On the morning of August 12th, the German Expeditionary Fleet had already departed from Ise Bay, preparing to sail southward towards Osaka Bay with the intent to destroy the vital islands of Osaka and Kobe.
After consecutively demolishing Shizuoka, Hamamatsu, and Nagoya, the officers and sailors of the German fleet had become completely numb to the destruction of Japanese cities. They no longer felt any guilt or remorse for their actions. Once mass slaughter became routine, no one cared about the consequences.
"I am surely bound for hell after my death!" murmured Admiral Spee. He realized that he was slowly becoming a demon, as countless innocent lives had perished under the bombardment of his fleet.
"However, for the benefit of the German Empire, I would gladly descend into hell!" Spee's gaze then grew resolute.
"General, it seems we need not head to Osaka Bay after all!" reported Major General Moff.
"Oh? Have the Japanese finally mustered the courage to face us in battle?" Admiral Spee raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, General. The Japanese Combined Fleet has departed from Tokyo Bay and is now heading south along the coastline. Their fleet is enormous, with 19 battleships, including two that appear to be armored cruisers. Additionally, they have 8 armored cruisers, 13 cruisers, and 39 destroyers. It must be acknowledged that the Japanese have sent their main forces this time. Their fleet is far larger than ours," Major General Moff said.
Admiral Spee nodded. "Indeed, the size of the Japanese Combined Fleet is impressive. Clearly, they are preparing to fight us to the death. This time, we must be cautious in our approach. We cannot afford to be caught off guard; failure would be disastrous."
After excluding the warships assigned to protect the transport fleet, the Expeditionary Fleet now only had nine battlecruisers, eight light cruisers, and twenty-one destroyers. In terms of numbers, they were at an absolute disadvantage. Even though the performance of the Japanese warships was generally inferior to that of the German fleet, caution was still required. The number of unpredictable factors in naval warfare was vast, and losing this battle due to negligence would have grave consequences. Admiral Spee did not know how he would explain such a failure to the Kaiser.
"Yes, General. We must leverage our strengths, systematically eliminating the Japanese Combined Fleet. If we can repeat the success of our previous engagement with the British, defeating the Japanese without losing a single warship, that would be ideal!" said Major General Moff.
"Indeed, once the battle begins, we should first neutralize their 'Kongō-class' battlecruisers. With them out of the picture, the remaining ships will pose no threat to us," Admiral Spee had already formulated his plan for victory.
"Order the fleet to immediately sail north and prepare for battle with the Japanese!" Admiral Spee commanded.
The German Expeditionary Fleet immediately changed course, heading north. Spee's intent in attacking Japanese coastal cities was to provoke the Japanese Navy into engaging them at sea. With this objective now achieved, there was no further need to continue the assault on Japanese cities; after all, he was not a mere executioner.
Of course, if the Japanese Navy refused to accept the German Empire's terms after their defeat, Spee's actions would likely continue.
In Sagami Bay, the Japanese Combined Fleet was heading south. A little over ten kilometers away, two German destroyers, the *G37* and *G38*, were closely monitoring them. These two destroyers had been patrolling near Uraga Channel, tasked with keeping an eye on the Japanese Navy. Should the Japanese fleet emerge from Tokyo Bay, they were to immediately report to the flagship so that the fleet could prepare accordingly.
"Commander, those two German destroyers are quite troublesome. With them watching us from a distance, every move we make is under their control. It would be best if we could drive them off," said Rear Admiral Yamashita Gentaro, Chief of Staff of the Combined Fleet.
Admiral Ijuin Gorō nodded. "Send two destroyers to deal with them. It will also give us a chance to test the capabilities of the German destroyers."
"Understood, Commander," replied Rear Admiral Yamashita, nodding decisively.
Soon, the Japanese Navy's *Kamikaze-class* destroyers, *Isokaze* and *Ayanami*, detached from the formation and charged towards the German destroyers.
These two destroyers were among the latest and most advanced in the Japanese fleet, displacing 450 tons, with a maximum speed of 29 knots. They were equipped with two 80mm 40-caliber single-barreled guns, four 80mm 28-caliber single-barreled guns, and two 450mm torpedo launchers.
However, compared to the German Navy's *G-class* destroyers, the Japanese *Kamikaze-class* destroyers were inferior. The *G-class* destroyers displaced 1,051 tons, with a maximum speed of 34 knots, and were armed with three 88mm single-barreled guns and six 500mm torpedo launchers.
The *G-class* destroyers had more than double the displacement of the *Kamikaze-class* destroyers, with a superior top speed of 5 knots. Although they had half the number of guns, the 88mm 45-caliber guns of the Germans were much more powerful than the 80mm guns of the Japanese. Furthermore, the German guns had a higher rate of fire, giving the *G-class* an advantage in firepower. In terms of torpedoes, the *G-class* could launch heavy torpedoes, while the *Kamikaze-class* could only launch medium torpedoes, making the difference clear.
On the *G37*, Captain Mike sneered as he watched the two Japanese destroyers charging toward them.
"The Japanese are as petty as ever. In a resource-poor nation like theirs, our destroyers are over twice the size of theirs. How foolish of them to think that by mounting so many guns on a 400-ton destroyer, they could somehow enhance its combat strength. If that were the case, they might as well just pile as many guns as possible onto their ships," Captain Mike said with disdain.
"Send a telegram to *G38*, tell them to prepare for battle. Since the Japanese are eager for death, we shall grant their wish!" Captain Mike said with a cold smile.