Author's Note: I do want to clear the air a bit by saying that I interpret the shipgirl rigging works more towards the anime style. Also, some aspects are closer to the manga for comedic sake.
The following day after Shikikan had his romantic date with Eugen, he found himself slaying the hated beast known as paperwork. Thankfully, this task was much easier with his current secretary being the elegant and beautiful Hood. She had much more experience in being a secretary than most of the other shipgirls thanks to her early career under Shikikan's leadership. Being one of his first battlecruisers shortly after Eugen joined him. For one of the most renowned ships under the Royal Navy, despite the fact she was one-shotted by Bismark, she easily found herself among Shikikan's favorite secretaries.
Not only could she hold herself in a battle but she could make a stack of papers child's play. Either it was something with the Royal Navy or Hood was just naturally gifted with signing the papers off without a single mistake and have time for tea. Speaking of tea, when Hood was around, Shikikan found himself enjoying tea much more than normal.
Part of it was how Hood presented herself towards others. She was soft-spoken and elegant with her messages, even threats when she really meant them. Her lady-like nature made her humble before all the other shipgirls. She dressed more modestly compared to other battlecruisers from the other factions. She stayed away from causing drama and focused on keeping the peace. Best of all, she never complained with the task she was given. But really, tea was better than coffee when the commander wasn't lacking in sleep.
If that wasn't something the average man would become smitten by, Shikikan was no exception. He found himself looking forward to having Hood around for the reasons before, but also another one. Two actually, but the last reason was more of a perverted one than a genuine. Everytime they spoke to each other whether it was about the Sirens, Akashi's ridiculous prices, or personal matters; Shikikan felt like his face grow hot.
Opening the door to his office with a content sigh, he found stacking the papers neatly for the maids to pick up. Approaching behind her, he took off his hat to rub his hand through his hair, feeling the stubs that they were due to military protocol, "Everything good on your end, Hood?"
The battlecruiser curtly smiled and nodded before her commander, "Of course, it wasn't all that bad. I must say that it is good to see you again, Commander."
He felt his face flush but thankfully the weather was the saving grace today, "Likewise."
The weather for this particular day had been predicted to be quite warm. Being on an island, that wasn't a surprise with their location close to the equator. However, when it got hot, it was humid as well. The heat was bearable this time around but Shikikan had to loosen up his uniform. Hood looked fine despite the fact she was wearing her full attire.
Offering a cup of tea to him, Hood spoke, "Commander, may I make a request for today?"
"Go ahead," Shikikan answered while accepting the drink gratefully.
"Since the Sirens have been absent as of now, I believe it would be best for the morale of the others to enjoy the beach," Hood explained, her hands lying in her lap as she turned towards her senior officer, "It would certainly help ease any ill will between factions."
The commander took a sip of the warm drink while his mind was on Hood's suggestion. On one hand, it would be a great idea so everyone could relieve their stress but the problem was the concern of a sneak attack. Sure, the Sirens were not appearing lately, but that didn't mean they weren't there. Then again, not everyone enjoyed the beach. So there should be a relatively good defense in the case of a surprise.
"Alright, request granted." Shikikan finished the drink with a small smile traced on his lips, "Just make sure everyone finishes their current tasks before they head down."
Hood smiled in return before getting up and out of the office. Shikikan watched her leave and unlike the other shipgirls, her dress hid her features. She looked like she was simply walking with no sway in her step. His eyes traveled from her back down to her rear that was hidden thanks to her dress.
"Goddammit. I'm a pervert aren't I?" Shikikan thought to himself as he went to change into more appropriate attire for the beach
Shikikan let out a sigh of content as he walked up to the jeep behind the office building. It was a standard issue jeep with no modifications besides the back being wide open to allow more people to sit. He had gotten rid of his uniform to wear a simple white tank top and a pair of green shorts. He brought along an umbrella and some other goods for the ride. Being the only male on the island, he made mental notes to not do something stupid.
The last thing he needed was to get one of these girls impreg-...Why was he thinking that?!
"Ugh, the sooner this war is over, the sooner I can go home."
His face felt like it was on fire while he stashed his goods in a compartment. Maybe this was a terrible idea considering he was now going to deal with all the shipgirls in beach attire. Opening the door and sitting in the driver's seat, he took a few breaths to calm down. The car roared to life as he inserted the key and turned it on. The radio hummed to life before the sounds of swing music flowed out. The only thing Shikikan could listen to without the frequency being terrible and the music scrambled.
The jeep lurched forward down the pathway towards the main road. Unlike the main nations, traffic was nonexistent. This allowed the base to maintain a steady flow without any hiccups besides the occasional defense. For a short as a drive as it was, the commander had no problem with just listening to the music and feeling the wind blow at him. Rides like this were what a man like him needed.
But as soon as it began, it ended with Shikikan parking the jeep on the side of the road. He could already see the umbrellas and figures of many of the shipgirls. A volleyball net set up with rudimentary borders made for the various girls to compete with each other. Naturally, a good amount of the girls were playing around in the water.
The car shut off as Shikikan got out to retrieve his goods and making his way to the hot sands of the beach. His simple sandals gave him some form of protection initially but he did feel some grains make their way to his skin. Once he felt he had found a good spot to relax, he stabbed his umbrella into the sand as a form of victory. Then he set up his umbrella so he wouldn't feel the heated grains below him and laid down.
He took a glance at the volleyball match going between some of the Union ships against their Ironblood counterparts. It looked to be mostly the destroyers and submarines enjoying themselves with the light cruisers crowding around them. Well, it looked pleasant until someone decided to up the ante a bit too much.
When one of the Union destroyers pushed the ball up to serve it to the spiker, a Union heavy cruiser came out of the crowd, jumped, and spiked it into one of the u-boats. This heavy cruiser was recognized for her trademark jacket that barely passed her chest and her really skimpy attire. That and her short haircut identified her as Baltimore, the energetic one with a strong sense of justice.
"Yeah! Score one for the Union," the heavy cruiser said with a trademark grin but everyone gave her a blank look
"You just smacked U-81 with the ball, Baltimore!"
What was a simple game of volleyball turned into a shouting match between the two factions as their larger sisters came into the fray. Shikikan sighed in annoyance before laying his head down to rest. Closing his eyes and trying to ignore the chorus of voices filling the beach.
"Commander, is it alright if I set up here?" a voice called out to him
The commander's eyes opened to find Hood in a completely different attire than what he was used to. From one of the most humble and modest ladies in the Royal Navy wearing a one piece swimsuit that revealed her true features. Shikikan felt his cheeks flash with fire as he could not believe how beautiful one of his secretaries was underneath her dress.
"O-of course, you don't need to ask," he said while fumbling a proper response to the gorgeous woman in front of him.
Hood hummed with a smile before she set down her own towel next to Shikikan. Did she purposely ask him to allow everyone to enjoy the beach so she could get out of her attire? Either that dress was made to hide her curves or she wore more clothing. Either way, the Commander was not ashamed of thinking that Hood was absolutely stunning.
"I got to say, Hood, you look quite nice when you aren't looking so proper," Shikikan began before he felt himself say something stupid, "N-not saying that you look bad being proper b-but.."
This got a giggle from the battlecruiser laying nearby, "Thank you, Commander. I don't normally go out to events like these because her Highness needs my advice on important matters."
"Such as?" the Commander's brow raised quizzically
"Our current role with Azur Lane, the war, gossip about the Ironblood, and sometimes she rants about how flat-chested she is," Hood answered while looking at the Commander
Shikikan got himself up into a sitting position before speaking, "Is she jealous about everyone else having...erm…"
"I think the term you are looking for is 'larger assets' to be polite," the battlecruiser added
"Yeah, that." Shikikan rubbed the back of his head while blushing a bit, "Is that why you wear that dress of yours?"
Hood took a moment to look out towards the ocean, past the crowd of arguing ships, and off towards the white clouds themselves. Her entrancing blue eyes searched the heavens for an exact answer to the Commander's question.
"Partially yes, but mostly no. The proper reason is I prefer to be unnoticed. Compared to the other girls around here, I can easily be cast aside besides my status among the Royal Navy," Hood finally spoke while turning to the Commander, "I prefer the peace and quiet while it lasts."
Shikikan couldn't help but nod along with that reasoning. When the Sirens were in full force, no one could have a moment to rest before being sent off to take down a fleet. The only rest was in between sorties and resupplying. That had to take a toll on many of the girls here.
"Would you do me a favor and apply some sunscreen to my back, Commander~?" Hood requested with a difference in her tone that made Shikikan's heart freeze for a moment
The way she asked that must have hit a spot vulnerable enough to cause the Commander's face to light up like a traffic light. That and the fact she asked him to basically rub her exposed back with sunscreen easily could be misinterpreted. What kind of god did he please, or piss off, to earn this sort of consequence? Surely, there was some form of mercy to save him from this embarrassing request.
"U-Um...S-Sure. Just your back?" Shikikan asked in a nervous tone that Hood could read with ease
Any girl could probably read how nervous he was to oblige this request, "Yes, just my back."
To further emphasize her point, Hood laid on her stomach and presented her exposed back to her superior officer. She held out her small bottle of sunscreen to him while she awaited for his task to be done with eyes closed.
Shikikan felt himself shake as his mind was scrambling for an excuse to run away without upsetting the battlecruiser. Sure, he was married, but that was a formality rather than the actual marriage. Something about protocols restricting the shipgirls from participating in 'indescreate methods' that would possibly put them unable to fight. Not even Eugen, for the tease she was, dared to break the protocols.
Taking a deep breath, the Commander steeled his nerves. He twisted off the cap before pouring out a small amount of sunscreen on his hands. He rubbed them together a couple of times so he could evenly spread the lotion over their target. Slowly, he put his hands on Hood's pale backside and performed the task.
Hood flinched a bit due to the lotion being cold in touch, but she relaxed quickly. Her eyes were still closed as she hummed to the feeling of her officer's hands caressing her back, "Commander, I think you should know by now that all the fleets came together and forged a compromise to ease the tensions."
Shikikan temporarily stopped his current action and looked at Hood with a puzzled expression, "A compromise? What would that be? Did you all decide to split the spoils of war?"
Hood giggled at such a notion that no doubt would cause more trouble, "Oh no, Commander. I'm surprised Eugen didn't tell you this after you two had married."
Again, Shikikan was more puzzled by what Hood was baiting him into, "What is it? Eugen never mentioned anything to me besides what she would like to do if there weren't protocols."
"Ah, you don't know," Hood mused, rising to where she was sitting and looking at her superior officer in the eye, "The fleets have agreed that at least one ship from every faction shall be married to you as a form of an unending alliance."
"...What?"
Shikikan's face looked like a child who had just been told about puberty and what that would mean to all his friends who were girls. Thankfully his sunglasses hid the bug-eyed look he had while facing Hood. Every faction was going to have at least 'one' girl trying to marry him. Keywords were 'at least' which opened the doors for more. Who were the lunatics that thought this was a good idea?
Worst of all, Eugen knew about this but didn't tell him?! He could've asked Hood on a date at least a year ago if he had learned of this. Wait… Wouldn't that mean the other girls were now basically going to compete for his affections on a daily basis?
Hood perked up as something came to her mind, "Oh, and the secretary role is officially an honorary position for any girl wanting to marry you. Basically, it's going to be fiercely competed for."
"You have to be fucking kidding me?!" were the thoughts of the stunned officer
Did Hood forget what kind of hell this would create for the Commander? The Ironbloods alone were quite a handful to handle but there were various members of the Sakura Empire that would murder for secretary. His thoughts then went to Shoukaku the other day and his face lit up even brighter. Did he unintentionally make the Crane Sister part of an officially recognized harem?! What kind of sick joke was this?!
"H-Hood...D-Does t-that m-mean…" Shikikan tried to ask before a finger was pressed against his lips to silence them
Before he realized it, he found Hood face to face with him with her curtly smile that almost looked a bit smug. One moment later, her lips were pressed against his while his shocked expression still remained. Although, he couldn't lie about the fact that he really wanted to date Hood for a while but his morals prevented him.
"Shikikan and Hood-sama are kissing!" a voice called out
Hood released the Commander as he looked at who had said that, finding Javelin who was blushing and pointing at them. This got the attention of the other girls that had a mix of shock, anger, and envy.
"Oh, I was beginning to wonder if any vermin were touching my Shikikan," Akagi said with venom dripping through her tone, a ball of fire held in her hand
"My husband is cheating on me? I should have known, you rascal," Eugen quipped with that smug look on her face
Hood was unbothered by the veiled threats despite the fact it would be the Commander taking the brunt of their anger, "I'm sorry ladies, mainly my fellow Royal Navy, but I'm sure you can figure out amongst yourselves the remaining spots."
Hood's words were like a cigar being smoked inside an armory. While Eugen seemed unaffected by the news, the rest of her sisters were now squabbling amongst themselves. Worse, the maidens of the Sakura Empire were now actively fighting with blades and magic. At least the Eagle Union was trying to use 'democracy' to decide who would be the secretary. Really, it was more of just endless shouting.
"God, what kind of sin did I commit for this?" Shikikan uttered in defeat, watching helplessly as the beach turned into D-Day
So who do you think will try to hook up with our poor Commander? Leave a comment below with your guess and find out in the next chapters.
