ONCE AN ENEMY - CHAPTER 5Nobou and Okuda fly in the midnight darkness on the mission to drop the last pair of thermite bombs on America. Despite his unwavering devotion to the Emperor and his duty as a soldier, he is painfully aware of the moral and ethical paradox posed by the code of the Bushido. In a series of flashbacks he sees his Grandfather teaching in the dojo welding the same katana that now accompanies him on this sortie. His concern centers on the fact that they are about to bomb a civilian target with zero military importance. In Los Alamos, the testing moves from the theoretical to the actual, while at the Brookings Harbor Cafe the boys talk baseball and get the updated war report from Capt. Rambeck, who toasts. “We may argue about the futility of death and war, but we should never forget that they died not in vain, but in valor.” Flashing forward to 1962 Howard and Yoriko walk the beach at sunset in discussion about the war, politics, ethics, morality, history and the philosophy that combines them. When asked by Yoriko why it is so hard for mankind to learn the lessons of the past, Howard delivers a key passage: “That is the million dollar question Yoriko. And I am afraid I have no acceptable answer (pause) with the possible exception that in every grotesque and horrifying situation there exists the possibility that one man might walk away somehow enlightened by the experience.”The chapter closes with Nobou and Commander Tagami aboard the I-25 discussing their latest orders and the news from The South Pacific campaign. It seems that their spectacularly successful work off the West Coast of America has ended and they are to immediately sail to the Aleutians. Tagami relays the grim news of the loss of Guadalcanal and Okinawa to Nobou, citing, “we were not anticipating the Americans being able to, or even having the will, to take our supply lines and air fields in the Solomons.” Thanks for following the story, Chapter 6 will drop next Tuesday. Visit us on Facebook and leave a comment!!

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