Chapter 535 - A PEACEFUL DISCUSSION

Kaito did not know about the anticipation that the people at Central Antiterrorism Bureau had at the thought of his capture. He was listening to reports from his subordinate Jungle with an increasing level of frustration. 

His people were in every place, but no one had caught even a glimpse of Bonnie and Clyde. It was like they had vanished from Tokyo. However, he knew that they were lying low to avoid the risk of someone stopping their plans. 

After the message they posted, they had to know that their activities would attract attention. No, they wanted the attention because of their hubris. They would not be satisfied if their might was not displayed before all.

Jungle looked at his boss and firmed his resolve.

"Boss, I have a bold suggestion." He said with apprehension.. 

Kaito was already irritated. "Spit it out." 

"Our numbers are few. The total people of mercenaries looking for those two firebugs are less than a hundred. We need more manpower to find them before the sun sets." Jungle paused. 

"I ȧssume you have a solution and not just pointing out an obvious problem for no reason," Kaito responded. 

"Yes." Jungle paused again. "I was thinking that the Yakuza has thousands of members going about their business as usual. If they were looking for someone, they would be able to spot them within a fraction of the time we might use." 

Kaito's face darkened, but he also knew the situation was a little urgent. He could not let Bonnie and Clyde act carelessly. Detonating a bomb was different from killing a single person. It was an act whose consequences could not be measured easily. 

Unless the two people were careful and thorough, it was likely that the bomb would cause a lot of death and injuries. The level of property damage was also going to be significant because they were not going to choose a condemned building. 

Kaito did not want that stain on his conscience. In comparison to letting go of the good karma he had gathered by saving Yagi's niece, it was better to call on the favour and prevent the disaster. 

"I think that Yagi is not a bad person." Jungle continued. "He has made a lot of good improvements to the underworld. He also seems interested in building a good rapport with you. If Bonnie and Clyde detonate the bomb, I cannot imagine what will happen." 

Kaito was annoyed by his chatty subordinate, but he also knew that he was acting out of the best interests of everyone. 

"Get me his number," Kaito said. 

Even if the gesture of calling Yagi was tantamount to slapping his own face, he was not so proud that he would let innocent people suffer. 

"Here it is." Jungle was prepared, so he directly gave a business card with only a number to Kaito. It was obvious that he was already set on this course of action. 

Kaito looked at the man with sharp eyes as he took the card. Jungle felt a little awkward because he knew his actions were a little presumptuous. He rubbed his nose before turning his head to the door, thinking of an escape route. 

"I just remembered that I have not checked in with the people in the suburbs. Who knows if Bonnie and Clyde have chosen a domestic life?" He said. 

Before Kaito could register the words, Jungle disappeared from the room. He was not stupid enough to wait for the boss to question him or get mad. 

On the other side, the heads of different departments were in a conference room, talking about the Shadow Brotherhood and Kaito. Director Deguchi, who was the head of the enforcement department, was like a cat whose tail had been trampled. 

"I do not know why you are delaying matters. Director Yojima has already shown us that Bonnie and Clyde are affiliated with the Shadow Brotherhood. We should have already brought him in. My team is ready to storm their headquarters immediately." Director Deguchi said. 

This man was unwilling to let go of this grand opportunity. As a director in the CAB, he did not have a lot of opportunities to show off force and power. His rival, Yojima, had more opportunities to show off because his work involved monitoring. 

Already, great merit would be recorded for Yojima because of the vigilance showed by his department. They had managed to flag down the message by Bonnie and Clyde. Moreover, they had more or less confirmed the validity of the threat. 

If they caught Bonnie and Clyde, most of the praise would go towards the department of nerds. Even the discovery of the connection with Shadow Brotherhood would be a feather on Yojima's cap. It was infuriating.

But if he managed to bring in Kaito and question him, his stock would go up. Everyone would know that he was the genius behind the destruction of the most dangerous ȧssassin in the country and possibly, the world. 

"We cannot storm into his headquarters and take him in. We must follow the appropriate legal protocols established." The head of the legal department countered. 

"You can keep reading your legal books while I do some real work." Deguchi was too fired up to keep up pretences. "I have a team and weapons. If Kaito resists arrest, I will deal with him properly. But he will not escape from my hand today." 

The excitement on Deguchi's face made him look a little flushed. He was like someone on drugs. In addition to earning merit for himself and the team, he was also thinking about winning the bet with some of his old comrades in the defence forces. 

How glorious would his Christmas and New Year be if he captured Kaito? 

He was naturally the item with the highest points. 

The head of the legal department was displeased by his colleague. All of them had their roles to play in the Central Antiterrorism Unit. He was in charge of the legal affairs of the bureau, so he could not let the meathead rush in to take Kaito. 

"Director Deguchi, even someone like you must know that there are protocols to follow when dealing with cases. If you drag in Kaito without a clear cause, you will jeopardise the ministry of defence. Remember, our priority is to keep the citizens safe." The lawyer said. 

"What do you mean by a person like me? Just because I do not spend my time with my nose buried in books does not mean that I am stupid. And secondly, I am defending the citizens by taking in a dangerous criminal." Deguchi shouted. 

He hated it most when people implied that he was not smart. It was especially so when he had to deal with know-it-alls from fancy departments. Unfortunately, this man never spared others. He would call other people dorks and other bad names, creating a continuing tension between the enforcement and the technical staff.

"The evidence I have gathered is circumstantial at best. It cannot be used to obtain a warrant or even prosecute Kaito. If we are hostile towards him, we will be blowing things out of proportion. For now, the best thing would be starting a peaceful discussion." Director Yojima spoke up. 

He was quite pleased with the results yielded by the new staff member, but he was not like Deguchi. If capturing Kaito was an easy task, the government would not have given up on antagonising him. They would not have chosen the route of silent support. 

"So, you are all against me?" Deguchi asked. "Fine. Let it be like that. But I still have the authority to bring in Kaito for questioning. If I deem him a national threat or a person of interest during a crisis, I am allowed to bring him in without approval from all of you, paper pushers." 

"This is going to be a disaster." Director Yojima said. 

"I should clear the next few weeks so that I will have time to make reports and attend the subsequent hearing. We are also probably going to receive an external auditor to evaluate the internal affairs. You should all be ready." The head of the legal department said calmly. 

The meeting, which was supposed to discuss the best approach to dealing with the Shadow Brotherhood, came to an ugly end. Ideally, most of the heads wanted to talk to Kaito and have him help them find Bonnie and Clyde. 

Except for a few stubborn people like Deguchi, anyone with half a brain knew that arresting Kaito would mean nothing. At most, they could only keep him for a little while before releasing him.

As the meeting came to an end, Director Yojima's phone rang. He picked the call and listened to the report from his staff member. His face changed, but he did not say anything. He put his phone back into his pocket before facing his colleagues. 

"Things are about to get messier." He said. "Interpol is here."