Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 225: The people of Uesugi, the gods of Uesugi
Former Section Chief of the Second Investigation Division, Masataka Igarashi, is tall and imposing. Unlike traditional Japanese men who have thinned hair by their sixties, he sports a thick, Showa-era slicked-back hairstyle. His hair is so thick that it's even longer than that of Eina Ikeda. His sideburns and beard are already white, and he has gained weight much more in middle age than Eiji Watanabe, with a large belly bulging out from under his shirt.

He was Sugishita Ukyo's former superior. After learning of his eldest daughter's disappearance on September 7, Igarashi Masataka, along with his wife and four children, began searching for her. During this time, they searched every corner of Yokohama and even Kanagawa Prefecture, posting missing person notices everywhere and offering a reward of 20 million yen.

In fact, based on Masataka Igarashi's experience in handling cases, if someone has been missing for more than 72 hours and there are no kidnappers demanding ransom, the probability of survival is almost zero. However, his family did not give up hope.

More than ten days later, Aiko Igarashi's body parts were discovered in Tokyo Bay.

The former section chief never imagined that his daughter would be dismembered in such a cruel way.

"It was I who killed my beloved son." The old father wept silently, and behind him, the whole family had cried until their tears ran dry.

"How do you know, sir? Is there any reason?" Sugishita Ukyo bowed politely, his expression unchanged. "Although it may be offensive, please, Section Chief, provide us with any possible clues. This will help us solve the case as soon as possible."

“Didn’t I tell you? Ukyo, and this forensic officer Uesugi.” Masataka Igarashi said with a heavy expression, “In my early years, when I was the head of the Second Division, I investigated many major illicit money cases, including but not limited to the Somei Academy donation case, the Funabashi Company smuggling case, the NEC illicit money case, and so on. I offended a lot of people.”

Uesugi Muneyuki nodded and frowned upon hearing this. He had heard about this from Eiji and Minami.

One important reason why Masataka Igarashi retired in his fifties to become a director at Mitsui Properties is that although he accumulated a lot of connections and resources during his tenure as the second section chief, he also offended many people.

This is also why the Second Investigation Division is not as good as the District Attorney's Office. The District Attorney's Office is not afraid of powerful people because they have American support behind them. The head of the Special Investigations Unit can do whatever he wants to both the political and business circles without fear of retaliation.

The Second Investigation Division did not.

"You mean, your daughter's situation was caused by you?" Sugishita Ukyo said calmly. "Could you provide a clearer explanation of that?"

“I’ve told Aiko so many times not to live alone, not to show her face in public, not to take on such a big project, but this child…” Igarashi Masataka just muttered to himself, “Why won’t she listen to her father?”

"Regarding this case, is there anything you can tell us?" Sugishita Ukyo interrupted his old superior again: "If there is anything, please tell us as soon as possible. If not, please go back for now and wait for our news! We need to rest."

"Hey! Ukyo, what kind of attitude is this?" Igarashi Masataka was enraged. The former section chief said angrily, "Is this how you treat your old boss and your beloved son's father?"

"And what is this all about? You're out conducting a search, yet you're staying in a hotel, asking to rest, and you're being so lazy! Is this how you handle a case? Show some effort! These are two lives! My daughter, my..." Igarashi Masataka was losing control of his emotions, especially when he saw Uesugi Muneyuki with her tie undone and looking drowsy, he became even more indignant: "That's my daughter, my daughter!"

“Mr. Igarashi, we understand your grief, and I understand your anger.” Uesugi Muneyuki sighed, “But I am human too, and I need to rest. We have to go to the site for investigation tomorrow.”

"You!" Igarashi Masataka couldn't stand Uesugi Muneyuki's work attitude the most. He grabbed Uesugi Muneyuki's collar with both hands, intending to teach this Japanese lost generation a lesson. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw several public security police officers come out and stare at him with wary eyes.

If he dares to make a move, the public security police will arrest him for obstructing official business.

The police have arrived too?
Masataka Igarashi suddenly realized something: he was no longer a member of the Metropolitan Police Department, nor was he the head of the Second Investigation Division.

He's just an old man who's now retired and turned into a corporate executive.

Thinking of this, Masataka Igarashi suddenly knelt down, shouted "I'm sorry," and then slammed his head heavily on the ground!

Uesugi Muneyuki and Sugishita Ukyo were both stunned by what they saw. Sugishita Ukyo quickly reached out to help him up: "Second Section Chief?! Please don't do this!"

"Please, everyone!" Igarashi Masataka knelt down in a standard dogeza, abandoning all his dignity, pleading with a hint of tears in his voice: "Please! You must seek justice for my son!"

Masataka Igarashi stated his judgment.

Ten minutes later, in the corridor of the Mitsui Garden Hotel, Uesugi Muneyuki and Section Chief Sugishita Ukyo walked side by side.

Uesugi Muneyuki still had displeasure on his face. He thought to himself that it was already 12 o'clock, and after a hard day's work, he was being questioned by the deceased's family. The spring breeze he had planned was also gone.

I'm so angry at Erina-sensei!
"It's really interesting. When I was still in Section 2, Section Chief Igarashi hated nothing more than the nagging families of victims and the pointless forced overtime. He once told me that the police are supposed to be upholding the law and order, but the first to violate labor laws are the police themselves. I never thought he would become like that too." Sugishita Ukyo said calmly, "I hope the police are on duty 24 hours a day, 365 days a year."

“People always become the very thing they used to hate.” Uesugi Muneyuki suddenly asked with interest, “Chief, how did you handle cases before?” “Hehe, that’s true.” Sugishita Ukyo thought for a moment, then smiled and said, “Does Uesugi-kun think that the work of a police officer is like what you did after you joined the Metropolitan Police Department? All sorts of major cases, murders, dismemberments, international attention, cabinet upheavals? One Special Investigations Headquarters case after another?”

“Actually, there are two characteristics to police work. First, prevention is better than prosecution. One shocking major case after another may be the result of the accumulation of all sorts of trivial cases and insignificant daily conflicts. Rather than solving a major case and making it on TV, I would rather there be no case at all.” Section Chief Sugishita Ukyo’s eyes were a little unfocused.

"The title of Marquis is not my intention, but I hope the sea will be peaceful."

"Secondly, the search work itself is complex. It is difficult for our criminal police to conduct searches entirely within the legal framework. Searches often rely on hard work and luck."

Uesugi Muneyuki nodded silently.

“People want police officers to be heroes, to be superheroes, but for most police officers, it’s just a job.” Seeing that Uesugi Muneyuki was willing to listen, Sugishita Ukyo continued, “We shouldn’t overly glorify it, Uesugi-kun. You deal with criminal cases, but me, having worked in the Life Safety Division for twenty years, do you know what I deal with?”

"Patrol officers deal with lost cats, asking for directions, and helping old ladies cross the street every day. Detectives are on the front lines between life and death. Public security intelligence and special operations teams are infiltrating to keep secrets. But in the Life Safety Division, I deal with minor crimes such as domestic violence, abandonment, relationship disputes, and juvenile delinquency. The Life Safety Division is also known as the 'isolated island of the Metropolitan Police Department'."

"But it is precisely in these minor crimes that the evil of human nature is contained."

"A working man defied the ban to visit his son and brought him his favorite cross-shaped pancakes, which brought tears to people's eyes. But he was actually unable to pay alimony and was preparing to commit suicide with his son."

"The mother in the family called the police claiming that her husband was abusing her and that she was divorcing him, but that was a fabrication. Her purpose was simply to fraudulently obtain single-parent family subsidies and alimony to beat up pachinko."

"A man who was swindled out of all his savings by a prostitute was desperate and went out on the street to attack other prostitutes at will."

“A couple who were deeply in love called the police 104 times in more than two years. Each time they said the other was going to kill them. If we didn’t do anything, they would complain about us. If we did do something, they would argue in bed and make up in bed. After that, they would complain about us interfering in their private relationship.”

"After more than two years, we finally received approval from our superiors to stop responding to calls for this couple and to stop accepting any complaints from them."

"However, because there was no police intervention, one day the man reported the case. Unable to control his emotions, he killed his girlfriend without police intervention or persuasion."

“The life safety class deals with these kinds of things every day. Many times we can’t even tell who the victim is and who the perpetrator is. Few police officers can stick with it. The turnover rate has been high for years.”

Uesugi Muneyuki remained silent upon hearing this. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Human innocence is a consumable. Enthusiasm will wear down, emotions will be depleted, and passion will gradually freeze. Over time, it will turn into a cold-blooded case-solving machine."

"Now I understand why it's always teenagers who save the world in anime and novels; adults would think it's better to just destroy it."

“That’s right.” Sugishita Ukyo nodded with a smile. “So don’t take it to heart, okay, Uesugi-kun? The former Second Section Chief really loved his daughter.”

"...I have a question, Section Chief." Uesugi Muneyuki suddenly became interested: "How have you managed to stay in the Life Safety Section for so long?"

"A heart full of enthusiasm must never be extinguished. Show compassion to the weak, help each other, and be able to make friends with people from any country. Even if this feeling has been betrayed a thousand times, this is my last wish." Sugishita Ukyo said slowly, "These are the words from the finale of a tokusatsu drama I watched when I was a child. It is because of these words that I have persevered until now, and I will continue to work hard in the future."

“I’m old now, Uesugi-kun. The future is yours.” Sugishita Ukyo turned around.

"But now it's yours." After Sugishita Ukyo's words of encouragement, Uesugi Muneyuki's resentment towards the deceased's family finally dissipated, and he suddenly began to truly understand Kashiwagi Jin.

While it's really annoying that guy used the presumption of guilt to convict himself, his enthusiasm for the case is commendable.

Being a police officer is just a job; they are not gods. But that's precisely why their enthusiasm is so precious.

He now understood why Sugishita Ukyo was able to become the head of the First Investigation Division at the age of 56, and why Chief Cabinet Secretary Onoda recommended and admired him so much.

Forever passionate, forever young.

People in the upper cedar, gods under the cedar.

(End of this chapter)