Just as Ning Zhiheng had set up the stage and was preparing to put on a good show for Kawamoto Kuraji, he was unaware that his target, Kawamoto Kuraji, was also meticulously searching for his whereabouts.
In a room in the Japanese consulate, Kawamoto Kuraji and Imai Yuji sat facing each other on tatami mats, a traditional Japanese mat.
Looking at his old subordinate, Kawamoto Kuraji filled the teacup in front of Imai Yuji and smiled slightly, "Imai-kun, what brings you to Hangzhou to see me today? I'm just an old man in my twilight years, no longer of any use to you."
Kawamoto Kuraji was forced to resign from his position as head of the Shanghai Special Higher Police Section because Ning Zhiheng's large-scale arrests of Japanese spies in Nanjing had backfired.
Imai Yuji was the head of the intelligence group under him, specifically responsible for intelligence work in Nanjing. He also bore a great deal of responsibility at the time. However, in order to protect his subordinate, Kawamoto Kuraji took all the blame upon himself. As a result, he was demoted to the Japanese consulate in Hangzhou as a consular counselor, while Imai Yuji escaped the storm unscathed.
For this, Yuji Imai was extremely grateful to his former superior, and he knew that Kawamoto Kuraji, even after arriving in Hangzhou, had not left the intelligence department; his true identity was that of the new leader of the Hangzhou intelligence department. His purpose in coming to Hangzhou was to assign Kawamoto Kuraji a new mission.
"Section Chief~~"
Yuji Imai had just opened his mouth when Kuraji Kawamoto waved his hand to stop him.
“Mr. Imai, I am no longer the head of the Shanghai Special Higher Police Section. Now, all that stands before you is a defeated general, an old man, Kawamoto Kuraji!” Kawamoto Kuraji said slowly.
"Understood, Mr. Kawamoto!" Yuji Imai could only bow slightly and say respectfully.
"Let's skip the old stories and get straight to the point: what brings you here this time?" Kawamoto Kuraji squinted, his somewhat sagging face making him appear much older. "While I'm still of some use, let's see what I can do to help you?"
Yuji Imai could sense the resentment in Kuraji Kawamoto's tone. How could a veteran agent who had made numerous contributions on the intelligence front be willing to stay here and wait to die?
He knew that Kawamoto Kuraji was just waiting for an opportunity, a chance to make a comeback.
“Mr. Kawamoto, I’ve come to give you a mission,” said Yuji Imai.
"What mission? Tell me!" Kawamoto Kuraji said noncommittally.
Yuji Imai said softly, "Actually, you know about this mission. It's the investigation you assigned to me back then, to find out why the Chinese intelligence agency was able to suddenly become so efficient and repeatedly crack down on our intelligence teams that had been undercover for many years."
Kawamoto Kuraji glanced at Imai Yuji with slight surprise, and slowly said, "What, the newly appointed Section Chief Sagawa hasn't figured out the reason yet? Heh, I've always wanted to know the reason, but unfortunately, I'm no longer in a position to do this. Wasn't this task your responsibility? There's still no result?"
Kawamoto Kuraji's words were sincere. Two months ago, he resigned because he was powerless to reverse the failure of the Nanjing intelligence front. He had also specifically assigned Imai Yuji to carry out this mission, but before the final result was achieved, he was demoted to Hangzhou.
Yuji Imai gave a bitter laugh, his tone extremely dejected, and said, "I have truly failed to live up to your expectations, Mr. Kawamoto. A month ago, I sent an investigation team of ten excellent agents fluent in Chinese, along with my longtime subordinate and friend Kenji Takeshita, and they were all wiped out. Not a single one of them escaped."
"What?" Kawamoto Kuraji's eyes widened suddenly. He hadn't expected the losses to be so severe. "So this means the mission is still unsuccessful?"
"Yes, not only that, but our most important funding channel in Nanjing, Yong'an Bank, was also uncovered by Chinese agents. Your intelligence agent, Black Fox, risked his life to pass on the information, and finally managed to cut off this connection in time. However, Black Fox was unable to escape the internal investigation of the Military Intelligence Investigation Department and has been arrested!"
Upon hearing this news, Kawamoto Kuraji could no longer contain his excitement. He stood up abruptly, pointed at Imai Yuji with his finger, his lips trembling, and remained speechless for a long time.
Finally, he slumped down, his voice low and weak: "Black Fox was our most valuable intelligence agent. He had been infiltrating the enemy for sixteen years. I repeatedly instructed Sagawa to use him with caution, but Black Fox was arrested after only a month. I misjudged Sagawa!"
Sagawa Taro was once his best agent, and he always thought that Sagawa Taro would be a qualified successor, but his performance was too disappointing.
"Not only that, during this period, the Snow Mountain Group was also cracked by the Military Intelligence Investigation Department, and their radio and codebooks were all lost. My emergency response team in Nanjing has also lost contact and should have been arrested as well. Mr. Kawamoto, the situation on the intelligence front in Nanjing is now even worse than before. Our intelligence organization in Nanjing has been completely destroyed and is now paralyzed. I have urgently ordered the remaining forces to go into hibernation until we find the real reason. Otherwise, any rash action will be tantamount to suicide!"
Upon hearing this, Kawamoto Kuraji gasped in shock; the situation had deteriorated to such an extent.
Nanjing, the capital of China, has always been the region where Japan has invested the most intelligence resources. They have spent a great deal of time and resources, gathering the best agents, and ten spy teams have infiltrated various departments and agencies of the Republic of China government. Their intelligence work has always been very effective. However, in just six months, the situation has taken an unbelievable turn, and now it is on the verge of collapse.
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