NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 104



Only Krnovel

Little Boy (3)

Major Daisuke Tsugimoto of the Korean Garrison Command.

He was a person who had graduated from the Korea Military Academy and the Korea Army University with excellent grades and even studied abroad at government expense, and had steadily followed the elite course as a soldier.

But whether he did something wrong along the way, or got on the wrong line, or maybe he just made a foolish mistake at a young age, he ended up in a colony called Joseon, not on the mainland, and as a supply officer, the most unpopular military officer within the Japanese military.

Any person with normal thinking would ask the question of why a supply officer is a lowly position.

If you think about it even a little, you’ll think that a supply officer is a position that manages all supplies within a unit, so they can raise their voice while managing the belongings of the people within the unit.

Western powers, including Prussia and France, which could be considered the teachers of the Japanese army, also re-emphasized the importance of supply, and so the Japanese army also created new heavy weapons.

However, perhaps it was because of the Japanese tradition of importing advanced foreign civilizations and changing them to a Japanese style, or perhaps it was because of the Japanese custom of taking supplies from the enemy as a daily routine over the years, but the Japanese military treated supplies with contempt.

More precisely, the concept of popularization itself was close to being vague.

From ancient times, what was called logistics in Japan meant local conscription.

Of course, the situation in the Western powers, which could be called advanced countries, was not much different, so this could not be said to be a characteristic unique to the Japanese military.

However, the Western powers judged that it was impossible to fight such a large-scale war with the existing supply system, as they were currently fighting a great war and in the distant future, World War I.

The existing method of relying on local conscription was completely overhauled and changed to a method in which each frontline unit was managed individually from the central government.

However, the Japanese Empire, which had stepped back from the Great War and focused only on selling goods, could only watch indifferently despite these valuable lessons.

Of course, later on, when the Japanese military officially had a kitchen corps, they slowly attempted to reform the supply system.

However, after being hit by the Great Kanto Earthquake and the Great Depression in succession, they were quietly forgotten, and they returned to the original method of conscription on the spot, and later on, they got to the point where they had nothing to eat and had to supplement their protein with prisoners of war… … Well. I’ll hold my tongue for now.

Therefore, in the current Japanese military, the sergeant major is a lowly position among lowly positions.

But, when an officer who had steadily progressed through the army’s elite course was stuck in such a lowly position… … anyone who saw it could not help but think that something was wrong.

‘You should be able to know because I keep my mouth shut.’

But I didn’t know the detailed inside story.

Our Major Tsugimoto was buried with only his head exposed in a remote mountain where not even lumberjacks who earn their living by the day come to visit, and he never tells me, saying he doesn’t know anything. So how could I find out?

Even if I tried to ask now, the wild animals living in the mountains had already eaten everything after a simple interrogation, so I couldn’t ask any more questions.

‘Looking at the current situation, it seems like they were pushed out in the factional strife… … .’

Since it was difficult to hear the exact circumstances, in the end, I had no choice but to rely on my own experience.

Well, what can you do?

This isn’t the first or second time something like this has happened, and the standard way to solve problems that arise during a mission is to improvise and adapt.

“I was wondering where the supply officer was, but I didn’t know he was here.”

“What’s going on, Supply Officer?”

I was in a bad mood today because I was called in early in the morning for a commander’s meeting and had a blast chewing out my staff, and then I went back and had a joint after the meeting.

Even though I was undercover, the old men couldn’t refute my words and instead suppressed me with their ranks, so I felt angry inside and while I was trying to control this, the supply officer came to see me and immediately asked for the key to the warehouse.

“Can I borrow the key to the storage room for a moment?”

“Keys? Why the sudden corrosion warehouse?”

“As you know, sir, the person on night duty yesterday was Sergeant Kiyoshi of the 3rd Battalion.”

“so.”

“Chief Kiyoshi wanted to have a drink before he leaves work, so I came to run an errand for him.”

It was a truly shocking thing.

If you compare it to the Korean military, a sergeant major would be roughly equivalent to a sergeant major.

By then, you’ve probably been in the military for a long time and you know how the unit works.

But is that kind of person drinking alcohol in a unit in an emergency situation where the army and navy are fighting each other with guns pointed at each other?

And you don’t go to a bar and buy the alcohol yourself, but rather buy it from the military warehouse?

“There really is no such thing as a separate Tang army.”

“Huh? The Tang army?”

“yo. this?”

If it were Korea, I would have let it slide because I thought it would save face, and I would have made a small comment later when we sat down together.

If the Japanese military were to place importance on rank, they would have called the platoon leader aside and had a brief conversation while engaging in an invisible power struggle.

But this was something only people who were worried about the future would do.

In the first place, I am not bound here.

From the military uniform I am wearing now to my rank and past history, nothing is mine. I have taken it from someone else and am borrowing it for a short while.

So I have no reason to tolerate it.

He stood up from his seat, roughly putting out his cigarette by pressing it against the wall.

“While some people are worried about the country and wondering how to set it right, our great leader is drinking alcohol in peace?”

“Ah, no, Your Majesty, why are you doing this… … .”

“Why is it like this? Some people are called in every morning, noon, and evening to have their joints cracked until their legs break, while others sleep comfortably, scratching their bellies as if they’re working, and then drink alcohol in the morning.”

“Hey… … . Why are you like that? The leader suffered so much last night… … .”

“Really? Then let’s check it out?”

“yes?”

The Japanese military is the most modernized military in Asia.

It is an invincible army armed with the best weapons in ‘Asia’, and as a member of that army, I am an officer responsible for feeding, clothing, and arming the soldiers.

“As of now, all the soldiers of the 78th Regiment, including the 3rd Battalion, are prohibited from taking out food from the regimental commander to the private.”

“Yes, yes?!”

“If you understand, then get out.”

It is outrageous to think that a mere platoon leader would dare to compare himself with a Major General of the Invincible Imperial Army of the Empire of Japan.

This bad NCO had to be dealt a severe blow.

I’m definitely not taking out my stress from my missions on some idiot like Mojiri.

“Your Majesty, why are you doing this?”

“what.”

“What’s so hard about giving me just a bottle of alcohol… … .”

“Gunzo Kuroda.”

For reference, a sergeant major is a rank below a captain and is equivalent to a sergeant major in the Korean military.

“yes?”

“Yes? Is that the correct answer?”

“No, really, why are you doing that… … .”

Kuroda’s joint was broken as it was.

“Ahh!”

“Since when have we been told to sit cross-legged while listening to officers?”

“Ugh… … . I’m sorry.”

“If you apologize, will that be the end of the matter? If it can be ended with a few words, why are there police and laws?”

“sorry.”

“Is that all you can say to me? Huh? Don’t you even know what you did wrong?”

“No, that’s not it… … .”

“This is outside, not inside?”

“… … .”

“Oh, dear. An officer is asking you a question right now, and you’re not even going to answer? Should I show you around the brig for disobeying orders? Or should I call in all the NCOs from the regiment and have them clean out the warehouse for the first time in a while?”

Kuroda’s face turned pale.

“Tell Kiyoshi that he can’t possibly smuggle anything out before he comes in front of me and hits me in the head. Also, tell him that if he gets caught stealing anything from the warehouse without me knowing, he’ll be put on the firing squad.”

“No, that, that… … .”

“You understand? Then get out.”

Kuroda eventually backed down without saying anything.

“Where did you sell the salute?”

“… … .”

He didn’t forget to salute politely.

“Is that the right arm angle?”

“… … .”

I felt a lot better after sending it back after grinding it to the point where it was mentally crushed.

“very good.”

Then, in the morning, I opened the Chosun Ilbo that the soldier on duty had brought and checked how the seeds of conflict I had sown had taken root.

* * *

“A life that does not resist is ultimately meaningless.”

The strange monster with two shining eyes that look in different directions is still touring the Kansai and Kanto regions today, captivating people.

If it had been a peaceful time before the great earthquake, people would have immediately picked up a pestle and chased him away instead of listening to the monster’s words, but people were disappointed in the current situation where they had been betrayed by the government they trusted and the army they admired had their honor thrown into the trash can by their own hands, so they listened to the monster’s words.

“What are you afraid of?”

“Don’t fear your master, fear the situation where you can’t do anything your master says.”

“Life on earth is short, but life in the next world is immortal. Should the long be sacrificed for the short?”

The monster’s words were strange at first, and even more incomprehensible the more you thought about them, but people fell for the monster’s incomprehensible and mysterious words.

“Teacher, what should we do now?”

“You just have to die.”

“Lord, you want me to die?”

“Okay, if you’re going to die, then bark at your master once before you die.”

“Aha… … . Yes!”

The monster roamed the countryside, gathering followers.

It was strange to see a strange person wandering around here and there, blowing wind at people and gathering people together.

If it were normal, the police or military police would keep an eye on him, catch him, beat him until he was about to die, and if they didn’t like it, beat him two more times to make him a mess.

But fortunately or unfortunately, the Metropolitan Police Department and the Military Police were now in a state of loss of function.

The military police had been arrested on charges of treason, including the commander of the military police who commanded them, and the Metropolitan Police Agency was paralyzed by the government that could be called their leader.

In Tokyo, the military is fighting each other on different sides, and the government is creating a strange secret organization to monopolize state affairs, and in this current situation, the sense of emptiness and betrayal felt by the frontline police officers is even greater than that felt by ordinary citizens.

As a result, even though the police officers on the front lines knew about this strange man’s actions, they either turned a blind eye to him or even sympathized with his ideology and secretly helped him.

“The monster who had gathered so much power stopped for a moment and looked up at the sky.”

“… … ?”

The monster stopped in the distance, where he could see Mt. Fuji with its white hair under the clear blue sky.

Then he asked those who followed him.

“Isn’t this scenery beautiful?”

“It’s beautiful.”

“Hahaha, really? It really is a beautiful world.”

The monster paused for a moment, as if thinking of something, and then looked at Mt. Fuji in the distance.

Then the army officer who had always followed him asked the monster.

“Teacher, why did you suddenly stop? The next village is not far away. If you are going to rest, wouldn’t it be better to rest in the village?”

Then, the monster whose appreciation was interrupted suddenly looked at his disciple and clicked his tongue.

“Tsk tsk. Nishida. Your teacher is lost in thought right now, so why are you talking to him without any sense?”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“No. Actually, I didn’t think about it at all.”

As the monster spoke, he sat down at the base of a tree that someone had cut down nearby.

Then he glanced back at the people following him, his chin still resting on his hand.

Although they all looked quite gaunt from having traveled a long way together, they still looked at the monster with unwrinkled faces.

“Haha, everyone is having a hard time buying it.”

“I followed them all because I liked the teacher.”

“Shit. He just followed me because he liked having someone think for him.”

“Master… … .”

“Whew… … It’s hot.”

The monster fanned his face with his hand and looked up at the sky again.

There wasn’t a single cloud in the clear blue sky.

“Today the sky is blue without a single cloud.”

“Oh, that’s true.”

“Hoo hoo hoo.”

“You seem to be in a good mood.”

“then.”

The monster got up from his seat.

Then he looked around for a moment and asked the officer following him.

“Which direction is Tokyo?”

“It would be northeast of here… … . It would probably be over there.”

“I see.”

Then he suddenly pulled down his pants and peed in the direction of Tokyo.

While everyone was confused by his incomprehensible actions, the monster, who had finished his work, climbed up to the base of the tree as if he were going to a podium and stood in front of the people who had been following him.

“Hello, brothers and sisters. I am Kita-something, a small business owner from far away in Tokyo. I have long since forgotten my real name, so I now use the name Itki instead.”

“???”

“I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and it’s been a few days since I left Tokyo, so I’m starting to think about going back.”

“yes?”

“You’re going back… … ?”

“I want you all to shut your stinking mouths now that I’m talking.”

“… … .”

“Yes, thank you. Anyway, the reason I went to Tokyo was because I thought someone had to solve this situation.”

Someone asked.

“Solution?”

“Shut your mouth. I’m talking.”

“… … .”

“Where did we end up? Oh, right… … . Anyway! I plan to go to Tokyo and meet our father, His Majesty the Emperor.”

“???”

For the first time, Kita Itki’s gaze was focused on one place.

And his eyes twitched.

“What do you plan to do when you meet him?”

“Why should I tell you that?”

“yes?”

“You’re just hangers-on. Just keep your mouth shut and follow me.”

“but…….”

Kita Itki asked the young man who was questioning his words.

“Then, will you stand before the Emperor?”

“… … .”

“See? That’s why you’re called hangers-on.”

Kita Itki looked into the distance again, glanced at them, and then said a word.

“That’s why I’ve been wandering around the provinces with sore legs. If I go alone, the Emperor won’t see me.”

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 105