Ippo Makunouchi wakes up one morning to discover he's become a girl—and he's not the only one. At the Kamogawa Boxing Gym, the entire crew has been transformed: Takamura is now a stunning beauty, and a frantic blonde researcher named Marie from Italy's Florence Institute of Curse Studies arrives with a confession. A cursed trophy in the gym's basement has unleashed a gender-reversal curse on everyone present, and Marie's power alone can't undo it. To break the curse, they must heal the "sorrow"
Hajime no Ippo: The Gender-Swap Curse Chaos - The Basement's Cursed Trophy ~Can You Stand in the Ring in a Girl's Body!?~
"…Nn."
When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was the feeling of hair spread across the pillow.
Smooth, long black hair tangling around my fingers. The reality I'd confirmed over and over last night pressed down on me again, heavy, in the morning light.
(So it wasn't a dream.)
I let out a small breath, there on the futon.
The ceiling was the same as always—old beams with visible wood grain. From the window came the sound of Mom downstairs preparing breakfast. The smell of miso soup. Grilled fish. Everything was the same as every morning before.
The only thing different was me.
"…Guess I'll get up."
I spoke, and then sank again. A voice like a rolling bell—high and clear. A girl's voice. Even after a whole day, I still couldn't get used to it.
I sat up.
My chest felt heavy. No—not heavy, exactly. Off-balance. I tried to stand and wobbled.
(My center of gravity is different.)
I'd thought the same thing yesterday. Narrow shoulders, thin waist, short legs. And above all, the two swellings on my chest that shifted with every movement, pulling my attention away.
I headed to the washroom to rinse my face.
I looked in the mirror.
The same black-haired girl from yesterday stood there.
"…Hahh."
Nothing came out but a sigh.
My features—yes, they were definitely mine. The gentle eyes, the slightly drooping brows. But the jawline was round, the skin pale, the lips small and red. However you looked at it, a girl.
I reached up hesitantly and touched my cheek.
Smooth. No stubble.
(Well, yeah.)
Because I was a girl now.
I took my toothbrush from the shelf.
I brushed my teeth. The girl in the mirror brushed hers the same way.
(Weird feeling.)
I rinsed and looked up.
My eyes met the girl in the mirror.
"…Guess I'll do my best today, too."
I muttered it, as if convincing myself.
Getting dressed took more than twice as long as usual.
My usual white T-shirt felt strangely tight because of my chest. No—not tight, exactly. The shape didn't fit. The jersey pants were loose at the waist; without cinching the drawstring tight, they'd slide right off.
"Damn… why's this so much trouble?"
In front of the mirror, I pulled at the T-shirt and adjusted the jersey over and over.
(Do girls deal with this every single day?)
The thought crossed my mind, and then—
(No—girls wear completely different clothes, don't they.)
My own lack of fashion sense made me sigh, even now.
Before leaving the house, I called out to Mom.
"Mom, I'm heading out."
Mom poked her head out from the kitchen.
"Oh, Ippo… sweetie?"
She caught sight of me and stopped short for a moment.
"…Are you—are you sure? That you can go out like that?"
"I'll be fine. I'm just running to the gym."
"I see… Be careful, okay?"
Her voice sounded worried somehow.
I put on my shoes and stepped outside.
The morning air was cool and pleasant.
The morning in Kamogawa is quiet. More than half the shutters in the shopping street were still down.
I started running.
And immediately, my chest bounced.
"Whoa—!"
My feet stopped on instinct.
(Right. When I run, this… bounces. A lot.)
I pressed both arms against my chest and started running again.
(Isn't there something to hold it down…?)
I felt pathetic, knowing nothing about a girl's body.
"Well now, young lady, you're full of energy this early!"
Halfway down the shopping street, the owner of the Yaotatsu greengrocer called out to me as he arranged crates of vegetables in front of his shop.
I stopped without thinking.
(Young lady…)
"Ah, hello…"
I bowed my head.
"Who might you be? You from around here? Don't recognize your face."
"Um… I'm a Makunouchi. From the fishing boat shop."
"Makunouchi? Oh, the Makunouchi family's… wait, didn't the Makunouchis only have the one son?"
"Ah, no, that's—"
I faltered.
(Even if I told him it's me, he wouldn't believe it.)
"…I'm a distant relative. Staying with them for a while."
I told a desperate lie.
"Is that so. Well, aren't you a cute one. The Makunouchis' son is lucky, having a cute girl like you around."
"R-right…"
I gave a vague smile and got out of there.
(Cute…)
A complicated swirl of feelings churned inside me.
(I'm a guy.)
But right now, anyone who looked at me would see a girl.
And that was unbearably frustrating.
By the time I reached the gym, three regulars had asked me "Who are you?"
Each time, I lied—"a distant relative"—and fled the scene.
(I want to go back to normal. Fast.)
I meant it from the bottom of my heart.
When I reached the Kamogawa Boxing Gym, I let out a breath of relief.
A weathered two-story wooden building. The sign on the wall read "Kamogawa Boxing Gym." Photos of past champions lined the entrance door.
(This place, at least, hasn't changed.)
I opened the door.
"Good morning!"
My voice echoed through the gym.
Instantly, every eye in the place stabbed into me.
"…Good morning, Ippo."
A blonde woman stood in the center of the gym.
Her long golden hair was in a ponytail again today. Emerald-green eyes watched me. A leather bag hung from her shoulder; she wore a white blouse and a navy skirt. Her features were deeply sculpted—Italian.
Marie.
"Marie-san, good morning."
I bowed.
"You're cute again today, Ippo."
"D-don't call me cute!"
My face went hot in a rush.
"Oh? I'm complimenting you, you know."
Marie giggled.
At that smile, I felt my chest skip again.
(Why now, of all times…)
I shook my head and pulled myself together.
"Ippo, I need to talk to you for a moment."
Marie's voice suddenly turned serious.
"Yes?"
"Come over here."
She walked toward a bench in the corner of the gym.
I followed.
We sat down side by side.
Marie looked down for a moment, as if thinking something over.
"…Ippo."
"Yes."
"Yesterday, I apologized to everyone. But it's still not enough."
She raised her head.
Those emerald eyes looked straight at me.
"Because of me, your bodies were changed. No matter how many times I apologize, it will never be enough. So I'm making a vow."
Marie took my hand in both of hers.
"Until the curse is broken, I will absolutely not go back to Italy. Until I've returned you all to your original bodies, I'll stay right here."
"Marie-san…"
I felt the warmth of her hands.
Slender, pale—but strong.
"So please. Let me help. I'll bring you all back to normal, I promise."
Marie's voice was trembling.
But her eyes were strong and unwavering.
I squeezed her hands back.
"Of course. I'll help too. Let's all go back to normal together."
"…Thank you, Ippo."
Marie smiled, relieved.
"So, Marie-san—do you have any leads?"
I asked.
"Yes. Last night, I had a look around the gym. And the presence of the curse is strongest from one particular direction."
"The presence of the curse?"
"Yes. As a curse researcher, I've been trained to sense that sort of thing. It's called curse detection."
Marie took a small pendulum from her leather bag.
An old-fashioned pendulum—a crystal-like stone on a silver chain.
"I use this to find the source of the curse. Here, watch."
She held the pendulum up at eye level.
At once, it began swinging on its own.
"…Just as I thought. It's that direction."
Marie pointed toward the back of the gym—toward the door leading to the basement.
"The basement?"
"Yes. A very strong curse presence is coming from there."
I looked toward the basement.
(Did something happen down there?)
I'd hardly ever gone into the basement. It was just a place where old trophies and unused equipment were stored.
"Would you show me the way?"
"Ah, yes. This way."
I stood and headed for the basement.
The stairs to the basement were at the very back of the gym.
I opened the door and went down.
A cold, damp air clung to my skin.
"It's dark. Let me get the light."
I found the switch on the wall and pressed it.
A bare bulb flickered on with a click.
Dim light illuminated the basement.
It was smaller than I'd expected.
Old sandbags and unused mitts were piled against the walls.
And at the back of the room, a single old shelf.
On it sat several trophies, coated in dust.
"This is the basement. I don't come down here much."
I turned back to Marie.
From the moment she'd entered, she seemed to be sensing something.
"…Amazing. This place is full of curse presence."
Marie raised the pendulum.
It began spinning violently.
"Just as I thought. It's here. The source of the curse is in this room."
Marie approached the shelf.
I followed.
Old trophies of all sizes lined the shelf.
Among them was one especially old bronze trophy.
About thirty centimeters tall, solid and heavy. Its surface was covered in countless scratches and dark tarnish. Something was engraved on the base.
"This is it."
Marie lifted the bronze trophy with both hands.
"…It's hot."
She let out a small sound.
"It's hot?"
"Yes. It's faintly warm to the touch. That's proof the curse's power is still alive."
Marie stared at the trophy.
"There's an inscription on the base. '1952, East Japan Middleweight Champion'… An old trophy."
"1952… that's really old."
"Yes. But this is the source of the curse that turned you all into girls. There's no doubt."
Marie gently set the trophy back on the shelf.
"Inside this, the owner's very powerful sorrow remains. The sorrow of losing someone they loved."
Marie's voice sank.
"Losing someone they loved…"
I stared at the trophy.
The tarnished bronze surface reflected the dim bulb's light dully.
"Unless this sorrow is healed, the curse can't be broken. But I still don't know how to heal it."
Marie bit her lip.
"I'm sorry. I still haven't been able to do anything."
"That's not true. Just finding the source of the curse is a huge step."
I tried to encourage her.
"Ippo…"
Marie looked at me and smiled.
That smile looked somehow close to tears.
"Is it all right if I touch it?"
I reached toward the trophy.
"No!"
Marie grabbed my hand in a panic.
"Huh?"
"Ippo, right now you're the one most strongly affected by the curse. If you touch the source in that state, there's no telling what could happen."
Her face was serious.
"But just for a second—"
"No. I'll investigate it responsibly. You mustn't touch it."
Marie held my hand tight and didn't let go.
"…Understood."
I pulled my hand back.
"Thank you. I don't want to put you in any more danger."
Marie let out a relieved breath.
"Heeey, Ippo! Marie-chaaan!"
A drawn-out voice echoed down from upstairs.
"Aoki-san?"
I looked toward the stairs.
"What, you were down here? I've been looking all over."
The one coming down the stairs was Aoki Masaru—now a girl.
Once a Japanese lightweight ranked boxer. Now he had shoulder-length black hair tied in two bunches, a cute girl through and through.
"Aoki-san, what's going on?"
"What's going on? Kimura told me to come get you two. Something interesting's happening upstairs."
Aoki grinned.
"Something interesting?"
"Just come up and you'll see. Come on, let's go."
Aoki ushered me and Marie up the stairs.
Back on the gym floor, a bizarre scene was unfolding.
"Kyahaha! Kimura, look, look! This hair is so silky smooth!"
Aoki was spinning around in front of the mirror.
"You've been at that for ages. Just come here—I'll tie it for you."
Kimura Tatsuya had become a girl too.
Once a Japanese junior lightweight ranked boxer. Now his short black hair was tied in a small knot behind his ear.
"Ehh, Kimura, you can tie hair?"
"Don't know if I'm good at it, but it'll beat that mess on your head."
Kimura moved behind Aoki and started tying his hair with practiced hands.
"Whoa, I actually look like a girl!"
"You are a girl right now. Obviously."
"Right! I'm a girl now! Haha!"
Aoki cackled.
I stared, dumbfounded.
(They both seem to be enjoying this…)
"Ah, Ippo! You come over too! Let's take a picture together!"
Aoki waved at me.
"A picture… why?"
"Why? We finally turned into girls—let's commemorate it. Come on, this body's pretty cute, right?"
Aoki turned to show off his body.
"I mean, commemorate…"
I was bewildere
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