When the American fleet began its bombardment, the eight heavy cruisers of the Second Fleet slightly turned their bows to the north. This was done to divert the enemy's attention while launching remaining oxygen torpedoes on board. The Takao, Myōkō, and Mogami class cruisers were equipped on both sides with torpedo launchers, reload mechanisms, and spare torpedoes. The torpedoes loaded in the starboard side launchers had already been used in the previous wave of attacks. Therefore, for this round, torpedoes loaded in the port side launchers were used, unleashing a second wave of attacks with a total of 56 torpedoes from all eight cruisers.

In the chaotic night battle where close-quarters combat was likely, significant damage was expected as a matter of course. Depending on the situation, they might even close in to a distance where machine guns were exchanged. Leaving torpedoes inside the ship during repeated hits could lead to the risk of explosion. In fact, in the intense battles since the beginning of the war, there were quite a few cases of ships sinking due to torpedo explosions.

Even after firing all the torpedoes in the launchers, the eight heavy cruisers of the Second Fleet still had spare torpedoes in the reload mechanisms. However, by consuming at least the ones in the launchers, the risk of explosion could be minimized. Even for heavy cruisers weighing over ten thousand tons, simultaneous explosions of multiple oxygen torpedoes would render them combat ineffective, and there was even a risk of sinking if things went wrong. The eight heavy cruisers, now lightened by unloading these formidable oxygen torpedoes onto the American fleet, approached the enemy while loading spare torpedoes using the reload mechanisms.

Meanwhile, within the American fleet, three red flashes occurred with a slight time difference. The 160 torpedoes from the first wave, launched by the eight heavy cruisers and the destroyer squadron of the Second Fleet, had found their mark in the American fleet. Although the nighttime long-distance engagement resulted in a less than two percent hit rate, the effects were enormous.

One of these torpedoes hit the new battleship North Carolina. The oxygen torpedo, penetrating below the waterline beside the main turret, caused massive flooding on the ship, depriving it of some maneuverability and rendering the first and second turrets unusable.

The remaining two torpedoes hit the Fletcher-class destroyers Chevalier and Strong. The former had her hull broken and sank with a roar, while Strong followed suit shortly after.

Taking advantage of the disruption in the enemy formation, each ship of the Second Fleet increased speed, closed the distance rapidly, and began shelling. The Hiei faced the South Dakota, the Kirishima faced the Indiana, the Kongō went after the Washington, and the Haruna targeted the listing North Carolina after being damaged by a torpedo.

Atago, Takao, Myōkō, and Haguro also fired 20 cm shells at the South Dakota, Indiana, Washington, and North Carolina. Although the 20 cm shells were only a tenth of the weight of those on the American battleships, they still possessed sufficient destructive and penetrating power for upper structures and non-armored sections. With more than the required number of shells, it was possible to turn the American battleships into scrap.

On the other hand, the four Mogami-class heavy cruisers were engaged in a brawl with four Cleveland-class light cruisers. The Mogami-class heavy cruisers fired 20 cm shells, while the Cleveland-class light cruisers retaliated with 15,2 cm shells.

The light cruiser Agano and 12 Type A destroyers faced off against American destroyers, which had been reduced to 14 ships. Both destroyer flotillas, Japanese and American, were tasked with preventing enemy destroyers from approaching friendly battleships rather than actively engaging in attacks. Therefore, a somewhat passive and hesitant battle was inevitable.

Of the 49 ships in the Japanese-American fleet, two had already sunk, and one had suffered severe damage. More ships were being hit one after another. The number of soldiers and sailors killed in action was already in the triple digits, and in some cases, it might approach four digits. However, this was still just the beginning, merely the prologue.