Konpeki no Kantai::Volume1 Chapter6

Status: Incomplete

45% completed (estimated)

   

Konpeki no Kantai Volume 1 Chapter 6

Chapter Six: The Deep Blue Fleet Strikes a Blow

1

Let's go back in time a little.

The Fugaku's radar had already detected signs of the returning attack force.

Without hesitation, Admiral Maebara ordered the firing of the marker dye.

Captain Irie interrupted, "Commander, isn't this a bit dangerous? According to the reports from the Seiden-kai, five enemy destroyers had left Panama in a hurry to get here."

The Seiden-kai were reconnaissance planes modified to be seaplanes. Their mothership was the I-701, Otohime. The Otohime was a large supply submarine accompanying the fleet.

"It doesn't matter," said Maebara.

"......?"

"Signals Chief, transmit a signal underwater!" said Maebara.

"Yes, sir."

"Use tactic G-7 to intercept each destroyer individually."

"Roger!"

Since radio communication is not possible underwater, the Deep Blue Fleet uses special sonic signals to communicate with each other. Of course, since there is a great chance of it being intercepted, it's use is limited to emergencies.

It was called the Ontsuu-8. It was a new invention created by the Deep Blue Society for submarine fleet operations. It consisted of a transmitter emitting high frequency waves.

The orders were transmitted in the Deep Blue Fleet's private code.

With a smile on his face, Captain Irie said, "Your Excellency, will you be using the G-7? That would make sense."

"Shall we show them the results that come from hard training?"

Maebara laughed calmly.

Up until now, the natural enemy of a submarine was a destroyer. If one of those guys had you in its sights, there was nothing you could do about it. About the only thing you could do was act like a ninja and hide oneself at the bottom of the sea.

For a submariner, this was most frustrating. The solution for this disappointment was the new tactics and equipment of the Deep Blue Fleet.

They had the ability to fight back and not run away. It was the long awaited interceptor function for submariners.

"Torpedo chief, did you hear that just now?"

"Yes sir. It's nice to think we finally get to use the G7."

"Let's do this. Get it ready! The enemy is closing quick. And he's what we would expect. They saw our attack planes and of course inferred that the mother ship must be close by."

"Understood. But sixty-twos are a waste. I think that fifty-three centimeters will be enough for this attack, if you don't mind."

"That's probably fine. I'm leaving it to you, so do as you will."

"Understood, sir."

At once, a sleeve that could be inserted automatically into the torpedo tube was slid into place, and a fifty-three centimeter oxygen torpedo was loaded.

"Hurry up! The first one is for the G7," called out Lt. Terashima.

At once, "Done." They were perfectly skilled.

"Torpedo room to conning tower. Preparations complete."

"That was quick," Maebara answered, totally at ease. "Lt. Terajima, you may fire."

"It is an honor, sir," replied Terajima, also quite comfortable.

If this had been a training exercise, then about now they would have been concentrating on how to escape.

"Now, now, Lt. Terajima. The success or failure of the attack will have a great effect on our operations from now on. This is the first test. Do it well!" said Maebara, lighting a fire under him.

"Leave it to me." Terajima was brimming with confidence.

"Who's the one listening?" asked Maebara.

"Nakayama Issui." Issui was a sailor first class.

"Switch with Sergeant Yamane." He was a petty officer.

"Yes sir, I've switched with Yamane."

"I am requesting this because we're going to do a sonar attack."

"Yes, sir. We're ready and waiting." Maebara's confidence was infectious.

Yamane Shuusuke was an expert in hearing who came up from the Yokosuka Navy Band. Maebara, thinking that those who played music had to have outstanding ears, poached him from there and trained him. Beating drums and tooting horns was simply a waste in time of war. This was the best use of their talent.

This is something that could be said of the Navy in general, but especially in the case of the Deep Blue Fleet, which from the second class sailors on up were skilled men. When Maebara was appointed as fleet commander, he took great care in selected about one thousand personnel. For that reason, it was indeed a team of very able men.

Sonar Tech Yamane reported precisely, "Bearing 23 degrees right, range 7000." His ear was completely reliable. You could even call it a unique ability.

"All right, shift direction and launch the decoy!" Maebara commanded with dignity.

"Torpedo room, yes sir! 35 right, range 4500."

"Bearing board ready."

"Fire!"

One of the secret G7 decoy torpedoes was fired from submarine #1.

"Hold steady as you are!"

"Understood, sir!"

"Sonar Tech Yamane, the decoy has been fired! We leave the rest to you."

"Yes, sir!"

Sergeant First Class Yamane's nerves were at full attention.

The decoy G-7 torpedo released a large volume of air diagonally forward of the enemy destroyer.

"The enemy ship has changed course! It has taken the bait!" shouted Yamane.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, sir. Without a doubt!"

The enemy destroyer must have thought that the bubbles the G-7 spewed were those of a torpedo being launched.

"We still have time. Take your time and do the math!" Maehara told him.

"Yes, sir. I am taking my time," answered back Lt. Terajima.

In the meantime, Sonar Tech Yamane was passing him data by the moment.

Terajima was using a high speed electronic calculator to calculate when the enemy ship would be abeam.

"Ready!" he decided.

"Fire!"

One by one in a line, the 53cm torpedoes were launched from the bow. They dashed quickly towards the estimated location.

"Hit it!"

Lt. Terajima felt like praying. He had the convictions, but he was no god...

They were oxygen torpedoes, so they left no track at all behind them. The torpedoes advanced in a fan shape. Unaware of the trap, the enemy destroyer charged ahead and started throwing depth charges.

"Look!", Captain Ootake shouted, as he lowered the speed of his Raiyou and descended towards the sea surface.

"The Commander just pulled a G-7."

At that moment, the belly of the enemy destroyer was struck by a 53cm torpedo. The 2000 ton class destroyer didn't stand a chance.

Without a break, the enemy ships that had gone after the decoys were attacked. Ootake didn't know, but it was the Suijin that did that. Tens of columns of flame shot up from the stern of the ship. The ship's magazine had been detonated by one of the explosions. The destroyer, engulfed in flames, quickly disappeared beneath the waves. It had been sunk instantly.

Three ships were left. The enemy had finally realized that the bubbles on the sea's surface were suspicious.

"Commander to Torpedo Chief. Attack with G-7. Intimidate the enemy a little."

"Understood!"

The voice of authority returned.

This time, all twelve launch tubes were filled with G-7 torpedoes and fired.

Behind the three sets of enemy ships, towards the coast, twelve bubbles erupted.

The enemy was dismayed. Without a doubt they thought the enemy was lurking behind them.

Their sonar techs were frantically trying to detect the sound of enemy submarine screws. But the propulsion method of the Deep Blue Fleet was by pumped jets.

"This is impossible! I don't understand." They sounded desperate.

Maebara gave orders.

"Make them detonate under their keels."

"All is ready, sir!"

"Switch to periscope attack."

The attack orders were also transmitted to the three allied groups by sound.

"Raise it!"

He was captured by the view.

It was heartening to see their friends the Haruarashi in the sky above. If there were any enemy aircraft, they should pass over the Otohime. The submarine tender Otohime was a ship with electronic warfare capabilities, albeit in their early stages of development.

"Fire!"

They fired a line of twelve 53cm torpedoes.

It was a shame, but they could not waste time. They had to recover the friendly aircraft.

The target was 2000 meters in front of them. At a speed of 30 knots the distance was two minutes. When a destroy spots a submarine, it rushes forward at great speed and rams it with its sharp bow.

The enemy, however, should have taken a little longer to come about. Seeing the periscope of the Fugaku, the enemy immediately changed course and boldly charged in.

"Here they come! Dive fast!"

The command center gave orders for navigation while transferring all the water to the tanks. The Fugaku headed downwards at thirty degrees, aiming for a depth of one hundred meters.

Would the enemy take the course Maebara predicted and close in?

It was stifling.

They listened carefully.

Suddenly, the sound of a hit. They could hear it directly, without listening gear.

The sonar tech called out, "Hit confirmed!"

The proximity fuse was active, it had grazed the bottom of the warship and exploded violently.

"Different sounds of explosion were heard. And no sound of the screws."

"Okay then. Rise!"

They immediately rose to periscope depth.

"Up scope!"

The remaining two enemy groups were nowhere to be seen, and one group was still floating there, wrecked.

"Poor thing. Strike it again!"

The Fugaku launched a single 53cm torpedo. A column of water rose, and it went under in a flash.

"Surface!"

"Commander, there is people in distress in the water. You don’t mind them seeing the Deep Blue Fleet?"

"Do we have a choice? Having said that, we can’t just machine guy a bunch of guys in distress."

"Yes, sir. Command center, surface!"

"Affirmative!"

The heroic figure of the Fugaku appeared on the surface of the rolling sea.

2

The Fugaku traced a loose S-figure with her wake. Why? The sea surface was relatively calm as a result.

Two Raiyou landed on the water at the low speed of 65 knots. The were completely out of fuel. They landed just in time.

Stowing the aircraft proceeded quickly. The Raiyous were winched aboard tail-first and their wings folded. The first and the second planes together took only five minutes.

Each of the three I-500 submarines should take about eight minutes to store their three Haruarashis. They were lifted out of the water with cranes.

It was also the most frustrating time. They used their radar to keep an eye on the sea and the sky. The sun was already high and they had nothing to hide behind.

The bridge of the Fugaku was equipped with ten triple anti-aircraft machine guns in case of such a situation. The machine gunners stared skyward from their positions. The I-500 submarines had six such triple guns.

It was totally frustrating, but Maebara didn't let it show.

"Commander! Enemy planes incoming!" The notice came from radar.

The I-500 was lifting the aft Haruarashi.

Maebara ordered, "Anti-aircraft guns! Buy us some time!"

Twenty-five millimeter bullets spewed out from twenty-eight gun barrels. An intense barrage reached out ahead of the enemy formation. The enemy faltered.

The 500s also sent forth a withering fire.

"Hurry up!"

One second, then another. Every second weighed on Meabara's heart. They would wait to the last second, but if they couldn't make it on time, the plane would have to be abandoned.

The moment he came to that conclusion, the storage operation was finally finished.

"Hurry up! We're diving!"

"Cease fire!"

The machine gun nest was sucked into the ship in an instant, as if it had been submerged. There was no hatch to be closed.

The ship swiftly began to dive, and waves started washing over the deck.

"Stop wasting time."

They received some machine gun fire.

The lookout on the bridge was the last one to jump into the conning tower. He was covered in blood.

"The hatch!"

Maebara was closing the hatch as if in a dream. An torrent of seawater came in like a dragon. Hurry. We're soaking wet. Turn the handle. It's closed. Just in time!

"Somebody get the wounded men to the infirmary."

It was a complete bloodbath.

"Done flooding the main tank!"

"Shift 700 to the forward trim tanks!"

"Water transferred!"

"Down, fifteen."

The Fugaku dove, feeling like it was dropping headfirst.

"Chief Petty Officer, are you okay?"

"This is the Fugaku, of course its fine!" came the reassuring reply. Commander Shinigawa knew the abilities and functions of the Fugaku inside and out.

"It's a little rough around the edges," said Captain Irie, holding on to the railing for dear life.

"No, it's okay to just let the waves do their work," replied Maebara. "Commander Shinigawa has been involved with the ship since the planning and design stages."

Suddenly, there was booming overhead. They were taking bombs. They must have been dropping them from the sky. The ship's hull shuddered, but the enemy seemed to have never dreamed the Fugaku could dive so steeply. The bombs were set to explode quite shallow. Maebara's expression finally relaxed.

"Depth, 120."

This was pretty much the ship's design depth.

"Captain, sir, don't you think we might try diving a little deeper?" Commander Shinigawa asked from below.

"Looks like we could."

"This would be a good opportunity to test our abilities."

"Okay then, I'll allow it. However, down two. We can't go further."

"Affirmative, sir."

The Fugaku dived even deeper.

3

Before long, at the astonishing speed of 18 knots, the Deep Blue Fleet broke free from the danger zone. This was more than 33 kilometers per hour. This speed underwater was beyond what anything anybody would expect of a submarine. Because of that, the enemy was desperately searching the wrong area of the ocean and dropping depth charges.

"Is this the President? A serious situation has developed."

"What's going on?" said the President, listening to the phone call from the Secretary of the Navy.

"The Panama Canal has been completely blocked by a surprise enemy attack. We will be unable to use it for the time being."

"What!?" The look on his face was strange.

"When you say 'for the time being', how long will it take to fix it?"

No answer.

"One month, two months? This is important, Mr. Secretary of the Navy."

"It was the Gatun Lock that was destroyed in the attack. We have sent specialists to the scene, but we think it may take up to six months to put it back in service."

"What!?"

"I'm sorry, sir."

"Your apologies won't help. We must do everything in our power to restore it. We can't fight a war in the Pacific if we can't use Panama."

"Mr. President, even if the locks could be restored, it is now the dry season in Panama. It will take six months before the Gatun Lake is filled with water and can be used as a waterway. What's more, the Gatun Dam has been destroyed, so six months might not be enough."

"......But how could the Japanese have done it with an aerial attack? I can't believe it. They were eight thousand miles from Hawaii."

"I would have thought it impossible. But according to reports, it seems the enemy had a mysterious submarine aircraft carrier. We spotted four of them."

"Really? They had such advanced technology?"

"We have underestimated them, just a bit."

"............" There was a long silence.

"Mr. Secretary of the Navy, so it's them? The ones who attacked Kimmel's fleet?:

"Quite possibly."

"That possibility bothers me. Check it out! No matter what it takes, discover the true identity of this mysterious fleet."

"Yes, sir."

"The very idea of something like that lurking in the Pacific Ocean horrifies me."

<~~45% Completed~~>

Back to Chapter 5

Return to Main Page