The ocean that was once calm now feels frozen by a suffocating tension. In the middle of the vast blue expanse, JS Izumo stands firm, but this time not as a protector, but as a surrounded target. The sea breeze blows hard, fluttering the edges of Izumo's white techwear jacket as she steps forward toward the edge of her flight deck. With steady steps, Izumo remains alert by manifesting her partial rigging: the two red and blue swords, ALKA and HPLS, and a large bow with a quiver of arrows on her back.
Behind her, the four Azur Lane destroyers-Javelin, Laffey, Ayanami, and Nimi-are in a state of full alert. Their torpedoes are ready. Their rigging glows faintly, their small cannons locked onto the two Aegis destroyers blocking them in front. Above Izumo's deck, the roar of helicopter engines is deafening. Two Fenice helicopters are hovering low, their radar sensors hard-locked with Spike missiles onto JS Kongo and JS Asuka. Izumo's dual MARS 230 rocket grenade launchers have also rotated, their muzzles pointing directly at the enemy bridge.
Izumo takes a deep breath, trying to stabilize her racing heart. Her adrenaline is surging, but she needs calmness to face this. She raises her hand, palm open, giving the universal signal to stop.
"I come in peace!" Izumo shouts, her voice loud enough to reach the two ships in front of her. "We do not wish to hurt each other!"
She realizes how ironic her words sound. Behind them, black smoke from the wreckage of the F-35B that Ayanami sliced still billows into the Iwo Jima sky. However, there is no smoke without fire; Izumo also cannot forget that two of her Qaher drones were destroyed without warning while they were only trying to perform evasive maneuvers. This fact adds a heavy weight to her mental burden.
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POV Narrator: Sparks in the Middle of the Sea.
The girl with long dark blue hair standing on the deck of JS Kongo stares at Izumo with a sharp and cold gaze. Her clean white uniform and the pencil skirt she wears give the impression of a very disciplined officer. She is JS Kongo.
"Peace?!" Kongo shouts back, her voice ringing out through the roar of the waves. "You are unidentified foreign ships causing trouble in our sovereign territory! Destroying our air units is not the way to show peace, you foreign ships!"
Kongo clenches her fist, then her index finger points toward Izumo. With a sharp gaze, she screams, "Tell me, where do you actually come from? Who sent this strange fleet?"
Izumo pauses for a moment before answering, "We are from the Pacific. From an island that you might never find on any map in this world."
Hearing an answer that sounds like a bluff, Kongo's face flushes with anger. Without warning, JS Kongo's main turret rotates and...
BOOM!
A warning shot is fired. The shell lands right beside JS Izumo's hull, creating a ten-meter-high splash of water that soaks Izumo's flight deck.
Then a second shot follows. Before the projectile can hit the sea, Izumo quickly draws her HPLS sword and aims a slash toward the incoming fire. With a strike that unleashes powerful laser energy, the projectile explodes in mid-air before touching the water. Izumo sheathes her sword back onto her back, then looks back at Kongo with a sharp stare.
Izumo wipes the seawater from her face. A thin, yet dangerous smile appears on her lips. Ayanami is already prepared to hold her sword, Nimi has raised her right cannon, Laffey has aimed her torpedoes, and Javelin is standing by with her spear.
"A very warm welcome," Izumo says softly, but her tone is threatening. "Do you want to feel the power of nukes?"
In an instant, blue energy glows in Izumo's right hand. A Mark 45 torpedo appears instantly. Izumo grips the incredibly heavy torpedo with one hand and raises it high toward the sky. On the body of the torpedo, the yellow-black logo is clearly visible: the Symbol for Nuclear Weapons.
The ship-girl on the adjacent ship, JS Asuka, who wears a white lab coat over a black uniform, immediately turns pale. She adjusts her glasses, her eyes wide at the sight of the warhead Izumo is carrying.
"Kongo, calm down! She's carrying a strategic weapon!" Asuka cries out in panic. "Do not provoke her any further!"
"Wait, Asuka," Kongo says, although she too is trembling slightly at the sight of that Mark 45. "Kaga and Hyuga will be here soon."
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The Arrival of the Guardians.
As if answering Kongo's words, the unique sound of jet engines is heard from the mist. An F-35B flies slowly in VTOL mode. Standing on top of the hovering jet is a ship-girl who looks very calm yet authoritative.
She has neat, short brown hair, wearing a white shirt with a formal black blazer. In her hand, she holds a highly sophisticated bow gun. She is JS Kaga.
Beside her, an Apache helicopter approaches. In the cabin door of the helicopter stands a girl in a blue naval jacket, a white shirt, and a red tie. Because of her short stature, the wind from the helicopter blades blows her jacket open, revealing her flat and muscular midriff. She is JS Hyuga.
Hyuga's face looks extremely angry. Her sharp eyes seem like they want to pierce through Izumo's heart. Without waiting for the helicopter to land, Kaga and Hyuga jump down from their air units and land smoothly on JS Izumo's flight deck. The F-35B and Apache continue to fly beside the ship.
"I am JS Kaga," the brown-haired girl says in a flat but emphasizing tone. She then points to her comrades. "This is JS Hyuga. And the dua destroyers in front of you are JS Kongo and JS Asuka."
Before Izumo can introduce herself, Hyuga has already rushed forward. With an unexpectedly fast movement, she grabs the collar of Izumo's white shirt.
"Intruder!" Hyuga barks. "You dare enter our country's territory without permission, and now you threaten us with nukes?! Which of you destroyed Kaga's F-35B?!"
Izumo does not flinch. Even though her collar is being gripped, her eyes remain fixed on Hyuga. "Calm yourself, Hyuga. We have only just introduced ourselves one-sidedly. If you don't let go of me now, perhaps my sword will do the talking."
In the blink of an eye, Izumo draws her ALKA sword. The blade glows a burning red. Before Hyuga can react, the tip of Izumo's sword is pressed right against Hyuga's exposed stomach. A little blood trickles because the tip of the sword is extremely sharp. Hyuga flinches; she didn't realize at all when Izumo drew her weapon.
"Back off, or do you want a hole in your stomach at our first meeting?" Izumo orders coldly.
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POV Izumo: The Secret of the Same Name.
Hyuga is forced to release her grip and take a step back. At the same time, Ayanami dashes forward, pointing her massive sword right at Hyuga's neck.
"I am the one who destroyed that plane, desu," Ayanami says expressionlessly. "Because you intended to shoot at us first."
Nimi (Z23) also steps forward, adjusting her glasses. "You downed two of Izumo's drones that were only performing a reconnaissance mission, not an attack. We were only defending ourselves."
Hearing that name, the atmosphere suddenly changes. JS Kaga, who was once calm, looks very shocked. Her eyes widen as she looks at Izumo from head to toe.
"Izumo...?" Kaga's voice trembles. "Who are you really? And why do you have the same name as our older sister?"
Kaga observes Izumo's physique. It is very different from the "Izumo" she knows in her world. The only similarity is their glowing silver hair, but the Izumo in front of her has fox ears and a tail, while their version of Izumo is a normal human ship-girl.
"We are not from this world," I answer calmly, while sheathing the ALKA sword. "Perhaps I am just another version of the ship you call your sister."
Kaga looks down dejectedly, her face filled with sadness. "Our sister... JS Izumo... she disappeared a few months ago under mysterious circumstances. It was as if she was swallowed by the mist while on patrol. We have searched every corner of the ocean for her, but there were no results."
I am stunned. So, the JS Izumo in this world disappeared? I start thinking fast. I myself am not the JS Izumo ship-girl from my original world, but a manifestation of the "game" version which has many technical differences. Does my transfer to this world have something to do with the disappearance of their version of Izumo?
"So you're mimicking or taking over our sister's identity?" Kongo interjects from a distance, her tone mocking.
"Enough, Kongo! Don't provoke them!" Asuka snaps from her ship. "Don't you see Hyuga was almost stabbed?!"
Kongo, being stubborn, instead opens her ship's VLS missile salvos. The missile hatch covers open, ready to spit out death. "If you don't release the weapon from Hyuga's neck, we might as well all turn to ash right here!"
"Be quiet, Kongo!" Kaga snaps. Her voice is so cold that Kongo immediately softens and closes her missile salvos again.
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The Dominance of the Older Sister.
JS Kaga walks forward, approaching me. She stands right behind Hyuga. With a movement so fast and precise (even my rigging radar had trouble tracking it), Kaga strikes Ayanami's wrist which is holding the sword.
SLAP!
Ayanami's massive sword falls. Before Ayanami can react, Kaga kicks her knee until Ayanami falls forward. In a fluid motion, Kaga's knee strikes Ayanami's face, throwing her back several meters.
"Ugh... it hurts so much," Ayanami says in pain, holding her bruised face from JS Kaga's knee strike.
"Ayanami!" Javelin screams. She wants to attack with her spear, but Kaga quickly points her bow gun directly at Laffey's face, who was trying to help the fallen Ayanami.
"Take one more step, and my arrow goes through your friend's skull," Kaga threatens.
Javelin stops, her hands shaking from holding back her rage. Nimi is also frozen; she didn't expect a modern Kansen like Kaga to have such deadly close-combat skills. Their large and powerful rigging turned out to be slower than Kaga's martial arts tactics.
"That's enough for the 'introductions'!" I shout, my voice thundering. "Or do you want a massacre to happen here?"
I stare sharply at Kaga. "We come in peace because we didn't know this world has what you call countries. I thought we were thrown into a world of empty land. I know my words don't make sense to you, but look at me. You see this ship's form is the same as your sister's ship, even my name is the same? Perhaps this world doesn't recognize two identical identities, so your sister disappeared when I moved to this world."
I then release my grip on the Mark 45 torpedo. The torpedo falls and rolls toward the feet of JS Kaga and JS Hyuga. Kaga uses her foot to stop the nuclear torpedo.
"Why didn't it explode?" Kaga asks in wonder.
"Because that's up to me," I answer firmly. "I could even wipe you out in an instant if I wanted to. However, I love peace. My goal is to travel the world and learn about life here for our own future. We are AZUR LANE."
Kaga stares at me for a long time, trying to find a lie in my eyes. Finally, she lowers her bow gun from Laffey's face.
"Very well," Kaga says softly. "We invite you to our base in Yokohama. We will talk further there with our superior. If you are hesitant, just bring that nuclear torpedo as a guarantee."
Kaga sighs. "I have many questions, and we ourselves need information to find our missing sister. Besides, we are also in conflict with a distant neighbor from the South who has just finished building a strong fleet."
"No problem," I answer. A distant neighbor, wait. There are other countries? I need to find out more detail. I hope it's just my feeling, or the national conflicts in this world are similar to mine.
Kaga then turns toward Ayanami who is sitting and holding her scratched face. Kaga bows her head deeply. "I apologize for the rough attack earlier. I only wanted to protect my sisters."
Ayanami, confused, can only answer shortly, "Ah... yes, desu."
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Heading to Yokohama.
Kaga orders Kongo and Asuka to stay at Iwo Jima to guard the border. Meanwhile, JS Hyuga and JS Kaga will escort us to Yokohama port to meet their Admiral.
"Admiral? So this world still has males in the military?" I think to myself. "I thought this world only contained ship-girls."
The two modern aircraft carriers, JS Hyuga (181) and JS Kaga (184), begin to maneuver in front of my ship. They head West, cutting through the waves at high speed. I direct JS Izumo to follow them from behind.
My destroyers begin to shed their rigging back into full ship forms. USS Laffey, HMS Javelin, and IJN Ayanami appear behind JS Izumo. Kaga, watching the transformation from the F-35B in VTOL mode beside the ship, looks amazed.
"So you are different from us," Kaga says. "You are ship-girls who can turn ships into weapons?"
"Correct," I answer. "We can turn our ships into portable weaponry without losing full control over the ship itself."
"Wonderful technology from another world," Kaga praises.
Hyuga, sitting inside the Apache helicopter cabin, only grumbles. "Kaga, you're too soft on them."
Kaga, hearing through the small headset, only smiles thinly. "Hyuga, if you want to experience the atomic bomb events like in the history books, feel free to challenge them to blow up that torpedo in front of your nose. I want to protect this country, and we need allies to face the threat from our 'neighbor.' I also want to find information about our missing sister."
Slowly, the Japanese coastline begins to appear. The magnificent Yokohama Port reveals its silhouette, with many modern warships anchored there.
"Team, act normal," I instruct Javelin and the others. "Don't be easily provoked when we arrive later."
Javelin nods while applying a plaster to Ayanami's slightly scratched cheek. We prepare ourselves for a new chapter in this journey. A meeting with "humans" and a modern fleet that has the same face as us.
The blue sea stretching across Tokyo Bay slowly begins to narrow, replaced by rows of concrete docks and forests of giant cranes towering high. Our group finally arrives at Yokohama Port. The atmosphere is so grand, typical of a world-class military port.
Ahead, the two modern aircraft carriers (JS Kaga and JS Hyuga) begin to maneuver gracefully. Several small tugboats pull alongside, helping to guide the steel giants toward their berthing positions. The sound of ship engines and heavy steam horns blare back and forth, giving a sense of busyness I haven't felt since being at the main Azur Lane headquarters.
I stand at the edge of the flight deck, watching the procession closely. JS Kaga and JS Hyuga are now docked side by side at the main wharf. Not long after, I see movement from their air units. Kaga slowly descends from the F-35B jet still in VTOL mode, landing gracefully on the concrete dock. On the other side, Hyuga descends from the door of an Apache helicopter hovering low before finally landing.
However, there is one sight that truly leaves me stunned.
The dock is not empty. There, hundreds of humans in work uniforms (both male and female) seem incredibly busy. They are dock operators, logistics crews, and technicians. I see them carrying giant fuel hoses, pulling mooring ropes, to checking sensors using manual electronic equipment.
"So... ordinary humans also play an important role here," I mutter softly.
At the Azur Lane base, as far as I know, almost everything can be done by the Kansen ship-girls themselves through the internal Wisdom Cube energy. When I fought against Long Chao before, if I needed a plane, I just manifested it from internal energy. If that plane was destroyed, I only needed time to recover my energy. But here, I realize there is a fundamental difference. Here, it looks more logical.
I see the technician crews performing physical checks on the wings of Kaga's F-35B. They bring spare parts, oil, and ammunition from warehouses on the edge of the dock. It seems the combat equipment of the ship-girls in this world doesn't just appear from energy. Everything is made by human hands through industrial processes. That means their stock is limited. Logistics is their lifeblood. I feel a very clear disparity.
The ship-girls here have souls bound to their ships, allowing them to control that advanced technology telepathically, but they still rely on the presence of human crews for maintenance. A unique symbiosis, yet it also looks very fragile if the logistics are cut off.
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The Center of Attention.
After JS Izumo and our four destroyers are perfectly berthed in the provided dock slots, our presence immediately becomes a magnet for attention. Hundreds of dock crews stop their activities for a moment, staring with their mouths agape. Even some civilians at the harbor boundary seem to be climbing fences or using binoculars to see us.
This is only natural. From a distance, my JS Izumo indeed looks similar to the JS Izumo of this world. However, if seen up close, the differences are striking. The dual MARS 230 rocket grenade launchers mounted on my hull, the Mark 45 torpedo tubes, to the Mi-24 Comet and AW249 Fenice helicopter units parked on my deck are not standard Japanese armaments in this world. Perhaps some of my ship's technology are only blueprints in this world.
And what surely surprises them even more is the presence of Laffey, Javelin, Ayanami, and Nimi. Four World War II era destroyers that are still in very smooth and new condition, as if they had just come out of a shipyard in the 1940s. For the crews here, seeing those ships sailing at high speed alongside a modern aircraft carrier is a historical anomaly that makes no sense. I hope they don't go home and check their history textbooks.
"Everyone, gather on the dock," I order my four destroyer ship-girls.
the five of us jump down from the ship deck to the concrete dock. We jump quite high, startling the crew who were giving signals to the tugboats parking our ships at the dock. JS Kaga is already waiting there, standing tall with a gaze that is now calmer. She signals us to follow her into the magnificent command headquarters complex.
As we walk past the crowd of crews, whispers begin to be heard.
"Look at that... is that really the aircraft carrier Izumo? But why does she have fox ears?"
"That girl with the long white hair... her ears are mechanical? Is she a robot?"
"The ships behind her... those are truly ancient destroyer designs, but why do the radars look so modern?"
I realize their gaze. In this world, ship-girls like Kaga, Hyuga, Kongo, Asuka, and perhaps other ship-girls we haven't seen yet, have physiques that very much resemble normal humans. They don't have animal features or mechanical accessories fused to their bodies like us. Seeing me with silver fox ears and a tail that moves occasionally, and Ayanami with her mechanical ears, surely makes them think we are creatures from another dimension, which is actually true anyway. We do come from a different dimension; even I and Azur Lane itself also come from different dimension.
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Meeting the Admiral.
We enter a large concrete building with tight security. At every corner, soldiers in full uniform salute as Kaga and Hyuga pass. We continue walking until we arrive in front of a large double door made of shiny teak wood.
Kaga opens the door slowly.
Inside a spacious room with large windows facing directly toward the bay, stands an adult male in a very neat naval high-officer uniform. His hair has grayed a bit at the sides, but his gaze is still very sharp and full of authority. Beside him stands an assistant who is also a ship-girl, holding a digital tablet.
The man steps forward, stopping right in front of us. He gives a steady salute with his right hand.
"Welcome to Yokohama Port, one of the main military ports of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, guests from a far-off country. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Vice Admiral Katsuto Deguchi, Commander of the Yokohama District, and beside me is Hikawa Maru, a Hospital Ship Girl who might guide you while you are here," he says in a heavy yet polite voice.
I am stunned for a moment. Finally, I meet a man who holds military command. This proves that in this world, human command structures still hold full control over the ship-girls.
I immediately return the salute, a normal habit in the military world. Ayanami, Nimi, Javelin, and Laffey behind me look a bit confused. They glance at each other, then awkwardly try to mimic my movement. Laffey even salutes while half-yawning, forcing Javelin to nudge her arm so she'll be more serious.
"I am JS Izumo, leader of the Azur Lane Exploration Task Force," I reply firmly. "Thank you for the welcome, Admiral Deguchi. Apologies if our arrival started with a bit of... err... trouble at Iwo Jima."
Admiral Deguchi lowers his hand, then gives a thin smile, a smile that is hard to interpret. He stares at me with a probing gaze, as if trying to read what technology is stored within my body.
"That trouble was a communication issue, and Kaga has already reported the gist of it," Deguchi says. "However, seeing you standing here, with the same name as our missing pride... this goes beyond any military logic I have ever studied. You know, our missing JS Izumo was the eldest and strongest sister of all the ship-girls here. She used to berth at Yokosuka, which is adjacent to this port."
He turns his gaze to the window, looking toward my JS Izumo ship and the destroyers docked there.
"We have many things to discuss. About who you really are, where you come from, and perhaps, about the help we wish to request," he continues.
I narrow my eyes.
"Help? So they are indeed in trouble," I think. So Kaga's words were true.
"We are ready to listen, Admiral," I answer. "But we also need answers. This world feels very familiar to us, yet at the same time, very foreign."
Admiral Deguchi nods. "Please, sit down. We have a long time before the dinner banquet begins. Yokohama is a beautiful city, but right now, the seas around us are not doing well."
I glance at my comrades. Nimi seems to have prepared her small notebook, Javelin looks enthusiastic, while Ayanami is still occasionally touching her plastered cheek. This meeting is the beginning of a new chapter. We are no longer just explorers; we are now diplomats in a world on the brink of conflict.
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To be continued.
Chapter 13: They Reach Out and We Who Love Peace