Despite the smaller number of students, the SRT campus was still pretty large, though Ragna was unsure how it stacked up to the other schools. Heavily militarized, with a great emphasis on practicality over anything else, the place felt more like a military compound than that of an actual school. As he was shown around by RABBIT Platoon, there were only a few occasional reminders, such as buildings for classrooms, this was indeed a campus for teenagers and not a base for people a decade or more their senior.

He did like how open it was though, being a large chunk of the learning was combat instruction wide spaces were needed more vs the inside of a building. Even the gun range he'd been brought to was on the spacious side, extending about 100 meters out with a variety of targets set up. Some of the shooting lanes had paper cutouts of a person attached to a line which extended out to the other end, while another half was much more open with marked targets and objects that could've been used as cover.

"You said you wanted to learn a bit more about weapons in Kivotos, right? I thought a shooting range would be a good place to discuss a few examples. Students are usually expected to have their own weapons, but we still have a variety to try out so we can be familiar with whatever we come across, sometimes onsight procurement is needed." Miyako stated, gesturing over to a nearby rack of guns that held a decent number in various shapes and sizes, from handheld pistols to much larger rifles. A few of the guns even had attachments on them.

"But just so you know, SRT's weapons are a cut above everyone else. We get to have all the special toys that none of the other academies even dream of getting to use." Moe stated with a smug look. "Even if a gun's still a gun, there's so many attachments you can slap on it."

"Hey, just because they weren't common and I don't use them, doesn't mean I'm clueless about how they work." Ragna stated with a huff. Looking at the rack of weapons, he once again felt an unnatural sense of familiarity with some of the weapons, some broad ideas of how they might be used already coming to him.

"I gotta ask, sensei. If people didn't use guns much where you came from what did they use? Everyone use melee weapons like you?" Saki asked.

"Bit of a long story, but guess you could say that." Ragna said with a nod, pausing to think. It was probably better to keep matters simple for now and put it that way. Ragna knew Kivotos had some mystical aspects to it, such as the halos, but as a whole the land appeared to rely vastly less on the more supernatural elements that were baked into every day life of his world. He wasn't entirely sure if there was a direct analog to compare say, Ars Magus to in Kivotos, and Ragna didn't feel up for trying to give a long lecture explaining things like that or Drives when his whole purpose here was to get information himself. "My sister was one of the few people who used them a lot."

"Oh? What kind did she use?" Miyako spoke up curiously.

"Noel knew her way around a couple weapons, but uuuh, guess you could say she mainly used pistols." Ragna answered. Bolverk was quite the dangerous weapon with all the different styles it could shift into and even if she didn't like to fight when held by Noel's skilled hands that deadliness had only further amplified when she were pushed to use it.

The thoughts of Noel brought a wistful smile to his face. Man… He wondered how his siblings were doing. Ragna had only lit the spark to create the new, more peaceful, world off of everyone's dreams and so he had a general idea of what it would be, but he had not actually gotten to see the remade universe and what direction everyone took afterwards himself. With both in such high positions, Jin was probably busy helping Kagura wrangle the NOL into a better direction than before, while Noel's interests were always outside the military so they must've still been enjoying the nice, quiet life away from any fighting and people trying to abuse her power.

Well… Not like he'd ever know the answer himself, but Ragna could at least hope they were happy and his sacrifice meant something. As long as he could believe in that then Ragna was content despite missing them.

"Anyway, forget I said anything." Ragna quickly spoke up. Now wasn't the time to dwell on the past and things that couldn't change. "You wanted to show me some weapons, right?"

Miyako looked a bit curious at the sudden change of subject, perhaps she saw there was something behind Ragna's quick dismissal."Well, before we started, did you want to try shooting one? Even if you're not going to use it yourself and guns can vary, having some personal experience in firearms can be valuable in knowing how to direct people using them."

Ragna shook his head. "Thanks, but no thanks. You're right and normally I like to do something myself, but I don't think I'd get much use out of trying it now instead of watching. I was right handed and I can't even reload on my own now."

"Ah, I see how that'd be a problem…" Miyako muttered. "How much do you know about firearms then, sensei?"

"Enough to know the basics. You two," Ragna gestured to Miyako and Saki. "have weapons that go up to about medium range, far as guns go, with a high rate of fire. She," Ragna point to Moe. "has a pistol for shorter range and fires slower, and lastly" The man then motioned over to Miyu. "her's is meant for long range. It's… Dammit, what's the term again?" Ragna scratched his head in thought. Some of this knowledge came to him like he was getting a refresher, but some he also learned on the helicopter ride from Sanctum Tower to SCHALE earlier. "Bolt-action, right? Have to pull it each time you shoot?"

"Correct." Miyako smiled. "Most guns have an effective range of a couple to several hundred meters, though most of the time engagements happen far closer, but Miyu's sniper rifle is just under a kilometer."

"She's even pretty good hitting targets that far, past effective range." Saki commented.

"I-It's nothing special…" Miyu commented lowly.

"Hey, that's not bad, especially if your weapon isn't meant to shoot that far." Ragna stated reassuringly. He could already tell Miyu's self-esteem was in the gutter, maybe some good words would be good for her.

The girl perked up a little, though still maintained her largely glum look.

"Anyway, if you're not going to learn how to use one yourself then there's not as much to worry about going over if you're already aware of the basics. Most engagements in Kivotos aren't going to take place over a long enough distance to start worrying about smaller details like that, though there's a lot to know about each firearm to use it the best." Miyako stated. "Or maybe it'd be better to go over explosives a bit?"

"Yeah, actually I had a few questions about those. One of the other girls I fought with used a flashbang, was hoping to learn a little more about that stuff." Ragna stated. He wasn't exactly big on using other weapons, besides Aramasa, because he'd never needed anything else between his Drive, known as Soul Eater, Ars Magus, and the Azure Grimoire. But considering it didn't look like he was going to be capable of relying on any of those now, outside the most extreme emergencies, having other options didn't feel like a bad idea. Could be useful support in the event he couldn't get into melee range.

"I've got you plenty covered with personal explosives." Moe interjected with a smirk. "Whatever it is from C4 to Semtex."

"Moe, I think he's talking more about things like stun or smoke grenades." Saki stated flatly.

"Sure, tactical grenades have their uses, but it's much quicker if you just knock someone out with plastic explosives." Moe shot back.

"I'm trying not to smash everything, already got a headache to deal with because of that already." Ragna stated. The moment he finished the sentence, realization slammed into Ragna like a ton of bricks and his eyes went wide. He still hadn't dealt with that mess. Son of a bitch, that was going to be a pain to deal with. Well, add that onto the list of things to ask Rin about. Or maybe he could go bug Yuuka about it since she clearly knew how that was to be handled.

"Oh, you got someone breathing down your neck about 'excessive force' too?" Moe said with a hint of sympathy, earning a glare from Miyako.

"Yeah… Something like that."

"Moe, when I cleared using the drone's missiles, that didn't mean use all of them." Miyako stated with a weary sigh.

"Hey, you said 'fire at your discretion' and my discretion was everything. It took care of the target in the end, didn't it?" Moe was undeterred.

"Uh, hello? Back to grenades?" Ragna interjected. Maybe he was going to have to schedule another visit and cut this one short to finish that paperwork before Rin started nagging him, so best to run through what he could.

"Oh, riiiiiight. Well, if you want something like that… Sounds like you're already a bit familiar with flashbangs. They're meant to stun and disorient, great for breaching a small room. Then, you have smoke grenades. Great for providing cover with the smoke they make, but if you don't have special equipment, then you're just as blind to the enemy as they are with you." Moe explained. "Plenty of other options, but those're the most common ones even SRT uses. They're not white phosphorus grenades or anything so you can grab both of them at almost any convenience store."

Hrm, that sounded interesting. While it wasn't like Ragna could perfectly 'see' without his eyes, to an extent he could still sense people and incoming danger, a skill that'd saved him many times with how some of his enemies could attack from nearly any angle. That could be useful for clearing a group or getting into close range. He could at least use them one handed.

"Wait… You can buy most of this at a random store?" Ragna questioned.

"You can't get the good stuff at just any store." Moe paused for a second. "You need to know the right people."

The comment earned Moe a skeptical glance from everyone else present.

"Well, at least those I can use." Ragna said, changing the subject. "Got any I can try?"

"This specific range was mainly designed for guns and conventional explosives, but we have a few places to practice using gear like that. But before we go, I wouldn't want this visit here to feel like a complete waste. Why don't you watch us shoot a little, if you can't do it yourself? I'd like to show you what SRT students can do." Miyako said with a friendly smile.

"Alright, guess it can't hurt." He hadn't exactly been observing the usage of guns too closely in the skirmish yesterday and Bolverk worked far differently from normal guns beyond the basics of 'point at what you want dead and shoot', so perhaps he'd learn something out of this and about the school a bit.

Part way into Miyako tour of SRT, she could say it had been more fun than she expected. RABBIT had gotten to show off their marksmen skills at the range, everyone's accuracy nearly perfect due to the shorter distance, Ragna had gotten to try out some grenades at the other shooting range, and they'd been able to talk a little between exploring SRT. Rather oddly, Ragna never went too indepth on his history. He mentioned a couple bits of trivia in passing and even gave details sometimes, such as having siblings, but though he did brush some of it off under the guise of being busy, Miyako still got the feeling Ragna was being cagey about certain areas of his past.

"So, wait… You actually spent several years living out in the woods?" Saki asked, looking the man up and down.

"Yep." Ragna plainly stated like it were nothing. "My master, Jubei, taught me a lot about how to fight and survive out there. I'd be lying if I said it was easy from the start, but eventually I got used to it."

"Damn. We've had to do some simulations of camping long term so we're prepared for wilderness survival, but we at least could bring supplies with us to prepare. Just a few weeks with only the clothes on your back isn't fun, let alone a few years." Saki spoke up, sounding impressed.

"Actually feels kind of weird to have a place I'm supposed to stay at now. Used to moving around or only staying in cities for a short time." Ragna admitted. "Nice not to constantly be sleeping with one eye open, for once."

"Anyway, hey Miyako." Ragna turned his attention toward the girl. "Said you messaged… FOX Platoon, was it? Since they might know more about the president? Heard anything back yet? Know you wanted to show me around a little more, but I got some stuff I need to take care of, so I can't stick around forever."

"Yukino-senpai said they'd be here within a few minutes. They were on the other half of the campus and it'd take about that long to get here. They should be he- Oh, I see them now." Miyako answered, pointing over toward the group of four that were quickly approaching her own squad.

Like her own group, the FOX Platoon were dressed in a fashion that combined a typical school uniform and military gear. Each had a third year uniform for SRT, a long sleeved white sailor uniform with a red tie and dark skirt to match. The other commonality of them all was that, unlike RABBIT Platoon's attached ears, each member of FOX Platoon had a very real set of fox ears atop their heads, the coloration different depending on the girl's hair color. Beyond that, each girl had a degree of customization on their outfit, be it where they wore pouches for extra gear or ammo, or even using a backpack.

"Well, I understand that SCHALE came to SRT for information." Yukino, the leader of FOX Platoon, greeted with a distance to her words. Her hair was a long dark brown which loosely extended nearly down to her knees. Covering it was a set of military grade headphones with a boom mic, alongside a throat mic. Around her left shoulder was a large red and black bag for carrying gear, while in her right hand was a rifle with multiple attachments, from a holographic sight, laser pointer, and light. Her halo was a red crosshair which matched her eyes. "Sensei, it's good to finally meet you. A lot of SRT have been wondering about the kind of person who would take charge of SCHALE."

"You're... Yukino, right? These girls told me a little about you." Ragna stated, gesturing over to RABBIT Platoon.

Despite the friendly greetings, Miyako couldn't help but feel a sense of tension building in the air.

"Oho, hope our cute little kouhai haven't been gossiping anything bad about us." Otogi spoke up with a cheeky smile. She was the sniper of FOX, holding a large rectangular box nearly her height and thicker than her torso containing her anti-material rifle and other important gear. Over her long, pale tan hair done up in a braid was a set of headphones, much like Yukino's, which were a similar shade to her own hair. The girl's halo was another green crosshair, though in a different style from Yukino's, having 4 shorter and rounded tips instead of points and a clover in the middle. Just like Yukino though, it matched her eye color.

"Hey, there's not anything bad we could say about our senpai and SRT's best students." Saki stated with a prideful look.

"I barely know who you girls are beyond names and what Saki just said, don't panic." Ragna said sarcastically.

"It sounds like our kouhai have been getting to know you quite well though." Niko stated warmly. Her hair was a pale pink and her eyes a vibrant blue, which was also similar to her own halo comprised of four intersecting loops which roughly formed a + shape, a small circle in the center. Like most of FOX, she had her own bag loaded with gear, two grenades strapped onto the sides. In her other hand was a shotgun with a few attachments, notably a holographic sight.

"Well, I wouldn't say that well, but with all the rumors that've been flying about SCHALE it has been nice to get a sense of who Ragna-sensei is." Miyako answered back.

"I see. And what kind of person would you say he is?" Yukino asked, glancing between Ragna and RABBIT Platoon, Miyako in particular, expectantly.

"I'm right here." Ragna interjected with an annoyed look.

"Only a few students in Kivotos have had any contact with you, sensei. I would prefer to get to know you myself, but we're short on time today and I'd rather have first hand accounts from my fellow students instead of relying on rumors and speculation running rampant, if you don't mind." Yukino answered calmly.

"I like his attitude." Moe answered plainly. "Refreshing to see somebody in authority not so uptight about the small details."

"I don't think that's something you want to admit." Saki stated with a sigh, recomposing herself a second later. "Anyway, didn't think I'd like him at first, but he's got a lot more stories and training under his belt than I expected for somebody with no experience in firearms. I think he's alright, so far. Good to see somebody high up care about SRT again."

"Uh, um… Well, he's a lot nicer than I expected." Miyu stated with a subdued smile.

"The hell kind of impression do I give? You didn't even know anything about me till today." Ragna interjected with a sarcastic huff.

"Probably the fact you look like you're trying to kill someone by glaring at them by default." Moe stated with no hesitation.

"Can't lie, you sure know how to throw a nasty look." Otogi commented with a light snicker.

"Yeah, sure, let me just unparalyze half my face and fix that."

"And you, Tsukuyuki?" Yukino interrupted the exchange, looking at Miyako expectantly.

"Well…" Miyako looked up toward Ragna in thought for a moment. She wasn't going to let first impressions sway her too strongly as she had only known him for an afternoon, but it was at least enough to start forming a general image of him. "I think Ragna-sensei's a little abrasive, but if their actions live up to their words, then I think SCHALE and SRT can get along."

Yukino's face turned pensive, contemplative even. Miyako was used to the girl being on the more serious side, but why did she look so melancholic? No, perhaps conflicted was the right word.

"Sure made quite the impression pretty quickly." Kurumi commented, glancing between Ragna and the RABBITs. The fourth member of FOX Platoon had long blonde hair, around the same length of Yukino's, with a large riot shield hung around her right side. Slung around her left was her primary weapon in the form of a submachine gun with a reflex and suppressor on it, while she had a holster for a pistol side arm strapped over her right thigh. Her eyes were a green shade with her halo being a triangle that had 3 lines extending out the points with a smaller, reversed one, inside of it.

"Yeah, great to hear everyone loves me, but it's not what I'm here for." Ragna spoke up. "I'm trying to find out more about the missing president, you familiar with her?"

"Apologies, but thank you for indulging my curiosity, sensei." Yukino stated with a hint of sympathy. "We're familiar with the GSC president and have run missions for her before, though not everything is declassified and permissible to discuss in public like this. Given the nature of SCHALE, you should have clearance about any operations if you wish to discuss them somewhere quieter, however."

Ragna shook his head. "Not really interested in that, well, maybe a little later. Right now, I'm more trying to know more about her in general."

Kurumi blinked, eye brows furrowed in visible confusion. "Eh, wait a second. She picked you for SCHALE, I'd expect her to already know pretty well."

"That's the thing, she knows me and I've definitely met her before, but I sure don't know anywhere near as much about her. Not like I can just go ask her myself." Ragna flatly answered. "The GSC's extremely busy right now too, so I thought maybe I'd be able to talk more at SRT till things calm down a little there to know more about the president."

Miyako tilted her head, that was rather unexpected a revelation. What kind of relationship was seemingly so one-sided but still had so much trust to be put in charge of something like SCHALE? That was a little strange way to talk about someone they'd met as well.

"And that's all? I see..." Yukino echoed the surprised sentiment, closing her eyes to think. After a moment, her expression relaxed somewhat, a low smile over her face. It was friendly, but there was still a hint of reservation under it. "What did you want to know then? I wouldn't exactly say we were friends with the president, so I'm not sure how much we can tell you."

Surely it was Miyako's imagination, but it seemed like there was a guard to her that Yukino just dropped, though not entirely. She wasn't that suspicious of Ragna, was she?

"I've barely got a damn clue where to even start so anything's better than nothing." Ragna admitted with a huff. "What kind of person was she to all of you? Might as well start there."

"As already stated, we only spoke occasionally outside the contexts of missions." Yukino repeated flatly. "But I would say the president was a capable leader, despite with her attitude most of the time being surprisingly carefree and casual."

"Honestly, she was a little bit of a weirdo, even if she knew how to keep everything in order." Kurumi stated with a resigned look.

"Well, the GSC does have a lot of eccentric people, so guess it's not too surprising the person in charge had that side too." Niko stated a little more neutrally. "She was reliable when it counted."

"Yeah, that sounds kind of familiar, now that you mention it…" Ragna grumbled a little to himself. "Wasn't she really into…" The man paused for a second, visibly trying to collect his thoughts. "Occult stuff, right?"

"Heh, yeah I think she was pretty into that stuff." Otogi spoke up, eyes closed in reflection. "Didn't she have a whole stack of books about that stuff on her desk once?"

Kurumi crossed her arms. "Now that you mention it, I think I remember that too. Don't remember whatever any of them were about though…"

"I recall at least one of them was about ancient legends, but I couldn't tell you anything more." Yukino stated before Ragna could even begin another question. "We're not specialists about the occult either."

"Hrm…" Ragna put his hand on his hip. "She never talked about any of that with you?"

"Not really." Niko admitted with a shake of her head. "Like Yukino said, though we did talk occasionally outside of the context of an operation, we weren't close, the president was a busy person. I'm surprised she could manage it all sometimes."

"Damn." Ragna said with a scowl directed at nobody in particular. "Really got nothing else for me about her?"

Yukino shook her head. "Negative. Unless you want to know more about any operations done for her, the acting president would be a far better person to ask about her character."

"She ever send you out for anything related to that?"

"Negative." Again, Yukino answered plainly.

Kuruim scrunched her eyebrows together pensively. "What're you so interested in the topic for anyway? You into occult stuff too or something?"

Ragna looked up in reflection for a moment. "Not entirely sure what counts for that here, this place is pretty different than from where I came from. Just trying to learn anything about that woman with how damn important she was."

"… You really didn't know the president much, did you?" Yukino said, her face turning contemplative.

"I do. I just had no idea she was practically the center of everything." Ragna answered back with a huff. "She didn't even tell me much about my job before I got here."

Yukino closed her eyes in thought momentarily. "Is that so… Sensei, there is a question or two I'd like to ask you then.

"Eh, sure. You answered mine, so guess I owe you a few. Shoot." Ragna said casually.

"Why do you think the GSC President chose you then?" Yukino asked curtly, looking at Ragna intensely.

"Hell if I know, never thought of myself as a teacher." Ragna bluntly admitted with zero hesitation.

Miyako wasn't sure she'd ever seen Yukino, someone who almost never lost their composure, with such a thoroughly perplexed expression before, even the rest of FOX Platoon had disbelief written over their faces. In fact, Miyako knew she had that same expression plastered across her own face. Sure, Miyako had dealt with blunt honesty before, sometimes Saki could be like that, but Ragna was brutally honest. Between this and what he'd said about justice, Miyako wasn't sure if the man was completely tactless and poorly fit for such responsibility or incredibly self-aware and the perfect person for it. Adults were complicated…

"But there's a reason I'm here for something only I can do." Ragna was the first to speak up from the stunned silence. "And since she didn't tell me what that is, if I can find out more about her, then maybe I'll find out what her point was."

"Ugh, I don't know what kind of answer that is from someone in your position, but the president was kind of weird like that with her vague mysteries." Kurumi spoke up with a conflicted frown.

"She did make a joke about a surprise being more fun for one of our lower priority missions, but she still gave up proper intel in the end." Niko added.

"Least you got more than I did." Ragna said with a groan.

"I see…" Yukino trailed off in reflection. "I have one more question. Sensei, what do you think about SRT's closure, now that you've spent some time on the campus?"

"Hey, wait a second." Saki interjected with tense words. "Those're just rumors, we're not shut down yet."

"It is not worth treating rumors alone as worthwhile intelligence, Sorai, yes. But that does not always mean they're always worth dismissing outright." Yukino stated with a directness in her words.

An uncomfortableness came over the rest of FOX Platoon and it made Miyako nervous. She knew SRT's situation was far from great, but the certainty even Yukino was speaking with was enough to make Miyako's own confidence waver. FOX were not only 3rd years but also the most elite unit in the school and had the most direct contact with the GSC as a result. If even they were nervous about those rumors, that wasn't a good sign.

"Well, not like I've gotten to take a good look at the place, but you seem like good kids, if my tour guides are any indication." Ragna said, gesturing to the RABBITs. "Considering how this city went to hell and Valkyrie or local schools couldn't handle it themselves, obviously something more's needed. Gotta admit, I was a little skeptical about this place at first. An entire school of highly trained people who answer only to the person in charge of everything hasn't always turned out well. But long as the students are responsible, I can see why it exists to deal with the political headache that's regular law enforcement."

"Nice to see somebody acknowledge SRT's important." Saki stated with an approving tone, but a hint of frustration under it.

"Then you're more understanding than some of the GSC." Yukino spoke, her expression softened toward something like approval. It wasn't quite a smile, but it wasn't as tense as she had been through most of the conversation. However, the expression was fleeting as her face dropped down to a more neutral one again. "I assume that all of you expect SRT and SCHALE to cooperate then, do you?"

Miyako tilted her head at the implication. "Well, why wouldn't we? SRT and SCHALE have similar authority. Ragna-sensei at least speaks with a lot of conviction, so I don't see why it wouldn't be easier to work together."

"That's naive." Yukino said flatly, eyes narrowing.

"Eh?" Miyako blinked. But why? SCHALE and SRT were independent from one another and would have their own ways of operating, but why not cooperate?

"SRT was unique in the kind of extrajudicial power it wielded, but if another branch were to crop up with the same authority, if not more, then SRT's purpose is no longer unique to itself." Yukino lectured.

A pit was slowly forming in Miyako's stomach. Yukino wasn't trying to imply that SCHALE was to replace SRT, was she? "Yu-"

"Are you stupid?" Ragna abruptly interjected. "Doesn't matter how strong I am, this 'city' is gigantic and I'm one person who can only be in one place at a time. I'm not gonna replace an entire school, nor am I trying to be the police."

"Perhaps." Yukino didn't back down as the heavy air between her and Ragna only grew. "But if the kind of authority our organizations wield is handed out too callously, authority which can supersede local academy laws and even individual members of the GSC, then it no longer is unique and people will start to question why so much is needed. SRT's existence is a necessity for the sake of Kivotos, but not everyone will see reason and would question why two agencies should exist with such extrajudicial power."

"Look, Yukino, I get politics are a pain in the ass and people can be idiots, but I just got here so you can stop looking at me like I'm a threat." Ragna stated. "Might be jumping the gun just a bit there when school hasn't even closed down yet. I'll talk to the GSC and see what they have to say."

An uneasy silence fell over the gathered group.

"I think it'd be best to wait and see what they say then." Niko finally spoke up in a diplomatic voice to ease up the tension. Yet it didn't do much for the atmosphere. "He's right that SRT hasn't been formally closed yet."

Yukino's face flicked through several conflicting emotions, but most surprisingly was the uncertainty. "I suppose all we can do is continue to wait for a decision anyway."

"Well, in that case, think it's best I get going then." Ragna stated with a casualness to his words that showed the man clearly wasn't bothered by the energy of the discussion. "I wanted to stay a little longer, but remembered a few things I've got to take care of on top of talking to Rin about all this."

"Already? It hasn't even been a few hours." Miyako spoke up. Sure, she'd gotten to show off a bit of SRT to Ragna and get a feel for the man, but there was still plenty more to cover at the school before she could think of it as even a decent overview, let alone a thorough look.

"Maybe I'll drop by another time, but I know I'm gonna get an earful if I don't take care of this." Ragna said with a scowl.

"Ragna-sensei, wait." Yukino interjected. "There's one more thing."

"Oh yeah, what is it?"

If Miyako had so much as blinked, she would've missed what occurred the next instant.

Hand already holding her rifle, Yukino had started to raise it toward a shooting stance, other arm racing toward the grip on the barrel.

But before she could even get her gun half raised, Ragna had started moving ahead of Yukino. The man had grabbed his sword in a reverse grip, stepped at a slight angle toward the 3rd year, raised his weapon above the path of Yukino's gun to block it, and placed the front edge of it against her arm and torso's side. Ragna had put himself out of the path of Yukino's rifle even if she pulled the trigger in that moment, blocked access to her weapon, and positioned himself in a manner that all her needed to do was twist his body to cut across her dominant arm and torso.

"W-Woah, hey! What was that about?" Otogi shouted, eyes rapidly darting between her squad leader and Ragna.

Nobody else moved a muscle for a solid several seconds. No one expected an actual fight to break out, yet were still trying to process the meaning behind Yukino abrupt threat. Across the girl in question's face, there was a rare flash of surprise.

Ragna lowered his weapon, slowly, yet didn't holster it and let the massive slab of metal rest in a relaxed stance. "If you wanted to surprise me, you shouldn't have been sizing me up the entire conversation." Ragna stated with an edge to his words. "Was wondering when you'd eventually make a move like that. Your finger moving to the trigger a split second early was a dead giveaway."

"So you're not just raw strength. You move like someone who's greatly experienced in combat. I wasn't sure if you would see such a small tell." Yukino's expression returned to normal as she said her words with a sense of respect, though also a dash of caution.

"You could've just asked me instead of drawing a weapon for a secret little test." Ragna said flatly before holstering his weapon.

"Words mean little without action to back them up. And I can tell more about your capabilities from that than any lecture." Yukino answered levelly. "If we do ever cooperate, SRT wouldn't be able to work with someone who lacked ability and discipline, regardless of having the right attitude."

Was she more open to the idea now? Yukino wasn't exactly a close friend of Miyako or anything, but she still considered her a friend. Maybe she just had her own way of testing a person, Miyako had been trying to learn more about Ragna through some of the tour for the same purpose, after all.

So why was the air still not relaxed then? Miyako couldn't shake the feeling of there being something… More to this.

Ragna let out a resigned sigh. "Guess you're not wrong about that. Some people talk big and have nothing to back it up. If that's all, I really gotta get out of here though."

"That's all." Yukino answered.

"If you come back for another visit, you'll have to give us some warning." Niko said with a warm tone and polite smile. "I would've loved to prepare some inari, but this was short notice."

"Aw, I would've loved to try some of Niko-senpai's cooking. It's been a while since we've had any." Moe griped.

"Normally, I'd offer to make some now, but…"

"There are a few things I would like to speak with my platoon about." Yukino interjected with the opening Niko gave. "FOX Platoon, let's get going."

"Hey," Ragna said before the group could start moving. "thanks for the information, even if it wasn't much."

"Sorry we couldn't say much else." Otogi said with a hint of sympathy under her grin. "But hey, thanks for meeting up too. Nice to see the new guy everyone's talking about. Later!"

With goodbyes said, and contact information exchanged so Ragna could send an update if he heard anything from the GSC, the gathering soon broke apart, leaving RABBIT Platoon by themselves once more.

"That was a pretty unusual meeting…" Miyako spoke up, half to herself. Some of Yukino's words wouldn't leave her head.

"Y-You don't think t-that they'll really close down SRT, r-right? Yukino-senpai sounded so convinced…" Miyu whined with a downcast look.

"And replace it with SCHALE? No way." Saki immediately said.

"I'd hope not…" Miyako trailed off in thought. Yukino did have a point and the more Miyako thought on it, the more she could see why somebody would, wrongly, be worried about SRT and SCHALE existing at the same time. Those in power were often scared to give it up, but SRT was founded to fight against such people and keep the system in check. If that's what it came to and the GSC actually made such a short sighted decision, well…

She wouldn't accept it lying down.

The walk back to some privacy had been a rather tense one for FOX Platoon, all of them knew not to speak until they were certain not a soul would hear them, but eventually that moment came and Yukino broke the silence with stern words. "We're going to have to adjust our plans."

"Yukino-chan… Are still onboard with Director Kaya's plan?" Niko asked with a frown.

Yukino hesitated in her answer, considering the options in her head carefully. She always weighed her options for any operation so as to achieve the best possible outcome and it was her entire reason for starting down her current path. It was seemingly the only option to ensure SRT's survival. Yet there was always that small voice at the back of her mind questioning if it was the right thing that she could never fully silence, despite seeing no alternative. But now…

"I don't expect anything he says to change the GSC's mind. SCHALE's existence is part of the problem in the eyes of those in favor of shutting down SRT. However, we may need to postpone the operation to plan around Ragna-sensei. If, in that time, matters look more optimistic for SRT, then we will reevaluate our options." Yukino finally stated, keeping her tone level.

"Be nice if that happened…" Otogi said, the sniper's usually cheerful attitude sullen. "I know things look bad, but if we go through with that plan then not like we can easily change our minds later after everyone gets hurt."

"Which is why the decision isn't being made lightly. And why we need to ensure the operation goes off without complications." Yukino stated.

Kurumi frowned pensively. "What's your assessment then?"

"Avoid melee engagement at all costs, nothing short of all four of us at once would be viable in such conditions and even then it's not favorable circumstances. I would wager they have more experience with close range fighting than anyone in Kivotos, with raw strength and speed few students could approach even aside from that." Yukino stated matter-of-factly. "Their blind spot will be much easier to exploit with some distance and multiple angles of attack. Ideally, if it comes to it, we'll be able to avoid any engagement with him, but we should be prepared just in case. We'll have much to discuss with Director Shiranui."

"Yeaaaaaah, was afraid you'd say something like that. Can't disagree with it after what they did to the tank and you barely got your gun up in time." Otogi said with a sigh. "Sure he might not be interested in working with her? Seemed pretty exasperated by all the red tape too."

Yukino shook her head. "As valuable an asset as he would be, we don't know nearly enough of his character to even consider telling Ragna-sensei, our intelligence is still too limited on that matter. It's not worth compromising the mission over."

"Now, now. Let's not get too pessimistic." Niko interjected with a supportive smile. "All this worrying might be for nothing. Who knows, maybe we'll be surprised and Director Kaya's operation won't be needed."

"I would keep your expectations tempered, Niko. Possible as it may be, I would consider those odds slim." Yukino stated flatly.

"Well… Like Otogi-chan said, it'd still be nice if it could work out like that." Niko said, her smile almost regretful.

"… It would make things simpler, yes." Yukino admitted, almost surprising herself with the reluctance she felt saying that. For just a moment, her mind wandered to such a possibility before she could bring herself back down to reality. In an ideal world, the kind of world she had believed in during her first year of SRT, such drastic measures would not be necessary. But reality was rarely so kind. Reality could be an unforgiving place which often had little patience for naivety. Still, no matter how true it was, sometimes accepting reality was difficult. Part of her still hoped for that day she would be proven wrong, to go back to those old days where ignorance truly was bliss, but that day had yet to come.

Yukino forced the longing smile that'd come over her face unwillingly away, returning to a more composed expression. "But we should still plan just in case."

Regardless of what happened though, it was not their plan nor were they giving the orders at the end of the day. Those orders came from Kaya, it would be her responsibility for whatever happened. Yukino would just be following orders in that case, doing what she had to for the greater good of ensuring SRT's survival. A gun wouldn't feel guilty for shooting someone, the weight would be on the one who pulled the trigger, no matter how many got hurt in the process.

She just had to follow orders...

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

This might be the last chapter which comes in a pretty short time period. Didn't take as long as I decided to split the SRT visit up so this ended up a little shorter than expected. But dealing with some major personal problems that just cropped up which might leave me without much time/energy to write for a while. Just depends on a couple things that happen over the next 2-3 weeks.