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Higa Takejiro
published Oct 12, 2018
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An Oral History
Takejiro Higa's interview courtesy of the Center for Oral History.
Photographs courtesy of Takejiro Higa. The Hawaii Nisei Project © 2006 TH: Hmm? WN: You sort of grew up hearing, “Tenno heika banzai.” You know, like at . . . TH: Yeah. I mean, in school, yeah, tenno heika banzai is a happy occasion, eh. This one is not a happy occasion. So the feeling is different. This one, fear attached to that banzai charge, yeah. Ordinary banzai charge is a happy occasion banzai charge, so — I mean, banzai, — so no problem. WN: ’Cause I was wondering, you know, like the haole troops, the soldiers, they had no knowledge of that. The meaning, the words, had no meaning to them. As opposed to you. TH: Yeah. So to the haoles, so far, in South Pacific, every time they have a banzai charge is severe fighting, yeah. And a lot of casualties. So because of that, probably, they had a fear in their mind. Same thing with the Tokyo Rose. Beginning part, when Japan was winning the war, there was a demoralizing effect on American troops. But when the tide turned, it became like a joke. So, in fact, toward the end, I think was acting like our entertainment. We used to look forward to that hearing. And that hearing, oh, bullshit again. Because from New Guinea to the Philippines, according to Tokyo Rose, we were sunk about three times. (Chuckles) And the ship’s radio would put it on once in a while, eh, for entertainment purpose, really. We used to laugh at each other, “Hey, we sunk again. How come we’re still alive?” (Chuckles) Of course, Tokyo doesn’t know we’re listening, eh. You know why? Navy intelligence broke Japanese military code early in the war. So the intelligence upper echelon knew exactly what Japan was doing all the time. So Midway battle, famous Midway battle, they knew exactly what was coming. So they waited until close enough to Midway. And from Midway, there’s a base, yeah. Bang, bang, bang, and bust up the Japanese navy. After that, the Japanese navy was a skeleton. And the same thing happened with Admiral [Isoroku] Yamamoto being shot down. They knew exactly what plane he was in. So the five P-38s, you know, the light fighter plane, two-fuselage plane. Five of ’em waited for them to come to Rabaul. So when the Japanese group of bombers came, approached Rabaul, they went straight to Admiral Yamamoto’s plane and shoot ’em down. They knew exactly what plane he was in, about what time they would be arriving over there. Because of the intercepted message. It was the best secret message, I mean, information of the war, I think. They knew. MK: Breaking the code and . . . TH: Yeah. The navy intelligence broke the code early in the war. They knew exactly what the Japanese were up to. MK: And then, you know, going back to the time you were in the Philippines. When you found out you folks were going to Okinawa, what were your feelings about going to Okinawa? TH: Sad. Ever since I saw that picture at corps headquarters, every night, I used to dream about my uncle, aunty, and cousins, and some classmates. Every night I couldn’t sleep. And the worst part is, I couldn’t even say anything to my brother. And I just. . . . You know, when people tell you don’t talk, it’s hard to keep, you know. Don’t say anything. It’s the hardest thing to do. I found it very difficult to keep my mouth shut. Usually, I’m a real talkative guy. And when I was under strict orders, I couldn’t say anything to even my brother about what I’m doing. So I couldn’t even give hints. I could easily give hints if I wanted to. Say I saw uncle’s picture, or uncle’s house, like that. But no way. I’m a hardheaded buggah [fellow]. So when they tell me, “Don’t say anything,” I wouldn’t say. MK: And when it came time to go, what was your specific assignment? TH: Well, I knew exactly where we were going to land and what units were involved. The only thing I didn’t know was exact day of landing. April 1. I knew where we were going to land because I looked at the map and I’m telling them, by general area, what little I know. And one part of the beachhead, I know quite well, too, see, because it’s only about a mile and a half from my village that grew up in. Down the slope. So I knew quite a bit about there. So I told them about. And the first thing I told them about — oh, if I can start from the beginning. The first picture the G2 officer asked me was, “Oh, I understand you lived in Okinawa for so many years.” “Yes, Sir.” “Where?” I pointed the general area. Then he pulled out one picture, a blown-up aerial picture of one place. At first, I didn’t recognize it. Then after a careful look, it turned out to be Naha. I’m very familiar over there. And I think I mentioned that prior to coming back to Hawai‘i, two-andhalf years, I worked for my uncle and I used to transport black sugar to dealers in Naha two, three times a week. Three, four times a week, during the sugar harvesting season. And I followed a certain path all the way to Naha Harbor. So I knew quite well in that area, detail. (Chuckles) As I mentioned last meeting, I described to the G2 officer everything in detail, as if the guy doesn’t know anything, including the size of Naha Harbor and how small it is so the boat cannot turn around so tugboat got to push ’em around. And even the small island deep inside the harbor. Afterwards, I felt like a two-cent piece, but (chuckles). Anyway, described to him everything. And then the second picture he showed me, he asked me, “Oh, where did your grandparents used to live?” So I looked at the general area and pointed finger. And he pulled out an exact picture of the area. And this area, my grandfather’s village, has no military value in surrounding area, so escaped bombing and shelling completely. Intact, left as I remember 1939. So I quickly located my grandfather’s house. And from there, I finger traced all the relative’s homes. And I see everything intact, the way I remember. So kind of relieved. Then next, he pulled out another picture. Hillside, toward the ocean. Beautiful sight, view. Lined up with the traditional Okinawa burial, haka, see, grave. So I guess I look at that, and I looked back at the G2 officer as, “What’s the big deal about this picture” kind of face. I think. I got scolding. So he said, “Goddamnit, look it carefully. We think the whole island is fortified.” They mistook this as pillboxes. Gun emplacement of pillboxes. So I explained to him everything I know about Okinawan haka. Even construction, how it looks like inside. Then he said, “Ho, thank God. We thought the damn island was fortified form north to south. Entire island.” So from that time on, he tells me, “Junior, you’re going to help us with this from this day forward.” For that, what you hear, what you see, what we talk about, not a word to anybody unless on a need-to-know basis. And that’s how I started getting my involvement with the general. So I knew exactly what units were involved, as I said. Only thing I didn’t know what the exact landing date. I knew exactly where we were going to land. And I saw the Kita and the Naka Airfield on the aerial pictures. So I knew what airfields were involved in that vicinity. Of course, these are all just before the war constructed. MK: So when your division landed in Okinawa, where did you folks land? TH: Chatan. MK: Chatan. TH: Extreme western end of the beachhead. See, four divisions landed on the main island of Okinawa. Two marine divisions took the northern sector. Two army divisions, the southern sector. And we landed primarily in the narrowest point of the island, Isthmus of Ishikawa being the center, yeah. It stretched from near Yomitan all the way to Chatan. Distance, offhand, I don’t know. It’s not too far, but several kilometers, I guess. And in that area, we had two airfields, Kita and Naka. Kita is Yomitan Airfield, and Naka was Kadena Airfield. But the Japanese army used to call Kita and Naka Hiköjö. Just before invasion, the army, general mobilization of civilians, and built the airfield with pick and shovel, he says. Because they didn’t have the equipment. So pick and shovel. In fact, after the war, when I first met my cousin, he looked at me and said, “You know, we struggled to build that airfield in a little over one month. As if we gave the present to the American army.” And because there was no fighting in the airfield because — now we’re getting back to Colonel [Hiromichi] Yahara’s book Okinawa Kessen, but, yeah. |
Before we landed, Okinawa defense force, according to
Colonel Yahara’s book, manpower: 186,000, consisting of
four divisions, two mixed brigades, and several other
attached specialized units — signal, shipping engineer,
transportation, communication, and whatnot, miscellaneous
units. All total combined, 186,000 men. And December
[19]44, Japanese central imperial headquarters, recognizing
the hard time have in Philippines, they decided to pull out
of the divisions, 9th Division. Supposed to be the cream of
the crop of the defense unit in Okinawa. Pulled out in
December [19]44 and shipped ’em out to the Philippines via
Taiwan. But I think they got stuck in Taiwan, okay. So,
because of that, Colonel Yahara, according to his book, he
had to change his defense plan. He decided to abandon the
two airfields, Naka and Kita Airfield, and no resistance at
the beachhead. That’s why we were able to land without any
opposition on April 1. But because it was April 1, and no
opposition, the assault troop commanders feared, being
April Fool’s Day, we may be running into a big trap. So
warned the assault troops, be extra careful as you move
forward. We didn’t know, of course.
And prior to landing — I think I gave you the gist of the stuff, eh — the navy fleet anchored offshore, pounded something like 44,000 shells, or something. A little over 44,000 shells. And several, thirty some-odd thousand rockets pounded in the beachhead and immediate area. And plus, so many bombs, yeah. Undefended area. And according to colonel, Japanese high command in Shuri headquarter, looking through the binoculars, say they were laughing to each other, they wasting thousands of thousands of shells in undefended area. They were laughing together, watching the invasion feat. Of course, we didn’t know that. And because of that pulling out the 9th Division, considered cream of the crop of the defense unit, Yahara has to change his defense plan, abandon the two airfields, and decide not to put up any fight at the beachhead but fight at the prepared position. And that’s what happened. We succeeded in landing without any opposition. It was a funny kind of feeling. We expected to hear gunshots at any minute, yeah. As we step off the landing craft, everybody scared, of course, you know. We did not hear one gunshot. Just landed. And according to Yahara, I mean the book, exactly eight o’clock, first assault troops start moving toward the beach. And altogether, what, in two days I think, they landed something like 540,000 people or something on the beachhead. And they established a beachhead. So without any organized resistance, assault troops cut the island in two days. Reached the east coast, and cut the island in half. Army moved to the south, marines went to the north. MK: And how about you? TH: Army went to the south. The 7th Division and 96th Division were the front line. We moved to the south. And when we hit the Kakazu Ridge — it’s north of Shuri but south of the landing area, yeah — we hit organized resistance. Because this was the first organized defense unit, defensive position. And from there, blood-and-guts battle started. And according to what I overheard one day, our division senior officers talking, said, “In two weeks of combat, our division lost one-third of combat strength.” Casualties. So they brought the 77th Division back to the island. Oh, by the way, the 77th Division landed on the Kerama Island on March 26, one week before, to establish an artillery base on that small island. It’s a small group of islands in the southwestern corner of the Okinawa island. Exact distance from the shoreline, I don’t know, but it’s close enough to set up an artillery base so they can fire support fire into the island. Mainland of Okinawa. So 77th Division quickly occupied the island. So they brought in the 77th Division to replace the 96th Division to pull out for reorganization with the replacement and retraining, yeah. So I don’t know how long it took, but anyway, afterwards, then the 96th went back to the front line. And from there on, inch by inch, yard by yard, fight. Every day. All the way until they passed the Shuri Line. Shuri was the main headquarters. MK: And while the division was advancing what were your experiences during that advance? TH: From the temporary position near the beachhead—I think we were there about three, four days, I forgot the exact date— for three or four days, we worked in somebody’s grave, haka. (Chuckles) Okay, let me explain that a little bit. For some reason, yeah, as soon as we landed and started moving upward to the hill, I saw something moving on the side of the small dugout. I jump back, I aim my carbine, and start yelling, “Whoever it is, come out, come out.” Under such excitement, I don’t know exactly what I said, in Japanese, or Okinawa-högen, or maybe some Hawaiian pidgin, I don’t know. But I was so excited. Anyway, that something moving but I didn’t see anybody come out so I was about to squeeze my trigger. Then I saw a small leg come out. A thin, small leg. And no matter how I look at it, it cannot be a GIs, yeah. So I stop my trigger finger and continue to yell. And this time, I think start yelling Okinawa-hogen, “Come out, come out.” And out came a small young girl, I would say about four or five years old. And then followed, one old lady came out. So, knowing that they’re not GIs, I kind of cooled down a little bit and composed myself and I start asking questions. So I asked, “How come you folks are hiding in this place?” The old lady said, “Well, family all ran away up in the hills. But I cannot keep up with them, so I decided with my granddaughter to hide inside here.” So I told them, “Don’t you ever go back in there. Now stay here. Somebody else is going to come and take you to civilian compound.” Not prisoner camp, but you know, relocation camp or refugee camp. “So don’t go inside now, just stay here.” So keep moving. And then, short distance, we came close to somebody’s haka. For some reason, the gate was open. I guess somebody was in there first and just scram out, you know. So as soon as we go inside, one GI wanted to go in, see. So I told him, “Wait. Give me your flashlight.” I look inside. “What you doing?” “Never mind, I tell you bumbai.” So I check and make sure there’s no snake in there, yeah. Because I was told that you can find snakes often inside the grave. Snake inside, yeah. So I make sure there’s no snake. So I said, “Okay, we’ll go inside.” So we go inside, we set up a temporary office. A small, mobile field desk with the gas lamp. And in the backside, see, the Okinawan haka is, as I told you, is built in the shape of a woman’s womb, see. Entrance is, I would say, about this much, no. Big enough for two men to carry the casket inside during funeral time. And inside is quite large. Even five-foot, six-footer GIs can stand around without bending your head. Exact measurement, I cannot tell you. But it’s wide enough, I would say, from here to there easily, yeah. Height is about, I don’t know how many feet. Maybe five-and-a-half feet, I don’t know. And square, just a square. On the backside, there’s a twomound shelf-like. And on top there, there’s a container, bone container. In Okinawa-högen, they call it jishigami. It’s a very beautifully decorated ceramic container. After the number of years, or number of period, they take out the casket out in the front, and meticulously wash the bone. And the lady’s bone in the container from feet down, build up, and the skull on the top. And preserve that in the backside for generation after generation, I guess. How long, I don’t know. Anyway, family tomb is the oldest there. I guess there’s some kind of sequence. That, I don’t know. Anyway, usually there are two shelves. Dirt mound, yeah. And, of course, some of the graves are built by concrete and stone. But many of them built into the hillside. Clay. Very solid ground. My own family grave was built into the mound. And, if possible, they can always build facing the ocean with the nice view. In fact, Okinawa tradition was that they considered the haka as a permanent home. So they even spent more money to construct the haka than their own residence. Beautiful, yeah. They spend a lot of money. And not everyone can build a haka facing the nice view of the ocean. So if you cannot, why, they still build haka with the nice view to the front. In the valley, usually. You know, hillside, yeah. Valley. And I think, if possible, they always face east. If possible. And, as I said, not every haka can be built in the same way. So they take the next alternative with the best view. South, or whatever. MK: So you used one of those haka as . . . TH: Working. Temporary working. I think, according to Donald Keene, our navy language officer assigned to us, we spent three days. But I don’t remember exactly. I thought was two nights, but two days we worked continuously without any sleep, I know. And as the captured documents come in, we have to translate. Especially maps. I know I worked throughout the night. And every now and then, we got to put the lamp on the side so you cannot see from outside. Open the curtain and exchange the air. You cannot continuously work in the enclosure, yeah. So every now and then we open the curtain and circulate the air. MK: And then, you know, you mentioned like captured documents, like a map. What else would you folks get from . . . |
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