He entered the 41st class of the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy graduating 14th out of a class of 118 in 1917 and graduating from the Naval Gunnery School in 1920. He did his midshipman service on the cruisers and . After he was commissioned as ensign, he was assigned to the battleship and cruiser . He later served on the battleship and destroyer . After his promotion to lieutenant on 1 December 1919, he was assigned to the battleships and , destroyer , and repair ship "Kantō". He was promoted to lieutenant commander in 1925, and graduated from the Naval Staff College the same year, specializing in naval aviation. He subsequently captained a naval fighter group based at Kasumigaura and served in numerous staff positions.