Iwaki (former province located in the central and eastern parts of present-day Fukushima and southern Miyagi prefectures)
libel; defamation; slander; character assassination
cunning; crafty; wily; sly
to side with the winner; to ride (someone's) coattails; to get on the bandwagon
misfortune; bad luck; ill luck; ill fortune
starting (construction) work
person with whom one is having an illicit love affair
oak (esp. Quercus serrata)
to sweep the slate clean; to start again from the beginning; to do it all over again
unavoidably; inevitably; necessarily; reluctantly; against one's will
foolish; idiotic; stupid; ridiculous; absurd
remittance; sending money
material witness; suspect
talk about divorce or separation
all companies; each company
subtle seasoning that brings out the flavor; secret ingredient
not having enough workers; being understaffed; being undermanned; having nothing one can do about something; having no options
desperation; despair; self-abandonment
all manner of (verbal) abuse; all kinds of names; abusive language; torrent of abuse; stream of insults
to be broken; to break; to fall through; to come to nothing
just one person; only one
exactly as stated; verbatim
source of information; intelligence source; message source
former site (of something); site (e.g. of a demolished building)
embarkation; boarding (an aeroplane, airplane)
kidnapper; kidnaper; abductor