Chapter 297: 297
Episode 297: The End of the Apocalypse (10)
Just a few hours after the German army's full-scale attack began, a flood of various urgent reports poured into the Japanese military headquarters in the rear.
Most of the urgent news was that the front line had been breached due to an attack from an unidentified army.
"What are you talking about! "The 21st Regiment has been breached!"
"Is the 35th Division still out of contact?"
"A new tank you see for the first time? What is that... … ."
At first, I thought the U.S. military had joined forces and attacked.
However, as detailed reports soon came in, the Japanese realized that their enemy was not the Americans.
"If it's not the U.S. military, what kind of army is it?"
"Well, that's-"
"German army. "They say they are German soldiers."
"German soldiers?"
"Are you kidding me? Why are German troops in North China?"
At first, the Japanese military ignored reports that German troops who were supposed to be in Europe had suddenly appeared in North China.
It is clear that they misunderstood the U.S. military or other allied forces. The unidentified tank, which is not a Stuart or Sherman, is clearly a new tank developed by the United States.
However, when it became known that Germany had declared war on Japan, suspicion and denial soon turned into astonishment.
"Why are the Germans here?"
"No, rather, why did Germany declare war on the Empire?"
The Japanese military could not understand Japan.
Even in common sense, it made no sense.
Germany's relationship with Japan is not very good, but it's not like they're headed for war, and their relationship with the United States is even worse.
Germany, which has only been strengthening its ties with the United States for a few months, is helping the United States declare war on the Empire?
There are many complex reasons behind Germany's declaration of war against Japan that are difficult to summarize in one line, but Japan had no way of knowing about them.
"This, this is betrayal! "It's a betrayal!"
"After all, the Germans were in the same company as the Yankees! "The white people were on the white people's side!"
"You guys deserve heavenly punishment! "Dare, dare!!"
The Cabinet and the Supreme Headquarters were outraged by Germany's 'betrayal'.
The emperor put down all his pride and - to the extent that he thought of himself - waggled his tail so hard, but took the side of the devil Yeong-mi!
Germany even began fighting even before the declaration of war arrived.
They also attacked Pearl Harbor and before that invaded China for ridiculous reasons, but if you care about such things in the first place, it is not the Empire of Japan.
The rulers of the empire felt strong anger at Germany, which ignored their favors and pleas and instead responded with a straight cut.
And what came after the anger was extreme despair.
When the hope that Germany would help the Empire in keeping the United States in check after the war, or at least mediate to conclude a peace treaty, was cruelly dashed, the arrogant Empire only then faced the reality that had befallen them.
Now, there is no country anywhere in the world that takes Japan's side.
The Soviet Union, which is left with only the chaff, is in no position to help the Empire because it has to pay reparations to Germany first.
Would they, who lost the war with Germany in the first place, be crazy and help the empire?
To make matters worse, Germany is a world superpower that even defeated the United States.
The leadership of the empire fell into a collective panic at the fact that they had to deal with the German army as well, in a situation where the U.S. military alone was overwhelming.
***
"Tenno Heika Banzai!"
"For His Majesty the Emperor! charge!!"
"Banzai!!"
Whether the opponent is the U.S. Army, the National Revolutionary Army, or the Australian Army,
Even if the German army
The Japanese military's mission itself remained unchanged.
If you don't want to see the empire destroyed by cruel white people, the women raped, and the children turned into castrated slaves, fight to the death.
The moment the war is lost, the subjects of the empire will forever be reduced to slaves of the white people!
It was not something that would have come out of a country that had good exchanges with Britain and the United States until just three years ago, but the already brainwashed soldiers had no doubt that they believed this nonsense.
Therefore, they rushed towards the tanks carrying hook bombs, explosive charges, and other defective items that could not be considered weapons.
"Enemy infantry ahead!"
"Those crazy people. "Do you know what happened to your head?"
Although he had often seen infantrymen running away from tanks, it was his first time seeing them charging backwards, so Wittmann was dumbfounded.
How dare you charge when running away isn't enough. What on earth is this way of thinking?
It is definitely brave to fight against a tank instead of running away.
However, there was a big difference between hiding in a trench or building and targeting a tank's weak points and blindly rushing towards a tank.
Therefore, Wittmann did not consider the Japanese soldiers brave. He was beyond reckless and it was nothing short of stupid.
The tank's axle machine gun and front machine gun spewed fire and slaughtered the Japanese soldiers.
Japanese soldiers collapsed one after another, their whole bodies turning into a beehive and bleeding gushing from the barrage of bullets fired from Hitler's chainsaw.
Even though the company commander, who was charging with the Type 94 saber drawn, was hit by an MG40 bullet and fell down, the platoon commander, who also drew the saber, led the soldiers and directed the charge.
Wittmann could not understand the Japanese soldiers who left their safe trenches and charged, or the enemies who charged without heeding even if their comrades and superiors died.
You're crazy, you're crazy. How on earth are Japanese people so crazy that they can do such crazy things with such confidence?
"Fire a grenade!"
Wittmann, sick of the Japanese army's madness, fired a grenade to escape from this madness as quickly as possible.
Unlike tanks with hard armor, the human body is made up of bones and muscles and is vulnerable to external shocks.
Needless to say, grenades emit high-temperature flames and throw fragments tens of meters apart.
"Ten no he-"
"Ah ah ah ah ah-!!!"
An officer who shouts "Long Live the Emperor" and dies with his entire body shattered while charging, and a soldier whose arm is blown off in the blink of an eye and who cries out while clutching the cut end with blood pouring out.
The five generals and military assistants keep shouting to charge even when both legs are gone.
The Japanese soldiers were not soldiers, but like dead people from the underworld who crawled out into this world.
Most of the soldiers were hit by grenades and bullets before they could reach the tanks and were scattered across the Chinese fields, but a few lucky ones were able to reach the tanks.
However, when they tried to climb on the tank, the following tanks immediately fired their coaxial machine guns, turning the enemy soldiers on the tank into a hive.
The grenadiers on the armored vehicles also fired bullets at the crowding Japanese soldiers and shot down the Japanese soldiers on top of the tanks.
The German army, tired of the Japanese army's hand-to-hand attack, formed a group of four tanks, and when the Japanese infantry approaching from the side clung to the tank, the following tanks turned their turrets and showered each other with machine guns.
The Japanese army's valuable armored power was also mobilized to block the German army.
However, there was no way that the Japanese tanks, which even the Sherman had a hard time defeating, could stop the German tanks, which were armed with incomparably thick armor and high firepower to the point where the Sherman could be dismissed as nothing.
The Imperial Army's secret weapon - Chinu and Chito fired their shells hard, but they were unable to inflict any damage to Tiger III.
As the shell ricocheted, the enraged tank commander screamed at the helpless gunner.
"Shoot orbit! "We have to stop them from moving!"
At the commander's urging, the gunner aimed for the track, but before the gunner could load a new shell, an armor-piercing shell fired by an enemy tank turned the tank on which the Japanese tank crews were riding into a ball of fire.
The shells fired by the Japanese tanks ricocheted as they hit, but the shells fired by the German tanks pierced the enemy's armor and exploded the ammunition.
"Defeat again!"
"This is the fourth generation!"
"It's not a tank, it's a pure tin can, right?"
To the German tank crews, who had previously aimed fire at formidable monsters such as the M4 Sherman and M26 Pershing on the Western Front and the T-34/85, IS-2, and SU-203 on the Eastern Front, the Japanese army's flimsy tanks were nothing more than rolling targets. .
The German tank crews burst into laughter as they watched the Japanese tanks burning fiercely, showing off spectacular fireworks every time a shell hit them directly.
"SS Captain Wittmann, it's done."
"What?"
"We're out of fuel."
"Fuck it, fuck it."
The only time the German armored units stopped advancing was when they had to replenish their depleted fuel.
"Everything else is good, but the problem is that it consumes a lot of fuel."
"I know yeah. "There are no other hippopotamuses that eat oil."
Although it was a surprising improvement compared to actual history, the amount of fuel consumed by heavy tanks was a level that could not be overlooked.
Therefore, fuel-laden supply units always followed behind the heavy tank battalion and periodically supplied fuel and ammunition.
Even as the cavalry stopped for supplies, the battle was in full swing in the sky.
"Damn, how can you be so fast! "You can't even see it!"
The pilots of the Type 97 fighters and Type 1 Hayabusa fighters operated by the Japanese Army Air Corps were unable to catch up with the high-speed German Air Force jets.
Although they were veterans who had fought against National Revolutionary Army pilots for many years, there was a vast difference in skills between National Revolutionary Army pilots and German Air Force pilots.
Among the fighters the Japanese military possessed, only the Type 4 fighter Hayate, which had the best performance, could compete with the jets, but it was too much to turn the tide of the war.
"Chu, it's falling!"
"Nakayama!"
"What kind of monsters are these… … !"
In actual history, Schwalbe was sent to Japan and helped create Japan's first jet fighter, the Kikkawa Karyu, but here it became an object of fear for the Japanese military.
The Japanese fighter planes, which sacrificed defense for mobility, suffered fatal injuries just by being grazed by 30mm machine cannon rounds.
While the bloody battle continued in the sky, the tanks that had completed their supply advanced again. Toward the victory that awaits them.
***
The empire lost the war.
Kantaro Suzuki, Prime Minister of the Empire of Japan, was able to confirm this. Japan was completely defeated in the war.
With the fall of Saipan and the collapse of absolute national defense, Suzuki predicted that Japan would be defeated.
However, even when Japan sensed defeat, it could not easily give up the war.
Although we lost the war, we clung to the vain hope that there was still a chance to minimize the damage.
Even if we cannot, we must protect Manchuria, Joseon, and Taiwan. The only way to do this is to fight as much as possible and bleed the enemy.
Following the miraculous calculation that even if the war was lost, the colony must be preserved, Japan generously sent its young men to the battlefield.
For the honor and glory of His Majesty the Emperor and the Empire! And for their eternal power!
Japan predicted that if it held out as long as it could, the United States, tired of its efforts, would sit down at the negotiating table. Not knowing that the United States, distracted by the attack on Pearl Harbor, would not negotiate.
As U.S. forces invaded Okinawa, Japan became impatient and clung to Germany. Please help Germany mediate so that we can conclude a peace agreement with the United States.
In return, I will hand over my interests in Manchuria and give you free use of ports in Joseon, Taiwan, and the Inland.
Germany responded to Japan's pleas with a declaration of war.
As the only remaining room for negotiation was completely lost, Suzuki, who had been maintaining an ambiguous position for fear of being assassinated by anti-war fighters even though he thought he should surrender in his heart, completely turned to surrender.
"The war is lost. "To reduce damage to the Empire, you must surrender now."
More cities in Japan must surrender immediately to avoid becoming like Tokyo. That was Suzuki's argument.
"You have to surrender! "What nonsense!"
"We must fight until the end! "There are still not 100 million people left in the Empire!"
Even when calls for surrender gained strength, there were still those who called for resistance. Mainly small faction of the army.
"Are you still out of your mind? This war is lost. "You lost!"
"Even Germany declared war on the Empire, so how can we hold out?"
"Do you want all 100 million people to die!"
Now that even Germany, which has defeated the United States, is rushing to destroy Japan, there is not a single chance of victory left for Japan.
The North China defense line had been breached, and now the German army and the National Revolutionary Army had pushed into Manchuria.
The Kwantung Army stationed in Manchuria was large in size, but in reality it was nothing more than a ragtag group of old and weak soldiers and child soldiers.
Veterans of the battlefields of China and Southeast Asia had long since melted away in New Guinea, Burma, the Philippines, and the atolls of the South Pacific.
Only a few who opposed the war against the United States knew from the beginning that Japan had no chance of winning, but now many people have realized that there is no chance of victory.
The problem is those who still mistakenly think they have a chance of winning.
War mongers who sincerely believe that if they endure massive blood loss and fight to the end, the 'mentally weak' Allied Powers will offer peace.
They knew what fate would await them if they conceded defeat and surrendered.
Will the United States really spare those who have started a war and advocated resistance?
"The Empire is an immortal nation. Surrendering before the decisive battle on the mainland has even begun is an insult to the emperor's son, who died on the battlefield!"
"no no… … ."
"There are 100 million people willing to fight to the death, but you surrender! Even if half of the 100 million population dies, the empire will still have 50 million loyal subjects. With these people, the empire will definitely be able to rise again!"
"You're crazy, you're crazy!"
"You crazy people! If you want to go to war, do it among yourselves! "Volunteer for special forces right now!"
Even though the downfall was just around the corner, the person who silenced the anti-war faction, who called for the imprisonment of 100 million people and insisted on a desperate fight, was the emperor whom they worshiped as a living god.
"Germany also declared war on the Empire. "It seems to me that there is no hope for war anymore."
"Unfortunately, that is so."
"To prevent the senseless deaths of our subjects and save the empire from the abyss of destruction... … "I think we need to end the war."
"I will follow Your Majesty's will."
Suzuki bowed his head at Hirohito's words.
He said it was a decision for the people and the country, but in the end, Hirohito is also a human being.
He believed that the longer the war went on, the less likely the Allies and the United States would forgive him.
The only way to survive is to surrender as soon as possible and ask for their mercy.
"Your Majesty spoke. "The time has come to stop the war for the sake of the empire and its subjects."
Even the small factions who had been calling for a helpless resistance to the commandment of the one and only living God had no choice but to keep quiet.
Suzuki continued speaking, ignoring the blank stares of the small group who had become mute.
"They decided to convey their intention to surrender to the British and American forces. A reply will come today or tomorrow. "Please do not say any more as this is a matter that His Majesty has personally ordered."
"… … ."
The Suzuki cabinet conveyed to the Allied Powers that they would surrender immediately if they maintained the Emperor system.
"Kill all traitors!"
"Traitors who want to sell the empire to the devil!"
However, there are still idiots who cannot accept reality.
Some small factions opposed to surrender staged a coup.
Just to continue the war.
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