Chapter 4: Burdens of Leadership
Over the next few weeks, Oarai's tankery team continued to practice, both doing practice matches and holding training sessions. The former identified the team's shortcomings, and the latter helped the team members work on remedying them.
The process was slow, as many would imagine. Those who had been on the team since its inception had fought in several difficult battles, and performed many hours of training, so it was difficult for the newcomers to catch up to them, and even more difficult to catch up with those who had been doing tankery for all their high school careers, if not since before then.
Miho pondered what to expect of the newer members. She knew that they would have to put in a great deal of effort into improving themselves in order to fight on par with the other members, and make a good showing against their opponents. It was a great deal to ask of the newcomers, but she knew that it was because it was what their circumstances demanded. In spite of that, Miho hoped that the newer members would realize that tankery was challenging, but it was also fun and fulfilling. She hoped that the more difficult parts would not scare away the neophytes, but they would stick around long enough to improve at tankery and learn how to enjoy it.
Octopus Team's efforts were primarily focused on getting its members adjusted to their new roles, having had Maho and Mako switching roles. They saw it as a temporary setback that made for more work in the short term, but would lead to improved team-wide performance over the long term.
"How are things going here?" Miho said, as she greeted Octopus Team near their tank inside the tank garage.
"Quite well, Miho-senpai," Nodoka said. "Maho-chan has improved a great deal under Someya-senpai's guidance. She's patient, studies hard, and doesn't have to worry about imitating others, so I'm confident that the arrangement we worked out together is ideal for her."
Maho's face lit up. Nodoka was somewhat emotionally reserved and strict, so being praised by someone like that, who was also a person Maho held in high regard, was pleasing for her to hear.
"I'm apparently doing pretty well, too," Mako said. "The other Mako commented that I've actually done my homework, so to speak, so she's glad that she doesn't have to walk me through every single little thing. I suppose that's partly her not wanting to do as much work, but partly due to her wanting us to pull our weight."
"That's good to hear, Someya-san," Miho said. "The new setup seems to be paying off so far, so I'd like you to stick with it. All of us have room for improvement, but you're not the only ones with a bit of extra work in that regard."
Nodoka sighed. She was aware that tankery had not always come easily to her, so she understood that some people were having trouble. In spite of that, she believed it was not unreasonable to expect her teammates to overcome their challenges, for the sake of the team as a whole.
"I know," Nodoka said. "As much as I sympathize with the newcomers' difficulty, I do hope that they will overcome them, for all our sakes. But because their doing so benefits all of us, I'm willing to do whatever I can to help."
From the observation tower, Miho, Nodoka and Aiko watched some of the teams practicing. Anglerfish Team and Octopus Team were under the temporary command of Yukari and Saki, respectively. The two teams, typically Oarai's best tankery crews, were not quite up to their usual performance, although they were still able to keep up with the others. Perhaps this was not ideal, but it was a potential arrangement if their respective commanders were unable to come to a match.
Oarai's commander, vice-captain and temporary instructor were particularly interested in watching Leopon Team practicing with the Porsche Tiger, trying to keep it going for as long as possible.
After a short driving exercise involving the Porsche Tiger pursuing the M3 Lee, the Porsche Tiger had an engine failure and threw up the white flag. The fire was put out in moments, and the white flag was reset in minutes, but Miho knew that if this was an actual match, the tank would be permanently out of the game.
"Out of curiosity, Nishizumi-san, was this a recurring problem last year?" Aiko said.
"It was, at first," Miho said. "By the time the finals came, Leopon Team was able to keep its problems to a minimum, so we were able to use the Porsche Tiger effectively in the match with Black Forest. It performed well, but couldn't stand up to the Maus."
"I'm honestly surprised you're getting it to work at this level," Aiko said. "Statistically, it's one of your better tanks, but with the various technical difficulties, most teams would dismiss it as too impractical to use, even under your circumstances."
"Perhaps that may be what's holding them back, Instructor," Nodoka said. "To succeed, we've had to make use of plans that most would not think of, and overcome odds that would intimidate most tankers."
"I understand," Aiko said. "In fact, my tankery instructor believes that the pursuits that are more difficult are often the ones most worth pursuing. Keeping this tankery club going will require a great deal of work after I'm gone, after Nishizumi-san has graduated, and most likely after you and your kouhais are gone from this school as well. But it's also worthwhile, and I'm glad that I'm able to help."
"I'm glad to hear that, Instructor," Miho said. "Let's continue to work with Leopon team to see if we can get them to work on operating their machine well in combat, because they'll soon be put to the test."
Miho and Nodoka had yet another meeting with the student council in their office, in which they discussed the results of practice thus far.
"That's good to hear," Shizuru said. "It sounds as though everyone is, at the very least, making some progress."
Shiina nodded in agreement. She recognized that Anteater Team had a long way to go before they caught up with their more experienced peers, but she was glad that she was performing as well as could be expected of her.
"I know," Miho said. "But while practice is helpful, a training match against another school would be good to determine how we stand against our rivals. Since the student council's approval is necessary to determine when and whether the ship goes into port, I needed your approval."
"That's true," Shizuru said. "Of course, from what I have heard, as far as the tournament goes, most school ships plan ahead for their tournament matches, sometimes without knowing whether they will even win the matches first. But in any case, Nishizumi-san, we will remain open minded to any practice match time and date within the realm of possibility."
Finding a practice opponent was not such an easy task, considering the myriad factors Oarai had to take into account.
They were hesitant to get too difficult of an opponent, such as Pravda or Black Forest, for the sake of avoiding demoralizing the newer members. They had won against Black Forest, but only barely, and under the flag tank rule. Perhaps they would fare better than most in an annihilation match, but they stood little chance of winning if they were outgunned.
At the same time, they wanted to avoid getting a relatively weak school, such as Waffle or Chihatan, so that their opponent would present a challenge. An overly easy victory could potentially make the veterans overconfident and the newcomers complacent. Naturally, they had to consider the other school's interest, and pick a school that wanted to improve, but was not overly concerned with tipping their hand to a prominent rival before the tournament.
Finding a school that satisfied these competing requirements was difficult enough, but other factors narrowed down the list of viable possibilities even further. St. Gloriana's schedule was entirely incompatible with Oarai's. Saunders and Anzio had other engagements in the immediate future, causing Miho to wonder whether they were having matches with each other. A few other schools failed to return Oarai's phone calls, or sent replies declining their request. Frustrated, Shiina once remarked out loud that they should settle for any school that was available and willing, and none of the others contested the possibility that it would come to that.
One of the few remaining options worth considering was BC Freedom Academy, the school that Oarai had faced in a practice match the previous year. So Miho's spirits rose when she heard Arakawa Kei, their commander, approve of the plan when Miho called her, with her coach, Fujita Yasuko, and the BC Freedom student council president also on the line.
"Yes, we are available this coming Sunday," Kei said. "And we would certainly be willing to face you again, Nishizumi-san."
The group representing Oarai, which consisted of the student council, Miho, Nodoka and Aiko, nodded approvingly.
"Thank you very much, Arakawa-san," Miho said.
"You're welcome," Kei said. "I do have a request, though, and I hope it doesn't sound too forward."
"No, please feel free to ask us," Miho said. "The terms for the match are ones that we both agree on, and we, at Oarai, are open-minded."
"You are going to bring 10 tanks this time, are you not?" Kei said.
"Yes, that's our entire team," Miho said, knowing full well that people knew that Oarai's team was small, and there was little point in pretending that they had more tanks or people that they were keeping in reserve. There was a time when they could count on people not knowing which tanks they had, but after Oarai's very public victory in the finals despite being outnumbered two to one, Oarai no longer had the advantage of obscurity.
"I thought so," Kei said. "In that case, we, too, would like to commit all of our tanks- 15 total- into the practice session. Doing so would enable all of our team to get practice against a strong opponent, and might potentially pose more of a challenge to you."
Miho glanced at Nodoka, whose expression turned concerned. None of those present and responsible for making the decision were entirely opposed to Kei's proposal, but a part of Miho believed that she could not accept without taking some time to discuss and consider it.
"I see," Miho said. "I'd like to consult with the Student Council before I agree to this."
Miho turned back to the Student Council, away from where the speaker phone would pick up their voices.
"What do you think?" Miho said.
"It does seem as though it would put them at an advantage," Shizuru said. "However, considering that this is a practice match, nothing would be at stake. Furthermore, unless I'm mistaken, did we not go up against similar odds last year?"
"Ten against seven, to be precise," Nodoka said. "At a ratio of about three opponents for every two of us, that's similar odds to what we would face if we say yes. Back then, it also gave us some idea of what we were up against in the tournament, primarily fighting against an opponent who outnumbered us, and will show us what we will face in the semi-finals. We're not guaranteed to win, but we should learn a few things from having another match, particularly how much we've improved and how much our opponents have."
"Perhaps BC Freedom would benefit from this," Ayano said, "but this is meant to be a mutually beneficial exercise, rather than a zero-sum exchange. Furthermore, if we're going to get that far in the tournament, we need to know how we'll do once we get there. As such, I think we'd benefit from it, so there's no reason to say no except for the - odds that we'll eventually face in the tournament."
"And you, Instructor?" Miho said to Aiko.
"To be honest, Nishizumi-san, in most cases, I haven't worked alongside many schools with this few tanks," Aiko said. "I know that most schools with larger teams are willing to match numbers with the smaller school, often to prepare their teams for the early rounds, or train some of the less experienced members of their teams." Aiko smiled slightly. "But of course, I haven't heard of many other schools that can do well while outnumbered, so perhaps you'll be able to pull this off. In any case, I would recommend that you say yes, although it is ultimately your decision. Do you agree?"
"Yes, ma'am," Miho said. "I think it would be worth a try, at least, so my answer will be yes."
The others nodded in approval, and Miho turned back to the receiver.
"Arakawa-san?" Miho said. "Are you still there?"
"Yes, Nishizumi-san," Kei said. "Have you reached a decision?"
"We accept your terms," Miho said. "Our ten crews will face your fifteen."
"Thank you, Nishizumi-san," Kei said. "Now let's get down to arranging a match. We'll be pulling into our home port at Sunday. Would coming there and having a match with us at 9 a.m. be best for you?"
Miho looked around, and Shizuru gave a nod of approval.
"That works just fine," Miho said. "We will see you there."
"I look forward to the match, Nishizumi-san," Kei said. "Until then."
"Goodbye," Miho said, before hanging up.
"Good work setting this up, Nishizumi-san," Shizuru said. "I believe that is all we need to discuss today, so you are free to go."
"Thank you all for your help," Miho said, bowing and taking her leave.
Outside the student council office, Miho and Nodoka prepared to part ways.
"There you are, Nodoka-chan!" Saki called out. "Would you like to walk home together?"
"Certainly, Saki," Nodoka said. "I will see you tomorrow at practice, Miho-senpai."
"I'll see you then, Nodoka-san, Saki-san," Miho said.
"Goodbye, Miho-senpai," Saki said.
Miho waved goodbye to the two, who were some of her closest friends outside her crew, as they walked away. As they left, Miho noticed two people behind her, and turned around to see Shiina and Natsumi, who had been waiting to speak with her.
"Do you have a minute, Nishizumi-san?" Natsumi said.
"Yes," Miho said. "Would you like to talk with me about something, Vice President, PR Rep?"
"You don't need to use our titles, Nishizumi-san," Shiina said, "We're not on the clock, so to speak. In fact, is it all right if we use first names?"
"I'm fine with that, Shiina-san," Miho said.
"I'm glad to hear that, Miho," Natsumi said. "Shiina and I were hoping that the president wasn't putting too much pressure on you."
"I don't think so, Natsumi-san," Miho said. "She's honest with me about the difficulties we all face, but she doesn't ask anything of me that I can't or shouldn't have to do."
"That's good," Shiina said. "The president has all sorts of responsibilities and obligations, and hopes that the tankery team's performance helps with them. In spite of that, winning is no longer as vitally important as last year, so you don't need to feel as though you're carrying the fate of this school on your shoulders again."
"We were also hoping to talk to Haramura-san," Natsumi said, "so that we could ask her the same question and extend to her the same offer. But she's already left, and she hasn't quite had the same... tankery background... as you do, so we'll meet with her later."
Miho paused, having some idea of what Natsumi was getting at, apart from the obvious reference to the previous year's tournament.
"To be honest, while last year was the first- and I hope the only- time I was fighting for such high stakes, with so many people who might potentially be impacted, I'm somewhat accustomed to fighting with a great deal on the line," Miho said. "My family sees perfection as the standard we all must meet, and has no tolerance for those who do not further their goal of perfection."
"Ah, yes, the Nishizumi style," Shiina said. "And I thought my mom was strict."
"But you didn't just go along with it, did you, Miho?" Natsumi said. "From what I've heard of the Nishizumi style, it's quite ruthless and demanding, and not at all like how you lead. As such, it hardly seems as though you just fell in line, even with all the pressure that you describe."
"No, I couldn't, Natsumi-san," Miho said, "because it was never in my nature to put victory above all else, treat people as tools, or keep distance from others as some of the more zealous practitioners of our style do. But I do what I do in large part because my older sister has chosen to be the heiress our mother needs, for the sake of allowing me to be whatever kind of person and tanker I wish. My sister once told me that if I wished to repay her for this gift, I could do so by cherishing and making the most of it."
"Wow, that's quite nice of her," Shiina said. "I'm an only child, as is Natsumi, so we're not sure what to expect from older siblings, or what to do for younger siblings"
"Neither am I," Miho said, "because my family is not much like any other family. I've heard of other tank families, and have a few friends from the Atago family, but the Nishizumi family is stricter than most of them. In spite of that, it's my family, and I can't change that, even if I'm not able to do the style of tankery my mother practices, teaches and hopes I will follow."
"That explains a great deal," Natsumi said. "Since Shiina and I have been forced to conform to our family's expectations in certain ways, we know that it takes a certain amount of courage to oppose your family in such a way, even if your sister is supporting you."
"Part of my courage comes from various people who are supporting and counting on me," Miho said. "It's for their sake that I hope to do as well as I can, and why I don't feel pressured while doing so, since they're doing their best as well. I recognize that I couldn't accomplish what I had without their efforts, so I strive to be the kind of leader they can count on."
Shiina and Natsumi looked at each other and exchanged a smile and a nod. Their worries about Miho had been dispelled, and they felt confident having her as their leader.
"That's a good perspective, Miho," Shiina said. "And because we know this, too, you can also count on us."
"Thank you, Shiina-san, Natsumi-san," Miho said. "I'll talk with you later."
With a bow and a wave, Miho hurried off to meet up with the four girls who had been some of her greatest and most reliable supporters in her time at the school.
Miho, entering the ice cream parlor, saw the rest of her crew, who waved her over.
"Sorry I'm late," Miho said. "I was briefly talking with two of the student council members, in addition to my meeting with the student council."
"That's not a problem, Miporin," Saori said. "We weren't waiting long, since we knew about your meeting."
"What did they say?" Hana said.
Miho smiled pleasantly and shook her head, wanting to be clear that she was not hiding anything from her friends. Over the course of the last year, she had learned that she could trust her friends with her secrets, such as her sensitive family issues and difficult experiences in the past, so she naturally felt comfortable being honest about herself with them.
"Not much," Miho said. "They just wanted to make sure I wasn't under too much pressure, and they were glad to hear I was able to do well with the others' support."
"That's good," Mako said. "I'm not a big fan of high-pressure 'motivation,' so this tournament should be somewhat more relaxing and fun."
"Well-said, Reizei-dono," Yukari said. "Tankery is meant to be enjoyed. Speaking of matches without concrete stakes, did you manage to get a practice match set up, Nishizumi-dono?"
"We did," Miho said. "We will be facing BC Freedom again, in their home port in Osaka, at 9 a.m. Sunday."
Mako sighed, her expression clearly disappointed.
"Is the starting time a problem, Mako?" Saori said. "It should be late enough that you don't need to get up early."
"That's not it," Mako said. "Think about it a moment, Saori; neither your parents nor my grandma will be able to come to this match. And since this is isn't an especially important match, it's not likely to be broadcast on television. The reporter for our news station didn't cover the match last year until the sports section of the evening news, and I don't think they'll send a crew to Osaka just for this."
"Oh," Saori said. "Most of our matches are as the 'home' team or in the tournament, so it's easy for my parents to see them."
Mako nodded. Her grandmother had collapsed at some point on the day of Oarai's first round, and had been hospitalized until the finals, catching most of the matches on television. She felt slightly jealous of Yukari, whose parents lived and worked on the Oarai ship and could come to all of their daughter's matches. Yukari, sensing this, decided not to speak up.
"You are not alone, Mako-san, Saori-san," Hana said. "My mother lives in the city of Mito, and I believe Miho-san's mother lives in an entirely different prefecture."
"Kumamoto prefecture, specifically, the city of the same name," Miho said. "But incidentally, I recently heard from Isobe-san and Tsuyama-san that for smaller tournaments, such as mahjong clubs or volleyball teams, they simply arrange transportation for the members off the ships, rather than waiting for the ships to dock."
"I see," Yukari said. "In that case, let's do our best, so we have something good to tell our parents."
Miho remained silent, unable to say anything in response. In spite of her mother's near obsession with victory, she wanted victory in her school's name, in the style her family had taught for generations, since Miho's great-grandmother had founded the school. Even if Oarai won, its victory would not likely be one that Shiho would approve of.
Naturally, Miho's personality and style of tankery had led her to conflict with her mother on many occasions. In Miho's first year of high school, this had culminated in Miho saving the crew of one of her team's tanks from drowning, but abandoning the flag tank in the process. Shiho had vocally disapproved of this decision and Miho, knowing that she would otherwise be unable to escape pressure from her mother, had transferred to Oarai.
At Oarai, Miho had initially been unwilling to get into tankery again, but she chose to do it because of her friends' support, glad to find those who would give her their unconditional support, and out of the belief that this would be a team that was very different from her old school. Miho's belief was proven correct, as the majority of Oarai fought on without the same expectations for victory that Black Forest had, even when winning was necessary to save their school. To the former student council, the tournament was a chance for Oarai to stay alive, and if nothing else, a small bit of hope that was preferable to giving in to despair and closing the school down, with the students spending their final year at Oarai with the school gradually shutting down.
In the semifinals, Shiho had, while believing Miho had never been a vital part of Black Forest, threatened her with being disowned if she were to lose to Saunders. In spite of the odds against her, Miho won against Saunders, and repeated the feat with Black Forest in the finals, in spite of Shiho's belief that Miho would never be able to defeat Maho.
But while Miho was able to resist the pressure her mother put on her, win against her family's style and even stave off the threat of being disowned, she could not so easily convince Shiho of the validity of her style, as Shiho hoped to reassert the Nishizumi style's superiority. Itsumi Erika, who was one of Shiho's students, and a rival of Miho's for the position of vice-captain for Black Forest, was essentially Shiho's champion in the tournament. As such, Shiho would be rooting for Erika, rather than her own younger daughter.
Saori, realizing that they could not make any progress toward solving the problem at the moment, and it was making Miho uncomfortable, decided to change the subject. They would have a great deal of time to deal with Black Forest when they faced the former champion again, but for now, they would enjoy themselves and deal with their more immediate task of a rematch with BC Freedom.
The day of the match, the ship pulled into port, alongside the BC Freedom school ship, which was somewhat larger than Oarai's. Some newcomers to Oarai marveled at how large it was by comparison, while Miho, having come from Black Forest, knew that Oarai's school ship was relatively small. She was well aware that Oarai was in many ways different from the schools she had attended in the past, being smaller, having relatively humble ambitions and having fewer expectations on its tankers. While some would consider Oarai less impressive because of those qualities, Miho appreciated her school because it was all of those things, and hoped to do what she could to help Oarai stand against better-regarded schools.
The ten tanks proceeded off the ship through the ramp used for unloading cars, along with many other residents of the ship, who had decided to come ashore for various reasons. Some had to go there for work, others wanted to have leisure time there, and still others simply wanted to spend time on dry land. For Oarai, it was a combination of these motives. They sought to face BC Freedom for the sake of their improvement as a team and because it was fun, as well as hoping to see the port city once they were finished.
In a forest clearing on the battlefield, Oarai's ten commanders stood across from the fifteen BC Freedom commanders. Miho noticed some new faces in the crowd, whether people who had not had a chance to fight alongside the others the previous year, those who were new to commanding, or those who were new to the team, and suspected the team had changed just like Oarai's had.
As Aiko and Yasuko introduced themselves to each other, Kei's new vice captain approached Nodoka.
"Haramura Nodoka-san?" Hatsuse said. "I'm Okahashi Hatsuse, vice captain. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
"It's nice to meet you as well," Nodoka said. "But do you know me?"
"We have a friend in common," Hatsuse said. "Ako's looking forward to how both of our schools do."
Nodoka remembered Hatsuse after hearing this. She knew that Hatsuse was a friend of Ako's from middle school, which meant that Hatsuse did not know the other members of Harue's tankery club from Achiga, nor people like Arata and Kirame, whom Ako had met in high school.
"That's good to hear," Nodoka said. "I'll send your regards to her some time after the match, and let her know how it went."
Yasuko nodded, and chose the moment to segue into another announcement.
"Before I forget," Yasuko said, "among the many people who will be watching this match, there are two you may know well."
Yasuko gestured toward Takei Hisa, the former vice-captain of the Oarai tankery team, and Fukuji Mihoko, former commander of St. Gloriana. The two had first met each other in their final year of middle school, as commanders of opposing sides, and had reconnected after Hisa's team had defeated Mihoko's in the quarterfinals of the previous tournament. The two had become close friends, and were attending university together.
"It's nice to see you again, Hisa-senpai, Fukuji-san," Miho said.
"Same here, Miho," Hisa said. "I'm looking forward to seeing how the newcomers fare and how much everyone else has improved as they face the one opponent that defeated us last year."
"You and Arakawa-san have a great deal in common, Nishizumi-san," Mihoko said. "Some may call your schools weak, but you fight at a level far beyond what most think you capable of, which is an admirable feat."
"Thank you," Miho said, as she smiled appreciatively.
"Thank you for the kind words, Fukuji-san," Kei said. "It's certainly encouraging to hear that."
"Indeed," Yasuko said. "I'm of the belief that not all odds can be overcome, but there's a certain value in trying, which is worthwhile." She then gestured at Hisa. "A certain friend of mine often reminds me about what it means to persist when the odds are against you."
"I know," Hisa said. "But this time, I can't honestly say whether Oarai or BC Freedom is at the disadvantage."
Miho nodded. While Oarai was the champion, it was by no means invincible. This was especially true when it still fielded fewer tanks than the majority of its rivals, and that many of those tanks were of decidedly lower quality. While BC Freedom had lost in the first round of the previous tournament, it had defeated Oarai before, so with numerical superiority, there was a very real chance that it could repeat that feat.
But at the same time, while Oarai was no longer in danger of closing down, it had not lost its determination, which it had often exhibited even while most of its members were ignorant of what was at stake. For the sake of its pride as a school, and for the sake of pursuing the same hope that all underdogs sought, it would prevail.
Author's Notes
The match with BC Freedom is the only time Oarai will face an opponent it has already fought against, at least until the finals. The main reason why I chose to have them face BC Freedom again was because Oarai had lost to them before; for this reason, I hope that Oarai has a rematch with St. Gloriana in canon.
The Maginot manga has some interesting information about why certain schools might refuse Oarai's request for a match, which I included here. Some may not want to show much of their arsenal or tactics prior to the tournament (although I'm curious as to how much of each, perhaps save for the Maus, are surprises to those who are well-informed). It's also indicated that it's close to the tournament, which might pose problems for scheduling the matches.