Chapter 115 - One Down

(After a week of waiting the JNST's opponent for the semi-finals has been confirmed. They were about to face the American Tankery Team while the German Tankery Team will face off against the British Tankery Team. But before Gero and the rest of the team started to practice for their match there was one last mission they had to do first. The location of the mission was at a hidden cottage house in the woods somewhere in North Carolina. It was owned by two very important individuals who were present at the location. Those individuals were the the Vice President, and the Secretary of Defense)

Current Vice President of the United States : Simone Borris

Current Secretary of Defense of the United States : Boyd Justin

[Cottage House - North Carolina]

"What was so important that you had to call for this emergency meeting, Mr. Vice President? You do know that things haven't calmed down yet after last week's incident!" Boyd asked

"I didn't call for this meeting! I thought that you were the one that asked for me!" Simone said

"What?!" Simone reacted

"I called you both to this very important meeting." a voice was heard from the shadows

(They looked towards the direction of the voice which was coming from the door of the house and saw Erika walking towards them. She was wearing an inner gray turtleneck and a jet black long coat.)

"Who are you!? What business do you have with us!?" Simone asked

"Protect the Vice President!" Boyd ordered

(All of a sudden numerous soldiers went out of hiding and started aiming their weapons at Erika. The soldiers were wearing military gear and had a very familiar skull mask on their faces. The Secret Service agents were also there and surrounded the Vice President to protect him)

"This is quite the welcome party you have here!"

"Who are you!? I'm not going to ask again!" Boyd shouted

"Me? I'm not sure you're ready to find that out." Erika said with an evil smile

"This bitch, just kill her then dump her body somewhere." Boyd ordered

(At this moment two loud gunshots were heard and the next thing that happened was two large caliber bullets hit the legs of Boyd and Simone. The bullets landed just below their knees and amputated each of their legs. Both of them fell to the ground bleeding and screaming in pain. The ones responsible for this were Sakurai and Nana who were on top of one of the tall buildings using Suppressed Barrett M82 Sniper Rifles.)

"Foo~ just below their knees! As expected of Sakurai and Nana!" Erika smiled

"Damn it! Damn it! It hurts so bad! Save me!" Simone shouted in pain

"Primary targets are down. Eliminate the rest." Erika ordered

(The soldiers and secret service agents that were under the vice president and secretary were suddenly being killed from behind. The soldiers were being killed by none other than the wives of the White Tiger. Darjeeling, Kay, and Kaede were hiding in the darkness and started killing the soldiers one after another. The ANBU were also there while Sakurai and Nana were providing sniper support. As the enemy were dying one by one Erika was just there standing comfortably and watching. It only took a couple of minutes for the one sided fight to finish and all that's left was Simone and Boyd)

"All clear Erika-sama." the ANBU Captain said

"Good work, set up a perimeter around the park while we wait for Mika to arrive."

"Yes ma'am. What about these two?"

"Treat their wounds just enough to not let them bleed out."

"Were these guys responsible for what Darling and the others saw back in New York?" Kay asked

"We're about to find that out." Kaede said

"So how was your first mission? Anybody hurt?" Erika asked

"We're fine, compared to the training we received by fighting Shiho-sama these thugs are nothing." Darjeeling said

"Calling ex-military contractors as thugs, since when did you learn how to talk trash huh?"

"Gero taught me." Darjeeling smiled

"Of course he did."

(After a few moments multiple cars arrived and headed for Erika's location. Mika was the first one to get out of the lead car then the next person was the most important person in the country, the President of the United States)

Current President of the United States : Ronald Crump

"How was your trip? I thought you'd have a hard time convincing the President to come here." Erika asked

"All I had to do was mention your and Ro-chan's names to him and he agreed right away." Mika smiled

"Miss Erika?!" Ronald reacted

"It's good to see you again, Mr. President, how have you been?"

"I've been very well, it's good to see you too! Where's Sir Gero?"

"Gero has entrusted me with this matter so he isn't here. He sends his sincere regards to you and your family!" Erika smiled

"Who are these young ladies here?"

"Including me and Mika, those other three are the wives of the White Tiger. They have joined us here to formally introduce themselves."

"It is great to meet you Mr. President! I'm Kay!" Kay smiled

"Greetings Mr. Ronald, my name is Darjeeling! I've watched a couple of your speeches before!" Darjeeling said

"It is an honor to meet the leader of this great country! I am Yamato Kaede."

"Ms. Kay, Ms. Darjeeling, and Ms. Kaede! It is a pleasure to meet you all! It brings me so much happiness that my friend Sir Gero has found such amazing and beautiful people to be his wives! I pray for all of your eternal happiness with him!"

"Thank you very much!" the wives answered with a smile

"Well then, can you please explain to me now why this place has been covered with blood and dead bodies?"

"Mr. President! Arrest this woman immediately! She has killed countless soldiers of our country and did this to me and the Secretary of Defence!" Simone shouted

"No need to arrest her! She needs to be killed right now as the enemy of the state!" Boyd shouted

"That's where you both are wrong. Miss Erika is an ally to our country. I trust her even more than my own Generals."

"That's absurd! Can't you see she's a threat to you and to every-"

"Shut your mouth!" Ronald suddenly shouted

"It's alright Mr. President, their hostility towards me is understandable since I've come here to expose the truth."

"Truth?"

(Erika then showed them two big brown envelopes which contained the truth that she was talking about)

"It would be best for you to see this first Mr. President."

"Don't listen to her Ronald! She's obviously plotting something!" Boyd said

(President Ronald them proceeded to read the contents of the envelope and soon his expression worsened)

"Is this all true, Miss Erika?" Ronald asked

"Unfortunately yes, I'd like to introduce to you two of Pandora's High Table Members, Simone Borris and Boyd Justin."

"I can't believe it. We spent years looking for them outside the country when they were this close to me." Ronald said in disappointment

(The facial expressions of Simone and Boyd were a lot worse than before after their identities were easily exposed. The envelope that Erika gave to the president contained all information regarding the transactions between the two and Pandora. From mission reports to money transfers were all exposed clearly)

"How long have you known?" Ronald asked

"We were already keeping a close eye on these two but without clear evidence we wouldn't make a move like this. We were only able to proceed with the mission after successfully squeezing out every bit of information from one of the heads of the Pandora facility in New York."

"What?! Pandora has a facility here in our country?!"

"Yes, our recent mission to the Brother Islands and Rikers Island proved it to be one of the facilities which is bigger than most. They kidnapped thousands of innocent people all over the world and held them inside Rikers Island Prison. Guess who was the last person to secretly purchase those islands."

"Simone.."

"Bingo! Those islands were purchased by the Vice President long before he came into power. During the mission we encountered the Graves Mercenary Group that was taking orders from the head of the facility. Guess who has the authority to mobilize this group without needing the permission from the President?"

"Boyd.."

"Bingo again! Only the Secretary of Defense has the power to fund and mobilize a mercenary group like Graves. Both these fuckers basically gave Pandora three islands in New York where they can conduct human experiments and be protected by the government." Erika explained

(Ronald then read the reports about the human experiments and the breeding facility found under the Brother Islands. He became so sick to his stomach that he almost puked at the spot. After feeling disgust the next thing the president felt was rage.)

"I trusted you both to protect our country and our people then you stab them in the back?! You dare to stab ME in the back?!" Ronald shouted

"They also sent a couple of Graves operatives when we were in Paris. One of our guys got shot in the head and Gero's sisters almost got killed." Erika said

"Oh my God! Please tell me they're alive!"

"The one that got shot is alive and will be out of the hospital in time for the tournament while the sisters were traumatized a bit but they weren't hurt so don't worry."

"Thank goodness! I don't know how I could ever face Sir Gero again if anything had happened to his friends and family!"

"Our Ro-chan is very merciful but this should be the last time that these kinds of mistakes happen. Or else there won't be a next time, Mr. President." Mika smiled

"Thank you, Miss Erika and everyone here, for cleaning up the garbage of our city. I don't know how I could ever repay you and your comrades for this."

"There is one thing you can do to make this right. If you have the guts to do it."

"Please tell me!"

(Erika then grabbed her gun and gave it to the president.)

"Take this gun and put a bullet inside their brains, right here, right now. It is your responsibility to take out the trash of your country using your own hands." Erika said

"B-But.."

"These two will die soon of blood loss. If that happens then they would've been killed by us. That could possibly spark a war between our countries because we would be labeled as the ones that killed the Vice President and the Secretary of Defence of the United States. I don't want that, you don't want that, and finally Gero doesn't want that."

"Very well."

(Ronald then walked towards Simone and Boyd with a cold expression on his face. The two were shivering in fear as the leader of their country was about to put an end to their miserable lives)

"W-Wait! Ronald, please listen! We didn't have a choice! We-"

(Ronald pulled the trigger and shot Boyd on the head cleanly. Next he pointed the pistol at Simone's head and put a bullet in her head as well. Ronald's hands were shaking as this was his first time killing a person with his own hands. Erika then slowly took back the pistol from the presidents hands and gave him a pat on the back)

"Well done Mr. President, you have proven to everybody here that you have what it takes to lead this country." Erika said

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity to prove myself. We'll take care of the bodies and take care of their families."

"How will you announce their deaths to the country?" Mika asked

"We'll say they were going on a trip together and their plane went down. I'll guarantee that nothing will lead back to you all."

"We appreciate that!"

"As for those of you that witnessed the events tonight. Tonight you will sleep soundly and then tomorrow you will remember nothing! Is that understood?!" Ronald said

"YES SIR MR. PRESIDENT!" the Secret Service Agents answered

"Members of the Secret Service! This is your President! A man not swayed by his emotions and only looks forward and beyond for the sake of your country and for the people living in the country! A man prepared to do what needs to be done to make your country great again! GIVE HIM YOUR BEST SALUTE OF LOYALTY!"

"SALUTE TO THE PRESIDENT!" the Secret Service Agents shouted and saluted

(As the secret service agents were saluting President Ronald a little bird helicopter arrived at the scene piloted by Sakurai and Nana.)

"Well it's time for us to go Mr. President. I hope the next time we meet will be a lot better than tonight!" Erika smiled

"I'll make sure that it will be better, Miss Erika! Please pass along my sincere gratitude to Sir Gero!" Ronald smiled

"Will do! Oh and it looks like our Senshado Team is against your country's Tankery Team! Hope you can watch!"

"I'll definitely make time for it!"

"Goodbye Mr. President! It was a great honor to meet you!" Mika bowed

"Bye bye!" Kay smiled

"Farewell!" Darjeeling waved

"Till next time Mr. President!" Kaede bowed

"The honor is all mine, wives of the White Tiger! Take care now!"

(Erika and the wives then boarded the little bird helicopter and they flew away back to their carrier under the cover of night. The ANBU operatives also pulled out of the area and disappeared within the shadows.)

"Mr. President, who were those people? We could barely move under all the pressure they were exerting!" one of the agents said

"You know that there is evil in this world we live in right? Evil that would make strong and grown men cower in fear."

"Yes, I've heard of those kinds, sir."

"Those people are the ones that stand up and fight to destroy said evil. They have been fighting for about four years now and they've been winning. Only a select few have been chosen by their leader, the White Tiger."

"White Tiger? What kind of person is he to be able to lead such a group of elites?"

"To summarize that man's existence in one word, he's the Strongest."

(Erika and her team arrived back at their house after a helicopter trip above the city of New York. Miho and Maho were at the front door to welcome them back)

"Welcome home, how was the mission?"

"Everything went according to plan. The rats are dead and the President of America owes us now."

"I guess onii-chan was right when he said we had nothing to worry about." Miho smiled

"Where's Ro-chan?"

"Sleeping soundly after onee-chan sang him a lullaby."

"You didn't do anything suspicious while we were away right?" Darjeeling asked

"Who knows?" Maho teased

"Enough teasing now, let's get some rest as well. We're gonna need to be in our best condition for the semi-finals."

[Semi-Finals Schedule]

Japan (Away) vs. America (Home)

Germany (Away) vs. Britain (Home)

[J.N.S.T War Room - Aboard the JSS Hakugei]

(Gero then had their whole team gather in their war room aboard the Hakugei Carrier.)

"Alright, before we start the meeting regarding the semi-finals, let's all give a big round of applause to Kal for making a full and speedy recovery!"

"Thanks everyone!" Kal smiled

"Are you sure you're alright? You can take another week of rest if you want!" Takashi said

"I'm good, I wouldn't dare skip the semi-finals just because of a small scratch like this!"

"A gunshot to the head is a small scratch?" Miho said with an angry expression

"Ah..s-sorry.."

"Good thing Kal is thickheaded. I was really worried sick about you!" Katyusha pouted

"I'm sorry for worrying you nee-sama.." Kal smiled

"Katyusha-sama is very proud of you for the work you have been doing. She always brags about you when she has the opportunity." Nonna said

"Nonna!" Katyusha blushed in embarrassment

"Alright, I think that's enough of the teasing! What do you guys say about starting the meeting for the semi-finals?" Erika asked

"Yes!"

"Our opponent will be the Tankery Team of America! Their main tank line up are M24 Chaffee Light Tanks, M4A3E8 "Easy Eight" Sherman Tanks and T29 Heavy Tanks!" Assam reported

"T29 Heavies? This is the first time I've seen them used in Senshado." Kay said

"Those 105mm guns pack a mean punch. Are they using them as tank destroyers?" Naomi asked

"That's right, their doctrine is simple but effective. Find the enemy and destroy them. Search and Destroy is their bread and butter and they have stayed in the top three by using that for years."

"What will be the Game Mode for the match?" Pepperoni asked

"It will be a Multiple Flag Tank Battle. Both teams will have three flag tanks to protect. The team that eliminates all the flag tanks of the opposing team wins."

[Overall Commander of America]

Name : Arnold Rivers

Tank : T29 Heavy Tank

[Vice Commander of America]

Name : Megan Jensen

Tank : M24 Chaffee Light Tank

[Tank Ace of America]

Name : Eugene Davis

Tank : M4A3E8 "Easy Eight" Sherman Tank

"Their tank ace, I feel like I've seen him before." Erika said

"He's the bully you beat up back in Africa."

"Oh yeah! Now I remember! Oh this will be fun!"

"You want to kick his ass again?" Kaede asked

"Damn right I want to!"

"Alright, Erika will handle their tank ace this time."

"Are you sure about this?"

"Why? You think I'll lose?" Erika pouted

"No..I just feel sorry for the guy. He's about to get humiliated by the same person twice."

"He deserved it anyway."

"Oh well, then I guess me and my sisters will handle the biggest threat on the American team."

"Who?" Maho asked

"Their Vice Commander. Her nickname is Mad Megan given to her by the other teams. She can't be controlled by anyone on her team, not even the Commander."

"She looked docile when we saw her during the elimination rounds ceremony." Miho said

"That's only when she's not in a tank. The moment she steps in a tank and the engine starts, she becomes an entirely different person."

"More like a wild beast out of its cage. Her fighting style is unorthodox and unpredictable. She relies more on her gut and intuition instead of having a plan." Shiori said

"That's why the three of us will be the ones going up against her. We'll hunt her down as the hunters of this match. What do you say?"

"Sounds fun! It's been a long time since the three of us last played together!" Miho smiled

"Miho's right, I already can't contain my excitement!" Maho smiled

(Gero and his two sisters were having scary and evil smiles on their faces which gave their teammates chills)

"But why is she the biggest threat and not their tank ace?" Marie asked

"Eugene Davis being a tank ace doesn't necessarily mean he's the strongest in their team. It just means that his tank kills are more than Megan's."

"But why is that?" Koume asked

"It has something to do with their personalities. Eugene, being the bully and coward he is, only targets weaker enemies and avoids strong ones. Megan is the opposite of this where she doesn't find fighting with weaker opponents fun at all. She tends to go for stronger opponents so that she can let loose." Shiori said

"They have completely opposite styles of fighting but it merges well with each other. Eugene doesn't need to worry about strong opponents while Megan doesn't need to concern herself with weaker opponents."

"That's why we're going to use their own personalities against them. Megan won't have any problems fighting me and my sisters."

"But what about Erika-senpai? Wouldn't Eugene avoid her since everyone knows of her reputation as the Iron Rose?" Sheska asked

"That is true, that's why we're going to make Erika one of the flag tanks as bait. Considering how Erika kicked his ass before, he's going to want some payback. He won't be able to resist going after a flag tank he wants to get revenge from."

"Who'll be the other two flag tanks?" Klara asked

"The second flag tank will be us since we're going to need to give Megan a good enough reason to fight us as well."

"I would like to be the third and final flag tank if it's alright with you all." Kaede said

"You got a plan?"

"It's actually Shiori's plan."

"We'll make my sister's tank a flag tank to lure in their main forces assuming that their Vice Commander and Tank Ace will go alone. If not then you'll just have to do your best in keeping them busy. Mika-san and Alice-san will look for the enemy team's flag tanks and destroy them. If you end up getting into a chase with their flag tank, coordinate with our tank ace, Jouko-san, lure their flag tanks where she has a clear shot on them." Shiori explained

"Roger that!" Jouko said

"Understood!" Alice and Mika said

"Our Vice Commander is so cool! Not losing to your big sister huh?"

"Shut up! I'm just doing my best so that we don't embarrass ourselves in front of the American team!"

"Don't go tsundere all of a sudden.."

"I don't want to hear that from you Tsun Tora!"

"Ha?! I dare you to say that again!"

"Tsun Tora!"

"You little brat!"

"That's all for the meeting! We have three days before the match! We will now be practicing with the Type 5 Chi-Ri tanks instead of the Type 4 Chi-To tanks! We start in one hour! Dismissed!" Kaede announced

"Hai!"

(After the team practice Erika received a video call from the twins from Germany)

"Erika-sama!" the twins greeted

"How have you been? Are you guys ready for the semi-finals?"

"Yes! We've been training like crazy!" Ingrid said

"We're ready to take on that princess!" Ilse said

"Don't over-train yourselves or you might get injured before the match."

"Of course! We can't let ourselves be injured before our match at the finals!"

"Looks like both of you are very confident in beating the princess this time. Have a plan in mind?" Erika asked

"We always have a plan! We noticed that the princess has been out of her top form ever since the elimination rounds." Ilse said

"Yeah well a lot of things happened after that so she's probably under a lot of stress."

"Do you know something about her situation, Erika-sama?" Ingrid asked

"Oh just some rumors here and there but nothing worth mentioning. Even if she's not in her top form, don't show any mercy. Give it your all and destroy her!"

"We will!"

"The next time we'll meet will be at the finals! Goodluck to you both and Beatrisa-senpai!"

"Goodluck to you and your team as well! Gute Nacht!"

"Gute Nacht!"

(The video call stopped and Erika was relieved that the twins were not nervous about their match. She was happy but deep down she knew that the chances of Germany winning against Britain was low. But she still hoped and prayed for the success of the twins and that they'd meet at the finals. The JNST continued on with their practice and the days went by quicker than when it was before the quarter finals. They headed for the tournament stadium of the American Team with their tanks and waited at their starting point. The crowd was twice as large than it was during the quarter finals. The amount of supporters for the American Team was far greater than the supporters of the JNST and it really made the team feel like an Away Game. Both teams parked their tanks at a standby area and all crew members were to go to the center of the field to greet their opponents. At the middle were twenty official judges of the I.T.A that will be responsible for judging and watching the entire match)

"This is an official Semi-Final Match of the 18th International Tankery Tournament! The participants are the American Tankery Team and Japanese National Senshado Team! The mode will be Multiple Flag Tank Match! The team that destroys all three flag tanks of the other team wins!

"Honestly speaking, I never expected your team would reach this far into the tournament." Arnold said

"What a coincidence, we also thought the same about your team." Kaede said with a smug smile

"A clear provocation but meaningless."

"Maybe for you, here's some advice. Better keep your dogs on a tight leash in this match or else you might get dragged down by them."

"Both teams greet each other!"

"Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu!" Kaede bowed

"ONEGAISHIMASU!" the whole J.N.S.T Team greeted and bowed

(After shaking each other's hands, Arnold felt something bad about Kaede's words and left him anxious. Both teams returned back to their tanks and after all tank crews were boarded and ready a large timer was seen in a big screen and counted down from 30 seconds)

[ 5 ]

[ 4 ]

[ 3 ]

[ 2 ]

[ 1 ]

[ 0 ]

"Sensha Zenshin!" Kaede ordered

[Tanks forward!]

[JNST Tank Lineup]

Type 98 Ke-Ni B Light Tank [x8]

Type 5 Chi-Ri Medium Tank [x30]

Type 5 Ho-Ri II Tank Destroyer [x8]

Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausf. E Heavy Tank [4]

(All tanks of the JNST now advanced in a spread out formation with their tanks heading for the center of the map. The battlefield is a big mountain with a flat top surrounded by a thick forest at the bottom. The mountain is filled with roads and tunnels that are big enough for tanks to enter. The tunnels are two tanks high and three tanks wide which is enough leeway for the tanks to maneuver)

"How do you want to do this Kaede-chan?"

"Step one will be you, me, and Erika will go to the enemy team and show them that the three of us are the flag tanks."

"Like fresh meat on a hook huh?" Erika asked

"Exactly, when they see us we'll start step two and go to separate locations. Erika will go to the top of the mountain, Eiji-kun and your sisters will head inside the mountain, while me and the rest of our team will spread out across our side of the mountain. The Shimada sisters will then enter the forest at the bottom to look for the enemy flag tanks." Kaede ordered

"Roger!" everyone answered

"Miho! Maho! Head straight inside the mountain and look for a place where we can give a warm welcome to Megan!"

"Okay!"

(Kaede, Erika, and Gero then headed straight for the tank formation of the American team at max speed. The tanks of the American team were going up the mountain as well and are being led by Arnold at the front)

[American Tank Formation - West Side of the Mountain]

"Listen up! There will be no change in our strategy! We find the enemy and we destroy them! Stay in formation and this will be an easy win!" Arnold said

"Are you sure about that?" Megan asked

"Megan will stay back and protect our flag tanks while Eugene breaks off the formation to look for the enemy flag tanks. Take three tanks each and remember to not engage them before our main force arrives!"

"But babysitting is boring! I want to fight the Iron Rose!" Megan pouted

"Back off Megan! That bitch is mine to destroy! I'll humiliate her in front of the whole world for what she did to me!" Eugene shouted

"Ha? Who the fuck do you think you are to order me around?"

"Did you both hear what I just said?! Stay focused and-"

(The three of them felt a huge burst of bloodlust all of a sudden. It made their tank driver stop their tanks because of the sudden cold chills down their spine. As they looked up the mountain a single 88mm shell flew on top of their heads and landed a direct hit on the gun mantlet of a T29 Heavy Tank behind them which ricocheted downwards hitting the thin hull plate. The shell exploded and a white flag popped up on the heavy tank. The American Team was shaken after one of theirs was easily taken out and the one responsible was none other than the Iron Rose. Erika was standing on top of her Tiger I tank with an evil smile on her face. Her right eye was glowing golden meaning she had activated her Sacred Possession. She stared down at the American team form up top like they were not a threat to her at all)

"That's one down.." Erika smiled

Coming Up Next : Chapter 116 - Tiger's Den

Author's Note :

Hi everyone! Here's the chapter and we just saw how the wives of Gero become female Alpha's as they exterminate rats inside the government of the United States! The semi-finals have also begun between Japan and America which started with a bang with Erika getting the first kill and displaying her overwhelming aura all over the enemy team! Stay tuned for the next chapter as it will be fierce and action packed!