Espionage: You're tasked with spying, but you'll blow up the Special Higher Police?

146. Saotome Squad

After settling the Saotome team in, Kondo's adjutant asked with some doubt, "Sir, I've heard of Yosuke Saotome before. Everyone says he has extraordinary abilities that ordinary people don't have, but what exactly are those abilities? We've all failed to find any clues, how can these five people possibly find them?"

Kondo glanced at his adjutant and smiled slightly, saying, "It's normal that you haven't heard of his abilities. Yosuke Saotome has the ability to see into people's hearts, so you'd better not have any disrespectful thoughts in front of him, because he can sense it."

"Understanding people's hearts?"

Clearly, Kondo's adjutant was somewhat skeptical, but he was too lazy to explain further, waving his hand and saying, "Well, whether it's true or not, we'll soon be able to judge for ourselves. For now, grant Saotome's squad the highest authority, and all Special Higher Police agents must fully cooperate with their work. Routine arrests and interrogations will be handled by Number 76. They haven't achieved anything lately, so they need to be given a good talking-to."

The Saotome squad immediately got to work upon arriving in Shanghai. Their objective was to track down "Sun Wukong," the elusive figure lurking beneath the surface of the city and causing Kondo immense headaches. This individual had repeatedly disrupted the Japanese army's operations and plans in the area, yet they couldn't capture him, didn't even know who he was, and had no idea where he was headed—a rather awkward situation.

Therefore, finding this person is crucial to preventing such incidents from recurring. Otherwise, Kondo even developed some psychological trauma. He kept thinking about which transportation route to change, but just before implementing it, he felt that the information had definitely been leaked and the enemy was waiting on the way. As for the second batch of biochemical materials, they had not yet arrived in Shanghai and were just piling up at the dock.

Because of this, Kondo's teacher, Hiramaki Koichiro, flew into a rage at him, claiming that the raw materials in the secret research lab were already severely insufficient, and if he did not find a way to obtain the necessary equipment and chemical raw materials, the war on the front lines of the Empire would be hindered, and Kondo would become a sinner of the Empire.

Kondo dared not offend his teacher, so he apologized profusely while also informing him that Yosuke Saotome's team had arrived in Shanghai and begun their investigation. Upon hearing this, Koichiro Hiramaki's emotions calmed down; clearly, he also knew that Saotome possessed special abilities that others did not have.

The day after Saotome's team arrived in Shanghai, all the police in the city stopped their overt searches and gave them two days off, allowing the people of Shanghai to take a breather from the previous high-pressure policies.

Whether genuine or feigned, the Sakura Merchant Guild pretended to give away some food for free, but the atmosphere in the entire city remained oppressive, tense, and suspicious.

Zhou Hongyi's antique shop, "Onepiece," has seen a significant decrease in customers due to the changing circumstances. Previously, most of the customers came specifically to buy antiques from Elizabeth, and later, some merchants also sought to curry favor with Zhou Hongyi. Now, the once bustling shop is deserted, and he can't even find old items in the surrounding area. The Japanese army's blockade of major transportation routes and inspections of transport vehicles have nearly depleted the shop's inventory.

However, Zhou Hongyi wasn't worried about this. His antique shop wasn't originally meant to make money; fewer people would actually be better. He genuinely wanted to make some money at the Paramount, although it had suffered some setbacks. For example, some customers who were previously neutral abandoned the Paramount after seeing Japanese officers and traitors frequently visiting, and instead went to other nightclubs.

Furthermore, during this period, the Japanese army implemented time controls on entertainment venues in Shanghai, and the shortened operating hours meant reduced revenue. Not only that, but Japanese officers often spent money and drank excessively without paying, and Zhou Hongyi was currently on Kondo's list of suspects, making it inconvenient to use force to collect debts.

Fortunately, the deficit on the first floor was largely covered by the member rooms and VIP members on the second and third floors. The most loyal VIP customer was Hirama Koichiro, Kondo's teacher. Ever since he almost died from the "ice and fire" sensation the first time he tried it, he'd fallen in love with the feeling and would come back every few days. Zhou Hongyi even suspected that the old man might have some kind of special fetish.

However, a new problem soon arose. A small entertainment venue in the bustling city of Shanghai went out of business and was rented out. The person who took over was said to be a small-time businessman. He renovated the venue and reopened it, naming it "Little Kyoto," with a completely Japanese style. This caused Zhou Hongyi to lose a lot of his customers.

However, losing business was a minor matter; Zhou Hongyi could still make money through shady channels to cover it up. But after this incident, underground members of the Red Party and the Kuomintang, including the Axe Gang members, went into hiding. In addition, the Japanese army and the agents of the 76th Division carried out a frenzied manhunt, which led to the obstruction of our traditional intelligence transmission channels.

In the past, apart from Zhou Hongyi, people like Chen Gong, Puti, or Chen Xiaodao all had their own channels for obtaining intelligence, but now without exception, they have all gone silent. Moreover, several related undercover personnel have been exposed. Fortunately, no greater impact or loss has been caused.

Furthermore, the increased patrols by the Japanese army significantly restricted the operational space of our underground personnel. To avoid exposing their identities, intelligence gathering by the Military Intelligence Bureau essentially fell to a few individuals, including Chen Gong. The Axe Gang's strongholds in the old city and the southern docks of Shanghai were frequently monitored, forcing them to use sewers and underground channels to move the wounded and supplies. As for the guerrillas, the impact was relatively less, but all roads in and out of Shanghai were strictly blocked, resulting in poor communication between the guerrillas and those inside the city, making it impossible for them to know the situation within the city and increasing the difficulty of coordinated operations.

Faced with this predicament, Zhou Hongyi planned to use the death of Captain Xu Guodong to further incite conflict between the Second Branch Bureau and the Japanese and spies. These people were his potential informants. He also considered the short but shrewd newspaper boys who were familiar with the local terrain of Shanghai. Despite the oppressive policies of the Japanese and spies, they had managed to sell many newspapers. Could they gather intelligence while selling newspapers and then submit it to Zhou Hongyi, who could then analyze it to determine its usefulness?

While Zhou Hongyi was trying to restore the intelligence network to normal operation, the five senior spies of Saotome's squad were also conducting a detailed investigation and discovered some clues.

"Commander Kondo, these are some of the suspicious points we've gathered over the past few days. Based on the questioning and investigation of relevant personnel, I noticed that a person named Zhou Hongyi appears at each point in the incident. He is also a student of Shimazu, the former head of the Special Higher Police, and is also known as Sarutobi Sasuke. I wonder if Commander Kondo has conducted any investigation into this person?"