Talk:Yamato/@comment-42.61.165.35-20150406101416/@comment-1915363-20150420130616

Somebody is missing the point about that her final sortie here.

That kamikaze voyage is more than just a suicide mission. It's a last ditch attempt to save Empire of Japan, IJN and Yamato's face in the history. As anyone who has passion for the battleships would tell you, she's more than just a great battleship, she's the embodiment of the Empire's naval pride. The Yamato might've failed to archive the purpose it was born for, but just from her mere presence as the world's greatest battleship of its time, she has become a living legend amongst the naval history that many people know by heart.

Suppose IJN decided to keep Yamato until the war is over, she'll eventually be surrendered to the Allies, effectively stripping IJN and Yamato of her pride. After that she would be likely to share Nagato's fate of being test-nuked until she drops dead into the ocean depths far away from her homeland, or worse. With that kind of fate awaiting her in the end, she would be better off resisting against insurmountable odds instead of shaming the country for doing nothing. Suicide mission, yeah, but better than stripped of its pride and treated as oversized toy to be used as a target practice.

There are times where honor is more important than a soldier's life, and that kamikaze mission is one of that moment. They knew they won't be returning home to their wives and children if they had any, yet they chose to go anyway.

It's the last piece of honor she got after being treated as hotel for so long. She is more than just a Yamato Hotel after all, so treating her as a hotel to the very end is pretty disrespectful of her.