On July 31, 2026, Japan's National Reconstruction Agency officially began operations. The launch date, July 31 (7/31), matches the numerical designation of Unit 731, the Imperial Japanese Army unit responsible for bacteriological warfare and human experimentation in China during World War II. Coincidental or not, the timing has drawn attention. More significant, however, is Japan's continued failure to fully confront its wartime past, even as conservative politicians push for constitutional revision and military expansion. In an interview with CGTN, Japanese writer Yasushige Hanaika argues that Japan's failure to reckon with its wartime history—and the growing historical ignorance among younger generations—poses what he describes as the country's real crisis.