then from confusion into something far more difficult to describe.
He looked at the blood staining his fingertips, then back at Cain.
Only now did he seem to truly understand that Cain was inhabiting a completely different body.
"Perfect."
With complete confidence, Uta reached for Cain's pants again.
"You're already uncomfortable, so just lie down and let me handle everything."
"No, no, no! I can take care of it myself!"
Cain retreated so quickly that her back struck the wall.
"Absolutely not. It's your first time being a woman, so I need to look after you properly."
Uta approached with a cheerful smile.
Cain's forehead filled with dark lines.
In desperation, an idea flashed through her mind.
"Wait! Hold on! I know how to fix this!"
"What?"
"If I transform into my hybrid form, my Zoan recovery should regulate this physical condition much faster!"
Cain spoke rapidly as she activated her Devil Fruit power.
"Just wait. I'll be fine in a second!"
Before she finished speaking, her clothes suddenly stretched to their limits.
Scales spread from her neck and covered her shoulders in a fine layer.
Yet the almost translucent pink scales deliberately avoided her collarbones, leaving their elegant hollows completely exposed.
The scales curved around the fullness of her chest before stopping abruptly at the edges, revealing large areas of pale skin.
Scattered patches appeared across her waist and abdomen, emphasizing the firm lines of muscle beneath.
Two graceful grooves descended from below her navel and disappeared toward her hips.
A long, slender tail unfurled behind her.
Two pointed horns emerged from her head, and combined with the face softened by Ivankov's hormones, she looked dangerously enchanting.
Uta went completely still.
His gaze traveled from Cain's horns to her face, then descended along her exposed collarbones, over the fullness of her chest, across her bare stomach, and finally toward her shapely hips.
For Uta, who had become male for the first time, the sight struck like an explosion inside his mind.
A newly acquired part of his body suddenly received more blood than it had ever experienced before.
Uta's pupils widened slightly, and a blush spread across his face.
'Is this what people call a… b-beast girl?'
Then blood abruptly burst from his nose.
It streamed down over his lips and dripped onto the floor.
Uta did not even try to wipe it away.
He merely stared at Cain, eyes filled with shock, fascination, and a dangerous intensity approaching complete loss of control.
"U-Uta?!"
Cain was startled and instinctively stepped forward to check on him, but Uta immediately raised one hand.
"Don't come any closer!"
His voice cracked as he covered his nose with one hand and frantically waved the other.
"D-d-d-don't move toward me!"
Blood leaked between his fingers and fell steadily to the floor.
At last, Uta understood precisely how Cain had felt while looking at him before.
The moment Cain straightened, her clothes finally surrendered.
The shirt had already torn apart when she transformed, leaving only a few scraps hanging from her shoulders.
As she moved, the remaining fabric silently slipped down the smooth scales and fell to the floor.
Her jeans could not withstand the transformation either. They loosened around her waist and slid down until they gathered around her ankles.
In an instant, Uta's nose became a fountain.
The blood no longer flowed.
It sprayed.
Uta's vision went black.
He had not fainted—the blood had simply erupted so violently that it briefly covered his eyes.
"UTA!"
Cain genuinely panicked.
No longer caring about her own condition, she rushed forward and caught Uta before he collapsed.
Uta wiped the blood from his eyes, opened them, and immediately found Cain's face inches from his own, with her full chest swaying directly before him.
"Don't—"
Uta tried to speak, but another wave of heat surged through his nose.
Blood erupted once again.
"Hang on! You have to stay conscious!"
Cain's voice trembled with fear.
She was a Zoan user with a powerful body. Losing some blood was hardly important.
Uta, however, was the user of the Sing-Sing Fruit. His body could not possibly endure this much blood loss.
At this rate, he might genuinely faint from anemia.
The image of Sanji's deathly pale face flashed through Cain's mind, and her heart lurched.
Cain hurriedly grabbed a bedsheet, wrapped it around herself, and shouted toward the door,
"Someone help! We need a doctor!"
Uta weakly tugged on the sheet wrapped around her body and slipped one hand inside.
"Don't… call anyone…"
His voice was barely audible, while blood continued dripping from his nose.
"It's too embarrassing…"
Uta closed his eyes in despair, only one thought remaining in his mind.
'My reputation is completely dead.'
Even as he lost consciousness, his hand did not forget to give Cain's scale-covered chest one final squeeze.