Suribachi's vagabond (english vers)

Chapter 3.3 : Internal threat

Dazai: "Well, let's just say you and I have some unfinished business."

Toru looked at him for a moment before sighing. "If you say so..."

Dazai now wore a satisfied smile. "Good. Now that we're on the same page, may I know what lead you have?"

Toru: "I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. The only thing I noticed was a reporter present during Kawabata's first press conference."

Dazai brought his hand to his chin, contemplating. "A reporter? Could she have exposed the affair? Why suspect her directly?"

Toru shrugged. "I actually know her personally. Well... I've been around her for a little while. She's dedicated to exposing and bringing to light corruption scandals involving high-ranking officials. But... there's something bothering me. Her modus operandi is quite simple, actually. She just interviews witnesses and gathers as much information as possible about her targets. Although it may seem like a rather rudimentary method, she manages to achieve quite impressive results. Some people have even complained to the office where she works that her persistence is akin to harassment. She doesn't let go until she gets you to spill everything you know, even threatening to disclose compromising information. What bothers me about this whole thing is that Kawabata's predecessor never granted interviews as a precaution, and no one in his circle was ever convicted, which means that no one in his circle was actually involved. So she couldn't have found the information she needed within the police department, or what she obtained must have been quite limited."

Dazai began to smile coldly. "Which means..."

Toru nodded. "Yes... it's certainly a member of the port mafia who leaked the information. As for the motives behind such an act... no idea."

Dazai pondered for a moment before speaking. "I can't see how a member of the mafia would be interested in what a reporter has to offer. The motive for the exposure is certainly not a reward... but it's certain that it was in line with some objective."

Toru crossed her arms before looking towards her desk, lost in thought. "Do you think someone intentionally wanted Kawabata to take over? Yet this guy didn't seem eager to be buddy-buddy with the mafia..."
Toru's eyes widened slightly as she realized something. "Unless..."

Dazai nodded slightly. "Exactly... the goal was to spark a new conflict between organizations. Even if the Department of Superpowers doesn't concern itself with mafia affairs, there's no guarantee they won't intervene once a high-ranking police officer is actually in conflict with us."

Toru looked up to face him, one eyebrow slightly raised. "Who in the mafia would want something like this?"

Dazai shrugged as he replied. "It's far from a majority, but some in the mafia miss the old boss's era. Not out of loyalty, but simply because they could kill and destroy as they pleased."

Toru: "I see... Moreover, the more I think about it, the more I realize that such a conflict could easily escalate. There are plenty of organizations in the city lurking in the shadows because of the mafia's dominance. But if it or even the department were to be weakened by such a large-scale conflict, it wouldn't take long for the city to fall back into the chaos it was in during the previous boss's reign. Overall, this doesn't tell us exactly who could be behind-"

Toru didn't have time to finish her sentence as she was interrupted by the sudden opening of her office door. "Toru!"
It was Haru who came rushing into the room, out of breath. Toru looked at him curiously while Dazai turned to face the door as well.
"We have a problem..."

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A little later, in one of the mafia's weapon storage hangars.

Toru and Dazai followed Haru to the hangar where he had been working recently. The hangar was not lit at this time of day. The only light that penetrated it was from daylight through the openings in the deteriorated ceiling and its large door which remained open. They were now facing a more than worrying situation.