The footage captured by Soldier One was quickly uploaded to the command center aboard the USS Stannis.
General Ross and Maverick both witnessed the astonishing scene: an adult Wakandan woman splitting open fruit with a vibranium axe.
Wakanda possessing vibranium was no longer speculation—it was real!
And judging from the footage, vibranium was not even considered rare among the Wakandans. The women handled the metal without awe, calm and unshaken, as if it was an everyday tool.
Even if Wakanda lacked the vast vibranium mines that Senju Haruto had mentioned, the amount they possessed was clearly far from trivial.
"Hahaha! History will remember us for this!" Maverick burst into booming laughter.
To him, this was a monumental victory. This discovery would not only make him one of the wealthiest men in America but also etch his name into legacy itself. If all went well, statues of him—and of General Ross—would be erected along the streets of the United States.
"I'll wager, General Ross, once we bring this footage back home, it will shake the entire nation!"
"Indeed."
Ross gave Maverick a sharp glance, his own face just as alight with excitement, anticipation, and unprecedented joy.
For as long as anyone could remember, vibranium was not only the rarest of metals but also one of unimaginable value. The fact that it could absorb kinetic energy alone made it priceless.
Weapons forged from vibranium, in Ross's eyes, were epoch-making creations.
"Soldier One, I need a more comprehensive field report."
Because mere claims—I think, I assume, I speculate—were not nearly persuasive enough.
To convince the powers that be to authorize an occupation of Wakanda, they would need irrefutable proof. Evidence so overwhelming that it would leave every single person stunned, bordering on madness.
"Yes, General Ross!" Soldier One replied firmly, his voice sharp as steel.
Ever since joining the army, he had never once disappointed his superiors. His stellar record had even earned him the rare qualification to be injected with the super-soldier serum.
Now, he had no intention of failing General Ross.
"Prepare to move out."
Lowering his binoculars, Soldier One reviewed his observations. Within a hundred-meter radius, only these Wakandan women could be seen.
To take them captive, force them to serve as guides, and interrogate them for the location of the vibranium mines was, without question, the simplest and most effective course of action.
But to avoid alarming others, Soldier One signaled with his hand, instructing the rest of the squad to hold their ground. He would make the first strike alone—swiftly subduing the women and bringing them back.
Inhale.
Exhale.
His breathing steadied, his body leaning slightly forward, resembling a lone white wolf on the grasslands preparing to pounce.
Senju Haruto observed all this without making any move to intervene.
But suddenly—his expanded spiritual sense picked up another presence. A separate force was approaching in perfect formation, their advance disciplined and deliberate.
And their direction was straight toward this position.
"Numbers… about sixteen," Haruto quickly calculated.
There was no doubt. These were Wakandan warriors. They had noticed Soldier One's movements and were executing an encirclement.
At this realization, Haruto tilted his head back, gazing into Wakanda's clear blue sky.
Not a single cloud marred the heavens; it was a pristine, sunlit day.
But only then did Haruto remember—Wakanda was not backward at all. On the contrary, it was supremely advanced. With their scientific prowess, launching satellites would be child's play.
If his guess was right, these warriors who had maneuvered around to the rear already had complete surveillance on their squad.
"Interesting."
A small smile curled across Haruto's lips. He himself had nothing to worry about. But the same could not be said for the soldiers around him—odds were high none of them would make it back alive.
"Well, in that case, there's no point in me lingering here."
Even as the thought crossed his mind, Haruto's legs moved in a blur, sprinting across the grassy plain to catch up with Soldier One.
After all, Haruto was no American. Though he had watched every Marvel movie, he was far from being a fanboy. He had always approached them with detached objectivity, as a casual observer.
The lives of these soldiers meant little to him.
What mattered was this: Haruto was now both Sage of the Six Paths and Supreme Sorcerer. His strength placed him on a level so far above ordinary humans that the gap was wider than that between gods and insects.
He was neither merciful to a fault nor weak-hearted.
His purpose here in Wakanda was singular: to complete his sign-in.
Everything else? Haruto simply did not care.
Nor did he see any reason to warn these soldiers of the impending danger.
Meanwhile, aboard the USS Stannis…
Inside the command center, General Ross and Maverick could hardly contain their joy as they rewatched Soldier One's transmitted footage. Their elation was like that of victors returning from war.
But their triumph was short-lived.
One after another, urgent request signals began to light up across the room.
The abrupt disturbance left both Ross and Maverick baffled.
"What on earth is going on?" Ross demanded, drawing a deep breath as he turned to his staff.
The situation, however, was worse than he imagined.
Before they could even establish contact with the various squad leaders, their communications began to cut out one after another.
The deployed teams had vanished as if into thin air—no responses, no signals.
"Connections lost…" The operators in the command center began to break into cold sweat.
Such a scenario was unheard of. None of them had ever encountered anything like this.
Coupled with the earlier mass crash of the surveillance drones, a dark premonition began to take hold.
Could it be…?
Wakanda wasn't some backward agricultural nation at all?
Had they been hiding their advanced technology this entire time?
But… was that even possible?
No one could say.
"General Ross…"
Maverick's face, once radiant with joy, was now pale with worry. Doubt gnawed at him. Perhaps their preparations had been grossly inadequate.
And truth be told, a single recording of a woman wielding a vibranium axe was unlikely to convince Washington to authorize a Middle East–scale military invasion of Wakanda.
If they failed to secure vibranium, then their mission would be nothing short of a disaster.
"General Ross! Soldier One—he's reestablished contact!"
At that moment, one of the staff spoke up.
"Soldier One?"
Ross froze for a second, then quickly recalled—Soldier One was different from the others. In addition to the super-soldier serum, he had also consumed the heart-shaped herb that Senju Haruto had refined.
That made him the strongest fighter in their ranks.
"Hurry! Patch me through to Soldier One!" Ross barked, his impatience raw.
The connection was made, and before Soldier One could even orient himself, Ross's urgent voice came through:
"Listen to me, Soldier One—there's a very high chance you've walked straight into an ambush!"
Soldier One, however, seemed confused. He hadn't yet realized what was happening.