When the Japanese General Headquarters in Tokyo received the telegram from Busan Port, they were greatly surprised. They even wondered if it was April Fool's Day in the West and sent another telegram to confirm. Then, in their anger, they immediately ordered the Combined Fleet to send warships to intercept the two Japanese ironclad battleships that had been seized in the Korean Strait.
When Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, Sukeyuki Ito, received the order from headquarters, he nearly fainted!
Two powerful ironclad battleships were silently stolen from the port they had already occupied! Moreover, the Soryu and Tenryu were the two most powerful sister ships among the 21 warships purchased from Britain. If these two warships were lost, the combined fleet's strength would decrease
