Chapter 2: Army

Army is the second chapter of the Splatoon manga. It was first released on 2016-02-29.

Plot
Rider furiously chases Goggles through Inkopolis Plaza, both in squid form, threatening to crush him with his Gold Dynamo Roller. Goggles tries to protest but notices that all his clothes have fallen off in the chase, giving Rider more reason to pull at Goggles' tentacles. Specs, Headphones, and Bobble Hat are just as nervous at what Rider will do to them, revealing that they broke their promise to him by losing their second match of the CoroCoro Cup. Goggles is let go after begging forgiveness, but not before being "beaten to a pulp" first.

After recovering himself, he asks Rider which cup match he is watching today, and Rider responds he will be watching Team Orange, led by an Inkling called Army. Specs recognises the name as one of the S4: a group of the four most formidable S+ rankers, who Rider admits are even stronger than him. Goggles is inspired to watch them too, but Specs reminds him how they have a battle coming up and Team Blue joke about how ironic it would be if they were drawn against Team Orange.

Later, Team Blue line up for their next battle, having been drawn against Team Orange, distraught at their run of bad luck. Army and his teammates, Splatterscope, Forge Octarian Jacket, and W-Sailor, recognise their opponents by reputation but dismiss them instantly, promising to not go easy on them as "victory is everything". Goggles simply reminds them that battles should be all about having fun.

The teams take their positions on either side of Flounder Heights and the Squid Sisters kick off the battle, but Goggles insists he smells danger. Regardless, the team decide to split up and aim for the high ground so they can ink the most turf on the way. Despite a strong start, Rider is unconvinced that they will make much progress, which is proven true as all four members of Team Blue are ambushed and splatted by Team Orange. Rider reveals that Army meticulously gathers data on his opponents to create a "Squid Net Manual" full of fool-proof tactics. Team Blue try swimming through their ink to hide, but this too is countered by Army's Echolocator special weapon. Team Blue's attempts to run away end with them all being splatted again.

Team Orange rapidly take stage control as Team Blue respawn, and W-Sailor prepares to use her Echolocator as her opponents come back. Specs is sure that they will never escape, but Army soon notices something even he did not foresee: Goggles followed the scent of danger into one of the stage's apartments and found some jellyfish having a curry. Blindsided by this left-field choice, Army freezes and his teammates also fail to find anything in their manuals to counter it. This gives Team Blue just enough time for the Echolocator to wear off and start going for broke, leading to W-Sailor being scared off and Splatterscope and Forge Octarian Jacket getting splatted. Finally, Goggles ambushes Army, curry still in hand, shocking Army enough for Goggles to land an Inkzooka attack on him as the Squid Sisters call for time.

Judd calls that Team Blue narrowly wins, devastating Army, but Goggles repeats what he said before - that battles are fun because they are unpredictable. Army admits he has learnt something new and orders his team to add the curry tactic to their manuals before they all share a curry. Backstage, Rider walks off with a smile and bumps into some other Inklings grumbling about Army's loss; even in shadow, he recognises them as the other three S4 members. One of them claims that although Army is the weakest of the four, Team Blue is proving to be "interesting".

Characters

 * Team Blue
 * Goggles
 * Specs
 * Headphones
 * Bobble Hat
 * Team Orange
 * Army
 * Splatterscope
 * Forge Octarian Jacket
 * W-Sailor
 * Rider
 * Aloha
 * Mask
 * Skull
 * Squid Sisters
 * Callie
 * Marie
 * Judd
 * Inklings
 * Jellyfish