Kazumi walked away, holding her things. She seemed to have instantly forgotten about Ihara and the others.
Just then, Sousuke stopped and turned around to face them. “Ah, right. You seem to be embarking on some kind of training regimen, but you can’t beat me with such stopgap measures. You should just give up on forming your club before you get hurt.”
“Grr...”
“That goes for you too, Chidori,” he told her. “I don’t know what you’re planning, but it’s a waste of time.”
“Wh-What did you say?!” Kaname demanded.
“I’m merely speaking the truth.” Then Sousuke turned around, and this time, really left.
Once the two were out of sight, the men started whispering to each other.
“He’s got a girl with him. And it’s Kitano-san, our store idol, of all people...”
“This won’t stand. This really won’t stand...”
“The humiliation! This has gone way past the whole club thing...”
Some trembled with anticipation, while others spat on the ground. Some even wept tears of frustration.
“By the way... what was that about losing in the first round?” Kaname asked hesitantly.
Ihara and the other men slumped over in shame.
“For all your big talk, are you just some group of geeks trying to impress a girl?” she asked incredulously. “Do you even really want to beat that guy?”
“Of course,” said Ihara. “That’s why we asked for your—”
“So, trust me already!” Kaname snapped at him. “I know I’m just an ordinary girl who’s been through near-death experiences countless times, and it’s understandable that you wouldn’t trust me. But at the very least, I want to beat that war-addled fool more than anybody here! Right? If you think I’m wrong, say so right now!”
Ihara and the others had no argument for this.
“If there’s something wrong with my methods, I’ll really work to fix them. But I need you to take me seriously. Trust me. We’re a team, aren’t we?!” As Kaname shouted her truth at them, Ihara and the others looked down, trembling with clenched fists.
“Chidori-san... you’re right. If we don’t do something, we’re just going to lose.” The one who spoke first was Ebikawa, who had previously argued with Kaname.
“You’re right. We forgot about something important,” the scar-faced Inoue said.
“That’s right. We need to trust her!”
“There’s ten of us! If we just work together, we can win this!” one of them said.
“I’m sorry, Chidori-san! I won’t complain anymore!” Hiromi chimed in.
“Let’s do this, Commander!” they all cried in unison.
“You guys... thank you. This is the first time you’ve called me Commander.” Kaname folded her arms and lowered her gaze, looking extremely moved. Tears pooled at the corners of her eyes, and then she struck an enthusiastic pose. “Now, let’s get back to training! Line up!”
“Yeah!”
“Radio calisthenics Number Two! Thirty times!”
The men collapsed to their knees, wailing in agony.
“Hey, Sagara-kun...” Kazumi said to Sousuke as they moved away from the camp.
“What?”
“Are you sure about this? Those friends you’re going to fight... Chidori-san and the others? You said some very harsh things to them...”
“It’s the truth. They can’t possibly beat me.”
“But... even if you’ve used real guns in foreign countries, Japanese survival games are a different beast.”
“That’s why I’m asking you to teach me.”
“I suppose, but—”
“Don’t worry. You’ll get the empty anti-AS 76mm cartridges that I promised you. A dozen of them,” he said bluntly, then removed the AEG from its case.
Kazumi had come along with him on the promise of receiving some rare military surplus. Empty 76mm cartridges were very hard to find in Japan, and quite expensive. They were about the size of a pen, so they were great for interior design.
“Also, this is a good opportunity. I’m going to fight so hard she never picks up a firearm again.”
“Oh... why?”
Sousuke paused in the middle of fiddling with his gun. “I don’t exactly know.” He then used the special loader to refill the magazine with BBs. “I just feel like it’s the right thing to do.”
Obviously, they had to do more than calisthenics. Kaname was currently working with Ihara and the others on a more on-point training regimen: accuracy and coordination. At the same time, they were working out a game plan for the match.
They would form four squads of three people each. If any of the squads ran into Sousuke, one member would serve as a shield while another fired wildly to hold the enemy in place, while the most skilled member took aim to try to finish him off. If they could remain calm and employ three-on-one tactics, not even Sousuke should stand a chance. They’d also have four chances at it.
“It’s called Heaven, Earth, Man Tactics,” Kaname explained. “I learned about it from an old Taiga historical manga.”
“Ohhh...”
“The squad names will be Lemon, Peach, Melon, and Papaya. Make sure you use those call signs when communicating via radio.”
“Those names sound a little wussy...”
“Really? I think they’re cute.”
“Well, okay,” Ihara reluctantly agreed. “What else?”
“We have to work out our placement and timetable.” Kaname opened up the map of the pay-to-rent survival game field outside Tokyo, where the match would take place. “You know this field well, right, Ihara-kun?”
“Affirmative.”
“But Sousuke doesn’t,” she pointed out. “We’ll use that to our advantage. We’ll place our teams... here, here, here, and here. Stay in contact and herd him towards the southeast part of the forest.”
It was a pretty logical placement for an amateur, but Ihara and the others voiced their doubts.
“You think it’ll work?”
“It’ll be fine,” Kaname reassured them. “His best strategies involve setting traps and getting in close enough to punch and kick. But he’s not allowed to do any of that this time.”
“Hmm. I see.”
“And with this many people, it should be surprisingly easy to finish him. No worries!” Kaname declared with a clenched fist.
And so, the day of the match arrived. It was a Sunday afternoon as the group gathered in the field’s safe zone, with Hayashimizu playing referee.
Kaname was wearing borrowed fatigues and jungle boots with a bandanna wrapped around her head. She hooked up the battery of her AEG, which she’d just learned to use, and loaded its magazine with BBs. She then secured her side arm into its holster and put goggles on for eye protection.
She pulled on the gloves and flexed her fingers a few times. “Okay,” she finally said, “preparations complete.”
“You look wonderful, Chidori-san,” said Mikihara Ren, who’d come to watch.
“Yeah, totally awesome!” chimed in Tokiwa Kyoko, who’d done the same.
“Thanks!” she told them. “Okay, you guys ready?!” She turned to her men.
“We’re ready, Commander!” Ihara and the others chorused together. They’d ended up only having a few days to train, but it seemed to have done them a world of good, as they were all brimming with enthusiasm. The combination of running, shooting, and eating Kaname’s home cooking had increased their sense of unity, as well.