On the return of the Japanese fleet to Hashirajima on 14 June the wounded were transferred to naval hospitals. Most were called "secret patients" and kept away from other patients and their families. The Navy did this to keep this major defeat secret. The remaining officers and men were quickly spread out to other units of the fleet and sent to the South Pacific, where the majority were killed. None of the flag officers or staff of the Combined Fleet was penalized, with Nagumo later being placed in command of the rebuilt carrier force.