Chapter 237: Yokohama Tank Road

The originally envisioned arrest operation began to turn into a police-gangster shootout, and the live broadcast footage from the scene was forced to cut off because the Kudo-kai opened fire; the camera crew had to retreat to a safer place to film.

Inside the frontline command headquarters, the police were jubilant, excited beyond measure that the Violent Group had taken the initiative to open fire.

Division Chief Sugishita Ukyo had no look of joy on his face; he was merely silent.

The Japanese police have extremely strict control over the use of firearms; theoretically, criminal investigators, patrol officers, and Public Security all have issued weapons, but unless it is a last resort, even if the opponent comes at them with a knife, most police officers would rather struggle with the criminal than use their firearms.

There is no other reason; it is simply because the subsequent explanations, reports, and investigations are extremely troublesome.

Getting stabbed and injured is called being wounded in the line of duty, and the due compensation, medical insurance, promotion, and merit will not be lacking; firing a gun might mean not getting hurt, but it is equivalent to inviting major trouble—internal supervision, external prosecution, and repeated court explanations mean that even if it is eventually deemed self-defense, the massive consumption of time and energy and the stigma brought by suspension and investigation are unavoidable.

However, if the criminal fires first, then none of this is a problem; as long as the criminal fires first, not only can the police naturally fire back, but afterward, the police internal affairs, the courts, and the District Public Prosecutors Office will all tend to protect the law enforcer, and at most, they will only be noted for a "lawful accidental injury" or "minor procedural flaw," which will not be recorded in their file; as for the follow-up report, one only needs to write that the other party fired first, and no one will make things difficult for anyone on this point.

Uesugi Muneyuki and Ikeda Erena were both watching the big screen with great interest; it was his first time witnessing a police-gangster shootout with his own eyes!

However, after watching for a few moments, Uesugi Muneyuki was a bit disappointed with the performance of the SAT.

There were not many people from the Kudo-kai, totaling only a dozen or so small handguns, yet they managed to keep an entire SAT squad from raising their heads; the Public Security police were very cautious, all hiding behind cover and riot shields, not daring to advance a single step.

After shooting for a while, the gunfire from the Violent Group gradually subsided, and both sides began to stand off.

That's it?

Uesugi Muneyuki always felt that it was not quite the same as he had imagined.

As if seeing through his expression, Division Chief Sugishita Ukyo took the initiative to explain: "The SAT's operational philosophy is 'zero errors, high suppression'; they will not engage in a shootout while taking risks."

"I see." Uesugi Muneyuki nodded to indicate he understood.

Of course, Sugishita Ukyo still had things left unsaid.

Police casualties are very expensive; for every SAT officer present, if one person is killed in action, the one-time compensation is as high as about 14.5 million yen, and if there are family members, they can receive about 40-60% of the martyr's salary for 20 years; that is to say, for one SAT officer killed in the line of duty, the Metropolitan Police Department has to pay a budget of about 40 million yen for it.

As for the Yakuza on the other side, heh, as long as there is resistance, the police can kill them without question; Yakuza have no human rights, and even if a subsequent investigation finds it was a wrongful killing, so what? For the life of one Yakuza, the Metropolitan Police Department paying 500,000 yen afterward to show humanitarianism is already enough.

A group of walking 500,000s—if they are killed, they are killed; it takes 80 Yakuza lives to equal the life of one police officer.

Life is priceless; life has a price.

……………………

At the Kudo-kai stronghold, Kudo-kai Senior Executive Kudo Geni was holding a SIG, pointing it at his subordinate, his face red as a jujube, appearing like a madman: "Who fired? Who fired? Who gave you permission to fire!"

The Public Security police's surprise attack had no warning and no premonition; they only reacted when the SAT broke down the door, and upon seeing the other party in full special police gear, the Kudo-kai Senior Executive immediately ordered them not to resist violently.

However, he never expected that someone would actually open fire in the chaos.

It's over, everything is over now!

The dozen or so Violent Group members present looked at each other; no one knew who had fired the shot; they only knew that someone had fired, the SAT reflexively returned fire, and then the Violent Group members reflexively shot back, and all of this just happened.

Not a single one of the Violent Group members present was under 40 years old, with an average age of over 50; many of them already had gray hair, terrifying tattoos on their bodies, and were wearing suits.

"What do we do now? Boss?" someone asked.

"We're in trouble, we're really in trouble now; what exactly is this for? Could it be that that matter was discovered?"

Kudo Geni could not help but panic in his heart.

But, how could it be? Why?

Didn't they say over in Kanagawa that they could handle this case?

With the two sides exchanging fire, the nature of this matter had changed; the previously envisioned response methods were already useless.

"Prepare, through the secret passage..."

While the Violent Group mid-level members were discussing what to do, they felt a slight vibration coming from the ground.

Or rather, the entire city of Yokohama nearby and the office workers in the vicinity all felt the slight vibration of the ground.

Vroom!

Upon hearing this sound, the Violent Group side felt their scalps go numb and felt despair.

Do you hate us that much? Even though the riot shields were already enough to withstand handguns, Public Security police, you guys!

You actually deployed armored vehicles?!

And with the trembling of the ground, two special bulletproof assault vehicles modified from Toyota Land Cruisers, equipped with bulletproof glass and armored steel plates, rolled over along the road, and under the cover of the SAT, crashed headlong into the stronghold!

Boom!

The muffled sound of heavy bulletproof tires crushing the gravel road tore through the night; the modified Toyota armored assault vehicle lowered its body like a black panther, its engine roaring as it charged toward the Kudo-kai stronghold—a three-story warehouse with concrete-sealed windows; the SAT's thermal imaging showed many people gathered on the second floor, the infrared markers flickering scarlet in the eyepiece of SAT Captain Godai.

"Breach, three seconds of suppression!" The command exploded in the earpieces; the lead vehicle suddenly accelerated, and the wedge-shaped ram installed on the front bumper smashed into the iron gate with a roar; amidst the screeching of twisting metal, the bulletproof glass cracked into a spiderweb pattern.

Inside the rear vehicle, six SAT members pulled down their night-vision goggles, and the laser sights of their MP5 Submachine Guns swept green lines through the dust and smoke.

A commotion erupted on the second floor; the moment they crashed in, a sniper poked out from the sunroof of the second vehicle, a. 338 Lapua Magnum bullet ready to be fired at any time. At the third-floor stairwell, tear gas was poured in through the ventilation ducts; before the coughing could start, the demolition team had already rappelled down and broken the windows.

Anyone still holding a gun was executed on the spot by the SAT; the cold Public Security police drew Glock pistols from their waists to pick them off one by one, and those who put down their weapons and held their heads were also held at gunpoint to the forehead, signaled to face the wall and kneel in a row.

"We have successfully breached the interior of the stronghold, no casualties, 6 armed Violent Group members killed, 23 members captured." A cold, hard confirmation sounded on the channel.

"Received, clear the battlefield immediately." At the frontline Kudo-kai Countermeasures Command Center, a Superintendent from the Metropolitan Police Department Public Security Bureau put down the walkie-talkie, stating the cold facts in a cold, hard confirmation: "Kudo-kai, finished."

"Do not relax, collect on-site physical evidence immediately, stay vigilant, the matter is not over yet, be careful that there are Yakuza who have not been discovered." Commissioner Onoda was very calm, issuing orders one by one.

"On-site evidence collection personnel, perform real-time data mirroring of electronic equipment to prevent remote destruction."

"Confiscate guns, narcotics, and account books; be careful, stay vigilant."

"Pay attention to capturing important figures."

"Yes!" News soon came from the front: "We have a situation, Commissioner, Kudo-kai Young Head Kudo Geni and two other senior executives are nowhere to be found!"

"There is a secret door, search immediately, blockade the surrounding streets, they won't get far!" Commissioner Onoda instructed coldly: "It's not over yet, keep your spirits up; he who travels one hundred miles only considers ninety to be the halfway point; do not let your guard down at the last moment."

"Yes!"

But with this moment of successful breach, the frontline command center relaxed a lot; although the faces of all the police officers present were still tense, there were already smiles at the corners of their eyes and mouths; no one cheered at the scene, there were only sighs of relief, and the sound of some lighters—a Public Security police officer had already couldn't help but take out a lighter to light a cigarette, preparing to celebrate.

It ended just like this?

Uesugi Muneyuki and Ikeda Erena looked at each other; the tall beauty's expression was somewhat dejected; she had not slept for thirty hours, and at this very moment, she felt the powerlessness of her own martial arts in front of the armored vehicle.

No wonder Miss Minami had no interest in watching; because there was no suspense at all.

Uesugi Muneyuki had the same feeling; it is said that the Glock small pistols once in the hands of United States police were also suppressed by gangsters using submachine guns, semi-automatic rifles, and rocket launchers, and that was how S. W. A. T. came to be.

It was precisely at this very moment that the entire Yokohama city heard a series of gunshots, the trembling sound of tanks crushing the road, and the roaring sound of them crashing into rolling shutters; everyone was guessing what had happened, and some had already noticed the police road closures.

What happened?

A Tankendo match?

The residents of Yokohama city guessed one after another, but no one dared to approach the Kudo-kai stronghold.

At a distance of approximately 230 meters from the stronghold, in an underground parking lot.

The last three remaining survivors of the Kudo-kai branch escaped from inside.

They fled through a secret passage, entered the interior of a residential building via a disguised utility room, and then used pre-prepared clothing to pretend to be residents of the building and left.

Because the incident was sudden and attracted onlookers from nearby residents, no one noticed these three guys; they snuck along the exit of the residential complex and perfectly avoided the police road closures, appearing on the other side.

But just as they intended to leave, a Patrol Officer from a nearby Koban happened to ride a bicycle over to check the situation.

The Kanagawa Prefectural Police had not been informed of the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters' surprise attack plan; all Kanagawa police, except for those taken away by the District Public Prosecutors Office, were unaware of this operation.

This Patrol Officer buddy was about 30-something years old, just a Patrol Sergeant, wearing the most ordinary field vest uniform, riding a bicycle and wanting to go over to see what exactly had happened, when he happened to run into the three people who had escaped from Kudo-kai.

"Hey, you!" The Koban Patrol Officer saw that these three people looked suspicious and called out to them: "What happened over there?"

"............" The three people did not answer, only walking quickly.

"Hey?" The Koban Patrol Officer realized something was wrong; he subconsciously reached out to touch his service weapon, the SW Small Revolver: "Stop!"

"Stop! I am now ordering you, stop!" Tossing his bicycle to the side of the road, the Patrol Officer drew his pistol from the holster: "What exactly happened?"

"............" The three Kudo-kai cadres did not say a word; the moment they saw the pistol, they also habitually reached behind them.

"Huh? You?" Seeing this movement, the Patrol Officer realized something: "You are not allowed to pass through here! Hey, Yamada-cho Koban reporting, there are three strange people appearing near the scene here, they seem to be carrying... Don't move!"

The three Kudo-kai people did not stop their movements; despite the Patrol Officer's repeated warnings, they still pulled pistols from behind them.

The Patrol Officer repeatedly signaled for the three people to raise their hands and not move: "Otherwise I'm going to shoot, I'm really going to shoot, ahhhhh!"

"Bang!"

After repeated warnings were ineffective, the Patrol Officer ultimately did not have the courage to pull the trigger.

He fell into a pool of blood, leaving only the Public Security Police faintly visible in the distance and the three people fleeing rapidly.

(End of chapter)