Castle s06e18 Episode Script
The Way of the Ninja
Hey, so, you want to go to Lincoln Center and hear some jazz tonight? Wynton Marsalis is playing.
Oh, I would love to, but I can't.
I've got that dinner with my old friend from high school.
You don't sound very thrilled about going.
Yeah, you know, it's just Carly's always been really competitive, talking about her fabulous life nonstop.
I bet no one's basing a character in their best-selling mysteries on her.
True, but the last time I talked to her, she had just came back from the French Riviera with a count that she met in Monaco.
And now I hear she's married to some big-shot, European businessman that she met on a yoga retreat, and she's embraced the spiritual life.
Well, you want me to tag along and regale her with tales of our crime-solving adventures? Definitely not.
You are exactly her type.
And the last thing I need is to watch someone from my past trying to seduce my fiancé while talking about the goddess that lives in her hoo-ha.
She did ask for a signed book, though.
Who did? Carly or the goddess? Beckett.
Please, Castle, you have to promise me if you don't hear from me by 10:00, you will call me and get me out of there.
I am setting an alarm right now.
See, this is what having a partner in life is all about.
Hey, guys.
So, I hope you're up for a pretty strange one.
Warehouse worker found our vic this morning.
Perlmutter said that she died around 3:00 A.
M.
Her passport says that her name is Jade Yamaya.
Passport? She a tourist? No, she's a Japanese citizen.
Stamp indicates she's been in the country for six months.
Okay, we have to notify the Japanese consulate.
- I'll put in a call.
- Thanks.
What is she doing down here all dressed up? There's no night life in this area.
And her clothes are higher-end.
I'm guessing she's not a working girl.
Looks like she was stabbed with a knife.
Mm.
To the untrained eye, perhaps.
But what you don't know about post-mortem analysis could fill a book, Mr.
Castle.
I in fact, it has.
Numerous times.
Fine.
So it was not a knife.
Ah, wrong again.
It was a knife.
But "stabbed" implies the blade was thrust into the victim, whereas this wound was produced by it being hurled into her chest.
What is this, "Last of the Mohicans"? What kind of knife is it? Uh, one with a hilt that matches these small bruises on either side of the wound.
It killed her instantly, severing the left anterior descending artery.
Okay, so, either that's the luckiest knife toss in the world Or she was killed by a circus knife thrower.
Like the Great Throwdini.
Ryan, do we have any witnesses that saw the Great Throwdini or anyone else in the area? Uh no, not so far.
But we did find this next to our dead body.
If it's not Jade's, it might be our killer's.
- What is it? - It's a drop key.
Yeah, I used to scavenge stuff like this from old buildings when I was a kid.
Yeah, buildings would keep them on hand to, uh, manually open elevator doors, something like that, in case of an emergency.
I'll have tech try to trace it and see what it's made for.
Long shot, but you never know.
And what about her purse? Is there any contact information or an address of where she was staying? No, but I did look through her cell.
Based on her calls and texts, she had a boyfriend named Dean Bedford.
I can't believe Jade is gone.
Dean, do you have any idea - why she would be in the warehouse district? - No.
She told me she was going to rehearsals and then straight back to the dorms.
So she was a student? She was a dancer at the New York Ballet Conservatory.
She lived there, too.
Yeah, we're patrons of the Conservatory.
That's where she and Dean met.
A professional ballet company is pretty competitive did she have problems with anyone there? Uh, no.
Just the usual jealousy.
She rose up the ranks pretty fast.
Any issues with anyone back in Japan? She didn't talk much about her life there.
Um it's like she wanted a fresh start.
I have to tell her family.
I don't I don't even know how to reach them.
Well, the consulate will take care of that.
Right now, the best way for you to help is to tell us what you know about Jade.
Now, we found this at the crime scene.
Do you recognize it? No, I've never seen that before.
Dean, how well did you know Jade? Did she socialize with other people? No, she was pretty focused.
Why? Well, it's just, when we found her, she was dressed to go out.
Out? If she was meeting someone on the sly it didn't show up in her phone records.
Pretty much every call she made was to Dean and the ballet.
Well, that's where she lived and trained, so maybe someone there knows why she went out last night.
Time to go to the ballet.
Uh, well, you might want to postpone your trip when you hear this.
- Did you get a lead on the drop key? - More than a lead.
Tech confirmed that the key was used to open an elevator.
Not only that, but they were able to get a name off the brass Marigold.
- As in the flower? - No, as in the Marigold Cookie Company.
The factory's been shut down for years and the building is abandoned, but the abandoned building is two blocks from where Jade's body was found.
This place is seriously creepy for a cookie factory.
Maybe the killer lured Jade here and she escaped, but she was unable to outrun the flying dagger of doom.
That doesn't make any sense, Castle.
How so? Because look at this place.
It's filthy.
There's no way Jade would set foot in here, not with the clothes that she was wearing.
Here's something else that doesn't make sense there's no electricity.
Why would the killer have a key to an elevator - if there's no power to make it work? - Let's go find out.
There's another room back here.
This must be his lair.
Yeah, and that's some kind of a shrine.
A shrine to murder.
Check this out.
The design of this hilt matches the bruises we saw.
And I'm betting there's traces of blood on here, too.
Someone's here.
Beckett? Castle, what happened? A ninja stole the murder weapon.
Yeah.
Castle 6x18 - The Way of the Ninja Original air date March 17, 2014 You were attacked by a ninja, and you witnessed it? Uh, no, sir.
Not exactly.
Because he made a sound and drew her away.
Ninjas are masters of the surprise attack.
I in any case, we think that he's our killer because the knife that he took from Castle appears to be our murder weapon.
- So what you're saying is that - Our killer is a ninja.
Or he is just an athletic person with a hooded track suit.
Yeah, who disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Yes, which I could do if I had a smoke bomb.
Whatever the man is, do you have any sense as to why he would kill Jade Yamaya? No, sir.
We don't have motive yet.
But we're looking into the objects on the shrine just in case they're connected to our victim.
Where are we on I.
D.
ing the suspect? There's no security video either from the building or the street cams not that any self-respecting ninja would be caught on video.
But CSU is sweeping the place for prints, for evidence.
We've also got a unit sitting on the building, on the off chance that he returns.
Excuse me, sir.
Uh, detective Beckett, this is consulate officer Amaya Tagami.
I came as soon as I could.
Jade Yamaya's death is a terrible loss, and the Ambassador has asked me to keep him informed of your progress on this case.
I spoke to Jade's parents in Kyoto, and they, too, are anxious for news.
All we know is that the attacker may have a connection to Japan.
Now, did Jade's parents say if she had any enemies? No.
The truth is, they hadn't spoken to her in weeks.
Her moving here caused a bit of a rift.
Why did she move? Was she trying to get away from someone? Or something? I don't think so.
They told me she came here for her ballet career.
How would I go about talking to them? I'm afraid they don't speak English, but I'm happy to pass along any questions you have.
Yeah, thanks.
I might take you up on that.
But in the meantime, could you tell us what this means? Uh, this kanji is Izanami, shinto goddess of creation and death.
Now, could it have any sinister connotations? Might it be found in the lair of, say, a ninja? No, uh this is, uh, very common.
Uh, people use it to honor their ancestors.
Where did you find this? In a room where we believe our killer spent time.
Well, I can assure you he's not a ninja.
There are no such things as ninjas anymore.
What does she know, anyway? I bet she's never even seen "Ninja III: The Domination.
" Yeah, no, I mean, she only comes from the country that created the mythology.
Which does not make her an expert.
Our victim was killed ninja-style from a a killer who had some kind of mysterious shrine.
I swear she just said that it wasn't that mysterious.
Yeah, about that shrine CSU didn't find any prints on it anywhere, or anywhere else at the lair.
The place was wiped.
Because ninjas never leave a trace.
I know what I saw.
You should have seen the way he moved the athleticism, the grace, the agility.
- It was like a - Ballet dancer.
N no.
Yeah, no, actually, a ballet dancer could move like our alleged ninja did.
Only now we got motive.
I talked to the dancers who lived with Jade back at the dorms.
Apparently, there was some major bad blood between her and a male dancer named Lee Tong.
Man! Yeah, but it can't be a ballet dancer.
Because it would just be such a huge letdown.
Of course.
We can't let facts get in the way of a good story.
What do you mean by "bad blood"? It turns out that Lee had a thing for Jade, but she just didn't feel the same way.
And then they both got cast in "Madame Butterfly," where they had to play lovers.
Rehearsals turned into screaming matches.
And then yesterday, one of the other dancers overheard Lee threatening to kill Jade.
And he has the skills to do it.
You mean like he's got martial-arts training? Yeah.
Black belts in karate and escrima.
- Where was he last night? - Not at rehearsal.
He and Jade both left early.
In fact, he was out all night long.
He didn't return back to the dorms till after she was dead.
Okay, I'm warming to this idea.
I.
.
I I think it was him.
Even though he's a ballet dancer and not a ninja? He could be both.
And being a dancer could just be his cover.
And that way, the lair could be like his batcave.
- And somehow he lured Jade there for a little private time? - Right.
But she rejected him, fled, he killed her in a jealous rage.
Hmm, and here I thought ninjas had total mastery of their emotions.
Look, I'm not claiming to have all the answers yet.
But just look at that guy he's a ninja through and through.
And I'm gonna prove it.
How? You'll see.
Mr.
Tong, I'm detective Beckett.
This is Mr.
Castle.
Oh, I believe we've already met.
Earlier today, in fact.
I don't think so.
Why am I here? We're investigating Jade Yamaya's death, and we need to ask you a few questions.
Now, I understand that the two of you had a rehearsal scheduled for last night? Yeah.
But then she bailed on me.
And where did you go afterwards? To an Art-House Theater downtown.
They were doing a Kurosawa retrospective.
Can anyone corroborate that? I doubt it.
Why? Because you didn't return to your dorm until 4:00 A.
M.
That's exactly one hour after Jade was murdered.
Wait, you think I killed Jade? People heard you threatening her.
I didn't mean it.
I was just frustrated.
She kept missing rehearsals, showing up distracted.
Look, if she fumbles a lift, I'm the one who blows a knee.
But that's not all it was, was it? You were pushing Jade for a more intimate relationship.
Not once I got to know her.
She wasn't as serious about her craft as I thought, and I just got sick of dealing with her.
But it all got way easier the second I knew she was leaving.
What are you doing? It's not him.
A ninja would have caught the cup.
I'm not a ninja.
Obviously.
And I'm Korean, not Japanese.
Way to racially profile.
What do you mean that Jade was leaving? Every night during rehearsal, she would cut out at 8:00, run to the bodega, and use the pay phone.
Who was she calling? I have no idea.
But I finally lit into her about it last night.
That's when she told me she was quitting the Ballet Company.
- Then she left.
- Where did she go? I don't know.
She changed into party clothes and took off.
That's the last I saw of her, I swear.
Jade was quitting the ballet? She worked and trained all her life to come here and dance at the NYBC, and suddenly she's gonna give it all up? What could possibly happen to suddenly make her want to do that? And why aren't you talking, Beckett? You're not still mad at me about the cup.
I'm not? Well, Lee's story checks out.
Usher at the movie theater recalls him sleeping through "Dersu Uzala.
" Blasphemy.
In any case, records from the bodega pay phone back up Lee's story every night at 8:00, calls were made to the same number, a place called Miyago.
It's a tea-import company not far from where Jade was killed.
I asked her boyfriend.
He didn't know anything about it.
Yes, Castle? Why would Jade be calling a tea-import company every night? My guess would be the same reason she was using a pay phone instead of her cell something shady was going on.
We need to check it out.
I should cancel my plans.
Oh, no.
Hey, we got this.
Yeah, wouldn't want you to cancel your dinner plans with Carly and the goddess.
Just make sure you call me at 10:00.
This does not look like a tea-import company.
So what is this place? And why would Jade be calling here? Check it out.
What's a limo doing in the warehouse district? This is definitely not a tea-import company.
- Let's go.
- Yeah.
Um Hey, guys.
You, um you think that's wise? I mean, we really have no idea what's behind that door.
There's only three of us.
- And two of us are cops.
- Yeah.
It's locked.
Oh.
Well, if this is a tea company, I think I want a cup.
What is this place? A geisha house? No.
It is a Japanese hostess bar, the modern-day equivalent.
I've been to a few of these in Tokyo, on a book tour.
I bet you have.
It's all a perfectly acceptable part of doing business - in the Japanese culture.
- And the girls? Uh, they work for the club.
They flirt, they get you to buy drinks, just keep things generally fun.
No, no, no, the dresses that they're wearing the same ones that Jade had on when she was killed.
She must have been working here that night.
Most of these girls are doing it for the money.
Jade had a dream job and a wealthy boyfriend.
Why would she be working in a Japanese hostess club? I don't know.
But if this place had anything to do with her death, - no one's gonna talk to us if they so much as smell a badge.
- Mm.
Well, then, tonight we are not cops.
We are just upscale gentlemen looking for a good time.
And if we play our cards right, we'll pick up some information along the way.
- Hello.
- Hello.
Konnichiwa.
And welcome to Miyago.
May I offer you a table? Your very best.
Domo.
Table seven.
Take that for me? Perfect.
All right.
Oh.
So, is this your first time at Miyago? - Yes.
- No.
Um well, he and I have been here before, but, um I'm married.
That's okay.
Most of the guys here are.
Uh, yeah, but I'm really married.
Eh.
- Oh, here we go.
- Yeah.
Here you are.
Oh.
It's nicer over there.
You know, the last time we were here, there was that one girl um with the short haircut, like from "Pulp Fiction.
" You mean Jade.
Jade, yes.
Jade.
So have you girls seen her around lately? Um well, see, w what my friend isn't telling you is that he actually had a little crush on Jade.
Mm.
- It was just - Aww.
Well I'll make you forget all about her.
You want to buy some private time? Oh, no, thanks.
I'm fine right here.
I don't think you are.
Not if you're asking about Jade.
Are you sure you don't want to buy some private time? Yes, I do want to buy some private time.
Um, hey, Castle, where you going? Uh, just gonna go do what we came here for.
You guys cover me.
Entertain these beautiful ladies.
What's he doing? Oh, oh! Um uh, wait a minute.
I'm flattered, but I really Play the part or I'll get in trouble.
Right, right.
Okay.
Why are you asking about Jade? You're not one of her customers.
No.
No, I'm, uh, a friend.
Is she okay? Um She's dead.
I knew it.
I knew when she didn't come in tonight.
They got to her.
Who? Hey.
Who got to her? Look, I tried to warn her, but she wouldn't stop.
Stop what? Sorry.
I have to call In a minute.
She wouldn't stop what? - What the hell is he doing back there? - I don't know.
Hey, you know what, ladies? Um I don't really like this sake.
Do you think maybe we could get another bottle? Something better? - More expensive? - Mm.
I like the way you think.
Be right back.
All right, hon.
I'll be right here.
Some of these businessmen look a little shady.
Look, check it out.
I see tattoos, scars.
Why don't you take a lap around and see if anyone looks familiar? I'll stay here and entertain the ladies.
All right.
Yeah, let's do karaoke.
It'll be fun.
Oh, no.
No, no, no, no.
It it will be? Okay.
Really? - Um - Hey! Hey.
Ever since she started here, Jade would always flirt with this one client a regular.
The girls say he has a violent streak.
I told her to stay away, but she wouldn't listen.
It's like she was targeting him.
And this client, what's his name? We only know him as Mr.
Saito.
But he must be important, because lots of people are scared of him.
So he was here last night and she was with him? No.
He has private parties sometimes, and hires girls from the club.
And every time, Jade would call Mama-San and try to get on the list.
And last night, she did.
Where was this party? Upper East Side.
I'm singing.
Was it that bad? Why do you think Saito killed her? Something happened at the party last night.
One of the girls said Mr.
Saito found Jade going through his things.
He hit the roof and had his people throw her out.
You have any idea which of his things she was going through? Pushing me, man.
Oh.
- $6,000?! - Ow.
$6,000?! Really?! - Come on.
- We didn't even finish the bottles! - At least let us take them - Listen, you're rich.
It cost you 6k, and we got nothing to show for it.
I wouldn't say that.
I mean, beside the lipstick marks on your shirt.
I actually got a lead in there that's gonna blow this case wide oh, whoa! Wait, lipstick marks? On my shirt? Where? Beckett will kill me.
Oh, my God! I didn't call! You guys, Beckett is going to kill me.
Ninja attack.
Aah.
Castle, look out! Don't move! Stay away.
Next time, you die.
Let me see your hands! Where did he go? I don't know.
He was just Well, you had him.
Now there are two ninjas? Captain, I know it sounds crazy You bet it sounds crazy.
One attacks you.
The other saves your life? It makes no sense.
Unless they are rivals in an ancient feud.
Two warring clans one committed to the path of darkness, the other sworn to follow the path of light.
This is not a ninja movie, Mr.
Castle.
This is a murder investigation.
I don't know where those ninjas came from, sir.
But what I do know is that our victim was trying to get close to Mr.
Saito.
And when she did, she was killed by a knife thrown expertly into her chest.
Now, the guy that attacked us tonight has the skills to throw that knife.
What do we know about this Saito? Not much.
No first name.
His reputation at the club is that he's dangerous.
And given the fond farewell that we received, I'm guessing that the club is not gonna share their client and employee records without a warrant.
I thought this party was on the Upper East Side? Have you looked for an address? Uh, yeah, but the name Saito's like "Smith" in Japan.
There's literally dozens of them up there.
Without any information, it's gonna be very hard to find him.
Maybe not.
Mr.
Castle? We know he threw a party last night.
A guy like Saito, he's gonna have it catered.
We find that party, we find Saito.
Then get on it.
Yes, sir.
Um Yes? I yeah, I just can I expense this? Don't worry.
I'll absorb that.
That's not I Castle, Beckett's calling for you.
You didn't call because you were in a private room making out with a geisha? Okay, we were not making out.
She was kissing me.
A and for the record, she wasn't a geisha she was a hostess.
The difference being? Okay.
Point taken.
But I was undercover, and I did get us a lead.
Oh, you know what I would have appreciated was a phone call about this lead somewhere around 10:00, - because "that's what partners are for.
" - Right.
And I was about to make that phone call, and that's when the ninjas attacked.
You've got an excuse for everything, don't you? Okay, I'm getting the feeling that this is about more than me not calling.
Well W was it that bad? Oh.
Well, did she go on about camel treks and yacht races? Or did you have a fight with the goddess? Mnh-mnh.
No.
Worse.
Carly was boring.
Boring? Yeah.
All she did was complain about her husband, saying, now that she was married, there's no romance in her life.
It's just an endless routine of sameness.
So your fabulous friend - Is not so fabulous anymore.
- Ah.
I mean, that's not gonna happen to us, is it? You've done this before.
Marriage isn't gonna change us, right? We're not gonna become one of those couples that go to the same two restaurants and only have sex on national holidays? No, I'm serious.
'Cause that place that you were at tonight, it was filled with married men that are bored with their wives.
I don't ever want to be bored with you, and I don't want you to be bored with me, either.
Okay.
Well, then, let's, um, put it into our vows.
A promise to each other that, even though we're married, it doesn't mean there is no more romance.
And we will never, ever be boring.
- Deal? - Okay, deal.
Does this mean you forgive me for not calling? Mnh-mnh.
Not yet.
Well how about now? Mm getting there.
This is torture.
Are those cronuts? Yeah.
Have one.
Hey.
They're not both for me.
Yeah, sure they're not.
Where's Castle this morning, anyway? He's writing down everything he can remember about the ninja fight in hopes to use it for his next book.
So, who went down to Soho to get cronuts? We did.
Turns out this bakery delivered a 40th birthday cake to our suspect and financier, Michio Saito, on the Upper East Side the day Jade was killed.
A financier? What's Jade doing trying to get close to a guy like that? Don't know.
But I ran Saito's name through the system it was flagged by organized crime.
- Organized crime like Yakuza? - Yep.
Rumor is he's high up on the chain in the Izumi clan out of Okinawa.
His legitimate businesses are just suspected fronts for money laundering, drug trafficking, and extortion.
So what's a ballet dancer doing going after a guy like this? What could she possibly want from him? Well, odds are, whatever it was got her killed.
Call Miss Tagami at the Consulate.
Have her get ahold of Jade's family.
See if there's a link between Jade and Michio Saito or the Izumi clan from Japan.
And why don't we go and visit the birthday boy? Mr.
Saito will be with you in a moment.
Yo, Beckett.
Just like the weapons we were attacked with.
It is a 15th-century shuriken.
Very rare.
Mr.
Saito, I'm detective Beckett.
This is detective Esposito.
What can I do for you? Do you recognize this woman? No.
I'm afraid not.
You sure? From what we hear, the two of you spent a lot of time together at Miyago's Hostess Bar.
I spend time with a lot of different girls at the club.
They're not all very memorable.
We understand that she was at your birthday party the other night.
- Was she? - Mm.
You saying you don't know? I'm saying there were many people at the party.
Well, witnesses said that the two of you had a fight, that Jade was expelled from your party.
You want to tell us what happened? No one was expelled from the party.
If she left, it was by her choice.
And I suppose it was just a coincidence that shortly after she left she was murdered? I am not responsible for what happens to her out on the street.
Isn't that your job, detective? I need a list of everyone that attended that party.
And I will need to see a search warrant.
Now, if there's nothing else Organized crime's been trying to bust this guy for years.
But a man like Saito he's careful.
We need someone to talk we need to find someone who was actually at the party that night.
Hey.
We got a problem.
I just tried to contact that consulate officer, Amaya Tagami, see if there's any connection between Jade's family and Michio Saito.
According to the Consulate, Ms.
Tagami's been on maternity leave for two months.
So the woman who showed up here Was an imposter.
Who is this woman and why would she impersonate a consulate officer? Maybe she's working for Saito.
If he is Yakuza, he'd have all kinds of assets working for him.
Makes sense.
That way she could keep tabs on our investigation.
Ah, she was doing more than that.
She was trying to throw us off track.
Do you remember when she said that she spoke with Jade's parents in Japan? - Mm-hmm.
- Well, Jade didn't have any parents.
Turns out she was raised in an orphanage from age 10.
Jade was orphaned at age 10? How did that happen? Well, I tried to find out, but prior to the orphanage, can't find any record of Jade Yamaya if that's even her name.
Not a birth certificate, nothing.
It's like she didn't exist.
Sounds like someone was trying to cover up Jade's history.
Yeah, well, we're gonna have to dig up whatever they were trying to hide.
If we know her true identity, it may lead us to why she was killed, so find out everything you can on Jade.
Start with the orphanage.
Castle and I will talk to Perlmutter, and we'll see if her body can tell us who she really was.
I checked the victim for any implants or traceable medical hardware, but I discovered nothing that would aid you in your quest.
However, I did find a telling mark on her body.
This is a very unusual scar.
Uh, my guess is she sustained the injury 10 or 12 years ago.
Right about the time she was sent to the orphanage.
In what way is the scar unusual? Uh, she took shrapnel.
Based on faint, small scars over her back and legs, it was from some kind of explosion, like an I.
E.
D.
You're not saying she was in combat as a 10-year-old girl? Uh, improbable, but this much I know she was treated by a U.
S.
military surgeon.
And you know that based on what? Uh, well, this open-type of stippled scarring is the result of a technique called debriding.
Uh, military surgeons started using it on blast wounds during the Afghan war saved a lot of lives.
But it wasn't adopted by civilian doctors until fairly recently.
Only two military facilities in Japan were doing this surgery at that time one at a base in Yokosuka, and one in Okinawa.
Okinawa? That's where Saito's Yakuza clan came from.
Okay, so, this Okinawa lead is paying off big time.
We did a search for explosions there back in the day.
This article is dated one month before Jade landed in that orphanage.
- Who are those people? - That's the Ozu family.
The dad is a building contractor who had a run-in with the local Yakuza.
The Yakuza settled it by stabbing his whole family and then blowing up his house.
And this is the murder weapon they found at the scene.
- That looks like the knife that was used on Jade.
- Yeah.
Was there a suspect in the murders? No arrest was made, but rumor had it the family was murdered by the Green Dragon.
I take it he's not a reptile? Reptile, no.
Monster, yes.
The Green Dragon was a secret-ninja enforcer of the Yakuza.
All of Okinawa was scared of this guy, and for good reason he's a ruthless killer.
Okay, so what does all of this have to do with Jade? Well, I think that Jade was this little girl.
Um I thought you said the whole family was murdered by the Green Dragon? I got a copy of the police report from the Okinawa prefecture, and I noticed this.
The younger daughter, her birthday is the same as Jade's.
What if she actually survived that attack? Well, if she was in that explosion, that would explain the shrapnel wounds.
Someone must have found her and wanted to keep her safe.
That's why she was treated at the military hospital.
Because if she was treated in a local hospital, the Yakuza would know she was still alive.
And that's also why her name was changed when she was put into the orphanage to hide her from the Yakuza.
So, this is a classic revenge story.
Jade was hunting down the man that killed her family the Green Dragon.
Saito's the Green Dragon.
The timeline fits.
He immigrated to this country just after the murders.
And when he did, the Green Dragon disappeared from Okinawa.
That's what Jade was doing at the party she was looking for proof that Saito was the Green Dragon.
He got onto her and then he killed her.
And then, when you got close, he attacked you.
Hey, guys? That was our team staking out the abandoned building.
They just saw somebody go inside.
It's the ninja.
Saito's returned to his lair.
Hands behind your head and come out where I can see you.
You're not a ninja.
No, but you did impersonate a consulate officer.
On your knees.
This is not what you think, detective Beckett.
Yeah, that's what all guilty people say.
Is this a badge? You're a cop? Not just a cop.
I'm Jade's sister.
My sister and I hid when the Green Dragon came.
Barely got glimpse of him.
He's dress in black, face covered.
We heard our parents screaming and begging for their lives.
After the explosion, my uncle, a policeman, he found us, and he got us to safety.
He falsified the report to say that we were killed so the Yakuza would not look for us.
So then you both survived.
Until now.
What were you doing in that building? I knew you'd gone there in connection with the case.
Wanted to make sure you didn't miss anything.
Why didn't you just tell us who you were from the start? Why this whole masquerade? If the Green Dragon knew who I was, he'd kill me.
I tried to put what happened to my family behind me, but Jade she could not let it go.
She made it her mission to find out who he was.
It's why she came to New York.
Three days ago, she called me and said she was closing in on someone.
- Did she say who? - No.
She said she needed to get proof first.
I flew out to try and stop her, but by the time I got here How did she know that the Green Dragon was in the United States? The day our family died, an American businessman came to see our father.
He was sent by the Green Dragon.
Last year, Jade recognized that man's voice from a TV interview.
She tracked him here, hoping he could lead her to our parents' killer.
Do you know the name of this American businessman? Randall Bedford? Jade's boyfriend's father? I don't believe it.
He lived in Okinawa for nearly a decade.
Jade must have started dating his son to get close to him, hoping that he knew the Green Dragon's identity.
Randall didn't just know the Green Dragon.
He was in business with him.
We ran background on Mr.
Bedford's companies half of them were co-owned by Saito International.
Dad, is it true? We were just kids when we started, Dean.
We were property developers.
Jade's father, he was an architect.
I was the builder, and Saito was the money guy.
But it was Yakuza money, and when Jade's father found out that Saito was Yakuza, he wanted out.
But the Yakuza never lets anyone out.
That's why I went to their house that day to warn Jade's family that Saito was coming to kill them.
And after what Saito did to them, I decided to get as far away as I could.
When Saito moved to New York, I knew there was no escape, Dean.
So, she's dating me because of you.
I had no idea who she was.
I thought the whole family was dead.
You fell in love with a ballet dancer.
That Oh, God.
That's all I knew.
Mr.
Bedford, if she had access to your study, she could have gotten into your files from back in Okinawa.
She did.
And used them to track down Saito.
The night of the party, when he found out who she was, he called me, enraged, and I I begged him I said, "please, don't hurt her.
" Wait.
You knew she was in danger? You knew and you did nothing? Dean, he would have come after us.
She's dead because of you.
Hey, I was protecting you.
What was I supposed to do? Mr.
Bedford, I'll tell you what you can do you can help us put Michio Saito away.
Michio Saito? You can't just walk in here.
We have a warrant for your arrest for the murder of Jade Yamaya.
You cannot prove I killed Jade.
We searched your place.
We found the dagger with Jade's blood on it.
We also have witness testimony affirming that you are the Green Dragon, responsible for murdering Jade's family.
That gives us motive.
You've been played, detective.
And I've been betrayed.
I did not kill Jade, and I am not the Green Dragon.
That honor belongs to You're the Green Dragon.
No, you just killed the Green Dragon in a heroic shootout.
That's what the headlines will say.
Too bad you're gonna have to pay with your lives.
I told you there were two ninjas! Castle, get the gun! Which one do I shoot? Drop the dagger! Now! Bedford?! Saya, drop it.
All this time, my sister was using you to get to the Green Dragon, but it was you all along.
It's the perfect ninja disguise a white American working as a Yakuza enforcer.
He's hiding in plain sight.
You killed my family.
Saya drop it.
He took everything! I know.
I've been there.
You want blood for blood, but it's not worth it.
Just let him live with who he really is.
And you're afraid we're gonna become boring? I contacted my colleagues at the U.
S.
and Japanese embassies, Miss Ozu They have decided not to press charges on impersonating a consulate official.
I appreciate that, Captain.
And I'd like to offer my personal condolences on the loss of your sister.
Thank you, detective, for helping bring my family's killer to justice.
Well, thank you for protecting the people that I care about.
Oh, um, there's something that we have to give you.
Here you go.
It's not evidence anymore.
My sister had this made in Okinawa.
It is a replica of the one that was used to kill my parents.
So the place we found it, I'm guessing that wasn't the killer's lair? No, that was my sister's shrine.
I took this from you because I thought I would need it to avenge Jade.
Well I guess ninjas really do exist.
No, I was not lying about that.
There are no more ninjas, Mr.
Castle.
I am merely a practitioner of the martial arts.
But I'm very, very good.
I'll say.
That's gonna be Ow! Mr.
Castle! Not boring.
Nope.
Nope, not at all.
Oh, I would love to, but I can't.
I've got that dinner with my old friend from high school.
You don't sound very thrilled about going.
Yeah, you know, it's just Carly's always been really competitive, talking about her fabulous life nonstop.
I bet no one's basing a character in their best-selling mysteries on her.
True, but the last time I talked to her, she had just came back from the French Riviera with a count that she met in Monaco.
And now I hear she's married to some big-shot, European businessman that she met on a yoga retreat, and she's embraced the spiritual life.
Well, you want me to tag along and regale her with tales of our crime-solving adventures? Definitely not.
You are exactly her type.
And the last thing I need is to watch someone from my past trying to seduce my fiancé while talking about the goddess that lives in her hoo-ha.
She did ask for a signed book, though.
Who did? Carly or the goddess? Beckett.
Please, Castle, you have to promise me if you don't hear from me by 10:00, you will call me and get me out of there.
I am setting an alarm right now.
See, this is what having a partner in life is all about.
Hey, guys.
So, I hope you're up for a pretty strange one.
Warehouse worker found our vic this morning.
Perlmutter said that she died around 3:00 A.
M.
Her passport says that her name is Jade Yamaya.
Passport? She a tourist? No, she's a Japanese citizen.
Stamp indicates she's been in the country for six months.
Okay, we have to notify the Japanese consulate.
- I'll put in a call.
- Thanks.
What is she doing down here all dressed up? There's no night life in this area.
And her clothes are higher-end.
I'm guessing she's not a working girl.
Looks like she was stabbed with a knife.
Mm.
To the untrained eye, perhaps.
But what you don't know about post-mortem analysis could fill a book, Mr.
Castle.
I in fact, it has.
Numerous times.
Fine.
So it was not a knife.
Ah, wrong again.
It was a knife.
But "stabbed" implies the blade was thrust into the victim, whereas this wound was produced by it being hurled into her chest.
What is this, "Last of the Mohicans"? What kind of knife is it? Uh, one with a hilt that matches these small bruises on either side of the wound.
It killed her instantly, severing the left anterior descending artery.
Okay, so, either that's the luckiest knife toss in the world Or she was killed by a circus knife thrower.
Like the Great Throwdini.
Ryan, do we have any witnesses that saw the Great Throwdini or anyone else in the area? Uh no, not so far.
But we did find this next to our dead body.
If it's not Jade's, it might be our killer's.
- What is it? - It's a drop key.
Yeah, I used to scavenge stuff like this from old buildings when I was a kid.
Yeah, buildings would keep them on hand to, uh, manually open elevator doors, something like that, in case of an emergency.
I'll have tech try to trace it and see what it's made for.
Long shot, but you never know.
And what about her purse? Is there any contact information or an address of where she was staying? No, but I did look through her cell.
Based on her calls and texts, she had a boyfriend named Dean Bedford.
I can't believe Jade is gone.
Dean, do you have any idea - why she would be in the warehouse district? - No.
She told me she was going to rehearsals and then straight back to the dorms.
So she was a student? She was a dancer at the New York Ballet Conservatory.
She lived there, too.
Yeah, we're patrons of the Conservatory.
That's where she and Dean met.
A professional ballet company is pretty competitive did she have problems with anyone there? Uh, no.
Just the usual jealousy.
She rose up the ranks pretty fast.
Any issues with anyone back in Japan? She didn't talk much about her life there.
Um it's like she wanted a fresh start.
I have to tell her family.
I don't I don't even know how to reach them.
Well, the consulate will take care of that.
Right now, the best way for you to help is to tell us what you know about Jade.
Now, we found this at the crime scene.
Do you recognize it? No, I've never seen that before.
Dean, how well did you know Jade? Did she socialize with other people? No, she was pretty focused.
Why? Well, it's just, when we found her, she was dressed to go out.
Out? If she was meeting someone on the sly it didn't show up in her phone records.
Pretty much every call she made was to Dean and the ballet.
Well, that's where she lived and trained, so maybe someone there knows why she went out last night.
Time to go to the ballet.
Uh, well, you might want to postpone your trip when you hear this.
- Did you get a lead on the drop key? - More than a lead.
Tech confirmed that the key was used to open an elevator.
Not only that, but they were able to get a name off the brass Marigold.
- As in the flower? - No, as in the Marigold Cookie Company.
The factory's been shut down for years and the building is abandoned, but the abandoned building is two blocks from where Jade's body was found.
This place is seriously creepy for a cookie factory.
Maybe the killer lured Jade here and she escaped, but she was unable to outrun the flying dagger of doom.
That doesn't make any sense, Castle.
How so? Because look at this place.
It's filthy.
There's no way Jade would set foot in here, not with the clothes that she was wearing.
Here's something else that doesn't make sense there's no electricity.
Why would the killer have a key to an elevator - if there's no power to make it work? - Let's go find out.
There's another room back here.
This must be his lair.
Yeah, and that's some kind of a shrine.
A shrine to murder.
Check this out.
The design of this hilt matches the bruises we saw.
And I'm betting there's traces of blood on here, too.
Someone's here.
Beckett? Castle, what happened? A ninja stole the murder weapon.
Yeah.
Castle 6x18 - The Way of the Ninja Original air date March 17, 2014 You were attacked by a ninja, and you witnessed it? Uh, no, sir.
Not exactly.
Because he made a sound and drew her away.
Ninjas are masters of the surprise attack.
I in any case, we think that he's our killer because the knife that he took from Castle appears to be our murder weapon.
- So what you're saying is that - Our killer is a ninja.
Or he is just an athletic person with a hooded track suit.
Yeah, who disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Yes, which I could do if I had a smoke bomb.
Whatever the man is, do you have any sense as to why he would kill Jade Yamaya? No, sir.
We don't have motive yet.
But we're looking into the objects on the shrine just in case they're connected to our victim.
Where are we on I.
D.
ing the suspect? There's no security video either from the building or the street cams not that any self-respecting ninja would be caught on video.
But CSU is sweeping the place for prints, for evidence.
We've also got a unit sitting on the building, on the off chance that he returns.
Excuse me, sir.
Uh, detective Beckett, this is consulate officer Amaya Tagami.
I came as soon as I could.
Jade Yamaya's death is a terrible loss, and the Ambassador has asked me to keep him informed of your progress on this case.
I spoke to Jade's parents in Kyoto, and they, too, are anxious for news.
All we know is that the attacker may have a connection to Japan.
Now, did Jade's parents say if she had any enemies? No.
The truth is, they hadn't spoken to her in weeks.
Her moving here caused a bit of a rift.
Why did she move? Was she trying to get away from someone? Or something? I don't think so.
They told me she came here for her ballet career.
How would I go about talking to them? I'm afraid they don't speak English, but I'm happy to pass along any questions you have.
Yeah, thanks.
I might take you up on that.
But in the meantime, could you tell us what this means? Uh, this kanji is Izanami, shinto goddess of creation and death.
Now, could it have any sinister connotations? Might it be found in the lair of, say, a ninja? No, uh this is, uh, very common.
Uh, people use it to honor their ancestors.
Where did you find this? In a room where we believe our killer spent time.
Well, I can assure you he's not a ninja.
There are no such things as ninjas anymore.
What does she know, anyway? I bet she's never even seen "Ninja III: The Domination.
" Yeah, no, I mean, she only comes from the country that created the mythology.
Which does not make her an expert.
Our victim was killed ninja-style from a a killer who had some kind of mysterious shrine.
I swear she just said that it wasn't that mysterious.
Yeah, about that shrine CSU didn't find any prints on it anywhere, or anywhere else at the lair.
The place was wiped.
Because ninjas never leave a trace.
I know what I saw.
You should have seen the way he moved the athleticism, the grace, the agility.
- It was like a - Ballet dancer.
N no.
Yeah, no, actually, a ballet dancer could move like our alleged ninja did.
Only now we got motive.
I talked to the dancers who lived with Jade back at the dorms.
Apparently, there was some major bad blood between her and a male dancer named Lee Tong.
Man! Yeah, but it can't be a ballet dancer.
Because it would just be such a huge letdown.
Of course.
We can't let facts get in the way of a good story.
What do you mean by "bad blood"? It turns out that Lee had a thing for Jade, but she just didn't feel the same way.
And then they both got cast in "Madame Butterfly," where they had to play lovers.
Rehearsals turned into screaming matches.
And then yesterday, one of the other dancers overheard Lee threatening to kill Jade.
And he has the skills to do it.
You mean like he's got martial-arts training? Yeah.
Black belts in karate and escrima.
- Where was he last night? - Not at rehearsal.
He and Jade both left early.
In fact, he was out all night long.
He didn't return back to the dorms till after she was dead.
Okay, I'm warming to this idea.
I.
.
I I think it was him.
Even though he's a ballet dancer and not a ninja? He could be both.
And being a dancer could just be his cover.
And that way, the lair could be like his batcave.
- And somehow he lured Jade there for a little private time? - Right.
But she rejected him, fled, he killed her in a jealous rage.
Hmm, and here I thought ninjas had total mastery of their emotions.
Look, I'm not claiming to have all the answers yet.
But just look at that guy he's a ninja through and through.
And I'm gonna prove it.
How? You'll see.
Mr.
Tong, I'm detective Beckett.
This is Mr.
Castle.
Oh, I believe we've already met.
Earlier today, in fact.
I don't think so.
Why am I here? We're investigating Jade Yamaya's death, and we need to ask you a few questions.
Now, I understand that the two of you had a rehearsal scheduled for last night? Yeah.
But then she bailed on me.
And where did you go afterwards? To an Art-House Theater downtown.
They were doing a Kurosawa retrospective.
Can anyone corroborate that? I doubt it.
Why? Because you didn't return to your dorm until 4:00 A.
M.
That's exactly one hour after Jade was murdered.
Wait, you think I killed Jade? People heard you threatening her.
I didn't mean it.
I was just frustrated.
She kept missing rehearsals, showing up distracted.
Look, if she fumbles a lift, I'm the one who blows a knee.
But that's not all it was, was it? You were pushing Jade for a more intimate relationship.
Not once I got to know her.
She wasn't as serious about her craft as I thought, and I just got sick of dealing with her.
But it all got way easier the second I knew she was leaving.
What are you doing? It's not him.
A ninja would have caught the cup.
I'm not a ninja.
Obviously.
And I'm Korean, not Japanese.
Way to racially profile.
What do you mean that Jade was leaving? Every night during rehearsal, she would cut out at 8:00, run to the bodega, and use the pay phone.
Who was she calling? I have no idea.
But I finally lit into her about it last night.
That's when she told me she was quitting the Ballet Company.
- Then she left.
- Where did she go? I don't know.
She changed into party clothes and took off.
That's the last I saw of her, I swear.
Jade was quitting the ballet? She worked and trained all her life to come here and dance at the NYBC, and suddenly she's gonna give it all up? What could possibly happen to suddenly make her want to do that? And why aren't you talking, Beckett? You're not still mad at me about the cup.
I'm not? Well, Lee's story checks out.
Usher at the movie theater recalls him sleeping through "Dersu Uzala.
" Blasphemy.
In any case, records from the bodega pay phone back up Lee's story every night at 8:00, calls were made to the same number, a place called Miyago.
It's a tea-import company not far from where Jade was killed.
I asked her boyfriend.
He didn't know anything about it.
Yes, Castle? Why would Jade be calling a tea-import company every night? My guess would be the same reason she was using a pay phone instead of her cell something shady was going on.
We need to check it out.
I should cancel my plans.
Oh, no.
Hey, we got this.
Yeah, wouldn't want you to cancel your dinner plans with Carly and the goddess.
Just make sure you call me at 10:00.
This does not look like a tea-import company.
So what is this place? And why would Jade be calling here? Check it out.
What's a limo doing in the warehouse district? This is definitely not a tea-import company.
- Let's go.
- Yeah.
Um Hey, guys.
You, um you think that's wise? I mean, we really have no idea what's behind that door.
There's only three of us.
- And two of us are cops.
- Yeah.
It's locked.
Oh.
Well, if this is a tea company, I think I want a cup.
What is this place? A geisha house? No.
It is a Japanese hostess bar, the modern-day equivalent.
I've been to a few of these in Tokyo, on a book tour.
I bet you have.
It's all a perfectly acceptable part of doing business - in the Japanese culture.
- And the girls? Uh, they work for the club.
They flirt, they get you to buy drinks, just keep things generally fun.
No, no, no, the dresses that they're wearing the same ones that Jade had on when she was killed.
She must have been working here that night.
Most of these girls are doing it for the money.
Jade had a dream job and a wealthy boyfriend.
Why would she be working in a Japanese hostess club? I don't know.
But if this place had anything to do with her death, - no one's gonna talk to us if they so much as smell a badge.
- Mm.
Well, then, tonight we are not cops.
We are just upscale gentlemen looking for a good time.
And if we play our cards right, we'll pick up some information along the way.
- Hello.
- Hello.
Konnichiwa.
And welcome to Miyago.
May I offer you a table? Your very best.
Domo.
Table seven.
Take that for me? Perfect.
All right.
Oh.
So, is this your first time at Miyago? - Yes.
- No.
Um well, he and I have been here before, but, um I'm married.
That's okay.
Most of the guys here are.
Uh, yeah, but I'm really married.
Eh.
- Oh, here we go.
- Yeah.
Here you are.
Oh.
It's nicer over there.
You know, the last time we were here, there was that one girl um with the short haircut, like from "Pulp Fiction.
" You mean Jade.
Jade, yes.
Jade.
So have you girls seen her around lately? Um well, see, w what my friend isn't telling you is that he actually had a little crush on Jade.
Mm.
- It was just - Aww.
Well I'll make you forget all about her.
You want to buy some private time? Oh, no, thanks.
I'm fine right here.
I don't think you are.
Not if you're asking about Jade.
Are you sure you don't want to buy some private time? Yes, I do want to buy some private time.
Um, hey, Castle, where you going? Uh, just gonna go do what we came here for.
You guys cover me.
Entertain these beautiful ladies.
What's he doing? Oh, oh! Um uh, wait a minute.
I'm flattered, but I really Play the part or I'll get in trouble.
Right, right.
Okay.
Why are you asking about Jade? You're not one of her customers.
No.
No, I'm, uh, a friend.
Is she okay? Um She's dead.
I knew it.
I knew when she didn't come in tonight.
They got to her.
Who? Hey.
Who got to her? Look, I tried to warn her, but she wouldn't stop.
Stop what? Sorry.
I have to call In a minute.
She wouldn't stop what? - What the hell is he doing back there? - I don't know.
Hey, you know what, ladies? Um I don't really like this sake.
Do you think maybe we could get another bottle? Something better? - More expensive? - Mm.
I like the way you think.
Be right back.
All right, hon.
I'll be right here.
Some of these businessmen look a little shady.
Look, check it out.
I see tattoos, scars.
Why don't you take a lap around and see if anyone looks familiar? I'll stay here and entertain the ladies.
All right.
Yeah, let's do karaoke.
It'll be fun.
Oh, no.
No, no, no, no.
It it will be? Okay.
Really? - Um - Hey! Hey.
Ever since she started here, Jade would always flirt with this one client a regular.
The girls say he has a violent streak.
I told her to stay away, but she wouldn't listen.
It's like she was targeting him.
And this client, what's his name? We only know him as Mr.
Saito.
But he must be important, because lots of people are scared of him.
So he was here last night and she was with him? No.
He has private parties sometimes, and hires girls from the club.
And every time, Jade would call Mama-San and try to get on the list.
And last night, she did.
Where was this party? Upper East Side.
I'm singing.
Was it that bad? Why do you think Saito killed her? Something happened at the party last night.
One of the girls said Mr.
Saito found Jade going through his things.
He hit the roof and had his people throw her out.
You have any idea which of his things she was going through? Pushing me, man.
Oh.
- $6,000?! - Ow.
$6,000?! Really?! - Come on.
- We didn't even finish the bottles! - At least let us take them - Listen, you're rich.
It cost you 6k, and we got nothing to show for it.
I wouldn't say that.
I mean, beside the lipstick marks on your shirt.
I actually got a lead in there that's gonna blow this case wide oh, whoa! Wait, lipstick marks? On my shirt? Where? Beckett will kill me.
Oh, my God! I didn't call! You guys, Beckett is going to kill me.
Ninja attack.
Aah.
Castle, look out! Don't move! Stay away.
Next time, you die.
Let me see your hands! Where did he go? I don't know.
He was just Well, you had him.
Now there are two ninjas? Captain, I know it sounds crazy You bet it sounds crazy.
One attacks you.
The other saves your life? It makes no sense.
Unless they are rivals in an ancient feud.
Two warring clans one committed to the path of darkness, the other sworn to follow the path of light.
This is not a ninja movie, Mr.
Castle.
This is a murder investigation.
I don't know where those ninjas came from, sir.
But what I do know is that our victim was trying to get close to Mr.
Saito.
And when she did, she was killed by a knife thrown expertly into her chest.
Now, the guy that attacked us tonight has the skills to throw that knife.
What do we know about this Saito? Not much.
No first name.
His reputation at the club is that he's dangerous.
And given the fond farewell that we received, I'm guessing that the club is not gonna share their client and employee records without a warrant.
I thought this party was on the Upper East Side? Have you looked for an address? Uh, yeah, but the name Saito's like "Smith" in Japan.
There's literally dozens of them up there.
Without any information, it's gonna be very hard to find him.
Maybe not.
Mr.
Castle? We know he threw a party last night.
A guy like Saito, he's gonna have it catered.
We find that party, we find Saito.
Then get on it.
Yes, sir.
Um Yes? I yeah, I just can I expense this? Don't worry.
I'll absorb that.
That's not I Castle, Beckett's calling for you.
You didn't call because you were in a private room making out with a geisha? Okay, we were not making out.
She was kissing me.
A and for the record, she wasn't a geisha she was a hostess.
The difference being? Okay.
Point taken.
But I was undercover, and I did get us a lead.
Oh, you know what I would have appreciated was a phone call about this lead somewhere around 10:00, - because "that's what partners are for.
" - Right.
And I was about to make that phone call, and that's when the ninjas attacked.
You've got an excuse for everything, don't you? Okay, I'm getting the feeling that this is about more than me not calling.
Well W was it that bad? Oh.
Well, did she go on about camel treks and yacht races? Or did you have a fight with the goddess? Mnh-mnh.
No.
Worse.
Carly was boring.
Boring? Yeah.
All she did was complain about her husband, saying, now that she was married, there's no romance in her life.
It's just an endless routine of sameness.
So your fabulous friend - Is not so fabulous anymore.
- Ah.
I mean, that's not gonna happen to us, is it? You've done this before.
Marriage isn't gonna change us, right? We're not gonna become one of those couples that go to the same two restaurants and only have sex on national holidays? No, I'm serious.
'Cause that place that you were at tonight, it was filled with married men that are bored with their wives.
I don't ever want to be bored with you, and I don't want you to be bored with me, either.
Okay.
Well, then, let's, um, put it into our vows.
A promise to each other that, even though we're married, it doesn't mean there is no more romance.
And we will never, ever be boring.
- Deal? - Okay, deal.
Does this mean you forgive me for not calling? Mnh-mnh.
Not yet.
Well how about now? Mm getting there.
This is torture.
Are those cronuts? Yeah.
Have one.
Hey.
They're not both for me.
Yeah, sure they're not.
Where's Castle this morning, anyway? He's writing down everything he can remember about the ninja fight in hopes to use it for his next book.
So, who went down to Soho to get cronuts? We did.
Turns out this bakery delivered a 40th birthday cake to our suspect and financier, Michio Saito, on the Upper East Side the day Jade was killed.
A financier? What's Jade doing trying to get close to a guy like that? Don't know.
But I ran Saito's name through the system it was flagged by organized crime.
- Organized crime like Yakuza? - Yep.
Rumor is he's high up on the chain in the Izumi clan out of Okinawa.
His legitimate businesses are just suspected fronts for money laundering, drug trafficking, and extortion.
So what's a ballet dancer doing going after a guy like this? What could she possibly want from him? Well, odds are, whatever it was got her killed.
Call Miss Tagami at the Consulate.
Have her get ahold of Jade's family.
See if there's a link between Jade and Michio Saito or the Izumi clan from Japan.
And why don't we go and visit the birthday boy? Mr.
Saito will be with you in a moment.
Yo, Beckett.
Just like the weapons we were attacked with.
It is a 15th-century shuriken.
Very rare.
Mr.
Saito, I'm detective Beckett.
This is detective Esposito.
What can I do for you? Do you recognize this woman? No.
I'm afraid not.
You sure? From what we hear, the two of you spent a lot of time together at Miyago's Hostess Bar.
I spend time with a lot of different girls at the club.
They're not all very memorable.
We understand that she was at your birthday party the other night.
- Was she? - Mm.
You saying you don't know? I'm saying there were many people at the party.
Well, witnesses said that the two of you had a fight, that Jade was expelled from your party.
You want to tell us what happened? No one was expelled from the party.
If she left, it was by her choice.
And I suppose it was just a coincidence that shortly after she left she was murdered? I am not responsible for what happens to her out on the street.
Isn't that your job, detective? I need a list of everyone that attended that party.
And I will need to see a search warrant.
Now, if there's nothing else Organized crime's been trying to bust this guy for years.
But a man like Saito he's careful.
We need someone to talk we need to find someone who was actually at the party that night.
Hey.
We got a problem.
I just tried to contact that consulate officer, Amaya Tagami, see if there's any connection between Jade's family and Michio Saito.
According to the Consulate, Ms.
Tagami's been on maternity leave for two months.
So the woman who showed up here Was an imposter.
Who is this woman and why would she impersonate a consulate officer? Maybe she's working for Saito.
If he is Yakuza, he'd have all kinds of assets working for him.
Makes sense.
That way she could keep tabs on our investigation.
Ah, she was doing more than that.
She was trying to throw us off track.
Do you remember when she said that she spoke with Jade's parents in Japan? - Mm-hmm.
- Well, Jade didn't have any parents.
Turns out she was raised in an orphanage from age 10.
Jade was orphaned at age 10? How did that happen? Well, I tried to find out, but prior to the orphanage, can't find any record of Jade Yamaya if that's even her name.
Not a birth certificate, nothing.
It's like she didn't exist.
Sounds like someone was trying to cover up Jade's history.
Yeah, well, we're gonna have to dig up whatever they were trying to hide.
If we know her true identity, it may lead us to why she was killed, so find out everything you can on Jade.
Start with the orphanage.
Castle and I will talk to Perlmutter, and we'll see if her body can tell us who she really was.
I checked the victim for any implants or traceable medical hardware, but I discovered nothing that would aid you in your quest.
However, I did find a telling mark on her body.
This is a very unusual scar.
Uh, my guess is she sustained the injury 10 or 12 years ago.
Right about the time she was sent to the orphanage.
In what way is the scar unusual? Uh, she took shrapnel.
Based on faint, small scars over her back and legs, it was from some kind of explosion, like an I.
E.
D.
You're not saying she was in combat as a 10-year-old girl? Uh, improbable, but this much I know she was treated by a U.
S.
military surgeon.
And you know that based on what? Uh, well, this open-type of stippled scarring is the result of a technique called debriding.
Uh, military surgeons started using it on blast wounds during the Afghan war saved a lot of lives.
But it wasn't adopted by civilian doctors until fairly recently.
Only two military facilities in Japan were doing this surgery at that time one at a base in Yokosuka, and one in Okinawa.
Okinawa? That's where Saito's Yakuza clan came from.
Okay, so, this Okinawa lead is paying off big time.
We did a search for explosions there back in the day.
This article is dated one month before Jade landed in that orphanage.
- Who are those people? - That's the Ozu family.
The dad is a building contractor who had a run-in with the local Yakuza.
The Yakuza settled it by stabbing his whole family and then blowing up his house.
And this is the murder weapon they found at the scene.
- That looks like the knife that was used on Jade.
- Yeah.
Was there a suspect in the murders? No arrest was made, but rumor had it the family was murdered by the Green Dragon.
I take it he's not a reptile? Reptile, no.
Monster, yes.
The Green Dragon was a secret-ninja enforcer of the Yakuza.
All of Okinawa was scared of this guy, and for good reason he's a ruthless killer.
Okay, so what does all of this have to do with Jade? Well, I think that Jade was this little girl.
Um I thought you said the whole family was murdered by the Green Dragon? I got a copy of the police report from the Okinawa prefecture, and I noticed this.
The younger daughter, her birthday is the same as Jade's.
What if she actually survived that attack? Well, if she was in that explosion, that would explain the shrapnel wounds.
Someone must have found her and wanted to keep her safe.
That's why she was treated at the military hospital.
Because if she was treated in a local hospital, the Yakuza would know she was still alive.
And that's also why her name was changed when she was put into the orphanage to hide her from the Yakuza.
So, this is a classic revenge story.
Jade was hunting down the man that killed her family the Green Dragon.
Saito's the Green Dragon.
The timeline fits.
He immigrated to this country just after the murders.
And when he did, the Green Dragon disappeared from Okinawa.
That's what Jade was doing at the party she was looking for proof that Saito was the Green Dragon.
He got onto her and then he killed her.
And then, when you got close, he attacked you.
Hey, guys? That was our team staking out the abandoned building.
They just saw somebody go inside.
It's the ninja.
Saito's returned to his lair.
Hands behind your head and come out where I can see you.
You're not a ninja.
No, but you did impersonate a consulate officer.
On your knees.
This is not what you think, detective Beckett.
Yeah, that's what all guilty people say.
Is this a badge? You're a cop? Not just a cop.
I'm Jade's sister.
My sister and I hid when the Green Dragon came.
Barely got glimpse of him.
He's dress in black, face covered.
We heard our parents screaming and begging for their lives.
After the explosion, my uncle, a policeman, he found us, and he got us to safety.
He falsified the report to say that we were killed so the Yakuza would not look for us.
So then you both survived.
Until now.
What were you doing in that building? I knew you'd gone there in connection with the case.
Wanted to make sure you didn't miss anything.
Why didn't you just tell us who you were from the start? Why this whole masquerade? If the Green Dragon knew who I was, he'd kill me.
I tried to put what happened to my family behind me, but Jade she could not let it go.
She made it her mission to find out who he was.
It's why she came to New York.
Three days ago, she called me and said she was closing in on someone.
- Did she say who? - No.
She said she needed to get proof first.
I flew out to try and stop her, but by the time I got here How did she know that the Green Dragon was in the United States? The day our family died, an American businessman came to see our father.
He was sent by the Green Dragon.
Last year, Jade recognized that man's voice from a TV interview.
She tracked him here, hoping he could lead her to our parents' killer.
Do you know the name of this American businessman? Randall Bedford? Jade's boyfriend's father? I don't believe it.
He lived in Okinawa for nearly a decade.
Jade must have started dating his son to get close to him, hoping that he knew the Green Dragon's identity.
Randall didn't just know the Green Dragon.
He was in business with him.
We ran background on Mr.
Bedford's companies half of them were co-owned by Saito International.
Dad, is it true? We were just kids when we started, Dean.
We were property developers.
Jade's father, he was an architect.
I was the builder, and Saito was the money guy.
But it was Yakuza money, and when Jade's father found out that Saito was Yakuza, he wanted out.
But the Yakuza never lets anyone out.
That's why I went to their house that day to warn Jade's family that Saito was coming to kill them.
And after what Saito did to them, I decided to get as far away as I could.
When Saito moved to New York, I knew there was no escape, Dean.
So, she's dating me because of you.
I had no idea who she was.
I thought the whole family was dead.
You fell in love with a ballet dancer.
That Oh, God.
That's all I knew.
Mr.
Bedford, if she had access to your study, she could have gotten into your files from back in Okinawa.
She did.
And used them to track down Saito.
The night of the party, when he found out who she was, he called me, enraged, and I I begged him I said, "please, don't hurt her.
" Wait.
You knew she was in danger? You knew and you did nothing? Dean, he would have come after us.
She's dead because of you.
Hey, I was protecting you.
What was I supposed to do? Mr.
Bedford, I'll tell you what you can do you can help us put Michio Saito away.
Michio Saito? You can't just walk in here.
We have a warrant for your arrest for the murder of Jade Yamaya.
You cannot prove I killed Jade.
We searched your place.
We found the dagger with Jade's blood on it.
We also have witness testimony affirming that you are the Green Dragon, responsible for murdering Jade's family.
That gives us motive.
You've been played, detective.
And I've been betrayed.
I did not kill Jade, and I am not the Green Dragon.
That honor belongs to You're the Green Dragon.
No, you just killed the Green Dragon in a heroic shootout.
That's what the headlines will say.
Too bad you're gonna have to pay with your lives.
I told you there were two ninjas! Castle, get the gun! Which one do I shoot? Drop the dagger! Now! Bedford?! Saya, drop it.
All this time, my sister was using you to get to the Green Dragon, but it was you all along.
It's the perfect ninja disguise a white American working as a Yakuza enforcer.
He's hiding in plain sight.
You killed my family.
Saya drop it.
He took everything! I know.
I've been there.
You want blood for blood, but it's not worth it.
Just let him live with who he really is.
And you're afraid we're gonna become boring? I contacted my colleagues at the U.
S.
and Japanese embassies, Miss Ozu They have decided not to press charges on impersonating a consulate official.
I appreciate that, Captain.
And I'd like to offer my personal condolences on the loss of your sister.
Thank you, detective, for helping bring my family's killer to justice.
Well, thank you for protecting the people that I care about.
Oh, um, there's something that we have to give you.
Here you go.
It's not evidence anymore.
My sister had this made in Okinawa.
It is a replica of the one that was used to kill my parents.
So the place we found it, I'm guessing that wasn't the killer's lair? No, that was my sister's shrine.
I took this from you because I thought I would need it to avenge Jade.
Well I guess ninjas really do exist.
No, I was not lying about that.
There are no more ninjas, Mr.
Castle.
I am merely a practitioner of the martial arts.
But I'm very, very good.
I'll say.
That's gonna be Ow! Mr.
Castle! Not boring.
Nope.
Nope, not at all.