Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 548, Warhammer: Total War!

The Metropolitan Police Department headquarters and surrounding neighborhoods will be sleepless tonight.

The Sakurada Gate, which should have been quiet under the cover of night, was now shrouded in a tense yet intense atmosphere. Thousands of Toyota Crown police cars and armored vehicles, elite forces drawn from various wards of Tokyo and even from neighboring prefectures such as Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba, converged on this place silently and swiftly, like rivers flowing into the sea.

The low growl of the engine and the static of the radio intertwined to create a pre-war symphony.

The plaza in front of the headquarters building was brightly lit, like daytime.

Rows and columns of police officers in dark blue uniforms or black suits stood solemnly like a steel forest. Among them were elite detectives from the First Investigation Division, their eyes sharp as eagles; intelligence experts from the Public Security Bureau, their faces hidden in shadow; special forces members from the SAT, fully armed and exuding a chilling killing intent; and key personnel gathered from various police stations in Tokyo, their faces bearing a sense of mission and determination. The epaulets on their uniforms or the badges on their suits reflected a faint light under the bright sun, converging into a sea of ​​stars.

All police officers on leave were suspended, and major police stations dispatched large numbers of elite officers to Sakuradamon immediately!
Everyone, come here!

On the top floor of the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters building, a huge Rising Sun Flag and the Metropolitan Police Department's cherry blossom crest flag fluttered under the searchlights. Below, a massive red banner hung, bearing bold white characters:

Special Investigation Headquarters for the Series of Major Terrorist Incidents in Hong Kong

All the police officers' eyes were focused on the makeshift command platform.

Commissioner Eiji Watanabe and Police Commissioner Jusaburo Tamaru stood side by side. They did not use microphones, but their voices, amplified by the loudspeaker system, resonated clearly in every corner, striking everyone's eardrums.

"Gentlemen!" Watanabe Eiji's voice, like a sword drawn from its sheath, shattered the silence of the night: "We gather here tonight for no other reason than that our country, our justice, and the people we have sworn to protect are being subjected to the most despicable and cruel challenge!"

The thousands of police officers below the stage remained silent, creating a tense atmosphere.

Eiji Watanabe suddenly swung his arm, pointing to the photo of Shota Akimoto and the image of the burning car wreckage on the screen behind him.

“Just hours ago, in front of the entire nation, they trampled on the law, mocked the police, and took lives in the most brutal way! This is not a crime, this is war! A war against us all!”

Commander Tamaru took over, his voice even more composed yet carrying greater power: "The National Police Agency has assigned this case the highest priority! All police officers nationwide are your support! In this battle, there are no forbidden zones, no restrictions! The sole objective—annihilate the enemy!"

"Operation codename: Warhammer!"

"Thump! Thump! Thump!" The SAT officers slammed their service pistols on the ground, producing a dull, rhythmic thud. Immediately afterward, thousands of police officers, as if acting as one, stomped their right feet on the ground, unleashing a deafening roar:

"Hey!!"

The sound surged into the sky, as if to shake off the gloom that shrouded Tokyo.

At this moment, Sakurada Gate transformed into a fortress of war, and the will and fury of thousands of police officers merged into one, becoming a sharp sword about to pierce the darkness.

Hundreds and thousands of officers in suits moved about under a complex command system. The square was filled with a dense mass of heads wearing police hats and with black hair. There were police everywhere!
In the heart of a sea of ​​suits and uniforms, the elites of the First Investigation Division once again gathered: Kosaka from the First Division, Shiratori from the Second Division, Kashiwagi from the Third Division, Shimano from the Fourth Division, Itami from the Fifth Division, and even Inspector Matsuda, who was on leave from the Thirteenth Division, all arrived.

The entire army has been mobilized.

Among the group of officers in suits, Inspector Shiratori Sho's expression remained grim. With a pained look on his face, he explained to Inspector Higurashi, the superintendent of the First Investigation Division, that he needed to go home to get a change of clothes.

When Japanese police establish a "Special Investigation Headquarters" to deal with major and heinous cases, the officers treat the headquarters as their home, working day and night to minimize their personal time, prioritizing solving the case above all else.

Although in theory the police would have a "shift system" to ensure that everyone could work 24 hours a day to handle intelligence and investigations, when the Special Investigation Headquarters was first established, many police officers would work 24 hours a day or even longer. Only when they were really tired and sleepy and could not keep their eyes open would they sleep for a while on a makeshift bed on a chair, table or floor in the Special Investigation Headquarters.

Japanese police even have a specific term called "saru-hall," which refers to such large, crowded, noisy rest areas with little to no privacy.

Similarly, once the Special Investigation Headquarters starts a case, officers almost never go home unless there is a major breakthrough or the case is closed. At most, they go home to get a change of clothes. Even so, the Special Investigation Headquarters recommends that family members bring the clothes rather than that officers go home to get them themselves.

Therefore, Japanese police often complain that we, as the guardians of labor laws, are actually trampling on labor laws and civil service laws all day long.

"Don't you have a girlfriend?" Inspector Higurashi had also been working overtime until now. He had just called his wife to have her bring some clothes from home: "Have your girlfriend bring them!"

“Saka has to participate in Mleague tonight, she’s busy, I have to go back and get it myself.” Shiratori Sho’s expression wasn’t very good. This couple had argued at home more than once before about who should do the housework. As a top model and mahjong player, Okada Saka actually earns a very good income, around 2000 million yen a year, while Shiratori Sho’s annual income is only 700 million yen. Therefore, it’s hard to say who has the higher status at home.

"Hey, finally, finally it's going to get exciting!" Kashiwagi Jin was very excited. He loved big scenes and thrilling investigations. "I have Meisa here, let her go home and get a change of clothes! Shiratori, you should learn from Kosaka Shimano and me, get married soon, tame your wife, and have her support you from behind!"

"Kashiwagi-san, you still love solving cases as much as ever! Honestly, I'm no match for your drive." Inspector Shimano of the Fourth Division, usually stern and unsmiling, could only respond seriously at this moment: "I won't say much more. Please take care of me this time as well." "Huh? What about the Special Missions Division? Where's Uesugi-san?" Inspector Kosaka of the First Division had been a little awkward with Kashiwagi Jin ever since he was beaten up last time. Kashiwagi Jin could pretend nothing had happened, but Kosaka couldn't, so he had to change the subject: "Without Chief Uesugi, I feel a little uneasy."

"The Special Missions Unit is different from us!" Inspector Itami of the Fifth Division couldn't help but complain, "They have a special department, a special budget, special treatment, special allowances, special efficiency, and special competence. Otherwise, why would they be called Special Missions Units?"

“Nonsense, Chief Uesugi is a forensic expert from the University of Tokyo. Good steel should be used where it's needed most. He can't be a frontline investigative tool like everyone else. The Special Missions Unit has been working for over ten hours straight. If Chief Uesugi is exhausted and dizzy, it will actually hinder our investigation.” Inspector Higurashi glared at Itami. “The Special Missions Unit is resting in the business suites of the nearby APA Hotel. Their meals will be specially prepared and delivered by the cafeteria. Tomorrow morning, after the University of Tokyo's lab results and the Forensic Science Research Institute's analysis are available, he will come here to meet us.”

“That’s great! I also want to stay in an APA business suite, and I also want to enjoy a set meal delivered by a personal clerk!” one of the subordinate police officers exclaimed.

"It's very simple. You need to be like Chief Inspector Uesugi, solving every case as long as there's a body, and never taking more than two weeks out of a case he personally handles. Then you need to have the daughter of the Superintendent General of Police as your fiancée, with a Chinese background, so that the University of Tokyo can offer you a direct PhD program invitation. More importantly, you need to be able to persuade the Cabinet to pass a formal parliamentary bill, granting you a special budget of 5 million yen per year." Inspector Higurashi said with a forced smile, "That way, you can openly stay at the APA Hotel, have a daily food budget of 8000 yen, a private car, and an entire special mission unit serving you."

"Damn it, why am I not a Special Missions Unit member? I can negotiate, I can be Uesugi-san's driver!"

This made everyone present smile.

You think you can get into the Special Missions Division? Do you even know what kind of people are in the Special Missions Division?

Aside from Ikeda, whom Uesugi insisted on bringing along, and Ishihara, whom he also insisted on selecting, the other members were all from wealthy and influential families, all second-generation rich kids!

"Alright, enough joking." Just then, Chief Sugishita Ukyo of the First Investigation Division appeared and said seriously, "Chief Uesugi's thinking and judgment are what our Metropolitan Police Department needs most. We need Chief Uesugi to work when he is in his best condition. It would be bad for him to keep working while he is tired. What we need to do is to hand over all our findings to him by tomorrow morning."

"Now that the elites from police stations across the country and police headquarters in the surrounding counties have arrived, we must demonstrate our capabilities even more!"

"Everyone in Class One, fight for the glory of Souichi!"

"Hey!!!" Kashiwagi shouted the loudest.

........................

In stark contrast to the exhilarating scene at headquarters, a few blocks away stood an APA business hotel.

Thanks to its special status and dedicated budget, the Special Missions Unit did not squeeze in with the massive Special Investigations Headquarters. Instead, it chose this more secluded and quiet temporary base, which would allow it to conduct core reasoning and covert operations without interference.

The suite was filled with the scent of coffee and weariness. Documents were scattered on the coffee table and carpet.

Uesugi Muneyuki sat on the comfortable leather sofa in the suite, rubbing his eyes laboriously.

Just now, he and Mikoto Ishihara performed autopsies on four bodies at the Metropolitan Police Department's forensic division.

Almost no remnants of the explosion were detected in the trachea and bronchi of Akimoto Shota's body, while the other three, especially the driver, had a large amount of inhaled smoke in their respiratory tracts.

This is consistent with the fact that he was located directly above the explosion's epicenter, and his life activities ceased instantly due to overpressure and high temperature at the moment of the explosion, leaving him no time to inhale subsequent combustion products.

Based on comprehensive forensic pathology examinations and physical evidence analysis, the injury patterns of all victims point to the explosion originating under the vehicle.

The body of Shota Akimoto showed no obvious signs of inhaling flammable material, consistent with the fact that he died instantly directly above the center of the explosion.

So there is no doubt that the bomb was planted in advance, and the policewoman Kumiko Ishihara was clearly being used.

However, there are still many unclear aspects to this case, and Uesugi Muneyuki can only wait for the test results from the University of Tokyo, the Metropolitan Police Department's overnight interrogation of Ishihara Kumiko, and the Public Security Police's investigation into the itinerary of Foreign Minister Akimoto's Toyota Century.

Are the Kansai Shinjin, the mysterious invisible figure, and the Red Canary involved in this incident, or did they play any role? And why was our Foreign Minister planted with a bomb? Why did he suffer such a brutal reprisal? Where did the ANFO explosives, identical to those used in the Imperial Palace incident, come from?
The case is becoming increasingly complicated.

Just then, he heard footsteps and was greeted by a strong, pleasant scent of shower gel.

"Zongxue~"

Uesugi Muneyuki subconsciously looked up, and the man's eyes suddenly lit up.

Oh huh? !
(End of this chapter)