The Away Mission Test: Part 7

Summary
''The first special assignment is sent out to each team: "Why do you think the teams were shuffled?" As the groups discuss their input, Squad 7's lights lose power just as Osamu's computer goes dark.''

Long Summary
Kakizaki announces the 1st special assignment has come in. Kodera thinks it is interesting while Mizukami thinks it's annoying. Osamu reads out the assignment and the squads begin thinking. Yōko believes the answer is what they were told earlier, but Oki points out they would be with their original squads if that was true; Suwa agrees.

Mizukami asks his squad what they think. Teruya wonders if there is a specific answer they must reach or if it's open-ended. Kashio believes that the phrasing makes it sounds like they have to give their opinion on the answer and not a hypothetical correct answer. Arafune points out they shouldn't overthink this and they all move on.

Kodera tells his squad they shouldn't waste too much time on this assignment, putting a time limit of 20 minutes to do it.

Kageura thinks the answer is to simulate the shuffling on the away mission while Inukai points out if it was that simple they wouldn't be asking them.

Tonooka thinks they might be trying to wear the agents down, similar to how a long journey is. Kai Minamisawa points out he isn't very stressed while Kikuchihara thinks to himself otherwise.

Hanazaki states how the answer must be related to how some agents aren't actually going on the away mission. Sasamori rebutts this by saying the mission still affects those staying because squads may lose members going on the mission. Yoshito Hanzaki then states that Wakamura, Mizukami, and Kitazoe were selected as captains to be substitute captains when their respective squad leaders go on the mission. Rokurō Wakamura however points out that Katori likely isn't going on the away mission. Hyuse interjects, saying she might be chosen for her battle prowess instead.

Okudera says nothing comes to mind but Kuruma tells him not to worry, as anything they come up with will help. Osano reacts to this by saying maybe the squads shuffled because it's fresh and fun, to which Kuruma agrees. Hokari says that they probably don't care if they have fun. Osano elaborates on it and Yuba wholeheartedly agrees with her, proving Osano's statement of how new relationships can be born here.

Kazuki Kurauchi believes weaknesses that are concealed in their original squads can be revealed with new teammates. Tsutsumi agrees, stating weaknesses are usually made up for by teammates. Hiyami thinks to herself about Tsuji's weakness to girls and Kumagai thinks about Shiki's weakness to boys. Hiyami further expands on this by stating they might have to conquer challenges they've avoided until now, and Murakami further expands on it by saying how they will appreciate their old squadmates even more now.

Ninomiya brings up Osamu, Wakamura, Koarai/Okudera, and Kageura due to how they all heavily rely on their teammates. Kagami agrees on how some squads revolve around a particular ace. Azuma, Chika, and Ema believe their squadmates will be fine. Ninomiya however says their personalities are a huge factor as well: like how Masato Kageura is heavily catered to by Hikari and Kitazoe. Ninomiya wonders about what Osamu can do without his squadmates, who usually respect him. Ema thinks to himself how Ninomiya doesn't have his respect either and thinks of Hstohara while doing so.

Katori sidelines the question and brings up how they chose the captains. Suwa asks if she wanted to be a captain and she responds no, she just wants to know what criteria they used. Oki questions whether there is actually a criteria, but Katori firmly believes there is one. Suwa agrees with her but also states they might not have been chosen for the same reasons. Suwa believes Utagawa, Kodera, Zoe, and Murakami were all selected as future squad captains. He also states Ninomiya, Kuruma, Kakizaki, and Ōji were all selected due to being management material. Osamu asks about management material and Suwa states more staff are needed for the growing Border. A beeping sound is heard and the lights go out; Osamu notices the panel is out of trion and goes to fill it up. The lights come back on and Suwa tells Oki to fill it up a bit more. The chapter ends with Osamu discovering he is out of trion and his laptop won't turn on.

Characters in Order of Appearance
Characters in italics are seen only briefly and have yet to make a proper appearance.
 * Kuniharu Kakizaki
 * Taichi Betsuyaku
 * Masataka Ninomiya
 * Tatsuya Kuruma
 * Shōhei Kodera
 * Satoshi Mizukami
 * Osamu Mikumo
 * Yōko Katori
 * Madoka Ui
 * Masamune Kido (flashback)
 * Kōji Oki
 * Kōtarō Suwa
 * Fumika Teruya
 * Yuka Kon
 * Yutaka Kashio
 * Tetsuji Arafune
 * Shōhei Kodera
 * Yūta Miura
 * Tsuneyuki Okudera
 * Rika Rokuta
 * Ai Kitora
 * Masato Kageura
 * Sumiharu Inukai
 * Nono Fujimaru
 * Kazuto Tonooka
 * Hana Somei
 * Hiro Kitazoe
 * Kai Minamisawa
 * Shirō Kikuchihara
 * Yoshito Hanzaki
 * Hisato Sasamori
 * Rokurō Wakamura
 * Hyuse
 * Maori Hosoi
 * Noboru Koarai
 * Rui Osano
 * Atsushi Hokari
 * Takuma Yuba
 * Kazuki Kurauchi
 * Daichi Tsutsumi
 * Aki Hiyami
 * Kō Murakami
 * Yūko Kumagai
 * Masataka Ninomiya
 * Rin Kagami
 * Haruaki Azuma
 * Chika Amatori
 * Yuzuru Ema
 * Hikari Nire (flashback)
 * Mirai Hatohara (flashback)
 * Ryō Utagawa (mentioned)
 * Kazuaki Ōji (mentioned)

Triggers in Order of Appearance
None appear over the course of this Chapter.