Everything just witnessed makes it hard for Goro Takemura not to suspect Yorinobu Arasaka of killing Saburo Arasaka.
Yorinobu cuts him off. "Takemura, what is your duty? Answer me."
Takemura answers as trained. "Protect the head of the Arasaka family."
"Good. Then continue to fulfill your duty."
Arasaka drilled one creed into Takemura for years: be loyal to the Arasaka family and protect its leader. Yorinobu is reminding him that Saburo is dead, and as the only heir, he is now the head of the family. Obey orders.
Takemura glances at Adam Smasher, waiting like a coiled machine, and buries his own doubts for now. "Understood." He cannot change the situation tonight. He follows Yorinobu out and does not investigate the real cause of Saburo's death.
…
News of Saburo's death rips through Arasaka's upper ranks and detonates an uproar. Shock or not, the giant still has to run. With Saburo gone, factional fights step fully into the light.
Under Saburo's rule, the company always had internal friction. Now the three main factions line up with their preferred successors:
Kiji (Pheasant) Faction: backs Hanako Arasaka. Conservative technocrats who want to keep to Saburo's course. Hanako lives like a recluse, rarely meddling in day-to-day affairs, which suits their desire for stability and continuity.
Hato (Dove) Faction: names Michiko Arasaka (Kei Arasaka's daughter) as its choice. Reform-minded officials cluster here, but this bloc is the weakest of the three.
Taka (Hawk) Faction: led by Yorinobu Arasaka. They prefer direct, uncompromising solutions. Yorinobu's stubborn, volatile style echoes Saburo's iron will, so the faction's aggressive executives rally to him.
With Saburo dead, the fight starts in earnest. The Hawks move fast and throw their full weight behind Yorinobu. Their influence is most substantial in Night City, which is precisely why Yorinobu planted himself there.
The Hawks do not care whether Yorinobu killed Saburo. Getting Yorinobu into the top seat matters more than the truth. With their support, Yorinobu buries the real cause of death and seizes the CEO chair before the other factions can react. Inside the company, the line becomes "an assassin poisoned Saburo." Outside, Arasaka announces that he died of natural causes.
Takemura becomes a liability. Yorinobu knows Takemura was Saburo's most loyal hound. A man like that will never be faithful to the father's killer. So Yorinobu tips the blame onto Takemura. That night, the only people in the suite were Saburo and Yorinobu; beyond them, only Goro Takemura and Adam Smasher had been in and out. Pin it on Takemura, and you both clear yourself and remove Saburo's fiercest loyalist.
Pushed by Yorinobu and the Hawks, Goro Takemura is labeled Arasaka's most wanted fugitive. Yesterday's most loyal bodyguard becomes today's hunted man.
…
The world reels at the announcement. Saburo Arasaka, the man who ruled Arasaka for a century and could shake the earth with a single step, has fallen. Night City buzzes louder than anywhere. Even the chaos around Ascension Technology's combat robots and their newly announced deal with Night Corp cannot compete with this.
Inside Arasaka Tower, in a high-floor executive office, Rocky sits on a plush sofa and watches Yorinobu with interest.
"Saburo Arasaka is dead," Rocky says. "How do you feel?"
Since Yorinobu took the CEO seat, Rocky has walked into Arasaka Tower like it is his second home. Their cooperation no longer needs a veil, though their final goal must still stay hidden from Arasaka's other sharks.
"Feel?" Yorinobu's tone is flat. "Do you expect guilt? I do not feel any. He was never my father to me. For my ideal, he had to die."
Father and son by blood, enemies by design.
Rocky nods once. "Do not celebrate too early. Saburo is not completely gone. His engram is still in Mikoshi. Do not take this lightly."
"I know," Yorinobu says. "That is why I need your help."
Metal footfalls approach. A fully chromed figure steps in.
Adam Smasher arrives.
"Can't you see I am with a guest? Save it," Yorinobu snaps.
Smasher turns to the "guest" on the sofa and recognizes the face.
"Adam Smasher. Long time no see," Rocky says with a small smile.
The last time they met, Rocky came to beg for cooperation. Now he sits as Arasaka's honored guest.