The Planning Committee was in the midst of preparing everything for the meeting, and Junyou was wearing a one-eared headset on her left ear with a microphone extension that was wirelessly connected to the almost unnoticeable earpiece in Zuikaku's ear.
They were in the Shinsengumi, and for this plan, they required Akagi to get the ball rolling and Houshou to provide the setting and materials needed.
The reason for choosing Houshou's bar over Mamiya's canteen was due to the aforementioned reason that they didn't want to involve any more people than was necessary.
Junyou was hiding in the kitchen with Chitose and Shoukaku as they sat on the floor, each one of them with an opened Popsicle wrapper on the floor beside them while Zuikaku was standing next to them and ate her own Popsicle.
To Chitose's side, there was an additional pile of snacks and drinks that she had purchased from Houshou beforehand to pass the time should they ever get hungry.
The kitchen itself was brightly lit, and being mostly a one-woman establishment, it was rather cozy without being claustrophobic.
A 2 meter tall steel-layered fridge stood unyielding at the far end of the kitchen, facing perpendicular to the exit of the kitchen which had small banners covering the exit and by extension, hiding the planning committee from anyone who entered the bar.
Pots and pans were stacked neatly on the marble counter to the right of the room, and the cupboards that stored various cooking materials and miscellaneous items were hanging from the roof of the kitchen in order to conserve space in the already-small room.
Along with a rack of knives, utensils and spatulas on the counter along with a few baskets of fruits and various assortment of foods, at the corner of the room and sitting beneath the counter were a few heavy sacks that likely contained rice, and were raised off the floor by being placed on small stools to prevent pests from easily eating into the material of the sack to get to the contents within.
The kitchen was well maintained as there were a few towels hanging off of drilled-in, round-tipped metal hooks at various locations in the kitchen. The maintenance of the kitchen was also accomplished with a well-hidden mop and empty bucket located at the other corner of the room, where a tap was turned off and sat beside a dustbin that was wrapped with a plastic bag for easy disposal of the garbage.
The duo seated before Junyou were using the material that Houshou provided to prepare the items needed to execute the plan, and were going to support and back Zuikaku up in case things didn't go the way they intended.
Hiryu and Soryu were off to complete their part of the plan in another location in case Kaga noticed too many of them together in the same place and suspected that something was up.
Chitose and Shoukaku were writing the words "あたり" with a black marker on the three Popsicle sticks to indicate a winning stick, with a cross on them to indicate a redeemed free Popsicle.
If you ate a Popsicle and you were lucky enough to have chosen a Popsicle that had "あた" on the stick to indicate a winning stick, you could get another Popsicle for free.
The plan here was that Zuikaku, being a lucky carrier while her sister was infamous for being an unlucky carrier, would appear to the approaching 1st Carrier Division to have eaten too many Popsicles due to the fact that she kept choosing a winning Popsicle, and was to offer it to Kaga to get her a Popsicle and possibly allowing her to start a conversation to improve their relationship as best they could for now.
Chitose and Shoukaku were forging the "あたり" writing to make it appear genuine, each carrier buying one Popsicle from Houshou, who was in on the plan, to make sure that there was no discrepancy in their plan as the Popsicle box that was taken out of the freezer now had four less Popsicles, Junyou receiving the Akagi SMS on her phone to signal that they were making their way from the Bird's Nest towards the Shinsengumi.
Zuikaku was almost finishing her Popsicle, the words "あたり" barely visible on the wooden Popsicle stick as Junyou silently motioned for her to hurry up with her food.
Zuikaku nodded, swallowing the remainder of the strawberry-flavored Popsicle while sticking her hand out for Chitose and Shoukaku to pass her the Popsicle sticks.
Chitose and Shoukaku both nodded at their handiwork, handing their Popsicle sticks over as Junyou reminded Zuikaku of the plan, uncharacteristically serious about helping out a fellow ship girl.
"You go out there and do your part. We'll be here listening in on your conversation while I guide you on depending on how the conversation goes, but it's ultimately down to how you want to approach her."
Zuikaku nodded, looking to her sister and her fellow light carriers as she smiled gratefully.
"Thank you. All of you."
Chitose smiled back at her with her "understanding elder sister" smile, Junyou giving her a thumbs up while Shoukaku raised her arm to put a comforting hand on Zuikaku's shoulder and saying.
"We'll be here for you. Now go."
Zuikaku nodded and turned to exit the kitchen as Chitose looked to Junyou and commented on the plan.
"This is a rather ingenious plan, Junyou-san. But are we being a little too manipulative in trying to get them together?"
But Junyou shook her head, thinking of several ship girls who would resort to far more underhanded tactics to achieve the same goals.
"We aren't hurting or coercing anybody to do anything they don't want to do.
We're all willing participants, and it's for Kaga's own good."
At least, I hope it is, if we don't fudge anything up and everything goes to shit.
Junyou thought that last part, but knew tact and didn't say it out loud as she turned on her ship girl mode along with the duo beside her and used her enhanced hearing to listen in on the conversation.
They didn't need to move around too much as they made the kitchen their temporary base of operations with Houshou's consent, and their subdued signatures would be hidden by the material that made up the Shinsengumi to prevent Kaga from noticing their presence.
They hoped.
Along with the rustle of the grass, the whistle of the wind and the chirp of the crickets that the ship girl mind instinctively dismissed as background noise, she could make out Zuikaku pretending to dry-heave as Akagi and Kaga approached her, their footsteps becoming progressively louder.
Zuikaku must be pretending to be sick or at least a little tired as Akagi asked with a touch of concern in her voice despite knowing about the plan.
"Zuikaku-san, are you alright? You seem a little uncomfortable there, did you eat something bad at Houshou-san's place?"
But Zuikaku reassured her with a slightly raspy voice.
"S'alright, I was just eating too much ice cream. See these? I kept drawing the winning Popsicle, and I already finished four of them."
But Kaga huffed, pointing out the obvious.
"You can either save the stick for another day, or give it to another ship girl for them to eat. There is no need to hog all the Popsicles to yourself, 5th Carrier Division."
Zuikaku started at that, Junyou hearing her increased breathing located just outside the bar as she whispered into the headset.
"Relax, relax… She's being prickly as usual, but you have to grow a thicker skin if you want to take things further."
She heard Zuikaku's breathing slow down as the carrier of the 5th Carrier Division casually shrugged off the jab.
"Ahaha, I guess you're right. I guess I shouldn't have been so selfish…"
Shoukaku leaned in to whisper encouragingly into Junyou's microphone,
"Zuikaku! Do your best!"
While Chitose was already helping herself to a chilled fuel can that was previously purchased from Houshou.
Junyou, trying to anticipate the best move to make while trying to get into the head of the Kaga-Class carrier, instructed Zuikaku quietly.
"Offer it to the both of them, but give it to Akagi, since Kaga's likely to refuse the first offer."
Zuikaku did exactly as she was told, piping up with the offer.
"Do you want the free Popsicle? I can choose from the box to get another free Popsicle if you want."
And Akagi was quick to respond with an enthusiastic,
"Oh! Me, me, me!"
And the trio could hear the footsteps of the Akagi-Class carrier get progressively louder as Akagi approached Houshou's bar with the "あたり" Popsicle stick to redeem a free Popsicle as Kaga kept pace with her while taking big yet confident strides.
Zuikaku walked behind them as she accompanied them to pick another winning Popsicle, possessing the highest luck stat amongst the trio.
Houshou, who was told of the plan, welcomed the carriers and allowed the trio to sit at the serving counter while pulling out the box of ice cream to let them observe the selection of flavors.
Zuikaku asked Akagi about her favorite flavor despite being informed about it beforehand so as not to arouse suspicion.
"Akagi-san, what flavor do you like?"
To which Akagi replied merrily, already anticipating the next step of the plan to eat the delicious Popsicle that Zuikaku picked out for her.
"Strawberry!"
Kaga, meanwhile, was deathly silent as Junyou strained her ears to try and pick up anything that would give away her presence.
A bit of rustling was heard, Zuikaku relying on her luck to accomplish the next step of the plan. And it was hard to accept, but even Junyou admitted that the next step of the plan was a calculated risk.
Even when Akagi had told them of both their tastes and helped them predict which flavor Kaga was likely to pick (orange), Junyou didn't like relying on something as unpredictable as luck.
Even on its own, a high luck stat wasn't very reliable despite its inherent power to influence cause and effect on an environmental, and potentially even global scale to allow a chain of events to go your way. It only gave you improved odds of something happening or not happening, and not a guarantee that everything will go the way you want.
For example, if there was even a 75% chance of Zuikaku choosing another winning Popsicle, the 25% chance of Zuikaku choosing the wrong Popsicle was also equally capable of coming true, no matter how lucky Zuikaku was.
They had to hinge the entire plan on the chance that the cosmic dice wouldn't screw them over this one time, no matter how many variables they accounted for.
Add that to the fact that they couldn't rig the Popsicles to be the winning ones without potentially drawing the suspicion of Kaga, the only thing that they could do now was quite literally pray that the goddess of luck would continue to smile down on Zuikaku as she forged on to win Kaga's heart through her stomach.
Junyou noticed out of the corner of her eye that Shoukaku was holding her palms together and her eyes closed in prayer, while Chitose had a hand on her shoulder to reassure her of the outcome.
The crinkling of the Popsicle wrapper could be heard, as Junyou could hear Houshou reminding Akagi not to eat too quickly lest she get indigestion.
But Kaga was quick to reassure Houshou.
"It's alright, Houshou-san. Something so insignificant as indigestion will not affect us, the mighty carriers of the 1st Carrier Division."
And Akagi piped up, her mouth full of what was likely the finished Popsicle.
"Yup, ith's nufhing, fince fhe're the 1st Fharrier Fifishun!"
Houshou audibly flinched, remarking incredulously.
"You've already finished the Popsicle?!"
Junyou could hear the almost unnoticeable sigh of relief that came from Zuikaku, which likely meant that the ice cream had the "あたり" sign on it.
Junyou turned to see Shoukaku open her eyes in relief, and nodded to Chitose to send a text message to Hiryu, to which the light carrier nodded and turned on her touch phone.
The next part of the plan was to draw Akagi away from the scene with an external event while Kaga would stay to finish the last Popsicle so as not to cause Zuikaku to supposedly throw up from eating too much ice cream.
Hiryu was to be with Soryu, and when Hiryu got the text message from Chitose, she was to notify Soryu to inform Akagi with a message about a random dish that Mamiya was serving today and allow Akagi to excuse herself by expressing interest in said food.
Akagi then suddenly whimpered, clearly no longer acting as she whined.
"Oww, I think I might be suffering from brain freeze…"
Houshou was softly chiding Akagi for her gluttonous appetite, slapping the crown of Akagi's head softly.
"You should eat cold food slowly, because our steel bodies are sensitive to heat and are affected by sudden changes in temperature. Add that to the fact that the thickness of the armor in the roof of your mouth is but only a fraction that of the armor that is your skin, it's no wonder that you suffered from brain freeze. Press your tongue against the roof of your mouth for a while, burn up some of the fuel in your body to warm yourself up and redirect the heat to your head. You'll feel a bit flushed that way, but you'll dispel the brain freeze faster if you do."
Akagi nodded, and right on cue, her phone buzzed silently.
Akagi popped up, whipping out her phone and sounded as if she was going through the motions of turning on a phone.
But as Zuikaku and Kaga both kept quiet in case it was a call, there was a skid of a chair being pushed back by someone standing up really fast, Akagi addressing the duo as she slammed the winning Popsicle stick on the table and dashed out of the bar at a speed that could give Shimakaze a run for her money.
"Mamiya'shavingacurryspecialthatIreallywantoeatinordertowarmmyselfupgottagobye!"
Leaving the two carriers alone in the bar with Houshou, and one could hear a pin drop as everyone had nothing to say about Akagi being attracted to food like moth to a flame. But Junyou had planned for this, and she whispered into the headset for Zuikaku to take the initiative.
"Ask her what flavor she likes, and pick one out for her."
Junyou could hear Zuikaku clear her throat to get Kaga's attention and parrot the question that everyone already knew the answer to.
Beside her, she could see Chitose and Shoukaku crouching and hunched over an already-opened "Hello Panda" packet that was colored pink to symbolize the flavored cookies within containing strawberry cream, the duo munching on the cookies as best they could without making too much noise.
Junyou held out her hand to quietly ask for some, and she was rewarded with the empty pink packet being placed her hand, Shoukaku and Chitose shrugging their shoulders in unison while putting on apologetic expressions.
Junyou's dulled eyes stared down at the betrayal of her two fellow carriers, but suddenly snapped to attention as she heard the skid of the steel chairs on the wooden floor.
Junyou could hear Zuikaku exclaiming,
"Hey, where do you think you're going? You haven't asked me to pick a Popsicle for you yet."
But footsteps that rounded the now-silent chair was heard, Kaga distancing herself from Zuikaku and Houshou as she left, calmly commenting.
"I don't like to eat anything cold before any major meal of the day."
But Zuikaku was also leaving, pushing her chair out loudly to put her feet on the floor as she sounded as if she grabbed the winning Popsicle stick and followed Kaga, accusing.
"Bullshit! You just don't want to accept anything from 'The 5th Carrier Division' in which if you did, you'd feel as though you owed us something, right?"
Kaga's footsteps stopped, and Junyou, through her sharp hearing, could clearly hear the disinterest in her voice, leading her to wonder if Zuikaku was wasting her time with the cold carrier that was infamous for being stoic and professional all the damn time.
"You might think that, I couldn't possibly comment."
Zuikaku shouted, causing the hiding trio to cover their highly attuned ears to the unexpected sudden rise in volume while Houshou politely sidestepped them as she entered the kitchen with the box of Popsicles to keep in the freezer.
"BULLSHIT!"
Using her one good ear that was still listening to the headset, she took off her headset temporarily as she listened in on the conversation between Kaga and Zuikaku, the latter losing her temper and getting carried away due to their rivalry and the resulting tension between them.
"You'd refuse even food simply because I'm the one who's providing it?"
Kaga moved around on the spot, likely turning around to face the approaching Zuikaku as she stated in a matter-of-fact tone that she was known for.
"I refuse the Popsicle that you offered because you took advantage of your luck to get free food at Houshou-san's expense.vHow disgraceful, for the 5th Carrier Division to resort to such petty tricks..."
Kaga was now shifting on the spot as she took on the tone of someone who was very good at letting others know of their mistakes, being blunt and direct in her observations as she chided.
"You may rely on your luck right now, but out there on the ocean, there is no telling when your luck will fail you and cause something bad to happen to you.
You have potential and may be trying to get stronger faster by asking me to coach you, but I personally think that you are not ready for the strength that you will unlock and the responsibilities that come with it. Not that I have any right to tell you what you should and shouldn't do. I rely on my skills, unlike you from the 5th Carrier Division, who relies on her luck to get by."
Zuikaku scoffed at that, retorting.
"I know that that's the case right now, and I currently can't possibly hope to achieve what you can do, but I'm getting there one step at a time! I swallowed my pride to learn from you. I tried not to retort when you coached me and pointed out my flaws. I even tried to be nice to you by offering you this!"
Junyou could hear a whiff of air and the small crack of something hitting the floor as if something was thrown to the ground quickly.
Junyou surmised that Zuikaku threw the Popsicle stick at the floor, her dislike of Kaga's direct and harsh words outweighing her love for her.
Junyou sighed, talking into the headset and trying to pacify an irate Zuikaku at the other end of the line.
"Chill the fuck out, you're here to try to talk to her, not start another cat-fight. Take a few deep breaths… Inhale… Exhale..."
Junyou could hear Zuikaku audibly trying to calm herself down by following her steps, and Kaga wasn't moving as she didn't think this conversation was over, which was a good thing.
Junyou then spoke to Zuikaku slowly, trying to get her next point across.
"Look, I understand that you want to improve yourself in order to make her proud, but I don't think she's the kind of person to like people who improve themselves for such self-serving reasons.
Don't improve yourself to try and surpass her, that'll make it sound as if you don't care about improving so long as you're better than her. Don't improve yourself to win her over, she'll likely reject you as it sounds as if you'll be satisfied with your progress after you earn her approval and love. You have to change your mindset and look at the bigger picture. Improving yourself to protect everyone may be a difficult goal, but she'll at least respect you for improving yourself for such a selfless reason."
Zuikaku started speaking again after she had contemplated Junyou's advice, trying to adapt her stance and change her goals and mindset not just for her own sake, but also for the sake of the base and her comrades.
She couldn't believe that of all people to tell her this, it was the one carrier that she thought knew nothing about selflessness.
Perhaps it said volumes about how shallow she was on the inside if she was indeed trying to improve herself for such self-centered reasons.
But she communicated these thoughts to Kaga, trying to convince not just Kaga, but also herself of her own sincerity in trying to improve for the good of everyone.
"I was told that trying to improve myself for the sole purpose of surpassing you was a silly goal, as I wouldn't care about improving myself any more so long as I was better than you. It took me a bit of thinking, but I think that she was right.
In times of war, we can't be so self-centered and get conceited whenever our strength reaches an apparent plateau. We must try to find ways to further improve ourselves if we are to protect everyone."
Zuikaku sounded morose as she continued on, Kaga silently and respectfully listening to her motive rant.
"I know that it's a big goal following a paradigm shift, but I ultimately want to protect everyone, and not just for the sake of others praising me. This base is my home, and despite what goes on between us, you're also a part of the Yokosuka family, and I also want to protect you.
You're my senior, and more than that, you're a fellow carrier. I may not be as skilled as you are right now, but rest assured, I will improve and do the things that you can't do, while you do the things that I can't do."
Kaga huffed, but was sincere as she congratulated Zuikaku for learning to selflessly fight for the greater good of the base, the country and the people, which was what the ship girls were ultimately fighting for.
"It seems that you have the right idea, 5th Carrier Division. We shouldn't be so self-centered in times of crisis. We need to look out for one another and learn from each other when we can. However…"
Kaga stepped forward and a ruffling sound was heard, Zuikaku yelping in surprise as she exclaimed.
"You have a long way to go, 5th Carrier Division. Don't go thinking that you're ready for the big leagues yet."
As Junyou asked Zuikaku through the microphone about a trend that she was seeing, backed up by her memories of the various heated interactions between the duo.
"Look, alright. I know you two got history, but you need to ask about why she isn't calling you by your name."
Junyou looked to Chitose and Shoukaku with an "Are-you-girls-with-me?" expression, exasperatedly commenting on Kaga's seemingly-subconscious behavior to keep referring to Zuikaku as "5th Carrier Division" as though she couldn't remember her name.
"I mean, are you serious?! Isn't anyone weirded out by this? Does she have selective Alzheimer's when it comes to remembering Zuikaku's name, or what?"
Meanwhile, Zuikaku was audibly struggling with as the ruffling continued, squealing in exasperation.
"Don't rub my hair, Kaga-san!bYou'll mess it up!"
Kaga stopped on command, seeing no point in continuing something that wasn't going to benefit anyone and commented.
"So long as you get the point, 5th Carrier Division."
But Zuikaku must have heard Junyou's question as she echoed it with a bit of hesitation, suddenly sounding almost fearful of Kaga's potential slew of answers, a lot of them negative.
" … Why do you call me '5th Carrier Division'?"
Kaga didn't get the point of the question, nonchalantly answering.
"Because you're 5th Carrier Division. Simple."
Zuikaku, now speaking in a tone of consternation, could almost be heard holding back a choking sob as she contemplated the hidden meaning of her senior not even bothering to call her by her name, even in private.
" … I mean, why don't you call me 'Zuikaku'? Why do you keep calling me '5th Carrier Division' instead? I can't even remember a time when you called me by my name like a person…"
She could hear Kaga try to respond, a sound escaping the introverted carrier before it was cut off by a pause, and Kaga meant to say something again as she was more convinced of her counter-argument, but she seemed to remember something that made her stop.
Junyou could hear Zuikaku snort softly in resignation, stating solemnly.
"That's just it, hmm? I reviewed my memory banks just now, and saw that despite knowing each other for quite a while, you've never once called me by my name, and only '5th Carrier Division' or '5thCarDiv girl' or some variant of it. I know that outside of sorties, you call Shoukaku-nee by her name whenever you feel like it, although you call her 'Shoukaku-san' most of the time. But you've always called me '5th Carrier Division', something that you do only to me, and it makes me feel like I'm just… Like I'm just a thing to you instead of a living, breathing person like everyone else, and my name isn't worth remembering. I suppose I got used to it a long time ago, but it came up as a stray thought, and I can't help but wonder if you look down on me so much that you'd single me out and do this to me and me alone…"
The ground underneath Zuikaku's feet shifted as a rustle could be heard on the ground, meaning that Zuikaku might be moving around as she picked up the fallen Popsicle stick.
And after she was done, Junyou could hear Zuikaku speaking solemnly as she addressed Kaga.
"I respect your strength and your skills, and I'm trying my best not to retort every time you point out a mistake in my shooting form in practice because I know you're looking out for me. But I just wanted you to know, that part of the reason that I wanted to improve myself was to impress you and so that you'd admit that I'm strong enough."
Zuikaku scoffed at herself, now bitterly reflecting on her past self as she pointed out the flaw in her own thinking with Junyou's previously stated points.
"It's so shallow, simply assuming that being better than you was all that was needed to gain your approval. Not that you'd ever approve of someone who only strives to be better than others just to show off and gain the seal of approval from others. But I can say that I was serious in trying to impress you, because ultimately, you are my senior, and one whom I highly respect. If I can't reach a level of strength where you think that I can adequately protect others, should you ever fall in battle, you'd die with regrets while thinking that I was too weak to protect the rest of the carriers. And they say that a ship girl who dies with regrets is one who can be Abyssalized to become an Abyssal to haunt the living…"
Zuikaku was now speaking as she remembered painful memories, the loneliness evident in her voice as she reminisced upon the war where someone died and left her more and more alone, trying to maintain a strong front and barely succeeding.
"You, Akagi, Hiryu and Soryu were all gone after Midway. Then, it was Shoukaku and Taihou in the Philippines Sea… I understand that no ship can last forever in a war, and due to my high luck, I would theoretically be the last carrier standing simply because I 'got lucky'. And if I can't protect everyone, I want to make everyone feel that they can at least pass on without regrets, because I'll be there, and I'll be strong enough to protect everyone. But look at this… Perhaps this Popsicle stick is my entire shtick. Perhaps luck is all I have, and I shouldn't think that I'll ever be able to perform up to your impossibly high standards. At this point, I really don't care if you address me as '5th Carrier Division', since I've gotten used to you addressing me that way. And I'm your student, so I have no right to complain about you treating me like shit if I want to learn anything. So with that, good day."
A sound of the Popsicle stick hitting the floor was heard as Zuikaku walked back to the Shinsengumi to meet up with the trio, and Junyou was already racking her brains to try and think up of anything to help Zuikaku get back in the game.
Chitose and Shoukaku were desperately whispering into Junyou's microphone to tell Zuikaku not to give up, making things very uncomfortable for her as Junyou tried to pull away from the carriers who leaned in a little too close for comfort to speak into the mouthpiece.
But Kaga was moving around the spot where the Popsicle stick was dropped and she finally called out to Zuikaku using her name, something that nobody expected her to do when addressing the more vocal and headstrong member of the 5th Carrier Division.
"Zuikaku."
Zuikaku's footsteps instantly stopped, Junyou shushing Shoukaku and Chitose as she moved the microphone and strained her ears to listen intently to the next exchange, Shoukaku and Chitose following in her footsteps and their faces hardening in concentration to listen in on the duo as Zuikaku moved around on the spot, likely to turn around as Kaga's footsteps approached.
Kaga was trying to console Zuikaku, not just as a fellow carrier who was under her tutelage, but also as someone whom she knew well despite their rivalry.
Even when she was rather dense when it came to interpersonal relationships, Junyou knew that the stoic carrier wasn't so insensitive as to not know when she was in the wrong or when she had committed a faux pas, and this was one of the times where she was trying to correct her subconscious tic and tried to mend the relationship with the 5th Carrier Division.
"I admit that I am at fault for subconsciously calling you by your division, and not by your name even after all this time. I realize that it was wrong of me to do so, and I apologize for that."
Zuikaku was now reacting to Kaga shifting about, exclaiming in embarrassment.
"Y-You don't need to bow to me in apology, K-Kaga-san!"
But Kaga was adamant, likely straightening up from her apologetic bowing position as she continued on in spite of Zuikaku's protests.
"I will do my best to call you by your name when we're not on sorties from now on as a form of respect and also as a sign of basic courtesy.
And this Popsicle stick…
… I'll be keeping it for next time, despite the fact that it's in poor taste to give away something that they got for free to others…"
Junyou instinctively spoke into her microphone to calm the carrier at the other end of the line down as she heard Zuikaku start a little, but still maintained a cool head in order to hear the Kaga-Class carrier out.
"Chill, chill… Don't get triggered so easily by her comments. Just hear her out."
However, Kaga audibly smirked, and she continued her sentence as she turned away.
" … But I appreciate you offering me this when you could have easily hogged it all to yourself. Thank you, Zuikaku."
Junyou whispered into the microphone, instructing.
"Tell her that you want things to improve between you two despite your rivalry, and that you want to improve yourself so that she can depend on you more."
Zuikaku simply huffed in response, proclaiming embarrassedly as she paraphrased Junyou's words.
"W-Well, I know that you can't do everything by yourself, so I want to get stronger so that you don't have to carry the burden of the war by yourself. And the way to do that is to improve things between us, not just because we can work better together, but because I really think that you deserve better from me. I can be better, and I will be better! You better count on it!"
Junyou could almost imagine Kaga's smirk as she barely heard Kaga whisper to herself as she left.
"I am now."
As Junyou smirked to the grinning Shoukaku and Chitose, all three of them high-fiving each other on a job well done.
Houshou approached them, squatting down to address Junyou as she asked politely, but her tone was one of maternal concern for a junior carrier.
"How did things go?
I hope it went well between them, despite the two of them storming out of the bar…"
Junyou gave her a thumbs up and flashed her winning smile at her senior, exhaling as she reassured the concerned Houshou.
"We hit a few rough patches, but it's alright. A successful first step for the Zuikaku Romance Team!"