Shizuka was already peeling off her shirt as she sat on the bed, moving slowly, deliberately, like she was savoring every second.

Meanwhile, I remained planted near the door, hovering close enough to make escape feel possible. Was it still an option?

“Just so you know,” she continued, slipping off her shorts to reveal sleek black underwear, “escape is not an option. You vowed, remember? A Yamigami shinobi never betrays their own. If you second-guess me now, I’ll count it as betrayal…”

“…Fine, fine… Who even said I planned on running?” I muttered, forcing myself to walk toward her.

Her eyes had looked faintly glassy when she told me not to run away. 

But as I approached, they lit up with unmistakable joy, as though the very sight of me coming closer was what she had truly wanted all along.

It almost made her seem like… she wanted to sleep with me not because she was some insatiable sex addict, but because she wanted me in particular.

What would that even mean?

I hope she’s not one of those crazy ones—the Yandere types.

But subsequently... when I reached the bedside, my body betrayed me with a sudden rush of heat. 

My face burned red.

Stripping in private had always been difficult for me; it was a quiet ordeal, something I had never truly grown comfortable with.

Maybe deep down I was some sort of closet pervert, but the truth was that even looking at my own naked body felt strange and uncomfortable. 

Letting another person see it? That was on a whole different level of embarrassment.

Only Yasuna had ever seen me like that, my fully mature female body. And even then, it wasn’t by my choice.

She had been so relentless and persistent that I eventually gave in.

I avoided swimming classes whenever I could, and I almost never set foot in the girls’ locker room. That’s how far I went to keep myself hidden.

Sensing my hesitation now, Shizuka reached for my top.

I tried to resist, struggling against her pull, but she was suddenly stronger and forced it off anyway.

Ahhh…

To think I had exposed myself so freely in front of everyone earlier today!

But wait; that was different. 

At the time, my body had been completely white, more artificial-looking, and less personal. Now, however, my complexion mirrored the tone of my human face.

This time it actually felt like I was showing my human body, not some metal shell.

Shizuka’s breathing grew heavier. Her eyes locked onto my chest, unblinking.

“J-Jeez, pervert,” I whispered, flustered. “You’re staring way too hard.”

“Ah, sorry, sorry,” she said with a smile, though her gaze never truly softened. Then she leaned forward, whispering with a grin, “Itadakimasu…”

Hngh… The sensation was… strange.

I felt the urge to push her away… yet at the same time another part of me wanted to hold her head closer. The conflicting impulses made my body tense all over.

A sharp stream of euphoria coursed through my metallic insides, and the wet, slurping noises of sucking filling the room only heightened the surreal experience.

“H-Hey… C’mon, A… At least, turn off the light…” My breathing quickened, coming in uneven bursts.

I had earlier thought exhaustion was beyond me, something I would never feel again. And yet… was Netherbyte cruel enough to program that in too?

Well, it made me more human, so I’ll overlook it.

“I refuse,” Shizuka murmured as she pulled me up to her level. “I want to see Nagisa-chan’s pretty body.”

Then, without warning, her lips crashed against mine.

She threw me onto the bed, and it was then that I realized just how weak I currently was!

Another one of Netherbyte’s tricks, wasn’t it?!

And the way she had gone quiet all of a sudden made it feel like she was just observing me, monitoring everything for her weird data, and making sneaky on-scene adjustments, too!

Hey! Confess already, digi-hentai!

{Negative: Netherbyte has no idea what Master is talking about.}

Liar! Then how come I suddenly have… n-n-nipples!!

It felt unbelievably strange, the way Shizuka’s teeth would subtly grind against a certain sweet spot on those peaks.

And when her hands roamed freely again, slipping across my skin while her lips moved hungrily over my nape and neck, my eyes wandered down to confirm what I was feeling.

I could see them, those nostalgic points I thought I had long since lost.

Shizuka didn’t seem to pay it much mind at all, and simply carried on with her frenzy, hungrier than ever.

“Y… You know,” I squeaked, trying to speak between breaths, “those aren’t really skin… it’s just another form of metal…”

She stopped kissing my neck for a moment and looked directly at me, her face lit up more with joy than with lust.

“But it is Nagisa-chan’s metal, isn’t it?”

“Please, don’t call it Nagisa-chan’s metal!”

“I love all parts of Nagisa-chan.”

Damn it, she’s treating me like some kind of sex doll now!

As her tongue continued to flick and drag along my two peaks of softness, my thoughts started racing.

Wait a second… with everything I’ve been noticing so far, it kind of feels like… uhm…

Shizuka actually likes me? Like, in that way?

I could be jumping to conclusions, sure, but hear me out.

Her mood always seems to dip, just a little, whenever I mention Kiyoshi or when I defend him.

It’s subtle, small enough that anyone else might miss it, but I catch it every time.

Then there’s the fact she looked genuinely down when I tried to escape from her earlier.

Of course, maybe she just loves sex that much, to the point that she feels sad if someone tries to deprive her of it. That’s definitely possible.

But just now, she told me she loved every part of me. And honestly, I can’t help but feel like she slipped up a little there.

That sounded more genuine than her usual teasing.

Hmm.

Maybe I’m just being desperate. 

Maybe I just want someone to love me and crave me for real?

It’s a sad thought when I stop to consider it…

Heh. Maybe I’ve always been a bit of a sad person, actually.

But still… it wouldn’t hurt to ask her directly, would it?

Right, let's ask her!