Saturday, 1st Week of July, 2033

Oarai Girls' High School

1:05 PM

Two days after Noriko's arrival

"Are we seriously watching this right now?"

"Of course, Takeda-san! It could give us some good ideas regarding strategy!"

Yuna and her commanders were all in one of the empty tank sheds, sitting on the cold stone floor as they mindlessly stared at an old flat-screen TV which showed footage from 2016 of an old Senshadō match Miho took part in.

"This is your idea of learning tactics, Fujiwara? Nothing's happening!" Akira exclaimed.

"Well, this is how I formulated all my strategies, Kaichou! It's thanks to this that I won the sparring match yesterday!" said the commander without sounding too cocky.

"You were lucky, you bastard! It's Shingen's fault that we lost so easily!"

"It's your fault for being such a jackass," the history buff countered, "All you did was hide behind a bush. I at least scored a kill."

This caused the two to turn on each other. "You know what, fuck you and your shitty ass cosplay! We would have been better off if you hadn't come here!"

"What the hell did you just call me, you bitch?!"

Among the chaos, the leader of the freshmen Ryu remarked, "You guys have problems…"

The two commanders were ready to throw hands when all of a sudden, they heard the door to the room open and quickly close.

"Keep the ruckus down, will ya? I can hear you all the way from the gates!" everyone turned around and to their surprise, they saw Nishizumi Miho herself standing by the door.

Their instructor, who had been absent for two days, had just inexplicably popped up from out of nowhere.

Immediately upon seeing her, Yuna jumped out of her seat and rushed to embrace her beloved idol.

Miho swiftly countered her by pressing her hand against her head, preventing her from getting close. "Good to see you haven't changed a bit, Fujiwara…"

"Of course! No matter what, I'll always look up to you, Nishizumi-sensei!" she exclaimed, to which the instructor rolled her eyes.

"Ahem, so I'm assuming you're back in business now, sensei?" Akira asked, fixing her monocle after her recent scuffle with Takeda.

"Yeah that's right," she responded, crossing her arms before muttering, "Probably not for long though…"

She's thinking of getting blackout drunk again, isn't she? Classic Miho…

"So is there a reason you've switched up your clothing choice into more casual wear?" asked the president.

Instead of her usual JGSDF uniform, Miho now wore a denim jacket and grey baggy jeans. "My uniform got a bit too dirty to the point where it couldn't be washed anymore. It's not like there's a dress code for people like me anyway," she shrugged. "Now could you tell me what the hell you guys are doing here in the middle of lunchtime? You should be hanging out with your other crewmates in the cafeteria or something."

Yuna answered this one, "Oh uh well, Isobe-sensei told us to do some research on Senshadō in our free time and this was the first idea I came up with so you know…"

"Isobe-sensei? Isn't she like the gym teacher or something?"

"Yeah but since we didn't have anybody else to teach us, she volunteered to act as a sub!"

"And she managed to single-handedly improve our skills in only two days," Akira added in a somewhat mocking way.

"Yeah! She taught us how to take cover, Nishizumi-sensei!"

"Wha… That's common knowledge, kid. Everyone who knows even an inkling of how tank battles work knows how to take cover."

"Well usually, we would have known of this by now but we've been left uneducated all this time. I wonder whose fault that is?"

"I dunno," she said nonchalantly as if she was ignoring the president. "Anyways, I'll see you girls after class… I need'a go for a smoke. Don't be late for practice, ya hear?" and with that, she turned around and walked out of the door.

Goddammit! Don't tell me the plan failed! Akira thought, displeased.

The room became silent for a couple of minutes, in which the six commanders just stood awkwardly occasionally sharing glances.

"So uhh… what was that about, Kaichou?" Yuna asked, "You seemed kinda confrontational towards sensei back there."

"It's nothing. Lunchtime is almost over so get back to your classes."

"B-But we aren't done with the film-"

"I said get back to your classes! Or it's five laps around the track!" she ordered, to which everyone quickly left.

On the way out of the tank shed, Ryu told Yuna, "You're the commander, man. Kaichou's making you look like a joke."

"I-I know Kobayashi-san, I'm working on it. Just… g-give it time, okay?"

Later that day

4:50 PM

Miho was atop her tower as usual, observing the ongoing battle below. Noriko was also with her this time.

The first thing the instructor did when she came back was of course, pit the crews against each other in a sparring match and watch it all unfold.

As the battle was ongoing and the teams searched for each other, Miho talked with her old friend now that they have some alone time together.

"I still don't understand why you're a gym teacher, Noriko. I thought you wanted to be a pro volleyball coach or something?"

"Eh, that dream was far too ambitious for me. And besides, I felt it's much better to teach rookies for the rest of my life rather than people who already know what they're doing. It's more exciting, you know?"

The instructor chuckled, "More exciting… If only you knew," before taking a swig from her beer can.

"So how's being a Senshadō instructor turning out for you?" Noriko was the one to ask a question this time.

Miho replied, while trying not to sound pathetic, "Yeah you know… It's- It's going pretty good I guess. I did a gig aboard the Surcouf last year, then the Kiev about a month ago."

"How'd you turn up in a place like Oarai then? Did they demote you or something?" she asked out of curiosity.

This somehow made Miho more embarrassed. "It's uhh… a long story. I kinda uhh... just felt like it, you know?"

"Liar" was printed all over Miho but Noriko somehow still believed it.

"Ah, you got tired of the big leagues and went back to your roots, eh?" she nudged the instructor's shoulder. "How humble of you!"

Miho could do nothing but chuckle, so she did. "Haha, y-yeah…"

The two then paused as Miho took another swig of alcohol while Noriko contacted one of the tank crews all of a sudden.

"Hippo Team, get to cover, you're looking like a big juicy target over there!"

In the distance, the two could see a small lake where on the shore sat a lone StuG III, its cannon trained towards the trees.

Wittmann answered Noriko's order by saying, "We're kinda busy here, ma'am! Hippo Team out!"

Miho noticed Isobe was talking with one of the crews and was quite shocked to see this. "Woah woah, aren't you not supposed to talk to your pupils during a match?!"

"They won't learn anything if we just leave 'em in the dark, Miho," she replied.

"Oh uh… Y-Yeah, I knew that. I was just… testing you… is all."

The StuG looked to be engaging something hidden in the forest. Wittmann wasn't exactly the greatest of marksmen though, as her shots mostly missed. But so did whatever they were firing at. The encounter was now at a stalemate.

"How much did you teach these kids anyways?" Miho asked before drinking from her beer can.

"Nothing much, just the basics. It's all I know based on my limited knowledge of Senshadō tactics. Their skills have drastically improved though. Especially that Fujiwara kid. She's been knocking tanks out left and right! No wonder she's the commander."

"Uh huh…" she responded absentmindedly. Then she heard a voice in her head who said, Damn, she's way better than you bro! And she's just a gym teacher! Talk about pathetic!

Miho shook her head to rid herself of these thoughts.

"You alright, Miho?"

"Y-Yeah it's just uh… this drink."

"You should probably get rid of that man. It's a bad influence for the kids, plus it's not good for you in general."

"Y...Yeah," Miho was forced to throw away the beer can.

Their attention was then turned back to the tank battle when the StuG was finally destroyed. Though predictable, it still managed to disappoint both instructors.

"Hippo Team still needs improvement I guess," Noriko remarked.

After that encounter, the Chi-Nu also appeared at the lake. At first, it was oblivious to the fact that it was being watched but then it was hit by a shot that bounced, and that's when they realized the situation they were in.

"Ooh, you're screwed, kid," Noriko remarked in a slightly amused manner. This time, she didn't interrupt the battle and instead watched what they were going to do next.

Quite surprisingly, the Chi-Nu fired back and actually managed to destroy one of its opponents, evident from the fact that the instructors heard a loud explosion before a billow of smoke rose from the nearby trees. Noriko quickly checked who was eliminated and found out that the Chaffee had been destroyed.

"That leaves the Hetzer and the Panzer on Team 2… looks like it won't make a difference anyways since well, Mallard Team's screwed," said Miho.

"Wait and see, Miho! Team 2 can still win this battle if they're clever enough."

Just as Miho predicted though, the Chi-Nu was taken out since it stood out in the open for too long. What killed it wasn't a shell though; instead it was the Panzer which, after the Hetzer destroyed the Type 3's tracks, rammed the Chi-Nu at full speed, forcing the white flag to pop out.

Noriko cheered at the sight of this. "Yeah! That was amazing!"

"Holy shit! The Panzer rammed it?!" Miho yelled, "Wha- Ho- How is that possible?!"

Meanwhile, Isobe was congratulating Yuna for winning yet another match. "You got great guts, kid! Keep it up and you'll be an ace in no time!"

Yuna gasped on the other end, "You really think so, Isobe-sensei?!"

"Of course! I know so! Now get back to base. That's enough training for today."

Jeez, she's kinda… better than me… Wait, what the hell are you saying, Miho?! You're being delusional again!

Noriko then turned to Miho which got her to flinch. "You did great today, instructor! It'll be a pleasure working with you from now on!"

"Wait, I thought you were a sub?"

"Well, not anymore! I've decided to extend my time here. The kids really like me! Plus, two is always better than one right?"

Hope I don't weigh her down then… Crap, you gotta be better than this, man. You look like a joke…

Miho shook Noriko's hand and said calmly, "I'll see you tomorrow."

5:20 PM

"Jeez, where'd you learn to do that?!" Miho, who was still astonished at what she saw, asked Yuna after the match was over. The two of them along with Ayano walked home together.

"Do what, Nishizumi-sensei?"

"Th-That thing with the Panzer! You fucking rammed Mallard Team!"

"Oh that! Isobe-sensei taught me, ma'am! She said that since I'm in a forty five ton tank that goes twenty eight miles an hour, then I might as well make good use of it!"

"Noriko again huh…"

The brunette noticed her instructor's somewhat worried expression so she asked, "Is- Is something wrong, sensei?"

"N-No it's nothing. It's just…" Miho took a deep breath before continuing, "I'm just… reacquainting myself with everything. Things just changed so quickly after I was gone, you know?"

"It's alright sensei! If you ever need help with anything, I'll be here for you!" she replied with a determined smile.

"Anything huh…" Miho paused, "Say kid, don't you think you're looking up to the wrong guy? 'Cause I'm not exactly one to be idolized. I'm kinda the prime example of what a tank ace shouldn't be."

"What are you saying, Nishizumi-sensei? Why wouldn't I not idolize you? You're the greatest tanker who ever lived!"

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago. I'm washed up, kid! Ain't it obvious? I mean look at me! I can't go back to being the way I was even if I tried…"

"Th-That's not true at all! There's no such thing as too late! Don't tell yourself that you can't change! That's the mindset of a quitter!"

"A… quitter?" Miho turned to Yuna.

The commander flinched at this, thinking she made the instructor mad. "I-I'm not saying you are! Just that you shouldn't be one ya know?"

Feeling strange, Miho could only say "Uh huh…" before she realized she was only a block away from her apartment.

"Y-Yeah hehe… Anyways, it's time we part ways, Nishizumi-sensei." Yuna said as she and Ayano began walking away. "We'll see you tomorrow alright? We promise we won't let you down!"

"Yeah uh, b-bye!"

After that, Miho continued on her way home where she spent the rest of the afternoon lounging around until she passed out on her couch.

The Next Day

8:06 AM

Inside the Donzoko Bar, Ogin was cleaning the mugs like usual when she heard the door open.

"Irasshai-masé!" she welcomed the guest in with a cheerful smile until that quickly turned into a disappointed frown when she saw Miho at the door.

Yuna, who was currently working there, gasped at the sight of her. "Nishizumi-sensei! It's an honor for you to be here!"

"She's a regular, Fujiwara, cut it out."

The brunette flinched and quickly replied, "Yes boss!" before she went back to work.

"Really Miho? First thing in the morning?"

"I'm not here for sake, Ogin," Miho sat on an empty bar stool. "Well, I kinda am… but that's not the main point. I need your help on uh… something."

The bartender's eyes widened at this. "So the great Nishizumi Miho comes to me for advice…" she then leaned on the counter. "Whaddya need?"

"Alright, but first, gimme the usual."

Sighing, Ogin pulled out a large bottle of sake from under the counter and placed it before Miho.

"Thanks"

"Need anything else?" Ogin asked, thinking that she had been tricked by Miho into giving her sake.

"Nah I'm good," After drinking a bit of the alcohol, Miho said, "So you know how I'm a Senshadō instructor right?"

"Yeah, I've heard the stories. What about it?"

"Well I'm kinda… having a problem with that…" Miho averted her eyes and scratched her head awkwardly.

"You want me to be your partner then?" she joked.

"No no, not at all! N-No offense by the way… Ahem, so you also remember Noriko right? Well, she's been covering for me while I was on leave and you know…"

"Ah, so you want her gone! Don't worry, I know a few guys that can get the job done!"

"What?! N-No, I'm not asking you to assassinate her!" Miho exclaimed in shock before sighing and taking another shot of her drink. "She's been doing my work far better than me even though she's just a sub. A-And my pupils even like her more than me now!"

"So you're jealous? Hmm, that's pretty hard to deal with… tell me more."

"I'm not really jealous, Ogin. In fact, I'm actually happy for Noriko. I-I'm glad she's doing something she clearly loves doing. She's not the problem here. I am!"

Ogin raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean by that?" her intrigue was increasing as the conversation went on.

Miho sighed and began to explain, "I feel like I'm weighing them down, you know? 'Cause yesterday I realized that I'm just… quite a lousy fucking teacher! I mean like, all I do is sit around on a tower everyday and wait for shit to change! Which - you know - obviously won't happen, but I still do it even though I know deep in my mind that it's wrong."

"Mhmm… So have you thought of improving yourself after that revelation?" Ogin asked.

"Well… yeah but from the way things look, I don't think I ever will! I think… I think it's too late, Ogin. I don't think I can fix myself no matter what I do."

"Ah! So that's what it is!" Ogin seemed to be onto something. "You… are lacking hope, friend."

"Hope?"

"Look, I know it sounds silly, but it's true. You can turn those kids into aces, man. Y-You just gotta... believe in yourself!"

"That's a bit of a difficult task, Ogin." Miho replied.

"Yeah, and you can overcome it! You're a Senshadō ace, dude. You've gone through much worse!"

The instructor paused for a moment, taking in her friend's words as she took another shot of sake. "Sooo… Do I just have to convince myself that I'm better than I actually am? Is that what you're saying?"

"You're already better than you think, Miho. It's just a matter of persuading your brain to think that way. You know what I'm sayin'?"

"I… kinda understand you, I guess?"

"Well that's good enough in my eyes," Ogin said, crossing her arms. "So I'm guessing you're gonna stay here for the rest of the day?"

"Do I have anything else to do?"

The bartender sighed, "You gotta fix that habit next, man. But whatever, if it makes you happy and stuffs my pockets with money, then I'm fine with it. That'll be three thousand yen for the sake by the way."

"Of course," Miho reached into one of her pockets and placed the cash on the counter. And the day continued as normal.

The Next Day

4:30 P.M

The Tank Sheds

Miho stood alone at the empty field in front of the sheds, pondering as she listened to the calm whistle of the wind and the distant yells and shouts of Oarai's students as they went about their sports.

As she stood there, smoking a cigarette, she suddenly felt a hand be placed on her shoulder.

"You okay, Nishizumi-sensei?"

"Oh, it's you," slightly startled, she turned around to Eiko. "You're Saori's kid, right? What are you doing here so early?"

"Yuna told me she overheard your talk with the bartender so she decided to help you."

"Really? Why didn't she just come here instead?"

"Too shy to talk to you about it directly. You know how Yuna is."

"Ah, right…" Miho paused and put out her cigarette. "So what's her plan?"

"Yuna suggests we do something other than a sparring match. Like a… a lecture or something. Anything that helps us learn more about Senshadō."

"Good idea. Problem is I've forgotten most of the shit I've learned back then."

"You don't have to teach us everything. Just the ones you consider basic knowledge, you know?"

The instructor raised her eyebrow at this. "Aren't you supposed to already know the basics?"

To which the redhead countered, "Well, the only 'basics' we learned from you was how to drive and shoot. Then you just gave us our tanks and said 'go ham'."

"Huh, touché…" she responded before pausing as the first crew arrived for today's practice - the freshmen.

"So has Noriko taught you anything valuable other than taking cover or ramming things?"

"Nope," Eiko said, "The only other thing she brought to the table was running laps on the field, to 'improve our body and mind' she says."

"That sounds like something Noriko would do," Miho then noticed everyone else arriving so she told Eiko, "Tell everyone to sit down here. I'll be back in a second."

"Where are you going?"

"Finding something to help us with the lesson, duh!"

And so, Miho left for one of the tank sheds while Eiko did as told. The instructor promptly returned with a large whiteboard. At this point, the crews were wondering why they hadn't been sent to their tanks yet.

"Alright everyone, we're doing things a bit differently today," said Miho without her usual stern tone, "We're gonna be having a lecture about Senshadō since you know… you have to learn something new every now and then. Now this marker's dryer than my grandma's unmentionables so you better listen close!" she then waited for a "yes ma'am!" from the crews which sadly never came.

"So first-" before Miho could even begin, she was already interrupted.

"Um, ma'am?" one of Duck Team's crew members raised her hand.

"Yes?" Miho looked over her shoulder with a glare.

"Uhh, why aren't we sparring today? I-Isn't that like, the usual thing we do?"

The instructor's glare went away and she turned around to answer. "Good question," Miho then began pacing back and forth. "As you all know, for the last two months, we've been doing nothing but mindlessly lobbing shells at each other, hoping to hit something. Well, today we are doing none of that as I feel you've all had enough training…" she was cut off again as the crews promptly began murmuring amongst each other.

"Thank fuck! No more club activities!"

"It seems your plan worked, Kaichou."

"It's to be expected."

"Hmph, taking out tanks was getting boring for me anyway…"

"Our kill count is two, Shingen…"

"SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTHS AND LISTEN TO ME!" Miho yelled, to which everyone shut up in an instant.

"Ahem, moving on…" she turned back around and began writing on the whiteboard. "The first and most important part of learning Senshadō is understanding the types of tanks and their uses. Now there are four types of tanks present in Senshadō and these are: light, medium, and heavy tanks, as well as tank destroyers," she then drew four crude tanks on the board, each becoming bigger as they went. "These guys each have their strengths and weaknesses and I'm sure most of you already know them but for the dumbasses who don't, let me elaborate. Light tanks have shit armor but great speed. They're good for scouting but never have them as the vanguard. Heavy tanks are on the other side of the spectrum and mediums are somewhere in between. Tank destroyers are kinda special though. They have great armor at the front and decent guns to protect themselves with. Do not place them out in the open; they're big targets nowadays. Have them sneak around the battlefield instead so they can snipe enemies from afar. It's best to give them camouflage to maximize effectiveness. Did all of you get that?"

The team responded with nods.

"Good. Next lecture's gonna be about the different types of shells. Just… give me a moment real quick." Miho then took a breather and pulled out a can of Asahi she stored in her jacket and began downing it.

Meanwhile, the Student Council got to talking. "Nishizumi-sensei's taking Senshadō a bit more seriously now it seems," Izumi remarked.

"I doubt this act of hers would last long. She'll probably go back to her old drunkard self in a few days," said Makoto.

And finally, the president told them, "Let's just hope we learn something valuable from her until then."

Both nodded in agreement.

After Miho had emptied her bottle of Asahi, she continued passing down her knowledge of Senshadō to her pupils. From the different types of ammo to the common weak spots every tank has, she taught them all. And by the end of the day, the crews had learned the basics of Senshadō, though it is not enough to fully help them in their upcoming struggles.

"It's surprising to think you had a good idea for once, Yuna," Eiko said as the two were about to split ways outside the school gates.

"Yeah!" she replied chuckling, "We might have an actual chance in the tournament now!"

"Well, it's still gonna take a lot more knowledge and experience to beat a veteran Senshadō team. We still have to train more."

"That's no problem for us, Eiko! We can get through any obstacle if we do it together after all!"

"Yeah yeah, enough of the corny shit. I'll see ya next time man," and with that, the young Takebe bid farewell.

"You too! Bye now!"

Later that night, Miho lay on her couch, massaging her aching forehead. Doing something productive for once had taken a toll on her unhealthy body.

"I haven't talked that long to anyone in a long time now, much less a whole goddamn Senshadō team, fuck…" she then glanced over the can of Asahi to her right, sitting there on an end table.

It was the only thing in the world that could make her feel pleasure, yet she refused to grab it.

I'm… I'm better than this… she thought to herself and decided to leave the beer can alone. She decided to just retire for the day to get rid of her headache.

Tomorrow is another day. To be continued...