At the same time, the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force deploys its Second, Third and Fourth Escort Fleets - the Fourth equipped with advanced Kongo-class Destroyers - to aid the Enterprise Task Force. While the combined Second and Third Fleets defeat an attempt by the Soviet Navy to outflank the Enterprise, the Fourth reinforces the Enterprise Task Force to deal a heavy blow to the Soviets, who retreats to rally in Soviet and North Korean waters under the Admiral Kuznetsov fleet.
The RoK Army regiments stationed along the DMZ fight valiantly for several days, fighting off several attacks by North Korean forces at the cost of withering down their own forces to near-critical levels. Deciding to consolidate its remaining forces while awaiting the mobilization of its remaining regular Army formations, the South pulls back from Seoul, Chuncheon, and Sokcho provinces to establish a secondary line around Daejon and Wonju - the former of which soon becomes a quagmire for both sides, leading the Soviet Union to aid the North's cause by providing some of its most advanced tanks.