He became a god in Japan starting with the bear disaster.

Chapter 36 Standoff

Yuno Imai is 55 years old, 178 cm tall, and has a lean build. He is missing the little finger on his right hand.

At the age of 17, he joined the small Yokohama organization "Matsuha-kai". He earned the nickname "Arakawa" for breaking through the ranks of the single escort team leader in the dock city. At the age of 20, he was promoted to a high-ranking position, mainly responsible for maintaining order in the casino and collecting protection money.

After the collapse of the bubble economy, this man, who hadn't even graduated high school, actually taught himself about financial and legal loopholes and built a loan sharking system for his organization. At the age of 29, he led seven members to split and form the "Imai-gumi," anchored in Okino Town, focusing on providing loan sharking and security services. Now, the Imai-gumi has 35 direct members and about 80 external collaborators, making it a well-known yakuza organization in Yokohama.

"The Yakuza isn't a movie, it's about settling accounts!" — These are the words that Tsuneo Imai said to the new recruits.

But no matter what dreams and ambitions he once had, Imai Kumano is now old. He believes he has earned enough start-up capital for the next stage of his life, and in recent years he has been thinking about retirement. He has gradually handed over the management of the organization to the younger generation he has promoted, and he himself has stepped down behind the scenes.

There was only one thing he was still handling personally.

Keep the principal's secret. If you can keep it, you'll get the agreed-upon opportunity to network with a bigwig in the financial world, allowing him to dedicate himself to a real financial career after retirement.

Although he rose from a petty thug to a yakuza boss, Imai believed his true talent lay not in the financial world, but in the real world of finance. He shouldn't be holed up in this cheap office building, enduring the noise of trams overhead every day, leading a group of vulgar gangsters to squeeze every penny out of ordinary people's pockets. Instead, he should be sitting in a private office in a skyscraper in Tokyo's Kabutocho district, transforming shady, violent loan sharking into respectable angel investment funds.

Of course, someone who never went to university doesn't aspire to become a financial tycoon. He just wants to make money from money and earn a few billion to have a truly sufficient retirement fund.

It would be best to set up another foundation, leaving a way out for my good-for-nothing children, and most importantly, my beloved grandchildren...

He sat in his office, his mind wandering to the future.

There was a knock on the office door.

Who is it? Most likely, it's one of my deputies coming to report on their work.

"Is this Tanaka? Come in."

As the voice faded, a stranger pushed open the door and entered.

He was quite young, looking just like when he first joined the organization. Every move he made exuded boundless energy, yet no emotion could be discerned from his expression. His eyes, however, revealed composure and calmness. He treated this underworld boss as if he were invisible, and was indeed a handsome and capable man.

The visitor stood in front of the desk, silently and fearlessly scrutinizing him, as if weighing some price.

Unable to stand the scrutinizing gaze, Imai Yuno frowned and said, "Who are you? I've never seen you before. You're not a newcomer to my group, are you?"

"He's just an ordinary person who came to make a deal with you."

Lin Xiuyi answered calmly.

"Who gave you permission to come?"

"I agree to let me come."

Imai was astonished upon hearing this. He knew that although the Imai Group he led was not large, there were still more than a dozen members guarding the headquarters every day. How could this young man possibly break through the guards of so many people and silently kill his way to him?

Upon closer inspection, he discovered that Lin Xiuyi showed no signs of having been in a fight.

How did you get here?

"They walked over."

"You know that's not what I meant," Imai suppressed his anger. "I'm asking how you got past my men, or whether you infiltrated the area?"

"No, I walked in openly and honestly. I even greeted your slacking subordinates. They were the ones who told me where your office is."

Lin Xiuyi confessed.

Imai was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized that this kid was too calm. He ran to the yakuza headquarters as if he were going home. Their Imai Group only did loan sharking and security work. They had never been suppressed or resented by other organizations. The thugs who acted as guards were used to their smooth and peaceful lives. They never thought that someone who took the initiative to greet them was actually here to cause trouble.

Not only did they slack off, but they also treated an outsider as a companion or peripheral member, letting him in casually and even telling him where their boss was...

"These idiots!"

Imai flew into a rage and cursed his incompetent subordinates.

"Now that you've asked your questions, let's hear about my trading."

What do you want?

"It contains ledgers recording Kenpei Maeda's debts, as well as your knowledge of his cause of death."

Imai was startled, a variety of guesses flashing through his mind. He instinctively asked, "You're a policeman? Impossible, too young... Are you a detective?"

"I told you I'm just an ordinary person, so just consider it me meddling in other people's business."

Lin Xiuyi answered him patiently.

The more anxious the other party is, the more patient he becomes, because being anxious will only lead the prey into the trap set by the hunter.

"Impossible, there's no way I'd tell you these things, you brat."

"Don't be so quick to deny it. I've already said this is a deal, so listen to my offer first."

Without waiting for a reply, Lin Xiuyi continued speaking.

"In 1999, before you left the Matsuba-kai, the biggest obstacle to you was the Matsuba-kai's accountant, Morita, right? He knew about your financial shady dealings and even planned to turn himself in to the police in exchange for protection. You didn't kill him; instead, you broke into his house alone late at night and, in front of Morita, tortured and murdered his wife and 12-year-old son one by one, ultimately causing him to have a mental breakdown and commit suicide on the spot. No one in your family should know that you were interested in boys, right?"

"In 2003, a small factory owner who had previously funded you begged you for an extension on his high-interest loan when he was struggling financially, even appealing to your past relationship. You lured him to a junkyard, killed him, and crushed his body along with his car into scrap metal. But wasn't that man your ex-wife's brother?"

"In 2015, you took your 8-year-old grandson on a trip to Hokkaido..."

Lin Xiu spoke expressionlessly, as if he were talking about something mundane, but Imai Yuno was sweating profusely, his pupils dilated and he was shaken. When he heard that the other party was about to bring up that most indescribable thing, every cell in his body was forcing him to interrupt immediately.

"Stop talking, stop talking! How could you possibly know these things..."

He had just stood up when his legs gave way and he fell back into the chair.

"Give me the account books, and everything you know about Maeda."

Lin Xiuyi stared at him coldly.

"You, you're threatening me. That's impossible, impossible."

Imai was filled with disbelief and at a loss; his psychological defenses as a yakuza boss had been completely shattered by human ethics.

"This is a deal. If you give me the things, these irretrievable secrets will remain secrets."

"Do you think you'll get out of here alive?"

Imai Yuno reached shakily into the drawer of his desk.

"I don't know," Lin Xiuyi shook his head, then changed the subject, "but I know the postman will be at work at 8 a.m. tomorrow. If I don't get back to the post office to cancel the mail before then, what I just said, along with the evidence, will be on the desk of the editorial department of Weekly Bunshun within three days."

Hearing this, Imai was utterly desperate and released the gun handle he had just gripped.