A fleet of black sedans cruised down the main road to Shinjuku.
It was a sweltering summer afternoon. Beyond the tinted windows, brutal sunlight baked the asphalt until the air above it shimmered with heat. The roadside trees hung limp and wilted. Now and then, a pedestrian with a parasol scurried past, their silhouette warping in the glare.
Inside the car, the heat couldn't touch them.
Satsuki, wearing an oversized plain white cotton T-shirt, rested one hand on the leather trim of the window as she watched the concrete jungle shimmer in the sunlight.
"This commercial building is ours," Satsuki said, lifting a finger toward a twelve-story tower whose curtain wall had just been renovated.
"I remember… the original owner was an import-export trading company. A while back, they jumped on the trend of speculating on golf courses in other prefectures. The second the Ministry of Finance cut off loans, their cash flow snapped."
"Endo used some offshore cash and bought the debt on this building for thirty percent of its value. We finished the liquidation a few days ago."
"Same story with those two office buildings behind it. And that cleared lot up ahead… Oh, the street shops next to it were cheap at the time, so we bought the whole block while we were at it."
Her tone stayed even, but the quiet pride in it was obvious—like a girl showing off a new doll collection.
Emi had kicked off her shoes and curled her legs up on the leather seat. She leaned over the wide center armrest, closing the distance until she was huddled right next to Satsuki.
She glanced where Satsuki pointed and nodded twice, but her gaze stayed greedily fixed on Satsuki's profile.
"Mm-hmm, it's really beautiful."
The glass curtain walls and busy commercial streets outside didn't register with her. She was facing the window, but her eyes were on Satsuki.
Hehe… Satsuki-chan is smiling~ Emi thought. So pretty~
Sunlight filtered through the dark privacy tint, laying a soft layer of golden flecks across Satsuki's profile. Strands of her hair swayed gently in the AC breeze.
Emi quietly leaned in another half inch, trying to get her shoulder even closer.
Satsuki pulled her gaze from the window and turned her head, meeting Emi's focused stare.
"Emi, which one do you like?" Satsuki asked casually.
Emi blinked, startled. Her eyes darted frantically across the street view outside.
The fleet happened to slow at an intersection.
Emi seized the moment and pointed at a large building on the corner.
It was a massive department store with a sleek exterior, its facade dominated by a huge poster for the latest season's womenswear.
"I think that mall is really pretty."
Satsuki followed Emi's finger.
Nagasakiya Shinjuku Flagship Store.
"Nagasakiya, huh…"
Satsuki looked back at Emi.
"We finished the transfer last week. It's under our name now."
Her voice was gentle.
"I had someone put up a 'Closed for Renovation' sign yesterday. They cleared the whole place today."
"Let's go take a look."
The car turned smoothly at the intersection and headed for Nagasakiya's main entrance.
Under the portico of Nagasakiya Department Store, six wide main doors were shut tight. A prominent wooden sign stood against the glass.
Black characters on white: "Closed for Internal Renovation."
In the shadows outside, the Nagasakiya store manager and several executives had been waiting for nearly half an hour.
It was brutally hot for a July afternoon, but the manager still wore a formal dark double-breasted suit, his tie knotted perfectly. His back was straight, his hands folded over his abdomen.
A few days ago, head office had sent an internal notice of asset change. The mortgage on this Shinjuku flagship had been taken over entirely by a Western fund.
Then, just last night, an urgent directive was faxed straight to his desk. The new shareholders wanted the mall closed and cleared today. Top management would inspect in person this afternoon.
The manager's stomach spasmed from nerves. He ran through his prepared English welcome speech again in his head and mentally inventoried last quarter's core revenue numbers.
Facing those Wall Street capitalists—famous for cost-cutting and layoffs, or so the rumors said—he had to prove the value of a major department store's management team in the first minute, or he and the supervisors behind him might be out of jobs.
He took a deep breath, forced down the pounding in his chest, and glanced back to signal the supervisors to keep their composure.
They were suffering in the heat too, but they held their poise. With the economy this bad, no one wanted to lose their job.
Just then, a fleet of three black sedans rolled over the speed bumps and into Nagasakiya's driveway.
The lead and rear escort cars opened first. Several security personnel in dark suits stepped out quickly, spreading out and taking positions around the portico, discreetly blocking all routes to the central lane.
Then the black Toyota Century with Shinagawa plates glided into the cleared lane and stopped smoothly at the foot of the steps.
Faced with that tight security, the manager's breathing hitched. He took a breath, forced his stiff legs to move, and led the executives forward to greet them.
The front passenger door opened.
Fujita Tsuyoshi, in a crisp black suit, got out, walked around to the rear, and opened the door.
The manager stopped two steps from the car. He took a deep breath, bowed a perfect forty-five degrees, and put on the professional smile he'd practiced countless times.
"Welcome…"
The first word had just left his throat.
A pair of white casual sneakers stepped out onto the portico stone.
The sophisticated custom leather shoes and suit pants he'd expected didn't appear. The manager's gaze traveled up from the sneakers, past plain light-colored casual pants, and settled on an extremely ordinary, loose white T-shirt.
He froze. This casual outfit didn't match the "Wall Street parent company executive" in head office's notice at all.
He looked up instinctively.
A young Asian face came into view. Satsuki stepped out and stood in the portico's shadow.
"…to…" The second half of his English greeting caught in his throat. He swallowed hard.
His mind went blank.
He recognized that face.
Saionji.
But the clearing directive had clearly come from a Western shell fund.
Several pieces of intel collided in the manager's brain.
Rumors said the Saionji Family's cash was tight from infrastructure projects. They'd stopped expanding, and their top leader had retired to Karuizawa to recuperate.
Had Nagasakiya's assets gotten so cheap that even the cash-strapped Saionji Family could buy them casually during "recuperation"?
No. That made no sense. The Nagasakiya Shinjuku flagship sat on the highest-traffic corner in the core business district. Its daily turnover had ranked top three in Kanto department stores for years.
Suddenly, he realized something.
His heart slammed in his chest, then tightened painfully.
He'd just discovered something he shouldn't know.
He cut the thought off immediately.
The muscles at the back of his neck locked up. He dropped his gaze and, stiffly, compliantly, lowered his forty-five-degree bow to nearly ninety.
Never dig into things you shouldn't know.
"E-Eldest Miss," the manager said, his voice tight as he fought to keep it steady. "I am the manager of this store. I apologize for not greeting you sooner…"
Satsuki didn't break stride.
She glanced briefly at the rigid manager and waved toward the back.
"Emi, come on. It's too hot out here. Let's get inside."
"Mm-hmm!"
Emi got out from the other side and jogged to Satsuki's side.
They walked straight past the manager and the executives toward the department store's glass doors.
Fujita Tsuyoshi moved first, leading the bodyguards inside.
The glass doors slid open smoothly on electric motors.
A blast of cold air surged out from the mall, washing the summer heat off the portico.
Satsuki and Emi walked in side by side.
The first floor was a vast expanse of luxury brand counters.
Right now, the wide main aisles were empty of customers, and soothing background music played low. The spotlights on every brand counter were still on, hitting diamond-studded watches and new seasonal ready-to-wear in the glass cases, throwing brilliant flecks of light across the floor.
The interior had been cleared of distractions.
The regular sales staff had been moved to the back-of-house employee corridors long ago to ensure privacy for the new parent company's inspection.
In sight, the counters were empty.
Only a few senior store managers and senior consultants from the foreign trade department remained.
They wore dark business suits, standing scattered in the blind spots of display pillars or just inside the VIP lounge doors.
As Satsuki and Emi passed, they bowed silently.
Once the two were past, they melted back into the shadows of the displays.
Everyone avoided direct eye contact.
The whole floor held a state of standby that was nearly invisible, yet ready to assist at any moment.
Emi linked her arm with Satsuki's, her steps light as she wove between counters on the polished marble.
"Satsuki-chan, look at that."
Emi pointed at an Hermès emerald-green bay crocodile Birkin in the window to the left and leaned in to whisper, "That color is so weird. It looks like moldy moss."
Satsuki glanced where she pointed.
"That's a limited color Paris just released this year," Satsuki said without slowing. "If you don't like it, I'll have the store manager pull it from the floor display."
"I don't need to," Emi said, shaking her head with a grin. "I wouldn't buy those bags anyway."
She had little interest in leather goods and jewelry that cost hundreds of thousands of yen.
Her gaze swept past the glass counters and stopped at a French haute couture accessory boutique.
French Hat Workshop Maison Michel.
Emi let go of Satsuki's arm and walked eagerly to the open display shelf.
She'd spotted a hand-woven summer sun hat from the "Blanche" collection.
The brim was wide, made from raffia imported from Madagascar that had been specially softened to feel light and springy.
A pure black silk ribbon wrapped the crown.
Emi reached out and picked up the hat.
A senior consultant who'd been standing silently in the blind spot behind the counter stepped out the second Emi touched it.
The consultant bowed and quickly pulled on clean white cotton gloves.
She didn't push a sale. Instead, she lifted a vintage handheld round mirror with walnut-inlaid edges in both hands and held it steady beside Emi and Satsuki so they could see.
"Satsuki-chan."
Emi turned, hat in hand, and walked up to Satsuki with bright eyes.
She judged the distance above Satsuki's head and gently set the hat on her.
"This looks good."
Emi stepped back half a pace, hands behind her back, nodding in satisfaction.
Satsuki walked cooperatively to a nearby full-length mirror.
She studied herself.
A loose white T-shirt paired with the slightly vintage wide-brimmed straw hat.
Satsuki raised her right hand and pinched the edge of the raffia brim, nudging it up half an inch to fix the angle.
The black silk ribbon fell naturally against her pale collarbone.
She examined the vibrant accessory—so different from her usual dark formal wear—and a smile slowly appeared in her eyes.
Hmm. Changing up her style once in a while wasn't bad.
"You've got a good eye," Satsuki said, lowering her hand and turning to Emi. "It's very light. Should be perfect for sun when we go to Karuizawa to escape the heat."
Hearing that, Emi's smile bloomed completely.
She stepped forward and tucked a stray lock of hair behind Satsuki's ear, next to the ribbon.
"I knew Satsuki-chan would look good in anything."
The store manager and several executives trailed a dozen meters behind.
Seeing Satsuki stop at the mirror, the manager took a deep breath.
He adjusted his suit hem, lightened his steps, and stopped a few meters from the counter.
"Miss Saionji," the manager said, hands pressed to his trousers, leaning slightly forward. "This hat is a limited piece that just arrived from the French workshop last week. If you feel it suits you…"
Satsuki adjusted the brim in the mirror. She didn't turn.
"Do you… know who I am?" Satsuki's voice was calm.
The manager stiffened.
"Y-yes, Miss."
"This visit can be made public," Satsuki said, lowering her hand from the brim. "Feel free to tell others I've been here."
The manager's breath caught.
Me… me?
The manager wanted to cry. If he'd known, he wouldn't have approached, even if it meant getting scolded by head office for "poor hospitality."
He didn't want to get dragged into Zaibatsu conflicts.
"I wouldn't dare, Miss," the manager said, bowing deeply, his voice dry with nerves. "I will keep it secret. You were never here today."
"Is that so?"
Satsuki turned her head, her cool gaze resting on the manager's face for a moment.
She looked back at the mirror.
"Go attend to your business. Don't disturb us."
She casually tidied the hair on her shoulder.
"Turn the AC on this floor up two degrees. Emi is dressed thinly."
The manager exhaled a sigh of relief he hadn't realized he was holding.
The tension in his neck and shoulders eased.
Finally. He'd been waiting for those words.
"Yes. I wish you a pleasant shopping experience."
He held his bow and retreated quickly with the executives.
The mall fell quiet except for the hum of the AC.
Emi leaned toward the mirror and reached out to help Satsuki straighten the black silk ribbon.
"Huh? Why does it feel like that person is scared of Satsuki-chan?" Emi pouted. "Even though Satsuki-chan is the cutest in the world."
Satsuki looked at her reflection and smiled as she turned a slow circle.
"Well… maybe he's just been overworked lately. Nerves are a bit frayed."
"That doesn't mean he can be rude. He should feel honored to serve Satsuki-chan."
Satsuki smiled and flicked Emi's nose.
Then she turned and walked to the scarf display nearby.
"Alright, alright. Don't pressure the uncle anymore."
Her fingers slid across the colorful mulberry silk scarves.
"What do you think of this one?"
Satsuki pulled out a Prussian blue scarf and wrapped it around Emi's neck.
Emi tilted her chin up obediently and let her fuss.
"Hmm, not bad."
Satsuki examined it and nodded, satisfied.
"Let's go to the second floor to look at summer clothes."
Emi grabbed the scarf happily and followed close behind Satsuki.
"Mm!"
Today, she'd gotten another token from Satsuki.
She liked it.