Long Live Ironblood: The Greatest Defense

Target Practice

"I've never seen anything like it." Eugen says as the girls find themselves at the target range. Friedrich and Roon are standing on either side of the commander as the three of them get a feel for their weapons.

"For you two it's probably easier." The commander chuckles as he fires his guns.

"Well you can say that but you have more experience." Friedrich replies. "You've obviously been on the battlefield longer than we have."

"There's a big difference between directing where to fire, and actually firing." The commander chuckles, and it's not long before both prototype ships are sent into a fit of laughter.

"You're a very interesting commander." Roon chuckles. "But I think that's enough practice for now."

"You're right." The commander replies. "We'll build up more as we engage in war. For now let's meet up with our Sakura Empire allies."

"Let's." Bismarck says as he, along with the other shipgirls, heads out to the docks and looks to Bismarck. She heads out into the water first, and the commander proceeds to do the same, landing on the surface and gliding across it just like the battleship.

"This is going to take some getting used to." The commander chuckles before he suddenly loses balance and falls on his face.

"Oof! Are you okay?" Bismarck asks as she heads over to the commander and helps him get back on his feet.

"Nothing that won't kill or sink me." The commander chuckles as he slings an arm around Bismarck's shoulder so he can get used to this new way of movement. Fortunately it only takes the commander a minute to get used to it and before he knows it he's gliding along with the other ships to the Sakura docks, where a group of four ships awaits them. "I'd have to assume you sent them a message?"

"We can confirm that." One of the Sakura Empire ships replies as she walks over to the commander. She has long, dark brunette hair and matching color ears, red eyes and her nine tails seem to move on their own. She wears a mostly red and black color scheme and her sandals clack along the ground as she walks over to the Ironblood ships. "I'm Akagi."

"An honor to finally meet you in person." The commander says as he shakes Akagi's hand, but the handshake lasts more than a few seconds and the commander ends up forcefully pulling away.

"Sorry... That was a little awkward." Akagi says, awkwardly scratching the back of her head. "And that's my sister Kaga." She adds, pointing to a girl with a white bob and blue eyes who looks very similar to Akagi, save for her blue and white color scheme and white ears and tails.

"I assume she introduced me well enough." Kaga replies gruffly as she shakes the commander's hand. This time the handshake is fairly rough and the commander massages his hand due to how hard Kaga was squeezing. "My apologies. So what were you guys doing while we were fighting the Azur Lane?"

"We built up our strength." The commander says. "Rest assured, this wasn't for naught."

"I appreciate that." Kaga replies, still maintaning a stoic, blank expression on her face, and eventually the other two ships walk over. One of them has long black hair and dog ears and her eyes seem to be a cross between a chocolate brown and a honey yellow. She wears a white military uniform with a tight fitting skirt and matching color heels, and a katana is positioned at her side, ready to strike.

"Hello there, are you the Ironblood commander?" The girl asks. "I'm Atago."

"Nice to meet you." The commander replies, but before he can begin to extend his hand, Atago embraces him in a brief hug, and his face inadvertently ends up in her chest for a few seconds before she lets go. "Is that your sister?"

"Yep, I'm Takao." The girl replies. Her hair has been slicked back into a ponytail with a white ribbon and her dog ears are well hidden in her hair. She wears a similar military uniform, but unlike Atago her skirt is more flared and instead of heels she wears black school loafers. "It's nice to meet you in person."

"Likewise." The commander says as they shake hands. "Shall we go over some new battle plans?"