The extraordinary account of how Japan's most powerful institution, the Ministry of Finance, maintains tenacious control over the nation's economy. * This first full-length expose of Japan's all-powerful institution, the Ministry of Finance, not only reveals the inner workings of the Ministry but also sounds a warning about the impact of its growing abuses of power on world financial markets. * Japan's Ministry of Finance -- the mighty Okurasho -- controls the majority of the country's largest corporations, banks, and national financial institutions. Yet, it bows to neither Parliament nor Prime Minister. In effect, its actions can sway the Japanese economy and affect financial markets worldwide. The real danger lies in the fact that it has focused on nation-building at any cost, acting increasingly from pure unenlightened self-interest -- as evidenced by its role in the recent Daiwa scandal.