Tokyo: I'm really not a killer

The head of the exchange office is named Yusuke Nishio, who is 41 years old and a native of Edo, Tokyo.

In his youth, he had dreamed of becoming a detective who chased down notorious thieves at the police academy. Unfortunately, his grades were mediocre and his family background was ordinary, so he was eventually assigned to the port area, where he worked for nearly twenty years.

He started as a patrolman, worked his way up through the ranks, handled neighborhood disputes, mediated marital conflicts, gave directions to lost elderly people, and occasionally caught thieves, gradually smoothing out his rough edges.

Now, he is married to a woman who works in a supermarket, they have two children, and they live on a small apartment in the suburbs of Tokyo with a meager salary and careful budgeting.

His life trajectory seemed predetermined—to remain in the position of director of the trade office until retirement, then collect a modest pension and enjoy his grandchildren.

He didn't have any grand ambitions; his biggest hobby was having a cheap beer after get off work, watching baseball on TV, or venting to his equally frustrated old colleagues.

"That young lady from the brothel is throwing a tantrum again..."

"The new subordinate is such a smooth talker..."

"It feels like I can see the end of my life from the beginning..."

Right now, patrol cars are speeding through the night streets with their horns blaring, heading towards the Imperial Hotel.

Yusuke Nishio drove himself, his face more serious and tense than usual; Masaki Hara sat in the passenger seat, his gaze calmly watching the street scenes rushing past the window.

"Hara-kun... have you heard about the bank hostage situation?" Yusuke Nishio suddenly asked.

Hara Masaki turned his head, looking puzzled, and said, "Bank hostage situation? Are you referring to the incident in Minato Ward 3-chome? I heard some commotion while patrolling the perimeter, but I don't know the specifics."

Yusuke Nishio sighed heavily, his knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel. "While you were on patrol, I was watching TV... and I happened to see a news report that Rin Shinomiya robbed a bank..."

"She robbed a bank?" Yuan Zhensheng looked incredulous. "This...how is this possible? Could the media have made a mistake? Or is there some misunderstanding?"

Yusuke Nishio scratched his head in frustration and said, "I don't know, but the reporter played the phone recording, and I recognized it. It was Rin Shinomiya's voice."

"Eh..." Yuan Zhensheng drawled out his ambiguous tone.

Yusuke Nishio's shoulders slumped slightly: "That young lady... although she's willful, always causing trouble, and frequently skipping work without reason, she really is a good girl. At least when she joined the police station, she genuinely wanted to be a good police officer. How could she...?"

"Maybe she was just having a moment of despair," Yuan Zhensheng said.

Yusuke Nishio became increasingly remorseful as he spoke: "Did I make her write too many self-criticisms, putting too much pressure on her? Or was it that I usually just scolded her and made her reflect, causing her to lose her temper?"

Yuan Zhensheng didn't miss the chance to kick her while she was down: "You're educating her for her own good. If she goes and robs a bank because of this, then she's beyond saving."

"Is that so...?"

Yusuke Nishio didn't reply, but his brows furrowed even more, and he pressed the accelerator harder.

The patrol car turned into the police station parking lot, which was already full of all kinds of vehicles.

The two got out of the car and quickly walked into the brightly lit headquarters building. The conference room was filled with smoke and bustling with people.

The director, several section chiefs, and other officials transferred from various places were discussing a huge port area map, their voices noisy and urgent.

Koji Yamamoto and Akio Yoshioka were also in the crowd. The former listened with a gloomy expression, a cigarette dangling from his lips, while the latter tried to straighten his back and make out the markings on the map.

Yusuke Nishio and Masao Hara, who came from lower-level staff, could only stand in the corner of the last row of the conference room.

Yusuke Nishio stood on tiptoe, craning his neck to try and hear the instructions in front of him, while Masao Hara stood quietly to his side and behind him, his gaze sweeping across the venue indifferently.

"...In the northwest direction, all high-rise buildings within a one-kilometer radius of the Imperial Hotel must be checked one by one! The focus should be on locations with a good view and a direct view of the hotel's lectern!"

A department head tapped the map with his baton:

"The mobile unit has cordoned off the main area, but we need more manpower for door-to-door visits, registration, and a thorough search of the surrounding areas. All patrol officers from each unit are to be integrated into the search network!"

The director's voice drowned out the noise:

"Listen up! This is a political assassination! The assassin is extremely dangerous and may be heavily armed! All personnel involved in the search must work in pairs and maintain constant communication! Report any suspicious persons or items, especially firearms, binoculars, or suspicious discarded objects, immediately. Solo operations are strictly prohibited! The primary objective is to locate the sniper position and collect evidence! Understand?"

"Yes!" came a chorus of mixed responses from the conference room.

Yusuke Nishio puffed out his chest and whispered to Masaki Hara, "Did you hear that, Hara-kun? We might be assigned to a certain neighborhood later, so be careful."

He felt as if he had returned to his youth, leading younger colleagues on missions and participating in the investigation of major cases.

Yuan Zhensheng nodded and said softly, "Please give me your guidance, Director."

The meeting continued, with senior management directing the search operation in an orderly manner. Everyone had something to do, and no one could slack off, including Yamamoto Koji.

An officer on the stage read from the list: "...The third division of the port area, Chief Nishio, you will take one person to support the resident visits and registration in a certain area of ​​Akasaka Minami-cho, and cooperate with the third mobile squad for perimeter security. The specific location and contact person will be provided later."

"Yes!" Yusuke Nishio quickly replied, tugging at Masaki Hara's sleeve.

Akasaka Minami-cho is located on the outer edge of the search area; their mission is to conduct registration and cooperate with security.

The meeting ended quickly, and the crowd began to move about, each receiving more detailed instructions.

Yusuke Nishio squeezed forward to get the documents, while Masaki Hara stood still and waited, his eyes sweeping over his hurried colleagues, his ears filled with snippets of conversation about ballistics, sniping positions, and media responses.

There are advantages to being a backdrop.

It can help identify and fill gaps in information and provide insights into the latest investigative directions of the police.

Police have sent the hotel glass to a laboratory for analysis, and the results will take about two or three days to reconstruct the precise trajectory and pinpoint the sniper's location. Until then, the police will have to rely on traditional search methods, circling around the area to find the person.

"Quiet!"

The microphone suddenly went off.

Everyone looked up and saw the commander holding a microphone, announcing:

"We just received a report from the scene that the mobile unit apprehended a suspicious man in the sewers during a search operation. He was unarmed but behaving furtively and trying to evade the search... He has now been brought to headquarters."

Yuan Zhensheng's heart sank, and he had a vague premonition of something bad.

"We're temporarily changing our search focus to ascertain his identity. Also, send an additional team to conduct a more thorough search of that sewer area, looking for any abandoned weapons or other items!"

After giving his orders, the commander hurriedly left, intending to interrogate the suspect himself. Yuan Zhensheng secretly followed behind the crowd, looking at the commander's back through the glass door frame. The latter happened to run into the police team detaining the prisoners.

Two riot police officers grabbed Hideaki Shiraishi's arms and hurriedly crossed the corridor into the interrogation room.

Just then, Hideaki Shiraishi looked up and met the gaze of someone behind the door and window.

The next second their eyes met. Hideaki Shiraishi was led into the interrogation room, while someone patted Hara Masao on the shoulder from behind. Yusuke Nishio asked, "What are you looking at?"

"It's nothing," Yuan Zhensheng said.

Something big has happened. That guy didn't die; he was even caught by the police. After a round of interrogation, Hideaki Shiraishi will most likely reveal his identity.

What should I do?