The Himeyuri School Corps consisted of 222 students and 18 teachers from the First Women’s Prefectural High School, an all-girls high school in Okinawa, made specifically for training their students to become teachers. Out of all the all-girls high schools that were driven to into the deadly battlefield, the Himeyuri School Corps, the largest of them all, lost 136 lives.
This page explores the unforgettable experience of Uehara Tomiko.
Uehara Tomiko, a third year student and a member of the Himeyuri Corps, worked in a surgery unit. Her main job was to treat injuries of soldiers wounded in battle, and along the way had to witness severe injuries. She states that witnessing these wounds were scary in the beginning, but she has gotten used to it in no time. Tomiko recalls a memory of her friend “Micchan,” or Kohagura Mitsuko, a friend she
"Tomi-Chan, don't leave my side. Be next to me forever."
There was a girl in Tomiko's class named Kohagura Mitsuko. Mitsuko was a big girl with white skin, who Tomiko thought as beautiful. Tomiko called her Micchan. When Tomiko met Micchan for the first time in two months at the south of Okinawa, Tomiko was shocked; Mitsuko was very skinny. Tomiko asked her, “what happened?” to which Mitsuko replied,
“I actually caught a fever and it still hasn’t gone away.” The two went to a spot unseeable from the cave. Mitsuko sat down, took off her air raid defense hood and said,
“Look at my head for me.” When Tomiko looked, she noticed that Mitsuko's whole head was covered in lice.
“Micchan, you’re probably so skinny because all this blood is sucked out of you. Lets cut this hair,” Tomiko said. Mitsuko left it up to Tomiko, so she took out her scissors from her first-aid kit, and two of them crying, Tomiko cut all of Mitsuko's hair off.
“Tomi-chan, everyone will know I’m bald now,” Mitsuko cried again.
“I’ll make sure no one will know" said Tomiko, and took out an important triangle cloth kept in case Tomiko herself got injured, and wrapped Mitsuko's head with it so it was not visible.
“Micchan if I do this, no one will know,” Tomiko ensured Mitsuko.
“Tomi-chan, don’t leave my side. Be next to me forever,” Mitsuko said.
“Yes, I won’t leave you.”
The girls promised, and since then they were always together in the cave.
“I actually caught a fever and it still hasn’t gone away.” The two went to a spot unseeable from the cave. Mitsuko sat down, took off her air raid defense hood and said,
“Look at my head for me.” When Tomiko looked, she noticed that Mitsuko's whole head was covered in lice.
“Micchan, you’re probably so skinny because all this blood is sucked out of you. Lets cut this hair,” Tomiko said. Mitsuko left it up to Tomiko, so she took out her scissors from her first-aid kit, and two of them crying, Tomiko cut all of Mitsuko's hair off.
“Tomi-chan, everyone will know I’m bald now,” Mitsuko cried again.
“I’ll make sure no one will know" said Tomiko, and took out an important triangle cloth kept in case Tomiko herself got injured, and wrapped Mitsuko's head with it so it was not visible.
“Micchan if I do this, no one will know,” Tomiko ensured Mitsuko.
“Tomi-chan, don’t leave my side. Be next to me forever,” Mitsuko said.
“Yes, I won’t leave you.”
The girls promised, and since then they were always together in the cave.
Tomiko reached her hand out saying ‘Micchan,’ and felt something lukewarm… It was Micchan's blood.
The two girls were always together. When Tomiko found food, she would split it with Mitsuko. However, with more people retreating to the South, there became less and less food. Since it had been 14 or 15 days after she cut Mitsuko's hair and started sharing food, Tomiko thought Mitsuko's condition would be better. However, Mitsuko's condition seemed to get worse. Her body was weakening and she wasn't eating. Tomiko thought Mitsuko had caught another illness.
On the 17th of June, Tomiko addressed Mitsuko: “Micchan, you need to eat something or you’re going to die. What would you eat?”
I want to eat sugar cane,” Mitsuko said.
At this point there were no more sugar cane fields around. But because Mitsuko said she wanted it, Tomiko was going to find her one no matter what it takes.
Tomiko and Makishi Tsuruko, a girl from her cave, went to look for sugar cane at night. The two girls ran and ran, out of their cave and through the sugar cane field. She couldn't find it. Tomiko thought, if there isn't any, then she should head back. As they started to head back, the full moon shone an end piece of a sugar cane. Tomiko grabbed it and ran to the cave.
Bringing sweets into the cave was against the rule because ants will emerge. Tomiko peeled the sugar cane at the entrance of the cave and broke it into bite-size pieces and wrapped it in her dirty handkerchief. Once Mitsuko's was ready, Tomiko ate some herself. She chewed on the sugar cane while she brushed her hair. By the time she was done, shelling by American soldiers were getting intense. Tomiko was about to go throw away the sugar cane peels, when Tsuruko insisted on throwing the peels away for Tomiko.
“Tomi-chan, I’ll go, so hurry and take it to Micchan.” Tsuruko grabbed the peels from Tomiko.
“Be careful then, hurry back,” Tomiko said.
Tsuruko headed outside, and Tomiko headed inside. They were about seven to eight meters apart. Tomiko was almost at Mitsuko. Wanting to cheer Mitsuko up, Tomiko called her;
“Micchan!"
As Tomiko tried to climb up to where Mitsuko was resting, Tomiko dropped her hair pin that she was holding when combing her hair. Inside the cave was dark, but because Tomiko's hair was long, she wanted to find it. Bending over and using the palm of her hand, Tomiko searched the ground. The five or sixth time she had touched the ground,
Booom...
People close to the entrance came pouring into the cave. Giving up on her pin, Tomiko reached out her hand.
"Micchan," she said and felt something lukewarm.
“Hurry and turn the lights on!” The teacher yelled. One candle, kept in case of an emergency, was lit. Then, Tomiko witnessed the disaster. It was inside the cave. The cave had a big entrance with stalactite's hanging. Looking at the injuries caused by the shell, Tomiko guessed that the debris of the shell broke the hanging stalactite.
One person had their chest torn apart crying in pain. Ogido-san, who was one term above Tomiko, had her stomach injured. Her intestines were coming out. Using her own clothing, Ogido-san wrapped her intestines and crouched down. Ishikawa-san, who was one term below Tomiko, had her leg torn open. Her hands and mouth shaking, Ishikawa-san couldn’t even say a word. Tomiko, pushed by everyone in the cave, ended up deeper than where Micchan was.
"Micchan?" Tomiko looked back and found her on a a higher level. Her hands and neck hanging, and blood streaming down. The lukewarm thing she felt a moment ago was Mitsuko's blood.
On the 17th of June, Tomiko addressed Mitsuko: “Micchan, you need to eat something or you’re going to die. What would you eat?”
I want to eat sugar cane,” Mitsuko said.
At this point there were no more sugar cane fields around. But because Mitsuko said she wanted it, Tomiko was going to find her one no matter what it takes.
Tomiko and Makishi Tsuruko, a girl from her cave, went to look for sugar cane at night. The two girls ran and ran, out of their cave and through the sugar cane field. She couldn't find it. Tomiko thought, if there isn't any, then she should head back. As they started to head back, the full moon shone an end piece of a sugar cane. Tomiko grabbed it and ran to the cave.
Bringing sweets into the cave was against the rule because ants will emerge. Tomiko peeled the sugar cane at the entrance of the cave and broke it into bite-size pieces and wrapped it in her dirty handkerchief. Once Mitsuko's was ready, Tomiko ate some herself. She chewed on the sugar cane while she brushed her hair. By the time she was done, shelling by American soldiers were getting intense. Tomiko was about to go throw away the sugar cane peels, when Tsuruko insisted on throwing the peels away for Tomiko.
“Tomi-chan, I’ll go, so hurry and take it to Micchan.” Tsuruko grabbed the peels from Tomiko.
“Be careful then, hurry back,” Tomiko said.
Tsuruko headed outside, and Tomiko headed inside. They were about seven to eight meters apart. Tomiko was almost at Mitsuko. Wanting to cheer Mitsuko up, Tomiko called her;
“Micchan!"
As Tomiko tried to climb up to where Mitsuko was resting, Tomiko dropped her hair pin that she was holding when combing her hair. Inside the cave was dark, but because Tomiko's hair was long, she wanted to find it. Bending over and using the palm of her hand, Tomiko searched the ground. The five or sixth time she had touched the ground,
Booom...
People close to the entrance came pouring into the cave. Giving up on her pin, Tomiko reached out her hand.
"Micchan," she said and felt something lukewarm.
“Hurry and turn the lights on!” The teacher yelled. One candle, kept in case of an emergency, was lit. Then, Tomiko witnessed the disaster. It was inside the cave. The cave had a big entrance with stalactite's hanging. Looking at the injuries caused by the shell, Tomiko guessed that the debris of the shell broke the hanging stalactite.
One person had their chest torn apart crying in pain. Ogido-san, who was one term above Tomiko, had her stomach injured. Her intestines were coming out. Using her own clothing, Ogido-san wrapped her intestines and crouched down. Ishikawa-san, who was one term below Tomiko, had her leg torn open. Her hands and mouth shaking, Ishikawa-san couldn’t even say a word. Tomiko, pushed by everyone in the cave, ended up deeper than where Micchan was.
"Micchan?" Tomiko looked back and found her on a a higher level. Her hands and neck hanging, and blood streaming down. The lukewarm thing she felt a moment ago was Mitsuko's blood.
"Everyone was dead...blood and flesh flew everywhere"
Tomiko climbed up to where Mitsuko was, only to be more shocked. Everyone was dead. Everyone's blood and flesh flew everywhere and there was no place to step. Tomiko saw that her clothes that were always put next to Mitsuko were covered in holes. If Tomiko didn’t bend down to find her pin that she had dropped, it would’ve been instant death.
Tsuruko who grabbed the peels from Tomiko and went to go throw it away, had her leg torn off from her femur.
“Tomi-chan, I don’t have my leg.” That is all Tomiko heard from her. Tsuruko died not long after that.
Tsuruko who grabbed the peels from Tomiko and went to go throw it away, had her leg torn off from her femur.
“Tomi-chan, I don’t have my leg.” That is all Tomiko heard from her. Tsuruko died not long after that.
"I couldn’t pick up one small pin, but instead of my pin, picked up my own life. "
In her interview, Uehara Tomiko describes that there were disasters like these where a lot of people died instantly or had severe injuries. She remembers dragging her friends who passed away out of the rough cave, and rolling them into holes caused by shells. She remembers that it took her until the next day, the 18th.
In her interview she says, "I couldn’t pick up one small pin, but instead of my pin, picked up my own life." |