King Of War: Starting with Arms Dealer

The three dirty bombs indeed lodged like a bone in NATO's throat, and no one could rest easy until they were found; any attempt was possible.

Find an intermediary, negotiate, "I give you benefits, you give me information"... Even just a bit of a clue would be good.

This was a common trick of the intelligence departments...

But Halliburton's role in this was rather interesting.

If Joe Ga had known, he would have understood that power had already started to change hands within America, and it was happening within the Democratic party.

Haliburton had thrown its support behind the old lady Rashiri, getting involved in such critical matters even before the presidential election had concluded, showing they were highly trusted.

The old lady wanted to find the dirty bombs to make a good start on her presidential career.

For this, she even went as far as to negotiate with ISIS, and even offer them benefits!

But this time, she clearly would not get her wish!

Two hours had passed, and as the sky gradually darkened, two Su-25s, which had been flying alongside the convoy for a long stretch, waggled their wings above the vehicles one last time, reluctantly heading back home.

Rabbit Squad, responsible for leading the way, went on high alert after sunset.

Driving two Arctic Cats, they searched diligently on both sides of the road, careful not to miss any suspicious places.

Worried that the green recruits would screw up again, the Tajik veteran cook Bayika had joined Rabbit Squad.

He was very satisfied with this group of young men who, after undergoing underwater training, had become quietly reserved and somewhat silent.

Because now they lacked past uncertainties and timidity...

As darkness fell, Bayika slapped All-rounder on the head in the driver's seat and scolded with a laugh, "Night vision goggles? Turn on the vehicle's headlights!

We're approaching Tikrit, we're going to establish a checkpoint ahead, call for support, and block off the road to stop all oncoming traffic."

As he spoke, Bayika looked back at the military dog crammed in the back seat of the Arctic Cat, and said smiling to 'Keeper', "'Wolf Fang' is a good dog, get him ready.

The roads through the city are slightly complicated, and we'll need thorough searches and checks to prevent car bombs from attacking the convoy."

Excited, All-rounder behind the wheel replied, "Old squad leader, do we have intelligence?"

Bayika shook his head with a chuckling smile, "You guys should be doing this even without any intelligence...

Kid, P·B is different from the army, here you can't wait for orders. Whether or not you've found a problem, you need to do your own job first."

Just as Bayika's words fell, Antar's voice sprang up in their radios...

"Rabbit Squad, pay attention, set up a checkpoint 600 meters ahead, block opposite direction traffic, Jazz, Goat, Hammer Squad move to support, check all vehicles and buildings along the way..."

Taken aback, All-rounder then gave Bayika a thumbs-up...

The two Arctic Cats of Rabbit Squad stopped upon nearing Tikrit, blocking the left side of the road.

As the other squads came up to support, Joe Ga's voice suddenly burst through their radios...

"Guys, there's an ambush in Tikrit, everyone be careful. Our drone has taken off and will soon share images of both sides of the road with us."

"Remember, once the fighting starts, immediately turn on your IR lights for friend-foe identification. Your job isn't to charge in and engage in street battles, but to mark the enemy's positions once you're close. Our artillery will take care of them."

"Make the most of the cover from the armored vehicles and don't screw up here..."

"Yes, sir!"

Listening to the responses over the radio, 'Chameleon' who dismounted for vigilance looked at Bayika with a bit of frustration and said, "Squad leader, is that it?"

Bayika patted 'Chameleon' on the back and said, "You are now mercenaries, you can't expect someone to arrange your course of action like a babysitter."

As he spoke, Bayika looked toward 'Duke' who was gesturing to them. He patted 'Chameleon' on the back again and said, "You're the team leader, go discuss the responsibility zones with them."

Bayika looked at the open space and the scattered factory compounds to the right front of the temporary checkpoint. He pointed at that area and said, "We're responsible for the area starting there up to 500 meters north."

'Chameleon' nodded slightly. On the right side of the road, because it was near Iraq's largest Tigris River, the open space by the river was basically occupied by large factories.

The walls of these factories were quite tall, making them very suitable for establishing mortar positions and hiding personnel.

Then 'Chameleon' glanced at the denser square-shaped houses on the left side of the road, he hesitated for a moment but ultimately chose to keep his mouth shut...

The houses on the urban edge of Tikrit, unlike the crowded inner city, were mostly standalone sandy-yellow structures, belonging to relatively wealthy individuals, surrounded by tall walls.

It seemed there was no specific plan for building these houses as they were spaced roughly 30-50 meters apart from each other.

This stretch of highway that passes through the edge of Tikrit spans 2 kilometers. The complex terrain formed by so many buildings would bring tremendous trouble to anyone entering it.

Just as 'Chameleon' and a few team leaders had agreed on their respective responsibility zones, a military dog suddenly barked from behind...

From the right side, a dilapidated sedan emerged from a factory and seemed to want to get onto the highway, while at the same time, the P.B. convoy was slowly approaching Tikrit from behind...

"Stop it..."

'Chameleon' decisively fired two shots into the air and then quickly rushed towards the inevitable path of the sedan...

'Jazz Squad's 'Crow' shook his head slightly, just about to signal his comrades to stop the car with a rocket launcher when it stopped on its own.

A thin man got out of the car and, from a distance of several dozen meters, raised his hands and shouted towards Rabbit Squad, occasionally gesturing that the woman in the car was his wife and trying to get Rabbit Squad to let them pass...

The Rabbit Squad guys had learned their lesson; they gestured with their guns for the man not to move. Then, they let the other teams leave first, after which 'Keeper' released the military dog 'Wolf Fang' from its leash. He hugged the dog, whispered a few words, and then patted its back...

"Go..."

In the man's terrified gaze, the military dog circled around the car and then sat on the ground by the trunk, letting out a tense bark...

"Everyone be advised, it's a car bomb..."

"Don't move, keep your hands raised and don't move..."