What if Japan Surrendered Earlier?
Both Scott and David have explored Japan lasting longer in the war, either fighting the Americans to a standstill or being smashed into the ground. Im going to explore the other side of it; what if Japan left the war earlier? As Scott is fond of noting, this timeline only works if you assume that the Emperor had real power and a good knowledge of the war situation. After 1944, Japan has nothing to bargain with. The POD needs to before then, but after Midway, as Japan thought it was winning the war until then. (Some Japanese thought that it was winning the war after then as well, which shows how stupid some people can be.) So, lets start just after Midway. The Emperor calls a strategy conference and outlines the following blunt truths. The war is lost. Japan may live for two more years at most. At the moment, however, Japan can bleed the allies badly, while Germany is pushing the USSR back. Therefore, Japan can use that as a lever to get a good peace out of the allies. The Japanese send
