The Japanese shrugged. "They’re not islanders," he said; "we’re like you Britishers, sea-dogs from birth, and our seamanship is a trifle better than theirs, I fancy. Besides, we’re probably better armed. A Russian destroyer only has three-pounder quick-firers besides its twelve-pounders. Their shots can pierce our egg-shell, of course, but our six-pounder shots will do far more damage to their interiors." "Won’t you use your torpedoes, then?" "No. Dog doesn’t eat dog: we keep our torpedoes for larger game." "You are not using the conning-tower?" asked Bob, noticing that Yamaguchi showed no sign of leaving the bridge. "No; it is better to take one’s risk in the open. Those peep-holes are rather worrying when you want to have a good look at the enemy." The three vessels were now in line ahead—steaming straight for the Russian flotilla, the _Akatsuki_ leading, the _Kasumi_ a quarter of a mile behind, and the _Asashio_ making a good third at the same distance. Bob on the fore-bridge was tingling with exhilaration. All his faculties seemed to be braced up. He had no sense of danger, in spite of his knowledge that one lucky shot from the Russians might explode the magazine beneath him and destroy the ship and every soul on board. His strongest feeling was one of impatience. The vessel was bounding along at more than race-horse speed; yet it appeared to be going slowly, too slowly, and he felt he would have liked to cry "Hurry up! hurry up! faster! faster!" Two minutes had passed since the order "Full speed ahead!" Then from the fore-bridge of the _Akatsuki_ the six-pounder shrieked. From that moment Bob saw and heard nothing except what went on in his own vessel. Immediately after the _Akatsuki_ had opened fire, Yamaguchi gave his first order. There was an ear-splitting report; the vessel seemed almost to pause momentarily in its career, like a racer pulled up on its haunches; and a second or two later Bob saw a cloud of smoke over the fore-deck of the leading Russian boat, which, travelling at thirty knots, instantly shook off the pall and emerged from it with one funnel completely shattered. Bob did not hear the explosion of the shell; the din from the _Kasumi_ and the other Japanese vessels, and from the approaching Russians, was too great to allow individual sounds, except within a few feet, to be distinguished. Almost before he was aware of it, the two flotillas had met and passed; they were within a few yards of each other, so near that the faces of the Russian seamen were easily visible; but Bob afterwards remembered few details, for the actual time of transit could be measured by seconds. The vessels sped past at a combined speed of some sixty miles an hour.