Chapter 43 - Light and Shadow 22 (126–130: Questioning of Isaka Masamitsu; Forgery Test of the Deed; Revised 11/13)
Based on the sketch Nishida and the others had Motohashi draw, and as preliminary information from Kurano, "Shigeno Yoshiaki," who was a secretary at the then-Isaka Group, had been listed. They had conjectured that Shigeno, who was 46 at the time, had taken Motohashi from the "Kume Ryokan" where he was staying to the coffee shop where Isaka was waiting, "Cafe Sanwa."
The list that had been sent included several employees of a similar type to Shigeno, though they didn't necessarily look like him, and they were intended to function naturally as "dummy" photos. They decided to follow the planned tactic of saving Shigeno's own photo until quite late. Also, on this day, Yoshimura was included in the questioning as Nishida's partner instead of Takeshita, partly to increase his experience.
Once the questioning began, they showed the photos smoothly like an assembly line. Motohashi occasionally stopped his hand and looked closely, but after shaking his head, he would move on to the next photo. When they had passed 40 out of the list of over 50 people, Shigeno's photo finally appeared. Motohashi took the photo in his hand, made a gesture of bringing it close to his face, and then placed it back on the desk. Then, crossing his arms, he told Nishida,
"I think it was probably this guy, but could you let me see the rest until the end?"
"Yeah, you're the one who decides."
When Nishida said that, Motohashi silently resumed looking at the remaining photos. And when he had finished looking at them all,
"Alright, I've got it! This guy from before!"
He thrust the photo of Shigeno, which he had set aside, in front of the two. It was true that there was no way to verify this, but even from his position as a secretary, it was likely a fact. Motohashi also showed signs of checking quite earnestly, such as confirming the subsequent ones even after he had chosen one. Anyway, since the person himself was dead, they couldn't question Shigeno either. It was a pity that it was only for confirming facts to trace the flow of the incident in the prosecution's statement at trial.
Having finished the questioning at the detention house, they returned to the Osaka Prefectural Police building. Nishida watched the detention house building pass by from the taxi window, thinking that the next time he came to this detention house, it would probably be to escort Motohashi to Hokkaido.
Upon arriving at the Prefectural Police, they first checked the Police Administration Division to see if the book had arrived, but it wasn't strange that it hadn't arrived yet, given it was just past noon.
After finishing lunch and waiting in the break room, they received a call on their cell phone from the Police Administration Division saying the book had arrived. They immediately went to the Police Administration Division, received it from the staff, and checked the contents on the spot. When he hurriedly opened page 83, which Akiko had mentioned, it described a method for forging a rakkan (T/N: an impression of a seal or signature stamped on artworks as a mark of authorship).
"I wonder what this means..."
Nishida said as he took out Sada's deed, which he had brought from Engaru, from his bag.
"If we think about it straight, is it the forgery of the bloody thumbprint?"
Yoshimura said as he compared the deed and the book.
"That too, but at this size, it looks like we could forge the main text and signature as well..."
Takeshita added.
In the few pages starting from page 83 of "The World Behind Artworks: This is the Forbidden Fake Production Manual," what was specifically described in the simple item for forging rakkan was using a "Print Gocco," a small printing device that allows for easy stencil printing at home.
Even with a color copier, if it's just a copy, it can be done, but it emphasized that with the general toner method (a method of fixing pigment powder to paper) seen in laser printers, the flavor of a rakkan (in other words, a stamp), which can be said to be a type of letterpress printing, would not come out. Also, considering the simplicity, it was written that Print Gocco was far more "qualified" for forgery.
However, it was written to avoid sticking the original directly to the Print Gocco to produce the master. The reason given was that there was a risk of damaging it due to exposure to high heat, and since there is almost no carbon in vermilion ink or vermilion ink sticks, it was impossible to make a master (a plate for printing) well in the first place. In this case, the method seemed to be to first copy the rakkan with a monochrome copier using ink or toner containing carbon, stick that to the Print Gocco to make a master, and then reproduce the color oneself.
Print Gocco was something everyone knew a while ago, and it was widely popular in general households, so to speak, for creating "New Year's cards."
The pattern, picture, or writing one wants to print is written on paper with a writing instrument containing carbon, and that is stuck to a sheet that becomes the base of a dedicated master (plate). Then, the first stage of the work is to have it react to carbon with a strobe flash that emits high heat (specifically, the carbon part becomes hotter than the surroundings, and due to that temperature difference, minute and countless holes are opened only in the part one wants to stamp or print) to burn it in and open minute holes.
Next, the process is to place a dedicated ink of one's favorite color on the master completed in the previous step and press it onto the paper one wants to print on, which allows for easy printing of many types of colors for home use, while being simple. Basically, the main use is for printing postcards and small papers, but by changing the ink and such, it was also possible to print on clothes such as T-shirts.
Note that Print Gocco lost its place to the subsequently popular personal computers and printers, and ended its history with the cessation of production in 2008 and the end of sales in 2012.
"From my experience using Print Gocco, I think it can probably be done, but let's actually try it just in case..."
When Nishida said that, he found out the nearest large stationery store from the staff and sent Yoshimura to buy a Print Gocco.
In the meantime, he read the relevant part carefully and first took a monochrome copy of the deed with the copier in the Police Administration Division. Nishida had no way of knowing that the monochrome copier itself was a "Risograph," a more precise version of the Print Gocco for office use, manufactured by Riso Kagaku Corporation, the same company that made the Print Gocco (Author's note: Generally, the mainstream of current office copiers is laser printers, but in workplaces where a large number of the same things are printed, such as government offices and schools, it seems that this Risograph is still often used. It is said that this method is suitable for printing large quantities cheaply and quickly due to the difference in printing methods. Also, the ink is made from soybean oil, so it naturally contains carbon). However, either way, since this copier is for monochrome, it was impossible to reproduce the color of the bloody thumbprint, so the method of color copying it as is was impossible.
In less than 20 minutes, Yoshimura jumped into the Police Administration Division carrying a large box. It wasn't something that needed to be rushed that much, but his rough breathing made them feel Yoshimura's spirit. Nishida thanked Yoshimura, but Takeshita was more concerned about whether there was the same model back in 1987. It was typical of Takeshita, but Nishida advised him,
"At the very least, as for the size that can be printed, it can be managed somehow by creating it in multiple parts."
And the three finally began the test production.
For the time being, they decided to first try making a master for a part of the deed. They stuck the copy of the deed to the screen, and in the same way as when printing, they pressed the upper part, which could be opened and closed like a hinge, against the lower part and fired the strobe flash. A tremendous flash shone enough to leak from the cover, and a scorched smell wafted around. When the upper part was raised and the original copy was peeled off from the master screen, the master was finally complete. The three proceeded with the plain work of placing ink that was mixed to resemble the color of the calligraphy and bloody thumbprint of the deed for nearly an hour, not minding that the female staff of the Police Administration Division were peeking in to see what they were doing while bringing them tea.
"Alright! Then, let's try printing it right away!"
When Nishida set the copy paper, Yoshimura pressed the opening and closing part of the Print Gocco, along with the screen, toward the set paper. After pressing it down for a few seconds, when he raised it, a part of the forged deed, test-printed, emerged from below.
"For something we just tried out, it's quite a feat..."
Nishida couldn't help but be impressed. The reproduction of the reddish-brown blood color of the bloody thumbprint part was high compared to the real Sada one on hand, despite it being a rush job. The printing of the bloody thumbprint part was undeniably a bit coarse, but in the first place, the bloody thumbprint of the deed itself was coarse, so it could be said that that point was also well reproduced. Nishida felt that they had been able to bring out the feel—no, the "flavor"—of the ink characters and the bloody thumbprint.
Takeshita and Nishida had exchanged words on the day they interrogated Motohashi, saying that Sada Toru's letters could be reproduced as many times as they wanted, but with this method, even the deed could be reproduced as many times as they wanted. In the extreme, if the ink for the bloody thumbprint part was made into high-viscosity blood, the bloody thumbprint might even be reproducible using real blood.
However, if the blood was from a different person, then as expected, forgery based on complete identity would be impossible. In that regard, Nishida once again recognized the fundamental difference between Sada's letters, where the content itself was important and there was almost no problem even if they were reproductions, and the deed, where the bloody thumbprint itself had high evidentiary value, even though they now had the commonality of being reproducible.
"As expected, the significance of the deed with the bloody thumbprint is strong."
While thinking that, he glanced to the side and saw,
"This looks like it'll work quite well!"
Both Takeshita and Yoshimura had satisfied looks on their faces at the quality of the "fake."
"Now, after this, we have to think of a way to give the paper of the deed a sense of age..."
As Nishida said that, he checked the index of the book for the relevant part. It was found immediately.
However, as for this, it was a pattern that could be easily imagined, or rather, even an amateur would have heard of it. Using coffee grounds or tea leaves, or lightly singeing it; to be honest, it didn't feel like a new discovery. It was described that for paper from around the Taisho era onward, the properties are almost close to modern ones, so there's no need to worry particularly.
Certainly, Nishida also didn't have the impression that the paper quality of the real deed was that different from current ones. And above all, in terms of years, it hadn't deteriorated that much compared to old art, and he thought there should be no need to put much effort into processing this point, including the simplicity of the means. Nishida judged that there was no need to reproduce it to that extent here.
"Then, let's try confirming with the wife now if a Print Gocco existed in the Sada house at that time!"
Saying that, he decided to ask Akiko over the phone. Then, although she was initially mumbling that she didn't know if they had one or not, after a while it must have occurred to her, and he was able to confirm that there had been a Print Gocco in the Sada house for a long time, and it was still "in operation" for creating New Year's cards even now. When he asked when that Print Gocco had been there, she said she "didn't really know" on that point. There aren't many people who remember every single detail of their daily lives from long ago. It was unavoidable. It could be said that the fact that the memory of its existence had been revived was enough. Note that he asked if the "master" used to create the deed remained, but he was told, "I don't see it."
Nishida thereby asserted the hypothesis that Sada Minoru had created a "fake" deed, transferred it to Isaka, and received the contract for the funding. Nishida was purely happy that he had been able to resolve the contradiction between the existence of the real deed and the wording of the contract, but Takeshita was not necessarily so.
"The Team Leader's idea should basically be welcomed as an explanation, but it raises a new question. Why did Sada, who brought the fake deed to Kitami, also bring the real deed? I don't understand the meaning of going to the trouble of bringing it separately."
"Isn't that in case he was seen through by the other party, or something like that?"
Yoshimura gave an answer driven by momentum, but Takeshita countered,
"Unless an expert was present, if he did it seriously with this method, it wouldn't be that easy to see through on the spot, right? And if he were seen through, there's no doubt he'd lose a considerable amount of trust at that point. Even if he brought out the real one on the spot instead, it wouldn't immediately be a case of 'Okay, fine,' would it? Thinking about it that way, I don't feel the merit of bringing the fake and the real one to Kitami together, to be honest. It's not impossible that he was unsure which one to bring out until the end because he wasn't confident in the quality, but with this level of quality from a simple reproduction experiment, he shouldn't have been that unsure. Even if Isaka says he knows the real thing, we, who also know it, are satisfied..."
Hearing that, Nishida couldn't think of a brilliant idea to resolve Takeshita's question either.
Furthermore, Takeshita raised a new problem.
"Even leaving that question aside, I think it's certain at this point that Sada handed over the fake deed to Isaka before receiving the funds. Of course, this is a conjecture based on the flow where Sada received a contract stating that Isaka Daikichi would provide operating funds after receiving the deed... And in that case, I feel like a big risk arises..."
"Even if he received the contract?"
Yoshimura spoke in a suspicious tone. Similarly, Nishida said,
"Is that risk that Isaka might just break the contract itself? There was a clause that the funding contract would be canceled if there was something like defamation regarding Sada's words and actions toward Isaka. Are you saying it would be a problem if Isaka claimed Sada violated the contract? However, if he did such a thing and rumors were actually spread in retaliation, it would be a foolish conclusion for Isaka. That wouldn't happen."
He laughed as if it were a groundless fear.
"The kind of story the Team Leader is talking about might be what it is, but I feel like there's a much bigger risk than that."
Takeshita seemed to be implicitly pointing out that what Nishida said was off the mark.
"What is it?"
Nishida immediately asked for the answer, while Takeshita began to speak with a thoughtful look.
"According to Sada Toru's letter, this man Isaka was driven by a sense of justice over the murder of Mendesu, and although it was a past incident that had reached the statute of limitations, he actually killed a person named Takamura. In the first place, you're thinking that was the fundamental reason Sada Minoru blackmailed Isaka, right?"
"Ah, I see what you're trying to say!"
Yoshimura must have noticed first, as he interrupted before Takeshita could finish,
"What the Senior Staff is trying to say is that by giving away the 'trump card' of the deed—though it was probably the fake one—Sada Minoru gave the other party, Isaka, the danger of feeling murderous intent, right?"
He confirmed with Takeshita.
"Yoshimura, your intuition is working! Team Leader, please think carefully! Looking at the contract, there's no doubt it was a transaction involving a considerable amount of money. First, there's the 20 million as direct consideration for the handover of the deed... And then, the 200 million he was to borrow from Isaka to pay back Sada's loans, at an incredibly low interest rate. From the repayment terms, I don't think it's an amount that could be moved so easily, even for a local mid-sized general contractor owner..."
Takeshita emphasized the last part. And after seeing the reaction of the two, he resumed the story.
"In that case, with normal emotions, one would feel like they don't want to pay if possible. If I were Isaka himself, I'd somehow try to snatch the contract from Sada and silence the man himself... To put it another way, at least if I were in Sada Minoru's position, since I'm conducting a 'transaction' by entering the 'home' territory of the other party in Kitami, I think I'd be conscious of the transaction while being very careful about 'my life being targeted.' In my hypothesis, it goes without saying that not only Isaka, but also Oshima Kaiji, unbeknownst to Sada, had murderous intent toward Sada Minoru..."
Takeshita once again suggested that Oshima Kaiji was also actively involved in Sada's murder.
"But Sada received the contract, and he has two real deeds on hand. Isn't it natural that he let his guard down? After all, he was actually killed..."
Nishida was still speaking skeptically after hearing that.
Takeshita's idea might have indeed been noteworthy... And Sada was a business owner, so he normally would have had a certain level of thinking and judgment. However, since he was economically cornered, it wouldn't be strange if he didn't have the leeway to think about such things. In the first place, the reason he resorted to actions bordering on extortion and threats was likely because he was cornered. It's not hard for Nishida to imagine that he was in a situation where he would immediately jump at the bait in front of him. In reality, due to the plot by the Isaka side, Sada was murdered... Even if he had won the contract in exchange for the (likely fake) deed, it would be meaningless if Sada himself was killed and the contract was "erased" from the world before anyone else, or at least a third party, could see it. Of course, "others" like Kitagawa and Shinoda saw it, but they weren't "third parties" in the true sense...
The fact that Sada would not tell anyone else about "Isaka Daikichi's past actions" was something Isaka likely had him promise and execute in advance, before the dinner on September 25th (although Sada's family ended up knowing). On that premise, once the deed passed into his hands, Isaka would have been able to give the go-ahead for Sada's murder to Motohashi. After that, if we see that he thought he could get through it with pressure on the police by Oshima Kaiji, Isaka's judgment for the atrocity can be understood.
To such a counter-argument from Nishida, Takeshita said,
"Are you saying, 'Look at the reality and facts in front of you'... Hmm, when you put it that way, it's tough..."
And he backed down for the time being. The logic that the fact that he was killed led to Sada not actually recognizing the risk was inevitable, as it was a natural thing beyond Takeshita's conjecture. It could be said to be inevitable since Takeshita is also the type who basically acts based on logical thinking.
However, Nishida's thought that "because Sada didn't recognize the risk," he was "easily killed" would, looking back later, unfortunately turn out to be a mistake. Of course, at this point, even Takeshita didn't have the words to properly counter it...
And no one could have known that it would take another seven long years to find out why Sada Minoru had brought the real deed owned by the Hojo brothers all the way to Kitami, even though he intended to hand over a fake deed.
Nishida immediately reported to Sawai in Engaru about Shigeno and the deed. Although the investigation headquarters for Sada Minoru's murder remained in the form of Engaru Station alone for now, the investigation itself had effectively returned to being led by the Kitami District and the Prefectural Police Headquarters, so Sawai showed interest in Nishida's story but simply ordered Nishida to take direct instructions from Kurano. Nishida felt that he might have lost some of his strong passion for the investigation compared to when they were investigating independently, though it wasn't that he was being dismissive.
Kurano, whom he contacted immediately afterward, didn't particularly react to Shigeno, as if it were already obvious. On the other hand, he was happy that the theory that Sada had handed over a forged deed to Isaka was consistent with the matter of the contract. However, perhaps because he recognized it wasn't directly related to the main thread of the case, he wanted to talk more about the results of the raids on the Isaka Group and Isaka-related locations.
In conclusion, it seems that no trace of the reward to Motohashi being paid from accounts held by Isaka Daikichi or the Isaka family was found. However, only one account, which appeared to be a dummy account held by the Isaka family, into which funds frequently flowed from the official account Isaka Masamitsu inherited from Daikichi, had turned up.
It was an account created at the Abashiri branch of Hokumo Bank in the 1950s. At the address of the account holder, a family with the same surname as the name, "Fukuda," did indeed live there since long ago. However, he said they had concluded it was a fake name because the person named Fusajiro, who should have been the one, had not lived there since long ago and did not exist, according to the results of the investigation of information held by the police.
Also, it seems the amount of money moving in the account itself had become extremely large at the same time as the transfers from the Isaka family name began several years ago. The meaning suggested the possibility that the dummy name account itself had undergone a de facto transfer of ownership for tax evasion from the previous holder to the Isaka family.
However, Kurano seemed to have judged that it was almost impossible for money related to the reward for Motohashi's killing to have moved in that account, since the funds only began to move significantly in that account several years after Sada's disappearance and murder eight years ago.
"Does that mean, in the end, the line that Isaka was the mastermind who requested the murder from Motohashi is thin?"
Nishida pressed for a conclusion.
"Just because funds haven't come out of an account doesn't mean we can conclude Isaka Daikichi wasn't the mastermind..."
Kurano's answer to that was somewhat non-committal. And he added,
"As for the payment method, isn't it possible that Isaka dealt directly with cash he had himself? Of course, even if that were the case, as long as we assume Motohashi's testimony, he left Kitami immediately after the crime without meeting Isaka, so it's impossible that he gave it directly on the day. On the other hand, it's quite possible that Isaka had an agent pay it at a later date. Unfortunately, if this was done and he was paid in cash later, it's impossible to grasp."
"That's true. It's a subtle point... By the way, are you going to contact the National Tax Agency and the bank about the dummy account that turned up this time?"
Nishida asked.
"No, I've decided not to do that..."
At the unexpected answer, Nishida asked,
"Is it because it would be a pain if a tax audit by the National Tax Agency interfered with the criminal investigation?"
"It's not that that's not part of it..."
Nishida waited for Kurano's next words as he hesitated.
"That dummy account at the Abashiri branch of Hokumo Bank under the fake name of Fukuda... Certainly, a total of over 10 million yen has flowed in from the Isaka family's accounts since several years ago, but nearly half of that amount was transferred in the first two or three times. And it seems that most of it was eventually withdrawn or transferred elsewhere for other purposes. However, after that, transfers of not-so-large amounts, about a hundred and several tens of thousands of yen per time, have been made. And more than half of that is now being directly transferred to charitable organizations such as the Red Cross and scholarship societies. Perhaps it was initially a transfer of funds for tax evasion purposes, but I don't see any malice in it in the end... And since the amount of movement itself has clearly become more modest since it became Masamitsu's generation after Daikichi died."
Kurano was hesitant until the end, but in short, it was a case of overlooking it in consideration of the small amount of the "transfer" since it became Masamitsu's turn and the "good deed" of the donations. It might be something that shouldn't happen for a guardian of the law, but if there is no criminal nature "for the police" and the National Tax Agency's intervention would interfere with the investigation, such a judgment might be possible.
Kurano must have interpreted that the reason he donated from a dummy account was because he didn't want to reveal his name—in other words, it was out of pure philanthropy. If it were to interfere with the donations, it would actually have a negative impact, so the choice not to contact the bank was self-evident. Nishida also didn't think that decision was particularly wrong and accepted it naturally in a way.
"Even so, I was honestly surprised that that was the only suspicious account. It means that the Isaka family was unexpectedly clean with money. When he started the company, he might have used money obtained by pocketing more than his 'share' of gold dust from the estate of a person named Senzaki... As expected of a company that has been honored by the tax office as a blue-chip tax-paying company for many years."
Since he spoke in a strangely "sweet" tone, Nishida became quite worried at this point whether the Section 1 Chief, an elite of the District Headquarters, was so simple as to be blinded by a mere act of donation. But,
"That aside, tomorrow, we'll finally be able to question Masamitsu voluntarily. Even over here in Kitami, the story that Isaka Daikichi might have been involved in Motohashi's murder of Sada has been spreading quietly but quite a bit, so it seems Masamitsu thought he couldn't keep refusing forever."
Kurano immediately returned to his usual way of speaking, so Nishida felt relieved that his fears were groundless.
And Kurano said, as if not letting him catch his breath,
"There was still something I had to tell you... It's not a formal decision, but the plan to escort Motohashi by air to the Kotoni Detention Center in Sapporo on October 17th was conveyed by Director Toyama. It seems they'll have him go through questioning by the Prefectural Police Headquarters team once, and then eventually drag him to Engaru for now. After all, they're going to leave it to Engaru Station in the end. I think escort personnel with arrest warrants will come from Section 1 of the Headquarters, but since the Director also recognizes the achievements of Nishida and the others, I think he'll have you participate in the escort to Sapporo and the subsequent escort to Engaru. I don't know how much Nishida and the others can be involved in the questioning, but since he'll be detained at Engaru Station, it's impossible that you won't be able to interrogate him at all, right? I think there will be a direct call from the Director to Nishida soon. Anyway, they're going to let Engaru Station have him! Good for you!"
He told Nishida. For a detective at a local station to be involved in the escort of a famous death row inmate was, to use an inappropriate expression, to be assigned an "honorable" duty. And it seemed they would be able to interrogate him at Engaru Station too. It could be said that their final degree of involvement in the case had become stronger than Nishida had thought.
That said, he couldn't just be happy. Nishida made one request to Kurano.
"Section Chief Kurano, during Masamitsu's questioning, please try asking him, 'Wasn't your father being blackmailed by Kitagawa and Shinoda, and by someone else entirely unrelated to them around 1992?' He probably won't admit it, but I want to see Masamitsu's reaction at that time."
"Hmm? Ah, the matter of Kitagawa and Shinoda's promotion in the Isaka Group and the matter you're conjecturing as the circumstances when Shinoda killed Yoneda... Understood, I'll ask."
Kurano readily agreed to the request.
When the business communication was over, he told the other two about the honor of being able to stand on the "grand stage" and being able to be involved in the prosecution, and both Takeshita and Yoshimura were simply happy about it.
And Nishida and the others left the building and checked into the business hotel "Osaka Castle Castle Inn." Once they settled in, this time, they began the verification of the forgery of the deed in earnest. They created masters for a single deed by dividing it into multiple parts and finished the whole thing while making adjustments. It was a perfect job, including the color of the bloody thumbprint.
After that, if they adjusted the paper to be printed on to a color that looked slightly oxidized, Isaka would undoubtedly have been deceived on the spot. Since there would be no problem even if Isaka's own fingerprints were checked, it was even more so. Even if Isaka had brought his own copy of the deed during the dinner, he shouldn't have known unless he was extremely careful. Moreover, since each deed is handwritten, they are not exactly the same.
Satisfied with the results of the day, Nishida declared he would treat his subordinates to sushi. The rank of the room had dropped by two from the previous day, but the day they would return to Hokkaido was becoming concrete, and the reason for his generosity was also that he was feeling somewhat buoyant.
October 15th, Sunday. As for the current situation on this day, since there was nothing in particular to do, they were waiting at the hotel. In Kitami, Kurano and the others should be subjecting Isaka Masamitsu to voluntary questioning. They had no choice but to wait silently for the results.
Even if it was voluntary, there should be quite a lot to hear, so Nishida had calculated that the contact wouldn't come until evening. He had instructed Takeshita and Yoshimura to wait in their respective rooms, and Takeshita was, as usual, reading through the letters from the newspaper reporter Shiino to Motohashi (Author's note: In this case, the letters are naturally assumed to take the form of handwritten vertical writing on stationery. Due to the format of the site, they will be in horizontal writing).
Mr. Motohashi,
The verdict the other day was very disappointing, not only for you but for me as well.
As time passes, it will be accepted... no, there is no way it can be accepted.
To be honest, I am aghast at the fact that I can no longer see you.
Still, without raising the white flag, the means of a special appeal still remains.
However, in the judgment of the lawyers, there was no possibility of it being overturned.
Certainly, if what you did is true, it is not permitted legally or socially.
However, during this one month I have been with you, there has been nothing
that made me feel you were a heinous criminal. Until now,
at the point of being a suspect, I had nothing but hatred, just like everyone else.
But this time was different. The frustration of not being able to explain the specific reason for that in words.
And it seems I won't even be able to find out what that is anymore.
It is a pity that the last meeting became the last time I saw your face, but
only that smile at that time has been my salvation. Anyway, please do not
become self-destructive until the very end. Well, for now,
I will stop here, but if there is an opportunity to send a letter, I will write again.
Shiino Satoshi
No matter how many times he read it, it was just a letter to someone with whom he had a light acquaintance. To put it another way, it could be said to be just a string of common sentences with no "emotion" put into them. No matter how few times he had met him for interviews, and for a short time at that, he felt that if he were the interviewer, he could write a sentence that appealed a bit more to the other party, while being aware of certain restrictions.
"Something must be hidden..."
How many times had he uttered the same line?
"I've only focused on the contact (letters) after the death penalty was finalized, but I guess I'll re-examine from before that. I have to go back to Hokkaido the day after tomorrow."
Saying that as if to convince himself, he resolved to investigate once more at the Osaka Detention House before the escort. If it was impossible today, the day after tomorrow was the day of the transfer. No matter how he thought about it, there was only tomorrow, the 16th, as a grace period.
Takeshita had already heard during the questioning at the Treatment Department of the detention house that there had been an exchange of letters between Motohashi and Shiino even before the death penalty was finalized, and he had actually seen other letters, just like this one. However, because he had emphasized the timing of the confession after that, and the fact that letters became the only means of contact with the outside world after the dismissal of the appeal made contact other than letters impossible, he had lightly glanced over the exchange of letters before that, thinking they weren't important. Since he hadn't even taken copies or done a careful check, he decided to re-examine them.
In Takeshita's thinking until now, before the death penalty was finalized, contact could be made through the means of a meeting in addition to letters, so even if an important exchange took place during that period, he thought it could be handled in a meeting. However, perhaps the letters during that period also had some hints, and Takeshita felt like betting on that. This was because in a meeting where there are eyes watching, although the degree of freedom is high, there are also limits.
*
Before 3:00 PM, the results of the voluntary questioning of Isaka Masamitsu came in from Kurano. In conclusion, it was that "unfortunately, nothing specific was obtained." Kurano was quite frustrated, saying he must have been given quite a bit of advice from that capable legal advisor of the Isaka Group, "Matsuda Satoshi."
At the time of Sada's murder, Masamitsu was living in Tokyo, and he apparently parried the questions by using a "reply" constructed around an absolute "alibi" that he could not have been involved at all. As for the dummy account, as Nishida had been told by Kurano in advance, he said they didn't even question him about it due to time constraints, as it was a matter outside the police's jurisdiction.
Incidentally, Kitamura and Mitsushima also participated in this questioning. Kurano said he had Kitamura handle the questioning of "whether Masamitsu knew about the matter where Daikichi was apparently blackmailed by Kitagawa and Shinoda, and by someone else in the summer of 1992," as requested by Nishida. It seemed he intended to leave it to Kitamura, whose experience with the Engaru team was longer than the other Kitami District Headquarters teams and who knew better what the Engaru team wanted to hear.
That said, unfortunately, it seems Kitamura's questioning was also successfully parried, but as for the impression he got from Kitamura,
"Team Leader Nishida, I think there's no mistake that he knows something. I suspect Daikichi was blackmailed at each of those times, just as we thought, right?"
And,
"The moment I said it, he couldn't hide a look of surprise for an instant. If it weren't voluntary, I'd have questioned him persistently, but after all, he's not even a suspect, just a voluntary witness questioning..."
He was very frustrated. However, for Nishida, even that information about Masamitsu's agitation was quite important. "As expected, Masamitsu has a considerable grasp of the Sada murder," Nishida was convinced.
When the phone returned to Kurano from Kitamura, he said he had also asked if he knew anything about Motohashi's sudden confession this time. Regarding that, he didn't seem to change his expression at all. Because of that, he seems to have had a strong impression that Motohashi's confession was a complete bolt from the blue for Masamitsu, more so than the murder of Sada Minoru.
And he was apparently somewhat indignant that the murder of Sada Minoru was now being blamed on his deceased father. It's not strange in itself to feel dissatisfied when a dead person can't speak. That said, he didn't seem to be truly angry, and rather, Kurano told Nishida that there was a sense of incongruity there.
The detectives in charge of the questioning, including Kurano, naturally poked at that point.
"Don't you also know about the involvement of someone else that the police haven't detected? And isn't it that there's a reason why it's better not to tell the police, and you're feeling the frustration of not being able to actively assert that? Or is it because you knew about your father's involvement in the incident from before, so you can't complain very strongly about the responsibility being pushed onto your father?"
In that way, they seemed to have pressed him on the premise of Oshima Kaiji's involvement, but Kurano told Nishida that he was parried there.
Nishida and Takeshita had conjectured that Isaka Daikichi had told his son Masamitsu most of the truth of the incident before he died. If Daikichi was the true mastermind—that is, the one with final "responsibility" for the murder—whether Masamitsu knew nothing or had heard something from Daikichi, the possibility that he would behave ambiguously about being blamed for his father's actions is low. He would either assert more strongly that it was unfair to blame his father (of course, if he knew the facts, it would be a mere lie) or he would give up easily.
In other words, in Masamitsu's attitude this time, in addition to his father's involvement, a subtle psychological state could be seen where he knew of the existence of the true mastermind but didn't want to break the relationship with that mastermind. As Kurano and the others felt a sense of incongruity, Nishida emphasized this point to Kurano.
At the very least, there is a mastermind of the same level as Isaka Daikichi, or a mastermind who should bear more responsibility; Nishida felt that such a possibility was glimpsed from the voluntary questioning. And the mastermind is, needless to say, Oshima Kaiji.
Finally, Kurano confirmed that the call from Director Toyama had not yet reached Nishida, told him it would probably come today, and hung up.