During the Battle of Saipan, on 7 July 1944, Captain Sakae Ōba partakes in a final banzai charge against the United States Marine Corps on the island of Saipan. It is the largest banzai charge of the Pacific War, but fails, resulting in over 4,000 Japanese deaths after 15 hours of close combat. American forces declare the island secure on 9 July, while Ōba and a handful of survivors retreat into the jungle and begin a guerrilla-style war using Mount Tapochau as a base due to its natural defensive position and prominent heights overlooking every possible approach.