The new TV Asahi crime drama Silent Truth started with a tense and emotional first episode, introducing a story built on childhood secrets and a dangerous present-day murder case. The show, based on the novel Reunion by Yokoseki Dai, follows Detective Junichi and his first love Makiko, who meet again under terrible circumstances.
The episode aired in Japan on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, and is available for international audiences on Netflix.
The Childhood Secret That Started Everything
The story began twenty-three years ago, showing a flashback to 1998. Four sixth-grade classmatesโJunichi, Makiko, and two other boysโwere seen in a serious moment at their school. They had a gun, an object clearly connected to a crime. The four children made a pact to hide their secret, burying the weapon under a cherry tree on the school grounds.
This shared secret bound them together, but as time passed, the friends grew apart and lost contact. The show then moved to the present day, where their hidden past is about to violently collide with the present.
The story begins 23 years ago, when Junichi, a sixth-grader, and three of his classmates buried a gun used in a crime under a cherry tree at their school.
Makiko’s Blackmail and Desperate Situation
In the present, Makiko, played by Inoue Mao, is a woman caught in a frightening trap. The episode revealed she is being blackmailed. The details of the blackmail are connected to the secret from her childhood, though the full scope was not immediately clear.
Her life seemed to be under someone’s control, creating a mood of fear and desperation. This situation put her directly in the path of the law when a murder investigation began.
Junichi Returns Home as a Detective on a Murder Case
Junichi, played by Takeuchi Ryoma, became a detective. He was assigned to investigate a murder case that brought him back to his hometown, the very place he left behind years before. The victim in the case was Hiyeyuki Sakuma.
As Junichi started his investigation, he found that the evidence and connections were leading him to people and places from his own past. The primary suspect in the Sakuma case turned out to be his former classmate and first love, Makiko.
Reunion Between Detective and Suspect
The central meeting of the episode was the reunion between Junichi and Makiko. They had not seen each other since childhood, and their reunion was far from happy. Makiko was now the main suspect in the murder Junichi was tasked with solving.
Their interactions were filled with unspoken history and current tension. Junichi was in the difficult position of having to professionally investigate someone he once cared for deeply. For Makiko, seeing Junichi again was a reminder of a simpler past that has now come back to threaten her.
Investigating the Hiyeyuki Sakuma Murder
Detective Junichi’s investigation into the death of Hiyeyuki Sakuma formed the procedural backbone of the episode. The show followed his steps as he gathered initial evidence and tried to understand the victim’s world.
A key element of the investigation was the murder weapon. Early findings suggested shocking connections between the weapon used in the Sakuma case, the primary suspect Makiko, and the secrets from Junichi’s own childhood. The buried gun from 1998 appeared to be a critical link, pulling Junichi’s personal history into his professional case.
How to Watch Silent Truth Around the World
For viewers outside Japan, Silent Truth is available for streaming globally on Netflix. New episodes are expected to be released weekly, shortly after they air on TV Asahi in Japan.
The series features a notable creative team. The script is written by Hashibe Atsuko, known for other dramas like Yuria Sensei no Akai Ito and Fragile, which sets expectations for a character-driven mystery.
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