21.   The probe could take weeks.

22.   The probe will probably take about a month, Dwyer said.

23.   He did not specify how long the probe had taken or how the conclusions were drawn.

24.   What form such a probe could take is currently the spoils in a battle between the legislative body and the White House.

25.   What form such a probe could take is currently the spoils in a battle between the legislative body and the Bush administration.

26.   Officials said the probe could take months.

27.   Officials said, however, that the probe could take time as US military vehicles do not carry number plates in Japan.

28.   Political parties have soft-pedalled on calls for a parliamentary inquiry into the scandal, saying the legal probe must first take its course.