It is a pity that although the power and range of the 460-mm naval gun are quite terrifying, it is still a bit wishful thinking to hit a moving target in the air at a distance of eight or nine thousand meters.

The purpose of the Japanese was more to increase the momentum, and the three main guns on the Yamato fired only one salvo and then stopped moving.

At 11:30 a.m., Ito received information from Army reconnaissance planes that they had spotted U.S. Task Force 58 260 nautical miles east of the fleet.

Sensing the danger coming, Ito immediately ordered the fleet to increase its speed to 25 knots and change course to the south, hoping to get rid of the other side's encirclement.

But people don't plan to use battleships to fight naval battles at all, and carrier-based aircraft are the well-deserved kings of this era. No matter how fast the fleet is, it is impossible to escape the pursuit of the fighters.

At the same time, the Yamato's air search radar also detected a strong signal that a large formation of aircraft was heading towards the fleet, which could raise everyone's hearts to their throats.

When the Japanese garrison whistle blew and shouted incessantly, the sailors quickly came to their respective posts under the command of their commanders and began to operate anti-aircraft weapons and waited for them. Various ammunition was brought to the deck, and anti-aircraft guns were pointed diagonally into the sky.

The rank-and-file soldiers only knew that the enemy was coming, and they did not know what the situation was, but it could be seen from the uneasy faces of the officers... The next crisis will certainly not be simple.

Kamio stood next to a triple 96 anti-aircraft gun, and together with several companions including Uchida, he was responsible for the loading of the gun position.

Guncao was still shouting all sorts of slogans, but Kamio didn't listen to them at all, staring at the clouds in the sky, knowing that although it would be calm, it wouldn't be long before this place would turn into a brutal battlefield of sea and air.

"There! One o'clock!"

Everyone looked in the direction of his finger, and sure enough, two Hellcat fighters jumped out of the clouds and appeared in everyone's field of vision.

"Turn right to 30 and report altitude!"

"Direction 12, height 3000, distance... Out of range..."

Listening to the report of his subordinates, Jun Cao's eyes were round and he looked extremely nervous, and he didn't know how many enemy fighters were hidden in that gray sky, but it was a pity that the other party was completely out of range.

Soon, the two Hellcats disappeared into the thick clouds.

By this time, small groups of American planes had begun to circle over the heads of the Japanese fleet, waiting for more fighters to join the attack.

Seeing that a big battle was inevitable, Ito ordered the fleet to make a 180° turn, moving in a zigzag to try to make it harder to target.

But all this is doomed to be in vain, and at about 12 o'clock, the US military has already assembled more than 180 fighters of various types over this sea area, and more than 100 fighters are on the way, and it will not be long before they can join the battlefield

The commander of the air attack then ordered a change of course, accelerated around the front of the Japanese fleet, and then turned around and swooped straight at the target.

Half an hour later, the first attack formations made visual contact with the Japanese fleet, the dive bombers began to increase altitude, and the attack was launched!

The first to fire were 76-mm high-angle guns on the light cruisers on the periphery of the fleet, as well as 25-mm anti-aircraft guns on the destroyers.

Dozens of black explosion clouds burst out of the sky, but this density was obviously not enough for the huge number of fighter formations.

The first American attack planes deftly evaded the incoming shells and passed through the outer lines of the Japanese fleet with almost no losses.

At this time, the anti-aircraft batteries on the Yamato began to exert force, and twelve twin 127-caliber anti-aircraft guns spat out tongues of fire, and countless anti-aircraft machine guns also joined the blockade fire network.

More than a dozen dazzling tongues of fire swung in the air like the tentacles of a monster outstretching their teeth, preventing everything from approaching it.

The explosion and fire reverberated around, and the pressure of the American pilot suddenly surged, and the impact could still be felt while sitting in the cockpit, as if it would be interrupted by a halt in the next second.

But this challenge was not enough to make them back down, and while dodging artillery and bullets, some fighters that did not carry heavy bombs began to turn to Yamato

Deck dumping bullets.

Hellcat's cannon fire was unable to deal substantial damage to the Yamato's hull, and they targeted the soldiers and gun emplacements on the deck in order to attract the attention of the ship's anti-aircraft guns so that they could create a bombing opportunity for their companions.

At this moment, three dive bombers that climbed high in the air sprang out of the clouds and rushed towards the Yamato at great speed.

The Japanese troops below also noticed that something was wrong and hurriedly mobilized firepower to intercept and shoot, but it was still too late.

The U.S. pilots fine-tuned their fuselages to dodge the anti-aircraft guns, and finally approached the target after passing through layers of firepower.

Under the belly... The fixed safety of the heavyweight high-explosive bomb has been opened, and at an altitude of less than 300 meters, the bomb is like a meteorite falling from the sky, carrying the extra acceleration given by the aircraft to the hull of the Yamato!

Rumble!

Rumble!

An aerial bomb hit the starboard side of the open deck, and the flames and smoke from the explosion rose into the sky, and three 25-mm anti-aircraft guns were instantly wiped out, and two 127 high-angle guns not far away were also damaged to varying degrees.

Another bomb exploded near the conning tower, directly destroying an air search radar, as well as a secondary gun commander and several 25-mm anti-aircraft gun mounts, killing and wounding countless people.

The last bomb missed its target due to its angle, crossed the deck and plunged into the sea, setting off a column of water with a loud bang.

The three US dive bombers were not spared, and one of them was hit in the wing by an anti-aircraft gun, and the pilot crashed diagonally into the sea with the fighter plane without even having a chance to parachute.

The other two fighters were not much better, the No. 2 fuselage was full of holes, and the nose of the fuselage had just been raised, but it was hit again by an anti-aircraft shell that followed and exploded in the air.

The last one was a little lucky, and quickly pulled up and escaped from the range of the fire network, but the body was seriously damaged and could only drag the black smoke away from the battlefield.

Using nimble and lightweight fighter jets to dive bombing with aerial bombs, this tactic is simple, straightforward, effective, and hugely beneficial. But this job is also extremely risky, like walking through a ghost door, and no one dares to guarantee that they can get out of it.

The huge shock caused by the explosion made the Japanese officers in the combat command room of the tower tremble, and Ito almost fell.

On the other side... More torpedo planes from the carriers Benrington and the USS Hornet attacked the port side of the Yamato, and the torpedoes nearly hit several times, but the Yamato was lucky enough to dodge them.

And this... It's just the start of the attack......