Chapter 208 - Name and Reality 131 {159 Alone} (377-379 Visiting the Boss: Father and Son 2)
The morning of Saturday, November 16th. Nishida was visiting the Boss in his hospital room. It was a day that made one feel the full arrival of winter, with the minimum temperature dropping below minus 7 degrees Celsius and the maximum temperature around 1 degree, nearly a sub-zero day. However, unusually for this time of year, there was no snowfall yet, the roads were dry, and driving was easy.
The Boss's surgery had taken place on November 12th, slightly later than planned. Nishida, who had returned to Kitami, had already received word of its success from his daughter Miyo, but his visit had been delayed until now due to the busy paperwork for the series of incidents.
Miyo reportedly came from Takinoue every day, but since she usually arrived after noon, Nishida was able to talk with the Boss one-on-one, though he had to be mindful of the patients in other rooms.
Nishida shared the cut fruit he had brought as a gift with the Boss on the bed. While looking back on everything that had happened, they also spoke about the future, keeping their voices down for the sake of those around them. He explained the process of how Onodera Michitoshi, the cousin of Kuwano Kinya, became the current Oshima Kaiji—a detail he hadn't been able to discuss in depth before.
Upon learning that Oshima, like the Boss's father-in-law and the real Kuwano Kinya, had been involved in the naval mine accident, the Boss was greatly surprised, saying, "To think Oshima was there, just like Ine's father and me."
"The doctor told me that if progress continues to be good, I'll be discharged on Monday the 25th... I'm thinking of going home once to drop off my things, and then having you arrest me right then. I've left the things that need settling to Miyo and Shigeru... Sorry, but please tell them that over there."
After hearing the general story from Nishida, the Boss made that request.
"Yeah. We'll come to the hospital in an ordinary car, you'll sit in the back seat normally, we'll go to your house, and after that, I'll just drive you to Engaru Station (over there)."
What Nishida said meant that they had agreed to take him in voluntarily without using a patrol car or handcuffs, and then formally arrest him once inside Engaru Station.
"I'm sorry, you're being very considerate."
"Don't worry about that," Nishida replied with a smile.
"By the way, there's something I want to ask. Nishida-san, will you answer me honestly?"
The Boss spoke after finishing his apple.
"...Yeah, I'll answer anything," Nishida replied, though the apple he was still eating almost stuck in his throat.
"It's about Sada... If he hadn't met me, would things not have turned out that way?"
"Ah, that..."
Nishida realized that the Boss was worried that his own reckless actions might have caused tragedies beyond just the young man Yoneda.
"No, I can state with certainty that's not the case. The reason is that Sada was originally staying at 'Shinoyama' to investigate various things in Ikutahara. His purpose was to confirm if the hiding place for the gold dust mentioned in Toru's letter actually existed, and to judge whether the contents of the deed and the letter were true. However, he couldn't confirm it within his planned schedule and was disappointed. That's when he coincidentally met the Boss at Yusen. He just happened to get confirmation there, but I'm sure Sada would have confirmed it sooner or later and blackmailed Isaka. Of course, the actions of Isaka and the others in response would have been the same. So, there's no need to worry about that."
He explained it to the Boss in painstaking detail.
"I see, that's a relief. Then what about that incident at the hospital in Kitami? From what I've seen in various newspaper articles, that happened because they were trying to hide the Sada incident, right? The detective from Kitami who used to come to my shop was also caught up in it..."
Nishida was at a loss at the Boss's further question. It was true that the incident was triggered by the goal of concealing Oshima's involvement in Sada's murder. And it could be said that it started from Nishida and the others uncovering Yoneda's murder, which resulted in the need for concealment. Furthermore, since there was the objective fact that Kitamura became involved in that investigation, leading to new developments, it was impossible to conclude that the Boss's actions were not involved as a remote cause.
On the other hand, the selection of construction companies due to the predicted future reduction in public works as of 1995 had absolutely nothing to do with the Boss. Based on that premise, even if Yoneda's murder hadn't happened, there was a normal possibility that Matsushima would have confessed about Oshima and Isaka's murder of Sada in some form. How Kitamura and the nurse—the sister of Kitamura's late girlfriend—would have become involved was not something that could be simply declared as "related or not." Perhaps Kitamura and the nurse wouldn't have become victims, or in some cases, the same result might have occurred. Therefore, Nishida spoke frankly.
"To be honest, I don't know, Boss... But if you start saying that, there's also the problem of the police not investigating properly when Sada went missing, so many other factors come into play. I think the one thing I can say is that there's no need for you to be so distressed about it. However, I'm not going to say it's completely unrelated either."
"I see... Well, it's a fact that one life was definitely lost because of what I did. That weight is no more and no less than that..."
The Boss seemed to be deeply regretting it as he spoke.
"Oh, that's right. I have another important present and report for the Boss today!"
To change the subject, Nishida pretended as if he had just noticed. After taking out the fruit, he pulled an "object" in a thick plastic bag and an envelope from his breast pocket out of a paper bag that had been placed by the window.
"Boss, this. Keep it until I drop it off at your house after you're discharged."
Nishida handed something to the Boss as he spoke. The Boss looked at it intently.
"Hmm!? ...What is this?"
He observed the contents of the plastic bag for a while. Then, he said:
"These are Ainu tekunpe (Author's Note: see below), right? I couldn't tell because they're so dirty... I had my mother make some for me when I was a kid. Well, back then, I was embarrassed to wear Ainu things and hated it, so thinking back now, I feel bad... But why this?"
He looked at Nishida curiously.
"Yes. I think Yoshimura mentioned it then, but these are exactly what your father was wearing when his body was discovered twenty-five years ago in Showa 52. Because they were buried, they're stained earth-brown like that... Of course, at the time of discovery, no one knew who it was. I only learned it was Mende in '95, seven years ago, when I first came to Engaru."
"Eh? Is that true? But, Nishida-san. If that's the case, did my mother make these tekunpe? And even if you didn't know the body was my father's at the time, how did you know it was Mende? You shouldn't have known about the relationship between my mother and father then."
Certainly, having been told one-sidedly by Yoshimura that "your father's remains were found and later scattered," some lingering doubts must have remained without hearing the basis for it. At the time, given the flow of the conversation, there had been no room to interject such questions...
"On that point, the key lies in the contents of the letter written by Sada's older brother, Toru, which was enclosed in the letter Sada Minoru sent to you, and the discovery of three sets of remains that were processed as unidentified by Engaru Station twenty-five years ago. In the letter, you know that your father, Mende Shigeyoshi, was killed by a man named Takamura, but it was stated that a total of three bodies were buried near the Jomon Tunnel, right? Then, of the three bodies discovered in Showa 52 (1977), two were victims of murder based on the situation. One of the two carefully buried bodies had marks suggesting he might have been struck in the head, and the one buried haphazardly was the same, which became the basis for concluding these were the two murder victims. And of the two carefully buried ones, the one whose cause of death was not clear was likely Senzaki, who probably died of illness, judging by the age estimated from the bones. We, who had seen Sada's brother's letter in '95, were convinced of this. Naturally, the one buried haphazardly can be inferred to be Takamura, who was killed in retaliation. That being the case, the remaining carefully buried murder victim inevitably becomes your father, Mende Shigeyoshi. Moreover, though we didn't know in '95, the fact that he was involved with your Ainu mother makes the fact that he was wearing these Ainu tekunpe supporting evidence."
At Nishida's explanation, the Boss was convinced, saying, "I see. It certainly fits the story in that letter."
"So these tekunpe are your father's, and at the same time, as you said earlier, Boss, they were undoubtedly made by your mother. Because your father wore them regularly, he must have still been wearing them when he was buried."
To Nishida's explanation, the Boss said poignantly, "So these are the tekunpe my mother made... I don't clearly remember what the tekunpe she made for me as a kid were like, but I suppose that's how it is," as he looked at them from various angles as if to confirm. The items, likely sent from the biological father he never met and the mother he loved, must have evoked deep emotions for the Boss, even if they were soiled and damaged in the ground.
Because of that, Nishida timed his next words carefully.
"Recently in Sapporo, I had the chance to meet a university professor specializing in Ainu culture. Since it had been on my mind, I asked him various things about these tekunpe."
Needless to say, when he visited Professor Taguchi's office at Shoyo University to double-check about "Memu," he had also asked various things about the tekunpe, saying, "There's one more thing I want to ask."
"It might be meddling if you already knew, Boss, but for Ainu women, these tekunpe were handmade gifts for the man they were interested in, and the man would wear them only when he accepted those feelings (Author's Note: see below 1). So your father probably understood that meaning and those feelings well, and the fact that he was still wearing them even after leaving you and your mother behind... I think it means he really did have feelings for the two of you after all."
Nishida said all that in one breath and looked at the Boss. The Boss still had a solemn expression.
"Isaka Daikichi also told Masamitsu before he died that Mende regretted leaving his lover and the son born between them, and Oshima reportedly heard similar things from Kuwano. I think those testimonies also support this idea. Unfortunately, Mende wasn't able to meet you while he was alive, Boss."
When Nishida explained that, the Boss just kept staring at the tekunpe and said, as if squeezing the words out, "I see..."
Furthermore, Nishida watched his reaction while slowly taking a piece of paper out of the envelope.
"Actually, after meeting the university professor in Sapporo, I sent those tekunpe to another university professor I know. That person is an expert researching blood DNA... genetic relationships. I had him compare samples taken from the bloodstains on the tekunpe with samples taken from the blood on the handkerchief I used to stop your bleeding. Because of that, a small piece of the tekunpe, a memento, was cut out, but I hope you can forgive that."
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On October 22nd, the day after returning to Kitami from Sapporo, Nishida had made an inquiry to Professor Suehiro of Ryogoku University, who had performed the DNA testing on the scrap of cloth from the hanten. Having become convinced during his Sapporo visit that the Boss and Mende Shigeyoshi were father and son, he wanted further scientific evidence and inquired whether "traces" that could be used for DNA testing could be extracted from the tekunpe, Mende's memento.
Since tekunpe are hand guards used for protecting the back of the hand during field or mountain work, Nishida thought there was a possibility that Mende's own blood or body fluids might have adhered to them if he had been injured. However, since they had been underground for over thirty years due to the burial, it was also true that he doubted whether any adhering samples would be at a valid level (Author's Note: see below 2). In that case, his conclusion was that he had no choice but to ask Suehiro, who possessed the most advanced DNA testing technology in Japan.
Suehiro's answer was that "even if blood had adhered, thirty years in the ground makes it extremely difficult," but his conclusion was "I'll take a look at the actual item first and judge if extraction is possible." Naturally, Nishida sent the tekunpe, gambling on that low probability. Then the next day, without waiting for the conclusion on whether extraction from the tekunpe was possible, he sent the handkerchief Nishida had used to stop the Boss's bleeding during his suicide attempt as the Boss's own DNA sample.
Five days after sending the tekunpe, Suehiro contacted him saying he had found traces that looked like bloodstains and would try to extract DNA from the blood that had soaked into the inside of the cloth. On November 3rd, he successfully extracted DNA from the sample. After that, he performed the test with the DNA extracted from the blood on the handkerchief. On November 13th, he contacted Nishida to say the father-son relationship had been proven. Then, on the 15th, the day before, the tekunpe were returned to Kitami along with the test report. The paper of the report stated that the DNA extracted from the tekunpe and the DNA extracted from the blood on the handkerchief were recognized as having a 99.99 percent probability of a father-son relationship.
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The Boss, looking at the report handed to him by Nishida, said:
"I don't understand the difficult parts, but it's okay to say that the owner of the remains who was wearing these tekunpe was Mende Shigeyoshi, and as a result of the test, he was my father, right?"
"Yeah. I thought there was no mistake based on circumstantial evidence, but it's also been proven scientifically," Nishida confirmed. The Boss seemed deeply moved as he touched the tekunpe again, but Nishida said hesitantly:
"There's something I'd like to ask, if that's okay?"
※※※※※※※ [Author's Note]
Note 1: Tekunpe
http://www.jtco.or.jp/japanese-crafts/?act=detail&id=108&p=5&c=16
http://www1.hokkaido-jin.jp/zukan/story/03/02.html (near the end)
The materials also state that "they were handmade by Ainu women as gifts for men." However, there are various theories as to whether tekunpe were purely of Ainu cultural origin, with some suggesting they were influenced by the hand guards (tekko) of the Wajin (ethnic Japanese) culture.
Note 2: Generally, it is said that DNA cannot be extracted from blood samples that have been underground for a long period, not only in 2002 but even with current technology. This is strictly for the novel. Also, the time required for extraction would be considerable for such degraded samples, but please understand that this has also been shortened for the novel.
Furthermore, regarding the North Korean abduction victim Yokota Megumi-san, North Korea said (likely) whatever they wanted, claiming she was "already dead," and as evidence, they sent remains to Japan that had been "cremated at high temperature." While claiming the grave was washed away in a flood, the fact that they submitted some remains made it almost blatantly obvious that the claim those remains were Megumi-san's was a "lie," but here the Japanese government also committed a terrible blunder.
They tried to perform DNA testing on those remains processed at high heat. They tried to "scientifically" prove that what North Korea was saying was a lie. Despite it being obvious without doing so, they went out of their way to do something unnecessary.
Naturally, DNA samples cannot be extracted from bones burned at high temperatures of over 700 degrees, neither then, now, nor in the future (since the DNA itself is destroyed), but for some reason, it was "possible." Through that, they reached the conclusion that it was a "different person" in a comparison with the DNA of Yokota-san's family (it seems they used mitochondria from the mother, Yokota Sakie-san). Moreover, the subsequent re-testing was inexplicably "impossible because the sample was used up in the testing."
However, a reporter from the scientific journal Nature naturally raised objections, and it became an issue in the Diet. After all, the person who performed that dubious testing and "produced results" had been "appointed" by the government of the time as the head of the forensic division of the SIL. In other words, a mysterious personnel move took place, and there were suspicions at the time that the reason was "because they produced testing results that matched the government's intentions."
This is one example of the structure—seen recently—where "rewards" are given to people who produce strangely convenient conclusions for the government, which was already established in 2004 (at the time of the testing) during the Koizumi administration. Looking back now, such seeds were already there, from a time when we weren't very conscious of it.
However, there is no need to go out of one's way to provide "(fake) scientific" grounds for denial for something that is clearly a lie. I assert it is a classic example of a superfluous addition. Or rather, it is clearly a fabrication of results.
Reference Materials:
https://www.excite.co.jp/News/entertainment_g/20160201/HealthPress_201602_dna_18.html?_p=3 (Parts 3 to 5 of this series of articles)
https://shinka3.exblog.jp/1779707/
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"What is it? The thing you want to ask."
The Boss looked at Nishida searchingly.
"I remember hearing when I first went to your shop that the name 'Yusen' was taken from the 'Yu' of Yubetsu, where you grew up, and the 'Sen' from your name, Izumi?"
"Yeah, that's right," the Boss affirmed briefly.
"But, isn't it actually different? Or rather, even if that's true, maybe there's another origin..."
When asked by Nishida, the Boss's eyes widened slightly for a moment, but he showed no other reaction. Nishida had no choice but to continue.
"You often see high-end restaurants, kappo, or even ordinary diners named after the owner's surname or given name, right? For example, Kappo 'Aida' or Eatery 'Aida.' In that sense, your shop's name 'Yusen' can be said to use part of your name as is."
"Yeah, I guess so."
The Boss nodded while staring at Nishida.
"So I thought about it. Considering the logic of your mother naming you Izumi from the surname Mende, if you convert the name Yusen itself back, doesn't it mean Mende—the surname of your father that you should have originally carried? I just had that feeling. I'm sure you had various thoughts about your father since you were a child, but on the other hand, after you learned who your father was, weren't you strongly conscious of it deep down? Kitaoji Rosanjin also later returned to his original, problematic surname. I thought it wouldn't be so strange if you had that same feeling..."
Nishida said that much and waited for the Boss's reply. But the Boss neither denied nor affirmed, lightly clenching the tekunpe in his hand. Then, slowly, he spoke.
"Nishida-san... As a prize for (the correct answer to) your quiz, I don't know when it will be, but once I'm back in the world (shaba), I'll treat you to a full-course kaiseki meal (Author's Note: In the old days, the meaning was almost the same as tea-ceremony kaiseki, but nowadays there seems to be a slight difference). It's not really worth showing off my skills in a small eatery, so I might be a bit rusty, though."
He smiled at Nishida. Receiving that, Nishida replied:
"I'm really looking forward to that. Make it for Yoshimura and Takeshita too, not just me."
"Can't be helped, then," the Boss said, though he didn't seem to mind.
Then Nishida checked his watch.
"Well, I have to get back to Kitami soon. Once Yoshimura is back in Kitami, I'll send him to visit you. I don't think I'll be able to make it then, though..."
"Yo-chan is probably working hard over there too... How about it, Nishida-san? Has he become a good detective?"
At the Boss's question, Nishida answered:
"I wonder... He's nearly forty, but he still hasn't cured the way he occasionally acts like a brat... But more than growing as a detective, I think the part where he's grown as a person is bigger. More than me, anyway."
"As a person?"
The Boss repeated Nishida's words, but since Nishida hadn't explained at all that the Boss's life would likely have ended if not for Yoshimura's persuasion, he brushed it off vaguely, saying, "Well, in various ways."
"Anyway, before you go, I have a request. Do you have a moment?"
Immediately after, the Boss spoke up abruptly, so Nishida, who was about to stand up from his chair, sat back down.
"What is it?"
"From what I saw on the news in the summer, Isaka's son is caught, right? Still in Kitami? You can have meetings with him and such, right?"
"Eh? Ah, well, I can, but..."
"Then could you give him this?"
Saying so, he handed over an envelope.
"Give this to Masamitsu?"
"Yes. It's a letter of apology for the terrible trouble I caused the Isaka family because of my mistaken grudge. I have no right to receive my father's share of the gold dust either. Not only that, I have to compensate for the money I extorted... Though I don't know how I'm supposed to compensate for that amount."
Hearing the Boss's words of remorse, Nishida said:
"I see... You certainly should apologize to Isaka. I understand. However, while I won't read it, the contents will be checked before it's handed to him. I can't give it to him until your case has been 'processed.' So it will be after you're discharged; please understand that point."
Since police personnel would censor it, he couldn't hand over a letter containing the details of a crime before the Boss was arrested.
"I understand. Anyway, I'll leave it to you, Nishida-san. Also, I have to write a letter of apology to Yoneda's mother, so tell me her address later too."
"You intend to write to the Yoneda house as well..."
As for the murder of Yoneda itself, Nishida felt it was a product of chance in a bad sense, so he didn't necessarily feel the Boss needed to apologize directly. But if the Boss wanted to do so, there was no reason to refuse. He replied again:
"Yeah, I understand that too. I'll contact you by phone tomorrow or so."
Then, as if relieved, the Boss said haltingly, "Sorry... I'm a bit tired, so I'll lie down." Although he was in bed, he had been sitting up talking with Nishida for a long time, and since it was shortly after surgery, fatigue seemed to be setting in.
"Sorry for taking so long."
To Nishida's apology, the Boss spoke.
"It's nothing, nothing. You even brought a gift and listened to my requests, so it can't be helped. I should be the one thanking you, rather."
However, his breathing had indeed become a bit heavy, so Nishida left the room, saying, "I'm going now. Don't worry, I'll make sure the letter is delivered."