So long as there is quiet and stability on security, we are inclined to forget how complicated it is to achieve. As long as there is security stability, a misleading feeling develops that the threats have diminished. And when there is quiet, a feeling develops that we can reduce what is required for our security needs. This is a grave mistake for which militaries and countries throughout history, including Israel, have paid a heavy price. Only by maintaining the muscles of the army can we fight and win when called upon - Lieutenant General Aviv Kochavi, Chief of the General Staff of Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

......

January 7th, 2024

1st Lieutenant Ryutaro Hatamoto - 3rd Special Forces Regiment, Japanese National Army Special Forces Brigade

It almost 9 years since that fateful day, and 3 years after a global pandemic named COVID-19 had fully run its course and was no longer a global threat.

And so, no more juggling between online studies from home and time in the barracks.

It's also the right time for my friends and I to earn the right to wear the Tan Beret and "Special Forces" tab on the right shoulder, as the headlines were increasingly dominated by the US and China's further deterioration of ties in the pandemic's aftermath.

"Ladies and gentlemen. We have a serious situation."

Announcements like this inside the base by the Colonel is rare, especially here in Japan, when almost all counter-terrorism operations were handled by special police forces of the prefectural police departments. This one must be so important that the Army has to be involved.

"Almost two weeks ago, the Okinawa Police has intercepted a shipment of arms for the Ryukyu Independence Force, an armed, extreme-left group aiming for Okinawan independence."

Colonel Kentaro Takasaki then switched the screen into various satellite images.

"Interrogation by both Okinawa Police and Public Security had confirmed that the shipment of Chinese-made arms was originated from Cambodia. The carrier has given us useful information about who is behind this operation. Behold, Om Nan. He's close to Prime Minister Hun Sen..."

"He's confirmed to head for Sihanoukville to meet a business partner and will stay for a week for that reason. He won't be heavily guarded..."

Our mission, at the behest of Cabinet Intelligence, is to snatch one of Cambodia's prominent businessman, preferably alive, and gather intelligence from him in person.

"We have a positive lead that he knows one or two things about 'Black Tiger'. The one responsible for killing PM Hatamoto..."

"...This operation will be joined by our good friend, the CIA. The Amerika-jin want that man too with the same charges facing him there..."

The mention of Black Tiger jacked up my spirit,

Volunteers were gathered with officers were Kokoro, I, Lieutenant Hisaichi Terauchi, and the overall team leader by the name of Captain Yuta Yadomi.

The rest were experienced enlisted men. But to my joy, Himari and Izumi, both corporals, did volunteer in this mission.

Kokoro got to her feet and touched me on the shoulder.

"Time to get ready for the op?" My mind was still dazed by the revelation.

"Yep," she replied.

I checked my phone, where the ticket for our flight had been sent. Then in our quarters, we changed clothes for our assignments.

"Oh." A beep on my phone.

"Who's that?" asked Kokoro.

"This must be important that he or she call this number."

......

"Hello?"

"Uncle Takahashi here, Ryutaro. How's life?"

"We're going to have a little trip to Cambodia."

"Ah... finding that 'one'..." My full attention was on what Uncle Takahashi was about to say next, "...he was often seen there ever since the Belt and Road thing began..."

".... my sources told me that he has a whole PMC for himself, so be very cautious... Many are former Western spec ops looking for money."

"Glad to know, Uncle. What else you want to tell me?"

"Come back soon, my favorite nephew."

.....

We used every single opportunity to rest, especially during the long flight from Narita to Bangkok, Thailand where we took a connecting flight straight to the Cambodian port city of Sihanoukville.

The first stop upon reaching the city was the Japanese consulate.

"Here."

One of the consulate's staff escorted us into the compound's secret underground vault. There, our eyes were greeted by rows of lockers.

"Banzai, sir."

The captain replied the salute accordingly; they must be the advance team already on the ground before us.

"Saki Mizushima, Cabinet Intelligence (1)." The agent did assure us of the safety of the facility we're inside and gave us a recent update, before the staff who escorted us before took over.

"We've recently resupplied by our good old friend and a few more."

Inside, we equipped ourselves with ceramic body armor which we put beneath our civilian clothing. Followed by secure communication gears, medical packs, explosives, knives, and most importantly, guns.

"You guys did your job well." quipped Captain Yadomi as he geared up appropriately.

"You're welcome, sir."

"Choose your favorite guns here, people." Yadomi boomed. "But don't waste your time here. We are going out in four minutes!"

"Sir, yes sir!"

......

"They don't give a girl that much to work with," Kokoro said as she held up the body armor and inspected them.

"Ma'am, try this," said Himari, who handed her superior another body armor she thought to be fit of the lieutenant's slender frame.

Our ceramic armor was tailored to be able to deflect small-caliber rounds and had refrigeration/heating units that would mask infrared signatures.

Then, to our guns.

"I always like Heckler and Koch stuff." I quipped to Kokoro. "I'll take this." My hand grabbed a large framed Mark 23 pistol, a favorite of American special forces. I wanted to take my favorite rifle, the heavy HK417 with a 16,5-inch long barrel. However, the nature of the mission means that I have to choose something smaller and more compact, hence a silenced MP7 submachine gun.

"I agree, theirs are quintessential excellence of German engineering." She also put a Mark 23 and an MP7 for herself both with its own suppressor.

I can hear Izumi whistled. "Every day is always a date for you two, eh, Lieutenant?"

"Oh, come on." I groaned a little. Kokoro looked at me and smiled. Then I head for him.

"What's your loadout?"

"Sir" With an air of professionalism he replied. "X95 5.56mm and a Glock 21"

In the meantime, Himari, as one of the overwatch squad, took a sniper variant of HK417A2 with a 20-inch barrel and a Glock 21 just like Izumi.

......

And here we go.

The first day of business was that we provide security, under disguise, to Naicho agents breaking into our target's hotel.

The second day was the day where we sprung into action.

"...The Cambodian Government, with massive protests from concerned citizens and similar reactions from the U.S., had officially welcomed Chinese military presence in the country as two Chinese transport aircraft carrying military officials have landed in the recently opened Dara Sakor International Airport..."

"... Citing the increased threat of China, the government of Indonesia had agreed for a logistic sharing deal with the Quad (2) in return of more advanced weaponry and training... an unprecedented step in light of its historical non-alignment stance."

"... A Chinese citizen caught in possession of 1 kg of fentanyl in its pocket has been released on bail..."

"Please turn off the radio, will you?" Izumi literally begged at the driver.

A few meters behind us was Kokoro and her team in a separate SUV. In the meantime, the Captain and his team use an alternate route from the consulate to the place where our target was supposed to meet with his partner.

"Isn't it just crazy? Someone tried to smuggle Chinese arms from places like this to Japan, and we're tracking him here? Where is this country going into?" bemoaned Sergeant Uesugi Maruyama from behind the wheel.

"A deep doo-doo," I told him. "How's your Mandarin?"

None of us, including the Captain, had ever gone to Cambodia before, however, we did notice that in this particular city, Mandarin Chinese signage is dominant instead of English or Khmer.

"Not as good as Staff Sergeant Oonishi or yours, sir. And the only one who speaks Khmer here is the Captain."

"Well" I sighed a little, "FYI, Cambodians have better command in English compared to French. Only 3 percent of them still speak French nowadays."

"Look out! Son of a bitch!" shouted my second in command, Staff Sergeant Aguri Oonishi, sat beside Izumi on the middle row seat as one motorbike cut through us without regard for traffic ahead, especially with the fact that the driver didn't wear any helmet at all.

Typical third world mentality.

"Here we come." The driver pointed at one out of many Chinese restaurants in the city, serving mostly tourists and permanent residents from Mainland China.

The Mandarin inscription was read as "Golden Fish Bar and Restaurant" with the corresponding English sign.

"Dragon 1 is in position." A signal of the Captain through our secure radios indicated he had reached a safe zone where they can park their vehicles, also a non-descript SUV just like ours.

We park our vehicle about 8 meters from the restaurant - on an empty space near the narrow sidewalk, pretending to be one of the restaurant's patron.

Then I whispered to the radio. "Dragon 2 in position."

"Dragon 3, in position," Kokoro reported. I checked the tracker embedded on my communication glasses, showing Kokoro and her team who is going to provide overwatch had silently occupied an abandoned condominium not far from the target area.

......

1st Lt. Kokoro Yamaguchi

"Chinese or English only."

"Yes, ma'am" answered my teammate before we disembark the SUV and head for our designated watchpoint, an abandoned condominium, a result of the bursting of the country's property bubble in the aftermath of COVID-19.

We pretend to inspect it, hence our civilian clothing.

I took up position with another operator, Sergeant Hitomi Katayama, to watch the sniper team's back, ready to engage anyone who tried to cowardly stab us in the back.

There are many people who can kill you in Cambodia. I went back to the briefing. Don't trust the locals too much. Especially here, where Chinese is increasingly dominant.

"Himari, any lead to our target?" Asked one of my teammates and second in command, Staff Sergeant Ayumu Murasame, in Mandarin.

"Stand by" she replied. "Negative, so far."

"Keep looking." He commanded.

......

1st Lt. Ryutarou Hatamoto

While the Captain and his team acted as a reserve, my team was tasked for the capture. I led my men to a dumpster behind the two-story building that we're about to enter, not far from the basement where Maruyama parked the car.

Maruyama was the last to move, as he's looking for threats behind us.

"When we got him, you'll bring the car and we'll rendezvous here."

"Aye."

"Good day!" one of the restaurant's crew greeted us in English as my team went in, and we replied accordingly. My team and I scanned the environment quickly. On the occupied tables, we could see a dozen Chinese-looking men but also few locals.

Assume the worst. My mind went back to my training, and I did discover what looked like concealed pistols tucked on some of the patrons. However, they seem to content to leave us be and enjoy their meal.

They're probably local security for Chinese projects here in Cambodia. So much for recession, I think?

Our seating arrangements ensure that everyone can watch each other's back.

We ordered some tea and a couple of Dim Sum.

"The chicken one." requested Maruyama in broken Chinese. Not far from our seat, however, a man entered the premises. The new patron has a pair of black glasses, a military-grade haircut, and a well-built body. A backpack was on his back.

"Sure, now, what about your..." He gazed at me.

"I am his big brother."

"Good idea, sir." I can see Izumi's mouth moved upon I said such to the crew offering the menu in front of us.

"I am his younger sister." Oonishi followed suit.

"How's your day, sir?"

"A good day" quipped the cashier who was the one got asked by Izumi. "We owned the government here... nothing out from our reach. Anyway, where are you from?"

"Shenzhen."

"Ah, so we're from the same hometown then. Business here is fine. Sure the revenue is down thanks to the recession, but so far we're holding on." the Chinese man's eyes were sparkling, eager to keep talking before a man who was a patriarch of a family of four sat three tables behind us stepped in to pay their bills.

"Anyway, did you know that the glorious People's Liberation Army has a base here in Cambodia?" He asked Izumi upon he finished his task ahead.

"Yeah. Do you happen to have a relative serving there?"

"My brother is in the Army, Southern Theater Command. Colonel." answered the cashier. "Anyway, what's your business here?"

"Export-import, and now we are looking for investment prospects here in this city." This time it's me who answered him.

"Great!" he exclaimed to us. "If you want to know about a few stuff, you can ask the boss."

"And who's the 'boss' you're talking about, Mr..."

"Come on, you can just call me Mr. Wei." said the cashier.

"Mr. Wei, if it's okay, can I have the "boss" that you're talking about?"

"Sure, come." I stepped forward into the cashier's table and he scribbled a note containing a phone number and name.

All in all his tone seems friendly, as well as all the waiter and waitresses attending the customers.

A few more talk about our home and what we're thinking about the place we're here when my communication glasses went on in a flash, signaling a message has arrived.

"Andy Lau is about to enter the building." referring to our target's code name. One man that was awfully familiar to me moved inside the restaurant, his pace fast, just like he has something urgent to deal with. A suitcase is in his hand.

"Let them meet." I texted the next order to my team and also let the Captain know, as the man head for a table with the previous, black-glassed male, whose expression also showed an urge for something to be solved.

In the meantime, another message arrived from Kokoro's team. Be advised, possible hostiles around the building. It seems they know that our man is important.

Still blissfully ignorant about our real intention, as we're done with the meal the cashier accepted our payment in cold, hard Renminbi.

"Be advised, he's about to head for his car, get ready." It's the Captain's message.

But I overheard some word muttered by the cashier, in Mandarin, to what could be his boss as we were making our way out from the premises.

"Those people are Japanese..."

"I have a bad feeling about this." Izumi was the first to speak up.

.....

1st Lt. Kokoro Yamaguchi

"He's moving" whispered Himari at her spotter and superior. "Towards the parking lot."

"Be advised..." I decided to text Ryutaro's team. "Multiple hostiles are behind you. They are looking for something, make it fast."

......

1st Lt. Ryutaro Hatamoto

I faced Om Nan straight ahead, just as he's about to reach his car.

"Sir, do you have a moment?"

The Cambodian exchanged glance at me.

"What do you need?"

In one fluid motion, my hand stretched out and clasped his mouth shut. All of his plea for help could not get noticed too far. Izumi and Oonishi also helped in ensuring he did not resist.

In perfect timing, Maruyama has driven the car out in a change of plan, thanks to updates from Kokoro's team. Instead of behind the restaurant, it was in the restaurant's parking lot.

"Hey."

"Damn" I know that the voice behind me, in Mandarin, was not part of the mission, and as he's bundled securely inside the car, I did what I should do in case of a hostile.

An elbow strike to the guy's midriff, and he staggered, but then his hand extended to do what I recognize as an attempt to draw something. So I took no chances and snapped his right hand.

I dashed on as more and more people that we recognize were those security guys who were with us before went closer to our position.

Don't waste your time fighting them all.

Yet, behind the guy that I had just downed, another Chinese had his pistol drawn, cocked and ready. From the front passenger seat, I decided to make use of my gun, and so my suppressed Mark 23 did its job; the Chinese writhed in pain as his right hand was a bloody mess, his pistol was on the ground in front of him.

"Go, go!!"

As Maruyama punched the gas under increasingly accurate gunfire from the surviving Chinese guards, I am on the line with the Captain.

"Dragon 2 to 1, package secured, but we're being followed. Please advise."

"Lose them, only engage while absolutely necessary.."

I can see that the Captain's car was closing behind one of our followers. In the meantime, Kokoro's team had also inside their car.

I pulled out my MP7 just in case, and not too soon, from the sedan behind us an AK-47 appears.

To our luck, the glass of our pursuer's car offered no protection against bullets at all, as Izumi aimed his Tavor at the driver straight on, dispatched its occupants before they could even open fire.

"Look out!" I told Maruyama as one big pick up truck appears. Deducing their intention, he immediately turned right into one of the arterial roads with single-family housing dominating the area.

"Great, local police." I can hear Maruyama groan as one police sedan swerved in an effort to stop us, and turning around with us being the hunted.

"Grrmmpp!!"

"You make the sound, you die." barked Oonishi at our "package".

"You messed with the wrong sort of people," I added.

More and more police sedans were detected.

"Dragon 1 to all units, rendezvous at the secondary site. The consulate has been subjected to several probing by hostile forces, confirmed as mercs and few local helpers... Out."

There must be someone with drones watching us, I see... And if we head for the consulate, it will be too obvious.

On my tablet, a new set of GPS locations has been set.

We had spent a good time driving around the city, and as we reach its outskirts, no one noticed that one of the country's businessmen was in our hands. Not even a local police helicopter who had passed us on the opposite direction.

The coordinates shown to us was an unassuming three-story gated compound in a quaint village fifteen kilometers from Sihanoukville. There, I saw the Captain and his team stood in front of it.

"There are a lot of questions for you to answer," I pointed my MP7 while Izumi and Maruyama grabbed Om Nan straight out from the car.

......

A/N: Hope you enjoy it!

(1). Cabinet Intelligence and Research Office (CIRO, Naicho), Japanese Foreign intelligence agency akin to the American CIA and British MI6 (Secret Intelligence Service).

(2). A strategic diplomatic, economic, and military forum consists of India, Japan, USA, and Australia in which specificically aimed to address the increased economic and military power of China in the Indo-Pacific.