The downfall of Sanlang Association instilled fear among the other four smaller gangs in Xijing City. Each gang worried it might be next. Like rabbits mourning the death of a fox, they were at a loss about what to do. If they scattered, they would be picked off one by one. If they gathered together, they feared meeting the same fate as Sanlang Association—wiped out entirely, with thousands of core members eliminated and tens of thousands of foot soldiers dispersing into nothing, leaving behind only women and children weeping in despair.
Though each gang was slightly stronger than Sanlang Association, their strength was still limited. If someone could silently eliminate Sanlang Association, they could easily destroy these four gangs as well. Under immense fear, the four small gangs eventually thought of uniting.
Though these four gangs had their own conflicts and longstanding grudges, at this critical moment of survival, driven by rational instinct, and upon the proposal of a Japanese parliamentary senator, they decided to temporarily set aside their differences and unite, forming an unprecedentedly large gang.
Some among them had considered seeking protection from the Hejin and Mitsui families. However, at this crucial moment, these two families were not thinking about gaining allies but rather seizing the opportunity to profit. They demanded that any gang seeking refuge must become their vassals—meaning gang leaders would have to hand over all their members and become part of these families. Rather be a chicken’s head than an ox’s tail. Each gang had grown through generations of effort, and none dared betray their ancestors’ legacy by surrendering their hard-earned achievements. Thus, those considering surrender abandoned their last hope.
The destruction of Sanlang Association also alarmed the Japanese government and the Emperor. They feared that if these small gangs were eliminated, organized crime might consolidate into a single dominant force. If that happened, with the power these families possessed, they could potentially manipulate the government, turning it into their tool.
This scenario was unacceptable to politicians from other regional families and the royal family. To prevent such a situation, the government entrusted four politicians from these four families to persuade them to form a new gang to survive the crisis.
The newly formed gang was exceptionally strong, something Hejin and Mitsui families had never anticipated. Suddenly, they found themselves in the weaker position, which made them fear for their own survival.
The united gang paid special attention to who would hold leadership. Eventually, they agreed that the four gang leaders would temporarily form a joint leadership committee. Major decisions would be made collectively through voting.
Though the new alliance was powerful, each member had their own hidden agenda. To prevent sabotage, the government temporarily gathered them all in a temporary barracks in the suburbs, with the Self-Defense Forces providing external protection.
After several days of adjustment, the super gang finally managed to unite temporarily. Faced with their overwhelming strength, the leaders’ ambitions began to stir.
In a joint meeting, the four old men gathered: “Why have our small gangs always been bullied by Hejin and Mitsui families, constantly facing the threat of extinction? Now that we’ve united and gained immense strength, I believe we should strike first—eliminate Hejin family, then Mitsui family. In the end, Xijing City will be divided among us four. What do you think of this proposal?” an old man with a mustache passionately urged.
The other three strongly agreed, though one suggested formulating a specific plan during this meeting.
“I believe we can arrange it like this: the operation will take place at night. Two groups will stay behind while the other two attack one of the enemy’s small outposts. We won’t pre-select the target; based on intelligence, whichever is easier to eliminate will be our target. This will also cause mutual suspicion between the two families, preventing them from uniting. The next day, we rotate. If danger arises, the two attacking groups will quickly retreat to the base. This way, we can gradually erode the enemy’s strength and finally destroy them completely!” All four raised their hands in agreement.
No one had expected the situation to develop this far. With approval from the military, government, and the royal family, the four small gangs received many heavy weapons and standard military equipment, launching their operation on the fourth day after Sanlang Association’s destruction.
Their chosen target was a branch of Hejin family. After Sanlang Association’s destruction, Hejin family had urgently redeployed its forces, now forming a structure of two branches protecting one central headquarters. Mitsui family’s arrangement was similar.
Both families implemented measures: communication every half hour. If a branch encountered an overwhelming force it couldn’t resist, it was allowed to retreat underground to the headquarters, destroying the branch to eliminate the enemy.
If the headquarters were attacked and communication was lost for half an hour, the branches were authorized to launch devastating attacks—indiscriminate artillery bombardments. With generations of tradition behind them, at this critical moment of survival, both families spared no effort, revealing all their accumulated strength.
In this world, no one willingly sacrifices themselves for others. Though it was a joint attack by two gangs, each secretly retained two-thirds of their main forces in camp, sending only one-third of their core members along with thousands of peripheral members to join the assault.
The more powerful families had deeply embedded intelligence networks within other families. Before the battle even began, Hejin and Mitsui families had obtained information about the joint gang’s target, attack routes, retreat paths, and timing.
Upon receiving the news of the impending attack, Hejin family evacuated the targeted branch, leaving behind only a small suicide squad to detonate explosives and perish alongside the enemy once the attackers entered.
Meanwhile, Hejin family deployed forces to lie in ambush along the attackers’ retreat route after attacking Hejin, aiming for a brilliant ambush. This would weaken Hejin’s strength while depleting the joint gang’s forces, allowing them to profit greatly from the battle and eventually become the dominant power in Xijing City.
The joint gang’s first wave of attacks was originally aimed at Hejin family. However, halfway through the operation, the leaders of the two attacking gangs, fearing their plans might be exposed and their lives endangered, suddenly decided to change course and attack a branch of Mitsui family instead. This sudden change completely triggered an all-out yakuza war across the entire nation of Japan.
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