Arpeggio of Blue Steel

Desperate Escape

Hyuga stays behind deflecting the attacks of Kongou's fleet to buy time for Iona and the others to escape. Before leaving Iwo Jima, Gunzō asks for Takao's help and she agrees to join his side. Unwilling to listen to Hyuga's words, Kongou fires her Super Gravity Cannon at her but fails to destroy her and taking advantage of her getting exausted, orders Maya to fires her own cannon but Takao appears in the nick of time to block Maya's shot. Believing that Hyuga and Takao are just covering the I-401's escape, Kongou tracks her down and gives chase, refusing to slow down even after falling into a minefield left by Hyuga to help Iona escape. Iona tries to reason with Kongou with no success and when the battleship attempts to fire her Super Gravity Cannon underwater to sink her, Hyuga manages to hack into Kongou's systems to have her lose control for time enough to Iona and Gunzō to escape. Takao then reveals to Kongou that instead of Takao, the true decoy was Iona herself, while the vibration warhead, Makie, her friends and the rest of the I-401's crew were safely hidden aboard her and she returns to pick up Hyuga to rendevous with Iona and Gunzō, who despite escaping from Kongou's grasp, are ambushed by I-400 and I-402 and apparently sunk by them.