AUTHORS NOTES: Hay everyone; yep here is another story of bravery and
sacrifice in honor of Medal of Honor. This story will be done in better
format I promise. This story is about Japanese during WW2, but if you want
more Germans just tell me in a review and I'll up date the first one with
another story. Just let me clarify the situation; all vol. 1 stories are
about Germans, and all vol. 2 stories are about Japanese. I hope you enjoy
this story. Please review.
Kenji leaned on the edge of the metal railing. That railing was all that stood between him and a watery grave somewhere in the South Pacific Ocean. Kenji was an anti-aircraft gunner on board one of the Japanese Imperil Navy's largest aircraft carriers. He thought himself lucky to have been transferred aboard the carrier "Kira." It was the most advanced ship in the Navy and now was on an important mission for the Japanese economy. On that ship down in the cargo hold was no less than ten tons of Gold. Spoils of war they were called, the gold was taken from conquered areas of China. Normally transporting the gold would be a job for cargo ships but Allied intelligence was catching up with them like an angered giant running in pursuit of the dragon that disturbed his rest. The allied air and naval forces had begun hitting the naval supply ships hard to stop transport of gold to Japan. Transportation of gold was handed over to combat ships just recently but Allied commandos had destroyed already one carrier transporting gold. This made Kenji and the rest of the crew, but they were taking extreme precautions; no ships or planes other than their own squadron would be allowed to dock with or land on the carrier and all combat sailors were to be on full alert and ready to fight to the death in defense of the ship. Kenji loved his country more than himself but somehow he couldn't bring himself to be ready to die. His grandfather was a member of the Japanese navy during the war against Russia and Germany. He was a hero to Japan and fought in many battles, and always spoke of how a true warrior is willing to give his life for his country and the emperor. Kenji however had never been in a battle before. He was afraid to go to sleep every night in fear that the enemy would send the "Black Cats" out on a night attack. The "Black Cats" were the United States night attack squadron. They flew in PBY's (float planes) and would fly off at night armed with torpedoes and bombs to attack Japanese ships that couldn't see them at night and couldn't pick them up on radar because they flew in low to the waves. Kenji had heard of several ships that were disabled or even sunk by this dreaded squadron.
It was about two o'clock in the afternoon. Kenji was relaxed. Standing by the railing having a smoke. His best friend Yamcha walked up behind him. "How are you feeling Kenji?" he asked.
"Quite well actually considering I have never been so nervous in my life," responded Kenji. "Yamcha are you sure your ready to die?" he asked.
"What?" asked Yamcha.
"Your always talking about the battles you've been through and how you were never afraid to give your life for the good of your country. But I haven't even been in combat yet and I am scared stiff," said Kenji to his friend who had been in the navy since 1940. "I know we are likely to be in combat soon but if we are I am afraid I will shame my family and friends by loosing my wits and fleeing in fear at the sight of battle," even as he said these words Yamcha did not seem surprised.
"Go easy on yourself Kenji we all know how you feel," began Yamcha. "None of us want to die, we are all afraid as you are," at these words Kenji's looked up to him in confusion. "I know we all say we aren't afraid, but that's probably the biggest and most used lie in the world. We are all afraid we only learn to control it and do what we must."
"But why what are we doing here?" asked Kenji. "We are still young our lives lay ahead of us. Why do we waste them here?"
At this Yamcha only laughed. "Kenji you have a home in Japan, and family and friends do you not?" asked Yamcha and was responded by a nod from Kenji. "That's why we fight, not for glory or for the emperor. But for Our home and our families." Yamcha patted Kenji on the back. "Don't worry once you get through your first battle you'll learn to control it." Kenji smiled and returned the pat.
An hour past and still nothing happened all the sailors could do was sit and wait. At about 3:30 in the after noon they were more than half way across the Sea of China when suddenly the deafening sound of the alarm came. The sailors all knew what that meant. Yamcha and Kenji both ran up the metal stirs to their AA guns and took their seat at the gunner's station while the loaders loaded the first rounds. Within a minute the planes were in view of the gunners. They were American dive-bombers at least twenty of them. It took only a minute for the carrier's squadron to take flight but as they did more enemy planes arrived. There were about 55 of them and 28 Zeros in the air. At least a dozen of the enemy aircraft had been taken down but only ten Japanese Zeros remained. The captain gave the order for the squadron to fight to the death. About another dozen enemy aircraft were shot down within minutes but at the cost of every last Japanese plane.
The sailors looked at each other, they all knew they would have to fight alone without air support. The officers drew their samurai swords and gave the order to load. All the gunners loaded their weapons and readied for the fight of their lives. "If we die," shouted an officer, "we die for Japan, for honor an for the emperor!" The sailors all shouted and cheered.
"In coming!" shouted one of the officers, referring to the incoming enemy aircraft. The enemy torpedo dive-bombers swooped down and slide across the skies over the waves preparing to drop their load. "FIRE!!" shouted the officer. Within an instant the skies were filled with metal, sweeping through the air like a swarm of bees, obliterating everything they touched. The bullets tore through the enemy planes like a sword through bamboo. At least a dozen enemy planes were destroyed; none of them had the chance to drop their load.
Kenji and Yamcha both manned 50cal. Machine guns; they didn't even see which planes they shot down they just fired off into the air in the general direction of the enemy planes. Another dozen planes came by for a pass. Kenji saw one that appeared to be coming directly at him and no one else seemed to be firing at it, Kenji knew it was up to him. He readied his weapon, brought his sight up to the plane and with a deep breath he pulled the trigger. He held the trigger down letting a hail of bullets tear into the plane. The plane came so close he could just see the out line of the pilot; Kenji cursed himself for not shutting his eyes, he had seen too much. He saw the bullets fired from his gun rip into the cockpit of the enemy plane, almost immediately afterwards the plane burst into flame and exploded in air. Kenji looked at the debris in the water with a mixture of shock, horror, and pride. He knew he had done what had to be done for Japan, but for an instant he was sure that him and the enemy pilot made eye contact. He knew he had killed another human being not just shot down a plane but killed another human, just like him. A wave of victorious cries and shots filled the air. "Kenji we beat them, they are gone!" shouted Yamcha. Kenji looked up into the sky, they were gone, the enemy planes were nowhere to be seen. His first battle was a victory but why did he feel like a sword had run him through.
The operation went smoothly. The ship docked at the port and the gold in the cargo hold was unloaded. The entire ship watched the laborers unload with a great sense of triumph. The had successfully delivered gold that may very well help the war effort and turn the odds back in favor of Japan, or so they hoped. Kenji had been congratulated for his first confirmed kill by everyone in his bunkroom even the gun commander complimented his triumph. Kenji took them all gratefully but still didn't feel entirely right about it. Two days later the shipped out of port and back again heading back to china and with a new squadron of fighter planes. That night Kenji looked out at the sea staring blankly at the waves. Yamcha was at his side almost immediately and asked him what had been bothering him for the past few days. Kenji explained how he saw the pilot of the plane he shot down and how despite all the glory of victory he still didn't feel right about killing a human being. At this Yamcha smirked and responded with, "Don't worry to much about it, its part of war, he would have done the exact same thing to you if the situation were reversed." Kenji felt a little better hearing that. "If you hadn't killed him he would have dropped his load and destroyed the ship and we would all be dead. Kenji looked at his best friend and smiled.
"Thank you my friend," said Kenji. Yamcha only smiled and patted his shoulder. Suddenly a mighty blow rocked the ship then another only right below them. They both heard the sound of airplane engines sweep by. They both knew what had happened, only one squadron could make such an attack, it was the Black Cats, two torpedoes had punctured the hull of the Carrier. The ship shook and tossed so much Kenji couldn't keep his balance. Yamcha tried to grab hold of his arm but it was too late. The last Yamcha ever saw of him he was plummeting towards the waves below.
"NOOO!!" Yamcha screamed but he knew there was nothing he could do only watch in horror. The alarm sounded and he knew what that met, the ship was sinking within five minutes he had made it down to where they were manning the life-boats it took the ship only ten minutes to sink below the waves only half of the life-boats had been launched and well over a third of the crew never made it off the Carrier. They all looked around, most of the boats didn't have any oars, and they were no less than a hundred miles off the coast of Japan, all they could do was drift aimlessly and hope someone came to their rescue. Yamcha spoke with the gun commander who was on the same lifeboat as him. He explained how Kenji had fallen overboard after the second torpedo hit.
"Yes, the young man had made his first kill only four days ago didn't he?" asked the gun commander. Yamcha nodded. "Remember that he died for the Emperor, and for Japan. I am sure his family will be honored by his sacrifice," continued the officer.
Yamcha looked out into the dark emptiness of the sea this emptiness was only disturbed by the frequent sweep of dorsal fins around the boats. "Yes," began Yamcha with an apparent emotional edge on his voice. "Honored," he finished.
Kenji leaned on the edge of the metal railing. That railing was all that stood between him and a watery grave somewhere in the South Pacific Ocean. Kenji was an anti-aircraft gunner on board one of the Japanese Imperil Navy's largest aircraft carriers. He thought himself lucky to have been transferred aboard the carrier "Kira." It was the most advanced ship in the Navy and now was on an important mission for the Japanese economy. On that ship down in the cargo hold was no less than ten tons of Gold. Spoils of war they were called, the gold was taken from conquered areas of China. Normally transporting the gold would be a job for cargo ships but Allied intelligence was catching up with them like an angered giant running in pursuit of the dragon that disturbed his rest. The allied air and naval forces had begun hitting the naval supply ships hard to stop transport of gold to Japan. Transportation of gold was handed over to combat ships just recently but Allied commandos had destroyed already one carrier transporting gold. This made Kenji and the rest of the crew, but they were taking extreme precautions; no ships or planes other than their own squadron would be allowed to dock with or land on the carrier and all combat sailors were to be on full alert and ready to fight to the death in defense of the ship. Kenji loved his country more than himself but somehow he couldn't bring himself to be ready to die. His grandfather was a member of the Japanese navy during the war against Russia and Germany. He was a hero to Japan and fought in many battles, and always spoke of how a true warrior is willing to give his life for his country and the emperor. Kenji however had never been in a battle before. He was afraid to go to sleep every night in fear that the enemy would send the "Black Cats" out on a night attack. The "Black Cats" were the United States night attack squadron. They flew in PBY's (float planes) and would fly off at night armed with torpedoes and bombs to attack Japanese ships that couldn't see them at night and couldn't pick them up on radar because they flew in low to the waves. Kenji had heard of several ships that were disabled or even sunk by this dreaded squadron.
It was about two o'clock in the afternoon. Kenji was relaxed. Standing by the railing having a smoke. His best friend Yamcha walked up behind him. "How are you feeling Kenji?" he asked.
"Quite well actually considering I have never been so nervous in my life," responded Kenji. "Yamcha are you sure your ready to die?" he asked.
"What?" asked Yamcha.
"Your always talking about the battles you've been through and how you were never afraid to give your life for the good of your country. But I haven't even been in combat yet and I am scared stiff," said Kenji to his friend who had been in the navy since 1940. "I know we are likely to be in combat soon but if we are I am afraid I will shame my family and friends by loosing my wits and fleeing in fear at the sight of battle," even as he said these words Yamcha did not seem surprised.
"Go easy on yourself Kenji we all know how you feel," began Yamcha. "None of us want to die, we are all afraid as you are," at these words Kenji's looked up to him in confusion. "I know we all say we aren't afraid, but that's probably the biggest and most used lie in the world. We are all afraid we only learn to control it and do what we must."
"But why what are we doing here?" asked Kenji. "We are still young our lives lay ahead of us. Why do we waste them here?"
At this Yamcha only laughed. "Kenji you have a home in Japan, and family and friends do you not?" asked Yamcha and was responded by a nod from Kenji. "That's why we fight, not for glory or for the emperor. But for Our home and our families." Yamcha patted Kenji on the back. "Don't worry once you get through your first battle you'll learn to control it." Kenji smiled and returned the pat.
An hour past and still nothing happened all the sailors could do was sit and wait. At about 3:30 in the after noon they were more than half way across the Sea of China when suddenly the deafening sound of the alarm came. The sailors all knew what that meant. Yamcha and Kenji both ran up the metal stirs to their AA guns and took their seat at the gunner's station while the loaders loaded the first rounds. Within a minute the planes were in view of the gunners. They were American dive-bombers at least twenty of them. It took only a minute for the carrier's squadron to take flight but as they did more enemy planes arrived. There were about 55 of them and 28 Zeros in the air. At least a dozen of the enemy aircraft had been taken down but only ten Japanese Zeros remained. The captain gave the order for the squadron to fight to the death. About another dozen enemy aircraft were shot down within minutes but at the cost of every last Japanese plane.
The sailors looked at each other, they all knew they would have to fight alone without air support. The officers drew their samurai swords and gave the order to load. All the gunners loaded their weapons and readied for the fight of their lives. "If we die," shouted an officer, "we die for Japan, for honor an for the emperor!" The sailors all shouted and cheered.
"In coming!" shouted one of the officers, referring to the incoming enemy aircraft. The enemy torpedo dive-bombers swooped down and slide across the skies over the waves preparing to drop their load. "FIRE!!" shouted the officer. Within an instant the skies were filled with metal, sweeping through the air like a swarm of bees, obliterating everything they touched. The bullets tore through the enemy planes like a sword through bamboo. At least a dozen enemy planes were destroyed; none of them had the chance to drop their load.
Kenji and Yamcha both manned 50cal. Machine guns; they didn't even see which planes they shot down they just fired off into the air in the general direction of the enemy planes. Another dozen planes came by for a pass. Kenji saw one that appeared to be coming directly at him and no one else seemed to be firing at it, Kenji knew it was up to him. He readied his weapon, brought his sight up to the plane and with a deep breath he pulled the trigger. He held the trigger down letting a hail of bullets tear into the plane. The plane came so close he could just see the out line of the pilot; Kenji cursed himself for not shutting his eyes, he had seen too much. He saw the bullets fired from his gun rip into the cockpit of the enemy plane, almost immediately afterwards the plane burst into flame and exploded in air. Kenji looked at the debris in the water with a mixture of shock, horror, and pride. He knew he had done what had to be done for Japan, but for an instant he was sure that him and the enemy pilot made eye contact. He knew he had killed another human being not just shot down a plane but killed another human, just like him. A wave of victorious cries and shots filled the air. "Kenji we beat them, they are gone!" shouted Yamcha. Kenji looked up into the sky, they were gone, the enemy planes were nowhere to be seen. His first battle was a victory but why did he feel like a sword had run him through.
The operation went smoothly. The ship docked at the port and the gold in the cargo hold was unloaded. The entire ship watched the laborers unload with a great sense of triumph. The had successfully delivered gold that may very well help the war effort and turn the odds back in favor of Japan, or so they hoped. Kenji had been congratulated for his first confirmed kill by everyone in his bunkroom even the gun commander complimented his triumph. Kenji took them all gratefully but still didn't feel entirely right about it. Two days later the shipped out of port and back again heading back to china and with a new squadron of fighter planes. That night Kenji looked out at the sea staring blankly at the waves. Yamcha was at his side almost immediately and asked him what had been bothering him for the past few days. Kenji explained how he saw the pilot of the plane he shot down and how despite all the glory of victory he still didn't feel right about killing a human being. At this Yamcha smirked and responded with, "Don't worry to much about it, its part of war, he would have done the exact same thing to you if the situation were reversed." Kenji felt a little better hearing that. "If you hadn't killed him he would have dropped his load and destroyed the ship and we would all be dead. Kenji looked at his best friend and smiled.
"Thank you my friend," said Kenji. Yamcha only smiled and patted his shoulder. Suddenly a mighty blow rocked the ship then another only right below them. They both heard the sound of airplane engines sweep by. They both knew what had happened, only one squadron could make such an attack, it was the Black Cats, two torpedoes had punctured the hull of the Carrier. The ship shook and tossed so much Kenji couldn't keep his balance. Yamcha tried to grab hold of his arm but it was too late. The last Yamcha ever saw of him he was plummeting towards the waves below.
"NOOO!!" Yamcha screamed but he knew there was nothing he could do only watch in horror. The alarm sounded and he knew what that met, the ship was sinking within five minutes he had made it down to where they were manning the life-boats it took the ship only ten minutes to sink below the waves only half of the life-boats had been launched and well over a third of the crew never made it off the Carrier. They all looked around, most of the boats didn't have any oars, and they were no less than a hundred miles off the coast of Japan, all they could do was drift aimlessly and hope someone came to their rescue. Yamcha spoke with the gun commander who was on the same lifeboat as him. He explained how Kenji had fallen overboard after the second torpedo hit.
"Yes, the young man had made his first kill only four days ago didn't he?" asked the gun commander. Yamcha nodded. "Remember that he died for the Emperor, and for Japan. I am sure his family will be honored by his sacrifice," continued the officer.
Yamcha looked out into the dark emptiness of the sea this emptiness was only disturbed by the frequent sweep of dorsal fins around the boats. "Yes," began Yamcha with an apparent emotional edge on his voice. "Honored," he finished.