Chapter 9: Memories

As the pair of Tigers began rumbling towards their starting position at the center of the practice area, the younger of the two sisters heard her mother's voice in her headphones, "What course of action are you planning on implementing in this duel of yours, Miho?"

"Um... well, the usual Kuromorimine doctrine of rushing the opposition with overwhelming force can't be applied today, Okāsan, since I have only this single tank under my command. After the match begins, I think it would be best to patrol the battlefield very cautiously and hope to locate Maho's Tiger from extreme range. That will allow me to plan my next offensive move based on the terrain her tank is occupying, and I can hopefully sneak us into a good firing position where we have some protection."

"Sneak, you said? Hmm. It appears you'll be relying once again on an all too typical and predictable Ooarai tactic." The woman occupying the radio operator's seat sounded displeased with her younger daughter's announced strategy. "Aren't you concerned that Maho has gotten wise to this overused technique of yours by now? She may set a trap for you to blunder into while you're looking for her."

"Hai, it is a risky plan, Mother" Miho admitted. "But since you've given us just one hour of battle time before declaring a winner, playing it safe by laying in wait for Maho's tank to randomly appear in front of us is a luxury I don't have."

"Very well. We'll soon see if this dubious idea of yours works. I have my doubts" the woman muttered.

Noticing that the Tiger they were temporarily following along the training area's access road was proceeding much slower than expected, Miho assumed that her sister was allowing Minako more time to become familiar with how the larger tank handled. She decided it would look better to her mother if she thought Miho was already taking the initiative. The brown-haired commander activated her microphone again. "Driver, increase your speed and pass the other tank. I want us to arrive at the skirmish starting point before they do so I have first choice of terrain when our tanks separate."

"Gladly, Commander!" The girl at the controls snickered, "That rookie is driving Maho's tank like a little old lady!" She promptly shifted into a higher gear and began accelerating around the second Tiger, deliberately driving past it as closely as she dared.

Also sitting with her head above her open hatch, Minako was startled to see the other tank appear beside her. "Nani? I thought they were supposed to be following us!"

As the un-numbered Tiger caught up to her, its driver smirked at the blonde with the red bow in her hair and yelled, "Get out of my way, Obāsan! We don't have all day!" She laughed at Minako's stunned expression, increased her speed further and pulled briskly ahead.

"Obāsan?" Minako blurted, incensed at being both insulted and passed. "Mako-chan, did you hear what she just called me? She called me a grandma! I was only driving so crazy slow because that's what Maho told me to do!"

"Hai. I heard her" Makoto chuckled from the seat to her right. "Are you going to let her get away with it?"

"Nishizumi-san, requesting permission to speed up!" the blonde begged her commander. "Please!"

"I know what Miho is up to" Maho replied. "Permission granted. Driver, retake the lead position."

"It is so on!" Minako cackled, shoving the gear lever forward into high. "Nobody ever said I drive like a grandma before, and they never will again!" She planted her right foot hard the floor, unleashing all six hundred and ninety horsepower from her huge Maybach HL230 engine. "Minna, we'll get to that starting point first, or we'll die trying!" the girl vowed.

Makoto looked back at Rei. "There's a pleasant thought!" she yelled to the miko above the thunderous roar of the engine behind them.

The driver of Miho's tank was caught off-guard when the second Tiger shot past her at full power, accompanied by Minako turning her head and sticking her tongue out at her. "How dare that rookie think she can beat me?" the girl fumed. "I won't allow it! I have more driving experience in my little finger than she has in her whole body!" She too pressed her accelerator pedal all the way down and the race was on.

. . . . .

In the house outside Nerima, Haruka watched the Tigers tear along the access road, throwing dirt high into the air behind their churning tracks and leaving thick plumes of exhaust in their wakes. She grinned, "Minna, this is more like it! I still don't know what they're up to, but I know a race when I see one! Go, Minako-chan!"

"My girl is really pushing that tank for all it's worth!" Taro chuckled. "Just like how she always drives her car."

Setsuna hurriedly reduced the image's magnification to keep the fast-moving Tigers in sight. "The road appears to become much rougher up ahead. I do hope they avoid an accident."

"Minna, maybe that's why our girls are at Kuromorimine today" Yuji suggested with a hopeful smile, still holding fast to his belief that they hadn't changed schools. "It's all just for a race, and after it's over they'll return to Ooarai where they belong."

"I don't think so, Yuji-chan" Ryo spoke up. "If it's merely a driving competition, why did my Ami practice firing her tank's gun earlier?"

The other boy's smile faded. "Oh" Yuji murmured. "I forgot about that. I guess I'm just grasping at straws."

. . . . .

The pair of Tiger I's were now running nearly neck and neck down the increasingly rutted access road, with their commanders holding on tightly to the jostling rims of their cupolas. Miho and Maho looked at each other, and the elder sister surprised Miho when she grinned and began slapping one hand against the rear of her turret as though she was riding a horse and spurring it onward.

Miho giggled and leaned ahead in a comical pretend-attempt to cut through the air rushing past her and make her tank go faster, producing a laugh from Maho that was lost to the wind and the roar of their powerful engines.

For a fleeting moment, the two teenage girls forgot about the serious battle that lay ahead and remembered happier times, when they were much younger and Sensha-do was merely a fun game to them instead of the possibly life-changing competition it had become on this day.

. . . . .

"Miho, why are we travelling so quickly?" her mother asked over the intercom, snapping the brown-haired girl's thoughts back to the present. "I don't intend to start the clock on your duel until we arrive at the separation point. There is no need to make haste yet."

"Uh... we're just having fun, Okāsan. That's all."

"Sensha-do isn't about fun, daughter. It's about skill and proficiency. About tactics and teamwork, and working hard to always come out on top. Not merely having fun."

"It used to be fun" Miho murmured. "And at Ooarai, it still is."

"You should try to forget about your current school, Miho. That part of your life is in the past now. Or it will be, when you defeat Maho again as I'm certain you will."

"Nishizumi-sensei is right, Miho-san" her gunner spoke. "We can easily out-drive and out-shoot those rookies. You'll be wearing your Kuromorimine jacket and cap again in your next match, and in every match from now on. Forget about Ooarai. Your place is here with us."

'No it isn't' Miho thought, breathing a heavy sigh. 'I'll honor my promise to return to Kuromorimine if I win today's duel, but my heart will always be with the boy I love and with my true friends.' She pictured Saori's bright, cheerful smile and Yukari's enthusiasm and boundless respect for her.

'Hai. That's where I really belong'.

. . . . .