Tokyo Detective

Chapter 561 Tokyo is like a chessboard

At midnight, there were very few people on the street, and a milk tea shop was closing up shop.

Inside the milk tea shop, three or five gang members were drinking and chatting to pass the time; it was clear that this shop was owned by the gang.

A man in a floral shirt sighed.

“It’s getting harder and harder for us low-level gang members to survive these days. Sometimes I really don’t want to be involved in the underworld anymore, but if I don’t, I don’t know how to make a living.”

The other man in the suit nodded.

"That's true. We're not in charge of the lucrative jobs. We can't even get involved in drug trafficking, smuggling, or the sex industry. Unlike Rencheng, who runs a milk tea shop for the group. Can't you find us small guys a way to make money?"

"correct."

The man they called "Big Brother" was over 50 years old and was a minor leader in the group.

"Don't even mention you guys, even I want to earn money to retire. Not long ago, I saw that the post office was hiring, so I wanted to leave the gang and find a proper job. You know what I said earlier? They said there weren't enough official members in the group, and I couldn't cancel my registration even if I wanted to leave. Damn it, how am I supposed to find a proper job if I don't cancel my registration with the police?"

Japan's underworld history is like an electrocardiogram: cracked down on by the government 20 years ago, the number of gangsters decreased by 60% in just ten years.

Ten years ago, restrictions were relaxed due to a change in wind direction, and it took a lot of effort to recover to 70% of its peak level.

They thought the yakuza had barely recovered some strength, but then a series of major events in Tokyo over the past five years stunned them.

What should the police do if they can't catch the terrorists? Of course, they'll find someone to take the blame.

From the rocket-propelled grenades attack on a gang headquarters five years ago, to the deaths of entire families of members of parliament, to the newly appointed Minister of Criminal Justice being blown up by landmines, to the current rampage of YMCAs in Japan.

After every major incident, the police will definitely crack down on gangs.

If I can't catch terrorists, and I can't fight the YMCA, then surely I can fight you Yakuza?

Anyway, you gangsters are the breeding ground for extremely evil people, so it's right to beat you up.

You say the underworld is innocent? No, I say you're accomplices of terrorists.

As a result of this series of crackdowns, the mid- to high-level gangs were not greatly affected, but the lower-level gangs were left barely alive, constantly being targeted by the police, and were in a worse situation than they were 10 years ago.

The man in the suit sighed.

"I've been a street hustler for three days now. If I don't find a job soon, I'll have to find a part-time job tomorrow. The convenience store on the next street is hiring a clerk. Gangsters, gangsters, it's so different from what I used to imagine."

The man in the floral shirt exclaimed in surprise.

"Damn it, isn't the neighbor's gang from a rival group? Aren't you afraid of getting beaten up if you go there?"

The man in the suit waved his hand dismissively.

"Don't worry, the convenience store has already paid protection money, and I'm only getting minimum wage."

"That's outrageous, they're only getting minimum wage."

The owner of the milk tea shop, Shinobu Saburo, couldn't help but offer a suggestion.

"If you really have nothing to do these days, you can go and participate in the protest. There is 1 per day, but you have to sit in front of the highway company to protest from 7 am to 8 pm."

The underworld boss shook his head.

"I'd better not. I'm afraid I'll get arrested by the police if I get involved. It's hard for the police to take action against ordinary people, but if gangsters get involved, they'll definitely crack down on them."

As for the reason for the protest, it has to be said that there is a relationship between the underworld and the highway. The highway is preparing to cancel all manual windows and plans to replace them with unmanned ETC lanes in the future.

Logically, the new changes should be useful to everyone, making things more convenient and eliminating the need to queue.

Unfortunately, gang members have been unable to obtain ETC cards in recent years because ETC cards are linked to credit cards and credit reports, so they cannot obtain them with their gangster identities.

A few years ago, you could link your bank card, but unfortunately that's been discontinued.

Imagine the despair that would drive the vast majority of gang members off the highway in the future; it would be enough to drive the gang to its demise.

So gangs across the country are hiring people to protest and even sue major highway companies. They want the government to see these gangs and these people who can't get things done.

Just as the group was getting into a lively conversation, the door suddenly opened, and several masked men appeared before them.

"Hey, the door's closed. What do you want?"

The masked man suddenly pulled out a pistol.

"do not move."

Several gangsters, whose dignity had been worn down by life, immediately knelt down, almost prostrating themselves. They earned less than 20 a month, so there was no need to risk their lives.

"Don't shoot, the money is all in the cash box, take it all."

The masked man neither fired a shot nor took the money. Instead, he signaled his partner to take out a baseball bat and smash everything in sight. They destroyed the milk tea machine, the renovations, and basically left the store completely unrecognizable before departing.

Store manager Shinobu Saburo looked like he was about to cry.

"No way! Am I going to lose my job too?"

The junior leader stroked his chin.

"It feels like their methods are similar to ours before. Could it be the work of a rival gang? But why didn't they beat anyone up?"

They couldn't understand it at first, but they soon realized it.

When the police arrived after the call was made, they said something quite unexpected.

"Smashing the store was intentional damage to property. We will retrieve some surveillance footage for investigation. Just wait for our notification."

Shinobu Saburo was a little confused. Could it be that the police couldn't tell it was gang activity?
“Officer, this is not an ordinary case of vandalism. It is an act of hostility by our rival gang, namely those people from the Mountain City Group.”

The police officer asked casually.

"Do you have any evidence? If you do, produce it. If not, don't talk nonsense."

"."

The gang members were stunned as they watched the police register and leave; something was very wrong. Over the years, the police have developed a set of methods for dealing with gangs. Don't assume that the crime of gangs damaging each other's property is less serious. In fact, the handling of these cases is more severe than that of ordinary property damage because the "Organized Crime Countermeasures Act" is applied.

For example, if the group that vandalized the store is defined by the police as a "disobedient gang," then the police will take the opportunity to expand the scope of the search and add charges on the grounds that their stronghold is hiding weapons and drugs, showing a "you dare give us an excuse, I'll kill you" attitude.

Conversely, if it is an "obedient gang," then only the responsibility for smashing the store will be investigated, and further investigation will be avoided, just like now.

The little leader scratched his head.

"It seems that the opposing group is more popular with the police than we are."

That night, not just one milk tea shop was vandalized, but multiple gang-related businesses were also vandalized. Although they were all small shops and shacks, the sheer number of attacks caused a significant change in the overall situation.

When some of the gangs whose property was vandalized attempted to retaliate, they were met with a severe crackdown by the police.

At a milk tea shop that was also preparing to close down, dozens of masked gangsters appeared.

"Brothers, get to work, and remember not to hurt anyone."

"Yes."

A group of people rushed in and started smashing things, before they could even finish venting their anger.

Police sirens blared, and a group of police officers were already blocking the entrance.

"Stop what you've done, you thugs inside! You're surrounded!"

The leading underworld official was dumbfounded.

"What's going on? When did the police arrive? And when did we become notorious criminals?"

Unbeknownst to them, their actions were being monitored by the police, who knew their every move.

"Run! Every one of us who escapes is one more who gets away."

"Run away."

A group of people rushed out of the store and scattered. Gang members who only cared about escaping were suppressed with stun guns, and those who dared to resist faced being shot in the limbs.

Shortly after, the gang leader was pinned to the concrete ground by the police. He noticed that the store clerk, who should have been unharmed, ran out with a bloody head and accused the gang members of assaulting him.

"Officer, they're the ones who rushed in, injured me, robbed me, and smashed everything."

Only now did the gang leader realize that the police were stinging them, and that if nothing unexpected happened, the gang would face a severe crackdown from the police.

He guessed correctly. In one night, more than 50 high-ranking members of mid- to low-level yakuza gangs were taken away. These 50-plus gangs already accounted for one-twentieth of the total number of yakuza organizations in Tokyo. There are less than 1000 yakuza organizations and more than 2 official members in the entire city of Tokyo.

A husband-and-wife barbershop in Arakawa Ward.

Not long after the owner opened for business, three customers arrived.

"Would you like a shampoo or a haircut?"

"Hair washing and haircut."

"Ok."

When the shop owner was cutting the hair of the second customer, the customer suddenly asked him a strange question.

"Is that calamus meant to signify that they are under the protection of the Black Knife Group?"

The shop owner glanced at the calamus, which didn't look very appealing.

"Yes, protected shops all buy a plate of calamus from the Black Knife Group once a month."

How much protection money?

"Ten thousand."

"If a new gang only charges you 7000 in protection money, would you be willing to accept it?"

The boss was stunned and didn't know how to answer.

The guests, who were clearly from the underworld, weren't in a hurry.

"If you agree in advance, you can enjoy a discount; for the first year, it will only cost 5000 per month."

"I...I'll think about it."

Soon after, the hair salon owner breathed a sigh of relief, finally getting rid of the troublemaker.

Although the underworld is not as arrogant and domineering as it used to be, getting entangled with them is still a terrible situation.

But what's the situation with that person?
The hair salon owner noticed that the other person continued walking towards other shops until he was caught by several members of the Black Knife Gang and dragged into an alley.

Unexpectedly, patrolling police officers also rushed into the alley and eventually took the Black Knife Group members away on charges of intentional assault.

The hair salon owner was dumbfounded. For the next whole day, he saw many outside gangs deliberately luring local gangs into committing crimes or mocking them. In short, they were all looking for trouble for the local gangs, and the police arrived very promptly.

At this moment, the hair salon owner realized that the police were helping the outside gang. Could it be that the local gang had done something wrong?

It's best not to know anything about the underworld.

That afternoon, the local police station requested the assistance of the Black Knife Gang's senior management in the investigation due to the gang's frequent crimes, and also revoked its designation as a "designated violent group".

Without legally registered identities, gangs cannot open bank accounts, rent premises, or even allow their members to enter public places.

In an instant, the entire criminal organization felt as if its spine had been removed. Losing its legal registration meant it could no longer make money openly, and without making money, it had no cohesion.

That night, a large number of outside gangs moved into the Black Knife Group's territory, absorbing those who were willing to submit and driving out those who did not cooperate.

The next morning, the Black Knife Gang leader learned as soon as he left the police station that the Black Knife Gang had been disbanded. To make matters worse, he was formally arrested not long after leaving the police station, and the newly established gang handed over the Black Knife Gang's criminal information to the local police station.

Everything happened too fast. The arrested gangsters felt as if some mysterious force was pulling the strings behind the scenes, and similar cases were happening all over Tokyo.

Moreover, the joint police crackdown on organized crime over two consecutive days, ostensibly aimed at eliminating all gangs, actually resulted in compliant gang leaders being notified and going into hiding. Only those unsuspecting targets were severely damaged.

(End of this chapter)