Tokyo: From Lawless Madpolice to Minister

Nozaki Masao's house was in the Harbor District, which is considered a wealthy area, so it was Manager Sagi who suggested that they should try to avoid a firefight; after all, it wouldn't do to disturb the peace.

It was clear from his place of residence that Nozaki Masao wasn't short on cash – an age-old tale of murder and arson being kindred to a gold belt.

Considering that there might be corrupt cops inside the Police Headquarters who were bought by Nozaki Masao, this arrest operation didn't even notify the Police Headquarters, opting instead for a surprise attack.

As someone greedy and lascivious, who was afraid of death, Aoyama Xiu Xin put on a bulletproof vest in the car, just in case a shootout did occur and it could increase his chance of survival.

As a man who was about to become Prime Minister, it would be a massive loss for all of Japan if he were to suffer an untimely demise.

So even if not for his own sake,

he had to be responsible to the citizens, for the nation's sake.

"Is it really necessary to be so afraid?" Asai Ayumi, who was driving, griped. "We could just trick Nozaki Masao into opening the door and pin him down on the spot; he wouldn't even have a chance to resist."

Aoyama Xiu Xin smirked without humor and casually retorted, "That's as fitting a comment as your cup size."

True to form, she was the type who would dare infiltrate Sakura Formation's dens without a qualm – truly a case of beauty without brains.

Asai Ayumi was stung by the jab, but she merely simmered in silence and dared not talk back, her ample chest heaving under the blue uniform, seemingly on the verge of popping the buttons.

"Ding-a-ling! Ding-a-ling!"

Just then, Aoyama Xiu Xin's phone rang.

"Mosi, Mosi."

"Deputy Director, Nozaki Masao's people have come to pick him up in a car; looks like he's going out – what should we do?" Nakamura Shinichi's voice came through, low and tense with urgency.

"What?" Aoyama Xiu Xin was startled and cursed inwardly – going out late at night, his schedule was too irregular. After a moment's contemplation, he said, "Follow them and act according to the situation, prioritize your own safety."

He wasn't like Sato, the type of boss who completely disregarded the safety of his subordinates and couldn't even take responsibility for it.

"Yes, sir!" Nakamura Shinichi responded.

Aoyama Xiu Xin hung up the phone and then called Asai Youki in the command vehicle, "Aoyama calling the Station Chief, I've just been informed that Nozaki Masao is heading out, and I've already instructed my man to follow him."

"Could he be trying to flee?" Asai Youki asked.

Aoyama Xiu Xin replied, "Unlikely. If he was really planning to run, he wouldn't wait around for someone to come pick him up."

Before the operation, he had Panasonic Junichi call Nozaki Masao to falsely report that all was well, so there was no way he could have detected that the police were already on their way to arrest him.

"Alright, have your man keep a close watch and report back any updates," Asai Youki said before ending the call.

Indeed, Nozaki Masao had no idea that the police were on their way to apprehend him, nor did he have any plans to escape; he was merely going to deal with an issue that had arisen at the Songhu Headquarters.

The Noguchi Group's main turf was in Shinjuku these days, but as they were originally from out of town, their headquarters was still situated in Matsudo. Tokyo's competition was fierce, and if they were ever driven out, at the very least, they would have an escape route.

The coincidence was that both Matsudo City and Narita City, where the Narita International Airport is located, were in Chiba Prefecture.

When Nakamura Shinichi learned that Nozaki Masao's destination was Chiba Prefecture, he suspected that he might be planning to leave the country and called Aoyama Xiu Xin again, "Deputy Director, Nozaki Masao is heading to Chiba Prefecture; should I intercept him?"

He had already thought it through; if he were asked to intercept, that would mean risking a collision to create a car accident.

"Don't hang up," Aoyama Xiu Xin spat out these two words before calling Asai Youki again, "Station Chief, Nozaki Masao is en route to Chiba Prefecture. If he's not going to the airport, then he must be heading to the Noguchi Group's headquarters. I believe the latter is more likely. Should we intercept?"

"Your man is outnumbered, and Nozaki Masao may have a gun in the car. Can't risk him taking chances, but we also can't let him reach the airport or the Noguchi Group Headquarters, as that would increase the difficulty of his capture," Asai Youki paused and then continued, "I'll contact Chiba Prefecture Police Headquarters to set up a blockade ahead. If Nozaki Masao has a gun in the car, to get through smoothly, he'll have to ditch the gun along the way. Once he's without a gun, he's like a toothless tiger; we can capture him by force."

And why not have the police setting up the blockade capture him under the pretense of an inspection? Does that even need asking?

Tonight, Shinjuku Police Station was making such a significant effort; how could they possibly let colleagues from another station take the credit for the arrest?

"Hey! Chief, you're a genius!" Aoyama Xiu Xin sincerely complimented, and once the call was cut off on the other side, he said to Nakamura Shinichi, "You heard the chief, right? Don't hang up the phone; keep the line open."

"Hey!"

Asai Youki called the Chiba Prefecture Police Headquarters, asking them to set up a roadblock on the highway to intercept Nozaki Masao's car, under the pretense of assisting their Shinjuku Police Station to capture a theft suspect.

After all, if they were to reveal that they were actually trying to nab a violent gang leader suspected of dealing in contraband, Chiba's Police Headquarters would probably take all the credit, leaving nothing for Shinjuku Police Station.

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

In the speeding Mercedes sedan, Nozaki Masao, dressed in a suit, sat in the back seat, staring expressionlessly out the window at the swiftly receding scenery, the occasional streetlamp flying by like a rapidly falling meteor.

He was in a very bad mood.

Because his house had been burglarized.

An hour ago, he received a call from the Songhu Headquarters, reporting that a gambling house run by the Noguchi Group had been hit by an armed robbery, losing over a hundred million yen.

And that was just the direct loss; there was also the indirect loss of compensating the customers, at least another two hundred million yen.

This was no small sum for the Noguchi Group.

It wasn't bone-breaking, but it surely was bleeding them dry.

Therefore, Nozaki Masao was very angry; someone dared to rob him, which was simply suicidal! He would dig three feet into the ground to find these bastards, then bury them again!

"Boss, there's a roadblock ahead," the driver's voice called Nozaki Masao back from his drifting thoughts.

He turned his head to look ahead and, through the windshield, he could vaguely see the red and blue flashing police lights. He frowned immediately, "Stop the car, bury the guns by the roadside."

"Hey!" The driver pulled over, and then a subordinate from the passenger seat took two guns and three loaded magazines out of the car, climbed over the highway fence, and buried them in the wild, marking the spot with a stone.

Afterward, the car started up again and within less than two minutes, was stopped by a roadblock formed by two police cars and road spikes on the surface.

"Good evening, sir. We're police from Chiba Prefecture Headquarters. Please turn off the engine, and everyone needs to step out for an inspection," an officer stepped forward to salute, then showed his badge and asked for cooperation.

Although Nozaki Masao was in a hurry, he knew being hasty was useless. He grimly got out of the car and watched as two officers searched the interior and exterior of his vehicle.

"Woo-woo-woo~"

Suddenly, a series of urgent siren sounds erupted.

And they were getting closer.

Nozaki Masao subconsciously looked towards the source, only to see at the end of the road a glaring and frantic mix of red and blue lights slicing through the dark horizon. Dozens of police cars sped toward them with breathtaking speed and orderly precision, their sirens piercing and lights flashing wildly, like a pack of beasts in the dark pouncing on their prey, a truly heart-stopping sight.

Tsk, such a big scene.

I wonder who the unlucky bastard they're after is.

Nozaki Masao thought with schadenfreude.

The four Chiba police officers who had been notified to set up the roadblock were dumbfounded by this spectacle.

Are they sure they're just catching a thief?

Then all four of them looked at Nozaki Masao in unison.

Did you burglarize the Emperor's wife or something?

Feeling their odd stares, Nozaki Masao wasn't dumb; his expression slowly turned rigid.

Idiot!

The unlucky bastard turned out to be me?