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“Bakayaru!” snarled Colonel Komoto. “If anyone remembers seeing tears in your damned eyes, it might ruin everything.”

“Yes Sir!” replied Captain Yamada, his face changing from concern through shock at Komoto's vehemence and finally settling into a mask that concealed his emotions. He saluted and Komoto returned the salute slowly and formally. Then, without any more words, Yamada turned and stepped off the train.

Yamada will manage everything competently judged Komoto as walked through the carriages to visit Marshall Chang. As he arrived at Chang's carriage, the wheels of the train started their first turn and began to propel him irrevocably away from the platform. Fortunately Chang and his entourage were still on board and seemed to have broken out several bottles of spirits.

“Komoto! Come and join us!” cried Chang. "With your aid, we seem to have returned to safe territory. A whisky ... or would you prefer saki?”

“Whisky will be fine,” responded Komoto.

“I thought that you and your staff were leaving us and travelling to Darien?” probed Chang.

Komoto took the glass and sat facing Chang before replying "I sent Yamada to Ryojun but decided to stay on board with you. I realised that we have been sharing a train for hours without using the time to discuss the situation now that you are no longer at war with Chiang. Our staffs can surely find ways of helping each other. After all, Japan's economy does depend on your security." He drank as he finished speaking and noted that it was a good whisky, which considering his situation seemed only fair. He was tasting flavours and seeing colours more intensely than ever before. However, he was also becoming detached from his own lies. He was only dimly aware that Chang was agreeing with him and telling someone to call Komoto's staff, either for consultations or perhaps to share the drinks.

As he sank deeper into his own thoughts, he remembered how only three hours before everything had seemed so easy. Whatever Tanaka believed, he knew that Chang would never be loyal to Japan. The solution was not to support Chang but for Japan to seize control of North China and secure its future. His plan was simple. Kill Chang in an incident that could be blamed on the Communists or Nationalists, between whom he saw little distinction, and thus force the Japanese Government to commit its forces to take control. Thus he had arranged to have explosives positioned to kill Marshall Chang Tso-lin and his party as soon as he and his officers had left the train.

Then his horror as he saw that not even all Japanese would believe that the assassination was the work of the Communists. The Chinese and the Americans would suspect Japan simply because he had left the train and Japanese politicians would refuse to act. He had tried to fulfill his duty but he faced failure and his duty suddenly seemed a huge weight pressing down on him. Then the revelation as he remembered the matching phrase. If he and his staff simply remained on the train, the Communists would certainly be the prime suspects and Tanaka would have to act. The only loose end was to send Yamada to explain to his trusted colleagues how the investigation needed to be managed.

"Are you all right", asked the Marshall.

"Yes, thank you," replied Komoto. "I was simply realising how our opponents can be defeated if we stay together."

ps. The background can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Zuolin
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