Chapter 330

After returning home, Usoppei calculated the time and guessed that Gin's conversation should have ended by then, before opening the chat group.

He had intended to make a comment, but when he went in, he found that Chianti had already posted something half a minute earlier.

Chianti: [It's all Gin's fault!]

Cohen: [...]

The organization's boss happened to be bored, so when he heard the notification sound, he clicked into the group chat to take a look.

Chianti? Shouldn't she be on a mission right now? And what's with Gin? Did his mission fail again?

Potts: [Did you get home safely?]

Chianti: [I guess so. The mission failed, but since it was an FBI trap, there's nothing we can do.]

The boss pondered, "There's actually an FBI connection involved here?"

It seems they were outmaneuvered by the FBI. No one expected the FBI to be involved in this mission, so the failure is understandable.

—But what about Gin?! Why is Chianti so unhappy with Gin? What did Gin do?

Potniss: [I'm glad you're all alright. This was really...sigh. Gin is always so stubborn. It's not your fault the mission failed.]

The boss, who had been lurking in the shadows, frowned deeply: Wasn't it the FBI? How come it's still Gin's fault? Even Gin couldn't have predicted this, could he?

Usopp's words, brimming with the aroma of tea, immediately resonated with Chianti: "Exactly! You told him it might be an FBI trap, but he wouldn't believe you and insisted on taking us there… If Gin had listened to you earlier, we might have been able to outmaneuver the FBI!"

Potts' judgment is truly accurate, and he's a good person too. Think about Gin, who's always talking about missions, but Potts is only concerned about whether she got home safely...

It's probably only vodka that would prefer Gin to be its boss.

Even Cohen was a little dissatisfied with Gin this time: "Gin is too stubborn."

Vermouth was satisfied with her success in protecting Kogoro Mouri and Conan Edogawa's secret. She would have been happier if the mission had failed, but she still had to put on an act in the group chat.

Vermouth: [Gin probably has his reasons; he doesn't want the mission to fail again.]

These words made the Boss start to recall which missions Gin had failed recently... Usually, he would fail one after another, but suddenly recalling them all at once made him realize that Gin had failed quite a lot.

And it seems like Potney warned Gin that there might be an FBI agent involved, but Gin still walked into the trap.

Chianti couldn't stand anyone praising Gin, not even a perfunctory compliment from Vermouth. She wanted to retort: ​​"He has his reasons? What reasons could he have for knowing the FBI had set a trap for us, and that Potts advised us to retreat, yet he still insisted on leading us into Akai Shuichi's clutches? We almost died!"

Because Chianti is currently very unhappy, coupled with her prejudice against Gin, her remarks are full of personal bias, and some details have even started to be fabricated.

However, the BOSS, who was completely unaware of the mission details and had not received any reports, was somewhat bewildered.

BOSS: ? ? ?

Even if it's nine parts fake and one part real, Gin's insistence on walking into the FBI's trap despite Potts' warnings must be true... What is Gin thinking?

Bourbon's phone kept vibrating, so he clicked on the link and saw it was breaking news. Although he didn't understand what was going on, he still chimed in with a comment: "[Is anyone injured?]"

Vermouth: [It's alright, just minor injuries.]

Bourbon: [Isn't Shuichi Akai incredibly skilled at sniping? So skilled that Gin, despite Botness's repeated warnings, still insisted on recruiting him... How come everyone only suffered minor injuries this time, even though they had the upper hand? Did he break his hand?]

Potts: [Speaking of which, what about that listening device? Bringing it back might allow us to check its DNA or something.]

Chianti: [It's ruined. Shuichi Akai shot the listening device away with his first shot, and then he sniped Gin.]

Bourbon: [How big was that listening device? How could Shuichi Akai have managed to snipe it? Couldn't you guys have placed it properly?]

Chianti immediately exploded: "How can you blame us? Gin has been keeping it himself ever since he found out! What could we do? Potts warned him about the FBI, but he wouldn't listen!"

As the BOSS looked at this string of conversations, he suddenly felt that something was amiss.

Potts pinpointed exactly what he felt was off: [Just a heads-up, I'm about to start badmouthing Gin again—doesn't this look a lot like destroying evidence?]

Bourbon: [...]

Vermouth: [...]

Chianti: [Ah! Now that you mention it, it really is strange! In the beginning, he was the one who discovered the bugging device, while we didn't. Then Gin stubbornly refused to listen to advice and insisted on leading us to our deaths! Shuichi Akai is the same; he's clearly the world's number one sniper, yet after all that trouble, Gin only suffered minor injuries, while the bugging device, which was supposed to be evidence, is gone...]

Seeing that Chianti seemed to be getting stuck on her thoughts, Bourbon couldn't help but speak up: "Calm down..."

Chianti: [Gin really is an FBI mole!!! What do you think, Potts?]

Potts: [That's true, but I rely on intuition when I see undercover agents. My dislike for Gin has overshadowed that, so I can't be sure based on reason alone!]

Everyone was speechless when they saw what Potts had posted.

But considering his uncanny accuracy in infiltrating undercover agents, his near-diagnosed mental illness, and Usui Saiki's frank and straightforward attitude of "I just don't like Gin" without taking the opportunity to label him... even the Boss couldn't help but wonder if this was also a change in the brain caused by mental illness.

Adding rationality can actually make it easier to make mistakes in judgment; the brain is truly amazing.

Botness: [My rational side tells me that when Shuichi Akai ran away, he was plotting against Gin. If Gin really is an FBI agent, then this is just internal strife. But my intuition tells me that Gin and Shuichi Akai give me a lot of similar vibes...]

Bourbon said slyly, "It might not be the resemblance in terms of undercover work. It could just be in other aspects. Gin might have recruited Akai Shuichi because he felt that Akai Shuichi was a lot like himself. Although it's hard to explain why he couldn't find anything wrong after you reported Akai Shuichi..."

Chianti: [Is it possible that Gin and Shuichi Akai were indeed in cahoots? Back then, Potts was constantly targeting Shuichi Akai, making Shuichi feel like he was on the verge of being exposed, so he planned to expose himself to cover for Gin? Speaking of which, how was he exposed back then?]

Bourbon: [Rum went to the meeting point early but was persuaded to leave by the FBI, who said it was too dangerous there.]

Chianti: [Isn't it obvious?! Would the FBI fail for such a bizarre reason? They definitely exposed themselves to Rum on purpose! It's to make people think they're going to arrest Gin, and that Gin isn't with them! Sacrificing one to save the other—isn't that a common tactic?]

Bourbon: [...]

Whether this is obvious or not is another matter, but it is quite clear that Chianti has become a radical supporter of the claim that "Gin is an undercover agent".

Usakabe Saiki, who proposed this idea, now seems like a conservative, making ambiguous statements and occasionally offering explanations for Gin... although he feels that his explanations only add fuel to the fire.

Just as Bourbon was thinking this, he saw Usui Saiki speak.

Botness: [Chianti, you're getting a bit carried away. Calm down. Although I keep saying Gin is an undercover agent, I don't actually have any evidence. It's just that I don't like him... Boss says he trusts Gin, and I think I should trust Boss's judgment too. It's okay to say bad things occasionally, but saying too much and causing trouble for Boss is not good. When you work with Gin on missions in the future, don't be too emotional. You still need to follow his orders. Anyway, I don't think he'll send you guys to the FBI again.]

Chianti said sarcastically, "Because this time it was too obvious, you won't dare to do it next time?"

Vermouth: [Listen to Potness, calm down.]

The boss, who had witnessed the entire event, pressed his temples.

Chianti... Although from her perspective, her resentment and dissatisfaction at this moment were very justified, it put the Boss, who was still willing to believe in Gin, in a difficult position, and he felt that Chianti was being tactless.

Even though Chianti didn't say these things to him in person, he saw them! They were bound to bother him!

The Boss, who only had his tolerance and filter ripped off by Usui, felt no empathy for Chianti. Instead, compared to Chianti, he thought Usui was a good kid who didn't cause him any trouble.

Despite having so many grievances against Gin, Usoppei rarely tells him. He just vents in a private group chat. Now, he even takes his feelings into consideration, giving Gin a heads-up before saying anything bad about him, and even speaking up for Gin while holding back his dissatisfaction!

He was also worried about affecting the organization's mission, so he helped Gin appease his subordinates after his mistake...

Just because he had subtly expressed his trust in Gin... This kid, Usopp, is too sensible. It's Gin who's been giving him some trouble lately, and Rum's movements aren't quite right either.

Now, he has to go and see Gin's report... Ugh, he already has a headache before he even looks at it.

Sigh, the only flaw of this kid is that he has no ambition and just wants to lie low all the time. If only he were willing to take on more responsibility and become his right-hand man.

--------------------

Bonus chapter!

.

This chat group could be renamed "Tea Party," the tea flavor is a bit too strong.

The boss is also hypocritical...

To Chianti: Although it was said in the group chat, it was also said to my face, which bothers me a lot!

To Bo Ye: Knowing to create a private group chat to vent, that's really thoughtful.