Even from the opening doors and the blast of Summer air that followed, the sheer largeness and denseness of the city was baffling to Iowa. The crowds at the station seemed large and foreboding, but Ushio and the rest of the girls trudged onwards and thus the battleship followed, stepping out onto the platform.
The dense streets filled with cars and the distant bustle of people, bright ads with cartoon girls and other vivid and colorful efforts to get people to buy various products loomed heavily over the distant streets.
Stepping down politely past the crowd and from the elevated train, Ushio led the group down to the narrow streets, verifying her group was with her, at the bottom, she noticed Iowa's curious and slightly uncomfortable glances all around.
"Is this your first time in a city?" Ushio asked Iowa worriedly.
"Um-yes, at least outside of being ten thousand tons of steel in the harbor." Iowa managed to shoot off. " from what I'd seen before I recalled Japanese cities being a bit more-quaint. With wooden houses and stuff."
Ushio frowned, "sorry." She muttered with genuine remorse.
"For what?" the larger ship asked, surprised
"It's not what you were expecting- there's a small town off the base. It is nice, but the bookstore is small, do- do you want to go there instead maybe?" The girl asked quietly.
Iowa let out another lopsided grin, "it'll be fine, I'm just getting adjusted is all." Iowa announced, stepping past a group of pedestrians.
The winding streets of the city seemed narrow to Iowa, but on reconsideration this may have been more due to the busy shops and large numbers of people. "Man, even for a city this is packed and everything is so much more colorful than it used to be." She added, resuming their movement.
"Huh?" Ushio asked, "oh! that's mostly just the entertainment district, it's colorful."
The American gave her a blank look as a group of children in matching uniforms pushed through between them. "So all of the cartoon girls?"
Ushio smiled and nodded, "it's a fun place."
"Did you take us to weebland?" Haggard asked, staring at a particularly pink and enthusiastic cartoon girl.
Ushio looked alarmed, "I-uh, thought it might be fun."
"Shut up Haggard" Iowa countered.
The ships continued onward, the Taffies forming in a small picket behind Iowa, chatting about various plans, Ushio led the way, glancing back periodically. Iowa suspected with sadness that she wanted to make sure the group didn't dissipate into the crowds to leave her stranded and flashed the destroyer her best disarming smile.
Rather suddenly one of her glances back resulted in a confused and slightly concerned expression. "Wasn't there-?" She began, pointing to the group of destroyers behind Iowa.
Iowa frowned, turning around to notice the trio of destroyers had become a duo.
"Hey, did we miss Hailey?" Iowa asked worried.
"Hailey?" Haggard asked.
"Your sister," Iowa exclaimed.
Haggard shrugged, a smile creeping up on her face.
"She saw something back there," Franks answered by pointing aways behind herself and eliciting a slight grumble or fun running from Haggard. "She said she'd come back once she checked it out."
"She's going to try to find her way through this crowd?"
"We've got radar and wireless," Haggard shrugged, "the backup was to fire a few flares."
"Don't you dare shoot off flares in a city." Iowa began, "come on, let's go find Hailey."
"Fine. But they're basically fireworks, it's not like we're firing off our guns."
"No flares,", Iowa repeated as she made her way through the crowd.
Pressing through the crowd, Haggard took lead, the 6th sense of radar guiding her through the crowds and down a side street the group had passed earlier. Finally stopping near a neon sign surrounded in those baffling cartoon girls Iowa had seen. Below it was a wide entrance and beyond that, a dazzling array of loud noises, excited yelling and bright lights, long with dozens and dozens of what looked like color TVs hidden in strange machines.
Hailey stood at the entrance, staring in with wonder.
"What?" Iowa asked meeting the girl at the entrance, "I don't understand."
"It's an arcade," the girl stated with wonder.
"So this is what you found. It's beautiful," Haggard added, joining her sister.
Franks stared and smiled.
"Huh," Iowa muttered. "So are you all staying here than?"
"Can we?" Franks asked surprised.
"Sure?" The battleship countered questioningly, "don't kill anyone. Me and Ushio will be back."
Am inhuman scream of delight and energy emitted from the destroyers as they barreled headfirst into the light and sound filled chaos of the arcade. Wincing internally at the noises, Iowa addressed Ushio. "Still want to go to the bookstore?"
The girl smiled and nodded, "I have a few things I'd like to pick up."
"Great," Iowa replied gesturing down the road, "lead on."
The pair continued down the crowded streets past various bright and alluring storefronts until, several blocks down from the arcade a larger building with several bright at alluring banners became visible over the short tops of several buildings, the few streets between the duo and their destination however featured several slashy barriers and various construction equipment. The owners of said equippment currently being in the part of repairing a section of road.
"Oh- oops," Ushio said with a frown.
"Huh?" Iowa asked.
"That road up there isn't usually blocked, we have to head around." explained the Japanese ship.
Iowa gave it some thought, glancing over her surroundings "Okay, how about that side route.?" she asked finally, indicating towards a distant alleyway.
Ushio frowned, thinking briefly, "okay." She finally announced with uncertainty.
The narrow alley of Iowa's 'side route' quickly meandered over bike paths, bridges, and side alleys, quickly changing the scenery enough to, in addition to Ushio's slight air of unease, tell Iowa that they probably were no longer even in the same district. The buildings had become less bright and even in a few cases run down and the people seemed less used to having a Westerner and young girl walking together, giving odd glances from the windows of the residences or alleys bordering the narrow road.
"Uh-iowa, I think we may be lost."
Iowa nodded, "seems that way" she answered, with frustration
"Sorry"
"Don't apologise, I chose the alley." Iowa soothed, "Hey, how about we go ask for directions?"
Ushio nodded slightly
Noticing a passing woman with arms full of laundry Iowa raised her hand in greeting, "Excuse me-" she began. Her only reply a tirade of frustrated Japanese.
Ushio's smile faded slightly.
"Okay, that was no good." Iowa began, thinking, "Hey, how about that noodle shack there?," she asked pointed towards a particularly dreary ramen cart with some disheveled and salty looking dock workers patronizing it.
"The-uh ramen cart?" Ushio asked
"Either one works" Iowa offered, "but the noodle shack is the closest."
"That's um- okay." ushio attempted to correct.
Iowa sauntered over to the ramen cart with a happy grin on her face, causing mild grumbles in Japanese by the patrons, a group of particularly salty dockworkers presumably taking a break.
Ushio followed with a nervous look on her face, removing her pink and sticker encrusted backpack and taking a seat towards an empty stool at the cart.
The owner gave an expecting frown towards Iowa as the battleship took a seat on one of the farther stools, elciiting a pained groan from the seat.
"Good afternoon." She began "sorry, me and my friend here were looking for directions. we got lost looking do you think you could give us a hand."
The man gave a shooing motion to Iowa and let out some particularly mean spirited Japanese in a dismissive manner.
"Okay, sorry, I don't speak Japanese, can I-"
More dismissive Japanese followed and the man began stirring a pot, now completely ignoring the duo, to the amusement of several of the dockworkers
Ushio piped up unsteadily in Japanese, prompting a second, more directed tirade at the destroyer, involving a spoon waved in a lecturing manner. The smaller ship began staring intently at the group and let out a soft reply, which, judging by the man's arrogant expression and Ushio's past tendencies, seemed likely to be an apology by Iowa's standards.
"Okay," Iowa began louder, "all we wanted was some patience and help." She began, "but you've been condescending and rude to my friend." She gestured towards the destroyer. "I-"
Iowa stopped, out of the corner of her eyes she spotted Ushio giving some very frantic looks around the base of her chair before glancing both ways down the road.
"What happened?" Iowa asked.
But the girl was busy tracking a target down the road, her shoulders and head slumping slightly downwards as the girl took on a full aura of defeat, letting out a pitiful, "oh," in a quiet tone.
The dock workers let out a raucious and mocking laugh that even the ramen shop owner took on as Iowa turned herself at the now distant target disappearing down the empty streets, a man in a blue dockworkers uniform. Wearing a pink backpack.
A quick look at the base of Ushio's stool confirmed the worst.
"Hey!" Cried the battleship sternly, her cry drowned out amongst the jeering laughs of the dock workers.
Iowa stood up, knocking the barstool down, "Get back here!" She called to the man, still underneath the giggles. She gave a quick glance back at Ushio, now sitting back on the barstool her head hung in defeat and sniffling slightly.
"Alright, to heck with this." She muttered, "we ain't gonna catch him like this."
"Hey scumbag!" She shouted, the laughs of the dockworkers choking into startled gasps and panicked falls onto the floor as her dual twin 12" turrets materialized on her back.
Taking her tone down slightly she glanced backwards towards her "A" gun. "Load me both barrels, just a single charge, I don't want a warhead." she explained to her gun crews
"Wait." Ushio called with alarm, now aware of Iowa's intent.
"She turned again towards the target, methodically addressing her bridge crew "Target bearing: three, five, eight. Range: 200 yards. Windage: zero knots."
"Iowa-" Ushio called.
Iowa hesitated briefly, a savage grin taking hold on her face.
"Fire one!" she yelled.
The explosion of a naval rifle, even a naval rifle scaled down by the improbable magic of a shipgirl was magnificent. Laundry over the road, scattering randomly across the path and any paper or other litter was thrown up by the hot winds generated by Iowa's shot.
The dock workers at the Ramen stand took it as their call to flee, rising from their impromptu hiding places off the street or hopping of their stools to rush off into the distance. On her target, however, the opposite and intended effect was achieved. The man fell prone and finally gave Iowa his attention, glancing back in abject horror at the smoking gun.
"Firstly." Iowa announced, making a right race towards the Ramin stall and sending an accusing point towards the owner, "I want an apology for my friend."
The alarmed desperation of the man seemed to indicate some sort of effort to recompense himself.
Iowa turned back to the prone man, still focused fully on her.
"Roosevelt taught me a thing or two about gunboat diplomacy and big sticks!" the battleship declared, proudly patting her smoking gun turret, walking slowly towards the cowering man. "The next one will be a bit more than just a fireworks display."
"You can't!" Ushio finally protested, following Iowa.
"Can't what?"
"You can't just shoot up the city."
"It was just enough powder to scare him, it wasn't going to escalate further." Iowa assured. "Like I said, gunboat diplomacy. It's all about having big guns, not necessarily using them."
"But-" Ushio protested mulling over the words before finally taking on a slight smile., "but thanks."
"Yeah, people taking things that don't belong to them upsets the American in me." Iowa declared as she took her backpack from the weeping form of the thief, offering it to the destoryer.
"Now, which direction gets us back on track to the bookstore?"
Ushio shrugged.
Over the blowing papers and weeping bandit, the distant sounds of sirens could be heard.
"Oh, that gives me a good idea," the battleship suggested enthusiastically, "maybe we could ask a government employee!"