Mitchell Sanders tells O'Brien a story about Rat Kiley: Due to rumors of North Vietnamese Army buildup in an area, Rat's platoon begins to move only at night and only off the main trails, struggling with the heavy foliage of the rain forest. They sleep in the day, which is difficult for Rat, who could feel tension and strain, causing him at first to become quiet and then to become nervous and jumpy. He starts talking about swarms of bugs and the strange strains of bugs in Vietnam. He scratches his bug bites, clawing them and finally scratching them until they become open sores. He eventually breaks down in front of Sanders, explaining that he is scared, but not normal scared. He sees pictures in his head of his fellow soldiers, but not their whole bodies, only parts and organs. He begins to see his own. Finally the tension gets to him and he shoots himself in the foot, a war wound that would rotate him out of the combat area. Lt. Cross says he would vouch that it was an accident, and Rat is flown to Japan to recover.
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