Okay, I'm making steady progress in spite of my schoolwork

Okay, I'm making steady progress in spite of my schoolwork. I have Japanese and Asian History to prepare for, but I'm on top of it. I'm not sure how many Katakana characters there are, but it's around 100. Now we're learning Hiragana. I hate Hiragana because it is so much harder to write than Katakana.

I am swamped with school work and it took a lot of effort to just finish this chapter. I don't have time to proofread it because I need to sleep.

I also watched the series: Welcome to the NHK. Or in Japanese: NHK ni Yōkoso. Then I read the manga. They both have their good points but the manga is more detailed and I think develops the main characters much better. Welcome to the NHK is about an unemployed college-dropout named Satō Tatsuhiro. He has lived in seclusion for four years and now suffers from a number of anti-social disorders in addition to what look like paranoia. He has hallucinations and is moderately mentally ill. The female protagonist is Nakahara Misaki, a high school dropout, who appears innocent enough initially. In the manga it becomes very clear she is just as or sicker than Tatsuhiro. She suffers from borderline personality disorders. The plot is that Misaki claims she can save Tatsuhiro from his life of seclusion and integrate him into sociality. In reality her plan is to make him dependent on her and he own lover/slave/prisoner. It has a happy ending… of sorts.

Welcome to the NHK is a comedy-drama. It is pretty realistic in that it isn't a stereotypical boy-meets-girl plot, but really shows a realistic life of people. It hits home the negative and harsh reality of life, especially the otaku (and online gamers like those who are addicted to World of Warcraft). It talks about mental disorders, isolation, drugs, suicide, the bitter side of relationships, and the people who have trouble surviving in the fast-paced Japanese society.

I don't own any trademarked or copywrite item. Please leave a review and/or tell a friend.


Chapter 7: In Case of the Worst

"Hope for the best, but plan for the worst."

A quote from the Bourne Ultimatum

0630 Hours; February 20th, 2012; Camp Hinata Army Base, Hinata; Kanagawa Prefecture, Federation of Japan

Kenji was standing in front of a mirror. He was shaving. Yakumo preferred him without the beard that had been his trademark and even his nickname for years. He wondered if Yakumo considered his beard a sign of devotion to Tenma, the reason he grew it in the first place. While not gifted with great insight, Kenji was somewhat aware of needs and feelings of the people around him. While he was often wrong, he tried to do what was needed which people considered his most enduring quality.

He walked out of the men's bathroom and back to his barrack. He was only dressed in a white T-shirt, blue pants with a yellow stripe up the side, and white socks. Once he entered his assigned barrack he rummaged for his uniform. He pulled on a white button shirt and put on a black tie. He attached the ribbons which denoted his medals and awards. He pinned on his badges for expert marksmanship, combat action badge, and air assault badge. This was the Federal Army B-Class uniform. For the winter they added a black cardigan and a dark-blue wool winter coat that fell past the knees. The final piece was a black beret with the gold Chrysanthemum.

The Imperial Seal was one of the few things that enabled people to tell the different between the US Army and Japanese Army uniforms.

Next to him was Pvt. Fujiwara Fiona, Japanese-Irish girl born in Tokyo. She was securing the black four-in-hand tie issued to female soldiers. "These skirts are pretty clever design. Mobile and practical and warm."

Of course, the military skirts were not flattering, but Fiona decided she could live with that. Her high school uniform was freezing.

"I see. That is good," said Kenji. After more than a year he was starting to pick up a slight American accent. They walked to the main lecture hall with the rest of 5th squad.

Asou Hiroyoshi walked out in front since he was the squad leader. He was up for consideration for promotion to Sergeant First Class, the rank above Staff Sergeant.

Behind him was Yamako Ichiro an ex-gunner on a CH-47 and current rifleman, Toyotomi Katase the squad's radio-op, and Ishida Uryū a sharpshooter. Then there was the assault team led by Ikuro Miyu, Kurosaki Ichigo a rifleman/unofficial-medic, Abarai Renji a grenadier, and Fujiwara Fiano a rifleman. Then there was fire team led by Hanai Haruki, Harima Kenji a rifleman/support gunner, Kitsumori Kazu a light machine gunner, and Jupei Miho a grenadier. Finally was the engineer team led by Amakasu Noriyori, Mori Ina a saber/squad's mom, and Tsutsui Junkei a light machine gunner. The engineer team was short a man. Shibata Keiji never returned to 5th squad after the war.

They filed into Lecture Hall C where Company E was assigned for the current time slot.

"Be seated and be silent," barked a short white-hair man with a captain's insignia.

"Okay, first things first," said Captain Hitsugaya Tōshirō once he descended the tiers to the podium. It looked much like a college lecture hall with rows of tiers making a semi-circle that face the podium. Behind the podium was dry-erase board with two additional boards that could be raised and lowered. There was also a projection screen that could be lowered if needed.

"There are a lot of rumors we are going to be deployed to Europe after this training cycle. We'll we are not. Since the People's Liberation Army and Korean People's Army do not present any immediate threat. So unless we want to train to fight our fellow NATO allies, we will train using the Soviet Union's Armed Forces as our model. This is for no political reasons, but merely because their weapons and variations of them are used by most countries that have been… less than friendly with Nihon," said Captain Hitsugaya carefully. As an officer, he had to say certain things, though everyone knew the Soviets were the traditional enemy of NATO.

"Okay, first we will look at Europe," said Hitsugaya pulling out a NATO tactics handbook that was translated into Nihongo. He knew what he would have to say, but the textbook was for reference. "Europe can be divided into West, South, North, East, Central, and Southeast. Generally we consider West, South, and Central Europe to we Western Europe, and East and Southeast as Eastern Europe. The North is considered it's own area.

Western Europe, with a few exceptions, is made up of NATO member states. Eastern Europe Blocs are mostly members of the Soviet Union with the exceptions of the Southeast. Most of those countries belong to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but a few are part of NATO."

They soldiers of Echo Company were taking notes, accept the officers. 3rd platoon's CO was transferred to North Group in Hokkaido where certain branches of the military trained in the open, sparsely populated island, such as the Armor Corps, Artillery Corps, and Ordinance Disposal Corps. 1st Lieutenant Rangiku was fast asleep at a table on Captain Hitsugaya's right. Captain Hitsugaya was ignoring her. 2nd Lieutenant Urashima was absent, but since he had actually been to these places his presences wasn't as important.

Hitsugaya prepared himself for the main subject of his lecture. Europe, how it was different from Japan and Korea, and how this would affect their tactics.

"Most of Europe is temperate climate. In other words, it's not too different from Kanto District that we are currently in. Countries like France, Holland, Belgium, Poland, and other countries like them are mostly flat, or at least compared to Japan. Most of you are veterans of the Korean War. In Japan, we know the middle areas of the islands are mountainous, the coasts are flat, and the rest are hilly. In Korea, we saw pretty much the same geography, but some deserts and plains in valleys.

Europe has a lot more rivers that are navigable by ships or boats than our nation, such as the Rhine, Seine, and Danube Rivers. These rivers are wider and deeper than some of ours. This will make long advances and retreats difficult. In a number of European wars we have seen bridges crossing these rivers play curial roles.

Next are the mountains. These mountains cover a lot of the central parts from west to east from the French-Spanish border to Greece. This roughly follows a fault-line that runs around the Mediterranean region.

North of the Alps, the mountains that stretch from southeast France to Austria, are a series of step hills and low mountains that much up a lot of Germany. Once you get to the land near the Baltic Sea near Hamburg and Berlin the terrain is mostly flat.

So what does this all mean, and what the hell does this have to do with combat you may ask," said Hitsugaya in a bored tone. "Well, on the bright side they don't get typhoons. Most of Europe doesn't get tsunamis or earthquakes. Italy, Spain, Greece, and Turkey do however. On the other hand, it rains a lot more. Their winters tend to be harsher and in places they can be longer. Our enemies last time were the mountains and dense urban areas. Europe is bigger. There are a lot of forests."

Hitsugaya lectured them on the terrain and conditions. Already Kenji was translating these into real life terms.

"There is a lot of fertile soil and soft ground. Good for digging trenches, but not as protective because it can be blown apart easier. The ground absorbs water pretty well so in winter it can freeze pretty hard. The worst is rain. It produces mud and lots of it. Trenches become saggy and can fall apart if they aren't properly supports by walls. Tanks can become stuck and so can every other vehicle. A lot of Europe is rural and they may not be paved roads… there may not even be roads in some places. This is particularly true in the Balkans."

The thing was that Japan didn't have rural zones nearly as large as Europe.

"The German-Polish border is fairly flat with a number of hills. Most of the area around the border, or Iron Curtain, is rural. It is not a popular place to live since it is the line that divides NATO and the Soviet Union. The further south you go the more mountainous it becomes. For these reasons, most generals have thought a land battle between NATO and the Soviet Union would be on the German-Polish border. It is also why most of their front line defenses are there and few people want to live there."

After hours of lecturing, they braked for lunch.

They returned to the hall for the second half of the lectures.

"Konnichiwa, I am Lt. Colonel Wayne Ian," said a Western-looking man in a US Army uniform. "Today I will be talking to you about our good friend Ivan, or the Soviets as you probably know them. Someone lower the projector screen, onegaishimasu."

The screen was lowered and the lights dimmed. Lt. Colonel Wayne turned on a laptop. On the screen appeared pictures several Westerners in green, grey, khaki, and brown colored uniforms.

"This is the Soviet Red Army, folks. Their uniform is usually a grassy green-khaki uniform. In winter they usually wear long grey overcoats. Many Soviet soldiers are transitioning to a disruptive-style camouflage. You folks use flecktarn camouflage that uses a series of small dots. My military uses digital camouflage that is a series of small squares that form subtle patterns like flecktarn. Disruptive camouflage is like a series of brush strokes usually in combinations of four or two colors. Four-color for woodlands and two-color for desert and winter."

He put up an image of soldiers in disruptive camouflage.

"On the top are Red Army infantry woodland, desert, and winter combat wear in that order. Below are British Royal Army infantry. The Brits wear disruptive camouflage, soldiers. Get a good look them and remember the difference. You don't want to be shooting our allies."

Kenji stared at the soldiers on the screen. The British uniforms were slightly different shades from the Soviets. The helmets were also a different shape which was probably a better way of recognizing them since color could be too hard to distinguish at a distance. The British also had very different looking guns from the Russians.

"First question, who knows the standard rifle of the Red Army?" asked Wayne.

Kenji raised his hand.

"Hai, private?"

"Sir, AK-74m."

"Very good. The AK-74 was introduced in 1974 to replace the aging AKM, an upgraded version of the AK-47. The thing are will learn about the Soviets are that they hate to replaced things like we do. They share about half the parts the AKM and AK-47 use. The main difference is the cartridges. With the AK-74 was introduced the 5.45x39 mm round that replaced the 7.62x39 mm they used before. The M74 cartridge is an evil little thing. It is steel-jacketed and is designed to tumble inside a human body so it has the penetrating power of steel ammo and the killing power of hollow-tips. The AK-74m that was introduced in 1991 by Izhmash State Weapons Factory, the primary maker of the Kalashnikovs, can mount a GP-25 or GP-30 40 mm grenade launcher. They have a flash suppresser like most guns and unlike the original model they can mount noise-suppressers. Unlike NATO guns, the Kalashnikovs were generally not meant to have scopes mounted on them, but they are a possibility.

Another version of the AK-74 is the AKS-74. The AKS-74 has a triangular side-folding stock and is used by the Soviet Naval Infantry and Airborne Troops.

Some of the elite units however get the new AN-94 or AK-107. The AN-94 is better, but more expensive than the Soviets normally like so it will probably not be their standard rifle. More likely the AK-107 will be the successor but the Soviets will probably not replace their AK-74ms after only 21 years of service.

Next is the RPK, the standard LMG of the Red Army. RPK, not to confused with the RGP, is a 7.62x39 mm fed from a 40-round banana clip like on an assault rifle, or a 75-round drum mag. Then there is the RPK-74 which fired the 5.45x39 mm rounds, but they only fire 30 or 40-rounds mags. Both guns are based on the Kalashnikov rifles and were designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov. The infantry and motor-rifles use the RPK. Air assault units normally use the RPKS and it has a side-folding stock. In fact any Russian gun with an 'S' at the end has a folding stock. Any gun with a 'M' at the ends of its name is an upgraded version of the original model. If it has a 'U' it is a carbine version. The RPK-74 is usually used by light assault units, border guards, and special forces because of their lighter weight. The same reasons we use the M249 SAW and FN Minimi. The RPK is preferred for regular infantry because of its firepower.

Another gun is the PKM which fires the heavier 7.62x54 mm rounds. It's fed from a 100 to 250 round belt and like the M240 and M60 it can be mounted on a tripod. Soviet squads usually have at least one soldier with a PKM and two with a RPK. You'll also see them on UAZs, Urals, various APCs, and it is usually the coaxial gun on tanks.

This is TOZ-194 pump-action and Saiga-12 semi-auto shotguns. Shotguns aren't as common in the Soviet Army as they are in NATO. The TOZ-194 is tubular-feed shotgun like most pump-action guns and fires seven 12 gauge rounds. The Saiga-12 fires 8 rounds from a box mag. Although the Soviets like to press close quarters, they prefer automatic weapons and shotguns aren't quite as popular which many of us consider… odd.

These are the RDG-5, RGN, and RGO hand grenades. All these grenades have a time delay of 3 to 4 seconds. Remember that Soviet manufactures are not known for quality so if you are forced to use Ivan's shit don't expect it to work right, cause Ivan sure doesn't. It's like the M67, you pull the pin and chuck it.

This is the 9K310 Igla-1, known in NATO as the SA-16 Gimlet, and this is the 9kK38 Igla, known in NATO as the SA-18 Grouse. These are the successors to the 9K34 Strela-3, or SA-14 Gremlin, and 9K32 Strela-2, or SA-7 Grail. They are the Soviets shoulder-launched SAM, just like our Stinger or your Type 91. The Russians models are heavier than ours by at least 3 kg and their missiles are heavier too, but only by about 0.7 kg. They use magnetic, grazing, and delayed impact type fuses, we only use delay impact types. The Soviet missiles have 200 to 400 meters longer range, but ours are faster and more agile. The KPA uses the SA-16 so I think you are already familiar with them.

This is the infamous RPG-7, standard issue anti-tank weapon to most militaries in the world. They have a range of 920 m and a muzzle velocity of 115 m/s. RPGs are not accurate weapons since their projectiles don't travel through a barrel. But they are much lighter and cheaper than any other AT-weapon available. Every Soviet infantry squad carries at least 2 of these and sometimes they may have as many as 12. This is the RPG-29. It's not used by a lot of nations because it has a shorter range. However the RPG-29 has a muzzle velocity of 280 m/s. There are rumors this weapon has penetrated the front armor of the mighty British Challenger 2 heavy tanks. There are confirmed reports these things have damaged Abram tanks. This is a rarer weapon in the Red Army, but something you soldiers will have to watch out for.

This is PMM, Makarov PM, or the PM, standard issue sidearm to the Red Army. Ivan doesn't care as much about handguns as we do so it is inferior to our M1911A1s, USP 45s, and Browning Hi-Powers. The PMM fires eight 9x18 mm rounds and has an effective range of 50 m. Even thought there is only a one millimeter difference in length, their cartridges are unusable in the weapons that use the 9x19 mm parabellum.

This is the SVD Dragunov semi-auto sniper rifle. It fires ten 7.62x54 mm rounds. The Soviets have designed it to have low recoils so their snipers can make quick follow through shots. Snipers and sharpshooters use these guns and there is probably one sharpshooter in every infantry company. This is the SV-98 bolt-action rifle which is only used by Soviet snipers. The Reds also have a list of .50 cal rifles, but their rare. The SVD and SV098 are the common ones."

Lt. Colonel Wayne took a sip from a glass of water on the podium. He changed the images to show vehicles and armor.

"We've covered pretty much all the Soviet small arms. Now for their vehicles and tanks.

This is the BMP-2 and BMP-3, core of the Soviet mechanized infantry corps, or motor-rifles as they call them. The BMP-2 has a 30 mm auto-cannon and the BMP-3 has a 30 mm auto-cannon and 100 mm gun. They have a PKT, the tank version of the PKM, in the coaxial position and anti-air position. They have a driver, gunner, and commander, plus a compartment for seven soldiers. The BMP-3 is much better armor, has a road speed of 72 km/h, and top off-road speed of 45 km/h. The BMP-2 has a top road speed of 65 km/h and top off-road speed of 45 km/h. The BMP-3 is 4 tons heavier than the BMP-2. Both model are amphibious, but Russians don't really trust this feature and therefore avoid using it in the water.

Then there is the BTR-80 and BTR-90 APCs. They are wheeled armor personnel carriers like our Strykers. The BTR-80 have the 14.5 mm machine guns and a PKT coaxial guns. The BTR-90 uses the 30 mm auto-cannon and a PKT coaxial gun. Like the BMPs they may have AT-4 or AT-5 ATGM (anti-tank guided-missile).

This is the T-72, the primary medium tank if the Red Army with the aging T-62. It has a 125 mm main gun, PKT coaxial machine gun, and a DShK 1938/46 or NSVT 12.7x108 mm anti-air machine gun. Their fast and light and often supporting motor-rifle battalions. The T-62 has a similar armament, but has a 115 mm gun and a DShK AA machine gun. Pretty much all Soviet tanks have the same guns as the T-72s. Older tanks average a top road speed of 55 km/h and off-road speed of 43 km/h.

A Soviet motor-rifle battalion will probably have two rifle companies and one armor company, at the least. A Soviet squad has 18 soldiers divided into teams of three, but the Soviets do not put much emphasis one squad based tactics like we do. More important to the Soviet style of warfare is the platoon and company. A platoon has about 54 soldiers plus a lieutenant. A company has 162 enlisted soldiers with three lieutenants, one captain, and a political officer.

A Soviet battalion assault will come in two forms. One is an infantry recon in which they pick a company and split up its platoons, sometimes squads, and spread them out to look for the enemy. Once the enemy is found they bring in the other rifle company. If that isn't enough they bring in the tank company. This is a common search-and-destroy formation and one the Reds used a lot during their Invasion of Afghanistan- you have a question corporal?"

"Hai, sir," said Ikuro standing up. "Do the Soviet recon elements have the support of APCs and IFVs?"

"A very good question, Corporal. Commonly the scouting elements would use UAZs or Urals, but if they expect heavy resistance they will use armored vehicles. The reinforcements will probably come in BMPs or BTRs.

The other would be an assault formation. This is when they know where the enemy is located. They would bring in the tank company first with the rifle companies behind in a blitzkrieg style attack. In fact these attacks may start with rocket-artillery, mortars, and/or howitzers, followed by fighter-bombers and helicopters.

The important thing you'll learn about Soviet Military Doctrine is that they fight to overwhelm. All their equipment is designed to be cheaper so they can field more of them or their equipment is designed to fire more munitions or fire faster.

A tank troop unit is more heavily armed. They will have the support have the T-80U and T-90, recent models of Soviet heavy tanks. These are heavy assault battalions that are trained to punch through the front lines or heavily defended areas. A tank troop battalion mostly consists of tank companies, but may have a few heavy assault rifle platoons. They usually operate in support of rifle and motor-rifle units.

Helicopter troop units are heliborne infantry. These guys often spearhead assaults or try to flank enemy lines. They are transported by Mi-8 or Mi-17 Hips with Mi-24 Hinds in support. Sometimes they have Mi-28 Havocs, but only elite units get them. Since the Hind and Hip bare some resemblance, they stick in close groups to make it hard to ID them from a distance. They commonly sweep in from a higher altitude, the Hinds make an attack run, and then the Hips will deploy their soldiers and pull out. In some cases they may have Mi-26 Halos to deploy BMD IFVs, an airborne troop version of the BMP series.

Then there are the parachute troop units. Paratroopers are the Soviets equivalent of our Marine Corps. Soviet paratroopers land to seize bridges, supply depots, fuel depots, major road ways, com stations, radar stations, and other sites to make the main body's assault easier. The Red Army Airborne Troops usually get the best weapons like the AN-94 or AK-107. Some of their elite parachute units have received prototype digital camouflage the Soviets are testing with a number of other things. Recently, Ivan has tested heavy-weight parachutes to deploy their armor. We are expecting that in the future the Soviets will be making changes to their offensive style of warfare. So far the main theory is that paratroopers may become a substitute for marines in the Soviet Armed Forces.

Next is the Zampolits. Zampolits are not actually soldiers. They are members of the KGB Third Directorate, a special division of the KGB trained to oversee the military. Every Red Army company has one Zampolit. Battalion, regiment, division, corps, and army commanders all have Zampolits assigned to them. The Communist Party doesn't trust their armed forces and their use the Zampolits to ensure there is no mutiny or uprising from the military. However, the Armed Forces hate the Zampolits. Zampolits tend to be an inconvenience to military commanders because they tend to 'request' things they aren't militarily sound… or practical. They wear brown uniforms making them distinguishable from regular soldiers. They often discourage soldiers from retreating, so killing them may encourage the enemy to retreat… or it could free them up to fight better.

NCOs in the Red Armed Forces are pretty much the equivalent of a corporal in our military. They have limited command and don't fill many duties. Lieutenants fill in most of the roles that Sergeants, Staff Sergeants, and Sergeant First Classes do. Captains function more like a lieutenant in our military.

Like so many other things, this can be traced back to World War II and the Wehrmacht, but first we have to go back farther. Division of units into as a fighting force with a large degree of autonomy appears in modern warfare with the Napoleonic Wars. For a long time units smaller than company didn't play much importance. Captains were actually the lowest ranking soldier on the field with any appreciative authority. Lieutenants really only served their company COs. Sergeants were normally just highly experienced enlisted soldiers that bridged the gap between officers and enlisted soldiers.

This progressed into World War I.

In 1939 when World War II started, things changed. Germany was looking at ideas for making more efficient use of infantry with their mobile-style of warfare. They decided that a company was too large as the basic maneuvering unit. This gave rise to platoon and squad leaders.

The Feldwebers storming out of Germany and into Poland are the forefathers of NATO squad-based tactics. However, back then the German squad was not like the ones today. A company would have a machine gun squad and an assault squad, as opposed to just having these teams within the squad. An MG squad had an NCO, five riflemen, and a three-man MG team. Then there was an assault squad that had an NCO and eight soldiers mostly armed with sub-machine guns. Although the unit is larger, the idea was the same and it revolutionized infantry tactics. Infantry tactics had a lot more depth and were more adaptive to the vicious modern battlefield which older Napoleonic Warfare didn't adapt too.

The British saw how well these tactics worked for the German. So did my country. The Brits used basically the same formations as Jerry did. We however formed a ten-man squad, similar to the sixteen-man squad you see today. You had an assault team, fire team, and a special team such as an MG or AT team. This put an even greater emphasis on the NCOs than in the UK or Germany. We take pride in the fact that we produce the finest, most well trained NCOs in the world.

For reasons best known to them, the Soviets didn't adopt squad-based tactics. The squad is our primary basic-maneuvering unit. The platoon is the Soviets basic-maneuvering unit. In teams of authority and role, a Soviet Sergeant is equal to a NATO Corporal and a Soviet Lieutenant is equal to a NATO Sergeant."


0900 Hours; February 20th, 2012; Southeast Group Headquarters, Budapest; Budapest Oblast, Hungarian Soviet Socialist Republic; Union of the Soviet Socialist Republic

(Conversations are in Russian in this section)

"Dobroye ootra (good morning), Comrades," said Colonel Vasily Eduardovich Nomonov, one of the senior instructors in the Southeast Command.

"Dobroye ootra, Comrade Colonel!" shouted the junior Soviet officers standing at attention.

"Today we will continue our lectures on NATO nations," said Nomonov. "We have covered this week Belgium, Holland, Denmark, and Turkey. So today we cover the Federation of Japan."

"Comrade Colonel, that nation of barbarians is surely not worth our time," laughed a captain. Several officers laughed too.

"Barbarians? Comrade Captain, are you familiar with the Battle of Tsushima?" asked Colonel Nomonov with a raised eyebrow.

"Da, but-"

"Those barbarians wiped out nearly the entire Russian Navy. They may have been fighting for the Czarists, but they were Russians and many who survived fought in the Revolution. Comrades, you are thinking of this old samurai system of Japan. You forget they are probably the most technological advance nation in the world!" shouted Nomonov banging his fist on the podium he was standing behind.

There was silence.

"Comrade Colonel, the Japanese still worship a monarch. I hardly think that that is the mark of a modern nation," remarked a KGB major.

"Spa-see-ba, Cromade Zampolit," said Nomonov dryly. "The Japanese Federal Armed Forces structure themselves after the United States Armed Forces. Their uniforms look almost identical. Like the British, they are an island nation and center a lot of their military focus on their naval forces. Japan possesses a huge surface fleet and numerous submarine squadrons."

He shuffled his notes and read, "The Japanese soldiers all bear the mark of their Emperor to show their loyalty to their backward Imperialist system."

This was something someone from the Party had written and thought it would be best said, but Nomonov though it was taking away from the facts about the Japanese military.

"This is a picture of the Type 89, standard issue assault rifle to the Japanese military. It uses the NATO standard 5.52x45 mm cartridge. It's most unique feature is that it has two triggers to fire two different fire modes. This is the USP 45 that was made standard issue sidearm to the Japanese during the Korean War…"

Nomonov continued to list the Japanese small arms.

"The Japanese make large use of mobile and light assault rifle units due to their islands. When their nation was invaded they refined many tactics," he turned and began to write on the chalkboard behind him. "As a result the Japanese became skilled at island-hoping, amphibious assaults, helicopter assaults, airborne assaults, rapid rifle company assaults, mountain combat, and, most of all, urban combat."

"Comrade Colonel, wouldn't that put them a disadvantage against us? Over here a nation that depends on their navy would not survive well. Also we don't have mountains or dense urban zones like East Asia," raised a young senior lieutenant.

"A good point, Comrade Lieutenant. The Japanese are not use to wide open spaces that we see in Europe and mainland Asia. But the Japanese have proven to be quick at adapting to new environments. This military was formed in the middle of a war after all.

Now common themes of Japanese military doctrine is discipline. The Japanese have grown up in their Imperialist society and find it very natural to obey orders without much question," said Nomonov who wondered in the back of his mind: who wrote this? He did agree the Japanese were discipline soldiers, but not why. "They like surprise attacks and using combined arms tactics with helicopters and artillery. They generally use small numbers of tanks supports by rifle companies. This is comes from their experience in urban and mountain combat."

He shuffled his notes again.

"The Japanese lack the numbers that we have, but make up for it with high technology weapons. With their large military-industrial complex they have some deadly weapons we normally only see in the American, British, or German militaries.

The Japanese do not have any experience with the mighty Red Army. The closest they have experience is fighting those poor Maoist-Communist in the People's Liberation Army. Since the Japanese are very similar to the American, British, and German militaries we already know how they fight for the most part," said Nomonov who once again questioned who wrote these notes. The Japanese in inexperienced and the amateurs could be unpredictable. Professionals all tended to follow the same norms, but amateurs don't know the norms. If they don't know its not possible they may inadvertently make it possible.

"Let me be frank, Comrades. Japanese soldiers, as told by our Chinese comrades, are determined and creative soldiers. They don't beat their heads against walls but find ways around them or weaknesses in them. They like to make their soldiers well informed and highly trained. Do not underestimate them because that will be a weakness they will exploit, if we find ourselves at war with NATO one day."


1000 Hours; February 22nd, 2012; Camp Hinata Federal Army Base, Hinata; Kanagawa Prefecture, Federation of Japan

"Okay numbers 13, 47, 23, 24, 98, 181, 54, 19, 88, and 137 please proceed to the fire range!" shouted an instructor.

Kenji shuffled his way up a hill to the rifle range. The rifle range was for rifles and machine guns. It was situated on top of a hill overlooking a wide open space. Targets were located down a gentle slop. The furthest was 400 m and the closest was 75 m.

Kenji looked around him. For the weapons drills they selected soldiers at random and sent them up for 're-familiarity' with their weapons. To his left was a nervous looking girl who was fumbling with a Type 89 assault rifle and to his right was an overly eager looking boy playing with his rifle. Kenji wasn't sure which one was more likely to accidentally shoot someone.

"Ano, Harima-sempai?" asked the girl reading Kenji's nametag.

"This is the Army, Private, not high school. You can call me Kenji or Harima, take you pick," said Kenji.

"Hai, Harima. Am I holding this right?" she asked.

"… is there a reason you're holding the stock against stomach?" asked Kenji.

"Eh?! Sumimasen," she apologized.

"Iē, it'll only hurt you if you do it that way. Put the butt against your shoulder for accuracy and next to your hip for rapid firing," he said demonstrating the correct postures with the Type 89. They all had to qualify with the standard issue rifle and then he would do it again with his primary weapon.

"Sounds like you know what you're doing, buddy. Damn this thing feels awesome. Fuck, I wish I had been old enough to join during the war," said the boy on Kenji's right with a loving look at his rifle.

"He's starting to scare me," said the girl.

"That's okay, he's scaring me too," said Kenji. He was wondering if the Army had lowered the psychological evaluation exams.

"Real soldiers don't scare," said the boy.

"You've never been shot at kid, have you?" asked Kenji. The girl looked at Kenji and noticed he was at least 20… old enough to be a…

"Ano… were you in… it?" she whispered.

"It's not a secret, Private," he said popping a 30-round clip in the rifle upon the instructor's command.

"I'm Pvt. Hayasuka Yukari. I joined during the summer," she said as she loaded her gun and waited for the command to open.

"Why? You don't seem like the soldier type," commented Kenji.

"The Government was offering pretty good deals for college. I got into Tokyo University, but couldn't pay for it. The Army said they would pay for four years of university in return for four years of service... I can't believe I'm missing a week of class," she groaned.

"Commence firing!" ordered the instructor.

Targets appeared at the 200 m point. With ease Kenji shot up the wooden target, removed the empty clip, and leaned the empty rifle against his thin. Hayasuka was haven't problems. She hit the target enough time to pass… but just barely. The nut on Kenji's right was yelling and laughing as he fired, but he was moving too much to accurately hit anything.

"Kami-sama! You're gonna' kill someone, baka!" shouted Kenji.

"That's the idea," said the boy smugly.

Kenji brought his fist on top of his head and knocked him to the ground. "To kill the enemy, not us!"

"You asshole I'll-"

He froze when he saw Hayasuka was aiming her rifle at his heart. She was trembling and looked scared beyond belief. "He's right. He was in the war. You need to learn to handle your gun responsibly, Somizu-kun. Or else…"

He looked at her gun, gave Kenji a dirty glare, and walked off grumbling to get his score.

"He's not too bright is he?"

"Ee, he's a war-nut, but he'll back down when you make matters clear," said Hayasuka.

"Actually I was referring to the fact he backed off even though the gun you were aiming wasn't loaded," said Kenji pushing the muzzle of Hayasuka's gun down.

They walked down the hill to get their scores. "I'm a terrible shot."

"You're afraid of your gun. You tense up because of the recoil and bang. My advice, shoot the gun until you're use to the noise and recoil. You think one gun is bad, just wait until you hear a hundred of them plus jet engines and heavy artillery."

"Arigato, Sempai," said Hayasuka bowing and walking off.

"These new recruits," said Haruki shaking his head and walking up to Kenji. "Looks like some of them will be rotated into our battalion."

"These kids will not survive their first battle. We weren't this bad, ne?" asked Kenji.

"Maybe," shrugged Haruki.

"Well, I'm getting my M14 and head for round two."

Two hours later, the same people that were with Kenji before were up for their primary weapons drills. Hayasuka was clutching, to Kenji's surprise, an M14E3 automatic rifle. He looked her up and down. She was around Yakumo's height, but she looked like weighted about the same as Tenma. He knew now why she was afraid of the recoil because the gun was oversized for her.

"Fire until I'm use to it?" she asked.

"Uh… fire it in short bursts. The original models were semi-auto, so they weren't meant to be an automatic weapon," he said loading his rifle. Somizu the trigger-happy-psycho was loading an M4A1 carbine. "In my experience this gun has long reach. You'll either make accurate single shots to pick off the enemy or long bursts to suppress the enemy. It's a terrifying gun to on the receiving end. Other than an MG nothing makes the enemy run for cover like the M14."

"Fire when ready!" shouted the instructor.

Kenji fired at the 250 m targets and before he was even halfway through his mag he had blown the target in half. He spent the rest of his mag on demolishing the remainder of the target. He watched Hayasuka try to control her weapon on full auto like Kenji, but her lack of body weight and muscles made it hard for her. An SMG or carbine would have been a much better choice. Still, if she worked out more she probably be fine.


1347 Hours; February 23rd, 2012; Maneuvering Ground #8, Budapest; Budapest Oblast, Hungarian Soviet Socialist Republic; Union of the Soviet Socialist Republic

"Comrade General, what do you think of this regiment? I think they are the best," said Major Sergei Paveloyevich Troskimov, a Zampolit.

'You mean their officers suck up to you and are 'good Party men',' thought Colonel-General Mikhail Makhailrovich Bondarenko, commander of the Soviet Southwest Group. "They are passable, Comrade Zampolit. They complete the drill fast enough, but they're too sloppy in their approach. If that had been a German tank troop regiment they would have lost half their regiment. I want the 217th to do it again."

"Da, Comrade General," said a warrant officer with a radio.

"Comrade Bondarenko, I think you may be pushing them too hard."

"Or maybe you're worried about the fact there is the son of a senior Central Committee member in one of those tanks I wonder?" asked Bondarenko bitterly. "If we go to war do you want him to die in his first battle? Comrade Troskimov, more than half that regiment would be lost and therefore there is a 50-50 chance he'd be dead."

"Who says we are going to war?" asked Troskimov laughing.

"Since when are we ordered to commence mock-battles this time of year?" asked Bondarenko dryly. It was a very unusual order and Bondarenko thought that maybe war wasn't too far fetch. The Balkans were known for being out of control and violent. His command included operations in Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, the Balkans, Albania, Greece, and the European sector of Turkey.

"NATO will notice this," said Bondarenko.

"They've haven't yet, but I agree that they will notice. NATO looks for patterns in our training cycles, or so says my friends in the First Directorate," said Troskimov. "If they see so much as a company doing something out of place they will be alerted."

Bondarenko frowned. Troskimov as Zampolits went wasn't too bad. He tried to be helpful, but it was obvious his loyalty was to the Party and his priority was Party Doctrine. "So what do you think our Western comrades will do when they see three guards motor-rifle divisions conducting full military exercises, and two tank troop divisions and two helicopter troop divisions in moderate training?"

"We'll find out soon enough, Comrade General."

The 217th Guards Motor-Rifle Regiment lined up for the exercise again. BM-21 self-propelled rocket-artillery fired a brief barrage. In an actually battle there would have a company of BM-21s, or Grids as the West called them, but the Soviets didn't want to waste munitions on a mere training exercise. A squadron of Mi-24Ds swept low over a forest on the 'Germans' left flank to avoid being spotted.

"If there are soldiers with Stingers in those trees those Krokodil (1) will never make it to the enemy lines," commented Bondarenko.

The mock enemy formation consisted of old T-55s. There was a computer inside that got them to fire at random. The 217th was armed with live munitions, but the enemy was armed with paint rounds.

"Those BMPs are too far forward. They should be following the armor platoons, not bypassing them. Who is in charge of them?" groaned Bondarenko.

A captain looked through a pair of binoculars at the mentioned company of infantry fighting vehicles. "That is Company F, Comrade General. I have the lists of officers here."

The aide handed the roster over and Bondarenko consulted it. "If he doesn't improve by the end of this week I want him replaced."

"Da, Comrade General," said the captain saluting.

Bondarenko was not impressed by the end of the exercise. The T-72s were trying to clash in direct battle with the enemy. Had they been real Bundeswehr Leopard 6A2, or worse yet Royal Army Challenger 2s or US Army M1A2 Abrams, they would have been annihilated. Only T-80s and T-90s were designed for that kind of battle. The Soviet T-72, which was far superior to the export models, were good tanks but would fair better if they used their speed and agility.

"They should have tried to flank the enemy. When they came under fire they should have deployed a smokescreen. The infantry should have dismounted so they wouldn't be slaughtered with their carriers!" Bondarenko voice grew louder with each sentence and it was not with joy.

"The 220th Guards Motor-Rifle Regiment is next, Comrade General," said Troskimov encouragingly. "Colonel Zanovich is turning out to be a fine officer."

"Da," said Bondarenko in a better mood. Elena Boskikov Zanovich was a rising star in the Red Army. She was the highest rank woman in a combat command. She was tall and powerfully built. Most men found her intimating and despite sexist attitudes, she commanded respect from her subordinates. Male officers objects at being under a woman's command, but now they were her most loyal supporters. The Party wanted to make her into an example for other women to follow, but she was more interested in her military career.

"She may be seeking your job, Comrade General," laughed Troskimov.

Bondarenko laughed with a bark. "I'm an old soldier, Comrade Zampolit. I will retire in a few years and if she is not Marshal of the Armed Forces, she can have my job."

The 220th was better armed than the 217th. They were a frontal assault regiment and had more heavy armor.

They watched as a T-80UK, a command version of the T-80U, led a group in an attack. They were split up into three groups and utilized the terrain so that the enemy couldn't see there were three companies advancing on them.

"She has trained her battalion commanders well," observed Troskimov.

"Da, but where are the rest?"

"I can't tell."

The 220th had fired their smoke dischargers at random creating a fog. It was possible to see through in some places but not in others. It made her presence known, but it was impossible to tell how many Soviets there were.

"Comrade General, Comrade Colonel Zanovich reports she has defeated the enemy and taken prisoners," said the warrant officer manning the radio.

Troskimov and Bondarenko were speechless.

"… well… the 220th can enjoy the next 48 hours on leave," said a stunned Bondarenko.


1245 Hours; February 23rd, 2012; Camp Hinata Federal Army Base, Hinata; Kanagawa Prefecture, Federation of Japan

"Okay, we have a T intersection here. On the northwest corner is a three story building. On the southwest corner is a police station. At the head of the intersection is a church with bell tower. We have residential homes all along the streets," said Colonel Daijin Shiori, commander of the 81st Heliborne/Mechanized Infantry Regiment.

"Squad 5 of Company E will rope in by this barn southwest of the intersection and secure an LZ. Platoon 2 of Company F will then land at LZ Alpha. You're to breach and clear these houses Alpha-North, Bravo-North, Echo-West, Foxtrot-West, and Golf-West, and make sure there are no anti-tank weapon on the south side of the east-west street and the west side of the north-south street. You then send the signal and Platoon 3 of Company F to advance and secure the church, Rally Point Bravo. This will be used as a new forward HQ for the 27th Infantry Battalion. You'll have support from an AH-64DJ, callsign Red Moss 3-1. Clear?"

"Hai, ma'am!" responded the assembled soldiers.

Foxglove Company was made up of almost entirely of raw recruits since most of their company was wiped out during the Kaesŏng Campaign. Most were about 18 or 19. They varied between looking so nervous they might wet themselves or looking so eager that playing with the safeties on their guns. The ones with a look of detached indifference were the veterans and some of the recruits were smart enough to imitate the veterans.

Kenji walked over to the UH-60J Black Hawk with his squad. He pulled on a protective mask similar to one worn during paintball games. The Japanese use chalk rounds like most modern armies. They could be loaded into any real gun and were non-lethal, but soldiers wear masks to protect their faces. Chalk moving at several meters-per-second could literally take out an eye.

An instructor checked all of 5th squad's clips to make sure no live munitions in place and to make sure the grenades were dummy ones and not live M67s.

The engineer team got in the back row with the UH-60J. In the next row was the fire team. Sitting behind the pilot and co-pilot facing back was the assault team. In the doorways was the command team with two soldiers in each door. When the green light was given the command team would rope to the ground followed by the assault team. The fire team would go next and the engineer team would go last.

A fully armed squad should be able to dismount a UH-60, and its variations, in 12 seconds. 5th squad was able to do it in 10.92 seconds. If they were under fire they could move even faster.

2nd Platoon; F Company, was a little disorganized in mounting their choppers.

"This is Haitatsu 1-1, we are outbound and proceeding to LZ Alpha," said Major Yanagisawa Tomokazu, commander of 17th Utility Helicopter Squadron and pilot of Haitatsu 1-1.

Hiroyoshi sat with his legs dangling out of the door. The idea was that when the ropes were released he could slide right out the door down the rope and to the ground. He had the goggles pulled over his eyes to prevent things flying into them. At his hip was his rifle.

"ETA 30 seconds! Stand ready!" shouted the co-pilot. The red light above the doors came on to signal they were going soon.

"Squad, secure you're weapons and make sure your safeties are on!" shouted Hiroyoshi. Kenji checked his M6 bayonet at his hip, a KA-BAR (2) attached to his ankle, and Kampfmesser 2000 strapped to his left arm for easy access. He made sure his Colt 45 was secured in its holster and his M14E3 to his pack.

"Rope! Hayaku (hurry)! Haraku!" shouted the co-pilot as the green light came on. If they didn't see the green light a buzzer alerted them too and on instinct the command team slid out the door and fast-roped down.

He moved quickly to a pile of lumber for protection… and because in a few second the assault team would crush him as they roped down if he wasn't out of the way.

"Echo 5-1 is on the ground," said Asou.

"5-2, checking in," said Ishida.

"5-3, standing by," said Toyotomi.

"5-4, ready," said Yamako.

The assault team landed and moved behind a tool shed where they were out of sight from the buildings.

"5-5, ready," said Ikuro.

"5-6, ready," said Fujiwara.

"5-7, standing by," said Kurosaki.

"5-8, ready," said Abarai.

The fire team touched down and took up position in a ditch that was being dug for a water-main. It was deep enough to serve as a trench.

"5-9, reporting in," said Hanai.

"5-10, waiting on orders," said Harima.

"5-11, locked and loaded," said Kitsumori.

"5-12, checking in," said Jupei.

The engineer team landed and joined the fire team in the ditch.

"5-13, in position," said Amakasu.

"5-14, checking in," said Mori.

"5-15, ready and cleared the ropes," said Tsutsui. It was the responsibility of the last person on the ground to report he was clear so signal the chopper that they could return to base.

"Haitatsu 1-1, we're bugging out. Out."

"Echo 5-1 here, no activity at LZ Alpha," reported Asou into his helmet mounted radio. From his position with binoculars he couldn't see any sign of the instructors playing the Soviet team. Officially they were called the Red Team, but since red was associated with communism and they were all carrying Soviet weapons they were called the Soviet Team.

"Haitatsu 1-2 copies. Inbound now, out."

Three Black Hawks came in low and landed roughly on the ground. Harima thought that some of the soldiers in the doorways didn't slid out, but were unseated by the impact.

"Squad 5, advancing on Golf-West," said Asou leading his squad. They lined up against the wall of the southern most building where a door was located.

"We could blow it open with a shotgun," suggested Abarai.

"Ee, chalk will work really well, Renji," said Kurosaki sarcastically.

"Well at least I'm coming up with idea!"

"Shut up!" barked Ikuro smacking them upside the head. It was hard to believe she was a shy quiet girl at home.

"Since you two, break it down," said Asou.

"Why us?" Kurosaki and Abarai wined together.

"Because you're loud, annoying, big and strong enough to break it down-"

"So is Kenji and Haruki," interrupted Abarai.

"And! I'm squad leader," said Asou acting as if he hadn't heard Abarai. He tapped the Staff Sergeant stripes on his shoulder and pointed to the PFC and Pvt. insignias on Kurosaki and Abarai respectfully.

"Fine," grunted Kurosaki.

"On three," said Abarai. "1-2-3-go!"

Together they rammed the plywood door and dropped to the floor. Ikuro and Fujiwara with their M4A1 carbines raised stormed in behind with Asou and the command team. Hanai and the fire team waited outside until everyone else was inside.

"Ikuro, check upstairs."

"Hai, Sergeant."

Ikuro led her team upstairs. It was supposed to be a normal European village. They had entered into a storage room of a shop. The front was a bookshop. The upstairs was the living space for the family that ran the shop. The only flaw was that there was no basement, which most European shops with family living above would have.

"Upstairs clear," said Ikuro.

"Movement. Tangos crossing the street," said Abarai.

A couple of soldiers were moving to west-east street, but Abarai wasn't cleared to engage.

"This is Foxglove 4-1, we're under fire!"

"Foxglove 5-1, we're pinned down in Alpha-South!"

"Foxglove 6-1 here. We're surrounded in Echo-West!"

"Red Moss 3-1, this is Echo 5-1," said Asou speaking into the transmitter Toyotomi handed him.

"3-1 copies and inbound for gunrun," said the pilot of the AH-64DJ.

"Red Moss 3-1, this is Yoroi Uma Six. Process as planned, over," ordered Colonel Daijin from the observation center using a channel the squads weren't using.

"Hai, ma'am. 3-1 out."

"This is Red Moss 3-1," said the pilot using the regular channel. "I've spotted a hostile AA-vehicle setting up in the area. Looks like a Shilka. Fuck! He's firing!"

Harima saw the Apache Longbow fly over trailing smoke. It was losing altitude and disappeared behind the trees.

"We have an Apache down, we have an Apache down. Red Moss 3-1 is down. 3rd platoon can you assist?" asked Colonel Daijin.

"But ma'am. Are orders-"

"Can you assist?!" asked Colonel Daijin forcefully.

"Hai, ma'am!"

"Than secure that site. 2nd Platoon, F Company; Squad 5, E Company, you are on your own. Secure the town without armor support."

"Echo 5-1 copes, ma'am," said Asou.

"What?!"

"You can't be serious!"

"6-1 again. We need backup."

Harima shook his head. This was a clever exercise. Colonel Daijin clearly wanted to know if 2nd and 3rd platoons of F Company could handle the sudden changes that happened in real battles. Clearly they chose one veteran squad to take control of the situation.

"Get that alley door open. We're gonna' clear Foxtrot-West and secure 6th squad's southern flank. Well then clear out the south buildings and push for the east buildings. We're taking the church with or without armor support."

"Entry plan?" asked Ikuro.

"You'll breech and clear. Amakasu, get a charge on that door. Hanai, watch our backs."

"Sir," nodded Hanai, Ikuro, and Amakasu. Amakasu placed a C2 charge on the doorknob. The assault team lined up by the door.

"Okay, 5-4-3-2-1-"

Bang!

The area around the knob was blown apart and the door swung open. They stormed the living room diving behind furniture. A soldier with an RPK was firing from behind an overturned table in the next room. He was preventing Asou or anyone else from entering. He was with a woman with an AK-74m who was covering the gunner from any attempts to flank him.

It occurred to Ikuro that in real life the table and furniture would not protect them, but they were shooting chalk.

Asou looked behind the house. There was no cover and he could see the enemy in some of the windows. The front was little better, but a couple of road blocks did offer protection… from the MG in the bell tower.

"This is Echo 5-1 to all Echo 5 callsigns, 5-9, there is cover in the streets. Cover 5-10 and take out that MG in the tower. We'll make it up from there," said Asou.

"Make it up?" asked an instructor in the control room listening to the transmissions.

"Sgt. Asou is one of our best," said Colonel Daijin. She suddenly remembered that it was her that put him in charge of that squad. Almost two years ago a wary and shell-shock looking corporal reported to her as the ranking soldier in his platoon. She had made him a sergeant because he only had enough soldiers to amount to a squad and as a corporal he wouldn't have any command training.

"Cover me!" shouted Harima as he pulled the AT4 off his back.

He popped up and fired a dummy round. This was basically a rocket that didn't launch and only released a lot of compressed steam. It was up to an observer to decide if he had killed the MG nest.

Sure enough, a man with a white armband, to signify his neutrality, waved-off the MG crew and signaled to Harima that the nest was down.

"MG is down," reported Harima.

"Good work. Now move across the street to that brick wall around that café and fire into the Foxtrot-West. Use the roadblocks for cover."

"Roger that, moving now."

From Echo-West, Pvt. Hayasuka could see a lone team crossing the street and moving into firing position.

'Harima-sempai wa totemoi kokoi desu (Harima is very cool)' she thought. 'He was right about my shooting. I'm scared of it, but I'm scare of dying… he'd make a perfect mentor.'

"Yuka-chan, what are you looking at?!" shouted Pvt. Takano Asako.

"Asa-chan, see him? If I have to be a soldier for the next four years of my life-"

She ducked as a volley of rifle fire raked her position at the window. "… I need a teacher. He's helped me improve faster than any of the drill sergeants."

Meanwhile, Hanai, Harima, Kitsumori, and Jupei found themselves cut off from their squad. Kitsumori was firing at muzzle flashes to lessen the other team's numbers… or at least pin them down.

The rest of 5th squad was searching Foxtrot-West. They cleared out a stray rifleman in an upstairs bathroom, but nothing else.

"Sergeant, there's no side door on the police station," said Ikuro. "We'll have to enter Echo-West from the street."

The police station was on the corner and had no back. There wasn't a parking lot or service entrance. It was a two story stone building. The other alley may have had an entrance, but wall at the end of the alley made that impossible… without resorting to real explosives.

"5-1 to Foxglove 6-1, we're linking up with you. Cover us and check fire on east corner. I don't need my soldiers getting shot up, clear?" asked Asou.

"Understood, sir," said Sergeant Sagawa Kazuya, Squad 6; F Company, leader. Sagawa was an OR-5 and Asou, as a Staff Sergeant, was an OR-6. Asou could order around most of F Company's NCOs accept for 1st, 4th, and 9th Squad leaders. 8th and 9th were Staff Sergeants like Asou and 1st was a Sergeant First Class.

Back in the control room, E Company's officers watched the monitors being fed by cameras scattered around the mock town.

"So this is 5th, ne?" asked a young man.

"Correct, Minegishi-kun," said 2nd Lt. Urashima proudly.

Second Lieutenant Minegishi Hideto was a 22-year-old man who had graduated from the National Defense Academy and was to serve a year in a combat command. Most of his classmates had signed onto supply, signal, medical, transport, and auxiliary corps. The ones with connections had signed onto cushy positions on major bases such as Northeastern HQ at Sendai, Northern HQ at Sapporo, Western HQ at Kengun, Middle HQ at Itami, Eastern HQ at Nerima, or Central HQ at Tokyo. He had personally wanted to go to the new EUROCOM at Brussels, but the only junior officers out of the academy that went had connections.

He had jumped on the opportunity to be in the 6th Infantry. Now he regretted it. He hated that he was in the field all the time and was expected to lead troops.

'So much for the old plan,' he thought for the thousandth time. 'Join the military and rise to the top. Retire with honors and then run for political office.'

Here he was at the bottom. Hitsugaya was senior because he was next in line for battalion command. Matsumoto was next in line for company command. Urashima could easily transfer to another unit for his own company if he wanted.

"2nd Platoon has regrouped," said Captain Yamazaki Natsuko, a 24-year-old woman and CO of F Company. She too was a graduate of the Academy, but had served in a replacement depot, a place where newly trained recruits were funneled into units needing replacements.

"E Company had one squad and took control of the situation," said Major Nara flatly. The new officers and sergeants were better trained than the veterans, but they were nervous, highly inexperienced, and most alarming was that most of them weren't trained for combat commands.

"Staff Sergeant Itatsu was doing okay, but his squad doesn't seem to be able to keep up with him," said 1st Lt. Matsumoto to the surprise of everyone. She had been asleep for most of the simulation.

"These guys won't make through their first battle. They expected to have air and armor support and when both were lost they couldn't adapt. They're too slow to react," said Captain Zakito Karin, former 1st platoon leader of D Company and current CO of Dogwood Company, darkly.

"On the bright side… casualties were minimal," said Colonel Daijin dryly. "Sergeant Major, signal the mission is over, then tell them they can walk back to base. Once they report back in there are free until 0600 tomorrow."

"Hai, ma'am," said Command Sergeant Major Neya Satoshi, Colonel Daijin's aide.


0900 Hours; February 23rd, 2012; Washington Athletics Club, Seattle; Washington State, United States of America

"These two should have popped up on your people's radar. Eighth Directorate spook operated in Bundeswehr turf in Afghanistan. He ever cross paths with KSK or MAD?" asked Jack.

"Nien, Oberst," said Oberst Anna Wörner, Compass Four. She was in charge of land operations. "I was never in Afghanistan, but I can pass it along-"

"No. This stays here. Ivan doesn't need to know what we're up to. Klar (clear)?"

"Ja. Must be a lot of pressure from your government," she sympathized as she picked up a picture. "Him we know. He surveyed the border for the KGB on Czechoslovakian-Deutsch and Hungarian-Austro borders."

"Surveyed?"

"Fine… he penetrated the Iron Curtain. His name is Nazariy Andriyovych Shevchenko. He was born in Odessa, Ukraine. He specializes in covert insertion. He is a pathfinder. Fines weaknesses in security and outlines it for special forces, usually Spetsnaz."

"When did you leave Europe?"

"We didn't know he had, Oberst. Shevchenko was spotted in Prague 12 days before your president was attacked. He's pretty elusive so less than two weeks was pretty recent for him," said Wörner as she wondered how he had suddenly slipped away to North America.

"Who does he work for?" asked Jack. Both knew Shevchenko was KGB, but not what part he worked in the Seventh Directorate.

"He didn't work for the regular change of command when we first noticed him. We knew his name from one of his early operations when he still worked for the Central Group (3). About 2011 we think he was place under someone else's command. The best guess is he's under command of someone in Moscow and carrying out missions for the senior KGB staff."

"Scary thought," said Jack detachedly. "Speaking of scary, there is a lot of activity in Southwest Strategic Direction. Multiple divisions have broken routine and are conducting large scale military drills. JNA (Jugoslavenska Narodna Armija or Yugoslav People's Army), is also stepping up military operations. The 9th Army (4) is digging into defensive positions along the Yugoslavian-Italian and Yugoslavian-Austrian borders. The 3rd Army (5) is moving up to the Kosovar border and the Greek border. The 1st and 2nd Armies (6) are in extensive training right now. No words on the 5th or 7th Armies (7) yet. Batajnica AB (8) is pretty active these days. So is Podgorica (9)."

"Danke, the Vatarland will put this to use."

"It won't do you any good. After the 2009 treaty with Serbia we have to downsize NATO presence in the Balkans. By March only a battalion will be left," pointed out Jack. The US and Serbian governments had come to an agreement on decreasing NATO troop numbers to lower tensions in the Balkans.

It looked bad, but the Yugoslavians said it was for national defense incase NATO attacked. If NATO rushed troops to Kosovo they could provoke a war that could still be preventable. For now, soldiers could only prepare for the worst and let the politicians and diplomats handle the situation for now… not that that was a comfort to any soldier.

Around the world, soldiers were preparing for a war that may not happen. Most thought that war was coming. The smart ones knew otherwise.

Although the Yugoslavians had decided to make the preparations to invade Kosovo to reclaim it and create a buffer between them and NATO invasion from Albanian, there was still a chance that the Yugoslavians won't attack if the West assures them they're in no danger of attack. If that were to happen the Soviets would stand down since their Southwest Frontier was in no danger...

... but that is assuming nothing escalates the crisis.


Well, I've got no idea what to do for my next chapter… okay I have ideas but no clear plan. Well, I guess I'll be researching Shinto weddings. I also need to brush up on Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Albanian names. American names are easy because Americans come from all other the world. Russian names I usually get out of the newspaper, Clancy novels, etc. English, Irish, and Scottish names follow patterns. A lot of Americans have German (English, Irish, or French) names and the rest I get from history books. Japanese names I usually pull from anime, manga, games, etc. If you want a story to sound somewhat authentic then names are important. Try wikipedia for names. That's what I do. Even if you are one of those people who don't trust wikipedia it's not like you're writing a school report.

Well, until later.

Respectfully

J. H. Kamiya

Appendix

1. It first should be noted that there is a difference between NATO Reporting-Names and Soviet Names. The Mi-24 is known by NATO as the Hind. The Soviets do not use the same name. It is called the Letayushchiy Tank (Flying Tank) in Russia, an appropriate name for people on the receiving end of the heavily armed and armor chopper. Most Russians called the Mi-24 the Krokodil (Crocodile).

2. The KA-BAR was the USMC and USN standard issue sheath knife during World War II.

3. The Central Group of Forces is a subdivision of the Western Strategic Direction. Central Group is based in Prague, Czechoslovakia. It only includes Czechoslovakia. Northern Group of Forces is based in Warsaw and included Poland. They also had an East Germany Group that was separate from the other groups.

4. The 9th Army of the Yugoslav People's Army Ground Forces is based in Slovenian. Their headquarters is in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana.

5. The 3rd Army of the JNA Ground Forces is based in Macedonia and its HQ is in the Macedonian capital Skopje.

6. The 1st and 2nd Armies are both based in Serbia. The 1st Army's HQ is in the Serbian capital Belgrade. The 2nd Army's HQ is in the city of Nis, a major city in the southern part of the country.

7. The 5th Army is based in Croatia and its HQ is in the Croatian capital Zagreb. The 7th Army is based in Bosnia-Herzegovina and its HQ is in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.

8. Batajnica Air Base is a civilian/military airport outside of Belgrade.

9. Podgorica Air Base is an air base in Montenegro near the city of Podgorica not too far Kosovo.