Holding the original shares, they fought all the way to the Korean War!

Kazuo Yamamoto squatted down.

He picked up the spent cartridge case, then held it up to his eyes and examined it carefully.

Kazuo Yamamoto's eyes widened suddenly.

"These are not Imperial bullets."

Several Japanese soldiers nearby gathered around, their eyes fixed on the two spent cartridge cases.

The cartridge case was larger than the 6.5mm bullets they usually use.

"Made in the USA?"

A Japanese soldier asked tentatively.

Kazuo Yamamoto remained silent.

He turned the cartridge case over and looked at the engravings on the bottom.

"This is a 7.62mm armor-piercing round."

His voice was deep, carrying a complex emotion that was hard to describe.

"These are standard US military bullets."

The Japanese soldiers looked at each other in bewilderment.

Their faces showed expressions of shock and disbelief.

Kazuo Yamamoto stood up and glanced around.

The woods behind the earthen slope stretched all the way to the distant mountain ridges.

There were obvious trampling marks in the bushes, left by someone running at high speed.

Branches were broken, fallen leaves were trampled, and the trails stretched northward, disappearing into the depths of the forest.

"He ran away."

Kazuo Yamamoto's voice was calm, but there was a hint of resentment in his eyes.

"Go north from here, through the woods, over that ridge, and you'll reach the hilly area."

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

"Once we get into those hills, even if we send a large team in, we might not be able to find him."

The Japanese soldiers behind him fell silent.

They knew that Sergeant was telling the truth.

They were familiar with the terrain in this area; the hilly region to the north was crisscrossed with ravines and densely vegetated, making it easy to hide someone.

Let alone just a few people, even if hundreds of people went in, it would be like finding a needle in a haystack.

"Let's call it a day."

Kazuo Yamamoto put the two spent cartridge cases into his pocket and turned to walk out of the woods.

"Return to the airport and report the situation here to Lord Oshima."

"Hi!"

Several Japanese soldiers answered in unison and followed him out of the woods.

Kwangsha Airport, Military Police Office.

Ichiro Oshima's brows were furrowed, and his face was grim.

He is the highest-ranking officer of the airport military police, holding the rank of lieutenant colonel, and is responsible for the security and protection of the airport and its surrounding areas.

This happened on his turf.

An Imperial Army lieutenant general and an Imperial Army colonel were murdered right under his nose.

If this matter is investigated, he will be the first one to be implicated.

Dismissal is the least of your worries.

If things go wrong, you could end up in a military court.

Ichiro Oshima tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

His mind was racing.

I was thinking about how to minimize the impact of this incident.

"Report!"

Kazuo Yamamoto's voice came from outside the door.

"Come in."

Ichiro Oshima looked up.

Kazuo Yamamoto pushed open the door and walked in, standing at attention and saluting.

"Lord Oshima, we have located the enemy's firing position in the woods to the north."

Ichiro Oshima leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed on Kazuo Yamamoto.

"What's going on?"

Kazuo Yamamoto took the two spent cartridge cases out of his pocket.

"It was found at the location where the enemy fired."

Ichiro Oshima picked up a bullet casing, held it up to his eyes, and examined it carefully.

His pupils suddenly contracted.

"American-made bullets?"

"Yes."

Kazuo Yamamoto nodded, his voice low.

"7.62mm armor-piercing rounds, standard US military ammunition."

Ichiro Oshima put down the spent cartridge and closed his eyes.

How did American-made bullets end up here?

Could it be that the Chinese Nationalist army sent them?

possible.

The Nationalist Army received American aid, and American-made weapons and bullets were not uncommon in the Nationalist Army.

Send a sharpshooter to infiltrate the vicinity of Taiyuan and seize the opportunity to assassinate a high-ranking imperial general.

This possibility is very high.

But the question is, how did the National Army know that Kiyoshi Katsuki was going to leave from Guangshe Airport today?

How did you find out his specific schedule and time?

This intelligence is all top secret.

Let alone the Nationalist Army, even within the First Army, no more than twenty people knew the exact time of today's handover ceremony.

There are ghosts.

Ichiro Oshima opened his eyes and his gaze fell on Kazuo Yamamoto's face.

"Where is the killer?"

They ran away.

Kazuo Yamamoto's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"From the point where the shot was fired, head north through the woods, over the ridges, and into the hilly area."

"When we chased after them, they were already gone."

"The terrain in that area is complex and the vegetation is dense. We don't have enough manpower, so we simply can't search it."

Ichiro Oshima clenched his teeth.

He killed someone on his turf and then ran away.

How is he supposed to explain this to his superiors?

"Continue the search."

Ichiro Oshima's voice was icy.

"Send more personnel, move all available troops from the airport out."

"Even if we have to turn that hilly area to the north upside down, we will find the murderer."

"Hi!"

Kazuo Yamamoto stood at attention, saluted, and turned to leave.

"etc."

Ichiro Oshima called out to him.

Kazuo Yamamoto turned around, waiting for him to speak.

Ichiro Oshima remained silent for a moment.

Then he picked up the phone on the table and shook the handle.

"Connect me to the Taiyuan Command Headquarters, to Commander Umezu's office."

His voice was calm, but his hand holding the microphone trembled slightly.

The operator's voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Hi, please wait a moment."

A moment later, a steady voice came from the microphone.

"I am Yoshijiro Umezu."

Oshima Ichiro's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, but he tried to keep his voice steady.

"Commander, I am Ichiro Oshima from the airport military police."

"There is something I need to report to you immediately."

"explain."

Yoshijiro Umezu's tone remained completely unchanged.

Ichiro Oshima took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

"At approximately 11:00 AM this morning, His Excellency Kiyoshi Katsuki was attacked by an unidentified enemy while boarding a plane at Kosha Airport, and His Excellency Katsuki was killed on the spot."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

Ichiro Oshima's heart raced.

But he dared not urge them and could only wait.

Several seconds later, Yoshijiro Umezu's voice rang out again, his speech noticeably faster than before.

"You're saying Lady Xiangyue was assassinated?"

"Yes."

Ichiro Oshima's voice sounded somewhat hoarse.

"Also among those who perished was Colonel Harada, the adjutant of Lady Kazuki."

"Where is the enemy?"

"After firing the shot, the killer fled north and entered the hilly area north of the airport."

"Our search team found the location where the killer fired the shot in the woods to the north and recovered two shell casings."

"What type of cartridge case is it?"

Ichiro Oshima glanced at the spent cartridge cases on the table.

"7.62mm armor-piercing rounds, standard US military ammunition."

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

This time, the silence lasted even longer.

Where are you now?

Yoshijiro Umezu's voice finally rang out again.

"At the airport military police office."

"Bring those two spent cartridge cases to headquarters."

"I want to see it for myself."

"Hi!"

Ichiro Oshima stood at attention and answered.

"besides."

Yoshijiro Umezu's tone became even more serious.

"From now on, this matter is classified as top secret."

"Keep the news inside the airport and don't let anyone know the details."

"yes!"

"Especially those two shell casings, you must not mention them to anyone."

"Hi!"

"You have thirty minutes to get to headquarters."

"Hi!"

The phone hangs up.