Japanese Liberation of Takeshima

***Spoilers for the franchise Gate: Thus The Japanese Self-Defense Force Fought There

*Liberties Taken: I know that currently the South Korean occupation force on Takeshima (also called the Liancourt Rocks) consists of South Korean Coast Guard and an occasional police presence, but I imagine that in the event of racheted tensions between Japan and South Korea, South Korea would likely station Marines there, as they have in the past.

On board a Japan Air Self-Defense Force Kawasaki C-1 transport over the Sea of Japan, en route to the islands of Takeshima (occupied by South Korea), 2:37 A.M. …

Sergeant First Class Shino Kuribayashi of the JSDF Third Recon Force checked her equipment again, fidgeting somewhat nervously.

"Nerves, Sergeant?" First Lieutenant Yoji Itami, the Commander of the Third Recon Team asked. "Relax, we'll be fine. Just remember your training."

"Well, South Korean marines aren't any Imperial or Bandit mooks, that's for sure. I'm not sure my skills will be the most use."

"Wow, Sergeant Kuribayashi being unsure before a battle?!" Sergeant Takeo Kurata exclaimed in exaggerated surprise, having overheard the exchange. "That's a first! Now I've seen it all!"

"Shut up!" The girl snapped back, elbowing him.

"You may not have much chance to fight in close combat, but you'll be in charge of the Type 62 machine gun. Think you can handle that?"

"Of course, sir!" The Sergeant exclaimed happily.

"Third Recon Team, we're coming up on the LZ! Be warned, the LZ may be hot!" The pilot warned over the intercom. "Repeat, the LZ may be hot!"

The rear door of the transport plane began to lower, and the soldiers prepared their parachutes.

"All right, deploy!" Lieutenant Itami ordered, before leaping out with a sigh.

"Yahooo!" Sergeant Kuribayashi cheered, an almost-comically large Type 62 machine gun slung over her back in proportion to the soldier's small frame. Aside from Lieutenant Itami and the eleven soldiers under his command, they were accompanied by a demigod and a mage from the Special Region, specifically an Apostle of the War God Emroy and a mage from the Rurudo nomadic tribe. Both of them were personally loyal to Lieutenant Itami and had come to assist their Japanese allies in liberating the islands of Takeshima from South Korean occupation.

"Wow, this is amazing!" Apostle of War, Rory Mercury, licked her lips in anticipation. It was her first time riding in one of Japan's flying machines, and she certainly didn't have to worry about Hardy up here.

As she watched Rory jump out of the plane, the young mage behind Rory sighed. "Even if the parachute device fails, I can still use magic to break my fall. Still, I've always disliked heights…" Leilei La Lelena muttered to herself in a monotone voice before following Rory and Lieutenant Itami's squad.

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South Korean Marine Base on Mejima (East Island) of Takeshima…

Commander Kim Eun-ha slammed down the phone in fury.

"What is it, Commander?" His subordinate, Captain Hong Jae-un drawled.

"Damn it, it looks like the Japanese finally got the balls to invade! It seems the JSDF transport our air defense detected earlier dropped off a few… uninvited visitors." Commander Kim's lips curled upward sadistically. "Captain Hong, why don't you take a squad out there and give them a very… warm welcome? You only have to delay them for a while, so we can take up our battle positions and emergency fortifications, but if you can kill them all, I don't mind! And I've sent out a call to President Moon, so Navy and Air Force reinforcements will be here soon! Let's send these Japanese bastards to hell!"

"Well, Commander," Captain Hong flashed an evil grin in response. "If, by some chance, they have some pretty girl soldiers with them… we would like to have… a little fun…"

"You're the same as ever, aren't you Hong Jae-un?" Commander Kim's lip chuckled slightly. "Just make sure you… dispose of all the evidence. If you get caught for war crimes like in South Sudan… this time, I can't protect you again. This is Japan we're talking about, not some third-world African shithole."

"Acknowledged, Commander!"

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On Ojima (West Island) of Takeshima…

South Korean Marine Lieutenant Park Jun-ho and Corporal Jang Su-hyong gazed down on the two paradropped persons on the rocky outcropping below.

"Hmm, looks like those two girls are the only two who landed on the rocks instead of the water," Lieutenant Park commented. "What's with the strange getup though? They don't look Japanese…"

"Hmm… a Gothic Lolita girl and a blue-haired mage… Ah! I remember! They're the guests from the 'Special Region'!"

"Ah, so they are now lapdogs of the JSDF! Though hardly surprising considering how they defended the JSDF on television. Damn Japan! Those girls should've been ours! Regardless, let's try to take them alive! After all, I'm sure those would be something Captain Hong would be 'into'!"

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Rory Mercury's sensitive ears perked up at the sound of what seemed like voices nearby, ones she could not recognize. "Stay down, Leilei! I hear people- I'll go scout it out! You wait for the JSDF."

Rory scaled a large, rocky outcropping with relative ease. "Ahh… it's somewhere around here…"

BANG! A sniper shot exploded at her feet.

"Gotcha!" Rory honed in on the ledge the sniper team was hiding on and spun around it, surprising the two soldiers there.

To Rory's untrained eye, both looked very similar to Japanese, but there were differences in uniform, and, as they chattered excitedly, she realized their language was not Japanese and thus unintelligible to her. Ah, so this must be the enemy rival nation of Japan that Itami was briefing us about, the "Koreans".

One soldier blasted her with a sniper rifle at point-blank range, ripping wounds in Rory's arms and legs. Wounds that quickly began to heal. The soldier blinked once, then unsheathed a combat knife and charged, yelling loudly.

What an idiot, Rory snorted, and easily bisected him at the waist with her battleaxe.

The second soldier panicked and stumbled away, firing madly at her with his sidearm, all the while fumbling with his radio and shouting wildly.

"Man, you aren't getting away that easily," Rory sighed, almost bored, and leapt at him, cutting the soldier down in a simple slash.

"Man, you didn't leave some for me?" A gruff female voice grunted behind Rory, as Sergeant Kuribayashi scaled up the rocks.

Wham! Tat-tat-tat! A series of bullets vaporized as they slammed into a magical ward.

"Don't worry- looks like they're a lot more coming this way for you," Leilei commented grimly, maintaining her blue magical ward to shield Kuribayashi.

The enemy gunfire had come from ten South Korean Marines rapidly racing toward their position, and Kuribayashi's eyes lit up. "Aha! Leave them to me!" She dropped to her stomach and leveled the machine gun. "For glorious Japan!"

The bullets raked into several South Korean Marines, dropping them on the spot, and the rest ducked for cover, retreating behind any rock formations they could cower behind.

Lieutenant Itami and the rest of the squad had just caught up, having landed in the water with flotation devices and being forced the climb ashore. He sighed upon seeing Kuribayashi blasting away with her machine gun and yelling expletives at the enemy.

"Sergeant, don't you always run out of ammo? You need to be careful where and how much you shoot." Lieutenant Itami then gestured to his subordinates. "Take up firing position, but be careful to stay in position!"

Firing down from concealed positions, the Japanese soldiers had a vantage over their South Korean opponents, and were able to pick off a few that were behind cover- but not all of them.

"Rory, can you help us take them out?" Lieutenant Itami shouted over the gunfire to the Dark Apostle.

"Sigh, and I had just healed by last injures too," Rory pretended to pout, but then broke into a grin. "Anything for my Itami!" The demigod charged through the crossfire, lethal for anyone but her, and leapt high into the air.

The South Koreans turned all their gunfire on the girl leaping down at them, but soon discovered it was futile. Rory made short work of her enemies, carving them up where they stood.

"All clear, Itami-kun!" Rory cooed, and Lieutenant Itami facepalmed.

Did Lieutenant Yanagida really promise Rory she could have me in bed in exchange for her cooperation? I'm not perverted enough to want to be ravaged by a Gothic loli demigod!

"Everyone, fan out and stay alert!" Lieutenant Itami ordered. "There might be ambushes or traps!"

"Lieutenant?" Sergeant Major Suichiro Kurahawa reported. "Rory and Leilei have just combed this island for enemy holdouts, but there doesn't seem to be any. However, there have been confirmed booby traps and mines rigged about, so we shouldn't wander around casually!"

"Very well, if Ojima is secure, we'll leave the clean up to the sappers! Tell Sergeant Azuma to get the Zodiac rafts ready!"

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South Korean Marine Base on Mejima (East Island) of Takeshima…

"Commander!" A South Korean soldier reported. "We've haven't finished our defenses, but we've already lost contact with the entire advance squad, including Captain Hong!"

"Damnit! I mean, Captain Hong was expendable, but… that quickly?" Commander Kim cursed, kicking his own chair over. "Then it's time to get serious!"

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Irrelevant Historical Fact:

14 years ago on this day, April 2, 2004, radical Islamist terrorists from Al-Qaeda attempted to bomb the Spanish high-speed train AVE near Madrid, less than a month after perpetrating the brutal March 11 Madrid bombings that killed 193 and wounded 2,050. Luckily, the second time around, they were discovered and thwarted by Spanish police.