Chapter 3

"Panzer vor!" Trafalgar's voice announced through the radio. Miho wasn't that much surprised from it now, thanks to knowing about everything inside the Tiger I and unsaid pending request for Saori to start qualifying for the position of a radioman/radiowoman. Yukari was again all fluffy from being in a moving tank, but also she was waiting for something to happen as she grabbed one of the cumulative rounds.

"Gruppe Ankou! Die Panzerfaust ist bereit." Miho raised an eyebrow at that. "He is ready to strike down the StuG III. Our goal now is to get their attention," Yukari suddenly said. Hmm… he and Yukari devised a plan already. Good to know that he is a good tactician. But, why is he calling us an Ankou team?! Saori seemed to be angry for some reason after hearing the word 'Ankou' and almost banged her head against the hatch.

"Where is our rendezvous point with him, Yukari?" the small girl turned to her. "The bridge nearby, Nishizumi-dono. We will fight back-to-back there." Hana looked up from her seat at them. Miho gulped. "Well… Bridges are one of the few serious advantages for those who hold them. But a few well placed shots can turn it into a disadvantage. Hana-san, get us there. We will capture the advantage." The driver nodded and the Panzer IV soon after that started moving.

Erwin grinned. "Well, it seems that the Panzer IV is now dubbed Ankou… Our original plan of tanking down Nishizumi first is still on, but after we strike down the Tiger I. We'll team with the Type 89B for now." Smart move, but not good enough, Trafalgar Jameson. We will win this mock battle.

"What did he say?" Anzu asked. "Something about team Ankou and a Panzerfaust at the ready," Yuzu answered. "Momo-chan, load the cannon and prepare to fire." "DON'T CALL ME MOMO!" Anzu grinned in response and started munching down another dried sweet potato.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Taeko muttered after hearing the phrase said in German. "It seems that Trafalgar laid a trap and teamed with the Ankou team, whoever it is. We better do not team with the others and show them, what's volleyball!" The rest of the team cheered. "For the Volleyball club!"

Inside the M3 Lee was a grave silence for a long time. "We… we're doomed…" Azusu broke the silence first. "Yes… we are…" Yuuki added. "Get us away Karina!" Ayumi shouted. Soon after, the M3 Lee tried to move, but it got stuck in mud and with the smell of smoke coming from the engine section, it finally stopped.

Ami was unamused from the sight of the M3 Lee crew easily giving up and trying to escape the battlefield, leading to getting their tank immobilized by being stuck in mud. "M3 Lee is unable to participate more…" she heard the Student council president announce to her team, while also leaving the channel open, so everyone on the 'battlefield' heard it.

Well, whatever his words meant, he managed to disable one tank and confuse another. But, why did he call one team after that dance?! She shrugged and focused again at the Tiger I. It and Panzer IV were heading towards the bridge in the middle. And when the Tiger I turned, a cannon fired, leaving smoke around it.

Traf coughed. Damn that Sturmgeshütz! It almost disabled my tank! he thought and quickly loaded a random shell into the cannon, ready to fire when the smokescreen fades. It wasn't a long wait, leaving him prepared and sure that his tank is considered as disabled like the M3 Lee. Only it wasn't.

As the smoke faded, he saw the StuG's rear armor perfectly situated to get a clear shot. He grinned and pulled the trigger, while shouting "feuer frei!" And he heard the oddly satisfying BANG! again.

Erwin heard the cannon of Tiger I fire, but it was too late to turn and try to deflect the shell. "BRACE FOR IMPACT!" she managed to shout right before the shell tore a hole into the rear armor. "Guess we're out…" Caesar stated. "Yeah… We should rather double-check our shots from now on…" Saemonza added and they all sighed. More training awaits them.

Yukari grew restless by the second. Trafalgar was supposed to be there a minute ago! But, he was nowhere to be seen. Also, what was Mako-san doing out there?! She could get herself killed! she thought as she stared at the always late-for-school girl speechless.

Suddenly, the radio made some cracking noises. "Gruppe Ankou! Nur noch zwei Panzers übrig!" his voice announced happily. "Only Panzer 38 (t) and Type 89B are left." That was Miho, translating the meaning of the message. "Why does he keep talking German? It's so annoying!" Saori said and sighed. "There are several reasons to explain it. Reason one: he learned German at school. Reason two: one of his ancestors was German and he learned from him or her. And reason three: he just enjoys talking German." Saori didn't say a word after that explanation and seemed to be interested in her uniform instead.

Yukari rolled her eyes. If Saori is the commander, she is supposed to be aware of the situation around her tank, not playing with her clothes! Suddenly, something grazed the turret of their tank. "We are now a Tank destroyer. The turret is stuck!" Miho announced to them. "That was the Panzer 38 (t)! It is hidden somewhere in bushes on the other side!"

And as she said that, another shell impacted their tank. "HANA-SAN!" Saori shouted. "They knocked out our driver!" To their surprise, Mako took Hana's place as driver after that and expertly drove their tank to dodge enemy fire. Suddenly, a shell soared through the air and missed them. "We're surrounded!" Yukari heard Saori shout afterwards and sighed.

Ami was speechless. Both Panzer IV and Tiger I were holding on their own with clearly smaller crews than usual for them. But now, the Panzer IV was trying its best to avoid getting shot and the Tiger I too far away to help one of the sides in this combat… Wait?! Is he trying to do that?! And then, a loud BANG! echoed through the 'battlefield' again.

Taeko coughed. There was smoke everywhere around her. The smoke cleared soon and she saw the rest of the volleyball team unconscious. What?! How?! she thought and then she saw a hole in top and left side armors. A clear penetration… she realized. He knows more than Yukari-san about tanks. He is really valuable for us.

Suddenly, the top hatch opened and she saw Miho's face staring at her with worry. "We're okay. They are just unconscious." Miho sighed in relief as the only response and she disappeared from view. Well, now I must wait.

Traf was shocked. He was originally aiming at the right side armor, but somehow he suddenly changed the aiming to a more dangerous one. What have I done?! I almost killed them! he thought. But, at least the experiment was successful. I managed to take it from around 1050 meters.

Suddenly, someone started shouting at him through the radio. "YOU IDIOT! DON'T DO THAT AGAIN, OR I WILL MAKE YOUR GUTS SEE THE SUN!" Traf gulped. "H-hey listen… I am sorry, but I accidentally changed the aiming right before pulling the trigger!" he tried to defend himself. A long silence was the answer to his explaining.

"We are not Kuromorimine. Stunts like this one can win a match, but can also lead to serious injuries. Or death…" Traf was shocked. The speaker was Miho all the time, not a crazy something-dere. "Jawohl, Kommandant. I won't do it in the future." And with those words, their small talk ended.

Better get going towards the bridge or I won't catch them there… he thought and sat back down on the driver's seat with a sigh escaping his lips. The fight was almost over. I will definitely need to take a bath after this…

Anzu almost said to fire at the Panzer IV, when she noticed it already aiming at their Panzer 38 (t). "Fall back!" she commanded almost instantly. But, before Yuzu even backed away ten meters, a shell impacted with their front armor. "Can we move?" Momo asked. "Try to shoot. If we can fire, we're not done!"

"The shot almost immobilized us! Anzu-chan, we can't move fast enough to escape!" Anzu looked at Momo. "Fire. We will shoot one more time." But, before that, another shot hit the Panzer 38 (t) and they could hear the small click of the white flag popping up. "Heh… At least we shot something…"

Miho smiled. Letting some of her former self out felt strangely satisfying to her. "Okay… We will now hide and shoot the Tiger I from behind. That is our only chance at penetrating the armor." Suddenly, Yukari looked at her. "He will probably expect this. Why don't do something unexpected?" she announced. "Good thinking. But, what is this 'unexpected' thing of yours?"

Yukari seemed to think for a moment. "Use one of your Nishizumi abilities, if you possess them." Miho sighed. There is no going back. We either win by fully releasing the caged cold beast or lose by doing basic tactics… "Aim between the two trees 300 meters left from us. Use a blank round. Fire on my mark." Yukari nodded and hastily completed her order.

"Driver! Get ready for leaving immediately after the shot. We must keep distance and have cover in order to take the Tiger down." She closed her eyes and tried her best to use the ability, which Maho possessed: Tank position perception with only her hearing.

And, she smiled after a while. "Now." There was a loud BANG!, followed by the clanking sound of a deflected round.

Ami held in a surprised gasp. So, he practically forced Miho to use her Nishizumi abilities… I should start searching for potential crewmates after this match. Maybe Pravda, St. Gloriana and Saunders have a boy or two to spare, she thought and smiled. Yes, that could be it. I heard that Anzu Kadotani already planned a match against Darjeeling's tankery team. And she can keep a secret.

But, another BANG! brought her back to reality and she struggled to find the last two tanks, only to see Miho's tank behind the Tiger. Both had parts of armor plating torn away. Wait!? Is that a… a draw?! she realized and hurriedly announced the defeated teams. "Team E-defeated. Team D-defeated. Team C-defeated. Team B-defeated. Teams A and F-defeated. The winner is no one. I'll send someone to pick up the tanks."