Five supply ships were sunk, and the sea area where the fleet was located was shrouded in fire. Ijuin's brows were twitching, his face was turning blue and white, and the pain in his heart was indescribable.
The order to set sail for the fleet was given by Yamamoto, and he was not expected to be attacked by superior enemy aircraft. However, he had to bear the responsibility for it. When he thought of this, he felt as depressed as if he had jumped into the sea of fire. ,
The air attack was not over. Although two more Baijis were shot down, the Baiji cluster's attack on the five surviving supply ships had not stopped. And just to the east of the fleet, there were dozens of medium-sized bombers watching eagerly. Waiting for the order to attack,
This air attack lasted for about twenty-five minutes, and in the end, after paying the price of seven fighter planes, the Xuebing Army Air Force sank a total of nine supply ships and three armed frigates of the Nagasaki Supply Fleet. The battle loss ratio is still based on the consumption ratio. The Xuebing Army still achieved victory in this "cutting off cooking" operation.
At about 5:40, the Xuebing Army fighter group began to return, and less than ten minutes after they left, the lookout soldiers on the Kongo howled again. The round of bombing just now had already made Ijuin heartbroken. When he organized the rescue of the drowned crew, he heard that another enemy plane was incoming. He was so horrified that he almost sat down on the ground.
When the "enemy plane" flew a little closer, some plaster flags on the fuselages of the fighter planes appeared in front of Ijuin. The old Japanese screamed, fiercely threw the loudspeaker in his hand on the deck, and shouted: "Ba Ge, since you are coming, why not come earlier."
Yamabe flew along the way and found five ships drifting with the waves about 100 kilometers away from the Nagasaki supply fleet. These ships belonged to the Taiwan supply fleet, but they had been destroyed because of the loss of power. Abandoned, Yamabe initially thought that this was the Nagasaki supply fleet, which shocked the boss. Later, when no living person was found on the ship, he realized that this was probably a ship abandoned by the Taiwan supply fleet. ,
Flying further east, within a few minutes, he saw the thick smoke rising from the sea area where the Nagasaki supply fleet was located. He followed the smoke and flew over. Soon, the embarrassed Nagasaki supply fleet appeared in front of dozens of Japanese airmen. in the eyes,
"We're late." Yamabe circled the fleet and muttered to himself in despair,
At that time, Yamamoto Isoroku had already received the war status telegram from Ijuin. Hearing that nine of the thirteen supply ships had been lost, and that none of the three fuel supply ships were left, the old Japanese was so anxious that he did not pick up the ship again. fainted,
This telegram was given to him personally by Koizumi. He had already known the content in advance. Koizumi seemed very calm. While he called for a military doctor to come and give Yamamoto first aid, he asked Sanada to call Tsukahara to discuss countermeasures with him.
Koizumi first expressed his opinion. He said: "The supply fleet from Nagasaki now only has one ammunition supply ship and two food supply ships left. These supplies can support about a week of losses, but there is no oil. For supplies, the fleet can only stop here, otherwise, if we cannot capture Hainan, we will not even have enough fuel to return."
After encountering heavy blows one after another, Tsukahara's fiery temper could not help but restrain a lot. Unlike Koizumi, who was obsessed with the Hainan Campaign, he turned his attention to the Japanese mainland thousands of miles away. He said: "Is it still necessary to continue the Hainan Campaign? The conclusion has been reached, Koizumi, what we should be concerned about now is the more serious issue. Even if we can return to Nagasaki safely, what will happen to the commander, what to do to the combined fleet and even the navy? Those bastards in the army will never let this go. Chances are, they are always thinking about bringing us under their command, and if this becomes a reality, I'm afraid your plans for a powerful navy will all come to nothing."
Koizumi was still too young and was simply an idiot politically. After Tsukahara's reminder, he realized this problem and couldn't help but become nervous: "Although the Hainan Campaign failed, it won't have such a bad impact."
Tsukahara sighed, then glanced sideways at him as if he were an idiot, then took out a cigarette and smoked it, without saying anything for a long time.
"Please give me one." Koizumi said, reaching out his right hand to take the cigarette from Tsukahara.
In terms of politics, Tsukahara's views were naturally more accurate than Koizumi's. As long as he thought that Yamamoto would be forced to resign or even leave the Navy because of the failure of the Hainan Campaign, Koizumi became uneasy. Although the Hainan Campaign was initiated by Yamamoto, the actual promotion But it was him. Yamamoto had great trust in him, but what did he bring to Yamamoto? Yamamoto trusted him because he expected him to contribute to the powerful navy, but now it seems that what he has brought to the navy is destruction. , this was a huge blow to him,
"Tsk," Koizumi struck a match and wanted to light the cigarette. However, he was so restless that he couldn't concentrate at all. He struck out more than ten matchsticks in a row, but failed to light the cigarette.
"Now I just hope that Haneda and the others can kill Ouyang Yun by surprise. In that case, there may be a turn for the better in the Hainan Campaign. However, based on my observation of the Xuebing Army during this period, it is really difficult for Haneda and the others to do this. Now." Tsukahara said, snatching the matchbox from Koizumi's hand and lighting the cigarette for him.
Koizumi took a long puff of the cigarette, then coughed violently, and finally calmed down his breathing. He said, "Mr. Tsukahara, besides this, we have another chance."
"What."
"Osaka Division."
"The Merchant Division, what can you expect from them?"
"Your Excellency, although we all disdain the Osaka Division, have you noticed this? They have at least taken root in Hainan. In other words, we have actually achieved an initial victory in the Hainan Battle."
"But..." Zhongyuan wanted to say, "But this is the reason why Xuebingjun voluntarily gave up his position." However, before he could say anything, he was interrupted by Koizumi.
He said: "No matter what happens to us in the future, at least for now, with the strong cooperation of our combined fleet, the Osaka Division has successfully established itself in Hainan. Doesn't the Army want to seize the results? We will leave it to them. Since the results have been given to them , then should the Army be solely responsible for the next war?"
What Koizumi said was shameless and even vicious. Out of his understanding of the Osaka Division's combat capabilities, Tsukahara could foresee the only fate of the division remaining on Hainan Island. While he was surprised by Koizumi's vicious heart, he He had to admit that this could indeed solve the crisis faced by the combined fleet and even the Navy. He took a deep breath and said, "Then let's wait until the commander wakes up and ask him to make a decision."
Koizumi shook his head: "No, this matter must not be known to the commander. You should be clear about the commander's character. He is a sharp-tongued man with a sharp mouth and a soft heart. We can just do this in secret. If something goes wrong, I will bear the responsibility." Already."
Tsukahara thought for a while and agreed to Koizumi's suggestion. Regarding the issue of acknowledging responsibility, he said nothing, but made a decision in his heart. He would definitely take over the responsibility by then to protect Koizumi, the star of hope of the navy.