Light Cruiser Naka

Naka (那珂) was the third and final ship of the Sendai-class light cruisers, laid down on 10 June 1922 at Yokohama Dock Company, launched on 24 March 1925, and commissioned on 30 November 1925. Named after the Naka River in Tochigi and Ibaraki prefectures.

In the popular naval game KanColle (Kantai Collection), Naka is depicted as a cheerful idol character known as "Naka-chan," making her one of the most recognizable ships in the franchise despite her relatively modest historical profile.

During World War II, Naka served as flagship of the 4th Destroyer Squadron under Rear Admiral Shoji Nishimura. She participated in the invasion of the Philippines and the Dutch East Indies. At the Battle of the Java Sea (27 February 1942), Naka was part of the Japanese force that defeated the Allied ABDA fleet.

On 1 April 1942, Naka was torpedoed by the American submarine USS Seawolf off Christmas Island, south of Java, suffering severe damage. After extensive repairs in Japan, she returned to service in April 1943 and was assigned to transport and escort duties.

On 17 February 1944, the US Navy launched Operation Hailstone, a devastating carrier air raid against the major Japanese naval base at Truk Lagoon (Chuuk). Naka had just left the lagoon to assist the torpedoed cruiser Agano when the raid began. Attacked about 35 nautical miles west of Truk by aircraft of Task Force 58, she was hit by a torpedo and a bomb in the third strike, broke in two and sank; about 240 of her crew were lost and 210 were rescued. She went down in the open sea outside the atoll, at about 7°15′N 151°15′E.