Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 218, The Wrath of the Tycoon

The Metropolitan Police Department acted swiftly, recovering body parts in the early morning, receiving the report in the morning, starting autopsies and tests at noon, obtaining results by comparing DNA in the afternoon, and by evening, the Mitsui Sumitomo Group, which was the first to be greatly affected and impacted in the Yokohama case and even had one executive officer arrested and imprisoned, could no longer hold back and urgently convened a board meeting.

In the evening, more than 30 board members of the Mitsui Sumitomo Group in Tokyo gathered together, with only one empty seat, which was obviously reserved for Executive Director Sato.

After receiving a call personally answered by Superintendent General Eiji Watanabe, Koichi Miyata, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, and Jun Ota, President of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, arrived in person. In addition, Kenichi Hori, Chairman of the Futaki-kai and President of Mitsui & Co., Ltd., also came, and Nagayuki Mitsui, President of Mitsui Properties, also arrived by emergency flight.

The CEOs of more than thirty companies under the Sumitomo Mitsui Group frowned; each of them knew what had happened.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the Tokyo Tower and a sea of ​​neon lights shone brightly under the night sky, but no one in the meeting was distracted by gazing at them. Around a 15-meter-long ebony conference table, more than 30 middle-aged and elderly men in suits sat upright, their ties and cufflinks impeccably fastened. Nearly half of them had graying hair. Among the piles of documents spread out in front of them, bold headings such as "Emergency Plan," "Project Proposal Interrupted," and "Construction Plan Frozen" were faintly visible. The air was filled with the bitterness of freshly ground coffee and a tense silence, with only the hum of the central air conditioning barely filling the void.

Everyone remained silent, but inside, a visible storm was brewing.

They were getting angry!

Japan's zaibatsu (financial conglomerates) were established during the Meiji era. Benefiting from the opening of the country by the Black Ships and the Meiji Restoration, a large group of businessmen engaged in industry and finance began to rise rapidly. They received the Meiji government's favor by sponsoring the new imperial government to allocate military supplies and pay, and thus controlled the country's industry and finance. On this basis, they formed a political and business group, and acted as accomplices and funders in Japan's series of foreign aggressions, committing countless crimes.

But that was a very common phenomenon at that time; everyone did it. It's just that Japan has its own unique national circumstances, which made the combination particularly close.

After World War I, the Mitsui zaibatsu had become the largest monopoly capital group in all of Japan.

After World War II, Emperor Munakata, the fifth-ranking official, took over the island nation and dealt with postwar affairs. Emperor Munakata astutely discovered the intricate connections and interdependent relationships between the Japanese zaibatsu system and the old Japanese government system, believing that this was one of the roots of Japanese nationalism. Therefore, he decided to take strong action, wielding an iron fist against the major zaibatsu, confiscating their monopolistic assets, dissolving key departments, and dismantling the zaibatsu system to make its subordinate companies independent companies.

Emperor Mai wanted to grasp both hands firmly, and to make both hands strong, sweeping away all the politics of the Chinese nation, clans, nobles, and tycoons in one fell swoop.

Most of the property was confiscated, and the zaibatsu system was ostensibly dissolved. Emperor Mai's reforms were undoubtedly very successful. However, just as he was preparing to further and more thoroughly resolve the major zaibatsu, the Korean War broke out.

The outbreak of the Korean War prevented Emperor Macdonald from completing the final step. In response to the war, the United States needed a frontline logistics center, a light industrial processing point, and a heavy industrial base. Emperor Macdonald slightly relaxed the restrictions, allowing companies and trading companies under the zaibatsu to hold shares and provide guarantees for each other again, thus allowing the old zaibatsu to retain their last bit of vitality.

In hindsight, Emperor Macdonald's handling of the situation was not problematic. Such a large military order and supply required entities of sufficient size to take it over. Therefore, it was necessary to allow the companies undertaking the order to hold shares and provide guarantees for each other to manage risk. Otherwise, even a country as large as the United States would have a hard time handling a default.

Thanks to the "special orders" worth $50 billion in the 50s, the zaibatsu were able to catch their breath and solve the employment problem for nearly ten million people. The old zaibatsu were reorganized into new conglomerates according to the will of Emperor Mai and rose again. With the help of the economic boom, they formed the current major conglomerates.

Having been nearly wiped out by the iron fist, Japanese conglomerates are far less monopolistic than their South Korean counterparts. A conglomerate is essentially a loose "confederation," bound together by mutual shareholding, guarantees, and joint mortgages. It is a horizontal alliance, with professional brokers making group decisions internally. It is more decentralized and emphasizes cooperation and internal resource exchange.

South Korean chaebols are companies directly controlled by a single family through multiple complex shareholding structures, which constitutes direct control.

The Mitsui Sumitomo Group is a combination of the Mitsui Group and the Sumitomo Group. The two groups, through the Mitsui Sumitomo Financial Group, have become one of the three largest financial entities in Japan.

Kenichi Hori, president of Mitsui & Co., sat at the head of the long table, his left hand unconsciously stroking the edge of his teacup, while his right hand drew rapid short lines on his notebook with a fountain pen. He did not speak, but his gaze swept across the room—this was the unspoken rule of the Niki Company: when a crisis affects multiple companies, the president of the core trading company must be the first to break the deadlock.

"The Metropolitan Police Department has delivered devastating news: Igarashi, the department head of Mitsui Properties, has been confirmed dead. DNA testing has confirmed that the body parts found in Tokyo Bay this morning were indeed those of Igarashi."

"Gentlemen, just a short while ago, Inspector Watanabe of the Metropolitan Police Department personally called to confirm this news. Sakuradamon asked us what our plans are for this matter?"

Mitsui Estate President Naganori Mitsui pushed a stack of reports to the center of the long table, his fingertips tapping heavily on the paper: "What do you mean, 'what to do'? What is Sakuradamon thinking? Do they think this is all a staged event by Mitsui Estate?"

"Executive Director Sato has been in there for several days now. According to the Nishimura Asahi office, Sato insists that he didn't do it." Koichi Miyata, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, twitched his gray eyebrows: "We also believe that Sato is not that kind of person!"

"That's not the point," Jun Ota, CEO of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, leaned back in his chair, his voice calm yet authoritative. "The point is, Igarashi is dead! He was murdered! And his body was dismembered and dumped in Tokyo Bay!"

"This will cause our entire Yokohama International Logistics Center project to be shelved! Not only will the entire project, worth 1.5 trillion yen, need to be re-evaluated, but what about this year's financial statements? If the financing plan collapses... the risk control committee will launch an investigation against us."

"Not only that, we absolutely cannot set this precedent." Mitsui & Co. President Kenichi Hori said coldly, "No matter the reason, whether it is business competition, whether it involves Igarashi's father's past personal revenge, or whether it involves the Yakuza, the face of our Mitsui Group and our Futaki-kai cannot be tarnished."

"A senior executive of Mitsui Properties has been murdered and his body dumped in Tokyo Bay. If we do nothing, who in Japan or even the world will respect our group?"

"If this continues, Sumitomo Mitsui will become a laughing stock in the international community!"

Everyone nodded in agreement, and the large group of elderly men with gray hair in the Er Mu Association felt angry.

Internal struggles within the group are one thing, infighting over resources is another, and family feuds are yet another.

The fact that a high-ranking executive of Mitsui Properties was murdered and his body dumped in Tokyo Bay is a huge blow to the reputation of the entire group!

This is something that no one can accept!
Today they can kill the minister, tomorrow they can kill the council members, and the day after tomorrow they can take care of all these old guys here? Where did this Yakuza come from? How dare they do this? I think you're tired of living!

Damn it, is Tokyo some kind of yakuza stronghold?
We must retaliate, and retaliate fiercely!

The people present quickly reached a consensus.

Just then, the president of Sumitomo Mitsui Insurance, his brow furrowed, suddenly interjected: "Tokio Marine Holdings and Nippon Life Insurance are also paying attention to this matter. They are also asking if we need to provide assistance? Or form a joint committee?"

Tokyo Marine Holdings and Nippon Life Insurance provided joint insurance for the entire Yokohama International Logistics Center project.

In the corner, two young secretaries hurried back and forth, silently handing the revised draft agreement to each company president. Kenichi Hori finally raised his hand to signal, speaking quickly and in a low voice: "If the project ultimately fails completely, the entire insurance chain of the joint insurance policy will collapse. Tokio Marine Holdings will need to pay up to 2300 billion yen in compensation, and Japan Life Insurance will pay 1500 billion yen."

He paused, then turned his gaze to Jun Ota: "Could this make up for the financing losses of our entire project?"

After a three-second silence, Jun Ota nodded slightly, and a soft sound came from under the table as a loose cufflink tapped against the arm of a chair—thankfully, there was insurance.

"That's unacceptable!" Mitsui Real Estate President Nagayuki Mitsui said angrily. "Tell the Metropolitan Police Department that we will investigate this thoroughly! The group will fully support and cooperate with the police's actions."

"However, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police insist that Sato was the one who did it..."

"No, we don't need to support the Kanagawa Prefectural Police; we only need to support the Metropolitan Police Department," Mitsui Nagayuki said. "The Kanagawa police—those who know, know—are not trustworthy!"

“Hmm.” Kenichi Hori, chairman of the Futaki-kai and president of Mitsui & Co., nodded. “Indeed, the Metropolitan Police Department seems more reliable, but… who can investigate this matter? If it’s not handled properly, it will have a huge impact on the reputation of our group. Moreover, we must also be careful of sabotage from other opposing forces.”

The president of Sumitomo Mitsui Insurance thought for a moment and then spoke up, "Tokio Marine Holdings and Nippon Life Insurance have a proposal regarding this matter."

"They want to appoint Uesugi Forensic Officer from the Special Missions Division of the First Investigation Section of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department to investigate this matter."

These words caused an uproar in the entire boardroom.

"Uesugi Forensic Examiner? Is that the Uesugi clan member from Yonezawa?"

"Yes, that's the one who investigated the University of Tokyo case, the Chiba serial murder case, and the Fujidai case!" Someone immediately remembered who Uesugi Muneyuki was.

"Oh, Bangxian's grandson, I remember now!"

"It's that kid who gets employees to use as an excuse to ask for annual leave, saying he needs a paid short vacation or something."

"And that FX Predator guy, thanks to his remarks, several mid-level managers in my company have gotten divorced."

"Let him handle this case? Indeed, if there's anyone everyone can trust, it's probably him."

"If it's Uesugi-kun, there's no need to worry about him deliberately changing the verdict for some reason. He's the kind of guy who dares to confront even the University of Tokyo and the District Public Prosecutors Office's Special Investigation Unit!"

"Mmm, if it's this guy..."

At 1 a.m., the presidents reached a consensus and left one after another, rubbing their temples as they got into the waiting black Toyota Century sedans.

Kenichi Hori, the president of the Futaki Association and Mitsui & Co., stayed behind last, gazing at the still brightly lit city outside the window. He sighed to his secretary beside him, "Notify the Metropolitan Police Department. We demand a thorough investigation to give all employees of Sumitomo Mitsui and all Japanese citizens an explanation. To this end, we are willing to provide all assistance within the scope permitted by law."

“However, we specifically requested that Uesugi Muneyuki investigate this case.”

"Also, notify Tokio Marine Holdings and Nippon Life Insurance that we need to form a special investigation committee as soon as possible to find out exactly what happened."

"Yes!"

As the car door closed, the president of the Ermu Association finally clenched his fists, unable to contain himself.

How did the country become like this?

Sumitomo Mitsui Group is furious!

(End of this chapter)