Nakamura Kenshou glared at Kimura Hachisai for a long while. Then he suddenly tossed out a cold remark and turned to leave.
"Kimura, saying something like that is very dangerous."
That single sentence jolted Kimura Hachisai awake. He hurriedly bowed deeply toward Nakamura Kenshou's retreating back and said fearfully, "I'm sorry, Senior Nakamura. I was too rash."
Nakamura Kenshou did not answer. He simply opened the door and left.
Kimura Hachisai slowly straightened up, his eyes filled with deep resentment and anger.
The reason he had been frightened just now was not because he feared Nakamura Kenshou, but because he feared Japan's true master lurking behind the scenes.
Kimura Hachisai was much younger than Nakamura Kenshou. He had not lived through that war which had nearly wiped out every Japanese man, but his parents had told him about that dark chapter of history.
Japan had been nothing but ruins back then, its future gray and bleak. It was the Korean War that had given them their last glimmer of light in the darkness.
The Americans handed every war-related order to Japan, allowing the nation standing atop the ruins to go full throttle overnight and reclaim its position as Asia's leading industrial power.
Kimura's father had been an outstanding skilled worker, which was why he had avoided being sent to the front lines. He had also risen above the crowd amid the production expansion of the 1950s, winning a life with food and clothing for the Kimura family.
Kimura Hachisai had only just begun to understand things at the time. He regarded his father as an idol and believed every day that his father was a great hero of Japan's second takeoff. That mindset lasted until he entered middle school.
One day, his father got drunk and babbled a great deal