Chapter 3: Weak Links

As both sides made their way to their starting points marked on the map, Aiko watched from the observation tower. After confirming that all the tanks were on their way to the starting locations, Aiko quickly perused the two sets of materials Ami had given her. One was an official report on the team's performance, typewritten and in a binder, with a formal introductory letter expressing her hopes that "Instructor Takahashi" would find it useful and ask her if she had any questions. The second was a set of notes on her first-hand observations of the team, neatly handwritten and in shorthand, and contained a short note telling "Aiko"- the two women used first names while off duty or in private correspondence- what some of her abbreviations meant.

Looking it over, Aiko realized that the newcomers were performing just as well, if not better, than the majority of Oarai's initial crop of tankers had. Of course, actual combat was another thing entirely, compared to practice matches, and one could be perfectly competent in practice, while falling apart under pressure. Aiko had heard about one member of the team, whom Ami had not described apart from saying she had graduated already- had a decent hit rate on the target range, but had never hit anything she intended to in actual combat.

Of course, Aiko realized that the tournament would be far less forgiving, especially to a team like Oarai, which was generally at a disadvantage in terms of how many tanks they could field and how experienced their tankers were. As such, she hoped that they would perform well in this training exercise, but also that they would make whatever mistakes that would result in valuable lessons for them.

From her starting point, on the opposite side of the river from Miho, Nodoka found herself asking the question of what Miho would do, but soon realized that the question was not purely theoretical. She had fought alongside Miho in many battles, as well as against her on occasion.

But this time, Miho had a different sort of battle on her hands. Both sides had equal numbers and tanks of comparable quality. Both sides, in similar circumstances and with similar experiences over the course of the last year, would have an almost identical modus operandi. In the end, the group that seized the advantage first and executed their strategy better would prevail.

Of course, this was not necessarily a contest to win, but also a test of the team's abilities. The less battle-hardened members would thus be given chances to demonstrate their skills, with the more experienced members stepping up to face them whenever they fell.

Blue Team advanced from its starting location, hoping to be able to ambush White Team and seize the advantage by gaining the element of surprise and taking out some of their better tanks.

Inside the Chi-Nu, Anteater Team nervously advanced to set up an ambush point at the bridge. Shiina had heard of the team's lackluster performance in the finals, and hoped to do what she could so that the rest of the team would not end up "carrying" them.

Unfortunately, the Porsche Tiger was already there, and they no longer had the element of surprise.

Short on time, and determined to not be taken out without firing a shot a second time, Anteater Team quickly fired, and struck the Porsche Tiger.

"Good shot for a beginner, Misha-san!" Nekota said, impressed at the explosion and smoke, which seemed to be a fatal blow to Leopon Team's tank.

Unfortunately, the white flag did not raise on the tank, putting the lie to any notions Nekota had that they had succeeded in defeating their foe.

"It didn't penetrate?" Shiina said. She knew enough to be aware that a frontal attack against a tank was not recommended, but had hoped that her shot would be effective, since it would likely be the only one she would get.

Shiina quickly reached for a shell and tried to load it, but knew that she would not be able to do so in time. But since Nekota had not ordered a retreat, she knew that it meant that their only options were to defeat the Porsche Tiger or be eliminated trying.

The Porsche Tiger fired, and its shell whizzed past the Chi-nu before striking a tree and exploding. Knowing that the window of opportunity had been reopened for a short time, Shiina quickly moved to load a round. But as Shiina looked through the sights, she saw smoke rising from the Porsche Tiger, followed by the white flag. The tank had overtaxed its engine while getting into position.

Shiina let off a sigh of relief.

"Well, that was anticlimactic," Shiina said.

Suddenly, the tank shook as the M3 Lee, appearing from the foliage to the side, struck it with both its guns.

"So is this," Shiina said with a slightly amused sigh, as the controls locked, signifying that the tank was disabled. Outside, amidst the smoke and dust, the Chi-nu's white flag raised.

"This is Anteater Team, we got taken by surprise fom the side and taken out!" Nekota said. "Leopon Team apparently overheated and shut down."

Miho simply nodded. Since Anteater Team had little experience in battle, it was understandable that their situational awareness was lacking, especially when already facing an enemy. They would need to work on correcting that flaw, but they, along with the others, would have time to improve.

Elsewhere, Nodoka, while ordering her tank and the others to flank Blue Team, heard Leopon Team's report over the radio.

"This is Leopon Team," Tsuchiya said. "We were about to take out Anteater Team, but we overheated and are out of the game."

Nodoka sighed. She was not the type to see luck as a factor, wanting to see her triumphs as the result of her own efforts, and believing that she should take responsibility for her failures. She thus saw Leopon Team's engine overheating as a problem that they would have to deal with in the future, albeit regretting that she could not help them. And she believed that this time, she would have to win with the tanks she had in order to prove herself.

Shortly thereafter, she heard from Rabbit Team.

"This is Rabbit Team," Yuuki said. "We got the Chi-nu."

"Good shot, Rabbit Team," Nodoka said. "Advance on Blue Team from the side."

Rabbit Team advanced toward the bridge, but spotted Duck Team, having come as a result of Anteater Team informing them of the White Team advance on the position. Rabbit Team turned to face Duck Team, while the turret of the Type 89 already was trained on the girls.

"Stay calm, girls," Azusa said. "Aya-chan, Ayumi-chan, fire when you have a good shot."

The Type 89's fired a shot that bounced off the M3 Lee's front armor. As it reloaded, Aya and Ayumi took the opportunity to aim and fire into weaker spots on its turret. Both shots found their marks, creating large blasts and scorching the tank. Each hit was enough to disable the tank, so it was no surprise when the white flag popped up.

Across the bridge, however, Sparrow Team, which had been advancing for an attack on Leopon Team, but was unable to make it in time, saw the fire of Rabbit Team's guns at Duck Team.

"Sorry we couldn't make it, Noriko," Mutsuki thought, as Anko finally loaded the shell into the gun. "But when they took you out, they gave us an opportunity, and we'll make the most of it."

Momo, firing across the river, struck the M3 Lee with a carefully aimed shot, striking the tank in the side as Rabbit Team tried to reposition themselves to attack.

The Char B1 Bis approached from the side, trying to support the others from their team, knowing that White Team's chances were looking grim. They had lost the bridge crossing, and would likely be forced back without reinforcements.

But Blue Team had prepared for this. Turtle Team took them in their sights, fired and struck them in the side, disabling them.

"Nice shot, Shizuru," Ayano said.

"Let's not get overconfident," Shizuru said. "Mallard Team has relatively little combat experience and a new commander. And we're down two of our teams already."

The StuG emerged from the forest to the side.

"It's Hippo Team, approaching from our right!" Ayano said.

Shizuru only had a moment to think through her possible courses of action. That moment, however, was long enough for her to realize that this was a far cry from student government, when she had enough time to talk things over with her fellow student council members to consider her options and arrive at a decision together, a process some called overly ponderous. When she had so little time to make a decision, she was much more likely to make a mistake, but taking too long to think would be a mistake in and of itself. With this in mind, she chose the obvious solution, the one that first came to mind.

"Teradaira-san, take evasive maneuvers!" Shizuru said. "The StuG doesn't have a turret, so we should head toward the side!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Natsumi said. "But which direction?"

Shizuru realized that she had not considered that question, as her tank slowly headed toward the tree line. The StuG shifted, got them in their sights and fired. The shell streaked across the open clearing and struck the Hetzer in the side, causing a large explosion.

The white flag then raised on the Hetzer.

As Anglerfish Team arrived to support the others, Miho took stock of the situation and realized that the time to step in had come now that most of the amateurs had their chance to show their skills.

"We're now two against two," Miho said. "By now, most of the teams with new players have been taken out of the game."

"That's hardly surprising," Mako said. "Most people don't take to tankery by just reading a book."

While in the past, Mako might have made that remark with some degree of arrogance or impatience with the slower learners on the team, her time teaching others how to drive had changed her perspective. She had seen beginners struggling to learn the ropes and those with at least as much experience as her trying to further improve themselves, so she had become more willing to help them, as long as they were willing to put in the effort on their own.

"That's true, Reizei-dono," Yukari said. "But I was even a bit surprised by how quickly Isuzu-dono and Takebe-dono learned, too."

"The other teams still have room for improvement, though," Miho said. "So let's see how they can do."

Looking ahead, Miho saw that Octopus Team, which was not only the leader of the opposing team, but the other contender for top Oarai team, had entered the fray in hopes of defeating Sparrow Team, which had engaged Hippo Team.

The Cromwell circled around the StuG, making several failed attempts to get into its blind spot. The four history enthusiasts, however, were well aware of their tank's weakness, especially since one of them was an expert on Erwin Rommel and World War II, particularly the tanks of that era.

"We're getting nowhere like this," Mutsuki said. "Hiroko, pass by the StuG. Anko, load an AP round. Momo, get ready to fire once you're at close range."

The three girls responded in the affirmative and carried out their orders as the two combatants approached each other and advanced.

The StuG fired at the Cromwell's front section, but overshot and barely missed. As they passed, Momo fired a shell into the StuG's side, halting it in its path as it was disabled.

Immediately after succeeding in that task, Sparrow Team drew Octopus Team's attention, which struck the tank with a shot to the front. Sparrow Team hastily withdrew, hoping to find a vantage point from which to counterattack. As Yuuki loaded another shell, Nodoka noticed Sparrow Team was having more trouble evading its fire than usual.

Nodoka momentarily considered what she had just seen- clear proof of the difference between Hiroko and Satomi. Hiroko was Nodoka's friend, so she had to admit to being somewhat inclined to favorably judge her. But the logical side of Nodoka suspected that while Hiroko had more experience than Satomi, she was still not up to Satomi's level as a driver. Perhaps Satomi had more natural talent, or perhaps she had merely been challenged more than Hiroko had been in the past, having had a steeper learning curve and more severe consequences for failure.

Nodoka realized that when she thought about it this way, it was almost as though she was justifying the Nishizumi style.

As Saki took the Cromwell in her sights, she fired again on Nodoka's shot made its mark in the target's side, and Sparrow Team's tank threw up its white flag.

"Muro seems to have some room for improvement," Nodoka thought as she crossed the bridge and engaged Anglerfish Team. "Now let's see how Maho fares compared to Reizei-senpai."

Meanwhile, in the Panzer IV, Miho realized she was down to her last tank as she pursued Octopus Team through the fields, each side trying to get into an advantageous position in which they could attack the other.

"It looks like it's down to the five of us this time," Miho said. "It's time for us to show Octopus Team what we can do."

"You can count on us, Nishizumi-dono," Yukari said.

"That's right, Miporin," Hana said. "We beat them last time, too."

Miho nodded in agreement. In many ways, this was a different challenge from many of her matches. But in the end, crew skill was important, and Miho wanted to see how her crew compared to Nodoka's.

The Tas and the Panzer IV both fired their cannons, as they ran alongside each other. While Saki and Hana were two of Oarai's best gunners, hitting a moving target while they themselves were moving was difficult for both of them. Crew skill could not easily counteract how motion threw off their aim. As both Yuuki and Yukari loaded their shells, the tanks' respective commanders realized that the next shot would likely decide it, and they hoped to find a good opportunity to make that shot before their opponent did. The tanks circled and weaved, trying to find the best angle from which to attack while not exposing their vulnerabilities to the enemy.

But then, unexpectedly, the Tas, trying to take too sharp of a corner while circling around Anglerfish Team, threw a track. The barrel of the gun stopped, unexpectedly tilting upward, and the shot missed as the tank suddenly halted in its tracks.

As Octopus Team was left bewildered, Hana took aim and fired at a weak spot in the Tas' side, from close range. A moment of vulnerability was all she needed to make an accurate shot at close range into her opponent's side.

The white flag went up.

"Blue Team wins the match!" Aiko said over the loudspeakers.

As Anglerfish Team heard the news, the built-up tension faded away, and they exulted in celebration.

"That was a close one," Saori said, letting out a sigh of relief. "Even with the others on our side this time, it still came down to just us and Octopus Team, once again."

"It has been a while since we have had such a close and exciting match," Hana said. "Since we had comparable troops and essentially the same plan, it boiled down to a shootout."

"It's different in some ways from my other matches," Miho said. "Nodoka-san's not only a good leader, but she knows how we operate. Perhaps some of our opponents can say the same, so exercises like this might prepare us to face them.."

"But in the end, Nishizumi-dono, you ensured that we pulled through once again," Yukari said. "I'm sure you'll be able to defeat whoever comes our way."

Miho smiled appreciatively.

"What about everyone else?" Saori said. Her question was partly inspired by a desire to see how well those she was helping were improving, and partly from a realization that, a mere year ago, she was like them. She wanted to believe that others would be able to improve themselves, just like she had, and was willing to do what she could to expedite that process.

"The rest of the team did surprisingly well," Miho said, "and the new members are taking to tankery more quickly than we'd expected. But judging from what I've seen, we will likely need to break in the new members further to get up to our level of performance at the end of last year."

"To be honest, though," Mako said, "it's harder to get enthusiastic about things when there isn't anything on the line. It's hardly surprising that none of us are doing quite as well as we did in the finals last year."

"Perhaps that is true, Reizei-dono," Yukari said. "But I think Nishizumi-dono knows better than anyone else that pressure doesn't always yield good results."

"I do," Miho said. "And I believe that there are times when there aren't winners and losers, like in this battle, times in which both sides can benefit from participating. We should do what we can, but also see where we can improve, which is one of those things that matters more than winning."

In the Tas, Nodoka let off a soft sigh of disappointment. She had fought alongside Miho long enough to know that she would not necessarily win against her, but she felt as though she could do better. She never believed in her own infallibility, but whenever she went up against others in competition, particularly those who were older and more experienced than her, she was reminded of her inadequacies, the areas in which she still needed work. Perhaps someone else was a better choice to secure the bridge. Perhaps if she had given her orders more clearly, she could have held the defensive position and repelled the enemy. Perhaps with a few different decisions, she might have won the final shootout.

But while a large portion of the responsibility for the loss- and the responsibility for improving- lay on her as commander, she noticed that all was not well with the team. Saki, Yuuki and Mako, who had their old positions, were performing well as usual, so the problem did not lie with them. As for the driver, her mistake was not necessarily fatal for the team, but it was preventable. In a team like Oarai's, Nodoka had to do everything she could to remove the possibility of preventable problems, but how far could she go and what was the best approach? She would have to find an answer, soon, with Miho and Aiko's help.

After the match, Aiko stood alongside Nodoka and Miho and addressed the crews.

"Good work out there in your practice match," Aiko said. "Some of you are new to tankery, and you did fairly well for your first time. All of you have room for improvement, but your performance in this match gives me confidence that you, having made significant progress thus far, will make more in the future. I, along with your commander and vice-captain will meet with you on a crew-by-crew basis to discuss your performance more in depth. Once I'm finished with your team, you are dismissed."

Miho, looking at the sun setting off in the distance, realized it was getting late.

"Before you begin, Instructor," Miho said, "I have a question for the others. Does anyone have any pressing engagements after school?"

The assembled students were silent until Shizuru, after a glance from Shiina, raised her hand.

"The student council has a meeting after school, Nishizumi-san," Shizuru said. "So we'd like Turtle and Anteater Team to be able to have their meetings first, if at all possible."

"Very well," Aiko said. "Turtle Team, please come with us. The rest of you, wait here."

"Thank you, ma'am," Shizuru said.

Shizuru, Ayano and Natsumi walked off with Aiko. Among the assembled students, Nekota turned back to her teammates.

"This is quite convenient, Misha-san," Nekota said. "Piyotan-san doesn't have evening classes today, so we should be able to meet up with her online,"

"Well, there's just one problem with that for me," Shiina said. "The president wants me to do student council work with her and the others after this."

"Oh," Nekota said.

"Well, RL does come first," Momogawa said.

"Yeah, I don't think I could explain to her that I'm ditching student council work for a game," Shiina said lightheartedly before her expression turned serious, "nor would I want to."

Nekota realized that student government work, like tankery, was one of the first things Shiina had become truly enthusiastic about apart from video gaming. While she had to obey Shizuru's orders, she also had a genuine desire to help out. With those reasons combined, Nekota had no desire to interfere, and was willing to wait as long as Shiina needed her to.

Inside the tankery team's tankery room, the debriefing for Turtle Team wrapped up relatively quickly, with them being told that they should improve their basic skills, but that they were less in need of doing so than Aiko had expected.

"All in all, you did quite well for beginners," Aiko said, "certainly better than what Instructor Chouno had led me to expect."

"Thank you, Instructor," Shizuru said. "But if I may ask, what impression did she give of us?"

"Essentially, that the novices knew only the absolute basics at nowhere near a reliable level," Aiko said. "I thought your radio operators wouldn't know the first thing about their devices. I thought your new drivers would only be able to drive reliably on the road and while not under fire. I thought your new gunners would only be able to fire wildly at the enemy, and your new loaders would only allow them one shot at most. And, of course, it would be impossible for your new commanders to keep on top of the other subordinates who didn't know their jobs any better. But some people learned more quickly than others, and the Panzer IV, which triumphed, was crewed by four amateurs with a veteran for a leader. They are the example to which you should aspire, and I believe you've done well approaching that point thus far."

Shizuru smiled and modestly nodded.

"We do what we can, Instructor," she said.

"You are dismissed," Aiko said. "Please send in Anteater Team on your way out."

"Yes, ma'am," Shizuru said. She and the others bowed and took their leave.

A few minutes later, Anteater Team walked in. Aiko's analysis was more critical, indicating that they had largely survived Leopon Team's attack due to luck, and been defeated by Rabbit Team due to a lack of awareness. As much as Shiina found the criticism somewhat reminiscent of her mother, she could not disagree with it, and remained largely silent, save for the occasional "yes, ma'am" to confirm that she was paying attention.

Eventually, however, Aiko reached her conclusion and her expression softened as she did.

"While I have criticized you a great deal thus far, I will point out two things that are more in your favor,," Aiko said. "First, as a relative newcomer, you are at a disadvantage against even the others on your team, much less the enemy, in terms of experience. And second, you have improved noticeably since the finals last year. You have some ways to go, but you have come a long way already, so I will do what I can to help you."

"Thank you for the feedback, Instructor," Nekota said. "I know well how it can be difficult to catch up with your more advanced peers. Misha-san... I mean, Fujino-san, introduced me to Ancient Legacy Online, but I found it too difficult to get up to her level, and quit before my free trial expired."

Aiko nodded.

"I know what you mean," Aiko said. "But most undertakings of any significance require a great deal of time, effort and the willingness to improve oneself. You'll need to stick with things like tankery if you want to win, investing a great deal of time and effort, but you won't regret doing so. For now, however, if you have nothing else to add, you're dismissed."

"Thank you, ma'am," the three girls said, bowing. Shiina briefly considered saluting, but for the fact that Aiko had told them all that military courtesy was not necessary.

The three girls walked outside, and prepared to go their separate ways.

"I'll see you two later," Shiina said.

"Sure," Nekota said. "We were actually going to have a tankery study session, so feel free to join us when you're ready."

As Shiina walked off to the student council meeting and Nekota and Momogawa walked home, Aiko turned back to Nodoka and Miho.

"Who's next?" Aiko said.

"I'll go to get my team," Miho said.

"And after that, Haramura-san's team?" Aiko said.

Nodoka shook her head.

"My team... will likely be a bit more difficult," Nodoka said. "Let's finish with everyone else first; I don't want to detain them when you have less to say to them."

"Very well," Aiko said. "I would like to speak with Sparrow Team after Anglerfish."

Miho left the room, and returned a few minutes later, with her team in tow.

"We're here," Miho said.

"Thank you," Aiko said."To be honest, Nishizumi-san, as an individual tank crew, you are doing quite well, which is something I do not often say about those teams without also providing criticism. You and your teammates were possibly the best out of all the teams, although there is always room for improvement. As such, you should keep practicing, but also put aside some of your time to give assistance to those who need it."

"Thank you, ma'am," Hana said.

"I'm glad to hear that, Instructor," Saori said. "It's hard to believe we were newcomers not long ago."

"Everyone was, at some point," Aiko said. "Before I was an instructor, I was a cadet. Before I led my teams, I was a student of tankery. As long as you remember where you came from and appreciate the processes that brought you to where you are now, you can teach others."

Miho nodded. She had struggled for many years to find her own way of tankery, and was glad, more than anything else, that she could play her part in helping others become good at tankery. Some would find the process more difficult than others, as tankery had not come as easily to the rest of the team as it had come to her closest friends, but Miho hoped to do what she could to help them with whatever troubles they faced.

Miho, together with Aiko, met with the rest of the teams and discussed where they needed to improve. Most of those with new members had to break the members in, and those who had switched positions needed to adjust to their new tasks. Aiko took that into consideration, but still chose to tell them where they needed work. Most of the new members had a basic grasp of their position as a result of the practice thus far, and simply needed to drive more effectively, load more quickly, hit their targets in less time and with fewer shots, and command more efficiently, while doing all of them in the heat of battle.

Miho was pleased with the team, even if she noticed Nodoka was uncharacteristically concerned, and oddly insistent on dealing with her team last.

The other six teams were brought in, receiving criticism and praise in various measures. The last of those six was Leopon Team, the first to fall. This time, Aiko's analysis was fairly short and to-the-point.

"At this point, it's somewhat hard to tell how your team measures up compared to the others, considering what happened to your tank," Aiko said. "In spite of that, I will say that in a team like this, all tanks and their respective crews must perform exceptionally well. As such, I'm sorry to say that your performance today is not acceptable."

Tsuchiya sighed. The only tournament round she had fought in was in the finals the previous year, and she found tankery combat to be quite exciting. Unfortunately, when she had to struggle and deal with issues like this, she found it quite disappointing, and her enthusiasm was deflated like a balloon pierced by a needle.

"Do you understand what I am telling you, Tsuchiya-san?" Aiko said, noticing that Tsuchiya and the others had gone quiet.

Tsuchiya solemnly nodded. Her usually exuberant demeanor hardly seemed appropriate when she was being criticized., and was difficult to maintain in light of her present troubles

"Yes, ma'am," Tsuchiya said. "I apologize for our failures."

Tsuchiya bowed in apology, and her subordinates followed in kind, but Miho shook her head.

"I wouldn't call it a failure, Tsuchiya-san," Miho said, with Aiko nodding in agreement. "All the teams with many newcomers have their own challenges to overcome, but as long as you work on them and the instructor and I help you, I believe you will be able to overcome them."

Tsuchiya gave a faint appreciative smile, but the others sighed. To them, tankery was an obligation to their club, a side job that threatened to become all they were useful for. They believed the idea that they were not meeting expectations of the one thing that seemed to matter to the commander of the team and student council was disheartening and potentially worrying.

"I'll do my best, Commander," Tsuchiya said. "Ladies, let's get to maintenance on the tanks.

The other three Auto Club members silently complied and left.

"Unless I'm mistaken, only Octopus Team is left, Nodoka-san," Miho said, after Tsuchiya closed the door behind her. "Can you get everyone together?"

"Actually, Miho-senpai," Nodoka began somewhat hesitantly, "I was hoping to privately speak with you and Instructor Takahashi before I met with my team."

"Go ahead," Aiko said. She had some idea of the issue- or rather, the person- Nodoka wished to discuss, but was not entirely sure what she wanted to say.

"It's about my driver, Yumeno Maho-chan," Nodoka said. "I think I know a little about her, and why her performance is not exactly up to par with the others."

"Are you saying it's not simply a result of her being inexperienced?" Aiko said. She had expected that some of the newcomers would have trouble, but had not expected that someone with experience would have problems.

"I believe so, ma'am," Nodoka said. "Now, this may sound like I am comparing it unfavorably to my own experience with driving, or with skilled drivers I know, like Reizei-senpai, Kuro, and others. But the unfortunate truth is that Maho-chan has been doing tankery for longer than anyone else here, except for Miho-senpai and I, and gets far less mileage out of her practice, so to speak. She's promising, but she has bad habits."

"What do you mean?" Miho said.

"She does essentially seem to forget the fundamentals from time to time, and tries to emulate some of the skilled tankers she sees, even if it can't practically work," Nodoka said.

Miho nodded, reminded of one of Anteater Team's practices the previous year. They had gone on a wild ride throughout the training grounds, the tank going in directions Miho did not think possible, and had emerged from the tank, dazed and saying "In a game, it would work..." over and over. Through training, they had improved, and while they were not quite up to par with their teammates, they were no longer merely a moving target for the enemy.

Maho also had to improve, but how could she improve, and how could Miho help? A part of Miho believed it would be best to defer to Nodoka, who likely knew her friend far better than Miho did. Another part of Miho realized that Nodoka did not only want her commander to be involved in helping Maho for the sake of the team leadership working together, but also because she believed that Miho could help her solve the problem in ways that she could not by herself.

"So what do you want us to do about this?" Miho said.

"The obvious solution is to talk with Maho-chan and break her of her bad habits," Nodoka said. "But the problem is how to do it. You may not have seen it much, but when I scold people for some things, I tend to be somewhat blunt. The best example was when I told Saki that I would not want her around if she was not willing to give her all to win, back when we first met while touring Oarai Academy. In the past, Maho-chan has taken it somewhat hard when I scold her. I don't want that to happen, since if she takes it personally, she'll never learn from it."

"I see," Miho said. "But is this bad habit just as a driver, or also in other positions?"

Nodoka paused, taking a moment to process what Miho was implying.

"Now that's a possible thought, Miho-senpai," Nodoka said. "I had considered it before, but it wasn't feasible in the past. My old school was stretched thin, and people ended up doing multiple roles at times, such as the commander also being the radio operator, or some gunning and loading at the same time."

"That's like what some of us do already," Miho said. "So why did you decide what you did?"

"To be blunt, if Maho-chan had difficulty performing a single role, how would she fare while multitasking?" Nodoka said. "I let her be the driver so that she would solely focus on that role, to prevent her from becoming distracted. But now, Maho might well be better off switching roles."

Aiko nodded. She was of the belief that giving a fish feeds one for a day, and teaching how to fish feeds one for a lifetime, so she generally advised the tankery clubs she taught, while letting them make their own decisions. Having helped Nodoka and Miho brainstorm a solution as much as she felt appropriate, now she had to consider how to help them implement it.

"It sounds as though you two have found a solution," Aiko said. "When you discuss this with Yumeno-san and the others, I can serve as a mediator if you would like."

"Yes, please do, Instructor" Nodoka said. "I'll go to get my team."

Nodoka walked into the room with her four teammates, none of whom were aware of the discussion that had been taking place until now.

"So, how'd we do?" Mako said.

Aiko and Miho looked at each other and nodded, silently deferring to Nodoka.

"For the most part, there are no problems with your respective roles," Nodoka said. While she appreciated Miho and Aiko's advice, she still believed that it would be best if she began the discussion. She then turned to Maho. "However, Maho-chan, I would like to discuss your performance as driver."

"Is this about Maho's... my mistake?" Maho said. Understanding the gravity of the situation, she shifted from referring to herself in the third person to the first person.

"Unfortunately, yes," Nodoka said. "While your driving the tank into a ditch was not the only factor leading to our team's defeat, it seems to be indicative of a larger problem, and Miho-senpai, the instructor and I would like to do what we can to remedy it. Ordinarily, I would speak with you alone about this, but this decision involves all of Octopus Team, so I spoke with Miho-senpai and Instructor Takahashi."

"The three of us have been talking," Miho said, doing what she could to frame what she was saying in a positive light. "We decided that you might be better off in a position other than the driver, and would like to help your team decide how best to utilize you. The first step would be to find someone whose position would be better suited to you, and who would be able to drive in your stead."

Miho paused and considered how things were going. She had decided to emphasize the collaborative nature of the decision, and put focus on the positives. But, as she said, Maho and the others would have to work on the solution together, so part of that would involve getting the input of Maho's crerwmates.

"Kataoka-san?" Miho said. "Do you think Yumeno-san would be a good loader?"

Yuuki sighed and shrugged.

"Not really, djey..." Yuuki said. "I tried showing her the ropes at middle school, but it didn't work out so well."

As a former schoolmate of Maho's, Yuuki knew that Maho's tendency to make mistakes under pressure would not be suited to the position of loader. While Yuuki had a tendency to be swift in the short term but peter out over the long term, she wondered if Maho could do it at all. Having also watched Saki and her middle school gunner at length, Yuuki also realized that if Maho took the gun, she would likely be the second coming of Kawashima Momo, whose inability to hit virtually anything in the heat of battle led to her being replaced as gunner in a similar manner.

So what could Maho do? What would be the best outlet for her enthusiasm?

"You know, I think she might be good at the radio," Mako said. "It's an important job, but you don't feel as though you're under pressure to do well in it. It'll take some studying, but I'm sure that's not a problem for you, right, Maho?"

"Not at all!" Maho said. "I'm glad to do anything for the team."

"Yeah, Hiroko-chan says Maho-chan often studies hard and helped our old team out with chores," Yuuki said. "She's the type who doesn't mind putting in extra hours for the team."

"Then that's settled," Miho said. "Someya-san, would it be possible for you to train as a driver?"

"I'm on it, Commander," Mako said. "I'm not as much of a quick study as the other Mako is, but I'm almost as much of a tank nerd as Yukari is, so I know a bit already."

"Thank you for letting me help, Nodoka-senpai, Commander Nishizumi, Instructor Takahashi," Maho said.

"I think that's all for today," Aiko said to Nodoka and Miho. "Octopus Team, I'll leave you to the task of adjusting. Please let me know if you have any questions for next time. All of you are dismissed."

"Thank you, ma'am," Miho said before walking off to rejoin her friends for a dinner at her place.

After saying goodbye to their teammates, Saki and Nodoka started to go home together.

"So, Nodoka-chan, how are you finding being vice-captain?" Saki said.

"It's more difficult than I thought," Nodoka said. "I have led before, but not as part of another's chain of command, and Oarai is quite a bit different from my old school."

Saki nodded in agreement.

"My sister was vice-captain for Miho-senpai's sister," Saki said, "and she ended up largely assisting the commander with various matters outside of battle, and sometimes commanding divisions of troops in battle. We all find our niches, and adapt our styles of tankery to those of our teams."

Saki left unspoken the fact that her sister was no longer vice-captain, and not merely because she had graduated. Teru had her own personal demons, and realized that for too long, she had been running away from them and giving the cold shoulder to her sister, resulting in her losing sight of why she had done tankery to begin with. As she grappled with the questions, she decided to take a hiatus from tankery in her first year of university, even if she was attending the same university as her commander and a few of her other classmates from Black Forest.

"But, as you may remember, Saki, Miho-senpai herself was vice-captain of Black Forest as well," Nodoka said. "Naturally, her style of leadership wasn't necessarily suited to her old school. Since I'm more blunt, and prone to ordering people, I wonder whether mine will be suited to this one, which had a relatively informal and laid-back team. Even my middle school was a bit stricter than this."

"I think you did the right thing today, Nodoka-chan," Saki said. "You were considering a way of how you could enable Maho-chan to help us, much like how Miho-senpai had to think of how to best utilize Kawashima-senpai last year. If you need help with any of that, feel free to work together with Miho-senpai, and I'm always there for you."

Nodoka smiled. She realized that she was not the only one taking a step outside her comfort zone. In her own team, Maho was learning a new position, and Mako was filling in for her. They were doing their best to be of use to the team, much like Saki and Yuuki were doing their best at their old positions, and Nodoka realized that she should do so as well.

"Thank you, Saki," she said. "I'll do what I can for all our sakes."

Sparrow Team walked back after meeting with Miho, Nodoka and Aiko. Their assessment had largely been positive, but it revealed that the team could use some improvement in their driving, loading and overall coordination.

Mutsuki sighed, realizing that most of the responsibility was on her, as leader. In most games of mahjong, the club played against, rather than alongside each other, and if they were to enter a team tournament, each member would be making an individual effort against the other three opponents. Satomi had been president of the club, but played relatively little role as far as playing mahjong and doing tankery went, resulting in Yumi taking charge of training people and managing the club. After the club was dissolved, Yumi's role changed, serving as commander and the primary one keeping the club together as they tried to re-establish themselves.

But each of their responsibilities seemed to be beyond Mutsuki at this point. She still felt as though she lacked the skill to manage a mahjong club or tankery crew, or the confidence and charisma necessary to serve as a leader who could hold the group together. So Mutsuki had to wonder. How was she doing in comparison to Yumi? And how was it possible to perform effectively under these circumstances? One person knew the answer, and even if Mutsuki suspected that it would not be the one she hoped for, she felt compelled to ask.

"Momo?" Mutsuki said. "I'd like your honest opinion about something."

"Go ahead, President~su," Momo said. As someone who was almost literally invisible for much of her life, she was touched that Mutsuki was specifically asking her a question.

"How do you think I'm doing?" Mutsuki said. "I'm finding it hard to live up to Kajiki-senpai as a commander. The Instructor did point out areas in which I needed improvement, but while I'm clearly not where I want to be yet, I don't yet know whether it's as good as could be expected of me."

Momo paused, carefully considering her response. An overly positive answer would be seen as mere flattery and not help, while an overly negative answer would make Mutsuki depressed, and adversely affect her performance. So Momo decided to tell the simple truth, from her many conversations with Yumi before and after her graduation.

"To be honest, you're slightly better than Yumi was at the very beginning, but not quite as good as she was in the later matches~su," Momo said. "But that's not the main point," she added, after motioning to stop Mutsuki from interjecting.

"Then what is?" Mutsuki said.

"Yumi, along with everyone else, had to deal with a steep learning curve~su," Momo said. "Just as she learned mahjong more quickly than most of us, she adjusted better than the rest of the non-veterans. But in the end, she, and everyone else, were doing what they could, and so are you."

"Thanks, Momo," Mutsuki said. "I still think that I'm a less than good person to deal with being a tank commander or a club president. I'm not necessarily the most confident individual, so if I don't believe in myself, how can I convince everyone else to believe in me?"

"Yumi has things she worries about all the time," Momo said. "But she found Kanbara-senpai to be a good source of advice as well, particularly when it came to being optimistic. Perhaps Kaori-senpai might have some idea of what her childhood friend would say."

"I'm not so sure of that, Momoko-san," Kaori said, speaking up for the first time in the conversation. "Satomi-chan always had a degree of confidence and optimism that I lacked. I know her well, but don't quite share her outlook on life"

"Still, I think Touyoko-senpai has a point," Hiroko said. "You can learn a great deal from those under you, even if you're a leader."

"Some of us are new to our positions, if not tankery itself," Anko said. "So we have some idea of what you're going through. We don't expect you to have all the answers, but merely ask that you be there for us as we walk this unfamiliar road together, leading us to the best of your ability."

"That's true, Tanaka-senpai," Hiroko said. "Maho isn't the best, and she knows it, but she tries harder than anyone else, and whenever someone criticizes her, she takes it into account and refocuses her efforts. In the end, you shouldn't aim for perfection, but your best."

Mutsuki nodded. She realized that Miho had more experience than she did, but leading others had not always come easily to her. Perhaps Mutsuki could not become a perfect leader, but she had no intenton of letting her subordinates down if they only expected this much. She was not the only one having difficulty, but she was determined to not let that defeat her.

"Thank you, everyone," Mutsuki said. "I'll do what I can."

After school, Hiroko parted ways with Sparrow Team and joined Maho on the walk home.

"Oarai's doing a lot better than our previous school," Maho said. "So many newcomers are doing well while Nodoka-senpai seems to have taken her tankery to another level,"

"Being forced to fight to keep one's school open will do that," Hiroko said. "But I think Yuuki-senpai also once mentioned a drive to prove themselves, and ensure that people knew that they won because they were strong, rather than because their opponents were weak, careless or unlucky. It thus makes sense that they'd be constantly looking for where they could improve."

"So that explains why Nodoka-senpai and the others were analyzing where we were weak," Maho said.

"That's only part of it," Hiroko said. "Nodoka-senpai has always had high standards for herself and for others, and relatively little patience for those who are just playing around. It's part of the reason why she's improved as much as she has, but she also believes that taking something seriously is necessary to enjoy it to the fullest."

Maho nodded.

"Maho's now the radio operator of Octopus team, while Someya-senpai is the driver," Maho said. "I'll have to work hard to learn my new position, just like Someya-senpai is."

"You two aren't the only ones," Hiroko said. "President Tsuyama, Tanaka-senpai and I are also new to our roles, so the team does have a fair amount of work to do. But in the end, where there's a will, there's a way. No one tries harder than you do, Maho, so if we keep at it, we'll improve as much as we need to."

What the two left unspoken, however, was that their opponents were also striving to improve, believing that they had it in them to win. Getting the newcomers up to speed was not only a matter of ensuring that they could perform as well as their peers, but so that the team as a whole would be able to stand against the rising tide of their competition and defend the championship against their reinvigorated adversaries.

Author's Notes

I'd like to thank Stalker117 and KMT4ever for beta reading this.

My intention here was to break in the newcomers without retreading old ground, so I decided to make the practice match different from canon and the previous Necessary to Win. It's more of an advanced training exercise, in which most people at least know what they're doing.

On a somewhat belated note, the Necessary to Win series- the original, Paths Toward Victory, the side stories and this fic- is now over half a million words long, making it by far my longest writing project.

Edited to fix a few minor mistakes and add a little dialogue for Maho in the final scene.

Character Analysis: Maho Yumeno

Canonically, not much of Maho is seen, apart from the suggestion that she could become a formidable player once she gains more experience and works on her many flaws(not to mention that because she's still in middle school, she likely will not be able to compete in the main plot of Saki). To put a long story short, Maho has the ability to pull off some of the improbable plays the players at her table make, but also has a bad habit of making various amateur mistakes that someone with her level of experience has no business making (drawing a tile as dealer, which is a bit like drawing six cards in poker).

In canon, Nodoka gets annoyed with Maho's carelessness, and shows her blunter and stricter side. Nodoka has little patience with those who believe in the occult, or those who aren't at least somewhat committed to winning, and since Maho relies on her ability while failing to iron out some of the flaws in her playstyle, Nodoka thus easily gets frustrated with her when she makes mistakes. Since Maho wants to impress Nodoka, she takes this quite hard, and is almost reduced to tears. Nodoka realizes that Maho is trying hard, and then gives some encouragement, suggesting that Maho will realize her potential in the future, likely after the series ends. In this fic, which takes place after the end of GuP and after what will likely be the end of Saki, you can see Maho doing just that, and becoming useful to her team.

Character Analysis: Mutsuki Tsuyama

In canon, Mutsuki doesn't stand out much compared to the others on the Tsuruga Academy mahjong team. She loses a fair amount of points in the first round and falls to last place, albeit while not doing much worse than Mihoko's other defeated opponents. In the individuals tournament, she, along with Kaori, doesn't make it past the first day, while Momo and Yumi had a reasonable chance at winning (I, for one, would have hoped that Tsuruga would have been able to make it to the nationals in at least the individuals, thereby fulfilling Momo's hope of staying with Yumi for as long as she can).

So one might imagine that because of this, combined with her somewhat unconfident personality, she's more than a little nervous to become leader of her group of girls. In this fic, she's inheriting the responsibility of commanding a tank, and leading the defunct mahjong club in its efforts toward being revived. But the circumstances require the juniors and former novices to step up and take charge, so Mutsuki is not alone in this.

Character Analysis: Momoko Touyoko

In canon, Momo is to Yumi what Yukari is to Miho; she admires her idol's performance in her game of choice, and sees her as the first friend she's had. Momo suffers from a lack of presence that makes her essentially invisible at times, and Yumi was the first person to reach out to her (in the manga, Miho also invited Yukari). Yumi was the de facto leader of Momo's mahjong club in canon and in this fic, so how will Momo deal with it now that she's gone?

Momo does find herself comparing Mutsuki to Yumi at times, especially since she misses her old friend and senpai. But she does realize that Mutsuki has essentially the same task that Yumi did, a difficult and unenviable one, and she herself was once a novice. As such, she tries to give her new leader the benefit of the doubt, and also do her best in her own position.

Many of Oarai's team have to deal with longer-term issues, and for Momo, her issue is keeping in touch with Yumi. She has always had to live with the knowledge that she would be separated from Yumi once Yumi graduated, but now, she has the opportunity to prevent them from drifting apart by keeping in touch with her. Time will tell whether this will last, but for now, Momo has a solution, and thus has hope.