<Begin Segment 25>

SK: But I'm sorry to say it, (...) we had this lieutenant. After we met this fire (...), he just froze and he just froze over there, more or less. So I had to take command and tell (others) what to do, and we couldn't move because we were being fired from this building and this building. But here's a good story where I really respected our field artillery people, very accurate. I tell you, it's terrific. We were along this bank over here being fired upon. Well, anyway, we didn't know what was going beyond this (mound) so I called for artillery fire, and I gave them the coordinates where they should fire, and they fired one round first, smoke. You know what smoke is.

TI: Why don't you describe it for me.

SK: Okay. It's actually, it's a smoke shell. It lands and it's to say this is where...

TI: Where you're going to land.

SK: Where you're going to fire.

TI: And then you can adjust from there.

SK: Yes, adjust, left or right or far or near. So I said, "That was a little too far. You going to fire another smoke?" He says, "Oh, no need, Kubota." "Okay." So they just bombarded that area. And then at the beginning the rounds were going (in) high then (they) started coming closer and closer over our heads. At least, I could feel the -- what you call the vibration or whatever. You know, when a car passes you, you can feel that. At least, I felt that the round's coming right over our heads. So I called the artillery people, "Hey, (you're coming) too close to us. 'Nough already. Pau, pau." And they said, "No worry, Kubota, no worry." [Laughs] Reassuring us that their firing is accurate, you see. (So I said), "Okay, okay."

TI: But you could feel the shells coming right by like the wind coming right by.

SK: That's right, that's right. The wind. I tell you, but the next one is this (...) sniper, is firing from this building so I said, again on the map, "You see this dark spot building?" "Okay, we see that." "They're firing at us. I'm quite sure there are a bunch of guys in there. Could you direct some fire on that one?" They said, "Okay." "You going to throw smoke?" "No, no, no. We know where to fire," and five or six rounds, just, that building just went down. Oh, I just raised my hat and said, "Thank you." Then we were able to withdraw. This was late evening already, late afternoon, so we were able to withdraw. I guess we did, carried out our (assignment).

TI: I want to go back and ask about the lieutenant. You said that in the heat of the battle he froze. So when a situation like that happens and you retreat and go back, how do you deal with that? How do you handle that situation?

SK: I didn't say anything. I didn't say anything. When we came back he just stayed put in his own area, in his platoon command. So (it) was dark already when we went back so I saw him sitting there and doing nothing so I took it upon myself to report to company headquarters, what happened, but I said nothing about that officer. But pretty soon a new replacement came in, a new officer came in.

TI: And how did that happen? Do you think the officer just said that he couldn't do it anymore or did someone else report that he couldn't do it?

SK: I don't know. I didn't report him, maybe our boys reported him. I don't know, but about a week or so later a new officer came in and during that period I took command of the platoon.

<End Segment 25> - Copyright © 1998 Densho. All Rights Reserved.