After Japan demanded passage through Korea to attack Ming China and then invaded, Korean naval command fractured. One admiral destroyed roughly a hundred warships without fighting after Busan fell, while Won Gyun began scuttling his force after mistaking Korean fishing boats for the enemy and retained only four vessels. Central restrictions discouraged regional admirals from coordinating without permission, even though Yi Sun-sin was already trying to combine with the other commander who had preserved his force. The eventual order sent Yi to Won because the court incorrectly believed Won still possessed the larger fleet and did not clearly settle command. Inaccurate reporting therefore compounded the institutional fear of independent cooperation before the first Korean counterattack at sea.
Chapter · 49:46-55:37
Panic destroys Korean fleets before battle
Other Korean commanders scuttled major forces amid panic and misidentification, leaving Yi Sun-sin to combine his prepared fleet with only a handful of surviving ships.