I did the hardest situp I’d ever done as I forced myself into a seated position on Akuchi’s shoulder to see what all the girls were gaping at, but my eyes turned to Natalia-sama briefly. Despite her apparent exhaustion, pride shone from her whole frame like the sun itself.

Natalia-sama danced over to the veiled mannequin the spotlight was illuminating. With a dramatic and elegant flip of her arm, the veil fell away and… something beneath sparkled and glittered.

My jaw dropped.

...........

....................

“Another sentai costume?!” I yelped. I didn’t recognize the suit, though. I might have fallen behind in my sentai watching over the last few months. “I-is this from a new show?” I blinked.

Natalia-sama danced around the mannequin which was set up to display the suit in all its grandeur. “No, not really. Seeing you in the Magiranger costume just inspired me!” She clenched her fist and smiled broadly.

“At least tell me there isn’t a horrible billboard on the backside!” I begged.

“Hahahaha... that was a horrible mistake. It might have backfired on me.” Natalia-sama laughed. “This time, I went with a simpler logo!” She pointed at the chest. There was a complex design in black on a silver costume. The design was yokai-inspired. I saw depictions of vampires, kitsune, nebulous looking monsters and other things I barely recognized, but the artwork was flawless. It just looked so cool. When I looked closely, I even saw a small oni with a club and a pugnacious face.

Is that Rui-chan? I blinked. “Um... where is the logo, Natalia-sama?”

“Oh... pan your vision out a bit... Look at it carefully... then you’ll see it!” Natalia-sama gestured, slapping the design gently. I tilted my head, but finally I saw what she was referring to.

ナ

タ

リ

ア

Her name was spelled with the pattern printed vertically across its chest. It was so elegant and subtle; my eyes were drawn to the intricate design of classic yokai on it.

The helmet was creepy. It strongly resembled the face of noh-face. It had two black windows where my eyes were supposed to be. The mouth was wide-open like a maw.

A silver crest was placed on the forehead, which diminished the creepiness of the suit. It made it look heroic, like a gundam in a certain sense. With it were boots and gloves with similar designs on them and a belt with a large pouch on it which blended perfectly with the costume. My silly fanny pack wouldn’t be necessary anymore. Like the last one, it had a cape and mantle which fluttered subtly in the air. The fabric sparkled the way silver did.

“Now everything is prepared!” Rui enthused. “It’s amazingly inspiring! This is going to work out perfectly. When Susumu wore that costume earlier, he became a true sentai hero! You could say it was possible because he was a yokai, but I actually think he really got into the act like Akuchi. In essence, his conscious power was stimulated by the costume. It inspired him and gave him a tremendous boost of power!”

Akuchi eyed Rui with a wry and deprecating smile.

Another pretty plan gone wrong, I’d say... I sighed at how juvenile her theory was, as usual.

“Why the sigh?” Natalia looked stricken. “Don’t you like it? It’s my magnum opus, my masterwork.” She looked like she was going to break into tears.

Your... greatest creation? Really? I thought about the amazing dresses and outfits she’d already created. A part of me was able to appreciate the elegance of her designs. And this was supposed to be the most precious piece of work she’d done in her whole life?

Natalia-sama’s eyes welled up with tears. Her sunny eyes resembled a puppy’s.

Oh crap... those eyes... Don’t do that to me!

I propped myself on Akuchi’s shoulder to boost myself off into a smooth flip. My feet planted firmly on the floor before the costume. My whole body shivered with the shock of landing hard, but I grinned broadly as I touched the sentai suit. “Of course I love it! Natalia-sama! You’re a genius! I love you!”

The clouds obscuring the blue skies of her eyes evaporated. She beamed the brightest smile upon me, and she promptly embraced and kissed me in a very thorough way. I stiffened and my cheeks stained deeply on the spot while my expression went blank.

Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

“Are you done yet?” Rui stomped behind us, sounding like the true oni she was.

“We’re done!” Natalia-sama broke the kiss. She glowed positively. “Get those clothes off, Susumu!”

“Whaaaaaaaaaaa!?” My head ratcheted in Natalia-sama’s direction to gape. My head practically exploded with the rush of blood to it.

Ume started sniffing at the air. She clapped her hands to her cheeks and blushed herself. “It smells so good!” She squirmed and fidgeted.

Akuchi imitated Ume and sniffed the air, with mediocre success. “Um... I smell Natalia’s perfume... faintly... It is kind of nice.”

Rui eyed Ume rolling her eyes.

“Get those clothes off, posthaste!” Natalia-sama exclaimed while enthusiastically tearing off my clothes herself. My head exploded even more and Ume swooned, elated.

I see, no heroic transformation sequence ... Well, of course this is not a real sentai show. I can’t just transform, right? OH KAMI! They all saw me naked! I blushed again. Ume got weak knees.

I woke up with the helmet on. I couldn’t see as well as I’d have liked, but far better than I could in the previous costume while at the Halloween party at the office. Natalia-sama had used some amazing material to create this costume. The visor was composed of one-way glass over the eyes. On the other side the visor was slightly reflective and black. Everything was a bit tinted as though I wore sunglasses, but otherwise my vision wasn’t impaired too much. Akuchi took my arm to help me to my feet. I noh-smiled my thanks to her. Being as my expressions would be hidden as though I was a noh-face again, I regard my hidden expressions in the same way.

“Do you think you could stop that stupid amazoness act?” Rui yelled, slamming a hand down on Akuchi’s head.

“Eeep!” Akuchi yelped as she poofed and transformed into Reiko-chan. I noh-gaped at her. “We’re getting serious now, I guess.” Akuchi tilted her head.

“Yes. We’re serious now.” Rui nodded. “I think all our preparations are completed. Are you up to helping us with our fight, Natalia?” Rui asked Natalia-sama.

“Well, I am exhausted after creating my baby.” She slapped my backside with a familiar gentleness. “I did my absolute best work.” She gave us her brightest smile paired with a stunning wink, even going so far as to give us a thumbs up.

I felt motivated! “LET’S DO THIS!” I yelled, leaping into action. My cloak billowed behind me heroically as I raised my fist into the air.

“I’m curious about what you’ll call this sentai series, Natalia.” Ume broke the mood with her question.

Natalia-sama smiled softly. “Well... I’m not sure, but how about this idea...” She hesitated.

“Tell me!” Ume bounced enthusiastically. “It’s probably amazing!”

“I agree, but let's please be serious.” Rui groaned.

“What is it?” Akuchi chimed in happily.

“Yokai Sentai Noh-man!” Natalia grinned broadly as she announced the title. I fell over.

Noh-man?! No man? Because I have a girl’s face and voice now? That’s an atrocious pun!!!