Reunion in the Park

Yoshoku restaurant was a fashionable meeting place, making its mark for introducing Western cuisine all the way back in the 1870s, maintaining a standard of excellence that made it a trailblazer for generations. The elegant location situated right next to Shinobazu Pond made it a fashionable meeting place for all walks of life.

Yoriyoshi pulled the Panda N-box into the modest parking lot in Ueno Park as Kyosuke kept his eyes out. The park was crowded with people, which was both comforting and concerning at the same time. On the one hand, it was difficult to focus on any given individual with this many people, but on the other, with this many witnesses around, it was highly unlikely anyone would be bold enough to try anything. He stepped out of the car first; if anyone wanted to make a move, he was determined to be the target, but to his relief the coast seemed clear.

"Clear," he tersely called, gently pulling Kyoko out, then escorting her towards the restaurant. His eyes maintained constant situation awareness; after everything that had gone wrong, the last thing he wanted was for it to all go wrong here.

Inside the restaurant, the maître d' came up and asked the group for their party size and table preference. Looking around, Kyosuke requested a table closer to the front of the restaurant to provide a better view of the parking lot. They were seated and provided menus. Kyosuke checked his watch; hopefully another ten or fifteen minutes, provided nothing else went wrong.

"Relax kid," Yoriyoshi advised. "You're sticking out, as tense as you are. Right now, if there were any bad guys around, you're practically drawing a target on yourself."

Kyosuke sighed and nodded, taking one of the menus, but paying scant attention. "Kyoko, any updates from your father?" 

Kyoko checked her phone. "Not yet, but he left the apartment about twenty minutes ago. He says he's bringing three cars total with two security cars."

"Security?" Yoriyoshi asked dubiously. "Is he sure they won't be like Yamamoto-san?"

"He says he pulled them from outside the normal hierarchy that work in our household; men who don't report to Akito-san," Kyoko promised. "They can't all be gangsters, right?"

"Probably not," Kyosuke admitted, then tried to relax, but still maintained his situation awareness. His attention was interrupted by the waitress coming to their table, who carefully placed a pitcher of water and four glasses on the table.

"Welcome to Yoshoku restaurant," she said with her best customer service voice. "If you have any questions about our offerings, please feel free to ask."

"Oh... I'd like to try your Hayashi Rice... Beef Stew... and maybe your Kamoba Royal Pudding!" Kimiko chimed in.

The other three at the table looked at Kimiko strangely; seriously... are you eating for two, but shook their heads. The others ordered tea and kept an eye out as the minutes passed. Fortunately, Kyosuke noticed the three limousines pulling into the parking lot right around the time Kimiko's dishes arrived.

"Father's arrived," Kyoko breathed a sigh of relief.

Yoriyoshi patted Kyosuke on the shoulder, "Looks like we'll be in the clear soon. Hope those syndicate goons didn't tear my place up too badly; hate to have to go into debt again."

Kyosuke nodded silently, cataloging that thought; a problem for another day. He watched the security personnel in the other cars as Isamu Ikemoto got out of the car and entered the restaurant. Kyoko quickly ran up and the two embraced. The moment was captured as Kimiko pointed her phone at them. "This is going to get so many likes on Instagram!"

Kyosuke and Yoriyoshi both shook their heads before the older man glanced back to Kimoko. "Don't you have a huge meal you should be focusing on?"

"Oh, I've already Instagramed those..." Kimiko gaily waved. "It's all part of the story; where the big reunion takes place is just as important as when. Since we couldn't do it at the Zoo, I'll be using the restaurant's dishes as the framing device when I write my article!"

"Kyoko-chan, thank the Heavens," Isamu sighed gratefully. "I've been beside myself ever since this whole ordeal began."

Kyoko turned to Kyosuke and Yoriyoshi. "I have Kyosuke once again to thank. He got me away from the kidnappers and this is his friend and boss, Yoriyoshi-san. He took us to Kyosuke's apartment while Kyosuke held off the gang members."

"I-I am once again in your debt, Sakurai-san," Isamu acknowledged with a bow, then turned to Yoriyoshi, "You have both done me a great service that I will not forget."

"What are you going to do about your security situation?" Kyosuke asked. "Yamamoto-san has apparently decided to work for General Tanaka's syndicate. He was the one who tried to bring Kyoko back with him. That said, I don't believe the men I intercepted who were kidnapping Kyoko were his men either. If I had to guess, they were members of Oyama's group."

Isamu stiffened. "Y-you're sure of this?"

"Kyoko can back me up on Yamamoto-san's presence. She was in the restaurant when Tanaka called him and tried to make his offer to kidnap her. But the men who actually had Kyoko in the trunk of their car... when I took them down and pulled her out of the trunk, I took one of their phones for intel," handing it over to Isamu. "Take a look at who's phone number keeps coming up."

Isamu's face darkened as Kyosuke continued. "Now, what Oyama's group's motivation is, I'm not sure, since I'm pretty sure they aren't going to be taking bounties being offered by their biggest rivals out on the street."

"Um... hello?" Kimiko interrupted, waving her phone. "This may or may not be related to Kyoko's kidnapping, but maybe you should see this." She pulled up her social media app. "I had these set up to send a notification anytime your family name came up on any news feed so I could follow your kidnapping story. In the last half hour, there's been a few incidents at several locations with your family's name on them."

Isamu took a look at Kimiko's phone and frowned. "Several of these are my company's inventory warehouses and shipping hubs," he reported with concern. "Those are very important locations for my company; a lot of products pass through those hubs and are routed across the country."

"Can't the police do anything about this?" Kyoko asked.

"Perhaps, but I need to get back to the office to coordinate this," Isamu noted grimly.

"Do you have your security personnel situation resolved enough to keep Kyoko safe, with Yamamoto-san in the wind?" Kyosuke asked. "Also..." he reached into his jacket and pulled out the Sig P230JP after confirming it was safely wrapped in its holster, unloaded and unchambered. "I assume your corporation acquired the license for this for Yamamoto-san; I took it off him when he threatened me during our stand-off. Obviously, it's not legal for me to hold it, so please have it properly secured."

Isamu held the pistol for several seconds, looked at Kyoko, then back at Kyosuke. "Am I wrong to assume there was more to your military career than being a cook?"

"There might have been a few things..." Kyosuke hedged.

"Oh, for crying out loud..." Kimiko blurted out with an exasperated tone. "He was in the Special Forces, US Army Rangers, one of their elite soldiers. Or did you really think some cook was going to beat down half-a-dozen armed men without breaking a sweat?"

Isamu took another minute to consider, then nodded to Kyosuke. "If I may have a moment of your time, I'd like to discuss the current situation with you, and if you would be interested in something more tangible going forward."