Naruto: Infinity Divide

Pirates!

Blanket Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Star Trek

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I'd like to clarify about the uniforms that the micro-mini dresses and boots are optional. I could be wrong, but I can't see those as being too practical in combat for the likes of Shizuka or Samui. Here is chapter 37. Enjoy!

Port = Left

Starboard = Right

[ ] Signifies a foreign language

Last time:

Naruto pulled into the driveway of his parent's home at 10:45 local time which was right on schedule as far as the blonde hybrid was concerned. He had originally intended to buy lunch for his family at a restaurant but T'Ara suggested they eat at home because they had no real idea of what Siegfried's tastes in foods were. Naruto glanced at his son in the car seat and thought, 'Mother is correct of course…as always.'

As the group piled out of the hovercraft T'Ara and Sovar came out to greet them with Talok in tow. Siegfried was extremely excited to meet his Grandparents. T'Ara greeted the little blonde with a hug. "I'm very pleased to meet you in person at last Siegfried." said T'Ara. "Welcome to your new home." She looked up at Naruto and said, "It is good to see you so well Naruto. This little one was a huge surprise to us and you no doubt."

"It is good to see you Mother." said Naruto. He turned to Sovar and his sister and said, "Father, Talok; I have missed you all."

Sovar said, "You have been missed as well Naruto; you brought home quite a little package."

Talok was obviously excited (by Vulcan standards). "Big brother, I am so pleased to see you. I never dreamed I would be an Aunt so soon."

Naruto gave his little sister a minimal smile and said, "We never dreamed that little Siegfried would come into our lives either."

…

"Personal Log of Naruto M'Fau, Stardate 2274.178: Today Samui and I bid farewell to our son. He was in a highly emotional state but this was to be expected given his age. We are fortunate that Lieutenant Rafi agreed to stay a few weeks to help Siegfried with this transitional time for him. She's decided to return to her home world when the time comes. It is still difficult to grasp the reality that I have a fine little son. Samui and I are now heading to Memory Alpha to rejoin the Gettysburg. It has been a long trip so far…"

…

Chapter 37

Stardate 2274.178 U.S.S. Gettysburg

Shizuka was drooling as she slept in her quarters on the Gettysburg. She was sprawled out on the bed. Her dreams had drifted back to the past and the first time she was with Naruto and they became mates…

…

Dream…

A small Away Team from the U.S.S. Darwin was taking readings of the local wildlife on the tropical planet Cassius VI. Cadets Naruto M'Fau and Maya Ayasugi from the Think Tank were among those in the science party supervised by an unusually moody Shizuka Nadeshiko. Things had started out well enough, but the Security Chief seemed to be getting more and more irritable and out-and-out hostile with those under her command. Naruto was concerned about her lack of discipline because it was totally unlike her usual demeanor.

This went on for what seemed like hours to the Cadets. Finally, Shizuka was reading the riot act to one of the cadets for a minor mistake and looked ready to physically assault him when Naruto interfered. "Lieutenant Nadeshiko, you must calm down! There is no need for viol-"

That was when Shizuka blindsided Naruto with a full strength backhand and sent Naruto tumbling. She looked frightened, guilty and angry all at the same time. Then the Security Chief growled and took off in a sprint towards the forest.

The whiskered blonde put two and two together quickly. He got up from his position on the ground and thought, 'She's gone into plak tow. This is bad. Why did she not inform us?' "The rest of you stay here and contact the ship. I'll go after Lieutenant Nadeshiko."

"Why should we stay behind Naruto?" asked Ayasugi. "She was out of her rational mind."

Naruto replied in a flat tone, "Because I'm the only one that can physically subdue her should it become necessary."

Ayasugi looked a bit shocked for a moment and then said, "I see your point. Be careful Naruto."

"I will be Maya." replied the blonde.

…

Shizuka was essentially running wild through the tropical forest. Her mind was a haze of anger and lust. She felt incredibly hot all over and couldn't control herself. 'IT HURTS!' was her only rational thought. She was looking around wildly to stop the burning, anything!

That's when Naruto tackled her from behind and said, "You have entered pon farr Lieutenant. We must-" She clocked him with a brutal right hook and grinned savagely before she lunged at the hybrid. Naruto wasn't amused. Not only was he bleeding now, but she also looked like she was enjoying herself. The whisker faced blonde was doing his best to subdue her without hurting her and was getting the hell beat out of him as a result. After they fought each other for a bit he finally ended up wrestling with her on the forest floor until he pinned the flailing Vulcan woman. Then she bit him on the shoulder and tasted his coppery blood the way T'Lyra sometimes did when they were mating. He let out a yell, but Shizuka calmed a little and then licked Naruto's face and let out a moan.

"There's no helping it." thought Naruto aloud. He very slowly, very gently put his pointer finger and middle finger to her face and stroked from her temple down to her cheek to initiate a mating bond.

She looked desperate but held his hand as he stroked her face again. Shizuka then did the same to Naruto's face and he leaned down and kissed her deeply. Shizuka seemed to revel in the new sensation and returned his kiss passionately. Then she pulled him down closer to her and did her best to ram her tongue down his throat. The Vulcan woman started grinding herself into him and mewled when Naruto started gently stroking her breasts through the fabric of her shirt. Naruto tried to undress her, but Shizuka started frantically tearing at his clothes.

"Oh, to hell with it!" growled Naruto as he started fumbling with the beautiful Vulcan woman's belt so he could take off her pants. It didn't take long before she had her legs wrapped around him as the two rutted in the grass like animals. After climaxing three times Naruto noticed she was smiling and calmer. Shizuka was a bit flushed and said huskily, "Let's go around again lover. Take me doggy style." She rolled over on her stomach and angled herself so he had a perfect view of her sumptuous ass. Any rational thoughts Naruto had about the situation kind of left his mind as he swiftly entered her wanting body from behind and buried himself in her to the hilt. Unlike before the blonde was able to take his time a slowly bring his new mate to orgasm again and again…

It was hours later when Shizuka finally cooled off and wanted to sleep. Naruto was exhausted and Shizuka was feeling completely sated. They both retrieved their battered clothes, and she kissed him deeply. "Naruto, I…"

Naruto kissed her forehead and said, "Let's get back to the ship. I'm sure they are looking for us."

…

Later, T'Lyra saw Shizuka when they got back to the U.S.S. Darwin. She asked, "Are you all right Shizuka? I sensed something was off, but Naruto said you went into plak tow…"

Shizuka was worn out but very happy. She explained, "Naruto found me and…took me as his mate. It was really difficult at first, but he calmed me down…I don't want this to be a onetime thing T'Lyra. I…I want to be with him like you are."

T"Lyra gave a small nod and said, "Once Naruto and I go through our pon farr we will get married on Vulcan. After that you can marry him too…"

…

Dream end…

…

Shizuka awoke with a gasp before she relaxed even seeing her wall chronometer was only at 03:00. 'Hmmm...when Naruto comes back from his little trip with Samui he and I are going to get it on right in the shower…'

…

Stardate 2274.179, Federation Express Transport

Naruto and Samui had a booth to themselves the first half of the trip, but the seating got rearranged after they took on more passengers and the pair was soon joined by a blue shirted Lieutenant Commander from Starfleet. They both stood immediately and saluted. The woman chuckled and said, "At ease Lieutenants, I'm just a passenger like you." She was a slim, attractive human woman with shoulder length black hair and deep black eyes. The woman introduced herself and said, "I'm Doctor Shizune Kato of Medical Division. I'm going to Memory Alpha pending transfer. Who might you be?"

Naruto replied, "I am Naruto M'Fau of Vulcan and this is my friend Samui Schrodinger of Earth." Samui nodded in greeting. "We are from the U.S.S. Gettysburg."

Shizune smiled and said, "Ah, I'm from the Mars Colonies. We'll be seeing more of each other since I'm going to be the Chief Medical Officer aboard the Gettysburg.

'Now if we could only get a chief Science Officer as well.' thought Samui. 'Naruto's stuck putting up with that harpy Wanda Hardy…'

The two blondes soon learned that Doctor Kato was very laid back and had a quiet but friendly disposition. They both felt that their friends from the Think Tank Shelly Wilson and Gregory Hammond would work well with Shizune…

…

Stardate 2274.180 U.S.S. Gettysburg, Memory Alpha

"Ship's Log, Stardate 2274.180: Captain Asuma Sarutobi reporting. We have arrived at Memory Alpha on schedule for our rendezvous with the fleet transport tug NCC-3801 U.S.S. Ptolemy*①. Unfortunately, the Ptolemy is not here. The ship was towing a starliner pod*② and we were to receive dignitaries to take to Earth. We have additional passengers to pick up and once that is done the Gettysburg will be tracing the Ptolemy's projected flight path as no transmissions have been heard from the tug in over six hours. Starfleet Command hasn't issued a fleet wide search yet, but I have a feeling they will before this situation is resolved. As ship as big as the Ptolemy doesn't just disappear on its own…"

The Federation Express with Naruto, Samui and Shizune docked at Memory Alpha and the three were soon beamed aboard the U.S.S. Gettysburg. Mabui was in the transporter room to greet them along with Ensign Heidi Gaul from the Think Tank. "Welcome aboard." greeted the mocha skinned first officer. "I'm afraid we have a situation on our hands so the Captain won't be able to welcome you formally until it is resolved Doctor Kato."

Shizune nodded. "I understand; I'll familiarize myself with the medical facilities and staff in the meantime."

"Very good." said Mabui. "Samui and Naruto report to the Staff Meeting Room once you've dropped off your luggage in your quarters."

"Aye, Commander!" chorused the two junior officers.

…

Staff Meeting Room

Naruto and Samui reported to the Staff Meeting Room as quickly as they could and saw everybody was there waiting. Filling in as Chief Medical Officer was Shelly Wilson and since Wanda Hardy was nowhere to be seen Naruto was acting as Chief Sciences Officer. Samui and Naruto saluted before taking their seats.

Asuma addressed his staff and said, "Good, we're all here. Intelligence has updated me us and the U.S.S Ptolemy is officially listed as missing as of 14:00 hours which is 34 minutes ago. We are the only ship with flag facilities in the local area so the Gettysburg will be coordinating the investigation. Four Police Cutters and two frigates will be joining us in the search. The Police ships have already fanned out through the surrounding systems. The frigates will be joining us directly. I'll be counting on all of you to assist in this task." The Captain turned to the center of the table where a holographic image of the area was projected.

"The last time the Ptolemy reported in was at 06:00 this morning which was a routine log entry. At the time the Ptolemy was here." said Captain Sarutobi pointing at a set of coordinates in the hologram. "Four hours later at 10:00 hours the Ptolemy missed a log entry. It should have been at these coordinates by then. Starfleet command wasn't alarmed until 14:00 when the U.S.S. Ptolemy missed an additional log entry at which time they ordered a search."

"Missed log entries due to interference aren't that uncommon." said Rafi. "Starfleet regulations usually give twenty-four hours before a ship is declared missing."

Mabui said, "That is generally correct Ensign Rafi. However, in this case there are V.I.P.s involved that are potential targets for pirates, terrorists and other factions."

Sassaav face palmed. "Not good. This could end up being a hostage situation or worse. Who are the lucky V.I.P.s?"

"The main people who would be targeted are the Federation Ambassador to the Kzinti Hegemony Lucas Zhukov and the Kzinti Ambassador to the Federation Y'zvar." answered Mabui.

Shizuka said, "I'll get the layout of the starliner pod and the Ptolemy in case we have to board her."

Asuma nodded. "It's a good idea to prepare for the worst but hopefully it won't come to that."

"Then we should proceed to the last known position of the Ptolemy at 06:00 and follow her flight path to search for data." said Naruto.

"Exactly Naruto." agreed Asuma. "Let's head out."

….

The U.S.S. Gettysburg left Memory Alpha and travelled at maximum warp to the point U.S.S. Ptolemy made her last transmission. There they were to rendezvous with two Federation frigates, NCC-303 U.S.S. Perry and NCC-306 U.S.S. Jellico*③. The Jellico arrived first and was waiting for the Gettysburg and the Perry. Captain David Ortega already had the Jellico sweeping the area for any signs of the missing transport tug. The Gettysburg arrived twenty minutes later, and Captain Ortega reported in.

"This is Captain Ortega of the U.S.S. Jellico to the U.S.S. Gettysburg." transmitted the Jellico. "We can find no signs of debris or any other unusual phenomena. It is safe to say the U.S.S. Ptolemy passed through this area undamaged. We could sure use a scout ship at times like these."

Captain Sarutobi smiled grimly and said, "I'm afraid we'll have to make do with what we've got Captain Ortega. I really didn't expect to find anything at this point but it's a place to start. Let's wait here for the U.S.S. Perry and we can start an organized search."

"Understood. Jellico will be on standby." said Captain Ortega curtly.

Captain Sarutobi turned to his First Officer and said lightly, "Captain Ortega is a bit of a grump wouldn't you say Mabui?"

Mabui looked over at Asuma and said, "To my knowledge Ortega was born grumpy. We went to the Academy together."

The U.S.S. Perry arrived ten minutes later with Captain Leila Kaiser in command. "Perry to Gettysburg, we are ready to proceed when you are."

The three Captains were in conference briefly and decided to set out on a wide span search with the Gettysburg following the flight path of the U.S.S. Ptolemy directly and the two frigates travelled at the edge of the cruiser's scanning range to the port and starboard. Traveling at warp factor two the three ships were covering a great deal of space when the Gettysburg and Perry to her port picked up a great deal of radiation.

Captain Sarutobi said, "Drop us to sublight Ensign Rafi. Lieutenant Naruto put full sensors on that radiation pocket. Tell me what you've got."

After a few moments Naruto said, "Judging by the amount and pattern of the radiation I would estimate one of the two impulse engines on the Ptolemy suffered some sort of reactor failure causing them to leak at 08:37 hours. Following the trail the Ptolemy left behind the ship turned hard to port and arced around to the flight path the U.S.S. Perry is picking up. I do not detect any debris indicating the Ptolemy suffered an explosion, however. We should contact the U.S.S. Perry and see if they concur while we follow the radiation trail."

…

"This is the Perry." answered Captain Kaiser. "The radiation trail doubles back in the opposite direction. Our sciences department concurs with yours, Captain Sarutobi. The Ptolemy had a reactor leak but that doesn't explain her change in course. There are no other signs of activity in the area other than the radiation trail. Shall we follow?"

"Affirmative Captain Kaiser." said Asuma. "The Gettysburg and Jellico will form up on your flight path."

…

The three Federation ships were in a simple line ahead formation travelling at warp factor four with the Perry in the lead followed by the Gettysburg and then the Jellico. Naruto looked up from his station and said, "We're picking up four cruiser sized vessels at maximum range moving at warp factor three. The radiation trail leads right to them. One of the four ships could be the Ptolemy."

"And the other three ships?" asked Captain Sarutobi.

Naruto answered, "Unknown but no cruiser sized vessels are scheduled to be in this sector aside of the Ptolemy."

"Assuming a worst-case scenario it could be pirates." said Mabui.

The Captain nodded and said, "Let's assume the worst then. Go to yellow alert. Where are they headed Naruto?"

"They are several days out at their rate of travel, but their current course avoids any major systems between here and the Klingon Border." replied the blonde.

Asuma turned to the communications station and said, "Relay the information to the other ships M'rella; the U.S.S. Gettysburg will be taking the lead in the formation at warp factor five."

…

With the Orion Pirate Squadron

Ahead of the Federation Squadron were three Orion Pirate Vessels of the Hamilcar Pirate Cartel and the ship they had captured, the U.S.S. Ptolemy. Though they usually preyed on relatively unarmed cargo convoys; occasionally they went for big game…When the money was good. ...Especially when the money was good. The Orion Salvage Cruiser*④ Whale was towing the big and heavy Ptolemy at her best speed which was about warp three without damaging the Whale's engines. They were escorted by two Orion Raider Cruisers*⑤, the Barracuda and the Piranha*⑥.

How had they pulled this off? First, Klingon Intelligence told them the coordinates to be at when the U.S.S. Ptolemy broke down due to a 'reactor leak' courtesy of a saboteur planted aboard the Ptolemy. Unfortunately for the pirates of the Hamilcar Clan, though the Ptolemy wasn't escorted; it was full of Federation Marines that were putting up a savage fight against the boarders from the Hamilcar Cartel. In short, the pirates managed to 'capture' the Ptolemy in a tractor tow, but they didn't 'control' the big transport tug by a long shot. Worse still, the two dignitaries they were supposed to capture were completely out of reach so towing the Ptolemy along like a massive, inert piece of metal at a ponderous speed was the best the Orions could do…

…And the Federation Squadron headed by the U.S.S. Gettysburg was slowly closing from behind…

"Well, fuck…" said 'The Baroness' Tayuya who commanded the Whale. "It looks like the Feds have caught onto our trail already." She pondered a moment and said, "Inform the Barracuda and the Piranha to prepare for combat to delay the Federation Squadron. The Feds have got at least a cruiser and two smaller ships, maybe destroyers or frigates…The Whale will stay on course until we get those two ambassadors and then drop the Ptolemy and escape at best speed."

…

With the Federation Squadron

"Two of the ships have doubled back to intercept us." said Naruto as he looked up from the science station. "They appear to be Orion Raider Class Cruisers. Their estimated time to contact is twenty minutes at our mutual closing speeds."

"And the other two ships…?" asked Mabui.

"They are still on the same course and heading moving at warp factor three Commander Kumo." replied the blonde.

"Condition red; battle stations!" said Mabui as the Federation ships went from condition yellow to red.

…

With the Piranha and the Barracuda

"A heavy cruiser and two frigates are a problem but not an impossible one." said Captain Sakon of the Barracuda. "If each of us takes out a frigate we can double up on the heavy cruiser afterwards. We'll pincer them."

"Understood." replied the twin of Sakon, Captain Ukon of the Piranha. "We'll take starboard, and you take port. Remember, one pass and haul ass."

The two Raider cruisers quickly split in opposite directions.

…

The Gettysburg

Asuma commanded, "All ships stand by to veer to port! We are taking out the Raider that was in the trailing position."

The Piranha and the Barracuda both were committed to their attack runs and gunning for the frigates when the entire Federation Squadron suddenly turned directly towards the Piranha. Captain Ukon's eyes grew wide and he froze up. "Captain, what do we do?!" screeched his helmsman.

A barrage of photon torpedoes from the three Federation ships answered the question and left the Piranha a gutted wreck before the Raider could fire a single shot in retaliation. Then the Federation Squadron accelerated away leaving the Barracuda to clean up the mess of her sistership. "Shall we circle around and finish the job on that Raider?" asked Mabui.

Asuma shook his head, "Our concern is the Ptolemy. From the looks of things, the other Raider is helping the cripple which is exactly what I wanted; two birds with one stone. Destroying the cripple would free up the undamaged one to attack us and I want to keep the squadron intact."

Commander Kumo asked, "Why do you suppose the Raider didn't return fire?"

Sarutobi shrugged. "Maybe he wanted to wait till the last second to open fire. Maybe he froze up. It was a stroke of luck for us either way. I was afraid we'd lose one of the frigates or at least our front shielding." The Captain looked at the tactical readout on screen. The demolished Piranha was at a dead stop and the undamaged Barracuda was at station keeping beside her rescuing crewmembers from her wrecked sistership. The U.S.S. Gettysburg, Perry and Jellico were closing on the Ptolemy and the Whale. They left the two Raider cruisers in the proverbial dust.

As the Gettysburg and the frigates leveled out and began closing on the Ptolemy, the Whale suddenly dropped her tractor beam on the inert Federation transport tug and accelerated away as quickly as she could.

"We're receiving a distress call from the U.S.S. Ptolemy." said M'rella. "They have boarders and require assistance. They were being jammed before."

"Contact them and find out if the two ambassadors are still aboard." ordered Captain Sarutobi. "We may need to pursue that Salvage Cruiser."

"I'm in touch with Captain Richardson sir. He says the dignitaries are secure." said M'rella.

"On screen." said Asuma.

When the viewscreen lit up they saw a rather beat up looking Starfleet Captain in a filthy dress uniform. He was of human descent. The man said, "I'm Captain Joshua Richardson of the U.S.S. Ptolemy."

Asuma said, "I'm Captain Asuma Sarutobi of the U.S.S. Gettysburg. How can we assist you, Captain Richardson?"

"Do you have Marines?" asked Richardson. "I have pirates all over my ship!"

Asuma glanced over at Shizuka who was all but foaming at the mouth to cheer. He sweat dropped at her antics and thought, 'We probably have more Marine Squads than any other heavy cruiser in the fleet.' "We have plenty of Marines Captain Richardson. I'll let your Marine Major coordinate with my Security Chief here and get them where they are needed most." Asuma looked at his readout of the Ptolemy. "What about the reactor leak you have aboard?"

Richardson growled, "It's been locked down and the plasma is being ejected into space. It was due to sabotage I'm afraid."

'God only knows how many casualties they have due to that.' thought Asuma dourly. "I'll have my Medical Staff on standby then. Do you have the Ambassadors secured? It would be best to beam them over as soon as possible."

"They are down under the protection of my Marine Major on the starliner pod." said Richardson. "I'll patch him through to your Security Chief now…"

….

Stardate 2274.182 U.S.S. Gettysburg

"Ship's Log, Stardate 2274.182: Captain Asuma Sarutobi reporting. It took nearly twenty-four hours to get the last of the pirates captured or eliminated that were aboard the U.S.S. Ptolemy. Of the estimated 150 boarders the Marines aboard the Ptolemy held out despite the fact they were outnumbered two to one. From the reports I've read so far, Lieutenant Nadeshiko and our Marine contingent did an outstanding job and the 42 remaining pirates surrendered willingly after suffering huge losses at our hands."

"Ambassadors Zhukov and Y'zvar have made themselves at home in our V.I.P. quarters and though Federation Ambassador Zhukov was terrified of the whole situation on the U.S.S. Ptolemy, Kzinti Ambassador Y'zvar said our Marines and the entire crew of the U.S.S. Gettysburg have left a 'favorable impression' upon him. Considering this is coming from a felinoid that is over two meters tall I felt it would be best to just take the compliment."

"The U.S.S. Ptolemy is underway again and headed towards Starbase 4 for repairs and her crew for medical treatment. On that note, our new Chief Medical Officer Doctor Shizune Kato is nothing short of outstanding. Her organizational skills saved many lives as she basically converted the starliner pod's cargo bay into a field hospital in no time. Our medical team is excellent but with Doctor Kato in charge I am positive it will be that much better. Our Marines suffered injuries but not one of them was fatal or debilitating. Considering that combined with our first ship to ship combat record we have been extremely lucky…"

The remaining seven day voyage to Earth was largely uneventful for the crew of the Gettysburg though Kzinti Ambassador Y'zvar eating his own weight in raw meat daily was a bit taxing on the ship's cooks because it had to be spiced to the Ambassador's tastes. Y'zvar was also given a tour of the ship by Captain Sarutobi as a matter of diplomatic courtesy. The Ambassador was very interested in the combat capabilities of the Gettyburg but given its classified nature Asuma was able to sidestep that line of questions. Captain Sarutobi wasn't too keen on giving away military secrets even to potential allies…

On the other hand, Ambassador Zhukov was more than happy to stay in his quarters as it turned out, which suited Asuma and his staff just fine. Zhukov had been rather spooked by the disaster on the U.S.S. Ptolemy and was writing up a personal memorandum that included travelling on heavily armed warships like the Gettysburg on future trips. Actually, the Ambassador was hoping to get a dreadnought next time…

…

Stardate 2274.190, Hamilcar Pirate Hidden Base, Klingon Territory

The Whale and the Barracuda were able to evade Federation (and Klingon) anti-piracy patrols and slipped back into a hidden Base Station in Klingon Territory. The Head of the Hamilcar Cartel was less than thrilled with the situation with the loss of the Piranha, but it couldn't be helped since they ran into a Federation Navy combat squadron instead of the few police ships in that were supposed to be in that sector. Even worse the Piranha's destruction couldn't be covered by the advanced credits that the Klingon Empire gave the Hamilcar Clan, and the Cartel had no captured Ambassadors to hand over for the rest of the cash…

'The Baroness' Tayuya naturally was cursing up a storm at Sakon and Ukon (In the end Ukon and most of his crew survived from the Piranha by some minor miracle).

…Sometimes it sucked to be a pirate…

…

Stardate 2274.191, Earth, Spacedock, NCC-1728 U.S.S. Gettysburg

The Gettysburg docked flawlessly in the Spacedock over Earth. The Ambassadors disembarked and Captain Sarutobi and his crew were glad to be rid of their high maintenance guests. Asuma was bound and determined to get a Chief Science Officer while they were in the Spacedock as the situation with Lieutenant Wanda Hardy had come to a head and the Captain wanted her off his ship yesterday.

Mabui was less than thrilled with Lieutenant Hardy herself and was already drafting the transfer orders for Wanda at Asuma's instructions. 'Insubordination, disruptive behavior, unseemly actions for an officer of a Lieutenant's stature…' "I hate to give such a negative fitness report, but Wanda Hardy is a liability on the Bridge. Captain Sarutobi should have put Naruto in charge from the outset…"

…

POSTSCRIPT:

*① Google: NCC-3801 U.S.S. Ptolemy to see this ship's appearance.

*② Starliner pods are passenger pods for V.I.P.s and such. There are other types of pods such as battle pods for combat and standard cargo pods for a variety of goods.

*③ Google: NCC-300 Burke Class Frigate to see the appearance of these smaller ships.

*④ Google: Orion Salvage Cruiser to see this ship's appearance.

*⑤ Google: Orion Raider Cruiser to see this type of ship's appearance.

*⑥ Sea creature names were a common theme of the Hamilcar Pirate Clan; don't ask me why.

It seems the dreaded footnotes have returned with a vengeance. Next chapter we'll be starting a new arc. It will either have the Gettysburg transferred to the Klingon Border or to deep space exploration. I haven't decided which idea I like better yet. The Gettysburg will get a Chief Science Officer as well. We also saw some familiar faces among the Hamilcar Cartel of Pirates. The Sound Four seemed just like the motley crew for that kind of work to me. See you next time. Blue out. 9/30/23