Chapter 652

Tokyo's Arakawa Ward, a remote industrial zone near the border with Saitama Prefecture.

Late at night, all was silent, only the distant hum of the expressway and the mournful whine of wind through gaps in abandoned factory buildings could be heard.

A three-story building with mottled exterior walls and an inconspicuous sign reading "Kurashi Transportation Co., Ltd." served as the nominal headquarters of the Kanto-designated violent gang, the Kurashi Group.

At this moment, most lights in the building were extinguished, except for the president's office on the top floor and the lights at the ground-floor entrance.

A black Mercedes-Benz S600 silently glided into the shadowed parking area on the building's rear side, reserved for upper-level vehicles.

The driver was a thick-necked, tattooed brute with a fleshy face; he had just parked, turned off the engine, and was preparing to light a cigarette while waiting for the president, Kurashi Tetsuya, to come downstairs—the president had been alone in his office for a long time tonight, seemingly troubled.

Just as he lowered his head to light his cigarette, both car doors were flung open!

Two black shadows, like leopards coiled and ready to pounce, darted into the vehicle. The shadow in the front passenger seat delivered a precise hand chop to the driver's neck artery; the driver didn't even utter a sound before collapsing limp. The shadow in the back seat quickly used prepared zip ties to bind the driver's hands behind his back, sealed his mouth with tape, and dragged him to the floor beside him.

The entire process took place within five seconds, clean and efficient, nearly silent.

The intruders were none other than Kashiwagi Jin and Date Nagamune!

"Impressive skill!" Inspector Kashiwagi Jin in the driver's seat quickly adjusted the seat and rearview mirror; his face showed little expression, but his eyes, in the dim light, were sharp as a hawk's.

Inspector Date Nagamune in the back seat checked the unconscious driver, confirmed he was not in mortal danger, then vigilantly observed the building's exit.

"Wait for him to come out." Inspector Kashiwagi Jin's voice was kept very low.

About five minutes later, the side door of the Kurashi Group headquarters opened, and a man wearing a dark-colored kimono overcoat, stocky in build,

with white-haired hair combed into a large pompadour stepped out—none other than Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya.

His complexion was grim, he was alone, his steps somewhat heavy, and he walked straight toward the Mercedes-Benz.

When he opened the car door, habitually preparing to sit in the back seat, a cold gun barrel pressed against his temple O

At the same time, Inspector Kashiwagi Jin in the front seat turned his head, and his Metropolitan Police Department identification flashed briefly in the vehicle's dim light.

"Chairman Kurashi, sorry to disturb you. I have a matter I'd like to discuss privately—please cooperate." Inspector Kashiwagi Jin's voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable pressure.

Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya's body instantly stiffened, his pupils contracted, but years of underworld life allowed him to quickly suppress his shock and anger.

He glanced at the back seat, where Date Nagamune Ichii—this young man bearing the distinctive hardened features and icy gaze of a former Self-Defense Forces member, his movements professional, clearly not an ordinary detective—was pointing a gun at him.

He then glanced at the front seat, at Inspector Kashiwagi Jin, whose demeanor was cold and stern.

"Police?" Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya snorted, but dared not move: "You two look unfamiliar—are you from Investigation Division 1? Public Security? Or the Organized Crime Control Department? With such a large deployment, what business do you have with an old man like me who merely runs a transportation business?"

He habitually tried to deflect with words.

"We're short on time, Chairman Kurashi." Inspector Kashiwagi Jin directly started the car, drove out of the parking lot, turned onto a more secluded, deserted factory road, and finally stopped beside an open space piled high with discarded shipping containers.

The engine shut off, leaving only the suppressed breathing inside the vehicle.

"Regarding your firearms collection, especially the Glock 19." Inspector Date Nagamune spoke, the gun barrel still steadily aimed at Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya: "We've received intelligence that you have a fine collection, and recently some good pieces" may have leaked out. Where did they go?"

Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya's face visibly changed upon hearing "Glock 19"; a flicker of distress and anguish he could barely conceal flashed in the depths of his eyes, but he quickly masked it with coldness: "I don't know what you're talking about! I don't understand! I want to call my lawyer!"

"Once the lawyer arrives, things will only get worse." Inspector Kashiwagi Jin turned around, his eyes like blades: "In Mitaka City, former Deputy Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Akiyama Tadashi was shot dead with a Glock 19 yesterday in the early morning. Crime scene traces indicate the killer was well-trained and meticulously planned. We now suspect the murder weapon may have come from your collection. Chairman Kurashi, you know what it means for a violent gang to be involved in political assassination? The entire Kurashi Group, from top to bottom, will be eradicated, not a blade of grass left."

A tremendous pressure, as substantial as it was real, weighed upon Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya's shoulders.

The flesh on his face twitched several times, his breathing grew heavy.

He knew they were not making empty threats.

Involving the assassination of a former Diet member, the police and public security would spare no expense; violent gangs are utterly powerless before such force.

After all, violent gangs are such lawful scum—kill them and they're dead, beat them and they're beaten.

Would the police dare point a gun at someone else like that?

In Japan, gun control is extremely strict; generally, when police question passersby and the passerby makes a motion to reach into their pocket, police assume the person is reaching for identification, wallet, or phone.

But violent gangs are different! For violent gangs, if they make a motion to reach into their pocket, police are allowed to draw their guns directly!

Silence spread through the vehicle, only the distant, faint barking of wild dogs could be heard.

After a long while, Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya seemed drained of strength, his straight back slumping forward; the ferocious aura of the underworld boss dissipated, revealing the visage of a weary, even somewhat aged father.

"The gun————indeed is mine." His voice hoarse as he admitted: "Five Glock 19s in total, all obtained years ago through special channels, well maintained."

Inspector Kashiwagi Jin and Inspector Date Nagamune felt a tightening in their chests, awaiting the rest.

"But three were stolen." Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya lifted his head, his eyes bloodshot, swirling with anger, shame, and a deeper, more complex pain: "The thief of the guns————is my son, Kurashi Junxiong."

This answer surprised both veteran officers.

A son stealing his father's gun?

"Junxiong————has always hated me." Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya's voice carried bitterness: "Hated me for being a yakuza, hated this household, hated that his veins carried my blood. He————was rebellious from childhood, I————I failed to discipline him properly."

"Because we come from a violent gang background, he was bullied from childhood, discriminated against by teachers, forced to transfer schools frequently, unable to make friends, all because we are yakuza————he was bullied and also deemed to deserve it, while if someone in class threw things or threw money, everyone always suspected him first."

"Later he attended a third-rate university, infiltrated those radical student groups constantly shouting about overthrowing the system", establishing a new Japan", and felt that was the righteous path, while we yakuza are society's dregs." His tone was filled with self-mockery and helplessness: "I locked him at home, beat him, scolded him, cut off his financial support————

It was no use. He was like a stubborn donkey, the more beaten, the more he ran outward."

"So he stole your guns to carry out his revolution"?" Inspector Date Nagamune frowned.

"————That boy, from childhood was clever, unfortunately he used his talents in the wrong place." Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya heaved a heavy sigh: "About two months ago, I noticed three Glock 19s and a batch of matching ammunition were missing. Besides Junxiong, no one else knew of this. I sent people to find him, hoping to bring him back, but he was as slippery as a loach, and moreover————he joined that group called the Sakikawa Restoration Army", which seems to have some connections, helping him hide."

Sakikawa Restoration Army! Indeed it was them!

"Have you found him yet?" Inspector Kashiwagi Jin pressed.

Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya shook his head, his face showing a mixture of worry and the frustration of hatred toward iron that won't become steel; his fists clenched, knuckles whitening: "No, that idiot Junxiong! He thinks holding a gun makes him a revolutionary? He has no idea he's playing with fire! Behind those politicians are police, public security, the entire state apparatus! They will crush you ignorant brats who don't know the height of heaven or depth of earth into powder!"

In his roar, the anger was genuine, but so was the deep-seated, fearful dread lest his son tread the path of utter ruin.

This is the despairing roar of a yakuza father for his son who has gone astray and may soon face eternal perdition.

After venting, Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya turned his gaze back to Inspector Kashiwagi Jin and Inspector Date Nagamune, his eyes holding something akin to a pleading resolve: "I can tell you what I know about the Sakikawa Restoration Army", a few leads and my son's situation, but you must promise me one condition!"

"Condition?" Inspector Kashiwagi Jin asked directly, having seen too many yakuza figures, knowing there's no free lunch.

Chairman Kurashi Tetsuya drew a deep breath and said, word by word: "Spare my son, Kurashi Junxiong."

Inspector Kashiwagi Jin and Inspector Date Nagamune exchanged glances, both seeing shock in the other's eyes.

This yakuza boss, whose hands may be stained with blood, now proposes a condition that is actually to protect his son who has gone astray and may even have participated in planning a political assassination?

"He's just been brainwashed by those radical ideas, stole a gun, but he doesn't dare kill with his own hands—I'm sure he didn't take part in this operation!" Kurashiki Tetsuya pleaded urgently, as if convincing the police, and also himself: "He's still young, he still has a chance to turn back! If—if you can catch him before he makes a fatal mistake, or—or he could serve as a witness for the prosecution, provide crucial information—can't you give him a chance?

A chance not to spend his life in prison? Even if—even if letting me take his place in jail would do!"

The last sentence, he almost shouted it out.

The car fell silent again. Kashiwagi Jin's expression was grim, he was weighing things.

Before the law, especially concerning such a grave crime, negotiating terms is not easy.

But Kurashiki Tetsuya, as a key informed person, his cooperation holds immense value, perhaps able to quickly open a breakthrough point, and Kurashiki Junxiong, as a member of the "Sakikawa Restoration Army," his actual level of involvement and the information he holds, could also become key to dismantling that organization.

Date Nagamune, from Kurashiki Tetsuya's distorted expression and fierce words, clearly felt a kind of nearly tragic father-son bond.

Hatred and affection, violence and protection, in this twisted world of the yakuza, are intertwined in such an extreme and contradictory way.

Loyalty! Heavenly Principle!

Under extreme evil and injustice, there is also the affection of licking the calf!

No, this might just be the operating logic of the yakuza, in the absence of any legal or traditional moral constraints, the yakuza's organizational cohesion consists of nothing but profit and giri.

"We cannot make any promises, Kurashiki Chairman." Kashiwagi Jin finally spoke, tone solemn: "The law has its standards. But if the information you provide is truly of great value, and in subsequent arrest operations, Kurashiki Junxiong can actively cooperate, provide crucial information, perhaps during sentencing, prosecutors and judges will take it into account. This is all we can say now."

This is not a guarantee, but at least it's a glimmer of hope.

Kurashiki Tetsuya closed his eyes, as if exerting all his strength, slowly nodded: "Understood—I'll tell you everything I know. Just please—hurry up. I'm afraid—afraid he really will do something irreversible."

In the abandoned industrial zone at midnight, a transaction concerning blood kin, guilt, and faint redemption was quietly reached between police and criminals.

The Mercedes-Benz restarted, carrying three people with different thoughts, drove off from this darkness.

About fifteen minutes later, Kashiwagi Jin and Date Nagamune sat in the Toyota car, both somewhat silent.

Tonight's plan went very smoothly, but the result turned out far beyond their expectations.

Father a hero, son a bastard?

Seems not right.

Father a bastard, son a hero?

Seems not right either.

Dragons beget dragons, phoenixes beget phoenixes, will a rat's son dig holes?

Still seems not right!

After a long while, Date couldn't help but say: "Really interesting—father is a yakuza boss, son is a revolutionary fighter, the son stole his father's gun to join the revolution, while the father, as a yakuza boss, pleads with the police for his son—what the hell is this?"

"Well, that's not so strange." Kashiwagi Jin sighed.

"Where's anything normal about this? Joining the Restoration Army with such an identity—isn't that exactly carrying original sin?" Date Nagamune couldn't help but say.

"Then aren't you the same? Date San." Kashiwagi Jin gripped the steering wheel: "You're working so hard, aren't you just trying to wash away the original sin of your old nobility and former self-defense official status?"

Date Nagamune's expression froze.

"Between me and Uesugi, we don't need to spell things out this clearly." Kashiwagi Jin spoke meaningfully: "But no matter what, thank you for your help this time—I'll tell Uesugi about your splendid performance."

"Hmph~ You don't need to say that—Uesugi Chief is what kind of person, he naturally knows." Date Nagamune couldn't help but hum somewhat proudly.

Kashiwagi Jin glanced at Date Nagamune, shook his head.

This guy should now understand why Kurashiki Junxiong joined that radical extremist organization, right?

People, after all, are lonely.

Everyone, is yearning to gain others' approval!

Even he is the same!

Uesugi, I will definitely make you approve of me!

Definitely!!!

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