met free Page 132
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Yuki Takada did not give up. He locked himself in his office, repeatedly watching surveillance footage and studying the structural diagrams of the pier.
Kishimoto Takuya stood on the edge of the pier, raised the box, spoke, pressed the button, and jumped down... He had watched every move countless times.
Suddenly, he noticed a small detail.
The instant Kishimoto Takuya lifted the box and pressed the button to trigger the countdown, his little finger seemed to make an extremely tiny, unintentional flicking motion, pointing towards the supporting structure below the pier.
"Under the pier!" Yuuki Takada jumped up. "Quick! Send people to check under the pier! Especially directly below where he's standing!"
It was already late at night, and the searchlights illuminated the sea near the pier as if it were daytime.
Officers from the maritime search team, dressed in diving suits, plunged into the icy waters to carefully inspect the underwater support pillars and piers of the pier.
After more than an hour of searching, a police officer found a small package tightly wrapped with waterproof tape in a hidden gap where a beam connects to a bridge pier!
The package was carefully retrieved and brought back to shore.
Upon opening it, there was a black micro memory card inside!
"Found it!" Sato Miwako exclaimed excitedly.
Yuki Takada, however, appeared unusually calm. He looked at the small memory card, feeling no joy at solving the case, but rather a heavy heart.
Who made that mysterious phone call?
Why would the other party help the police?
What does it mean that neither the "triangular relationship" nor the "ghost ship" mentioned by the other party will allow Kishimoto Takuya to live?
The memory card was immediately sent back to the technical department for decryption and data analysis.
The contents are shocking: a complete list of members of the "triangular society," involving dozens of important figures from the political, business, and judicial circles.
Detailed financial networks and money laundering records, as well as evidence of numerous previously undisclosed crimes, including several murders staged as accidents or suicides.
This is indeed a "bomb" that could detonate throughout Japanese society.
Meanwhile, the manhunt for Takuya Kishimoto continues.
Based on some secret contact points and funding channels mentioned in the memory card, the police identified several suspicious properties.
The day after the memory card was discovered, police received a tip that someone was attempting to smuggle themselves out to sea from a private dock near Tokyo Bay.
The target of the smuggling was a small speedboat connected to the "Ghost Ship" group.
Yuki Takada and Miwako Sato immediately led a team to the scene.
The night was deep, with only a few dim streetlights on the pier, and the sea breeze carrying a salty smell wafted over.
They quietly surrounded a warehouse on the dock that was dimly lit.
Through the crack in the window, you could see a figure inside, with their back to the door, seemingly tidying up something.
Judging from his physique and movements, he looks a lot like Takuya Kishimoto.
"Takuya Kishimoto! You're surrounded! Put your hands up and come out now!"
Yuki Takada shouted through a megaphone.
The figure inside the warehouse froze abruptly and slowly turned around.
It was none other than Kishimoto Takuya!
His face was pale, and his left shoulder was wrapped in thick bandages, with traces of blood still faintly visible. But his eyes remained coldly indifferent, even carrying a hint of mockery.
He did not try to resist or run away; he simply stood there quietly.
A strong sense of unease rose in Yuki Takada's heart.
It went too smoothly, unbelievably smoothly.
Would a man like Takuya Kishimoto give in so easily?
After all, they hadn't been able to capture him so easily during the previous attempts to arrest him.
The officers carefully stormed into the warehouse and quickly subdued Takuya Kishimoto.
He did not resist, but simply stared coldly at Yuki Takada and Miwako Sato.
“We’ve found the memory card, and your so-called ‘triangle’ is over,” Yuuki Takada said calmly as he walked up to him.
Takuya Kishimoto's lips twitched into a strange smile:
"Really? Congratulations!"
“However, the game isn’t over yet, Officer Takada. Some things, once released, can never be taken back. The ‘Triangle Society’ is just a hand, and the real brain… you’ll never get a chance to touch it.”
At this moment, a sudden change occurred!
"Bang!" A crisp gunshot shattered the silence of the night.
A bullet came from a dark corner outside the warehouse, aimed directly at Kishimoto Takuya's forehead!
"Watch out!" Sato Miwako reacted quickly, tackling a police officer next to her to the ground.
Yuki Takada also instinctively lowered his body.
The mocking smile on Kishimoto Takuya's face froze, a clear blood hole appeared on his forehead, his eyes widened as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he just fell straight backward.
Quit your mouth!
Someone wants to kill Kishimoto Takuya to silence him before the police can arrest him!
"Sniper! One o'clock, that abandoned lighthouse!" Sato Miwako immediately identified the source of the bullet and shouted, pointing to a dark building in the distance at the dock.
Some officers immediately moved towards the lighthouse to encircle it, while others kept watch over the surrounding area and protected the scene.
Yuki Takada crouched down and checked Takuya Kishimoto's carotid artery; it had stopped beating.
He looked at the body that had just lost its life, his feelings a complex mix.
Kishimoto Takuya was a murderer and a criminal, but his death meant the interruption of an important clue and that the bigger mastermind behind the "triangular relationship" was still at large.
Miwako Sato walked to his side, her expression grave:
“We arrived a step too late…or rather, we were used. Someone used us to find Takuya Kishimoto, and then cleanly and efficiently eliminated him.”
Yuki Takada stood up and looked in the direction of the lighthouse, which was now deserted; the sniper had obviously made a swift retreat.
“His last words, ‘The Triangle Society’ is just one hand…” Takada Yuki murmured, “Who is the real mastermind…? Mishima Ryunosuke? Or that mysterious lawyer Suzuki? Or… some unexpected big shot on the memory card list?”
The sea breeze ruffled his hair, carrying the chill of the late night.
Kishimoto Takuya is dead. Although the case has been solved, it has instead fallen into an even deeper mystery.
That memory card was like Pandora's box; once opened, it unleashed far more evil and conspiracy than they could have imagined.
“Let’s go back,” Yuki Takada said to Miwako Sato, his voice sounding tired. “What we’re about to face may be an even more difficult and dangerous battle.”
Sato Miwako nodded, looking at Kishimoto Takuya's corpse on the ground, then at Takada Yuuki's arm in a sling, her eyes resolute: "No matter what, we will investigate to the end."
In the end, the body was taken back, but thankfully, the Kobayashi Yuko case has been successfully concluded.
The lights of police cars flashed on the dock, reflecting on the dark sea.
The shadow of a cargo ship moved slowly across the distant horizon, like a ghost.
Could that be the "Sea Shadow"? Nobody knows.
Takuya Kishimoto's death brought this case to a hasty close, but it also opened a larger hole.
Chapter 168 Heading to Paris, France
In Yuki Takada's apartment.
Looking at his neatly dressed reflection in the mirror, Yuuki Takada lowered his head with satisfaction and glanced at his already packed suitcase.
After carrying my suitcase, I took a taxi to Haneda Airport in Ota Ward.
As for why he went to Haneda Airport?
It was because this time, it happened to be the day of the Metropolitan Police Department's staff trip. Except for the officers who stayed at the Metropolitan Police Department on duty and the officers who still had cases to handle, almost everyone participated in this activity.
Their destination this time appears to be Paris, France.
The morning light in Tokyo streamed through the taxi window, dancing on Yuki Takada's sharp suit.
He sat in the back seat, his gaze sweeping over the fleeting street scenes outside the window, his fingertips unconsciously tapping his knee.
Haneda Airport came into view, its massive structure gradually becoming clearer in the morning light, like the prologue to an adventure about to unfold.
As the youngest inspector in the Metropolitan Police Department's First Inspector Division, he should have been looking forward to this trip to Paris, France, but his professional instincts kept him on his guard.
The international departure hall of the airport was bustling with noise.
As soon as Yuuki Takada entered the room, he heard a loud shout from the front: "Takada-senpai, we're here."
He turned his head slightly and saw Sato Miwako jogging over with a bright smile on her face.
Miwako Sato was wearing a casual shirt and had an overly heavy travel bag slung over her shoulder.
"Sato, how much stuff did you bring?" Takada Yuki frowned slightly. "We're only going for two or three days and we'll be back. We don't need to bring so much stuff."
Sato Miwako scratched her head sheepishly: "I have a friend studying in Paris, and she happened to be there this time, so she asked me to bring her a lot of Japanese seasonings and snacks."
Just as Yuuki Takada was about to respond, another familiar voice interrupted: "Oh, Inspector Takada, you're still as meticulous as ever."
Yumi Miyamoto from the Ministry of Transportation walked over gracefully, her sunglasses pushed up on her head, and her beige trench coat perfectly accentuated her slender figure.
Behind her were several of her colleagues from the traffic department. They had all changed out of their usual serious police uniforms and were wearing casual clothes, their faces beaming with a rare sense of ease.
"Miyamoto Yumi, is this all your luggage?" Takada Yuki noticed that she only brought a small carry-on suitcase.
Yumi Miyamoto blinked and smiled faintly: "Women always find a way to travel light, and besides, Paris is the fashion capital. I plan to buy more there."
Amidst the laughter and conversation, the crowd suddenly parted to create a passage, and the burly Chief of the First Investigation Division, Matsumoto Kiyoshi, strode over.
Even dressed in a polo shirt and casual pants, he maintained that dignified expression that instilled fear in criminals.
"Is everyone here?" Section Chief Matsumoto looked around and said in a serious voice, "I have a few words to say before boarding."
The noisy crowd immediately quieted down.
"This trip is a rare collective vacation for the Metropolitan Police Department, and its purpose is to allow everyone to relax and unwind," Kiyonaga Matsumoto said solemnly. "But I hope everyone remembers that even when we are abroad, we are still representatives of the Japanese police, and we must be careful in our words and actions."
He had barely finished speaking when he suddenly turned to Yuuki Takada: "Especially you, Chief Takada, I know you can't shake your habit of investigating cases even when you're on vacation. Please be sure to restrain yourself this time and don't get involved in any more cases in Paris."