Rain plattered the rooftops of the buildings. Many men and women rushed to buildings or shelter from the rain, while some took out umbrellas and simply walked through the torrent of rain. Puddles began to form on the sidewalks and little raindrops formed ripples on the water. Dark coulds covered the sky while cold winds sweeped in, chilling the skin of the area's inhabitants.
Today was another rainy day of the Yokosuka Naval Base.
Among the noisy rain and the shadowy figures, two lovely young ladies strolled through, one of the ladies covering both of them with a umbrella. The girl holding the umbrella wore a properly fixed and clean Dress Blues with a service skirt. She also had black Oxford Shoes and white silky stockings cover her legs and feet. She adorned a tan sunhat with a black ribbon tied around it on top of her long black hair. The other girl had a brownn ponytail with numerous cherry blossoms palnted in it. The girl under the umbrella had a black, single, tighhigh with a slogan in Japanese stenciled on it.
"Hey Yamato, can you see our dorm building?" the lady holding the umbrella asked, squinting her eyes through the foggy rain.
"I can't seem to see anything, Iowa-chan," Yamato told Iowa. Iowa sighed, and unconsicously brought Yamato closer to her.
The sight of two of the world's powerful battleships strolling together was a sight to behold. When Iowa had unexpectedly met Yamato on the first day of the visit, both girls had surprisingly became fast friends. Now, it was either cute or horrifiyng to see both girls (the latter rather rare to have, due to Yamato's expenses to keep up with). Yamato and Iowa were walking back to their respective dorms after a training excercise, but the heavy rain had disoriented them from their path. Yamato tried to talk with Iowa from using mainly Iowa's umbrella, but Iowa just pulled Yamato under and both were on their merry way. For Yamato, being this close to a women's body, tried her best to not blush.
"Dear Lord, this rain is quite heavy," Iowa commented, hearing a heavy drop strike her umbrella, "seems like we're in Philippines already."
"Is the rain that honestly bad in Philippines?" Yamato inquried. Iowa simply nodded.
"When I was at Philippines, the stormy days made me think I was at sea," Iowa recalled, her eyes wondering on the rain. Yamato hummed, although she looked like she was in deep thought.
"Hey, Yamato...Yamato?" Iowa asked, politly tapping on Yamato's shoulder. Yamato blinked before she shook out of her thoughts.
"O-Oh, Iowa-chan!" Yamato flustered, noticing the uncomfortable distance between Iowa and her.
"Ah, sorry, you were lost again..." Iowa told Yamato, "..in one of those times, you know?"
'Must've been my mentioninf of the sea again...'
Yamato sighed, her shoulders slumping. Iowa began to politly and gently straighten the powerful battleship, softly gripping her shoudlers and straightening them. Iowa, as she was straightening her Japanese counterpart, recalled the time when she had found out about Yamato's low Self-Esteem.
"That's actually pretty awesome, Iowa-sama!" a little destroyer commented on one of various war stories Iowa had told.
Iowa was sitting on a pile of crates while small and cute Japanese destroyers circled around her. Yamato was nearby, staring out to the waters that surrounded the base. They were occupying a space on a unsued pier, where birds roamed freely and fish normally congregated.
"Which part?" Iowa asked rhetorically, smiling ever so often.
"The part where you showed off your full might! I must had imagined their faces when you said that your guns caused a shock wave!" the little destroyer answered, her eyes sparkling in admiration. Iowa chuckled at the adorablness of the little destroyer. The rest of the other destroyers agreeded, their eyes also sparkling in admiration. Iowa, who had noted the potential distaster and saw Yamato wondering out to space, stood up.
"I believe we should get to our normal time, right?" Iowa told them, which implied them to go back to the base. The destroyers wanted to object, but Iowa's pleading eyes told them otherwise. As the destroyers left the pier conversing about Iowa, the battlesip herself approached Yamato.
"Hey, Yamato?" Iowa asked, gently placing her right hand on Yamato's left shoulder. Yamato quietly gasped, pivoting to face Iowa.
"I d-didn'y notice you!?" Yamato cutely bursted, blushing lightly. Iowa chuckled, placing a hand on her shoulder, reassuring her.
"Now, why did you go off to cucoo land anyway, Yamato?" Iowa asked, dropping her hand.
"It's...It's nothing..." Yamato shyly told her. Iowa wasn't fooled.
"Something is troubling you, right?" Iowa asked, her eyes gentle yet questioning.
Yamato looked away, trying to hide whatever she is hiding.
"N-Nothing is t-troubling me Iowa-chan..." Yamato stuttered out, her parasol slightly drooping.
"It has to do with me, right?" Iowa asked another question, gently forcing Yamato to face her. Yamato only stared into Iowa's eyes. Both girls were strong, but Iowa was a bit stronger than Yamato. Just by a little.
"...Y-You know my...nickname?" Yamato asked. Iowa nodded.
"Hotel Yamato," Iowa answered.
"And you know my expenses when the IJN had tried to maintain me," Yamato told Iowa. Iowa nodded, sucessfully connecting the dots.
"Because of your extreme expenses, the IJN had withheld you from major operations, even if you are the world truly most powerful battleship of all."
"Yes, and the only Operation I had parcipitated in was Ten-Go..."
Iowa saw the sadness within her eyes. Iowa inched closer to Yamato, just incase to comfort her.
"When I went out, I thought I was able to turn the tide...help everyone..become a hero rather than a burden..." Yamato recollected her memories. Iowa, deciding not watch her closest friend tear, hugged her. Iowa's finger's looped around Yamato's.
"Now, now...hush Yamato," Iowa softly ordered her. Yamato's tears retracted, but Yamato stared at Iowa in surprise.
"How can you say you're a burden!?-"
"I was bec-"
"You. Are. Not. Are. Damn. Burden, Yamato. I don't see you as one, I see you as a great, close, best friend. If those bastards see you as a burden, then they can go off and hide in a corner, because I do not view you as a burden."
"I-Iowa-"
"You are a powerful girl. The most powerful, gun-riddened, brave battleship the world had saw. Personally, you are stronger than me, better than, more polite and courteous than me. How can you say you're a budern, Yamato?"
Yamato looked into Iowa's caring eyes, and saw what they revealed. She gulped and looked away.
"Promise me this, dear friend, that you will never consider yourself a burden to anyone! Promise me that...please?" Iowa asked, her face already uncomfortably close. Yamato was blushing, but she nodded. Iowa squeezed her hands on Yamato's before letting go.
"Now, should we go to that izakaya you were talking about?"
Iowa stared deep into Yamato's eyes.
"We had made a promise right?" Iowa asked softly.
"Y-Yes, Iowa-chan." Yamato answered with stutters.
"Look, you can't just break the promise right now..."
"B-But I overheard a few of the carrier girls j-joking about me...joking..."
Iowa sighed, looping her fingers once again around Yamato's. Yamato blushed heavily, her eyes trying to look away.
"Ignore, Yamato. How could you have forgotten it? Or our promise?"
"It wasn't t-that, too...I began to think of...o-of your s-safety..." Yamato told Iowa. Iowa raised an eyebrow at this.
"I-If..If you were p-placed under a g-great danger that could...k-kill you...and I c-couldn't be t-there because of m-my u-upkeep..." Yamato continued. Iowa squeezed her fingers in reassurement.
"I have other there to protect me, Yamato. I'm not a as small as a destroyer or easily forgottened compared to the Fhilipino fighters during World War II," Iowa reassured her.
"W-What if t-they can't p-protect you!?"
"Yamato..."
"What i-if...i-if you could h-had sunken like m-many of u-us?"
"Yamato, please..."
"I just wan to p-protect-" Yamato tried to reasoned before she felt Iowa's body lean up on her's. Yamato felt a warm presence on her lips. Suddenly, she had forgotten about the rain, the base, everyone...but herself and...Iowa...
Iowa.
Yamato realized the warmth on her lips.
It was Iowa kissing her.
Her best friend turned lover.
Yamato pulled out, breathing heavily from the unexpected kiss.
"I-I...I-Iowa-chan..." Yamato gasped out, her hands still looped around Iowa's. Iowa looked away, blushing as hard as her.
"I h-had to...y-you were o-on the v-verge of t-tears..." Iowa muttered. Her umbrella was already creating a waterfall, as they had ignored the rain for entire time. Yamato inched closer to Iowa, trying to not get wet.
"S-Sorry..." Yamato stuttered, clumsily holding her parasol. Iowa nearly let go of umbrella. Akward slience developed as they continued their search for their dorm.
"Told you, man!"
"Shut up..."
"C'mon, Ike, give the guy the money. He won it fair and square."
"Damn you, Fred..."
"You Americans are quite amusing to watch."
"If it entertains you, we could set up a comedy show like others, ma'am."
"I don't think that'll work well..."
"It's just a suggestion."
"The way you said it, Bon, didn't sound like a suggestion."
"Be quiet Chicken."
"Oi, you little bastard rabbit!"
"Jesus guys!"
As downpour steadily fell, the two battleships held their akward silence. Iowa, deciding to try and break the silence, spoke up.
"Do you see our dorm?"
"...no..."
"Yamato..."
"Sigh..."
Iowa could only watch as Yamato looked away from her from embarrassment. Iowa, approached her, her left hand snaking around Yamato's neck.
"What had gotten into you?" Iowa asked.
"Its...i-its just the kiss...I thought w-we..we w-were just b-best friends..." Yamato explained. Iowa slightly slumped from hearing that.
"S-So...y-you ju-" Iowa whispered out, sounding hurt.
"No, no, no! I didn't mean like that!" Yamato tried to explain quickly.
"Ah just come here!" Iowa, who acted she was hurt, pulled Yamato into a long, deep, passionate kiss.
Under the umbrella, under the rain, under the clouds, under the watch of God, two souls made love.
Two souls of powerful warships to ever exist in history.