Chapter 29: Deterrence

After finishing a late-night snack and securing her testimony, Shiraishi recalled something and turned to Gina to confirm: "By the way, where do you live?"

Given that it was already eleven at night, even though Gina was no ordinary young girl, Shiraishi still felt uneasy about her heading home alone.

"I don't! You people raided it the day before yesterday!" Gina said testily.

"Hm?" Fuji looked at her, puzzled—what did she mean by "raided"?

The day before yesterday... raided...

With his astonishing memory, Shiraishi immediately made the connection; the precinct had indeed sealed off a container warehouse two days ago.

"I see... that warehouse, is it? You can't blame us for that. That place wasn't zoned for residential use; the safety hazards were severe. It wasn't just a breeding ground for crime, but if a fire broke out, we’d be the ones catching flak for it. We still have some unclaimed personal belongings in storage; you can go pick them up... or not." Shiraishi said matter-of-factly.

Of course, the warehouse wasn't meant for living, but individual shipping containers had been illegally converted into cheap rooms. Following public complaints a week ago, they were officially sealed off the day before yesterday—at which time Gina was still in detention, only being released today.

As for why she "might not want to pick them up"?

Some of those items were likely stolen goods...

If you go and claim them, you’ll end up back in detention for a few more days!

"How about I stay at your place? I've heard that some runaways just crash at an older man's house," Gina teased deliberately.

"Where did you hear that? Please call the police if you hear it again," Shiraishi naturally dismissed the suggestion.

Seeing Shiraishi look her way, Fuji quickly interjected: "I live in the police dormitory; I can't take in outsiders."

"Are you a runaway?" Shiraishi asked with a hint of expectation—though he knew it was impossible. After all, she was an old friend of the Beika Precinct; if she really had a home, they would have found it by now.

"Too bad, I'm an orphan... You 'winners at life' can't possibly understand that, can you? Are you feeling sympathetic yet? I had no choice but to be self-reliant!" Gina said provocatively.

"I see. What a coincidence, so am I. I grew up in the Shiraishi Orphanage right next door in Kamurocho. But when I was your age, I was working part-time jobs while teaching myself to get into Todai," Shiraishi shrugged.

Gina: ...

Gina hadn't expected that even the topic of being an "orphan" could be shut down so decisively!

"Are there any aid measures for this situation?" Shiraishi asked Fuji, not being very familiar with the local policies. He hadn't worked in a local precinct before, so he wasn't well-versed in such matters.

"It’s not very meaningful. She turns eighteen next month. Once she’s an adult, qualifying for assistance becomes... sigh..." Fuji seemed to have looked into it already, but... police officers aren't gods, and this country isn't a paradise where everyone is free from want. Some things just cannot be solved.

However, Shiraishi still had a way!

He made a phone call: "Hello, Director... Sorry for calling so late... It's like this..."

"Yes, that's wonderful. Thank you so much..." Shiraishi said, describing Gina's situation to someone on the other end.

After hanging up, Shiraishi told Gina: "I'll send you to the Shiraishi Orphanage in a while... You can help out there. There's no pay, but they’ll provide room and board. Think about whether you want to go to school or look for a job, and report back to me by next Monday!"

"Huh? I'm not your subordinate..." Gina wasn't fond of Shiraishi's commanding tone, but... her objections were overruled.

The founder of the Shiraishi Orphanage had already passed away, and the current director was the elderly Mrs. Shiraishi. Previously, Shiraishi had donated a third of his salary to the orphanage, and he was now its second-largest benefactor. Sending Gina there to help out and crash for a while was, of course, no problem at all.

As for the largest benefactor?

That would be the young mistress Ayako, who preferred to remain anonymous.

Shiraishi also believed that although Gina was a thief, the fact that she had gone out of her way to provide him with a lead after seeing the news showed she was someone who knew how to repay a favor. Even if his lecture wouldn't turn her into a saint overnight, she certainly wouldn't steal from an orphanage.

Fuji then volunteered: "I'll take her there. It's in Kamurocho anyway."

After all...

While the distance wasn't great, at this hour, one would either have to take a taxi or use a police car, and those "small cars" were quite inconvenient for Shiraishi!

"I didn't say I was going..." Gina muttered softly, though she eventually added, "Hmph, fine, I'll go see if you're just bragging!"

"Then I'll leave it to you." Shiraishi entrusted her to Fuji.

Fuji went to retrieve an unmarked car from the Criminal Investigation Division to take Gina to the orphanage in the neighboring Kamurocho.

As for Shiraishi himself...

He simply went for a night run back to his apartment in Beika!

...

Fuji soon arrived at the streets of Kamurocho, but...

On a secluded street leading to the orphanage, two groups of tattooed men were engaged in a passionate brawl, and Fuji ran right into them!

The "Anti-Boryokudan Ordinance" of Tokyo had been in effect for five or six years, and the vitality of major violent organizations had declined significantly. Even so, as the lair of the Tojo Clan—the largest criminal organization in Kanto—Kamurocho remained a hotbed of vice.

Fuji slammed on the brakes, causing not only the brawlers to stop and look over, but also startling Gina in the passenger seat!

"Hey, this is Kamurocho... just let it go, okay?" Gina, of course, knew exactly what kind of place Kamurocho was.

But Fuji clearly wasn't going to pretend she hadn't seen anything just because "this is Kamurocho." She stepped out and flashed her badge: "Police! Stop right there!"

"Police? Never seen you before..."

"Whoo—the Kamurocho precinct doesn't have such a pretty babe, hahahaha..."

The gangs in Kamurocho were still very spirited; they dared to catcall and whistle at a female officer... but they did stop!

"Which precinct are you from? Don't meddle in business that doesn't concern you!" the leader scolded.

"Cross-jurisdictional enforcement? You should pick your spots, sweetheart."

Seeing that neither side was playing straight, Fuji simply said: "I don't want any trouble... disperse immediately!"

"Damn it! You don't know when to quit, do you?"

"Disperse? I'm gonna..."

A hot-headed thug began to curse, even making a threatening move.

Fuji kept her badge raised. The leader of the group, a lieutenant, stepped closer, provocatively leaning in, only to see...

"Beika Precinct? The one next door? Wait... I remember..."

The man seemed to realize something and instinctively recoiled.

"Beika Precinct... could it be..."

"Ahem, miss... officer, your chief... is he Chief Shiraishi?"

"Misunderstanding! It's all a misunderstanding... we were just joking!"

"Y-yes... that's right... look at our crests... we're with the Tojo Clan... just horsing around!"

The Beika Precinct... no, to be precise, the name "Shiraishi" seemed to have some kind of magic!

Upon hearing the name "Shiraishi," the expressions of the gang members changed instantly, their attitudes doing a complete one-eighty.

Fuji: ???

Though she didn't know what was going on, Fuji said: "If you're horsing around, don't disturb the local citizens!"

"Yes, yes, we're leaving right now..."

Fuji didn't believe they were just "horsing around"—they were all groups affiliated with the Tojo Clan, and it wasn't as if they didn't know how to fight, it was just...

Seeing them truly scatter like birds, Fuji didn't press the issue and got back in the car.

By the time she drove away, she could still see the two groups nodding and bowing toward the rear of her car in the rearview mirror...

Gina, who had been excitedly looking back, asked: "Hey, is that old guy their protector or something?"

"Don't talk nonsense! The Chief used to be a section chief in the Organized Crime Control Division, of course they're afraid of him!" Fuji defended her chief, even though she felt their attitude was abnormal.

Of course, Fuji's "explanation" wasn't actually wrong—that was exactly the reason!

It was just that in practice, Shiraishi was even more extreme...

The Tojo Clan?

There wasn't a single door among the dozens of offices belonging to the Tojo Clan's various groups in Tokyo that Shiraishi hadn't kicked in at least once!