The Silent Wakagashira: Masaru Takumi and the Memories of the Ichiwakai War (1970s-1997)

The Silent Wakagashira: Masaru Takumi and the Memories of the Ichiwakai War (1970s-1997)

Masaru Takumi was a powerful figure who held the key position of wakagashira in the Yamaguchigumi V. His assassination in Kobe in 1997 brought him to the attention of the entire nation. Behind his rise to power and tragic demise, however, lies the so-called "Yamaichi War" between Yamaguchigumi and Ichiwakai, a conflict that intensified in the 1980s.

In 1981, shortly after Masahisa Takenaka, the fourth head of the Yamaguchigumi, took over as head of the gang, a shocking incident occurred in which he was assassinated. This incident triggered the anti-Takenaka faction to leave the Yamaguchigumi over the heirship dispute and form a new Ichiwakai. Direct advisors such as Shigemasa Kamota and Hiroshi Yamamoto joined the Ichiwakai, resulting in a bloody nationwide war between Yamaguchigumi and Ichiwakai. This was the "Yamaichi War. The Yamaichi War lasted from 1984 to 1989 and resulted in approximately 220 attacks across the country, killing more than 25 people and injuring more than 70 others. It was the largest scale gang infighting in the postwar period, and the police proceeded with a large-scale crackdown on the Yamaguchigumi as a de facto security crisis.

During this period of conflict, Masaru Takumi pledged his loyalty to the organization as a direct member of Yamaguchigumi and became famous as a fighter. While leading the Osaka-based Takumi Gumi, he rose to prominence through his calm and hard-headed actions and established a firm position within the Yamaguchigumi. As the organization was reorganized following the end of the war, Takumi was trusted as a coordinator of the organization, and when the fifth Yamaguchigumi was established in 1989, he was selected as a young leader under the leadership of Yoshinori Watanabe, the head of the gang. From then on, Takumi took charge of the practical side of Yamaguchigumi and became known as the "silent young leader" who adopted a moderate line, especially in the external world.

However, the organizational calm did not last long: on August 28, 1997, Masaru Takumi was shot and killed by a member of the Nakanokai in the tea lounge of the Shin-Kobe Oriental Hotel. The incident reportedly stemmed from the "Nakanokai attack" that had occurred the previous year. The Nakanokai rebelled against Takumi's arbitrary negotiation of a settlement for that incident, and the spark of internal strife was rekindled. As a result, the Nakanokai, which had effectively become independent from the Yamaguchigumi, targeted Takumi, the young leader, in retaliation. The shooting took place in a hotel in the late afternoon, and a civilian dentist who was present at the scene was killed by a stray bullet. The shock to society was great, and the reality of the danger of gang wars and the damage done to innocent citizens was widely reported.

Takumi's death caused an upheaval in the Yamaguchigumi's power structure. The assassination of a young leader, a person who had played a central role in the organization, caused a huge ripple effect both inside and outside the organization. The Takumi clan was succeeded by Sadamu Irie, who later became the core of the Kobe Yamaguchigumi. On the other hand, the Nakanokai, which was responsible for the assassination, was destined to be dissolved in 2005 due to the aftermath of the Takumi incident and the health problems of its chairman.

The man, Masaru Takumi, was trained in the struggle and supported the order of Yamaguchigumi, but he was also caught in the spark that destroyed that order. His death exposed the chain of tension and disintegration that lurked within the organization, and is still spoken of today as the end of a silent young leader who was considered the "front face of Yamaguchigumi.