Gundam 00: Rise of China

The moment the iconic blue and white silhouette broke through the clouds, the artillery fire on the entire battlefield off the coast of Taliban suddenly subsided.

The Exia Gundam, which had finally arrived, hovered in mid-air. The emerald green aura emitted by GN particles was like a cold veil, covering the intertwined battle lines below.

The airspace, once filled with the deafening shouts of battle, fell into a deathly silence. The Taliban army's resistance abruptly halted, and the Union army's counterattack also stopped.

No one's eyes could escape their gaze from that steel giant.

After all, that's the physical manifestation of Celestial Being—Gundam!

"It's those bastards again, those damned accomplices!"

The Taliban drivers' palms were sweating, and one of them said angrily.

The Taliban soldiers on this battlefield were well aware of the formidable power of the Gundam.

Those four steel monsters utterly destroyed all their defenses, trampling their efforts into dust.

Are Taliban soldiers afraid?

Of course I'm afraid.

Despite the fear, the Taliban soldiers on the scene looked at each other, determined to protect their country and improve its future.

Nobody stepped back an inch!

Driven by their belief, even the old training mobile suits raised their guns, and the fixed-wing fighters continued to circle, despite knowing they couldn't win.

For the sake of Taliban, they are even willing to draw their knives and fight to the death!

The atmosphere in Taliban was heavy, while the atmosphere on the Union side was much more relaxed.

Many of the Flagship pilots were delighted to see the Gundam appear.

In their minds, Celestial Being's Gundams only target Taliban, never even getting close to Union.

The Gundam in front of them even flew over their own fleet and rushed to attack Taliban without stopping for a moment.

So how could the Celestial Beings, who claim to eradicate war, dare to offend the world's policeman?

However, while the Flagship pilots were optimistic, Chief of Staff Jason was not so optimistic on the bridge of the Union fleet's new flagship.

Staring at the motionless Exusiai on the screen, his brows furrowed into a knot.

Chief of Staff Jason was unsure what the pilot of this Gundam wanted to do, or rather, what the Celestial Being organization's current stance was.

Mike's old friend believed that Celestial Being and Union had a tacit understanding, but Chief of Staff Jason couldn't gamble everything on the unknown.

So, is Gundam here to help suppress Taliban?

Or are they here to reap the benefits?

What is he thinking now, at this moment when he is the focus of so many people's attention and the subject of their speculation?

In fact, inside the Gundam's cockpit, Setsuna's brow hadn't relaxed since arriving at this battlefield.

On the way here, he had made up his mind, after all, from Taliban's perspective, the other side started the war in order to fight for justice.

The root of the war lies with the oppressive Union.

Hovering above the battlefield, watching the fierce fighting below, and seeing the falling machines and exploding flames on both sides, he was momentarily at a loss as to who to attack.

The Taliban army is fighting desperately, and the Union army is also fighting to the death.

Blood was flowing on both sides, and people were dying on both sides.

If Veda's instructions had been followed and all Taliban forces had been disarmed more quickly, would this brutal war have been avoided?

His fingers tightened slightly on the joystick, and his gaze darted back and forth between the two clearly defined camps.

Although he has learned to think now, it seems too early for him to make judgments, so he remained silent.

But it was precisely because of that momentary silence that it felt like a boulder pressing down on the battlefield, making it hard for everyone to breathe.

The sword that is swung down is not scary; what is scary is that the sword remains hanging there.

Finally, someone couldn't hold back any longer.

A Union flagship pilot, who had lost two teammates in succession, stared at the Exia suspended motionless in mid-air, and thought of the flagship that had been blown into a fireball.

His pent-up anger exploded, shattering his reason. He slammed the public channel shut, and his roar echoed throughout the entire airspace.

"What on earth are you celestials doing?!"

"Now that you've attacked the Taliban army, you should properly deal with these rebels!"

"They actually managed to destroy our warships using those mercenaries who were like dogs!"

"Didn't we say we wanted to eradicate war?"

"Is this how you eradicate war?"

After spraying the fumes, the driver turned his attention to the Taliban army.

"And you Taliban scum!"

"Don't push your luck!"

"Your peaceful lives are all a gift from the Union!"

"It was the Union, the world's police, that protected you, you ungrateful wretches!"

Upon hearing this, Chief of Staff Jason's expression changed drastically in the fleet's command room, and he quickly and sternly stopped him.

"Shut up! Who gave you permission to use a public channel!"

But Chief of Staff Jason's words came too late; sometimes, a person's heart is swayed by a single thought.

The pilot's words traveled along the radio waves to every receiver on every aircraft and into the ears of every Taliban.

In the Taliban army ranks, Wang Ye, sitting in the cockpit, immediately curled a knowing smile at the corner of his mouth beneath his mask.

Sure enough.

Arrogance is ingrained in the Union's very being. They have been swaggering and domineering for centuries, and they have long regarded plunder as a blessing and oppression as protection.

There's no need to stir things up yourself; simply putting this self-righteous arrogance on the table is more effective than any petty tricks.

Moreover, even if the Union members don't erupt, but someone in Taliban does, the result is actually the same.

"A gift? ************ A gift!"

Upon hearing these words, the captain of the Taliban's Third Mobile Squad roared with red eyes, unable to contain himself any longer, and pushed the control stick to its limit.

Soon, the training vehicle he was driving sped off at full speed, risking engine overload.

"Our land, our resources, our lives—you've stolen them all!"

"This is the blessing you're talking about?!"

"There are no cowards in Taliban!"

"If you want war, then let's fight! Who cares about your charity!"

The Taliban army, which had just been intimidated by the giant and dared not make any rash moves, was now like a powder keg that had been lit.

All fear and all apprehension were shattered by this blessing.

Piloting their old machines, they charged relentlessly into Union's formation, determined to take a piece of their enemy's flesh even knowing it meant certain death.

Even if we all die here today, we will die gloriously standing up, not living on our knees!

Just then, the Taliban army launched another attack.

The Gundam Exia, which had been hovering for a long time, moved.

A fleeting image of my childhood flashed through my mind: a village destroyed by war, relatives lying in the ruins, all because of the so-called "gifts" imposed by those above me.

Those days and nights of displacement, those sufferings of being crushed and ignored, were never a "gift".

It is oppression.

It is a disaster imposed on the weak by the strong.

He once thought that celestial beings and humans were different, and that he wielded his sword to eradicate all wars.

But if the sword of the celestial beings only dares to strike the weak who resist, but turns a blind eye to the strong who commit harm, then what difference is there between them and those invaders?

"The one who is wrong is not the one who resists."

The boy's voice was soft, yet unusually firm.

Exia's eye sensors suddenly lit up with a blinding light, the GN thrusters on her back burst out with a strong emerald green light, and the GN sword, enhanced by particles, shone with dazzling light.

Without the slightest hesitation, the blue and white giant turned his sword and charged straight at the Union army's formation.

Oppressors are never the righteous ones.