I am interested in knowing if the Yakuza ever formed a body similar to the Mafia Commission, and if they ever had any Apalachin-esque event where the bosses held an emergency mob summit with all the oyabuns attending, but a policeman was surveilling it and called in for reinforcements.

They tried back in 1964 which only lasted till 1965 when the Yamaguchi-gumi left. Since then there are factions of the Yakuza having social gatherings, meaning some groups are affiliated with other organizations on a board. These are the Kanto-Shinboku-kai, Yonsha-kai, Gosha-kai, and the Kanto-Shinno-Doushi-kai all still active as the others have disbanded over the decades. Think of them like how the American LCN, Sicilians, Ndrangheta, and Camorra are structured. Tokyo is still the hot bed for the Yakuza, which is why the Kanto-Shinboku-kai and Kanto-Shinno-Doushi-kai have the biggest influence there.

the internal structure of the different yakuza families is similar?

No. The Italian structure is simple, while the Yakuza has many ranks and gets confusing especially with merging of other groups joining the main branch. These groups are huge.

The big organizations like Yamaguchi-gumi are federations and under their umbrella there are first-tier gangs, second-tier, third-tier etc..

BTW meetings and ceremonies are very public, police and media are often aware when big meetings take place.

Wonder how the Mafia thinks of them and vice versa.

i meant if the yakuza groups (example yamaguchi-gumi and inagawa- kai) have same structure or they are different

Yes and no. The Yamaguchi-gumi is big so there are more levels, the bigger ones are like that but all are similar. Hollander already said it. Clans are gangs, that have the same structure, but when it comes to Federation setups, the Kimicho is the boss of bosses for the group, underneath him are the Saiko-Komon, and So-Honbucho are associates who are direct with the boss. The Wasagashira is the underboss and right hand man to the Kimicho who is also a Kanbu the boss of his own family and are made members. The Kanbu are bosses of their own families. The Shateigashira is also a Kanbu who oversees Kyodai members and are regional bosses. The Gashira are Kanbu who are under the Kimicho with two or more becoming Wasagashira and Shateigashira. The Kyodai are big brothers who are equivalent to capo who are in command of Shatei are little brothers who are soldiers. The exception to this structure is the Sumiyoshi-Kai which has a Kimicho who's power is shared with seven other Kanbu. When it comes to a clan there is one kanbu, but the structure is the same.
There are a total of 25 organizations that are designated boryokudan, but the yakuza membership is actually three time or more then the numbers given has there are many groups not given this designation.

They are more similar to Sicilian Cosa Nostra, because they are are not family based organizations you have to leave your blood family to join them.

That because until 1995 the japanese law doesn’t punish the fact to be a part of the yakuza but only the crimes that you commit as part of the yakuza plus the Mafia is a secret society while the yakuza members have all the body covered with tatoos because everybody must understand that you’re a yakuza member.
The Yakuza are more involved in japanese society and is not rare that high ranking members stay in big society board of control while mobsters uses figureheads.

Yep. The Yakuza are part of the society, in government they are lobbyists. They do good deed for their communities. If you visit Japan, my own experience are Hiroshima, Hyogo, Osaka, and Kyoto on vacation, and Tokyo on business, you will find the streets clean even in the worst parts slums of the city. The give aid to their communities when disasters hit. They pretty much police themselves on what crimes that can be committed.

in which areas of japan is it most rooted?

Southern Japan, and Tokyo. The areas I mentioned above, but I have to say in Hiroshima besides their HQ, clubs, gambling dens and businesses, I did not see them at snack bars or Karaoke, which is big over there. Tokyo they are a dime a dozen, and they come in from surrounding areas as they have business there. Osaka you see them a lot. Even when you dont see them, you know they are around. A friend of mine who was a guide to me over there, father was a Yakuza member in Fukuoka which is Yakuza central and I believe him, but I have never been there, so I am just taking his word for it.

Yes, the Greater Tokyo Area and the metropolitan region of Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto. Yamaguchi-gumi was formed by a labor union of dockworkers in the Kobe port, once the biggest container port in Japan, now the fourth busiest port.

Before his death, wasn't Michael Zaffarano involved in some discussion with a Yakuza member on how the Mafia and the Yakuza could jointly profit from porn rackets? Who was the Yakuza member he was dealing with?

it makes sense, aizukotetsu-kai is the oldest yakuza group and it was founded in kyoto

It was a Inagawa-kai member, who was either living in Manhattan or both Manhattan and Westchester at the time. We dont know his name, but I am sure it is out there somewhere.

i always wanted to know some more info on the yakuza
since i watched the movie war 2007 (which is about them and the triads)
it's nice to see giacomo holla and m2w posts which are very informative
thank you guys !

The Tattoos are not forced anymore, not since the 1990s, once in the 2000s, they started to relax that. He was most likely in a Bosozoku when he was a teen, which severe as a recruitment pool. A lot of Yakuza comes from Burakumin or Korean background, not all of then but at least have of their membership, some organizations are dominated by these. If you understand the Japanese society and culture, then you know they believe they are better then everyone else and looks down of those that they feel are not to their standards. When he said they dont require a member to cut off his finger to make amends, that is true, as some of the larger Federations are moving away from that tradition, but not all. His story of him fighting with the boss of his family and leaving the Yakuza is also true. There have been many members since the late 2000s that have retired due to an argument with a higher ranking member in the family, but the big one was the split in the Yamaguchi-gumi in 2015. Ironically the group that split from Yamaguchi-gumi in 2015, also split in 2017. I think the guy was in the Yamaguchi-gumi since most of what he says lines up with that organization, and although I never been to Fukuoka, my friend said that drugs were heavy there. I can state for a fact that drugs are rampant in Tokyo as many Japanese work long shifts, I know a few that pulled 30 hours or more on a shift and they dont get enough sleep, they are always working.

Sumiyoshi-kai very powerful in the Greater Tokyo Area.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOHRHU1vCQ0

At least two shootings recently one two days ago in Nagano a gangster was shot but survived and last month in Yamaguchi Prefecture Junichi Maehara a high ranking member of YG was shot and injured.

Yakuza turf war simmers 5 years after split from Yamaguchi-gumi

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13696843

The gang’s gone gray: Majority of yakuza in Japan now over age 50

http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/13655613

Earlier this month two gunmen opened fire at Yoshihiro Oyadomari, the 64-year-old boss of the Furukawa-gumi, and a 61-year-old fellow gang member in front of a FamilyMart convenience store.
Oyadomari was struck in the left hand. The other gangster was shot in the buttocks. Neither victim is in a life-threatening condition, police said previously. Takuya Fujimura, a 52-year-old member of Tsukasa Kogyo, an affiliate gang of the Yamaguchi-gumi, turned himself in two days later.
The shooting is just the latest incident involving the Yamaguchi-gumi and Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi. The gangs have been engaged in a dispute since the Kobe Yamaguchi formed as a rival to the Yamaguchi-gumi in 2015.