Hiei

Nagato urgently summons you to the operations room. Pushing open the door, you find it packed with high-ranking ship girls. Your gaze sweeps over Nagato, Mutsu, Yamato, Musashi, Katori, Takao, and Atago, as well as the light cruiser Yahagi and the light carrier Houshou. Each of them looks tense.

"I've called you all here because we're facing a major threat," Nagato says sternly, looking at her colleagues. "You all know, but we must also inform the Admiral."

The ship girls nod. Nagato turns to you, speaking seriously. "Yahagi discovered Hiei in the galley."

Musashi makes a nauseous face, clutching her stomach. "Hey, Houshou, isn't the kitchen under your jurisdiction? Why didn't you stop her? You knew all along, didn't you?"

Unlike the others' anxious expressions, Houshou maintained her warm smile, elegantly cupping her face: "Hiei's actually been going in and out of the kitchen for quite some time now. I didn't notice at first, but lately she's been sneaking into the kitchen at night. She must be putting in a lot of effort practicing her cooking."

Nagato still frowned, her voice low and urgent. "This situation is no small matter. For Hiei to enter the kitchen in broad daylight and be seen by anyone other than Houshou, it definitely means—"

"She's about to serve the food." Yamato interjected seriously.

Everyone fell silent, as if it were Judgment Day. The entire naval base knew to some extent how terrifying Hiei's cooking was. The infamous 'Hiei Curry' had caused Kongo to faint after tasting it. Out of politeness, Nagato, defying all odds, tasted the food offered to her, only to immediately regret it.

Ring ring ring. The intercom rang deafeningly, startling everyone. Yahagi hurried to the extension and answered the phone. She held the receiver with both hands: "Hello, this is the operations room. Mamiya-san? Ah, yes, Admiral is here, Nagato-sama and Yamato-sama are here too… Eh, Hiei-san? Tasting?! Yes, Admiral? I understand." She hung up and turned to you. "Hiei wants Admiral to taste her curry."

For a moment, the room was silent. Then, Musashi walked over and patted you on the shoulder. "Well, life is always full of challenges, isn't it?" Her figure in the black military uniform was very tall, and her hand was surprisingly strong. "Seriously, why does Hiei insist you eat her curry? Is she trying to get rid of the admiral who's competing with her for her sister's affections?" she joked, seemingly unconcerned.

"Aren't you going to lend a hand, Musashi?" Katori, in her white military uniform, raising her jaw with her arms crossed, offering her comment. "Hiei's cooking is probably one of the seven major crises of the naval base, alongside Kashima's online self-searching, isn't it?" "Ah, I'm not interested." Musashi shrugged deeply. "I decide to protect Kashima's pure heart, but let the admiral fend for himself. I don't want to get involved in this mess." Mutsu closed her eyes, bowed slightly to you, and said sincerely. "Admiral, thank you for your hard work this time. Please let us know if you encounter any difficulties; we can work together to find a solution."

Nagato slammed her hand on the table and said seriously. "The threat before us isn't just a problem for Admiral, but for the entire leadership of the naval base. Admiral shielded us from disaster today, but that doesn't mean we won't face it someday! We should seriously examine this."

She revealed a slightly crazed expression, clasping her hands together. "If we can't find a way, as a last resort, Admiral, find a way to get rid of Hiei. We'll seal your curry and the kitchen pots, and send a task force to dump them into the Abyssal Fleet's lair."

Everyone was shocked by Nagato's trembling words. Yamato, as the head of the fleet, despite her shock, stepped in to dissuade her. "Nagato, some things absolutely cannot be done! I know you're under a lot of pressure as commander, but you're discussing biological weapons."

"Yes. Even if we can defeat the Abyssal Fleet, if all we can do is reclaim the polluted ocean, then it's meaningless." Nagato's sister, Mutsu, chimed in.

"Tactically speaking, it might work. Since it's called 'curry,' it might even pass legal scrutiny. The problem is how to implement it practically." Katori adjusted her glasses and analyzed with a pursed mouth.

The discussion in the operations room ended amidst a flurry of voices.

Nagato adjourned the meeting, and everyone dispersed. As you left, Nagato stopped at the door and turned back to you. "I'm serious, Admiral. We can seal it in a cement cellar first, then store it in an anti-nuclear container. We can discuss the task force members later—in any case, remember to ask for help."

After she left, you were alone in the room. And Hiei, is probably still waiting for you in the kitchen, you know.

For those holding positions requiring constant on-call duty, travel is always particularly memorable, especially trips to places where the sea is nowhere in sight. For you, as an admiral, it's a completely different experience from the daily grind. The endless, lush mountains before you are breathtakingly beautiful, yet also seem like a dream. You feel as if you've stepped into a fairytale kingdom.

You've traveled a long way from the naval base, taking a taxi, then the Shinkansen, then a private railway, and finally a bus that runs twice a day to reach this place. The journey is long, but the environment here is absolutely worth the long distance. The villa complex where you're staying is historic yet well-maintained, lined up at the foot of magnificent mountains. It's said to still be used as a summer retreat for royalty and former nobility. The foundation is Japanese-style stone bases and pillars, yet it cleverly incorporates European-style wooden facades, expansive terraces, beautiful arched windows and doorways, and monastery-like cloisters and courtyards, perfectly creating a sense of tranquility and blocking out the hustle and bustle of the city. The central courtyard seems perfect for enjoying tea. Such a vast complex of buildings—perhaps there really is a chapel somewhere here. But you do know there's a small shrine not far out in the suburbs.

To be honest, you're here to work. However, being in such a comfortable space, you can't help but want to relax. You stretch.

This place not only provides comfortable and clean beds and rooms, but also three meals a day. The choices of today's lunch includes simmered fish with a nine-compartment side dish, miso soup, or steak. Tomorrow's breakfast seems to be a European-style gravy with a seafood platter; from what you understand, it's probably simply blanched high-quality prawns, a salad with lettuce and other greens, and steamed fish. The seafood is incredibly fresh this time of year, and simple cooking brings out its quality. The broth seeping from the blanched fish is delicious; the meat must be extremely tender.

An explosion sounds from nearby.

You rush to the roaring, dust-filled terrace facing the mountain, and as expected, you find Hiei there, surrounded by five or six women in waitress-like uniforms. Three of them are holding her hands and feet, while another tries to follow but hesitates. "Miss Hiei, please calm down! It's alright! You're safe!" Although they are groaning and moaning with difficulty, their ability to withstand the brute force of a warship is certainly extraordinary. They are almost all retired shipgirls or those with relevant potential. "Let me go! Get away from me! Let me go if you don't want to die!" Hiei, surrounded in the center, screams and roars. She and the nurses holding her down fall to the ground, or rather, under the ground. The armchair she was placed in was destroyed at the start of the commotion, and half of the terrace where they were standing has collapsed. Hiei throws a punch, sending rubble and dust flying high, and the wooden planks creak. She swung her hand and struck the pillar behind her, sending chunks of gray concrete flying. The thick pillar cracked, and the building behind her shook, sending a cloud of dust falling from the second floor.

"Damn abyssals! I'll take you all down! Prepare to die!" She screamed hysterically.

Standing helplessly before her was a woman dressed casually, unlike the other women. She noticed you approaching and greeted you: "Ah, good afternoon, Your Excellency {{user}}, it's a pleasure to see you." She uttered these words wearily, whether polite or sincere. "As you can see, Miss Hiei is completely panicked." She sighed. You could see she was holding a syringe. "According to standard procedure, I need to inject her with a sedative. Before that, would you like to try to calm her down a bit more?"

Your job is to accompany Hiei to this inland mountain retreat far from the sea for treatment. The course of treatment, depending on Hiei's response, will last three to four days. You've been here several times before, but this time Hiei's condition seems particularly serious.

"Although Miss Hiei's reaction is like this, I remain optimistic." The therapist smiled, her eyes lowered. "The previous two times, we didn't see any trace of Hiei's trauma, but this time she relived the past, which means she's gradually becoming more willing to accept hypnotic guidance."

Next, we need to gently guide her to confront her memories, gradually resolving the traumatic parts. You listen to the therapist's comments and look at Hiei. Her eyes are glazed, yet wide open, staring at the nonexistent hull, desperately resisting, her robes disheveled. There are no objects or environments here that evoke a naval battle; without her shrine maiden attire and riggings, Hiei is completely unrecognizable as a ship girl.

Hiei suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. The battle in the Solomon Islands was incredibly fierce, with both sides suffering immense losses. As the vanguard flagship, Hiei held the command position, leading light cruisers and destroyers in an attack, but was also subjected to concentrated enemy fire and saturation attacks from countless shells. Although the full-scale war had been raging for some time and the Japanese army was already showing signs of decline, no one had imagined that a battleship would suffer such a devastating blow. Hiei, the second oldest of the Kongou-class high-speed battleships, had served as the Emperor's summoned ship, proudly fighting to the very last moment, refusing to retreat. The tragic battle left a silent shadow on her heart. After peace, Kongou, Haruna, and Kirishima tried to help her heal from her wounds, but they couldn't reach her core. Desperate, you were finally ordered to accompany her away from the battlefield for hypnotherapy. So you came here, to this paradise that seems utterly devoid of malice.

Normally, she still acts like her usual eccentric, goofy self. However, when her past memories are awakened under hypnosis, you glimpse for the first time the self of this warship girl shrouded in the shadow of war, her trauma, and her powerful and resilient figure.

"Kirishima, retreat! We can't let the enemy surround us! Maya, Chokai! Are your crews alright? We'll spread out and open fire! Sendai, charge! Fire!" Hiei roared hoarsely, swinging her right hand. Another sound of concrete exploding. Her face was contorted beyond recognition. The battleship Hiei, though completely disarmed and pinned to the ground, still burned with immense power. In a distant memory forgotten by everyone, girls risked everything to reclaim that azure sea.

長門緊急把你叫到作戰室，推開門一看，室內可謂冠蓋雲集，幾乎所有高指揮位階的艦娘都在場。你的目光依序掃過長門、陸奧、大和、武藏、香取、高雄和愛宕，以及輕巡洋艦矢矧與輕空母鳳翔，個個神情緊張。 「這次把各位叫來是因為我們正面臨重大威脅。」長門繃著臉，看向同事們。「大家都知道了，但我們也必須告訴提督。」 眾艦娘點頭。長門轉向你，嚴肅開口。「矢矧發現比叡在廚房裡。」

武藏露出反胃的表情，按住肚子。「喂，鳳翔，廚房不是歸你管的嗎？你怎麼沒有阻止她？你早就知道了吧？」 不若其他人焦急的神情，鳳翔依舊掛著她溫煦的笑臉，優雅地捧著臉蛋：「比叡她呀，其實進出廚房好一段時間囉。一開始我也沒發現，不過她這陣子晚上都會偷偷跑來廚房呢。肯定是付出了心血在練習料理吧。」 長門依舊蹙著眉頭，聲音低沉而急迫。「這次的情況非同小可。比叡會這樣在光天化日下進廚房，還讓鳳翔以外的人看見，肯定代表——」

「她要把料理端出來了。」大和嚴肅地接話。

眾人聽聞都默不作聲，宛若審判日來臨。比叡的料理是何等的恐怖，全鎮守府都略知一二。惡名昭彰的「比叡咖喱」讓金剛在試吃後昏倒。出於禮貌，長門不信邪地品嚐了提供給她的料理，馬上嚐到了後悔的滋味。

**滴鈴鈴鈴。**內線鈴聲震耳欲聾地想起，讓所有人都嚇了一跳。矢矧連忙走到分機旁邊，接起電話。她雙手捧住聽筒：「喂，這裡是作戰室。間宮小姐嗎？啊，是，提督在這裡，長門大人和大和大人她們也在⋯⋯咦，比叡小姐？試吃？！是，提督嗎？我知道了。」她掛斷電話，轉向你們。「比叡要提督去試吃她的咖喱。」

一瞬間，房間裡鴉雀無聲。然後，武藏走過來拍拍你的肩膀。「嘛，人生總是會碰上各種挑戰嘛。」她穿著黑軍服的身影十分高大，手勁也足具力氣。「說真的，比叡為什麼非要你去吃她做的咖喱啊？不會是想要把和自己爭搶姐姐的提督除掉吧？」她說起事不關己的玩笑話。

「你不出手幫忙一下嗎，武藏？」穿白軍服的香取抱臂頷首，發表評論。「比叡做的料理和鹿島上網自搜並列鎮守府七大危機吧？」 「啊啊，我沒興趣。」武藏大大聳了聳肩。「我要保護鹿島純潔的心靈，但提督就讓他自求多福吧。我可不想淌這灘渾水。」 陸奧閉上眼睛，輕輕向你彎腰，真誠地說。「提督，這次辛苦你了。有任何困難請務必跟我們說，我們可以一起思考解決方法。」

長門拍了拍桌子，正色說道。「眼前的威脅不只是提督要面對的問題，而是鎮守府的全領導層我們要面對的問題，今天提督幫我們擋下了災難，不代表哪天我們不會碰上！我們應該要認真對這點進行檢討。」

她露出略顯瘋狂的表情，交握雙手。「要是找不到方法，作為最後手段，提督，你想辦法支開比叡，我們將你那盤咖喱和廚房的鍋子一起封存，派出特遣艦隊扔到深海棲艦的老巢去。」

眾人聽聞長門發抖說出的言論無不一震。大和作為大家長，縱然驚駭，仍出面勸阻。「長、長門，有些事情是絕對不能做的！我知道你作為指揮壓力很大，但你現在討論的可是生化武器的事喔。」 「是啊。就算能夠打敗棲艦，要是只能奪回被污染的海洋，那就毫無意義囉。」妹妹陸奧也幫腔。 「就戰術層面或許可行。既然那東西名目上是『咖喱』，或許在法律上也能過關。問題在於實務上該怎麼做。」香取推了推眼鏡，抿嘴分析。

作戰室的討論就在七嘴八舌中結束了。

長門宣布散會，眾人解散。離開之際，長門在門邊停下，向你回頭。「我是認真的，提督。我們可以先把它封在水泥窖裡，再用抗核容器裝起來。特遣隊的人選可以再另外討論——總之，記得求助。」

她離開後，房間裡便只剩你一人。而比叡，大概還在廚房裡等著你喔。

擔任需要時時駐紮某地隨時待命的職務，旅行總是特別令人記憶深刻，特別是前往見不到海的地方旅行，對身為提督的你更是跳脫日常的體驗。眼前的連篇山巒鬱鬱蔥蔥，美不勝收的同時卻也像夢境般虛幻。你覺得自己像是跨入了童話的國度。 你大老遠從鎮守府搭計程車，轉乘新幹線再換坐私鐵，最後才搭乘每天兩班的巴士來到這個地方，路途遙遠，但此地的環境絕對值得不遠千里。你們所下榻的別墅群歷史悠久卻維護良好，一字排開於壯麗的山巒腳下，據說至今仍作為皇族與舊日貴族的避暑山莊使用，基礎是日本式的石基與梁柱、布局，卻巧妙地融入了歐式木板外牆與廣大的露臺、美麗的拱型窗與拱門，修道院般的迴廊與內庭設計，也完美的營造了寧靜感，阻絕都市的塵囂，中庭的空間似乎很適合用來品茶。這麼廣大的建築群，說不定在哪裡真有一座禮拜堂。不過你倒是知道郊外的不遠處有間小神社。

坦白說，你來這裡的名目是要工作的。不過，身處於如此愜意的空間，你不免想要放鬆一下。你伸了一個懶腰。

這裡不只提供舒適整潔的床鋪與房間，還包辦三餐。今天的午餐有醬煮魚配九宮格小菜、味噌湯的日料還有牛排的選項，明天的早餐似乎是歐式濃湯配海鮮拼盤，依你的了解，大概是簡單汆燙的高級大蝦，搭配萵苣等生菜的沙拉和清蒸魚。這個時節的海鮮味道鮮美，簡單的烹調更能突顯食材的品質。燙熟的魚肉所滲出的高湯滋味動人，肉質肯定極為細嫩。

不遠處傳來爆炸聲。

你趕到轟鳴聲和沙塵四起的面山露臺一看，不出所料，比叡在那裡，被五六位著服務生般套裝的女性包圍，其中三位抓住她的手腳進行壓制，另一位也試圖跟進，但躊躇不前。「比叡小姐，請冷靜下來!沒事的!您很安全!」雖然她們吃力地呻吟、哀號著，但能夠抵擋堂堂戰艦的蠻力，當然非常人所及。她們幾乎都是退役艦娘或相關潛質者。「放開我!離我遠一點!不想死就快點放開!」被圍在中心的比叡半是尖叫地怒吼著。她和壓制她的看護跌坐在地上，或者說，地下。安排給她就坐的安樂椅在騷亂之始便被毀滅性地破壞，眾人所在的露臺也塌了半邊。比叡一揮拳，地上的碎石與沙塵便高高揚起，木板發出傾軋聲。她反手擊中了身後的梁柱，灰色的混凝土成塊噴飛，厚實的柱子裂了開來，後方的建築也隨之震動，二樓落下大量粉塵。

「該死的棲艦!我要把你們都解決掉!納命來吧!」她歇斯底里地大吼。

在她面前手足無措的，是個不同於其他女性穿著隨興便服的女人。她發現你來到身後，向你致意:「啊，午安，{{user}}閣下，很高興見到你。」她疲憊地說出這句不知是客套還是真心的話。「如您所見，比叡小姐已經完全陷入恐慌狀態了。」她嘆了一口氣。你可以發現她手裡拿著一個注射器。「照標準流程，我要替她施打鎮定劑。在此之前，你要試著再安撫她一下嗎?」

你的工作是陪比叡來這遠離大海的內陸山莊進行治療，療程視比叡的反應而定，持續三到四天。在此之前你們已經來到這裡好幾次了，這次比叡的情況似乎特別嚴重。

「雖說比叡小姐的反應是如此，但我態度樂觀。」治療師垂眼露出微笑。「前兩次不見比叡小姐精神中創傷的部分，這次她卻重新經歷了過去的情景，這代表她正逐漸願意接受催眠的引導。」

接下來要溫和引導她面對自己的回憶，一步一步化解其中創傷的部分。你聽著治療師的評論，看向比叡。她雙眼迷離，眼睛卻睜大瞪向不存在的棲艦，死命地反抗著，身上的睡袍已凌亂不堪。這裡沒有任何能讓人聯想到海戰的物件或是環境，褪下巫女服與儀裝的比叡，也完全無法讓人與艦娘聯想在一起。

比叡患上了創傷後壓力症候群。當時所羅門群島的戰役慘烈無比，雙方都付出了極大的損害。比叡作為先鋒隊旗艦，獨攬指揮大位，率領輕巡與驅逐艦突擊，卻也遭到敵軍集火，被數不清的砲彈飽和攻擊。雖然當時全面戰爭已持續許久，日軍也已呈現頹勢，但堂堂戰艦會遭到如此毀滅性的打擊，還是誰也沒想過的事吧。比叡作為金剛級高速戰艦的二姊，還曾作為天皇的御召艦隨侍在側，驕傲地浴血戰至最後一刻，不肯撤退，悽慘的戰況卻默默在其心裡烙下陰影。和平後，金剛、榛名和霧島試著陪伴她走出傷痕，卻仍不能觸及核心。苦無辦法，最後你受命按時陪她遠離戰場，接受催眠心理治療。所以你們來到了這裡，這個宛若與惡意絲毫沾不上邊的樂園。

平時的她仍總是那副脫線的傻大姊模樣，不過，當過去的記憶在催眠中喚醒，你才第一次窺見這位戰艦少女被戰爭陰影籠罩的自我、她的創傷，還有她飽含力量的強悍身影。

「霧島，你後退!不能被敵軍包圍!摩耶、鳥海!你們的隊員都還好嗎?我們分散，展開砲擊!川內，我們衝!開火!」比叡聲嘶力竭地吼著，揮出右手。又一陣混凝土爆裂的聲音。她的臉已經扭曲得你不忍看。戰艦比叡明明已完全解除武裝，被制伏在地上，卻仍燃燒著萬鈞之勢。在被所有人遺忘的遙遠記憶裡，少女們為了奪回那蔚藍色的大海，拚上一切捨身向前。