[u][b]March 20th, 7:00 AM[/b][/u]
7 AM is a late start for Death Man. Usually by now he'd be at one of his offices, taking reports and calls. Deciding which businesses needed extra protection, whether or not any messages needed to be sent for the good of the organization as a whole. Normally, he'd be in Tokyo. Today, however...

[u][b]New York, Staten Island Port- Warehouse 52[/b][/u]

He was jetlagged. Tired, angry. Still though, he'd come to this warehouse- legally purchased using some loan-sharking money- to deliver a message. A message that would not be undermined by the sounds of the bustling docks outside, or the beep-beep-beep of heavy machinery at work. He paced back and forth on the shipping container before a small crowd of very nervous men and women in very nice suits with high collars, a makeshift stage for his little presentation.  Some of his audience were new recruits from the Americas and back overseas, some were old blood from Japan. The new kids, he could understand. They didn't know how things worked. But the ones who'd been in his syndicate before didn't look any more pleased than he did. Stopping, he sighed. A large red curtain hung behind him, and he turned to face the crowd, leaning on his cane for effect.

[b][color=black]"Gentlemen. I came all the way from Tokyo to check on some... disturbing reports I've received of this cell's activities. I've been lead to believe that you have been buying and selling human beings."[/color][/b]

He spun the cane, pointing to the gathered crooks, glaring under his skeleton mask. The reaction of fear was consistent, at least. That was good. The new blood had likely been informed of what happened to those who crossed him.

[b][color=black]"Now, I feel like I've had this conversation every few months, and it's getting tiresome. I just got the blood off my favorite shoes from last time. Human trafficking is not the purview of Tekiya. It takes advantage of the lonely and downtrodden. It is a shitty thing to do, and the exact sort of thing the Yakuza formed to prevent. I'm not angry with you, just... disappointed. Satou, the curtain."[/color][/b]

With that, the curtain spread open to reveal a young, tattooed, bare-naked Japanese man bound with chains and gagged, hanging upside-down from a crane. As the man struggled, Death Man leapt down from the container.

[b][color=black]"However, I am positively LIVID with Shotaro here. I understand this was his idea, so he's the one who's getting punished. Now, the last few times someone tried to start an operation like this, I just cut off a finger, as is tradition. But that's not getting the message across. Satou, the crate."[/color][/b]

The crate slid aside, a man in a similar skull mask using a forklift to do so. Lord Death man tapped on a large aquarium full of crystal-clear water... in which a half dozen alligators eye the meal above greedily. Death Man flipped the top of his cane open, pressing a button as the hook dropped the bound man into the aquarium. As the water churned and turned to a deep red, one of the men at the back- his mottled skin covered in red and blue lines- laughed and patted a squeamish looking Asian-American youth's shoulder.

[b][color=black]"Thus, I direct your attention to the tank of sewer gators that Shotaro is currently taking a swim in! These alligators infest the sewers of New York, abandoned long ago by tourists who thought a pet alligator would be a [i]wonderfu[/i] souvenir from a vacation to Florida. Now, as he preyed upon outcasts, these outcasts shall prey upon him. Going forward, remember- we are criminals, not monsters. There's plenty of gators for the traitors. I suggest you focus on your smuggling of electronic parts and luxury goods in the future. Now... I have other business to attend."[/color][/b]

With that, Death Man walked towards the exit of the warehouse, his cape swirling dramatically behind him as he headed to the car he used while operating in New York... a powder blue Trabant. Small and nonthreatening, the tinted windows didn't even register to most. Now he just had to make his way through traffic. He switched on the radio and began the long, arduous journey back to HQ...