What Japan could do without attacking Pearl Harbor

What happens if Japan does not attack the American ships at Pearl Harbor?

Japan could pause exposed invasions after losing surprise or concentrate its main fleet elsewhere; the outcome depends on how the Pearl Harbor plan is abandoned.

The counterfactual includes the possibility that Japan's carrier force is discovered several days before the planned attack. A warning around 4 December could put Allied forces on alert and reduce the surprise on which Japanese plans relied. Operations in Indochina might still continue, while the Malayan campaign could pause because it depended on amphibious movement and naval protection. Army-Navy rivalry would not mean that the Japanese Army ignored the threat to its sea supply routes. A separate scenario has Japan choosing from the outset to concentrate its main fleet against Malaya or the Philippines. These are conditional alternatives, not a single predicted outcome.