Chapter 862

The anonymous whistleblower letter entered the Metropolitan Police Department's internal procedures on the third day after the personnel transfer plan was announced.

The envelope bore no sender's name, and the postmark was from Asahi Ward, Tokyo.

The content of the whistleblower letter was very brief, with a few photocopied documents attached; the originals of those documents came from the internal system of the Police Agency Security Bureau, and the photocopies bore date stamps and circulation numbers, so clear that no professional knowledge was needed to understand them.

It was obvious that the information had been leaked from within Public Security to Yae Ken Tetsuya, flowing out from an active employee with permission to access those documents, spoken by someone who knew what Gawa Toshiki's group was planning.

Onoda Kimiaki stood by the window of his office, holding a cup of tea in his hand; outside, the Imperial Palace lay quietly spread in the afternoon sunlight. "Director General, indeed..." the secretary said anxiously: "Someone has found out! Eight or nine times out of ten it's that guy Uesugi Muneyuki!" After hearing the secretary's report, Onoda Kimiaki took a sip of tea and set the cup on the windowsill.

His expression showed no change; his gaze passed through the glass and fell on the building complex in the Kasumigaseki direction in the distance: "Someone leaked it by accident, but it wasn't me who leaked it—it was you who leaked it."

"What?" The secretary stood where he was, his lips slightly opening and then closing, but soon he straightened himself again: "Ha! It was I who carelessly leaked it! Red Bean Paste Private Mosaic!"

"Don't worry, I've already arranged a position for you. Auditor at the Audit Bureau of the Ministry of Finance, taking office next month." Onoda Kimiaki smiled: "When you go to a new place, you must work hard, and pay attention to Okada Jimukan—this Ministry of Finance Official is very capable."

"Haiyi!!!"

Ministry of Finance!

Upon hearing that name, the secretary's face instantly flushed red!

Audit Bureau of the Ministry of Finance!!!

After bowing deeply, the secretary turned and walked out of the office. That afternoon, he entered the Kanri Kankan of the Metropolitan Police Department. He admitted that a few months earlier he had carelessly taken an internal document out of the office, and the document had later been obtained by someone else. He did not know how the document ended up in Yae Ken Tetsuya's hands, but he was willing to bear full responsibility.

The investigation by the Kanri Kankan concluded here. The conclusion was "minor offense," not constituting criminal punishment. The secretary was transferred from his original post to the Audit Bureau of the Ministry of Finance. No one was arrested, no one was prosecuted, no one was questioned about "that night when the document was carelessly taken out—who exactly opened the file cabinet, who failed to close the drawer."

"File away!" Those few cold words gave the whistleblower letter its conclusion.

Yokohama Port, afternoon, sea breezes blowing in gusts.

Hasegawa Fukutokukan stood on the floating bridge at the pier, facing a white yacht before him.

Of course, this was not his yacht; it was lent to him by a friend in real estate, and he merely said, "Borrow it for a few days to clear my mind," which would not count as private property in the financial disclosure of public officials.

The personnel reassignment had already taken effect; he was about to cease being Deputy Superintendent.

His new position was Chief of Student Affairs at the University Police, overseeing student dormitories and the cafeteria, though he was dressed in casual clothes and appeared quite relaxed—a dark blue jacket, gray trousers, white sneakers. His hair was tousled by the sea breeze as he stood on the floating bridge waiting for the crew to untie the mooring rope, even having leisure to hum a song: "The waves of the Miluo River surge, chaotic clouds fly beside Mount Wu~"

"In this muddied world I stand alone, righteous indignation ignites and hot blood surges~"

"Order and chaos, rise and fall seem like a dream; worldly affairs truly resemble a single game of chess~"

Footsteps sounded from behind.

Hasegawa did not turn back: "You've come?"

"I have come."

"You should not have come."

"I have already come."

"After all, you still came."

"Yes, after all, I still came."

"So you've already investigated everything clearly?"

"Not quite—just a few small details left. I came precisely to lay everything out clearly."

Uesugi Muneyuki walked to his side, standing on the opposite side of the floating bridge, the two facing the same expanse of sea with one person's distance between them. "Well, what do you intend to ask?" Hasegawa Fukutokukan suddenly laughed with relief.

"This matter, from beginning to end, from eleven years ago to the previous Metropolitan Police Department siege hostage case, was entirely designed by Public Security Police themselves, right? The explosion at the harbor eleven years ago, the covering Public Security Police officer, that informant, that bomb—you deliberately manufactured several lives to make society value Public Security's existence, to get the National Diet to allocate more budget and power to you." Uesugi Muneyuki spoke.

The muscle beneath Hasegawa Fukutokukan's right eye twitched once, he squeezed the flesh on his face to close his right eye, and said nothing.

"Cao Liangming was your informant; it was he who brought in that bomb, not the Dehua Gang members themselves installing it. It was Public Security Police who placed it themselves."

Uesugi Muneyuki said coldly: "Even, some members of those so-called right-wing terrorists who also had information as members of that violent group—this is utter nonsense. 'But you needed that explosion, needed someone to die on that ship, needed someone afterward to ask: 'Why were Public Security Police there?' 'Why wasn't their information shared?' 'Why did people die?' These inquiries would become budget, become authority, become law. You used one bomb, four police lives, and countless bloody lives of the violent group to exchange for this matter—Parliament and Cabinet's attention and authority toward Public Security Police, and the law."

"I'm not wrong, am I?" Uesugi Muneyuki said softly.

"Hehehe, hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe!"

Hasegawa Soun laughed with relief.

He did not answer Uesugi Muneyuki's question, nor did he look at Uesugi Muneyuki.

"The Cold War ended, the Berlin Wall fell, the Soviet Union is gone."

"?" Uesugi Muneyuki tilted his head slightly, but did not interrupt him.

"The people of this country feel the threat has disappeared, feel Public Security Police no longer need such great power, such large funding, such high status. The Director General is now more often taken from the criminal investigation division. We have been marginalized, our budgets cut, our authority hollowed out. When the day comes that a real threat arrives, what will we use to block it? What will we use to protect this country?"

"Yes, yes, there were the cult incidents of the 1990s, and the 9/11 twin towers attack, but the Japanese people just have this nature—they insist Japan is among the top ten safest countries in the world, that terrorist attacks could never happen nearby, yet every day they are taxed, consumption tax rising from 5% to 8% to 10%, which is truly real and visible."