Chapter 570: Surrender!
As the second-in-command on the Japanese side, Takamori Morita was currently raging aboard his ship.
"That bastard Ozawa Seiji is a disgrace to the Empire! Surrendering without a fight is unforgivable—he's humiliated the Imperial military and betrayed the spirit of Bushidō! And those traitors—those thankless cowards..."
Just as Ozawa Seiji had said, Takamori Morita was a reckless brute. But in Japan's current militaristic society, men like him thrived—especially with a high-ranking uncle to protect him.
In some ways, East African and Japanese societies were similar—both highly militarized, where blunt, headstrong personalities could succeed. Of course, Japan was far more extreme—even more so than Prussia, likely due to its island geography.
"Commander, Ozawa Seiji's order just cost us a third of our forces. The gap between us and the East Africans is too great. What should we do?"
Morita was clearly frustrated. "The East African fleet is powerful, yes, but we still had a chance with cunning. We had the numbers—mostly fishing boats and merchant ships, sure—but we had enough firepower. If we'd gotten close, we could've seriously damaged their fleet. It's all Ozawa's fault for surrendering."
"Commander, the East African Navy likely wouldn't have let us get close. I think that's why Ozawa chose to withdraw."
"Enough! Don't defend him. He's always looked down on me—now he's using this to settle scores. I'm the second in command, yet he retreated without even consulting me!"
Morita was being arrogant. He and Ozawa had a superior-subordinate relationship. As the senior officer, Ozawa had full authority to make decisions. If anything went wrong, the blame would fall on him—not Morita. All Morita had to do was follow orders.
But Morita didn't see it that way. He said to his men, "I had a plan. Everyone knows our fleet is weak—so would the enemy. That would make them complacent. If we pretended to surrender, they'd likely believe it. During the surrender, we could approach their fleet.
Their ships are huge—less maneuverable. If we got close, our smaller boats could gain the upper hand.
We could weave through their formation and surround a few ships. Then, at close range, we could fire or ram them before they could react.
Sure, we'd take heavy losses. But if we destroy even one ironclad, it's worth it. Their ships are irreplaceable out here—this is the Pacific, not the Indian Ocean. Even slight damage would be hard to repair."
Morita wasn't entirely wrong. Repairs for East African warships in the Far East would be difficult. Only Japan and the Far Eastern Empire had facilities that could handle ironclads—and even they lacked real experience.
Even East Africa couldn't easily repair them. Bagamoyo Shipyard could build ironclads, but refurbishing them was another matter. Often, it was cheaper to build new ships.
East Africa had six shipyards, with Bagamoyo being the most advanced—capable of designing and constructing ironclads. But East Africa specialized in gunboats.
Gunboats were practical—suitable for coastal defense and riverine operations. They were cheap, reliable, and perfect for poorer or smaller nations—or those not aiming for a grand navy, like Japan, the U.S., Australia, Canada, and the Far Eastern Empire. Even major powers used them in large numbers as ironclad substitutes.
Of course, the Far Eastern Empire had been misled by the British. Its strategic needs were immense—second only to America globally. Gunboats were affordable but insufficient for such a large territory.
The U.S. had no nearby threats. The Far Eastern Empire, by contrast, was surrounded—European colonizers to the south, Russia to the north, Japan and the U.S. to the east. Without a navy, it was a sitting duck. The Beiyang Fleet did provide some deterrence, but Japan—fully aware of the empire's weaknesses—eventually exposed its vulnerabilities, leading to a coalition of foreign powers.
That's why navies were the most deterrent military branch of the era—unless your country had no coastline, like Austria-Hungary or Germany.
East Africa, with coastlines on two oceans, had to invest heavily in its navy—it was vital to national security.
Japan, being an island nation, had similar needs. But in a previous life, it had gone overboard with a massive army and a fanatical death cult. If the British had that mentality, they'd have crushed Germany long ago. But Britain was smarter. As an island nation, it focused on its navy. Japan's army-navy rivalry was a historical hangover—the army represented domestic political power.
Morita said, "Now that Ozawa has taken the main force, I'm left with just 23 ships—half of which are tiny fishing boats. We can't really hurt the East African Navy, and we might get wiped out."
"What do we do, Commander?"
"We can't quit now. Otherwise, Ozawa will mock me forever. We'll take the risk and try to drag the East African Navy into a fight."
His men stayed silent. They thought their commander had lost it.
"Don't look at me like that. There's no turning back. We're not aiming to cripple their fleet—just to do some damage. Maybe hit those three ironclads while their guard is down."
"And then what?"
"If we succeed, we'll try to retreat—not through the Miyako Strait, but through gaps between the Southern Ryukyu Islands. We'll evade pursuit and head north."
That gave the crew some hope. Even a 0.1% survival chance was better than certain death. And dying in battle for the Emperor wouldn't be a waste.
"Here's what we'll do... then we'll..." Morita laid out his plan.
"Yes, Commander!"
Then, on Morita's order, all his ships raised white flags.
A white flag meant surrender—recognized by both Eastern and Western military customs. The East African Navy, upon seeing the unusual move, began to speculate about their true intentions.
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