He claimed privately to a former Naval Academy student (and biographer), Ooka Jiro, that he withdrew the fleet from the battle because he did not believe in wasting the lives of his men in a futile effort, having long since believed that the war was lost.
Privat hævdede han overfor en tidligere student ved flådeakademiet (og levnedsbeskriver), Ooka Jiro, at han trak flåden ud af slaget fordi han ikke ville spilde sine mænds liv på en håbløs opgave, da han for længst var nået til den overbevisning, at krigen var tabt.