Judgment Branch 000

, also known as the , is a secret branch within Judgment, which is deployed on the confirmed death of a Judgment member. Chapter 3 Part 15 Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Part 1 Chapter 4 Part 2 Chapter 4 Part 3 Chapter 4 Part 4 Chapter 4 Part 5 Chapter 4 Part 6 Chapter 4 Part 7 Chapter 4 Part 8 Chapter 4 Part 9 Chapter 4 Part 10 Chapter 4 Part 11 Chapter 4 Part 12 Chapter 4 Part 13 Chapter 4 Part 14 Chapter 4 Between the Lines 3
==Principles==
An elite execution squad made up of four members, Judgment Branch 000 or the Special Exception Cleanup Team is a secret division of Judgment, thoroughly hidden and with no official records, though its members are officially-recognized members of Judgment (with the associated privileges, such as access to the Bank), considered as merely ordinary members to those unaware of Branch 000's existence.
The members of Branch 000 all wear white miniskirt military uniforms. The garage for their Matchlock tank is located in Nagatenjouki Academy's athletic club building.
===Number 000===
Judgment Branch 000 is deployed solely in the event that the death of a Judgment member has been confirmed, coveyed by Judgment and Anti-Skill over radio by the unique code .
The general understanding of Number 000 to most members of Judgment and Anti-Skill is that both groups would operate under emergency response shifts to capture the culprit at any cost, with the case not allowed to go unsolved. However, the code's true meaning, likely not known to those calling it in over the radio, is for the execution squad to swiftly eliminate everyone involved in the incident that led to the Judgment death, ignoring laws and regulations during this mission. Attackers, witnesses and even people who tried to save the deceased will be treated as suspects, and no one deemed involved is to be left alive, on either side of conflict and even if their connection is hidden behind the scenes. A Number 000 can only be cancelled with authorization from a majority of the Academy City Board of Directors.
===Equipment and Abilities===
Given their position, certain tools in Branch 000's arsenal are more technologically advanced than the ones typically at Judgment's disposal. However, as with the rest of Judgment, they tend to rely more on esper abilities than next-generation weapons for dealing with criminals. Being an elite execution squad tasked with hunting down and eliminating targets which might include killers of Judgment members, Branch 000 has high combat strength.
The team has a powerful combination technique, referred to as an . In this attack, Inoue Fox's Illuminate Fencer provides the light source for the laser and Satou Lycaon's Popping Bomb provides external energy, Yamada Coyote's Perfection Hit locks onto the target and Tanaka Jackal's Swing Shield protects the team from heat and shockwaves. When used at Reserve Meal, the massive beam tore through the whole warehouse, melted a hole in its outer wall, and destroyed a couple of buildings outside. It cannot be fired repeatedly as Lycaon needs time to charge up.
====Matchlock====
Branch 000 utilizes an anti-drone tank known as the or for transportation and long-range bombardment. They are used to riding and boarding the tank, with Yamada Coyote driving and the other three in the turret.
Weighing over 30 tons, the tank has a giant gun and continuous tracks, equipped with both composite armor and thick rubber panels to mitigate pavement damage. There are hatches on both the main tank and the gun turret for the crew to board. The tank has advanced datalink functionaity and as much comms equipment as a small communications base. The main gun borrows from the design of a warship's quick firing gun and can launch over 20 shells a minute, even when the vehicle is in motion (though firing for 10 minutes straight would likely deplete the onboard stocks). The gun can be operated via a flat touch screen.
An anti-drone tank typically requires the ability to track supersonic drones on complex paths, to fire a barrage that can accurately destroy an attacking swarm, and ammunition cheaper than the target drones. The Matchlock uses shells that cover a wide area with their explosions, rendering precise targeting and a larger number of shots unnecessary, allowing for a high drone interception rate at a hugely reducted cost, with the tank only needing the bare minimum for radar. However, differing from the weapon's intended usage, Branch 000 have used it to bombard and level targets on the surface rather than in the air.
==Chronology==
===Toaru Anbu no Item===
====Dark Justice Arc====
In late August, one year before the events of the main story, a Number 000 was issued following the death of Minamioki Sarusa after a failed infiltration of the Ark of the Electronic Sea, with Sadistic Dolls and Item, two groups that simultaneously acted to kill the cult's leader but failed to save the victim in time or even find out about them, designated as involved in the incident and therefore targets for elimination. The Frees were hired by the execution squad to gather information on the targets beforehand, however instead of just observing, they killed a member of Sadistic Dolls during Item's elimination of their rivals, which was fatally tracked back to them. Detective Shiratori Okibi also investigated and learned of the incident and order, with Item learning from her data after their battle with her, late on August 30th.
As August 31st began, after dealing with a hacker than had been hired by the cult to find sacrifices from DNA maps in the Bank, Branch 000 deployed in their Matchlock from Nagatenjouki Academy to eliminate Item, starting with a long-range bombardment on School District 16, before tracking their targets to a direct confrontation in School District 1's Reserve Meal cold storage warehouse.
==Members==
*"Inoue Fox"
*"Yamada Coyote"
*"Satou Lycaon"
*"Tanaka Jackal"
==Trivia==
*All of the known members of Branch 000 appear to have codenames, consisting of a common Japanese family name (Inoue, Yamada, Tanaka and Satou), and a canine-related name (, , and (which might refer to the , which includes the African wild dog Lycaon pictus, or its namesake, the in Greek Mythology, who was cursed to become a wolf)).
*As with previous designations for Academy City's technology and weaponry, the in stands for Hard Science. The likely stands for tank. Its other name comes from a , a historical type of firearm that ignited gunpowder through a burning piece of flammable cord or twine, which was brought into contact through a mechanism activated by pulling a lever or trigger with a finger, an improvement over previous firearms which lacked a firing mechanism and needed a match applied directly by hand.
==References==
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