Ooarai

"Are you sure this will work, Nishizumi-dono? I'm sure Erika knows how this works."

"Oh, have faith in Miporin, Yukari-san! She knows what she's doing!"

"And... that's the last one..."

"Momo-chan, this is Saori, we're done with the decoys!"

"Good work, Anglerfish! All tanks, take your positions!"

Kuromorimine's tanks could be heard coming closer and closer to Ooarai's positions. The sounds of their tank engines grew increasingly loud as they approached, seventeen in total. The Maus had stopped firing at the forest as Kuromorimine's forces exited its range. Ooarai's tank engines had been turned off to allow them to better hear Kuromorimine's tanks, and before long they could discern which direction they were coming from. Turning their engines on, the tanks maneuvered to the best spots for an ambush they could find, though several had their concerns about this, especially with how Kuromorimine was seemingly walking right into their trap. Erika was a good commander, how was she making this blunder? Miho was asked about this by everyone, but she knew that she had Erika where she wanted her.

"Our fleeing has gradually worn her mind, and the minds of her crew. I know she's anxious, and the more anxious you get the more taxed your brain becomes. No doubt her mind is now drained from fear of being ambushed, so any time soon she'll find our decoys, shoot them, and reveal their location, where we'll annihilate them all and go for their Maus."

"Shouldn't we attack them now? They're right in front of us, we can easily ambush them."

Erwin decided to drop a favorite quote of hers in response to the T-44's suggestion.

"As the great Bonaparte said at Austerlitz..."

The rest of Hippo Team joined in finishing off.

"'Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake!'"

Psychological warfare was at play as Ooarai drained their opponents' brainpower with each passing minute. Now, Kuromorimine had fallen right into the hands of Ooarai, and it was time to close the history books on this match.

Kuromorimine's tanks soon came into view, their lighter brown contrasting with the dark green of the forests. Ooarai had took the time they had to attach vegetation on their tanks to better disguise them, and it worked as Kuromorimine didn't even notice them. The Kuromorimine formation suddenly halted, and a Jagdpanzer fired its cannon right into the decoy. Shards of wood fell around, and as Miho watched as Kuromorimine was covered in confusion, she gave the order to attack. They had been played like a fiddle.

"All tanks, feuer frei!"

Ooarai's tanks poured shells straight into Kuromorimine's tanks which, recognizing their fatal mistake, were in the middle of reversing. In an instant, three Panthers, a Jagdpanther, a Jagdpanzer IV, and a Panzer III were wiped out. Erika's Tiger II deflected several shots from the start and joined the other surviving tanks as they fired back at the sources of the enemy shells. Another Jagdpanther and Panther went down moments later, accompanied by a Panzer II shortly after. Rabbit Team joined in the fun by employing an old tactic of theirs: sneaking behind an Elefant, they aimed at its shell-dump hatch and fired, knocking it out in the same manner. Soon after, Rabbit Team was knocked out by the Tiger II. In less than five minutes, Kuromorimine had lost ten tanks, bringing their total remaining to just eight remaining.

Ooarai did not go without any losses. The Type 89, responsible for helping knock out the Panzer II and III, had been white-flagged by the Tiger I shortly after its Panzer II kill. Mallard Team's streak of being knocked out every match continued as their Renault B1 Bis, which had helped Duck Team knock out the Panzer III and helped with distracting the Elefant for Rabbit to do its thing, was met with several shells from two Panthers and a Jagdpanzer IV, and finally, Rabbit Team was knocked out by Erika after their déjà vu Elefant kill. But, Ooarai had inflicted three times their casualties, and launched a pursuit of Kuromorimine's broken forces.


Kuromorimine

As Kuromorimine withdrew with Ooarai hot on their heels, Erika was inside her Tiger, furiously punching the walls of her tank, hurling as many insults and curses as her mind could possibly come up with. Her hands were growing redder, and her voice growing hoarse, but she didn't care. She was furious at herself for allowing this disaster to befall her team, that Jagdpanzer crew for firing and revealing their position, and the sheer amount of damage that Miho had caused on her crew. The plan was in tatters, without the proper numbers to destroy Ooarai thanks to the advantage being wiped out in mere minutes, and the only hope now was that the Maus could clutch the match, but knowing Miho's prowess, did they really stand a chance? Erika was bitter for the rest of the retreat, she had allowed Miho to wear her mind down and draw her into this trap she had set. Had she remained refreshed, she would've sensed it immediately, yet her sheer determination to catch Ooarai had seemingly doomed the match. All the while, Erika's crew were trying to calm her down.

"Commander, please calm down! We need you to be calm for this next phase!"

"Commander, with all due respect, keep this behavior up and we'll lose easily!"

"Commander, control yourself! We can't afford you to have a breakdown at this stage!"

"Please, Commander, for the sake of our team..."

"SHUT UP! ALL OF YOU SHUT UP! I'M DONE WITH THIS!"

Erika's rage only grew with every attempt to calm her down. She had left her neck radio on, meaning that the other commanders-as well as the spectators-could hear just how badly Erika's mental state had become. The commanders all joined in trying to calm down Erika, to no avail. It was a disappointment. Erika, the rising star who had defeated Pravda with a divergence from the usual style, and put up a great fight against St. Gloriana, and had led her team up to this point in this Loser's Bracket, and now she seriously fell for this? It was a major shock to everyone, and Kuromorimine's morale was near shattered. The only hope they had left was their Maus, with its impenetrable armor as demonstrated by its involvement in their last match with Ooarai. But, Miho had knocked it out before, and given how slow it was with slow rotation, movement, and weight dragging it to earth Ooarai could easily outmaneuver it and knock it out with either the same tactic or something different.

But, seeing the situation, Kuromorimine's Vice-Commander stepped up to take over. Koume Akaboshi, the same girl who Miho had saved a year before, had repeatedly advised Erika to call off the pursuit during the chase in the jungle. But, with her mind worn down by the never-ending pursuit, Erika continued on, to get most of her team wiped out. Now, Koume had to step up and try to win against Miho with what she learned from her. Due to her status as Vice-Commander, if the Commander's situation was unfit for command, she would be the next in line. And, with several matches under her resume, she had learned much from Miho and other commanders, and was considered a rising star in Kuromorimine. With Erika suffering a mental breakdown, it was all up to Koume to turn the tide of an otherwise seemingly-hopeless battle. Kuromorimine still outnumbered Ooarai, but not with their advantage at the start.

"All tanks, regroup with the Maus and head for the hills! We'll play cat-and-mouse with them there, so be sure to use your wits and instinct."

"Understood, Vice-Commander!"

Kuromorimine's tanks exited the forest, and gathered around the Maus in heading for the hills some two kilometers away. Ooarai was hot on their heels, and the slow-moving Maus was making things difficult for them, as more speed meant a bigger chance at victory for Kuromorimine, especially at this time. Erika had been forcefully sedated by her tank crew, and the gunner took command of the tank in her absence, trying her best to command despite having no prior experience. Koume saw this, and was faced with a dilemma. She could either keep retreating in a fighting retreat, or stop and make their stand here. Had she been the flag tank, she could leave the Maus to conduct a last stand as the others escaped, but trusting in the Maus' heavy, thick armor to stay alive, it had made things complicated since it was so slow. Koume had trouble trying to make a decision with time restricting her scope of thought, but she had to make it before Kuromorimine's run in the tournament would be history.

"All tanks... we won't be able to safely reach the hills. Stop your tanks, turn around, and we'll fight to the end here. Form around the Maus, make sure you take out as any of Ooarai's vehicles as possible. Commander Erika is counting on us."

Koume was somber as she spoke these words. With the Maus not fast enough to reach the hills in time, she knew that this was probably it for Kuromorimine's run in the bracket. At least they had a chance at victory in the Grand Finals, though it would've been preferable they be the ones to lead their coalition to victory. Oh well, you can't win them all.

Kuromorimine stopped and began to rotate. Ooarai closed in rapidly, and before they were really in position to fire, a shot from the T-44 immobilized a Panzer IV of Kuromorimine, who shortly after were ready to fight and returned shells at Ooarai. With them facing heavier tanks, it was harder to knock them out, and most of their shells were bouncing. The Maus was trying its best as well, but with a turret heavier than a Panther it was taking ages to turn, which made it an effective paper tiger. The other tanks were faring a bit better, however. The Tiger I was able to knock out Hippo Team with good coordination with its sister the Tiger II, but it in turn was knocked out by the Porsche Tiger in a little fratricide. The Maus was bouncing many shells, and if this went on long enough, the armor would grow weak enough to penetrate, which was something Koume was afraid of. But what could she do here? The Maus was a handicap.

"What-why are we-"

"Commander, you're finally awake!"

"Is the match over..."

"No, but it might be, we're surrounded by Ooarai! Our Tiger I was knocked out, alongside another Panther!"

"We've just lost another Jagdpanzer IV! Commander, you must take command of the situation! Koume has been holding Kuromorimine on her shoulders these past few minutes!"

"Koume... wait... ARE WE STILL LOSING?! OH, CURSE ME AND THIS MATCH!"

"Oh dear. Sedate her again, please..."

"I WILL NOT BE SILENCED! THIS IS... rebellion..."

"There, that should keep her calm for the rest of the match... hopefully."


Ooarai

Three more tanks had been knocked out for Kuromorimine at the cost of one of Ooarai's tanks, with seven tanks for Kuromorimine and six for Ooarai. Miho was impressed by Kuromorimine's decision for a stand. She had sent the Mark IV off somewhere safe to allow no risks, given that what was in front of her was all that Kuromorimine had left. Driving circles around their opponents, Kuromorimine had formed a square around the Maus, its turrets pointed in all directions. It was reminiscent of the tournament's first Finals, where Continuation drove around St. Gloriana's forces, whittling them down until they were all wiped out. Now, it was Ooarai and Kuromorimine sharing this same waltz, and for most of the music, Ooarai had dominated the ballroom. Now, all that was left to do was finish the dance.

"All tanks, focus on knocking out the tanks surrounding that Maus! They can't last much longer!"

Ooarai's tanks with turrets fired relentlessly. Slowly, but surely, Kuromorimine's forces were growing thin. There was one Panther left on the battlefield commanded by Koume, but it didn't last for long. A couple of minutes after the StuG was knocked out, the last Panther fell to a well-aimed shot from Anteater Team. The Tiger II was still in the match, bouncing shells thanks to its thicker armor, and the Maus was trying to score hits on enemy tanks passing by its barrel, but they avoided its shells, though sometimes the shockwave tipped them a bit. The last Jagdpanzer IV was knocked out seconds later, leaving only five tanks remaining for Kuromorimine and six for Ooarai. The Hetzer was further off, using its status as an assault gun to act more as artillery as the others circled around.

In every tank, the crews were repeating the cycle as best they could. Load, fire. Load, fire. Load, fire. On average, an Ooarai tank was firing around 7 rounds a minute compared to Kuromorimine's 5, and each passing minute the armor of both sides gradually weakened from the constant impacts and bounces. It was a question of who would break first, and with Ooarai containing the upper hand, the answer was pretty obvious. Kuromorimine was not going to last much longer. As soon as the tanks surrounding it were knocked out, the Maus, all alone would be subject to a storm of shells that it could barely respond to, and it couldn't attempt an escape given how slow it was. Given enough time, its armor would strain until the thick armor gave way, and it was knocked out in a storm of explosions.

Miho knew this, and with the Tiger II finally meeting its end in addition to the remaining Jagdpanthers after much constant bombardment, meaning that all of Kuromorimine's non-flag tanks were knocked out, she ordered all tanks to fire at the Maus with all they had. The Mark V had been called in to help now that things were safer, but made sure it kept moving to not allow it to get knocked out, given they were the flag tank. With the combined strength of six tanks, Ooarai battered the Maus relentlessly, but as time dragged on fear began to set in on Ooarai. They may be dealing damage to the Maus, even though it was mostly bounced shells, but if they keep this up, they would run out of shells. Miho needed to think of something quick before they had nothing left to fire.

"Momo-chan, should we do the same thing again? You ram into the Maus and I'll see if I can land a shot on its engine."

"There's no mountains nearby, Miho, the closest one is over a kilometer away! And without Duck Team we won't be able to pull it off this time, unless Anteater's willing to do it."

"I'll try to hit it with a reduced field. If you tip it upwards enough, I may be able to hit it even with even ground."

"I'd suggest recruiting the others to help as well. As much as I'd like Shark Team to do the honors, they're the flag tank, and last time Turtle got knocked out from the damage of holding up a tank that weighs how many times bigger than us."

"Actually, I have an idea. Shark Team, do you think you can be able to hold Anteater's tank on top of you?"

"I mean, it's possible, but I don't know if we want to take risks. We crew a tank from how many years ago, and this armor's probably fragile."

"Hey, didn't you stop a speeding Char B1 and not suffer a dent? You should be fine with holding up Anteater."

"We'll try, I guess. Just hope that this doesn't sink us."

So, Miho put her plan into action. Turtle Team began to move from its position to position itself directly ahead of the Maus, which, seeing what was going on, began to turn its turret. However, by the time Turtle began its charge, they were too late. The Hetzer was speeding towards them, and the Maus was unable to lower its gun fast enough to match the Hetzer's position. Just like before, Turtle Team smashed into the front of the Maus as Shark Team maneuvered behind the Maus. Anteater Team managed to use the Mark IV's rear slope to get on it and get a clear shot on the Maus' engine, all the while Miho and the other available tanks fired into the Maus to hopefully distract it, but it was turning its turret. It was a race against time,

but unfortunately for the Maus crew, they were too slow.

Arachnid burst from their positions and used the rear of the Maus to jump onto it and lodge itself in a position to block the turret's turn, just like Duck Team had, and much to the Maus commander's outrage of having this played on her again. Piyotan, eyeing the target, fired straight into the Maus' engine. The shot rang true, and there was a burst of flame and smoke from the Maus, followed by a white flag as the Maus crew jumped out, all of them coughing and the Maus commander looking very upset. Knowing what this meant, Ooarai's crews began to cheer at their victory, only for Miho to dissuade them after seeing Kuromorimine calling and gesturing them to stop, some even telling them to shut up. Confused, some began to ask what was wrong, before Koume herself came and announced what had happened.

"Erika-san has suffered a mental breakdown and had to be sedated. We're waiting for an ambulance to pick her up."


Battlefield

Miho didn't hear what Koume had said as she rushed to the Tiger II to talk to Erika, only to find, to her horror, that she was limp and being carried out by her crew. At first, she thought she was knocked unconscious, but then realized that was unlikely given that her team's shells hadn't really shaken up the Tiger much, and that caused chills to go down her spine, knowing Erika... she didn't want to learn the worst had happened. When she approached the crew, concerned over Erika's well-being, they simply told her,

"She suffered a mental breakdown as we retreated because of your ambush. Things got too bad, so we had to sedate her. Hopefully things will be alright when she wakes back up."

"Don't blame yourself for this, we kept telling her to pull back but her mind was pretty drained from the lengthy chase. I guess she was too focused, putting more strain on her brain like that."

Miho was at a loss of words. This was a first. Erika suffering a mental breakdown had never happened before, at least not during a Sensha-do match. Sure, she threw temper tantrums here and there, but nothing like a mental breakdown. This was new, and she was afraid. Afraid not only that Erika would be mad at her and chew her out like she did after the 62nd Tournament, but that her life wouldn't be the same again. Mental breakdowns were severe, and there was a risk of going insane if you really lost it. Miho could only hope that Erika would be fine when she woke up, she didn't want to lose a friend, especially not from this match. To think she may have caused Erika to live with a ruined mind for the rest of her life was taxing on Miho's mind, and her concerns were shared with the others as they found out what had happened inside that Tiger II.

Koume approached Miho, trying to comfort her. She shared the same sentiments. Although Erika had criticized Miho for saving her life, Koume still liked Erika and saw her as one of her role models in commanding. With Erika in the state she was in now, though, Kuromorimine's future was looking uncertain.

"Miho, I, don't know what to do, but... we can just hope that she'll recover. After all, she's a very strong girl."

"I hope so, Koume-san. Although Erika hated me for saving you, we've reconciled, and to see her like this hurts me."

The rest of Anglerfish joined in trying to console Miho, as well as the rest of Ooarai joining in helping Kuromorimine cope with this sudden setback. Although they had been opponents, in the end it was all just a sport. Meanwhile, the announcement of the result was being broadcast to the rest of the world.

"Kuromorimine's flag tank was seen to have been knocked out! Ooarai Girls' Academy wins the match!"

Although the stands erupted in cheers, there were no such celebrations on the battlefield. Both sides watched with gloom as a still-sedated Erika was hauled off in an ambulance. Jouko, the Sturmi crew, and Alice didn't celebrate either, despite the noise about them in the stands. A quick glance at them, and you could see all with their heads bowed and hands folded in prayer, before they rushed to the battlefield to talk to the teams. Soon the stands, too, seeing the faces of the crews, were silenced out of curiosity or dread. Miho, riding back in the Panzer IV as the knocked out tanks were hauled off, was the first to greet the equally worried spectators.

"Jouko-san, I'm so worried about Eririn... I don't want her to be like that for the rest of her life!"

"Well, Miho, that's when prayer comes in."

"Prayer... to the ancestors?"

"No, Miho, to God."

Miho knew where this was going. She didn't quite know how to respond at first. Christianity had now come knocking at her door, in these circumstances, it was as if it knew what was going on and offered help, but, she doubted if this would work. But, with her traditionalist beliefs faded after her departure from Kuromorimine, she decided to just give it a shot. After all, she didn't have to worry much about her mother, she wouldn't get as much heat as her sister could if she did the same, and although it felt weird and even a bit ridiculous to do something like this, there was no harm in trying. After all, if this helped Erika make a full recovery, then so be it, she was willing to make this commitment.

Hoping for the best, Miho agreed to pray, and as the others looked on in curiosity, Miho joined Jouko and Alice and the Sturmi crew in prayer for Erika, praying that her mental condition would remain stable and healthy and that she would remain fit to continue her career in Sensha-do, before Jouko added her hopes that Erika would also accept Christianity as well, knowing her predicament and knowing that she needed comfort and warmth from the Bible's hopeful promises, as well as the Christ-like character that Christians were asked to emulate, especially at a time like this, and that she needed the love and support that she deserved.

With their prayers done, Jouko and the others wished Miho good luck in the Grand Finals that would take place a week from then. It was going to be 30 tanks on 30, and an annihilation match, just like the All-Stars match, except this time, it was Continuation against the world. Originally, Jouko considered bringing only four tanks: herself, Alice, Linder, and Mika, but knowing that meant training her crews and upgrading the vehicles for nothing in the tournament, she agreed to allow them all to participate.

"Well, hopefully Erika gets better. Good luck at the Grand Finals, Miho, and don't worry, my first snipe won't be on you this time."

"Oh, I'd much prefer you didn't snipe anybody."

"I mean, we're already at a disadvantage with lower-quality tanks, so some things might have to be left unchanged."

"Miho-san, do you want to go visit the Boko Museum before the match?"

"I'd love to, Alice-san!"

"Well, we'd better visit Erika at the hospital. She's probably almost there, she could use some support."

"Hannes is right, wanna come with us, Miho?"

"Sure, Frisell! I'll bring the others too, to show support for Erika-san."


JRC Tottori Hospital, Tottori, Tottori Prefacture - 3 hours later

Miho and the others were listening to the doctor's analysis of Erika's mental breakdown, and throughout it they were fearful and anxious. Anglerfish wasn't the only one listening, some other students from Ooarai and Kuromorimine, including the Tiger II crew, were also listening on. Everyone was hoping she would be alright and that it wasn't bad enough to ruin her mindset permanently. Erika's bed was by far the most crowded in her hospital unit, which prompted wonder from the other patients and visitors. Erika herself was lying on the bed, her face serene and calm as if in a deep sleep, a demeanor that was not often seen from Erika, especially during a match.

"It seems that Miss Itsumi was lucky to have been sedated in time. We discovered from an analysis of her brain's functional history that during the breakdown she suffered, one of her brain's blood vessels shows signs of an aneurysm. Had she remained in her state for, say, another minute or two, given how much she was intensifying each second, I'm sure it would've been a rupture. Around 15% of patients with a ruptured aneurysm die even before reaching hospital, so you were lucky to calm her down before things got worse."

"Pardon me, but what is an aneurysm?"

Some were heard sighing, fewer seen facepalming, though it was understandable. Given Saori's obsession over men and not particularly caring about how the human body worked since she didn't display interest in science, she didn't know much medical stuff, so the doctor obliged her with an explanation.

"An aneurysm is an abnormal bulge or swelling in a blood vessel, and can put pressure on the nerves or brain tissue. If it bursts or ruptures, it spills blood into the surrounding tissue, and this is called a hemorrhage. A ruptured aneurysm can cause serious health problems such as hemorrhagic stroke, brain damage, coma, and even death."

"Wow... so there was a chance Erika could've died if we didn't sedate her in time?"

"Precisely."

"An aneurysm? Is-is there any way to fix it, or something?"

"Unfortunately, we cannot fix it here. We'll have to send her to a more advanced facility such as St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo for her to undergo surgery."

"Does that mean... she has to be moved again?"

"Mhm. We'll allow her condition to stabilize for a few days before moving her to St. Luke's. I understand you girls are in a tight schedule thanks to the upcoming Grand Finals in a week, so we'll try to get everything sorted out and done with in time. Unless, of course, you'll appeal to delay for a few days to allow Miss Itsumi to make a full recovery from her surgery."

"Yeah, we will, doctor. Thanks for your help, I do hope Itsumi-san gets better."

"As do I. Good luck in the Grand Finals, by the way, you'll be facing some titans of Sensha-do!"

"Oh, we'll try our best to beat them, sir! As Napoleon once said, 'impossible' is a word only to be found in the dictionary of fools!"

"That's the spirit! Thanks for visiting, everyone, we'll make sure to keep Miss Itsumi in good health until the time comes to move her."

"Thank you, doctor-san!" everyone said in unity.


Hospital lobby

"So, what did he say, Miho?"

"Well, Jouko-san, she almost died."

"So it was an aneurysm, then."

"Wait... how do you know?"

"Not to brag, but I did study some medical stuff here, so that's how I learned how aneurysms work."

"Oh... well, they're moving Eririn to St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo in a few days. I'll try to get the Grand Finals delayed so she can recover. Maybe you can help as well?"

"Well, I'll try. And St. Luke's is a pretty solid hospital. I'm sure she'll recover quickly."

"I hope so. I'll just, keep praying, I guess."

"That's what I like to hear. I'll be praying too, and everyone else."

"Anyways, see you at the Grand Finals, or next time we meet?"

"Sure. Oh, I wanted to give you this, I'm sure since getting the news about Alice, you wanted to check it out for yourself."

"A Bible?"

"Mhm, a King James Version, one of the many copies I have of it."

"Well... um... okay..."

"Tell me if you want to return it, there's no price to pay for receiving this."

"Well... thanks, Jouko-san. I'll be sure to read it, I'll tell you my thoughts soon."

"I also left a few 'study notes' in there to help you comprehend some of the more complex details. I hope you enjoy reading it. If you like, feel free to teach your friends as well, I'm sure they'll like it, too. Stories, drama, promise, a lot of things to find in this Book of books."

"I will. Thank you it, Jouko-san!"

"My pleasure, Miho."

As the two went their separate ways, Jouko prayed in her heart that the seed she had now planted in Miho had landed in the fertile soil, which would grow into an abundant harvest, just like with Alice.