Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 230, Major Breakthrough and New Mysteries
At dawn on Hakkeijima Island, the sea breeze howled along Tokyo Bay. A line of police cars were parked near Hakkeijima Island. Hundreds of police officers from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Special Investigation Headquarters for the serial body dumping case had arrived. Surrounded by the sound of sirens, the officers watched as Uesugi Muneyuki performed autopsies on two highly decomposed bodies.

The two deceased were Sasaki Hisato and Fujisaki Katsumaru. Sasaki Hisato was the tall, strong, and powerful man that Uesugi Muneyuki had met, who was not fat and had streamlined muscles all over his body. Fujisaki Katsumaru was the short man who was particularly thin, only about 1.6 meters tall, and whose waist was a little wider than an A4 sheet of paper. He successfully climbed over the small bathroom window and entered the Igarashi residence.

"This is it!" Inspector Kosaka found two black plastic bags in the trunk, containing Igarashi Aiko's lower limbs and head, which she hadn't had time to discard yet.

"Eek!" Minami instinctively stepped back, quickly pinching her nose. Her legs, encased in stockings and high heels, retreated rapidly along the concrete, pulling Erina along with her.

Erina was more curious, while Ishihara Mikoto followed Uesugi Muneyuki around him to examine him.

"How is it, Uesugi-kun? Are you sure?" Inspector Higurashi squatted down next to Uesugi Muneyuki, frowning as he looked at the bodies of Sasaki Hisato and Fujisaki Katsuya: "Are you sure it wasn't an accident?"

“No.” Uesugi Muneyuki shook his head directly, pointing to the corpse: “Normally, when a person drowns, a large amount of water enters the lungs due to breathing and the piston-like action of the lungs, causing water to accumulate in the lungs, eventually leading to drowning.”

"If it is not drowning, a person will not breathe after death, so a large amount of air will remain in the lungs, forming an environment similar to a balloon. At this time, the body will not sink, but will float because there is a large amount of air in the lungs and body."

"Therefore, the simplest rule of thumb is that most bodies that float to the surface of water are not drowned."

"Uesugi Muneyuki said with a frown."

This is actually a very simple forensic medicine. According to forensic experience, even if a body that did not drown is tied with a 5-10 kg weight, it may still float to the surface of the sea. There was even a case in history where the deceased was tied to a refrigerator, and the body still floated to the surface of the water and was discovered after drifting for about 20 kilometers.

"The bodies appear to have died from drowning, but they were actually already dead before they fell into the water," Mikoto Ishihara confirmed. "This wasn't an accidental fall into the sea; it was murder!"

"Yes, or, after committing the crime, someone put two people in the car and let them fall into the sea naturally, or the murderer was in the car at the time, committed the crime, and then left."

“These two people look like they drowned, and the cause of death is indeed suffocation. They were trapped in the car and couldn’t float. If they were submerged in water for a long time, water would indeed slowly enter their lungs, creating a false impression that looks like drowning. However…” Uesugi Muneyuki said calmly, “But precisely because their bodies were in the closed environment of the submerged car, the air in their lungs wouldn’t escape, which would expose the truth that their deaths were not accidental!”

"I see!" Inspector Higurashi and Inspector Kashiwagi nodded.

I learned something new!

“I see. So, there are two possibilities.” Chief Sugishita Ukyo of the First Investigation Division paced slowly with his hands behind his back. “First, the minor collision was an accident. Sasaki Hisato was already struggling financially. After the accident, he was in trouble with the vehicle and had to pay compensation. Perhaps Ms. Aiko’s words were also quite harsh, which made him hold a grudge. Afterwards, the two of them followed Ms. Aiko to find out the location of her house and then took the opportunity to commit the crime. They kidnapped Aiko and demanded that she give up the compensation and instead demand his own repair and medical expenses. The negotiations broke down, and Sasaki Hisato eventually killed Aiko.”

"When the yakuza learned of this, the higher-ups quickly realized that Sasaki had committed a serious crime and had no choice but to kill him to cover it up, which led to this accidental fall into the sea."

Everyone nodded in agreement; this was a fairly reasonable explanation.

Uesugi Muneyuki had a different opinion, and he continued, "Besides that, there is a second explanation."

"The minor collision was not an accident. As an open member of the yakuza, Sasaki Hisato deliberately caused the collision with Ms. Igarashi Aiko under orders. Afterwards, the two parties began to negotiate compensation. Sasaki got the opportunity to contact Ms. Igarashi, then followed her home to confirm her location, and waited for the right moment to commit the crime."

"After successfully committing the crime, Sasaki Hisato planned to dispose of the body as instructed by the organization, but the organization had already planned to silence him and his accomplices."

When Uesugi Muneyuki mentioned the second possibility, everyone's expression turned serious.

“Uesugi-kun is right, the second possibility also exists.” Sugishita Ukyo sighed, his hands behind his back. “Based on our investigation of Ms. Igarashi, it’s impossible that she wouldn’t mention that she is a department head at Mitsui Properties, and she might even mention her family.”

"Section Chief, and Uesugi-kun, which one do you think it should be?" Inspector Higurashi asked.

“Without a doubt, it’s the second one.” “It’s the second one.” Sugishita Ukyo and Uesugi Muneyuki said simultaneously without hesitation.

"But the yakuza probably didn't order the killing." "The killing must have been an accident."

Sugishita Ukyo and Uesugi Muneyuki spoke at the same time again.

Then, Uesugi and Sugishita from the Metropolitan Police Department looked at each other with astonishment.

You old man?

You little rascal?

Uesugi Muneyuki was even more surprised. He had used the Soul Contract to summon a spirit. In the Soul Contract, Sasaki Hisato's resentful and mournful spirit told Uesugi Muneyuki what was going on.

The minor collision was personally orchestrated by a high-ranking member of the Kudo-kai, the yakuza organization behind Hisato Sasaki!
Kudo Gen'i, a high-ranking member of the Kudo Association, instructed Sasaki to deliberately cause a minor collision with Igarashi Aiko and harass her in order to hinder the smooth progress of the entire Yokohama City revitalization plan.

Kudo promised to send Sasaki Hisato to Southeast Asia afterward and give him 60 million yen.

Sasaki Hisato carried out the Kudo Association's request, but Igarashi Aiko resolutely refused to cooperate.

"I didn't intend to kill her!" Sasaki Hisato said to Uesugi Muneyuki. "She tried to escape and recognized me, so I had no choice but to kill her!"

How exactly did you die?

There were people on the bus! We confirmed that there was no one on the bus, but there were people on the bus!

Sasaki Hisato had been dead for a long time, and his soul was very weak. Uesugi Muneyuki quickly asked a few questions, and his soul dissipated on the spot.

The other accomplice was kept completely in the dark. He didn't even understand what was going on, and only knew that he was following the "squad leader".

Uesugi Muneyuki only learned the whole story after cheating, but how did Sugishita Ukyo, that old man, deduce it?
As if sensing Uesugi Muneyuki's question, Sugishita Ukyo smiled and said, "Don't be surprised. I'm 56 years old this year. I've witnessed the rise and fall of yakuza groups. At this point, murder is the last resort, especially since the perpetrator is an employee of the Mitsui Sumitomo Group." "If that's the case, this incident... let's report it to headquarters!" Inspector Higurashi said to everyone present.

Uesugi Muneyuki, Watanabe Minami, Kosaka Kashiwagi, Shimano Itami, and the others all nodded.

Only Sugishita Ukyo hesitated for a moment. Seeing that everyone was looking at him, the section chief paused for a long time before silently nodding.

The Metropolitan Police Department reacted very quickly. After listening to the report, Watanabe Eiji, who had been up all night, told everyone to stay put and that new instructions would be given soon.

And so, with the sea breeze howling at four in the morning, hundreds of police officers waited beside the salvaged car.

Uesugi Muneyuki tried to flashback to his death, but Sasaki Hisato didn't know who attacked them from behind. When he flashed back again, he saw the scene of Igarashi Aiko's death, which was very similar to the scene of Igarashi Aiko's death. After being kidnapped, the female department head resolutely refused to cooperate, spoke fiercely, and even tried to escape. Sasaki Hisato had no choice but to kill her.

It seems that all the questions have been answered.

But there's still one part that doesn't make sense.

The case was solved, but the trail to the Tokyo Women's University student went cold again.

Assuming these are two different and unrelated cases, why would body parts be found in the same location?

This is yet another new mystery.

While Uesugi Muneyuki was still pondering, the people at the Metropolitan Police Department had already relaxed considerably. In any case, this case, which had garnered attention both domestically and internationally and involved 1.5 trillion yen, had been solved, at least from a criminal perspective. The murderer was dead, and they could now write their report.

Another great achievement!
Kashiwagi Jin was already imagining what kind of commendation he would receive afterward and how he would be interviewed. Kosaka Shinichiro, on the other hand, was looking at Inspector Higurashi's back with anticipation, wondering when he would be promoted. Minami and Inspector Okada were discussing the case and how to write the report.

Erena and Mikoto were bickering. The tall beauty was angry that she hadn't realized immediately that the two hadn't drowned accidentally, even though Uesugi had already said so. Mikoto tried to explain the principles, but the complicated forensic terminology left Erena dizzy. She said she didn't want to hear what Uesugi had to say.

"Don't worry, Uesugi-kun." Inspector Higurashi couldn't help but come to Uesugi Muneyuki's side when he saw him looking worried. He pointed into the distance and said, "The Yokosuka U.S. military base is just over there. If all else fails, ask them for help."

"Helping to solve the low birth rate? Speaking of which, how many Japanese of American descent have actually been left in Japan by the US military stationed there?" Uesugi Muneyuki, interrupted in his train of thought, also made a joke.

"I'm not entirely sure about that. The only thing I do know is that a survey conducted in Okinawa in the 1990s revealed that there were over 5000 Japanese of American descent near the US military bases." Inspector Higurashi looked into the distance. "Based on that standard, the three US military bases after the war probably left behind over 15000 people of American descent in Japan?"

"Then the actual number left should be more, probably around 30000 to 50000, but some are second or third generation and not considered direct descendants of the US military." Uesugi Muneyuki became interested: "After all, it involves personal and family privacy, and often it is only discovered when the skin, hair and eye color are different at birth."

"There are quite a few pretty mixed-race people," Inspector Higurashi shrugged and chuckled. "Like Ikeda?"

"Isn't Ikeda of Filipino Hispanic descent? How can that be the same?"

"Almost, almost."

The two exchanged a few jokes, wondering why there hadn't been any news from the Metropolitan Police Department yet, when a voice from the night sky caused everyone present to change their expressions drastically.

A police helicopter streaked across the sky and landed near the salvage site on Hakkeijima Island.

Amidst the roaring rotors and swirling air currents, Superintendent General Eiji Watanabe and Chief Cabinet Secretary Kimiaki Onoda stepped off the helicopter one after the other.

"Attention, everyone! Salute!" shouted the Metropolitan Police Department counselor who followed closely behind.

The Superintendent General of Police and the Chief Cabinet Secretary of the National Police Agency actually arrived in person?
All the criminal police officers present bowed.

"I've been wanting to make an appearance like this in front of you for a long time. How about it, Ukyo? I finally managed to persuade Director Watanabe to send this helicopter!" Before Watanabe Eiji could speak, Onoda Kimiaki ran up to Sugishita Ukyo and showed off, "Isn't it cool?"

"Well, a little bit..." Sugishita Ukyo said with a straight face, not knowing what to say.

"Don't be so serious. I wouldn't have come by helicopter if I wasn't showing it to Ukyo." Chief Cabinet Secretary Onoda was disappointed with Sugishita Ukyo's reaction: "Convincing Tokyo Air Traffic Control isn't that easy."

"Could you please be normal? Chief Cabinet Secretary, this is a very serious matter," Sugishita Ukyo could only reply.

"That's precisely why we came in person—because this is a very serious matter." Chief Cabinet Secretary Onoda quickly shifted from a joking tone to a serious expression: "Court Witness Uesugi?"

"Yes." Uesugi Muneyuki made direct eye contact with Onoda Kimiaki for the first time.

“Well done. This case can be closed.” Chief Cabinet Secretary Onoda nodded. “Next, the Public Security Bureau will take over.”

"what?!"

"The Public Security Bureau has been silent for too long. It's time for the whole society to understand once again the necessity of the Public Security Bureau and its importance to Japan."

Chief Cabinet Secretary Onoda said expressionlessly, "Get ready to witness our big move."

"They dared to cause such a big incident. This is no ordinary gang. We must take strong measures."

"Your and Ukyo's analysis makes a lot of sense, but whether it's the first possibility or the second possibility, it's completely irrelevant."

(End of this chapter)