"We're going at dusk." Shizuka looked at her watch. "Temperature?"
"28 degrees, Sensei!" Yumiko reported. "That's not too high for us. The humidity is the only problem."
"Still can't use winter gear, in that case." Shizuka sighed. "Hayama, are you confident with the strength of the bite-resistant shirt?"
"Absolutely. It was used in many mental hospitals in Japan." Hayato nodded with a serious expression. "My parents won't send us these without reason. If it's against bites and clawing, it would help mitigate the injuries. In fact, it would also protect against knife slash, but it wouldn't do anything against stabbing."
"Perfect," Shizuka said. "We're fighting with summer jackets again! You can wear the winter pants if you want."
"Bueno." Zaimokuza grinned. "To be honest, the protection granted by the winter gear is overrated."
"Well, you have OTHER armor." Hachiman joked. "Unlike the rest of us."
"Hey, no fat shaming!" Zaimokuza protested. "Even if it's true!"
Zaimokuza wasn't that obese, not to the point where his fat could be an extraordinary cushion. Most of his bulk has been actual muscles. Which is why he could overpower multiple zombies at once.
With the absence of Yukino, Zaimokuza might very well be the strongest Soubu fighter now, even more than Tobe.
"That's because the padding used by winter clothing is low density," Hina remarked. "Fabric armor must be made from densely packed layers of cloth. Whether it's a stab-proof vest or bullet-resistant armor, same principle."
"Can you make something better than the winter gear, Ebina?" Shizuka asked.
"Yes," Hina said. "I can make gambeson. But not with hands."
"Gambeson." Shizuka was thoughtful.
Gambeson is a type of cloth armor European soldiers wore in the medieval era. They're made of dozens of layers of linen. Far more protective than winter gear despite being equally bulky. The Samurai had a thinner version of such cloth armor, which they wore under their iron plates.
"Looks like we really need that sewing machine." Yui clenched her hand. "Yumiko is still wounded from yesterday's fight! We need a better armor!"
"It was a brutal fight, but it can't be helped." Yumiko creaked her neck. "I'm fine. Hayato is hurting, as well. Compared to yesterday, we're better off."
"Right. Today's fight is likely to be as intense. Pray that we get more competent allies compared to yesterday." Shizuka said. "Now, let us pack our stuff."
Knowing their base camp was in danger, they decided to work and split their supplies into separate places. They put the most compact stuff in the car baggage space, which includes medicine and powdered drinks.
They transferred half the food supplies into the neighboring apartment, where they installed the antennas. And left the rest in the base camp, especially the perishable food and juices.
The radio equipment was repackaged into the protective case, though the cables and other auxiliaries were left behind.
"Let's go."
Hopefully, the worst-case scenario would not happen. With this in mind, the Soubu group departed to the industrial complex.
As scheduled, they met the police group on the road leading to the factories. Much to their surprise, half the police were packing hard. They were covered from head to toe in armor and carried a shield made of thick polycarbonate plastic.
"Riot gear!" Hachiman shouted. "You literally can't find better equipment to fight against zombies! They're even better than military armor!"
"Uooooh! I want one!" Zaimokuza shouted as well.
"Is that true they're better than military armor, Sensei?" Yumiko was doubtful.
"Yes." Shizuka nodded. "Military armor is designed to primarily defeat bullets and bomb fragments, though recently also developed to defeat various threats."
"But let me ask you something. What difference is there between hordes of zombies and a crazed, rioting mob?" Shizuka rhetorically asked. "There isn't any. Except zombies are more stupid but more persistent. You cannot demoralize zombies. It's kill or be killed."
"Riot gear is designed to be optimal against sharp objects and blunt impact. Knives, baseball bats, thrown rocks, and angry humanoid-shaped threats. Riot gear is the perfect anti-zombie equipment."
"However, riot gears are heavy. Just the armor and helmet alone, fifteen kilograms. Now add the shield, add four or five kilograms. Unless you're extremely fit, you're cooked."
That was why only half the police force was wearing riot gear. The other half seemed to wear SAT equipment, resembling typical SWAT officers from the movies.
"SAT gears?!" Shizuka was surprised. "You got reinforcement?"
One of the Riot gear-wearing police revealed himself to be Aikawa. He usually looked slim and shady, but the gears made him unrecognizable.
"No," Aikawa said. "Instead, HQ dumped unused equipment on us, including a huge stockpile of 38 special ammo and two shotguns."
"Gunma Police Department survived the onslaught." Shizuka grimaced. "And they're holding the fort."
"Yes." Aikawa sighed. "They could not spare anyone. It is up to us to arm ourselves."
"Did someone have the ability to do so?"
"He-hello!" A young-looking man who looked in his early twenties waved. His hair was tied to a bun, which looked dorky. But Shizuka would consider it a merit to keep himself tidy. "My name is Satou Yoshirou. I'm a fourth-year student from Saitama Engineering University and interned in a weapons factory before, so I'm quite well-versed in firearm design and operation."
"You want to create a PSDR based on Nambu M60?" Shizuka asked.
"Yes. I already have the design on my computer. The maths added up, and the design should work. In theory." Satou confidently said. "I could not promise to make the parts up to specification, but the police are desperate for help."
In other words, he might not have the necessary skills to manufacture it. All because of lack of experience.
"I can see that." Shizuka scoffed. "We ain't working for free, though."
Aikawa pointed at the other massive factory next door. "Did you see that giant building? That place converts truck chassis into industrial machines."
"Ah."
No wonder it was huge. It was a factory that handled truck rebuilding operations.
"If we clean this area, you can get your truck." Aikawa closed his visor. "We'll take the lead."
"Okay," Shizuka said as the Soubu kids pulled their fresh bows and crossbows. "On our mark."
The kids already feel more confident. Unlike evacuation site volunteers, the police are more trained and experienced to handle the situation. The loss of one of their comrades motivated them to be more fierce.
After babysitting muscular men yesterday, reliable adults are a breath of fresh air.
The initial zombie horde was caught off guard when a dozen bolts and arrows struck them. Unfortunately, only a few shots squarely hit their head. Even shots to the neck were useless.
As the horde reacted, the four officers formed a shield wall to hold the tide. A loud thud ensued as the two groups collided.
The police pushed the horde with all their might, throwing four zombies to their back. Shizuka and Tobe took the initiative to drag two zombies from the blob.
"PUSH IT!" The Police Chief shouted. "KEEP PUSHING!"
*WHAM* their shield met yet another group of zombies and stopped their charge.
One zombie screeched, but it was dead in Komachi's hands before it could recover, courtesy of two shots from her nail gun. Another zombie fell, and Hachiman pulled his trusty screwdriver out.
Hayato and Yumiko maneuvered faster than they were yesterday, no longer burdened by the stuffy winter gear and with a new pair of shoes. They could dodge successive attacks and tripped a couple of zombies before finishing them off.
Even Yui, Saika, and Hina, the second weakest members of the group, could stand their ground and fight zombies one by one.
When a zombie was about to bite Hayato, he used his left-hand tonfa to stop it. Although his arm felt some pain, it wasn't much, and he cracked the zombie's skill with his right-hand tonfa.
It was all thanks to the new gloves and resistant shirt.
Zaimokuza went wild and swung his sledgehammer like a madman. Unfortunately, it meant his attack wasn't accurate enough to be an instant kill, even if he threw zombies left and right.
"Zaimokuza! Stop wasting energy, moron!" Yumiko yelled as she used her crowbar end to stab the zombie Hayato restrained. "Focus! You're the strongest in the group!"
"Ah!" Zaimokuza stopped and took a step back.
Komachi stepped back from the fray and focused on using her crossbow to take on the enemies.
"Headshotting zombies are dang near impossible!" Komachi shouted. "So annoying! They're too fast!"
"If it was that easy, the military would mop the entire city," Hachiman commented as he let off another arrow, which unfortunately nicked the ear of a zombie instead of the head.
"Unfortunately, we're not blessed with slow, shambling zombies." Saika laughed before ducking to dodge a zombie lunge. "Whoops!"
Worse since bolts and arrows don't move as fast or as accurately as modern bullets. The chances of missing because of miscalculation are higher.
"It's alright! Keep shooting!" Yumiko cheered up. "Go! Go! Go!"
"GROWL!"
Tobe used his helmet to headbutt the zombie and then used his pipe to crush the neck when it fell. "Either way, as we stay focused, we can win!"
Not only could they weather more damage than before, but their new gears helped to increase their offensive power and evasion. That is the difference between fighting almost naked and fighting in armor.
Of course, having the near-invincible allies in the form of Riot-armored police helped a lot. While their ginormous polycarbonate shield limited their attack strength and range, they were borderline untouchable.
Even as cracks began to form all over the surface, their shield managed to hold.
Even though they lost Yukino and Saki, their fighting strength was much higher than yesterday.
"What?!" The police chief was surprised when a zombie managed to shatter his shield with a punch. Granted, it already took a beating. Only a section of the shield broke, but still, it was shocking to experience.
"Careful! The ones with glowing eyes are dangerous!"
Its movement was fast, superhuman in everyone's eyes, befitting its muscular, half-naked appearance. Each of its punches rang on the shield like a sledgehammer, forcing the chief to step away before the shield pulverized.
What a strange male zombie!
"Chief! Take my shield!" Aikawa threw his shield at the Police Chief. "Come on, you bastard!"
The zombie strangely reacted and chiefly dodged! No zombies ever dodged an attack before!
"IT DODGED?!"
"You guys, be careful! I'm taking this one myself!" Shizuka dashed.
It wasn't as if the zombie was doing martial arts. However, it behaves more like a living human than a zombie. It could defend and dodge attacks, and its speed and strength made its counterattack dangerous.
"GROWL!!"
Aikawa charged and ferociously assaulted with the metal tonfa that Tobe and Hayato made for the police. Even though the tonfa was filled with foam, the dampened noise was sickening.
"Get down, you zombie bastard!"
Aikawa's skill and accuracy overcame the zombie's speed advantage. It was at that point that Shizuka could accurately gauge his fighting strength.
"DUCK, AIKAWA!" Shizuka shouted.
Shizuka took the opportunity for a flying knee attack and squarely hit the strange zombie on the chin, sending it sideways. Aikawa followed with his tonfa as a baseball bat, bashing the zombie again with his entire body weight.
The way the zombie glared at them made the two realize it wasn't over.
"What a hard skull!" Shizuka felt a little sting in her knees, something that wouldn't happen if she were to hit an average zombie's skull. "Did I just kneed a concrete?!"
This greenish, muscular zombie was weird. It was not just the skull. It also had stronger joints than other zombies. The beating it received would have mangled the arms.
Aikawa pulled his Nambu M60 and shot the zombie almost point-blank, only for the bullet to shred part of the face and deflected aside instead of piercing through into the brain.
It wasn't as if the gun was ineffective. However, it might take more than one, maybe even more than two shots!
[ ] Keep attacking until Aikawa could shoot again. Hopefully, the second shot counted.
[ ] Use the shotgun to blast it. It should be more effective than the snub revolver.
