Chapter 427

In fact, from the very beginning, Inspector Megure wanted to involve Shinryu Sakkawa in this major case.

But when the FBI agent named Judy heard about it, her expression was a little strange.

Inspector Megure immediately thought that Shinryu Sugawa had been invited to some conferences in the United States before and had acquaintances in the FBI. It was possible that he had some kind of conflict with this Judy in the United States.

So Inspector Megure privately asked Kenji Hagiwara if he knew any information.

As an FBI agent, Kenji Hagiwara wasn't that forgetful, but no matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't recall when Shinryu Sakkawa had ever offended him.

However, Kenji Hagiwara also reflected on this. He realized that he had probably become accustomed to it subconsciously. He felt that many things were fine with him, but others might feel offended and angry. So he was more careful with his words: "When Shinryu went to the United States, he encountered FBI cases twice. Seeing that the FBI was having some trouble, he helped them solve the problems..."

Inspector Megure understood.

It means they slapped the FBI in the face, and twice at that!

It's one thing for Shinryu Hanakawa to embarrass his colleague in the Metropolitan Police Department, but to pull such a stunt in a place like America that looks down on foreigners is bound to make people uncomfortable and it's normal for them to feel resistant.

After all, the higher-ups had ordered the Metropolitan Police Department to cooperate with the FBI. Inspector Megure thought to himself, "Well, there's nothing we can do about it. Let's just do our best for now, and if all else fails, we can secretly ask Shinryu Kanakawa if he's willing to help."

...That's right. Because of some filters, he originally had some expectations for the crime-solving level in the United States. But now that he sees that they are still defeated by Hanchuan Shenliu, his expectations have dropped sharply. It seems that their level is not much different from those under his command.

If you want to capture Navy SEALs, why not send some FBI elites?

Judy, an FBI elite, had no idea what Inspector Megure was thinking. She didn't even realize that a simple change in her expression could make the Japanese police think so much.

As an American, her exaggerated expressions are hard for Japanese people to ignore, making it easy for them to overthink things.

After investigating the case for several days, they made little progress, but another victim died. Judy finally couldn't help but ask.

"Where is your... advisor? Isn't Hanchuan Shenliu coming?"

Inspector Megure, with his high emotional intelligence, was somewhat puzzled as to why Jodie suddenly seemed unconcerned, but he didn't directly question her: "Well, he said he's a consultant, so he's basically an external staff member. For such an important case involving international collaboration, if you don't mind..."

Judy shook her head: "Of course I don't mind."

Inspector Megure: "...Okay, then I'll ask him if he'd like to come."

"Of course you mean 'of course'? If you don't mind, what was the meaning behind your sudden change in expression earlier?"

Actually, Judy didn't really mind. After all, so much time had passed. She only remembered that Han Chuan Shenliu had a dangerous aura, but was very intelligent. Her resistance stemmed from the subtle emotions she felt because the FBI had embarrassed themselves in front of him.

With important matters at hand, Judy naturally prioritized solving the case. It was already a blessing to have someone to help, and the sooner the case was resolved, the better. Otherwise, what if the organization they had been tracking suddenly encountered trouble, leaving them unable to handle the situation?

Now that it's Japan's home turf, and the culprit is a Navy SEAL, not an FBI agent, failing to solve the case would be a bigger embarrassment for Japan. Judy was really hoping that Shinryu Samakawa would come soon, but he hasn't shown up yet.

Hearing Inspector Megure's response, Jodie was even more anxious than him: "What if he doesn't want to?"

Isn't Japan known for its severe hierarchical bureaucracy? It's one thing for American advisors to have more freedom, but is Japan really that free?

Inspector Megure was quite protective of his own, and based on Kenji Hagiwara's words, he imagined a bunch of scenarios where the FBI secretly didn't give Shinryu Saikawa a friendly look when they were in the US, despite Saikawa helping them solve cases.

While there are indeed good people in the FBI, such as the bomb expert who invited them to a conference in the US, that's a technical expert! They're a completely different story from these agents!

Therefore, he didn't guarantee that he could get Han Chuan Shenliu to come, and just said quietly, "If he doesn't want to... no one can force him."

Jodie, unaware that she had become a villain in Inspector Megure's mind: "…………"

Well, considering Han Chuan Shenliu's demeanor, it's indeed hard to imagine him compromising.

Judy could only pray that Fukawa Shinryu had a good impression of the FBI, or that he was interested in the case.

After rushing around and with yet another person dying, Kenji Hagiwara finally managed to bring the person over.

"This is Consultant Han Chuan. We're all acquaintances, so I won't waste time introducing him."

Based on his experience, Inspector Megure was quite worried that someone in the FBI might be a bit dim-witted and say something unpleasant. That guy named Cameron seemed to have a terrible temper, so he quickly skipped over the potentially problematic part and went straight to the point.

"That's right, the current situation is that Hunter, who was a suspect, is dead."

The game started with a bombshell. Inspector Megure glanced at Shinryu Suzumawa and found that the other man remained expressionless, seemingly unsurprised.

Kenji Hagiwara continued, "We found Hunter's diary in his room. The contents were roughly: 'That guy stole my prey again,' 'This is provocation,' 'I'm going to kill him,' and so on."

Ida Hang magnetically attached a photo of the original diary to the whiteboard: "Based on the analysis of the diary, the one who killed Hunter before was not Hunter, but rather Hunter's enemy was killed first, and even came to kill Hunter."

Judy pondered, "So, the culprit's target was Hunter all along? The previous killing was a provocation, but now that Hunter is dead... should the culprit also kill Hunter's two remaining enemies?"

Kogoro Mouri and Conan Edogawa were not originally among the attendees at this meeting, but because Kenji Hagiwara was spotted by Conan Edogawa when he went to pick up Shinryu Sakkawa, Kogoro Mouri, wanting to do his part, insisted on coming along.

At this moment, Kogoro Mouri expressed his thoughts: "That's Hunter's enemy, not the criminal's enemy. The other two should be fine, right?"

Judy pondered for a moment, then looked at Hanakawa Shinryu, who had remained silent, and asked, "What do you think, Mr. Hanakawa?"

Han Chuan Shenliu raised his eyes and said calmly, "I think it's better if you don't take the diary too seriously."

"……Why?"

"It's too deliberate," said Han Chuan Shenliu, propping his chin on his hand. "If my brushstrokes were as messy as his, I would just lie down and not want to do anything."

Judy was still confused: "You mean the diary is fake, so it's deliberately written in a messy way? But..."

“No, I think Mr. Hanchuan is referring to the messy and overlapping handwriting in Hunter’s diary.” Conan Edogawa suddenly realized something after Hanchuan’s prompting. “It doesn’t seem like it was done carelessly… more like my hand was shaking?”

Han Chuan Shenliu nodded: "The person who writes a diary has shaky hands or often has blurred vision. Writing is probably a very painful thing for him. At this point, there is no need for him to keep a diary. He should be more concerned about reducing his physical pain."

The others suddenly realized.

But no one present was a handwriting analysis expert, so even if Hanakawa Shinryu said that, it still felt like there wasn't enough evidence.

Kenji Hagiwara believed Shinryu Kagawa: "So, Hunter's body does look... skin and bones, as if he suffered a lot of torment. If he was sick... the autopsy results aren't out yet, I'll go and urge them."

Because Kenji Hagiwara remembered a casual conversation where Shinryu Samikawa had mentioned that Hunter might have a terminal illness, which was why he suddenly decided to commit murder, he suggested to Inspector Megure that a pathological autopsy be performed when Hunter was sent for a forensic autopsy.

Upon hearing that it was a possibility that Shinryu Samakawa had mentioned before, Inspector Megure immediately went to discuss it with the FBI, and the FBI did not refuse.

However, pathological anatomy requires too many instruments, which necessitates applications or queue jumping, making it somewhat slow.

Fortunately, under the guise of a transnational joint investigation, when Kenji Hagiwara went to urge them, the case had just ended. Since it would take time to send the paper version, they sent the electronic version first.

Kenji Hagiwara quickly shared the electronic version with everyone present, and for a moment everyone in the conference room began to bury themselves in reading the new information.

Conan Edogawa also received the electronic version, but his focus was entirely on the case. He didn't even question why Kenji Hagiwara would specifically send a copy to his elementary school student's email address. After quickly flipping to the important part, he was the first to shout it out.

"He was shot in the head eight years ago, and the surgery didn't remove all the fragments?"

“And it’s near the brainstem…” Judy’s scalp tingled. “This is so painful… No wonder they found a lot of powerful painkillers when they dissected his stomach…”

Han Chuan Shenliu put down his phone: "I suggest asking his former doctor. He's been on the battlefield, so he probably has more than just PTSD."

Judy nodded seriously: "I understand, I'll contact the US side right away."

"The brain is a very sophisticated instrument. If there are bullet fragments left in the brainstem, it's perfectly normal for his hands to tremble. He might also have frequent headaches, and his vision might even decline."

Conan Edogawa was still analyzing the situation, oblivious to the unspoken message in Kenji Hagiwara's eyes—"Hey kid, at least consider the occasion! Aren't you going to put on an act at all?!"

"If he had these aftereffects, he wouldn't have been able to snipe at all, let alone engage in duels like those mentioned in his diary... Wait, weren't there two bullet marks at the scene of Hunter's death?"

Cameron, who has collaborated with Conan Edogawa many times, explained cooperatively: "Yes, the culprit's first shot must have missed, Hunter's return shot also missed, and the second shot hit him squarely in the forehead."

"...Something feels off."

Conan Edogawa said with a puzzled look, "Snipers of such high skill level usually kill with a single shot before, but this time, at such close range, they missed?"

Kogoro Mouri rolled his eyes: "After all, it's Hunter on the other side. He's probably just too excited because he's finally going to kill the person he wants to kill the most."

"Then he is not a qualified sniper."

Han Chuan Shenliu turned his head and looked over: "In this situation, it's an assessment, right? Just like killing your own parents to prove that you treat everyone equally and won't be unfair because of blood relations, killing your teacher to prove that you've graduated."

Everyone: "…………???"

What kind of logic is this?! Who treats everyone equally by killing their parents? Who must kill their teacher to graduate from school?!