The Yakuza's Threat

Kazuya Hattori arrived at his workplace, the Paranormal Department of the Tokyo Police Force. The front desk secretary, Nezumi – a 300-year-old mouse yōkai – met him in the reception hall. He gave Kazuya a grave look from behind his glasses.

“Good day, Hattori!” he squeaked. “Chief Shinemori is waiting for you. Miss Takeda has already arrived. And… there’s another entity, too.”

“Another entity?” Kazuya raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, Nezu?”

“You’d better see for yourself.” Nezumi sighed. “He complained about you and Miss Takeda. I reckon you’ve messed up big time, although I don’t know the details.”

Kazuya gulped. He ran towards the stairs, hurrying to reach the second floor, where Chief Shinemori’s office was located.

For Nezu to look so grave and not tell me who the visitor is… It must be someone from the Kagenashi Clan! He thought, his heart banging. Miss Takeda and I raided those foxes yesterday, so they’re complaining now. Ugh, this is the worst outcome! I can’t drag Miss Takeda down with me. I must confess to Chief Shinemori that it was solely my fault!

He reached the second floor, knocked on Chief Shinemori’s office and walked in, but froze at the threshold. Chief Akechi Shinemori sat at his desk with an open laptop, frowning. Inuko Takeda, Kazuya’s half-dog-yōkai colleague, stood with droopy white ears and a lowered tail near the Chief.

The Kagenashi foxes were in the room, just as Kazuya suspected. Two low-level thugs, dressed in black suits, stood opposite Inuko. But Kazuya focused on their leader – an old man with long, white hair and a beard, dressed in a black kimono. He was leaning on a wooden stick with his wrinkly hands, a silver ring with an amethyst gem on his finger. He glared at Kazuya with his crimson eyes, his pupils as narrow as half-moons.

Rage and resentment filled Kazuya’s heart. The old man was Genzaburō, the kumichō of the Kagenashi Clan, whom Kazuya had been hunting his entire career. He believed Genzaburō had murdered his parents because his father, Detective Jin Hattori, discovered incriminating evidence against him. After all, the fire that killed Kazuya’s parents ten years ago looked eerily like crimson foxfire, despite carrying no spiritual kitsune trace. Moreover, all of Jin Hattori’s files turned to dust in those flames. So, both Kazuya and Chief Akechi Shinemori, Jin Hattori’s former partner, believed that the culprit was Genzaburō.

Now, that very man, the murderer of his parents, stood in Chief Shinemori’s office. Kazuya’s blood boiled, and his nostrils flared.

Does this old freak have no shame? He clenched his fists. He’s complaining about Miss Takeda and me when it’s I who lost my family to him?!

Kazuya averted his eyes from Genzaburō with disdain. He stepped into the room and shut the door behind him, then bowed to Chief Shinemori.

“Good day, Sir!” He greeted him. “I arrived, as you requested.”

A mocking smile flickered amidst Genzaburō’s white moustache as he eyed Kazuya. The latter barely held back a snarl. Genzaburō’s smirk looked awfully like his grandson Yukihiro’s.

An apple doesn’t fall far from its tree. Kazuya sniffed. He remembered his older sister’s affair with the yakuza heir. What did Kasane even find in Yukihiro?

“Perhaps Detective Hattori can explain to you his questionable conduct in our nightclub yesterday?” Genzaburō turned to Chief Shinemori. His voice was deep and seductive like Yukihiro’s, but throatier. He glanced at Inuko, who bared her fangs defensively. Genzaburō added, “This young lady was his companion, so she might have something to say, too.”

Chief Shinemori’s brow furrowed, and fists clenched at Genzaburō’s mocking remarks. He hated the old man because Kazuya’s father, Jin Hattori, was his best friend. Akechi Shinemori still shuddered at the memories of their fight with Genzaburō in the past. The old fox swung his claws and sent purple flames at Jin Hattori, which would be fatal for him. Akechi pushed Jin aside and took the hit. He barely survived, thanks to his inherent fire resistance as an Explosion Mage. But he received a permanent scar on his face.

Due to his old enmity with Genzaburō, Akechi was angrier at Kazuya’s and Inuko’s misconduct. He turned his laptop around and showed them the screen, containing a paused video recording.

“I remember I told you and Miss Takeda to go home after the case was closed yesterday,” he addressed Kazuya. “So, what is this?”

He turned on the video. Kazuya’s eyes widened in shock, while Inuko yelped like a dog caught in a crime. The video showed their advances through Foxtails, the Kagenashi Clan’s nightclub in the Roppongi district. The camera had recorded Kazuya hypnotising the yakuza foxes to gain access to the staff-only areas, where Yukihiro and his henchmen met them.

The recordings from the staff room especially terrified Kazuya. They showed how he shot Yukihiro in the heart but failed to kill him. Kazuya’s voice was audible, so his reason for storming the nightclub became clear – the rage over his sister’s acquaintance with Yukihiro. Inuko’s usage of Raijū’s Bark, the most powerful Lightning Magic of the dog yōkai, was also recorded, nearly killing some Kagenashi thugs.

And yet, Kazuya was relieved by some video sequences, or rather, their absence. Certain parts of Yukihiro’s speech were cut, so his relationship with Kasane didn’t come to light. Kazuya could somehow bear the punishment for his reckless actions, but he couldn’t have Kasane’s ties to the yakuza become public. To his luck, Yukihiro shared his opinion and persuaded his stern grandfather, Genzaburō, to cut out the parts mentioning his and Kasane’s intimacy.

“Well?” Chief Akechi Shinemori asked sternly, glowering at the trembling Kazuya and the yelping Inuko. “I got this footage this morning from the Kagenashi Clan.” He glanced at the smirking Genzaburō and barely drowned his wish to strangle him. He turned back to the young detectives. “Do you even realise how grave this is? – Both of you could face jail time for attempted murder! Not to mention you’d be permanently fired from the police.”

Inuko gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. Her golden, canine eyes filled with tears. Kazuya remembered how she feared losing her job. He clenched his fists and turned to Chief Shinemori.

“I apologise for shaming you and our department with my recklessness!” He bowed to the Chief. “But I ask you to spare Miss Takeda! She only supported me, as any good partner would do. Disobeying your command and storming the yakuza nightclub was my idea. And, as the video certifies, I did it for selfish reasons. I regret my actions, and I’m ready to receive the punishment!”

He straightened up again and looked at the Chief. Akechi Shinemori’s honey-brown eyes shimmered with compassion for a moment, but he regained his surly look. Before he could speak, Inuko tugged at Kazuya’s arm. She glared at Chief Shinemori, her ears and tail set upright like a guard dog’s.

“I’m at fault, too,” she said. “I followed Hattori Senpai of my free will.” She turned to the surprised Kazuya. “I won’t let Senpai face the consequences alone!” She beamed at him and wagged her tail. “I supported you then, and I’ll stand by your side now.”

Kazuya’s cheeks burned. Gazing into Inuko’s eyes, he felt butterflies in his stomach.

When this ordeal is over, I should treat her to some ice cream. He thought. She got into this scrape because of me, and… I’d love to ask her out.

He trembled at his desire. What if Miss Takeda rejected him after she’d seen all his ugly sides yesterday? – But he had to try.

Chief Akechi Shinemori cleared his throat, waking Kazuya from his musings, and turned to Genzaburō.

“What are you planning to do with that footage?” he asked, his voice shaking, and his brows knitted. If the Kagenashi Clan publishes this video, not only Hattori and Miss Takeda but our whole department will suffer. The officials will fire us all! He clenched his fist. I knew Hattori could be reckless, but I didn’t take countermeasures. I can’t have our people lose their jobs because of me!

Genzaburō’s smile deepened, delighting in his enemies’ despair. He tapped his finger on his walking stick, the amethyst gem of his silver ring glimmering on his wrinkly hand.

“Don’t fret, I won’t have it published… yet.” He chuckled at the police officers’ wide-eyed expressions. He raised his eyebrows at Kazuya, who glowered at him. “My grandson, Yukihiro, has a soft heart…” Genzaburō smiled ruefully, somewhat ashamed. “He demanded that I give you a second chance. But there won’t be a third.” His pupils narrowed to slits. “If I catch any of you snooping around my premises again, I’ll make sure the whole of Japan sees this footage.” He regained his benign smile. “Good day to you all!”

He and his thugs vanished in a cloud of purple fumes, their scent of burning wisteria lingering. Kazuya, Inuko, and Akechi stared at the place where the yakuza had stood seconds ago. They felt shivers down their spines. The Kagenashi Clan now held a kompromat against the Paranormal Department of the Tokyo Police Force.

Guilt and rage overwhelmed Kazuya’s heart. With his thoughtless actions, he had endangered not only himself and Miss Takeda but also his entire workplace.