The Prime Minister seemed to have made the right choice, and things began to progress smoothly.
Even old rivals within the party all chimed in to congratulate the Prime Minister on his decision, and politicians began to steer Japan in the direction he indicated, regardless of faction or vested interests.
Everything was going well.
In the cultural sphere, guidelines were issued to mainly air broadcasts mixed with criticism of Korea, and countless new anti-Korean books started filling the shelves in bookstores. Furthermore, the location of these books was moved to high-traffic areas, and at times they were even displayed prominently.
Goods imported from Korea shifted to other trading partners, and if there were remaining contracts, the government quietly pressured them to cut ties, while covertly providing subsidies as well. Additionally, whenever there were loopholes in contracts, they were ruthlessly exploited.
Alongside these sinister actions, rumors were spread using the internet and the media.
“Biological weapons were being experimented on at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Japan.”
“In case a disaster occurred, tons of biological weapons were stored beneath the embassy, ready for attack.”
“Documents were discovered in the secret safe of the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Japan. It was a plan for an invasion of Japan.”
The content indicated that all of this was the fault of the Republic of Korea.
The contamination of the water was a man-made disaster caused by the biological weapons stored at the Republic of Korea embassy, which were released due to a fire, and now Korea’s poor relations with Japan were part of Korea’s schemes for an invasion.
As the sense of crisis heightened, the National Assembly began moving toward a return to normal country status. Through the media, they made the public aware that Korea was a clear enemy, amplifying unease, and instilled a sense of crisis that Korea could attack if they remained unarmed.
As a result, public support coalesced.
The people cried out that they needed weapons, and the National Assembly began to act to amend the constitution accordingly. Politicians also seized the opportunity to amend the constitution and sought to return to a normal country that could have an army.
However, just as the constitution was about to be amended, a certain country intervened.
“Stop the constitutional amendment. This is a warning.”
It was America.
America would not stand idly by while Japan amended its constitution.
Especially not in an atmosphere that felt like it could explode at any moment.
America did not want Japan and Korea to quarrel.
Absolutely not.
In the first place, Korea and Japan were states being treated favorably to counter China and Russia.
Yet, if the two countries were to exhaust their military strength fighting each other rather than uniting against China and Russia, how could that be viewed positively?
They did not want the carefully constructed encirclement against China and Russia to dissolve so easily. After decades of effort, their response was nothing short of furious.
America issued a strong warning, firmly stating that the constitutional amendment was impossible under any circumstances.
Naturally, Japan was troubled by America’s reaction.
Dinner was right in front of them.
All they needed was to take one step forward.
To have suddenly appeared and interrupt…
But what could they do?
America was a powerful country.
Instead of expressing irritation, Japan moved as usual.
They began to lobby American politicians.
But even those who had previously welcomed Japanese lobbying were now reluctant to take bribes.
Money was always nice, but this time it could mean the end of their political careers if they took that “nice” thing.
On top of that, China had been deploying industrial spies globally, absorbing technology like a black hole and ramping up military forces to threaten America. In such a situation, if the two of them decided to fall together, China would be able to gobble them both up and explosively increase its own strength, breaking the balance of power.
If that happened, America could no longer remain the world’s police.
The world would split in two.
Just as the world was divided between the Soviet Union and America in the past, it would be divided between China and America now, and humanity would once again lose precious peace, gained through blood and death, and be engulfed in the flames of conflict.
That must never—absolutely must never—happen.
“If the constitution is amended, there will be severe economic sanctions.”
“And if you foolishly attempt anything after the sanctions, there could be worse consequences.”
“This is not just the opinion of our party. It’s not just the President’s assertion, nor just the Republicans’ assertion. It’s also agreed upon by the Democrats. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“It means that all of America agrees on this issue.”
“So.”
“Don’t make foolish moves.”
Order must be maintained.
The encirclement must be upheld.
The Republic of Korea was responsible for the ground forces of the encirclement.
Japan was responsible for the naval forces.
This was their duty, and it was the price they paid for the prosperity granted to them.
It was the reason why the two nations could resurrect from the ashes, and it was the debt they had to bear.
The Republic of Korea was on the front lines.
Japan was the outpost.
Both had to hold their positions.
America issued this threat, and Japan’s desires were thus restrained.
With order restored, Japan and Korea seemed to return to a semblance of normalcy under America’s mediation.
They disliked each other, but due to their strong older brother, they pretended to get along.
As much as they hated each other, they showed a great deal of interest in one another, a relationship akin to love-hate.
And thus, the incident seemed to be coming to a close.
*
“Phew… It was a good opportunity to amend the constitution…”
They felt they had missed an opportunity.
They believed this was a golden chance to return to being a normal country, but everything was ruined due to America’s intervention.
The politicians couldn’t hide their disappointment.
Those on the extreme right gulped down alcohol in their sorrow, while those not on the right lamented that they had missed the opportunity.
They also knew very well that they might not find another chance like this.
But what could they do?
When the world’s most powerful empire is saying not to.
If they tried to resist even slightly, they would be thrown into a pit of despair.
With America just a fingertip away from meddling in the yen, Japan’s economy would plunge into chaos that it could not solve on its own.
In such circumstances, how could they defy America?
They could only soothe their disappointment.
“Still, we managed to pull off our ulterior motive. The original goal wasn’t the constitutional amendment, was it?”
At least it was somewhat fortunate that while they missed the opportunity, they succeeded in their actual intent.
“Exactly. We successfully turned the focus toward Korea.”
What they originally aimed for was but to change the direction of the blade.
To redirect inherent aggression and violence away from the government and toward an external enemy.
To shift attention and find safety.
“If we hadn’t pulled it off so skillfully, the public will might have strangled us. It was really a close call.”
“Indeed. Luckily, we redirected the focus in time…”
“Honestly, I was a bit worried. I thought the situation was serious, and wondered if it would work. But lo and behold, as soon as the word ‘Korea’ came up, their attention was like a predator spotting prey… Hahaha.”
“I knew it would be effective, but I didn’t expect it to be to this degree. I think I’ll have to utilize this more often. Hehehe.”
They were disappointed to miss the chance to amend the constitution, yet if you really think about it, they had not lost anything.
It was not a loss but rather a gain.
Their plans had succeeded perfectly, and they had successfully diverted attention away from themselves.
Because of that, those who should be held accountable were not, and those who were on the brink of losing their heads remained safe.
Considering the typical Japanese disposition of being uninterested in politics, if some time were to pass, this incident would likely be treated as if it never happened, allowing them to operate without any issues.
“But now that we’ve stirred up so much, we can’t just do nothing and back down… Right?”
“Hmmm, that seems correct.”
However, the situation still wasn’t completely settled.
They managed to divert attention, but they hadn’t shown anything concrete to the public.
“If we simply back down… America might not be too pleased. It would be like holding a spark inside a powder keg.”
“Exactly. To calm the unrest, there needs to be some results.”
Having sensationally painted Korea as to blame for everything, how could they then simply keep their mouths shut without any achievements?
If they did, the angrier public would redirect their wrath back at the Japanese government.
Instead of showing the arrogant nation a lesson, it would simply seem like they had tucked their tails like a defeated dog.
If that happened, the topic of accountability would slither back into the spotlight, and many heads could roll.
Possibly even more than now.
“Hmmm… Given America’s scrutiny, we can’t overdo it…”
“I’d love to send a squadron of fighter jets near Korea, then call them back… Just like what Russia did to us.”
“Would that really work? America would be furious.”
“Ugh…”
They needed to achieve results.
But they couldn’t overstep.
The politicians were weighed down by these two conditions, and then one finally decided.
“Okay. How about this?”
They finally reached a decision.
“Let’s send a destroyer to Takeshima to irritate Korea.”
