Many Marines remember a quiet Buddhist’s post-Hiroshima devotion to reconciliation. But private papers reveal a Japanese naval officer equally dedicated to his country’s cause in World War II.
The telephone interrupted the serenity of a Hawaiian evening—as well as my pleasure at doing absolutely nothing at the moment—after an active day at Headquarters, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific (FMFPAC). An evening call at the chief of staff’s quarters usually meant bad news. Not so this time, in the summer of 1984. The caller was retired Marine Major Bob Hoskins. We had shared an office 26 years earlier when he was the S-3 (operations and training officer) of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment and I, then a first lieutenant, was his assistant S-3.
