Chapter 121

Although the Japanese are generally indifferent and can pretend not to see someone die in front of them as long as it doesn't affect them, Usuiba Saiki's conspicuous "halo of secrecy" and his departure from the public's focus, no matter how upright his posture may seem, still adds a layer of ghostly filter to the eyes of others.

This kind of killer who kills someone and then acts as if nothing happened, leaving with an air of nonchalance... could this be the legendary assassin?!

So, just a few minutes after Bo Yezhai returned to the car and closed his eyes to rest, someone knocked on the car window.

Usaku Saiki looked up and saw it was Matsuda Jinpei, and gestured for him to roll down the car window.

"...?"

Usakabe Saiki rolled down the car window in confusion, only to find that there was a stranger with Matsuda Jinpei. He gave Matsuda Jinpei a look, signaling him to explain, but Matsuda Jinpei didn't look at him and instead spoke to the stranger.

Are you sure you're talking about him?

The stranger nodded repeatedly: "Yes! I saw him leave the murder scene! His hands were in his pockets; the murder weapon was probably hidden there!"

Bo Yezhai: "…………"

Being suspected of being the murderer was something Usoya Saiki was used to. He should have been happy to receive this unexpected gift of suspicion, but after hearing the last sentence, he became a little uneasy.

No, it's the dead of winter, what did he do wrong by putting his hands in his pockets?! Doesn't this guy ever look at where his hands are when he's spouting conspiracy theories?!

Matsuda Jinpei gave Usuo Saiki a mocking look, then said to the man, "Alright, I understand. He's not the murderer. You've misunderstood."

The man looked at Matsuda Jinpei with an incredulous expression: "Officer, you didn't even ask him his name or check his ID before you were sure he wasn't the murderer?"

"Because I know him, he is..."

Halfway through his sentence, Matsuda Jinpei suddenly realized something. His intuition told him he couldn't continue, but it was too late.

The person who rushed to him, firmly claiming that he might have found the murderer and even knew where the murderer was hiding, insisted on bringing him along. However, the person he met was Han Chuan Shenliu. He took a step back and looked at him and the "suspect" with shifty and uncertain eyes.

"...You two know each other?"

"...He's a policeman too."

The other person's expression became quite colorful and interesting at that moment. Just when Matsuda Jinpei thought that this person was going to shout things like Japan was hopeless and there were too many corrupt police officers, just like some of the criminals that Kanakawa Shinryu had arrested before, he saw the person's expression change and suddenly become reasonable.

"Oh, I see. You're a police officer. That's all right then. I have to catch my flight, so I'll be going now. Goodbye."

After saying that, the man turned and ran away without looking back.

This dramatic change of heart clearly demonstrates that regardless of whether the other party believes Han Chuan Shenliu is truly a righteous police officer, they have already backed down.

The world may lose one less person willing to provide intelligence to the police.

Hagiwara Chisato, who witnessed the whole thing: "..."

Matsuda Jinpei said in a detached, worldly tone, "Now you know why we don't take Kankawa with us when solving cases, right?"

Hagiwara Chisato's expression was subtle: "Now I know."

—I initially thought it was just about scaring passersby, but now it seems the problem lies more in potentially disrupting people's impression of the criminal…

Although Matsuda Jinpei was temporarily called away, it did not affect the investigation.

Even though Kenji Hagiwara was previously in the explosives handling unit and then spent half a year at the police academy, his observation and reasoning abilities remain very high.

With his high emotional intelligence and affability, he quickly deduced the truth from the clues he obtained, found the evidence, arrested the culprit, and handed him over to the belated on-duty police officer.

If you calculate the time, you can even take your time going through security, there's no need to rush at all.

Bo Yezhai was very satisfied.

[You see, if I wanted to, I could actually enjoy a peaceful vacation; I could just leave the case-solving to others.]

Usoba Saiki confidently declared: "It'll be even easier once we're abroad. Nobody will send a Japanese policeman like me to solve cases; I have no obligation to. Even if the second-year graduate students wanted to help, they might be sent back!"

The system seemed skeptical, with a hint of regret: "If you think it'll work, then it will... but be careful you don't get shot dead abroad. Gun ownership rates in the US are much higher than in Japan, and police use firearms quite casually..."

Usoppō Saiki then realized the problem and fell silent.

[...So you didn't consider the potential impact of the "behind-the-scenes halo" phenomenon overseas?]

[There's always a way, and didn't I get the evasion skill from the exchanged skills? Even Ran Mouri can dodge bullets, it would be too much if Shinryu Suikawa couldn't!]

And we're already at the airport! It would be such a waste to say we're not going now!

He never even left the country in his past life! He's determined to give it a try this time!

Kenji Hagiwara glanced at Saiki Usaku with a puzzled look, not understanding why he seemed to be suddenly agitated.

Originally, Bo Yezaki was just going with the flow, but since the system didn't think much of him going to Hawaii, Bo Yezaki's rebellious spirit suddenly kicked in. He had originally wanted to just give up, but now he changed his mind.

[I'll relax once I get to Hawaii. First, I need to eliminate all the factors that might affect my trip.]

system:【……? 】

The system quickly understood what Bo Yezhaiji meant.

After boarding the plane, Usui Saiki did not immediately sit down in his seat. Instead, under the bewildered gazes of Hagiwara Kenji and Matsuda Jinpei, he walked to the very back, took the opportunity of a flight attendant coming out of the galley at the rear of the plane to glance inside, and then walked back before finally sitting down.

Matsuda Jinpei couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?"

“Check the plane for anything unusual.” Bo Yezai frowned. “It’s a bad start, I’m a little worried.”

Matsuda Jinpei: "...The probability of a plane crash is even smaller than the probability of a car accident."

Bo Yezaki pondered: "The probability that a police academy student will encounter one or two cases per month on average..."

Matsuda Jinpei remained silent.

Kenji Hagiwara thought his concerns were somewhat valid: "So, what did you see?"

"So far, the flight attendants I've seen haven't shown any abnormalities," Bo Yezaki thought. "The possibility of a hijacking orchestrated from within is probably quite small."

Matsuda Jinpei wasn't actually that worried about the plane crash he mentioned.

In the world of Detective Conan, plane crashes don't happen to the main characters; they always manage to escape unscathed in the end—and he did just see someone who absolutely couldn't have died here.

On the contrary, a hijacking could cause the captain to take a longer route, delaying his trip and having a significant impact, so he must be more careful.

He absolutely must arrive in Hawaii on time! Nobody can cause him any trouble this vacation!

Bo Yezaki glanced at almost everyone who passed by his seat, seemingly unintentionally, and his sense of security kept increasing.

System: [The suspicion level is also rising...]

Anyone observed by Hanchuan Shenliu with the "behind-the-scenes aura" fully activated would start to have wild thoughts—Hakuba Saiki said he would give up once he got to Hawaii, so the system was already quite satisfied with taking the opportunity to gain some suspicion points.

Every flight attendant who passes by here tries to keep their eyes from wandering, but once they leave the passenger compartment, they can't help but secretly chat with each other.

Did you see that?

"I saw him, wasn't that him? He was sitting so close to the front, but he inexplicably went to the back and circled around..."

"Could he be..." someone gestured.

Another person gasped, "No! Don't say it! It's too unlucky!"

"Well, I don't think we need to worry too much," a flight attendant said timidly. "The two people sitting next to him are police officers. When I parked the car, I saw them solving a case in the parking lot... The officer who smiles at us when we make eye contact is very smart. He solved the case in no time. If there's anything wrong with the person sitting next to him, he'll definitely notice!"

Someone suddenly realized: "Indeed, when I passed by, I saw him talking to that person, he was probably trying to get information out of them..."

"In short, we and the police have been on high alert, so even if something does happen, the situation won't be too bad..."

As it turns out, one shouldn't jinx things.

When a passenger complained that he suddenly heard a strange beeping sound from his seat, and the flight attendants confirmed that such a sound could not possibly come from there, an ominous suspicion began to circulate in everyone's minds.

The flight attendant who had witnessed the two police officers solving a case in the parking lot hesitated before handing a note to Kenji Hagiwara.

Matsuda Jinpei was looking out the window when he noticed the flight attendant's subtle movements out of the corner of his eye. He then turned around and teased, "As expected of Hagi, you got the phone number so quickly?"

But in Kenji Hagiwara's mind, the flight attendant's fake smile was followed by panic and confusion. He unfolded the note with a serious expression: "Maybe it's not a phone number... Ah, I knew it."

"What's wrong?" Matsuda Jinpei leaned over to take a look, his previously nonchalant expression turning serious. He immediately stood up, walked to the back, showed his police ID to the flight attendant, and whispered, "I'm from the explosives disposal unit. Where's the box you mentioned that made the strange noise?"

Passengers who were originally in that area were moved to other locations, but the space on the plane is only so big, and even though this location is relatively far back, so many unusual behaviors still caused some panic in a small area.

As Matsuda Jinpei got up from the ground and nodded seriously to the flight attendants, a passenger finally couldn't help but ask.

"What's going on? Is there a bomb?!"

"What? A bomb?!"

The already somewhat unsettling atmosphere suddenly became even more chaotic.

Matsuda Jinpei quickly shouted, "I am a police officer from the bomb disposal unit. Please return to your seats and do not panic, so as not to affect the bomb disposal. This kind of bomb is very simple, so don't worry!"

It's actually quite difficult; it's not the kind of problem that can be solved in ten minutes. But in this situation, that's the only way to reassure people.

This tactic had some effect. With the help of the flight attendant's explanation over the loudspeaker, the passengers were able to remain seated, though the whispers grew louder and louder.

"Who installed it? Didn't you notice it when you were cleaning?"

"Just defusing the bomb is useless, what if the criminal is still on the plane and wants to take us all down with him..."

"Could the captain have already been killed?"

At that moment, someone suddenly stood up and asked Usakabe Saiki, "Excuse me, may I ask you a question? Your seat is clearly here, but you just went to the back... Why is that?"

It was said to be a question, but the implication was that the other party was being doubted.

In fact, more than one person noticed Usaku Saiki's actions when he first boarded the plane—because everyone wanted to avoid him, Usaku Saiki stood out and naturally left a deeper impression.

Most people had some doubts, but they remained silent. Only this person mustered up the courage to voice his doubts.

When they heard someone finally speak up, many people quietly breathed a sigh of relief, thanked the brave man, and quietly repented for their cowardice and silence.

The world needs people like this who have a strong sense of justice and are willing to risk their lives!

The young man being questioned remained indifferent, his dark, blood-red eyes giving the person who accused him a cold look, showing no intention of explaining.

The man's breath caught in his throat.

If a normal person is treated like a criminal, and is innocent, they would surely say something in their defense, right? This person, however, remained completely silent…

Does that mean he's tacitly agreeing?! Was he right after all?

There was no emotion in those bloodshot eyes, as if they didn't care about their own lives at all. They could even bring a whole plane full of people to their deaths!

This guy must have lost his will to live, so he's taking revenge on society and dragging everyone down with him!

Since the person involved showed no intention of explaining, Kenji Hagiwara reluctantly tried to speak, but someone unexpectedly beat him to it.

"Well, I think this gentleman has nothing to do with the bomb."

A gentle, mellow voice rang out: "I saw everything he did. Although his behavior of walking back and forth was indeed a bit strange, he kept his hands in his pockets the whole time and never took them out, so he did not have the conditions to plant a bomb."

He paused for a moment, adjusted his glasses, nodded to the dark-haired, red-eyed young man who was looking at him, and then asked the flight attendant.

"I have assisted the police in solving some cases before. May I be allowed to participate?"

The flight attendant clearly recognized him, and said it with an expression of admiration.

"Of course, Mr. Yusaku Kudo!"