Let's Go and Do Our Best!
Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 08.25h Sunday
Taking off her shirt Miho felt a shiver run down her spine, even though the heater inside the room was on it did feel a little chilly to her. But given the time of the year, however, that should not come as a surprise.
"I need to get changed; it won't be long before the guests will appear," she reminded herself before she reached out for the green shirt that was commonly worn underneath their jacket though they had switched to a slightly thicker one for which she was all too grateful.
"So how are you feeling today Miho-san?" Hana asked as appeared behind her friend. "Are you feeling nervous about doing the opening act perchance?"
"Oh, Hana-san!" Miho let out in surprise. "I hadn't heard you coming in. You scared me there for a moment..."
"My apologies, Miho-san," the girl chuckled while hiding a slyly smile behind her hand. "That had not been my intention but I want to thank you for the treat nevertheless."
"... W-What?"
"Oh nothing, it was nothing at all," Hana said while feigning innocence. "So how are you feeling about having to go on stage and greet all of those people? I can imagine you must be pretty nervous about it."
Being silent for a moment Miho was having a bit of a problem in coming up with an answer all of sudden as her friend quickly changed subjects. She did recall Saori mentioning before that at times the graceful-looking gunner could be a little weird at times, and unless she was mistaken this had been one of those times.
The other girl remained silent as well, just slightly tilting her head.
"I ehm... I guess you could say that I'm nervous about going up there. I've never addressed so many people before in my life; I'm just scared I'm going to mess up in a way."
"I'm sure that you'll get it right the first time, Miho-san."
"Thank you, Hana, but if I'm honest I'm a little jealous of you."
The black-haired girl blinked before giving her a confused look in return. "Of me? I don't understand."
Miho smiled. "You get to stay inside the tank so you don't have to worry about anybody seeing you. I wish I could be inside the tank as well, it's far more comfortable to be inside a tank than to be out on stage before so many people."
"I suppose you have a point there," Hana admitted as she could perfectly understand that being inside the confines of a tank would be a great way to shield oneself from the eyes of countless people. "Still I feel that being outside a tank is far better, at least you have fresh air to enjoy. That gets harder after you've been inside the tank for a while."
Miho let out a chuckle. "I guess you're right, fresh air and plenty of sunlight are pretty important after all, don't you think?"
"Yes, I agree."
"Have you ever done anything like this before, Miho-san?" Hana asked.
Miho looked. "Who me? You mean if I have ever done something like this during my time at my previous school?"
Nodding her head Hana informed her friend that she was a little curious as she could easily envision that giving speeches to large crowds would make sense for a school as large and prestigious as Kuromorimine. In her mind, it did make sense.
"Ah to be honest I never had to, my sister always did the speeches," Miho admitted, fiddling with her fingers as she cast her head down. "... I've never really been good at it, I just don't like being in front of large masses. It makes me feel uneasy."
Listening to what her friend had to say Hana could somewhat understand what was troubling the other girl; she had never had any issues with addressing a crowd though, to be honest, she never really had to do that. Even at an exhibition, there was rarely a need to talk to more than just a few people at best.
"Well, I'm sure that you'll pull through," Hana reassured her, giving her a warm smile.
"Thank you, Hana-san. Thank you for your kind words," Miho said in return, feeling a little better now thanks to such comforting words. "It's good to hear somebody say it."
"That's okay, that's what friends are for after all."
"Yeah."
Hana could not help but let out a soft chuckle. "Still, you have to admit that it is all pretty exciting, don't you think? I mean with all of those people who have come to see us."
Letting out a nervous laugh Miho said. "I do hope that they didn't come just to see us, the school itself is far more important than any of us.
"I'm not sure if that's how most of our guests will see it," Saori said as she joined with her friends. "Much like the Prez said, a lot of them will have come to see the Sensha-Do team and, more importantly, to meet you Miporin."
"She has a point there, Miho-san."
Nodding her head Miho knew what her friend meant, but it was not something she could agree to. In her opinion it felt wrong that people would only pay attention because she was here, she had seen for herself how many wonderful people this school was home to.
"I don't think that's right, I shouldn't get all of the attention," Miho said. "There are so many wonderful people in this school who deserve attention more than I do. All of the people on the Festival Committee, or Ichimichi-san, all of those students and clubs who put in so much effort."
"We know Miporin," Saori informed their friend. "We all know that. You don't have to tell us that. And you're right, a lot of students put in their effort, they deserve to be praised for that."
Miho sighed before casting her eyes down to avoid seeing her friends. "You're right, I'm sorry for bringing this up. I shouldn't have..."
"That's okay," Hana said in return. "We understand why this troubles you."
"Hana's right, you don't need to apologise for that, Miporin."
With a lump stuck in her throat Miho was feeling better, and yet she also felt a sense of embarrassment wash over her after hearing what her friends had to say.
"Miporin, are you nervous?" Saori asked cautiously. "Well, I guess since you're gonna have to do the welcome speech I can understand. Still, you don't need to get all worked up about it. No matter what happens we'll be there for you."
Nodding her head Miho offered a few words of thanks to her friend; it really was the case that the prospect of giving that speech was ramping up her anxiety. How much she wished that Anzu had picked somebody else to do it, or better yet, do it herself.
"It'll be fine, you've been through worse."
"I'm not so sure about that Hana-san," Miho had to admit, "I'd much rather be in an intense match than having to address so many people. It just isn't something I'm all that fond of; I don't like to get all that attention from people."
"That's okay, Miporin. We understand."
The black-haired girl nodded in agreement with that sentiment, Hana knew that Miho for all of her qualities did have her occasional moment of shyness. That and there was of course the fact that her friend was at times too humble for her own good.
Hana placed a comforting hand on her friend's arm. "You've never let us down Miho-san, you should know that by now. We have complete faith in you and we know that no matter what, you'll always try your best."
Miho smiled gratefully. "Thank you Hana-san, and you as well Saori-san. I'll try to relax a little more. Thank you both for being my friends."
Saori shot her a victory sign. "Don't mention it."
With the noise outside growing audibly louder, it was clear that it was almost time for them to kick things off.
Ooarai school carrier – school grounds – 08.40h Sunday
Leaning against the wall with her arms across her chest Anzu was feeling a sense of satisfaction take hold over her at the sight of one girl, in particular, leaving the tank sheds. A part of her did feel guilty about making said girl do this but they all knew that was for the best.
"Give them everything you got, Nishizumi-chan~," she said with a smile. "You're far better at inspiring people than I'll ever will. You're the best person suited for the job; people are here to see you, not me after all."
The sound of approaching footsteps pulled her from her thoughts, turning to her right she saw the form of Momo walking towards her. Nodding her head she signalled to the other girl that she had seen her.
Greeting her in her typical manner Anzu let out a cheerful sounding, "Hey Kawashima~."
"Good day, Prez. I'm glad I was able to find you before the opening would begin," Momo said in return, her face still having the same stern expression she had been carrying with her all morning. "You were gone rather quickly I should add. Where have you been?"
Shrugging her shoulders the girl merely replied with. "Ah, I needed some time for myself. There were several things on my mind so I wanted to be left alone."
Hearing the explanation the black-haired girl did not say a word; she merely adjusted her monocle and waited patiently.
"Is there anything?" Anzu raised her eyebrow as her curiosity was piqued. With the corner of her mouth moving she knew that there had to be a reason as to why her companion had come to see her.
"Can I ask you a question, Prez?"
"Sure, go ahead."
Scraping her throat for a moment Momo asked a question that had been on her mind. "Prez, what's your opinion about what the MEXT representatives told us yesterday. I'm still not sure what to make of it all. It seems so farfetched to me."
"Hmmm, I think they're desperate, but that might work to our advantage~."
Momo shot a confused look at the smaller girl beside her, at the moment she could not see how that desperation could benefit them. "What do you mean Prez, I don't understand? How could this even work to our advantage?"
"Because that means they're willing to bargain with us," Anzu answered.
That made sense but Momo could not help but have some reservations about the willingness of MEXT to negotiate with them. As far as she could tell their school had little weight to use as a bargaining chip at the moment.
"Are you really sure of that?"
Taking a deep breath before giving her answer the diminutive girl was staring in front of her. "We'll find out more at the next meeting with them but so far it seems that they are willing to talk to us. This meeting has gone a lot better than the last few interactions we had with MEXT in the past."
"Even so."
"I'm not going to pass up on this opportunity, Kawashima," Anzu informed her companion. "This is a serious matter and having our school participate in it would provide us with a lot of additional promotion. We can't pass up on something so big, not when it has so much to offer us."
"But Prez, this isn't Kuromorimine or a university we're talking about here. This is-." Momo snapped shut the moment she became aware that a couple of students were walking towards them. Letting out a sigh of relief when it became clear that the students were just on their way somewhere else, Momo was about to continue but the other girl did not let her.
"Listen, Kawashima, I know what you're going to say and you're right. This isn't going to be easy for us; this might just be the hardest match our school is ever going to participate in."
"So why do you still want to go through with this? Aren't you scared that we're likely going to lose?"
"Scared?" Anzu asked in return. "Of course I'm scared, I'm not as silly to go and pretend that I'm not. This is quite the endeavour for me, and as exciting as it is I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared by it."
Looking down at the girl in front of her Momo was struggling to describe the sensation she was experiencing at the sight of her trembling, there was a knot in her stomach with the realisation of what was scaring the girl so much.
"Okay, that's enough worrying for now," Anzu said while pushing herself away from Momo. "We can't keep dwelling on this forever otherwise we'll just turn in some sorry adults you know~." Quickly giving her companion a cheeky wink the girl chuckled.
With her left eye twitching, Momo was left with the idea that she had just been played, and that was something she did not take kindly to, even if it was from Anzu. Grumbling something underneath her breath while pinching the bridge of her nose, she had a good look at the other girl.
"Now now Kawashima, don't give me that look."
"... Why you..." the other girl hissed. "... I can't believe I fell for that."
"Ah relax." Waving with her hand, gesturing for the other girl that she was getting worked up about nothing Anzu was enjoying herself a little bit too much. "There's no point in getting worked up about any of this, we still have a responsibility to all of the students and guests to carry out."
"Ah right, Prez!" Momo all of a sudden snapped to the attention.
"That's good to hear Kawashima but don't lose yourself over the rules too much today. It's more important that people are having a good time so I'm willing to ignore a few issues as long as it's nothing serious."
For a second time today, Momo's eye twitched in response, now she could understand the sentiment behind such a gesture but deep in her heart, she could not agree to let minor incidents go unpunished lest this festival devolves into chaos.
"I know what you're thinking but I don't believe there are going to be people here looking to cause trouble," Anzu informed when she caught sight of her expression. "And the Public Morals Committee is out in full force today so I don't see there being any problems with misbehaviour or such."
But before she had the opportunity to react to that, there was something else that caught the interest of the diminutive girl. And that something took the form of a certain someone.
"So how is our star attraction doing, President Kadotani?" a newcomer called out to Anzu.
Looking to her left the girl in question saw that it was none other than the head of Ooarai's Festival Committee, a girl who went by the name of Ichimichi Yuuri.
"It seems like there's plenty of people who've come to see her," the girl continued, her arms folded across her chest. "So do you think this festival is going to be as successful as you hope it will?"
"Don't know," Anzu just shrugged her shoulders. "Besides as the head of the Festival Committee shouldn't that be something that you should be concerned about, Ichimichi-chan?"
"Not at all," the other girl answered in return. "I'm confident that all of the hard work that the committee and the students have put into this festival will make it a success."
"Oh is that so?" Anzu raised an eyebrow.
Watching the other two girls staring at each other Momo got the uneasy feeling that this whole conversation would lead to nowhere. Even then, her sense of duty and responsibility prevented her from leaving.
"Well, I suppose we won't know the answer until next year," Yuuri remarked.
"That's true," Anzu agreed.
Seeing the two girls come to a mutual understanding did allow Momo to feel at ease, perhaps it now would be a good opportunity for her to inquire about how things are going around the campus. "Ichimichi-san, if I may ask how are things actually progressing?"
"Ah that," the girl said in return. "So far it seems all it's going as we had hoped it would; nobody has reported any problems thus far. But as you know just as well as I do the Festival has yet to start for real, there's a lot that can still go wrong."
"Ichimichi-chan has a point there, yesterday went well for us but that doesn't mean we can get complacent. There's a lot at stake here for us, we all need this festival to be a resounding success. We need a substantial increase in new students if we want to have any chance of keeping the school open."
"That is why the Festival Committee had spent no effort into doing whatever it could towards that goal. I know that all of the students involved have also given it everything they got, one could not have asked for more from any of them."
"I know that," Momo gritted her teeth; this was information she already knew. It was pointless to repeat it again at this point, she did not see any value in going over it again.
"But Prez I-."
"Kawashima, be quiet."
"... Huh?"
Anzu just hinted at the stage centred in the tank area where already a huge crowd had taken their seats. "Nishizumi-chan is about to give the opening speech."
"Ah good," Yuuri remarked with a smile on her face. "I'm looking forward to Nishizumi-san's speech."
Now the other girl would also turn her attention to the aforementioned stage and wait silently for the big moment to begin, this was what all of them had been working towards for the past few months.
"Good luck Nishizumi-chan," Anzu said underneath her breath as she closely watched the girl. "Show these people the charm of Ooarai's senshado."
Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 08.55h Sunday
Approaching the stage that had been erected Miho grew increasingly anxious the closer she got, knowing that she was about to address a huge crowd, and right now she was as nervous as she could be. Trying to somewhat stem her rampaging nerves she took her first step up the stairs, with her palms sweaty she only had just a few more steps to where her spot was.
Throwing a glance across her shoulder Miho noted with satisfaction that the Panzer IV was gently following her to where it would park, as had been practised so many times in the past week.
"Good luck everybody," she said underneath her breath even though she knew that there was no need for that, with her friends in the tank she was confident that they would perform the task assigned to them with flying colours.
As for her own role, that was something that she was less confident about.
Behind her the low growling of the tank's engine gave away that it was still following her, its driver making sure to keep her charge moving in pace with the person in front of it. It gave the impression that the girl was in command of the tank and that the great steel beast was following her orders.
Her throat felt unusually dry as she reached out with her hands to grab the microphone that had been placed there for her, to think that she was this nervous. Taking a deep breath before wrapping her hands around the microphone Miho told herself that she could do this.
'It's okay, there's nothing to be afraid of. I only have to address these people, to welcome them to our school. To welcome them to Ooarai.'
Closing her eyes as she gave a sigh she listened to the sound of the crowd.
'This is it, this is why all of these people came here today. They came to see our school, to see our Sensha-Do team, and they came to see me,' she reminded herself.
It was an overwhelming sight, to see this many people all cheering for her, it was enough to leave her speechless. Taking it all in Miho had to fight hard not to cry, to keep her emotions in check, to stop the aching sensation she was feeling in her chest from overtaking her.
Closing her eyes while pressing her hand against her chest she took in a breath of air before letting it out slowly. This was it, there would be no turning back, this was the moment she had been practising for.
Opening them she took a confident step forward before reaching out and grabbing hold of the microphone, bringing it up to her mouth she began to address the crowd that was facing her.
"... A very warm welcome to each and every one of you. Today, on behalf of the Ooarai Girls' Academy, I welcome you all to this annual school festival." Having gotten the first part off her chest Miho was starting to feel a little better.
"Finally, the auspicious day has come; put an end to our inpatient anticipation and tireless preparations for this event. The annual school festival is the culmination of the school's academic year. It is a time for celebration and recognition of the students as well as the school's achievements."
Still, she was as nervous as she had been, there was just no way for her to get used to something like this. All she could do was place her trust in having memorised the speech and deliver it to the best of her abilities.
"My name is Nishizumi Miho and I am a student of class 2-A and also the captain of our schools' senshado team. I am here to pay the greeting to the people who added to the success of this event."
Pausing for just a brief moment Miho had a quick sip to moist her throat. Giving speeches was not something she was used to.
"On this fortunate occasion, I would like to thank the members of the Student Council and the School Festival Committee for giving me the opportunity to welcome you all. In this way, I feel proud to introduce you to this incredible place that so many of us call home."
Just standing her and addressing this crowd was a sensation that she could not describe. It was exciting but also exhausting for one not accustomed to this.
"I would like to tell everyone that every year our school celebrates this. At the end of the day, we make memories and celebrate the day with great enthusiasm. Also, the participants have gone through a lot of effort that went into the preparations for this big day."
"Let everyone appreciate the efforts of all the students, who have been participating to showcase their talents. We have been fortunate that there was support from all the sides for the participants and the students, who are working backstage."
She could not help but admit that Yuzu had really outdone herself with coming up with this speech, though she also had to admit that it had not been easy to memorise it all. Still, she knew in her heart that she had been given such an honour in welcoming their guests.
"The year was exciting, full of challenges and revival. Some days were an endless stream of emergencies that came unannounced. Everyone allows learning, asking questions, reflecting, and introspection. As we prepare for the year, we welcome new people, new questions, and new problems: new solutions and new heights."
Feeling more confident in herself she was confident that she could pull this off. It was an all-or-nothing now at this point.
"It is a day of joy because together, we will remember many of the moving stories we have experienced in the past years. It is also a day on which our old students, parents, andfriends will learn more about the past, present and future development of our school. Our students have always been known as students with diverse capabilities, and today I am sure that you will agree."
She could feel her chest swell with pride as she said this.
"This event would not have been successful without the hard work of the many volunteers and students on the school festival committee. Thank you so much for your efforts."
She was almost there, just a little more and she could return to the relative safety of her friends and the other members of the senshado team. One last thing that she had to do.
"Everybody! Panzer Vor!"
Barely had she finished her speech or the Panzer IV roared as with a deafening crack, it bellowed like an angry God. Flames leapt from the gun's muzzle as a practice round was blasted downrange.
The green tracer covered the short distance in but a fraction of a second, many within the crowd turned their heads in an attempt to try and follow the shell's path before it disappeared into the distance. The gun's recoil rocked the tank back on its heels.
A huge roar erupted from the crowd
"I hope that everyone has a great time and we assure you that it will be an unforgettable event for all of you."
And with that, the Ooarai High School festival had officially begun.
Once all of the commotions had died down a little, Miho had been able to make her way back to the relative safety of the tank sheds.
"That was awesome Nishizumi-dono!" Yukari beamed the moment her idol set foot in the tank sheds. "Oh, that was so exciting seeing you on the stage and addressing the whole crowd like that! Ah, I can't tell you enough how cool that was! I'm so excited!"
"Welcome back Miporin, you did really great out there!" Saori congratulated her on a job well done. "Well, with that out of the way what do you say we all get ready to welcome our visitors?"
"Yes, I feel that is a good idea," Hana said.
Nodding in agreement Miho was feeling a lot better now that she was out of the spotlight, and with their cherished Panzer IV now back in the hangar they could begin with the task of welcoming those guests who came to see Ooarai's fabled senshado team.
"You did great out there Nishizumi-chan." An excited voice behind her called her.
"P-Prez?" Miho said in surprise when she turned around only to see Anzu standing there. "I-I hope that it was good enough for you."
"Relax, you did great," Anzu reassured her. "The crowd loved every moment of it. And besides, I like it that you kept it simple but powerful. That's so like you, Nishizumi-chan~."
Hearing the twin-tailed girl say that made Miho blush a little. "I-It wasn't anything special. I only welcomed all of these people to our school, just welcoming them to this wonderful school where I've met so many people that I've come to cherish."
"You certainly reached out and touched their hearts with that speech of yours~. Nice work."
"Ah thank you but to be honest a lot of that is due to Koyama-senpai's hard work. She did most of the work with making and refining the speech and focussing on the important part of it. I only memorised it."
"Now, now Nishizumi-chan. There's no need for you to be so modest, your part in delivering the speech was every bit as important as Koyama making it. One could not have done so without the other, heck I'd say that it's a perfect example of teamwork. Wouldn't you agree, Nishizumi-chan?"
"I ehm… yes…"
The others were nodding their heads in agreement as well, it was simply the truth. Much like how all of the preparations for the school festival had been a team effort so was the speech. Every student of Ooarai would contribute to that effort, no matter how small or insignificant it might seem.
"Well anyway," Anzu said before having a look over her shoulder. "I'll leave all of you to get to it; you'll certainly have your hands full this day so I won't bother any of you any further. Best of luck to all of you."
"We will Prez."
The collective mood was at an all-time high, every person in the building could feel the excitement in the air, and everybody was anxious and raring to go. With their spirit up the maidens of the Ooarai senshado team were as ready as they were ever going to be.
"Right, I guess that means we're going to say hello to them," Saori said while she hinted at the first groups of people wandering into the tank sheds. "The first of our guests for the day have just arrived it seems."
Getting up from their spots the myriad of girls that made up Ooarai's senshado team began to make their way to their assorted spots as a long and busy day was lying ahead of them. This was their moment of truth.
Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 11.50h Sunday
"Are you sure it's alright for you to go, Yukari-san?" Hana asked as she watched her friend grab her backpack. "Don't you want to be here when Miho-san comes back with lunch for us?"
Scratching the back of her head in response, the fluffy-haired girl gave a strong indication that she was in a state of conflict. "... Yeah, I'd like to stay and enjoy lunch with all of you together but I did kind of promise to Minase-dono yesterday that I'd come and check out her club..."
Hana nodded her head in agreement. "A promise is a promise."
"... Yeah... a promise is a promise after all. I guess I can't really blame anybody but myself for this. I just hope that Nishizumi-dono won't be upset about it."
"I'm sure that she won't," the black-haired girl mentioned to her friend. "You know how Miho-san is, right? She's always more concerned about others than herself so it feels to me that she would want you to keep your promise to Minase-san."
Nodding her head Yukari knew this was true, there was no need for her to feel guilty about leaving but there was still a part of her that did. And to be honest, she was not all that hungry, to begin with as she had gotten herself some sandwiches from home.
"Can you let Nishizumi-dono know where I went? I'd really appreciate it if you could, Isuzu-dono."
"But of course, I'll let her know. On a related matter, do you think you'll be back in time?"
"Yes I will," Yukari answered. "I've got my watch set up so I'll get a warning. Don't you worry; I'll be back in time. I'm not going to let Nishizumi-dono down."
"Well just be careful on your way, Yukari-san, and have a good time there," Hana said as she waved off her friend. It was good to know that the fluffy-haired brunette had made another friend in the school, a friend with whom she shared a common interest. "And be mindful of your manners, please. It would be a shame if Minase-san were to get into any trouble because of her guest."
"I will, Isuzu-dono!"
Appearing next to the graceful gunner Saori was curious where their friend had gone off to. "So where did Yukarin go? I thought she was going to wait for Miporin to come back with lunch for us."
The black-haired girl merely said. "It would seem that Yukari-san already made a promise to one of her classmates to go and visit their club
"Oh, I see. That kinda makes sense you know. Well, I think it's a good thing that Yukarin went to go and see her friend."
Hana agreed with that sentiment.
"Still I'm hoping that Miporin's gonna be back soon, I'm starving here you know," Saori filled the other girl in. "She'd better bring in a lot of the good stuff, there's supposed to be a food stall on the premises that has super delicious stuff and such."
"Oh?" Hana raised an eyebrow at hearing that. "Is that so? Well, I guess in that case it would be in all of our best interest if Miho-san were to return with all due haste, wouldn't you agree?"
Somehow, for some unexplainable reason, Saori could feel the hairs in her neck stand upright at the sound of her friend's voice. Quickly bringing up a different topic she hoped that this would be enough to make her friend forget about her ravenous appetite.
"I'd never thought there'd be this many people, don't you think Hana?"
"Huh?"
Success, her changing the subject had done the trick, allowing her a moment of relief. Now, having taken Hana's mind off food for the time being Saori continued. "Yeah, well they did tell us that they were expecting a lot of people but to tell you the truth I thought they were exaggerating it a bit."
"Oh I see," Hana agreed, seeming to have all forgotten about her appetite. "That is true, I never expected to see this many guests. I didn't even think that it could get busier than it was yesterday but I was clearly wrong here."
"Well, we've been at it for almost three hours by now so it's not a surprise we've seen a lot of people but I don't dare to think how many more there's still to come."
Looking back at it Hana could hardly recall it having been several hours already after the opening speech from Miho and the firsts guests entering the tank sheds. There had been so many people; she could not recall how many questions she had answered, nor could she remember most of the faces she had seen.
"How's Mako-san actually doing?" the black-haired girl asked all of a sudden. "I haven't seen her in a bit."
Giving her friend a questioning glance Saori could only say. "You actually have to ask that? This is Mako we're talking about. Where do you think she is? C'mon Hana, you should know this by now."
The moment their driver had parked their tank back in its usual spot she had excused herself and simply disappeared, but not before she had left Saori with a list of choice items she wanted for lunch. Ever since nobody had seen her.
But before she could even so much as glance at the other girl in mild disapproval, the two of them were interrupted by the most untimely arrival of another trio of girls. One that both of them could have easily done without.
"Hey ya'll! How's it going?!" Anzu asked as she stepped inside the cordoned-off area that separates the resting area from the remainder of the tank sheds. "So how's the festival going for any of you? Keeping yourselves busy with entertaining our esteemed guests?"
"Ah Prez..." Yuzu let out with an exasperated sigh, taking some form of pity on the girls for having to deal with the overexcited president. "Should you really be saying that to them?"
"Why not? This festival's better than last year that's for sure!"
In response to that Yuzu could do little other than silently pinch the bridge of her nose. She should have seen that one coming but in her defense, she had been rather optimistic all day, perhaps that had caused her to drop her guard around the diminutive girl.
"You seem rather happy, Prez. Did anything good happen?" Hana remarked.
"Nothing in particular Isuzu-chan~"
Momo just rolled her eyes while Yuzu remained silent.
"Oh, I see."
"So Prez, if I may ask," Saori said with her arm raised. "What brings you here then? If you're looking for Miporin she's not here at the moment."
Anzu grinned. "Oh, but I didn't come here for Nishizumi-chan. I just came to see how the rest of you were all doing, and if our esteemed guests were enjoying themselves."
"Huh?"
Exchanging some looks with each other the girls who were present in the resting area were trying to come up with an answer to that, nobody had given it any thought as they all had been too busy with looking after the visitors.
The sudden sound of her phone ringing caused Momo to distance herself from the others, allowing her to answer whoever was calling her.
In the meantime, the others were keeping themselves busy with telling the other two members of the student council on their interactions with the myriad of guests that had come, and there had been an awful lot of them, to be honest. While it had meant that they had all been able to stay busy they also had to admit that it had been a lot of fun getting to meet so many new people.
"I'm glad to hear our guests are enjoying themselves, and it also sounds like the rides on the tanks are attracting plenty of attention as well," Anzu remarked, clearly satisfied that things were progressing as well as they did. "That's good; you're all doing a terrific job."
"We're really proud that you are all giving this your best shot. We know that we have been asking a lot of every one of you, and were still going to ask more of you before this day is over but we want you to know that your hard efforts won't go unnoticed," Yuzu added to the earlier compliment, feeling that it was important to stress to the others that the student council was not going to let their hard work go without some kind of reward.
With the mood improving as the talks went on everybody was visibly relieved, knowing that things were going as well as they could. But they also wanted to have the chance to enjoy their little hard-earned rest and relax a little, taking in some of the tranquil atmosphere.
That was until a certain crass voice echoed throughout the building.
"They did what?!" Momo could be heard bellowing in rage, her expressing twisting in anger as her mind was processing the information. "I can't believe they're going off a stupid stunt like that! Yes, dispatch whoever of the Public Morals Committee you can find first! I'll be there at the quickest opportunity!"
Nobody dared to utter a word, all just looking at the monocle-wearing girl in suspense.
With an expression born of unbridled fury etched firmly on her face, Momo stormed off towards where it was that she needed to dispense some justice to whoever had dared to bring her wrath upon them.
"So what was that all about?" Saori uttered in fright as they all kept watching Kawashima disappear around the corner. "I don't think I've ever seen Kawashima-senpai this angry."
"Indeed, this is a new one for me as well," Hana agreed.
Anzu, seeming unfazed, or perhaps because she had not really paid it any attention, did not seem to be impressed by what had just transpired.
Shaking her head Yuzu had a pretty good idea of what had just caused her friend to go into a frenzy. "I think somebody just did something really stupid for Momo-chan to react that way. Well, I guess there's no point for us to worry about it if we don't know the full story."
"Ah well, whatever's the problem I guess it'll be solved one way or another."
"Prez, should you really be saying that?"
"Why shouldn't I?"
Letting out a nervous laugh Saori did her best to hide her unease about the whole situation, truth be told she could have done without any of this. And to think she had been waiting for her friend to come back with something for them to eat.
Hana raised her hand and asked. "I take it then that a guest or a club has gone out of line?"
Exchanging looks, the pair of Anzu and Yuzu took a moment to consider their answer.
"These things always happen, I'm sure that it's nothing~."
Everybody heard Anzu make that claim, and yet nobody believed her for even a second.
Ooarai school carrier – school grounds – 12.05h Sunday
Going for a little walk Miho was glad that she got to have a break for the moment, the festival had already been in full swing for three hours now but in that short period, there had been a staggering amount of visitors at the tank sheds.
That said, she was going to have to look for some food and bring enough back with her so that the others could also have lunch. She had won their little bet, so it was her responsibility.
"There were so many people, I didn't think there'd be so many," she mumbled to herself, her mind going back thinking on how many people she had greeted, shook hands with, got her picture taken, answered questions, and other stuff. "I guess we're more popular than I thought we'd be."
It made her laugh; although nothing special it was a bit of a funny thought. "And to think this day has barely started, I don't think there's going to be any shortage of students being willing to come here. We could use every single one of them to strengthen our Sensha-Do team..."
That caused her mind to drift back to the knowledge that had been disclosed to her yesterday, with what MEXT and the Federation were planning it was going to be more important than ever for Ooarai to expand its senshado team.
It was the delicious aroma of something that Miho recognized that gave her cause to stop and turn towards the alluring scent of what had to be some kind of pasta. It did raise the thought that it was a bit odd for anybody making pasta for the festival but the moment her eyes came to rest on the scents point of origin everything became clear.
Blinking for a second she was surprised when she was confronted by the sight of none other than the Duce of Anzio, Anchovy standing in front of a truck that had been converted to a mobile kitchen.
"Come get your pasta! Get your pizza! All freshly made for you! Finest cuisine in all of Anzio! Come and get them while they're hot! We've got pasta and pizza for everybody!"
"... What is she doing here?" Miho asked herself as she could not come with a suitable answer as to why this girl would be here at Ooarai. Looking past the girl she could see others as well, Carpaccio, Pepperoni, and a few others she had seen before but did not know their names.
There was a hive of activity taking place, with groups of people coming to place an order.
"Ah Nishizumi, good to see you!" the green-haired girl let out as she caught sight of her. "I was hoping I'd get a chance to have a little chat with you. This is a great festival alright but it's got nothing on Anzio, let me tell you that!"
"Uh-huh, ehm, Anchovy-san, I'm sorry for asking but why are you all here?"
"Isn't that obvious!" the girl declared with pride. "We're here to lend Ooarai Girls' Academy a helping hand! To make sure that your guests have full access to the finest cuisine we at Anzio can offer! We've spared no expense! Well, technically you did but that's not important."
"W-Wait? What?" Miho was dumbstruck; this did not make any sense. What and where did this come from all of a sudden?
"Oho, I can see my presence has left you speechless, hasn't it Nishizumi?" Anchovy boasted as she noticed the other girl's sudden confusion though it did seem she had gotten the wrong impression. With a clenched fist she proclaimed, "Do not be concerned about it! We at Anzio know all about what it takes to make a festival a huge success and we are fully committed to the cause! We'll leave no stone unturned in our ...
This was going from bad to worse, and by now Miho had completely lost track of the plot.
"What's the meaning of this?! I've barely dealt with one pain in the ass or another show's up!"
"Kawashima-senpai?" Miho said as she was surprised at the sudden presence of the older girl though in hindsight she should have expected for her to show up at some point. "Don't tell me that you're on patrol, are you now?"
"Correct, I was told there were signs of irregularities at some of the food stands but it seems that I have found the culprits. What's more, I've caught them red-handed in their vile act!"
"Now wait just there!" Anchovy, holding her riding crop, declared profoundly. "I'll have you know that we asked to come here and set up shop! And we were asked to do so by your very own student council president! Behold and quiver knowing that you got nothing on us! This is her signature at the bottom!"
"W-What?!" Momo snapped the moment she laid her eyes on the document and spotted the name responsible for this. "H-How, how is this even possible?! Why wasn't I informed of this decision?! This doesn't make any sense!"
"Hehe," Anchovy chuckled in satisfaction, acting all smug about it as she knew that she was in the right and that there was nothing the other girl could do about it. "I told you didn't I? We're here fair and square, and we even have the right paperwork."
"D-Damn it," Momo cursed behind her teeth while throwing a venomous glance at the green-haired girl in front of her but to her credit she did make a quick recovery, regaining her composure. "I see, it would seem that you do have the required papers to do business here."
"Of course we do," the green-haired girl said with a smug expression on her face. "We wouldn't even be here if it hadn't been for an official invitation."
Momo considered that, but she also shot a foul glance back at the girl opposite of her. "Oh is that so? That sure didn't seem to bother you the last time you were here."
"So Nishizumi," Anchovy said as she turned her attention away from Momo. "Apologies for that little incident I had to deal with that first. So what can I do for you, is there something you wanted to order? Fancy for a nice Anzio special pizza or perhaps you want our fabled Napolitan! I'm telling you, Pepperoni might be an idiot in everything else but she's a pure genius when it comes to preparing delicious food."
"Did you call Anchovy nee-san?"
"Be quiet Bakaroni!" Anchovy shot back.
Looking past the twin-tailed girl Miho had a closer look at the food stand which was really more of a small truck that had been converted to be akin to a mobile kitchen where the pair of Carpaccio and Pepperoni was hard at work preparing the food.
"So anything you fancy or do you want me to show you what our menu has to offer? We spared no expense so there's more than enough to choose from and I can assure you, you won't leave dissatisfied."
Turning back to face Anchovy again, Miho had to admit that it might not be a bad idea to take the girl up on her offer. She had gone off to get something to eat and to have a quick look around, and although she had planned on getting some of the more usual food one would find at a school festival she could not deny that Anzio's cuisine was simply to die for.
"So uhm Anchovy-san, is there something you can recommend to me?"
Wrapping an arm around the girl Anchovy began to lead her newest customer towards the food stand itself. "Oh you're so cute Nishizumi, I just love that little naivety of yours when it comes to our cuisine. There's nothing I can really recommend to you as it's all that good."
"But-."
Putting her finger against Miho's lips, the twin-tailed girl informed her. "I told you before, didn't I? That we came here to ensure your guests got full access to the finest cuisine that we at Anzio can offer.
Letting out a nervous laugh Miho became aware that she had gotten herself involved in something bigger than she could handle. Maybe it would be best if she were to look to make her escape at the earliest opportunity.
"So the Prez invited you to come and set up a stand?" Miho asked all of a sudden, hoping that her sudden change of subject might help her steer this awkward moment. "... I'm surprised that they asked you for this?
"I know!" Anchovy replied. "We couldn't believe it ourselves at first either. None of us knew what to make of it when we received the invitation so I had Carpaccio contact your school and get to the gist of things."
Miho just nodded her head, visibly relieved now that the situation was going again in a direction she was comfortable with. She already had gotten her share of excitement yesterday.
"So I take it you had to go through a lot of trouble in getting all of the stuff you were going to need, am I right?"
"Not at all!"
"Huh?"
Punching a clenched fist into the air the Duce of Anzio explained herself. "We at Anzio are always prepared for any kind of cuisine-related emergency! Our rapid response teams are at a moment's notice, ready to answer the call for help whenever it should come!
Blinking Miho understood that things were about to get weird again and that she did not know if she was supposed to be impressed by this or not. "... Oh... wow... I guess that's really incredible..." Hoping it would do the trick.
"You bet it is, Nishizumi! Here at Anzio, we spare no expense when it comes to food! The moment we got confirmation that the offer was genuine we sprung into action, we left no stone untouched in our commitment to proving your school and its guests to the finest cuisine we at Anzio have to offer! Mark my words!"
The green-haired girl gave a pretty intense impression to Miho but she has had enough encounters with the girl before that she came to expect this. That said, there was something to be envious about with regards to the boundless enthusiasm and their almost infectious esprit de corps.
"So what'll it be, esteemed guest?"
Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 13.20h Sunday
"Alright, let me help you," Noriko said as she assisted a young girl in climbing down the tank, making sure that she would not lose her footing and fall. "Just be careful, mind your steps. There you go."
She knew from personal experience that clambering around the exterior of a tank was not an easy thing to do; it was all too easy to lose one's grip and fall, the metallic surfaces of the tank offered little in the way of traction.
That said, the Type 89 having a good-sized hatch in the front of the vehicle certainly was a big help for allowing guests to enter and exit the vehicle with relative ease. Something for which Noriko was grateful, she would not have liked for some of their guests to try and climb up the outside of the tank.
"T-Thank you," the girl said with a blush on her face. "I've had a lot of fun, thank you so much for the ride."
"Ah no, thank you very much for having ridden with us," Noriko said in return, making a quick bow to the girl in question she said. "I'm glad to hear that you had a lot of fun, that makes it all the more worth it."
Saying her thanks once more the girl bid her farewells as she continued on her way. Noriko kept waving until she lost sight of her, it had been a bit of a hassle to help the girl get inside the tank but in the end, she felt that it had all been worth it.
"So do you think we'll see her next year?" Shinobu asked as she appeared from the hatch situated at the front of the steel beast. "I kinda got the impression she was a little scared."
"Yeah, I got that idea as well. Still, you've got to admire her guts for going through with it, even when it got a little rough at that one spot."
Nodding her head, Shinobu knew that there had been a rough spot in the track which had caused the tank to shake violently for a few seconds. Nothing that any of them had not experienced before but it had her worried for a few moments for their guest.
"You want to go and grab something to eat?" the taller girl asked.
"Ah, I wish we could but it's not our time yet."
Shinobu had a glance at the clock. "Oh, you're right. Guess that's out of the question then."
"There's some onigiri in the back if you want a quick bite," Noriko told her companion. "I don't think anybody is going to mind if you had one of those."
"Good idea, do you want me to bring one for you as well?"
Noriko nodded, although she was not yet feeling all that hungry per se she would not mind having a bite to eat. "Ah sure, wouldn't mind having a bite myself. Also, could you get me a bottle of water as well, my throat's pretty dry?"
"Got it."
Looking to her right to where the remaining member of her crew was busy keeping a group of guests entertained Noriko was feeling satisfied at the work they had all done. A couple of hours had already gone by since the start of the festival but there were no signs of it letting up any time soon.
"We really have our work cut out for us," she said to herself, smiling as she did. It might be a lot of work but so far she had been fully enjoying herself; one could not deny that something was gratifying about being able to help people and bring a smile to their faces.
There was no telling if any of these guests here would ever come to study at Ooarai but even so, Noriko felt that it was no excuse to not go all out.
"The Prez sure wasn't kidding when she said they were expecting more visitors than ever. Last year almost felt like it was deserted compared to this, well, I gotta admit that this is way more fun."
She was able to keep herself busy, and that was something that the diminutive girl always found enjoyable. For her to be stuck somewhere with nothing to do was like a nightmare, she was the kind of person who did things.
"Ah well, I'm looking forward to the next person who wants to go for a ride." Stretching her arms she was already looking to see if people were lining up to go for a ride in their Type 89 but it seemed that at the moment nobody had an interest.
"Guess people would be more interested in getting into Anglerfish or Leopon than us," she reminded herself that the bigger vehicles were likely to attract the most guests as more people could be carried inside.
"Greetings Duck-dono!"
Lost in her thought Noriko almost did not notice the small person calling her.
"Again, greetings Duck-dono! It's a pleasure seeing you again."
That was until the person called her out a second time, somewhat confused she turned around to see who it was. Blinking in confusion as she caught sight of another diminutive yet all too familiar sight, Noriko was dumbstruck by what she saw.
Standing there was a short-statured girl with her long black hair tied in braids, her brown eyes hiding a pair of spectacles that seemed a little oversized.
Bringing her hand up to her head the little girl made a salute. "Greetings Duck-dono! Fukuda from Chihatan Academy is reporting in!"
"F-Fuku-chan?! What are you doing here? Wait, why are you even here to begin with?" She blinked in surprise, unsure of what to make of this sudden turn of events. "Why are you at our school? I mean sure it's not hard to get here for you but why are you even here to begin with?"
"Why I came to pay you a visit Duck-dono! I've been wanting to see what your school is like ever since we fought together. Is there something wrong with that reason, Duck-dono?"
Noriko's eye twitched at the mention of that peculiar nickname the other girl was using to address her and her crew. Somehow the girl had coined the term during their little time together during the exhibition match and it had stuck ever since.
"W-Wait, F-Fuka-chan...?" Shinobu mumbled the moment she caught sight of the newcomer, her reaction mimicking that of Noriko. Any thoughts of handing over the food she had brought for her companion lost. "... You're the last person I expected to show up here..."
"Huh, what do you mean Duck-dono?"
Noriko's eye twitched at hearing that name again, it was still something that she could not get used to. Guess she would have to explain again to the girl why she did not want to be called by that name, but for now, that was something for a later moment.
"Hey look it's Fuku-chan!" Akebi remarked the moment she spotted the bespectacled standing there with her fellow tankers. "Wow, I didn't expect to see you here. So what brings you to our school?"
Once Taeko joined in as well on the conversation things got pretty lively, each member of the fabled Duck taking it, in turn, to get reacquainted with the young girl in their midst. To any person who observed it, it was clear that these girls were overjoyed to see each other again. Trading playful banter between them they all found themselves in high spirits, making the most out of the somewhat unexpected but not unwelcome surprise visit from the little girl.
For Noriko and the others, it had been a while since they had last seen this particular member of Chihatan's senshado team, not since their match against the UST several months ago, although they had kept in touch with Fukuda online.
"Well, since you're here anyway. Care to join us?"
"Huh?" the girl let out, "What do you mean Duck-dono?
Opening the large hatch situated at the front of the tank Noriko turned around and addressed her. "So Fuku-chan, would you like to go with us for a ride? You're here anyway and we have some time to kill so what do you say?"
"Yes! I'd very much like to join you, Duck-dono!" And with those words, Fukuda took a confident step towards the tank. "I-I never thought I'd ever be allowed to ride in this tank!"
"Well, you're about to!"
Helping the smaller girl climb into the tank Noriko was asking herself what kind of a ride she was going to be in for before she would climb into the steel beast herself.
Watching the scene of Noriko helping the younger girl get into the tank before signalling to one of her crewmates that they were all ready to take the tank for a ride, Miho could feel a warm sensation wash over her.
This was the kind of thing she wished for to happen, this was what this festival was all about. People were enjoying themselves while learning more about the school. It was a good feeling, and it made her feel better knowing that their hard work was paying off.
"Hello, Miho-san." A far too familiar voice called her out, compelling her to turn around and see who it was, her heart beating with excitement in her chest.
"I'm glad that I got to be here today, I wouldn't have wanted to miss this for the world."
Spinning on her heel Miho came to an abrupt halt as her eyes locked with those of the person who had just called her name.
"... K-Koume-san...?"
Author's note: Well folks, there it is, the newest chapter for you to enjoy.
This update has been slower than I planned but the past months have been very turbulent for me, not just at work but in other aspects as well, I think the strain of all of that is getting to me. Writing has been difficult for me as of late and these days I often find myself not wanting to write at all.
At this point I don't really know when the next update might be, can't even say how many updates there might be this year but at the moment I don't think it'll be possible for me to match last year. There just isn't the mood or inspiration for that at the moment.
Until next time, whenever that may be. Take care.
