Age of Rebirth

After going through untold hardships and trekking hard in the tropical primeval rainforest until more than three o'clock in the afternoon, after paying the lives of more than a dozen soldiers, Major General Kuroda and his team finally found which plane had crashed and was burned beyond recognition. The wreckage of a large transport plane.

"Lieutenant Commander Watanabe, please stay alert 200 meters away with your subordinates! Without my permission, you are not allowed to approach the crash site!" Major General Kuroda was unceremonious and wanted to drive away the army personnel. "Guards at the crash site, hand over to the marines I brought!"

Lieutenant Assistant Watanabe was so angry that he almost vomited blood. All his soldiers cleared the way in front of him. Among the dozen or so people who died, one of them was his subordinate. Why, I don’t need me now, so I just followed him. Like a dog, knock me aside?

Isn't this bullying?But look at the gold star on the collar badge of Major General Kuroda. Lieutenant Commander Watanabe, who was about to lose his temper, lost his temper and yelled at his soldiers: "Be careful at 200 meters from now on. Don't go up if you have nothing to do. We don't care about the navy's business!"

Major General Kuroda, who was staring fixedly at the wreckage of the transport plane, had no intention of paying attention to this little army lieutenant, his mouth was full of harsh words, his legs trembled uncontrollably, and he approached the wreckage of the transport plane step by step, burning It was so powerful that it was almost invisible, but he saw at a glance that in the hands of a charred corpse, a saber was still largely intact.

Major General Kuroda's head suddenly "boomed!" That's right, it was Commander Yamamoto's most beloved "Tsukiyama" saber. Although it had been burned by fire, he could still tell it at a glance.Just relying on this saber, it can be concluded.Commander Yamamoto is dead, that charred corpse.It is the remains of His Excellency the Commander!

The eyes of Major General Kuroda surged out uncontrollably, and the twenty or so rank and file officers who came with him roughly guessed what happened, and took off their military caps to mourn in silence. A few minutes later, the black Major General Tian wiped away his tears, and ordered in a low voice: "Put all the dead bodies in place!"

The remains of the five generals of Yamamoto.Major General Kuroda did it himself. The "Yueshan" saber was carefully wrapped in a white cloth by him, and then he returned along the long way. On the way back, he saw the red and swollen eye circles, and his face drooped. man of the navy.Lieutenant Commander Watanabe wondered, "Why are all the guys in the navy so sad? They didn't say what they were doing here, it's so weird!"

After a few hours.Major General Kuroda's plane took off from Bougainville Airport and returned to Honiara.

Ten minutes later.Admiral Nagano Shuyama, the Minister of the Japanese Navy, who was almost up all night at the mansion, received a telegram from Lieutenant Admiral Matsuda, Chief of Staff of the United Fleet. "It is very sad, Your Excellency, it has been confirmed. Commander Yamamoto's plane crashed in the primeval rainforest of Bougainville Island in the Northern Mariana Islands, and His Excellency the Commander was unfortunately killed!"

The short telegram was like a bolt from the blue, and it hit General Nagano on the head. He staggered and almost fell down. Yamamoto 56 died, and the death was inexplicable. There were many doubts. In the surrounding airspace, no Chinese fighter jets have ever appeared, and all ground radar stations of the army have not found any traces of the Chinese fighter jets, so how can they be shot down?

The timing of Yamamoto 56's death is also full of doubts. It happened to be the time when he was about to take up the post of the Supreme Commander of the Empire's Australian battlefield. The biggest doubt is that Yamamoto returned to his homeland and saw the emperor's itinerary. It should be top secret, but how could something happen? What about the baby?

If it was because of the mechanical failure of the plane, Yamamoto's plane was forced to make an emergency landing, and an accident might happen. However, in the telegram to himself, it was stated that there were ten fighter jets escorting him. So, where are the ten escorting fighter jets now? went?

Also, the Army Defense Command of the Northern Mariana Islands said that it had received a request for help from the deputy commander of the escort fighter jets. However, when the fighter jets rushed to the air combat airspace, they found nothing, assuming it was China. The fighter jets shot down, the land-based fighter jets that took off and the ground radars did not detect it. Could it be that the fighter jets in China fell from the sky?

The death of Yamamoto 56 was full of doubts and doubts, and everything was so abnormal. General Nagano thought his head was about to burst, and he couldn't figure it out. In his heart, he was already suspicious. The army's actions have only one purpose, the position of the supreme commander of the imperial Australian battlefield, Yamamoto's death, who is the beneficiary, of course the army!

Doubt is suspicion, but General Nagano has no evidence at all. This bitter fruit can only be swallowed, and he has to go to the palace to explain this matter to His Majesty the Emperor. Just half an hour ago, the palace called to urge Well, it is said that His Majesty the Emperor is already very upset, why didn't General Yamamoto come to see him?

General Nagano could only pack up his worries and doubts, and rushed to the palace with a very heavy heart. Sitting in the car, he felt sad for a while. Originally, the people sitting in this car would be Yamamoto 56 and himself. Individual, and now, only myself is left, a generation of famous generals of the Imperial Navy is about to leave, who can take on the important task?

Admiral Nagano was almost choked up, and reported to His Majesty the bad news that the commander of the United Fleet, General Yamamoto, died in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific Ocean. Emperor Hirohito's face turned from livid to sallow, and finally pale , staring blankly ahead.

The blow was too great. At this time, the empire concentrated most of its army and naval combined fleet on the Australian battlefield, looking forward to the moment of decisive battle with the troops of the Chinese devil Tang Qiuli. The most ideal candidate for the commander once created the North American battlefield for the empire. The miraculous Yamamoto 56 suddenly fell. How could Emperor Hirohito, who had placed high hopes on Yamamoto, feel so embarrassed?

The death of one person, Yamamoto, led to the vacancy of the candidate for the commander of the Imperial Army’s Australian Field Army and the commander of the United Fleet, which had a huge impact on the Australian battlefield where the war was about to start. How did Emperor Hirohito accept this bad news?

"Shuzo Nagano, I just want to know, how did Aiki Yamamoto die?" Emperor Hirohito shot a cold stern light in his eyes, and asked word by word. Minister, Navy No.1 directly called out his name.

General Nagano muttered for a while before saying in an uncertain tone: "Your Majesty, according to the report of the Northern Mariana Defense Command of the Imperial Army, the plane of Yamamoto 56 was shot down by a Chinese fighter jet!"

"This must be the reason for Aiki Yamamoto's death?" Emperor Hirohito's knife-like gaze pierced Nagano Shuzo's heart.

"Other than that, there is no more reasonable basis!" Nagano Shuzo could only answer like this.

The death of Yamamoto 56 is confusing and full of doubts. Although Shuzo Nagano in his heart tends to believe that it was the hands and feet of the army, for the position of the commander of the Imperial Army in the Australian battlefield, any despicable plots and methods, Koichi Minai, that old guy make it out.

But there is no evidence, there is no evidence at all. If you directly report to His Majesty the Emperor that the army did it, then there will be a bloody storm in the imperial world, and the investigation will first start from the Joint Fleet Command. Maybe the people in the navy will be implicated wantonly, killing one thousand enemies and self-defeating eight hundred, the price is too high.

Emperor Hirohito was silent. He, who had been in a high position for a long time, could of course hear the hidden meaning in Nagano Osamu's tone. This matter was too involved. Even if he was himself, he couldn't pursue it to the end. Among them, the army and navy might be involved. The historical grudges between the two lines, entwined with vines and many connections, may be traced to the end, which will shake the foundation of the imperial world. Even the emperor, who monopolizes the power of the empire, sometimes cannot do what he wants.

"Forget it, the most important thing right now is the Australian battlefield!" Emperor Hirohito sighed inwardly, and said, "Aiki Nagano, your navy must investigate the cause of Aiki Yamamoto's death closely. I want to know the truth, but you must not Use this to attack your political opponents and wantonly frame them, otherwise, I will never forgive you lightly!"

Emperor Hirohito’s words are exactly what Shuzo Nagano was thinking, and he didn’t want to cause an uproar in the imperial world. A quiet secret investigation is the safest way to deal with it. Hand, then don't blame me, Nagano Xiu San, for killing and killing, and even solve some old debts at will!

"Yes, I would like to obey His Majesty's order!" Nagano Shuzo replied with a bow.

"Phew!" Emperor Hirohito breathed out heavily, as if to vent the depression in his chest, and said, "Aiqing Nagano, besides investigating the cause of Yamamoto O's death, the immediate priority is who will take over as the commander of the United Fleet?" I don't know if there is a suitable candidate in your mind?"

Nagano Shuzo did not answer Hirohito's words, but raised another question, "Your Majesty, who will take over as the commander of the United Fleet is a major and important matter, but it is not a top priority. It needs to be done immediately!"

"My subject's consideration is that the fall of Yamamoto-kun will inevitably affect the morale of the navy and even the entire combined fleet, and the current combined fleet is escorting the army troops transferred from the North American battlefield to Australia. The offensive mission of the Chinese Independent Division in the Australian battlefield should not be destabilized because of this!"

"Therefore, my subordinate's opinion is to temporarily block the news about the fall of General Yamamoto, including the army. It can be claimed to the outside world that the five generals of Yamamoto need to recuperate in the local area for a period of time because they are unwell."

"As for the position of the commander of the joint fleet, the chief of staff, Lieutenant General Matsuda Shinichi, can take over temporarily, and the mission remains unchanged. In this way, His Majesty and the headquarters will also have a buffer time, and they can choose and examine candidates for the commander of the joint fleet calmly. !"

(to be continued) (to be continued...)