Takuya Nakayama walked over and pulled out the large leather chair without a hint of formality, taking a seat. He reached for the purple clay teapot on the table and poured himself a cup of steaming sencha.
"I've come to deliver some good news—and to enjoy a cup of your fine tea while I'm at it," Takuya said, lifting the teacup to blow on it. He gave a playful wink. "Someone at Bandai finally couldn't hold out any longer. They've decided to jump ship."
Hattori's hand, holding his own teacup, paused mid-air.
"Makoto Yamashina?" The old man raised an eyebrow.
"If he had that kind of decisiveness and guts, Bandai wouldn't be in such a miserable, leaky state," Takuya said, taking a sip of the tea. It was pleasantly hot, leaving a sweet aftertaste. "It's Chuta Mitsui."
Hattori set his teacup down and leaned back slowly into his chair, his gaze instantly turning profound.
"Chuta Mitsui?" Hattori tapped the solid wood armrest twice, the light thuds echoing in the room. "He's Makoto Yamashina's right-hand man, an absolute core member of Bandai's upper management. He actually went behind Yamashina's back to find you privately?"
"Last night, we met privately at a secluded ryotei," Takuya Nakayama said, setting down his teacup as a mocking smile touched his lips. "Manager Mitsui came with 'utmost sincerity,' spilling Bandai's deepest secrets."
Then, Nakayama laid out the intelligence Chuta Mitsui had provided.
He detailed everything: Bandai's staggering internal funding gap, the disastrously poor sales figures for their toy production lines, and even the minutiae of executive meetings where they'd passed the buck, slammed tables, and cursed each other.
Hattori listened in silence, his gaze fixed on the tea leaves standing upright in his cup.
"He's using Bandai's last remaining assets as a token of loyalty to secure his own first-class ticket to Sega," Hattori sneered, his voice dripping with contempt for such a traitor.
"And he's desperate," Nakayama added, his eyes gleaming with insight. "He knows better than anyone that Bandai is a sinking ship, leaking from every seam. If he waits any longer, they won't even have any leverage left to bring to the negotiating table. He wants to help us apply pressure from within, forcing Makoto Yamashina to comply, all to make his own contribution stand out."
Hattori put his reading glasses back on, took the calendar from the table, and flipped through its pages with his withered fingers.
"The general framework for the Sotsu acquisition has been largely finalized," Hattori said, his voice steady as he looked at the dates. "But the financial due diligence and legal procedures won't be completed until mid-next month at the earliest. For us to swallow Bandai, Sotsu must make the first move. The sequence absolutely cannot be disrupted, or we risk creating unnecessary complications."
Takuya Nakayama nodded in deep agreement. Without the copyright agency rights held by Sotsu, Bandai's value would be drastically reduced. The lock used to choke Bandai had to be held firmly in Sega's hands first.
"How does Mitsui plan to cooperate?" Hattori asked, looking up.
"He suggests leaking news to the industry that Bandai's capital chain is about to break, coordinating with Sega to drive down Bandai's valuation from the outside," Takuya sneered. "Once the valuation falls below Makoto Yamashina's psychological defense line, Bandai's top management will completely collapse. This move is nothing short of vicious."
After hearing this, Hattori did not rush to respond.
He picked up the purple clay teapot from the table and unhurriedly refilled Takuya's cup.
"Driving down the valuation, playing a psychological war—the direction is indeed correct." Hattori set the teapot down steadily and said earnestly, "But Takuya, we must not make our greed too obvious."
Takuya Nakayama looked up, his gaze fixed on Hattori.
"Chuta Mitsui is willing to trample Bandai into the dirt without a second thought, just to secure his own future. He'd even throw Makoto Yamashina under the bus," Hattori said, his tone calm yet carrying the sharp wisdom of an old fox who had navigated the treacherous waters of business for decades. "But Sega cannot afford to do the same."
He paused, his eyes sweeping over the office area outside. "If Sega is to acquire Bandai, we aren't just after their production lines and distribution channels. We need their skilled workforce. Bandai's executives can take their money and run, but the middle and lower-level employees—they'll still be eating from Sega's bowl after the merger."
Hattori's gaze turned distant as he posed a question that struck at the very heart of the matter. "If we publicly trash Bandai's value and collude with Mitsui to sow chaos within their ranks, how will Bandai's employees view Sega after the acquisition? They'll see us as ruthless bandits, vampires who only know how to play dirty tricks. Do you really expect them to work for Sega willingly, carrying that kind of humiliation and resentment? The cost of internal integration would end up being higher than the acquisition itself!"
Takuya Nakayama gently stroked the rim of his teacup, secretly admiring Hattori.
Hattori's strategy was indeed a level deeper than his own.
Business warfare was never just a numbers game on a balance sheet; it was a conquest of hearts and a game of psychological warfare. Winning on paper but losing the people was a crude victory.
"We can leak the news, but we must be strategic," Hattori said, outlining a concrete plan. "Wait until we've finalized the valuation framework with Sotsu's top management and signed the letter of intent. Then, use the momentum of the Sotsu acquisition announcement to let a few hints slip into the industry."
Hattori traced a circle on the table with his finger, as if delineating a perfect trap.
"The key is not to disparage Bandai, but to emphasize Sega Galaxy's formidable ability to integrate copyrights," Hattori said with a faint smile. "Let the industry guess and calculate for themselves. Once Sotsu is under Sega's control, Bandai's licensing channels will be choked off, and their valuation will naturally plummet. This decline will be an irresistible market force, not a result of Sega playing dirty. From start to finish, Sega will remain completely above board."
"Blame the ruthless market, and we simply go with the flow." Takuya Nakayama couldn't help but clap his hands in laughter. This move was simply brilliant.
"And while we're at it," Hattori added, his gaze sharpening, "let's leak an independent assessment report of Bandai to a few friendly financial media outlets. Use the real data Mitsui provided, but keep the tone strictly objective. Frame it as Bandai being trapped in an industry downturn, struggling with a difficult transition and sinking into a quagmire. We need to set the stage so Bandai's rank-and-file employees see Sega as their savior, not as the ones coming to take their jobs."
Takuya Nakayama nodded repeatedly.
Give Bandai's employees a way to save face, preserve their jobs and benefits, and make them view Sega as their liberators—that was the true psychological warfare Sega needed to employ.
"So, how should we respond to Mitsui?" Hattori asked, turning to Takuya.
"Let him stew for a few days." Takuya stood up and calmly smoothed the hem of his suit jacket, a cunning smile spreading across his face. "He's more anxious than we are right now—like an ant on a hot skillet. If I agree to his terms immediately, he'll think he's in a position of strength, and he might even try to push his luck. Let him suffer a bit longer. Once he can't take it anymore and comes crawling back to us, we'll be the ones calling the shots."
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