The third day after the war, the rain finally stopped.
Sunlight streamed through the clouds onto the muddy earth, raising a thin mist. In the temporary cemetery outside the fortress, more than two hundred wooden crosses had been newly erected, each engraved with the name of a fallen soldier.
Liao stood at the edge of the cemetery, clutching a forehead protector stripped from the corpse of an Iwagakure shinobi. Dried blood stained it.
"Commander." A young Resistance Army soldier jogged over and gave a somewhat sloppy military salute. "Mr. Sato asked me to inform you that Konoha's second shipment of supplies has arrived."
Liao nodded, tucked the forehead protector into his clothes, and turned toward the fortress.
In the fortress's central square, more than a dozen transport vehicles bearing Konoha's emblem stood in neat rows. Konoha logistics shinobi in green vests directed the unloading as crates labeled "high-calorie rations," "medical supplies," and "construction materials" piled up like hills.
Even more eye-catching were the three brand-new "Defender-II" Heavy Bolters mounted on display stands across the square. Their metal bodies gleamed harshly in the sunlight.
"This shipment is three times larger than the last one." Sato adjusted his glasses, a checklist in hand. "Aside from weapons and ammunition, there's enough food to last us a month. Konoha also sent ten engineers to help us build permanent fortifications."
Liao swept his eyes over the supplies and fell silent for a moment. "What do they want?"
"Nothing." Sato smiled. "Or rather, they already have what they want from us—the trust of Konoha, and our resistance against Iwagakure and Kumogakure."
As soon as he finished speaking, a middle-aged man in a Konoha uniform approached. A scar marked his face, but his smile was gentle.
"You're Liao, right?" The middle-aged man held out his hand. "My