Chapter 2569 The Iron Dice Is Spinning 1

"This is a big gamble, a big gamble that can determine the fate of two countries and the ownership of the Western Pacific." Shigetaro Yoshimatsu said, looking at the forest of masts in the distance. Today, the Japanese fleet is unprecedentedly powerful, but in the eyes of Shigetaro Yoshimatsu, Japan has never been as dangerous as it is today! Whether it was the Philippine Naval War or the later Russo-Japanese Naval War, Japan never worried about national subjugation! Because, at that time, Britain, the most powerful country in the world, was Japan's biggest backing, but today! Everything is different. Japan must rely on its own strength to survive in the cracks! Gone are the days of having thighs to hug.

"Now, I truly appreciate the shrewdness and strength of Senior Hirobumi Ito. At that time, Japan was very weak, but there was no risk of national subjugation. But now, Japan is unprecedentedly powerful, but it is like a ship in the wind and waves." Shigetaro Yoshimatsu told Said the staff officer Nagashimamura Hayao next to him.

"Mr. Commander, now is not the time to express emotion. The fleet is about to set off, and we need to finalize fleet discipline." Shimamura Hayao said.

"This is my problem." After adjusting his emotions, Shigetaro Yoshimatsu issued the first order of this battle!

"Order, all fleet communication equipment immediately enters a silent state! All cryptographic machines and communication equipment activate the new first frequency band, all battleships use the fleet's internal communication method, and no long-distance communication signals can be sent out!"

"Order, our telegraph transfer station in Rabaul conducts testing again. I want the Rabaul transfer station to be responsible for the transmission of all reconnaissance information before the battle begins. In addition, send a message to the submarine force at the transfer station, asking them to step up their attack on the U.S. fleet. Movement reconnaissance!" Shigetaro Yoshimatsu issued a series of orders, and half an hour later, with heavy rain outside the window and turbulent waves, the Japanese fleet left the anchorage and embarked on the journey. The route chosen by the Japanese was exactly what Su Xiong thought. They did not enter the battlefield from the eastern waters of New Ireland Island where the Americans were at the same level. Instead, they chose to go around in a circle and enter the battlefield from the west of New Ireland Island!

"The storm is coming." At this time, the German and American fleets were also on full alert. All non-essential ships had evacuated the war zone, and the remaining fleets were concentrated in several safe havens near the core area. The huge U.S. Navy still shrunk its defense system, changing from an open palm to a clenched fist.

"Where is the current position of the Japanese fleet?" Benson asked routinely during breakfast.

"It's not clear. The entire sea area around New Ireland Island is covered by heavy rain. Our aircraft cannot conduct reconnaissance at all, and submarine reconnaissance is also very difficult. The Japanese fleet has frequently changed positions recently, and in such poor visibility, our submarines It is very difficult to find the Japanese fleet, they have shown signs of moving to the open sea before," said the staff officer on the side.

"How is the deployment of our cordon to the east?" Benson frowned, but looking at the heavy rain on the sea outside, he did not continue to dwell on the problem of missing the target.

"There won't be any problems,

We have blocked the narrow strait between New Ireland Island and New Britain Island, and in the east, we have deployed several cordons, with submarines and destroyers working together. It is almost impossible for Japan's large-scale fleet to penetrate covertly from the east. "The staff officer said.

"What about the West?" Benson asked.

"It's also impossible, Commander." The staff officer said firmly.

"So, our plan is foolproof?" Benson asked. "As everyone knows, the plan that seems to have no problems is the most likely to cause problems. The storm will not last forever, it will last for a week at most. Therefore, I require the main fleet to maintain the second level alert state and the reconnaissance patrol team to maintain the first level alert state. "

"What is General Su Xiong busy with?" Benson asked.

"The armored cruiser detachments of General Su Xiong and old General Fletcher are together. They are in the core area and can take care of all the anchorages in the area by relying on their high speed advantage. The fleets of the two countries work together and are ready to be ready." said the staff officer.

"What's Old General Fletcher's attitude?" Benson asked.

"He and General Su Xiong were very happy to get along with each other," the staff officer said.

"Very good, then I'm relieved." Benson nodded. He is quite satisfied with the current situation. There were some conflicts between Benson and Su Xiong, but they were eventually reconciled. After making some necessary compromises, the two sides formulated the current method. In order to take into account the vast core area, Su Xiong's fleet and Old Frye Tohru's armored cruiser detachment was left in the inner ring. They can attack quickly to support any place where they encounter Japanese battleships. This is the superiority of high-speed battleships. Even taking into account the poor ship condition, the German fleet is still better than The average speed of the U.S. fleet is about 6 knots higher!

It’s not that the German fleet has not lost speed, but that the speed of some battleships in the American fleet is so bad. For example, the American battleships before the New York still used triple-expansion steam engines! Americans are the only ones in the world who use triple-expansion steam engines to be super fearless!

So this is why Benson finally agreed to Su Xiong's suggestion, because the speed difference between the two fleets is really too big, and there is no way to form a formation. The result of the forced formation is that the attack rhythm cannot keep up at all, which is a bit Historically, after Scheer integrated the pre-dreadnoughts into the main fleet, there were some problems with slowing down the fleet.

The main fleet commanded by Benson is deployed on the periphery. As Betty expected, Benson wants to have a decisive battle with the Japanese fleet. Because his fleet is slow, he must bring his main fleet closer to the opponent. ! As for the core area, he is relatively reassured, because a fleet of 4 Bavaria-class battleships and 5 armored cruisers is enough to deal with half of the Japanese Combined Fleet. In his opinion, if the Japanese Combined Fleet wants to take the entire Japanese Combined Fleet from his own eyes, Sneaking in underneath, it's almost impossible! So Benson is very relieved!

In fact, Benson hoped that the Japanese could penetrate his defense line and then be bitten by Su Xiong. Then, he would lead the fleet to fight a decisive battle similar to the decisive battle in the Norwegian Sea. After all, if the Japanese rush to the inner circle, then their fleet will have an advantage on the route and can consider intercepting the opponent's retreat!

Benson is quite satisfied with the current situation, but Pershing is different, because, just this morning, intelligence was sent from the front line that the Japanese were conducting a large-scale assembly in the rain! It looked like it was preparing to launch a large-scale attack, which naturally made the US military, which was already exhausted and had some supply difficulties, feel very uncomfortable. Fighting in such bad weather greatly weakened the US military's firepower advantage!

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