Chapter 84 The FBI must understand this perfectly!

Logically, the FBI doesn't need to inform its superiors to detain someone, but unfortunately, Ikuya Nekono's surname is Nekono, and the Nekono surname has influence in many fields, with the group's industries spanning the globe.

There are four highly influential top-tier zaibatsu in Japan: Suzuki, Karasuma, Sootome, and Nekono. Among them, the Karasuma, Sootome, and Nekono families have deep roots, inherited from ancient clans, while Suzuki is a rising star that has benefited from the opportunities presented by the times.

Karasuma was once the most prominent of these four top conglomerates. At its peak, Suzuki was just emerging and its size was pitifully small, almost insignificant compared to Karasuma. However, in recent years, due to its stubborn conservatism and the mediocre abilities of its successor, Karasuma has gradually declined.

In the eyes of the public, Karasuma is the most outdated and backward of the four zaibatsu, but even a fallen camel is bigger than a horse, and its strength should not be underestimated.

In contrast, Suzuki, as a model of grassroots rise and a newly established force, is the most vibrant and down-to-earth. The leader and his brother have approachable personalities and even adopted a bold "hands-off" strategy in raising their heir, unlike other young ladies.

Therefore, Suzuki is the one that the public is most familiar with and understands.

In contrast, Otome and Nekono are much more mysterious to the public. They never disclose information about their family life to the media and have always kept their distance from the public.

However, it is generally acknowledged that the two families have always had a good relationship. Their ancestors had many intermarriages, and they are closely related by blood. They often advance and retreat together.

However, in this generation, the heirs of both families, Ai Sootome and Ikuya Nekono, are only children and have no brothers or sisters. Therefore, Ai Sootome and Ikuya Nekono will not marry each other in this generation. However, Ai Sootome and Ikuya Nekono grew up together and their relationship remains close.

Unlike Karasuma, Suotome and Nekono did not adhere to conventions. They made a compromise between Japanese and Western styles. Suotome's education of love was a combination of traditional Japanese and British styles, and Nekono Ikuya was half British.

His half-British heritage was also a major reason why the FBI treated him well, because Nekono Ikuya's grandfather was the Marquess of Cecil in England.

For a long period in its history, the United States was a British colony. Although it later gained independence, many of today's wealthy individuals have British immigrant ancestry. Cecil has a secret background in the mystical world, and the once uninhabited America possesses many natural potion ingredients.

Many wealthy Americans with British immigrant backgrounds earned their first fortune by working for Cecil. On their path to wealth, they inevitably relied on Cecil's reputation for protection, which Cecil tacitly approved, because those people had more power and it was easier for them to collect potion ingredients.

Those people didn't know they were actually gathering ingredients for magic potions, but it's not surprising that the Marquis liked rare and exotic plants and was willing to pay a high price to collect them.

For this reason, Cecil still wields considerable influence in the United States even today. The FBI's cautious approach to Ikuya Nekono, due to the delicate relationship between the US and Japan, is largely out of consideration for Cecil.

Ugh! The FBI!

Alas! Capitalist countries!

However, if you own the capital, that's a different story. At least you won't be rudely confronted by arrogant Americans who will kick down the door with guns and shout, "FBI! Open the door!"

Upon arriving, Nekono Ikuya did not make things difficult for the FBI, who were quite polite and had even greeted him in advance. Although their reaction speed made Nekono Ikuya suspect that they already knew someone was going to kill Robert Wilson, but were either unable to protect Robert Wilson or were deliberately using him to lure in bigger fish.

FBI agents have already been dispatched to hunt down that arrogant sniper—this was reported to Nekono Ikuya by Blake's security team, who were checking the area for any other potential dangers.

Without looking at Robert Wilson, Ikuya Nekono nodded slightly to Blake and said, "Yes, I understand."

"Detain me if you want," Nekono Ikuya thought to herself. As long as it didn't involve top-secret national secrets or other highly confidential matters that absolutely needed to be protected—and if it really involved that level of secrecy, Nekono Ikuya didn't want to rashly get involved in this mess.

Afterwards, no matter what the FBI investigation uncovered, there would always be helpful people willing to do him a favor and reveal some scraps of information. It was even possible that the FBI director in charge of the case personally told him.

—As long as there are no serious secrets.

Given that Ikuya Nekono himself was also caught in the crossfire of the sniper attack on Robert and his life was seriously threatened, he has ample and legitimate reason to be concerned about the details of the case and to understand the truth behind it.

This is not sensitive.

Of course, one of the important reasons was that Ikuya Nekono was interested in the information currently held by the FBI. Since the FBI reacted so quickly, directly coming to his door to request his arrest, their understanding of the inside story was definitely much better than that of Ikuya Nekono, who had just landed and was completely clueless.

First, cooperate with the FBI, do them a good deed, and build positive relationships. As for what happens next…

A sly glint flashed in Nekono Ikuya's eyes, and she naturally planned to "steal" the FBI's investigation results without any qualms!

The reliable Blake instantly understood the unspoken meaning beneath Nekono Ikuya's calm tone. He nodded slightly and whispered:

"Understood. I will handle the communication with the FBI properly and ensure that we have a reasonable right to know."

Unreasonable information should also be avoided. The FBI, with its bad reputation, is a force to be reckoned with. It would be bad if the FBI "accidentally" revealed "national secrets" and let Nekono Ikuya know something important, and then used that as a reason to detain Nekono Ikuya and prevent him from leaving the country.

The United States has been coveting many of the technologies of the Caterpillar family and the Cecil family!

Nekono Ikuya's main family and maternal family only have influence in the United States, but ultimately she has not obtained American citizenship.

Beware of schemes orchestrated by state capital.

Nekono Ikuya: Beware!

After speaking in a low voice to Nekono Ikuya, Blake resumed his businesslike demeanor, turning to the pale-faced Robert Wilson with a hardened expression.

Blake's voice was steady and powerful, carrying an unquestionable tone: "Mr. Wilson, given the current complex situation and the security threats you may face, for your safety's sake, we will be fully responsible for your security until the FBI arrives and completes the handover procedures. Please cooperate."

These words sound reasonable and full of humanistic concern, but in reality, they are just an attempt to openly control people and ensure that the first favor can be successfully delivered.

But what Nekono Ikuya was selling was far more than just this one favor.

The second, more crucial and subtle point is that he selectively ignored a fact at this moment: the FBI may have known about the sniper plan all along, and even intentionally used Wilson as bait, which led to the danger encountered by Nekono Ikuya, who had just arrived completely unaware of the situation.

Who knows if the sniper might have also taken down Nekono Ikuya while taking down Wilson? Or maybe their aim was off due to poor technique? They were so close!

Regardless of whether the FBI's actions were intentional or due to an intelligence oversight, the fact remains that Ikuya Nekono was fatally targeted due to the FBI's planning or mishap. If he were to adopt a confrontational attitude, his position and influence would allow him to exert pressure on the FBI, demanding an explanation and accountability, potentially escalating the incident to an international level.

This is enough to make an already complicated case even more difficult, leaving FBI officials overwhelmed.

But now, Nekono Ikuya has chosen to remain silent, which in itself is a significant favor.

The FBI must understand!

"The FBI?! The FBI is going to detain me?!"

Robert Wilson was speechless, instantly understanding the situation. His pupils contracted for a moment, his face filled with resistance, and his eyes even darted around as if he wanted to run away.

Blake: Stare—

Then he saw Blake's men silently moving to several key points, blocking all his escape routes.

There's no way to escape!

Robert Wilson looked grim.

Moreover, he couldn't be sure whether choosing to escape would be like walking into a trap set by the organization, and then being killed by them.

He began to convince himself.

The persuasion was too successful. For some reason, he suddenly became impatient.

He probably felt that being arrested by the FBI at least guaranteed his safety, since those who wanted to kill him had gone so far as to deploy snipers.

Nekono Ikuya remained noncommittal.

Not long after, accompanied by the sound of sirens growing louder as they approached, several black Chevrolet Suburbans sped up with an undeniable presence and stopped precisely a short distance away.

The black Chevrolet Suburban, a classic FBI vehicle in movies and TV shows.

Classic, absolutely classic.

This gave Nekono Ikuya the immediate sense that he was in America. Being sniped as soon as he landed—Nekono Ikuya thought he'd stumbled into a Middle Eastern battlefield!

The black Chevrolet stopped, the door opened, and a group of capable-looking detectives quickly got out. Some took over on-site security and guard duties, while others walked towards Nekono Ikuya.

Nekono Ikuya noticed that some people were dressed slightly disheveled but had happy expressions... Had they made a discovery?

The two people leading the group were very different in temperament but equally eye-catching.

One was an older man with blond hair and a mustache, whose sharp and steady eyes exuded a composure and wisdom born of experience. He was clearly an experienced and high-ranking commander.

The other was a striking young woman with short, neat blond hair, wearing a well-fitting suit and a beautiful appearance, but her blue eyes held a hidden sharpness.

James Black and Judy Sterling.

James's gaze swept across the scene, quickly locking onto the imposing and well-positioned Nekono Ikuya, and then Robert Wilson, who was being "protected" by Blake and the others.

He put on a perfectly appropriate apologetic expression and walked over first.

“Mr. Nekono, I am James Black of the FBI.” James proactively showed his identification and spoke in a friendly tone, “I’m sorry that you encountered such a dangerous incident so soon after your arrival. Thank you and your men for taking control of the situation and protecting Mr. Wilson.”

They chose to protect, not seize, a cautious choice of words, but they knew the truth all too well.

Judy followed beside James, her gaze quickly and professionally sweeping over Nekono Ikuya. Her eyes lingered for a moment on his striking good looks and unusually calm demeanor, a hint of scrutiny and curiosity flashing in them before she formally presented her identification, "FBI, Judy Sterling."

Nekono Yuuya glanced silently at the black Chevrolet they had driven up in, but he had a feeling that someone inside was watching him.