Tonight on Top Panzer!

Miho watches Boko

Rosehip almost fucking dies

And Saki sees a butterfly!


"Are you sure this was a good idea?"

Joshua gazed out over the tank field, the early morning air crisp in his lungs as he watched the horizon

"It's a great idea. They need to get ready for when this shit gets real, Miho. And just look at what they've achieved!"

Miho grimaced, as the distant sounds of an engine tore through the peace ofthe air

"That's what Im afraid of..."

Their conversation was interrupted by the collective screams of Duck team as the car sped forwards, chased soon after by a Crusader Mk. III. As the Crusader came up to the car, they collided, spinning the Puma around until it faced backwards. Undeterred, the Puma spun it's wheels and carried on, driving backwards just as quickly as if had been going initially. It made its way twords the Crusader, and at the last minute spun around and used the hull of the tank to launch itself sideways, balancing on one side of it's tires as it continued past the tank, firing it's gun to drop it back down once it had passed it.

Rosehip's face was filled with glee, as she began slapping her Crusader to pick up more speed. Her driver complied, and seconds later the vehicles were gone from sight, their dust clouds making another circuit around the tank grounds.

Joshua turned to his girlfriend with a smug look on his face,

"They're ready!"


After thanking the excitable british tanker and sending her back home, Oorai's Sensha-Dō team held another strategy meeting. Anzu seemed uncharacteristically nervous, which Azusa supposed was understandable. Still, they'd made it this far, and Nishizumi-senpai wouldn't let them down yet! Even Hector-san had done his duty excellently last match, but with all of the undercover operations, it was decided that it would be too risky to try and infiltrate Kuromorimine.

After the meeting, Azusa went back to her beloved M3 Lee and began tinkering on it; Soon enough, her fellow Rabbits came around, looking for their commander to watch movies with Hector-san like they'd agreed. Azusa declined, though, lost in her own thoughts as she tried to figure out how to be most useful to the team, saying she'd catch up layer; She'd been talking with Orange Pekoe alot, and the girl had given her alot of encouragement and advice. The Lee wasn't the strongest tank in their lineup, but if used correctly, the girls could pose a serious threat to any enemy tank that underestimated them. The question was, how to do that?

When Azusa's phone vibrated with a message, she was surprised to see Hector texting her.

'Need reinforcements. They've begun nesting.'

Attached was a picture of an unamused looking Hector, with the Rabbit team laying on him in various spots and poses, using his sizable body for warmth as they set up a blanket fort. Saki had her head buried in his hair staring at a butterfly out the window, and Yuuki and Karina each were laying on an arm with bowls of popcorn. Aya was holding up a DVD case and taking the selfie, smiling at her commander

Azusa giggled at her friends, before deciding that watching Kelly's Heros would be a much more fun time than sulking around hoping to be useful.

The first year pat the Lee on its hull affectionately, whispering goodnight to it and making her way out of the tank hangar


Joshua decided that the day before the finals match should be spent with his own crew. He'd been neglecting spending time with them for a while, but this was the big leagues.

It came as a bit of a surprise, then, that his team were all busy. Sure, they'd met up and gone out for dinner, but later on each of his crew had said they had previous engagements;

Hector was, of course, claimed by the Rabbit team girls for a movie night, and needed to get the snacks started before they all got home. Rachel was having a slumber party with Hana, Yuzu, and Mako. Michael, oddly enough, had a game night session with the newest members of Anteater team. Sam and Shinobu had a date night planned, but turned it into a girls night by inviting Saori and Yukari.

That left Joshua all alone, so he fell back on the one person he knew who's crew was also occupied, and before he knew it, he was knocking on Miho's door.

Minutes later, he was laying on the couch, playing with he their as Boko did something stupid on the screen. His girlfriend hummed; She looked positively blissed out right now, eyes barely even open.

Joshua thought that it was a far cry from the nervous wreck she was around her mother; if he didn't know any better, he'd never know the most important match of her life was the next day


Kouma walked the halls of Kuromorimine with a pep in her step; Sure, practice had been incredibly rough the last few weeks. But it was all worth it; Kuromorimine was back at the championship! Koume had taken a while to become okay again with being in a Panzer after the last championship match; a near death experience tended to change a girl. Two of the crew that had been in the Panzer when it went down had quite Sensha-Dō altogether. The rest-Koume included- Had needed time to get back into the swing of things

Kuromorimine had been helpful; contrary to popular belief, the school did know that they were highschoolers. And the Sensha-Dō team had a bond like few others; Koume's teammates had worked very hard to make sure she was okay, mentally and physically, before she got back into a panzer. Kommandantin Nishizumi herself had visited her several times; Even Vizekommandantin Itsumi had seen her! The girls really did care, they just took Sensha-Dō a bit more seriously than other schools.

The exception, of course, had been Nishizumi Shiho. When Miho had jumped into the river to save her friends, most girls agreed it was the morally right thing to do; Even Itsumi Erika begrudgingly agreed. But most also thought that it wasn't the place of a single panzer commander to jump headfirst into the waters; That's what the match officials were there for, they argued. And because of Miho's foolishness, the school had lost the championship, and it's shot at a record breaking 10-year Sensha-Dō championship streak.

Those girls had obviously never been in a panzer that was flooding with water, as your crewmates screamed and panicked to get out like drowning rats. You never really understood how cramped a panzer was until every snag and crevice was grabbing your skirt and uniform, fighting you as you tried to escape. When Miho had opened the hatch and yanked her out, she never had been more grateful for someone in all her life, championship be damned!

Of course, her mother hadn't seen it that way, and now Koume was taking orders from Erika instead. What's more, Erika had become increasingly... odd, these past few weeks. Ever since her loss against the American tankers, she had become obsessed with their commander, Joshua Whitman. Not only did she seem like a girl obsessed with a boy, but a fan as well. The only thing that had surpassed her admiration for Whitman seemed to be her undying love for her Kommandantin (a subject that she would deny vehemently if ever pressed). That's why it came as such a shock when Erika had started to come undone; She barely slept, she hardly ate, even Maho was becoming increasingly concerned, asking Koume to check on her over and over again.

When Koume finally did, Erika had tearfully told her I'd her dilemma; Who was she going to pick?? Maho, or Joshua? She didn't know, both were so incredible. Maho had a clear edge in Erikas heart, but she'd tried for so long to get her attention and nothing had ever come of it. Koume tried telling her how Maho obviously felt the same way (it was even a bit of a bet in the locker room how many longing glances Maho would send Erikas way when she wasn't looking) but Erika would have none of it. Then there was Joshua, who was apparently dating Nishizumi Miho now. That fact didn't bother Erika as much as the fact that Miho seemed to always get the attention of those Erika adored; First Maho, now Joshua.

It had taken an extreme amount of patience to deal with a crying, arrogant Erika, but Koume had done it, comforting the girl and telling her that no matter who she chose, they'd be lucky to have her. The next day Erika was... well, not back to normal, but coping well enough with her made up dilemma.

But now the day was fast approaching, and the pressure was being felt by everyone. Nishizumi Shiho had attended several practice matches herself, apparently quite invested in their success against her daughter, and these Americans in particular. Shiho had even been grilling Erika for information on Joshua and his crew, with no apparent reason, as some of the questions were odd and personal. Koume didn't question it though; To question the Mistress of the Nishizumi Style was tantamount to idiocy in its purest form.

And so, Koume practiced, and Kuromorimine grew stronger and stronger. And now, their hard work would be put to the test the next day, against the opponent none expected to face.

Oorai.


Now we're gonna be getting into the meat and potatoes of why we're here; The Final Showdown, Coup-dé-grace, The Big Cheese.

Sister v Sister, Nishizumi on Nishizumi, tank vs tank, Anzu on sweet potato.

The stakes have never been higher here at The International Exhibition Tournament, folks!