The Game is Afoot

Daisuke Oyama's glared at the assembled group of men in his main hall as they presented their reports. "What do you mean, you've lost the target?"

The leader bowed deferentially. "Our group reported success in capturing her in Ikebukuro and were on their to the drop off point in Shinjuku when they lost contact with the team who had her in their vehicle. When they couldn't reestablish contact, they circled back and found their vehicle wrecked and the two men had been physically disabled, and the girl was gone."

"Witnesses say they were attacked by a man riding a motorcycle, and he took the girl with him," a second man reported.

Daisuke paced back and forth in frustration before stopping. "That doesn't sound like the police... could it be one of Tanaka's people?"

"It would make sense," the first man nodded. "If they could get the girl, they could possibly derail the entire deal if they negotiate it properly."

"Or..." Oyama considered, "if they have her, we go to Ikemoto-kaichou and use that act as motivation... letting him know that we share a common enemy." He shook his head, "But it would still be better if we could get her back! One of their people probably already took my son from me; I'll be damned if I allow them to take down our organization by stealing our bargaining chip! Find this assailant and get the girl back! I don't care who you have to go through to do it!"

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"Where are you taking us?" Kyoko asked, as the two of them headed south along the streets of Shinjuku.

"Shinjuku-sanchome station is just a few blocks away from here. If we can reach it, we should be able to get a train to Minato, or at least close enough to get out of danger," Kyosuke explained.

"Why not just go to the nearest kōban?" Kyoko asked.

"Normally sure," Kyosuke allowed, "but right now, the men who are after you have a lot of the police in this area in their back pockets. We have no idea which police are honest, and which are on the take."

Kyoko stopped for a moment. "How do you know things like that? Do you really hear that kind of talk working as a cook?"

Kyosuke hedged, "Shibuya isn't Minato; we get all kinds of people," he claimed.

Kyoko looked at Kyosuke with uncertainty, "Are you... working with them?"

Kyosuke sighed and took Kyoko's hand, "Look, I promise... let's get you home safe and sound, and then... I'll answer any questions you want to hear. After that, you can decide for yourself whether you want to see me again going forward."

After a moment, Kyoko nodded. However, Kyosuke then noticed the crowds of people around them had started to gather in the past minute. Crap, he realized; our little public spat has apparently been capturing the attention of the paparazzi, as the crowd had been filming with phone cameras, whispering amongst each other and sending reactions and shares.

He tensed up as he noticed among them a group of young men giving them directed eye contact and abruptly heading towards them. He quickly changed direction, pulling Kyoko into an alley between buildings trying to evade them. Glancing back, he pulled Kyoko closer as he saw them men pulling clubs out. "Stay close to me..." he whispered. "If they attack, stay low and don't panic."

"Attack?" Kyoko fearfully gasped.

"They won't touch you," Kyosuke reassured. "You're way too valuable; the only one they're going to hurt is me. If they do take me out, then get to Shinjuku-sanchome station," he ordered, as he pulled his collapsible baton and held it ready. He didn't want to start a fight, lest he be considered the aggressor, but he didn't have to wait long.

"Get him!" the first man ordered, as his partners charged forward. The first attacker swung his club wildly as Kyosuke expertly dodged, counterattacking with a strike to the man's throat, dropping him instantly. The second man lunged forward with a dagger, forcing Kyosuke to sidestep the attack and blocking the strike by pinning his arm. He then pivoted on his hip, dislocating the attacker's arm and dropping him to the ground.

The attacking leader scowled, gesturing the rest of his men forward as the surrounding civilians scattered from the violent scene, creating more chaos in every direction. Kyosuke grabbed Kyoko and looked for a path away from the attackers and back onto the streets. These alleyways are pinning us in; I need to find another way to the train stations, he realized, heading back towards the streets.

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Akito Yamamoto pulled into the Kabukicho district where the warehouse stood waiting and got out. He looked around nervously; this was the first time he was actually talking to the man he had been working with face-to-face, but at this point, he couldn't risk any chance that this conversation was recorded. Inside, he was confronted by security guards who immediately discovered his firearm; as a licensed security guard for one of the richest men in Japan, he was one of the extremely rare civilians who could actually carry such a weapon outside of the police. After a nod from the senior men in the rear, he was allowed to pass and came face to face with General Ryo Tanaka. "Just what do you think you're doing? This wasn't part of our agreement!"

Ryo Tanaka blinked with surprise, then annoyance at both the message and the tone. "And what exactly do you think I'm doing?"

"Did you send your men to kidnap Kyoko in Ikebukuro?" Akito demanded.

Ryo's expression went almost blank before becoming amused. "I almost wish we did. It would make our job much simpler if she were here now."

Akito looked aghast. "I never agreed to have her hurt or killed!"

"Oh, I never said that," Ryo coyly responded. "Be that as it may, you should know that if she's brought here... well, it would be better for all parties. Safer for her, peace for the streets, and well worth it for you," he promised.

Akito looked at Ryo with a cold regard. "Y-you've put a price on her head?"

"On her safe return," Ryo corrected. "Of course, it would be better for all concerned if she came back with you, would it not? I'm sure that you would be much more gentle than some of my associates, who are nowhere near as... elegant as you are." 

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Kimiko came to a stop at the 302 highway and checked her phone again. Since she didn't have a passenger, she obviously couldn't read the scrolling messages and drive at the same time, so checking the latest location of the Ikemoto heiress required her to scroll through the latest tagged pictures. She gasped at what she saw; videos and pictures of street hoodlums charging forward armed with clubs and knives, before getting expertly beaten down by Sakurai-san. Reactions on social media were varied, ranging from shock at the violence to praise and glorifying at Sakurai's apparent skill. Kimiko shook her head; social media could have such a desensitizing effect on people's sensibilities and morality, she thought, completely missing the irony of her own participation of fueling the phenomenon.

Just then, she was jostled out of her inner world of scrolling on her phone by the abrupt sound of her car door opening and two people practically tumbling into her tiny Honda N-box. She snapped her attention to the rear seat of her car and froze at the sight of Kyoko Ikemoto in the car seat and Kyosuke Sakurai finishing off an attacker to the ground before following suit. "Drive!" he ordered.