If you have a tattoo and it was applied with an electric ink gun, you are not yakuza. In Japan's underworld, the yakuza take pride in having the ink pushed under their skin by hand with steel or bamboo needles.
Several years ago, while on a photojournalism assignment, I ended up talking to a yakuza on Saipan Island, I unknowingly insulted him. I had praised his intricate mosaic of body tattoos and mentioned the ink gun process was probably painful. His face grew stern and he turned away. His girlfriend explained that no self-respecting yakuza would get a tattoo applied in such a way. As it turned out, this particular yakuza had his tattoos applied by hand with whale bone.
You can read more about the yakuza in my new Japanese underworld thriller Pacific Poison, available on Amazon in ebook or paperback.
Here’s the link:
https://www.amazon.com/Pacific-Poison-Japanese-Underworld-Thriller/dp/0997424753/ref=sxts_sxwds-bia-wc-nc-drs1_0?cv_ct_cx=pacific+poison&dchild=1&keywords=pacific+poison&pd_rd_i=0997424753&pd_rd_r=d59d2e40-2824-4da6-91d7-225a7a0ba71c&pd_rd_w=DVy8V&pd_rd_wg=XeJ6m&pf_rd_p=43f4b3f0-0b04-46ba-8a08-2e851d035e17&pf_rd_r=ZXAVKJZ7SQPACGPJ13AF&psc=1&qid=1595242719&s=digital-text&sr=1-1-f3947b35-9c59-4d7a-9603-b751e6eed25b
