Chapter 10: One Step Closer
Miho, Hana and Yukari walked uneasily down the corridors of the hallway of Oarai's hospital, having changed into casual outfits that they believed would make them look presentable for Mako R.'s grandmother. They had managed to contact Mako R. and Saori the previous night and confirmed that they had arrived at the hospital, but only found out Mako R.'s grandmother's room number, not anything about her condition.
Much to their surprise, the first indication of the patient's condition was her voice, coming through the closed door while Hana was about to knock. The girls vaguely overheard Mako R.'s grandmother shouting complaints and insisting that Mako R. not waste any more time in the hospital room when she should be at school.
"Perhaps we shouldn't go in?" Yukari said.
"No, we have come this far," Hana said. "We cannot be deterred now, even if our reception is hostile."
Miho and Yukari glanced at each other, realizing the deeper meaning present in Hana's words. As Hana had stood up to her own mother and been disowned less than a day ago, it was no surprise.
The trio of girls stepped through the door and noticed Saori and Mako R. in their Oarai school uniforms. They also noticed Mako R.'s grandmother, Reizei Hisako, sitting up in bed, clad in hospital clothing, and eying them warily.
"Miporin! Yukarin! Hana!" Saori said.
"Who are they and what are are they doing here?" Hisako said bluntly.
"My friends," Mako R. said. "After I got a call about your collapsing, Grandma, they heard and got worried, so they came here.
"They're not worried about me- they were worried about you!" Hisako said. While a part of Hisako found being pitied insulting, another part concluded that it was more logical to assume that Mako R.'s friends were concerned about their friend, rather than a woman they had heard about second-hand and never actually met.
"Really, Grandma?" Mako R. thought skeptically. "Miho always struck me as the kind of person who seems to care about those she's just met- why else would she have helped me get to school? For that matter, her sister seems to take after her in that respect."
"Anyway, they're friends of mine from tankery," Mako R. said.
"You're doing tankery?" Hisako said. Hana subtly winced, bracing herself for another child coming into conflict with her family. "I never could figure out what the big deal about it was, and neither could my daughter-in-law, even if tankery was supposedly more popular in her generation. Still, it's a step up from taking naps in the afternoon."
"Well, it's an elective at Oarai, and we're required to take one," Saori said. "Mako was originally going to take calligraphy."
Mako R. had originally chosen calligraphy under the reasoning that as it essentially involved the art of moving a brush and writing, it did not require much effort, unlike the martial arts electives, for example.
"Don't any of these things teach anything useful?" Hisako said. "But useful or not, you really should get back soon. I'd rather not have you wasting time here on my account."
"Right, Grandma," Mako R. said calmly, but with a hint of reluctance. The worst had passed, but Mako R. still worried about her grandmother.
Mako R. walked out of the room, followed by Saori, Hana and Yukari.
As Miho started to leave, she stopped when she heard Hisako speaking. Turning around, Miho noticed that Hisako had turned away from her, possibly not wanting to show them her expression.
"You know, Mako, for all her intelligence, isn't too good with social graces and whatnot- of course, neither am I," Hisako said. "But all the same, there's a lot more to her than that, and I'm glad you're sticking with her long enough to find out."
"It's our pleasure!" Miho said.
Stepping out into the hall, Miho found Mako sitting on a chair and leaning back, having apparently nodded off. Miho noticed the smile on Mako R.'s face, and was hesitant to disturb her.
As Team Anglerfish left the hospital, Hana carried the sleeping Mako on her back; contrary to the impression she left on most people, she was a tall and surprisingly strong girl.
"I'm glad to hear that Reizei-san's grandmother is feeling better," Hana said.
"This won't be the end of Mako's problems in this matter," Saori said. "It isn't the first time her grandma's collapsed, and it won't be the last."
"Still, while Reizei-dono and her grandmother often argue, there didn't seem to be any hard feelings involved in it," Yukari said. "Not like Isuzu-dono and her mother..."
Yukari stopped herself short and clapped a hand over her mouth.
"I-I'm sorry!" Yukari said. "It's just after I heard that your mother, well... told you you couldn't come home, I couldn't help but say it out loud. I have a bad habit of not being able to keep my mouth shut or tell what I shouldn't disclose to others."
Saori gasped in surprise, while Miho gave a melancholy nod in response. Mako R. stirred on Hana's back, almost imperceptibly, having heard it, but being too tired to say anything. Hana sighed, realizing that she could no longer keep her family issues from her friends.
"Your mother disowned you, Hana?" Saori said, not having heard what Yukari was talking about.
"No, please do not call it that, Saori-san," Hana said. "She does not wish to see me or speak with me until I recant my decision to take tankery. According to Shinzaburou, our family servant, she is still paying for my education and living expenses at Oarai. He said that Mother may sometimes be over-emotional and prone to taking things personally, but she is not the sort who would neglect my needs over something like this." Hana relayed Shinzaburou's comments with a hint of levity in her voice, as though she found the notion of worrying about her mother cutting her off touching but misplaced.
"I'm starting to appreciate my own parents more," Yukari said. "Mom and Dad saw for years that tankery seemingly did little but isolate me from my friends, but they still supported me nevertheless, since I found tanks fun. Mom was one of the first women in her family to work outside the home. Dad's parents wanted him to be a lawyer like his father was, but he realized he didn't have the grades to get into law school, and chose to become a hairdresser instead. The parents of both of my parents accepted their decisions, so that's why they're open-minded about mine."
Miho smiled.
"So is that why they're fine with what you do, Akiyama-san?" Miho said.
"That's right," Yukari said. "Mom said she and Dad don't want to give me advice that they don't follow themselves, unless they acknowledge that what they did when they were my age was a mistake. But they don't have any regrets about how things turned out, and hope I can find a path in life I'm happy with."
The group began to board a nearby bus that would stop near the boat they could take to return to the school ship.
"Speaking of which, where are Reizei-dono's parents at a time like this?" Yukari said. "Reizei-dono herself implied that this wasn't the first time this had happened."
"Mako's parents died in an accident while she was in elementary school," Saori said. "And the last time Mako saw them before they died, Mako had an argument with her mother."
Hana's expression turned sober for the first time since she was disowned. She still believed that tankery was the best and most fulfilling path for her, as a woman and as a flower arranger. She still believed that her mother would come around, and still wanted her to do so. But now, she realized that there might be a time limit to her efforts.
"Are you certain you should be telling me this, Saori-san?" Hana said. "It seems Reizei-san would not tell this to others lightly."
"Mako wanted me to do so," Saori said, "although she didn't expect that it would also be relevant to your situation, Hana. She was worried about Miporin, given that Miporin seemed distant from her family."
Miho nodded.
"Is it about my sister?" Miho said. "She cares, even if she can't always show it."
"Well, Mako and I came to that conclusion, after seeing what your sister did for us," Saori said. "I personally think that actions speak louder than words, and there are points at which even seemingly distant and not very affectionate people demonstrate how much they care."
That evening, after Anglerfish Team left the hospital, Hisako was lost in thought when a nurse came by, making her rounds.
"Excuse me," Hisako said. "Do you happen to know when the tankery matches are broadcast on TV?"
"Yes, ma'am; I can give you the channel if you would like," the nurse said. "There was a tankery match yesterday afternoon; Oarai against Anzio."
"Ah yes, that," Hisako said, leaving unspoken about how that was around the time she had collapsed and been rushed to the hospital. "Do you know when Oarai's next match will be?"
"I'm not sure," the nurse said. "The main matches people are looking forward to are the ones that Black Forest, Pravda and Saunders will have. Oarai's quarterfinals match is not for some time, and is against an opponent that has yet to be determined."
"I see," Hisako said. "My granddaughter, Mako, goes to Oarai and drives for the team."
"That's nice; my niece goes to Chihatan," the nurse said. "But the way things are going now, I don't think she and your granddaughter will face each other; she's not only on the other side of the tournament, but has to face Black Forest right off the bat- until last year, they were defeated for almost a decade. Also in that side is Pravda, the one who defeated them."
"So Mako might end up facing one of those two in the final round?" Hisako said.
"To be honest, ma'am, only if her school gets that far," the nurse said. "St. Gloriana and Saunders, two of the stronger competitors, are their likely opponents. Still, I'll be rooting for Oarai, since the school ship part of my city."
"Since when did you get a taste for challenges with such steep odds, Mako?" Hisako thought; she knew that Mako did as well as she did in school because her intelligence made getting good grades child's play. "Still, it's a nice change."
"Well, your niece's trying this hard is certainly admirable," Hisako said. "For a long time, I wished Mako would do the same. But this may yet be a pursuit to which Mako can devote herself, and one at which she might end up succeeding."
Elsewhere…
"Thank you for the match!" the members of Black Forest and Chihatan's tankery teams said as they bowed to each other after the match, which had ended in defeat for Chihatan. An overwhelming pincer assault by Black Forest had devastated Chihatan's front lines, forcing the flag tank to retreat. Maho, having anticipated their escape route and launched her attack to force Chihatan to take it, had pre-emptively sent Teru's tank and two others to cut off their escape. A quick volley of fire struck and disabled the Chihatan flag tank. Chihatan lost eight tanks in the battle, while Black Forest lost only one of theirs.
Jindai Komaki, a Chihatan second-year who was commander of the team, wore a uniform that resembled what she might have worn in the Japanese army during World War II, had they allowed women to enlist as soldiers and crew tanks- at class, she wore the school's uniform of a sailor fuku, and around her family's estate, she often wore the ceremonial robes of a miko. In all cases, she believed that propriety was of the utmost importance.
During the post-game, Teru glanced at Komaki, scrutinizing her. Komaki was hesitant to say anything, but her expression indicated that she was somewhat uncomfortable with the attention. She quickly shifted to a graceful and polite smile before shaking hands with Maho and going back to her team.
As Black Forest's team headed back to their ship, Maho turned to Sumire.
"Teru seemed oddly fixated on Chihatan's commander," Maho said to Sumire. "Have they met?"
"Ah, you didn't know, Commander?" Sumire said. "Jindai Komaki looks similar to the way Saki did as a young girl, having a similar hairstyle. However, not only does Saki have a different hairstyle now- short, a bit like Matano's- Saki has chestnut hair, while Jindai's is raven-colored. Additionally, Saki has a practically flat chest, while Jindai… I have to admit I'm somewhat jealous."
"So, is that all they have in common?" Maho said, and Sumire nodded.
"It seems so, but even I can't help but notice Jindai's resemblance to Saki," Sumire said. "Presumably, so does Teru, however much she tries not to think about Saki."
Unbeknownst to Sumire, Teru had a similar reaction to Awai when they first met, but it had lasted only until Awai first opened her mouth, boisterously greeting Teru and declaring that she was the best tank driver in the country.
Awai had briefly noticed Teru's reaction, but without any information that she could use to understand it or give it context, put it out of her mind. So, too, did Komaki.
Komaki returned to her teammates, a large portion were distant relatives of hers, whose families were vassals to Komaki and her family. To them, Komaki was essentially their liege lady, and they honored her with the title of "Princess."
"I offer my most sincere apologies, everyone," she said.
"No, Princess," Usuzumi Hatsumi, Komaki's third cousin, who, despite looking like a small child, was a third-year, said. "We have all been trying harder, so you would not have to push yourself as far."
"It's not often that we get a strong opponent right off the bat," Iwato Kasumi, a third-year and first cousin to Komaki, said. "Last year, we were able to avoid getting Pravda until the second round, and had more of a chance against them. Maybe your luck will improve next year, Komaki-chan."
Komaki smiled slightly and nodded, comforted by what Kasumi had said. While some of her teammates were fairly distant relatives whom she had only met in high school, she had known Kasumi since the two were small children; in comparison to Komaki's relationship with her other teammates, she and Kasumi were more like friends, or even sisters.
"Thank you, Kasumi-chan," Komaki said with a smile. "Speaking of which, who was matched against Pravda in the first round this year?"
Elsewhere…
Pravda's tanks encircled the old church where Bosporu Academy's four remaining tanks were holed up. Hiroe had sent a messenger, giving them five minutes to decide whether to surrender or keep fighting and, as Hiroe's message said, "lose a little bit later than usual."
Katyusha, one of the higher-ranking Pravda officers, and one who, along with the commander and vice-captain, played a major role in formulating Pravda's strategies, waited inside her tank, a T34/85.
"If I was in charge, I'd give them longer- about three hours, maybe? Then I'd be able to get something to eat and take a nap while they're freezing and starving," Katyusha said as she peered out the top of her tank and talked to Nonna, her best friend, who was in a nearby IS-2.
"You're honest as always about your ulterior motives, I see, Katyusha- at least when talking with me," Nonna said.
Nonna was perhaps the only Pravda tanker who did not outrank Katyusha and could afford to take such a tone with her. But while Nonna enjoyed poking fun at Katyusha's various flaws, she did not judge her because of her short stature.
Inside a KV-2 commanded by Funakubo Hiroko, a third-year with shoulder-length light brown hair and glasses who was the vice-captain and Hiroe's cousin, the crew used the five minutes to take a break, even if there was not enough time for them to leave the tank.
"Senpais, it's almost time," Nijou Izumi, a girl with short brown hair who was the radio operator and one of the few first-years on the Pravda team said.
"All right," Shimizudani Ryuuka, a girl with long dark hair who was the crew's loader and a third-year, said. She then turned to the girl with shoulder-length brown hair whose head was resting in her lap. "Toki, it's time to wake up."
"Already…?" Onjouji Toki, the gunner and a third-year, said. She was sickly since she got out of the hospital after falling ill the previous year, but her gunnery had improved to a degree that surprised everyone and earned her a spot on the team.
"Hiroe decided to give the enemy five minutes to make up their minds- she's not one for waiting around," Hiroko said. "But don't worry-" Hiroe continued as an eerie smile crossed her face, "We'll end this quickly and you can sleep on the way back, Toki."
"That's the idea," Eguchi Sera, a tomboyish girl with spiky red hair who was the driver, said.
The enemy tanks filed out of the church, into the gap that Hiroe had left in their ranks. They had spent the five minutes discussing amongst themselves what to do, and had no time to scout out the enemy's position.
"Now!" Hiroe said over the radio.
The Pravda tanks opened fire on the advancing Bosporu tanks- three 9TPs and a 10TP, striking down those that came forward in a hail of gunfire that resulted in several thunderous explosions. A well-placed shot by Toki struck the 10TP flag tank in its side, ending the match.
"Pravda High School wins!" the announcer said.
Inside her tank, Hiroe smiled at her victory, as she surveyed all four disabled Bosporu tanks.
"What the enemy lacked in tactical sense, they almost made up for in guts," Hiroe said. "Not bad for a no-name school."
At the post-game ceremony, the Pravda and Bosporu commanders stood before each other and exchanged bows.
"That was a nice last-ditch effort there," Hiroe said to Kakura Kurumi, a diminutive girl with short brown hair who was Bosporu's commander. "You know, hardly anyone can defeat me, but I have to respect those who give their all and face me head-on. In that regard, you're a long way from where you were three years ago."
Hiroe then extended her right hand for a handshake.
"Why does every time you praise someone always sound like a backhanded compliment?" Kurumi said, before sighing, forcing a smile and shaking Hiroe's hand. "But thanks; it was a good game."
Kurumi glanced over and saw Katyusha on Nonna's shoulders. She wasn't especially proud of being diminutive, but at the same time, she saw trying to compensate for it by relying on the height of another as only admitting to being ashamed of it. In that way, while her team had gotten eliminated in the tournament far earlier and far more easily than they would have liked, she could say that they had fought honorably, with their own ability.
The two teams then began to head back, but for one Bosporu girl, while the tournament ended, she had one thing left to do.
"Commander Atago!" someone called out. Hiroe turned and saw a tall girl with long black hair who wore a black wide-brimmed hat with the tankery uniform. Her name was Anetai Toyone, and she was Kurumi's driver, and a third-year at Bosporu.
Katyusha, perched on Nonna's shoulders, saw the girl come closer and, turning to her, realized that they could make eye contact.
"Whoa, Nonna, I didn't realize there were any girls out there who are actually taller than you!" Katyusha said, amazed.
"Or any girls almost as short as you, like their commander is," Nonna said with an amused smile.
"Please, sign this!" Toyone said, holding out a board in front of Hiroe, as well as a pen.
"Sure thing," Hiroe said, tickled by being considered a famous tankery player, and willing to honor a request of this nature from a fan. She accepted Hiroe's pen, wrote her name on the board, and handed it back to her. "Here you go."
"Thank you so much, Commander Atago!" Toyone said. "It's my last year to do tankery in high school- the first in which I did it with my friends, and I…I also wanted something to remember it by."
Toyone gave Hiroe a deep bow in appreciation, and then did a quick about face to rejoin her friends, hoping to avoid showing Hiroe the tears welling up in her eyes. It had ended sooner than she thought, but she had enjoyed the journey thus far. And while the team was mostly composed of third-years, it could still practice together and train the first- and second-years.
Hiroe, lost in thought, stared and watched Toyone walk away. While determined to win, partly because of her own pride and partly out of loyalty to her team, she did not have anything against her enemies, especially when they were fighting for similar reasons as her. But she also recognized that the tournament was a contest in which only the fittest could advance onward and win.
"So you don't have anything against me, even though we beat you?" Hiroe thought. "Sounds like the Nishizumi School could learn something from you."
"Onee-chan?" Hiroe's younger sister, Atago Kinue, a girl with shoulder-length blue hair and glasses, said. "We're heading back."
"All right, Kinue, I'm coming," Hiroe said.
In the stands, the Atago sisters' mother, Atago Masae, sat with her younger sister, Funakubo Masaki, who was Funakubo Hiroko's mother.
"Well done, girls," Masae, a woman wearing a navy blue business suit with a white dress shirt and blue necktie who strongly resembled her younger daughter, but whose hair was waist-length, said with a smile. She was head of the Atago family, and head instructor of the Atago school of tankery.
"You seem quite pleased, Nee-san," Masaki, who, like her daughter, had medium length brown hair and glasses, and wore a turtleneck sweater and a skirt, said.
"Why wouldn't I be, Masaki?" Masae said. "Both my daughters and my niece are now on the team together. Hiroe and Hiroko have done well so far, but I'm pleased to see Kinue doing well, too. They've certainly earned their spots on the team."
"Are you concerned about the possible implications of nepotism?" Masaki said. "As much as their coach, Kumakura-sensei, has done for us, back when we were their age, she's always been fair and principled. She'd only name Hiroe commander or approve her choices for the team- including Hiroko for vice-captain- if she thought that it was for the best."
"It's also for their sake," Masae said. "Hiroe is the sort who wants to earn everything on her own. I may have taught her how to do tankery, but she was the one who asked to learn it, and she was the one who achieved those victories. That's why I'm so proud of her, and I think that's why Kinue takes after her so much."
"That explains a great deal," Masaki said. "Hiroko always noticed that Hiroe doesn't like it when her enemy isn't fighting at full strength. And this might be why Hiroe didn't consider her victory last year a 'true' victory."
Masae nodded.
"I've always taught the students at my tankery school that while they should always aim for victory, constantly strive to improve themselves and not rest on their laurels, there's more to a game than winning," Masae said. "Sometimes, victory can be hollow if you didn't earn it yourself. And sometimes, defeat can be a good lesson. Of course, my daughters, your daughter and the others have come a long way since starting high school, so I think it's possible for them to win this year."
"Other underdogs have been similarly emboldened," Masaki said, "including Oarai and BC Freedom. With more people putting in more effort than ever to gain the championship, this looks as though it will be an exciting tournament."
Elsewhere…
As the last of BC Freedom's tanks were loaded onto its school ship, and it began the final preparations to set off for sea again, Yasuko started dialing Hisa's number on her cell phone.
"Congratulations on winning, Hisa," Yasuko said. "Sorry I didn't call earlier, but I didn't have a lot of free time, as I was getting my team ready for their match. But it seems that I'll have a lot more free time for the rest of the year."
"So, you didn't win?" Hisa said.
"No, we lost to St. Gloriana," Yasuko said. "Otherwise, we'd be your next opponents."
"So we succeeded where your students failed," Hisa said. "Does that mean that you've perhaps underestimated our chances?"
"It's hard to say," Yasuko said. "On the one hand, you've got many strong opponents left, both in your bracket and in the others. On the other, I was almost completely certain you'd never make it, even against a school of Anzio's caliber. So, for now, while I still think the odds aren't in your favor, and you have a ways to go before you stand a chance against Black Forest, I won't make any predictions with absolute certainty, lest I regret them."
"Thanks, Yasuko," Hisa said. "I wish you the best of luck next year, and the years to come after it."
"You're right," Yasuko said. "I do have quite a bit of time left to keep trying."
After saying goodbye to Hisa and hanging up, Yasuko turned to Kei A., who was waiting nearby, holding a basket in her hands.
"Ah, Kei," Yasuko said. "I'm sorry, I was on the phone."
"I just wanted to show you something, Coach," Kei A. said and handed Yasuko the basket. "It looks like our efforts weren't completely in vain."
"An 'endorsement' from St. Gloriana, huh?" Yasuko said. "If I were their commander, I'd still think our team has a ways to go. But if we'd gone up against St. Gloriana instead of Oarai in our practice battle, we probably wouldn't have earned this."
"My friends and I spoke after the battle," Kei A. said, "and we're going to get ready to try again next year."
"That's the spirit," Yasuko said with a smile. "Of course, you will need to work on your weaknesses, and either remove the weak links or make them strong, but where there's a will, there's a way."
Meanwhile, at Oarai
After one afternoon practice session, Hisa approached Miho for a private discussion, and led her to an isolated corner near the tankery garage.
"So what did you want to talk with me about, Hisa-senpai?" Miho said. "And why do you want to speak with me alone?"
"I'd like your honest opinion, Miho," Hisa said. "And I'd like you to give it to me in a place where you can say it, but without having to worry about offending anyone."
"What would you like to know that might offend people?" Miho said, slightly confused.
"This may sound harsh," Hisa said, "but are there any weak links in the team that you can think of? Your team and mine are doing quite well, but we'll need to get everyone up to speed."
Miho sighed, realizing this was a necessary question with an unpleasant answer.
"I can think of a few," Miho said. "The Type 89 is by far our weakest tank, and has too little power to effectively take out most opposing tanks- but until we get another tank, we're stuck with it. Rabbit Team tends to get taken out much earlier than the others, although it is partly a product of bad luck and they have gotten better since the practice match; that's why they were able to survive in the match with Anzio. And there's one team that keeps missing…"
Miho trailed off, remembering the person with whom she was speaking. At times, she almost forgot that Hisa was not part of Turtle Team, having associated her with them because of her position on the Student Council, and she feared that she might take offense to criticizing her friend and colleague.
"You mean Momo?" Hisa said, slightly catching Miho off guard in her directly addressing the issue.
"Touyoko-san's quite good, comparable to Saki-san or Hana-san," Miho said. "But the PR rep… how do I say this… I feel the team might do better if someone else takes the gun of the Pz 38. All the other gunners have improved since the practice battle... except her." A knot formed in Miho's throat. "But I...I don't know how I can tell her that. My sister, due to being commander and a different kind of person than I was, was responsible for dealing with under-performing tankers at Black Forest"
Hisa sighed.
"I can see what you mean," Hisa said. "Momo's my friend, but I recognize that her aiming, to put it bluntly, sucks, which I think is a result of her being high-strung, short-tempered and impulsive. Unfortunately, those aspects of her personality make it hard for someone like you to call her out on it, much less tell her that we don't need her as a gunner anymore."
"Why don't we talk to her together?" Miho said, causing Hisa to nod.
Miho and Hisa proceeded to the student council office, where Momo and Anzu were watching Yuzu file away some paperwork.
"Momo, do you have a minute?" Hisa said. "Miho and I wanted to talk to you about something."
"What do you want, Nishizumi?" Momo said in her typical stand-offish and contemptuous tone. While Miho was her superior as tankery team commander, at times, Momo still treated her like just another constituent, and an underclassman, at that.
"Kawashima-senpai, I'd like to talk to you about your gunning," Miho said. "Hisa-senpai and I have been reviewing the team's records, looking for areas in which we can improve, and..."
Miho glanced to Hisa, hoping she would say something, but Hisa merely nodded to prompt Miho to continue.
"Well, Nishizumi?" Momo said impatiently, already knowing what Miho wanted to say.
Miho cleared her throat. It was too late for her to back down now without making things worse. Clearly Momo understood what the problem was, and if she did not, Anzu and Yuzu did.
"And so, I was thinking that it might be better for the team if… someone else was gunner," Miho said.
Momo frowned. She was not surprised, but was not convinced Miho fully grasped Turtle Team and the Student Council's methods for division of labor.
"Yeah, and just who do you have in mind?" Momo said. "We're crewing this tank with a crew of three, so we're already stretched thin. So which of the other two would you have man the gun instead? Yuzu? She's driving, so she can't multitask, even if we end up sticking her with all the grunt work for the student council. The president? Good luck getting her to help out outside of an emergency."
"Yes, the president" Miho said, almost reflexively. "It would go the longest way in increasing our chances of victory."
Anzu gave off a slightly amused sigh at how easily Miho had volunteered her.
"Sounds like a hassle," Anzu said.
"You always say that, President," Hisa said. "Still, you've never been one to walk away or slack off when the going gets tough… especially not now."
After a brief pause, Anzu nodded.
"All right, I'll do it," Anzu said. "Kawashima, you OK with loading?"
"I can do that if you insist," Momo said.
"All right, that takes care of everything," Hisa said. "Let's go, Miho."
"Thank you for understanding," Miho said, before taking her leave.
As Miho and Hisa walked out of the student council office, Miho turned to Hisa.
"Why did you remain silent for most of the conversation, Hisa-senpai?" Miho said. "You might have been helpful when the time came to convince the PR rep to acquiesce."
"The point was to get you to tell her yourself," Hisa said. "You're the commander, so you should be giving orders to me, rather than the other way around."
Miho found Hisa's logic difficult to contest, although she was not fully convinced.
"Still, I don't feel as though I changed their minds," Miho said. "They didn't agree until you spoke up and impressed upon them the importance of doing so."
"The student council's like that," Hisa said. "Like Momo said, we tend to let Yuzu do a lot of the grunt work, as well as our class reps, the disciplinary committee and the people outside the student council. But when times are desperate, we get our act together, and bring the results we need. It's a bit unconventional, and people not familiar with us might question why we do things this way, but we're able to make it work."
Miho smiled and nodded.
"That's a bit like the tankery team," Miho said.
"And, of course, you spoke up, which is what counts," Hisa said. "People are starting to take notice of and respect your ability, Miho; I hope you're one of those people who has, as well."
"I will," Miho said, before getting ready to part ways with Hisa.
"Oh, and one more thing," Hisa said. "You might have heard this before, but Yasuko called me recently, and told me that BC Freedom lost to St. Gloriana. They'll be our next opponents."
"This could be difficult," Miho said. "BC Freedom defeated us, and now we have to face someone who defeated them, an opponent with a good record in the past tournaments."
"That's how it typically goes," Hisa said. "Most of the weak teams get taken out in the first round of any tournament. But since the stronger schools are limited in terms of how many tanks they can bring, they won't show any quarter to weaker ones. We defeated Anzio at the strongest it could manage in the first round, so if we rise to the occasion, we should be able to pull through in the next round."
Elsewhere
The first round match between Joghurt and Saunders swiftly reached its conclusion, as the two sides fought on a rocky battlefield. Saunders had lost three of its tanks, but Joghurt had lost six of theirs.
"Arata!" Kay said over the radio. "Alisa's got a 'pretty good idea' on where the flag tank is," she said, giving Arata its location.
"Understood," Arata said. "I'm on my way there and am almost there."
Nodoka's old friends from the tankery club, along with Arata and Yuu, drove near the exit of a canyon.
"That must be the flag tank," Arata said, hearing another tank driving to the end of the canyon. "I'm not sure how Alisa knew exactly where it would be, although I hope she wasn't looking for it with her flag tank."
"Does it matter?" Shizuno said. "We take it out, and the match is ours!" She finished loading a shell. "Loading complete!"
Ako trained her sights on the Pz 38(t) as it emerged from the narrow canyon that had protected it from the shots of the Saunders tanks. She quickly fired and struck it in the side, disabling it.
"Saunders wins the match!" the announcer said.
The Saunders tanks drove back for the post-game ceremony, as did the few operational Joghurt tanks. On the way back, however, the Saunders flag tank, commanded by Alisa, made a stop in an isolated spot for what Alisa likened to retrieving the murder weapon.
"Remember, this is our little secret," Alisa said, as she stuffed the item that had helped her team win the match into an innocuous and deceptively labeled cardboard box.
Alisa's gunner rolled her eyes as she began to wonder- if Alisa thought schools like Joghurt were so far beneath them, why did she feel the need to go as far as she did?
As the tanks were loaded onto the school ship, Nanpo Kazue, commander of Joghurt's tankery crew, met with her grandmother, Shizuru.
"I'm sorry, Grandmother," Kazue said. "I was unable to uphold the honor of your style of tankery, even considering that I ended up in such a weak school- I had wondered why they would entrust a first year like myself with the commander position, but it seemed no one else was up to the task."
"The fact that you're here at a school like this is, to some degree, my fault," Shizuru said. "So don't blame yourself for your circumstances."
"The tank that took down my team's flag tank seemed promising for a relative newcomer," Kazue said. "And somehow… no matter what I tried, they knew where I was going to go."
"Few would have thought that you could use that detour through the canyon," Shizuru said. "The enemy seems quite capable... or perhaps they had some 'help.'"
"If you understand that much, Grandmother, perhaps you could have prevailed," Kazue said. "I'm still not anywhere near your level yet."
"You have a long time ahead of you, Kazue, and many more chances to try again," Shizuru said. "All you can do is make the most of what you have at your disposal."
Kazue reflected on how a team that could only field seven tanks, many of which were quite unimpressive by any standard, had supposedly defeated the somewhat well-known Anzio Academy. Could this dark horse school accomplish the same feat against Saunders? Only time would tell.
But Kazue reasoned that if a no-name school like Oarai could win against steep odds, there was no reason why she could not manage the same.
"Thank you for the kind words, Grandmother," Kazue said. "I promise you, you will not come to regret your faith in me."
After the match, Harue gave her congratulations to the entire team, then went specifically to Ako and her team- both because they were responsible for taking down the flag tank, and because they were her students.
"Good work, girls," Harue said.
"I'm actually surprised," Ako said. "I didn't think that we'd hold up this well compared to the others on Saunders' regular team."
"You do have a fair amount of practice and experience," Harue said. "Some people don't get started in tankery until high school, meaning that the first years are essentially newbies, and the second- and third-years might not have as much as people who have done it since.
"Our time with you has paid off, Akado-san," Kuro said, "as has our reading, studying and practicing until the day when we could compete together again. We're now one step closer to our goal."
The girls smiled and nodded. After a moment, Shizuno paused and sighed contemplatively.
"Say… aren't we going to look up how Nodoka's doing?" Shizuno said. "To see if her school made it through?"
"I'd rather not find out," Ako said. "If we found out that her school got knocked out, we might just end up losing all our resolve to continue. We'd be of no use to the others, who have their own reasons for wanting to win, if that happened."
Shizuno nodded in agreement, conceding that their plan to see Nodoka again was not only dependent on their success, but also that of Nodoka and her team. Their efforts would help them with the former, but with regards to the latter, they could only hope for the best.
As the girls of the former tankery club changed the subject, Harue's mind remained on Nodoka. As Nodoka was her former student, she had a connection to her much like the other girls did, but unlike them, she could no longer choose to be ignorant of Nodoka's status in the tournament, given that her duty was to prepare Saunders for whatever opponent they faced.
Harue had watched the rest of the matchups between the relatively obscure teams on television, in hopes of analyzing the other teams' styles of play and tactics. As a result, she had seen that Maginot Girls College had defeated Waffle Academy, that Koala Forest had triumphed over Viking Marine School, Blue Division had defeated Continuance, and Oarai had defeated Anzio. With the information at her disposal, she could prepare her team for what lay ahead, and hoped Nodoka's commander and instructor would do the same.
"No need to worry about that for the moment, girls," Harue thought. "Nodoka made it past the first round. However, she may not be as lucky next round, given that her opponent's significantly stronger and more skilled than Anzio. If they're still as strong now as they were when I faced them a decade ago, she has quite a fight on her hands."
Inside St. Gloriana's commander's office, which resembled a room in an upscale British-style home, Darjeeling approached the commander's desk. The desk was neat and professional, but had a few touches of elegance associated with the ladylike students of St. Gloriana, as shown by the tea pot on it.
Fukuji Mihoko sat at the desk, wearing the St. Gloriana uniform- a white dress shirt with a black necktie and skirt, a blue slipover sweater- along with black pantyhose and shoes. She glanced at the similarly dressed Darjeeling as she approached through her left eye, which was a light red- in most circumstances, her right eye remained closed.
"Commander, I have the information you requested," Darjeeling said. She was one of the top tankers in the school, and had been considered as a candidate for commander. But while the decision was a relatively difficult one, the winning candidate was chosen based on experience, results while at the school, and demonstrated leadership; the latter was especially important after the departure of Ceylon, Mihoko's utterly despised predecessor as commander. Darjeeling gracefully accepted the result, and was most pleased when the commander asked her to become her vice-captain.
"Thank you very much for printing out these records for me, Darjeeling-san," Mihoko said as she read over the printouts.
One joke that Assam, a third-year, occasionally made was that the "real" reason behind tankery only allowing tanks from World War II was that Mihoko would be unable to operate any newer technology. Despite that opinion, though, Assam had the utmost respect for Mihoko as a commander.
"This name looks familiar…" Mihoko said.
"Miyanaga Saki-san or Nishizumi Miho-san?" Darjeeling said. "Both share the same family name as high-ranking members of Black Forest."
"Both, but there's one other, whose given name sounds familiar," Mihoko said. "I am aware of people sharing each other's names without any relationship, but I have to wonder if this is more than a coincidence."
"Have you heard this saying?" Darjeeling said, " 'Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous.'"
Meanwhile at Oarai
"So these are all the people who made it to the next round," Nodoka said. "Nishizumi-senpai and Takei-senpai realize that what we have now isn't up to the job of defeating them, so we will have to improve our tanks, as well as the girls who crew them."
Saki merely paused and nodded.
"Saki-san?" Nodoka said as she noticed Saki's lack of response. But, to Nodoka's surprise, she saw a smile crossing Saki's face. Did she not realize that to face her sister, she would have to win the next round and the one after that?
"I'm excited," Saki said. "There seem like a lot of strong people out there in tankery- I'd like to play them all, or at least, as many as I can."
Nodoka smiled. Saki was finally taking an interest in tankery.
"The road ahead to our goal may be long and difficult," Nodoka thought. "But in spite of that, and no matter how things end, I am glad I am able to walk it, and am most glad of all that you're walking it with me, Saki-san."
Author's Notes
Thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows.
EXpertUS: Teru does have a few humanizing moments, such as when she appears concerned after Toki collapses. You may see a few of them later on.
I've always been somewhat sympathetic to Yuri, especially since her disowning Hana comes off as more of an emotional overreaction than something she coldly and ruthlessly planned in advance. At the very least, she seems to care for Hana, and is certainly a far cry from Shiho.
Shizuru Nanpo is a gender-flipped version of Kazue Nanpo's grandfather from Saki. If you don't know who Kazue is, she's one of the stronger opponents Saki has to face in the Nagano individual tournament (meaning she only appears in the anime). Kazue comes off as somewhat arrogant in not liking the group tournament due to having to rely on "weak" teammates, but her dialogue with her grandfather indicates that she's motivated by family honor rather than self-aggrandizement, making her a rare case of a "Stop Having Fun Girl" with a sympathetically portrayed motivation.
Here's a fun fact; Nonna is 172 cm tall (5 feet 7 inches), while Toyone is 197 cm(6 feet, 5 inches) tall.
This chapter is dedicated to the memory of all those individuals and teams who get eliminated in the first round of their respective story's tournament. From red-shirts like Chihatan and Bosporu to otherwise promising contenders like Saunders (from canon), and Anzio, your efforts against the protagonists, main antagonists and those who fall to both of them have not gone unnoticed.
With so many teams eliminated, you may be getting some sense of who might become Oarai's opponents in the future, as well as some of the characters who will show up more later.
On a side note, Saki: The Nationals ended recently. I was hoping the anime would shed light on a certain subject (which I won't discuss here, since it would probably provide a major spoiler for this fic), but it was fairly enjoyable. I'm looking forward to the next season, whenever it comes out.
Edited to fix an error with number agreement and switch Sumire's name with Teru's in one line. I also updated the tank to be more in line with Joghurt's lineup in Necessary to Keep Winning, and added a reference to Harue's previous match with St. Gloriana while she was a student.