Enson -- in a way, he takes us into this world
where we get to see two men...
who have put everything on the line
for this just one fight to prove their manhood.
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
Michael: In the streets of Japan,
what do you do with all this potential
in a community where there's no job opportunities?
This is kind of like
the old-school way of handling things.
It's a little primitive, but, you know,
it's a lot simpler as opposed to over here,
sometimes, when it's who got the biggest gun.
[ Indistinct shouting in Japanese ]
♪
Our goal is just to simply show the world a window
as to why people do the things they do,
and where that desperation comes from.
It's like they say, when the system fails you...
...you create your own system.
♪
Enson: Kitakyushu may look like the rest of the country,
but there's another side.
For decades here in Japan,
the black market had been run by the Yakuza.
But things are changing.
We're here now in Kokura, which is a town in Kitakyushu,
which is one of the hubs for organized crime.
The district is known for its sex workers and drugs
smuggled in through its harbor.
More recently, gangs have also moved
into another illegal business --
underground mixed-martial-arts fights.
[ Indistinct shouting in Japanese ]
It's a world I'm familiar with.
I started out as a street fighter
and went on to fight professionally for 19 years.
[ Bell dings, cheering ]
I was ready to die every time I entered the ring.
Because of that, a lot of my fans were gangsters.
[ Grunting ]
They feared me and they respected me.
I got word that there was an underground fight coming up,
so I went down to Kitakyushu
to see how a new generation of gangsters
are moving into the fight scene.
I've known this gang for years...
All right, let's go in.
...and I've seen them grow from just a couple of guys
into a gang of over a hundred.
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
This gang has what's known in Japan as "Gurentai" --
a loosely-organized street gang
similar to what you'll find in a big American city.
[ Taser buzzes ]
[ Laughter ]
In Japan, almost no one has guns, even gangsters,
so these guys rely on their fists and other implements.
Man: U.S.A.! [ Metal clinks ]
[ Siren wails ]
As the gang has grown, the cops have taken notice.
♪
The Gurentai used to be the minor leagues
for the Yakuza, Japan's infamous crime clans.
The Yakuza are Japan's organized-crime families --
very, very similar to the Mafia in the United States.
They run protection rackets, they shake people down,
they control the drugs, they control the prostitution.
They are deeply enmeshed in Japanese politics,
and they play a role in the Japanese financial system
that goes far beyond what we know as the Mafia.
Enson: But in 2011,
the government cracked down on the Yakuza,
passing new laws making it hard for the Yakuza members
to do business and to find new recruits.
Peter: Sometimes these crackdowns
are related to a breach in the unspoken rules.
The Yakuza steps over a line,
and it's time for the police to remind them who's in charge.
Enson: It even became illegal
for Yakuza members to set foot in fighting arenas.
Control over the fight scene, both legal and underground,
was now up for grabs.
♪
All these gangsters, they all pretty much run gyms.
Let's go check it out.
The gang's leader, Natsu, and his lieutenant, Maza,
are training a street fighter called Kita.
Like millions of young Japanese,
Kita grew up with few job opportunities
in an economy rocked by years of stagnation and recession.
The economy in Japan has been in a near zombie state
for far too long.
The number of jobs available to young people has fallen off.
They have a hard time finding meaningful work.
Enson: He turned to crime
and did two-and-a-half years in prison
for aggravated assault.
So, now that he's out,
Kita wants to get work with this gang
and become part of their family.
Impressing its leader in an underground fight
is the fastest way.
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
♪
Enson: It's two days before the underground match,
and I'm here to meet Kita's opponent at a rival gym.
[ Speaks Japanese ]
For Gurentai gangs,
these gyms also serve as recruitment centers.
And this is the guy who runs the gym...
[ Speaks Japanese ]
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
The gym owner introduced me
to a Gurentai fighter named Shin.
He's hoping a win against Kita
will earn him some respect on the street.
[ Laughs ]
[ Laughter ]
[ All speaking Japanese ]
I wanted to hear what the Yakuza thought
about the rise of these young gangs,
so I called an old Yakuza friend of mine
who is in one of Japan's most violent clans.
We're gonna go meet Koike right now and talk to him.
And last time I met him,
he went nuts and beat up the managers
and kind of wrecked the shops.
[ Music playing in background ]
I took this footage with my camera
the last time we hung out.
He was a little upset
with the slow service from our waiter.
I had to step in before things got out of hand.
Whoa, check this out.
Yakuzas cannot enter.
And this is -- this is the police symbol here.
[ Door bells jingle ]
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
[ Laughter ]
Koike is a Yakuza from the old school,
known in the streets for his short fuse.
[ Woman laughs, claps ]
Enson: Ooh.
[ Laughter ]
Huh?
Seven people, he said. Seven people.
Oh.
[ Koike singing in Japanese ]
[ Singing continues ]
♪
Enson: For the Yakuza,
the Gurentai are just low-level punks
who will never threaten their power.
But on the streets of Kitakyushu,
it's clear the Yakuza is losing its grip
on the next generation.
Kita's opponent, Shin, is like a lot of gangsters I've met.
He doesn't want to answer to a Yakuza boss.
[ Speaking Japanese ]
[ Both laugh ]
[ All speaking indistinctly in Japanese ] [ Laughs ]
♪
[ Japanese hip-hop playing ]
[ Crowd cheering ]
[ Hip-hop fading ]
♪
Enson: We caught up with Kita
on his way to a tattoo parlor popular with Natsu and his gang.
[ Tattoo gun buzzing ]
[ Speaking indistinctly in Japanese ]
[ Tattoo gun buzzing ]
♪
Enson: The government crackdown
means that any Yakuza member can be rounded up at any time.
For young gangsters like these,
that's just another reason why
they are choosing to join smaller street gangs.
[ Indistinct conversing in Japanese ]
[ Laughter ]
♪
Enson: We're going to the ocean side,
where they've organized a fight that's gonna happen right now.
My experiences, from watching these type of gangsters fight,
they'll fight for their pride and their ego.
And these -- these fights are way more exciting.
We've arrived at a remote property --
unaccessible by the cops or the Yakuza.
[ Indistinct conversing in Japanese ]
We're on this -- like, this private property.
There's more guys coming down here.
This is where they usually do it.
[ Coins jingling ]
This is it, man. It's gonna happen soon.
[ All shouting in Japanese ]
[ Cheers and applause ]
Enson: Kita and Shin are fighting for honor and respect.
The $1,600 prize
will go to the gang of the winning street fighter.
[ Coins jingle ]
[ All shouting in Japanese ]
[ Cheering ]
♪
[ Shouting continues ]
[ Cahorn blaring ]
[ Applause ]
[ Cheering ]
[ Laughter ]
[ Laughter continues ]
[ Coins jingle ]
[ Applause ]
[ Conversing in Japanese ]
[ Laughs ] Yeah.
[ Laughter, applause ]
[ Enson laughs ]
Enson: Winning the street fight
has got Kita in with Natsu and his gang.
He's found a new family and a way to make some cash.
For the Gurentai gangs of Kitakyushu,
times are flush.
Their move into the fight scene might be a sign of the times.
As the Yakuza's control over the Japanese crime world fades,
a new generation of gangster may be emerging.
♪