Interlude #12: Tamura's Observation

I have a tendency to live in the now. I plan for the future - especially with operations - and I acknowledge the past. But I live in the now because I can only change now; yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come.

Many people cannot live that way. The 'now' eludes them. They allow 'then' - the past and the future - to control their decisions. That is why Moke-san often surprised his security teams; they were seeing in the past not in the present. It was much easier 'now' to surround him with beautiful, deadly women with whom he wanted to spend time, than use the same no-nonsense men that worked well 'then' with his older brother and father. It was easier 'now' to set up a parameter than to tail him - which he frequently slipped. It was easier to let him solve most of his own problems - making sure he was trained properly - than send a team in to rescue him each time it looked like he was in some sort of trouble.

As a result, the number of assassination and kidnapping attempts against him was much higher than the number of incidents reported. We handled them 'now' when the suspicious activity occurred instead of 'then' when Moke-san was involved. Resolve the issue now and there is no incident.

Over the years, Moke-san had become much like a son to me. There were even times when he, Ishtaaru and I pretended to be family - when it simplified travel or other things. I liked the boy; he seemed to like me. Over the years, he had come to me for advice or solace as he would an uncle. I cared deeply for the boy; felt a certain amount of pride over the man he was becoming.

But he was no longer my responsibility - not directly, at least. Kaiba Seto, our new Boss, had outlined my new responsibilities.

"Do you trust his current security team?" He had asked me after he had assumed the mantle of control.

"As much as I trust any team I am not a part of." I had replied.

He nodded and flipped a page in the folder on his desk. "I notice that Ishtaaru Isis' payroll is through your department and that her personnel file is sealed. I gather she is more than a simple nanny?"

"She has a few ... related skills." Her full background was something he could open, but I appreciated the fact that he didn't unseal the file. "I would not reassign her."

He smiled thinly. "Mokuba will be disappointed to hear it. I think he's quite tired of a babysitter."

We were both silent for a time.

Finally, he closed the file. "I am retaining Morimoto as Security Alpha. I find gaps in your personnel file that are disturbing." I nodded, but offered no explanation. He gave me another moment to speak, and then nodded. "Instead, I'd like you to create an internal security division. Take over the investigation on that missing KaibaArms inventory for a start. I'd like a full report on the status Monday morning. In addition, I'd like you to review protocols company-wide."

"Yes, Boss. What sort of protocols?"

"Any. All. Add a forensic auditor to your staff if there isn't one already and audit every department and every procedure. I'd like your primary concern to be the ongoing safety and health of KaibaCorp, but if you see something that is out of compliance, unsafe, or suspicious, investigate it."

"That will give a very broad range of access, sir. Many will feel threatened."

"Good." For a moment, he reminded me of Kaiba-sama. "Those that fear an audit, have something to hide. But I want you to understand - you have no authority to act. Yours is an investigative mandate. I want weekly updates on anything we determine is critical and monthly updates on the rest. I will determine what actions are taken and when. Is that clear?"

"Very clear, Boss."

"Good." He turned toward the window. "I have a personal matter I'd like you to resolve."

"Certainly, sir."

"Wheeler Joseph in currently contracting for our New York office. My understanding is that he was supposed to be blacklisted. All my friends were."

"After Hat Yai, yes. I was not involved in the administrative aspects, but that was my understanding as well."

"Do a full background check on all of them. If they pass, clear them. Including Wheeler. I don't know what Joey is doing -" he paused. He sighed heavily. "Irrelevant. Find out what he's doing for us. If it's dangerous, have him terminated. If it's not, contact his mother and assure her of that."

"Would you like to know -?"

"No." He cut me off quietly. "I would prefer not to know anything about him or about Mutou Yami. Just do the investigations and file the data."

"Very well, Boss." I paused. "Sir, there are some investigations for which it is better that you not be apprised of the full details. I don't know if you are familiar with the term 'plausible deniability'."

"Intimately." He said with a wry smile. "Naturally, if I was never informed of some small matters that later turn out to be of consequence, well, I am young. I don't have the experience to address all issues." He smirked, "or to recognize when I am not being given the full story."

"I'm sure you will gain such experience over time." I replied.

"I'm sure." He agreed. "Monday, seven-am. Do you have any issues I should address now?"

"Not at this time, sir." He nodded and dismissed me with a wave.

At the door, I paused. There was one matter. "Boss. The day Kaiba-sama died, he asked me to clear my schedule to handle an overseas matter for him. He had scheduled a full briefing for six-pm, but obviously..."

"Yes, there was a change in plans." He looked curious. "Do you have any idea what it was regarding?"

"No. Only the nature of the assignment."

"That being?"

I hesitated. "I often cleaned up loose ends. As I did in Hat Yai."

His expression hardly changed. "And you believe Gozaburo needed your ... cleaning services." I nodded.

He considered his response before opening a drawer. He tapped in a code and then tossed me a key card. "His office. I see you have a number of investigations to start. I want to know who and why as soon as you know."

"Should I complete the assignment?"

"That will depend on who and why."

I nodded, although that wasn't the response I expected. He was more like Kaiba-sama than I thought.

I hoped Moke-san's faith in his brother was not mislaid.

Nonetheless, I relished my new assignment. It did not take long to cull a group of security investigators from KaibaSecurity and other sources. Boss only questioned one of my new employees - Suzuki Ichiro. The man's qualifications for the position were impeccable and we knew that his dismissal from the Tokyo Police force had been in retaliation for being involved with the investigation after Kaiba-sama's death. We agreed to hire him in the lowest paid security position and on two-year probation. If he managed to prove himself - which I was confident he would - he would qualify for a modest raise and a permanent position then. I applied him to the most tedious tasks I could find and Kaiba-san seemed appeased. I was happy to note that, in the end, Boss was able to put his personal grudge aside and make the decision based on the facts presented.

For the Internal Security division, I already had several questions I wanted answered. Most of them turned out to be inconsequential. As typical with such things, however, the investigations of the innocuous revealed signs of other questionable practices - some of which lead to issues requiring action.

I regretted that Crawford had to be terminated, but it was clear that her relationship with the I2 executive was going to continue. I was also disappointed to discover a number of other staff members who had engaged in personal activities expressly forbidden by KaibaCorp policies. Internal Affairs is always the most hated department in any agency - even if it is one of the most necessary.

I spent the first several days in Gozaburo's office, checking files, reviewing voicemails and recreating the last week before he died. I had Morimoto also spend a day searching - although I did not tell him why.

There were several questionable files and calls. Many people and places coded by chess terms. I had to spend some time learning the game itself to determine a pattern in the codes. After a week of fruitless searching, I gave a list of the codes - but not the underlying data - to Boss. He knew Kaiba-sama's chess strategies; he might recognize a pattern where I did not.

I had one of my staff run the background checks on Boss's friends. We blacklisted the Mutous because of their involvement with I2. The Hondas we cleared; luckily, Mazaki-san had always been an employee in good standing and Boss decided to 'overlook' her breach of the fraternization policy. Otogi Ryuji had a few misdemeanors on his record, but nothing that actually breached corporate policy, so we cleared him as well.

Which left Boss's lovers. Again, I had to wonder about Moke-san's faith in his brother.

Mutou Yami did not exist. No one in the world had ever been given that name at birth or had it awarded by any court. No legal ID had ever been issued - and after a search of some rather shady sources by my entire team, it was unlikely that any illegal ID had ever been issued either. He had no citizenship number for any country, no birth certificate, not even a paystub. We couldn't even determine how he arrived in Japan - although his movements after he arrived were easily followed. With one exception.

Two hours after he was confirmed to be at Kame Game Shop, he was spotted in New York in the company of Wheeler Joseph. Four hours after that, he was confirmed back in Japan with Boss in Domino. It was not simply unusual; it was physically impossible.

Mutou's future was unknowable; his present, unknown. I did have, however, one source for obscure Egyptian data. I went to see Ishtaaru-san.

Moke-san had often accused me of having unspoken feelings for Ishtaaru-san. She was undeniably lovely and I had played the roll of her husband often enough. I found it a comfortable role to play; she seemed to find it equally acceptable. If there was a woman that I could - that I would want - to take as a wife...

But 'now' Ishtaaru had her own duties and it would be dishonorable to distract her from them. The past cannot be recaptured. The future may never come. Now, we have our own roles and that is all that matters.

She smiled when she saw me. "Akio-san." She bowed and I returned the gesture. "How may I assist you?"

"I need information about the Egyptian, Mutou Yami."

"Ah. Yes." Her eyes darted away from me. "Please, sit. I'll make us some tea."

I followed her into the kitchen rather than sitting down in the den where we usually meet.

She has never avoided my eyes before.

"I don't know much about him, I'm afraid." She said as she filled a kettle and turned on the burner. "He's allegedly related to Mutou Solomon; although usually, the family tries to pass him off as Yugi's elder brother. They resemble each other enough that most people accept that. And since the boy's parents are all but invisible, no one has bothered to verify the story."

"But you did?" I asked. She continued to keep her back to me as she gathered tea, honey and cups.

"Of course." She looked at me then. "When he began spending time with Seto, I knew, eventually, he'd be spending time with Mokuba."

"And what did you learn?"

"The obvious. He is not Mutou's grandson. He is Egyptian. He -"

"How do you know?" I cut her off.

She paused. "He's fluent in Coptic. First language. He barely speaks a word of Arabic; his Japanese is better." She waited for my next question.

The native speakers of Coptic were a very small tribe of Egyptian desert dwellers. Indeed, the only reason anyone else cared if the language survived was due to its biblical connections.

A few tribes spoke it, a few priests.

And Ishtaaru's family. Coptic was her first language.

"Do you know him?" I asked finally.

She turned back to her tea preparations. "No. We'd never met before Kaiba-san introduced us. It was at -"

"Did you know OF him?" I didn't move, but my voice seemed to grab her.

She took a deep breath and turned to face me. "Did I know of an 18-year-old boy who speaks my language and claims to be a third dynasty Pharaoh? No, Tamaura-san. I can honestly tell you I neither knew nor knew of anyone like that."

She was lying. About something. She'd lied to me twice before. Both times were over the same issue.

"Was he involved with your brother's death?"

Her eyes shifted, for just a split second, and then she met mine, holding my gaze. "Yes, I did speak to my family at length about Mutou Yami and, no, none of them believe that he is", she paused and chose her words carefully, "at fault for my brother's death."

"That is not what I asked."

"The temple collapsed. The desert reclaims its own. It has for millennia." She turned back to the shrieking teakettle and smoothly transferred the hot water to a delicate pot. "Do you think a boy called 'Pharaoh' can command the desert?" She picked up the tray and turned to me. "If I had to decide, I would say the boy named for the God of Sand was more able to do that. Shall we sit?" She led the way to the den.

She poured our tea as I sat. "As far as I can tell, Mutou-san found the boy in the desert and informally adopted him. He must be an orphan; none of the tribes in that area acknowledge a lost son. And I would be willing to believe that the boy is related to Mutou-san. There is a physical resemblance and the man did spend much of his younger days in the region. More than one desert girl has found herself in a tent with a foreign archeologist."

"So you believe that the boy came out of the desert as the long lost bastard of Mutou Solomon only to come to Japan for no particular purpose.