Kyushu, Japan, on the outskirts of Kumamoto City, Takayuhara Airport.

A Type 93 biplane dive bomber landed bouncing down on the green lawn runway. The officers of the Japanese Red Army, who were waiting around the airport for the arrival of the plane, finally breathed a sigh of relief -- now the air supremacy of Kitakyushu has long been controlled by the Chinese military. This Takayohara Airport, which is close to the Kyushu headquarters of the Japanese Continental Defense Army, has been subjected to six or seven air raids in just a few days, and several main runways have been bombed into potholes, only the inconspicuous lawn next to it has not been bombed much, so it has been used as a temporary runway, but this kind of runway cannot take off and land large aircraft, so today this dignitary had to take the risk of flying from Tokyo in a Type 93 dive bomber during the day. Fortunately, he was not intercepted by Chinese fighters on the way, otherwise he would have died before he could have made a breakthrough.

As soon as the plane came to a stop, the pilot in the front seat jumped down first, helped an officer in the back seat wearing a khaki army coat unbuckle his seat belt, and helped him up from the seat. The officer was none other than Ishihara, and his face was blue and he was sneezing vigorously, and it seemed that he was frozen. The Japanese army's Type 93 dive bomber is actually copied from Germany's HS.123, the old-fashioned design, not only the wings but also not even a cabin cover, now it is the winter of February, the temperature on the ground is below zero, three or four thousand meters in the air is minus ten or twenty degrees, and the wind is particularly strong! Ishihara was born in 1889, and now he is almost 50 years old, and his health is not very good (he only lived to be 60 years old in history), so he really suffered a crime along the way.

He was supposed to be the commander of the Hawaiian Front. Commanding 200,000 Japanese troops, guarding several islands, waiting for the jade to shatter. I don't know which tendon Takeda Heng is wrong, and I think he is quite talented in military affairs, so he was urgently recalled from Hawaii. As soon as he returned to Tokyo, he had not had time to relax for a few days when he was appointed deputy commander-in-chief of the Kyushu Headquarters of the Japanese Defense Army. When Takeda Heng summoned him in the basement of the Chibi Imperial Palace, he bluntly said to him: "Araki's military talent is very problematic, and he can't command the Armageddon of two million people at all, so I can only count on you, the deputy commander-in-chief!" After receiving this mission, Ishihara was no longer in the mood to take a slow boat or train, so he took the risk of flying to Kumamoto on a Type 93 dive bomber. He now knows nothing about the situation on the Kitakyushu front. It would also be nice to meet Sadao Araki and Adachi Twenty-Three earlier to learn about the situation.

Waiting for Ishihara at the airport was the deputy chief of staff of the Kyushu headquarters, Hyotaro Kimura, who graduated from the 20th artillery department of the Lushi, one year higher than Ishihara. However, this person is a Japanese "artillery expert" who has always been in charge of weapons production, and he has no opinions, and has the nickname of Jiqìren. I really don't know how to be a good deputy chief of staff? Watching Ishihara get off the plane. Kimura hurriedly stepped forward to salute this junior who was a junior but had very good official luck: "Comrade Deputy Commander, it's too risky for you to come by plane, in case you encounter a fighter jet ...... the outrage."

Ishihara interrupted him with a nonchalant wave of his hand, took a sip of the kettle full of hot water handed by a staff officer who was present, and then frowned and asked, "How is the situation now?" Are both Tsushima Island and Jeju Island lost? ”

Hyotaro Kimura sighed and replied, "Not only Tsushima Island and Jeju Island, but even Izaki Island was occupied by the Tyranny two days ago. ”

"What! Izaki Island is also lost? Ishihara's face darkened, having fought the Americans in Hawaii. Knowing that an island with a large airport can be built is strategically valuable! And this Ikizaki Island is also close to Kyushu Island.

"Isaki Island can't be defended at all, the terrain is too flat. There is no danger to rely on at all, and the deployment of heavy troops on the island can only be sacrificed in vain, so a brigade and some Red Guards are put in place. However, we have been heavily armed along the coast of Kitakyushu, and there are still a large number of shore defense artillery......"

The two of them said as they walked towards the waiting car, and Ishihara's face was about to turn black. As soon as the island is lost, the Chinese will be able to build the airfield to the beach of Kitakyushu, what can a few old shore defense guns do? Even if there is a 420mm naval gun modified train gun, how many shots can it fire under the threat of overwhelming air superiority of the enemy?

Kimura Hyotaro glanced at his face, thinking that Ishihara was worried about the future of Japan, and sighed again: "Now it's really a mistake, going south to Australia looks like a scam by the Germans, and the Hawaii side can't stop the United States, and the soldiers of the violent branch are about to land in Kitakyushu, and they can only fight...... Fortunately, the Combined Fleet had inflicted another heavy blow on the U.S. fleet in the South Pacific, and Commander Yamamoto had just sent a telegram to Tokyo, saying that the war in the South Pacific and the South Seas was no longer in serious trouble, and that the main forces of the Combined Fleet could return to the mainland, so that the tide of the war might turn for the better. ”

Hearing the news that the United Fleet had severely damaged the American fleet, Ishihara Waner let out a helpless wry smile from the bottom of his heart: "Don't believe the Navy's nonsense, they have not inflicted heavy damage on the American fleet once or twice, but as a result, the Americans are getting stronger and stronger, and the Combined Fleet is getting weaker and weaker." He and Kimura got into the car one after the other, and smiled bitterly: "But the guys in the navy also tried their best, but unfortunately war is never a one-on-one fair duel, if our strength is 1, the strength of the Americans is 100, the Chinese are at least 80, the prospect of this war is really desperate!" ”

Kimura was a little unconvinced when he heard his frustrated words: "It's not so strict, right?" If the gap in strength between us and the United States and China was really that big, then we would have lost the war a long time ago! ”

Ishihara looked at Kimura, shook his head, and said, "Kimura-kun, what we are participating in now is a worldwide war!" Japan is not alone, the Soviet Union and India are standing with us, and the Pacific theater is not the main battlefield of this world war, but the Eurasian continent is the home field...... As long as the Soviet Union and India can defeat China and Germany, even if we are defeated by the United States in the Pacific, we will still win the final victory. It's a pity that we still pressed the wrong treasure......"

Kimura sighed and didn't speak again. In this way, the two of them came to the Kyushu headquarters of the Japanese Continental Defense Army speechlessly. Ishihara pushed off the reception banquet held for him by the Kyushu headquarters, and immediately rushed to the basement of the original Kumamoto Coal Mining Industry Company building, which is now the location of the operational command center of the Kyushu headquarters.

Inside the combat chamber. Around the huge sand table, the officers of the Japanese Red Army, including Kuroshima Kameto, the chief staff officer of the Japanese Red Navy's Combined Fleet, who had flown back to Kyushu from Port Moresby via the Truk Islands and Saipan the day before, were all in attendance. First of all, Qin Yanzaburo, chief of staff of the Kyushu headquarters, gave a general introduction to the latest changes in the battle situation. The shape of Kitakyushu seems to have stabilized for the time being, and the Chinese did not immediately attack Kitakyushu after occupying Jeju Island, Tsushima Island, and Izaki Island, but only sent out battle cruisers and aircraft to carry out repeated shelling and bombardment of military targets along the coast of Kitakyushu. It seems to be preparing for the next stage of a large-scale landing battle.

As for the deployment of the Japanese army, it can be said at a glance on the sand table. Twelve of the 17 divisions (including the 106th Division, which was almost completely annihilated) that had previously been assigned to the Kyushu headquarters formed the Kitakyushu Cluster, which lined up along the coasts of Nagasaki, Saga, and Fukuoka prefectures, and focused on defending the port cities of Hirado, Matsuura, Karatsu, Fukuoka, and Kitakyushu facing the Tsushima Strait in the north of Kitakyushu. In addition, one division was deployed in Sasebo and Nagasaki in the west of Kyushu, and varying numbers of regular Red Army troops and Red Guards were deployed on the affiliated islands of southern Kyushu, such as Kagoshima City, Kushikino Port, Shibushi Port, Miyazaki City, Hosanan Islands, Yakushima Island, and Tanegashima in the southern part of Kyushu. In addition, there was a 104th Division in Kumamoto City, which served as the general reserve for the Battle of Kitakyushu. As for the rest of Kyushu Island. Basically, only the Red Guards, whose combat effectiveness was very problematic, were guarding.

After learning about the overall defense situation of Kyushu Island, Ishihara couldn't help but sigh: "No, there are too few troops." There are loopholes everywhere. In particular, the eastern region was almost completely empty, and the defenders in the south were too few, with only one wing in Kagoshima City and only one infantry brigade in Kushikino Port, Shibushi Port, and Miyazaki City...... Such a force could not play the role of a guard at all. If the enemy lands in the south of Kyushu. Airborne words in the east. Our heavy army group in the north simply did not have time to return reinforcements. Even if they landed head-on in Kitakyushu, it would be difficult for them to resist the overwhelming sea and air superiority with 12 divisions, right? ”

After Ishihara expressed his opinion, senior officers from the Kyushu headquarters and various unit commanders attending the meeting also expressed their agreement. The commander-in-chief of the Kyushu headquarters, Sadao Araki, said: "Ishihara-kun, the Revolutionary Military Council has agreed to send additional reinforcements to Kyushu, and the first batch of 16 divisions is on their way to Kyushu Island, and all of them will arrive in early March at the latest, when the regular Red Army on Kyushu Island will reach 800,000!" In addition, the regular Red Army under the jurisdiction of the Western Headquarters (responsible for the western part of Honshu and the island of Shikoku) will also reach 800,000. Troops can be dispatched to aid Kyushu at any time. ”

Although the total strength of the Japanese Red Army has exceeded 5 million, the personnel of the navy and logistics organs have been removed. Only 35.6 million can really be used for field warfare, of which 800,000 are stationed in the South Sea Islands, 200,000 in the Hawaiian Islands, 300,000 in the Mariana Islands, the Truk Islands, and the South Pacific Theater, 100,000 in the Ryukyu Islands, 100,000 in the Kata Islands, and the remaining 21.2 million in Japan. Now that 1.6 million have been deployed to Kyushu and the western country, there are only 560,000 regular Red Army left in the rest of the territory of the Japanese mainland, and if the Chinese come to attack the west and land in the Kinai or Hokuriku areas, the consequences are really unimaginable!

Ishihara patted his knees, slowly stood up, looked at the sand table for a long time, and finally shook his head, turning his gaze to Kuroshima Kameto, the chief staff officer of the combined fleet: "Kuroshima-kun, do you have any opinions?" ”

Hearing this question, all eyes converged on this naval immortal staff officer. After all, Japan is an island country, and the defense of the island country is extremely dependent on the navy, as long as the sea control is in hand, the sea is the best line of defense, even if there are not a few land forces, there is no need to worry about the invasion of the enemy. On the other hand, once the sea power is lost, the enemy will attack any point in the Japanese archipelago from the sea at any time, and the Japanese army will be forced to deploy along the long coastline of the Japanese archipelago, and even millions of people will not be able to make the defense of the Japanese archipelago foolproof. Therefore, the key to fighting the battle of Kitakyushu is still on the Japanese Red Navy Combined Fleet, in fact, the Kuroshima Kameren also came from this.

"Now the United Fleet has two reserve options for the Kyushu headquarters to choose from." Kuroshima Kameto left his seat and took a stack of bungami from a naval staff officer who had followed him to Kyushu, and distributed it to the senior officers present.

"Considering that the important ports along the coast of the Japanese archipelago are under the threat of overpower, the combined fleet of the Navy has lost its sustained combat capability, so the two proposals proposed by the combined fleet are based on a quick solution." "The first case is codenamed 'Red Flag No. 2 Decisive Battle', and the main force of the Combined Fleet will attack the coast of Kyushu and launch a decisive battle with the Riot Navy in order to defeat the Storm Landing Fleet and regain the sea power in the East Ocean!" To this end, the combined fleet will concentrate all its main forces, including 11 aircraft carriers and 5 new capital ships, to return to the mainland.

In the second plan, the main force of the Combined Fleet would mainly lure the enemy through guerrilla warfare, and would not pursue a decisive battle at sea, but would only seek to divert the main force of the enemy's navy from the waters near Kyushu Island, so as to cooperate with the army's implementation of the plan for a decisive battle in Kitakyushu. The initial plan of the 'Operation Youhao' was to use the 2nd Fleet to attack the territory of the Storm in the South Seas region, and the main force of the Combined Fleet to attack the southeast coast of the Storm Territory, so as to force the main force of the Storm Navy's navy to leave the waters near Kyushu Island. ”

Sadao Araki turned his head to look at Ishihara: "Ishihara-kun, do you think the Kyushu headquarters should use the 'Red Flag No. 2 Decisive Battle' or the 'Wandering Battle'?" ”

Not to mention, Araki, this old guy is not as arrogant as in history in this time and space, probably he has seen the world on the Soviet-German battlefield, but the Great Japanese Red Army is the weakling on the table of world war gambling at all, right?

Ishihara pondered for a moment, and finally shook his head and said, "Comrade Commander, Kuroshima-kun, whether it is the 'Red Flag No. 2 Decisive Battle' or the 'Youhao Operation', I'm afraid it won't bring much chance of victory to the decisive battle in Kitakyushu. Because the former is completely suicidal! At least 3,000 aircraft have been concentrated in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula! And how many carrier-based aircraft can the combined fleet come up with now? You won't lose nothing in the Battle of the Coral Sea, right? ”

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