-Last Chapter-
Kaga blushed and hung her head, her ears drooping at her sister's teasing but knowing that she spoke the truth. She was a proud carrier, a seasoned veteran of the Sakura Empire! Yet here she was now…
How was she to know he'd be so persistent in his desires?
Looking down she eyed the source of her current embarrassment with a mixture of slight affection and annoyance.
A sleeping Naruto was currently nestled into her lap snoozing away without a care in the world. His head resting softly on one of her tails like a makeshift pillow while the others held him tightly in a blanket of fur keeping him warm. Her hand ran unconsciously through his hair and despite her earlier posturing, she had to fight the urge to draw him in closer and rub at his chubby cheeks as he snuggled deeper into her embrace.
Mentally she cursed this softer side of herself and resolved to see something done about it… eventually.
~Present~
"Did you remember to grab your lunch?"
"Hai."
"What about cleaning your guns? Did you make sure to inspect them properly?"
"Hai."
"And you are sure you have enough ammo? It never hurts to bring a little more."
"Hai."
"What about..."
Kaga watched with quiet exasperation as her sister fussed over the newest addition to their not so little fleet like he was a newborn babe, running down a seemingly endless checklist while he nodded along absentmindedly. By her side, Takao, Atago, and the Commander could only look on in a mixture of thinly veiled amusement as the blond was carried to and fro by the worried aircraft carrier, his blank face nestled snugly between the overly worried kitsune's bust muffling his voice somewhat.
"Sister please... it is just a simple sortie." Kaga interrupted trying her best not to let her embarrassment at her sister's actions affect her but that was much easier said than done given their giggling audience. "There is no need for such... intense preparation." She sighed approaching her sister with the firm intent of prying the boy out of her death grip.
Akagi was having none of that however and merely swatted her reaching hands away with her tails. "How can I just send him out like that? The dangers of the seas could rear their ugly heads at a moment's notice or worse..." An oppressive aura began to emanate from her huddled form. "Some foreign skank could lay her filthy fingers on him while he's out of my sight." She muttered darkly drawing sweat drops from the assembled group at her less than practical concerns.
"Sister..." Kaga rubbed the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "He'll be fine."
"Does this look like the face of someone who will be fine?!" Akagi wailed dramatically and held the blond out like a doll, his feet dangling limply from his elevated position as he was thrust towards them.
"Hi..." He waved lazily unbothered by his current predicament, his usual blank expression serving only to undermine Akagi's worries seeing as the boy didn't seem particularly concerned about his upcoming mission in the slightest.
"See!" Akagi quickly pulled him back to her chest and ran her fingers through his hair all the while uttering soft reassurances of protection so long as he stayed by her side forever. It would have been somewhat endearing if not for the hastily added threats of violence towards others that were sprinkled within.
"I apologize, Commander. I did not foresee this outcome." Kaga bowed towards her leader who merely waved her off with a half-smile, she actually had expected this which is why they were here so early.
It had been a little over a week since Naruto had been introduced to the Sakura fleet to overall positive reception. There were still a few who remained cautious in his presence but even they were coming around to the charming battleship with time. Of course, no one had responded quite as positively as their resident foxes who had taken over as the blond's guardians/sister figures and he was seldom seen without at least one of them accompanying him at all times.
Much to the misfortune of his fellow ships who had to endure either Akagi's smoldering hate-filled gaze or Kaga frigid glares upon coming within ten feet of the seemingly unaware boy who was more than happy to chat with all that crossed his path. It made for quite a spectacle.
"It's fine." She reassured before approaching the fussing carrier. "Akagi I promise you that he will be perfectly safe on this mission and I've assigned him an experienced supervisor just in case." She swore, placing a firm but kind hand on the fox woman's shoulder.
Akagi huffed for a while longer, giving the boy in her arms a final squeeze before reluctantly allowing him back onto the ground whereupon he immediately waddled over to Kaga's side much to her annoyance.
"Very well." She ground out while recollecting herself. "I will hold you to that promise." She then turned to the boy who had by this point been led away by Kaga by Atago who'd offered the boy some sweets.
"Naruto." She called catching the boy's attention who perked up at his name being called and walked back over to her. She kneeled and stroked his whiskers lovingly, a soft hum escaping his pouty lips as she did so, sending a jolt of something... sinful down her spine.
"Be safe." She instructed softly before giving him one last hug.
"Hai, I will be careful." He nodded returning the embrace his arms wrapping tightly around his newfound sister figure in an effort to reassure her.
"Good." She released him and sent him off with a soft push towards her sister, sending her a knowing look in the process. Her sister couldn't hide her feelings from her even if she tried.
Kaga sighed but gestured for the boy to come to her which he did happily, bushing up gently against her leg knowing she wasn't one for open displays of affection.
"You are not weak so I have no concerns about your safety." She muttered placing a hand upon his head as a sign of confidence in his ability. "You remember what to do when you see an enemy?" She questioned earning a nod from him.
"Don't stop firing until not even ashes are left." He recited cheerfully, happy to have remembered her lessons. "If they get up then set the sea on fire for good measure." He finished ignoring the concerned looks sent his way by everyone but Akagi who was nodding proudly off to the side.
"Good boy." She praised fondly and graced him with a small smirk and a brief but affectionate hug before passing him off to Takao who was now questioning if allowing him near the twin carriers was actually a wise course of action on their part.
"Right... let's get going." Mirai sighed turning on her heel before she heard something else that she really didn't need to know about right now.
...
"This will be a simple mission, I don't expect you'll run into much trouble if any but as always I expect you to keep on your toes out there." She explained looking over the assembled girls, plus boy, that she had assigned to the task. "We've heard rumblings of hostiles pushing upon some of our secondary trade routes, nothing major but we should keep an eye out in case this is the set up to cut off our main supply lines later on."
"Leave it to us, Commander~" Nachi smirked, having been appointed as head of this operation it naturally fell to her to display her confidence to her underlings. "This will be so easy I won't even need to break a sweat." She laughed in her usual haughty but lax still manner.
Mirai rolled her eyes internally at the Heavy Cruisers penchant for trying to do things effortlessly but knew that she could rely on her to keep everything moving smoothly, for all of Nachi's bluster and bravado she was, in fact, rather capable.
By Nachi's side, Ayanami and Naruto nodded silently in agreement, they would not fail.
"Nachi," She turned to the cruiser in question. "This will be little Naruto's first mission so be sure to show him the ropes but don't be afraid to let him make his own decisions. He will be acting as both the flagship and the heavy artillery so make use of him if needed." She reminded.
Nachi nodded and patted the smaller boy at her side with a smirk. "Of course, I'll make sure he has no problems." She assured with a twinkle in her eye.
"I'll hold you to it, after all... I don't think I need to tell you what might happen should he come back in less than pristine condition?" She warned.
Nachi felt her blood run cold at the question, the enraged silhouettes of Akagi and Kaga hovered above the heavy cruiser like vengeful spirits, billowing walls of fire encircling around her...
"I will protect him with my life!" She promised quickly, her usually sun-kissed skin was now pale as a ghost as she nodded rapidly. No damage she could suffer could compare to whatever they would do to her!
Ayanami watched the proceedings with a sigh and sent a subtle look to the Commander that she would ensure that things went smoothly, nothing would get past her if she had her way. It may have helped that she'd begun taking a liking to him for his generally happy disposition and penchant for assisting around the base where he could.
Naruto smiled gently at the support of his seniors and resolved to do his best, no harm would come to them if he could help it.
"That's what I like to hear." Mirai nodded offering her subordinates a confident smile, her trust in them was absolute even if their individual... quirks, caused her more headaches than she'd like. "You three are dismissed, I expect to see you back in a few hours."
"Mkay/Hai/Yes Commander!"
-A Few Hours Later at Sea-
"I know I said this was going to be easy, but I didn't think it was going to be this easy." Nachi sighed frowning slightly at the lack of anything going on as they patrolled over the small slice of endless blue expanse. "Even a few pirates would be better than this..." She muttered trying vainly to disguise the disappointment she was feeling.
It had been two hours since they'd left the base and begun their scouting mission, two hours of near-absolute silence other than the call of seagulls and the crashing of waves. They had about another hour left of travel before they'd turn back to make their report which clearly didn't sit well with Nachi who'd begun to make her distaste for the silence known.
"Do not complain." Ayanami chided keeping her eyes out for any sign of danger. "Keep focused." She reminded as the trio made their way further out along their route, avoiding battle whenever possible was a positive in her mind.
"I-I'm not complaining!" Nachi denied furiously. "It's just an observation, thinking out loud for the newbie's sake." She rebutted hastily, sending a sideways glance towards the humming battleship on their flank. His usually blank stare absorbed by the gently rocking waves though she could tell he was still paying attention to his soundings since he was easily keeping pace with them while maintaining formation.
"Mhm." Ayanami didn't respond but it was clear she didn't exactly believe the scantily clad cruiser's answer. "Have you detected anything?" She asked shifting the conversation back towards their mission rather than their grievances.
"Disrespectful little..." Nachi grumbled but answered nonetheless. "Nothing out of the ordinary though I am picking up some familiar signals a few miles off." She noted having been temporarily equipped with a radar for this operation as most scouting fleets were.
"Friendlies?" Ayanami questioned.
"I believe so, probably another group on their way back from their own mission." She guessed, looking off in the direction she was picking up the signals from.
Naruto looked off into the distance curiously, he had still yet to meet any ships that were not from the Sakura Empire... he wondered what kind of people they were? Kaga had told him bits and pieces about some of the other factions to give him an idea since Akagi's renditions were... a bit less than accurate, but he still wanted to see for himself.
He would have to ask the Commander about leaving the dorms to explore soon.
"That's weird?..."
Nachi's confusion shook him from his thoughts as she suddenly veered off to the side, a noticeable frown on her face as she paused halting their advance. The sonar attached to her riggings spinning up in parallel with its user's concern.
"What's wrong?" He asked wondering why'd they suddenly stopped.
"I tried to send a message over to whoever's out there but something is jamming my comms." She relayed causing her charges to narrow their eyes in suspicion. "Their lines were just open a few seconds ago but I can't get through no matter how hard I try and the range on my radar seems to be fizzling out." She explained sending a sharp look towards the equipment in question
"Do you detect hostiles?" Ayanami questioned softly, but her fingers clenched around her sword regardless, giving away her true feelings on the sudden change in the situation.
"I'm not detecting much of anything other than static." She growled, cursing her fat mouth for seemingly jinxing what should have been a routine run. "Our path is clear but I don't like the idea of just leaving those girls behind on the hope of just a random equipment malfunction."
"Then should we investigate?" He questioned siding up next to his party.
"Under normal circumstances, I would say yes. However, the Commander gave strict orders to keep you under wraps until she was ready to introduce you to the others." Nachi groaned torn between following her orders and investigating a potential attack on their allies. "There isn't really a protocol for this."
"They could be in trouble..." He frowned softly, he may not have known them but if they were allies than didn't they have an obligation to help if they could?
"It is suspicious." Ayanami agreed, while equipment failures were not unheard of this felt too convenient.
"So you two want to defy orders and head over?" She asked giving them serious looks, it was one thing to consider it but there was no question the Commander would be less than pleased if her plans were disrupted.
"The Commander will understand." Ayanami assured, their commander was a kind person who valued their safety. She was confident between keeping a secret or possibly saving lives that she would gladly lay herself bare if need be.
"I don't want anyone hurt because of me." Naruto declared, a previously unseen resolve stirring within him, if he was born to help protect humanity then he couldn't afford to put others in harm's way. "We should help." He urged.
"You two..." She bit her lip and weighed her options, ultimately it was her choice in the end which meant what happened next was on her shoulders.
Wonderful...
-A Few Miles Off-
"Behind you!"
The sounds of cannon fire filled the air like the beat of war drums, drowning out the shouts and yelps of those caught within the storm, their words unheard under a hail of gunfire.
"To think we could be ambushed so easily!" A proud but clearly frustrated voice shouted out among the noise, her weapons trained on the mass of intimidating, black ships that now encircled them. "The nerve of these dogs!"
"There is nothing to be done about it now, Nelson." A calm but somehow equally vexed voice admonished. "Focus your ire towards clearing us a path out of this." They ordered.
Nelson scoffed but did as she was told, her twin mounted guns ripping through her opposition as quickly as she could fire them while at her sides her companions focused on keeping her afloat, taking out anything that strayed too close. Their teamwork being just enough to hold back the tide for the moment.
"Miss London, are you hurt?"
"Ah, no I am holding up for now." London assured, shaking her head while unloading another few shots from her pistol, the armor-piercing rounds digging into hulls of a few unlucky ships and leaving sizable holes in her targets if not sinking them outright. "How about you, Miss Belfast?" She questioned over the sounds of gunfire, ducking to avoid some rounds of retaliation.
Belfast sighed as she waltzed with her usual grace between rows of shells, her guns working overtime to keep any suicide boats as far away from Nelson as possible while hazy white smoke billowed out from the sides of her rigging offer them a bit of cover in this storm.
"I am fine, a bit tender in a few places but it will take more than this to put down a maid of the Royal Navy." She promised, siding up to the light cruiser as the pair worked in tandem to fend off the hoard. "I am, however, still unable to contact the base or any nearby sorting parties." She relayed with a frown figuring that their signals were being jammed.
"This is utterly ridiculous!" Nelson growled as more ships arrived to block their path in a seemingly endless sea of red and black. Ships corrupted and changed by the Siren's to serve as cannon fodder, only a step above trash in her eyes. They were easy enough to destroy but their strength lies in sheer numbers, not firepower and right now the three of them were severely outnumbered.
She cured their ability to seemingly appear from thin air and vanish without a trace, such a frightening power could make even the simplest of missions into hellish skirmishes. It didn't help that they'd already spent most of their munition reserves on their earlier sortie leaving them with little ammunition to fight with.
She maintained a steady stream of clearing rounds but her guns could only fire so fast... at this rate, she was going to be on empty long before they were in the clear!
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The battle suddenly ground to a halt on both sides as a mighty explosion went off in the middle of the swarming fleet, churning the waters below in a violent shower of seawater, the air above became filled with dark clouds of thick smoke and the smell of burning metal as the ocean seemingly came alive in a field of fire cooking whatever strayed too close to the blast zone.
She watched as the swarm of cruisers began to split off no doubt trying to escape the range of such potent ammunition lest they end up in the same position as those unlucky enough to have been caught in the epicenter of the blast.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
A second explosion nearly shook her to her core, her eyes catching sight of dark purple shells raining in beautiful arcs down upon the wall of opposition setting the sky alight in flashes of violent energy. The sea practically roiled as the supercharged shells plunged into the depths before exploding with equal force, large spouts of heated water rising where they landed and creating scalding jets of steam in their wake.
"Nelson!"
London's voice drew her attention away from the spectacle and she turned to face the light cruiser who was pointing in the direction of a newly created opening. A hole had opened up in all the confusion that was just large enough for them to pass through.
"Quickly! Now's our chance!" She shouted while dipping back into the cover Belfast had created to mask their escape. She didn't need to be told twice and she made her way forward into the smoke as fast as she could trailing just behind her two companions as they slowly but surely slipped past the now burning blockade who were far too occupied to even bother with them.
Even as her own guns fell silent the echoing rumble of shells being fired could be heard for what seemed like miles, the trashing waves and ever-thickening black smoke were a testament to the unforgiving nature of such conflict.
Finally, the trio reached the outer limits where they were quickly meet with their rescuers who were doing their part to help push back the siren fleet. Torpedo barrages cut through the water like knives while glowing armor-piercing rounds punched large holes into the dark hulls.
"Nachi? Ayanami?" Belfast looked between the two IJN fleet ships with surprise having not expected to see the odd duo before quietly composing herself and offering them a deep bow of gratitude. "I do not know why you are here but we offer our sincerest thanks for your assistance." She said flashing an elegant smile to express her thanks.
At her sides, both London and Nelson nodded as well, offering their own words of gratitude to the pair.
"It was nothing, all in a day's work really~" Nachi preened happily accepting the thanks and admiration of her fellow comrades while Ayanami merely gave the cruiser a blank look before addressing the Royal Navy girls. They hadn't been expecting to run into the head maid out on patrol but she supposed that was to expected with so many different fleets working in tandem.
"Are you all unharmed?" She asked surveying the small scrapes and burns that peppered their once pristine clothing. "Are you in need of major repairs?"
"Other than some wounded pride and a few bruises, we're fine." Nelson huffed her twin tails swaying as she shook her head and dusted herself off. "We hadn't expected such a large force to be waiting in ambush, we were under-equipped for this." She admitted turning back to face the now retreating attackers.
Even now she could see intense eruptions of light blasting their way through the now fleeing armada, where once a seemingly endless blockade stood... was now only a few handfuls of damaged wrecks or smoldering remains.
She could only wonder at the kind of ship capable of bringing such a force to their heels...
...
Bored blue eyes watched impassively as the skies above were filled with soot and smoke, the hum of his cannon's exhaust ports acting as audible evidence to his handiwork as he wadded through the battlefield seemingly without a care. With his diminutive form encased under layers of thick gleaming armor and rows upon rows of heavy weaponry, he spared little thought to defense and simply burned through his enemies like insects.
"Turn to ash..."
His mobile armory responded to his will and the air around him was swiftly filled once more with the smell of gunpowder, the waves beneath his feet quivering as hellfire rained down upon his targets mercilessly. Chains of near-deafening explosions flashed before him as legions were sunk by his hand but he paid them no mind, merely turning his attention to the runners next.
"You won't escape..."
Gold bled abruptly into his eyes like liquid mercury, his vision sharpening as he locked onto his newfound prey, small chubby hands reached out as if to pluck them from the horizon and deadly armaments of steel and iron moved in tandem to assert his wishes. He looked on without the slightest care as enemy hulls seemed to fold in on themselves as his salvo of rounds perforated their now warped and mangled forms, sending quite a few to the depths below while crippling a great many more in the process.
A few turned to face him in open defiance, their jagged ebony gun barrels aim squarely at his lumbering form before firing upon him in tandem, the flash of their combined discharge lit the now murky oil-stained waters below as they fought desperately to bring down the singular Battleship.
Naruto watched as his rigging swiveled, lustrous black chrome hull plating protecting him from harm as their weaker shells bounced off his superior defense before commanding his main guns to fire a new and devastating salvo of shells that ripped the last of his opposition to shreds in moments.
It wasn't even a fight at this point...
He sighed as he began to clean up the stragglers, those that had failed to escape in time were being rendered into unrecognizable heaps of metal by his turrets. Gold tinted eyes fading slowly back to deep blue as his adrenalin seeped out from him. His guns lowered into a more relaxed position before eventually dispersing in a brief shower of light leaving him to move unhindered.
Turning his back to the last of the escaping fleet he made his way through the leftover wreckage, the slowly sinking remains of his handiwork surrounding him like a field of corpses as he threaded gently through the calming waters. He stopped and briefly placed his hand upon one of the wrecks, inspecting it for the sake of his curiosity.
The metal was brittle but still hot to the touch, not that it bothered him but he noted it all the same. The slowly fading hull was riddled with holes that he recognized as having come from his secondary guns, likely with an enemy that had strayed too close to him while he was 'working'.
He stared ahead quietly as he caught sight of his reflection in one of the tinted panes of glass that hadn't been shattered by his seemingly unending assault, barring some stray ash dusting his coat he looked almost pristine, not even a single hair seemed out of place. With the rush of battle now over he found himself feeling almost...Disappointed.
Not in himself but in the lack of challenge, he hadn't needed to push very hard to bring this enemy to their knees. For all their numbers they hadn't posed much of a threat even if he'd had the advantage of a sneak attack, even with time to organize an attack they'd only lasted what felt like mere minutes before the rest fled like mice. He silently hoped that next time he would get to push himself a bit harder.
Leaving the wreckage behind he peeked out from behind yet another slowly burning wreckage to take stock of the first ships outside of the Sakura Empire he'd ever laid eyes on, and the reason for their detour. The Royal Navy, home to the proud but ever elegant maids and royalty of the British fleet that made up a large core of Azur Lane. Kaga had praised their power and frightening level of teamwork and even Akagi had begrudgingly agreed that the Royal Navy had more than earned their place within the organization.
He had to admit they weren't exactly what he was expecting but that wasn't a bad thing, he actually sort of liked their done up look, it was a far cry from the looser garments that were more popular among the Sakura girls.
"Ano... She's even bigger than Onee-chan..." He gazed in slight amazement at the impressive 'torpedo bulges' on display from the Royals, if they were all so heavily armored then he could understand how they'd earned such a fearsome reputation.
He may have also idly wondered if they would make a nice place to sleep.
"Royal pillows..."
-Back at Base-
Akagi's hand abruptly clenched around the porcelain glass cup in her hands, the cracked glass falling to the floor in a shower of lukewarm tea and small gleaming shards as her tails twisted and writhed in annoyance behind her. A twinge of unknown fury sparked through her disotrying the calm atmosphere she'd built in the privacy of her home, a small tug at her senses ruining any chance of peace that might have settled within her.
She didn't know why she was mad but something inside her warned of ill tidings, forces that would greatly reduce her Naru time...
...
AN. Chapter Complete
So there we have it the first taste of Naruto's combat ability, like I mentioned before this wasn't meant to be a huge fight or even one that would push him a ton since it was mostly just cannon fodder but give an idea of what he is capable of normally. I would class him as a Priority Research Ship so his firepower is greater than most SRs given that his tech is a bit more developed with his Siren half.
I decided not to show what skills he'll have since I want to save those until he's actually in a fight that requires them plus I think it fits the theme of him discovering more about himself with time and experience than just rushing along.
Of course, we also have the second faction being introduced here with the Royal Navy. I asked you guys for your preferences and it was pretty much a coin flip between the Iron Bloods or the Royals but I decided to start with the Royals since there are quite a few distinct personalities in that faction that would be fun to interact with. I know a lot of people wanted to see Belfast, Queen Liz, Warspite, Hood, etc so I think it'll be better to start there but don't worry we will get to everyone eventually (I hope)
I'm sure my Eagle Union fans really want Enterprise to appear sooner rather than later, just give it time!
So with that out of the way, I'll talk a bit more about the story.
For one, Naruto's attitude towards combat:
I don't want to go too deep into this because I do have plans for Naruto's attitude to change depending on how intense a battle becomes and his unique situation. I will say, however, that he does not hate or even dislike to fight, he doesn't like to hurt his allies but he has little to qualms about fighting enemies and in this specific example where the ships he fought didn't resemble humanoids that point is made more obvious.
Naturally, he will eventually have to fight other girls and that may or may not cause him some hesitation but I wanted that to be clear.
Two, Romance clarifications:
So I got a few questions on this that I wanted to offer a bit of clarification on to help get people settled on what exactly could be expected from possible romance choices for Naruto here.
Will there be a romance option at all for Naruto?
Yes. since it looks like the story is going to continue (at least as of present) then there will almost certainly be a pairing(s). Some people seemed a bit unsure if that was on the table or not so to be absolutely clear the answer to that is yes.
Is Naruto limited to only Destroyers/Subs/or Other smaller ships?:
No. I think this idea is born out of Naruto taking a more childlike form at the moment but he is not going to be limited to girls that are around his current size. One thing to keep in mind is that Naruto is half Siren and a key element to Siren ideology is evolution, Naruto is not necessarily going to be a static character in certain areas which is where I'll leave that thread.
But yes, other battleships, carriers, cruisers, etc are on the table so don't worry about that.
Lastly, will I be looking into or focusing on romances on outside characters? (such as the commander or other ships)
Not really, no. Since I plan to keep chapters short I don't really want to go in-depth with characters who don't have a ton of relation with the main cast. The Commander is a bit of an exception but that's primarily because she is a centerpiece of the story, it's why I kept Akagi's clinginess towards her rather than just shifting it towards Kaga.
That's all for now, obviously, we'll get to see just how the Royal girls respond to Naruto next chapter and eventually he will meet with the faction properly but that is for another chapter. I hope you enjoyed and take care!
New AL Ships Featured:
Belfast
London
Nelson
Nachi