Chapter 56 - Light and Shadow 35 (183–189: The Tape Kitamura Left Behind)
November 14th. From the morning, Nishida and Yoshimura were visiting Shibata, a Senior Staff member of the Kitami Area Headquarters Forensics Division. Since there had been no progress in the investigation through questioning, they had come to check the culprits' left-behind items in detail, thinking to grasp at straws. That said, the information was that only bullets and footprints were left at the scene, and there was nothing that could serve as a lead for the culprits, but they had come with a glimmer of hope.
"Is this really all there is?"
Yoshimura's confirmation of the lack of left-behind items sounded rude.
"Hey! There are no oversights in our work!"
The veteran forensics officer intimidated the "youngster."
"I'm sorry. It's just that for such a bold incident, there are so few clues. They bypassed the checkpoints, and it's quite tough. We were hoping there might be some information here..."
The youngster confessed that they were indeed grasping at straws.
"What's happening with the yakuza side?"
"It seems they're washing through the Nissho-kai and Gishin-kai, mainly. Especially the Nissho-kai, who are seen as having a reason to attack Matsushima—they're investigating everyone from members to low-level punks, but even now, with alibis and whatnot, no one fits, and they're having quite a hard time." Nishida spat out.
"Tch, how pathetic! To be hit this hard and just take it! Your colleague Kitamura is dead!"
It was the usual foul-mouthedness typical of Shibata, but it felt less like it came from his usual self and more like an abuse born from genuine anger at the atrocity.
"Ah, that's right! Thanks to you guys coming to bother me, I almost forgot something important! I have to make arrangements to return the belongings of the three victims today..."
Shibata said this while taking out items in plastic bags. Matsushima's things, which he had brought into the hospital, were in a cardboard box. Momose's things were likely in her nurse's uniform, consisting of only things like pens. It seemed the items in her locker were not worn at the time of the incident and had already been briefly checked and returned to the bereaved family.
The clothing the three were wearing at the time of the murder seemed to be kept separately for gunshot wound analysis. According to Shibata, Kitamura's belongings included a coat and a suit with a wallet and other items placed inside carelessly. However, among those gathered belongings of Kitamura, a portable cassette player like a Walkman in a plastic bag for storage caught Nishida's eye. At that moment, the conversation he had with Kitamura in the car about karaoke while they were staking out Managing Director Kitagawa in Kitami vividly returned to Nishida's mind. Certainly, Kitamura had said he was such an enthusiastic "singer" that he recorded his own singing voice on a portable tape recorder to check it. Nishida had a hunch.
"Did you listen to the contents of this?" he asked immediately.
"Huh? Since it has a REC button, I thought maybe something was recorded because Kitamura was listening to Matsushima's story... But it was nothing but someone's singing from the beginning, and I didn't hear anything like that at all, so I thought unfortunately Kitamura didn't think that far ahead..."
"No, wait! Does that mean you didn't listen to it until the end?"
"Well, yeah, but..."
"You've got to be kidding! You have to check it properly until the end!"
Nishida suddenly shouted with such fury that Shibata involuntarily flinched.
"Hey, why are you so pissed off?"
"On that day, Kitamura was off-duty and had promised to go to karaoke with us in Engaru that night! I think he had that Walkman to check his own singing voice when he went to karaoke! However, he suddenly turned back and headed to the hospital because Matsushima wanted to talk! So, it wouldn't be strange if he suddenly noticed its existence, right!? And if that's the case, it wouldn't be strange if he recorded the questioning from the middle of the tape he had been recording on until then, without even having time to rewind it! Even if it kept running after Kitamura was shot and went to the end and automatically rewound, it wouldn't be strange, would it!?"
Shibata didn't fully understand the story, partly because he didn't know Kitamura's "habit" and partly because he was being shouted at one-sidedly.
"I don't quite understand the circumstances, but if you say so much, it might indeed be better to check until the end. Alright, fine, let's try listening..."
Shibata said this, took the cassette out of the tape recorder, and pressed the play button on a nearby boombox. Then, while checking the audio one by one, he repeated pressing the fast-forward button alternately. For about twenty minutes, there was singing that seemed to be Kitamura's—as he himself had said when he was alive, it was a singing voice with a quite beautiful high-tone voice—but when they listened after fast-forwarding for a while, something like a conversation suddenly began to be heard along with a somewhat unclear sound. The voices seemed to be a conversation between Kitamura and a man who was likely an old man with not much strength in his voice. Nishida bet on the possibility that the old man was Matsushima.
"Is this it?"
Shibata confirmed with Nishida.
"I don't know, but I think it's probably it... Let's listen properly from the beginning!" he said. The three leaned their faces toward the speaker of the boombox, and Shibata immediately rewound delicately and carefully to find the start of the conversation.
"Shibata-san, where was this found?" Yoshimura asked while watching the work.
"I didn't collect it at the scene myself, but according to what's written in the materials, it seems it was in the chest pocket of Kitamura's coat. I told you earlier, didn't I? ...Oh, is this it?" he replied, while seemingly finding the vicinity of the start of the recording. It was likely recorded in the chest pocket for Kitamura to record secretly, so it was unclear with mixed noise. They concentrated on the audio to distinguish it clearly.
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"...Matsushima-san, sorry I'm late."
"You finally... came. Since I... called you out... on my own, it can't be helped, but..."
"I'm really sorry. Because Matsushima-san said to come immediately."
The voice of the old man, Matsushima, was even harder to hear as it was broken up, partly due to the influence of the recording condition and probably also due to the influence of lung cancer. However, it was a stroke of luck that it was at a level where it could somehow be heard if they concentrated. The one who spoke after Matsushima would be the nurse in charge, Momose Yukiko.
"So, you said you had something to talk about?"
"Yes, that's right... About that Sada... or whatever... case, I managed to write... a Written Statement... I don't have... much strength, so... the handwriting might be... hard to read... but for the parts that were... too difficult, I had... this nurse... write for me, so... you should be able to... read it... Well, take a look..."
"A Written Statement regarding that case!? Understood, I'll take a look at it anyway."
Kitamura's voice had become high-pitched due to the sudden development. Then there was a rustling sound, likely from receiving the paper from the nurse.
"Then, I'll read it for a moment," Kitamura announced.
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"Stop it for a second! He said 'Written Statement,' didn't he, Matsushima...? Was this not left at the scene?" Nishida asked hurriedly.
"At least, there's no trace of it being collected by forensics!" Shibata also pressed the stop button and spoke with more force in response to Nishida's question.
"Does that mean it was taken away...? Then isn't that bad?" Yoshimura also understood the significance of this.
"We won't know until we listen to the end, but it seems that might be the case... For now, we have to listen to the rest!" Shibata pressed the play button again.
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On the tape, silence continued for about two minutes after that. Occasionally, the sound of Matsushima coughing and what seemed to be Kitamura's breathing or the sound of clothes rubbing—noise—was recorded, but Kitamura must have been reading silently during that time. However, Nishida strongly thought that he should have read it aloud at this point. Because he could guess that the Written Statement was taken away by the culprits. And breaking the silence, Kitamura began to speak again.
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"To be honest, I'm quite surprised... Is this really, truly the truth?"
"...Yes, it's the truth. On that day, I met Sada along with Isaka. At that time, I didn't know, but when I heard from the police later that Sada had gone missing, I thought, 'Ah, he was probably killed by Isaka and the others.' ...I was only asked by Oshima to 'be a witness to make Sada trust us, because a dispute has arisen between Isaka and a man named Sada,' and I didn't know the contents of the discussion well until just before. However, my relative's construction company was also well taken care of by Oshima, and the reason I was able to become a Prefectural Assembly member was thanks to my boss, Oshima, so either way, there was no option to refuse if I was asked at the time. And even after he went missing, there was no option to talk about it in detail to the police... Can you understand that part? Cough Ugh Cough cough..."
He coughed here and the conversation was interrupted once, but he began to speak again immediately.
"...I remember... Isaka muttering, 'That bastard, getting cocky,' after Sada went home and we were alone. And Isaka said with a smirk, 'Well, just a little more patience.' I never thought at that time... that it meant Sada would go missing..."
Here Yoshimura pressed the stop button.
"Does this mean Isaka effectively predicted the murder?"
"That might be it! Anyway, let's listen to the rest quickly!" Nishida played it without being able to suppress his excitement. He had a feeling he might be hearing something incredible right now.
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"I see... I wonder what I should do... Er, it's mostly written here, so what should I ask? ...The content is just too incredible, I'm confused... Er, what should I ask... Ah, then for now, I'll ask about things not written here... Regarding the dinner, or rather the discussion, before he disappeared—were Isaka and Sada in a confrontational mood from the start?"
"I don't know what kind of flow led to that until then, but on the surface, they both seemed calm. I felt they were performing confirmation work quite business-like. A contract describing the contents of the discussion was also handed to me, and I signed it."
"So, from the start, they were filling in the details while preparing a contract-like document for confirming the receipt of (the bond)?"
"That was probably it. Perhaps out of consideration for me, who was uninvolved, I think Sada didn't mention fine details much. However, as written there, Isaka did tell me after Sada went home that he was being threatened by something Isaka himself had done in the past. I wasn't told the contents, but well, he didn't show any sign of remorse... As I said earlier, I hadn't heard the contents of the discussion well from Oshima beforehand. So, to be honest, Isaka's story didn't... click with me at that time."
"I see... However, as the biggest question, why did you think of submitting this to the police as a Written Statement now? I'm very sorry, but if you had said it sooner..."
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Normally, Kitamura should have asked this first, but he must have been considerably confused. Nishida rather considered Kitamura's state of mind for trying to find out about really trivial content at first.
However, it seemed even Isaka had not confessed to Matsushima that back in 1941, he had further killed Takamura, a work colleague, as a punishment for killing Mende. Although he made remarks hinting at the Sada murder plan, the reason why Isaka Daikichi did not touch upon that at all cannot be fully explained, but he might have had more resistance to saying he had experience in completed murder than to a vague prediction. Also, the detectives had already made a guess close to a conviction that the main reason Sada Minoru had blackmailed Isaka was likely that, rather than the matter of usurping the inheritance of his employer Senzaki.
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"I'm... sorry... As I said, I was well taken care of by Oshima, so I didn't want to say anything unnecessary about Sada's disappearance, which Oshima was likely involved in as well. However... I don't have long left—no, if things go poorly, I might not even last a week. It's a pathetic story, but even at this stage, I don't want to go to hell... And even if I go to hell, if my nephew's company can survive, I might be able to think that drinking bitter water is unavoidable... Cough Gah Cough..."
"Are you alright? Matsushima-san! Shall we rest for a bit?"
Here Momose Yukiko finally entered the conversation. For a while, an atmosphere of what seemed to be her taking care of him was recorded.
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Nishida stopped the playback once and said,
"Matsushima felt that Oshima might have been involved at the point he learned Sada had gone missing."
"Naturally," Yoshimura also reacted.
"But, wouldn't you say it's not to the extent of being 'natural'? After all, Isaka is a powerful supporter of Oshima, so as a favor to Isaka, he would normally do something like arrange a witness. ...Well, it's fine to listen properly first before drawing a conclusion..."
He lightly poked at his subordinate's "assertion" and asked Shibata to press the play button again.
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"With the bubble bursting and tax revenue falling, public works are still somewhat flourishing now as a stimulus for the economy. But the outlook is that they will be considerably reduced in the not-too-distant future, and the struggle for survival in anticipation of that has already begun to occur, and struggles have come to occur even between Oshima and members and supporters of the Minyu (Party). My nephew's company lost that competition, and from September, it was practically decided that it would go under... So, it's become meaningless to keep Oshima in my debt... On top of that, I don't know why, but it seems even the impossible shooting at Murayama-gumi has been made out to be the work of my nephew's company. My nephew is not a man who can do such a thing. I've known his character well since he was small. I can only think that someone is trying to frame my nephew's company... So, even if I were to worry about my nephew's future, it's meaningless now with things like this... I want to confess everything I know before I die and die without leaving anything behind. You understand, don't you, detective? My feelings."
"...I see. So that was it... Understood. If that's the case, I understand why you felt like confessing now... Yes, you have to unburden yourself... So, when you learned of Sada's disappearance, did you, Matsushima-san, try to confirm anything with Oshima or Isaka?"
"No, I didn't... That's already like a tacit understanding, isn't it? Oshima also, whether he trusted that I wasn't the kind of person to blab or not, his selection of me must have been because he was sure I wasn't a man who would do something disadvantageous to both of us. In fact, after that—my older brother was still running it at the time—more work began to come to the company... That must have been meant as hush money..."
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"If it was to the extent that more work came in, then after the incident at least, he didn't have the sense that he was asked to mediate in a pure sense..."
"That's right. It seems Matsushima also understood, as far as the audio goes."
Nishida thought about scolding Yoshimura for saying something obvious, but he suppressed it and asked Shibata to press the play button.
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"I see... Understood... I was also curious about this in the Written Statement—it says that as Sada was leaving the discussion, he said, 'In this matter, there are still people who should receive the portion of the inheritance you took, and one of them has been found. My discussion with you ends here, but you'll have to settle things separately with that person.' What about this?"
"Even if you ask me 'what about it,' what should I say?"
"Specifically, how Isaka reacted after hearing that story from Sada, or if he said anything, things like that."
"Is that what you mean... In that case, Isaka was laughing after Sada went home, saying, 'There's no way he could find them.'"
"By the way, regarding the person who should receive the inheritance, the 'one person who was found'—specifically, did a name or something like that come out of Sada's mouth?"
"Not a name, but he must have said something specific, but I can't remember that. However, I do remember Isaka muttering to himself, 'How can he find someone whose name he doesn't even know, at the very least'..."
"Huh? I don't quite understand... Matsushima-san, you heard that 'some words' were specifically uttered from Sada's mouth, even if you can't remember the name specifically, right? Regarding that, did Isaka say 'he doesn't even know the name well'?"
"Yes, that's right. Even if I'm asked about that, I don't know the reason why Isaka said that."
"I see... I don't quite understand... This is tough... Well, whatever... I'll move on to the next important story."
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Nishida pressed the stop button here. He thought that the reason Kitamura couldn't understand the meaning of Matsushima's statement—that "Sada specifically uttered some words, but Isaka, who heard them, also said 'he doesn't know the name'"—was likely because he couldn't connect it with the part in the bond and the letter about "the orphan of Mende Shigeyoshi whose name is unknown (from the description in Hojo Masato's letter to his brother Masaharu, it was already known that the orphan was a male child)."
At that time, Sada Minoru likely used an expression like "Mende Shigeyoshi's son (if he had really found him, the possibility of him being a son is high)" or "Mende Shigeyoshi's orphan." Even if the actual name of the orphan he found was known to Sada, the Isaka he was dealing with naturally didn't know it, so it wouldn't have made sense even if he said it as it was. Therefore, it was perfectly possible that Sada had not revealed the actual name to Isaka at this point.
And by Sada saying "Mende's orphan," Matsushima recognized it as a "specific thing." However, in the flow of that conversation, it is not strange at all for Isaka Daikichi to use the phrasing "someone whose name he doesn't even know." But if you don't think about that carefully, it becomes a conversation that seems strange from the outside.
The detailed contents of the Written Statement are unknown as they do not exist before them at present, but since it was such important content that Kitamura was inadvertently confused by its significance, his mind might not have been working well regarding this either. At the very least, Kitamura had been off this investigation for a period, but there is no doubt he had grasped the contents of the bond and the letter to some extent through the subsequent investigation (such as the search of Kitagawa's safe deposit box). Naturally, there was no way he couldn't understand it at all.
And above all, Nishida and Yoshimura were surprised that Sada had cut in with "I've tracked down the existence" regarding the male child whose name Mende Shigeyoshi should not have known, in front of Matsushima and Isaka, just as he had said at the detective agency in Sapporo in 1987. Probably, the portion that the male child (who would be an old man or close to old age by now) should have inherited or something equivalent to alimony was also something he was trying to demand from Isaka, as far as the conversation between Matsushima and Kitamura goes, it must have been described in the Written Statement.
"Considering his statement at the Kataoka Detective Agency, can we think that Sada Minoru really had found Mende's son?" Yoshimura said.
"Hmm, to be honest, I can't say... Normally, the probability should be quite low... However, if a man named Sada said it to Isaka merely as a bluff, I don't think he would dare say the same thing to the staff of the detective agency. So, did he find him after all..."
To Shibata, who was listening to the conversation between the two, it must have been completely incomprehensible, but it was impressive to Nishida in a way that he just listened to the progress seriously in silence, unlike the usual Shibata. However, rather than harboring such impressions, Nishida was obtaining a more significant meaning from this conversation between Kitamura and Matsushima.
"By the way, that's not the only problem, is it, Yoshimura! Do you remember the talk in Osaka? The one where Takeshita asked me, 'Sada came to Kitami quite carefree, but didn't he think about the fear of being killed by Isaka Daikichi, who has already killed a person?'"
"Yes, I remember that. It's the one where the Team Leader said to the Senior Staff, 'It's because he had that perception that he was killed,' isn't it?"
"That's right. I'm ashamed to say it's exactly as I said. But now it's come to seem that, as Takeshita read it, Sada had indeed taken out insurance."
"Insurance?"
"Yes, insurance! He took out insurance to prevent harm from being inflicted on him, against Isaka. However, for Isaka, it likely resulted in the ironic conclusion that it didn't become insurance because of its 'impossibility.'"
Nishida said this and laughed self-deprecatingly. Yoshimura didn't understand the meaning immediately, but after thinking for a while, he raised his voice.
"I see! Is it a threat like, 'There's someone else besides me who knows what you did in the past, so don't do anything half-hearted to me!'? If Sada had found Mende's son, it's natural to think there's a high possibility he had told him various things about that time. In reality, we don't know if he had really found him, and even if that was true, if he had confessed such a story to him."
"I think that's what it was. But unfortunately, Isaka took that statement as a so-called complete bluff... Sada should have thought about that point too. Normally, Sada himself must have thought it was an impossible discovery..."
"In that case, Sada wasn't just in a buoyant mood when he went into Kitami... Did he face the dinner with some degree of resolve?"
Yoshimura said this and pressed the play button again.
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"Er, this is really important—did Isaka certainly say to you, Matsushima-san, after Sada left, as it is written: 'Oshima also lent a hand to me in the past and got his hands dirty with evil deeds. And I hold an even bigger secret of his. That's why he and I are in a relationship of sharing the same fate'?"
"Yes, no mistake. He certainly said so. That's why he also said, 'Oshima has no choice but to cooperate with me.'"
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Immediately after playing it, Nishida stopped it.
"I don't know well what evil deeds Oshima cooperated with Isaka on in the past, but it seems there's an even bigger secret, and those connect to the necessity for Oshima to cooperate with Isaka. The reason Matsushima thought Oshima was also involved in the Sada Minoru murder was because he had heard such things..."
"The reason why Oshima was likely in a cooperative relationship with Isaka all along, including the Sada Minoru murder, wasn't simply because he was a powerful supporter... Or rather, the reason was precisely here, wasn't it?"
Yoshimura was also nodding deeply.
"It's not clear, but he must have had his weakness grasped by Isaka due to past evil deeds or something. If a member of the Diet had done something evil in the past, there's a strong chance his reputation would plummet. If things go poorly, it could affect his political life! The relationship between Isaka and Oshima wasn't just a powerful supporter and a politician, but was originally established with this kind of structure! However, the problem is that with this alone, the contents of the evil deeds and the secret are unknown. I have no idea at all."
Nishida's face was beginning to flush. He played the tape again.
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"It's not written in the Written Statement, but Isaka received something like a bond from Sada in exchange for the contract, and he showed that to me after Sada left."
"Ah, the one he received from Sada in exchange for providing management funds—though it seems it was a fake bond in the end..."
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Kitamura said the part from "though it seems it was" in a low, muttering voice. It was even harder to hear because it was originally unclear, but they understood that part after listening to it about twice. The reason he spoke that way was likely because it was a story Matsushima wouldn't understand even if he told him.
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"That's right. He showed me that bond... Ah, I have to ask this... You know that the name Oshima Kaiji is just a common name for elections, don't you?"
"Yes, I've heard something like that here and there."
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Kitamura's way of speaking seemed to say, "What does it matter?"
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"So, his real name is Tadokoro Yasuo, and this is something people who know Oshima a little normally know."
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At this time, Nishida was remembering the conversation between two businessmen at the izakaya "Iyomante," which Yoshimura's classmate ran, during the investigation in Sapporo.
The origin of Oshima Kaiji is "Kaiji" to show the intention of succeeding the "route" of his mentor, the famous Diet member elected from the Hokkaido 5th District (a former multi-member district in Hokkaido that existed until '96, an electoral district with an area equivalent to the whole of Shikoku, including Kushiro, Obihiro, Kitami, Abashiri, Nemuro, etc.) who had a base in Abashiri and Kitami, "Kaito Takumi," and "Oshima" from the former Prime Minister Oshima Kenichi, who was the leader of the faction "Otori-kai" to which Kaito belonged and was a famous prime minister. He took both and used the common name for elections, "Oshima Kaiji." At that time, the story that "Tadokoro Yasuo" was his real name had also come out. Even so, Nishida didn't understand why the story of Isaka showing the bond to Matsushima jumped to that, so he listened even more intently to catch the meaning.
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"And Isaka, while showing that bond, told me something unexpected. He said, 'In this, the name he had before he became Tadokoro Yasuo, when he usurped the inheritance with me, is written'... At that time, I also understood the meaning of the 'evil deeds he got his hands dirty with by cooperating.'"
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The moment they heard this, Nishida and Yoshimura looked at each other. However, they said nothing—or rather, could say nothing—and without even stopping the tape, they concentrated on the audio as it was.
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"What did you say!? Is that true? So, what was the original name of Oshima Kaiji, also known as Tadokoro?"
Kitamura seemed to have rattled it off as if to hurry him, but Matsushima began to answer slowly in contrast.
"I don't remember the name written on the bond well. If you, detective, remember the name and bring it up, I might know."
"Understood! I know all the names that were on that bond... no, one isn't a name... so I'll write them on paper now and show you, and if you have any memory of the corresponding one, please point to it!"
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The sound of Kitamura scribbling on paper with a pen continued for a while, but the conversation resumed immediately.
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"How about it? Is it among these?"
"Yes... it's here. This one."
"This one! This is it, right? It's Kuwano, isn't it!? Are you really sure?"
"Yes, now that it's shown like this, there's no mistake. That's the one..."
"Wait a minute... Er, hmm, to be honest, I'm so surprised my jaw has dropped... But thinking about it carefully, it certainly can't be anyone but Kuwano among these... if what Isaka said is true."
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Nishida stopped the tape here. Kitamura's mutter was indeed correct. If it couldn't be Hojo Masato or Mende's son, the only one remaining is "Kuwano Kinya." Furthermore, the "big secret" about Oshima that Isaka held was likely that the name "Kuwano Kinya," which is completely different from Oshima's "outward" real name "Tadokoro Yasuo," is his real name and true identity, and from the flow, "falsification" is suspected.
And if they considered the stories of Sada Toru and Minoru's eldest brother Sada Yuzuru and Hojo Masato's brother Hojo Masaharu, whom Nishida and the others had also questioned so far, the "evil deed Oshima cooperated with Isaka on in the past" was that "Isaka and Oshima, also known as Kuwano, stole the gold dust left by the old man Senzaki, even the portions for Mende's orphan and Hojo Masato," which was likely correct for the most part. Nishida's hand was trembling slightly. Not from tension, of course, but from the joy of finally having firmly grasped a large tail.
"Team Leader! We already knew to some extent, but with what we just heard, the basis for inferring Oshima's involvement in the Sada murder has become clear. It also matches the testimonies of Sada Yuzuru and Hojo Masaharu so far! We have to tell the Section Chief and Senior Staff Takeshita quickly! The Senior Staff will be especially happy."
Yoshimura also had a smile that could be described as beaming.
"...Wait a minute! Rejoice after listening to the end. Information related to Kitamura's case might still be in there!" Shibata admonished the two who were overflowing with such joy.
"True!" Nishida pressed the play button firmly.
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"However, Isaka said something else... curious at that time. 'That guy Oshima'—er, was it Kuwano? 'Thanks to that name, he was certainly able to escape from the hell I experienced'..."
"Er... I don't quite understand, but what does that mean?"
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Rather than not understanding well, it would be more correct to say he didn't understand at all, considering Kitamura's state of mind at the time, Nishida thought as he listened.
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"I didn't understand either, so I tried asking. Then..."
"Then?"
"He said, 'You're the same age as me, and you don't understand? You're slow on the uptake,' and he was about to say something, but just then, the proprietress of the restaurant 'Furin' came to greet us. We were both good customers who used it often, so it was natural... After that, after chatting with the proprietress, Isaka said he had business and left first. That was the end of that..."
"Then we won't know... Well, that itself is probably not a big deal... It can't be helped even if we worry about it."
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Neither Nishida nor Yoshimura, nor of course Shibata, who did not grasp the details of the case, felt any meaning in this statement of Matsushima Kotaro after hearing the "major fact" before it. No, they couldn't have felt it. In addition to the unexpected development that Kuwano Kinya on the bond and Oshima Kaiji were connected, in front of the fact that Oshima was in a relationship with Isaka of, to borrow Isaka's words, "sharing the same fate," it was clearly content that paled in comparison. Kitamura must have been the same.
However, Nishida at this time had no way of knowing that this answer that Isaka didn't say was precisely the important thing in knowing the true identity of the person Oshima Kaiji, which he would finally realize during the investigation seven years later. And a fact he didn't want to hear was recorded at the end of that recording tape.
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"Anyway, for us investigators, Oshima's involvement in the case was a major concern, so this Written Statement is nothing but a source of gratitude. Truly, thank you..."
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Was it the sound of a door opening here?
A faint sound like a slight "shhh" was recorded. And then,
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"...Who are you!"
Kitamura's roar flew, and
"Kyaa!"
Momose's scream followed. Then, "pash, pash," in quite rapid succession, what were likely the sounds of a handgun firing were recorded.
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It was thought that a silencer might have been used, but the firing sounds resonated more than expected, and the sound of bullets being showered was clearly recorded. Kitamura also received gunshots, and a groaning voice was recorded, but that also disappeared immediately. He must have indeed been killed instantly. The two listening to it did not coordinate, but quietly closed their eyes, their lips trembling with anger at the death of their fellow detective.
However, Shibata, who was present in the same place, was likely counting the firing sounds; when the firing sounds stopped, he rewound and listened a few more times. He, who prioritized his duties over emotions, seemed to be checking the remaining bullets and the number of shots fired. It was a part that Nishida and Yoshimura couldn't understand—or rather, couldn't imitate—but this obsession was likely Shibata's own way.
After that, since there might be important hints for the murder of the three including Kitamura in this part, Nishida and the others continued to listen in silence. Rather than indulging in poor sentimentality, that itself would be a memorial service for Kitamura. Such an awareness as a detective finally "arrived" at the two besides Shibata as well. And actually, from there, the voices of the culprit group, which were not recorded during the shooting, were recorded.
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"Hey, did you kill them all?"
"It's fine... no problem, they're goners."
"I collected that paper and the notebook he had. Hurry up and collect that!"
"Where was it?"
"They said it's at the outlet, hurry up!"
"Ah, found it, found it! Then let's go together quickly, Abe!"
"..."
"Ah... that old habit again... Hurry, let's go!"
And the clattering sounds of the culprits disappeared immediately along with the sound of a door closing.
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"Too lucky! It seems there was someone named Abe among the culprits!"
Nishida was elated the moment he heard this, as he never thought the surname of a culprit would be in the audio. His previous depressed feelings were gone, and his nature as a detective came out. Needless to say, since it's necessary to arrest the culprits to avenge Kitamura, the joy wasn't exactly improper, but still...
"Since they didn't think they were being recorded, the name came out!"
Yoshimura also had a triumphant face. However, only Shibata wasn't that happy.
"But even if you say Abe, there are several patterns for the characters!"
He cautioned calmly in front of the two who were rejoicing.
"Now that you mention it... It's a common surname, and there are patterns for the characters. Is it a pattern like Watanabe..."
To Yoshimura, whose joy suddenly seemed halved after being told that,
"Still, it's far better than not knowing at all," Nishida comforted him.
In any case, Matsushima's Written Statement had likely been stolen by the group of two culprits, as per the eyewitness testimony, according to the situation of the bullets and the audio. It was a bitter blow that the essential Written Statement was taken, even if one person's surname was identified. The notebook Kitamura was thought to have been writing in was also taken. But conversely, it can be said that the purpose of these gunmen was exposed to the light of day by Kitamura's recording, which the culprits had not recognized. It was fortunate that they never imagined Kitamura, who was taking notes, was also recording. Although there was no time, it might have been good that their attention was completely focused on those things and they didn't awkwardly search his clothes...
In any case, with this, it could be said that the scenario of Matsushima's retaliation and the two being caught in it due to a yakuza conflict had completely disappeared. The tape seemed to have run out of time around the point where, after the culprits' escape was witnessed and the patient in the adjacent private room who became the first discoverer entered the room and shouted in a loud voice that could be either a scream or surprise, people who seemed to be hospital staff came clattering in, a commotion started, and the sirens of what were thought to be patrol cars and ambulances from outside could be faintly heard. It must have automatically rewound there.
"Even so, how did the culprits know that Matsushima was going to hand the Written Statement to Kitamura-san? Although it was suspicious that the timing was too good, since it's now certain that was completely the purpose, I don't think it was a coincidence."
Yoshimura presented the natural question the investigators had, suspecting that Matsushima was killed in connection with his attempt to say something to Kitamura about the Sada case.
"That's that. The conversation about the outlet and whatnot is the key."
Shibata gave the answer indirectly.
"I see! It's a wiretap after all!"
Yoshimura seemed to have realized immediately with that hint.
"There's almost no mistake. There's a perfect wiretap that's always connected to the power supply and also functions normally as a tap. It shouldn't be distinguishable from a wiretap at a glance. They must have been using that. And with that wiretap, they learned on the day that Kitamura would receive something like a Written Statement for the police from Matsushima, and they tried to prevent the handover and steal the Written Statement itself. Whether the perpetrator and the one wiretapping are the same is another matter, but at the very least, the wiretapper was in a place quite close to the hospital, and the perpetrator was likely in Kitami City or the vicinity, wasn't he? Since they rushed there immediately with the information from the wiretap."
Shibata displayed an accurate deduction unlike a forensics officer.
"There was a small possibility it occurred spontaneously, but in this case, it's a crime that couldn't exist without a certain degree of planning. But to install a wiretap in a private room, it should be quite limited. Normally, it would be either someone who came to visit or a hospital employee."
Nishida also gave his opinion based on Shibata's thoughts.
"As for visitors, it seems only the nephew of Taihei Giken and his family came. He seemed to have refused visits from political associates or old acquaintances..."
Yoshimura explained to Shibata.
"Furthermore, when it comes to hospital employees, since he's a patient whose death is imminent, if it were the doctor in charge or the nurse in charge—or even other nurses who entered and left even if not in charge—it should be possible to kill him in a 'gentler' way without it being found out, a story that also came out in the investigation meeting. Is the logic to first consider hospital employees who are not directly engaged in medical care?"
"It's as Yoshimura says. But that hasn't been seen in the questioning yet. And the problem is, if it's a pattern where someone who didn't want to do the deed themselves just cooperated with the killer, the involvement of doctors or nurses, which is considered low probability due to the ease of killing, is also possible. But then again, it's certain that the probability is low. Not to mention, at least Momose Yukiko was killed along with him."
"Team Leader, what about the possibility that they killed a 'collaborator' to silence them?"
In response to Yoshimura's formal counterargument,
"There's almost no chance of that. The reason is simple. If you're going to have a nurse specifically install a wiretap, it's faster to get information directly from her. In fact, Matsushima seemed to have opened up to her and she was by his side."
He answered with confidence. Of course, the theory that "the nurse was just a victim caught in it" was an "answer" already shared to some extent among the investigators, putting aside the talk of wiretaps.
"That's true too... Ah, that aside, we have to report to the investigation headquarters immediately!"
Yoshimura said, clapping his hands.
"As Yoshimura says, I'd like to report to the investigation headquarters immediately... but if there was someone searching for Matsushima, the story changes. There's a possibility that the previous questioning Matsushima gave to Kitamura about the contract exchanged between Isaka and Sada became the trigger this time. Whether it's an S (spy) nesting inside the police or the investigation information just leaked out without malice, I don't know, but it might have been flowing to the culprit group. At this point, wouldn't it be better to narrow down the people we tell this information to as much as possible? We can't keep quiet forever, but it's not a good idea to tell them immediately either. For that reason, Shibata-san, please keep this matter to yourself for now. Also, please dub the tape."
Nishida's wording was polite to Shibata, but he requested strongly. Shibata said,
"You really ask for the impossible. It can't be helped, make sure to report as soon as possible! It's a violation of the rules on this side. Two or three days is the limit for dragging it out!"
He responded reluctantly, but his eyes were smiling.