Chapter 99 - Chapter 97: The Trainee's First Sortie (Slight NSFW Warning)

Mmmgh... Hmm...? What? It's morning already? Argh...I opened my eyes and the first thing I saw was a bunch of brown hair. I'm hugging something warm and soft. It was Zuihou, who is sleeping with her back towards me. This is the best dakimakura I ever had.Anyway, this is rare. Even after a fun and sweaty night, Zuihou is usually the one who wakes up first. This is the first time I woke up before her. I stroke her head as I sat up in bed. Last night was fun. We tried a few new positions. First, she tried sucking me off. Since it was her first time, it was clumsy and ticklish, but seeing Zuihou try her best and pushed on even though she was gagging a few times was more than enough for me. After releasing a load, she spat it out, unable to swallow it. Not that I expect her to. After a short break, I had her ride on top of me and take control. It was cute and hot watching Zuihou bounce on my member until she climaxed herself. After that, without pulling out, I took her from behind and kept it going until we tire ourselves out and fell asleep."Mngh... Mmm... Hmm..." (Zuihou)She is waking up."Mmnn..." (Zuihou)"Good morning, Zuihou.""Hmm?" (Zuihou)Zuihou turned around and looked at me sleepily. She rubbed those sleepy little eyes of hers,"Good morning, Admiral." (Zuihou)I brushed a few strands of hair away from her face and continued petting her. From this angle, I can see her boobs. I think she knows it as well, as her face turned red and she pulled the blanket towards her face."Geez! Don't stare so much!" (Zuihou)She puffed out her cheeks to protest. So cute!"Why are you so adorable?"I poked her puffy cheeks. She seems more annoyed when I do that. All according to plan."Cut it out." (Zuihou)She swats my hand away and sat up, still covering her chest with the blanket. She turned away from as she tries to get out of bed, showing me that peach shaped butt of hers. No way I'm letting her get away after showing me that.I grabbed her arm and pulled her back to me."Eh?! Wai- Admi- Mmng!? NNNNH!" (Zuihou)First, seal those lips of hers."Mnh... Nn..." (Zuihou)I can feel her melting as we shared a deep, sloppy kiss."Puaah~ Admiral, y-you sly raccoon! What are you doing so suddenly!?" (Zuihou)"It's only sunrise and you already have me feeling so happy. Thanks, Zuihou."She is blushing so hard. I want to devour more of her."Geez! Stop doing silly things and get dressed!" (Zuihou)I held on to her arm before she could escape,"Nope. We are not done yet."I took off the blanket, revealing my member standing at attention,"Thanks to you, I'm like this first thing in the morning. I won't be able to concentrate on work like this. Do something about it as my secretary.""Why are you blaming it on me?" (Zuihou)She's flustered..."Come on.""Waah!" (Zuihou)I flipped her onto the bed,"12 minutes. Just give me 12 minutes.""Geez~~ Hyaa! Nnn!" (Zuihou)Her moans echoed around the room as I rubbed her nether regions. I didn't really need to do much since she is already turned on and wet. All right. Time to have my meal!After helping myself to my girlfriend and getting my fill, the two of us went to the mess hall to have our breakfast. Fortunately, there was still some food left. My fun time went... a little into overtime. And Zuihou got reasonably angry. I really can't help it. Zuihou is too cute when she is feeling it.It has been about a week and a half since Aoba created that PR video for Misaki-chan, before releasing it onto the internet. To my surprise, it became viral. Most of the comments were about how cute or how cool certain shipgirls are, but there were a number of comments thanking the girls for their service. Let's not talk about the negative ones.A lot of the girls are obsessed with the video. They kept rewatching it again and again, especially the shots and scenes where they were present.Moreover, I don't know whether to feel happy or sad about one particular scene in the video.Instead of keeping it for myself, I accidentally sent that picture I took of Zuihou when she was looking up at the sky. Aoba's editing skills used that beautiful still shot of Zuihou into a rather epic one as it transitioned into the scene where she launched her aircraft to initiate a bombing run on an Abyssal fleet, followed by montage of the other carriers doing the same thing. Aoba really made good use of the battle footage we provided her with.Haah... Oh well. At least, that picture has been immortalized in that PR video and used in the best way possible.As of last week, we finally completed the boring theory and basic tactics class. From this week on, everything is going to be hands-on practice. This week, I'm letting the trainees try their hand in commanding a small Destroyer Squadron. Lots were drawn last Friday to determine which fleet they will be assigned to and when will it be their turn to lead the fleet. To make things easier, everyone was assigned four destroyers for this week's practical. I want them to feel comfortable leading a small group before forming their own fleet. I had told them before to befriend the shipgirls as much as they can during their free time.I already know Ogami-san and Nekokami-san has gotten friendly with quite a number of the girls in the base. Takeshi-san has gained the trust of the Battlships, the Tenryuu-class Cruisers, some girls from the Mutsuki-class, the Etorofu-class girls, and the two speedsters. The Coastal Defense Girls seem to really like climbing and being carried by him. He is pretty tall after all. Nagamura-san managed to befriend the revised Shiratsuyu-class girls like Kawakaze and Yamakaze, Noshiro, Sakawa, Tama, Kuma, Hiryuu, Souryuu, Imuya and Iku.Hashimoto-san, on the other hand, is a big blur. I did see her talk to Asashio and Zara once. But aside from those times, I had not seen her interact with any of the shipgirls. She is always in her room or in the archive room, reading the combat logs. At this rate, I'm worried none of the girls would want to follow her.I looked at my tablet. Today's is Hashimoto-san's turn to command a sortie. For this week, the trainees will put what they had learned to the test. It's not a major assessment. I want to see how well they can lead a fleet and customize a personalized lesson plan for them. Nekokami-san did well during her first sortie on Monday. Nagamura-san had a little trouble on Tuesday after making a small navigation mistake nearly sent the fleet off-course. Aside from that, he did well in giving the girls their orders."Hashimoto-san, when you are ready."The girls she was assigned to stood front of us in the briefing room, ready for the briefing. Today's sortie involves them going to the Wakasa-wan area and eliminating the Abyssal Fleet that has been spotted there. A regular culling mission. The JMSDF ships patrolling that area reported about it yesterday. The enemy fleet consists of one Light Cruiser Ho-class and two Destroyer Ro-class."Yes! I'm Lieutenant Hashimoto Rei. I will be your Commanding Officer today. I will be in your care!" (Hashimoto-san)A strong introduction. The girls seem to be reacting well for now."Pleased to meet you, Lieutenant!" (All)"For starters, can you introduce yourselves?" (Hashimoto-san)"Yes!" (Asashio)Asashio took a step forward and gave a salute,"I'm the destroyer Asashio. I'm ready to work hard to serve the fleet. Please take good care of me!" (Asashio)A perfect model student as always. I think she and Hashimoto-san will get along just fine."Nice to meet you. Next, please." (Hashimoto-san)"Here! Here!" (Shiratsuyu)Shiratsuyu raised her hand and jumped excitedly. Her long flowing hair swayed as she bounced,"I'm Shiratsuyu that just received the greatest remodel, Lieutenant. I'm definitely the number one ship. Now, let's go!" (Shiratsuyu)"Eh? Shiratsuyu? When did you get remodelled?" (Hashimoto-san)"Fufu~ I got it last Sunday! Look, isn't this awesome?" (Shiratsuyu)Just as promised, I checked with HQ if we could give Shiratsuyu a long-overdue remodel. To my surprise, the blueprints for her remodel were already in the oven. It just needed to be finalized and adjusted by Akashi. After our resident repair ship had done the necessary changes and sent it back to HQ for approval, Shiratsuyu was given a full makeover.Now, Shiratsuyu's hair is longer, with a faint blue color at the tip of her hair, while sporting the distinctive hair flaps just like her remodeled sisters. She stills wears the usual black Shiratsuyu-style uniform, but with a magenta zipper and some new additions. The new outfit makes her breast more noticeably prominent. A bronze whistle hangs on her neck. She has fingerless gloves, a longer right sleeve and wears thigh high stockings now.As for her rigging, the 12.7 cm single gun mount Type A that's slung across her shoulder is replaced with a second twin mount Type C with Type 22 radar attachment. On her mast, the flag signals "5" and "Z" are flown from the halyard. Of course, she doesn't have those on her now. Only during sorties."Wow. This is impressive." (Hashimoto-san)"Heehee~ I know, right?" (Shiratsuyu)"Yeah. Let's move on." (Hashimoto-san)"Nice to meet you! I'm Fubuki! Thanks for having me!" (Fubuki)"Nice to meet you, Fubuki." (Hashimoto-san)Good thing I didn't put Fubuki in Nekokami Fubuki's fleet. Otherwise, it would have been very confusing."And lastly," (Hashimoto-san)"Heyo! I'm Suzukaze. I'll add a ton of power to the fleet!" (Suzukaze)"G-glad to hear that, Suzukaze." (Hashimoto-san)There was a knock on the door,"Admiral, it's Ooyodo." (Ooyodo)"Come in."The door opened and Ooyodo poked her head instead,"Admiral, excuse me. Can you come out for a moment?" (Ooyodo)Okay... I think I know what to expect when she is like this."Zuihou,""Yes. Leave them to me." (Zuihou)I didn't even need to say it."Thanks. I will be back."I left the room and closed the door behind me,"What's up? A confession?""Yeah yeah. Try something new for once. We just received an order from HQ." (Ooyodo)I knew it. What is it this time?"Another emergency sortie? Or some kind of nonsense like before?""Frankly, I don't know if this belongs in the latter." (Ooyodo)I took the telegram from Ooyodo's hand and read it."A meeting with... Huh? What is this? How is a military organization like us and a clothing company related?"This is even more ridiculous than I thought. I am being ordered to head over to HQ tomorrow for a meeting with the CEO of HoshimaChik, a clothing store that became famous in Japan about five years ago. They specialize in affordable and fashionable streetwear for teens and young adults. Also, why do I have to bring Zuihou along?"Apparently, Admiral Yuito was also called to HQ." (Ooyodo)"Why? I don't see any reason why are we getting involved with them."I continued reading the telegram. The gist of it is that the CEO is interested in having our shipgirls model for a magazine. He has seen the promo video and would like us to participate in a photoshoot for a Valentine's Day promotional event. More details will be given during tomorrow's meeting and participation is compulsory for me, Zuihou, Yuito and Zuikaku. The meeting will take place in the afternoon, 1300 hours. Christ! Why is HQ giving us such ridiculous orders lately?"I really don't want to make the trip all the way to Yokosuka for a weird and time-wasting meeting. But since it's a direct order, I can't reject it."This is so troublesome..."Oh. They also said that transport and hotel expenses will be compensated." (Ooyodo)Okay. That sweetens the deal a little."Fine. Inform HQ Zuihou and I will be present. And book two shinkansen tickets for us.""Roger. What time?" (Ooyodo)"The whole trip is about 4 hours. So maybe about 1500 hours or so. Otherwise, I will leave it to your discretion.""What about the hotel?" (Ooyodo)"I will handle that part. Since IJN is paying for it, might as well choose an expensive one."Ooyodo let out a sigh,"What?""Never change, Admiral. I will send a reply to HQ and notify them of your participation. After that, I will book the Shinkansen and inform you once it's done." (Ooyodo)"Yep. Thank you.""Also, I know you are awfully close to Zuihou and a number of girls, but you better sleep separate rooms. Alright?" (Ooyodo)Ooyodo got so close that I can almost see my reflection in her eyes."After all these years, the last thing we want is for you to lose control and sexually assault a shipgirl. I don't want to see the MPs drag you away." (Ooyodo)"I got it. I got it. You should know me by now. I have excellent self-control. Please stop looking at me like that."Ooyodo walked away. Since it has come to this, let's pick that hotel I failed to book last year when Zuihou and I went on that trip. I better be careful this time.I reached to open the door, only for it to swing outwards. Good thing it opened slowly. Otherwise, it would have been painful."Ah. Admiral. All done?" (Zuihou)The one who opened the door was Zuihou."Yep. I will tell you the details later."Zuihou cocked her head sideways."Is everyone ready for the mission?""Yes! Everyone's ready. They will sortie in 15 minutes." (Hashimoto-san)"I already assessed how Lieutenant Hashimoto's briefed the fleet." (Zuihou)"Alright. You all know what to do.""Yes!" (DesRon)"Lieutenant Hashimoto,""Yes." (Hashimoto-san)"Wait for us in the Command Centre.""Yes!" (Hashimoto-san)The four Destroyers head to the launch bay to prepare for their mission while Hashimoto-san went to the Command Centre. In the meantime, Zuihou and I can take our time to walk there. I took out my phone and searched for that hotel I wanted to book before. Ah. There it is. How long should I book it? Maybe 2 nights for now. I should inform the hotel I may extend for a few more days, just in case.And, done. Now to check if my reservation went through... Sweet! I've got the email stating my booking has been confirmed and my card has been charged! That means the room has been secured!"What are you doing?" (Zuihou)"Booking our room. I made sure the reservation has been confirmed.""Room? For what?" (Zuihou)"We got called to HQ for a meeting. Some fashion company is interested in working with us.""Why is a fashion company getting involved with us?" (Zuihou)"That's what I want to know as well. But this is a good chance. I booked another night. Let's go on a date after the meeting. It's been a while since we had a proper one."Zuihou's eyes gleamed. Her bright and cheerful smile is piercing my heart!"Yes! Let's!" (Zuihou)Zuihou hugged my arm,"Heehee~♪ I can't wait~!" (Zuihou)I pet her head,"Let's not keep Hashimoto-san waiting.""Unn~" (Zuihou)The both of us walked to the Command Centre. We entered to see Hashimoto-san. Her back was facing us and I can hear her mumbling something. It got clearer as I approached her."Okay. Lead the fleet to Wakasa Bay and eliminate the Abyssals in the area. You can do this, Rei. You can do this." (Hashimoto-san)"Nervous?""Hya-! Mmph! Ahem." (Hashimoto-san)I can see her jump and quickly covered her mouth to stifle that little scream. She turned around and did a salute."Admiral, everyone is ready to sortie." (Hashimoto-san)Haah... She is too serious... Huh? I didn't notice it before but are those dark circles around her eyes? Maybe she was too nervous to fall asleep last night?I returned her salute,"That's good."I looked at the monitor. The Destroyers are waiting at the Launch Bay, ready to begin."Whenever you're ready.""Yes!" (Hashimoto-san)Zuihou and I took a seat at the wall while Hashimoto-san went for the console,"All units, sortie!""Destroyer Asashio, sort-" (Asashio)"Alright, Suzukaze. Just watch what your older sister can do." (Shiratsuyu)"Wai-! Hey! Stick to the order!" (Hashimoto-san)Before Asashio could step on to the launch pad, Shiratsuyu cut her off and leapt onto the launcher. The ground lit up beneath her as the chains brought her rigging and equipment to connect with their owner."Heehee~ I'm the first!" (Shiratsuyu)"Destroyer Asashio, sortieing!" (Asashio)"Fubuki, moving out!" (Fubuki)"Alright, I've been waiting for this~!" (Suzukaze)The rest of the girls activated the launch pads and their respective equipment and riggings came flying towards them. The gate protecting the base's waters opened up, letting the girls through."Move at battle speed 4. Once we reach the mission area, drop to battle speed 3." (Hashimoto-san)"Roger!" (Asashio)"Isn't it better if we move at max speed? The faster we head over there, the faster we can take out the Abyssals and complete our mission." (Suzuakaze)"No. Stick to the plan." (Hashimoto-san)"I'm just suggesting." (Suzukaze)"I know. But I'm your Commanding Officer. I won't allow any unnecessary changes to the plan." (Hashimoto-san)Oh no. That's minus points."Whatever you say, Lieutenant." (Suzukaze)After about seven minutes, the fleet reached the mission area. The seas are correct for now."Reduce speed. Keep an eye out for any signs of the enemy." (Hashimoto-san)"Yes!" (Fubuki)"Roger!" (Asashio)The fleet cruised slowly around the area. So far, nothing."There's nothing here." (Shiratsuyu)"Stay alert and maintain course. The mission is not over till we find and destroy our target." (Hashimoto-san)"Radar's not picking up anything. No signs of any Abyssal activity in the immediate vicinity." (Shiratsuyu)"May I suggest changing our course? It might have moved to a different location." (Asashio)"Fine. 5 minutes. If we can't find anything in the next 5 minutes, set a course for bearing 40 degrees North North-East." (Hashimoto-san)A little reluctant to heed her fleet's suggestions.After 5 minutes, they were still unable to find the Abyssal fleet that is supposedly in the area. The fleet followed Hashimoto-san's orders and adjusted their course."Radar's picking up something. Abyssal activity detected." (Shirastsuyu)"Location?" (Hashimoto-san)"3.5 Nautical miles in front of us." (Shiratsuyu)"Maintain speed and advance to the enemy. Once in range, launch the first wave of torpedoes and fire all cannons." (Hashimoto-san)"Roger!" (All)The fleet made a beeline to the enemy. The enemy fleet became clearer as they got closer.Hey. What is the meaning of this?"Report! Enemy fleet spotted! The enemy fleet compositions contradict existing intel!" (Asashio)"What?!" (Hashimoto-san)"That's a To-class! And Ha-class!" (Suzuakaze)Those bastards at the JMSDF! More than eight years and they still can't tell the difference between each Abyssal class. I will lodge a formal complaint later."Lieutenant, your orders?" (Asashio)Hashimoto-san frantically flipped through her notebook. She kept looking at the monitor and back at her notebook."Erm... Um..." (Hashimoto-san)She is panicking..."Lieutenant Hashimoto, calm down."She isn't responding..."Line- No. Dia- No. Wait. Um..." (Hashimoto-san)"Admiral..." (Zuihou)"I know. Write it down for me."I passed the tablet to Zuihou and got up from my chair."Come on... Come on... This wasn't part of the plan..." (Hashimoto-san)I placed a hand on her shoulder,"I will take it from here. Sit down.""Admiral, I can still..." (Hashimoto-san)"Sit."I gently pushed her down onto the chair,"That's an order."I took the mic,"Guys, line ahead formation. Increase speed to 4. Fubuki, you're on AA duty.""Roger!" (Fubuki)"Asashio, Suzukaze, both of you will take out the two Destroyer Ha-class. Shiratsuyu, handle that Ha-class.""I'm doing it alone?" (Shiratsuyu)"Come on. Don't act coy with me. I have seen you take out a Tsu-class on your own. And that's before getting your remodel. Let's see who completes their task first. You or the other two.""You really know how to encourage me, Admiral. I will get first blood!" (Shiratsuyu)"Not if I kill a Ha-class first!" (Suzukaze)Aside from being able to launch planes, a To-class is just a tougher and stronger Abyssal Light Cruiser. Same with the Ha-class. Moreover, my girls are stronger than them. The usual method of blowing them up quickly will suffice, especially since Destroyers are being used. But for an unexperienced Commander-in-Training like Hashimoto-san, these enemies are a little too strong for her."Good grief! We are still on a mission. Be serious." (Asashio)"It's alright, Asashio. You know very well that's how the Shiratsuyu-class operate.""Geez. Admiral, you are too soft on them." (Asashio)"That's how I do things. I leave the fire direction and timing to you. You girls know best about these things. Now, go for it!""Roger!" (All)"Incoming enemy planes! I will protect everyone!" (Fubuki)Fubuki angled her 12.7cm Twin Gun Mount Model A Kai 3 towards the air and started blasting at the Abyssal Plane. The enemy plane turned into a fiery meatball and fell into the ocean."Alright, I'm attacking." (Asashio)"Eat this~!" (Suzukaze)"Let's~ goooo~!" (Shiratsuyu)The three Destroyers fired a salvo at their respective targets. The shells flew through the sky and like a comet in the day, fell straight onto the Abyssals.Shiratsuyu emptied her torpedo tubes and launch another volley at the To-class. Her shots staggered the To-class, giving her torpedoes enough time to make contact. The fiery explosion tore the To-class apart as the Destroyer cheered gleefully. Right after the To-class was destroyed, a second explosion engulfed one of the Ha-class."Yay! I'm number one!" (Shiratsuyu)"Damn it! I was just a second before you!" (Suzukaze)The remaining Ha-class finally blew up, courtesy of Asashio's Type 93 Oxygen Torpedoes."Phew. Shiratsuyu-san, radar check please." (Asashio)"Hm? Ah. Right. Standby... No Abyssal activity detected. We are in the clear." (Shiratsuyu)"Asashio, call it.""Yes! All enemy units have been eliminated. Mission accomplished!" (Asashio)"Good work everyone. The enemy was different from what we expected, but you destroyed them perfectly. I will see you back at base.""Roger!" (All)"Over and out."I shut off the radio and monitor. That was easy. Now...I look at the cast fallen Lieutenant who is sitting on the chair."Sometimes, things don't always go according to plan. You saw it before. During that emergency sortie.""..." (Hashimoto-san)"What's important is to keep a cool head, analyze the situation quickly, come up with a new strategy, and above all, trust the shipgirls under your care.""..." (Hashimoto-san)"You probably expected this, but with me taking over the mission, you have failed this assessment. But it's not the end of the world. My job is to train you to be good commanders and that's what I plan to do. So long as you are open to learning, you still have a good chance. This is just the first of many sorties you will be in charged of. There will be more chances for you."I placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up and I can see tears in her eyes,"For today, wash up and get some sleep. Then, talk to the four of them. Try to understand their feelings. You said some bad things to Suzukaze earlier.""...I did?" (Hashimoto-san)Zuihou passed her a tissue,"Thank you..." (Hashimoto-san)Hashimoto-san wiped her eye while I continued,"Yep. While it's true we are their superiors, it doesn't mean we can throw our rank around and order them to do things. Our relationship with the shipgirls is to build on trust and respect, not through force. How would you feel if I told you to do something just because I have a higher rank than you?""Isn't that the normal way of doing things in the military?" (Hashimoto-san)"Even if it's wrong?""That's..." (Hashimoto-san)"You see what I mean? We are given a lot of power. We could easily order every single shipgirl to fight to their deaths, but doing that makes us no different than the monsters out there. Here's another example. If Grand Admiral Akihito ordered me to pass and award you with a 'Commander' rank effective immediately just because you're his daughter and he is my superior, how would you feel?""I would definitely hate that!" (Hashimoto-san)She stood up angrily,"Ah..." (Hashimoto-san)"Now do you understand?"I pat her on the back,"Go get some rest. Instead of locking yourself up in the archives and your room, interact with your batch mates and the other shipgirls. Who knows, they may be able to teach you some things.""Admiral, you knew about it..." (Hashimoto-san)"Your parental information is in the dossier. So, it's not a secret in the first place.""That's true..." (Hashimoto-san)"Go on. I will lock the place up.""Roger." (Hashimoto-san)We exchanged salutes and Hashimoto-san left the Command Room."Will she be alright?" (Zuihou)"Yeah. She will be. She is not the kind to give up that easily. I will have to put today's performance in that weekly HQ report. I hope her father is not reading it." Hopefully, I won't bump into him when we are Yokosuka HQ tomorrow. The last thing I want is to be questioned about Hashimoto-san by him.