Come this way.
Across this street, to your left.
Yes. To the left, then straight ahead, about 5 min to walk.
A Keigo Higashino novel
with Hiroshi Abe as Kyoichiro Kaga.
What's wrong? Are you drunk?
Emergency ... Yasuda to Central. A casualty on Nihonbashi Bridge
at the Kirin statue. Send an ambulance!
The Wings of the Kirin.
So the first Saturday of next month is ok, right?
Beginning 11:00 am.
On that day I can come for sure.
I leave it to you.
But I can't guarantee to show up.
You didn't show up for the 1st anniversary, will you skip the 3rd too?
My father would have prioritized work too.
You're probably right. Still,
I think you don't get it at all.
About what?
About your father.
Excuse me.
Kaga speaking.
Nihonbashi? I'm nearby.
Understood. I'll come immediately.
An incident in the neighborhood. An emergency.
I was transferred to Kyobashi Hospital, near your station.
You can call anytime.
I get it.
Here, your 40 yen change. Thank you.
Kaori-chan, let's call it a day.
We close the shop.
Fuyuki-kun? How was the interview?
Kaori.
What shall I do?
I ...
I've done something bad.
I ...
What's wrong?
Fuyuki-kun!
Someone in there?
What are you doing?
Stop there.
Stop!
What are you doing?
I don't know.
When I saw him, he was already there. I thought he was heavily drunk.
His mind was blurred, he didn't even notice the officer.
Where was he stabbed?
The crime took place in Edobashi underpass.
I just came from there.
- There were blood stains all the way. - I see.
He walked the whole distance.
Since he was stabbed in the chest, it probably took him 7 to 8 min.
- Did he have a phone? - He had not.
He had a key case with a business card inside and a handkerchief.
The question is ...
If he walked the whole distance,
why didn't he ask anyone for help?
Kaga, the family of the victim is on the way to the hospital. Please take care of them.
- Are you Aoyagi-san? - Yes.
I'm Kaga from Nihonbashi Station.
How is my husband?
I am truly sorry, but
soon after he arrived at the hospital he passed away.
... Please leave your message after the beep ...
Fuyuki-kun, what happened?
Hello! Hello!
Excuse me, isn't this Fuyuki-kun's phone?
This is the police.
Dear.
It can't be.
Why?
Why Father?
We have found a suspect.
He had Aoyagi-san's bag in his possession.
- Are you Nakahara-san? - Yes.
This way please.
Fuyuki-kun.
Skull fracture and brain hemorrhage.
His condition is very serious.
I wonder why he had this.
Dad went to Internet-cafés?
Does this belong to your husband too?
The glasses are his, but
the case?
I see.
The victim is Aoyagi Takeyaki, 53,
Director of Kaneseki Metals Corporation.
Crime scene was Edobashi underpass.
He still walked 300m and was found on Nihonbashi bridge.
We can infer that he was stabbed at 8:50 pm.
The murder weapon's blade is 8cm long.
The fingerprints have been wiped off with a cloth.
This is the video from a Nihonbashi surveillance cam.
The victim, walking from Edobashi underpass,
broke down at the middle of the bridge.
In a distance of 800 m from the crime scene, in Hamacho Park Alley,
a patrol found a suspicious person.
He tried to escape,
but was hit by a truck and is still unconscious.
His name is Yashima Fuyuki, 25.
He lives in East Arakawa-ku, Midori Mansion building.
The apartment is rented by Nakahara Kaori. Yashima is living together with her.
Yashima Fuyuki was in possession of the victim's belongings.
A camera, a glasses case,
an Internet-café card.
Nothing else was taken, as we checked with the victim's family.
No photos in the camera.
The membership card is from an Internet-café in West Shinjuku.
That is near the victim's employer.
He had been going there for half a year.
Yashima was abandoned by his mother soon after his birth.
He stayed until the age of 15 in a foster home in Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture.
He has a history of petty crimes.
I guess we can proceed with Yashima as the suspect.
As soon as he recovers consciousness, we'll question him.
What puzzles me is: Why did he have a weapon at hand?
Please take care of the details so that we can close that case quickly.
The persons I'm calling now, please start immediately with the investigation.
Matsumiya, Investigation Division.
Kaga, Criminal Division Nihonbashi Station.
Question the suspect's room-mate Nakahara Kaori.
If the knife belongs to him, the crime may be premeditated.
Check thoroughly with her if it is Yashima's knife.
I knew they would team me up with you, Kyouichiro.
They don't know that we are cousins.
Sorry, I should call you Kaga-san on duty.
The Department didn't deem it necessary to deploy more than the two of us.
Don't hold back if you have any ideas.
Then, let's go to Yashima's hospital.
Before that, I'll go somewhere else.
It won't take long. We'll meet at the hospital.
If it's part of the investigation, I'll go with you.
Quite possibly a fool's errand.
"A fool's errand can change the outcome of an investigation."
That's what your father taught me.
It's this way.
I knew that.
Yes, he came here at least 2 times.
Are you sure?
I never forget a face after the 2nd time.
Right, Kaga-san?
Why this shop?
Did he buy something?
The 2nd time he came, he bought this.
The company employing the victim is in Shinjuku.
Right. And he lives in Nerima.
Why did he come to Nihonbashi to buy this case and why was he killed here?
What was Aoyagi-san doing here?
Please count on us for the funeral.
I'm grateful. I wouldn't know what to do.
Director Aoyagi was a promising employee since his youth.
The company will do everything possible.
Thank you for your help.
Goodbye.
Are you related to the victim? What can you tell us, please?
Please leave here immediately.
This is private property. You are trespassing here.
Could we ask you some questions?
Please show some consideration.
We're police officers.
I'm his childhood friend from the foster home.
So you lived together since you left the foster home.
Yashima-san started working for a building contractor, right?
Yes.
But 3 years ago, the company he was working for went bankrupt.
He told me, "Let's go to Tokyo".
You are the last person he sent a mail to.
["Found something incredible. I'm meeting someone now"]
Shortly after 6:30 pm. ["Found something incredible. I'm meeting someone now"]
Was Yashima-san looking for a job?
Since half a year, when he was fired from the factory.
A factory? What factory?
Well, something like Kaneda ... or Kanemoto?
Kaneseki?
That's it.
Why such questions?
Where was his appointment yesterday?
He didn't tell me.
His accident happened around 9:30 pm.
A moment before, he called you, right?
Yes.
What did he say?
Well ...
"I'll be back soon. Sorry for being late." That's all.
Are you sure he said only that?
Excuse me. Fuyuki-kun is the victim of an accident.
Why such questions?
He had this bag in his possession.
It's not his.
It belongs to a person named Aoyagi Takeyaki.
Aoyagi-san?
Aoyagi Takeyaki,
Director of Kaneseki Metals.
Do you know him?
No,
I don't know him.
He was killed yesterday at about 9:00 pm.
Yashima-san had his case and his wallet.
When a patrol found him,
he ran away and was hit by a truck.
You think he killed that man?
Well, he is the prime suspect in this investigation.
That's not true.
Such things ... Fuyuki-kun is not that kind of person.
He wouldn't do that.
He's no such person.
No, I don't know him.
He had been working at Kaneseki Metals' factory
until half a year ago.
My husband never talked about his job.
Did your husband often have business in Nihonbashi?
We don't know about that.
What could he be doing there?
You have no idea either?
Last time you met your father,
was there something unusual about him?
Not particularly.
You're wasting your time asking my brother.
You were not talking to Dad lately.
How's that related?
You have always hated father.
You were avoiding him.
You were the one always bad-mouthing him.
Yuto!
You too, Mom! You scolded him he was always playing golf.
Enough with that.
Shubunkan Junior High School,
it's your school, right?
There's a call to that school on your father's cellphone.
3 days ago. Do you know the reason?
Did you hear something?
I see.
We really are no help.
We know nothing about Dad.
Even when the police ask, there's nothing we can tell.
Yuto.
Tell me ... why did you stop swimming?
Why do you ask?
Did something happen?
- Yuto! - I've forgotten.
It's so long ago.
Nobody really knows their father.
That's how it is, isn't it?
Many kids at that age are like this.
Did you also feel that way?
You will go to the third memorial anniversary of your father, won't you?
Kanamori-san called you?
It put my mother's mind at ease. She was worried you wouldn't go again.
I don't see the sense of a memorial service.
That's not the point.
You're not the only one concerned.
Don't you understand that we too want to remember your father?
- You didn't attend the first memorial... - Ok, ok.
You can relax. I'll do it.
Yes, I received the call.
Aoyagi-san called me for advice.
Why did he want your advice?
Well,
because I'm the coach of the swimming club.
What was the conversation about?
I already told it to the other inspector.
Sorry, but
we inspectors often have to repeat things to get to the truth.
He was worried about his relationship with his son lately.
What did he say?
He called saying he'll need some time to talk.
Who had thought something like that would happen?
A coffee shop?
Yes. "Miles Dawn", a self-service coffee shop in Edobashi.
That's close to the crime scene.
According to the clerk, he came at 19:30.
He ordered 2 Cafe Latte.
He had an appointment?
Perhaps with Yashima-san.
Yashima had worked at Kaneseki Metals for a while before getting fired, right?
Yes.
Maybe they fired him due to a downsizing.
Yashima probably called him because he had a grudge.
A temporary staff calling a Director?
Besides, it happened 6 months before.
6 months in which he couldn't find a new job.
He had a grudge and he carried a knife.
Nakahara Kaori said she never saw that knife.
That doesn't prove anything.
We need to find where the knife came from.
That's right.
We don't know for sure if he met with Yashima.
But he could be the person he was meeting in the coffee shop.
You need to check if Yashima had a meeting with the victim.
We'll go to the Metal factory tomorrow.
You take care of it.
What do you mean?
It's enough if one person from Nihonbashi Police goes to the factory.
Where will you go?
I'll walk around a bit.
We need to know why Aoyagi-san came to Nihonbashi that evening.
But ...
You don't need me to ask a few questions.
It's ok. But please stay in contact.
I get it. We'll obey the instructions of the Department.
- Give me chopsticks. - You can pick your food.
To be honest, Yashima-san...
I don't really remember him.
The reason why he left?
Simply staff downsizing. These are tough times for our industry.
I understand the feelings of temporary staff.
But stabbing someone because of a grudge, that's horrible.
It is not proven yet.
Aoyagi-san has been in charge of manufacturing, right?
Yes. He was the person who knew this factory best.
When I became manager of the factory, I kept consulting him.
Aoyagi-san was still coming here?
Sure he did. Regular visits once a month.
This is the belt where Yashima worked.
Is there a possibility that Aoyagi-san and Yashima-san had met here?
No, I don't think they ever had a chance to talk.
- Something happened? - It's nothing.
Is there anything else you want to know?
I'd like to hear some people who knew Yashima-san.
I asked already.
Unfortunately, there's no such person.
It seems he had kept to himself.
I see.
- Shall we go to the cafeteria? - Please.
[Staff wanted]
Welcome.
Sorry for calling you here.
So he will be the lead?
That's great.
Yes. Please make sure to see the performance.
So, when was it
that this man started coming here.
About half a year ago.
As expected, you are in charge of the Nihonbashi crime.
- There you are. - Thank you.
Excuse me, your shop is about here, right?
Yes.
What are you looking for?
No, it's just that I hadn't been here for a long while.
It's a pleasant neighborhood for a walk.
That's my opinion too.
Exercises make me want to eat something sweet.
Please enjoy. Thank you.
He came here since about half a year?
Is that correct?
Yes. He came here at the weekends, dressed casually in golf wear.
Golf wear?
For a walk?
More than a walk. He seemed to have a purpose.
What makes you think so?
While he was looking at the map he checked the time on his watch,
and he always had a camera.
He came to Nihonbashi to take photos?
I guess so, and not only in this neighborhood.
- "Exercises make me want to eat something sweet." - Yes.
You truly are a journalist. Well observed.
I wish I were already.
Your article in the weekly was excellent.
Thank you.
But without this part-time job I still wouldn't survive.
Here.
Thank you. This is welcome.
It seems you want to talk about Yashima-kun.
Yes. Yashima and I were good friends.
Why didn't you tell so at the factory?
We get in trouble if we don't know our place.
Did Yashima-kun forget his place?
Do you know the Interlock system?
No.
Normally, if a person touches the conveyor belt by mistake,
the system stops it to avoid accidents.
A safety system?
Yes.
But it doesn't work too well.
If you use it too often, it easily breaks.
Before we refill the material
we should interrupt the conveyor belt.
Yashima!
He hurt his back badly.
He couldn't move for 5 min.
Did they call an ambulance?
The supervisor and the manager came right away.
They took him to the staff room for a short rest.
Then they told him to leave early.
He said his right arm was numb.
He took one week off,
but he couldn't go to hospital
because we don't earn enough money.
But the company has to pay for a workplace accident.
Even if we go to hospital, they forbid us to talk about accidents,
and they don't report workplace accidents.
Why is that?
Kaneseki management
orders temp staff to keep quiet.
That's probably why Yashima was fired.
And if someone asks who told you ...
Of course I won't tell.
Thanks for talking to me.
I don't know what happened to him.
He went to Tokyo.
He was my only friend.
They're hiding workplace accidents?
So, that's the connection between Yashima and the victim.
I think that Yashima knew the victim.
Look over there.
This is the Director of Manufacturing.
He could have us fired
with one word, just like that.
So Yashima, who had lost his job because of the victim,
planned to put pressure on him by means of the workplace accident.
That's why he had the knife.
We don't know if the knife is Yashima's.
As long as he remains unconscious, many questions remain unanswered.
Good evening.
Where have you been so long?
I lost my train pass. I had to walk back.
Where's that new pair of socks?
Here.
Thank you.
The landlord came again for his rent.
We have two days left.
I get it.
You don't get it.
We can't go by on my part-time job alone.
You said your numb hand was better.
Well, yeah.
So find a job, whatever it takes!
Listen, Kaori.
There's a job I always wanted to do.
- Today I found ... - You have to put bread on the table.
The world is not for dreamers.
Pull yourself together!
This way please.
So many people came!
He really was a distinguished man.
Thank you for everything.
Yuto-kun, do you keep swimming?
Your father was so proud of it.
Isn't that your son?
Yes. He participated in a swimming competition recently.
Speaking of it, weren't you also an athlete in your youth?
Sort of.
He is just like me, more sportsman than intellectual.
We know so little about Dad, his good sides.
I wish we had talked more often.
Are you ok? Do you eat properly?
Sure, I'm fine. I won't die of starving.
The suspect is still unconscious?
Seems so.
Will he recover consciousness?
I have no idea. The police don't talk.
- Aoyagi! - Teacher!
Thanks for taking the time.
It was hard, wasn't it?
Hang on.
Yes.
If there's anything I can do, please tell me.
Thank you very much.
The unconscious man in this hospital
had an accident in the factory of the victim half a year ago
and was one week unfit for work.
For a workplace accident with more than 4 days off
it is required to write a report.
Yet neither Kaneseki Metals nor
the employee reported it.
This workplace accident hiding...
The news moved fast! They already know about the workplace accident.
It was leaked by our superiors.
If the worst happens to Yashima,
it's easier to close the case with a designated suspect.
No doubt, it's Aoyagi's dad's company.
You think that's a reason to kill?
I tell you: This was the motive, for sure!
Good morning.
Thank you for coming to the funeral yesterday.
Aoyagi, one moment!
I deeply apologize.
Did you receive instructions to hide the accident?
Yes. I received the instruction from the director.
Aoyagi-san himself gave the instruction?
That's right.
Labor Agency will probably launch an investigation.
It will tarnish the image of the company.
Welcome.
Thanks for coming.
- Which person is it? - Right in front of you.
About a month ago,
you met this man here?
Yes, that's right.
It was a shock to see him on the news.
You remembered his face well.
Because he engraved himself on my memory.
Is this for a prayer?
No.
Right. One must not talk about it.
- I'm sorry. - No problem.
Sorry, I have some more shrines to visit.
If you'll excuse me.
All purple paper cranes?
Exactly.
This is quite something to remember.
"I have some more shrines to visit"?
This shrine is dedicated to one of the "Seven Lucky Gods of Nihonbashi".
My shop is here. This is the nearest shrine from here.
Aoyagi-san bought the glasses case there.
This is quite a good walk.
The reason why he came to Nihonbashi
was to visit the 7 shrines.
Kaga-san!
I don't think this man was like they say in the news.
I'm sorry. I shouldn't tell mere journalist's hunches.
If you come to that conclusion after meeting him a number of times,
it is more than a hunch.
Thanks for your help.
Good morning. Sorry for taking a day off without warning.
Nakahara-san, come over for a moment.
The suspect in the Nihonbashi murder case
is your companion, right?
You are living together, are you not?
Now the police is doing a painstaking investigation.
You understand, we're a business.
If strange rumors start ...
It's her!
You are Nakahara Kaori-san, right?
Nakahara-san!
You are the girlfriend of the Nihonbashi murder suspect!
Tell us about that workplace accident!
Kaori.
How is it?
- Looks good. - It's lame.
Kaori.
Right now,
I don't have money, but
I will surely make you happy.
Yes?
Nakahara-san.
It's me.
I killed him.
I am
Fuyuki-kun's ...
Her anemia is not dangerous,
but Nakahara-san is pregnant.
In her 3rd month.
Can I talk to her?
Well, it should be possible now.
What do you say?
Mentally, it would still be hard for her.
We don't have time.
Please.
It's Fuyuki-kun's baby.
Did Yashima-san know about it?
He had once worked for a building contractor, right?
Yes.
At that time, did his job
require him to use knives?
I don't know.
But now he doesn't own a knife.
You can't know about everything he owns, can you?
I know it better than he did.
Why do you say so?
The one who found his new pair of socks that day was me.
When he spoke to you on the phone
he had the bag of the victim.
- But he didn't tell you. - Kaga-san!
In fact, you don't know anything about him.
He did tell me!
"What shall I do?"
He said he'd done something bad.
I see.
This was his last call.
Yashima-san
was looking for his new pair of socks that same day, right?
Why...
Why that day of all days?
There's a job I always wanted to do. Today I ...
You have to put bread on the table.
The world is not for dreamers.
Pull yourself together!
I pressed him too hard.
I was blaming our poverty on him.
That's why he committed such ...
I'm the one who killed him.
I killed Fuyuki-kun.
He said, "I've done something bad."
Once we know where the knife comes from, it's settled, right?
Alright. We'll announce the suspect's death to the press.
All of you,
please put together a comprehensive report.
Yes!
Excuse me.
The person Yashima met
could have been an employer.
Probably he had seen a poster.
You mean he saw a poster offering a job and applied for it?
He went in and was told to come the next day.
True, there was no phone call with any company on his phone.
But I think he needed the new socks for an interview.
I presume he intended to wash them
near the company he wanted to visit.
What are you saying? We're having the press conference today.
We could search for that company just today and hold the conference tomorrow.
Alright then.
I'm not your puppet on strings.
When talking to higher-ups, you get through smoother and less conspicious.
Everyone knows where the suggestion came from.
I've told you often enough:
Obeying the instructions is rule No 1.
We'll check these 7 temples!
That's an instruction for you.
In Kasamainari Shrine, about 4 months ago,
the victim was seen
offering green paper cranes.
About 3 months ago in Ochanoki Shrine,
all of them were light-blue paper cranes.
And he was seen taking pictures with his camera.
I didn't think we'd walk that much.
Go back if you don't like it.
I didn't say that.
We need to understand why Aoyagi-san prayed at all these shrines.
Between today and tomorrow we'll be walking a lot.
If you don't like it, talk to the chief. He'll find you another partner.
Once again. I didn't say that.
Next stop is Suitengu Shrine. I'll go on my own.
We'll go together!
Yes, since about half a year.
They were placed here.
I counted them. There were always exactly 100 cranes
together with an envelope holding 1,000 yen.
Always the same color cranes?
Yes. The first 100 were yellow.
Then green, then blue, every time a different color.
You saw the person who left them?
No.
It seems he always came when no one's around.
People come to Suitengu to pray for safe child-birth, right?
Yes.
The only pregnant person in this case is Nakahara Kaori.
She's 3 months pregnant.
He came to Suitengu since 6 months.
You're right.
What kind of paper did he use for the cranes?
About that size,
Japanese made.
This is it.
You know these shops well.
In Nihonbashi, that type of paper is only sold here.
As expected from a true detective.
Maybe you do even remember this man?
Yes, because he came again.
Again?
When I saw him the first time,
we didn't have enough of this type.
He wanted 10 sets.
So many?
What could he have had in mind?
I'm sorry, I can't tell.
I see.
By the way. What's the connection between a Kappa and pregnancy?
Ah, that's a charm to protect from drowning.
Drowning?
Kaga-san!
No doubt, this is the paper.
Really?
Thank you for your help.
Here.
Huh?
Of course, murder is absolutely inexcusable.
But to an extent, this suspect,
wasn't he the victim of a ruthless enterprise?
A symbol of modern social disparity.
Those idiots.
You said my friends would sympathize with our loss.
How can I face them tomorrow?
On the net and everywhere they write it's only natural that Dad was killed.
It can't be helped.
It's all his fault.
Haruka.
Are you still investigating?
And you? Don't you still have unanswered questions?
What unanswered questions?
Why was your father in Nihonbashi?
You're content with us closing the case without knowing that?
Content or not, my father reaped what he sowed.
It was wrong of him to hide that workplace accident.
Someone hated him for that, that's all.
- So what! - Stop it!
So what!
"He collapsed on Nihonbashi's famous Bridge."
The media are making such a fuss over it.
Just more trouble for us.
Your father didn't just collapse there.
He came onto that bridge,
to the statue of the Kirin,
with his last powers in order to die there.
Kirin?
On Nihonbashi bridge
there's a winged Kirin statue.
Why did your father
take the pain to walk all the distance from where he had been stabbed,
instead of asking someone for help?
"My brother has always hated Dad."
That's what your daughter said.
It happened when Yuto was younger.
During a summer vacation.
You want to quit?
I have quit already.
Why? You said it was fine with your study schedule.
You said you'd stay in the swimming club.
Why?
- Why did you quit? - Dear...
When I was in school,
I was a dedicated swimmer. I told you that, didn't I?
But I had to work part-time for my family.
I couldn't ...
I've heard that story already.
But you're so talented.
I can't hear it anymore!
- Thanks for the meal. - Yuto!
Yuto!
My husband taught Yuto to swim.
He wished his own father had done that for him.
Usually, he was the mute father figure.
But when it came to swimming,
he spoke with enthusiasm.
Until that summer vacation.
So why did Yuto quit swimming?
Well...
What happened to Yuto-kun at the club?
What changed?
I'm not sure.
Maybe an accident is worth mentioning.
An accident?
A junior at the swimming club
sneaked into the school pool at night.
It seems he drowned.
But fortunately his life was saved.
By the way, your husband,
was he a religious person?
For example, did he often visit shrines?
No.
He did not even visit the shrine with his family on New Year.
Among your husband's kinship, is there someone pregnant?
Not that I know of.
I see.
Tell me.
Is it so bad to hide a workplace accident?
He's been killed. Let's leave it at that.
To hide a workplace accident is a crime.
It can have serious consequences.
But, there's no murder that we should "leave it at that".
That's what I firmly belief as an inspector.
[ Wings of the Kirin ]
Why?
We found the company who interviewed Yashima on that day.
It is a furniture store in Kyobashi named "Woodwork".
[Staff urgently needed] He saw the poster and entered.
But the manager was not here, like today.
I told him to come again the next day at about 6 pm.
Shoes are not allowed in this office.
That's why he needed new socks on that particular day.
And was he hired the day of the murder?
No, they where only offering part-time jobs for an event.
Yashima-san was looking for a permanent job in the furniture business.
In any case, he met with the victim shortly after that interview, didn't he?
No. Fact is, the boss empathized with Yashima
and recommended him to a colleague in Edobashi.
Yes, it was unexpected.
He was recommended by Woodwork and I interviewed him.
I wanted to settle it the very day.
I thought he was a trained professional.
But he said he had worked for a building contractor
and was making furniture only as a hobby.
That level of qualification.
In the end, he wasn't hired.
Yashima-san went back right after 7:00 pm.
The victim entered the cafe at 7:00.
The distance and timing would allow it.
Under these circumstances,
Yashima coming out of that workshop in Edobashi
and the victim visiting the 7 shrines
could very well have met by chance.
Yashima, who had failed at his interview,
thought that he was in that predicament
because Kaneseki Metals had fired him
and decided to talk to the victim.
They went to the cafe next door.
Yashima threatened to expose the workplace accident.
The conversation turned bitter and he decided to attack him in the underpass.
Sounds plausible, doesn't it?
Just tell it yourself.
What doesn't fit is their meeting by chance and Yashima carrying a knife.
He had the knife for self-defense. He had a record of petty crimes.
Such a guy would habitually...
What is it?
The knife .. maybe he had it that day to show his carpentry skills.
Of course! Yashima was making furniture with it.
I think we should follow that reasoning.
But we need to verify it at the two companies.
I see.
We postpone the announcement until tomorrow evening.
Yuto, come quickly!
Haruka.
Haruka!
Call an ambulance!
Ok.
I'm returning Yashima-san's belongings.
This is that new pair of socks.
It's embarrassing, not because it's the only new pair he has,
but .. it's as if we were married.
We know now which company interviewed him.
A furniture shop near Nihonbashi.
He wanted to make furniture.
He made this table too?
We didn't have any money.
So he made all these here by himself.
It's as you said before.
I ...
didn't know anything about him.
You didn't tell him you were pregnant, right?
Because I was afraid
to get pregnant without work or money.
Maybe he would have run away.
What you have said before,
that he could not kill anyone,
do you still believe it?
I don't know.
What an idiot!
To attempt suicide
just because people say Dad did something bad!
Since last night, did Yuto-kun meet someone?
No.
Did he see something about the case on the net or on TV?
Well, I don't know.
That incident stirred up some painful emotions.
Murder is like cancer.
Once it enters the body, it spreads pain all over.
Please question Yuto.
About what?
About what I just asked his mother.
Kaga-san.
I'm going back to the starting point.
Nakahara-san.
Excuse me for startling you.
Inspector.
Are you ok?
It's not good to over-exert in your condition.
I'm fine.
What are you doing here?
I've gone back to the starting point.
This is the way I do things.
Isn't it why you came here too?
You mean Fuyuki-kun's last phone call?
Yes.
It was from here.
This is where
he called me from?
Then the officer detected him
and he ran that way.
I just can't believe it.
Fuyuki-kun
didn't kill a person.
Even if no one believes in him,
I believe in him.
Inspector, Fuyuki-kun cannot have killed someone.
Yes.
I understand.
Where do you want to go in Tokyo?
Just drop us anywhere convenient as long as it's in Tokyo.
You're quite carefree, my friends.
So... the place where Tokyo starts.
What's this?
The place where Tokyo starts?
Well, we're driving right through it.
Thank you very much.
All roads in Japan start from here.
In short, this is the heart of Tokyo.
See you,
my carefree friends.
Thank you very much.
This is Tokyo.
Yeah, Tokyo.
Hurray! Hurray!
"It all starts from here."
When we heard that, we were so happy.
When was that?
Pardon?
When you shouted "Hurray", when you came here the first time?
3 years ago, about this time of the year.
I could tell exactly from my diary.
I thought a woman always remembers such days.
I would remember it,
if it were an important festive.
But we didn't celebrate it.
Fuyuki-kun and I forgot that day.
So please check it.
Your diary will tell you, right?
I will find it out.
Do you know this?
A dragon?
It's a Kirin.
It's a legendary animal. A combination of several animals.
Can it fly?
No,
it didn't have wings originally.
But all roads of Japan start from here.
So the wings were added to symbolize that from here the Japanese can fly everywhere.
But,
this one will never fly.
This Kirin
is exactly like ... me and Fuyuki-kun.
Yuto-kun!
Someone you know?
His father
died over there.
You mean...
No doubt, he also came back to the starting point.
I have heard about your sister. I'm glad it's not serious.
Tell me about the workplace accident.
Was it really all my father's fault?
It's regrettable, but it's a fact.
You pretend Father was dear to you.
But once you get exposed, you blame it all on him.
You're still a kid. You can't understand this.
Don't make a fool of me!
Do you think you can get away with this?
Stop it!
Father wasn't such a scoundrel!
Let me go!
"Father wasn't a scoundrel"?
- Is that what he said? - Yes.
Last night he said, "He reaped what he sowed".
Yuto must have realized something overnight.
By the way, we couldn't learn from the two furniture shops
whether Yashima-san had a knife or not.
I see.
So our bosses will announce he had it for self-defense
together with the news of his death, on the press conference tomorrow.
I won't let that happen.
This is the security camera opposite to
the one that filmed Aoyagi-san.
There is no take of the victim.
However, this is very probably Yashima.
At 7:40 pm,
the victim must have been with someone else.
The victim did not meet with Yashima?
What made you check that distinct camera at that time?
If Yashima had been in the neighborhood,
he would come here for sure.
Why is that?
This is an important place to him.
We'll have to cancel the press conference, right?
I know I look like a troublesome nurse to you.
Kaga-san, it's only once a year
when you should remember your father.
I'm not forgetting him,
but for me that account is settled.
What do you mean by "that account is settled"?
My issues with my father are all settled.
So you plan to keep staying far away from him?
Just as when your father died?
It was his own wish to die alone.
You think he left his home and his family in order to die alone?
I promised to respect his decision.
Is that a promise between father and son?
- Exactly. - It's ridiculous.
Such a promise, made in good health,
doesn't mean anything.
Have you ever
seen someone facing death?
It's part of my job.
Kaga-san, you don't know what you're talking about.
What do you mean?
What you see are just corpses, not persons.
I've met many dying people.
I played shogi with your father in hospital.
I know.
Yes, you told me by mail to do so
and to keep it secret from your father.
Just as I thought.
You knew my next move?
The most fun in shogi
is to read the mind of the opponent.
That looks like an inspector's insight again.
In the policeforce, many guys are good at shogi.
You learned it from one of them?
The one who taught me shogi
was my father.
So in the same way
you did teach your son?
I never had a chance to teach him anything.
I see.
What will happen next?
- Give him oxygen! - Yes
Shogi.
Yes?
What is it?
Shogi.
We'll play again tomorrow.
Quick.
Yes.
Can you see?
I'm sure your father
wanted to meet you at the end.
In fact, it wasn't about shogi.
He wanted to talk to his only son.
When people approach death
they drop their pride.
They come back to their true essence,
and when they have their last message to deliver,
we living persons have a duty to listen.
When I watched your father,
I realized that.
Therefore,
I feel compelled to keep bothering you.
I rarely see you cornered like that.
Listening to the message of the dying.
Is that the duty of the living?
Have I been completely mistaken all the time?
Wait! Where are you going?
Why did Yuto change his mind about his father? What do you think?
That story again?
He must have received a message from his father.
What message could his dead father have send him?
Aoyagi-san had visited Suitengu Shrine
and then, despite a lethal wound, he walked to here.
This is a message from his father?
Perhaps what he wanted to convey to Yuto-kun was:
"It's you".
This is the reason why Yuto-kun came here today.
Chief inspector!
The analysis of the security cam just arrived.
No doubt, this is Yashima in the picture.
The victim was at the cafe with someone else.
We need to question people around that cafe.
We have to find out who was with the victim.
Inspector Kaga!
What are you after?
You have mixed up that investigation again.
Answer me.
Where are you leading us to?
To Aoyagi Yuto.
3 years ago, one of the students drowned, right?
One night in summer,
a student sneaked into the pool.
Yeah. But why do you bring that up?
You were the first to find him, right?
Yes, I came there by chance.
During summer vacation, at night, what were you doing there?
What do you mean? That day there was a swimming competition.
I stayed late at the computer to enter the results.
Yoshinaga?
Yoshinaga!
I jumped in immediately.
Fortunately, I managed to save Yoshinaga-kun.
Where is Yoshinaga-kun now?
No idea. I heard he moved to Nagano Prefecture. I don't know where exactly.
Then, I'll find out.
Excuse me. How is that related to Aoyagi-san's death?
Sorry, I can't answer that.
But the murderer died. The case is closed, right?
The case is not yet closed.
By the way, Itokawa-sensei, you teach mathmatics, right?
Yes.
Junior High School mathmatics teaches many formulas, right?
What do you mean?
By formulas you can solve all kinds of problems.
But if you understand something wrong,
you are bound to repeat your mistake over and over again.
- That's correct, isn't it? - That's right.
For the kids to learn the right formulas,
please give them the right guidance.
Hello.
You had an appointment for an obstetric check-up yesterday, right?
You didn't come, so I was worried.
It was intentional.
I know very well that people say I'm nosy.
Are you moving?
Back to my hometown.
I still have a few friends there.
You want to give birth in your hometown?
Or does that mean you don't want that baby?
I don't feel strong enough to raise it on my own.
I've learned how tough the world is.
But that baby is your only family now.
What about Yashima-san?
If he heard you speaking like that,
what would he say?
Japanese police are nice, aren't they?
You hit someone, you injure him,
and yet you get off free.
He didn't file a complaint, so it's over.
That guy only got what he deserved.
Summer vacation, 3 years ago,
there was a swimming competition.
You participated in it.
How is Yoshinaga-kun doing?
Your father was visiting Suitengu Shrine.
It seems you know what I mean.
I don't know.
Why do you bring that up?
It's quite possible that it is related to the murder of your father.
At Suitengu, people pray not only in case of pregnancy but also in case of drowning.
Won't you tell it to us?
The message you received from your father.
That's enough.
I have nothing more to say.
Seems you have touched a sensitive spot.
He is not alone in this, otherwise he would have talked.
Yokota-kun!
Director Aoyagi didn't know about the interlock problem.
When the Director made his inspection, the system was up and running.
Can you walk?
Get back to work!
Get back!
- I'll inform the Director. - Hold it!
Don't tell Director Aoyagi about this.
I was only thinking of Yashima.
What they told on TV was not the truth.
I regret it.
I get it. We will thoroughly investigate that incident.
We need to talk.
Me, you, and Kurosawa-san.
Could it be about ...
I'll email you. Make sure to come.
Why so suddenly now?
Did someone tell you something?
That's not it.
No. Maybe you could say
my dad did.
We're police.
I'm Yoshinaga.
My husband comes back only at weekends.
He's an advisor for a number of companies in Tokyo.
Tomo-kun, visitors are here.
Hello.
He can breathe on his own.
You didn't sue the school?
The police confirmed it was an accident.
And you were content with that?
Of course not.
But I felt responsible.
Responsible?
He had been selected for a relay competition.
You mean the day of the swimming competition?
Yes.
All the other team members were 3rd years.
He was so afraid to let his senpais down.
You remember well what happened 3 years ago, don't you?
How could I forget!
On the day of the competition he wasn't good.
He called me on the phone in tears.
That's why that night
he sneaked into the pool to train.
We are sorry to bring back these harsh memories.
We are investigating because of this man.
Who is he?
Aoyagi Takeaki-san. Does that name sound familiar?
Every month he visited Suitengu Shrine in Nihonbashi.
He offered 100 cranes each time.
You know what I'm talking about, right?
Hanako-san in Tokyo!
I'm keeping a blog.
It's a kind of nursing diary for my kid.
From all over the country I receive messages of gratefulness and encouragement.
Some are even kind enough to post regularly.
One of them is Hanako-san in Tokyo.
She takes 1,000 cranes in 10 sets
and places them in the 7 Lucky Gods Shrines of Nihonbashi.
For my kid.
When did that start?
One year ago.
Excuse me.
Kaga-san!
[The Wings of the Kirin] [I dream that one day it will spread its wings]
For Tomoyuki-kun
she's doing an incredible job, isn't she?
The relay team.
Aoyagi Yuto, 3rd year.
Sugino Tatsuya, 3rd year.
Yoshinaga Tomoyuki, 2nd year.
Kurosawa Shota, 3rd year.
Some friend came and they went out.
He said a friend from the swimming club.
Aoyagi-kun?
Right. Aoyagi-kun.
Sugino Tatsuya also was called and went out.
Understood.
Does your son have a cellphone?
Yes. Why?
Don't tell him about me, just ask him where he is.
Yuto-kun!
- You are Kurosawa-kun? - Yes.
They're inspectors.
Sugino is not here yet?
What time is the meeting?
At 7 o'clock.
You fixed the time by phone?
By email.
That's bad. We must expect the worst.
I'll look inside the station.
It's Kaga. I need an emergency deployment.
Sugino Tatsuya, High School senior, black short hair, about 1,75m tall.
He's a person of interest in our present case.
Now arriving at platform 2...
Sugino!!
You know why Sugino Tatsuya wanted to die.
And why your father visited Suitengu in your place.
"Hanako-san in Tokyo"
It's you, isn't it?
Excellent.
When Yoshinaga reached 2nd year, his times greatly improved.
This competition was his first participation for our team.
Too early!
Wait!
I'm so sorry for today. It's all my fault.
You are the worst. You screwed our qualification.
Sincerely, I'm so sorry.
Just because the teacher noticed you, you think you are ready for it?
It's not like that.
Go back to training. We'll see how sincere you are.
I'm sorry.
- From tomorrow morning, I promise... - Not from tomorrow!
From today!
Exactly. Guys, let's go for a special training.
Good idea. Let's do it!
Larger strokes with your arms.
What's that, Yoshinaga? Be serious!
Several more, back and forth.
- Don't be lazy. - Ok, let him swim.
Come on, swim!
Let's sink him! Ready, go!
Your arms, swing them higher.
Attention! Get out quickly!
Who is there? What are you doing?
- Where's Yoshinaga? - He must have run out before us.
Certainly not. Let's find him.
There he is!
Shubunkan Junior High. It's a second year student.
As quick as possible please.
I'll do it.
- How could this happen? - Special training.
What you taught us, holding his legs while he moves his arms.
Idiots!
Teacher, we are so sorry.
The ambulance is coming soon. You guys get out!
But ...
Don't tell it to anyone.
Say you have never been here.
Get lost!
The next day, the police came to our school.
They questioned the members of the swimming team.
Maybe I was too harsh with him after yesterday's defeat.
He felt it was his fault.
So he sneaked into the pool on his own.
We knew
Yoshinaga-kun was going to tell everything as soon as he'd wake up.
Of course, we wished for him to wake up.
On the other hand, we were afraid of it.
However, Yoshinaga-kun didn't wake up again.
Then we graduated.
It's despicable of us, but we totally forgot about him.
Until one year ago.
A friend from Shubunkan showed it to me.
What's this blog?
It's Yoshinaga.
[Kirin-kun was happy to see Tokyo again after a long time on occasion of a regular medical check-up. The weather wasn't good, yet we visited Suitengu Shrine.]
Suitengu Shrine!
Hello. I regularly read your blog.
Recently, I had an opportunity to visit Suitengu.
I prayed for you too.
I wish Kirin-kun will wake up soon.
To Hanako-san in Tokyo.
Thank you for your kind encouragement.
I think Kirin-kun is glad of it too.
Can I post it on my blog?
Hanako-san in Tokyo, thank you for visiting the 7 shrines.
What I had done can never be forgiven.
I was always aware of it, but
this was all that I could do.
I hoped my prayers might somehow awaken Yoshinaga.
So why did you suddenly stop visiting the shrines?
I found a shop specialized in Japanese paper selling sets of 100 of the same color. They are so beautiful in lines. Please convey my greetings to Kirin-kun. Hanako in Tokyo.
What are you doing here?
My computer crashed and I needed to ...
Stop it! You can't enter here as you please.
- This page came up as I switched it on. - Alright, now go!
Who are you corresponding with under a female name?
How dare you read!
- Did you ... - I did nothing wrong.
- Get out quickly! - Wait! Yuto!
At this moment, I was seized by an uncontrollable fear.
I trashed all the cranes I had folded and stopped visiting the blog.
"Your father didn't just collapse there."
But then that inspector said,
"He came onto that bridge, to the statue of the Kirin,
with his last powers in order to die there."
"Kirin?"
"On Nihonbashi Bridge, there's a winged Kirin statue."
So I went back to the blog
after a long time.
I noticed that Hanako in Tokyo was still visiting that blog.
How can it be?
All that time someone had been placing cranes.
Dad?
Your father had realized
that "Kirin-kun" on that blog
was a member of your swimming team at Shubunkan Junior High.
A schoolmate of his son.
However...
he couldn't imagine why you used a fake name.
His son had prayed for the recovery of a friend, but then suddenly stopped.
This must have made that friend's mother sad.
So he took it over. [This is Hanako in Tokyo]
In the end,
this may have been his way to apologize.
When he read the mails you had sent to the blog,
he learned what origami paper you had used for the cranes.
Yellow,
green,
light-blue,
and blue
cranes arranged in a line.
Half a year ago, it had been purple cranes.
Only the white cranes were left.
At that moment, a photo was uploaded on the blog.
The photo of the swimming team.
Your father suddenly realized that the accident had happened at the day of that competition.
Then,
at once he solved the riddle of your relationship with him.
Why you were using a fake name to email.
Why you had abruptly stopped swimming at that time.
Perhaps
Yoshinaga's accident was connected to his son.
Sugino speaking.
Are you Sugino Tatsuya-kun?
Well, yes...
Yoshinaga Tomoyuki, do you remember him?
I am
his father.
I need to ask you something.
I panicked.
We had destroyed the life of his son.
He would surely hand us over to the police.
That's why you took along the knife?
What do you want to talk about?
Before we start, I need to apologize.
I am not Yoshinaga-kun's father.
I am Aoyagi Yuto's father.
Aoyagi?
I didn't want Yuto to learn that we'd meet,
so I lied.
I'm sorry.
I only claimed to be Yoshinaga-kun's father to make you come here.
This accident 3 years ago,
did Yuto tell you something about it?
Whatever he may have told you, I'd like to know.
I'm begging you.
So you told him the truth, right?
No.
I told him I hadn't been present at that time.
That his son had done it alone.
I see.
I'm grateful you told me.
Of course, I should have had that conversation directly with my son.
I'm pathetic, am I not? I couldn't muster such courage.
- Excuse me ... - But I promise
I won't drag you into this.
I'm sorry about all this.
Please.
What will happen to your son now?
What he did is unforgivable.
I can't leave it at that.
Are you going to hand him to the police?
- But then he will ... - It is not about him only.
I am responsible too.
I'm not a good father.
I didn't understand him at all.
I didn't realize how much he was suffering.
Sugino-kun!
But next day, I saw on the net that someone else was the murderer.
You were surprised?
Expecially since that suspect was unconscious.
I thought it was a miracle.
It was all over without exposing anyone.
But ...
today, when I received Yuto's mail saying
the police had connected
the pool accident 3 years ago with his father's death
and that they knew everything,
I thought I should die.
This is
the true reason why Sugino Tatsuya wanted to kill himself.
Really?
Had you not run away from the truth 3 years ago,
your father would not have died.
You kept avoiding your father, did you not?
But your father ...
"Why did you quit?"
When you quit swimming,
when he found your mails,
and finally when he detected your fault,
he never ceased
offering his hand to you.
Had you accepted to talk at that time,
had you properly told him the truth,
he would not have needed to ask Sugino-kun.
Why did your father,
severely wounded as he was,
without calling an ambulance or calling for help
drag himself to that Kirin statue?
When you read that blog, you understand, don't you?
The real meaning of the wings of the Kirin.
"We found this Kirin statue as we walked back from our visit to Suitengu."
"Now I know the meaning of it's wings. From here we can reach all places in Japan."
"It gave me courage."
"The wings of the Kirin are, no doubt,"
"the wings of courage."
That your father
could never find the courage to call you to account
was something he deeply regretted.
For that reason
he wiped off Sugino-kun's fingerprints.
When your father
saw he was going to die, he wanted to reach that Kirin.
For Yoshinaga-kun,
to make amends for his son.
And,
to leave a last message
for you.
"Have courage!"
"Do not run away from the truth!"
"Do what you think is right!"
That testimony
is here.
It was found in your father's car.
He kept folding these cranes in your place.
You knew that your father, who had done that for you,
would never hide a workplace accident.
Even if no one else trusted him,
you knew you could trust him.
That's right, isn't it?
I trust him.
I can trust him, can't I?
You can!
You still have almost 100 cranes here.
What are you going to do with them?
I'm sure you know it, right?
Because you concealed that incident
a student tried to take his own life.
I concealed it because I had only the students' best in mind.
When Aoyagi-san called you,
what did he really want?
He asked about the involvement of his son in that incident 3 years ago.
Am I wrong?
I told him he had nothing to do with it.
If at least at that moment
you had told him the truth, none of this would have happened.
I did it only to protect the kids.
So that their future wouldn't be ruined.
Don't give me that nonsense.
Because of you, how does their future look like now?
When Sugino-kun stabbed Aoyagi-san,
why do you think did he do it?
Because you
taught them something wrong.
Because you taught them 3 years ago
that they could get away with an offence by concealing it,
Sugino-kun killed Aoyagi-san and thus produced another victim.
This is
the future you created.
If you can't grasp that, resign as a teacher.
You are not qualified to teach students!
For what Yashima-san did here
there are probably two different reasons, I think.
Two?
He had been injured by an accident in the factory and was dismissed shortly later.
Just now, he had not got the job he had applied for.
He must have had a grudge against Kaneseki Metals.
That day,
Yashima-san spotted Aoyagi-san close by.
On impulse, he followed him.
But soon
he regretted what he just had done.
He called you.
"I've done something bad."
The second reason
is here.
Suitengu!
It's a shrine to pray for safe pregnancy.
Yashima-san came here to buy a votive picture.
- How much is it? - It's 500 yen.
Could I have it for 300 yen?
Really ... I'm sorry.
It's alright, I'll pay.
He didn't know that these pictures
were to be taken home.
He hung it on this tree.
A guardian of the shrine took it away.
This is it.
[For the baby that will be born] [I pray for a good job quickly.] [Yashima Fuyuki, June, 12, 2011.]
Fuyuki-kun.
The day you came to Tokyo hitchhiking,
wasn't it June, 13th?
That's right.
It's also the day of the incident.
You see, he never forgot this important day.
He wanted to get a job and celebrate with you.
And he wanted to congratulate you on your pregnancy.
This is why he did what he did.
It's not because you pressed him too hard.
I'll give birth.
I'll deliver this baby.
For sure,
I'll raise this child.
Suddenly the world is smiling to me.
If you see the world smiling to you, you're alright.
It's no use to stay in the dark and lose faith.
Aoyagi!
Is this for Yoshinaga?
This will never amount to any redemption.
That's right.
Still, let's go!
Aoyagi!
Here we are.
A good place to start, isn't it?
Yes.
I will make a new start from here,
together with this child.
I will never forget that you cleared Fuyuki-kun of any suspicion.
You can forget that, but what you shouldn't forget is:
For this child,
promise never to give up, no matter what!
Yes.
Thank you very much.
Let's go. If we're late, Kanamori-san will scold us.
I'm sorry for being such an annoying, scolding nurse.
It's about time for our appointment. Let's go now!