Hotcakes and a slice of panzer!
Ooarai school carrier - streets - 08.35h Sunday
Walking through the calm and quiet streets of the town Miho was reminded that it was still rather early in the morning, and as it was a Sunday, it should not come as a great surprise that there were few if any people out on the streets at the moment.
"It feels kinda different than usual, well it's not like it's so bad to have a little peace and quiet every now and then," Miho remarked quietly to herself as she craned her neck up to have a better look at the blue sky overhead, the sun had just broken through the clouds and coupled with the tranquility of the streets it made for a peaceful setting that helped Miho to relax.
"I'm really glad that I got a chance to sleep out today, I haven't really gotten a lot of sleep in the past week, not with all of the planning that we've been doing," she said as she came to a halt for a moment and stretched her back, reminding herself that for the past week school had been a busy period. Luckily though Saori had come through and had provided all of them with the perfect opportunity to catch a chance to relax this weekend, her suggestion had been a rather simple one, and much to the relief of those present, they would have hotcakes at Mako's place.
With a smile Miho thought about it, "I can't recall when's the last time that I got to have hotcakes for breakfast, I think it was a long time ago with my sister. Even before I joined Kuromorimine."
It had been so long that she couldn't recall it anymore, kind of a shame, but that wasn't so bad as she would get to enjoy it with her friends today, this time she was going to make sure that she would savor the moment and make certain that she would always remember it.
"I do wonder why Saori-san told us all to gather at Mako-san's place," she asked herself, it made more sense to have it done at Saori's place as she had everything they needed right there though Miho figured that there had to be a good reason for it anyway. "Maybe there's something special about Mako-san's place, come to think of it I didn't really get to see much of it when I visited it then, actually I didn't even see the inside of her place."
Somehow it was making Miho feel a little disappointed in herself that she, in all this time that she had come to know the girl, that she had never once visited her place, well with that it was fortunate that Saori had decided to keep it here, maybe that had been her plan all along.
Picking up the pace again she promised herself that she was going to take the time and get to have a better look at Mako's place while she was at it, there was likely going to be plenty of time for it anyway as she doubted they would be finished with breakfast anytime soon.
Just thinking about breakfast was enough of an invitation for her stomach to rumble in protest since she hadn't eaten yet, in hindsight likely not the best idea, though she felt that it would be a shame if she were to show up for the hotcakes and only manage eat one of them.
Tapping her hand against her belly she silently asked for her stomach to bear with it for a little longer, soon it would get to feast on all of those delicious hotcakes that they were going to make. "There, there, now. Just hold out a little longer, it's going to be fine."
As she thought about it, she began to giggle, realizing how silly she must have appeared to people for talking to her own belly. "I guess it still being so quiet outside has its advantages, well it's not that bad. Ah, I can't wait to get there and start eating, I'm getting a little hungry."
"Good morning Nishizumi-dono," Yukari greeted her once Miho had rounded a corner. "Good to see you up already, so Nishizumi-dono are you feeling as excited as I am about eating hotcakes together at Reizei-dono's place?" She was being her usual energetic self again, a little odd as there wasn't a tank in sight though it seemed that getting to spend time with her friends was enough of a reason for the brunette to get really excited about.
"Ah Yukari-san, good morning to you too," Miho said in return as she quickly greeted her friend, "Yes, to be honest, it's been awhile since I last had them so I was really happy when Saori-san invited us all. I'm really looking forward getting to have breakfast with all of you."
"I know, it's been ages since I last had any so I'm really excited to get to try them again and from what Isuzu-dono told me the ones made by Takebe-dono are the best ones of the entire school. I can't believe we get to try them out."
"Huh, say what?" Miho blinked with her eyes, for a moment she thought that her friend had just said that the hotcakes made by Saori were the best in the entire school, sure the ginger-haired girl was really good when it came to cooking but surely that had to be a little exaggerated.
"Just like I said, Takebe-dono's hotcakes are apparently the best ones in the entire school," Yukari said again, repeating what she had said earlier, "From what Isuzu-dono told me yesterday it seems that last year Takebe-dono actually won first prize with them during the cooking contest. At least that what's she told me."
Not sure on how to respond to that Miho was left speechless, if it was true, and she had little reason to doubt any of her friends, then Saori's hotcakes had to be something really special. Hearing this somehow made her feel a little nervous about having breakfast with her friends or perhaps she was thinking a little too much about it. "Is… Is that so?"
The brunette nodded her head, "Yeah but to be honest I've never had a taste of them myself so I can't really say whether it's true or not though I doubt that Isuzu-dono would lie to us. Ah but you have to admit that Takebe-dono is really good in the kitchen, I mean her bento's are always top notch."
That was true and there were also the dinners they had often made together though it was always under the supervision of Saori, it all began to make sense.
Slowly picking up the pace again Miho began to wonder what she was supposed to expect when she and Yukari would reach Mako's place, she wasn't really certain anymore that she had the right idea of what having hotcakes really meant, perhaps it would be best if she were to pretend that she hadn't heard a thing and just allow herself to be amazed.
Ooarai school carrier - Mako's residence - 08.50h
"Morning Miporin, Yukarin," Saori greeted the pair of friends as she stood there in the opening of the front door waving for them to come inside, wearing an apron it was pretty obvious that she must have already been pretty busy in the kitchen.
"Morning Saori-san," Miho greeted her friend in return, making a short bow followed by her taking off her shoes before going any further into the house, "So Saori-san, is there actually a reason why you told us to come here instead of your place?"
The ginger haired girl began to laugh, "Well you see, I kinda forgot that my hotplate is broken, I've been meaning to get a new one but we've been so busy lately that I've kinda forgotten about buying a new one. That's when I remembered that Mako still has one so I rushed over last night to see if it still worked. It did so I decided to have breakfast here instead."
"I see," Yukari remarked as she listened to the explanation from Saori, having left her shoes at the entrance. "Reizei-dono's place is pretty big, does she live here on her own?"
"She does," Saori answered them and then explained to them that since Mako's grandmother still lived in Ooarai it meant that Mako had this entire house to herself even though it was big enough to accommodate several people with ease, she also remarked that in her first year she had actually made the suggestion once that she and Mako could be housemates.
"Anyway come in further, do you want me to give you a tour through the house? We still have some time left as Hana hasn't come back yet from getting some cream from her place."
Miho looked in surprise but kindly accepted the offer from Saori though the question as to why Mako hadn't come to greet them was answered the moment they reached the living room as said girl lied there on her belly, sound asleep from the look of it.
"Well, that explains that," Miho giggled as she saw it, keeping her voice down so as not to disturb the sleeping girl. "So where exactly are we going to eat actually?"
"In the living room, don't worry as I'll make sure that Mako's up by then," taking off her glasses Saori was quick to give an answer to that question, she had already decided that they were going to make use of the living room as it was the largest room in the house.
"Come on, I'll show you two around," she said and gestured for Miho and Yukari to follow her as they were going to begin the tour in the kitchen first, all awhile Mako remained sound asleep, the only noise coming from her the gentle snoring she made.
About a good thirty minutes later, and a complete walkthrough of the house the trio of girls returned back to the living room, their sleeping companion remaining as silent as she had been when they had left, giving off no indication that she had noticed what had happened.
"Wow," Yukari breathed out in awe as she sat down next to the sleeping girl, still rolled up firmly inside her futon. "I know that Reizei-dono can sleep well but his is new to me."
Scratching the back of her head Saori gave them an explanation as to why Mako was so tired, apparently said girl had gone to visit her grandmother yesterday after school and she hadn't come back until late last night, very late. And given that Saori had arrived already pretty early in the morning there hadn't really been a lot of time for the poor girl to catch her daily quota of rest though of course, her quota was rather excessive compared to most other girls her age.
"But wait," Miho remarked as she thought of something, "How exactly did you get in last night if Mako-san was visiting her grandmother?"
"Oh that you mean," Saori said in return before she reached into her pocket and pulled out her keychain and held it up for Miho and Yukari to see. "I've got a spare key to Mako's place, see, there are times when I need to come over and wake her up. It's a lot easier if I have a spare to let myself in, don't you think?"
Surprisingly both Miho and Yukari found themselves agreeing with her after all, Mako wasn't exactly known for getting up early and the last time they had to wake her up that early they had to resort to firing the tank's main gun. Nevertheless, it would be best if that was kept to that one time, firing off a round, even if it had been a blank, in a residential area wasn't exactly something that they were feeling proud about.
"So when exactly do you think Hana-san's going to be back?" Miho asked as the absence of the graceful dark-haired girl was taking quite a while now, "Shouldn't she be back by now?"
"She should be," Saori answered the question before making her way towards the table to fetch her cell phone. "Maybe I should give her a call to find out what's keeping her. Excuse me for a bit," she said as she went back to the kitchen.
"I guess that Isuzu-dono might be having some trouble in finding the cream or do you think that perhaps she needed to go shopping for some? Shame we don't have any at my place otherwise I could've brought some over," Yukari mentioned as she and Miho kept waiting in the living room, leaning back she was starting to get a little impatient as they kept on waiting.
Fortunately, it was that Saori came back at that point and informed them what had happened, "Seems like Hana didn't have any cream at her place so she went to the local store to buy some for us. She's already on her way back and she thinks that she's gonna be back in maybe ten minutes or so."
Hearing that Miho offered a sigh of relief as she felt better knowing that their friend was fine and already on her way back, now that was cleared up Saori offered to make them some tea in the meantime while they would wait for Hana to come back as well as doing some small talk to kill time.
It was a good twenty minutes later before Hana finally showed up back at the house and the first thing the girl did when she saw her friends was to make a deep bow and apologize to them for being so late. "I'm really sorry that I kept you all waiting, had I known I would've taken a taxi instead, again I'm really sorry for being late."
"It's okay, we're just glad that you're back, Hana-san," Miho replied as she was happy that their friend was finally here and with that the breakfast could finally begin in earnest, having all of her friends here meant a lot to her. Of course, now it also meant that a hive of activity took place as both Saori and Hana kept walking back and forth from and to the kitchen.
"Hooray, hotcakes! I haven't had these in forever," Yukari beamed with excitement as she watched with captured interest when Saori placed down the griddle on the table, she got only more excitement once Hana appeared carrying a large bowl which held the batter.
"Yukari-san, you seem really excited about having them don't you?" Miho asked, amused by the endearing reactions of her friend at something that she felt wasn't all that special.
"Yes!" the brunette said in a cheery response, "We don't eat them all that often as my dad doesn't really like them so having the chance to have them here with all of you makes it really special to me. Ah, I didn't think that I'd get to share breakfast with Nishizumi-dono!" Anybody who saw the expression on the brunette's face could see clearly that said girl was really enjoying herself though with the excitement in the air that didn't come as much as a surprise to them, everybody was already enjoying the pleasant atmosphere.
"We've got some fresh cream as well," Hana remarked as she returned to the room, holding another smaller bowl in her hands, this time filled with cream, placing it down on the table she informed them what else they still had in the kitchen, "For those of you who want something else with your hotcakes we've also got syrup and butter, and I think that we also have some custard and fresh fruit left in the kitchen in case any of you would want those. You can help yourselves to whatever you want."
"Wow," Yukari breathed in awe as she gazed at everything that was already amassed on the table and if the dark haired girl were to be believed there was even more on the way. "Takebe-dono and Isuzu-dono really have outdone themselves don't you think, Nishizumi-dono?"
"Yeah," Miho said in return, somewhat impressed by the myriad of dishes on the table as this wasn't like her usual breakfast or even the kind of breakfast she had at her old home. Then again it certainly was turning this breakfast into a rather special and memorable event. "I didn't even know that there were so many things that you could put on them."
"I know right, at my place we only use syrup, never had them with fruits or custard so I'm really looking forward to getting to try them out," Yukari said in an excited tone, nodding her head in agreement before a certain grouching sound caught their collected attention.
Her head rising from the pillow Mako gave the first signs of life since the two girls had entered the house, it seemed that the diminutive girl was finally starting to wake up.
"Good morning to you, Mako-san," Miho greeted the smaller girl and then got up from her seat as she offered to help said girl with cleaning up the futon, "While don't you let me do that for you, you can go and get yourself refreshed and dressed in the meantime?"
"Ah," was all that Mako could get past her lips as she nodded her head and then with a groggy expression on her face rose to her feet and slowly stumbled her way towards the bathroom, everybody else just slowly watching her as she left the room.
"I'll go and see if I can help Reizei-dono," Yukari mentioned quickly as she got up as well, going in the same direction that the other girl had just gone, as she closed the door behind her Miho was left alone in the living room for the time being while she worked on getting the futon wrapped up so that there was going to be enough room for the five of them. Once that was done and Mako had returned to the living along with Yukari it started to become a lot livelier in the room than it had been only a few short moments ago as everybody settled into their routine, a more relaxed mood beginning to set.
Miho watched when with a certain brashness Mako dipped one of her fingers in the batter and then began sucking on it. "Ehm… Mako-san," she whispered, "You're gonna get a stomachache."
Said girl didn't say a word in return, with a sly expression on her face she held her finger in front of her mouth and whispered a quick, "Shhhhh." Trying to get Miho to be quiet, before any of the others and one girl, in particular, would notice it.
"Mako!" Saori shouted in an angered tone as she whacked the shorter girl over the head with a rolled up newspaper. Giving the girl not only a stern lecture but also a piece of her mind as the ginger-haired girl voiced her concerns, "I've told you before how many times now, don't eat the raw batter or you're going to get really sick. Have you forgotten how sick you became the last time you ate some of it?! I'm not gonna tend to you if it happens again! Don't say I didn't warn you!"
"Mako-san apparently got really sick the last time she ate some of the raw batter despite Saori-san's warning her not to," Hana quickly filled the others in on the matter hoping to explain as to why the normally kind and caring girl was so upset about at all of a sudden. "Saori-san had to tend to her while Mako-san had to rest for several days before she felt like being able to leave the house again."
"Ow, can you really get that sick from eating raw batter? I know that my mom always told me not to eat any because you could get sick but I didn't know it could be this bad," Yukari said, expressing her surprise at being told this. "How sick can you actually get from eating it?"
"Pretty sick actually," Saori filled them in about the dangers of eating raw batter or dough which had similar risks involved although she skimmed over a lot of the finer details but that didn't mean that her message had lost any of its meaning. "And that is why you shouldn't."
With that out of the way it was finally time for the moment that everybody had been waiting for, everything was already set on the table, and all that remained was for Saori to begin making the hotcakes which didn't take all that long.
"What's this about?" Miho asked as her curiosity peaked when the attention of her friends was inadvertently drawn to the ginger-haired girl the moment she sat down and reached out for the bowl of batter, somehow everybody seemed to be waiting for her to begin.
"Saori-san's the best when it comes to making hotcakes, she can make these delicious thick ones," Hana quickly explained to her as the rest of them watched Saori holding her hand above the plate sensing if it had already reached the right temperature for her to work on.
"I… I see," was the only reply that Miho could form as she heard that explanation though she wasn't sure what to make of it but just as she did she sit down again her interest was raised when Saori could be seen pouring the first of the batter on the plate. "Wow! You're adding more batter to it?"
Saori gently nodded her head in response as she explained to her friends what her reasons were for doing this way. "Yeah, you add more in the shape of a doughnut to make it fatter," she answered her friend's question smiling as she did. "You just watch and see for yourself."
"Wow, it's rising really fast," Yukari gasped in amazement as she watched how the hotcakes quickly rose after Saori had flipped them on the other side.
"We'll let them sit with a lid over them until they're done," the ginger-haired girl mentioned to her friends and explained to her captivated friends that this way the hotcakes would get to rise even more making them fluffier. It took a couple of minutes before the first of the hotcakes were ready to be served, reaching out for her friends' plates Saori was being pretty busy in making sure that they all got several before finally, she was able to make some for herself to enjoy. Even the words of praise coming from her friends were most welcome.
"Oh wow! These are so good," Yukari beamed the moment she took the first bite from hers, "These have got to be the best ones I've ever had, wow I just can't believe they're that good!"
Smiling Hana agreed with the brunette, "Saori-san, you've really outdone yourself this time, I think that these are even better than the last ones I had. Oh, they are just delicious, I can't just stop eating them."
Unlike the other two girls Mako didn't say a word, no she was more occupied with devouring her hotcakes at a frightening rate and barely had any of the others finished half of their portion or she was already asking for seconds though Hana seemed to refuse being outdone.
"Saori-san," Miho spoke after she had finished her first hotcake, "I want to thank you for having invited me over, these are definitely the best hotcakes I've ever had and I'm glad that I got the chance to share them with you all. This might be the best breakfast I've had since coming to Ooarai. Thank you all for being here with me." Barely had she spoken the words or her face took on several shades of pink as how embarrassing it must have sounded began to sink in with her. "Ah, please forget I said that," she said quickly before averting her eyes.
"You know," Yukari admitted as she craned her neck and gazed at the ceiling having been able to fill her stomach to her satisfaction, which confused those present, "I'm really looking forward to next year, to think of all the new matches that we're going to have together, all of the people that we're going to meet. I know that it's also going to be sad that we've got to say goodbye to so many of our friends but still…"
"Life goes on, hmpf," Mako said in response right before she stuffed her mouth full with a hefty piece of hotcake. "Mmph, mmph, hmpf, hmpf, mmph, mmpfh."
"Mako!" Saori interjected quickly as she leaned forward, trying to stop the shorter girl from stuffing herself. "You need to show some moderation, take small bites, alright? Sheesh," she sighed in exasperation as she wiped off the sweat with the back of her hand, shaking her head in the progress as the diminutive girl just continued with what she was doing.
"Anyway, do you think that we'll manage to get enough new recruits to join the team? We're definitely going to need quite some of them to make for up the crews that we're going to lose," Yukari continued, not seeming fazed by the display of Mako only a few short seconds ago. "Ah, it feels really exciting just thinking about it, oh that reminds me, Nishizumi-dono have you heard the news that's been going around lately?" she asked her friend all a sudden.
Miho blinked, feeling a little confused about the brunette's sudden question. Apparently, her friend was already aware of some news that she herself hadn't caught on yet. "Have I heard what exactly? Are they planning on anything special? What do you mean, Yukari-san?"
Beginning to grin from ear to ear Yukari leaned in closer and gestured for her friends to do so as well though there really wasn't any need for it as they were the only people in the house. "Well, rumors have been going around on several websites about the exchange program that the JSF has with the UETSA," the brunette said in a soft-spoken tone, again there really wasn't a need for acting like this was a major secret but that didn't seem to stop her, occasionally throwing a glance over her shoulder as if trying to make sure they were alone.
"My, my, my," Hana remarked, a sly smile on her face as she seemed to be really enjoying the moment. "This is really exciting don't you think? I wonder what's going to be so special but if you don't mind me asking what exactly is UETSA? I've never heard of it before."
"Huh?" In her surprise Yukari just stared at the dark haired girl opposite of her, for a moment she felt like she wasn't sure on whether or not the girl was actually being serious or not. "You mean you don't know, Isuzu-dono? Well much like the JSF is for Japan, the UETSA is for Europe and it arranges all Senshado related matters though they call it different than we do. It's an abbreviation of United European Tank Sports Associations"
Yukari then began to explain to her friend how the sport was played across the world and that there were various organizations who oversaw its implementation and execution, organizations such as the NTA in the United States or the UETSA in Europe but these were certainly not the only ones as the sport was really popular as well in Russia and various countries in Africa as well. As one would come to expect these organisations also had exchange programs in place that would allow for teams from one of these organisations to go and participate in another, the goal of which was to expose teams to new stimuli, tactics and ideas which upon their return these team would introduce into their own leagues and as a result help to enrich the sport.
"They keep these exchanges once every two years," she said, holding up two of her fingers for her friends to see, originally it had been planned to keep them each year but the costs associated with moving an entire team and its support simply prevented that. "Last time a team went over to Europe and that's already a good two years ago.
"So Yukarin," Saori remarked, raising her hand as she caught her attention before she continued. "So does that mean that this year we're going to see a team from the UETSA come and play here in Japan? Did I get that right or did I catch it wrong?"
"Yes! Apparently this year it's the JSF turn to host a team from the UETSA while they stay in Japan, don't you think it would be awesome if we could have a match against them, Nishizumi-dono?!"
"Eh… Yukarin, do you really think that's a good idea? I don't know if it's gonna be a smart idea in having to face a team from Europe," Saori voiced some of her concerns as she wasn't really sure if she wanted to get into another match against a team that was nasty. "What if they take Senshado different than us, what if they play it really rough? I don't want to get bruises all over my butt again just because we're getting hammered by shells!"
Hana looked up from her plate, sensing an opportunity, "Is that what you're worried about Saori-san? Shouldn't we more worry about MEXT trying anything?"
"I doubt that's going to happen," Miho was quick to correct her friend as now with the paperwork in order there no way for their school to be closed. "If anything I wouldn't mind getting to see what Senshado is like in other countries, I know that my sister went over to Germany for several matches in the past but I sadly never got to see much of them."
The four of them listened to what she had to say, in truth none of them actually had any idea of what they could expect and it was even possible that this wasn't going to affect them at all as normally these were older students or even adults so the chance of them meeting Europeans was almost nonexistent.
"A shame, though," Yukari let out a sigh as she helped herself to another hotcake. "I really would've liked a chance to see what kind of tanks they might have. Still, do you think it's possible for us to go and watch a match of theirs?"
"I don't see any reason why we can't," Saori responded, "I mean it's not like we can go and visit a match during the weekend. Hey do any of you know if they allow boys in Senshado in the rest of the world, I think I read that somewhere online…" she began to trail off.
Nobody really had an answer for her, mainly because they hadn't ever bothered to check it.
Meanwhile, Mako just kept herself busy with finishing the last of her hotcakes, not really having participated in the various small talks of her friends her immediate concern lied with hoarding as many of the hotcakes as she could before the supply batter would eventually run out. A round of laughter went out when the others noticed it and quickly followed her example, they weren't planning on letting Mako hug all of the remaining hotcakes for herself.
Ooarai school carrier - tank sheds - 11.15h
"So I guess that you still haven't been able to get her repaired, senpai?" Yukari asked as she and Miho were being given a thorough report on the current status of Leopon by Tsuchiya, it seemed that they still hadn't been able to get everything repaired as some of the parts they had ordered had yet to come in. It was a shame as that meant they would be down one team for the training today.
But the problems didn't seem to end there as Miho got another unpleasant surprise when Anzu, in her usual manner, stop with chewing her dried potatoes and got up from her seat.
"Ehm prez, is there something wrong?" Miho asked as she noticed it but as to the girl's exact reason she was left clueless, for a brief moment she asked herself if perhaps the diminutive twin-tail was going to make another one of her surprise announcements to the team, maybe a match against another school or perhaps this had something to do with the upcoming culture festival. She didn't have to wait to get her answer for long.
"Well, Nishizumi-chan," Anzu said as she waved to Miho and the others, her twin tails moving as she did, both Momo and Yuzu were quick to follow her example as they said their goodbyes and then left along with the diminutive girl, "Take care of the training for us will you? We've got some important things to take care of first. Thank you! Bye, bye!"
As they were being watched leaving the sheds Miho began to wonder what could be so important that the student council would pass on attending the training today, it didn't do her much good to think about it for too long as there wasn't much she could do about it. Besides it did work out for her as now the team was down to just six tanks which meant that it would be easier to divide into two equal teams.
"So does that mean it's just going to be the six of us, captain?" Azusa asked, being the first to notice besides Miho that the numbers were equal again. Behind her, there were some murmured talks coming from the rest of her tank's crew though she kept her attention focused on the meeting before they would head out.
"Yes, as Leopon is still undergoing repairs and Turtle now absent due to others matters the remaining six tanks will split up," Miho answered before she turned her attention to the other crews and began to instruct them on what today's plan for training was going to be, "We'll form two opposing teams, Isobe-san and Sono-san will team up with Anglerfish while Caesar-san and Nekota-san will team up with Azusa-san who'll be in command."
Those crews arrayed here nodded their heads in approval; all of them, except for Azusa who appeared to be in a sudden state of shock at the mention of being placed in command of the opposing team.
"… E-Ehm… c-c-captain… N-N-Nishizumi," she stuttered as she began to shake uncontrollably at the mere thought that she, as one of the youngest members of the entire team, would be given orders to older students which were normally unheard of in normal classes and it really made the younger girl feel rather nervous about the prospect of the upcoming match. "… A-A-Are… y-you really… s-s-sure…?" she asked in a hesitant tone, pointing at herself as if questioning if Miho really had meant her and not somebody else.
A bead of sweat ran down the side of her face, her throat feeling rather dry as she waited with baited breath for a reply from the team's captain.
"Yes," Miho said in return, offering the younger girl a reassuring smile to let her know that she had indeed meant her, "Given that you're one of the younger members of the team I thought it would be best if you were to be given more experience in commanding the team, the team is going to need a new second in command next year as some are going to graduate."
Miho began to fill everybody in on her plans for Ooarai's tankery team.
Although some concerned murmurs could be heard coming from the crews they all nevertheless understood that they would have a lot of work cut out for them not only in the coming months but next year as well, everybody was expected to help with the new recruits.
Miho continued, "I'm certain that you all know that there's going to be a big weight on our shoulders next year, people will have high expectations of us after what we showed them this year. Sadly I think it's only going to become harder for us, people know us now, many of the other schools know all too well what we can do, and they aren't likely to make the same mistake of underestimating us again."
Observing the response she was getting from the rest of the team Miho also warned them that many teams who prior to Ooarai's participation in the tournament did not enter in the competition would now be bound to try again, spurred on by the immense success that they had, and of course there would be those schools looking to boost their skill or reputation.
"There's likely going to be a lot more request for friendly matches coming in the future, most of these will likely be schools with smaller teams but we shouldn't take those lightly either."
The students arrayed here agreed to that, the country had seen what their team could do, other schools were aware of the threat that Ooarai now posed, the competition would only become fiercer. It was going to be even more of an uphill struggle than it had been this year.
All of that meant that the team would need to improve as well, becoming more used to using new tactics as well as decreasing their reliance on Miho's instructions; a certain sense of independent thinking was going to be needed to prevent Ooarai's team from collapsing if there would be a hit to its chain of command. As such Miho wanted to have at least two more people in the team who could take over and Azusa was a natural first pick though picking the second person proved to be more troublesome. There were several other students that Miho had in mind but perhaps it would be a good exercise and see how they would do in the coming training matches, the next one would be done without her supervision.
"Azusa-san, I have your map right here," Miho mentioned as she held out one of the two maps that had been prepared for this training match. "Make sure that you have a good look at it before you leave, if you have any questions now's the time to ask me."
Accepting it and folding it out the younger girl's eyes quickly scanned the map, it didn't take her long to realize what was actually wrong with it or rather what was missing, "Ehm captain," she said cautiously, "I think this map isn't complete, it's missing a lot."
Giving her a smile in return Miho explained to her that the map wasn't wrong, it was correct.
"There's a reason why it only has your starting point noted down on it, I want you to come up with a plan yourself, I won't always be there to give out orders. Don't worry too much about it, Azusa-san, just believe in yourself," she said as she let her hand rest on the younger girl's right shoulder, reassuring her that she had nothing to worry about.
Finishing her lecture and feeling that it was about time for them to get into some action she rounded up her talk and gave one last order to the team. "Alright then everybody, mount your vehicles. Panzer vor!"
A chorus of hurrah greeted her in return as the crews dashed off towards their respective vehicles, clambering aboard their charges, engines roaring into life as the great steel beasts were awoken from their slumber. The distinct clattering sound of the tracks began to pick up as the tanks rolled out onto the parade grounds before making a sharp turn to the right and heading off in the direction of the training grounds.
Ooarai school carrier – training grounds - 13.00h
Relaying her orders to the other tanks in her team Azusa was again looking at the map in front of her, questioning which route would be the better one to pick. "Ah I wish that I had a little more to go on besides these coordinates," she sighed as she went through the words again that her captain had told the younger girl.
"So where exactly are we going?" she could hear Karina asking, prompting the tank's commander to get back inside the turret and provide additional instructions so that her driver had an idea on where they were going.
"Just make sure that you keep us steady, the part in front of us looks rather rough and I'd hate to see the tank roll over," she warned her driver in advance as they had been here before on numerous occasions which meant that they got to recognize their surroundings quickly.
"Aye," Karina said in response and kicked it to a higher gear as the tank picked up the pace.
Standing up straight again in the cupola Azusa got to enjoy the view offered by her tank's height, maybe about the only advantage that the M3 held compared to other tanks, then again that same height also made the tank a far larger target given its rather thin armor.
At the head of a column of just three tanks she again began to wonder why she had been the one chosen to lead this group, surely there had to be someone better than her, she wasn't entirely happy with the thought of getting to order around the older students and she dreaded when the moment would come where she would pick up her microphone and radio in an order.
She was starting to feel nervous, least of which because she was up against the team's captain, it made for a rather daunting task in having to come up with a plan that would allow her side to defeat the best that Ooarai had to offer when it came to tankery.
Resting on the cupola she was starting to feel exhausted. 'Why do I feel so terrible all of a sudden, was it something I ate or perhaps I'm coming down with a cold. No, wait, that can't be it. No, the reason why I'm feeling must be because this is the first time I'm actually in command of more than just my own tank. I feel so nervous about the captain having picked me. It would've been better if she had picked somebody else instead, I'm just a first year, there's no way that I can be good enough to take on such an important role. I'm just glad that we don't have to worry about running into the other team right now, I wonder if we can even win this match.'
For now, at least she wouldn't have to worry about it as it was going to take a good twenty minutes before they would reach the starting point, time that she should be using to formulate a plan and explain her strategy to the other commanders in her team. Gently rocking back and forth as the tank took a dip Azusa tightened her grip, she wasn't looking forward to this game.
Looking across her shoulder she noted with some satisfaction that the StuG and Chi-Nu were keeping up with the M3, at least she wasn't going to have to worry about the others losing sight of her as she was acutely aware that their greatest strength lied in a combined assault.
Commanding a single tank and issuing orders to its crew was very different than having to command a unit of three tanks, it was far more challenging to do so and already she was finding it hard to do so while they were just moving to their starting point, God help her when they would be in actual combat. There was simply no way that she was going to be able to keep up with her team captain if she were to find herself in that station, and yet she also found herself admiring her team captain for always managing to pull through such difficult situations. She wasn't even going to get started when she reminded herself at how much harder those battles had been, she was just facing three opponents today, her captain had faced teams with twenty to thirty opponents.
"Geez, just thinking about it already makes me feel worse," she said underneath her breath, doing her best to make sure that nobody else could hear her, she knew that it would be bad for the morale of the crew if they would learn that their commander was doubting herself. 'Ah come on Azusa, you can't stay down like this, you need to pull yourself together. There's gotta be a reason why captain Nishizumi picked you, even if you can't believe that you can pull this off yourself, she likely does, you have to believe in her, believe in yourself.'
Shaking her head she rose up again, she needed to be more positive and stop thinking that she didn't have a chance at winning this match just because the odds were stacked against her, hadn't Ooarai found itself in just that same kind of situation before, and they had always come out on top because they kept on believing. 'That's right, I need to believe in myself, I need to believe in my crew, and the teams under my command. Staying down isn't gonna help me, I need to think and come up with a plan, we want to win this, to prove that we're just as good as the older students, I need to show that the captain was right when she picked me. I need to trust her judgment, she picked me for a good reason. I need to believe in her, in myself.'
Returning to her map she became aware that she would need to relocate to a different point once the match would start at which point the real challenge for her would come.
"I wonder if it's possible for us to make use of this area here," she said to herself as she traced a line across the map, taking into account of what the terrain might be and if it would be suitable for what she was planning to do, "Or perhaps we can try this route, which is better?"
Slowly but certainly a plan was starting to formulate in her mind, it was going to be a little risky but if she played it right then she might be able to get the first kill if the other team came looking for them. "Alright, let's go and try this one," she said as a smile began to appear on her features as now she felt like she had an idea on how to continue from here on.
"Are you really sure that it was alright to give her just their starting location, Miporin?" Saori asked as she rose up from the hatch, using one of her arms to keep herself steady as the Panzer IV traversed the uneven grounds. "Don't you think she could've used more info?"
Lowering her binoculars Miho smiled as she said, "I didn't give her any further information because she doesn't need it. Azusa-san's pretty smart and she's been paying a lot of attention during practice so I was a little curious to see how much she has learned."
The ginger-haired girl still had her doubts and she expressed those. "But still… don't you think it would've been better… I mean she's only a first year, you should've helped her."
"Actually I think that Nishizumi-dono is right," Yukari chimed in as she emerged from her own hatch and joined in on the discussion. "It's really important that the rest of the team are going to become less dependent on Nishizumi-dono, if we don't try and get several other commanders who can take over our command structure is going to remain vulnerable."
She also added that it was likely that next year they would see a more concentrated effort by opposing teams to take out Anglerfish first in an effort to cripple Ooarai's command.
"Well, that's true." Saori found herself admitting that it would be really bad if they got taken out first and there was nobody else who could take over and prevent the team from being picked apart. Still, she felt some concern about throwing Azusa in the deep so to speak, she was a little worried that it might just be a little too much for the younger girl's shoulders to bear. It could get pretty tense during the crucial moments of battle and it was all too easy to make a mistake, fail to notice an important detail or pass the wrong order.
"I'm glad to see that you're worried about them, Saori-san," Miho said as she noticed the somewhat concerned look on her friend's face. "That way I know that somebody is looking after them, I don't want to burden any of Rabbit with this but the truth is that they're likely going to take over from us when we graduate." For a moment Miho fell silent.
"That's why I want to help them as much as possible, they need to get as much experience as possible while we're still here to help them. Once we graduate there's not going to be anybody to help her."
"And that is why you wanted for her to take command of the other team, Miho-san?" Hana asked politely as she had decided that she wanted to get in on what the other three had been talking about and given that there was no risk of running into the opposing team she was confident that she could leave her position for the moment. "But Saori-san does have a point, we have to be careful that we don't burden them too much. They still have a lot to learn but much like Miho-san said they're smart when they need to. You all remember that it was them who saved the whole team when it looked like it was all over for us?"
There was a collective nod, they all knew to what event Hana was referring to, it had happened during the final stages of Ooarai's fight against the UST when it looked like their team was done for. Trapped and surrounded by the enemy it seemed all was lost, that was until the six young girls of Rabbit came up with an ingenious plan to rescue their comrades when they had destroyed the mountings of a Ferris wheel allowing the great metal construct to slam right into the opposition and enable the trapped tanks to force a breakout which eventually led to Ooarai's triumph. Without Rabbit team having made that crucial decision they would have lost.
As they had been driving for a while now Miho figured that it was about time to send out Noriko and do a little recon of the area ahead of them, with any luck she might even be able to find the other team though Miho hoped that Azusa would make it as difficult for them as was possible, she wanted for the younger girl to succeed. Pressing her fingers against her throat microphone she radioed her orders to said the diminutive tank commander but she also cautioned Noriko not to take any unnecessary risks.
"Good luck, Isobe-san," Miho wished to her as she watched how the small tank picked up speed, kicking off a cloud of dust, and made off in a different direction than Anglerfish and Mallard who maintained their current heading. Now she was starting to get a little curious as to how Azusa was doing, well she was going to find out for herself soon enough. After that, she would come up with a plan and see how the younger girl was going to react.
Observing the terrain in front of her Azusa was doing the math in trying to come up with a number of approaches that the other team was likely going to make use of, a quick look at her map along with her understanding of the terrain yielded no less than four separate approaches.
"This isn't good, we only have three tanks so there's no way that we can overlook all of them and I don't want us to be spread out," she remarked as she considered her options, no matter how hard she tried she constantly found herself wishing that she could have had either Leopon or Turtle to support her, either of them would have provided her with some much-needed fire support. "No doubt captain Nishizumi will send Isobe-senpai up one of them to scout out our position, I can't risk them relaying our position but then that might just leave the road wide open for the rest of the enemy team to come through. Geez, this position really isn't helping us," she sighed as she came to realize that this plan had been a waste of time. Already the second setback the young girl had to endure after she had failed to take into account that the marshy area to her right simply rendered her original plan useless, leaving her with a backup plan that was less than ideal.
Having another look at her map and thinking it through Azusa could reach but only one conclusion, they would need to abandon this position and take up one that was more favorable for them to defend from. "This is Rabbit, we're pulling back from this location, please move to the following point and be aware of your surroundings," Azusa mentioned over the tank's radio, informing the commanders of the other two tanks under her command of her plans.
Two quick acknowledgments of the plan came in over the radio, signaling that the other commanders had accepted her order which made Azusa feel a bit more relieved as she felt rather nervous about giving orders to the older students.
As the tank began to move back Azusa kept watching their immediate surroundings, always alert with regards to any potential ambushes as she was under no illusion that the Type 89 was likely already somewhere nearby, with that in mind she kept on scanning the area.
"Karina, make sure that the engine doesn't make too much noise, I don't want them to find us yet," she informed her driver as slowly the tank began to quicken its pace.
Returning to studying her map Azusa finally thought that she had found a location that would still provide them with some good fields of fire while being easier to defend, the only problem was that that they would need to cross an open area that was going to leave them vulnerable to enemy fire.
"We don't have a choice, well it's not like Mallard or Duck are much of a threat but I dread it if we were to come under fire from Anglerfish, Isuzu-senpai is really good," she let out as she gazed again on the map, trying to figure out if there was perhaps a different route that would leave them less exposed. "It's no good, all of the other routes just take far too long and the longer it takes the bigger the chance that they're going to find us before we get there."
Contacting the other vehicles she instructed them to make haste as speed was of the essence, however, she also stressed that at all times they would need to remain aware of their surroundings to avoid getting caught in an ambush.
Once the other crews had radioed in their approval she informed the rest of her own crew to go and have a look, if they were to see anything suspicious they were to report it immediately, once she was finishing with issuing her orders Azusa let out a deep exasperated sigh.
"Who knew that being in command could be so exhausting," she sighed, feeling as if her body was about to give out and they hadn't even gotten into a fight, she couldn't even begin to imagine what it must be when their captain was under those intense moments when a split second delay would mean the difference between making the kill or being the one to get killed. To have such a responsibility thrust on one's shoulders was a heavy burden alright, for a moment it made the young girl question if she was really cut out for this, had her captain made the right choice in picking her for commanding this team.
"I doubt I could ever be as good as captain Nishizumi is," she said underneath her breath as she picked her binoculars and peeked out through the cupola, the fresh air blowing in her face doing her good. "Why did she even put me in command here, I'm not that good, I just wish I knew why she decided to pick me instead of others. Wait, don't tell me?"
Azusa shot up straight as a cold shiver ran down her spine at the realization that possibly Miho had selected her because she was looking for somebody to take over when she herself would graduate, as if the prospect of becoming the second in command wasn't already scary enough at it was, the mere thought of having to take over from Miho was outright terrifying. Letting her hand rest against her chest Azusa felt an aching sensation, her breath caught in her throat and the palms of her hands becoming sweaty. "… I-I… can't…"
It was enough to almost paralyze her, her mind going numb for a while, not even noticing it when Saki began to pull on her sleeve until the quiet girl gave a hard tug.
"Eh, S-Saki?!" Azusa blurted as she suddenly found herself staring in said girl's brown eyes. "W-What… is it. Did you see something?"
Not saying a word in return, the quiet girl simply just pointed in one very specific direction, in response Azusa brought up her binoculars and began searching in the direction hinted at by Saki. What she saw was exactly what she had been afraid of. "No! Everybody stop!"
In the cupola of her Type 89, Noriko grimaced as she watched how the opposing team, without prior warning, began pulling back from their current position in good order, "This isn't good, I wonder if they somehow managed to spot us, or perhaps there's something else going on."
The wheels in her head were turning as she sought to come with an explanation as to why their opponents had decided to abandon their current position though a curt look at the map told her already enough. Their commander had likely realized that with four separate means of approach that it was all but impossible to hold the position currently occupied by them.
Telling Taeko to inform the captain of the sudden movement Noriko kept a vigilant watch from the cupola of her tank, making a note in which direction the three tanks were moving and at what speed. "You certainly seem to be in a hurry, I wonder where you're going."
Lowering herself in the cupola she addressed her driver. "Shinobu, make sure you keep up with them when I tell you to but stick to cover as much as you can, we don't want to get spotted by them."
Once she was satisfied that there was enough distance between them and the others tanks she gave the order to Shinobu to start the engine again but also to keep the noise down as much as possible as she didn't want to give away their position or their presence for that matter.
"Just got word from Anglerfish, they're moving along with Mallard, we're told to keep shadowing the enemy force but not to engage them unless we absolutely have to. If possible we should keep track if any of the tanks are going to split off from the rest and report those."
Noriko nodded in acknowledgment of those orders, she fully understood what her captain had in mind, and they would look to separate one of the enemy tanks, isolate it from its support and then take it out using their superior numbers. Rinse and repeat would see them negate the other side's advantage in raw firepower.
The problem was, of course, getting one of their tanks to split off from the rest in the first place, they had to pick the right target but she felt certain that Azusa wasn't going to fall for just any bait, much like she had done herself the younger girl paid close attention to whenever their captain analyzed a situation. "You're not gonna fall for any trick, we have to make it an appealing target for you otherwise you're not gonna chase it, are you. I doubt that we're good enough for you."
She could present her own tank as a target but she doubted that any of the enemy commanders would fall for that, after all, their Type 89 wasn't that much of a threat which likely meant that they would be ranked lowest. Miho's Panzer IV would be the most obvious target though again she questioned on if any of the opposing team would break off from the rest and engage in a single duel against Anglerfish as that would only turn into a one-sided slaughter.
"Well I guess the only thing that we can do right now is to keep watch of them though I'd love to get in there and mess up their plan," she grinned, taking a certain sense of satisfaction as she imagined their tank rampaging in the enemy ranks causing mayhem and confusion.
"Commander, is there anything wrong?" Akebi asked from inside the turret as she noticed that her commander had been rather quiet for a while now and she had grown a little worried as that wasn't like her at all. "Did the enemy spot us, or is there something else?"
"Ah no," Noriko quickly answered in returned. "It's just that there's not much we can do at the moment other than keeping a watch on them but I don't like sitting here around doing nothing. I'd like to get stuck in right now but it'll be hard to approach them undetected."
Nodding her head in agreement the blonde knew what the shorter girl was talking about, gazing through the sights of her gun she had been able to get a look at the terrain and much like Noriko had said it wasn't the kind of terrain that would allow them to get any closer than they were at the moment. Not unless they wanted to get spotted and then get every gun aimed at them, they couldn't afford to take a direct hit so not being fired at in the first place was their best defense. Well that was just how things were at the moment.
So far it remained awfully quiet on the opposing side and as Noriko brought up her binoculars to have another look she was faced with a scene that caused her blood to run cold, the enemy had came to a halt but more concerning was that their turrets were turning in their direction, the distinctive shape of the StuG's and Chi-Nu's muzzle breaks aimed directly at them.
"Shinobu, gun the engine now! Get us out of here!" Noriko shouted as they didn't have any second to spare before an explosion tore up the ground in front of their tank, a second volley of shells landed perilously close to them, throwing up great clouds of dust and sand around the tank.
Flooring the throttle Shinobu threw their tank into the next gear as they scrambled to get away before one of the enemy shells would eventually find their mark, reluctantly she found herself admitting that the enemy spotters had been doing their job alright to have seen them.
"Hard right! Avoid those spikes!" Noriko shouted as their tank lurched to one side mere moments before another shell exploded where they had been only moments before, rocks and other debris clattering harmlessly off the armored hull as Duck team sought to escape its assailants. "Now, hard le-!" Was all Noriko could get past her lips as she got abruptly interrupted when their tank was violently jerked to the left as an enemy shell found its mark, striking the vehicle's rear.
Author's note: Well folks, there it is, the newest chapter to Aftermath for you all to enjoy. The update is a little slower than I had wanted but this past month has been very busy at work and making roughly 3 hours of overtime every single day takes a severe toll on one's ability to read and edit material. Just glad that I was able to get this finished and it posted.
I hope that you all had a very pleasant Christmas with your family, loved ones, friends and those who you hold dear. Savor and cherish the days that you get to spend with them and be certain to savor those you have yet to spend with them.
Hopefully, you've found the chapter to be enjoyable. As always I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts, opinions, and any other kind of ramblings you might wish to hurl in my general direction. If you spot anything or just want to have a talk, feel free to contact me.
Can't exactly say if I can manage to get the next chapter posted in January as the month is going to be pretty busy again but I'm going to give it my best and try, if not then it'll likely be somewhere in the later half of February. I still have a lot planned for this story so expect to see plenty of new chapters then.
Anyway, I'm going to wrap this up quickly before these author's notes turn into an essay of their own. Once again happy holidays to you all and already have a good New Year's eve.
Right, that's enough of my rambling.
Until next time, enjoy the holidays, looking forward to seeing you all again in the New Year, and take care folks.
