In Yakuza: Like a Dragon, certified best boy Ichiban Kasuga can start the substory “Whispers of the Underworld” in Isezaki Ijincho during Chapter 9. To trigger the substory, Ichiban must have reached at least Confidence Lv. 4 in his personality stats, and he will need Confidence Lv. 7 in order to complete the substory. He also must visit the Kinka Bridge and unlock the Gambling Hall before he can speak with Iroha at Survive Bar to start the substory.
Ichiban can increase his Confidence by, understandably, giving confident answers when presented with dialog choices. Additionally, he can increase this stat by taking certain tests at Ounabara Vocational School, by completing specific tasks in Part-Time Hero, and various other activities. Here's everything players need to know to unlock and complete substory 36, “Whispers of the Underworld,” in Yakuza: Like a Dragon.
Whispers of the Underworld (Substory #36) Walkthrough
By Like a Dragon’s Chapter 9, if he has not unlocked access to the Gambling Hall in Isezaki Ijincho, Ichiban should first head to the ladder at Kinka Bridge. In order to unlock the Gambling Hall, Ichiban needs to be at least Confidence Lv. 4. To quickly reach the bridge, he can take a taxi to the Yokohama Blvd Residential District.
Ichiban needs to head to the eastern end of the bridge, directly across from Kinka Pharmacy. If he hadn’t spoken with them in a previous chapter, he'll find two men who, after a brief conversation, will grant Ichiban access to a ladder leading down the sewers and the underground Gambling Hall.
Ichiban then needs to visit Survive Bar and speak with Iroha, who tells him she has more details to share about a rumor she had mentioned to Ichiban in a previous chapter. Ichiban, bless his heart, doesn’t remember what she’s talking about, but she elaborates and tells him she heard about a shipping company called Zhou Long Distribution that can be found on Ijin Street.
Iroha tells Ichiban that if he provides the correct password, he’ll get access to a secret weapons shop, a trend continued from previous Yakuza titles. This starts the substory, “Whispers of the Underworld,” and Ichiban’s interest is piqued by the potentially illegal stuff the shop could have in store for him. He asks Iroha for the password, which she recalls is “Lau Chau Chau Ya.”
Armed with this new information, Ichiban needs to head to the substory map marker on Ijin Street, which is on the eastern side of Isezaki Ijincho in the Restaurant Row district. Here he’ll find the tiny Zhou Long Distribution storefront where he recites the password to the employee at the front desk. The employee tells him to wait, and Ichiban steps outside to find a group of three employees demanding he earn access to the shop by defeating them in a battle.
Once defeated, Chau appears and tells Ichiban to meet him near Kinka Bridge along the river’s edge. Ichiban needs to head back to the ladder at the eastern end of the bridge, directly across from Kinka Pharmacy. Ichiban should slide down the ladder and head forward, but instead of turning right into the sewer tunnel toward the Gambling Hall, he needs to speak with Chau Ka Long found directly across from the entrance.
In order to experience the full conversation with Chau and complete the substory, “Whispers of the Underworld,” Ichiban must have reached at least Confidence Lv. 7. If he does not meet this requirement, Chau will not deal with him and tells him to return with more confidence.
When Ichiban has the required Confidence Lv. 7, he can speak with Chau and can browse his wares. Ichiban does not need to purchase anything from Chau Ka Long’s Armory, just finish the discussion, and he can be on his way.
Like many other substories in Yakuza games, to trigger the next dialogue cutscene for the substory, Ichiban needs to travel a short distance from Chau. He can head to and from the Gambling Hall, or back up the ladder, etc. Once the chat map marker appears, Ichiban can head back to Chau Ka Long and have an interesting conversation, completing the substory, “Whispers of the Underworld,” and unlocking Chau Ka Long as a Poundmate.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.