DISCLAIMER: I own nothing...if I did, I would be living the good life with the Kongo sisters, Saratoga, and Mutsu.

Here it is...as promised! Somehow I don't think this one will be as long as the original, but you never know, right? Hope you enjoy it!

Special thanks to Generalfeldmarschall, brtk136, Zone-Meister, Pyeknu, Repair Ship Akashi, Krugger, Berean, F-14 Tomcat Lover, and Lt. Cmdr. Jonathan Miller for reviewing the final chapter of Gaijin Teitoku!

Here we go!

Gaijin Teitoku II: Time Marches On

Chapter One: Doc Meets Dess

Fast battleship Kirishima sighed happily as she relaxed against the tree trunk. So many changes had taken place at the naval base over the past year, and if her calculations were correct – and they always were – more changes were still to come. How exciting!

She glanced around at the beautiful fall afternoon. It was still warm enough to remind one of the late days of summer, but the breeze had a slight crispness to it that served to remind one that fall was on its way. All in all, it was a perfect day to be outside enjoying the sunshine.

"Kongo, Auntie Haruna wishes you'd stay put!"

Kirishima smiled indulgently as she turned to look at the other occupants of the blanket. Her dear Haruna onee-sama was trying to corral their mischievous nephews. Seven-month-old twins Kongo and Toshio Naoe 'Tosh' Avers were certainly a handful, but with over two hundred loving aunts at the naval base (along with four uncles) – and a whole other slew of aunts and uncles around the world – Kongo and the Admiral had no shortage of babysitters to choose from.

Over the past year, the various nations of the world had passed resolutions stating that the kanmusu would function like a normal navy – patrolling the seas of the world and generally keeping the peace – so there was no reason to declare them obsolete. It went without saying the major humanitarian organizations would have put up a ginormous howl if any country attempted to scrap their shipgirls; Avers had gone before the Japanese Diet and stated bluntly that, though he had great respect for Japan and the girls under his command loved their country deeply, if the Japanese government ordered the shipgirls on Eta Jima scrapped, the JDF would have to invade the island to get them…and that would be if they could get through seven battleships with guns that were capable of blasting any incoming forces to smithereens while they were still thirty miles out.

Three hours later, the Diet passed a law that gave Eta Jima to the World Kanmusu Fleet to use for as long as there were shipgirls in existence. All in all, a good day.

Kirishima glanced over at where Haruna had managed to snag Kongo. The fast battleship picked up the baby and showered her with kisses, causing her to squeal in delight. She then looked down at the blanket where Tosh was resting fitfully; for some reason, he'd been out of sorts all day. Each twin seemed to take after a different parent; Kongo was a lot like her fast battleship mother, always cheerful, always moving around, and always getting into things. She was a happy baby who never seemed to cry unless she was hungry or needed a change. Tosh, on the other hand, was a quiet boy who took after his father, preferring to play quietly and rarely got into trouble.

A whimper from Tosh caused Kirishima to reach over and pick him up.

"Are you all right, Tosh-san?" The fast battleship spoke to the baby as though she expected him to answer. While that might seem weird to some, Dr. Spock-san stated in one of his numerous books that talking to one's baby was very important and that it greatly helped in their development. According to Kirishima's calculations, Kongo and Tosh were well ahead of many other children in their age group, which was always a good thing.

Tosh's response to his aunt's question was to throw up all over her and then giggle. Haruna looked over and cringed at the spectacle, only to miss Kongo flopping down on the blanket with a soft 'mmh'. The faint noise got the battleship's attention, and she picked Kongo up and cuddled her, thinking she'd been seriously hurt, although the little girl appeared more interested in getting down and playing some more than staying still in her aunt's arms.

"Onee-sama…Kongo-san fell!" Haruna looked stricken.

"Haruna, calm down," Kirishima stated calmly as she wiped off her glasses. "As Tosh-san is ill, I believe we should, as the Americans state, 'kill two birds with one stone' and take them both to the infirmary, don't you agree?"

"Hai!" her sister replied, standing up. "Haruna, heading out!"

Kirishima sighed at her elder sister's exuberance before folding up their blanket and following.

The atmosphere of the JDF Hospital at JMSDF Base Kure was laid-back for the most part, but for the doctors in Accident & Emergency, there was always something going on. Lieutenant Commander Dr. William Ray Rhodes shook his head as he left Exam Room Three after wrapping a patient's sprained ankle; he had to give retired Sergeant Major Nagakura credit…the man refused to let his age keep him down. Although, you really ought to be extra careful if you're still skydiving at ninety-two, he mused.

A nurse passed him in the hall. "VIPs in Room Six, Doctor Rhodes-san," she stated. "Twin children with a frantic aunt."

"Gotcha…thanks," Rhodes replied, taking the chart and glancing at it. He was surprised to see the name 'Avers' there; usually anyone having to do with the shipgirls went to the repair facility on base; apparently the shipgirl that was formerly a repair ship also served as their medic.

This might be serious, he thought. Could be why they're here instead of having remained on the island. He opened the door to find the twins – a boy and a girl – being held by their aunts.

"Afternoon, ladies," Rhodes greeted them, "I'm Doctor Rhodes. What seems to be the problem today?"

The aunt wearing glasses jumped up and came over to him, holding the boy in her arms. The boy appeared to be fine; he was looking around the office with interest and didn't seem sick at all.

"Doctor, I am Kirishima, fourth ship of the Kongo class," Glasses Girl introduced herself. This is my elder sister, Haruna."

Rhodes turned to nod in acknowledgement at Glasses Girl's sister, and found himself staring into a pair of heart-stopping brown eyes. He forced down his inner male reaction that was howling like the wolf in the old Tex Avery cartoons and smiled at the girl.

"Miss Haruna," he replied, making sure to use his Alabama accent, and was awarded by the sight of the dark-haired girl emitting a soft squeak before blushing scarlet and looking away.

Rhodes smiled and turned back to Kirishima. "And who are these two?" He indicated the twins.

"These are our niece Kongo and nephew Toshio," Kirishima stated proudly; to Rhodes she seemed proud enough to have been the children's mother herself.

"What seems to be the problem today?" Rhodes asked, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

"We were spending the afternoon outside and Kongo-san was crawling around on a blanket Haruna had laid down," Haruna stated, looking guilty. "Haruna was distracted by Kirishima onee-sama asking Toshio-san if he was all right, and she'd just picked him up when he threw up on her."

Rhodes noticed the stains on Glasses Girl's white miko top and cringed. "I see."

"Then Haruna heard a soft cry and when Haruna looked down at Kongo-san again, she had fallen from her crawling position."

"Why don't you lay Miss Kongo down on this table and I'll look at her, then we'll look at Master Toshio," Rhodes patted the exam table, and Haruna walked over and stood by while Rhodes examined Kongo for any injuries. After a few minutes, the handsome young doctor straightened up and shook his head with a smile.

"Ladies, your niece is fine…she just lost her balance and tipped over, is all. Kids are gonna do that when they're learning to walk and crawl…you just gotta watch out for 'em." He thought for a moment. "I'm guessing their primary care physician is the repair ship at your naval base?"

The two battleships nodded. "Has Little Miss Kongo here exhibited any shipgirl traits?"

Kirishima nodded. "She's managed to manifest a small rigging that Akashi thinks is supposed to be the weapons for JDS Kongo."

"So you're saying she's a guided missile destroyer?" Rhodes asked, and when Kirishima nodded, he smiled. "Then I don't think you'll have much to worry about in terms of bumps and bruises, especially if she's got the armor of her ship counterpart."

"Dess!" Kongo squealed. "Dess, Dess, Dess!"

"That's the only word she knows how to say right now," Kirishima stated. "She's quite proud of it, too."

"As well she should be," Rhodes replied, turning to Toshio, who had been placed beside his sister. Rhodes gave him a basic exam, which the little boy appeared to take in stride. Once the exam had been completed, Rhodes turned to the two battleships.

"He doesn't have a temperature, and he doesn't appear to be sick…I'm going to guess he just ate something that didn't agree with him and now that he's gotten it out he should be fine." When the two battleships breathed huge sighs of relief, he smiled. "Ladies, one thing you have to remember about kids: they're gonna get sick…they're gonna eat stuff they're not supposed to. But that's because they're kids…they get into stuff. That said, I don't think you have anything to worry about with these two."

Rhodes walked over to the door and opened it, ushering the four of them out. "Rather than bill your naval base and have Fleet Admiral Avers and his wife freak out over a sudden emergency room bill concerning their children, I'll let you tell them about this and have Fleet Admiral Avers call our billing department to settle up."

"Arigato, Doctor," Kirishima smiled. "I think that would be best."

"Th-Thank you, Doctor," Haruna murmured.

Rhodes turned and smiled at her. "Nice meetin' you, Miss Haruna…you have a good day, now."

He thought the tiny squeak the battleship admitted was adorable, and he couldn't help but wonder how far down her beautiful body that rosy blush of hers went. He was jarred from his naughty thoughts by a familiar voice addressing him.

"Hey, Billy Ray! What we doin' for dinner tonight?" Lieutenant Dr. James Wayne Rhodes approached, an easygoing grin on his face. He took notice of the two women standing beside his brother and his smile widened.

"Afternoon, ladies! Dr. Jimmy Wayne Rhodes at your service! How old is your son, ma'am?" he asked Kirishima, who smiled and shook her head.

"Tosh isn't my son, Doctor…he's my nephew. Neither Haruna onee-sama or myself are married." She sighed. "We just haven't found the ones we're meant to be with yet."

"Well, now, that right there is truly a shame," Jimmy Wayne nodded in sympathy. "Perhaps you two lovely ladies might elaborate for my brother and I over dinner this evening?"

Kirishima smiled. "We'd love to, right, onee-sama?"

Haruna blushed. "Ha-Haruna is agreeable to that."

"Perfect! What time should we pick you up, then?" Jimmy Wayne pointedly ignored his brother's look of consternation.

"Oh, take the last ferry to the naval base and we'll eat at Hosho's restaurant," Kirishima replied breezily. "Then you can stay in guest quarters overnight." She adjusted her glasses and smiled at the American doctor, batting her eyes flirtatiously.

"Sounds like a plan," Jimmy Wayne grinned, waving goodbye as the two battleships headed off down the hall. He turned to his brother. "Go ahead, Billy Ray…you can thank me for getting us dates."

"Thank you for getting us dates," Rhodes parroted, then added with a grin, "you saved me from having to ask the one called Haruna myself."

His brother seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "Glad you didn't say you wanted Kirishima…always had me a thing for girls with glasses."

Rhodes emitted a snort of laughter. "She's all yours…that Haruna's adorable. But if they're the girls I'm thinking of, there are two more sisters whose approval we probably need. From what I've read of them, all four are very close and very protective of each other." He fixed his brother with a serious look. "I know your 'footloose and fancy free' way of dating…don't do that with this girl. Not only would it probably screw my chances with Haruna, but you'd be facing thirty-some-odd fourteen-inch guns, get me?"

Jimmy Wayne shook his head. "Wasn't plannin' on doin' her like that…there's somethin' about this girl that's different than all the others. Aside from the whole 'battleship spirit'-thing," he amended when he saw his brother giving him a 'no shit' look.

Rhodes shook his head. "I'll take your word for it. Come on…let's finish our shift; we've got dates to get ready for."

UP NEXT: It's a birthday to remember for the Blaskewicz family!

The names Toshio and Naoe hold special significance for Kongo...can anyone tell me why?

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