The water-dragon shells slammed densely into the sea, blowing open patch after patch of vacuum in an instant. The sight was terrifying.
The once calm surface looked as if an invisible giant hammer were pounding it again and again, leaving one huge sunken crater after another.
Surging seawater rushed outward in all directions, spreading wildly and churning into wave after wave of chaotic surf.
The Light Emperor War Dragon glanced leisurely at Akagi, who was forced into a frantic retreat under the violent assault of the water dragon, barely able to dodge.
Then it looked again at the fox behemoth and Kaga, who were already bound tightly in its whiskers, completely taken.
Compared to Kaga, it was obvious that as an elder sister, Akagi was stronger and tougher in every sense.
"Akagi, watch out!"
Kaga's cry suddenly ripped across the battlefield, full of raw panic.
Akagi's heart jolted. Her focus wavered for the briefest moment and her footing slipped.
Just as she tried to forcibly twist her body to avoid the next volley of water-dragon shells, something changed.
The seawater around her, thick with gathered energy, suddenly spun out of control.
In a blink, it rose up into a towering waterspout, a colossal vortex that connected sky and sea, blocking off any possibility of retreat.
"What?!"
Akagi's pupils shrank. Before she could do anything meaningful in response, the waterspout, infused with the brute power of nature and a strange energy, swallowed her whole.
"Akagi!"
Kaga watched it happen, eyes bloodshot, her voice tearing at her throat. She struggled wildly, fingers digging into the golden whisker around her waist until her nails almost sank into the solid light.
She tried to gather ghostly blue carrier shikigami around herself once more, but the frail energy had barely taken shape before it was crushed silently by the vast pressure radiating from the Light Emperor War Dragon.
Not even a ripple made it out.
Inside the raging waterspout, Akagi felt the world spin wildly.
All around her was endless seawater and chaotic surges of power.
She was like a fallen leaf tossed into the drum of a washing machine, torn and spun without mercy.
The immense centrifugal force and crushing water pressure made it impossible to keep her balance, let alone break free.
Very soon, a suffocating dizziness and lack of oxygen flooded her head. Her thoughts blurred, and the strength in her limbs faded rapidly.
As the energy within the waterspout finally dissipated, the mass of water splashed back into the sea with a roar.
Akagi, unconscious, dropped like a cut kite.
Right before she hit the surface, a soft yet resilient mass of water rose as if alive, catching her body and forming a flowing prison around her, holding her gently and suspending her over the waves.
"Akagi!"
Kaga saw her sister captured and unconscious, and her heart twisted in agony. Her voice broke into something close to a sob.
Then the golden whisker around her waist gave a small, deliberate squeeze.
A subtle shock coursed through her body.
Kaga's vision went black. She did not even have time to say another word before she, like Akagi, slipped into unconsciousness, sagging in the dragon whisker's grip.
Beside them, the massive fox-shaped rigging let out one last howl, full of unwilling sorrow.
The light around its body dimmed at once, its movements stilled, and it too sank into silence.
...
A short while later, Kenji stood at the edge of the base's command platform, looking out at the scene before him.
Suspended in midair by clear flowing water were two unconscious figures, wrapped gently but firmly... the First Carrier Division sisters, Akagi and Kaga.
Close by stood Ayanami, her cool eyes still glaring at him, hostility plain and undisguised.
Farther away, Prince of Wales approached with her usual elegant, unhurried steps.
That familiar smile was on her lips again, just distant and proud enough to be perfectly in character.
"Big bro... no, that is not right, Your Majesty Prince of Wales."
Kenji looked at her, the corner of his eye twitching slightly as he deliberately drew out his words.
"It seems this commotion has been going on for quite some time already, has it not?"
He narrowed his eyes, gaze sharpening as he looked straight at her.
"They say the Royal Navy is full of actors. I always thought that was just the bitter joke of some unfortunate souls with bad luck."
"But now, after witnessing everything with my own eyes today..."
Kenji paused, meaning heavy in that silence.
"I can say with one hundred percent certainty... that rumor is not wrong at all."
The smile on Prince of Wales's face did not change in the slightest. It was as if she had not heard any sarcasm in his tone.
She offered a flawless, graceful salute, her voice warm and pleasant.
"Commander Kenji, you flatter me.
"As you can see, since you took action personally and resolved this crisis so effortlessly, there was no need for us to make an appearance. We would not want to steal your spotlight, would we?"
Every word was impeccable, polished to perfection, dripping with diplomatic grace.
But.
Kenji's mouth twitched again.
It sounded very pretty.
She had obviously been hiding off to the side watching the show, only strolling out now that everything was over.
The Royal Navy's reputation for acting, it seemed, was very well deserved.