table from him. He had nothing but contempt for him, but the

young man was useful and Nishikawa was not a man who would

allow his personal feelings to get in the way of business. A dapper

man in his mid-forties, he controlled the Roppongi district for the

Yakuza and he was anxious to move up in the organization. The

Ginza was a plum he’d had his eye on for a long time, but there was

an obstacle in his way. That obstacle was Don Teruyuki Kobayashi.

And the young man sitting across the table from him in the private

back room of the bar was going to give him the means to overcome

that obstacle.

Nishikawa could not think of a more despicable creature than a

son who would turn against his own father, but he concealed his

distaste from Yoshiro Kobayashi. This rather spoiled young man

had been privileged to occupy an important position in his father’s

organization and this was how he showed his gratitude. By selling

out his own father. He was not, however, selling him out cheaply.

Shiro was well aware of his value to Nishikawa and he had made

no bones about it. He had come to him with a proposition, a

proposition he had known that Nishikawa would be unable to turn

down.

Shiro did not wish to follow in his father’s footsteps. He wanted

no part of the Yakuza. He had taken degrees in economics and

business administration and what he really wanted was to leave

Japan, go to America, and become an investment banker. There

was, in fact, nothing to prevent him from doing this, but he

apparently lacked the courage to make an open break with his

father and he did not wish to be disinherited. Don Kobayashi

possessed a considerable personal fortune and Shiro obviously

intended to receive his share when his father died. Moreover, he

was not above hastening the time when that would happen. He

believed that running the family’s operations on the Ginza was

beneath him. He wanted to do his stealing in more congenial

surroundings. And he wanted to make the move in comfort. The

present situation had provided him with the ideal opportunity.

The Ginza murders were making Kobayashi look bad. They had

caused a drastic falling off in business and had brought a great deal

of unwanted attention to the area. Under ordinary circumstances,