User blog comment:Leolab/Operation Zodiac: Now With Actual Assassination/@comment-422690-20190201050315

13th Place: Misuzu Kusakabe

Well, the first dead had to be someone and it’s undoubtably Misuzu. While she is able to form allies through force of personality, her blunter and more straightforward nature will result in her being isolated and vulnerable to a sneak attack from one of the other craftier fighters, possibly one of the people she allied herself with. Her powers are ill-suited for stealth, being chunni flashy and dramatic, meaning any surprise attacks must be finished quickly. Furthermore, she doesn’t have enough raw power to challenge the other direct fighters, though if she catches Junichiro, the Black Dandelion, or Nana trying to kill her she can kill them.

12th Place: Signum

As much as it pains me to admit, Signum will lose early, too. While she is nearly invincible in combat, her abilities are far too flashy and destructive to survive long in this type of match. The other combat powerhouses have ways to disguise that it was them who did the killing, but Signum lacks that edge. She will lose under the “cannot be discovered” clause.

11th Place: Black Dandelion

Next to go is the left-field entry. While the fact that it is, well, a plant will cause it to slip past most peoples’ radars, the Black Dandelion ultimately has too much of a one-track mind. It can get the biggest effect by infecting all the normie students and causing a zombie apocalypse, but it’s not enough of a schemer to do that on its own. It’ll end up being murdered entirely by accident, or it will be wiped out after it causes some zombies to invade.

10th Place: Cole MacGrath

The next one out is Cole MacGrath. As a serial do-gooder, he’s going to poke his nose into places where it’ll get sliced off. While he does not have to kill, leaving any of the others alive is going to bite him in the ass. He is powerful, sure, but not invincible or paranoid enough to survive with heroic attitude. And before you chide me for not using Evil Cole, even that side would lose early, as he would be discovered and arrested.

9th Place: Junichiro Tanizaki

Junichiro is simply too nice for this kind of match. Light Snow is a huge asset for hiding, but he only really gets murdery when Naomi is in danger; while she will be part of the sim, her presence is a non-factor in voting. Add that to the fact that he’s so kindhearted, and you’ve got one of two things: stabbed in the back, or a patsy.

8th Place: Tonya

Tonya’s a skilled fighter, and is excellent at being stealthy. Unfortunately, she does not have the resources to be stealthy against most of the other foes she faces from this point on, and even if she did she doesn’t have the raw attack power necessary to strike. The only one she has a chance of beating is Nana, and she’s not going to be careless enough to be anywhere where she can get killed. Further, her trolling nature will alienate any meat shields allies she may find amongst the NPCs

7th Place: Kazuma Yagami

Kazuma’s incredibly powerful, but he’s also prideful and arrogant. This will, like with Tonya, drive away allies, though he is generally strong enough to fight whatever may come his way. Where he falls, though, is that his attacks tend to be of one variety; even though he can conceal bodies, when found it will be clear who did the deed. Further, his magic is directly countered by the remaining Iwafune and Jo.

5th Place: Akiha Tohno and Nana Hiiragi

This was a tough choice between Akiha and Nana, so I put them both in. Akiha’s reached the limit of what her Caging Hair can accomplish, with warriors like Iwafune and Lun Lun able to no-sell the attack due to their magical ability or Jo able to completely nullify it with the Green Stones in her gauntlets. The two remaining members of the cast it would work on are Nana and Kabutomushi, but considering these two are professional assassins it’s unlikely she’d even think to suspect them, as they are skilled at remaining undercover.

Nana’s at the point where people like Kabutomushi would find her suspicious, due to their shared nature, as well as Jo, whose Elysian Eye will see through her lies. Further, her attempts to harm the remaining combatants will either backfire or be ineffective. Jo’s power isn’t something she can take advantage of, and with her lies found quickly she will have to face her in open combat. Kabutomushi can simply no-sell her attacks, and can crush her skull with ease. Lun Lun, as well, will likely be able to tank what traps she sets up, though it would leave her damaged. The only one she has a chance to kill is Iwafune, whose reliance on his Sanctum for combat is his likely downfall.

4th Place: Tenkei Iwafune

Iwafune gets fourth, surprisingly; I’d figured he would sweep the ranks easy when I created the roster. As stated above, he relies on his Sanctum for combat, which is what will cause his death. Jo has anti-magic shit in her gauntlets, the lack of vision won’t impair Kabutomushi in the slightest, and since the Sanctum takes the form of fog, Lun Lun can manipulate it with her Aquamerald. While Iwafune is certainly no slouch even without his Sanctum, he isn’t nearly as dangerous. Further, the manifestation of his Sword of Damocles is an indication he’s using his powers, meaning he might fail the “do not be discovered” condition, though his laid-back and conflict-avoidant attitude places him as the defender in any battles he may have to fight.

3rd place: Lun Lun

Liliana bows out next, unfortunately. Epically badass as Lun Lun is, she’s still at a disadvantage here. Jo can use her equipment to nullify all her attacks, as they do qualify as magic. Further, it shreds her armor as well, as her Dress is pure mana. Kabutomushi has also faced numerous enemies with supernatural powers and still won, giving her a slight experience edge. She makes it this far due to a blend of her immense combat skill, her ability to seek out targets, and her ability to access the Guarden, which allows her to fight to her fullest without worrying about stealth.

2nd place: Jo

Jo will be the second of the three top best girls to lose. Despite her incredible combat ability, ability to get others on her side, and access to the Cracking Field so that she can fight without worry, she’s ultimately a poor match against Kabutomushi. Jo is highly specialized against magical and non-human foes, but against others she merely has superhuman strength, speed, and skill. Kabutomushi simply has superhuman strength and skill with peak human speed; it’s not magical in nature. Had it been any other member of the cast in the final two, she would have won this.

1st: Kabutomushi

Kabutomushi ultimately wins this. Despite a lackluster power set, she is a highly capable and experienced assassin, and is skilled at avoiding notice. This, combined with her very simple power, will allow her to stalk and murder her targets unnoticed. Unlike with Kazuma, a death from super strength can be disguised as one of a multitude of other causes. Further, should she get in a physical fight, her physical strength and durability outclass all the other combatants save maybe Signum; her greatest tactical strength, and the grounds for her reputation as the strongest assassin, is her ability to use her massive physical strength to overcome any disadvantage and turn it to her advantage. The only person to actually be able to win in combat against her was forced to combine a Za Warudo knockoff and a potent, painful poison. Even then it was an incomplete victory, as her opponent was unable to kill her. All in all, Kabu-chan best girl, and best girl is the winner.