One Day I Picked Up a Ninja (7)
It couldn't be helped. Since she couldn't wash with water, her body would have to be cleaned with a damp towel.
But if Hikaru tried to wipe herself down and accidentally brushed against her wounds, the injuries could reopen. That was why I'd decided to clean only the wounded areas and her back myself. Her lower half could be washed with water later, so that wasn't a concern.
I swallowed hard as I looked at Hikaru, who stood there hesitating, her face flushed red.
Honestly, I couldn't claim I had no ulterior motives.
Twenty-two years of virginity. Add Kenji's thirty-three years on top of that, and you got a grand total of fifty-five. Holding onto my composure was no easy feat. Who wouldn't get their hopes up when they had the chance to touch a beauty like this bare-skinned?
Still, I had no desire to steamroll her wishes and force the issue. That wasn't my style.
Even when I read manga, I only felt satisfied if the woman was happy. Watching a girl climax in pure joy made me feel good too. Forcing myself on someone and pumping them full of pleasure — wouldn't that be fine if she ended up happy afterward?
Absolutely not.
Being forced to do something you don't want is agonizing. Even if the outcome turns out well, that experience stays lodged inside you like a thorn for the rest of your life. I didn't want to give Hikaru that kind of memory. Setting the towel back on the tray, I spoke.
"Hikaru. If this is too hard, we can do it another time. Or you could just clean the parts you can reach yourself…"
"No."
Hikaru shook her head. With a resolute look, she took a deep breath and lay back against the bed.
"I'll do it today. Honestly, I've been feeling pretty grimy myself. And…"
Hikaru glanced down at her fingertips for a moment. After steadying her breath, she quietly added:
"If it's you… it might be okay."
The tips of her ears had gone bright red as she said it.
I stared at her blankly for a second.
W-why is she this cute?
I couldn't believe a creature this adorable existed in the world. The scenes I'd seen in the manga had already faded from my mind. The Hikaru right in front of me was the only real Hikaru.
In that moment, Hikaru did something I hadn't expected.
"Then… I'll take it off."
Squeezing her eyes shut, Hikaru lifted her top. Not just enough to bare her stomach — all the way past her collarbones.
"……!"
I'd clearly meant for her to just pull her clothes up enough to expose her stomach.
But why isn't she wearing a bra?!
Hikaru had one arm covering her large breasts, eyes squeezed tightly shut. Her face and ears were flushed so hot you could feel the heat just looking at them. She'd been that embarrassed just showing her side last time — what on earth was going through her head right now?
And besides…
My eyes drifted to her chest before I could stop them. Even under her clothes, I'd known they were big — but with the wrapping peeled off, Hikaru's breasts were downright devastating.
They're seriously huge.
I wanted to touch them. I wanted to knead those soft-looking mounds like dough, just from looking at them!
"Um… Kenji?"
Hikaru cracked one eye open and looked at me. She must have gotten nervous when I just stood there staring without doing anything. That finally snapped me out of it, and I shook my head.
"Ah, sorry. I… just got flustered for a second when I saw you weren't wearing anything underneath."
"I-I usually take it off in my room. It's a little… uncomfortable…"
Hikaru's voice was trembling. She was so tense she was even stumbling over her words.
"Y-you can start wiping now."
"Ah. R-right. Ahem."
Damn it. The incredible sight before me had my lower half swelling like it was about to burst. I could have told her it was fine to keep her chest covered — but was I really going to let a golden opportunity like this slip away?
I carefully picked up the towel, leaning my hips back as far as I could to hide my erection.
"I'll start around the wounds first."
I'd already disinfected the injured areas when I changed her bandages. So I carefully lifted the bandages bit by bit and gently wiped around the wounds, barely scraping the surface.
"Pfft—!"
Hikaru flinched, as if it tickled.
"A little ticklish? It'll be over soon. Just hang in there."
I wasn't trying to tickle her on purpose. Even a little more pressure here would agitate the stitched areas. Unless you had the dexterity of a surgeon, you were better off not attempting this at all.
That aside — how is even her skin this perfect?
The skin under my fingertips was so soft that I felt like I might lose my mind the entire time I was wiping her down. The thought of scars marring a body this perfect filled me with regret.
If only I could bring over one of those potions the Hunters use back in the real world.
A full amputation might be another story, but a cut like this could heal without leaving a single trace.
Wait. Didn't my ability upgrade the System itself as my level rose, rather than me? If my level climbed higher, I might eventually be able to bring real-world items into this place.
There's no experience bar or anything, so I have no idea how leveling even works. Do I need to raise our bond?
Nothing I could figure out right now. Better to focus on the present.
"Alright, the wounds are done, so next…"
I was about to wipe her back. But then I noticed the sweat pooled thick under her breasts.
Gulp.
I swallowed involuntarily. That was firmly in the realm of fine dining.
"There's some sweat built up under your chest. I'll clean there first."
The words tumbled out before I could stop them. Hikaru's eyes went wide.
Of all the times to put my foot in my mouth!
I scrambled for an excuse—
…Nod.
Hikaru quietly nodded. Her face burned even hotter.
…That's a green light, right?
Either way, Hikaru had given permission. I lifted the underside of her breast with my left hand.
"……!"
"……!"
Hikaru and I both froze for completely different reasons. For her, it was the unfamiliar touch of my hand. For me…
Whoa. Tits.
How was this much volume paired with this much spring even possible? I desperately wanted to shove her arm aside and grab hold of them properly — but I held back with superhuman restraint.
Don't rush. Take it slow. Slow.
Even a virgin like me knew the basics. If you misread the mood and push too far ahead, you can wreck a relationship you've carefully built. I took a small breath and went back to wiping Hikaru's body.
A little earlier, Kenji had asked if she wanted to shower. He'd said she must be feeling grimy after going so long without washing.
How does he read my mind so well?
Hikaru had been wanting to wash up herself — her body felt sticky and unpleasant. Back at the clan, there was nothing to do outside of training and missions, so she would shower as a hobby during her free time. That was how much she loved it. More precisely, she loved the particular sense of cleanliness that came after a shower.
So when Kenji asked, Hikaru had nodded firmly. But the words that followed left her thoroughly shaken.
"A-are you serious about that…?"
Kenji had said that if she took off her clothes, he would wipe her down himself.
Even though Hikaru had been kept from modern culture, she wasn't completely ignorant about relationships between men and women. She used to eavesdrop on the other clan members talking in the training grounds, the dining hall, or the baths — and among those conversations were stories about romance.
Piecing together what she'd overheard, it seemed that when a man and a woman liked each other, they expressed those feelings through physical contact. Holding hands, pressing lips together, or… well. Skinship between people was the most intense way to express a heart and confirm it in return.
And Kenji was using the excuse of wiping her body to attempt that very skinship. No matter how much he tried to dress it up as a doctor's duty, Hikaru could see and hear more than an ordinary person.
His fingertips are trembling ever so slightly more than usual, and his breathing sped up for a moment before he forced it back into a steady rhythm.
His expression was calm. But breathing and pulse couldn't lie. A ninja could read emotion from the faintest tremor in another person.
Hikaru fretted at the blanket on the bed.
So Kenji has feelings for me.
He'd treated a complete stranger, let her stay in his home, and even prepared her meals with care. It was stranger that she hadn't noticed sooner.
When Middle-class Ninja Reiji had come looking for her, Hikaru had thought long and hard — and reached a conclusion. For Kenji's safety, leaving was the right thing to do.
That resolve hadn't changed. But the moment she realized he saw her as someone special, the weight of that decision grew far heavier than before.
If it were only her own lingering attachment to abandon, she could endure it somehow. But—
If I leave… what kind of face will you make?
Something tightened in a corner of her chest. Her resolve was set, yet her heart kept whispering that it wanted to stay by his side.
Hikaru slowly closed her eyes. She couldn't remain with him forever. So she would give everything to this moment — so that when she looked back on this time after leaving, not a single regret would remain.
She asked for nothing more. That way, neither Kenji nor she herself would get hurt.
"Hikaru. If this is too hard, we can do it another time. Or you could just clean the parts you can reach yourself…"
"No."
Hikaru shook her head at Kenji's words. It was embarrassing — but for his sake, she could do it. She opened her mouth with a resolute expression.
"I'll do it today."