The War of Resistance: My Expedition, My Country

The Chief of Staff of the Front, Ushiman Juichiro, also walked over quickly and quickly spread a new map of the enemy and friendly situation on the table in front of the three people.

At Watanabe's signal, Niu Man gave a detailed introduction to the enemy situation based on intelligence gathered from all parties.

After Chief of Staff Niu Man finished speaking, Watanabe Shozo asked Kimura: "Tell me about the 15th Army's plan."

Kimura Heitaro stood up, bowed deeply to Watanabe, then bowed to Ushimitsu and Sakurai, and said, "Your Excellency the Commander, Ushimitsu-kun, Sakurai-kun, I think the conquest of India can be suspended for now."

As the three looked stunned, Kimura continued, "The battles of the past few days have shown that we lack superior manpower and weaponry, and we don't even have air superiority. Although the Empire's warriors are incredibly brave, it's meaningless to ask them to make fearless sacrifices on a battlefield like this."

Kimura continued, "The enemy is equipped with a large number of automatic weapons, and now they have new rocket launchers. Every time the soldiers charge, they will be subjected to the baptism of enemy crazy artillery fire. The 31st Division has lost more than 2000 people in the offensive in the past few days and has advanced less than 10 kilometers. If the battle continues like this, the 15th Army may have been exhausted before reaching Silchar." At this point, Kimura Heitaro choked up.

The scene evoked a sentimental sentiment, and Sakurai lamented, "The 28th Army faced a similar situation in northern Burma. The terrain was steep, there were no roads, and the enemy's flexible artillery fire caused heavy losses to our army, significantly delaying our operational plan."

Niu Man nodded and added, "We prepared too hastily, and the enemy is growing stronger and stronger. We are really at a disadvantage in such a battle. It is said that the navy has also suffered repeated setbacks in the Western Pacific. The Battle of Guadalcanal was very difficult."

Watanabe sighed inwardly as his key subordinates were predicting the Empire's unfavorable military situation. He was well aware of this. However, the Imperial Headquarters demanded a swift victory over India and a push into the Middle East, hoping to join forces with the Axis powers in the region and divide the world. This seemed to disregard the fact that the Imperial Army had already reached its limit.

Watanabe raised his hand to stop the three from complaining, and said softly, "I understand what you all mean, but for the future of the empire, we must persevere. Everyone must demonstrate the courage and bravery of an imperial soldier to deal with this minor setback."

Then, a sly look flashed in Watanabe's eyes, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. "Headquarters has secretly procured 240 Leopard tanks and 80 accompanying self-propelled artillery and tank destroyers from the Axis powers to form the 3rd Tank Division. They will soon be sent to Burma to join the Burmese Front. This is our truly elite corps. When the time comes, we will definitely conquer India and seize control of the Indian Ocean!"

Watanabe stood up and pointed at the map. "The Imperial Headquarters and the Southern Army are aware of our current predicament and have agreed to temporarily suspend the invasion of India. However, we cannot give up! Nor can we give the enemy time."

He pointed to the Imphal front. "15th Army, Commander Kimura. Continue your feint attack. Reconnaissance the terrain quickly to find a favorable direction for a tank assault!"

"Oi", Kimura stood up and bowed his head to salute!

Watanabe pointed toward northern Burma. "Sakurai-kun, the 28th Division of the 18th Army, continue your advance into northwestern Burma. We must seize Putao and annihilate the guerrillas! We must not stop spreading false information to the enemy about roundabout attacks! The 33rd Division, your offensive into northeastern India must be fierce, seize advantageous terrain, and establish deep defense positions!"

"Oh!" Sakurai also stood up and saluted to receive the order!

Watanabe continued, "The Mei Agency has received solid intelligence from Chongqing that China and the United States will launch a large-scale offensive in northern Burma. The goal is to reopen the Burma Road and build a new China-India Highway from Ledo to southern Yunnan."

"This is absolutely not allowed!" Watanabe raised his voice, shouting frantically, "Headquarters has ordered us to establish a multi-layered defense system in northern Burma. We must fully utilize the jungle combat capabilities of the 18th and 33rd Divisions, employ a strategy of luring the enemy deep into our territory, and annihilate the elite Chinese and American forces in northern Burma in one fell swoop!"

In the Grape Valley, although the guerrilla columns fought flexibly, taking advantage of the terrain and geography, and repeatedly dealt heavy blows to the Japanese, the Japanese army also changed its combat mode, using squadrons, small teams, and even task forces to search and suppress the enemy along the dense mountain forests.

The Japanese army had an advantage in manpower and a large number of veterans with rich experience in tropical jungle combat as its backbone. They advanced step by step, continuously breaking through key points and compressing the guerrilla column's space for maneuver.

The Japanese army seemed to have found a way to counter the rocket artillery, denying the guerrilla columns the opportunity to launch concentrated assaults. They even utilized the Japanese veterans' accurate marksmanship and skilled grenade launcher manipulation to repeatedly inflict fatal blows on the guerrillas of various ethnic groups.

The Japanese were very decisive. After gaining a breakthrough point, they would immediately and quickly penetrate with large forces, leaving the guerrilla columns no time to react. After all, the guerrilla columns were too few in number and could not fight the Japanese head-on.

Forced to retreat, Qin Shi ordered the withdrawal of the Putao Valley and moved to a new gathering point in the dense mountain forests. Immediately after occupying Putao, the Japanese army launched a widespread massacre, forcing the people of all ethnic groups to participate in the construction of roads, bunkers, and other infrastructure. The Japanese quickly established a forward base in this sole valley in northwestern Myanmar.

At Waliwagao and Namura, the battle between the 200th Division and the Japanese 33rd Division for key passes and crossings intensified deep in the dense forest. Liu Molong (Liu Wu) had just received a report that a secret base of the Sino-US task force, located on the Wamu tributary upstream of the Qindun River, had been raided by Japanese forces. The task force suffered heavy losses and the base had been captured. Huang Wei requested that the 600th Regiment dispatch a mechanized unit to cooperate with the division's special forces company to capture the base.

The commander of the special forces company, Liu Jiang, led a commando team consisting of three M3 armored vehicles, two armed jeeps, an M1 tank, two mortar teams, and a rocket launcher team, and set out from the defense zone of the 2rd Battalion of the 3th Regiment to recapture the lost stronghold.

After marching for about 4 hours, they reunited with the remaining members of the Sino-American task force. According to the order from above, the command of the force was handed over to the US Captain Lewis.

Lewis first briefed Liu Jiang and the others on the general situation of the stronghold. It was a reconnaissance station. Fortunately, the Japanese attacking the stronghold hadn't noticed the station, hidden more than 10 miles west. The commando's mission was to launch a surprise attack on the stronghold, disrupting the Japanese deployment while ensuring the safety of the reconnaissance station.

After clarifying the mission, Liu Jiang and Lewis discussed the matter and divided the assault team into three groups. Wang Ruijian, the division's special operations staff officer, led tanks and armored vehicles to the reconnaissance station to organize the defense. Liu Jiang led a mortar and rocket launcher team and a platoon of soldiers to form the assault group, preparing to launch a surprise attack on the Japanese tonight. Lewis, along with two armed jeeps and other members, formed the support group, also providing support and covering fire, waiting for an opportunity to recapture the stronghold.