Rubuta ci gaba don wannan sakin layi - "Ōyodo" ya koma Babban Jiki na 1st Mobile Fleet, wanda Ozawa ya umurta, a ranar 5 ga Oktoba kuma ya bar Yokosuka a ranar 11 ga Oktoba. A hanya, jirgin ruwa ya kai hari a kan jirgin ruwa wanda ya harbe torpedo shida, duk wanda ya rasa. Jirgin ya tashi daga Yashima anchorage a ranar 20 ga Oktoba 1944 zuwa Philippines a matsayin wani ɓangare na Operation "Sho-Ichi-Go" <unk> wanda aka yi niyya don kayar da mamayar Amurka na Philippines
Ka yi haƙuri. "Ōyodo" wani ɓangare ne na Ozawa na Arewacin Mobile ("Decoy") Force, wanda shine ya jawo hankalin dakarun jirgin saman Amurka daga babban rundunar sojojin Japan ta hanyar fallasa masu jigilar jiragen saman Japan da suka tsira. "Ōyodo" shi ne kawai jirgin yaki a cikin sojojin Ozawa wanda ke da jiragen ruwa na bincike, kuma duka E13A1 sun yi bincike da kuma anti-submarine patrols a kan jirgin ruwa. A safiyar ranar 24 ga watan Oktoba, yawancin jiragen sama da ke cikin jiragen ruwa sun kaddamar da su don kai farmaki ga 'yan kasuwa na Amurka a matsayin abin shagala. Ba su haifar da lalacewa ba kuma sun sa Amurkawa su bincika a cikin shugabanci daga inda suka kai hari. Daga karshe Amurkawa sun hango jiragen Ozawa a 16:40, wasu gabas da Cape Engaño, arewa maso gabashin Luzon. Jirgin saman Amurka ya bazu kuma ya yi latti sosai a rana don kaddamar da harin iska, don haka Admiral William Halsey, kwamandan rundunar ta uku ta yanke shawarar tara masu jigilar jiragen sama a matsayin da za su kai hari washegari. Ozawa ya juya hanya a cikin dare, yana gaskanta cewa Amurkawa za su bi shi zuwa arewa.