Chapter 41: Confronting the District Prosecutor

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) headquarters, known as the Sakurada-mon Building, is located in the heart of Chiyoda Ward. Across the street from the Sakurada-mon Building stands the Kasumigaseki Peers' Hall.

Uesugi Muneyuki is well-acquainted with the Kasumigaseki Peers' Hall, having attended numerous peer assemblies there as a member of the nobility. Furthermore, the hall stands on the former site of the Yonezawa-Uesugi clan's Edo residence. Today, that ancestral estate has been seized for public use, leaving the Uesugi family with nothing more than a garden villa in Bunkyo Ward.

Yesterday’s honors have faded into distant memories; if he is to forge a new path of glory, he must rely solely on himself.

Adjacent to the Sakurada-mon Building sits the National Police Agency (NPA) headquarters, another massive, modern office complex. Unlike the MPD, the NPA is not open to the public, and while the MPD boasts a workforce of eighty thousand—including civilian staff—the NPA has always maintained a core personnel count of under one thousand.

What, then, is the difference between the MPD and the NPA?

It is quite simple: the MPD is the powerful regional enforcement agency for the Tokyo metropolitan area, responsible for maintaining law and order within the capital. The NPA is a national-level administrative organ under the Cabinet, tasked with the indirect management and coordination of all prefectural police departments across Japan. The former deals with specific cases, investigations, and patrols, thus requiring vast manpower; the latter is purely a bureaucratic governing body.

Facing the MPD and NPA is the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office. This department serves as the local prosecution unit, responsible for determining whether suspects arrested by the police should be indicted.

The Public Prosecutors Office holds "absolute prosecutorial power," keeping a firm grip on the authority to bring charges. Naturally, they are perpetually at odds with the MPD. Their jurisdictions often overlap, yet the Public Security Department of the Prosecutors Office is overseen by the NPA’s own Public Security Bureau. This makes it difficult for the local prosecutors to defy the NPA’s will in some matters. Conversely, the Prosecutors Office has the power to oversee bureaucrats, which in turn allows it to exert influence over the National Public Safety Commission, the body that supervises the NPA.

Is your head spinning yet?

Exactly. This is the hallmark of a bureaucratic system designed with checks and balances, fragmented power, and a lack of centralized control. Those at the top intentionally foster long-term rivalries to keep everything within their grasp.

In reality, the specifics are even more complex.

The predecessor to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department—the Imperial Japanese Police—was steeped in pre-war crimes, its atrocities too numerous to record. Due to certain unspeakable reasons, it is best left unsaid, but they were the sort of organization that sat at the same table as the Gestapo, the Cheka, and the Nationalist KMT secret police.

After the war, the "Five-Star MacArthur" Emperor reorganized the MPD to such an extreme degree that it was effectively destroyed and rebuilt. Following the American model, MacArthur dismantled the organization, stripping it of its national jurisdiction and delegating it to local divisions. He even revoked the MPD's exclusive claim to its name, allowing any local branch—such as the Osaka MPD or the Kyoto MPD—to adopt the title.

This rather crude transformation did not completely cleanse the system, but it did alter the structure of the Japanese police. Later, the Tokyo MPD managed to claw back the exclusive rights to the name. However, because of the power shift initiated by MacArthur, the decentralization of authority from the center to the provinces became an established fact. Afraid to openly defy the General, the Japanese instead greatly reinforced the functional powers of the Tokyo headquarters. This resulted in the Tokyo MPD becoming the de facto highest-level enforcement agency in the police hierarchy, while the national-level NPA was relegated to a bureaucratic department for coordination and general oversight.

When Uesugi Muneyuki, led by Sudo-butt, stepped into the lobby of the MPD, Inspector Higurashi of the First Investigation Division was already waiting.

Contrary to what one might imagine, Uesugi’s first impression of the MPD lobby was that it was—plain.

The decor was truly Spartan, lacking any of the imposing aura one would expect from the highest enforcement agency. If he hadn’t known better, Uesugi would have mistaken it for a large community service center.

The place was teeming with people. A dense crowd stretched from the entrance to the automated glass doors. Behind a row of counters, female officers sat processing business for the public, while a sea of men and women in suits moved through the lobby in a chaotic swarm.

"Rizo, young Uesugi, and... Ms. Ikeda." Inspector Higurashi’s heart sank the moment he saw Ikeda Erena trailing behind Uesugi.

Why did this woman have to come along?

Life in Tokyo is good; I don't want to be transferred to the countryside!

"The prosecutors are already waiting." Higurashi pulled Uesugi aside. "I’ll take you in, but be careful."

"Why did the prosecutors call young Uesugi in?" Sudo-butt sensed that the inspector’s mood was off.

"It’s bad. Prosecutor Kambayashi and that female prosecutor, Lin Yanzhen, are here," Higurashi whispered in the noisy room. "They are looking for a weak point in Uesugi-kun’s testimony."

"What? Those two?" Sudo-butt grabbed his head in frustration. "This is a miscalculation."

"That’s why the Police Administration Department is involved this time. Young Uesugi, when you face their questioning, only answer questions related to the autopsy. The elite from our Police Administration Department will handle everything else," Higurashi instructed carefully. "For all other questions, simply say you don't know."

"Wait, Yanzhen? Why such an unusual name?" Uesugi didn't seem bothered by the stakes at all, showing interest only in the prosecutor’s name.

"She’s of Korean descent."

"A Korean-Japanese can join the Tokyo District Prosecutors Office?"

"Exactly why you need to be careful."

They took the elevator up, and the environment changed instantly. The lobby's austerity gave way to an elegant interior where wood tones of white, brown, and black were combined to project a sharp, serious atmosphere. It was a stark contrast to the Otsuka Precinct. The men in suits and female officers in uniform hurried by without a hint of slack, moving with the precision of a fine instrument.

***

Pushing open the meeting room doors, the three prosecutors from the Tokyo District Prosecutors Office were already present. Opposite them, three prosecutors from the MPD’s Police Administration Department and a manager from the First Investigation Division were seated.

"You are Uesugi Muneyuki from the Department of Forensic Pathology at Tokyo Medical and Dental University, correct?"

The three prosecutors—two men and one woman—sat opposite him with stern, menacing expressions. The female prosecutor indeed bore the features of Korean ancestry.

The Tokyo District Prosecutors Office also had its origins tied to the MacArthur era. After the war, the General had been furious after surveying the state of the nation, believing the entire government and system were rotten. Under his mandate, the "Hidden Assets Special Investigation Team" was formed to strike hard against the political, business, and criminal worlds, dismantling the pre-war zaibatsu and elite families. This team was the predecessor to the current office.

"Yes."

"You personally conducted the on-site autopsy for the arson-murder case in Bunkyo Ward, correct?"

"Yes." Uesugi remained expressionless.

"Then can you explain why you performed an on-site autopsy without the permission of the family or the approval of the District Prosecutors Office? Who gave you the authorization to do so?!"

The man in his fifties sitting directly across from Uesugi was the "Prosecutor Kambayashi" mentioned by Higurashi. He wore a savage look, slamming his file onto the table. "What kind of joke is this?!"

"My judgment was based on the facts at the scene and scientific evidence," Uesugi replied coldly. "According to forensic medical knowledge and the Police Act, with local police present, I have the authority to examine a corpse."

"That is correct. Inspector Higurashi of the First Investigation Division and Inspector Sudo of the Otsuka Precinct were both on the scene. They had the authority to request that Mr. Uesugi perform the on-site autopsy to determine if the death was accidental or a homicide," the MPD manager said, flipping through the statutes. "This standard is in accordance with regulations."

"There are indeed regulations for on-site autopsies, but there must be sufficient evidence to suggest a potential murder. I ask you, where is the evidence?" the prosecution demanded. "Mr. Uesugi, answer the question!"

"MPD, be quiet!" the female prosecutor interrupted, signaling for the police to stay out of it. "We are questioning the witness."

The atmosphere in the room grew heavy. Six eyes from the prosecution and six from the MPD—Higurashi, Sudo, and Erena—were locked on Uesugi.

The tall, beautiful Erena looked worried; she didn't know how to respond to this.

Uesugi, what should we do...

"The evidence is that there was no residue in the victim's trachea or lungs," Uesugi answered.

"I asked for the basis of your decision to perform the autopsy on site!"

"The basis is that I believed this was not an accident, but a murder."

"And the evidence for your belief that it was murder?"

"The evidence is that there was no residue in the victim's trachea or lungs."

"I am not asking for that evidence! I am asking for your reason for performing the autopsy!"

"The reason is that I believed this was not an accident, but a murder."

"Just because you 'believed' it was murder, you performed an autopsy without any evidence of foul play and without permission from the family, a judge, or the Prosecutor's Office?"

"The evidence is that there was no residue in the victim's trachea or lungs."

After this exchange, the atmosphere on the MPD side shifted from serious to barely contained laughter. The three police officials buried their faces in their collars, trembling as they fought to suppress their amusement. Inspector Higurashi and Inspector Sudo turned their heads away, biting their lips, while Erena covered her mouth, a faint "huff-huff" sound of laughter escaping her.

In contrast, the faces of the three prosecutors turned the color of liver. Prosecutor Kambayashi panted heavily, struggling to speak.

He had been caught in a logical loop!

This kid—when asked for a reason, he gave evidence; when asked for evidence, he gave a reason. And yet, the fact remained that there truly was no residue in the trachea. According to professional forensic findings and the University of Tokyo’s autopsy report, Uesugi’s judgment was reasonable. In fact, even the prosecutors knew that if smoke didn't reach the lungs, it was ironclad proof that the victim had died before the fire.

He had actually found a bug in the system, but how dared he? Didn't he know that if he had performed that incision and found residue, the prosecutors could have used it to crush him and the MPD in one stroke?

***

Oh, wait. Not the MPD. As an old rival, Prosecutor Kambayashi knew the police well; if things got too tight, the MPD would immediately perform a "righteous severance," claiming Uesugi was merely a temp from a local precinct and had nothing to do with them.

Sure enough, seeing that Uesugi was holding his own, the chief inspector from the Police Administration Department spoke up. "Uesugi-kun’s autopsy was performed with the permission of the local precinct and the First Investigation Division. After the First Investigation Division arrived, Inspector Higurashi and Inspector Sudo consulted and reached a consensus that a further on-site examination was necessary."

"That is correct." "Indeed." Higurashi and Sudo exchanged a look and nodded firmly.

In this situation, no matter how much the MPD and the local precinct might clash, they had to present a united front.

The prosecutors' expressions soured further.

Failing that, they tried another angle: "We have received information that the Uesugi family hosted the Otsuka Precinct officers at the Shunpu Restaurant that day. Is this true?"

"It is true. My father wished to thank the Otsuka Precinct for their continued support," Uesugi nodded. "The family covered the expenses."

"Then, did the officers from the Otsuka Precinct conduct their investigation while intoxicated?" the prosecution pressed.

"The arson occurred within the jurisdiction of the Otsuka Precinct. Although the officers were not on duty, they abandoned their banquet out of a sense of honor and immediately headed to the scene. Because alcohol had been consumed, the First Investigation Division prohibited the Otsuka Precinct from participating in the search. Therefore, while they had consumed alcohol, they did not violate the Police Act," the MPD side responded immediately.

"The victim, Mr. Koyama, was a full-time employee, and you, Mr. Uesugi, have just been promoted to full-time status at the hospital. Did you, out of sympathy or some other emotion, insist that there was a murder?"

"I judged that there was a suspicion of murder based solely on facts, evidence, and professional knowledge. It has nothing to do with Mr. Koyama’s status."

"So, in your autopsy report, you concluded the victim was strangled based on professional knowledge and factual evidence as well?" The prosecution wouldn't let him go.

This was another trap. The MPD side grew anxious again.

"Yes, based on my professional knowledge," Uesugi said calmly. "A person who is strangled has the characteristics of strangulation. I wrote it in the report."

"Are you saying you identified bruising on the charred skin of the corpse with the naked eye?"

"Yes," Uesugi said, unfazed.

"What did you use to identify it?"

"I identified it with the naked eye."

"Are you telling us that you identified bruising on a charred corpse—injuries that would require a professional colorimeter to distinguish—with your naked eye?"

"Yes, based on my professional knowledge."

"What professional knowledge?"

"A person who is strangled has the characteristics of strangulation. I wrote it in the report."

"Pff—hahahahaha!" Someone on the MPD side finally burst into laughter.

Conversely, the three prosecutors were now red-faced with rage. Prosecutor Kambayashi opened and closed his mouth, unable to utter a word, before finally standing up. "Fine, that is all for today. Thank you very much!"

With that, the three prosecutors, faces as purple as liver, grabbed their briefcases and scurried out as if fleeing.

Once the meeting room door closed, the room erupted into cheers and laughter. The air inside and outside the room was filled with a sense of triumph.

We won this round for the MPD!