Chapter 013: Yasutsuna

After reading the report, Wang Bo asked, "Who is this man, and why did he kidnap Imamura Kiyoko? Could it be for money?"

Just now, Meng Bo had also mentioned that Imamura Kiyoko's father was the owner of the Imamura Newspaper.

In those days, the internet age had not yet swept the world.

Traditional newspapers were still indispensable reading for people. Unlike the sunset industry of the future, the newspaper business was at its zenith, in its glorious heyday.

As the owner of the Imamura Newspaper, he must be very wealthy.

So Wang Bo's first suspicion about the kidnapper's motive was money.

"Take a look at this too." Meng Bo took out an envelope and handed it to Wang Bo.

Wang Bo opened the envelope, pulled out the letter, and read it. It was a ransom note written in very polite language, using terms like "Dear Sir," "your daughter," and "I" throughout.

But the meaning conveyed between the lines was very simple... I heard you have a famous samurai sword at home. If you hand it over to me, I'll let your daughter go.

At the same time, the letter specifically stated that whether to report to the police was up to him, but he must hand over the sword at the appointed time, or else his daughter would die.

The letter appeared polite, but in reality, it was extremely arrogant, completely disregarding Japanese law enforcement.

Calling it a provocation was not an exaggeration.

"Interesting. Not for money, but for a sword." Wang Bo asked, "What sword does the Imamura family have? It must be a famous blade."

Meng Bo asked, "Have you heard of the Tenka Goken?"

"No, I haven't." Wang Bo shook his head.

Meng Bo explained, "These five swords are very famous national treasures of Japan. They are Mikazuki Munechika, Sōjuō Tsunetsugu, Dōjigiri Yasutsuna, Ōtenta Mitsuyo, and Onimaru Kunitsuna. Each has a deep historical background and legendary stories."

Wang Bo said, "Among these, I only know Dōjigiri Yasutsuna."

He knew of this sword only because, before his transmigration, while playing FGO, he had drawn Minamoto no Raikō, the owner of Dōjigiri Yasutsuna, and thus learned about its origin.

As for the others, Wang Bo had never heard of them.

But prompted by Meng Bo, Wang Bo realized, "You mean the owner of the Imamura Newspaper has a national treasure like one of the Tenka Goken at home?"

"No." Meng Bo shook his head decisively. "I said they're national treasures. Treasures of that level are in the hands of the state. How could they fall into a merchant's hands?"

"Then why did you bring that up for no reason?" Wang Bo couldn't help but complain, sizing up Meng Bo as if considering where to strike to give him an unforgettable lesson.

Feeling uneasy under Wang Bo's gaze, Meng Bo quickly said, "Although the Imamura family's sword is not one of the Tenka Goken, it has an inseparable connection with Dōjigiri Yasutsuna."

"What connection?" Wang Bo asked curiously.

Meng Bo said, "Do you know who made Dōjigiri Yasutsuna?"

Wang Bo shook his head.

Meng Bo continued, "The maker of Dōjigiri Yasutsuna was named Yasutsuna. He was once a swordsmith from Hōki Province, now Tottori Prefecture. It is said that Dōjigiri Yasutsuna was his masterpiece."

"And then?" Wang Bo pressed on.

Not daring to be slow, Meng Bo quickly said, "There is a legend that the Imamura family's sword is also a work by Yasutsuna. Though not as formidable as Dōjigiri Yasutsuna, it is still a very powerful blade."

"Of course, this is just a legend. Whether it's true or false, I don't know. But without a doubt, this sword has a very long history, said to have been passed down from the ancestors of the Imamura family."

Wang Bo nodded thoughtfully and asked, "So then, is Imamura willing to give up this sword to save his daughter?"

Meng Bo said, "Actually, Imamura Kōji did take out the sword. At the appointed time, he delivered the sword to the designated location and set up an inescapable net nearby."

"But it failed, right?" Wang Bo asked bluntly.

Meng Bo nodded and said, "Yes, it failed."

And the reason for the failure was not complicated. From the beginning, whether it was kidnapping Imamura Kiyoko or writing the ransom note, it was all done by one person, so Imamura Kōji always thought the kidnapper was alone.

So he entrusted Japanese law enforcement to handle it.

But when the other party came to take the sword, the law enforcement discovered that the other party was not alone at all. In that sword-taking battle, the other party had at least five people.

The Japanese law enforcement was caught off guard by this group.

Not only did they lose the sword, but many also lost their lives on the spot, suffering heavy losses.

More importantly, they did not rescue Imamura Kōji's daughter, Imamura Kiyoko.

This greatly disappointed Imamura Kōji.

After hearing about this, Meng Bo took the initiative to approach Imamura Kōji and told him that he had a way to rescue his daughter.

After inquiring about Meng Bo's reputation, Imamura Kōji decided to trust him.

He offered a reward of one million US dollars. As long as his daughter and the sword were recovered, he would hand over the million.

Upon hearing about the one million US dollars, Meng Bo was instantly full of motivation.

But he was not a reckless person. After understanding the kidnappers' strength, he was clear that alone, he could not defeat this group of kidnappers.

So he thought of cooperation, and when he thought of cooperation, he thought of Wang Bo.

The scene of Wang Bo effortlessly crushing the Skull Knight last time was still fresh in his mind, so this time Meng Bo instinctively wanted to cooperate with Wang Bo.

As long as he brought Wang Bo on board, dealing with these few people would be no problem.

Even if there were a few more enemies, they wouldn't fail.

After understanding the whole story, Wang Bo asked, "Where are these guys now?"

Meng Bo said, "This group disappeared after grabbing the sword. I'm currently tracking their whereabouts."

"So you haven't found them yet."

"Although I haven't found them, I've narrowed down the general area. I'm sure they're in Shibuya, and very likely in Daikanyama." Meng Bo said with some certainty.

Wang Bo realized, "No wonder you live in a place like this. But are you sure they're in Daikanyama?"

"Yes."

"How sure are you?" Wang Bo asked.

"About sixty to seventy percent." Meng Bo couldn't guarantee one hundred percent, but sixty to seventy percent was there.

Wang Bo nodded thoughtfully and asked, "Do you have any photos of them?"

"Yes!" Meng Bo fished out a few very blurry photos from a pile of documents on the bed.

But after looking at them, Wang Bo was speechless, because the people in these photos were all wearing various masks.