Toshizō Nishio Early life and career . Nishio was born in Tottori Prefecture , and was a graduate of the 14th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1902 , and the 22nd class of the Army War College ( Japan ) . He was commissioned a second lieutenant in June 1903 and served during the Russo - Japanese War , seeing combat at the Battle of Sandepu . He was promoted to lieutenant in February 1905 , to captain in December 1909 , to major in November 1916 and to lieutenant colonel in August 1920 . Nishio was first attached to the 10th Regiment / 10th Division from 1921 to 1923 ; he was promoted to colonel on 6 August 1923 . Afterward , he was an instructor at the Army War College until 1925 when he became commanding officer of the 40th Regiment / 10th Division . From 1926 to 1929 he was Chief of the 1st Section , Inspectorate General of Military Training . Promoted to major general on 1 August 1929 , he was assigned to command the 39th Brigade of the IJA 20th Division , stationed in Korea . From 1930 to 1932 he was Chairman of Military Investigation in the Ministry of War . He was promoted to lieutenant general on 1 August 1933 , becoming the Head of the 4th Bureau of the General Staff in 1934 . China . On 5 March 1934 , Nishio was appointed Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Army in Manchukuo , where he oversaw the establishment of the reorganization of the Manchukuo Imperial Army and the pacification of Manchukuo . In March 1936 he became Vice Chief of the General Staff and Acting Head of the General Affairs Bureau , of the General Staff . In early 1937 , he briefly commanded the Imperial Guards Division , before being transferred to China at the beginning of the Second Sino - Japanese War . After the Marco Polo Bridge Incident Nishio was sent to North China , and took command of the Second Army on 26 August 1937 . He oversaw the Tianjin – Pukou Railway Operation that took the Japanese to the Yellow River . He was at the Battle of Xuzhou , crossing the Yellow river and overrunning Shandong until 30 April 1938 . Shortly after the defeat his army suffered in the Battle of Taierzhuang , he was replaced and returned to Tokyo to be Inspector - General of Military Training . Promoted to general on 1 August 1939 , Nishio returned to China again to take command of the Thirteenth Army on 12 September for a month and then took command of all the forces in China as Commander in Chief of the China Expeditionary Army on 22 September . He oversaw the Battle of Zaoyang - Yichang and the First Battle of Changsha . His force withstood the Chinese 1939 - 40 Winter Offensive and rolled back their gains in the spring with many operations including the Battle of Zaoyang - Yichang . His forces were again struck in North China by the Hundred Regiments Offensive , while he continued attacks in the Yangtze valley in the Central Hopei Operation and Western Hopei Operation . On 1 March 1941 he was replaced and returned to Japan to become a member of the Supreme War Council until he retired in 1943 . Return to Japan . Nishio took up the governorship of the Tokyo Metropolis from 1944 to the end of World War II . Although arrested after World War II by the American occupation authorities as a suspected war criminal , formal charges were never brought to trial and he was later released .