Chapter 118: The Yamakawa Family’s Chief of Staff Really Knows How to Get Things Done

Minato Ward, Tokyo—Mita 3-chome.

Tonight, Inagawa Kai chairman Inagawa Hiro was spending the night at one of his residences there. At fifty-two, his energy was far from what it had once been, and he had gone to bed early. But just as he was sleeping soundly, a ringing telephone woke him.

“Ring-ring! Ring-ring-ring!”

“Hello?” he mumbled, opening his eyes and reaching for the telephone beside the bed.

The call came from a bodyguard in the living room downstairs. In a deferential voice, he said, “Chairman, Yamagawa family chief secretary Yamagawa Chiyu wishes to see you. He says he has come to present you with a gift.”

“Damn it!” Inagawa Hiro cursed irritably at having his pleasant dream disturbed. But he also knew that if Yamagawa Chiyu had come to see him so late at night, it must be for something important.

“Tell him to wait downstairs.”

More importantly, Inagawa Hiro knew that the Yamagawa family was under Aoyama Hidenobu’s protection. He had just made a decision unfavorable to Aoyama Hidenobu, and the Yamagawas’ sudden visit might have something to do with it. He needed to find out.

“Yes, sir!”

After waiting for Inagawa Hiro to hang up, the bodyguard walked toward the door. Bowing to the short, somewhat unattractive Yamagawa Chiyu, he said, “My apologies for keeping you waiting, Chief Secretary Yamagawa. Please come inside.”

The several bodyguards blocking Yamagawa Chiyu’s way bowed to him, then stepped aside.

“Yes, sir!”

Yamagawa Chiyu returned the bow, then waved to signal his men to remain outside. Carrying a square gift box, he swaggered into the living room alone.

He was Yamagawa Kazuki’s cousin.

He was also Yamagawa Kazuki’s right-hand man.

Yamagawa Kazuki had been fat since childhood, while Yamagawa Chiyu was short and ugly. Ostracized by the other children their age, the two had no choice but to cling together for warmth…

Of course, rather than say they had banded together for comfort, it would be more accurate to say that they had joined forces to torment those who had ostracized them—turning the tables on the students who had tried to bully them.

Both men were ruthless, reckless, slightly unhinged, and warped. As a result, they had grown extremely close.

After sitting in the living room for three to five minutes, Yamagawa Chiyu heard footsteps. Inagawa Hiro slowly descended the stairs, leaning on the banister. He was wearing pajamas, and his hair had turned mostly white.

“Chairman Inagawa, I apologize for disturbing you so late at night. It was presumptuous of me to visit,” Yamagawa Chiyu said, rising and bowing.

Inagawa Hiro’s expression was displeased. He left Yamagawa Chiyu standing there and only spoke after walking over to the sofa and sitting down.

“If you knew it was presumptuous, you shouldn’t have come. I assume you have something important to say. I hope you won’t disappoint me.”

“Yes, sir!”

A brilliant smile spread across Yamagawa Chiyu’s wrinkled face. He lifted the gift box with both hands and offered it to Inagawa Hiro.

“You certainly won’t be disappointed.”

Inagawa Hiro merely crossed his legs and remained unmoved.

The bodyguard behind him accepted the gift box. The moment he opened it, he let out a startled cry. The box slipped from his hands and crashed to the floor. In an instant, blood splattered everywhere, and a severed, blood-soaked head and a piece of flesh rolled out.

“Protect the chairman!”

Several bodyguards in the living room immediately drew their pistols and surrounded Yamagawa Chiyu.

Although Inagawa Hiro was a true heir of the underworld, his dealings had always been with the upper echelons of organized crime. He had never witnessed such a gruesome scene.

At his position, he had never needed to kill anyone personally.

After standing there in shock for a moment, nausea and fury surged through him. He glared at Yamagawa Chiyu.

“Damn it! What is the meaning of this?”

“Hahahahahaha!”

With guns pointed at him, Yamagawa Chiyu remained completely calm. Instead, he burst into laughter, slapped his forehead, and feigned regret.

“Ah, it seems Chairman Inagawa hasn’t recognized whose head this is yet. My mistake—entirely my lack of foresight. Please wait a moment while I put it back together.”

With that, under the uncertain and astonished gazes of everyone present, he bent down, picked up the head and the bloodstained piece of flesh, and placed them on the coffee table.

He wiped the blood from the surface of the head with his sleeve, then pressed the piece of flesh against the missing portion of the cheek.

When he had finished, he turned the head to face Inagawa Hiro and grinned.

“I’ve put the face back together. Do you recognize him now, Chairman Inagawa?”

“Chief Secretary Kameda! Kameda Sei, chief secretary of the Senju family!” one of Inagawa Hiro’s bodyguards recognized him first. His pupils contracted sharply as he shouted in horror.

Inagawa Hiro shot to his feet. Shock and fury twisted his face as he pointed at Yamagawa Chiyu and demanded, “What is the Yamagawa family trying to do? Have you come to declare war? Even the Sumiyoshi Association wouldn’t have the nerve to kill a member of the Inagawa family and then bring his head here to provoke me! Yamagawa Kazuki is courting death!”

He had already guessed why Kameda Sei had died, and he knew exactly why Yamagawa Chiyu had delivered the head. But he deliberately turned the accusation back on them, pretending to know nothing about the matter.

Otherwise, if he admitted that he had issued the order, then even if war broke out, they would have no justification on their side.

“The one courting death isn’t our chairman. You know very well who it is, Chairman Inagawa.”

Yamagawa Chiyu pulled out several tissues and wiped his hands. Then he took out a voice recorder and pressed the play button.

“Chairman Inagawa, you should listen to this as well.”

“Static… It was an order from Inagawa Kai director Aota Tetsuya. The Senju family only…”

After hearing the recording, Inagawa Hiro’s expression shifted unpredictably.

He had not expected them to have recorded the conversation.

“Did you know about this, Chairman Inagawa? If you did, are you planning to go to war? The Yamagawa family may be small, but we are willing to shed the last drop of our blood for Mr. Aoyama! If you didn’t know, then…” Yamagawa Chiyu gave a mocking smile as he put away the recorder. “Your control over the old retainers left behind by your father is truly worrying, Chairman Inagawa.”

One of Inagawa Hiro’s bodyguards flew into a rage.

“Damn you! How dare you show such disrespect to our chairman!”

“Mr. Aoyama wants an explanation. You have twenty-four hours to respond.”

Yamagawa Chiyu ignored the bodyguard entirely. He merely bowed slightly to Inagawa Hiro.

“Chairman!”

Another bodyguard hurried into the room. After glancing at Yamagawa Chiyu, he leaned close to Inagawa Hiro’s ear and whispered, “Several of our businesses throughout Tokyo have been attacked by unidentified assailants. Numerous casinos and clubs have also been raided by the police. An officer we know says the order was issued on an emergency basis by the Tokyo Metropolitan Public Safety Commission.”

Inagawa Hiro abruptly looked up at Yamagawa Chiyu.

“Giving you twenty-four hours doesn’t mean Mr. Aoyama is willing to wait that long,” Yamagawa Chiyu said with a smile. “It means that if you fail to respond within twenty-four hours, the Inagawa family will pay the price.”

Inagawa Hiro was livid. At the same time, he was deeply shaken. How had Aoyama Hidenobu, a mere police inspector, managed to launch such a powerful counterattack?

What gave him that kind of power?

“Ring-ring! Ring-ring!”

Suddenly, the telephone began ringing urgently.

A bodyguard hurried over and picked it up.

“Yes! Yes!”

He quickly set the receiver down and approached Inagawa Hiro.

“Sir, it’s your father. He wants to speak with you.”

Inagawa Hiro walked over, picked up the receiver, slightly bent his waist, and called out respectfully, “Father.”

“Hiro, hand Aota over.”

“Father!”

Inagawa Hiro raised his voice.

“I received word that tonight’s police operation was personally ordered by Hikawa Juro, chairman of the National Public Safety Commission. We must show them that we understand the situation.”

“Aota is an old member of the Inagawa family. He should make a sacrifice for the family. Also, have Aota tell Aoyama Hidenobu that the mastermind behind everything was Kurosawa Makoto. He won’t have a chance to settle accounts with us over our betrayal.”

“Beyond that, I’ll contact that old bastard Hori Masao and have him mediate. We’ll offer Aoyama Hidenobu some compensation as well, and then this matter will be over.”

“But, Father, will that man accept such an outcome?” Inagawa Hiro asked doubtfully.

Aoyama Hidenobu was young and hot-blooded. They had nearly killed him this time. Surely he would not let the matter go so easily.

“He’s a clever man. Clever men know when to stand firm and when to compromise. He has the Public Safety Commission behind him, but the Inagawa family has connections there as well. We simply don’t want to escalate the situation or engage in a pointless struggle. He may be unwilling, but he’ll have to accept it.”

Inagawa Hiro was unwilling too.

It was one thing to compromise with those high-ranking figures who stood above everyone else. But now they were being forced to compromise with a mere police inspector. To him, it was nothing short of humiliating.

Still, he had no choice but to obey his father’s orders. After drawing a deep breath, he answered, “Yes, Father. I understand.”

Only after his father hung up did he lower the receiver. Turning toward Yamagawa Chiyu, he said coldly, “I knew nothing about this. Director Aota acted entirely on his own. I will hand him over to you. As for why he did it, you can interrogate him yourselves.”

“It’s good to be powerful and well established,” Yamagawa Chiyu remarked with a sigh. “You always have someone to hand over. Unlike us—we’re a small family with little backing. When something like this happens, all we can do is fight to the death. There’s no one we can sacrifice to keep ourselves safe.”

He had barely begun speaking, and already every word was dripping with sarcasm.

“Damn you!”

Inagawa Hiro was already seething. The blatant mockery finally pushed him past the limits of his restraint. He stepped forward and slapped Yamagawa Chiyu hard across the face.

“You’re nothing but Aoyama Hidenobu’s dog, and you dare bark at me?”

“I am Mr. Aoyama’s dog. But what about you, Chairman Inagawa?”

Yamagawa Chiyu touched the mark on his cheek, then leaned toward Inagawa Hiro.

“Woof, woof. Woof.”

Inagawa Hiro’s face twitched with fury.

“Chairman Inagawa, thank you for your time.”

Yamagawa Chiyu took a step back, bowed, and strode away.

“Damn it!”

Inagawa Hiro bent over and swept everything from the coffee table onto the floor. Bracing himself against the table, he gasped for breath.

…………………………

Two o’clock in the morning.

On the rooftop of a high-rise building, a cold wind howled.

Aota Tetsuya, director of the Inagawa family, stood at the edge of the roof with two men restraining him. Already seventy years old, he was small and frail, and the wind whipped tears from his eyes.

Not far away, Yamagawa Kazuki was speaking with Aoyama Hidenobu on the telephone.

“Mr. Aoyama, Aota has confessed everything. He says Kurosawa Makoto ordered him to do it.”

“Kurosawa Makoto will be released on bail soon. Have the man you found locate him before then. On the day he is released, make sure he plays the role he is meant to play,” Aoyama Hidenobu ordered.

An eye for an eye. A favor returned in kind.

They would send Kurosawa Makoto skyward in a dump truck.

“Yes, sir,” Yamagawa Kazuki replied.

“Send him downstairs,” Aoyama Hidenobu added.

“Yes, sir.”

Still holding the telephone, Yamagawa Kazuki walked to the edge of the rooftop and waved to his two men.

They threw Aota Tetsuya off the roof.

“Ahhhhhhh… crash!”

Hearing the scream and the sound of a heavy body striking the ground through the telephone, Aoyama Hidenobu hung up.

Of course, he knew that Aota Tetsuya was merely a scapegoat offered up by the Inagawa family. But for now, he had no choice but to accept it. He was still too weak.

The Inagawa family was willing to sacrifice one of its senior members to give him an explanation only because they had taken the Hikawa and Asai families into consideration. Otherwise, not only would they have refused to give him any explanation, a second wave of attacks would have followed immediately.

“I’ll remember this. We’ll take it slowly.”

Aoyama Hidenobu spoke to himself.

He had originally believed in the principle that peace was the greatest virtue. Once the automated lending machines came onto the market, he had planned to let the Sumiyoshi Association and the other interested factions fight it out, then sit down and negotiate. He would give the Yamaguchi-gumi, the Inagawa family, and the other organizations a share of the automated lending machine business, making the pie larger for everyone and allowing them all to profit together.

But now he had changed his mind.

He would use this opportunity to make the Inagawa family pay for trying to kill him. Tonight’s events would merely be the first installment of interest.

“What have you remembered, Hidenobu?”

Uchida Yuki, who had been sleeping beside him, had been awakened by his voice.

She had fallen asleep in his hospital room when she came to visit him that evening.

She had slept all the way until now.

Aoyama Hidenobu gently stroked her head and said softly, “It’s nothing. Go back to sleep, Yuki.”

“Oh.”