01x09 - Episode 9

[bunniefuu]

Okay.

I'll show you what she gave me.

Huh?

I have it at home though,

so it'll take a little while.

We could do it at the Sengokusha office,

in our reception room.

Nobody would see us there,

so it would be safe.

Thank you.

Wow, I'm relieved you met up

with Niko-chan.

So, how was your first marriage mixer?

I didn't have time for the mixer,

but I managed to blend in

thanks to Ms. Iijima.

Hats off to her for sure.

It looks good on you.

Actually, there was a tiny incident.

Have you been entrusted with something?

I thought that was you.

Give me the envelope, now!

What are you doing? Stop it!

I'll be taking this.

You said you were visually impaired!

That's more than just a tiny incident!

Tell me everything you remember

about that man.

Okay.

I only vaguely remember the details.

He was like this.

I'm sure it was neither Kubozuka

or Aoshiro, barring plastic surgery.

So we have another player.

You mean all three are connected

to the case?

Well, the more people involved in a crime,

the greater the chance of getting caught.

So fewer is always better.

Mr. Aoshiro has an alibi, right?

He does.

But we can't rule him out of

being involved somehow.

Because these two are

from the same hometown.

I actually went to Niigata yesterday.

I managed to talk to a few of Aoshiro's

high school classmates.

Huh?

The father of one of our classmates ran

a company more successful than Aoshiro's.

But one day, the local delinquents

started targeting him, beating him up.

Nobody would believe me,

but Aoshiro was behind it.

He ordered the delinquents to do it.

What do you think?

Mr. Aoshiro was jealous?

Exactly.

I was introduced to his other friends

and asked them questions, too.

They all said the same thing.

"I bet nobody would believe me."

"I don't have any proof, but…"

And finally, they said this.

Just between us,

everyone who got in his way

met a tragic fate.

The reason I can't rule Aoshiro out is

because I discovered this side of him.

It's hard for me to believe.

But they're just rumors, right?

Isn't there a chance

they're slandering him out of jealousy?

You have a point.

To be honest, I found him

to sound pretty fishy,

but maybe he's just easily misunderstood

in that way.

Does that mean Kubozuka

likely did this all by himself?

The interesting thing is,

I asked around about Kubozuka, too.

They all said the same thing again.

That he was a likeable guy.

What?

So if Aoshiro isn't involved,

and Kubozuka is innocent,

I thought there could be another culprit.

And then…

Sunglasses Man showed up.

Well, it doesn't mean the information

I found out is true.

As you said, they're just rumors.

I don't want anything coloring my judgment

and remain skeptical.

Ms. Shinoda.

You've grown.

Huh?

I'd like you to approach them

by saying her mother asked you

to look for your missing classmate.

Sounds like great work!

Shinoda, you can pull off disguises.

Is it working?

Shinoda, I want you and Suzaki to pretend

to be a flirty couple.

I guess I gotta k*ll it.

I'm sorry!

I'm scared. This is way too scary.

I'm Shinoda, a writer

for the Sengoku Weekly.

Is it still a scoop?

I got it from here.

Good work.

He gave the okay!

Nice one.

Just like you were in your letter,

I'm curious to know

where your warmth comes from.

If you would like to meet up again

sometime, this is my private information.

You really did a great job.

Thank you.

Right.

I guess I have grown.

This is what she gave me.

Data of some sort?

Photography was her hobby.

Unfortunately, there are so many pictures,

I don't know which ones are relevant.

How many are there?

About 2,000?

Can I look at them?

Of course.

Do you think one of them

is the money shot?

Best place to hide a tree

is in the forest.

Something that looks only scenic

could have something hidden in it.

Tanioka was using it to blackmail someone.

There's a good chance

that's what got her k*lled.

Is there really such a damning photo

among all these?

Wait.

There's something odd about this picture.

Mr. Murai!

Is this?

Earlier today, we met up with

a man named Niko-chan

who was friends with the third

victim Tanioka.

Niko-chan?

The place he lives in

is colloquially called "Nikotama."

Right before her death, Ms. Tanioka gave

Niko-chan a USB-stick as insurance.

And this was one of the pictures.

Aoshiro!

Huh? How can you tell?

I've been after him a while.

Good eye, Suzaki.

It was indeed Seiya Aoshiro.

Which means

Makiko Tanioka and Seiya Aoshiro

were connected.

There was another curious picture,

which is this one.

It's Aoshiro again.

But, who's the man with him?

This man resembles the person

Shinoda met at the marriage mixer.

We don't know who he is.

These pictures were taken one week

after the second death.

My guess is that Tanioka concluded

Aoshiro was involved and blackmailed him.

So you're saying Aoshiro k*lled her

over these pictures?

No, but it is a possibility.

Ms. Tanioka told Niko-chan that she found

a rich man to blackmail, before she died.

It makes for a compelling case

if Aoshiro was this mark.

If this sunglasses guy was at the party,

we should be able to find him.

If he's involved somehow,

how did he get into the party?

Can you look into it?

Okay, I'll ask the party organizers.

And I'll ask my stylist contact if they

know who this guy is.

Got it. So Dai, I want you to find how

Aoshiro and Tanioka were connected.

- Okay.

- Then…

Where's Akutsu?

The bathroom. He ate too much.

Tell him to stake out Aoshiro.

Okay.

And Su,

I want you to be at the ready.

You got it.

Shinoda, find out with Tama-chan

who Tanioka was friends with.

Yes, sir.

But be careful.

The culprit's attacked

three women already.

Make sure not to act alone.

Warn Tama-chan, too.

It's Niko-chan.

Huh? What?

You've been saying Tama-chan

all this time.

Are you okay with the time?

Afternoon hours don't start

until 1:00 p.m..

Thank you.

We'll do whatever it takes to find

this sunglasses man.

Tell me.

Why's a tabloid so hellbent on this?

I mean, you've lost a friend.

We need to find out the truth.

But if I'm being honest,

we have our motives as a publication.

If we secure solid evidence

on a wanted fugitive,

it would make for a sensational article.

My mentor said

being the first to break the case is huge.

Whoever can write first about a fugitive,

no matter how trivial the content is,

is a winner in this business.

If someone beats us to it,

no matter what we publish, it's too late.

Given the scope and the notoriety,

even follow-up reports will sell.

Part of it is that we're desperately

trying not to get out-scooped.

You're so honest.

Just let me know if I can help.

Thank you.

Seagulls!

- What? Where?

- There.

Sorry I'm late.

Glad you made it.

Thanks.

Could I have the same?

Coming up.

So? What were you investigating?

That serial mysterious deaths case.

How did the undercover work go?

It was crazy.

But there was progress.

The whole Incident

is working on this.

So listen, I had this thought.

How would you feel if Sengokusha

pulled out of the tabloid game?

Will they?

No, hypothetically.

What if it discontinued?

I would've had an answer in April.

Did something change since then?

A little.

What about you, did something happen?

Yeah.

It's one of the new novels

that was brought in.

A manuscript!

When I read a manuscript like this,

it helps me realize there's a real person

behind the words.

This novel especially

since it's going for realism.

The life it depicts

doesn't seem fabricated.

That's why…

Yeah?

Like I mentioned before,

I'm convinced that novels and tabloids

aren't that far apart.

I mean, reading this

gave me a stomachache.

This pain was carried over from

my time at the Sengoku Weekly.

What about you?

Would you feel relieved if Sengokusha

dropped the tabloid?

Well.

I'd become uneasy.

Uneasy?

Novels and tabloids both explore reality

from different sides.

If you throw away one,

you halve the effort.

That's a questionable move

for a publisher.

What do you mean?

In other words, novels only cover

topics picked by the authors,

but tabloids can cover anything.

I mean, they're selective to an extent,

but most of it isn't pretty or perfect.

Sorry, could you say that again?

This probably isn't the place.

So you're saying if

the Sengoku Weekly got pulled,

these not so pretty things

wouldn't see the light of day?

Yes! And maybe that's where

my uneasiness comes from.

I see.

What a serious thing to think about.

This is all because you asked

what the purpose of tabloids was!

You thought about it for me?

Thank you.

Am I too serious?

Sorry.

SENGOKU WEEKLY

SENGOKU WEEKLY

I couldn't manage to find

a connection between Tanioka and Aoshiro.

If that's the case,

was her blackmail target

the sunglasses man instead?

It comes down to if he has money

worth shaking down.

I'm having my stylist contact ask around

about the sunglasses man.

Got it, how about the mixer?

After hearing we had a reporter

go in undercover,

they begged us not to mention them

in an article.

They agreed to check if

the sunglasses man is a member.

Okay, Akutsu.

How's tailing Aoshiro?

I found out the Truth Weekly

is tailing him, too.

Are you serious?

It was definitely the Truth.

What do we do?

Stay on Aoshiro and

check out that reporter.

Yes, sir.

And Su, you're on standby.

Standby?

Dai, I want you to switch to

investigating Kubozuka.

How's he funding his escape?

Try to take into account Aoshiro and

Sunglasses' possible involvement.

- Find a new perspective.

- Copy that.

- Mr. Murai.

- What is it?

Please tell me Madoka Hashimoto's

home address.

I want to ask her parents

if they've heard from her.

I doubt they'd talk to a tabloid.

Have them look at Ms. Tanioka's

photos then?

They might know something.

It's worth chasing down any possibility,

but we're the only ones

with these crucial pictures.

Not even the cops have it.

We'd need them to stay quiet.

They can't even tell the cops

they saw these pictures.

So better not show them.

Sorry.

You know what?

I'll leave it to you.

Even if they went to the police,

they won't take action immediately.

If they come question us,

me and Mr. Murai make ourselves scarce.

Right?

Either way, we have to go hard and fast.

I'm not letting the Truth Weekly

getting ahead of us!

Shinoda, give it a shot.

Yes, sir!

TO BE CONTINUED

You're doing this

to write a tabloid piece?

One wrong move and we'll get sued.

I want you to find a star.

He looks somewhat similar.

A shady hobby?

The type of hobby I can't share.