Chapter 16, The Story of Three Principals
"...You and I are like cherry blossoms blooming at the same time in the courtyard of the same military academy.
I have long had the awareness to give up immediately, and for the sake of the motherland, let’s leave calmly! ”
At the Etajima Naval Academy in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, normal classes have been completely suspended these days.
School students of all grades, senior graduates who have fled from various places on ships, as well as some professors and ordinary sailors, gather in the playground all day long, giving various speeches and debates, or just sitting around Drinking soju while singing "Sakura of the same period", the song is miserable and weak, which makes people frown. After some people were drunk, they even hugged a tree with both hands and banged their heads against the tree trunk crazily. Or they stared blankly at the sky covered with rain clouds and beat the moss on the concrete floor with their fists in grief and indignation.
Listening to the song "Sakura of the same period" that sounded from time to time on the playground outside the window, as well as all kinds of drunken scoldings and roars, Admiral Takeo Kurita, the principal of the Etajima Naval Academy sitting behind his desk, was wearing reading glasses and holding a A cup of cool strong tea only made my brain feel slightly achy.
What can be done? All is lost. The war is hopeless. The miserable navy, the miserable empire, the miserable Japan... The achievements of more than seventy years since the Meiji Restoration may all be in vain. The Japanese archipelago will also linger under the enslavement of the US military and will never recover.
Oh, forget it, it’s always a good thing to have the energy to sing. At least it’s slightly better than committing seppuku or living like a walking zombie, right?
As a senior bureaucrat, General Takeo Kurita has never been a very courageous guy. He is similar to Chuichi Nagumo, the commander of the Wugang garrison not far away. He is an old man in officialdom whose edges have been smoothed by time. Because their combat skills were really mediocre and they had performed poorly in a series of previous naval battles, and even shrunk their hands and missed the opportunity to fight, these two old men were kicked out of the front line and sent to the rear to take up relatively quiet idle positions.
To be honest, they are tired of the long and cruel war, and they are eager to withdraw from this turbulent era.
After learning that Tokyo and the entire central government had been razed to the ground by the atomic bomb, and that there was no one above their heads to give them orders anymore, Kurita Takeo and Nagumo Chuichi's reactions were that they were completely confused and had no idea what to do. I just listen to the radio every day to get news. A few days later, I heard that a Japanese provisional government had emerged in Kyoto. It was led by former Prime Minister Konoe Fumima. General Nagumo Chudai, the commander of the Wugang garrison, didn't think much about it and subconsciously obeyed. The order instructs the naval fleet to cease resistance, seal up ships and weapons, and prepare to surrender to the US military.
As for the principal of the Etajima Naval War School, Takeo Kurita, at that time, he actually had no intention of jumping up and crusade against the "pseudo government" in Kyoto. He just felt that his current identity was an educator and he did not hold any military power, so as long as he kept silent That's fine, no need to talk too much.
Unexpectedly, although the two old men thought it was okay to say goodbye to the war, the young people below had completely different ideas. The order to surrender the US military immediately triggered a riot at the Etajima Naval Academy, and then a mutiny broke out in the army near Wu Port. After some chaos, Nagumo Tadashi saw that the situation was out of control, and immediately jumped out without responsibility. I ran away and now I don’t know where I went. Some of the ships in Wu Port immediately weighed anchor and went to sea, preparing to defect to the main force of the combined fleet in Nanyang. The remaining people subconsciously gathered at their alma mater, wanting to discuss a countermeasure with their teachers and classmates.
As a result, as the principal of the Etajima Naval War School, Admiral Kurita Takeo was involuntarily elected as the temporary leader of the Japanese naval force in the Hiroshima area before he could figure out what was going on. A few days later, more and more ships fled to Etajima from various places, and the Etajima Naval War School was soon packed to the brim. Just arranging food, accommodation and medical treatment for so many people made Kurita Takeo very busy. Next, Ozawa Jisaburo, the president of Tokyo Naval University, also came to Etajima with his students who survived the nuclear explosion and the entire Yokosuka garrison fleet.
After being given a slap in the face by Ozawa Jisaburo, Kurita Keno finally understood what role he was currently playing: roughly equivalent to Enomoto who took the shogunate fleet and the Shinsengumi north to Ezo when the Tokugawa shogunate fell. Admiral Wu Yang...although he has never actually moved away.
However, in the face of this historical mission that came from heaven, instead of getting excited, Kurita Takeo only felt infinite fear.
"...Kurita-kun, the situation is already obvious! The whole of Japan is looking at Etajima! Look at us men from the sea!"
Principal Ozawa Jisaburo clenched his fists and banged on the map of Japan nailed to the wall, with a look of hatred on his face, "...I went to Hiroshima yesterday to meet with the Army people, Umezu Mijiro and Okamura. Neji prepares to return to Hiroshima A new wartime base camp is established to lead the empire’s war against the United States! It is necessary for our navy to join in as soon as possible and make our voice heard in the new base camp! "
"...Yijiro Umezu? Did he withdraw the Kwantung Army to the homeland?" Takeo Kurita hesitated and asked in a low voice.
"...Yes, the Kwantung Army, the North China Front Army, the Korean Army, and the Home Army in the western region are all gathering towards Hiroshima!"
"...What about Manchukuo? And what about Okamura's North China Defense Zone? What to do there?" Kurita Takeo asked again.
"...Japan is about to be lost, so why bother with Manchuria?" Ozawa Jisaburo sighed, "...the Army reached a secret agreement with the Soviet Union, that is, they unconditionally gave up all occupied areas north of the Yalu River. , even including Lushun and Dalian, and no damage to any and any infrastructure. The Soviet Union tried to work through the Chinese Red Army to ensure that the retreat of the Kwantung Army and the North China Front Army would not be hindered. Then, the immigrants from the Manchuria Pioneer Corps would also gradually move into North Korea...the war in China over the years. As a result, I had to give it all up!”
"...It is true that they have no choice but to give up, and they have no choice but to give up: the Taiwan Army and the Fourth Division in Shanghai have already surrendered directly to the enemy!"
Kurita Takeo nodded, "...Well, in this case, Umezu Yoshijiro can probably gather 200,000 to 300,000 troops in Hiroshima."
"...In fact, the Kwantung Army alone is enough to wipe out the domestic rebels, but if we want to fight against Halsey's U.S. Pacific Fleet, we must still rely on our navy! Kurita-kun! In order to save the motherland, let us work together Come on!" Ozawa Jisaburo shouted, waving his fist.
However, Admiral Takeo Kurita, who was nicknamed "Escape Kurita" in Japanese naval circles and was once famous for driving a battleship and being chased by torpedo boats all over the world, obviously did not have such ambitions. His first reaction was Shivering, "...But, can we fight?"
"...We must fight no matter what! No matter what, we are far from reaching the end of our rope!"
Ozawa Jisaburo raised his voice an octave again, "...Kurita-kun! Even if we don't count the Maizuru Fort in the Sea of Japan and the Sasebo Fort in Kyushu Island, we still have more than five provinces in Wu Port and Eda Island alone. One hundred thousand tons of combat ships and at least ten thousand naval aircraft in the mountains of Shikoku Island! The huge sealed naval ammunition depots in it contain 160,000 tons of artillery shells and explosives! The more than 40 giant oil storage tanks on the shore of Tokuyama Bay in the Seto Inland Sea also contain at least six One hundred thousand tons of various types of fuel are enough for us to fight for at least half a year!”
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Although Principal Ozawa Jisaburo kept encouraging him, Principal Kurita Keno still felt a little lack of confidence:
On paper, the current Etajima Naval Academy, or Wugang garrison (which can be basically regarded as the same place from the map), is indeed strong. It not only has a complete shipyard and maintenance workshop, but also has a stockpile of Huge amounts of ammunition and fuel, sufficient naval talents (who have not graduated), and a quite powerful fleet and thousands of aircraft have been assembled in these days. It seems to rely on the geographical advantages of local operations and the coastal defense fortresses built over many years. , should be able to compete with the Halsey fleet. But take a closer look, what kind of ships are moored at Etajima right now?
First, there are the four battleships Haruna, Kongo, Ise, and Hinata, the four aircraft carriers Amagi, Katsuragi, Hosho, and Ryuho, and a modified aircraft carrier Condor in Sasebo, which should be able to be mobilized during the war. But they are basically old ships that have been lagging behind for a long time, and their combat effectiveness is really unflattering.
Then came the cruisers Iwate, Izumo, Aoba, Tone, Yakumo, Kashima, Kitakami and Oyodo, followed by sixty-six large and small destroyers, but half of them were old destroyers that needed major modifications before they could be used. , which are thirty or forty years old, and even have legacies from the Russo-Japanese War.
Next, there are sixty equally outdated coastal defense ships, seventeen submarines of various kinds, more than one hundred and fifty torpedo boats, and more than one hundred gunboats that can only be used as maritime police... Due to the command system Many ships spontaneously parked in the shadows under the rocks on the seashore to avoid bombing by American aircraft: Not to mention anti-aircraft guns, not even an anti-aircraft machine gun on some old ships, how can they conduct air defense operations?
There is no way, the elite main force of the Japanese navy is now in Truk in Southeast Asia, and there is only a pile of messy junk here on the mainland.
What's even worse is that the command system of the Japanese Navy has already been bombarded by atomic bombs. Just relying on two unjust principals, Kurita Takeo and Ozawa Jisaburo, can really destroy all the strategic materials hoarded by the Imperial Navy. He has them all in his hands and can he command the rabble coming from all directions? Not to mention other things, just the idea of getting fuel from the military supply department in Tokuyama Bay and filling up the oil tanks of the ships gathered in Kure waters made General Kurita Takeo angry. It takes away the strength of the old nose. As for the artillery shells, bullets and firearms in the naval ammunition depot on Shikoku Island, as well as the canned goods and rice in the food depot, Kurita Takeo really doubted whether he had to fight with the person in charge of the warehouse before he could get them.
——Nowadays, there are many greedy people, especially those in charge of warehouses, who only think about how to embezzle public property!
"... Mr. Ozawa, you are too optimistic. The ancient Greek philosopher said that a group of mobs is not equal to an army, just as a pile of building materials is not equal to a house. In the same way, a group of battleships alone does not equal combat effectiveness. Fleet. Without the authority of the headquarters, the Navy Ministry and the Military Command, Without a complete staff team to direct our fleet operations, and without local government to provide us with supplies and early warnings, it would be impossible to act decently with just these aircraft and warships in Etajima, as well as these ungraduated students in the school. Let’s fight for it!” Kurita Takeo said with a wry smile.
"...Wait a minute! Kurita-kun! It's been so many days, haven't you even set up a temporary headquarters and staff organization? There is no shortage of professional talents here on Etajima!" This time it was Ozawa Jisaburo's turn to be surprised. "...What exactly have you been doing these days?"
"... Provide food and accommodation for those who are escaping one after another, fill up their ships with fuel and supplies, provide treatment for the wounded and sick, divide and arrange the berths of the ships... Fortunately, the ammunition does not need to be replenished for the time being, basically no matter which The ship didn't even fire a few shots..." Kurita Takeo replied.
"...Are you treating them as earthquake victims?" Ozawa Jisaburo suddenly choked and almost couldn't breathe. "...Kurita-kun! Do you realize that we are at war now? ! ”
"...I know! So I sent students to take over the early warning radar, pulled up torpedo protection nets at the port, and deployed anti-aircraft guns."
General Kurita Takeo spread his hands, "...But so far, American planes have not visited this place once. It is because the observation post's eyesight in the air is not good enough, and it has almost brought down our own planes several times."
"...In other words, there is no fleet headquarters on Etajima now, only an air defense headquarters..."
Ozawa Jisaburo couldn't help rolling his eyes, "...well, we still have a little time, we should have time to rebuild the fleet's command system..."
"...Well, it seems that it is indeed necessary to control the fleet, and it cannot be such a mess all the time. But, do we really have to continue fighting? The navy used to fight to be loyal to the emperor, but why is it willing to die now? "Principal Takeo Kurita's attitude is still very hesitant.
"...If the US military is still overseas, of course I am willing to solve the problem through peace talks. But now that the US military has landed on the mainland of the archipelago, it is obvious that it wants to kill us all. There is no way we can't stop fighting! Unless We scuttled the battleship immediately and took off this uniform!”
Ozawa Jisaburo's expression was also extremely complicated, "...otherwise we should fight for this country! Even if we go to the ocean to attack and defend the enemy from outside the country, it is no longer possible. But to defend the Seto Inland Sea, at least don't let The boots of the U.S. Marine Corps stepped on Etajima. This should always be possible It can be done! The land under our feet is not some deserted island in the South Seas whose name we cannot pronounce, but the sacred homeland of the Japanese nation for generations! Has the majestic Imperial Navy degraded to the embarrassment of the shogunate era? Allowing Western warships to come and go freely in the Seto Inland Sea?
Du Fu of the Tang Dynasty in China had a poem that said, "The country is broken by the mountains and rivers," but we must not be "the country is broken by the warships." Back then, despite the weakness of the Qing Dynasty and the incompetence of the Manchu court, the Beiyang Navy still had the courage to fight with the Chinese fleet until the last moment. If after the combined fleet failed in the war, most of the warships were handed over to the enemy intact along with the naval port without firing a single shot, or even as if they were new, that would be the greatest shame for Japanese men! ”
Even though Ozawa Jisaburo spoke so impassioned and righteous, he looked as if he was about to sacrifice his life for justice. But Kurita Takeo was still full of war-weariness and didn't want to die at all. Not only did he not want to die, he also didn't want his subordinates and students to die - from the beginning, he just wanted to protect this school and let as many subordinates and students as possible survive in this war that was coming to an end. Go down...Seeing that it seemed that he could not convince Kurita Takeo for a while, Ozawa Jisaburo could only shrug his shoulders and turned to ask about the main situation of the Truk Atoll combined fleet.
"...Truk's side? After confirming the death of Marshal Yamamoto Isoroku, some communications came through intermittently, but there wasn't much of value. I only know that the main fleet is gathering towards Truk over there. And nominate the next person in charge after the death of the marshal..."
At this moment, the phone on Principal Kurita Takeo's desk suddenly rang, interrupting him.
So, Kurita Keno made an apology gesture to Ozawa Jisaburo, and then answered the phone... Then Kurita Keno's expression became more and more weird, and finally put down the phone and said to Ozawa Jisaburo in a subtle tone, " ...The new acting commander-in-chief of the combined fleet has been elected.”
"...Who is it? Kondo Nobutake? Toyota's deputy general? Koga Hoichi? Or is it Horikichi who presides over Nanyang Heavy Industries?" Ozawa Jisaburo asked.
"...I guessed it all wrong. It's Admiral Narumi Inoue, the principal of the newly established Nanyang Truk Branch of the Imperial Naval War School... Alas, the entire Imperial Navy has millions of tons of ships and more than 300,000 troops. Now it's actually We three principals are in charge! Is this a joke?”
And Ozawa Jisaburo's reaction was obviously even more intense, "...Narimi Inoue? Damn it! Why is this Zhao Kuo of the Japanese Navy, a failed scholar who can only talk on paper? How did Truk's Combined Fleet Command recommend him? Such a new chief? ”
"...Uh...I can't pretend that I didn't hear this! You two!"
——Before Jisaburo Ozawa finished speaking, he was stunned to see General Narumi Inoue, wearing a white military uniform, pushing open the door and walking in.
Kurita Takeo: "...???"
Ozawa Jisaburo: "...!!!"
Facing Inoue Narumi who suddenly appeared, the two principals first blinked in disbelief, then looked at each other, and finally turned their heads together and asked the third principal who had just entered in unison: "...Inoue-kun , how did you come from Truk?"
Inoue Narumi blinked her eyes and was about to say something to the two principals when she suddenly heard a low sound of an engine coming from far above her head, and a sharp air raid siren also sounded immediately. Her expression changed involuntarily. "...There's no time to talk about this! It's an air strike! Run!" The next moment, a bright and huge fireball and a deafening explosion engulfed the campus of the Etajima Naval War School almost instantly...