Auditing the Books

Stepping out of the Sega Headquarters building, the driver had already parked the car in front of the main entrance.

After sliding into the back seat, Nakayama Takuya lowered the window a crack. Tokyo's evening breeze blew away the stuffiness inside the car.

His mind was still turning over the details of the audit plan.

European and American consulting firms charged steep fees, but what they provided was not merely a plan—it was deterrence.

When the department heads across Sega learned that every entry in their books would be reviewed by a top international team, the cost and risk of cooking the books would increase by geometric progression.

That deterrence was exactly what he needed most right now.

Over the past two months, the scenery on Nakayama Takuya's desk had changed completely.

In the past, it had been piled with game concept art, planning proposals, and test discs. Now all of that had been replaced by hefty copies of Modern Corporate Financial Management, Principles of Auditing, and stack after stack of data reports stamped with seals of every color.

He spent all day soaking in those dry words and numbers.

Aside from the earlier order he had given Yoshimura to redo the reports, and arranging for Director Hoshino to contact the North American audit team, he had cut off all other unnecessary work-related socializing.

As for overall management of game development, Hisao Oguchi had taken over completely.

That morning, Hisao Oguchi knocked and came in with several documents in his arms.

"Managing Director, the late-stage test report for Sakura Wars 2 needs your signature." Oguchi placed the documents beside a pile of financial statements, moving very lightly, afraid of disturbing the account books arranged by date.

Nakayama Takuya raised his head from Detailed Explanation of Japanese Tax Law, rubbed his