I simultaneously traverse countless worlds

This is assuming the Washine Group still exists; Washine Yukio won't be greatly affected. But if the Washine Group disbands or is destroyed...

Well, look at the original manga and anime of "Black Lagoon". Bando, the deputy leader, tried to hire people from the Moscow Hotel to deal with the Kasuna Association, but things got too out of hand. He tried to abandon the Moscow Hotel but was wiped out by Captain Balalaika and his men. Before he died, he wanted to send Washimine Yukio away from Japan. The reason was that he knew that if the Washimine Group fell, Washimine Yukio, the daughter of the former leader, would definitely be targeted by his old enemies. If she didn't leave Japan, the consequences would be dire. As for Washimine Yukio's choice later, it was something he couldn't interfere with.

Now, Li Mo's questioning of Washimine Yukio is not about her identity as a high school girl, but about her being the daughter of the former leader of the Washimine Group and the legitimate heir to the group. This is a completely different situation, concerning the future of Washimine Yukio herself and the Washimine Group. Only Washimine Yukio herself can make this decision.

Therefore, Li Mo did not directly state this point, but the higher-ups of the Washi Peak Group understood the reasoning behind it. They could not make this decision for Washi Peak Yukio, and after hesitating for more than ten seconds, Washi Peak Yukio gritted her teeth and made her decision:

"...I...I agree to this proposal and am willing to join the EU!"

Chapter 4 The Mysterious EU

Washimine Yukio's final choice left Bando's deputy head, Matsuzaki Ginji, and other Washimine Group executives speechless. Even if some of them had other ideas, most of them remained loyal to the Washimine Group and to Washimine Yukio.

Admittedly, Washine Yukio herself has little combat ability, but as the only daughter of the previous leader of the Washine Group, she already has the right to inherit the group's legacy. Unless a rival yakuza organization defeats the Washine Group, or a member of the Washine Group stages a coup, no high-ranking member of the Washine Group would dare to oppose Washine Yukio's opinion before she has fully demonstrated her profligate abilities; otherwise, she would face a united attack from the others.

The Washine Group, just from the name, you can tell it was founded by the Washine family. It was a yakuza organization developed and expanded by Washine Yukio's father. In Japan, where many feudal remnants still remain, yakuza organizations outwardly promote loyalty and chivalry, which means they are still the same kind of Japanese Bushido.

Its core principle is that those who join the Yakuza cannot betray their superiors or the gang leader. It operates under a strict hierarchy, and Washine Yukio, as the successor of the Washine Group, naturally holds a very high position.

Even though Washine Yukio herself was intentionally kept away from the affairs of the yakuza group by her father and could be said to be living the life of an ordinary high school girl from a relatively well-off family, in the eyes of the Washine Group members, she was essentially the next successor of the Washine Group. Even if some of the higher-ups of the Washine Group had other ideas, they could not openly oppose Washine Yukio.

After all, Washine Yukio's position in the Washine Group is that of the successor. The previous leader and founder of the Washine Group was her father. Many of the Washine Group's elders are her uncles, and several high-ranking members regard her as their own daughter.

Under these circumstances, Washimine Yukio had just agreed to Li Mo's proposal to join the EU and become a member, which was essentially making the Washimine Group a vassal force of the EU. This was much better than the previous complete surrender. However, no one, including the acting head of the Washimine Group, knew what Washimine Yukio, the unsuccessful second-generation leader, would do. Nevertheless, given the rules and the reality, they had no choice but to accept Washimine Yukio's decision.

However, the acting group leader Bando and the others were not without their opinions. After Li Mo and his group left the headquarters of the Washimine Group, some of them prepared to express their thoughts and their attitude towards Washimine Yukio's decision!

………………

"Miss Yukio, why did you agree to those conditions?"

Seeing Li Mo and his group leave the Washimine Group's headquarters, and as the Washimine Group members returned to the conference room, Matsuzaki Ginji anxiously questioned Washimine Yukio, then turned to the seated Deputy Group Leader Bando, saying with some dissatisfaction, "And Deputy Group Leader Bando, before the leader died, he told us to manage the Washimine Group properly. Why didn't you stop him just now..."

When Matsuzaki Ginji said these words, the expressions of Bando's deputy leader and the others were not very good. They were actually a little embarrassed by Matsuzaki Ginji's questioning, but they were helpless against him.

As the top martial arts expert of the Washine Group, Matsuzaki Ginji is feared by the surrounding yakuza gangs and is known as "Ginji the Slayer of Evil" because this swordsman cannot tolerate those who go too far. However, his combat power is really important to the Washine Group. Once, more than a dozen enemies wielding samurai swords and short guns tried to surround and kill him, but he killed them one by one in a small alley. When fighting against other yakuza gangs, Matsuzaki Ginji is always the general who charges ahead.

It's no exaggeration to say that if it weren't for the former leader of the Washimine Group saving Matsuzaki Ginji's life, possessing outstanding abilities and a strong moral compass, making him wholeheartedly follow Washimine Yukio, Matsuzaki Ginji wouldn't have had any problem recruiting his own people and starting his own faction.

"Ginji, do you think the Washirine Group is doing well right now?"

Faced with Matsuzaki Ginji's questioning, before Washine Yukio could answer, Bando Dai-gang leader spoke up with some helplessness, directly laying out the current dire situation of the Washine Gang, leaving everyone around speechless.

Just that one moment was enough to leave Matsuzaki Ginji speechless!

As one of the high-ranking members of the Washimine Group and the strongest fighter in the entire yakuza organization, Matsuzaki Ginji naturally knew that the Washimine Group was in dire straits, and could be said to have long been in a financial predicament where income could not cover expenses.

When the Plaza Accord was signed, America showed no mercy in exploiting Japan, resulting in the immediate bursting of the Japanese economic bubble. The Japanese, who had once been wealthy, immediately experienced the sharpness of capitalism's scythe. Many middle-class and even rich people went bankrupt overnight. The crashing stock market, the bursting bubble, and the closing of factories became painful memories for Japan that year, and incidentally affected all aspects of Japan.

Putting aside other things, even in places like Kabukicho and casinos controlled by Japanese yakuza groups, the big spenders who used to be able to spend lavishly are now extremely rare. The number of customers and their spending power are far less than before the Plaza Accord. And most ordinary Tokyo citizens are now more concerned about their work and families than going out to enjoy themselves.

Those unburdened office workers also don't have much money to live a carefree life. Major companies and enterprises facing economic crisis have plans to lay off employees, and they are lucky if they can afford to have a drink at an izakaya these days. They rarely go to Kabukicho to spend money.

As a result, life has become extremely difficult for Japanese yakuza organizations. Organizations like the Washimine Group, which previously did not engage in the highly profitable activities of yakuza organizations and whose operating style was considered relatively ethical, have fallen into a cycle of decreasing income, inability to cover expenses, and having to use their resources to stay afloat. In just a few years, the Washimine Group has almost exhausted all its working capital. It can be said that without the help of the EU Group, the Washimine Group would probably have to find new sources of income or prepare to disband.

Therefore, Ginji Matsuzaki could not question what the acting head of the Bando group said. If this problem could be solved, the Washimine group would not be in such a troubled state. It was only natural that the acting head of the Bando group and other high-ranking members would acquiesce to Washimine Yukio's choice.

"Uncle Ginji, I can't just watch the Washine Group that my father left behind disappear like this. Joining the EU and becoming its vassal will at least allow the Washine Group to exist!"

At this moment, Washimine Yukio quickly stepped in to smooth things over. This high school girl, who usually gave off a timid and submissive impression, seemed to have become a completely different person, directly dispelling Matsuzaki Ginji's desire to say anything more.

“Miss Yukio, you should be more careful in your actions. While the EU Group will certainly provide assistance to the Washimine Group, it will definitely have its demands, and it's all very secretive…”

Seeing Washimine Yukio's smile and her unwavering belief in maintaining the Washimine Group's continued existence, Matsuzaki Ginji had no intention of arguing further. He looked seriously at the only daughter that his boss had entrusted to his care, and sighed silently as he spoke earnestly.

"Hmm~!"

Washimine Yukio obediently accepted Matsuzaki Ginji's concern. She knew that Matsuzaki Ginji, a strong swordsman nearing forty, was the most trustworthy person in the Washimine Group. This was what Washimine Yukio was told by her father before he died. Moreover, she had trusted this uncle very much over this period of time, especially since he was showing concern for her safety.

With the statements from Matsuzaki Ginji and Washine Yukio, and the approval of Bando, the acting leader of the group, the rest of the Washine Group naturally had nothing to say. What they were more concerned about was when the EU Group would allocate funds to relieve the Washine Group's financial crisis!

……

The high-ranking members of the Washine Group agreed with Washine Yukio's opinion. They believed that relying on the EU Group to obtain financial support from them was not a big deal, as Japanese yakuza organizations naturally engaged in this kind of business.

For example, if Japanese zaibatsu or politicians have something they can't do, they usually signal the yakuza groups they control to take action. Even though Japan later enacted laws to restrict those established yakuza groups, those yakuza groups that actually acted as black gloves for Japanese zaibatsu or politicians were not severely affected. The ones who suffered were mostly those yakuza groups that had a big reputation but had no connection with the upper echelons of Japan.

In fact, for Japanese yakuza organizations to act as the black gloves for zaibatsu and politicians is an extremely competitive and difficult task. In the past, the Washine Group at most maintained certain cooperative relationships with some politicians through private financial interests. But to expect them to provide financial support to the Washine Group is wishful thinking. Even many large companies and enterprises in Japan cannot obtain bank loans. How can you expect yakuza organizations to have such treatment?

The very next day, the Washi-mine Group received a payment of ten million US dollars from the EU Group through their channels. This extravagant gesture left the entire Washi-mine Group speechless. Even Washi-mine Yukio, the future second-generation heiress of the Washi-mine Group, went to the EU Group's headquarters in Japan to handle matters such as purchasing high-precision industrial equipment for smuggling. These were no big deal for the Washi-mine Group.

However, while everyone in the Washimine Group was stunned by the EU Group's grand scheme and began working diligently to help the EU Group infiltrate Japan, someone in Tokyo was also looking at the EU Group's public information and couldn't help but sigh:

"EU Company is really too mysterious!"

Chapter 5 The Sorrows of the Cat's Eye Sisters

"EU Company is really too mysterious!"

In a two-story private café located in the Tokyo metropolitan area, on the second-floor living area with a sign that reads "Cat's Eye Café," a beautiful, mature woman with black hair and bright eyes looked at a briefing on some public information about the EU Group in her hand, and couldn't help but sigh helplessly, rubbing her forehead.

Tears in the next life!

This stunningly beautiful woman with long, wavy black hair is none other than Rui Kisugi, the eldest sister of Hitomi Kisugi, the female protagonist of "Cat's Eye." She is the leader of the three sisters and the true core figure of the recently famous female thief "Cat's Eye."

Without a doubt, Laisheng Rui is an absolute beauty. With her slightly melancholic eyes, noble and elegant temperament, and graceful figure, plus the perfectly placed beauty mark at the corner of her mouth, almost every man who knows her has the idea of ​​wanting to get close to her. However, she is clearly not interested in men who are looking for her two younger sisters and inheriting the Laisheng family name. If they dare to approach her, it is a polite but unhesitating rejection.

It's not that no one has tried to take advantage of the situation, but after all, the Kisugi family was once a billionaire family. Even though the Kisugi family's assets have shrunk significantly, they are still far beyond what ordinary families can match. This Cat's Eye Cafe is just one of the residences of Kisugi and her two sisters in Tokyo. Although the Kisugi family's power in Tokyo is not strong, their connections and influence are quite extensive.

As for Rui Kisugi, if she wanted to, she could easily become a highly sought-after heiress in Tokyo. However, she has no interest in that. Apart from occasionally running this Cat's Eye Cafe, she is trying to find the artworks that her father once collected!

"Big sister, what are you talking about? It's too mysterious!"

Just as Lai Sheng Lei was sighing, a melodious girl's voice rang out. A beautiful girl with short black hair walked over, pulling along a beautiful woman who looked similar to her but was several years older.

When the three beautiful women, who were clearly related, gathered together, it seemed to brighten up the second-floor living area. The three women, each dressed differently but all beautiful and charming, would attract attention if any one of them appeared. Moreover, the three women covered the age range from mature women to young girls, which could satisfy the desires of most men, except for a few old perverts with unique sexual tastes.

Hitomi and Ai in the next life!

The two beautiful women who appeared were none other than the other two members of the Cat's Eye trio, Hitomi Kisugi and Ai Kisugi, the female protagonists of "Cat's Eye". They had just gone out shopping and were now returning to the Cat's Eye Cafe.

It must be said that the three Cat's Eye sisters are all exceptionally beautiful. Hitomi Kisugi, who is just over twenty years old, is at the most beautiful and charming age of a woman. Her pair of crystal clear and beautiful eyes and her long, black, slightly wavy hair that reaches her waist, combined with her tall and alluring curves, make her full of the temperament and delicate skin of an Eastern beauty, as well as the hot and seductive figure of a Western beauty. Even Ai Kisugi has a figure that surpasses that of girls of the same age, full of youthful vitality.

Moreover, if the three sisters, Rui, Hitomi, and Ai, were together, their attractiveness to men wouldn't be a simple addition of 1+1=2; it would be a multiplicative increase, making it dazzling and overwhelming!

"Tong and Xiao Ai, you're back from shopping!"

Seeing her two younger sisters' beautiful and captivating figures, Kisugi Rui remained completely unmoved, lazily lying on the sofa. She weakly greeted Kisugi Hitomi and Kisugi Ai, then handed them a briefing on public information about the EU Group, explaining to them, "The mysterious force I'm referring to is the EU Group, which has artwork left by Daddy. They've only been in Japan for a little over six months, but they seem very mysterious and powerful..."

The information briefing in Laisheng Lei's hand contained not only publicly available information about the EU Group, but also general information about several of the EU Group's subsidiaries, including information about EU Blackwater Company and EU Auction Company, which she highlighted in red.

EU Blackwater needs no introduction. It's a security company registered in America that provides various security measures. It has gathered more than a thousand retired soldiers, retired police officers, and former militia members for intensive training. It can be said to be the security force under the EU Group. It has even obtained legal gun licenses in countries such as America and Japan, and has acquired a training camp in the Luzon Islands to train specialized security personnel. Its equipment is even comparable to that of a regular army.

In contrast, EU Auction Company is much behind. However, after acquiring two small auction houses and taking over their staff, it has also established auction houses in New York, Tokyo and Hong Kong Island in just over six months. It has already held at least one auction, and some of the auction items are quite outstanding. It has already gained a certain customer base in the three major international cities.

Of course, the information that Lai Shengrui had was not that detailed, but just seeing that the EU Group had invested more than one billion US dollars, along with security companies such as EU Blackwater that were clearly not to be trifled with, anyone with a normal IQ would understand that they were not simple.

"Big sister, you're not saying we're planning to target one of these big international companies, are you?"

After reading the briefing about the EU Group in her hand, Hitomi's pretty face became extremely serious. She looked at her younger sister, Ai, and then looked at her older sister, unable to help but ask a question.

Just kidding! Although the three sisters, Hitomi and Kisugi, have already appeared as "Phantom Thief Cat's Eye," and have recovered several of their father's paintings and collectibles from several museums and collectors, leaving the Japanese police looking helpless and embarrassed, Hitomi and Kisugi are, after all, people who have received elite education. They naturally understand that although most of the Japanese police are useless, the wealthy people in Japan are not to be trifled with, not to mention America's large companies and conglomerates.

—Japanese police claim to have a low crime rate, and in many cases, they do not investigate or even file cases for unsolved crimes. For example, in many cases, the deceased are presumed to have committed suicide because no autopsy was performed, and the Japanese police actually accept this without classifying it as a criminal case, unless it is a high-profile case or a major case under pressure from superiors. In the mid-1990s, when the economy was declining, Japan's crime rate was actually not low, but the Japanese police's crime-solving rate never improved. Even though most areas of Tokyo did not have surveillance cameras, most Japanese police officers were not really an elite force.

The Cat's Eye sisters were very clear about this. Every operation they carried out was based on meticulous intelligence work, ensuring that they would not encounter the elite forces of the Japanese government. They even confirmed the general personnel and routes of the Japanese police. It was unlikely that any wealthy individuals or private art museums would pose a challenge for them. This is why the "beautiful phantom thief Cat's Eye" was able to successfully escape after stealing valuable works of art in just a few years.

The Japanese police couldn't even find any useful clues, so it was impossible for them to connect the female thief who stole valuable artworks with the wealthy Kisei family. Furthermore, since the Cat's Eye sisters were trying to reclaim their father's paintings and collections, the police and the victims' investigations into the art market or black market were completely wrong, and they couldn't find any trace of the Cat's Eye sisters at all.

However, for the three sisters of the Kiyosa family to attempt to steal precious artworks from a large international company is undoubtedly like trying to pull teeth from a tiger's mouth. A slight misstep could result in their demise, and even if they succeed, they might face a fierce manhunt.

“I didn’t want to either, but more than a dozen of my father’s works ended up in the Tokyo branch of the EU Group. They directly acquired a lot of art collections from collectors…”

Upon hearing Hitomi's words, Rui knew that her younger sister was offering a reminder. However, thinking about the reason why the three sisters became the Cat's Eye Thieves, she couldn't help but sigh and recount the information she had received about the EU Group's actions.

"Hey? Why don't we buy it first?!"

Lai Sheng Ai was somewhat confused by what her eldest and second eldest sisters had said. The intricacies of their conversation were rather complicated for her. However, the beautiful girl quickly noticed a problem and directly asked her eldest and second eldest sisters about it.

In fact, Kiyosa Ai had the same question in her mind before, but the previous theft plans went very smoothly, giving the girl a strong sense of psychological stimulation. In addition, since it was to retrieve her father's paintings and art collection, even if Kiyosa Ai herself saw it as just taking back her deceased father's belongings, she naturally didn't have any special thoughts. But now, after hearing about the EU company's approach, she was shocked as to why they didn't choose to buy the art, but instead used theft to directly retrieve her father's paintings and collection.

No matter how you look at it, the actions of the Cat's Eye sisters were actually very dangerous. It was a good thing that they weren't found by the Japanese police or the owner, but if the Japanese police or the owner found clues and recovered the lost collection, the consequences for the Kiyosuke family would be very bad. On the other hand, an acquisition like that of the EU Group would have no future problems. It's an art transaction where one party buys and the other sells, so even if the other party regrets it in the future, there will be no lingering consequences.

Faced with Ai's question, Rui and Hitomi exchanged glances, then looked at their youngest sister. Just as Ai seemed confused, Rui, the eldest sister, sighed silently and said quite frankly:

"The problem is, the Lai family doesn't have enough money to acquire all of Father's paintings and art collections from his lifetime!"

(From left to right: eldest sister Laisheng Rui, second sister Laisheng Tong, and youngest sister Laisheng Ai!)

Chapter 6: The Origin of Cat's Eye?

Most people don't realize that art collecting is actually a very expensive business!

Especially if you don't buy an artist's work at a low price during their lifetime when they are down on their luck or unknown, hoping it will appreciate in value after their death, the prices for famous artworks from well-known artists or collectors can be astonishing.

比如作为印象派画家的顶级大咖之一的莫奈，其创作的画作睡莲系列是堪称天价，1917年到1919年间的巨幅作品《睡莲池》就拍卖出了3181万米元，2014年6月，莫奈于1906年创作的名画《睡莲》以5500万米元成交；2008年6月，他的一幅尺寸为182.88厘米x91.44厘米的大型画作《睡莲池》，在伦敦拍卖会上是拍出了4100万英镑的天价。

Works by other world-class European painters or artists also command staggering prices. For example, Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi" sold for 4.5 million US dollars at auction in America in 2017, which is an astronomical figure!

Even though this was the world before Li Mo transmigrated to, where European and American collectors had driven up the exorbitant prices of European artworks and paintings, in the Black Lagoon hybrid world, European and American artworks in the 90s were also quite expensive. For example, when Japan's economy was booming, European and American artworks and paintings were also the focus of acquisition for Japanese collectors and museums, and spending a fortune was not a problem.

At that time, while the Kisugi family was wealthy, only Kisugi Rui was holding up the show. Kisugi Hitomi and Kisugi Ai were still young. When Kisugi Rui tried to acquire her father's paintings and collections, she was almost always rejected or asked for exorbitant prices. In Europe and America, whether abstract paintings were hyped up and used to exploit the wealthy was not openly acknowledged. However, the exquisite beauty and value of works by skilled painters were generally recognized. Heinz, the father of the Cat's Eye sisters, was indeed a first-rate artist during his lifetime. The paintings and art collections he left behind after his death naturally had great potential for appreciation, especially during the peak of the Japanese economy!

Even though the Japanese economy was directly burst by the Plaza Accord, most art collectors were not poor. Those who collected works by a first-rate artist like Heinz were at least wealthy people. They naturally knew that after the artist's death, the artworks he left behind became rare and their value increased significantly. Even if some people suffered considerable losses after the Plaza Accord, the prices of art in European and American markets did not fall and even rose.

It's no exaggeration to say that the paintings and artworks by Heinz, the father of the Cat's Eye sisters, could easily buy ten of the Kisei family's fortunes, not to mention the Kisei family's current predicament of suffering significant losses and a substantial reduction in their assets!

………………

"Therefore, we had no choice but to resort to this method to reclaim my father's works and collection!"

Seeing the shocked look in his younger sister's eyes, Lai Sheng Lei, who had previously learned just how deep the water was in the art market and how expensive the works left by his father were, shook his head helplessly and revealed the key reason for the birth of Phantom Thief Cat's Eye.

We don't have enough money to buy back the paintings and artworks left by our father!

This is the key reason for the birth of the Cat's Eye sisters, and it is also the choice that Rui and Hitomi Kisugi made out of desperation. Otherwise, if they could easily take back their father's works and belongings with some money, why would Rui Kisugi risk becoming a thief girl?

Surely no one really thinks being a thief or a phantom thief is a risk-free thing, right?