Tokyo: From Lawless Madpolice to Minister
Chapter 43 - 41: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind (Vote for Monthly Tickets! Vote for Monthly Tickets!)

Chapter 43: Chapter 41: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind (Vote for Monthly Tickets! Vote for Monthly Tickets!)

"According to reliable information from my informant, Takeda Ichiro has arranged to meet someone at the Maple Restaurant in the Shitamachi District tonight," he said gravely during the emergency meeting of the search headquarters initiated by Sato Rich. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is our best chance to capture the source of this chaos once and for all!"

The meeting room erupted into commotion.

"Have we finally found this guy?"

"Who is Takeda Ichiro meeting?"

"This case can finally be closed!"

Everyone was excited, talking over each other. After all, several days of tracking Takeda Ichiro had led nowhere; now, such a huge breakthrough was bound to be thrilling for anyone.

Well, not Aoyama Xiu Xin.

He observed the scene with cold detachment, taking in everyone’s expressions and reactions.

If he wasn’t mistaken, the person Takeda Ichiro was meeting tonight at the Maple Restaurant was none other than Sato Rich.

Sato Rich was revealing this information now because he wanted to use the police to legitimately eliminate Takeda Ichiro—it wasn’t difficult for him, with personal loyalists within the first division, to make the arrest and ’accidentally’ kill Takeda in the gunfire.

As long as Takeda Ichiro died, no one would be able to prove he had been part of the Changxin Bank robbery, and Sato would earn considerable credit for it.

Truly sly and malicious!

Mr. Aoyama thought such a person deserved to die a thousand deaths!

"Quiet, please! Silence!" Asai Youki rose and raised his hand. After the room gradually calmed down, he turned to Sato and asked, "Chief Sato, your information is indeed exciting, but are you sure about the reliability of your informant’s source?"

With that question, the previously excited crowd grew quiet. Indeed, the police had spared no effort and still failed to find any trace of Takeda Ichiro. How could Sato Rich’s informant have obtained such accurate information?

Could it be false intelligence?

Or perhaps part of Takeda Ichiro’s plan?

"Out of concern for my informant’s safety, his identity must remain confidential, so I cannot disclose it to everyone," Sato Rich said in a measured tone. He then continued with a serious and earnest expression, "It’s normal for you all not to trust him, but please—trust me! Believe in my judgment as a seasoned police officer!"

With that, he bowed deeply.

Seeing this, the members of the search team seated on either side of the conference table hurriedly rose and bowed in return.

"Please continue, Chief Sato," said Asai Youki after bowing back and then taking his seat again.

The other police officers promptly followed suit and sat down.

Sato Rich cleared his throat, slowly swept his gaze over everyone, paused briefly on Aoyama Xiu Xin, and then continued, "The reason my informant has such accurate information is that he was the middleman arranging this evening’s meeting. Takeda Ichiro wants to purchase a batch of firearms through him. I told him to pass my number to Takeda Ichiro who has already contacted me, so tonight I will disguise myself as an arms dealer and meet with Takeda Ichiro at the Maple Restaurant."

Hearing this, the people present were visibly shocked.

"Chief Sato..." Asai Youki instinctively wanted to advise him that it’s unwise for a man of honor to put himself in danger.

But before he could say more, Sato Rich raised his hand to stop him and said with a noble air, "The informant is my man. Although I trust him, human nature is unpredictable—there may be dangers. So it has to be me going tonight, no one else should try to dissuade me!"

"Moreover, Takeda Ichiro is extremely meticulous and cunning. We cannot afford any mistakes tonight. If we fail, who knows when he will surface again. So just in case, I will carry a tracking device but no listening devices."

Seeing Sato Rich willing to take such risks, everyone’s admiration for him surged; they also felt more confident about the credibility of his informant’s information.

While his actions involved great risk, if successful, it would be a significant achievement, so no one else tried to persuade him at that point, as it could be seen as competing with him for glory.

Aoyama Xiu Xin had to admit, Sato Rich was quite cunning. If he hadn’t known the truth, he might have been fooled too.

With just the mention of an informant, Sato had made himself out to be a hero willing to face danger, as well as providing a legitimate reason to meet with Takeda Ichiro—thus reassuring Takeda and avoiding suspicion from the police.

Not carrying any listening devices likely meant he was afraid the command center would overhear his conversation with Takeda Ichiro.

After all, he could control what he said but couldn’t control what Takeda might say upon seeing him.

"Chief Sato truly has courage like a tiger!" Asai Youki praised, taking back control of the meeting. "We still have five hours until dark. I suggest we arrange for someone to scout the restaurant and get an understanding of the layout and then plan tonight’s capture operation in detail."

"Senior Police Director, please entrust this task to me," volunteered Aoyama Xiu Xin as he stood up.

Of course, he couldn’t allow Sato’s plan to succeed.

Asai Youki nodded, then turned to look at Sato Rich. "What do you think, Chief Sato?"

"Detective Aoyama is exceptionally clever; he will surely accomplish this task," said Sato Rich.

He was unaware that Aoyama Xiu Xin knew about his involvement in the Changxin Bank robbery and thus didn’t see assigning the task to him as disadvantageous.

"Police Chief Asai," Asai Youki called out again.

Asai Ayumi stood up swiftly, "Yes!"

"Take Detective Aoyama and Detective Nakamura to the Maple Restaurant immediately to survey the inside and the surrounding area. Time is of the essence," instructed Asai Youki.

"Hi!" Asai Ayumi responded again, and then walked out of the meeting room with Aoyama Xiu Xin and Nakamura Shinichi.

Asai Youki then announced, "Let’s take a break for now. Rest up, everyone. We’ll continue after they return."

"Mr. Aoyama, why did you take on this task voluntarily?" After leaving the meeting room, Asai Ayumi walked side by side with Aoyama Xiu Xin, asking with puzzlement.

Aoyama Xiu Xin didn’t answer, instead he took out his mobile phone and called Takahashi Tomoyuki, commanding, "Find somewhere with no one around to talk."

"Hi!" In the meeting room, Takahashi Tomoyuki glanced at Sato Rich, then hurriedly took his phone and ducked into the stairwell, "Please go ahead."

"During the meeting just now, I noticed you didn’t seem surprised by the intelligence on Sato. It seems he tipped you insiders off in advance. Did he suggest you could kill Takeda Ichiro during the arrest?" Aoyama Xiu Xin said casually as he walked on.

"How... how did you know?" Takahashi Tomoyuki was immediately alarmed. Could there be another traitor around Sato Police Chief like himself? After giving it some thought but coming up empty, he honestly replied, "He did mention it, saying Takeda Ichiro was extremely dangerous, and for his safety, we need not give any warning and directly eliminate him during the arrest."

"Okay, I got it." Aoyama Xiu Xin hung up the phone with a cold sneer. Just as he had suspected.

Beside him, Asai Ayumi’s eyes widened in disbelief, "Do you have an informant close to Sato?"

How many secrets did this guy have that she didn’t know about? He, a demoted Patrol Chief, actually had an undercover agent near a Police Chief!

"Police Chief, there’s still a lot you don’t know about me," Aoyama Xiu Xin bragged, then turned to Nakamura, "Prepare thirty recording pens, make sure each one works, and meet up at Maple Restaurant."

"Hi!" Nakamura didn’t know why this was needed, but his strength was in never asking why.

After getting into the car, Asai Ayumi could not hold back her curiosity any longer, "What exactly are you planning? I’m your superior; you should at least fill me in, shouldn’t you?"

The seat belt cutting diagonally across her chest accentuated the roundness of the bosom beneath her tight shirt.

"Police Chief, you’ve got a few brushes," Aoyama Xiu Xin said seriously as he closed the car door and looked at her.

Asai Ayumi was confused, not understanding why he suddenly praised her, "So what? What’s the issue?"

"So, help me brush them," Aoyama Xiu Xin said as he unbuckled his belt, partially disrobing, and started the car, "Brush while I fill you in on everything."

Asai Ayumi was stunned at first, then she realized what he meant. Her fair cheeks instantly turned red, her eyes’ confusion and curiosity replaced by shyness and annoyance.

This guy was really despicable!

"You... you..." Her anger caused her ample chest to heave, she turned her head away, and through gritted teeth, she said, "In your dreams! Even if it means jumping from the car, even if it kills me, I will not agree to this!"

Twenty minutes later, Asai Ayumi tossed a tissue out of the speeding car window, swept back the hair that had fallen across her forehead, her face still flushed with anger as she said, "Now you need to tell me."

Don’t ask why she suddenly agreed; some things are just too tough to swallow.

"I speculate that the Changxin Bank robbery was a joint venture between Sato Rich and Takeda Ichiro..."

Aoyama Xiu Xin was, as usual, excellent at speaking.

As soon as he started talking, Asai Ayumi was shocked.

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

Even as they arrived at their destination, Asai Ayumi still looked somewhat dazed by the shocking revelation.

The Senior Police Director of Police Headquarters’ first investigative division turned out to be one of the culprits behind a bank robbery that caused multiple deaths.

She had only read such plots in novels.

She never expected it to unfold right before her.

"What are you standing there for, get out of the car," Aoyama Xiu Xin said as he pulled out the car keys, prompting her casually.

Only then did Asai Ayumi come to her senses, fuming, "Sato Rich deserves a thousand deaths!"

Aoyama Xiu Xin thought so too, yet to him, the reason Sato deserved death wasn’t because of the money he stole or the people he killed, but because he framed him!

Because they wasted some time with verbal communication on the road, Nakamura Shinichi had arrived before them.

"Deputy Director, the recording pens. I’ve tested each one," Nakamura said as he saw Aoyama Xiu Xin get out of the car, shaking the package in his hand.

"Hmm, good job," Aoyama Xiu Xin patted his shoulder, then entered the restaurant, instructing, "Find out how many private rooms there are. Make sure to hide a recording pen in each room, two in the large rooms, and if there are any extra, hide three."

They still didn’t know which private room Takeda Ichiro and Sato Rich would meet in, so they had to arrange every room. As long as they recorded their conversation during the meeting, Sato Rich would be good as caught.

In Japan, there’s something known as "secret recording." Recordings made without leading questions or coercion can be used as evidence.

With the recordings and the money Sato Rich used to pay off his loans evidently not having a clear source, with some simple investigative work, his involvement in the robbery of Changxin Bank would be nearly proven.

He can look forward to spending the rest of his life in prison.

Tonight, Sato Rich was hunting Takeda Ichiro.

Little did he know, he was also someone else’s prey.

This is like the proverb: the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.