Chapter 6: Passing the Dagger

After a few days of work, the Automotive Club was able to fully restore Oarai's fleet of tanks to working order. Combining this news with a full supply shipment full of shells, fuel, and spare parts meant that Oarai could begin training in earnest. Saori's recruit for the Panzer IV's driving position, Mako Reizei, was also adjusting to the team excellently. On the training field, the eight vehicles waited for orders. "Okay everyone listen up," Miho ordered with her radio gear equipped, "We're going to begin our first exercise. Commanders on your map are points marked Point I, II, and III forming a loop around the perimeter of the forest south of our training field. I want everyone to simply move in a single file column following the Panzer IV. Since we're all lined up already, follow the tank to your right except for the M3, you'll be following us."

The sounds of various tank engines firing up filled the area. The Panzer IV slowly made its way to the front of the column. Once it passed the M3 Grant it stopped to the right of the American tank while facing an open gate at the edge of the field. The M3 jarred forward and awkwardly turned to face the leader. The Sturmgeschutz III followed and the Type 89B followed the tank destroyer. At the rear, the Stridsvagn capped off the native Oarai tanks and was followed by the Type 100, Elefant, and Tiger H2 in that order.

Miho took over the radio once more, "Okay everyone, follow the tank in front of you at approximately 75 meters. This will give you time to react if the tank in front of you is knocked out in a match." Miho ended communication with the other tanks and ducked down into the turret. "Mako keep us moving at 15 miles an hour and try to avoid kicking up dust," she ordered.

The driver nodded and pushed the accelerator forward. In the seat next to her, Saori looked through a catalog of tank information. "So Miho, if you're giving orders with your radio, why am I the radio operator?" Saori asked.

"Well as commander, I also have to keep watch for enemy units and direct the tank. I can communicate with the other tanks while I'm doing this, but if I need to give out detailed information, I can just tell you the basics and have you transmit the rest. Plus sometimes I need to have my ears ready to hear enemies and can't take transmissions, so they're redirected to you. Another thing is having you around means another set of eyes to observe our surroundings. Seeing an enemy before they see you can make the difference in a battle," Miho explained. "Plus it seems you've taken an interest in that catalog, so maybe you'll be our encyclopedia for tank knowledge if Yukari's busy," she teased.

Saori gasped and threw down her book. "I-I, no way! Guys don't like nerdy girls! I mean maybe some, but not the total catches!" she exclaimed flustered, "That was mean, take it back!"

"Oh um, sorry?" Miho replied. Maybe I should stand outside the cupola again…

Saori huffed. "That's fine, you can make it up to me by letting us over at your place to hang out sometime," she proposed.

Miho giggled, although Yukari looked down at Saori with annoyance. "So what? I'm a nerdy girl now?"

"Oh well… maybe. Not in a bad way!" Saori replied, trying to repair relations.

Hana interrupted the two, "Okay everyone, let's focus on practice right now. Will we be doing any firing in this exercise Miho?"

"Not yet, we'll head over to the range after we get back to the field. Joseph said he finished setting it up this morning," Miho answered before standing up through her cupola again.

The tank column slowly made its way across the path. Being in command of a tank sent mixed feelings through Miho. This almost feels free, freer than anything in Kumamoto, she thought. But the accident at the nationals last year remained in her mind, causing her heartbeat to quicken every time the tank dipped on the path. It's fine, everything is just fine.

The tanks rolled through the gravelly path with no problems. Although it was a simple exercise, it gave Miho a clear picture of how the drivers would perform their duties. She stood outside the cupola with a notebook and began noting some areas of improvement. The M3 is still pretty stuttery compared to everyone else, but Karina's probably anxious about messing up. Hopefully it's not a chronic issue. The StuG needs to adjust their gun to prevent it from sticking too high in the air or hitting the ground… The Type 89B and Stridsvagn are doing about average which for a new crew is a good start. She recorded each of her findings in her notebook. I'm surprised Mako is doing this well. For her first time in a tank, she's doing incredible! She thought. Picking up her commander's radio, she tuned in to the final three tank's radios. "So rear tanks, what do you think about our performance?" she asked.

"This is the Elefant, Joseph says he likes what he's seeing," Elliot reported.

Chloe tuned in from the Type 100, "Just a repeated message here, Ross said the same."

"We see room for improvement, but nothing that isn't already apparent or that can't be fixed with experience. Speaking of experience, William has an idea to suggest when we get back to base," Casey informed.

Miho set her notebook down in the turret and looked ahead. "We'll be heading over to the range first, but we can discuss it after we get some firing practice in," she replied. The column drove off the loop and back onto the gravel field. Against the perimeter of the field was a massive dirt embankment. Five blocks of concrete were pushed into the embankment with targets painted onto each of them. Behind the embankment was the edge of the carrier where any poorly aimed shells would fly harmlessly into the oceans with the only casualties being any unfortunate seagulls or sea life that dared to challenge a large caliber tank shell. Various range signs were also placed in front of the targets as well. "Everyone line up at the five hundred meter mark. This will be where our guns will have the most effective chance of dealing damage without getting extremely close to the enemy. Remember this commanders. The further you are from an enemy unit the less penetration power your shells will have using standard armor-piercing ammunition. However, we will be supplied with High Explosive Anti-Tank ammo in varying quantities based on your gun. HEAT rounds rely on explosive power, so they won't require a high velocity and are effective at any range. But we'll supply them on a case-by-case basis as standard velocity ammo can be more effective in most guns. For the Type 89B, you'll notice that most of your rounds are the Type 3 HEAT round. You have a low-velocity gun, so your AP rounds won't be effective at any range, but that HEAT will give you 55mm of armor penetration at any range, which can be enough to take light and medium tanks out," Miho lectured.

Noriko exclaimed the 57mm shell in her hands. Sure enough, the base of the shell read Type 3 HEAT. "So because the round comes out slower in our gun than any others, we'll be using these to compensate?"

"Yes, it's still not the best considering your tank falls behind in most areas, but it'll give you enough to be more effective," Miho explained.

"Oh, I get it! Like putting a good player near the net to compensate for a poor server!" the Type 89's commander exclaimed.

Well, I guess if that helps them understand it… Her radio crackled to life with the voice of Azusa, the commander of the M3 'Grant'. "Captain Nishizumi, we have two guns, which is more effective? Should we use one over the other?" she asked.

"Well both of them can be used to pretty good effect. Your main gun is going to be the 75mm in the hull so Yuuki and Ayumi should expect to fire more than the 37mm in the turret. But that doesn't mean the 37mm is bad. For its caliber, it's an effective gun against a lot of targets, but both of your guns will struggle against heavy tanks. That's where we'll compensate with your teammates like the Elefant or StuG III. They're dedicated tank destroyers so they'll help take out what you can't," Miho explained.

Lots of no firing and lecturing agitated Momo Kawashima, the sole operator of the Stridsvagn's turret. "Are we going to do any firing or are we going to sit here and listen to you explain every detail of each of our tanks, Nishizumi?" she radioed in angrily.

"Oh um… yeah, of course, we should start firing-" Miho began before the Type 100 interrupted her with a transmission.

Something about Momo didn't sit well with Ross. "For one Kawashima, show a little more respect to your teammate and captain. Two, it's important to know what you're doing before you can apply yourself to your task. Gunnery is a hell of a task to handle without the proper knowledge. Quite frankly our little seminar in Garage 1 isn't even a quarter of what we'll need to know before going into a match," Ross transmitted.

"Guys, we shouldn't argue right now, you both are making important points. We'll gather both practical experience and knowledge as we go, but we can't do that if we're bickering with each other," Miho defused. She turned her radio to connect with every tank on the team. "Okay everyone, load your standard round!" she ordered.

Tank shells were pulled from their racks and slammed into their respective breeches. One by one, the breeches clicked shut, with the final tank to finish loading being the M3 Grant. After everyone radioed in their confirmation of loaded guns, Miho gave the order. "All tanks, fire at your targets!"

With a simple click on the trigger, all six guns fired and spat their rounds towards their target. The sound was deafening to the new tankers and the smell of ignited gunpowder permeated every tank.

However, most of the rounds didn't reach their target perfectly. The 37mm round from the Stridsvagn flew ridiculously far off target and into the ocean beyond. The same-sized round fired by the M3's turret gun faced the same fate of a burial at sea. Out of the five tanks, only two hit their targets. Both of the 75mm guns of the Panzer IV and StuG III hit the target, although not perfectly, while the Type 89 and M3's hull gun fell short. "This actually works out pretty well. We can send in our three experienced gunners and use them to work on the accuracy of the tanks that missed their target. The StuG and IV should be able to improve on their own," Ross noted. The other two advisors agreed with a quick nod before Ross radioed his idea to Miho.

However all he heard as a reply was static. "That's odd, is something up with this thing, am I on the wrong frequency?" he asked himself as he fiddled with the small handheld device. The commander turned the radio knobs up and down but heard nothing. "Okay what's up with this thing?" he angrily muttered until a round of 7.62mm MG34 ammunition smacked him in the face.

"Take a look at the captain's tank, you dense walnut," Jody advised rudely.

Ross looked up from his radio and glared at his gunner before standing up through his cupola. The commander's hatch on the Panzer IV was completely shut. With no captain in sight, Ross radioed into the Elefant and Tiger. "Not sure if there's something wrong or I'm just overthinking this, but I'm not getting any response from the Panzer IV's radio, and the commander's hatch is shut. Do you guys have any clue what's up?" he asked.

"I couldn't tell you, Ross," Joseph replied.

William on the other hand may have had an idea. "You two, continue with that plan and keep everyone's attention. I'm gonna go see what's up with the Panzer IV," he directed. The commanders nodded and the three jumped down from their tanks followed by their gunners. While everyone else went to help improve the accuracy of the tanks that missed and continue the exercise, William climbed onto the hull of the Panzerbefehlswagen IV and knocked on the commander's hatch. Miho pushed the split hatch open hesitantly. "Is everything okay? Ross sent a message but we didn't get a response." William asked.

"O-oh right. Sorry, everything is fine," she replied. The captain shakily put her headset back onto her head. "So should we continue firing?" she asked.

William nodded and jumped down from the tank. "Yeah, I've got some of the gunners working with the others on improving their accuracy. You and the StuG did pretty good for the first time firing"

"Well, Hana does do flower arranging so she's got great hand-eye coordination," Miho replied. William gave her a thumbs up and went to the M3 Grant where Quinn was helping Aya and Ayumi adjust their gunsights.

000

A few weeks after their first active practice session the new tankers were becoming acclimated to their roles. The forest nearby was their usual training ground, as it had several pathways and clearings that gave the fledgling team plenty of natural experience in a variety of conditions. After the final practice session of the week, William felt confident enough in the team to propose his idea to Miho.

The Panzer IV reversed into Garage 2 and its occupants jumped out to do post-practice maintenance before they called it a day. William entered a side door that connected the garages. "Good work today everyone. May I talk to you for a moment, Miss Nishizumi? He asked.

Miho jumped down from the turret of the medium command tank. "Oh, sure, what is it?" Miho asked.

"The tank crews are getting pretty used to their vehicles. I wouldn't say we're ready for the nationals just yet, but I think we need a little bit more than target practice and moving in formation," he stated.

Miho nodded and tapped her chin in thought of what they could do to further their practice sessions. Thankfully, she didn't need to wait as William already had a proposal. "So I think we should have a practice match. Everyone in the transfer tanks has been itching to get back in action," he suggested.

"It might do us some good to get into some active combat situations. The transfer tank crews haven't had much practice since you came on board Oarai. I like the idea, but who could be our opponent?" Miho asked.

William was pleased to hear his captain's approval. "I was thinking we could fight each other. Three vs. five, Schwarzadler against Oarai."

Miho's eyes widened. "That's a good idea! We'll be pretty even against each other since we have more tanks and you have more experience. I'll call a commander's meeting on Monday to see if everyone's up to it," she said. The sound of the M6 Tractor interrupted their conversation as it passed the open garage doors and entered Garage 1. "What's going on with the M6? Did we find another tank?" she asked excitedly.

"Well it is equipment, just not a tank. That should be the last of our supplies coming in," William explained with a smirk, "You're gonna love what Joseph's bringing in."

The two went over to Garage 1 where a cacophony of work grabbed the attention of the other teams. Folding tables were set out displaying all manner of boxes, crates, and packages. The crews of the Schwarzadler tanks tore into the supplies using pry bars, box cutters, and even a pair of bolt cutters for one chained crate. Miho watched with shocked eyes as the crews pulled a wide variety of reproduction tools and uniforms from the First World War. Joseph jumped out of the artillery tractor wearing a new uniform. Instead of the old jumpsuits that reflected the WWI German tanker uniforms, he wore an authentic reproduction of a standard soldier's uniform that looked like it had been plucked straight from the trenches. A striking combination of a steel blue tunic and pants complete with a black leather belt, ammunition pouches, a Stalhelm, Y strap, and chest level pistol holster completed the outfit.

The sharp clicking of his black boots grabbed William and Miho's attention. "So what do you think of the new uniform?" Joseph asked.

Unsurprisingly Miho had a lot of questions, once she had picked her jaw off the floor. "Where'd you get all this stuff? How'd you get it?"

"Some of it's from back home, we had just got approved for a uniform update right before we got shut down. Some of our more exotic stuff can only be purchased online. Stuff like this!" he explained before opening his holster flap. He pulled out a small dark steel object and handed it to Miho. "That is a genuine WWII production Sturmpistole. Don't worry, we only supplied it with flares."

Miho looked over the weapon with intense interest, feeling the cool black steel and smooth wooden grip. "This is impressive, but I do know my way around these types of weapons. I have an inert Panzerfaust back home and I'll recognize a Panzerwurfkörper 42, so don't try to use any. Just make sure to use this safely," Miho warned and handed the pistol back to Joseph.

"Safety is Freikorp Oarai's number one priority, well maybe tied with style, but still it's important," Joseph reassured while returning the flare gun to its holster. "Give us a couple dozen minutes and we'll have everyone here in uniform."

The captain looked on as the newly dubbed "Freikorp Oarai" took turns changing in their tank turrets and equipping their new gear. Gone were the Prussian Blue jumpsuits and in was the new steel blue uniforms. The commander's uniforms however had golden buttons and cufflinks to distinguish themselves from the other crew members. Other than that, the boys and girls who transferred just a little over a week ago looked identical as they lined up at the front of the garage. A few pieces of gear like trench shovels, mess containers, and even gas mask tins remained on the tables.

In front of the group, William, Ross, and Joseph approached Miho. William addressed her first. "Now I know officially we are advisors and do have some input on the team, however after this week I think everyone is equipped to master their roles and work as a team on their own. So I want to continue a tradition from back home here. We'd like to perform a passing of the torch ceremony," he explained.

After looking at each of the boy's faces, Miho could tell this was a serious occasion, and although she was not a student of Schwarzadler, the boys wished to hand over command over their service to her. "I understand," she meekly responded and tried to stand as straight as possible.

William looked at Ross and nodded. The First Sub-Commander of Schwaradler opened a small wooden box he had been holding. Inside, hidden in a leather sheath, was a WWI trench dagger. "A captain in the Schwarzadler tankery team serves in the position their entire high school career. During their junior or senior year, they pick a promising freshman to be their successor and to be the Second Sub-Commander. After the captain graduates, the Second Sub-Commander is sworn in as the Captain and is given this dagger," he explained, "With our tankery team being disbanded and the top commanders transferring here, we wish to present this dagger to you as a symbol of our submission to Oarai's command structure and to provide the service of the newly created Freikorp Oarai to the Oarai Sensha-do Team."

William took the dagger from the box and pulled its sheath down. "Of course, due to safety concerns, the dagger has been blunted. This dagger was given to the first Captain of the Schwarzadler Tankery Team by his grandfather, who had served in the German army during the First World War and brought this to his new home in America." The former captain equipped the sheath and placed it back in its box before presenting it to his new captain. "I know I haven't graduated yet, however considering the circumstances I believe that this dagger should be handed over to Oarai and we ask that you continue the tradition of Schwarzadler when you graduate as well."

Miho slowly took the box from William. She held the simple oak rectangle as if it were a bar of gold. "I can tell the significance you place in this tradition. I will continue it if that is what you wish," she affirmed.

Hearing this put a smile on the three boy's faces. "Thank you Captain Nishizumi. What shall be your first order?" William asked.

"Um… well," Miho stuttered before she took a deep breath. "Ladies and gentlemen, at ease!" she ordered.

Like a switch, the crews went from rigid oath-bound soldiers from the previous century to high schoolers once more. What was leftover on the tables was packed away and the formation dispersed. After everyone had finished, Joseph took the last crate to his office, where he would work on the contents later. Ross, William, and their crews returned to their tanks to resume maintenance.

With everyone dispersing, Miho returned to the Panzer IV and her crew. "Those guys took that super-seriously, I'm not sure how to feel about that," Saori said as the girls sat on the tank's hull.

"I can understand them waiting to continue their traditions. They probably want to preserve their identity while still submitting to Miho," Hana commented.

Yukari on the other hand was more excited about all their gear. "Did you see all that? It's like a Freikorp unit just jumped straight from 1919!" she exclaimed.

Mako was napping in the driver's compartment with the hatch shut. Miho jumped up to her cupola and placed the box inside the turret. "Those guys really do love their theme," she said. But still, I don't want this team to become like Kuromormine. "But I think we should cool it with the whole submitting their will thing. This isn't the JSDF, so let's keep things casual."

"Casual is my kind of thing!" Saori exclaimed.

The four girls giggled together. No matter what, they'll be friends first.

000

The weekend brought sweet respite from schoolwork and teachers for the students on the Oarai carrier. Most students took advantage of their free time by hanging out with friends or relaxing at home, but Ross was taking advantage of his time in a unique way. "There you go, all done," he said while clipping the buttons together on his daughter's pink overalls which went over a plain white shirt. He picked her up from the changing table that was one of three pieces of furniture in his room. She squealed cutely and grabbed onto his shirt. "So, what to do today?" he asked mostly to himself. Since living expenditures were covered by the scholarship, Ross didn't need to fill his schedule to the brim and juggle work, tankery, and school. Only the simple task of handling the Japanese education system and commanding a 30-ton war machine was required for him. The weekend had finally returned to what it should be, a bastion of free time in a busy world.

Because Natalie couldn't physically answer him yet, Ross had to brainstorm ideas for himself. Pacing through the empty apartment didn't generate any ideas, but it was a nice and clear day outside. "How about we go outside for a bit? Take advantage of this nice weather?" he asked. Natalie only responded with babbles. Well, it wasn't a negative reaction I guess, he thought. "Alright, some fresh air will do us both good and maybe we'll see some of our friends out and about."

Natalie's attempts to mimic his speech may have sounded like senseless babbles, but it still warmed Ross's heart. He grabbed a small sun hat that was hanging from a wall hook and put it on his daughter's head which pushed her side ponytail down. "Sensitive skin needs protection," he explained and adjusted the hat so that it wasn't obscuring her face. Natalie giggled and grabbed at the edges of the woven hat. "All good?" he asked. A head bobble could be interpreted as a nod but was likely just random movement.

Ross grabbed a few objects like the apartment key, his wallet, and the always prepared diaper bag with his free hand before leaving the apartment. With a click, the electronic keycard locked the door and the pair traveled down the open-air stairwell. Thankfully the temperature was perfect with only moderate humidity despite being surrounded by the ocean for miles. Praise the lord for microclimates and dehumidifiers! He chuckled to himself which caused Natalie to respond with more babbles. "You're pretty talkative today aren't ya?" Ross asked. Her babbling continued.

Unsurprisingly the ground floor had some students wandering around or lounging. Most of them were paying attention to their own things, talking with friends, or using some of the public access computers. Several of them glanced at him, with reactions varying from disinterest to wariness. One particular stare agitated him, coming from a girl with shoulder-length blonde hair. What are you looking at, my daughter's not just some ticking time bomb of crying and smelly diapers, Ross thought bitterly, Can't go one place without someone giving me that look. His negativity ended when he stepped outside of the automatic glass doors. "So where do all the cool kids of Oarai hang out?" he wondered to himself.

"Why? So you can avoid them?" a voice mocked from behind.

Ross was about to give some random judgemental smart mouth the death glare to end all death glares, only to turn around and see his favorite gunner. "Son of a-" he stopped himself, "Godda-" he again paused. "You!" he settled on.

The red-haired mischievous annoyance smiled warmly. "Ah Huot, that's all you got for me since you can't swear in front of your little princess?" Jody teased.

"Me? Curse you out? Never!" Ross exclaimed. "What are you doing today?" he asked.

The prankster smirked. "Why're you asking commander?" she asked playfully, "You looking for a da-" Jody stopped herself and turned away.

Ross could pick up on her joke regardless and frowned. Alright, boss cool the jets, she's just joking.

"Shit man, sorry it just slipped out, I didn't mean to- well you know. I know how much you hate that stuff, since well-" she stuttered.

Ross sighed and adjusted Natalie in his arms. "First, sensitive ears. Second, no swearing. Third, it's fine I know you meant nothing by it," he said.

Jody breathed a sigh of relief and faced Ross again. "Thank god, I thought you were about to skin me alive."

"Oh no, that's definitely still on the table."

Ross's eternal enemy chuckled awkwardly. "So how're you doing today Natalie?" she asked and tickled the baby's feet. Natalie giggled in response and shook her feet causing her to kick against Ross. "How about you come hang out with Aunt Jody? Let's leave this loser behind," she suggested.

Natalie jumped in Ross's arms and stretched her arms out to her 'aunt'. Jody responded and picked her up from Ross. "Aww, I knew you had some sense, kid."

Ross rolled his eyes. "So are the other three out and about?" he asked while crossing his arms.

Jody giggled when Natalie rested her head against her shoulder cutely. "Nah, Tandy and Chloe are with Joseph at the garages, and Alex is 'mediating'," she replied and played with Natalie's hands, much to the child's delight.

"The time will come, right?' Ross joked, mimicking the silent loader's explanation for her meditation time. The two laughed together and Natalie followed. "I didn't actually have any plans though for today. I was just gonna walk around town and see if there's anything interesting."

An idea came to Jody. "Oh, I know the place you'll want to go, come on, I'll take you there!"

Jody led Ross a little ways from the apartment building and into the shopping district. "I've been familiarizing myself with this place just like the shops back in Oregon. They're all really nice and some of them have some great stuff. You should come down tomorrow as well. Have you ever seen a farmer's market at sea? There's a group of gardeners and underdeck greenhouse owners that set up a bunch of stalls and sell their produce and some other goodies," Jody explained while they walked.

"You know, I have heard Oarai is famous for sweet potatoes, maybe I should buy some. I read that one of the foods you should encourage kids to eat from a young age is sweet potatoes," Ross stated, "Although vegetables and fruits, in general, are good for you."

Jody scoffed. "Come on Ross, you're starting to sound like my dad. What's next? Is your hairline gonna start receding and your hip gonna give out?" she teased. "I bet you'd like some sweet potato fries instead, potatoes can't be tasty unless they're fried!" Jody declared. Natalie seemed to agree if her babbling was anything to go by.

Ross gave her a mild glare. "Now don't you go and give my daughter anything she shouldn't eat. Sugar, salt, and especially fried fatty foods are terrible for babies her age. I mean, they're typically terrible for anyone, but my point still stands!" he exclaimed, "I didn't read all those parenting books for nothing you know."

"Well Mr. Baby Expert, let's see if your parenting books can keep up with me!" she exclaimed before taking off in a sprint down the sidewalk.

Ross growled and ran after her. "Hey! Running with a baby is probably the worst idea in existence!" he shouted. Despite the head start, Ross was able to quickly catch up to his gunner. Of course, this doesn't mean he could out-stop her.

"And slide to the right!" Jody shouted and spun around to the right to dodge her chaser before skidding to a stop in front of a tank store. Ross was much less fortunate and tripped over his feet. This sent him flying before impacting the sidewalk on his stomach.

I hate this girl so goddamn much… The boy picked himself up from the ground and dusted himself off. "Why do you pester me out of all people?" he asked rhetorically.

"Mostly because it's funny, but hey, for participating in my little race, here's your prize!" she answered while handing Natalie back to Ross. "And people say participation prizes are lame."

Ross shook his head in exasperation while adjusting Natalie back into his arms. He looked at the sign on the shop next to them. "Oarai Tankery and Tank Equipment Retailer…" he read, "Oarai's number one choice for tankery merchandise and service."

"Terrible name to be honest, but the stuff this place has is insane. You can pretty much get anything but the tanks themselves here," Jody stated. The two entered the shop and immediately felt the temperature drop. "Woo, that's nice, especially after that run!" she exclaimed.

Ross rolled his eyes and stepped out of the doorway. Shelf after shelf was filled to the brim with military surplus, reproductions, and other merchandise. Even a few heavy-duty parts like track links and suspension wheels were hung up on hooks like more typical sporting equipment. Uniforms from various nations from World War II were hung up with various helmets and garrison caps. But one unique piece hanging up all alone was a strange-looking blue cowboy-style hat that immediately caught Ross's attention. Is that?! He walked over to the hat and pulled it off the hook. "It is! A Schutztruppe slouch hat!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here with all these other hats?" he asked nobody in particular. Suddenly, Ross had an incredible idea. He took Natalie's sunhat off which caused her to frown and wave her hands to grab it back before he replaced it with the Schutztruppe hat. "Look at you, my little colonial soldier! Off to beat the nasty British out of Deutsch-Ostafrika?"

Natalie seemed to like her new hat, so he checked the price on the tag. Oarai must not be into the whole Schutztruppe thing huh… he thought, looking at the price which was only a few hundred yen, which he calculated to be around five dollars.

"It took you less than two minutes to find something for her? Is that a new record?" Jody asked with a smirk.

Ross rolled his eyes and looked for the register. "Just look at her though, she's adorable with this new hat. It's got more character," he argued.

"She's six months old, she couldn't understand the concept of a hat if she tri-" She was thankfully interrupted by Ross chucking Natalie's weaved sunhat into her face. "You know what? I think this looks good on me!" she declared with a completely straight face as she removed the hat from her face and put it onto her head. Unfortunately for her, the hat couldn't even hope to fit. The two students shared a laugh which grabbed the attention of another group of students checking out the store.

"Hey guys, checking out this store too?" Miho asked as she walked over. In the back left corner of the store, the rest of her crew were playing a tank-themed arcade game.

Ross and Jody turned to their captain. "Yeah, I thought Ross would like it. What game is that over there?" Jody asked.

"Oh, it's some type of tank simulator." Miho stepped aside to let them see. Yukari was at the wheel of a Tiger I shooting at green lines that formed a Type 3 Chi-Nu. Saori leaned against the back of the chair that was attached to the arcade while Hana stood to the side while intently staring at the screen.

From behind, a gruff voice from the counter spoke up, "That's a custom piece based on Battlezone, an Atari game from the 80s. I built it from the ground up with spare parts and bits and pieces I had laying around." Everyone turned to see the store owner, a man with a predominant receding hairline and brown mustache. "It took about five years to complete. Now where're my manners?" he laughed dryly. "Teruo Otter, owner of this store."

Suddenly Ross and Jody loudly laughed. Seeing Ross laugh, Natalie imitated and giggled. Everyone else looked at them with a raised eyebrow, except for Teruo, who was smirking. When the three settled down Ross spoke up. "Your shop name is a backronym of your last name?" he asked.

"A backronym?" Miho asked.

"The first letter of each word in my shop's name is my last name. It didn't occur to me until a customer mentioned it about a year after I first opened my shop. Every so often it finds its way to make a new customer laugh," Teruo explained.

The three girls realized and lightly laughed as well. "So, are you all looking for something, except for that little slouch hat the little one is wearing?" Teruo asked.

Yukari, Hana, and Saori shook their heads. "I want to beat Hana's score before anything else!" Yukari declared. She turned back to the game and put in a coin to begin a new game.

"She's surprisingly competitive when it comes to tanks…" Saori stated.

Hana nodded in agreement. "I put in a score when we got here just for fun, but I ended up beating one of Yukari's old scores, so now she's trying to regain the top spot," she explained. She returned to watch Yukari destroy Type 3's and Saori followed.

A sudden thought occurred to Ross. "Say you wouldn't happen to have a MG34 mount for a Tiger I commander's cupola, would you?" Ross asked hopefully.

Teruo rubbed his mustache in thought before flipping open an inventory catalog book he had under the counter. "If I did, it wouldn't be on public display in the store itself, administration got all uppity after the T-Gewehr incident, so no weapons on the shelves. They're all in the back storeroom," he explained. He flipped through the book a few more times before stopping a page halfway through the book. "Alright, I've got a few in the back, but no MG34's… I can order you one, but it'd take a few weeks to get onboard after we dock at the port." he looked up at Ross as if asking him what he wanted to do. "Or perhaps do you want to do what you American tankers like to do with what weapons I do have in the back?"

Ross smiled excitedly. "Well what do you have in the back?" he asked.

Teruo closed the book and gestured to the three non-gaming students to follow. He stepped away from the counter and passed the arcade game. At the back of the store, he unlocked a plain steel door that opened to a storeroom filled with boxes and more merchandise. The four stepped into the room, which was larger than the main store itself. "Wow, it's a lot bigger than it looks outside," Jody noted.

Teruo stayed in the doorway to watch his shop and the storeroom. "I can't publicly display a lot of this stuff, but I can sell it, so long as you don't go waving it around in public. There's ammo, advanced equipment like rangefinders, everything a warzone needs. Stuff like your MG34 replacement is closer to the back."

Ross became enamored with the stock that the shelves held and eagerly scanned every inch. Jody and Miho took a more relaxed approach in their browsing which put some distance between them and Ross. "So what did Teruo mean when he said 'what you American tankers like to do?'" Miho asked.

"Well, across the pond we like to outfit our tanks a little more freely. The American Tankery League still has the same rules as the Japanese Sensha-do Federation, but tankers in the states began making some modifications to their tanks. It's nothing extreme, but you might see a M4 Sherman with Schurzen Skirts welded on or perhaps an M2 Browning in a custom coaxial mount on a Panther. It's mostly limited to cosmetics and cupola machine guns. Until you get to the frankensteins…" she trailed off dramatically.

Miho tilted her head in confusion. "Frankensteins?" she asked,

"Horrifying combinations that are only legal because the ATL would rather fill slots by not adhering to some of the JSF's rules about stock competition. Sometimes you'll just see a T-34 with Panzerfausts bolted to the side, other times you see a Stug III casemate mounted on a Chaffee's hull."

Miho was shocked and appalled at the thought of such a disgusting modification. "They just let teams do what they want?" she asked fearfully.

Jody burst out in laughter at Miho's expression of fear. "Of course not, could you imagine? A Sturmgeschütz M24? Nobody would be crazy enough! Well maybe except for Joseph, he'd totally try that."

"So how far do you guys modify your tanks? There has to be a legal limit." Miho asked, relieved that the horrifying frankenstein tanks didn't exist.

"Mostly just mounting some more useful or powerful stuff on the AA mount, something like an anti-tank rifle," Jody answered, "Heck back in one match in Montana this one team had a spigot mortar mount in front of the cupola. Joseph pestered William about mounting one to the Elefant for days."

They were interrupted by a sudden cheer from Ross deeper in the storeroom. When the two girls caught up with him, they found him excitedly examining a 40mm light artillery cannon on a tripod. The gun wasn't much longer than an MG34 and looked light enough to mount on the cupola mounts despite its large caliber. "It's the forgotten child of Vickers and Crayford, England, the Vickers-Crayford rocket gun!" he exclaimed while passing Natalie to Jody. "Joseph can definitely figure out how to mount this beast onto the Type 100's cupola with the right tools."

"That's all well and good, but how could you use something built for WWI in an anti-tank role?" Jody asked skeptically.

Ross folded up the tripod and picked up the 90 lb piece by placing the barrel over his shoulder. "Easy, a 40mm HE shell to the tracks or gun sights are enough to inconvenience any tank. Take out the tracks with a shot from this gun and with the tank immobile, the 88 can easily take it out," he explained. "What do you think, Miho?"

I'm not sure, but I guess it'd be okay since it'd be used in the tank and not on foot like the Panzerwurfkorper… Besides, he looks pretty set on it, she thought to herself for a moment. "I guess it's okay if you want to mount it using the AA mount. Although you should keep it on the tank and not try to use it on foot," she advised. "I don't want anyone to try attacking a tank on foot, that's just asking for someone to get hurt."

Ross beamed and saluted with his free hand. "Thank you Captain Nishizumi, I won't let you down!" he exclaimed jokingly.

Miho blushed and waved her hands in front of her. "Oh come on, don't call me Captain Nishizumi, it's too formal and undeserving and well, you know what I'm saying!" she exclaimed bashfully. Jody and Ross laughed at the flustered captain, which only caused her more embarrassment.

Teruo cleared his throat to grab the group's attention. "So I'm guessing you've decided on that old rocket gun?" he asked.

Ross excitedly nodded, and the group exited the storeroom. At the front counter, the rest of Miho's friends were waiting for them. While Yukari and Hana were simply waiting, Saori flipped through a tank-themed magazine to occupy her time. Teruo returned to his position behind the counter and rang up Ross's items. After Ross paid him he put the rocket gun and an AA mount into a long black carrying bag that resembled a golf club bag with a zipper. "Just a warning, it's typically not a good idea to wave something like this around in public, so you should keep it in this carrying bag until you're back at your garage," he informed and handed the concealed gun back to Ross.

"Right, nobody wants to look down the barrel of a 40mm light artillery piece, even if it is for tankery," Ross agreed.

"Sensha-do," Jody corrected. Ross stuck out his tongue at her. "Well you wouldn't go to Europe and call their football soccer now would you?" she asked rhetorically.

000

Friday nights were always a great time to get together with friends and hang out. The sounds of cooking in Miho's apartment reflected this as four members of the Panzer IV prepared supper together. Mako, on the other hand, was taking a nap at Miho's desk while everyone else prepared in the kitchen. "That's just how Mako is," Saori answered when Yukari asked if her napping so often was normal.

Meanwhile, Hana was peeling potatoes next to a trash can, letting each peeled piece of potato skin fall into the can without trouble. Her flower arranging experience helped avoid any cuts. Despite the cheerful atmosphere, she still felt troubled and her discontent with her recent flower arrangements wasn't what was on her mind.

Next to her with a cutting board was Saori, the unofficial main chef, who was chopping Hana's potatoes into bite-sized cubes. "Saori, we've been friends for some time now right?" Hana asked.

Saori stopped chopping and gave Hana her attention. "Yeah, why?" she responded.

"Well there's been something troubling me since those American transfers came aboard, and I guess I just need something to confide with about it," Hana stated as her potato peeling slowed.

Getting the opposite message of Hana's body language, Saori grew excited. "Oh? Have you fallen in love with one of them and you need romance advice from me? I thought this moment would never come!" she exclaimed blissfully.

Hana blushed and looked away. "No, no it's not that," she deflected.

"Aww, well what is on your mind?" Saori asked.

Hana turned back to face Saori. "Well, it's about Ross or more specifically his daughter, Natalie."

"Okay, what's up with her?"

Hana sighed and continued peeling her potato. "I've never liked children, especially babies. They're loud, throw up all the time, and I've always found them somewhat repulsive," she revealed.

"Huh, I didn't think you could be troubled by anything, but I see your point. So why are you bringing this up?" Saori asked.

"Well we're all becoming friends and we're on the Sensha-do team together. We may be in separate tanks, but we're bound to continue to run into them. I don't want to cause any trouble," she confided.

Saori hummed to herself and tried thinking up a solution for Hana's problem. "Well, you could always try to keep your distance. She wouldn't be at any practices and how often will we run into them in town like today?"

"I don't know, you see how much he adores her. It doesn't feel right to feel that way about something so important to a friend."

"Well, you can't help how you feel about some things. All you can do is make sure it doesn't damage your relationship. So long as nobody's getting hurt, then you can have your internal reservations," Saori advised.

Hana nodded and grabbed another potato to peel. After a few more potatoes Saori spoke up herself, "You know, something about them is bugging me too."

Hana tilted her head in confusion and looked back at Saori, prompting her to continue. "Ross said Natalie's mother didn't transfer and got really defensive about that whole topic in general. So if she isn't on board, then Ross is Natalie's only guardian here. Doesn't that concern you a little? Why didn't her mom transfer as well? Why did Ross choose to separate her from them when he came here? Wouldn't it have been better to leave her in America over taking her to a school ship across the Pacific where they know nobody?" Saori rambled.

"Saori, you're rambling again," Hana reminded,

"Sorry, it's just kind of concerning, you know? A baby shouldn't be away from her mother, regardless if she's still with her father. I'm just concerned about her welfare."

"I think that's a bit too far. Nothing about Ross says that he's-"

Saori huffed and interrupted Hana, "Well we were just sharing our feelings so I thought it would be appropriate to share mine as well."

Hana sighed. "I can understand your point, but it doesn't look like she's being harmed, so unless we see otherwise, I think it's safe to say that she's fine," she assured.

The two were interrupted when Miho and Yukari entered the kitchen. "Hey Saori, we finished setting the table, are the potatoes almost done?" Miho asked.

Saori and Hana smiled and covered up their conversation. "Yep! They'll be ready to boil in just a little bit of time!" Saori exclaimed.

"Alright, I'll get to work on the rice!" Yukari excitedly replied.

000

The garages come Monday were filled with excitement and anticipation. Today would be the day the new tankers would enter their first match. Even if it was just for practice, they felt determined to prove that their training hadn't gone to waste.

In Garage 2, Miho had gathered her crews for a quick strategy meeting. Three diagrams of her opponent's tanks were pinned to a whiteboard along with a map and she crammed some last-minute studying before the match began. "They outgun us, but we have two more tanks. Will that really be enough to turn the tide?" she wondered. She idly looked between the diagrams, map, and her crews while deep in thought. Eventually, her eyes fell on a few crates of 37mm and 75mm shells. The crates they were in however had "Smoke" printed onto them. "I think I just found my… what do they say in America?" she wondered aloud. "Right, an ace up my sleeve." She called over the History Club and Student Council to the crates.

Erwin and Momo opened the crates to reveal a bounty of smoke shells. "Here's the plan. Kawashima, as our fastest tank you'll be our vanguard, but don't engage the enemy with anything but smoke and machine gun rounds. I have no doubt they'll send the Type 100 ahead of the Tiger and Elefant because of its impressive agility. Make Ross angry, mess with him, and bring him into a nicely concealed StuG III right here on the map." She turned to the path she predicted Ross would take on the map, a nice nature trail just off the main road. "The rest of the team will take the I/IV road we took on our first driving exercise right around the back of the battle area until we reach the ventilation mountain or Point V, here," she pointed to an intersection on the map. "Point V leads to a split shaft in the mountain, it's one vent with two different ways out, but one convenient feature is a maintenance stairwell that connects to the highest level of vents, from there Saori will scout for us with some binoculars and her cellphone," Miho explained.

Saori nodded in agreement. "I'll do my best!" she assured.

"From there, we'll know their moves and reconnect with the Stridsvagn and StuG III. If we can get within 500 meters, I'm confident Hana and Saemonza can take them out with our long 75s. Saemonza, you'll need to hit the gun mantlet of the Tiger. After that we'll hit the Elefant from both sides, the M3's hull gun, and the Panzer IV will penetrate their side casemate armor and without a turret for rotation or other tanks to guard it, it'll be a hard target to miss. s," Miho explained confidently.

The commander of the Type 89, Noriko, spoke up, "What role will we play captain?"

"You will be our vanguards for our main group. You won't be able to penetrate the armor of either of our targets. Your job will primarily be the guard of the Panzer IV and obscuring any shots from the Tiger and Elefant. They know the StuG and Panzer IV are their biggest threats and will be targeting them. Of course, they'll fire at you, but we're going to be their priority targets," Miho explained.

Noriko nodded. "We'll do our best. The volleyball girls have guts! No tank will penetrate our armor nor resist the power of the Type 89's gun!" she declared.

Well at least she's confident, Miho thought.

000

With both teams completing their preparations, they positioned themselves on the opposite sides of the battlefield. Oarai's tanks were positioned nearest to the garages, while Freikorp Oarai was positioned on the opposite side where the ventilation mountain overlooked the battlefield. One of the teachers they could find willing to referee the match overlooked the battle from an observation tower next to the garages. "Alright, is everyone ready?" she asked using a handheld radio which also doubled as a judge's match console which could activate and deactivate the sensory arrays which determined a tank's knock-out status.

A chorus of affirmations responded. "Alright then, Sensha-do starts with a bow and ends with a bow. All participants, bow."

"Let's have a good match!" everyone exclaimed while awkwardly bowing in their tanks.

"Alright everyone, stay safe and have fun." She raised the starting pistol and fired a blank round. "Match begin!"

Miho stood at her position confidently and activated her new throat microphone. "Panzer Vor!"

Her opponent on the other side of the battlefield gave his own order through a standard hand radio. "Freikorp Voran!" William ordered.

Eight tanks roared to life and ventured into the forest. On one side, a new team looked to gain experience, and on the other, an exiled team shaking off the rust. Who will prevail?

000

Sorry for not updating Tank Aces for a while, but to make up for it, here's a double upload! Typically I'd wait until I'm a few chapters ahead before I upload what I have complete, so I've just been sitting on these while I worked on future chapters, but given the time between chapters I think I'll make an exception. I might just switch over to uploading them when their done and proofread, but I haven't decided yet. I'm hoping for more consistent updates, but writing problems and personal stuff may interrupt that. Regardless, here's more content, and hopefully more will be coming up soon.

Thanks to everyone who's been following, favoriting, reading, and reviewing! I hope you've enjoyed Tank Aces so far, because I've got some good stuff coming and if you've liked it so far, you won't want to miss it.

Coming up next: Chapter 7: Showing our Strength!