21st Century Goguryeo

January 22nd, 2024, 09:00

The 1st Marine Division headquarters base, Midori Ward, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture, Japan

The 1st Marine Division command line had prepared and established a suppressing operation related to Japan's 'Declaration of Independence.' However, they were now busy preparing, according to the new orders of the Marine command line, to throw away all of the prior operation plans and to establish and prepare to go into action with a new operation plan.

Staying true to the changed operation plan, the 1st Marine Division didn't show any movements different from before. They were going about their normal procedures as always, but some marines, namely the explosive specialty marines, were moving secretly, following the orders they had been given.

They had also gotten information from the National Intelligence Service that American special forces had entered the country a few days ago through Narita International Airport and that they were deployed throughout Tokyo. Most of the focus was on tracking these special forces agents down.

Even just moments ago, they had gotten a call from the National Intelligence Service that hundreds of U.S. Navy Seals had entered the country through civil aircraft and Narita International Airport.

"How many teams?"

"According to the information we currently have, that would be five men per team, so a total of 250 men." Colonel Kim Jin-wook answered the 1st Marine Division commander, Major General Min Tae-hwan's question quickly.

"So those American b*stards must be prepared this time,"

"It seems so. If we count the Navy Seals, the current number of American special forces men deployed in Tokyo is about 1,000." Colonel Kim Jin-wook elaborated, looking at his tablet carefully.

"Mm, it's not a problem for the Security Service to come at us with tens of thousands, but it's a bit worrying that there are more than 1,000 American special forces soldiers." Major General Min Tae-hwan stroked his chin, making a worried face. It was a sticky situation.

"I don't think there will be much of a problem if we get information about their locations beforehand. Also, this isn't a suppression operation, so wouldn't it be okay?"

It was true. If they had to, as Colonel Kim Jin-wook had said, move according to the suppression operation plan they previously had, they would have had to bring over the 2nd Marine Division, currently in charge of defending the east, to Tokyo.

But out of the entire 2nd Marine Division, only two regiments were deployed to Shikoku in place of the 5th Marine Division that had been dispatched to Ukraine.

The problem here was the American special forces' main task. Their goal was to, per the 'Declaration of Independence,' cooperate with the Security Service forces and take down the 1st Marine Division deployed in Tokyo.

In other words, even if the 1st Marine Division didn't show any movements different from the norm, it was confirmed that the Security Service of Japan and the special forces of the U.S. would attack the 1st Marine Division.

At that point, the situation had changed to one that required excellent self-defense, as well as fighting with the American special forces, to have the operation plan succeed.

"Commander! If there isn't enough time, what do you think about requesting airborne forces from the Joint Chiefs of Staff?" suggested Colonel Kim Jin-wook as he read the Division Commander's expression.

"Airborne forces? Even so, how can we, as the invincible marines, ask for help from the army?" Major General Min Tae-hwan had been an officer for more than 30 years and had great pride in being a marine.

"Haha, I must have said too much because of your expression."

"Was my face really like that?"

"Yes, sir. It was a face full of worry."

"Hahaha, I must have looked scared in front of you, when it's really nothing at all," Major General Min Tae-hwan joked, smiling brightly. He then gave additional orders, as if he had made up his mind about something, while looking at the screen on the wall that was showing the development status of the U.S. special forces and the Security Service of Japan.

"The entire Spartan 3K should take care of the American special forces!"

Spartan 3K, a rapid response regiment, was originally given tasks with the 2nd Marine Division to spy on Japan's Security Service that had been gathering in Tokyo, or to fight, depending on the situation.

"Then, wouldn't we have a shortage of the 7th regiment troops that were going to take care of Japan's Security Service?"

The newly modified operation plan of the 1st Marine Division was as follows: it was to, except for the 3rd Marine Regiment that had moved along Hokkaido, have the 2nd Marine Regiment, along with the explosives specialty marines, go into given tasks in Tokyo as well as the surrounding industrial complexes within 200 kilometers. The 7th Marine Regiment and the two mobile strike squads of the Spartan 3K would be facing off against Japan's Security Service, which had around 40,000 men.

In other words, Major General Min Tae-hwan was trying to—as the special forces got larger in number—change the plan from having only one of the Spartan 3K mobile strike squads go against the American special forces to having the entire Spartan 3K force go against the American special forces.

"Operations Officer! In this situation, it's better to have a shortage of troops to face the Japanese Security Service than to face American special forces! Isn't that so?"

"That is true, but I was wondering if it was okay to leave one mobile strike squad, at least, to help out with the Japanese Security Service."

Colonel Kim Jin-wook seemed worried about facing 40,000 of the security service with only one regiment of around 1,500 men, even if the Japanese security service was an infantry force that only possessed normal personal firearms.

"Mm, we can decide on that after we see how the American b*stards move! What do you think?"

"Yes, sir. That sounds good."

"Good! Then relay the details to subordinate units."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

January 22nd, 2024, 12:00 (U.S. time: January 21st, 2024, 23:00)

The Pentagon (the situation room of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Headquarters), Arlington, Virginia, USA

The spacious, 200-acre situation room of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was busy with many commanders and staff, but the atmosphere of the room was very relaxed.

This was because they had been tense when they had gotten information about the Republic of Korea noticing their movements and mobilizing various naval forces in the East Sea, but they had relaxed upon further confirmation with all of the reconnaissance forces that they had, when it was confirmed that there were only two multipurpose amphibious assault ships, destroyers, and frigates, totaling up to 12 ships.

It was a point of slight concern that the two multipurpose amphibious assault ships each had 16 6th-generation CWA-11P Phoenix fighter jets. However, these jets were developed more for ground attacks than other attacks.

Furthermore, the Pacific Fleet had 300 F-35C and F-35B Lightning II fighter jets. These fighter jets didn't lose in terms of number or performance compared to the opponent fighter jets.

At that point, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Austin Berry, who was also the commander of naval operations, was watching the situation personally before doing anything else. This showed how important the Pacific Fleet's landing operation, related to the 'Declaration of Independence,' was to the U.S.

Even just three years ago, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff didn't have military power. Unlike the Republic of Korea, which had a specific operating region, the U.S. considered the whole world as its operating region. Because of this, the U.S. had Unified Force Commands deployed in each region of the world, and the commander of the Unified Force Command of that region had all of the commanding power for any operation in that region. But currently, as network-based technology advances, it has become possible to relay orders and know the status of the operation from anywhere in the world in real-time. So, after the 1st Northeast Asian War had ended, President Trump had given all of the commanding power, including the commanding power of the Unified Force Commands of each region, to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

"Are you sure that the Korean naval force is only that big?" Chairman Austin Berry asked repeatedly.

"Yes, sir. When combining all of the data from the military satellites, including the Atlas reconnaissance satellites and the satellites that pass through the skies above those seas, there isn't any other naval force within a radius of 500 kilometers," answered Captain Julian Green, head of the Reconnaissance Military Command of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The Reconnaissance Military Command was a department that collected, combined, and commanded all the data of the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force, as well as the Marines and the Coast Guard, when there was an ongoing war or when the country was under a state of emergency.

Captain Julian Green answered in a confident tone. He was slightly annoyed at the repeated questions from the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, but he didn't show it. Chairman Berry's rigid expression didn't get any softer, however. It was because of the continuous suspicions that were wandering in his mind.

"Haha, Chairman! It seems your nerves are too sensitive."

The Chief of Operations, Nick Rimando, who had exactly the same name as the 3rd fleet's Operations Officer, Nick Rimando, interjected.

Chairman Berry got up from his seat, crossed his arms, and shook his head.

"It's not that I don't believe in our reconnaissance force, but recently the Korean navy has been showing up with numerous new technologies that we can't even imagine. Don't you know as well? The result of the naval warfare we had with the Korean navy three years ago."

"Three years ago? We didn't have too much information about Korea back then, but this time it's different, Chairman!"

Chief of Operations Nick Rimando, much like Captain Julian Green, replied in a confident voice. The surrounding commanders also started to agree, nodding their heads.

"I understand. Even so, please continue to be alert and perform your job to the fullest in the reconnaissance tasks and operations, Commander Green."

"Yes, sir."

As Captain Green replied, nodding slightly, Chairman Austin Berry turned his head to ask one of the Unified Force Command commanders, the Central Command commander, Captain Kyle Scott, a question.

"Commander Scott!"

"Yes, Chairman!"

"Early tomorrow morning, after the Pacific Fleet has carried out the landing operation, when can the 5th fleet get to the operating region?"

On President Trump's urgent orders, the 5th fleet sailed from the Middle East through the Straits of Malacca last week. Currently, it is in the seas previously known as the South China Sea. The distance was 3,700 kilometers—a distance that could be covered in at least 80 hours if all ships sailed at 25 knots from Namju to Jeju-do in the Republic of Korea.

With a hint from his aide, Captain Kyle Scott immediately answered, "There are exactly 73 hours left, so 1 p.m. on the 25th at local time."

"73 hours... not too bad. That'll be when the 7th fleet will carry out its operation at Dongju after the landing operation finishes," Chairman Austin Berry muttered, as if he was reflecting on the previously established operation plan.

"Yes, sir. There won't be any issues with getting there on time."

It was called the 'Declaration of Independence' operation in Japan, but the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff's official operation name for this operation was the "Revelation of Destruction" operation.

As the name of the operation suggested, making Japan, which had become simply a small nation, an autonomous country was only an excuse. The actual intention of the U.S. was to prove to every country in the world that they were the ones leading the world order.

The U.S. special forces deployed on the 23rd at 5 a.m. (local time) will work together with Japan's security service to attack the 1st Marine Division of the Republic of Korea while the Pacific Fleet carries out a landing operation on the Kujukuri Beach of Chiba at the same time.

The landing operation must be finished in one day. When all six U.S. Marine Divisions have landed within the day, the 7th fleet must sail around Japan's south coast and near the seas of Dongju, and attack the 2nd Marine Division's military facilities. At the same time, the 5th fleet that will come from the previously-called South China Sea must also sail toward the operation sea area of the northern Korea Sea and attack Jeju-do's military facilities.

This was the general gist of the 'Revelation of Destruction' operation.

This was a large-scale military operation, even including the attack on the Republic of Korea territories, that was widely different from the information related to the 'Declaration of Independence' that the Tokyo agents of the Foreign Intelligence Service had been able to acquire this past September.