Chapter 9: The Shikikan!

Welcome one and all to chapter 9! Just wanted to say thank you so much for all the favs, follows, and comments! Hope y'all enjoy more chapters to come!

So without further ado, let's get to it!


"In every time, in every world, the strong polish their fangs while the weak polish their wisdom." Sora, No Game, No Life


Currently the Shikikan has found himself in a naval exercise against practically everyone who had arrived on base in the past couple of days, which then led to this doubling as an attempt to prove himself to them as their new commander. The girls are now on the hunt to find him first and get the MVP award of having a wish of theirs granted.

"Any luck finding where Shikikan and his team went you two?" A voice questioned over a secured radio channel.

"Sorry Atago, but my planes haven't spotted hide nor hair of any of them." Zuikaku said as she searched together with Shoukaku, Yamashiro, and Fusou. The Sakura Empire had decided to split into two fleets to widen their search radius. "How goes your end?" She added.

"Same for us, it's like he's vanished from thin air. Looks like this might be a bit more difficult than we thought ahaha." Ise laughed as she was currently moving on ahead with Hyuuga, Shouhou, Takao, and Atago.

"Where could he have gone?" Shouhou questioned as she had her planes scouting the surrounding areas, not noticing two surprisingly well-hidden figures lying down and hiding under what seems to be some sort of camouflage cloak. Once Ise's group moved past them and Shouhou's planes were out of sight, the two figures sneaked into a position behind them.

"Shikikan, we made it into position des." Ayanami whispered into her radio.

"Any sign that they've noticed?" He questioned.

"Nope, with these ocean camouflage cloaks Yuubari gave us, we're almost like real ninjas hehe!" Javelin whispered loudly.

Shikikan chuckled a bit before continuing. "Good to hear, go ahead and proceed to phase two when ready."

"Yes sir!" They said before jumping up and out of their cloaks and taking aim at their priority target.

"The power of the "Demon", come feel it!" "Witness Javelin's performance!" They shouted before launching a hailstorm of barrages at an unsuspecting light carrier.

"Huh? WAAA!?" Shouhou shouted before being showered with both destroyers' full barrages.

"Shouhou!?" The four in her group shouted as they all looked back in shock.

"Nya! Shouhou is unable to continue! Please switch to a blue ribbon nya!" Akashi announced on her mic that connected to everyone participating in the exercise.

"That looked quite unpleasant. Come see me at the docks before heading back out." Vestal added.

"Wuu…okayyyy, s-sorry everyone." Shouhou said as she had spirals in her eyes and imaginary Manjuus floating around her head as she stumbled back to the docks.

"Mission complete des." Ayanami informed the Shikikan.

"It worked out perfectly Shikikan!" Javelin exclaimed.

"Great work you two! Head on back into position for phase three."

"Yes sir!"

Ise's group was dumbfounded at what was going on as they overheard what the two destroyers were saying. Noticing them, Ayanami bowed briefly and Javelin waved to them before the two put on their cloaks again and scurried away.

"Hmm, should we go after them?" Atago questioned.

"Nay, without Shouhou, we lack a bird's eye view of our surroundings, which would lead us into another potential trap or ambush." Takao rationalized as she recovered first from the ambush.

"Wha-What just happened!?" Yamashiro yelled over her radio to Ise's group.

"Looks like we got caught in Shikikan's trap. Be on your guard everyone!" Ise exclaimed.

"It seems Shikikan has taken advantage of Yuubari's whimsical inventions. Let's just hope those cloaks are the least of our worries." Takao rationalized.

"Ara, looks like Onee-san might have to get a bit more serious, to match Shikikan of course ufufu."

"Tsk, can't believe I got hit by their sneak attack too." Hyuuga huffed as she took a hit on her right side as well.

"Good thing your ribbon's tied on your other arm, huh Hyuuga? Want to pay the Shikikan back with a barrage of our own?" Ise laughed.

"You read my mind!" She smirked before brushing off the debris on her and getting up unfazed.

[With Shoukaku's group]

"Zuikaku, send some planes over to where Ise's group was and see if you can find their assailants." Shoukaku ordered.

"Sure thing!" She said before sending half her planes westward.

About five minutes later…

"All clear in front of us. Wait…, I think something's moving along the other side of that small island over there." Zuikaku pointed to where her planes spotted movement.

"Hmm..oh! I think I see something! Let me move a little bit closer!" Yamashiro said as she skated westward by herself.

"W-wait Yamashiro! We haven't air swept that area yet!" Zuikaku shouted.

"H-huh?" She looked back before she yelled "Hu-waaa!" as she tripped over what was seemingly a fake sea mine.

"Yamashiro! Are you-kya!" Fusou was stopped mid-sentence by a flurry of fighter and torpedo bomber plane attacks from behind.

"Yamashiro! Fusou!" The 5th carrier division carriers yelled.

"Yamashiro and Fusou are out. Switch ribbons, head back to the docks, and wait for Shikikan's orders." Shiranui announced into her mic.

"Uwa….I got too excited, sorry everyone." Yamashiro said downtrodden before heading over to Fusou. "Are you okay Fusou-nee-sama!?" She exclaimed.

"Fuuuu, yes, but I'm ashamed I let my guard down. My apologies everyone. Best of luck." She bowed before she and Yamashiro skated back to the docks.

"Shoukaku! Zuikaku! Are you two alright!?" Takao yelled over the radio to them.

"Yes, but it looks like we fell into one of Shikikan's traps as well. Seems like he's set up some undetectable fake sea mines around here and somehow snuck behind us so do watch out." Shoukaku informed.

"Ney Takao-chan, with Shouhou, Yamashiro, and Fusou gone, we should probably group up with Shoukaku and Zuikaku and increase our defenses." Atago chimed in.

"Agreed, let us regroup on the island near you two and re-plan everything. It seems we've greatly underestimated the Shikikan." Takao commanded over the radio.

"Yes, he's much more capable then we expected. I'm quite impressed ufufu." Shoukaku giggled.

"S-shoukaku-nee, I get why you're impressed but still…." Zuikaku began.

"Don't worry Zuikaku, I understand the scenario we're in. Let's hurry and group up with the others and pay the Shikikan back for the surprises ufufu." She smiled with a mischievous aura surrounding her.

[With Shikikan on his light cruiser]

"Nice aiming Unicorn! Well done!" He said to the purple haired light carrier as he patted her head.

"Ehehe, thank you Onii-chan!" She blushed happily as she enjoyed the sensation.

"Looks like the first traps worked perfectly, let's keep it up everyone!" He radioed.

"Yeah!" His team chanted.

"H-how did you know that the Sakura Empire would be where they were!?" Z23 asked flabbergasted.

"Long story short, since the area from the base to here is riddled with rock formations, that wide open area seemed ideal for a sea minefield to me. I had Ayanami and Javelin set up for a sneak attack a ways away from the field so that anyone who tried to follow after them would be too distracted to notice Yuubari's undetectable sea mine inventions before them." He explained.

"I made those sea mines out of a rubber composite that qualifies as a radar absorbent material, or RAM for short, on a whim so they shouldn't appear so easily on a normal radar scan. That said, I'm still surprised you managed to come up with that trap so quickly Goshujin!" Yuubari said.

"The idea just popped into my head heh." He smiled shyly.

"Onii-chan is so cool!" Unicorn praised with stars in her eyes.

"She's right, well done Herr KommandantI!" Z23 praised him as well.

"Thanks, you two." He smiled. "Any updates on the others by the way?"

"Ja, Royal Navy and Eagle Union both decided to split up into smaller groups to expand their areas for us, while Iron Blood is traveling in one large fleet. They've started to slow down and have intensified their searches after hearing Akashi's and Shiranui's announcements though." Z23 informed.

"Ning Hai and Ping Hai are nowhere to be found….zzzz" Laffey mumbled.

"No turning back now since we've made our move, go ahead and proceed to the next phase you two."

"Yes sir!" They said before ending the radio call.

"Are your other inventions good to go Yuubari?" He asked as he looked at her checking out her creations.

"Hai Goshujin!"

"Alright, let's get a move on, then shall we? I can't just sit back and let you girls do all the work after all." He chuckled before revving up his cruiser and making another call on his radio. "Shouhou, Fusou, Yamashiro, are you three alright?"

"Hmm? Oh Milord! Hai! Vestal just finished checking on all of us and said that we are able to return to the exercise." Fusou picked up while Shouhou and Yamashiro sat besides her.

"I'm glad to hear that because the next steps in my plan involve you three." He said before giving them detailed instructions on what to do. Upon hearing it all, the three immediately sailed back on out.

[With the Iron Blood]

"Ho? Looks like Herr Kommandant's made his move." Eugen smirked as heard Akashi's announcement. Currently, she was sailing with her Iron Blood allies, scouring the rocky area around them for the Shikikan.

"Ugh, this would be a lot less of a pain if Graf Zeppelin were here." Hipper sighed as she continued looking around.

"Despite how she acts, she has a pretty caring personality, what with her not wanting to leave Tirpitz all on her own again." Z46 commented.

"She's not much different from you in a way Hipper haha!" Scharnhorst added.

"H-huh!? And what exactly do you mean by that!?" Said a very flustered tsundere.

'BOOM!' The sound of cannon fire was heard, and a large shell was coming right towards them.

"Hah!?" Hipper said before the group dispersed, causing the shell to hit nothing but the water in the center gap of their formation.

"That's some aim whoever over there has…" Eugen remarked as she looked over to where the shot came from, spotting a large cruiser a far distance away.

"Enough chitchat, looks we've got company ahaha!" Deutschland said as she readied her rigging for a fight, to which everyone else did as well.

"Please hit!" A voice said before a flurry of cannon fire was blasted right at Deutschland's backside.

"Agh!" She said before faceplanting into the water from the force of the fire.

"A sneak attack!? How!?" Scharnhorst before turning towards where the shots came from, revealing a lone Z23.

"Ho? Did you come to greet us yourself Nimi?" Eugen smirked before firing at Z23.

"Oh no! My aim was off! Eep!" Z23 shrieked before diving behind a large rock pillar.

"You okay Deutschland?" Spee asked her elder sister as she moved to her side.

"Ugh..., oh I'm SO getting you back for that Zed!" She said before also firing at the pillar Z23 was hiding behind causing it to explode from the cannon fire. Once the smoke and debris cleared, Z23 was nowhere to be seen.

"Where'd she go!?" Deutschland screamed before more cannon fire impacted the area around them from behind.

"Another ambush!?" Gneisenau was surprised as she looked around to see Fusou and Yamashiro firing at them from afar.

"Looks like they've recovered and were quickly put straight to work. How long can you keep me amused Herr Kommandant?" Eugen's smirk widened.

"Anton, Bruno, Caesar, all cannons ready!" Scharnhorst yelled as she fired all of her cannons at the two Sakura Empire battleships.

"Watch out Yamashiro!" Fusou yelled as she jumped to the right.

"Hai!" Yamashiro said before jumping to the left.

"Tsk, we were careless and got ourselves surrounded." Scharnhorst scoffed.

"Watch out, the ship towards the north is firing again!" Gneisenau yelled as she saw the large cruiser fire another shell at them. They dispersed thinking it was just another normal shelling, but what they didn't know was that it was anything but.

'Bang!' Instead of crashing into the water, the shell exploded right in front of them, releasing a loud flash and deafening bang, catching all of the Iron Blood girls off-guard.

"What is this!?" Deutschland and Hipper yelled as they tried to cover their eyes and ears from the sudden flashbang.

"Now Laffey!" Z23's yelled from an unknown, yet nearby distance.

"Ey!" The group heard someone dashing towards them but were unable to react in time.

"Wow nya! Graf Spee and Z46 have lost their ribbons nya!" Akashi yelled into her mic.

"HUH!?" The Iron Blood girls yelled as they finally were able to regain their bearings, only to see a certain Eagle Union bunny-eared girl holding two red ribbons in one hand and a peace sign in the other.

"The Shikikan has also asked us to also announce that if you aren't injured, you should stay put where you are until he contacts you instead of making the long haul back to the docks." Shiranui added.

"…How vexing." Z46 and Spee pouted before they both took a seat on some nearby flat rock formations.

"Well done everyone! Head on back here so we can continue the plan!" Shikikan said to the two destroyers via radio.

"Yes sir!" They all said before beginning to flee the scene.

"Where do you think you're going?" Hipper said as she trained her rigging at the two destroyers right before another shot from the Shikikan's cruiser was sent at the group once more.

"Oh no you don't! Three times is pushing it!" A very annoyed Scharnhorst said before blasting the incoming shell, only for a massive amount of smoke to blanket the entire area.

"W-what now!?" Deutschland said in between coughs from the thick smoke.

"Now's our chance Laffey, let's go!" Z23 yelled.

"Kayyyy." She said before the two dashed off under the smoke's protection.

After a few more seconds, the smoke thinned before completely vanishing from the area with neither the Shikikan's cruiser nor the two destroyers anywhere in sight.

"We were completely fooled." Gneisenau sighed.

"Ugh, I can't believe I of all people fell to that servant's trap!" Deutschland scoffed.

"Well played Herr Kommandant, looks like I'll be able to have some fun after all." Eugen laughed. "Let's regroup and figure out where to go from here, since it's obvious enough that we've been completely humiliated and fooled ufufu. See you later Spee, Z46." She continued before heading out.

"Tsk, just you wait Herr Kommandant!" Scharnhorst, Deutschland, and Hipper all thought in unison before following after Eugen, while Gneisenau sighed a bit before a small smile appeared on her face.

"Despite all that's happened, I'm feeling a lot more confident with him as Kommandant." Gneisenau thought aloud before she too left the area.

A few moments after they left…

"Spee, Z46?" A voice radioed over to the two shipgirls on standby.

They both looked at each other before asking. "Herr Kommandant?"

"Are you two okay to come join me northwest? You should be able to meet up with Z23, Laffey, Fusou and Yamashiro on your way here."

"Ja, I'd hate to admit it, but your ambush was quite effective and efficient." Z46 spoke up.

"Most impressive Herr Kommandant." Spee added with a small smile.

"Heh, thanks you two. But we're just getting started. See you soon!" He said before signing off.

"Time to prove ourselves Fize." Spee said as she jumped off the rock she was sitting on before heading off northwest with Z46 in tow.

{With Z23 and Laffey]

"Phew we managed to get out unscathed." Z23 sighed in relief as she and Laffey were currently heading to where the Shikikan was.

"W-wait up!" A voice yelled.

The two destroyers were startled and were about to fire at the voice but stopped once they realized it was Yamashiro and Fusou who also made it out in one piece.

"Nice work over there you two." Fusou smiled.

"Yeah! Milord's plan sounded a bit confusing, but it worked out really well!" Yamashiro added with stars in her eyes.

"Oh, two more incoming." Laffey said as she noticed Graf Spee and Z46 heading towards them as well.

"Glad to see you are unhurt from Eugen's and Deutschland's volleys, Zed." Spee said upon arrival.

"How were you able to escape unscathed?" Z46 wondered.

"Thanks to Yuubari's invention here, I managed to sneak away." Z23 said as she looked at the camouflage cloak in her hand.

"Shikikan spotted." Laffey said before racing on ahead to where a shallow cave was. Parked inside was the Shikikan's large cruiser and Ayanami, Laffey, Yuubari, Unicorn, Shouhou, and the Shikikan himself awaiting them all on the cruiser's bow.

"Good work everyone!" Javelin said as everyone hopped aboard the cruiser.

"Want something to drink?" Ayanami offered with oxy-colas and water bottles in her arms before handing them out.

...

"Laffey, full of energy…probably." She said as she quickly finished off her oxy-cola.

"Alright everyone, ready to continue?" Shikikan asked as he was feeling pretty good from success after success thus far.

"Yeah!" They all chanted.

"Alright now that we've essentially doubled our firepower, I think it's time we start getting a bit more bold on the offensive front." He suggested before explaining the next part of the plan.

Upon finishing breaking down his plan to the girls, everyone looked at him in awe.

"Uhm, did I say something weird?" He asked, starting to feel shy from all of them staring at him.

"How long has Herr Kommandant been plotting out this complex campaign?" Z46 was awestruck.

"About this morning when the girls in my office at the time and myself decided to hold this event today."

"Amazing Milord! To think you thought of all of that in such a short time!" Fusou said in pure amazement.

"So that's why you seemed so confident when you only picked five to join your side at the start." Spee concluded.

The Shikikan smiled shyly as he rubbed his head awkwardly. 'Thanks to everyone's help, everything's been going smoothly, so let's keep it up until the very end!"

"Yeah!" The girls chanted once more before the Shikikan signaled to his Manjuu cruiser drivers to rev up the engines and sail on out.

[Moments ago with the Eagle Union]

"Wow nya! Graf Spee and Z46 have lost their ribbons nya!" Akashi yelled into her mic.

"Again already? Man, he works fast. Any luck with your radar Helena?"

"Sorry Cleve, but the jamming signal's gotten stronger here."

"That must mean we're getting close! Keep a sharp lookout everyone!" Hornet said a she had her planes scour the area around them. "Any luck on your end Enty-nee?"

"Nope, Saratoga, San Diego, Eldridge, and I looked around the islands near our location, but came up empty-handed." Enterprise responded as she shook her head.

"He's done a good job hiding his tracks, but Sister Sara will find Shikikan soon enough!" Saratoga said as she launched the rest of her planes out to widen her search.

"Shikikan's pretty good at hide-and-seek huh Eldridge?" San Diego asked the adorable twin tailed blonde who only replied with some sparks and a nod.

"Hmm? I'm picking up another radio transmission." Enterprise said as she accepted the call.

"How do you do, Miss Enterprise?" An elegant voice asked.

"Belfast? Did something come up?"

"Unfortunately, no, we've had no luck on our end in finding Master." Belfast started.

"That said, we decided to ask our long time Eagle Union allies and see if they've gotten any luck." Wales spoke as she entered the transmission as well.

"Looks like we're in the same boat then cuz we've come up empty handed so far too." Hornet chimed in.

"Hmm, Shikikan's done a good job disrupting the Iron Blood and Sakura Empire ranks thus far. Plus, with him getting more and more allies, this is starting to sound quite troublesome. Shall we agree on keeping in touch?" Wales suggested.

"Sounds good, but once we do find him, what will do about the MVP prize? Sister Sara is really looking forward to having a stage to perform on, you know?" Saratoga asked smugly.

"Heh, if I may, I believe the phrase 'all's fair in love and war' would suffice for that matter?" Belfast suggested with equal levels of smugness.

"A friendly competition it is then. Good hunting our Eagle Union friends!" Wales stated before signing off.

"Looks like things are heating up! I'm getting more and more pumped up! Let's hurry and find him everyone!" Hornet shouted before signing off as well and resuming her search.

"I look forward to facing off against you and your fleet soon Shikikan." Enterprise smiled softly before she too dashed off with her group.

[Back with the Shikikan]

Currently, the Shikikan and his team were cruising alongside the edge of a nearby island.

"Hm? Oh! Shikikan! My planes have spotted someone! I think it's a group of girls from the Royal Navy! And they're heading this way!" Shouhou yelled from the stern of the cruiser.

"I don't think they've spotted us yet Onii-chan. Illustrious nee-chan and everyone else looks like they're still looking around as they move forward." Unicorn added.

'Looks like it's time to challenge the Royal Navy then. Hopefully they haven't teamed up with the Eagles yet.' The Shikikan thought with his eyes closed before opening them. "Alright everyone! Looks like we're going to start a bit earlier than I expected, but let's commence the plan now!"

"Yes sir!" Everyone yelled before they all jumped off the boat and got into their designated positions.

"Hey Yuubari.." He said as he turned around to face the cute genius inventor/light cruiser.

"Hai Goshujin?"

"Let's save off on using your CFG's for now. I get the feeling we're going to want to use 'that' against a certain someone in the Royal Navy in particular." He said as he pointed at a certain device behind Yuubari.

"Hmm?" She hummed as she looked around to see what he was pointing at. "Okay, I'll go ahead and set it up now then." She said before getting straight to work on the device.

A few moments later, three distinct Royal Navy girls were sailing towards the island the Shikikan was sailing alongside moments ago.

"I don't think he's near here Belfast, Sheffy." Edinburgh said as she had a hand over her eyes as she searched the area.

"Miss Illustrious said that she could've sworn one of her planes spotted irregular movement around here." Sheffield said as she cocked her twin guns and scoured the area.

"Be careful not to underestimate Master you two. He's already done a number on the Sakura Empire and Iron Blood ladies." Belfast said as she slowed down her pace a bit to look around, specifically at some bushes near the shoreline of the island.

[In said bushes]

"Eeek, I didn't think we'd be against Belfast! Her maid's intuition is really scary! Oh no, I think she already noticed us!" A voice whispered loudly as she saw the Head Maid staring in her direction.

"She's looking straight at us des."

"Zzz…change of plan and fight here?"

"Oi you three! Be quiet or Shikikan's plan will be ruined!" Another girl whispered loudly.

"Shh!" The three put their fingers to their lips while the fourth girl quickly put her hands over her mouth.

[With the three maids]

"See something Belfast?" Sheffield asked before looking towards where she was looking. "Looks like those bushes could use some 'trimming'," She said before opening fire on said bushes with her guns.

As she did so, four destroyers jumped out of the line of fire and summoned their riggings in response.

"…Okay! I admit I'm at fault too, but you three are not exactly innocent either!" Z23 shouted with a bright red and embarrassed expression before taking a quick deep breath and calming herself down. "Alright change of plans! Open fire everyone!" She shouted before firing at the three maids, to which the other members of the start squad followed suit.

"Eek!" Edinburgh said as she ducked and dove for cover behind a large rock, while Belfast and Sheffield skillfully skated and dodged the shots.

"Your intuition is as frightening as ever." Sheffield commented as Belfast was still calm and smiling while dodging effortlessly.

"This might be bad." Laffey deadpanned.

"Daijoubu, we have the numbers advantage des. Ayanami, advancing!" She said before taking out her sword and charging at Belfast.

"Ara, looks like we might have our hands full here Sheffy, Edinburgh." Belfast smiled calmly before she blocked the incoming attack from Ayanami with her armguards.

Ayanami continued her assault by slashing wildly at Belfast, but the Head Maid was able to block attack after attack. Realizing this was getting nowhere, Ayanami aimed her main gun point blank at Belfast and fired, surprising the Head Maid and breaking her smiling façade. Belfast managed to jump out of the way, only to be forced to dodge more incoming shots from Ayanami.

"Ey!" Javelin shouted as she charged Belfast, causing the Head Maid to put up both her arms to block her javelin thrust.

Seeing this opportunity, Ayanami switched gears and swung her katana at Belfast, sending her flying backwards. Recovering from the two's teamwork, Belfast regained her bearings and elegantly landed back on her legs.

Her usual friendly, calm demeanor replaced with a slightly annoyed one, Belfast spoke. "Dear Miss Javelin and Miss Ayanami, this might be a bit painful. Do watch out." She said before bringing her hands up and materializing multiple hand sized torpedoes in between her fingers. She then swung her arms out and threw said torpedoes like throwing knives at the two destroyers.

"Incoming torpedoes!" Javelin yelled before dodging to right and Ayanami to the left. "Let's go Ayanami-chan!" She continued before making a mad dash at the maid.

"Hai!" Ayanami said quickly following after her bubbly friend.

"Ara, this might be troublesome." Belfast surmised before forming more torpedoes in preparation for the two incoming destroyers coming in hot.

Meanwhile…

"Self-imposed limiters released!" Laffey said as she vaulted to her right side while firing off a barrage at Sheffield.

"Time to clean." Sheffield responded as she vaulted leftwards and fired continuous shots at Laffey.

Both shipgirls' barrages were just barely missing the other as the gun fight kept on.

"Not bad War-god of Solomon." Sheffield complimented before unleashing another focused barrage at Laffey, who was now on the run as she dashed away from the line of fire that followed after her.

"Good conditions, let's go." Laffey said as she managed to get behind a boulder that shielded her somewhat from the barrage and gave her enough time to build up enough power to jump up high and launch her torpedoes at the maid.

"Watch out Sheffy!" A voice called out before tackling Sheffield out of the way.

"Ugh, that hurt Edinburgh, but still thank you for the assist." Sheffield grunted as she got back up and dusted herself off.

"S-sorry, that girl over there was just so relentless." Edinburgh pointed at another incoming Kansen.

"Sorry Laffey, but she managed to escape me for a second." Z23 said as she made her way to Laffey's side.

"This is a bit tricky, especially with those powerful gear they've gotten from Master." Sheffield said as she got to her feet and aimed her guns at the two destroyers. "Let's go, Edinburgh."

"Ah, um, yes!" Edinburgh stuttered as she fumbled about and prepared herself for a two on two.

"I won't miss this time!" Z23 said before blasting at Edinburgh, who dove out of the way just in time, soaking herself with the seawater and accidentally shooting off her torpedoes at Z23.

Almost caught completely off-guard by the 'surprise attack', Z23 managed to jump out of the way before she chased after a fleeing Edinburgh once more.

Meanwhile, continuing their gun fight, Laffey and Sheffield kept on shooting and dodging barrage after barrage, turning into a competition to see who would mess up or run out of ammo first.

[Back with Ayanami, Javelin, and Belfast]

"Ey!" Javelin said as she kept thrusting her javelin at Belfast, who was starting to get very tired from the 2v1 fight. It was taking almost all of her effort just to not get hit from the relentless coordinated attacks from the two. Belfast had to jump back to avoid another javelin thrust, but unfortunately, she landed awkwardly when her left leg bumped into a small rock formation.

"One more time! Ey!" Javelin said as she capitalized on the opportunity and jumped at Belfast, landing just before her and doing a spin to thrust upwards at the now very fatigued Head Maid. Not able to dodge in time, Belfast had to put up her guard, only to be launched well above the surface of the water.

"Feel the power of the demon!" Ayanami yelled before launching her torpedoes at Belfast, who was seemingly unable to dodge as she was in midflight.

Wide-eyed, Belfast forced herself to spin mid-flight, avoiding direct contact with the torpedoes before falling to one knee on the water's surface.

The two destroyers looked on in awe at the impressive evasive capabilities of the Royal Navy's perfect Head Maid.

"Ha…ha…ha…." Belfast panted as she struggled to catch her breath. "Most impressive Miss Javelin and Miss Ayanami. It's been awhile since I've had this much of a workout, so to return the favor, allow me to go all out as well." Belfast smirked as she grabbed the hems of her skirt and curtsied just right before a sudden burst of smokescreen engulfed her.

"Careful Ayanami! Belfast only uses her smokescreen ability when she's serious!" Javelin warned as she tried to catch her breath.

"She wasn't serious before?" A fatigued Ayanami asked in shock hearing that Belfast was fighting the both of them without using her full strength.

As soon as Ayanami asked that, the smoke screen rapidly expanded outwards and engulfed the two destroyers inside.

"Ayanami! Where are you!?" Javelin yelled as she couldn't even see her own two hands in front of her eyes in the thick smoke.

"Allow me to bring you over to her Miss Javelin."

"Kya!" Javelin yelled as she felt someone grab her hand and her weapon before being flung into an unsuspecting Ayanami, causing the two to fly out of the smokescreen and bouncing along the ocean surface.

"Owieee…Ah! Ayanami-chan are you okay!?" Javelin said as she struggled a bit to get herself and her friend up.

"Hai..des.." Ayanami panted as she tried getting back up. "We've got to do something about that smokescreen des. I won't be able to see her in there, let alone land a hit."

"Ara, perhaps now would be a good time to surrender your ribbons before you two get hurt?" Belfast challenged with a confident tone.

"Oh no, what do we do?" Javelin began to panic but stopped when she and Ayanami heard a familiar voice on their radios calling out to them.

"Ayanami? Javelin? Are you two okay?"

"Shikikan? Hai, but we've run into a bit of an issue…" Ayanami started.

"Don't worry, I've got a plan. Charge straight ahead towards the center of that smoke and then…..."

The two destroyers looked at each other as a bubble with a large question mark appeared above their heads, before deciding to follow along with whatever the Shikikan was planning.

A few hundred feet away, the Shikikan was in his command room on his cruiser. He was currently looking over the various fights the starter squad and the Maid Corps found themselves in. He then looked over to Yuubari on his right, holding a button in her hands. "Go ahead Yuubari."

A few seconds later, a small grey, circular device flew past between the two and landed just short of the smokescreen Belfast was shrouded in.

Right before the device expanded outwards revealing what seemed to be a set of rotor blades. Said blades began to spin around the device, quickly getting faster and faster to the point where the smoke screen was completely blown away!

"What!?" Belfast said as she lost her cover due to the strange device that landed in front of her and was now being charged at by the two destroyers once more.

"Ey!" They both yelled as they coordinated their attacks right after each other's, preventing Belfast from getting even a split second to catch her breath as she had to continuously either had to dodge or block attack after attack from the two. Getting pushed back a far distance away from the other two and unable to even notice her surroundings, Belfast unknowingly jumped back into a large rock, causing herself to lose her balance and focus from the sudden impact.

[A few seconds ago with the Shikikan]

Shikikan was currently watching Ayanami and Javelin bombard Belfast with their relentless assault and was seemingly preparing to fire his cruiser's cannon.

'Come on a bit more you two! She's almost there!' He cheered the two on, right until they had Belfast right where he wanted her.

'Perfect!' He yelled in his mind. "Fire!" He shouted out loud right before his cannon roared and launched a large shell at Belfast's direction.

[Back to the present with Ayanami, Javelin, and Belfast]

'I was too careless.' Belfast thought as she brought herself back up, right before she saw the two destroyers rushing her once more. "Ladies, you have my sincerest praise for pushing me this far, but I'm afraid this tea party is over." She said before firing her main guns at the two.

"Now Javelin!" Ayanami yelled as she jumped to her left, while Javelin jumped right. As they did so, Belfast noticed all too late a large shell flying at her from where the two had jumped away from. Her main guns' fire had hit the shell on its sides causing it to explode, but instead of ending it there, the shell burst open to reveal a large net flying directly at her.

A wide-eyed Belfast was unable to react in time as she was trapped on all sides.

"Kya!" Belfast yelled as she was embedded by the net with the large rock behind her.

"Now's your chance you two!" Shikikan yelled into his radio.

"Ey!" The two destroyers yelled as they charge at Belfast for the last time and swiped her red ribbon together.

Silence fell over the area as everyone felt as if time had stopped.

After a few more seconds of pure silence, a voice was heard around the whole exercise area.

"NYA!? How nyunbelievable! Belfast of the Royal Navy has lost her ribbon nya!" A stunned Akashi loudly announced into her mic.

"WHAT!?" Everyone still holding a red ribbon screamed as they heard the news and were all brought to a standstill.

"We did it Ayanami-chan!" Javelin yelled as she tackled the Sakura destroyer into a back breaking hug, who quickly returned it with pleasure.

"Phew…great work you two." Shikikan said over his radio.

"Your plan worked out perfectly Shikikan…des!" Ayanami said with welcomed surprise apparent in her voice.

"Yeah! Our teamwork was amazing!" Javelin cheered.

"Ara, how shameful of me to lose, especially so early in the exercise." Belfast sighed before her smile quickly replaced her dejected look. "Splendid work Miss Javelin, Miss Ayanami, and of course you too, my Master. Now, may I ask that you release me from this net? Putting it lightly, it's rather uncomfortable."

[Moments ago, with Laffey and Sheffield]

"NYA!? How nyunbelievable! Belfast of the Royal Navy has lost her ribbon nya!"

"What?" Sheffield said with a shocked look on her face as she turned to where Belfast was.

"You let your guard down. All systems green, go!" Laffey said as she took advantage of Sheffield's shock and finally landed a barrage at Sheffield.

"Sheffield is also unable to continue." Shiranui announced.

"How pathetic of me to lose focus in the middle of a fight." Sheffield chastised herself as she lied on the water in defeat.

"It was a good fight. Good job!" Laffey said with a thumbs up as she approached her and offered her a helping hand up.

Sheffield did not respond, but she gratefully took Laffey's hand up and had a ghost of a smile on her face as she rose.

[Moments ago, with Z23 and Edinburgh]

"NYA!? How nyunbelievable! Belfast of the Royal Navy has lost her ribbon nya!"

"What!? Bel-ooph!" Edinburgh questioned as she stopped looking where she was dashing off towards before tripping over her own two legs and falling down once more.

"Now's my chance! Hup!" Z23 said as she dove for Edinburgh's ribbon on her arm.

"Edinburgh has now lost her ribbon as well." Shiranui announced.

"Owiee….." Edinburgh said exhausted and dejected.

"It was a good effort on all of us. Be proud of yourself!" Z23 said with a smile as she helped Edinburgh up.

"I-I still can't believe Bel of all people lost her ribbon. W-wait! That means I did something better than Bel for once!" Edinburgh proclaimed as she had sparkles and tears of joy in her eyes.

'It was less than a minute longer though….' Z23 sweatdropped before deciding to keep that fact to herself as Edinburgh was seemingly on cloud nine at the moment.

[Back to the present with Belfast, Javelin, and Ayanami]

"And finished!" Javelin pronounced as she finally got the net completely off Belfast.

"Daijoubu?" Ayanami asked.

"Yes, and thank you Miss Javelin, Miss Ayanami. I'm a bit fatigued from our battle, but nothing some time and tea won't fix." She giggled as she dusted herself off.

"Great work everyone! Hurry and come back aboard my ship. I've gotten word from Unicorn and Shouhou that the rest of the Royal Navy and the Eagle Union are headed that way." Shikikan radioed over to the starter squad and Maid Corp members.

"Yes sir!" Everyone said as they rushed back with their new allies in tow.

[With the Royal Navy]

"I can't believe Belfast of all people lost. What on earth is going on over there?" A befuddled KGV asked as she, Wales, and Illustrious made their way over to where Belfast was.

"No wonder the Shikikan looked so confident when he only picked five to join his side. He must've had some sort of plan all figured out." Wales concluded.

"If so, perhaps we might've bit off more than we can chew?" Illustrious asked jokingly.

"Potentially, but on the honor of the Royal Navy, I refuse to give up. What say you Wales?"

"But of course, I'm of like-mind KGV." Wales reassured with a confident smile.

"Heh, then if you will, Illustrious." KGV nodded to the well armored carrier.

"Leave it to me!" She said as she sent her planes out. "Looks like the Shikikan and friends have already left the scene, but I am spotting some members of the Eagle Union heading in the same direction we are. Shall we meet up with them for now?" She suggested after a few minutes of scouting.

"Since we're already down to three, it be for the best to gather some intel and figure out how to counter the Shikikan... Alright, let's go!" KGV decided as she led the remaining three Royal Navy members off.

[With Hornet, Cleveland, and Helena]

"Yikes, if he was able to take down Belfast, we've got a problem on our hands." Cleveland spoke.

"Looks like us and the two Dragon Empery girls are the last ones to spot the Shikikan. I've gotta say, he plays a mean game of hit-and-run." Hornet joked.

"My radar is still buggy, so he might still be nearby." Helena said as she was trying to scan the area around them.

"Hey Enty-nee, any luck?" Hornet radioed her sister's group.

"I'm seeing no sign of Shikikan, but I am seeing three members of the Royal Navy heading our way." Enterprise announced on her radio as she had her planes high in the sky in front of her.

"Damn, where could he have-wa!" Hornet yelled mid-sentence.

"Hornet!? What's wrong?" Enterprise frantically asked.

"Sorry Enty-nee, but it looks like I'm about to have my hands full here with some party crashers." Hornet smirked as she ended her radio call and looked on at her ambushers.

"So, I'd take it you all aren't here to just say hello?" Hornet smirked as Cleveland and Helena skated to her sides.

"Yeah! I mean no! Wait, maybe?"

"You were right the second time Yamashiro." Fusou sweat-dropped.

"Members of the Eagle Union, won't you join us and Herr Kommandant?" Z46 asked as she drew her sword.

"Sorry, but us Eagle Union girls aren't ones to ever give up!" Cleveland grinned as she got ready for a fight and trained her riggings at the Kansen in front of her.

"Looks like we'll have to do this the hard way then." Graf Spee said as she lunged at the group and fired.

"Woah!" Cleveland said as she, Helena, and Hornet dispersed.

"And so, the curtain rises. Nevertheless, I applaud you for not running away." Z46 taunted as she released an onslaught of a barrage at Hornet.

"Hup!" Hornet grunted as she dashed left and right, doing whatever she could to avoid getting hit by Z46's shells. 'Even though they're blanks, her shells look like they still pack one helluva punch.' Hornet said as she looked at the large eruptions behind her caused by said shells.

"Looking away from your opponent is a sign of either arrogance or foolishness."

Caught off guard, Hornet quickly turned back to see Z46 right in front of her with her sword quickly following suit. Desperate to block, she had to use her rigging as a shield. While succeeding in blocking the swing, Z46 had packed enough force into it to send Hornet flying backwards along the water.

"Much like a small rock skillfully slung across the water's surface, you were sent quite a ways back. Perhaps now you will reconsider your decision?" Z46 taunted with an expression that was seemingly blank, but somehow exuded a smug aura.

"Why you…." Hornet started with a tick mark on her head and an annoyed smile. "Try this on for size! Go Doolittle airstrike!" She exclaimed as she launched a squadron of B-25 bombers at the diminutive Iron Blood Kansen.

"I'm speechless." Z46 said wide-eyed and surprised.

"Heh, because you're about to eat your words?" Hornet said with brimming confidence.

"Nein, but because of how Herr Kommandant's plan for you worked out ever so flawlessly." Z46 clarified as she used her AA guns and quickly shot down every single one of Hornet's bombers.

"What!?" Hornet said stupefied.

"Now, I believe it is time for you to 'try this on for size'." Z46 said as she had used her 'Iron Wing Annihilation' ability and blasted Hornet with her enhanced firepower.

"Ahh!" Hornet said as she took the brunt of the assault and was clearly feeling it after being pushed far back, but she was still standing strong.

"It'll take more than that to beat me you know!" Hornet smirked after she caught her breath.

"The carriers of the Eagle Union are nothing to scoff at. You have my sincerest praises and full attention." Z46 said as she prepared for round 2 with the carrier.

[With Graf Spee and Cleveland]

"Woah!" Cleveland yelled as she was on the defensive, constantly being pushed backwards as Graf Spee swung her giant mechanized arms at her while also firing in between swings.

'This is bad, it's taking everything I have just to dodge those massive arms!' Cleveland screamed internally. "Y-you're quite tough!"

"And you're quite quick on your feet, but it looks like you're about to hit your limit." Spee replied as she saw Cleveland panting heavily.

"If my sisters saw me like this, I'll never live it down!" A determined Cleveland said as she shook her head and fired away at Spee, who quickly put her arms up granting herself a makeshift wall of a shield.

'Okay Cleve think! She's got the advantage in power and defense, but you've got speed. Think! Think!' Cleveland tried to brainstorm.

"I believe here's far enough." Spee said as she glanced back.

Confused, Cleveland leaned over to her right to see what she was looking at before going wide-eyed. "Helena!"

[With Helena, Fusou, and Yamashiro]

"Kya!" Helena yelled as the force of impact from Fusou's and Yamashiro's blasts sent her tumbling along the water.

"Are you okay!?" Yamashiro asked worried for the bluenette.

"You should really consider surrendering, I'd hate to see you get hurt anymore than this." Fusou tried to convince her.

"I-I'm fine!" Helena said as she struggled to get back up. "SG lock on the enemy position!" She continued before launching an all-out assault of a barrage at the two battleships.

"Wa!" Yamashiro yelled as she only had the choice to put her guard up.

"Stand strong Yamashiro! Only a little more until Milord's plan bears fruit!" Fusou said as she struggled to keep her guard up.

'Plan? Wait!' Helena thought as she looked back. Hornet was a far distance away dealing with Z46 while Cleveland was even farther away as she was desperately trying to evade Spee's pursuit. "Cleveland! Hornet! The Shikikan is trying to-KYA!"

"Helena!" Cleveland and Hornet yelled as they heard Helena's yell.

[A few minutes ago with the Shikikan]

"Is the CFG locked and loaded Yuubari?"

"Hai, it is ready and at your disposal Goshujin."

"Alright, time for me to put in some work too." He said as he trained his cruiser's cannon at his intended target. "And…fire!" He continued as the cannon roared to life once more.

'Alright that…wait no! I aimed too high!' Shikikan panicked seeing how the CFG, or C-foam grenade, round was no longer going to land at just Helena's feet, but right into her torso!

{Back to present time with Helena]

'KYA!" Helena yelled as she was hit directly with not just any shell, but with some sort of white foam that acted like an extremely stronger form of gorilla glue. "Wha-What is this stuff!?"

"Aw crap…."

"Milord?" Fusou and Yamashiro questioned over their radio.

"I'm going to have to beg for her forgiveness, but for now go ahead and proceed with the plan please." The Shikikan sighed.

"Right away Milord!" The two said before skating over to Helena and grabbing her ribbon.

"Helena has lost her ribbon and nya?" Akashi started announcing before getting a radio transmission. "Okay nya, so we will be taking a fifteen-minute break to deal with an issue as requested by Shikikan. Don't move too far away from where you currently are and no fighting until the break is over nya!"

Cruising at max speed, the Shikikan jumped off aboard his cruiser and onto a speedboat, bee-lining over to a still trapped Helena, surrounded by Cleveland, Hornet, Fusou, Yamashiro, Spee, and Z46, confused and trying to get Helena out.

"I-I am SO, SO sorry Helena!" The Shikikan bowed his head in apology to her.

"What is this stuff Shikikan!? It's stuck on my clothes and in my hair!" Helena pouted adorably.

"It's a foaming agent that suppose to immobilize targets by preventing them from moving. I had it aimed for your feet and rigging and had Fusou carry the solvent to melt it away for afterwards, but I ended up aiming a bit too high. I brought all of the solvent I had aboard, so please bear with me. Again, I'm really sorry Helena." The Shikikan bowed his head once more before moving over to Helena and pouring the solvent over where the foam covered her. After a few minutes of dousing her, Hornet keeled over laughing in the background after being told of the situation, and Cleveland just rubbing the back of her head awkwardly, Helena managed to break free.

"Sigh, well no one was hurt, and I can tell that you really are feeling sorry, so I'll forgive you for this Shikikan, but please escort me back to your cruiser and let me use the shower." Helena sighed and smiled a bit at the still guilt-ridden Shikikan.

"Yes ma'am." He replied before picking up the bluenette into a princess carry.

"!...Um, Shikikan...you don't have…" Helena mumbled.

"S-sorry! I just thought that it be hard for you to move with all of the leftover foam and solvent on you." He said before gently placing her on his speedboat.

"I-it's okay, I didn't really mind, I was just taken by surprise…." Helena said with a growing blush.

Now both red-faced and embarrassed, the two had a silent ride back to his cruiser, with a few minutes to spare before the end of the sudden break.

"Wow, how smooth, looks like you've got some competition Cleve." Hornet joked with a hand over her mouth as she grinned at the cruiser in question.

"I-it's not like that! We're just friends and…...I'm kinda jealous of Helena too, you know?" Cleveland mumbled the last part.

"What should we do Nee-sama? We were all just fighting and 'that' just happened and now we all are standing right next to each other." Yamashiro asked.

"I...I'm not sure, this is a rather strange predicament." Fusou shook her head.

"I have a suggestion." Z46 started. "Due to the unforeseen circumstances, shall we call a ceasefire between us and head our separate ways for now?"

"Hmm, I don't like how this is ending, but a ceasefire makes sense, since the mood was kinda ruined ahaha.…" Hornet laughed awkwardly.

"Then it's agreed. Until we meet again on the battlefield." Z46 nodded her head before she, Spee, Fusou, and Yamashiro followed after the Shikikan.

"Well, this is awkward." Hornet said as she turned to Cleveland.

"I overheard Helena say something about the Shikikan's plan before she got hit with that grenade thing." Cleveland said lost in thought.

"Same, that little Iron Blood girl said something about how the Shikikan's plan for me worked out perfectly…Let's head over to Enty-nee and see what she thinks." Hornet suggested.

"Yeah…it sucks losing Helena but grouping back up with everyone is probably the best idea right now." Cleveland said before the two headed out.

[Back to Shikikan]

With Helena now aboard his cruiser and headed for the showers, the Shikikan radioed to Akashi saying that he was good to go.

"Okay nya! Shikikan has just told me that we are back in action! The exercise continues starting…now nya!" Akashi announced.

'Alright now that that's over with…', he said to himself as he took a second to gather his thoughts. "Alright Fusou, Yamashiro, Z46, and Spee, first of all, great work! The plan was a success despite my mistake ahaha…" He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly before continuing. "The others should be in position, but just to make sure…" He stopped as he radioed over to the other group.

"Yes sir!"

"Belfast, is your group good to go?"

"Yes Master, everyone is in position and ready to begin. As you previously thought, the Royal Navy and the Eagle Union look to be heading to meet up with each other."

"It's earlier than I expected but go ahead and run the interference plan now Belfast. Graf Spee and Z46 are headed your way now." He replied as he nodded to the two girls who quickly jumped off the cruiser and headed towards the next battle.

"As you wish Master." Belfast confirmed before ending the transmission.

"How about your group, Z23?" Shikikan continued.

"Ja, the Sakura Empire has yet to spot us thanks to these cloaks. Shall we commence the plan now?"

"Hmm…" He pondered before deciding. "Not just yet, wait until Fusou and Yamashiro are nearby to provide cover fire. The remaining members of the Sakura Empire are all quite strong and I'd prefer to play it safe while we still can."

"Understood Herr Kommandant! We shall continue tailing them for now then." Z23 replied as she ended the transmission.

"Alright and last but not least." He started before turning around. "Shouhou, Unicorn, any luck on finding the Hai sisters?"

"Hai! But it seems they've lost their ways and are currently in the far east end of the exercise area." Shouhou laughed awkwardly as she had her planes following the two very lost Dragon Empery girls.

"Ahaha…." He sweatdropped. "I feel a bit bad but leave them be for now. Shouhou head to Z23's position and Unicorn to Belfast's please."

"Yes sir!" They said before jumping off as well and sailing off.

"Looks like we're in the endgame now huh Yuubari? How are your inventions holding up though?" He said as he walked over to Yuubari by the stern of the cruiser checking on her inventions.

"Ohh! Goshujin! My inventions are working perfectly and ready to go! There's still plenty of flashbang, netting, and C-foam ammo, the fog repeller and 'sea mines' are working smoothly, and as Z23 said, all of the camouflage cloaks are working as intended."

"I couldn't have gotten this far without you, Yuubari. Thank you." He said as he gently rubbed the cruiser's head.

[Affinity Up!]

'Ahhh Goshujin, your hand is so warm.' Yuubari purred in her mind before realizing that she was about to drool. "W-we've yet won Goshujin! Let's hurry and bring an end to this! I'm really looking forward to improving that research lab once we win!" Yuubari said as she had sparkles and determined flames in her eyes.

[With Belfast and her group]

"As you wish Master." Belfast said before ending the radio call. "Ladies, it's time for the tea party to begin." She called out to Sheffield and Edinburgh. "Miss Graf Spee, Miss Z46, and Miss Unicorn will be joining us shortly, but we've received the signal to begin now." She announced before leading the charge.

"You do remember what the mission is right, Edinburgh?"

"O-of course I do Sheffy! It's umm…uh.. that!…Right?"

"By that you mean we are to capture two ribbons in particular and then fallback, then yes." Sheffield sighed before sailing after Belfast.

"W-wait up!" Edinburgh stumbled as she tried to keep up with the two reliable maids.

[With the Eagle Union}

"Oi! Enty-nee!"

"Hornet! Cleveland! What happened!?" Enterprise exclaimed as she saw the two a bit battered and bruised.

"The Shikikan happened ahaha…." Cleveland chuckled. "He had an ambush set up for us and we fell right into it."

"Plus, it's safe to say that capturing Helena was his main goal during it. What do you think Enty-nee?" Hornet added.

"Hmm, looks like Shikikan has done some research on all of us and has planned accordingly. If so, that would explain why he only picked five at the start." Enterprise said with a knowing smile.

"Yikes, if so, then we might be in trouble, unless…." Saratoga said before a mischievous grin plastered her face.

"Unless…?" Cleveland took the bait and asked.

Now a full-blown grin, Saratoga continued. "Unless we pull a prank on the Shikikan of course!"

"Yay sounds fun! Let's throw a pie at him!" San Diego said with stars in her eyes.

"That does sound like fun, but I was thinking more of trying to pull one over the Shikikan and catch him off guard. Like Enterprise said, the Shikikan has only been doing hit-and-runs, so he's bound to show up again for another hit! Sister Sara suggests we split up, while pretending to search for him, while sneakily getting near the other factions. Once his team shows his face, we give him a taste of his own medicine by ambushing them!" Saratoga said.

"Oh! Nice idea Sara! Your experience on the battlefield is no joke!" Cleveland said loving the idea of finally turning the tide.

"Hmm! I'll go ahead and let the Royal Navy know and set up a bait!" She said before sending a transmission over to Wales before speaking up.

"Hey Wales! Sister Sara here! We have a plan to turn this exercise into our favor and wanted to know if….."

"Hm? What's wrong Sara?" Hornet asked as Saratoga had a stopped speaking and had a surprised look on her face. She quickly brought the volume of the speaker up so that everyone could hear.

"Sorry Saratoga, but Shikikan is already a step ahead."

"Helena!?" Everyone yelled in surprise.

"The Shikikan figured Saratoga might get the idea to try and pull a prank on him, so he already came up with a countermeasure. He also wanted me to let everyone know he wishes you all 'Good Luck' beforehand.

"What? Sister Sara was found out? Wait what do you mean b-AHHH!?" A surprised Saratoga shrieked as a shell came flying near her.

"Heh, you weren't kidding about him being a step ahead Helena." Cleveland said with a nervous grin.

"One step might be an understatement here Cleve." Hornet said with a similar nervous grin.

"And so, we meet again. Hopefully this time we won't have any unforeseen circumstances interrupting us." Z46 said as she once again unsheathed her sword.

"I'll be going all out this time, so please prepare yourself." Graf Spee said as she stretched her mechanized arms out.

"Good day to you all, ladies of the Eagle Union. Would you care to join us for some tea on Master's side?" Belfast smiled and bowed gracefully. Behind her was an Edinburgh ready to fire her main guns and Sheffield spinning both her guns in her hands before aiming them at the Eagles.

"Belfast…" Enterprise said before drawing her bow, knowing all too well of Belfast's prowess on the battlefield.

"Wow! What a big audience for our performances! Right Sara?" San Diego asked as carefree as ever.

"A bit too big if you ask me ahaha…." Saratoga said as she understood the situation all too well.

"More….over there…." Eldridge spoke up and pointed straight out, where she spotted Unicorn launching a squadron of fighters at them.

"Unicorn, will do her best!" She announced as loudly as she could.

"Nya! It looks like things are heating up between the Eagle Union and Shikikan's combined fleet!" Akashi announced with sheer excitement.

"Take care not to get too hurt everyone!" Vestal added.

"Hmph! Well now that my prank is exposed, nothing left but to push through with force!" Saratoga resigned herself before launching a huge squadron of dive bombers at the combined fleet before her.

"Huh!? Wait Sara! That Iron Blood girl over there can…!" Hornet tried to warn her, but it was too late.

"The unworthy are fated to drown in this world." Z46 said before activating her 'Iron Wing Annihilation' ability once more and shooting down all of Saratoga's dive bombers with her superior AA guns.

"Wa-ha-What!?" Saratoga said in utter shock.

"I have not tasted defeat, nor suffered pain, therefore I have no accomplishments. However, that changes now, for I fight not just for the Iron Blood, but for Herr Kommandant's sake as well!" She announced before releasing an enhanced barrage at the Eagle girls.

"Scatter Eagles!" Enterprise commanded as she and everyone else jumped in different directions as to avoid the assault.

"Time to clean, but this time without fail!" Sheffield said as she lunged forth and started firing both guns at her closest target, San Diego.

"Waa!" San Diego yelled as she had just barely landed before having to duck and then dash out of Sheffield's line of endless fire.

"I won't be losing this time! Especially with Enty-nee with me!" Hornet smirked as she and Enterprise readied themselves.

"The Grey Ghost, a formidable opponent whom of which might prove to be quite troublesome." Z46 hypothesized with the same calm expression on her face.

"Allow me to be of assistance." Belfast said as she moved by Z46's side and threw a mini torpedo from her hand at Enterprise. She quickly responded with a light arrow, causing an explosion and smoke to cover the area.

Taking advantage of this, Belfast had dashed forward and through the smoke where she was greeted with Enterprise launching another light arrow at her. With ease, Belfast swiped the arrow away with one arm and dashed right up to Enterprise. Quickly grabbing her bow and hand, Belfast quickly spun around and around before launching Enterprise a fair distance away from the rest of the Eagles.

"I'll hold Miss Enterprise off, please proceed without me everyone. Dear sister, I leave supporting Miss Z46 in your capable hands." Belfast bowed before following after Enterprise.

"Leave it to me Bel!" Edinburgh said before firing her torpedoes (on purpose this time) at Hornet.

"Two on one huh? The Shikikan sure does know how to pile it on." Hornet chuckled as jumped out of the way before launching her fighters at the bespectacled maid.

"Eek!" Edinburgh yelled before ducking for cover.

"Do not fret, I will provide assistance. Go out and prove your might!" Z46 said as she focused her fire at the fighters.

"T-thank you! And r-right!" Edinburgh said before she took a deep breath. "Time to prove myself as the older sister!" Now determined, Edinburgh fired continuously as she charged Hornet.

"Tsk…This might be rough." Hornet grumbled with an unsure smirk before adjusting her hat and bracing herself.

[With Cleveland and Graf Spee]

"Didn't expect our rematch to be so soon..." Cleveland said as she fired all her guns at Graf Spee.

"Likewise." Was the only reply Spee had as she quickly put up her arms to block the relentless fire.

'Okay so it's not like I don't do any damage to her….' Cleveland confirmed in her mind. "There's only going forward from here!" She said as she dashed around a guarded Spee all while firing.

"You might have the speed advantage on me, but that alone won't be enough to defeat me!" Spee said as she swung her arms down and launched a devastating barrage at the light cruiser.

"Argh!" Cleveland said as she had dodged all but one shell and was sent flying a ways back, bouncing along the water's surface.

"Cleveland!" Saratoga said as she had launched some fighters at Spee, causing her to put her guard back up as she tried shooting them down. "You alright? That looked pretty un-fun." Saratoga asked as she helped Cleveland up.

"Yeah, but I got to say, her firepower's no joke." Cleveland winced a bit.

"If I remember correctly, she's known as a 'pocket battleship' in the Iron Blood, but don't worry! From here on out I've got your back!" Saratoga said as she launched more fighters at Spee who was still struggling to take down the previous fighters still. However, the new set of fighters were intercepted by another squadron before making their way to Spee.

"Unicorn will help!" She said as her dive bomber dropped a special package onto Spee, healing her a bit.

"Thank you." Spee nodded her head from the surprise help.

"Alright! Looks like things are heating up! Let's go Cleve-bro!" Saratoga said before launching almost all of her remaining planes out.

"Don't call me Clevebro!" She protested before dashing and firing at Spee once more.

"L-let's do our best for Onii-chan!" Unicorn mustered up all of her courage to say to her unlikely ally.

"Agreed." Spee nodded before charging forth at the fast approaching Cleveland.

[With Sheffield and San Diego]

"Tsk, what a pest." An annoyed Sheffield said as she has yet to land a direct hit at the ditzy fleeing cruiser.

"Wha! Ah! Eek!" San Diego said as she was comically dodging, dipping, ducking, and diving out of Sheffield's line of fire.

"Hey Sheffy?" A voice asked via radio.

"Hmm? Oh Master, my sincerest apologies. I didn't expect her to be so proficient at running a-…dodging, yes dodging."

The Shikikan chuckled awkwardly at the maid's ever so sharp tongue. "Would you be against me providing some assistance?"

"Not at all, in fact please do, dragging this out might be an issue, especially for Belfast in particular."

"Yeah good point. Go ahead and shift a bit to your left then." Shikikan requested.

She tilted her head a bit, confused from the strange request, before shifting to the left as she continued chasing after the still frantically fleeing San Diego.

"Perfect…and Fire!" He said before the sound of a cannon firing was heard in the nearby distance. A few seconds later, a large shell came flying right past where Sheffield had shifted from and was flying directly at San Diego. The shell exploded before colliding with San Diego, revealing a large net that managed to trap the unaware light cruiser, sending her to the ground after a few tumbles from the impact.

"Awawawawawa….." San Diego mumbled as she had spirals in her eyes.

"…...A most impressive shot Master." Sheffield muttered to herself wide-eyed from the snipe shot as she looked back and saw the Shikikan's cruiser tens of thousands of meters away. She skated up to the trapped San Diego and retrieved her ribbon.

"A….valiant effort I suppose." Sheffield said to a woozy San Diego as she helped her up and out of the net. "Head over that way and you'll spot Master's cruiser awaiting you." Sheffield pointed out before dashing back to support her allies.

"Kay….." San Diego responded as she stumbled over to the Shikikan's cruiser.

"With an impressive supporting shot from the Shikikan, San Diego was taken down by Sheffield and has lost her ribbon." Shiranui announced. "Hmm? It looks like some more are about to join her."

[With Belfast and Enterprise]

"I wasn't expecting to have to fight you of all people Belfast." Enterprise said in between her shots.

"Neither was I, but Master is a far more brilliant strategist then he lets on." Belfast replied as she dodged arrow after arrow. Once close enough, she fired her main guns at Enterprise, who just barely managed to dodge the shells by twisting her body a bit.

"Your guard is down Miss Enterprise." Belfast said as she was now point blank with Enterprise.

"As is yours." Enterprise calmly replied as she looked back at a confused Belfast.

At that moment, Belfast could hear the sound of a plane diving swiftly approaching. Knowing what was incoming, Belfast quickly jumped out of the way, but not before forming two sets of three mini torpedoes in her hands and throwing one set at the incoming plane, and the other at Enterprise.

"You're as reckless as ever." Belfast sighed.

"With you as my opponent, I can't afford to play safe." Enterprise smiled as she easily shot down all three torpedo projectiles with her bow.

"With an impressive supporting shot from the Shikikan, San Diego was taken down by Sheffield and has lost her ribbon." Shiranui announced. "Hmm? It looks like some more are about to join her."

"Wha!?" Enterprise said once she realized how far away she was from her fellow Eagles.

"It looks like you've finally caught on." Belfast smiled.

"Was this your plan all along?" Enterprise said still surprised at how she failed to notice her surroundings earlier.

"As I've said before, Master is quite the strategist hehe." Belfast giggled a bit before giving Enterprise an elegant curtsy. "Looks like my job here is done with the ambush plan succeeding. A good day to you Miss Enterprise, although I get the feeling that we shall be meeting again quite soon." She continued before covering the entire area with a thick smokescreen.

"Wait! This isn't over!" Enterprise yelled after she stopped coughing from the surprise smokescreen before moving straight forward through the smoke, only to be greeted by nothing but open sea and a long-gone Belfast.

'Looks like I lose this one, but this exercise is far from over Shikikan.' Enterprise had resigned herself with a small smile that radiated determination as she dashed back to her fellow Eagles at top speed.

[With Cleveland, Spee, Unicorn, and Saratoga]

"With an impressive supporting shot from the Shikikan, San Diego was taken down by Sheffield and has lost her ribbon." Shiranui announced.

"Sandy!?" Cleveland looked to where San Diego had run off to.

"Hmm? It looks like some more are about to join her." Shiranui added.

"Cleveland to your left!" Saratoga shouted.

"Whoa!" She said as she just barely dodged an incoming fighter's guns. Seeing more incoming, she switched to offense and fired her AA guns and swiftly brought them all down, just right in time to dodge an incoming mechanized hand coming down on her.

"Ha..ah…man I can barely get a breath in!"

"Where are you looking? I'm over here!" Saratoga said as she launched some cover fire at Spee, who had no choice but to put her arms up to form a wall.

"Miss Spee!" Unicorn shouted before her dive bombers came and dropped some cargo, healing Spee. "Miss Spee, we should hurry!"

"Agreed, please provide me with you support for just a little bit longer!" She requested before dashing as fast as she could at a fatigued Cleveland.

"Oh no you don't!" Saratoga tried to have her planes intervene, but they were struggling against Unicorn's persistent fighters.

"Now's your chance Miss Spee!" Unicorn said as she did her best to help in any way she could.

"Great work Unicorn!" Spee complimented. "For all that I treasure!" She continued as she fired a full barrage at the light cruiser.

"Ahh!" Cleveland grunted as she failed to completely dodge the attack and fell to her knees.

"Cleveland! I'm on my wa—WAA!" Saratoga said before getting blasted with a flurry of gun fire.

"Pardon my intrusion, but please hurry up. Belfast has informed me that she just withdrew, and that Enterprise is rapidly approaching." Sheffield said with her guns smoking from the shots she just fired at the pink haired carrier.

"I'm on it!" Spee said before swiftly making her way to a downed Cleveland and grabbing her ribbon.

"Cleveland has also lost her ribbon nya!" Akashi announced.

"Come see me at the docks Cleveland. You're covered in injuries and debris." Vestal added.

"Damn, how uncool of me." Cleveland said as she was flopped on the ground fatigued, battered, and bruised. Hearing Vestal's orders, she forced herself up and sailed away.

"Owiiee….huh? Oh no Cleve-Ahh!" Saratoga started before once again being bombarded and knocked off her feet by Sheffield.

"Good work, let's hurry back to Master everyone." Sheffield nodded before dashing off.

"Thank you again for your help Unicorn." Spee looked back and nodded to the shy little girl.

"Ehehe, I'm glad I was able to help!" She smiled brilliantly as the two quickly left the scene.

"Ugh…How rude! Interrupting me twice by shooting at me! Hmmph!" Saratoga complained as she dusted herself off.

[With Hornet, Z46, and Edinburgh]

"Cleveland has also lost her ribbon nya!" Akashi announced.

"What Cleve too!?" Hornet said as she was currently fighting strong against her opponents.

"They did it! Let's head back to Shikikan!" Edinburgh requested with urgency before heading out first.

"Hmm, it looks like our fight will be put on hold once more. Until we meet again." Z46 nodded before sailing off after Edinburgh.

"Oh no you…." Hornet was about to say before she dropped to one knee, her adrenaline wearing off, and fatigue setting in. "Ah….ha…damn, I'm exhausted!"

"Hornet!"

"Hmm? Oh Enty-nee…ha…sorry, we lost Sandy and Cleve and they got away too." Hornet said a bit downhearted as well.

"Don't worry, I'm at fault for not realizing how far out Belfast had sent me. Let's hurry and regroup with Saratoga and Eldridge." Enterprise said as she helped her sister up.

"Too late I'm already here!" Saratoga said as she cruised right up to the two sisters. "Glad to see you two are okay! Wait where's Eldridge?" She asked looking around.

"Huh? She wasn't near you?" Hornet asked, only receiving a clueless nod from the diminutive carrier.

[Meanwhile…]

"Great work everyone! We can finally begin..." The Shikikan was about to say before….

"Found Shikikan" A voice said.

Startled by the surprise the Shikikan jumped forward to the bow of his ship and turned around to see Eldridge standing right in front of him and emitting small sparks.

"H-hey there Eldridge, when'd you get here?" He questioned realizing that it was just him and the destroyer at the moment.

"Shikikan…ribbon..." Eldridge said as she took a small step forward, still emitting sparks and her intentions clear.

'Crap, Helena just left for Z23's group and Yuubari is deep inside the cruiser maintaining her inventions. She wouldn't make it in time if I called out to her.' The Shikikan was brainstorming how to get out of this sudden sticky situation. 'There's absolutely no way I can win against a destroyer bare-handed…' He thought before a sudden idea popped into his head 'well…at least not with force I can't….'

"Hey Eldridge?" The Shikikan called out to the slowly approaching destroyer, who was very focused on the ribbon on his arm.

"Hmm?" She hummed as she was only a few feet away now.

'It's not like I have any other way out of this.' He steeled his resolved before speaking up once more. "C-can I have a hug?" He asked with an awkward smile as he extended his arms out to her.

Eldridge was brought to a halt hearing his request. The ahoge on her head curled immediately into a heart as she dropped her guard and jumped into his arms.

"Hug!" She said with a happy smile as she snuggled into his embrace.

'T-that worked? Well now I just feel bad…' A surprised Shikikan thought.

"Nya!? The Shikikan himself has managed to get Eldridge's ribbon!" Akashi announced in sheer surprise.

"A rather cheap shot, but nothing against the rules of course ufufu." Shiranui added.

Hearing the announcement, Eldridge's ahoge stood straight up like an exclamation point as she looked at where the ribbon should have been on her arm.

"Sorry Eldridge, but if it means anything I kind of did just want to hug you once I saw you ahaha..." Shikikan chuckled awkwardly as he scratched his cheek with her ribbon in his hand still.

"Shikikan…no fair..." She pouted very cutely.

"S-sorry Eldridge, can I make it up to you with some cake later?" He pleaded using a promise of sweets as a trump card.

Eyes sparkling and her ahoge forming back into a heart, Eldridge replied, "Okay…, Eldridge forgives Shikikan", right before snuggling back into the hug.

"Goshujin!? I heard Akashi's announcement and rushed out…oh" Yuubari said as she barged out of the cruiser's door in a hurry before spotting the Shikikan.

"Don't worry Yuubari, looks like this part of the plan was a bigger success than we expected." He said with a light chuckle as he walked over to her with Eldridge glued to his arms.

"Is everything alright Master?"

They spun around to see Belfast, Sheffield, Edinburgh, Spee, Z46, and San Diego all jumping aboard the bow of his ship.

"In short, Eldridge appeared out of nowhere and almost got my ribbon, but I somehow managed." He smiled awkwardly.

"Shikikan…tricked Eldridge with hugs but promised cake as an apology." Eldridge said as she jumped off to land right in front of them and explained.

"Hugs?" Spee asked as she tilted her head.

"Hug" Eldridge replied as she hugged a more-than-happy-to-comply San Diego.

"Wait cake!? Shikikan can I have some too!?" San Diego begged with stars in her eyes and some drool forming on her lips.

"Allow me to offer my assistance in baking said cake Master." Belfast chimed in as she walked up to him and smiled happily.

"Thank you, Belfast." He happily accepted. "But for now, let's get a move on and prepare for the endgame of this exercise everyone!"

"Yeah! (everyone)/Yes, Master (Sheffield and Belfast)."


Phew! Longest chapter yet! The original plan was to make this whole exercise just one chapter, but I was barraged with idea after idea that ended up forcing me to want to break this chapter up and put those ideas to good use.

Thank you again so much for your continued support for this fanfic! Can't believe we've hit over 100 follows! Let's see if we can get the follows, favs, and comments up even higher!

The next chapter is about 25% done already so do look forward to it in the upcoming weeks or so!

Also one last side note! Without me going off on a tangent about how much I dislike the media, please do take care of yourselves during these unnecessarily tough times and be careful of untrustworthy news reports and misinformation! CDC and WHO are the best places for the most accurate information if you are feeling lost!

Okay now that that's off my chest, let me know if you are enjoying the story in the comments and by following and favoriting this fanfic! Please stay tuned for next time on Azur Lane fanfic, An Unsung Legend Chapter 10: A Shining Ray of Hope!