I am Orihime, here me roar!
Chapter One: Lioness Rising

A.N.: This was originally called Orihime the Werewolf but I changed my mind. The idea for this came to me after reading Akame ga Kiru. Again, like with the Fusion Saga this is not a crossover. I am simply taking one element from another manga and putting it into the Bleach universe. If you're wondering why I'm having Orihime as the main character it's because I'm having a bad day and I'm taking it out on her. Because that's how I roll.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.

Sometime after Ichigo regained his powers….
Urahara Shop

"Hello?" Orihime called out as she walked into the small candy shop and looked around. There was no sign of the shady shopkeeper, the burly Tessai or either of the kids that hung around here. There wasn't even any sign of Yoruichi, who'd just returned from a trip to the Soul Society. "Hello? Anybody home?"

"In here!" came a voice from down the hall.

Following the voice, Orihime entered a small room, lit only by a few lights on the wall, giving it an eerie atmosphere. The man she'd been looking for was currently at a workbench with his back to her. Kisuke turned his head slightly to acknowledge his guest, his trademark hat on a nearby chair. "Oh, hello there, Orihime. You here for your candy?"

Giggling, Orihime nodded. "Yep! I promised I'd bring candy for Tatsuki's birthday party and the convenient store is all out."

Smiling, Kisuke got up, stretching his arms and bending backward, his sore back popping back into place; a result of him spending hours at his workbench. "Alright. Wait right here while I go and get it."

Orihime sat down in a nearby chair while Kisuke left the room to get her order of candy. As minutes ticked by she turned to Kisuke's workbench and saw what he'd been tinkering with.

On the table, illuminated by a lamp, was an old, worn out belt. She saw that it was covered in fur and that the buckle had the image of a lion imprinted onto it. Leaning down to examine it, she could feel vestiges of spiritual pressure from within the item. 'Weird…' she thought as she leaned forward. 'I can almost…hear it…calling to me….'

She was about to reach out for the belt when she heard footsteps and turned around. Kisuke entered the room carrying a box full of delicious candy. "Here you go, Orihime!" He handed the box to Orihime who thanked him.

"Say, Mr. Urahara? What's this belt you've got?" Orihime asked out of curiosity. "It looks really old."

"Ah! You noticed that, did you?" Kisuke smiled and sat down at his workbench, gesturing to the belt with a wave of the hand. "Well, to be honest I'm not quite sure what this is. When I traveled with Yoruichi to the Soul Society last time, it occurred to me that not much is known about the era before the Thirteen Court Guard Squads were formed or what was used before the zanpakuto was invented. After doing some digging in the archives I came across this in a sealed vault."

"So this belt is over a thousand years old?"

"There weren't that many documents with the item when I pulled it from the vault but what I could piece together does insinuate this was a weapon used to enhance a person's physical capabilities to combat Hollows. Although as to what exactly it is I have yet to conclude." He turned back to the belt and looked down at it with an inquisitive eye. "For now, I don't even know what it does to a person if they put it on."

Orihime put down the box and scratched her head. She looked at the old belt and, again, felt it calling out to her. "Why don't I put on the belt? Just for a few seconds," she suggested. She wondered what the belt could do but the idea of a power boost could be the confidence she needed to finally confess her feelings to Ichigo.

Kisuke scratched his beard and looked at Orihime hesitantly. "Orihime, that doesn't seem prudent. I'm not sure what the belt will do to you if you put it on." But then Kisuke immediately shot down his own argument, "Then again, your powers of Rejection could simply undo any changes the belt gives you so I don't see why not. Remember," he warned as he picked up the belt, "If you feel any pain or discomfort at all, take it off. This has been sealed away in a vault for over a thousand years. I'd guess that it was put there for a reason."

"I will," Orihime promised, taking the belt from him. As her hands gripped the ancient item, she felt something awaken deep the belt, like a sleeping animal waking up from a deep slumber. Shaking off any nervousness and quelling the butterflies in her stomach, she wrapped the belt around her and fastened it to her waist. For several seconds afterwards Orihime felt a tingling sensation throughout her whole body but nothing more than that. "Um…looks like it…AHHH!"

Kisuke leapt out of his chair when Orihime threw her head back and cried out in shock, the belt erupting with golden light. Orihime saw stars as power surged through her body, her body changing from the belt's power. 'I...I feel amazing!' A growl left her lips before she opened her mouth wide. Kisuke watched in complete disbelief as his friend changed right before his eyes.

Cat-like ears sprouted from the top of Orihime's burnt-orange hair and a tail sprouted from underneath her shirt. Because she was wearing a simple shirt and skirt, he could see her thin, delicate arms and legs suddenly bulk up. Orihime opened her mouth wider as her canines extended. When she looked at Kisuke, the man saw her eyes become narrow and strange. But the most startling attribute to her new transformation was her hands. Orihime's hands glowed and morphed until she suddenly had paws, deadly claws poking out from the tips of her fingers. As the transformation reached completion, Orihime threw her head back and a sound that Kisuke never would've imagined came from her:

A lion's roar.

"RORRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Orihime shouted before her feet hit the ground. As the burst of power faded, she looked down at herself with shock. "What…what happened to me?"

Kisuke sat down on a stool and stared. "I had thought that the belt merely bolstered a person's strength by enhancing their muscle structure…I'd no clue it could cause a metamorphosis like this." He looked at the newly transformed Orihime with concern. "Orihime, do you feel alright?"

Orihime looked at her strengthened arms. She wasn't an Amazon by any stretch but she was far more built then she could ever hope to be. "This is amazing! I feel great, Kisuke!"

Nodding, Kisuke took out some paper and gestured to the door. "Well, since you've taken a liking to the belt, why don't we run some tests…."

An hour later….

"Hurrrrrrgh!" Orihime grunted as she lifted a huge boulder over her head. Kisuke stared in fascination as his friend hurled it all the way across the underground chamber. That was just a few of the many tests Kisuke gave her to test the limitations of her new transformed body. Orihime was now phenomenally fast, as strong as Chad and, after testing her by chucking Kidô spells at her, had durability that could possibly match Ichigo's.

'Incredible… this is way more than just a boost in muscle structure or stamina. Her body has become as powerful as a lieutenant-class Soul Reaper's at the very least. There's no way a normal Human, even with her muscles, could lift a boulder that size like it was made of paper.'

Putting down his notes, Kisuke walked over to the girl. Orihime was busy pulverizing another boulder with powerful kicks. "Alright, Orihime, that's enough for now. You should take off the belt and turn back to normal."

When Orihime turned around she looked at Kisuke perturbed. "Take it off? Why?" She flexed her arms and felt her muscles tighten up. "This feels great! I feel better than ever!"

Kisuke frowned, not liking where this was going. He didn't like the bestial look in her eyes and it made him feel a little afraid. "We don't know what prolonged exposure to that belt will do to you. It would be best to give it a rest for now."

Orihime looked at Kisuke before looking down at her belt. Deciding that Kisuke had a point, she reached for the belt. When her hands gripped the belt she hesitated for a moment. Kisuke held his breath when he saw her hesitate. Finally, just when he thought she wouldn't take it off, Orihime unbuckled the belt and removed it from her.

normal. The belt slipped from her hands and she stumbled to the ground, her body exhausted from the transformation. Kisuke caught her before she hit the ground and helped her to her feet. "Orihime, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she said after taking deep breaths. "I just feel tired, that's all. And my head hurts a little."

"I'd imagine that having all that power leave you at once is taxing on your body. Why don't I escort you back to your apartment today?" he suggested.

"Okay," she said, her legs feeling wobbly. She turned back to the belt and looked at it with suspicion. When she'd been about to take it off, she hesitated because a voice from within her mind told her not to take it off. She wondered what that was and if it was the belt causing it. Still, even as she stared at it she could feel its power calling out to her...

Kisuke scooped up the belt and tucked into his robes. "C'mon, I'll help you out of here."

Later….
Orihime's Apartment

"Thanks again, Mr. Urahara!" Orihime said, her strength returned to her after Kisuke had fed her dinner and walked her back to her apartment. Kisuke had put the belt in a box to examine it later before picking up Orihime's candy order and carried it home for her. "That was fun!"

"Well, for now you should rest and relax for a while, Orihime. I'll let you know if I discover anything new about the belt."

"Alright, bye, Kisuke!"

Kisuke turned around and left Orihime's apartment when she closed the door, heading back to his shop. Returning there, he entered his workshop and walked over to the box with the belt inside. It was fascinating what it did to Orihime but also terrifying. 'For just a moment, I thought she was going to attack me for telling her to take it off. Still, some time away from it might help clear her head.' He reached into the box…and grabbed nothing. "WHAT?!"

Looking into the box, he saw that it was empty. He stared at the empty box and wondered what happened to the belt. What Kisuke had so foolishly forgotten was that he did indeed put the belt into a box:

The box with Orihime's candy that was now in Orihime's apartment.

Back to Orihime….

Orihime put the box onto her bed and opened it up. After going through the hours of Kisuke's tests while being transformed she felt like she'd earned the treat. She reached into the box, only to find herself grabbing hold of something that was definitely not candy. "What?" she gasped when she pulled out the belt. "Why is this here?"

She stood there, holding the belt and looking at it. She could feel it again. It was calling to her. 'I really shouldn't…' she thought as she stared at it. 'Kisuke warned me not to but…' She remembered what it was like when she was transformed. The power…the strength…the speed…the thrill.

Stepping out into her living room, she gripped the belt in her hands, her heart thumping as she stared at the belt. 'Well…maybe just one more time….'

Quickly, she set the belt down and headed for her bedroom, slipping on some shorts and a white shirt that exposed some of her belly. Heading back, she put all fear out of her mind and put the belt on once more. This time the transformation came much faster and more intense. Orihime let out a loud roar once the transformation was complete, her body stronger and beast-like once more. She looked down at her body and grinned. 'This feels great. Why would anyone take this off?'

As she continued checking out her new body she suddenly felt a urge hit her. She wasn't just transformed with beast-like attributes but she now had heightened senses. She could smell something off in the distance. Something that reeked of death and blood; a hollow.

Orihime grinned. It was time to go hunting.

To be continued