Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 383, Public Security Police Attack!
The special investigation headquarters of the Ebisu Gym in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, was brightly lit in the early hours of that night.

After Uesugi Muneyuki and Kashiwagi Jin successfully obtained intelligence through a method that was difficult to explain, and then released evidence of "reasonable suspicion," the entire Special Investigation Headquarters, especially the others, were utterly shocked.

Are gyms involved in an entire sex trafficking industry chain?

The First Investigation Division Chief, Sugishita Ukyo, along with Kosaka from the First Division, Kashiwagi from the Third Division, Itami from the Fifth Division, and the Special Missions Division led by Minami, gathered around the whiteboard, discussing what to do.

The whiteboard was covered with photos of the gym, a layout of the bar, and fragments of communication records. The female instructor, Sakura, and the questions "The girl (Chihiro mentioned earlier) is missing?" and "Transnational human trafficking?" were circled in red on the whiteboard. When the investigation was carried out again, sure enough, the female instructor, Sakura, was released the next day at noon due to insufficient evidence. As a result, she took a plane to the Philippines that afternoon. What was quite meaningful was that the airport police did not react at all.

The table was piled high with files and half-eaten cup noodles. Everyone's brows were furrowed, and the air was thick with weariness, anger, and a palpable tension of impending breakthrough.

"Why hasn't the search warrant been issued yet?" Kashiwagi asked impatiently. "Section Chief, go and ask again!"

“It’s already past midnight. To apply for a search warrant, the application must first be submitted to the Criminal Investigation Department, then to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, then to the Court of Justice for review and approval, and finally to the Court of Justice for approval before the search can proceed.” Minami yawned; she too was horrified by what Uesugi Muneyuki had uncovered, and thus struggled to maintain her composure. “Theoretically, the Court of Justice should have judges on duty 24 hours a day, the main problem is the Public Prosecutor’s Office…”

“I know all of this!” Kashiwagi said impatiently.

"Then shut up!" Miss Minami, lacking sleep, was a little exasperated: "Don't keep asking! I'm not the District Attorney! Besides, if the District Attorney's office doesn't approve it, why don't you think about whose problem it really is?"

"What do you mean, whose problem?" Kashiwagi Jin didn't understand the implication behind Minami's words.

Miss Minami rolled her eyes, amused. Indeed, if this guy had realized that he had offended Chief Nishikawa, he wouldn't have ended up like this in the professional group.

Uesugi Muneyuki and Sugishita Ukyo remained silent. The two members of the Metropolitan Police Department's First Investigation Division, the Uesugi-Sugishita duo, had already sensed something unusual.

He received no response to his submitted search warrant application, but instead received a reminder from Mariko Hironaka.

[Someone's here, a dozen or so men in suits, very quickly!]

The conference room door wasn't knocked on; instead, it was abruptly pushed open by several police officers in black suits, their faces expressionless and their aura icy. The door slammed against the wall with a dull thud, instantly shattering the concentration in the room, and all the detectives looked up in astonishment.

Immediately afterwards, led by a brown-haired, tanned policeman, eight men in suits, all dressed in similar attire and exuding a menacing aura, filed in and quickly and precisely occupied key positions in the conference room. They were like a black wall that had suddenly appeared, isolating the original space and atmosphere. The tanned policeman at the front pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, his gaze behind the lenses sharp as a scalpel, sweeping over every detective present, finally landing on Sugishita Ukyo, the head of the First Investigation Division, who raised the police notebook in his hand.

Toru Kinoshita, Inspector, Security Planning Section, Security Department, National Police Agency.

The entire Special Investigation Headquarters fell into a deathly silence. The sound of typing stopped, the whispers ceased, and only the low hum of the monitors and the heavy, shocked, and angry breathing of the detectives remained. Ikeda Erena's hand instantly went to her holster (though she rationally knew she couldn't draw her gun), her eyes piercing the Public Security officer like blades. Inspector Itami gaped, bewildered. Sugishita Ukyo's face first showed shock, then barely suppressed rage. He straightened his posture, his expression serious, and said in a deep voice, "Inspector Kinoshita? What does the Public Security Bureau mean by this? This is the Special Investigation Headquarters of the First Investigation Division!"

Inspector Kinoshita ignored Sugishita Ukyo's questioning and the burning anger in the eyes of all the detectives. He expressionlessly took a document from his person, his voice low but clear like the scraping of cold metal, reaching everyone's ears.

"Order from the Security Department of the National Police Agency."

"The case concerning 'burning bar' and related illegal activities is now under the full jurisdiction of the Security Planning Division of the Security Department of the National Police Agency."

"This case involves sensitive information related to national security and a highly complex international criminal network, which exceeds the current investigative authority and scope of the First Investigation Division of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department."

"Thank you to the First Investigation Division for their hard work in the early stages, which provided a valuable foundation for the subsequent investigation. All case files, physical evidence, electronic data, and information on relevant personnel will be transferred to the Security Planning Division receiving team immediately."

Inspector Kinoshita was immediately followed by two police officers who stepped forward, their eyes locking onto the documents and computer on the table.
"Your mission has been successfully completed. Please immediately cease all related investigative activities and adhere to confidentiality regulations. The Public Security Bureau will handle the follow-up matters. Thank you for your hard work; you can go back and rest now."

Inspector Kinoshita's words were devoid of emotion, utterly uninspired, and even carried a hint of unquestionable expulsion.

Meanwhile, more than a dozen police officers filed in, rudely and even deliberately pushing aside the criminal police officers who tried to stop them, and began to collect all the case files.

"Wait!" Bai Muren roared, slamming his hand on the table, making the instant noodles bounce. "What a joke! 'National Security'? 'International Network'? We're investigating missing girls! Drug-faking! Human trafficking! The chain of evidence points here (he pointed to the bar and clues on the whiteboard)! What right do you police have to say that..."

After saying that, he was about to rush forward to stop him, but then something hard pressed against his waist.

"Say one more word and I'll charge you with obstructing official business, Inspector Kashiwagi. Don't forget, you're still in your cooling-off period," Inspector Kinoshita said coldly.

Kashiwagi Jin heard Inspector Kinoshita pull the safety on his pistol. In that instant, even the fearless star inspector of the Metropolitan Police Department instinctively felt a sense of danger. But someone was even more ferocious. Ikeda Erena stepped forward, almost face to face with Inspector Kinoshita. Her voice trembled slightly with anger, but her eyes seemed to spit fire: "Inspector! Those girls! They've been drugged, they've been sedated, they've likely been sold! You think you can just cover this up with a simple 'takeover'?! Who are you trying to protect?!"

Erina's hands clenched into fists.

But Inspector Kinoshita completely ignored her.

Just then, Uesugi Muneyuki stepped forward: "Inspector Kinoshita, if we just stop here, what will happen to the victims? What if the leads go cold? What about the case concerning the son of Councilor Suo?"

The police chief's gaze remained unwavering, not even glancing at Erena's angry face. He hadn't even bothered to explain, but he knew Uesugi Muneyuki and that the police leaders and high-ranking officers valued him. So, with a calm and dismissive attitude, he coldly repeated, "I'm sorry, Forensic Officer Uesugi, but this is the order of the Security Minister. The order has been given and cannot be questioned. If you have any doubts, please ask Minister Kamishiro. We are just following orders."

The police officers behind him had already sprung into action, methodically tidying up the documents on the table, sealing the computer mainframe, and preparing to receive the evidence bags. Their movements were professional, efficient, and unstoppable, as if the detectives and their anger were nothing but air. One of them walked directly to the whiteboard and began carefully removing the photos and charts, ignoring Bai Mu's almost fiery glare.

"I will report everything that happened here to the Criminal Investigation Department." Section Chief Sugishita Ukyo closed his eyes. Seeing this, he already understood that this was Onoda's doing.

"welcome any time."

Watching the police carry out orders like machines, and seeing the clues they had worked so hard to gather, which carried the hopes of the victims, being "accepted" bit by bit, a huge sense of powerlessness and deep humiliation enveloped the entire Special Investigation Headquarters. They were powerless to resist the direct orders from the National Police Agency, especially when the title of "Security Minister" was invoked.

The police officer watched as his subordinates took away the case files and cleared most of the whiteboard before speaking again, his tone still flat: "Section Chief Sugishita, please keep your subordinates in check. If any cooperation is needed later, the Public Security Bureau will formally contact the Metropolitan Police Department. Now, please leave this room. We are taking over this area." He stepped aside, making the doorway clear: You should leave.

Kashiwagi took one last look at the photo of Coach Sakura that the police had taken down, his eyes filled with deep hatred and profound helplessness. He turned abruptly and strode out of the conference room, not caring that his shoulder bumped into the door frame.

Uesugi Muneyuki narrowed his eyes meaningfully. He suddenly understood why Mai-senpai had deliberately made her familiar disguise herself as Coach Sakura, and why she hadn't told him what was going on.

Sometimes, people can't teach each other no matter how hard they try, but experience teaches people, and they understand it in one go.

Previously, in Uesugi Muneyuki's mind, public security police officers had always been seen as capable and relatively positive figures.

Today was the first time he had witnessed the dark side of this organization firsthand.

Uesugi Muneyuki's mind was filled with the chat evidence of sexual favors he had finally managed to obtain, as well as the famous line, "My lover is this country."

It really is!
He was enveloped in a strong sense of dark humor.

Inspector Kosaka and Inspector Itami hung their heads, like defeated soldiers, and silently followed Kashiwagi Jin away.

Miss Minami's face was ashen, her chest heaving violently. She stared intently at Inspector Kinoshita, then glanced at the Special Investigation Headquarters scene that the Public Security Bureau had quickly "disinfected." Her expression changed several times. Just as she was about to say something, the phone suddenly rang.

It belongs to Eiji Watanabe.

"This case will be closed for now. The police will deal with the bar's operators, but the VIP list and the network behind it will be put on hold for the time being. This is for the sake of 'greater stability'," the Superintendent General of Police said calmly.

"But, Father!"

"Minami, listen to me!" Watanabe Eiji emphasized, "And Uesugi-kun, you come back first, and the Special Missions Division members come back first too. I have something to say to you."

After a moment of internal struggle, Minami finally managed to squeeze out, "...Let's go."

His voice was filled with resentment and indignation.

And so, the Special Investigation Headquarters, which was once full of fighting spirit and hope, is now only filled with cold, black-suited police officers and empty rooms where all "sensitive" information has been quickly erased.

The police officers stood in the center of the now-empty conference room. Inspector Toru Kinoshita, who was in charge, pushed up his glasses and stared expressionlessly at the blank whiteboard. He took out his phone and sent an encrypted message that only Soichiro Kamishiro could understand: "On-site control complete. Cleanup complete."

The 'miscellaneous items' have been sealed off.

(End of this chapter)