"Well this has been interesting, to say the least." Kaga was standing at the docks, facing back east. Although they would have liked to stay longer, everyone had been away from home long enough. Kaga shook hands with Gangut and Kirov, thanking them for keeping Zuikaku safe, and promising to keep in contact.
Zuikaku turned to Soyuz, a slight blush coming to her face. "Well, this was fun, at least," she said, fidgeting with her dress.
Soyuz laughed. "Got that right. You'd better come back and visit me, ya hear?" Grinning, she gave Zuikaku a quick hug, then stepped back, along with Gangut and Kirov. Smiling sadly, Zuikaku turned and made her way to the sea with her friends. Glancing at her sister, and Kaga, Zuikaku eased into the water, turned, and began to make her way back east, accompanied by the others. Shokaku pretended not to notice the tear that Zuikaku quickly wiped away.
The journey home passed much more quickly than the journey out. As the first day wound down, everyone would usually have needed to stop and rest. However, with Zuikaku finally back among them where she belonged, and needing to return to Yokosuka as was possible, Kaga insisted they keep moving.
"We're gonna need to hurry. Nagato will be wanting to have a talk with all of us."
Zuikaku frowned. "That's what I'm worried about. She'll give me hell." She shivered at the thought.
Kaga put a hand on her shoulder. "We'll do our best to keep her from flying off at you too much. Don't worry too much." She smiled slightly. "Now we need to hurry, we've still got a long journey home, and we've got to make sure Nagato doesn't any more reasons to be upset than she already might." Zuikaku only nodded, and turned back, looking ahead. Kaga shot a worried glance at Shokaku. Shokaku only smiled, dismissing Kaga's concern.
Confused, Kaga sailed over to her. "What's that supposed to mean?" She seemed more confused than angry, although Shokaku was still momentarily worried.
"Well Zuikaku's probably still feeling a bit guilty about running off," Shokaku said quietly. "And she's got to be a bit worried about Nagato's reaction when she sees her again."
Kaga frowned. "You're right, Nagato can get a bit worked up when things go haywire like this." She leaned closer to Shokaku. "Do you think we should try to do something to help Zuikaku when Nagato has to talk to her?"
Shokaku thought for a moment, then nodded, a smile forcing its way to her face. "That's an idea. Do you think we should talk to the others as well?"
"What do you think? If this all goes downhill then we're all in trouble." She paused, to allow Kaga to think about that. "But if we do show Nagamon that we support Zuikaku more than we do her, then maybe she'll back down."
Kaga smirked at the use of Nagato's nickname. "Nagamon. That'll never get old. But yeah, I can see the statement that would make. Should it just be us two, or all the carriers that went?"
"Probably all of us. It would make a better statement. Should I let the others know then?"
Shokaku nodded. "Just keep it a secret from Zuikaku-san for now." She grinned. "I'd like to see her face when we go with her."
Kaga smiled. "Well I'll let Akagi, Hiryuu and Souryuu know then." She patted Shokaku's shoulder.
She spent the better part of the next hour filling the three in on the plan, often double-checking things with Shokaku as questions came up. As night fell, then passed, hunger began to prevail once again. Hiryuu sighed. Souryuu looked over at her sister.
"Relax. We're almost back. Since we didn't have to fight a typhoon on the way back, we'll make the return journey quicker. If we're lucky, then we'll be back by this evening," Souryuu said with a hopeful look on her face.
Souryuu's words proved true. As the sun began to sink, the outline of Yokosuka appeared on the horizon. Everyone raised a cheer, relieved to finally be back in familiar territory. As they drew closer, Zuikaku stopped talking at all. She'd been chatting with Kaga and her sister to pass the time, yet now she went silent. Kaga could sense the tension in the air, although she could do nothing about it. Zuikaku would have to face Nagato's wrath alone, for the moment. As the fleet drew closer to home, they could make out a small group standing on the pier, waiting for them.
Nagato was unmistakable, as were Mutsu Akashi, and Oyodo. To her credit, Mutsu looked a bit sympathetic. Nagato, however, had an expression that would make a Re-Class pale in fright. Kaga gritted her teeth and led the fleet up to meet with Nagato. She left her equipment with Akashi, and turned to Nagato. The others followed suit.
Her face a brick wall, Nagato turned and began to walk away. Without turning around, she called for Kaga and the rest of her fleet to follow her to her office. Zuikaku was visibly shaking. Kaga put an arm on her shoulder.
"You'll be fine. We'll back you up. Like I said, most of this chaos was my fault. I'll take the fall, need be." She forced a smile. Zuikaku said nothing.
"Maybe the stuff that happened here was, but I was the one who ran off," Zuikaku murmured. She said nothing more. Kaga frowned in concern. As Nagato ushered them into her office, Kaga shivered. It was cold inside, as if Nagato had made it cold on purpose. Only Zuikaku and Kaga were allowed to enter. The others were forced to wait with Ooyodo in her office.
Ooyodo wisely turned to leave with them. "I'll leave here before the yelling gets too loud," She said quickly, entering her office and closing the door.
Satisfied, Nagato turned her attention to Zuikaku, who had shrunk down in her chair and was trying to look small. Nagato sat down at her desk and leaned towards Zuikaku. Zuikaku gritted her teeth and looked up at Nagato.
"I'm going to ask you this once, Carrier Zuikaku." The use of her full title caused Zuikaku to shiver. "You will explain fully why you left this district without permission, and you will accept without argument the full consequences of your actions," Nagato's voice left no room for argument.
Voice shaking, Zuikaku began, "After w-we l-lost t-the compet-tition, Kaga l-left notes all over the base c-c-celebrating her and Akagi's victory. It really got to me. After seeing them all over the place, eventually I had to get away from it all. So I left. Didn't know where I was gonna go at first, but eventually Vladivostok came to mind. Came through the typhoon well enough, made it to Vladivostok in one piece. Got fixed up there. Bonded with a few of the girls in their district. Then Kaga-san and the others came to collect me. The rest, as they say, is history." Her tone had gone from scared and afraid of getting grounded, to one that was smug, almost proud of her accomplishment.
Nagato scowled. "So you're telling me you just up and left, all because of something Kaga was saying?" Before Zuikaku could say anything, Nagato went on. "Then you ran north without knowing your destination, caused another District some of their resources, and made no attempt to contact me. I was forced to send another fleet out to find you." Zuikaku nodded.
"Do you regret any of this?" Nagato's voice carried even more of an edge, something Zuikaku didn't know was possible.
"Only that I didn't wait to tell Shokaku-san in person that I was leaving. Otherwise, not really. Kaga was being toxic at the moment, something that has thankfully changed, Akagi wasn't helping the situation, nor were you. You're supposed to have tactical insight. Tell me how wise it is to have one of the base's biggest carriers under fire from her peers and with sagging morale in the event of a battle," Zuikaku countered.
Nagato glowered. Regardless of your attempt at logic, you have violated multiple base rules and regulations. These include leaving without a reason, failure to inform your superiors, and inconvenience of another district to cap it off. As a result, you will be confined to your quarters for the remainder of this week, and the entirety of the next. It will be up to your sister to provide you with food, an fill you in on anything you miss." She stood. "That will be all." As Nagato stood to leave, Kaga also stood. As Nagato turned, the door opened, and the other four carriers that had come with Kaga entered.
"However," Kaga began, "it would seem the rest of us disagree." As one, the five other carriers went and stood alongside Zuikaku. "As Zuikaku will tell you, I already apologized for what I did last week, as did she for overreacting. I for one will not stand to see my friend to be shut away like that alone. If you're going to shut her away, then you'll be shutting us up as well."
"Zuikaku already apologized for her actions, no harm was done, and she is back in one piece," Hiryuu added. "I don't see any reason to keep her locked up."
"Because she broke with protocol. I will not stand for that kind of actions from carriers," Nagato said coldly.
"Just like you didn;t stand for it from Mutsu, after her incident?" came another voice from the hall. Everyone turned in surprise. Mamiya had joined them. "I saw these guys come back a while ago and follow you into your office. When they didn't come out after a while I figured something was up."
Nagato turned to Mutsu. "What is going on here?"
Mutsu sighed. "You can't see it? You're making enemies by doing this to Zuikaku. You need to let this one slide." She paused, and put a hand on her sister's arm. "After all, Mamiya is right, you didn't give me any more than a warning."
Nagato groaned and sat down. "Very well. Zuikaku, get out of here before I change my mind. All of you."
Zuikaku wasted no time in compiling. As Kaga followed her out, she paused one last time, and turned to Nagato. "Just know that Mutsu was right. You are making enemies, acting as you did tonight. Remember that." She left without another word.