Dark clouds blanketed the island. Even though clocks showed just after noon, the whole base was basked in dusk, a curtain of rain connecting sky and the earth. The ocean was only barely visible from windows, the sound of its raging waves struggling to break through the constant downpour.

Three figures raced across the central plaza, sharing a single rain coat a good bit too small to cover them all at the same time. They tugged and fought for the sheet of plastic, heads and limbs popping in and out from underneath the cover. Finally, they reached the door to the HQ building and crashed in, heavy wood bouncing off when hinges reached their maximal reach.

The coat dropped to the floor, all three girls more or less soaking wet, their kimonos dripping rainwater.

"A brilliant idea! Like, 'let's not waste time, we'll go already clothed'! Like, brilliant!" spat Yuudachi, her hair - possibly neatly pinned up just a while ago - a complete mess.

"Not my fault you're all so slow" shrugged Shimakaze. "If I could ran as fast as I wanted, I'd escape the rain before it even fell!"

"Not sure if it works this way, Shimakaze-chan" despite being the wettest, Shigure didn't really seem to mind. "But I'm just happy we got here"

"And I am not!" pouted Yuudachi. "I am, like, wet and angry!"

"Poor girls" Myokou approached them, a fresh frotte towel in her hand. "Come, dry up, we still have some time before the official part begins"

Watching the scene from the upper floor, Okada could not help but laugh.

"Your sister has a great way to approach children. Putting you four in charge of the academy was a great idea"

"When you're sisters with Ashigara-chan, you need to know how to handle difficult kids" Nachi shrugged. Clad in a navy blue kimono and with her hair loose, face and gestures remained the only recognizable features of the deadpan cruiser she usually was.

"Kids..." Okada repeated, joy suddenly escaping him like air from a punctured tyre. "...kids with guns. Who are actually destroyers. This is fucked up"

"Wasn't war always this way?" she looked at him, her face serenely expressionless. In that she was allmost like Kaga, but with an additinal, barely visible underlayer of cynical realism. "Kids fight. People die. I thought you officers know this better than us, grunts"

He stood for a while in silence, thinking about an answer. Behind them, a bunch of destroyers left the upstairs bathroom. He could have heard Akatsuki's voice, boasting about a 'lumber treasure' her squadron found during latest expedition. If didn't have other things on mind, he'd take bets whether the first one to point out the mistake would be Suzukaze or Ikazuchi.

"Let's go outside for a second" he proposed, pointing at the balcony door.

He closed the door behind them a minute later. Running across the HQ's southern wall, the balcony faced the so-called carrier district - a campus of bungalows, each housing a different pair. He could have seen Hiyou and Jun'you running towards the HQ, their ornamental umbrellas like red blurs in ubiquitous rain. Tinfoil carport above them drummed steadily, bombarded by droplets.

"There's something I'd like to ask you" he started after clearing his throat. "I know we already had a conversation about this, but I just want to ask in a more... private situation"

"Huh...?"

"It's good to have you back here" he started, keeping his eyes on Hiyou's (or was it Jun'you's?) umbrella. "Hikari was... pretty much devastating for all of us"

"I can imagine. But we indeed had this conversation, commander. And I do not wish to reiterate it on my birthday. Especially since I had it much, much worse than most of you"

There was little anger in that voice; it sounded more like an unsure trapper approaching a potentially hazardous place.

"Neither do I, Nachi-san. Therefore, let me get straight to the point. You are hard to read, and I my social skills are as simple as Tenryuu's jokes. And there was one question I did not ask back then. Half because I was afraid of your answer, half because there were others around. Now I finally have the guts to do so"

He finally tore his gaze away from the red blur and looked towards Nachi. Her eyes were wide and brows high. For the first time since becoming the commander on Raiushima, he saw her surprised.

"I have no doubts regarding your loyalty. But I always wanted relations here to be built upon something more than just that. Back when our fleet consisted of Tama, Kiso, Saza-chan and Suzu-chan, I kept repeating I want to earn your trust. If you followed my orders only because you were obliged to, I feared one day one of you would refuse to do so. Especially since I knew sooner or later a potential conflict will happen"

Nachi smirked.

"My apologies for disappointing you when the time came, commander"

"I was too successful in my ambition. Your trust turned out to be... misplaced. Things changed after Hikari, I tried to refine my approach. But this is something you already know from one source or another"

"Indeed. Nee-chan was very informative."

"Ashigara is very... yeah. In many ways" he said, the memory of smashed jaw spreading like a phantom pain. "Anyway, I spent a lot of time thinking about all of this. Especially once you returned. And today I think it's finally the time for me ask this question; was your trust in me misplaced?"

This time it was Nachi who looked away - but only for a few seconds. It seemed as if the answer was already in her mind, and she just needed a while to make sure all the pieces fit tight in their places.

"If you mean following an order like that, then yes. I would still do the same thing. If I had any doubts - they were dispelled by what I saw under your command, both before and after the battle with the Princess. Treat your men as you would your own beloved sons. And they will follow you into the deepest valley"

"Sun Tzu again, huh? What's not to love in you preferences towards books?"

"I presume this answers your question, commander?"

"Yeah, I think-"

Door behind them opened abruptly. In the passageway stood Kasumi, her irritated eyes casting sparks of anger and contempt As usual when she looked at her admiral.

"Kaga-san wanted me to tell you're to stop wasting everybody's time and get downstairs. Seriously, how can a commader be such an irresponsible, laidback slacker?!" she spat out, turned back and left, not giving him any chance to reply.

Okada shook his head with resignation.

"I am pretty sure Kaga didn't use these exact words..."

"I trust she didn't"

"You said this on purpose, didn't you?"

"My only purpose now, commander" Nachi shot him an amused look while crossing the threshold back inside, "is to celebrate my birthday and drink the night away. And I trust you to accompany me in this noble task"