Chapter 41: Black Cat and the Prime Minister

Before the Yamagami-gumi, the largest gang in Urawa—no, in all of Saitama Prefecture—was called the Shoko-kai.

The Shoko-kai was a gang composed of Zainichi Koreans.

At that time, the Zainichi Koreans were not as clearly divided into two factions as they are now, either of North Korean or South Korean descent.

Back then, the leadership of the Shoko-kai was mainly of South Korean descent—according to today’s classification, they could be categorized as a South Korean gang—but they also had many members of North Korean descent among their ranks.
They controlled almost all the Zainichi Koreans in Saitama Prefecture and had considerable power.

As mentioned before, the Japanese police were once so troubled by the issue of Korean gangs that they had to give guns to the Yamaguchi-gumi to let them fight each other.
After the Shoko-kai grew large, they also received the same treatment from the local police in Saitama Prefecture.

At that time, within Saitama Prefecture, any other gang that caused friction with the Shoko-kai would surely receive secret help from the police.
If members of other gangs injured or even killed members of the Shoko-kai, the police would most likely turn a blind eye.
If members of the Shoko-kai injured or killed members of other gangs, the police would pursue the case relentlessly, and even if it was just a scapegoat, they had to arrest one to go to jail.
Even if a member of another gang rear-ended a Shoko-kai member’s car, the police would most likely find the Shoko-kai entirely at fault.

The Shoko-kai was naturally unwilling to be so ostracized and suppressed.
More than a decade ago, cornered and desperate, they launched a final, dying counterattack.

The remaining gangs in Saitama Prefecture engaged in a bloody battle with the Shoko-kai.
At that time, Seiko was still in kindergarten, and that was the only time in her life she had ever shot and killed someone.

It’s hard to say who won that bloody battle.
The Shoko-kai disbanded, many small gangs disappeared directly, and the surviving gangs also suffered heavy losses.
But those who survived ultimately had the opportunity to carve up the living space left by the fall of the giant.
Today’s Yamagami-gumi and Takada-gumi are both survivors of that bloody battle.

As for Saori…

Saori is Saori.

At least in Seiko’s eyes, the Saori she knew was the Saori right in front of her.

As for the child born to Murakami Eishi and that mistress, Seiko had never even spoken a word to her.
To have her feel guilty for assuming her identity was impossible.

The same went for Murakami Eishi.
He didn’t even recognize his own daughter, so Seiko felt even less of a psychological burden.

From Urawa Station, it only took about ten minutes to reach Omiya Station.

From Omiya Station, it was less than a ten-minute walk to a nightclub called “Black Cat.”

Some people had already arrived before Seiko.

“Black Cat” was not open for business in the morning.
The nightclub’s staff were hiding in fear.
In their place were two groups of burly, fierce-looking men.

The moment Seiko arrived at the nightclub’s entrance, she was blocked by a group of people, but was quickly welcomed in by another group.

“These people are clearly here to sue for peace, yet they’re still so arrogant,” Doan Hiroshi, who came to greet Seiko, said with a disdainful smile.

Doan Hiroshi was one of the powerful chokusan of the Yamagami-gumi.
His Doan-gumi had about two hundred men, slightly fewer than the Ishiwatari-gumi, but not by much.

Previously, when Seiko had decided to go to war with the Takada-gumi, three powerful chokusan had firmly chosen to stand by Seiko’s side.
One was the boss of the Ishiwatari-gumi, Ishiwatari Takashi; another was the boss of the Doan-gumi, Doan Hiroshi; and the third was the boss of the Nitta-gumi, Nitta Hiroshi.

Regardless of their reasons for choosing to support her, Seiko had to reciprocate their support.

Unconditional loyalty does not exist.
Trust between people is built through repeated positive responses.
On the Ishiwatari-gumi’s side, Seiko had already rewarded them with the business of Oshin-ya.
So, when Yamagami Nobuo asked Seiko who should manage the nightclub, Seiko gave Doan Hiroshi’s name.

Yamagami Nobuo, who was already eager to cultivate a qualified successor, naturally didn’t mind helping Seiko build her own team.
Therefore, the Doan-gumi appeared here today.

The other group confronting the Doan-gumi was from the Takada-gumi…

Walking up to the second floor of the nightclub, Seiko immediately saw two old men with graying hair and sharp eyes, silently facing each other.
The atmosphere was so tense you could hear a pin drop.

“Grandpa.”

Under the scrutinizing gazes of the two groups, Seiko walked forward unhurriedly and greeted him.

Seeing Seiko’s appearance, Yamagami Nobuo’s cold expression visibly relaxed, and he chuckled lightly, “Seiko is here.”

The other old man, the boss of the Takada-gumi, Takada Yamakiyo, seeing the interaction between Seiko and Yamagami Nobuo, couldn’t help but soften his attitude as well.
Perhaps it was because he thought of Yamagami Nobuo losing his son in his old age, and himself having a son late in life, only to almost lose him, that he felt a sense of shared misery.

The Takada-gumi and the Yamagami-gumi, the first and second largest Yakuza organizations in Saitama Prefecture, had chosen to hold peace talks in Omiya City, a neutral territory where neither side had officially planted their flag.

However, it seemed the process of the peace talks was not very pleasant…

“Yamagami Nobuo, you don’t really think you’ve won, do you?” Takada Yamakiyo said.

“If we didn’t win, why did you come to initiate peace talks?” Yamagami Nobuo said.

“I indeed don’t want to continue sacrificing the lives of the young people in the organization, which is why I came to talk peace with you.”
His own son was also a young person in the organization; Takada Yamakiyo felt he wasn’t wrong on this point.
“But don’t you think you’ve won, not ever!”

“What do you mean?” Yamagami Nobuo’s gaze sharpened.

“Haha, Yamagami Nobuo, do you think your opponent is us?”
Takada Yamakiyo pointed at himself, his words seemingly tinged with self-mockery.
“Our Takada-gumi is just a pawn clearing the way.
No, even the Inagawa-kai is at best just a vanguard clearing the way.
Your real opponent is…”

Takada Yamakiyo pointed at the ceiling and slowly said, “Nakasone Yasuhiro.”

Seiko raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“The Prime Minister?”
It took Yamagami Nobuo a moment to react before he exclaimed, “The Prime Minister wants to take Urawa City?”

“What is Urawa?” Takada Yamakiyo said.
“What Nakasone Yasuhiro wants is the entire Saitama Prefecture.”

Yamagami Nobuo looked at Takada Yamakiyo with doubt.

Takada Yamakiyo read the doubt in Yamagami Nobuo’s eyes and couldn’t help but sneer, “What’s so hard to believe?
The governor of this Saitama Prefecture is an independent, the mayor of Urawa City is an independent, the mayor of Omiya City is an independent, the mayor of Chichibu City is an independent, the mayor of Hasuda City is an independent… It’s as if Saitama Prefecture has declared independence from Japan.
How could the Liberal Democratic Party tolerate this situation continuing?”

Yamagami Nobuo’s expression gradually became grave.

Although the current Prime Minister of Japan, Nakasone Yasuhiro, had a rather average reputation among the public, being ridiculed by the Japanese as a “weathervane,” and Yamagami Nobuo himself had privately cursed the Prime Minister for just putting on a show and not doing any real work, when he had to truly face this name, Yamagami Nobuo felt as if a mountain was pressing down on him.

Listening to this, Seiko couldn’t help but frown as well, but the reason for her frown was different from Yamagami Nobuo’s…

Seeing Yamagami Nobuo’s ugly expression, Takada Yamakiyo’s smile finally became unrestrained.
“I will pay the price you want, but what I want, please be sure to do it.”

After laughing, Takada Yamakiyo flicked his sleeves and left.

Yamagami Nobuo was silent for a long time before asking Seiko, “How much of what Takada Yamakiyo said do you think is true?”

“Half, I suppose,” Seiko said.

“Which half is true?” Yamagami Nobuo asked with a glimmer of hope.

“The Prime Minister wanting Saitama Prefecture might be true,” Seiko said.

Yamagami Nobuo almost wanted to curse, “Then what’s the difference between that and it all being true?!”