With Hiyoko, Chihiro learns about Punishment Upgrades.

Chihiro was rarely, if ever, confrontational. He'd never thought of himself as hateful or vengeful. However, he had a job to do, and he barely needed the excuse. "What Hiyoko's doing is wrong! It's wrong, and there's no way anyone our age wouldn't know that. She wouldn't do this in front of anyone else; she's only doing it to me, privately, cuz she thinks she can get away with it! Wrong is wrong... plus, there's no way I'm going out there with pants full of ants or wearing my underwear. This is the corner she's driven me into... I'll do what I have to."

But what did he have to do? It turned out he wouldn't have to think about it too hard: someone else already had an idea. There was a blinking message icon again.

["Hey kid

Now we're talking! I mean, I know it sucks for you, but a weak, impotent guy getting bullied by a hot chick with a bad personality and looking for a way to turn it around, that's dream material for Custom Girls. The energy might be huge! I think this is a perfect chance for you to learn about Punishment Upgrades.

Normally, when you select a purchase, it becomes a rule for the target it applies to. You made it so Miu couldn't do anything about whatever you said about her outfit, right? It wasn't just that it was hard for her to retaliate; she literally couldn't.

A Punishment is perfect for wringing a little more sadistic pleasure out of your purchases. With this handy feature, you can make it so resisting the effect isn't literally impossible. Let's say it will be strongly, strongly discouraged. See what I mean for yourself when you check out your options.

I bet you've already got your mind made up to target Hiyoko. That means you'll get 5 gems for targeting a new girl today, and 5 more since it's the first one you've interacted with since Miu. With a handy 10 gems, you're ready to get started again. There's also a mission specific to Hiyoko, and if you can complete that, you'll get way more. Why not give it a shot?

Ahem. MISSION - Use one or more purchases to make Hiyoko dance. Reward is 10 gems and a mystery bonus effect."]

Chihiro didn't feel great about everything he'd read, but he had to admit that "Punishment" for Hiyoko was exactly what he was in the market for. Furthermore, while he was still adjusting to the idea of using this app, he recognized that having more gems could only be helpful. Going for the mission would make sense, especially if it was something as innocent as making her dance.

Still, it seemed tutorial time was indeed over: there was a short list of seemingly random purchases available to him, all of which had obvious applications if you were trying to humiliate or enjoy a woman, but none of which straight-out suggested they would make the target dance. More importantly, he was looking for something that felt like a punishment that fit the crime, something that would teach her a lesson. There was a purchase that fit that bill, but had nothing to do with dancing, and it'd cost 9 gems, almost everything he had left.

But maybe with the Punishments, if he could find one cheap enough...

On the other side of the door, Hiyoko had her ear and one rosy cheek pressed against the barrier between herself and her prey. From this position, she could see the entrance to the hut and be ready to become sweet and innocent if anyone showed up, while still listening hard for the fellow young woman's tears and sniveling she was sure she'd earned.

Besides a big grin full of teeth, the sadistic student was wearing her blonde hair up in two huge pigtails tied with green ribbons and a cute green, polka-dotted two-piece, both the top and the bottom having wavy frills covering the body. The swimsuit looked a little childish considering her body, while still slender, had blossomed to the point where she would no longer be mistaken for a little girl. The frills didn't fully hide the swell of her bosom, and weren't long enough at the hips to completely obscure the actual article and her peachy bottom. What's more, with her growth spurt, she'd outpaced the shorty she was tormenting in terms of height.

Still, Chihiro's height hardly mattered. That was just another ingredient in the blender that made Hiyoko's classic insult smoothies. What was important, what made that shrimpy girl a tasty target, was her wimpy attitude. Hiyoko had been waiting a long time for a good opportunity to make her cry.

In fact, there was another reason she wanted to push Chihiro: she wanted to see if she could get something nasty out of her, some words a little harder than "We're supposed to be grownups! Why don't you act your age?" The truth was, Chihiro had her goody-goody-two-shoes act keyed up so hard that she'd stolen certain roles Hiyoko always took for granted would be hers in the academy. Treated as the cutest, most **** girl in the school, doted on by the boys, constantly protected by certain older-sister-like individuals...

"Let's see that dumbass girly girl disguise crumble and find out what you really think about me! At least cry and beg a little harder! Hehehehe...!!"

It wasn't as satisfying as she expected, mainly because she wasn't hearing anything from the other woman. The image of Chihiro fighting to keep her tears in check, sucking back huge strings of snot as quietly as she could manage, was entertaining in its own way, but she needed to push harder to get a reaction. "What's wrong? I thought you were supposed to be a brainiac! This isn't one of your tough programming problems: there's just two options. Or maybe you could try uppin' the volume on your big baby bawling? Maybe your tears can move me, if I really hear you wail! You knooow, I might just get bored. I might find another popsicle and some more ants for your crummy uniform, too..."

She'd been smiling, but now she clicked her teeth in irritation. Loud crying was best, and silent crying was good, but why did it feel like she was being ignored?

Finally, Chihiro did speak up in her small, tentative voice, and what she said was funny enough that it was worth the wait. "Hiyoko, you put on my swimsuit."

The blonde cracked up, holding her gut and doubling over laughing. "Excuse me? I put on your swimsuit? What the heck is that supposed to mean?! You're the one who programmed these outfits, didn't you, genius? Who are you tryin' to fool, here? It's just you and me here, and you know this one's mine! Afraid you're stuck with the sticky one, nerd." Still laughing, Hiyoko idly scratched at the back of her swimsuit, thinking about the ants in Chihiro's.

"No, that's not it. I'm telling you to, um, to put on my swimsuit. The one in here. Did you hear me? Will you do it?"

Hiyoko was still laughing, but with less amusement and more spite. "Hmmm, you drive a hard bargain, but I think I'm good in mine! I like my ants outside my suit, where I can squish 'em! Hehehe... y-yeah, ants really suck," she commented a bit more quietly, adjusting the back of her swimsuit again and trying to scratch it as discretely as possible.

"If you're comfortable in yours, that's fine... b-but, um, let me know if you're not."

"W-what are you talking about it? Mine's fine! I mean... I think it's fine...!" No longer able to stop herself, and not aware of anyone around who'd see it, she began scratching at her ass fitfully. "H-hold on. What's goin' on here? How'd you get ants in mine, you sneaky little shrimp?"

"I don't think there are any... But I think you should change into my swimsuit. I think you'll feel better!"

Hiyoko pulled out the band of her swimsuit carefully. Sure enough, there was no ice cream residue, no stickiness, and no insects of any kind. All she saw was the inside of the band and her own healthy skin. "No ants! B-but what the heck?!" She lowered her voice to a hissed whisper to ask the million dollar question. "Why is m-my ass on fire?!" Distressed, the dancer began grinding her ass against the rough surface of the thatched wallpaper. Tears began forming at the corners of her eyes as she failed to find any relief. "H-how are you doing this to me? This isn't fair!"

"I don't think it was fair, what you did to my trunks! Let me know if you want them. I don't think the ants are even the biting kind... but I'm not sure."

"A-a-as if, Shorty!!" Hiyoko shouted. She took another glance at the doorway, and, finding it empty, let out as muted of a roar as she could as she furiously rubbed at her burning bottom. She tried every surface she could think of: in between frenzied grips with her own dainty hands, she tried sanding it uncomfortably against the rougher surface of a nearby shuttered wood door; she fell to her butt and tried scooting it across the tile as though she were waxing it; she tried every prop she could get her hands (or, rather, her ass on), including the rental clothes rack and available surfboards. Nothing worked.

The image of Chihiro's swim trunks flashed through her addled brain: even if there were fire ants in them, could they possibly be any worse?! "A-all right, fine fine fine! Whatever, toss 'em out!"

"... Say you're sorry, and say please."

"You're sorry and say please!" Hiyoko shouted back sarcastically. "Grrrrrrrr!! Ooooooh, f-fine! I'm sorry, please please please!" Now, Hiyoko actually was crying, her big orange eyes swimming and her face burning red. "P-Pleeease, Chihiro!! I'm sorry! I'm gonna die!!"

"... Do a dance and I'll toss it over."

"Are you nuts?!" Even as she said it, Hiyoko began hopping back and forth on one foot desperately, a questionable defense against burning feet and a worthless defense against her supernaturally afflicted burning bottom. "Y-you're invited to all my dances from now on if you just gimme those trunks!" In desperation, taking another last look both ways to confirm they were alone, she took off the bottom of her swimsuit and bared herself to the lobby, mooning the doorway for a moment as she snagged another rental bottom off the hanger and trying it on without looking at it. Sure enough, it did nothing.

She screamed, ripped the rental bottom off herself, threw it on the floor, and ran back to Chihiro's door half naked. She madly pulled the knob and found it locked. "Shiiiit shit shit shit!!" With tears and snot running down her face, giving her sore ass a last few **** scratches, she made up her mind to do something drastic.

Chihiro wasn't crying in his changing room, but he wasn't laughing or celebrating, either. He could tell Hiyoko was going crazy on the other side of the door, but that sure wasn't making him feel good, and it definitely wasn't arousing him. At this point, he was looking at the app. He was at least pleased to see that, despite her protests, something that she'd done while he couldn't see had apparently counted as a dance. That meant he'd have more gems, a bonus effect, and-

Before he could consider Custom Girls any further, he realized the Custom Girl herself was no longer patiently waiting for the swimsuit he'd been about to toss her. For just a moment, his locked door violently shook. Then, while he was trying to find the words to **** out that Hiyoko should just wait a second and he'd toss over the trunks, he heard a different sound on the door.

A scratching sound, accompanied by shaking. Moving up.

To his horror, he saw Hiyoko's blonde pigtails fill the space over the top of his door. For a moment, the lingerie-clad young man stammered to try and stop her. Then, desperately, he grabbed the sticky garment and tried to throw it. His throwing arm was no Ultimate Pitcher's, and the garment drifted uselessly to the floor.

Hiyoko had seen it, though: her maddened orange eyes peering over the top of the door locked onto the drifting garment, completely ignoring the thrower. Chihiro saw her finish clambering over the door and barely had time to let out a startled yelp before she toppled bottomless into his private dressing room, landing on top of him.

While Chihiro covered his eyes and tried not to peek, tried not to discern what soft part of the woman whose fall he'd broken was making contact with his bare skin, Hiyoko kicked off him. Ignoring her half-nudity, she howled as she pulled the sugar-stained garment up her hips. Of course, she had hips and a butt that outclassed Chihiro's boyish figure, and the trunks that would be roomy on him fit her slightly more snugly.

The fit was the last thing on her mind. The now beach-ready dancer let out a tremendous sigh of relief, wiping at her face now that she could think to do anything with her hands but scratch at her ass. "Oh God! I thought I was gonna die! No, I almost did die! However many bites I get from wearing this, it was worth it."

Peeking through his fingers, Chihiro saw that Hiyoko was fully clothed again. Now, she turned her head back to him and spoke, slowly. "Right... Chihiro. Now that that's over, seems like you and I need to have a little chat, huh? I'd stay right there on the floor, if I were you."