NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 92



Only Krnovel

There are few in Tokyo (9)

The news that the commander of the military police, Araki, was heading to the Imperial Palace was immediately relayed to the Army and Navy Ministries through army and navy spies hiding in the military police.

“The commander of the military police is in the palace?”

“Yes, it seems that he went to report the current state of affairs of the army to His Majesty the Emperor and ask him to sort out the situation.”

“Hmm… … Are they trying to cover up this incident by cutting off the tails of one or two guys?”

“It seems highly likely that that will happen.”

“I don’t know about anything else, but we have to stop that guy Ugaki from grabbing the next Army Minister’s position… … .”

“Then, how about involving Ugaki in this incident?”

“But is there a way to tie it together?”

“If you just make it, won’t it be over?”

“If we make a mistake, he’ll escape from the beast cage and wreak havoc on the Navy. Let’s just wait and see for now.”

The Navy watched from a distance as if watching a fire across a river, as it was something that was far from their own, but the Army’s situation was a little different.

“Why is that crazy guy Araki in the palace?!”

“I went to His Majesty the Emperor to inform him of the true circumstances of the young officers whose discontent was about to run wild, and to ask him to issue an imperial edict to deal with the current situation fairly.”

“Oh no… …! That Araki guy hit the player.”

From the Army’s standpoint, it was a situation no different from a fire underfoot.

It was already difficult to cover up the incident due to the Navy’s interference, but it was even more difficult to cover up the incident when Araki, a figure within the Army, caused such a large-scale accident.

“Where is that Araki now!”

“It seems that they have not been able to enter the palace yet due to an altercation with the guards at the entrance to the palace.”

“The Guard? Who was the commander of the guard regiment guarding the Imperial Palace just now?”

“That would be… … Yama… … Colonel Yasuo Yamada.”

The head of the Army, Vice Minister of the Army Ugaki, who assists the Minister of the Army and is in charge of practical affairs, is starting to go bad.

As soon as he heard the name Yasuo Yamada, he looked for his name in the list of graduates of the Military Academy and the Army University that remained in his memory.

“You’re Araki’s classmate from the Military Academy.”

In that case, Araki will probably not resort to force right away out of consideration for his colleagues’ reputation.

Ugaki’s judgment was as follows.

“Contact the Imperial Guard Division headquarters in Tokyo immediately and tell them to arm their troops and gather at the Imperial Palace.”

“Yes? Armed and heading to the Imperial Palace… …?”

The adjutant was furious at Ugaki’s words that he would send armed troops to the palace where the Emperor resided.

“Your Majesty, I know it may be presumptuous of you to ask this, but if we are not careful, we could be accused of being traitors.”

“What are you talking about! The commander of the military police has already led his troops to stage a coup d’état. We must suppress this quickly and secure His Majesty the Emperor’s personal guard!”

“Oh, I understand.”

Soon martial law was declared throughout Tokyo and a mobilization order was issued in the name of Army Vice Minister Ugaki.

And the commanders of the Guards Divisions also responded to Ugaki’s words… … .

“Ugaki? He’s Yamanashi’s subordinate who openly talks about disarmament.”

“When I see this kid being cheap, I think Araki must be doing the right thing.”

“Everyone, wait inside the barracks.”

“Martial law and absurdity, the Imperial Guard Division will not follow the orders of the Army Ministry or anything like that, but only His Majesty the Emperor. Ignore everything else!”

… … I didn’t get it.

The Imperial Guard Division, which was in charge of defending Tokyo, was dissatisfied with Army Minister Yamanashi Hanzo and his subordinate, Army Vice Minister Ugaki, who were always talking about reducing the army and disarmament.

That is why the guard division commanders completely ignored the Army Ministry’s request, saying that they would only move at the Emperor’s orders.

“What?! These crazy guys… …!”

“What should we do now?”

“This is the world’s most useless piece of trash… … .”

Ugaki exploded with anger.

Even though the Guards Division did not respond, that did not mean that all of Ugaki’s factions disappeared.

“Bring me the current status of the units stationed near Tokyo!”

“Oh, I see!”

The 1st Division of the Army was stationed in Tokyo, and the 13th Division was stationed in Takada, on the outskirts of Tokyo.

The 14th Division was stationed in Utsunomiya, about half a day’s drive from Tokyo, so Ugaki had three divisions he could mobilize right away.

However, the problem is… … .

“But if we send them to the Imperial Palace… … . It won’t look good… … .”

Even though the pretext was to suppress the rebels (Jin) who were trying to illegally occupy the palace, aiming a gun at the palace required great courage.

If things went wrong, Ugaki’s political career could end here.

He was well aware of the danger and tried to finish the job by mobilizing only the Guards Division if possible, but things did not go as he had hoped.

“Vice Minister Ugaki, if things go wrong, you might end up taking full responsibility. You… … know the elders well.”

But Ugaki’s intentions were firm.

“Forget about the old people in the back room! What’s old Joshu going to do when he’s old and can’t do anything anymore!”

“Ha, haona… … .”

“Vice Minister Ugaki’s words are very correct.”

At that moment, Ugaki’s office door opened wide and a group of officers came inside.

At the forefront stood someone that Ugaki also knew well… … .

“Dojo-kun?”

“Vice Minister Ugaki, I came here because I thought you needed help.”

“hmm!”

Ugaki didn’t say anything more, but he was very happy to see Dojo come to him when he was in trouble.

“Interestingly, some of the staff members in the 1st and 13th Divisions were my peers and seniors, so I was able to persuade them and invite them here.”

As soon as Tojo finished speaking, the other officers standing behind him saluted Ugaki.

Ugaki also quietly accepted their salute and relaxed a little.

“Hehehe. I never thought you would come here… … . You’re a great help to me.”

“Don’t worry too much, old people of Joshu.”

“Huh? What does that mean?”

“What I said is true. Since the establishment of the Military Academy and the Army University, the Army has been gradually emerging from Choshu’s shadow.”

“Hmm.”

“That’s true even now. Are there any people from Choshu among those gathered here?”

From Dojo to his close associates, and even to Ugaki and his adjutants, there was not a single person from Choshu.

Although they were all from different regions, they had one thing in common: the Military Academy and the Army University.

“The future Imperial Japanese Army will no longer be led by the Choshu Army, but by the talents of the Military Academy and the Army University. And this will be the first step toward a hopeful future.”

Dojo picked up the sword at his waist and threw it on Ugaki’s desk.

“This is the sword I received from His Majesty the Emperor when I graduated from the Military Academy at the top of my class. It is as important to me as my life.”

Then the others also took off the swords on their waists and placed them on Ugaki’s desk.

“We have all decided to join forces with Vice Minister Ugaki.”

“… … Is that so.”

Ugaki, impressed by Dojo’s loyalty, nodded with tears in his eyes.

“Mobilize your troops immediately and wipe out all the Choshu bastards remaining in the army.”

“… …Not Araki?”

“yes.”

But Dojo’s thoughts seemed a little different from Ugaki’s.

“Araki is currently occupying the Imperial Palace and is trying to stir things up within the army by receiving His Majesty the Emperor’s edict. Shouldn’t we get rid of him?”

Then Dojo shook his head.

“At this point, the commander of the military police has moved ahead of us, so there is no way to stop him. By the time the army enters Tokyo and heads to the Imperial Palace, Araki will have met His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Hmm… … But, if Emperor Yamada persists.”

“Araki has a great cause to represent the grievances of the young officers. So Yamada won’t last long either.”

“Justification… … .”

For a warrior who died for face and honor, a justification was more important than anything else.

Of course, none of these people were of good birth enough to call themselves samurai.

“Let Araki take care of the pretext. We can just take advantage while he squabbles with the Emperor.”

“Sili? What kind of silliness are you talking about?”

“Of course we have to sweep away the Choshu guys within the army!”

Ugaki simply thought of using this incident as an opportunity to get rid of Araki and his group, who had fallen out of favor, but Tojo had completely different ideas.

“Are you suggesting we start a coup?!”

“It’s not that it can’t be done, but if it’s going to be done, it would be more correct to call it a purge to ensure the independence of the military rather than a coup.”

“This is crazy… … .”

Ugaki stood up from his seat.

Then he looked at Dojo with an expression as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have heard.

“Do you know what you’re talking about now?”

“Yes, I know very well.”

“No, you don’t know anything! Even though the Choshu guys’ morale has been greatly reduced by the Military Academy and the Army University, we still can’t completely ignore their influence within the military!”

“So you’re saying that you’re going to cut off their noisy airway with your own hands?”

“Are you trying to repeat Seinan’s actions again?”

Ugaki chided Tojo, saying that he was trying to start a civil war, referring to the previous Seinan War.

But Dojo didn’t blink an eye and said:

“They don’t have the power to do that. And since we moved first and our cause is clear, they’ll all be swept away without any resistance.”

“Justification? Where is the justification for your actions!”

“Don’t we have His Majesty the Emperor’s edict?”

“A school? What kind of nonsense is that?”

“Araki, isn’t that guy supposed to receive the Emperor’s edict? Something like a decree to punish those involved in Shinnosuke’s corruption.”

“… … !!!”

Ugaki, who had been thinking about it for a moment, looked back at the dojo again, seeing that the situation was more fitting than he had expected.

“So… … are you saying that you’re going to link them to this incident and deal with them all at once?”

“Now that the stage has been set, shouldn’t we have a refreshing dance?”

“… … Then what about the Saito incident last time?”

“We can just link that to further investigation.”

“oh my god…….”

It was a perfect plan with no escape.

Ugaki simply wanted to silence Araki for the sake of the army, but Tojo wanted to use Araki’s rampage to stamp out the Choshu faction.

“My father and I have been sharpening our swords for a long time, waiting for this moment when the Choshu bastards will be driven out.”

“… … .”

“From the moment I spit on Aritomo’s words and fell out of favor with him, a beautiful sword was created in my heart. Now it’s time to draw it and cut down those Choshu bastards.”

Dojo urged Ugaki again.

“Please give me your permission, Mr. Vice Minister. I will take care of the rest.”

“… … .”

“Do you intend to see blood?”

“If they want, they can do so, but Aritomo’s descendants are all cowards. Do you think they would want to shed blood?”

“… … .”

Ugaki saw his father in Dojo’s face.

I saw the face of a general who, although capable, was unable to rise to a higher position because he was not from Choshu and ended his military career in a mediocre position.

His father was a man who wanted to remove Choshu’s shadow from the army and make it a place where everyone was treated fairly regardless of their origins.

But what about the son?

Did he inherit his father’s will?

That was something I didn’t know.

“Araki and you… … It seems like you’re all possessed by a ghost.”

“Maybe so.”

Ugaki nodded.

“Move swiftly like a whirlwind, but always keep your mind calm like a forest. When attacking and capturing an enemy, be fierce like a fire, and when defending, be solid and heavy like a mountain.”

Dojo saluted silently.

Then he turned around and left the office.

Then the officers who followed him followed behind.

Ugaki didn’t look at him, just stared out the window silently and muttered to himself.

“There’s a ghost wandering around Tokyo. A ghost that possesses people… … .”

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 93