You took down a few notes as you walked through the long hallway to your room on the 18th floor of Tokyo's world famous Blue Garden Hotel and Resort. You had been posing as a guest for the past weekend and had observed an auction taking place in the back lobby. In addition to various antiques and relics there was a near pristine suit of valuable samurai armor... just as your boss Ryu had predicted.
The thing had been sold to a wealthy historical club who would no doubt seal it away in some private museum for their eyes only. At least, that was probably their plan. If you and the Sakura Garden Yakuza had a say the treasure would soon be finding a new home safe and sound in Ryu's office, where it would likely be departing to a rich underground collector shortly afterwards. Whatever its fate, you had been promised a large payday for securing the armor by any means necessary and you intended to collect.
As you swipe your keycard through the scanner on your door you take a moment to reflect on your days working for the mafia back in America. Your old boss wasn't as friendly as Ryu, but the guy had a strong moral code and did a lot to look out for his crew. You had actually been up for a big promotion before you ended up getting sent overseas to oversee a budding partnership with the local yakuza. Nearly two years later and you had succeeded in establishing strong ties between the two groups, but the SGY still had a ways to go before they'd be the dominant players in Japan.
You had been instructed to return once you had helped remove any rival factions and ensure a long prosperous future between the two organizations. Things were progressing smoothly enough with the SGY now one of the bigger gangs in Japan, but you still had a few more years worth of work before you could return home. You weren't complaining though, with the loans you had to take out to help build your empire you saw this assignment as one big extended vacation. Yeah, you were starting to receive a few angry messages about paying back your debt, but that's what this job was for.
"Once I pay back that loan and smooth things out with the boys in the SGY I'll be heading back out west so I should enjoy the time I've got left here." you note as you change into a silk robe and order a bottle of champagne and ice to be brought up to the room. The boss man had provided you plenty of extra cash to case this place and you weren't going to let a single yen go to waste. Just as you lit up a cigar you hear a soft knock at the door and get up to answer it.
"Who is it?" you call as you exhale a cloud of smoke. A young woman's voice then piped up from the other side. It was sweet and smooth like honey, but hid a tinge of venom that you were quick to pick up on. "Mr. David? Is that you? It's room service, I have your order for you." she replied sweetly. "Ah, that was quick." you joke as you open the door and gesture to an open seat near a wooden table sitting next to the bed. The woman silently walked in and took a seat before lighting up a cigarette and relaxing a bit.
"You can have a cigar or two if you like, I don't buy the cheap stuff." you offer as you sit down in your own chair and pull a small box off a nearby shelf. "How kind, you really are a gentleman." the woman replied as she stubbed out her cigarette and took a cigar from the box. You picked up your lighter off the table and lit it for her. After exhaling a plume of smoke she crossed her legs and straightened her posture.
"Thank you, now are you ready for your order?" the woman asked with a sly smile. "I have a few other "rooms" to visit yet and I want to keep on schedule." You nod and lean back in your chair as you pull out your notebook and let her continue. "I was only able to get a few looks at the armor before it got packed up inside the safe, but they're keeping it in a massive vault near the top floor. Expect at least a dozen guards and security personnel. The lock is entirely electronic, no lockpicking I'm afraid, you'll need to figure out how to open it or get something that can get through it. Looks pretty sturdy, I doubt a drill would cut it."
You scribbled down a few more details she gave as another knock came from the door. It was the actual room service this time, a man in a suit with your champagne and ice. You quickly thank him with a 10,000 yen tip and send him on his way while your lovely guest resumes talking. From the sound of things you would ultimately need three separate keycards from the guards and a password or something powerful enough to crack over 5 inches of hard metal. No easy task.
"Thank you my dear, you've been most helpful. I believe the price we agreed on was 100,000 yen?" The woman nodded as you popped the cork on the champagne and grabbed a few glasses. You both declare a toast to new fortunes and take a sip from your glasses. After finishing her drink the woman pocketed the money you had laid out on the table and checked her address book.
"You know, I have a few friends who might be able to provide some of what you need to get this suit of armor you're after. If you cut me a small piece of the pie I can provide you a lot of help." she offered as she gave you a piece of paper with a few phone numbers on it. "They don't come cheap, but I can probably negotiate a few big discounts here and there, plus it'll save you some expenses in the long run, what do you say?"
After a moment of thinking you finish off the rest of your glass and pour another for the both of you. "I'm not sure, the boss laid out a very precise expense plan for this job. If I hire any outside help it comes from my own pocket." you finally say as you take a drag off your cigar. "Look, think about it a little more. My help won't be cheap but it'll pay off in the long run, I promise. I'm gonna pay a quick trip to the ladies room, give me your answer when I get out." she replied as she got up and excused herself.
You weren't an expert when it came to things like this, a little help from some actual experts with high end equipment would make things a lot easier. On the other hand, it would eat up a good chunk of your profits once the job was actually completed. The woman would be back in a few minutes and you needed to decide on an answer for her. Should you let her join the crew or not?
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