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Ooarai Girls Academy vs. Anzio Girls High School |
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The battle between Ooarai Girls Academy (bracket number 8) and Anzio Girls High School (bracket number 6) was a match in the quarter-finals of the 63ʳᵈ National High School Sensha-dō Tournament. Ooarai had fought Saunders University High School in first round and Anzio had fought Ooarai Girls Academy On the day of the match, Anchovy comes to meet with the Ooarai students, also meeting Miho for the first time. In the meantime, one of her vice-commanders, Carpaccio, reunited with Caesar one of her childhood friend.
Operation Macaroni[]
The match kicks off, with both teams heading for the central crossroads, which is the primary strategic location in the otherwise mountainous battlefield. Anzio's CV.33 tankettes are the fastest vehicles, and arrive first. They prepare a trap with Operation Macaroni, a ruse that uses wooden cutouts to imitate Anzio vehicles guarding the crossroads whilst their real tanks flank around behind Ooarai and encircle them.
Miho has Duck Team and Rabbit Team scout the crossroads from two sides. Duck Team spots five Anzio 'tanks' and Rabbit Team spots another six. Given that Anzio's enthusiasm is at odds with such a conservative defensive strategy, Miho is cautious about attacking. Furthermore, the numbers indicate that Anzio would be fielding eleven tanks, which is a breach of rules: 2nd round matches only allow up to ten vehicles per side.
Sure enough, when the scouts probe the crossroads, the Anzio 'tanks' are revealed to be fakes. Miho immediately deduces their plan, and redeploys Ooarai forces accordingly. Duck Team heads right. Rabbit Team heads left. The remainder of the Ooarai vehicles stick with the flag tank, the Panzer 38(t), and proceed forwards in search of the P40, which is Anzio's flag tank.
Northern Flank[]
A force of five CV.33 tankettes, commanded by Pepperoni, are discovered by Duck Team. The machine-gun-armed tankettes turn to engage the Type 89B on the move. Although their concentrated machine gun fire panics the volleyball club members, it is insufficient to penetrate the armour of the medium tank. Duck Team counters with accurate fire, landing hits on multiple Anzio tankettes.
However, as the chase drags on, Anzio vehicles keep appearing as fast as Duck Team can take them out. The Ooarai girls begin to harbour fears that the CV.33s are invincible. However, Miho calms them over the radio, informing them that the ultra-light vehicles are simply being knocked over by the Type 89B's shells. Having not shown the white flag, the tankettes are being tipped back onto their treads by the Anzio girls and are hence rejoining the fight as fast as they are hit.
Understanding that a direct hit to the weak points of the CV.33 will immobilise it for sure, Noriko Isobe opens the hatch to direct shots from a 'heads up' position. At that moment, Rabbit Team, pursued by two Semovente, comes flying past in the other direction and narrowly avoids a collision with Duck Team.
Through some accurate shooting, Duck Team rapidly immobilises four of the CV.33s, leaving only the tankette commanded by Pepperoni remaining. Anzio abandons its encirclement plan and Anchovy calls all her forces back to defend the flag tank. Pepperoni disengages and races off, with Duck Team giving chase.
Southern Flank[]
Rabbit Team, scouting east, spots another two Semovente M41 tankettes parked alongside the road. Aya Oono, prematurely believing them to be more wooden fakes, opens fire with M3 Lee's machine gun. She is shocked when the Semovente come to life and return fire. Rabbit Team takes off, and the Anzio vehicles follow close behind.
With their main 75mm armament fixed in a forwards position, Rabbit Team is at a firepower disadvantage. The girls argue amongst themselves as to whether to continue running or turn around and fight. Amidst the chaos, they encounter Duck Team, racing past in the opposite direction whilst engaged with five Carro Veloce. They narrowly evade a collision with their friends.
Anzio abandons their encirclement plan and rallies their remaining forces back to their flag tank, so the two Semovente break off the pursuit and disengage. Rabbit Team takes the chance to turn around and fire, but consistently miss the small, mobile Anzio vehicles.
Azusa Sawa encourages her crew to calm down and stop the tank for stationary aiming. Aya Oono uses the smaller-calibre 37mm to find the range on the first Semovente, which allows Ayumi Yamagou to score a direct hit with the 75mm cannon. As Yuuki Utsugi jokingly liken her to Miho Nishizumi, Azusa Sawa sets her tank off in pursuit of the remaining Semovente.
Tank Destroyer Duel[]
The main Ooarai force moves through the crossroads and heads west. In the meantime, Anchovy, wondering about the suspicious delay in implementing Operation Macaroni, radios Pepperoni and discovers that she put out all eleven decoys at the crossroad, giving away the deception. Anchovy has her P40, the Anzio flag tank, move out. In that moment, Ooarai appear, and both sides drive straight past each other in surprise. As the two forces turn to engage each other, Carpaccio, commanding a Semovente M41, recognises the blue hippo on the StuG III as the icon Caesar uses in her online username. Whilst the P40 leaves with its one remaining CV.33 escort, Carpaccio engages Hippo Team in a one-on-one duel.
Although the StuG III has thicker armour and a more powerful gun, the Semovente M41 has the advantages of mobility and a lower profile. Both tanks spar around an open clearing, evenly matched. Eventually, both vehicles open up the range and line up to decide the engagement by reloading speed. Caesar and Carpaccio both reload at exactly the same rate, and the tanks knock each other out at the same time.
Operation Protractor[]
Having spotted the Panzer IV and the Panzer 38(t), the P40 turns downhill and engages them through the trees. Hurtling across the rough terrain, match is even, with neither side able to score a hit on the other's flag tank.
As Duck Team rallies and begins knocking out Anzio tankettes, Anchovy realises that they no longer have enough forces to encircle Ooarai, and abandons Operation Macaroni. Even as she gives orders over the radio, Anglerfish Team lands a hit on her last remaining CV.33 escort, leaving the P40 completely exposed. Anchovy recalls her remaining forces back to the flag tank's defence, commencing 'Operation Protractor'.
Anglerfish Team and Turtle Team split up. Anchovy spots Turtle Team first and suspects that they have split up to attack from two sides. She immediately turns to attack the Panzer 38(t), which is the Ooarai flag tank. Turtle Team's return fire is ineffective thanks to Momo Kawashima's pitiful gunnery. However, Turtle Team is in reality just drawing the P40 into a kill zone.
Anzio is defeated[]
When Anchovy finally appears to have cornered the Panzer 38(t), she misses her shot, then realises that her tank is in the open with Anglerfish Team aiming down on her from atop a high ridge. At that moment, Anzio's last remaining tanks rush onto the scene. The Semovente loses control and tumbles down an incline, to be immediately shot by Rabbit Team. Pepperoni's Carro Veloce belts around the corner, and Duck Team speeds into view behind them. The Type 89B fires, hits, and sends Pepperoni's tank tumbling into collision with the immobilised Semovente. The Panzer IV fires last, aiming a shell down onto the front plate of the P40 to negate the effectiveness of its sloped armour. With the Anzio flag tank knocked out, Anchovy slumps over the wreck of her vehicle in defeat.
Aftermath[]
After the match Anchovy, disappointed by her loss, greeted Miho for the match and initiated her at Anzio's signature post-match party, during which Hana's blackhole stomach will devastate Anzio's food stock. Ooarai would fight the previous year's winner, Pravda Girls High School, during the semi-finals.
Gallery[]
63rd National High School Sensha-dō Tournament | ||
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1st Round | Viking vs Koala ♦ Pravda vs Bonple ♦ Maginot vs Anzio ♦ Saunders vs Ooarai ♦ BC Freedom vs St. Gloriana ♦ Yogurt vs Waffle ♦ Kuromorimine vs Chi-Ha-Tan ♦ Blue Division vs Jatkosota | |
Quarters-finals | Viking vs Pravda ♦ Anzio vs Ooarai ♦ St. Gloriana vs Yogurt ♦ Kuromorimine vs Jatkosota | |
Semi-finals | Pravda vs Ooarai ♦ St. Gloriana vs Kuromorimine | |
Finals | Ooarai vs Kuromorimine | |
Participants | ||
Anzio Girls High School ♦ BC Freedom High School ♦ Blue Division High School ♦ Bonple High School ♦ Chi-Ha-Tan Academy ♦ Jatkosota High School ♦ Koala Forest High School ♦ Kuromorimine Girls Academy🥈 ♦ Maginot Girls' College ♦ Ooarai Girls Academy🥇 ♦ Pravda Girls High School🥉 ♦ Saunders University High School ♦ St. Gloriana Girls College ♦ Viking Fisheries High School ♦ Waffle Academy ♦ Yogurt Academy |