Chapter 70 One life and seven lives

What caused the storm was what Holland Smith called "political din." Although the two Smiths are in a superior-subordinate relationship, they do not belong to the same military branch.Ralph Smith's army has always been the "big brother" in ground combat. The Marine Corps is just a younger brother who has recently risen after the outbreak of the Pacific War. The general of the army was dismissed, so how can the former big brother feel embarrassed? It is not impossible to remove Ralph Smith, but a suitable reason must be given first.Lieutenant General Richardson, Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Army, appointed an investigation committee to investigate.Of course, the investigators are all Army personnel. After they checked, the valley where the 27th Division fought has been called the "Valley of Death". Can this go up?Ralph Smith did the right thing!

In its report to Richardson, the Commission of Inquiry found that Holland Smith did not know enough about the conditions in "Death Valley" that although he had the power to fire Ralph Smith, it was "incorrect in the circumstances". , The implication is that Holland Smith was prejudiced against Army personnel. The main reason why Ralph Smith was dismissed was not that the battle was wrong, but that the Marine Corps and the Army on Saipan were fighting each other. Richardson flew to Saipan angrily. Without consulting Nimitz or obtaining the consent of Holland Smith, he inspected the 27th Infantry Division and awarded honors to the officers and soldiers on his own initiative.He also reprimanded Holland Smith: "I want you to know that you are not allowed to manipulate the Army at will. In any case, your Marine Corps only knows how to fight beachhead warfare. Do you know how to fight on land?"

Richardson's naked sectarianism not only made Holland Smith very dissatisfied, but also Spruance and Turner.Turner, who had been called "the frightening whirlwind" and was not to be trifled with, contradicted Richardson to his face. Richardson just felt better, but after being robbed by Turner for a while, he jumped up angrily.Spruance had no choice but to take the attitude of making a big deal a small one, and stepped forward to comfort him: "Turner has such a temper, no one takes him seriously." Indeed, what needs to be serious is the war itself.However, the effect of changing generals could not be reflected immediately. The 27th Bu Division was still advancing very slowly along the "Death Valley", but the 2nd Marine Division on the left wing took the lead all the way and took the lead in attacking Mount Dabocho.

Although the Japanese army was still able to survive by virtue of the rugged terrain, it was limited to this.The battle on Saipan was basically conducted unilaterally, that is, the U.S. military kept pushing forward, the only difference being that the push was faster and slower. The U.S. military controls the air and the sea, and can use low-flying strafing and bombing attack aircraft, as well as sea and land cross-fire, to weaken the Japanese army's strength from all directions.Even if the Japanese army stayed in the fortifications and did not go anywhere, its combat effectiveness was also weakening day by day. Saito, Jing Heng and others also thought about withdrawing part of their troops from the front line to the rear as a reserve force, but they could not withdraw at all. People stared at their movements without blinking, and as soon as they retreated, they would bombard them with artillery fire.

On the evening of June 25, there were only 1,200 combat-capable soldiers and 3 tanks left in the frontline of the Japanese army. Saito and Jingheng were forced to telegraph their superiors that Saipan could no longer be defended. Even though he couldn't hold it, Jing Heng still had a stubborn attitude of "fate has tortured me thousands of times, and I still treat it like first love": "Never surrender, we will defend the position until the last soldier, unless otherwise ordered, every A soldier must defend his turf." Saito, on the other hand, has not given up on reinforcements, and hopes to send a few planes to help out: "There is no hope of victory in places without air supremacy, and we still expect air reinforcements."

On the night of June 26, a group of Japanese troops isolated in the southern part of Saipan broke out in hysteria. They actually broke out from the encirclement and began to rush towards Saipan Airport, which had been controlled and used by the US military. The more frequently the mantra was recited, the stronger the ability to somersault. The Japanese army had a good organization and a complete written order and command system. They even thought of a slogan that sounded shocking: "One life fights seven lives." It's just that the American soldiers are not vegetarians, and the next morning, in the Japanese army's breakout area, more than 500 Japanese soldiers' corpses lay horizontally and vertically.

The Japanese army rushed all the way to the edge of Saipan Airport, destroying and injuring three planes, but at this time they were at the end of their battles, and the American engineers and ground crews at the airport swept them away with guns.Since then, the remnants of the Japanese army in the south have been sluggish, and they can no longer make any waves. On June 28, following the order of the 31st Army, Saito moved his headquarters to a cave north of Dabocho Mountain.Under the auspices of Jing Heng, Nagumo, Saito, Jing Heng and their staff held a meeting.At the meeting, both Nagumo and Saito sat silently, and only Jing Heng made a suggestion, saying that the last line of resistance should be established on the remaining third of the island.

Saito's mind was empty, he would do what Jing Heng said.Nagumo remained silent, and a lieutenant in the navy expressed his opinion on his behalf: "We let the army call the shots." Major Hirakushi, the former press officer, was then dispatched to call up the reserve team.Today, living soldiers can only be found in the nearby field hospital. According to the formation of the army, Hirashishi let the wounded who are still able to move back with him, but no one can stand up. No matter what line of defense, no man is empty talk.After listening to Hirakushi's report, Jing Heng couldn't say a word.