Whakaotihia te rerenga e whai ake nei: I whānau mai a Sugiyama ki tētahi whānau "samurai" o mua i Kokura (i tēnei wā he wāhanga o Kitakyushu City), Fukuoka Prefecture, i puta ia i te 12 o ngā akomanga o te Imperial Japanese Army Academy i te tau 1901. I mahi ia hei rangatira rangatahi me te 3rd Battalion o te 14th Regiment o te IJA 12th Division i te Pakanga a Ruhia-Hapani, a i whara ia i te mata i te pakanga.
Te Pakanga o Shaho. Nā ngā mate i puta mai i taua whara, kāore i taea e ia te tino whakatuwhera i tōna kanohi matau.