In the dark and cloud-covered sky, a golden light flickered fiercely, like a divine sword piercing through the heavens, cast down by a god from above the clouds to impale the earth...
A faint, thunderous roar echoed from the distance.
Inside the corporate high-rise, Yashida Shingen felt a slight tremor, but paid it no mind. His burning gaze was fixed on the leader of the Hand sitting across from him.
"Why ?" His voice was hoarse as he asked.
As the eldest son of the Yashida family, Shingen's life was far from ideal. To outsiders, he was the heir apparent, destined to inherit the family empire and beco one of the most powerful figures in the country, standing at the pinnacle of the power pyramid.
But only Shingen himself knew the truth; his aging father still held the reins of power. He was capable of mobilizing vast resources with a single word.
Shingen was little more than a puppet propped up on stage, with every major decision requiring his father's personal approval.
Take, for example, the secret laboratory in Yokohama. Its construction costs alone had exceeded billions of dollars, bankrupting nurous small and dium-sized enterprises under the Yashida na.
Yet Shingen had no power to refuse. All he could do was play the filial son, helping his father conceal financial reports and deceive the board of directors.
He had thought such obedience would earn his father's trust, that the family empire would eventually be passed to him. But in the end, Yashida Ichirō had chosen Mariko instead...
Elektra raised an eyebrow, replying, "You are the most suitable candidate, Mr. Yashida."
She was eting with the Yashida heir on Sean's behalf, intending to recruit him to their side. The aim was to consolidate power, strengthen the Hand, and carve out a foothold in the Asia-Pacific region.
"Your father clearly doesn't trust you. He favors your daughter, Mariko, while casting you aside. Those hidden financial reports, and the missing funds. If you don't seize control of the conglorate, once all this cos to light, your fate will be… unfortunate."
Drawing from intelligence gathered by the Hand and information provided by Sean, Elektra thodically chipped away at Shingen's psychological defenses.
"Isn't that why you collaborated with the yakuza? To assassinate Mariko and smoothly take power?"
Elektra t Shingen's shocked gaze with indifference, "Don't look so surprised. The Hand controls eighty percent of Tokyo's underworld. Your dealings with the yakuza couldn't escape our notice."
"Is this a threat?" Shingen straightened his back, attempting to salvage so dignity as the scion of a great family.
"No. This is leverage." Elektra replied coldly.
Her gaze shifted to the window...
Tokyo glittered under the night sky, while in the distance, a massive plu of dust rose into the air. Thick clouds swirled ominously, flashing with streaks of lightning.
Sean must have dealt with the Ghoul by now. Next would be HYDRA's secret lab. As for Ichirō? He was no threat at all.
Truthfully, if they were to choose an ally, the ruthless and cunning Ichirō would have been the ideal candidate. But Sean believed the old man's ambitions were too vast, and his greed insatiable. He wasn't soone who could be easily controlled.
Shingen, on the other hand, was far more manageable. His ambitions were confined to the family business, and his capabilities were diocre at best... hence why his father had sidelined him in favor of his granddaughter.
"Mariko is in our hands. Ichirō is dead. With the current heir under control, you hold the advantage."
Elektra's tone was calm, but the man across from her was anything but.
His father's heartless actions had severed the last threads of familial affection in his heart.
If eliminating his own daughter would secure his position as the head of Japan's greatest conglorate, Shingen wouldn't hesitate. In a family like his, blood ties paled in comparison to power and wealth.
"My father–" Shingen hesitated, sensing sothing amiss.
"The dead don't co back to life. Regardless of how it happened." Elektra cut him off.
She studied the so-called heir with a hint of disdain, recalling Sean's assessnt: "Ambitious yet timid, lured by petty gains but lacking resolve."
To win his father's approval, Shingen had hidden financial reports and deceived the board. Yet when he learned Mariko would inherit the family instead, he had resorted to hiring assassins to kill his own daughter.
Such actions revealed Shingen for what he was... a weak-willed diocre person who is only fierce in appearance. No wonder his father had written him off.
"Centuries ago, the Hand shared a close friendship with the Yashida family. I'd like to see that relationship restored."
Shingen lowered his head. After a long silence, he nodded...
...
~Yokohama, Secret Laboratory~
Viper sat at an ornate desk, conversing with the holographic projection of a man with a monocle and a sinister air.
The man's frown deepened:
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