Chapter 11: Desires and Obligations
The first round of the tournament took the longest amount of time to finish, as all of the competing schools had to participate. Several had already had their turn by the time Oarai had their match, and several had yet to go.
For the schools that had won, there was plenty of time to prepare for their next match, such as by practicing, watching their potential rivals or studying about where they could improve. For the schools had lost, there was far more time to prepare for the next year, to try again in hopes of succeeding where they had failed, and for the students who wanted to do tankery in the future to practice and hone their skills, wherever their paths would lead in the future.
One thing was certain; Oarai would need to improve itself to keep up with its opponents, and ensure that the team remained strong, both in the present and in years to come.
Miho started up Skype, and had a call with her sister, Hiroe and Hiroko in the evening a few days after Miho's first match. The main topic of discussion were the matches between Oarai and Joghurt, and between Rhineland and Momotaro.
"That sounds like it was a good match, Miho" Maho said, after hearing an in-depth account of the match. "Again, congratulations."
"Thank you, Onee-chan," Miho said.
"My friends and I from Pravda also got to see it, Miho-chan," Kinue said. "I'd hoped to see your match, Maho-san, but it was on the same day."
"You didn't miss much, Kinue," Maho said. "The battle went somewhat easily for me. But out of curiosity, have you, your sister or your cousin heard of the Kumano family?"
"Yeah," Hiroe said. "We keep tabs on a lot of the 'competition,' not just the Nishizumis, even if their current heiress didn't put up a good showing."
"To some degree, she seemed jealous of me," Maho said. "Specifically, that I was in charge of my school, while she took longer to get command of hers, and felt as though she couldn't quite live up to her mother."
"Wow, projecting much?" Hiroe said, her tone containing a mix of amused disdain and annoyance before turning more serious and slightly sympathetic. "But in all seriousness, I do understand where she's coming from. I have had to work harder than most to prove myself, and I honestly considered choosing a school besides Pravda and Black Forest so I wouldn't be compared to Mom. But I decided to work hard at overcoming it, rather than snipe at people in a similar situation."
"That's right, Hiroe," Hiroko said. "And for better or worse, when you have something to say to someone, you come out and say it, rather than making passive-aggressive remarks like that."
"Still, she did apologize," Maho said. "And she did put up as much of a fight as she could. In that regard, the younger Kumano-san is doing her best in the same way."
"Yeah, I get it," Hiroe said. "Still, I do hope that she can forfeit her claim to inherit the school, or, for lack of a better word, 'get fired' without being disowned. Mom made it clear that if I couldn't meet her standards, I'd simply stop teaching for her."
"I hope so, too," Miho said. "I was never able to carry on the Nishizumi family legacy the way Mother hoped I would, but I still hope that she considers me a daughter in spite of that, and that Instructor Kumano feels the same way toward her daughter."
The conversation continued for a few more minutes, as the participants discussed their lives at school.
"I have to go fairly soon," Maho said. "I'm going to have to get up early tomorrow, since I'm going to visit Oarai."
"Nice," Hiroe said. "Hiroko and I have been pretty busy lately, since it won't be long before our second match. What about you, Kinue?"
"My match with BC Freedom is relatively soon," Kinue said, "the first one after the other schools finish their first matches. As much as I would personally like to see Oarai someday, perhaps that will have to wait for another time."
The conversation wound down and the participants said goodbye to each other, hoping to talk again soon. They had their own lives and their own responsibilities, but still enjoyed the chance to step away from them and talk with each other openly, honestly and about any variety of things.
Maho arrived at Oarai in the morning, and met with Miho, who was waiting with the rest of Anglerfish Team near her school.
"Good to see you here, Miho," Maho said.
"Hi, Onee-chan," Miho said. "I'd like to introduce my friends."
Miho went around and made introductions. Maho had heard all their names before, and had met them on multiple occasions, but this was a good time to start over, to show them the sister
"So what plans do you have?" Hana said.
"We were planning to meet for lunch with the Miyanaga sisters, as well as Sumire and her cousin," Maho said.
"Sounds great!" Saori said. "The four of us all have... prior commitments for today, so we'll leave you to it."
The rest of Anglerfish Team said goodbye and went their separate ways from Maho and Miho. As soon as they were out of earshot of Miho and Maho, though, Mako turned back to Saori.
"You're pretty good at coming up with excuses on the fly Saori," Mako said, "but this seems unusually forced; we don't actually have any plans for today. What's up?"
"I think Miporin could use a little space today," Saori said. "She doesn't get to see her sister that often, and when she saw her, it was usually while her sister was acting as commander, so they couldn't really talk. They deserve some time by themselves, as sisters, without feeling as though she needs to include us. We have plenty of time to see each other later."
"That makes sense," Yukari said. Having eavesdropped on a conversation between Miho and her sister after the semifinals in the previous tournament, Yukari had some idea of the personality Maho had behind the facade, and how much Miho meant to her. She was glad to meet Maho and truly get to know her, but also believed that she deserved time with Miho alone.
Miho and Maho walked together through the streets of Oarai Academy's school ship, on their way to meet up with the others. As they passed various places Miho knew well, Miho pointed them out and sometimes provided a story about an experience she had at them.
"So, what do you think of Oarai so far, Onee-chan?" Miho said.
"It's good to finally see your school, Miho," Maho said. "It definitely seems smaller and more lively than Black Forest, so I can see why you would like it more."
"The team's certainly easier to get to know, given that it's smaller and less competitive," Miho said. "I know everyone's names, and at least a few things about each person, not just my friends. There's all sorts of people on the team- novices and veterans, athletes and intellectuals, the tech savvy and those who don't use it as much, and so on and so forth. I believe that by starting from square one and not having any expectations, we ended up being inviting for more people."
"That's true," Maho said. "Of course, those who would want to join a winning team would likely not find it attractive."
"I suppose not," Miho said. "But Nodoka-san and her friends had their own reasons for getting involved in Oarai's tankery team, so not everyone seeks out a winning team."
Maho nodded.
"True," Maho said. "I once spoke with an Oarai alumna at my university- no one you would know, since she graduated the year before you came. She said that she was not one to look for the best, but what was good, and what was the right fit for her. She said that even if Oarai was not the top-ranked school, she believed she learned a great deal there."
Miho smiled. Her sister had long believed Oarai was simply a place she had chosen to run away from tankery, but over time, it had become her home, as a place better suited to her than Black Forest was.
"So you do know quite a bit about Oarai already, Onee-chan," Miho said. "So how has the rest of our family been?"
"Mother has been striving had to reassert the Nishizumi school's dominance," Maho said. "She has been tirelessly looking over the curriculum, seeing where we can improve, even if her goal and her standards for our students still remain as focused on perfection as they have always been. She no longer sees you as the cause of all our problems, but she still hopes you will lose to Erika, in the end."
Miho let off a sigh. She had known that Shiho's beliefs, instilled in her at a young age and reinforced through a lifetime of receiving and giving rigorous training, as well as her school's continued success in tankery, would not be overturned so easily. In spite of that, she had hoped that she would be swayed more by recent events than she had, which is why she considered her sister's news disheartening.
"I thought so," Miho said, before her mind turned to one of the main pillars of support for her mother; Shiho's husband and Miho and Maho's father, Nishizumi Homura. "And what about Father?"
"For him, work's proceeding largely the same as usual," Maho said. "Even though he can't directly be involved in the Nishizumi school, he does what he can to support us through his work at his parts dealership."
Miho nodded. The Nishizumi family was not unlike the Nishizumi school in some regards. All members were required to do their part and make sacrifices for the sake of the collective's mission. But what could the members expect in return? The only benefits seemed to be top-notch tankery training- which also served as enhancing one's ability to fight in the Nishizumi school's name- and the prestige of calling oneself a Nishizumi alumna.
Neither of these benefits seemed to be very appealing to a young Miho, who saw little reason to do tankery until she made her first friends in it. But as Miho got older and made more friends, she soon realized how few families were anything like hers. Her friends had their own desires and goals; they saw tankery as a fun diversion, and did not approach it with the same fanaticism as the Nishizumis and their disciples. Miho enjoyed doing tankery with her friends more than her family's students, and realized she had more in common with her friends than her own family. She had to wonder; would they be forced to give up those goals if they worked under someone more in line with the Nishizumi style?
Sensing Miho's discomfort, and knowing about the long-standing issues at the root of it, Maho spoke.
"It may only be my opinion, Miho," Maho said, "but no organization is completely homogeneous, and while all organizations have certain expectations of their members, I don't believe they should force their members to stop thinking about themselves. Family is no exception, since for the most part, membership is not a choice."
"I agree, Onee-chan," Miho said. "I think it's because I've met so many people with different ways of tankery and reasons for doing it that I didn't unquestioningly accept our family's style of tankery. I do everything I can to win, but one thing I cannot do is to ask my subordinates to unquestioningly give up their own desires and what they hold dear in the name of victory."
"Ah, yes, I remember those girls you did tankery with all those years ago," Maho said. "I was glad to see that you'd made friends, and to hear that you've recently resumed contact with them. It seems like you've been quite successful at that regard once again at Oarai."
As Miho nodded pleasantly, Maho left unspoken how she had relatively few friends, and those few she had tended to be outside her family's school. Said individuals did not judge her in comparison to her mother- which was fortunate, since they disagreed with or outright despised Shiho- but considered her own merits, just like Miho did.
Maho was many things apart from a Nishizumi heiress or a commander, and her reasons for coming to visit Oarai were not related to either role. She simply wished to spend some time with her sister, see her sister's school and meet with some friends in the process.
"I, too, have simple desires of my own, wholly separate from those of my mother and our school," Maho thought. "I do wonder sometimes how things would have gone if I had come to school here."
Miho and Maho arrived in the cafe, where Teru, Satomi and Sumire were waiting in the lobby.
"You're right on time," Sumire said. "Satomi and I were just discussing each other's matches."
"Satomi?" Miho said.
"My cousin," Sumire said. "Or, 'Saro,' as she somehow came to be known around Oarai."
Miho chuckled softly at Sumire's blunt description of Saro's nickname, as they proceeded to a table and sat down. Saki arrived a few minutes later, and seemed slightly out of breath as she found their table, and Teru waved her over.
"Hello, everyone; I'm sorry I'm late," Saki said. "I had a bit of trouble finding this place."
The others simply nodded. Sense of direction had never been Saki's strong suit.
"It's been a while, Hirose-senpai," Saki said to the one member of the group she knew well but had not seen in the recent past.
"Just Sumire, please," Sumire said. "We go back some ways, and I've been meaning to make that request to you for a while now."
"The same goes with me," Saro said. "Since you know my cousin, 'Satomi-senpai', or 'Satomi-san' is fine."
"Alright... Sumire-senpai, Satomi-senpai?" Saki said.
The two Hiroses nodded in approval.
"So now that everyone's here, how have things been at Oarai?" Teru said.
"Fairly good, Onee-chan," Saki said. "You saw our victory over Joghurt, and practice has been going well."
"That's good," Sumire said, before glancing at her cousin. "But what about the rookies of the team?"
"Tankery's going somewhat better these days," Saro said. "I still feel as though I'm catching up to the others, but at least I'm making some progress."
"Everyone feels that way at first, Satomi," Sumire said. "When I first started in middle school, I felt as though I had to not only measure up against the rest of my yearmates and peers, but also meet my parents' standards."
"Which you ultimately did, Sumire," Teru said. "I don't approve of the pressure your parents put on you, but do believe that you had what it took."
"Saki-san told me a little about her old middle school," Miho said. "It was fairly small, but you still had tankers to spare, correct?"
"That's true, Miho-senpai," Saki said. "And now that I think about it, Oarai is different from Hanekoma in that regard. In many other schools, you try to be among the best, lest they find someone to replace you. Here, you try hard because there's no one to replace you."
"Perhaps that may not always remain true, Saki," Teru said. "Hanekoma's team was relatively young, having been started a few years before I got here. The year I arrived, essentially all the newcomers were guaranteed spots on the team, but the year you did, only the most promising first-years, like you and Mizuho, had a chance."
"And what about those who didn't have a chance?" Miho said. "What happened to them?"
"They simply did what they could to be of use to the team and prove themselves," Sumire said. "And after... people started leaving, they comprised the majority of the the last holdouts, before they, too, gave up."
Miho solemnly nodded, and the others at the table shared her sentiments. The tragedy that had ended Mizuho's life was no longer a taboo subject, but it was a somewhat depressing conversation subject.
Teru, noticing that the conversation had turned awkward, decided to speak.
"Of course, Miho, while no one can perfectly predict the future, your school's team will not necessarily suffer the same fate as the one Saki, Mizuho, Sumire and I were on in middle school," Teru said. "Where there's a will, there's a way, and it's up to you to ensure that your team keeps going after you graduate, and gains members without losing its identity."
Miho nodded appreciatively, and allowed the conversation to shit to subjects besides tankery. She believed every school she had attended, every tankery match she had fought, and everyone she had met had lessons of their own to teach her, and was always glad to learn from someone else's experience. She hoped to pass those lessons on to the team, and help it grow as a product of everyone's knowledge and experiences.
At the end of a practice battle, Nodoka peered out of the top hatch of the Tas, and saw the disabled Panzer IV. Anglerfish Team had been circling around Octopus Team for one final attack in the hopes of winning when Saki had managed to get a solid hit on their tank, disabling them and taking out the last survivor of the opposing team.
Nodoka realized that the deck had been stacked somewhat in her favor. Both sides had a combination of crews that they had never had before, but Nodoka's side, at least in her mind, seemed to include the better half of the team. But winning against Miho was a pleasant change of pace for Nodoka, regardless of the circumstances. They were also planning to put Azusa, a possible candidate for the next vice-captain, in charge of one side for a few practice matches, to get her used to commanding the team.
While highly competitive, Nodoka had never seen Miho as a rival. Part of the reason was because they were on the same team, which meant that if either of them improved, the team as a whole benefited. All the same, Nodoka hoped to catch up to Miho and command as well as she did, for the sake of their teammates. The fact that Oarai in general and Nodoka in particular were no longer as desperate to win the tournament as they had been last year was not cause for Nodoka to relax her efforts or become complacent. She still hoped to win, as it seemed like the natural goal for which all contestants in the tournament aimed, even if she did not pursue it with the same zeal as the Nishizumi school.
Nodoka realized that most of her friends, both the ones she had made at Oarai and the ones she had in the past, were hardly people who would be typical Nishizumi disciples. The timid and shy Yuu, as well as her more outgoing but still modest and affable younger sister did not exude the arrogance that many believed the Nishizumi style practitioners often showed. The highly energetic Shizuno and Yuuki were a far cry from the humorless stereotype of the Nishizumis. Kirame, who was glad to simply be of use to her teammates, Hisa, who wanted to re-establish Oarai's tankery team and Saki, who wanted to reconcile with her sister and enjoy tankery, had ambitions very different from the Nishizumi belief in victory above all else. Even Miho, the younger daughter of the head of the school, was no exception. Granted, not all Nishizumi disciples fit the mold, but Nodoka's friends deviated from Nishizumi standards enough that they were happier and more successful doing tankery their own ways.
Nodoka's friends at Oarai had helped her win the tournament, and the old friends she knew at Saunders had put up a worthy fight against her. She thus sought to lead her friends at her school to victory against those who would be thought stronger than them, and put up a good fight for her old friends when and if she faced them again.
Leopon Team had an individual practice session that ran late, putting their Porsche Tiger through a variety of tests of its performance. Doing so outside of the practice matches was a way by which they could carry out those tests without the pressure of battle, and practice their jobs until they could perform them reliably under fire. They could also more easily collect data on how the tank performed, and they did their jobs in it.
Luckily for the team, the data that Tsuchiya collected showed that they were improving as a team. They could keep the tank in the game longer, enabling its heavy armor to fend off more enemy shells that might otherwise be aimed at their more lightly armored teammates. They could fire more quickly and more accurately, enabling the to use their powerful gun to devastating effect. Lastly, they could move their tank more effectively over all sorts of terrain, preventing it from becoming a hindrance to the team while the others were advancing or retreating.
Tsuchiya glanced at her watch and then out at the setting sun, realizing that it was time to go. The four girls from the auto club would have to change out of their tankery uniforms, walk home and then do their homework, chores and other day-to-day activities. All extracurricular activities were impositions on students' time, and tankery was particularly intensive in this regard, especially when combined with the auto club. In spite of that, somehow, going the extra mile for it was not as unpleasant for Leopon Team as it once was.
"I think that's enough for one day," Tsuchiya said. "We're doing better lately, but we still have a lot of room for improvement. Is everyone up for another practice session at the same time tomorrow?"
The other three enthusiastically nodded.
"I must admit, I'm surprised," Tsuchiya said. "I haven't heard a word of complaint out of you three about this."
"If we're going to be competing in tankery matches from here on out, it'd be best if we didn't also end up making asses of ourselves while doing so," Gotou said.
"Yeah," Rokubungi said. "We're supposed to help the tankery team, after all, so we owe it to them to do well."
Nanami nodded in agreement.
Tsuchiya smiled, somewhat satisfied with how things were progressing. Perhaps her teammates were still viewing participation as a matter of duty and fulfilling their obligations, but they were becoming more willing to do that duty.
After parking their tank in the tank garage, they met with Aiko, who had stayed behind to supervise the training session..
"So you're done for the day, ladies?" Aiko said.
"Yes, ma'am," Tsuchiya said. "I'm sorry to keep you here late."
"Don't be," Aiko said. "I won't be around for long, so all of you should make use of my services while you can."
Aiko's hours for her teaching days extended some time after the end of the tankery practice, with the time being used for a variety of purposes. Sometimes, it was used for practices that went longer than expected, while other times it was used for holding private meetings with certain members, or doing various work. While she had spent some of this time with Leopon Team, she would have time for some of her other tasks, including concluding her time as Oarai's second temporary tankery instructor.
Aiko's temporary assignment soon ended, and she, like her predecessor, reported before the student council, Miho and Nodoka, sharing her findings and making recommendations for the future. She would no longer be teaching Oarai, but she did not see this as the end of her obligations to them, and hoped that her advice would be useful to them in the long term.
"My final recommendation is a full-time faculty member who can coach tankery," Aiko said. "Such a person would be vital in getting the newcomers up to speed, and being an established voice of experience in the absence of people like Nishizumi-san and Haramura-san. Being able to recruit top talent for those coaches is one reason why the established schools have the advantage they do. So I ask; is it feasible or Oarai at this point?"
The student council looked at each other and shook their heads sadly.
"Unfortunately, Instructor, at this point, we cannot feasibly hire a full-time instructor," Shizuru said. "We are currently looking into our options, but we will not likely have anyone in place for this year."
"I understand," Aiko said. "This is somewhat standard advice I give to the schools I serve as an instructor. It is the optimal course, although I do recognize that if more schools could have full-time tankery instructors, there would be no need for my services."
"Oarai is the team it is largely because of its circumstances," Miho said. "Because our tanks are inferior, we have to outmaneuver the enemy. Because so few of us have much tankery training, we forgo conventional strategy. Having better tanks and more experience will prove helpful, but even if we obtain them, we should never forget where we began, or where we came from."
Aiko nodded.
"I've helped instruct at many different schools," Aiko said. "One middle school, in its first year of tankery, had only a handful of tankettes and light tanks, and not enough students for even those tanks; the tankettes were purchased at a very low price as part of a trial run, although the program fizzled out. They also did not even have tankery uniforms, not even the jackets you girls use."
"Ah, these?" Miho said, pointing at her own jacket. "The fabric club made them last year."
"That's a solution," Aiko said. "Most of the schools have contracts with various companies that also supply school uniforms; I recall that Pravda gets its school and tankery uniforms from the same manufacturer. It seems like a good sign of support from your school's clubs."
"Well, the fabric club isn't doing it for free," Ayano said. "They're officially reimbursed for the materials required to make the uniforms. It's significantly cheaper than buying them from an outside supplier, but they are not paying out of their own pockets, nor should they."
"That makes sense," Aiko said. "And just to confirm what I heard once, is it true that Oarai's tanks were found around the school ship?"
"Yes, ma'am," Miho said, "for the most part, by the people who now crew them. Most of us started out looking for our tanks before practice even began. There was a great deal of ground to cover, so the student council mobilized all of us to have more eyes searching."
"I see," Aiko said. "That's a good story, and I believe that it nicely sums up what you need for the future. You will need external support for the club to remain in operation, but you will also need a strong team that works well- individually and together- for the tankery team to continue thriving. I've done what I could to help you, but in the end, that's something that you and future generations will have to do for yourselves."
Miho nodded, remembering the advice Hisa had heard from her professor. Oarai's success came from many different sources- skill, hard work, ingenuity and luck- but none of what they had accomplished had come from waiting around for someone to simply hand them what they needed. Additional funding and support would be necessary to keep winning and grow as a team, but for now, they would do what they could to succeed with what they hadprove that they would be a good investment.
Shortly after leaving Oarai and returning to her apartment, Aiko placed a call to Ami, who was off duty at the moment.
Ami, sitting in her room in casual clothing, picked up the phone.
"Chouno Ami speaking," Ami said, her standard way of answering the phone while off duty.
"Hello, Ami, it's been a while," Aiko said. "How have you been lately?"
"My assignment at Joghurt ended a few days ago, Aiko," Ami said, taking on a more informal tone as she realized Aiko was not calling on the job. "Your assignment at Oarai should be ending just about now, right?"
"It just did," Aiko said. "The students learned well, although I was probably 'the strict one' compared to you."
Ami chuckled slightly.
"You know, Aiko, from our teaching styles, it's sometimes hard to tell that I was the one who graduated from the Nishizumi school," Ami said.
"It actually makes sense if you think about it," Aiko said. "Because I've had to struggle and try hard in the past, I tend to push people a bit more, to make sure they're doing their best, and because I nearly flunked out, I recognize the value of giving under-performers wake-up calls. At the same time, because things didn't come easily to me, I have compassion for the slower learners, and because I was given a second chance, I don't write people off as failures."
"That seems about right," Ami said. "Oarai is essentially doing things the hard way, albeit not by choice, so the team will have to accomplish a great deal if they hope to prevail. Despite, or perhaps because, of that, its tankers are not going to get everything the first time, and one should be patient with them. I learned that lesson from you, and it was driven home by teaching at many schools that were different from my alma mater."
"You're welcome, Ami," Aiko said. "But speaking of our alma maters, do you ever feel a conflict between your desire to watch your student succeed and your loyalty to the Nishizumi school? While I hope for Oarai's success, that hope is tempered by the fact that one of their opponents is not only my alma mater, but is commanded by my instructor's younger daughter."
Ami paused to think about her response for a moment. Her friends came from a variety of backgrounds, and the only ones she had from the Nishizumi school were Ami and Takako. As a result of knowing them, she had also come to realize the validity of other approaches, although she still remained indebted to the Nishizumi school for teaching her the skills that enabled her to become successful.
"I know all too well what you mean, and my answer is yes," Ami said. "Miho-san's successes are not in the Nishizumi school's name, or by the Nishizumi school's ways, which is one reason why Instructor Nishizumi disapproved so strongly. Although... she has recently started to wonder if Miho-san is not the only onat fault for the Nishizumi school's recent troubles."
Aiko sighed.
"Only a Nishizumi would call placing second in the national tournament two years in a row a failure," Aiko said. "That said, I do understand where they're coming from, and believe that a bit of self-reflection is always a good thing."
"Even as a Nishizumi disciple, I'm not entirely sure about what I want for Black Forest," Ami said. "On the one hand, I want my school to remain well-respected, and a large part of the reason why I try so hard is so that they will do so. On the other hand, perhaps a defeat may be more important to them than a victory if they learn the proper lessons from it and rededicate themselves to improving."
"I understand what you're getting at," Aiko said. "To play devil's advocate, that could apply to Oarai as well."
"Perhaps," Ami said. "Of course, as always, it's mainly a matter of what they learn from their lessons- the ones you taught them, the ones I taught them, and their many other experiences. Their opponents have certainly learned since last time, and are eager to show them."
"Indeed," Aiko said. "Let's see how things play out from here on out."
Oarai's two teachers had imparted different lessons on the fledgling tankery team, and both, in spite of their loyalty to some of their rivals, were interested in seeing how Oarai would rise to the occasion against them. The coming tournament would shape Oarai's future in the months and years to come, and they hoped Oarai would continue onward in tankery.
Author's Notes
This is a transitional chapter that mainly focuses on Oarai, as well as touching on the Nishizumi school's role in this installment of the story.
One could imagine the conflict between Miho's way of tankery and the Nishizumi school (or at least, Shiho's version of it) is a conflict between two interpretations of what the team means to an individual, and what the former can expect of the latter. Shiho's way could be considered the "dark" side, in which subordinates sacrifice for their leader, who fights for her own goals and, to some extent, sees them as means to an end (albeit an end that many of her subordinates willingly and wholeheartedly support). Meanwhile, Miho's way could be considered the "light side," as she does her best for the sake of those under her command, and while she does acknowledge that she depends on their efforts, she also doesn't want them to give up on their personal goals for the team's sake; rather, she hopes that they can achieve them by fighting alongside her.
Interestingly enough, Miho, while by no means a selfish individual, feels relatively little sense of duty to her family, or desire to actively win her mother's approval. For the former, she makes it clear in her internal monologue near the end of Little Army that tankery is not about her family or emulating her sister, but the shared experiences she and her friends have. As for the latter, she's known since Chapter 7 of Little Army what it takes to get her mother's approval.
Oarai will have a great deal of work ahead in the long term, years in the future, far beyond what this fic will cover. As always, with its present secure, it can look toward the future and think beyond what might possibly be its last year in operation.
Character Analysis: Shiho Nishizumi
Shiho's goals- upholding the honor of her family name and keeping her family's school as the best- have been established already and remain largely the same. Miho is disappointed but not surprised at her mother's remaining static and unchanging, albeit grateful that she is in the family and Shiho is not likely to disown her on a whim. Shiho has realized that Miho cannot so easily be scapegoated for what ails the Nishizumi school, nor will disassociating herself from Miho be a panacea. These past few years have challenged Shiho, and she may no longer be able to blame her school's defeats on others.
Of course, Shiho has seen Miho's success, and is starting to wonder if, despite the fact that she does not advance the Nishizumi's cause, she is not a detriment to them, either. Shiho will thus hope that Miho loses against Erika, but wonders if, perhaps, Miho winning every battle until then may not be such a bad thing after all.