(Today's update came early, haha. I got up at four in the morning to write this chapter. After taking care of the baby from waking up until the afternoon nap, I immediately wrote another chapter. Please give Yi Zui a little encouragement—votes, please~~~~)
Four days had passed since Tashu was burned down. Most of the fire had been extinguished by the morning of the first day, and people could cautiously enter the city to search for supplies that had not been destroyed. Over the following days, the Strike Gundam proved immensely useful, lifting collapsed houses and transporting needed materials. Of course, all of this was done at night.
The four days of scavenging had not improved things by much. The refugees had all moved into Dawn Desert's base, making the already-small facility unbearably crowded. Small tents were scattered everywhere, while children ran about among them. Their innocent laughter helped lift a little of the gloom hanging over Dawn Desert.
Because of Mwu's order to help the refugees, the Archangel's supplies were also beginning to run short. With so many people, the Archangel's provisions simply could not last long. After discussing it with Dawn Desert, they ultimately decided to conceal their identities, split up, and head separately into ZAFT-controlled cities to buy supplies.
Dawn Desert and the Archangel were also facing an extremely serious shortage of water. They had no choice but to purchase water in the major cities already controlled by ZAFT. Of course, water was not the only important thing they needed, and this particular procurement would only be possible if Dawn Desert's leader, Seibu, personally negotiated it.
Xiao Ran had even volunteered to go with Kira and Cagalli, claiming he needed to keep an eye on the two brats. He followed the sibling pair to a town even