Chapter 239: Returning Home "I won't be able to escape soon. When the time comes...
Zhu Fu Jingguang stopped abruptly.
The black shadow moved too fast just now, and the distance between him and Haibara Ai was too far, so he had no time to react.
Judy's hand subconsciously moved to her waist.
After touching it, she remembered that this was not America, and she was not an FBI investigator with a license to kill.
She is now an ordinary English teacher, with no guns or other long-range weapons.
Judy felt something was wrong.
She looked at Aida Tomoaki.
Was the current emergency already within this guy's expectations?
He first invited Huiyuan Ai to explore the route with him, then, under the pretext of taking photos, he asked her to stand alone at a distance from them...
If he was the original Tomoaki Aida, Judy would never suspect that he had any special purpose, but the current Tomoaki Aida is the "Thousand-Faced Witch" under the skin, and the things she does always make people feel that she has other purposes.
Who is this guy who suddenly appeared and took Haibara Ai hostage?
He didn't look like an ordinary person. When he rushed over just now, she was dazzled and couldn't even see his movements clearly.
Judy couldn't help but frown.
"Who are you? What do you want?" she shouted. "Don't hurt the child. We can negotiate terms—"
The sound made Kiichiro Numabuchi's ears twitch.
He stared coldly at the people in front of him, with no intention of moving the kitchen knife in his hand.
"Let them back off." Haibara Ai's lips moved.
Kiichiro Numabuchi glanced at the little girl's face, his expression a little confused.
"Back off." He did as he was told, his voice hoarse.
"Raise the knife a little higher." Haibara Ai continued to command in a low voice, "When they retreat behind that big tree, take me away immediately."
Numabuchi Kiichirō obediently raised his knife. The pale neck contrasted sharply with the black, rusty knife, and the approaching blade forced the three men to retreat slowly.
New doctors retire the fastest.
"Please don't hurt her." He raised his hands and said, "If you are short of money or food—" He glanced at the dead chicken abandoned nearby, "We can contact someone to send it to your residence."
Kiichiro Numabuchi remained unmoved.
Except for Miyano Shiho, what others said was meaningless to him.
I don’t understand and I don’t want to listen.
"Right now." Huiyuan Ai said, "Take me away from here, find a safe place, I want to talk to you alone."
The beast-like figure glanced at the three people vigilantly, then looked at the chicken thrown on the ground with some reluctance, picked up Haibara Ai, and quickly jumped into the forest and disappeared.
Haibara Ai felt the wind whistling past her ears. She was being held in the arms and moving through the mountains at an extremely fast speed.
Kiichirō Numabuchi's message flashed through her mind.
Kiichiro Numabuchi possesses physical qualities far beyond those of ordinary people, which is why he was originally trained as a peripheral member of the organization.
However, he was also the instructor's biggest headache at the training camp. He was unwilling to learn physical techniques, lacking systematic training and refinement. When fighting, he always relied on instinct and reckless brute force. This was fine against unsuspecting targets, but against prepared enemies, he was easily countered.
The camp teacher's comment on him was: well-developed limbs, but an extremely simple mind.
The superior who picked up the new recruits from the training camp didn't believe it and sent Kiichiro Numabuchi to complete the task. However, everything went wrong and the superior was also blamed.
The final result was that the superior was furious and sent Kiichiro Numabuchi to the organization's research institute.
Then Madeira threw her to Haibara Ai.
It took Miyano Shiho a long time to establish a friendship with him.
Just as the training camp teacher commented, Kiichiro Numabuchi has a very simple mind. He trusts whoever treats him well, and is afraid of whoever treats him badly.
Their intelligence is really low, equivalent to that of a seven or eight-year-old child.
On the day he was released, Miyano Shiho asked him where he wanted to go after leaving the organization.
Kiichiro Numabuchi thought about it and told Shiho Miyano that he wanted to go home.
"My mother cried for a long time the day I left home," he said. "I didn't want her to cry. So I had to go home."
The wind gradually died down and the bushes became thinner. On a flat ground, Kiichiro Numabuchi put Haibara Ai down.
Huiyuan Ai asked softly: "Ichiro, is this your home?"
Nagano Prefecture, Mount Weaver.
Kiichiro Numabuchi nodded, then shook his head.
“The others are still here,” he said. “My parents are gone.”
"Who are you?" he asked again, "Are you Shiho?"
"No, Shiho is not that small. But you really look like Shiho." He squatted down and looked at Haibara Ai in confusion.
Huiyuan sighed.
"It's me, Ichiro. Long time no see. How have you been lately?"
He must have been having a rough time. Because Kiichiro Numabuchi looked like a savage now, with ragged clothes, a scruffy beard, and blood all over his body.
"It's really you, Shiho." Numabuchi Kiichiro was visibly happy, but then quickly became depressed: "Shiho, they're coming for me again. I won't be able to escape soon. Will you come to save me then?"
"'They'?" Haibara Ai repeated, "Are you talking about the organization?"
"They found you? Impossible..." She looked at the cliff not far from the plain. "If they found you, how could you still be here?"
He would definitely be sent to the lab immediately. It would be unbelievable not to squeeze every last ounce of value out of such a good test subject.
"Really, Shiho," Numabuchi Kiichiro said, "I saw them. The dark shadows and the terrifying noises kept threatening me... I was so scared. I ran away and hid in the mountains... I couldn't see them for a while, but the noises were getting louder."
Auditory hallucinations.
Haibara Ai thought.
Before coming to her lab, Kiichiro Numabuchi had mild auditory hallucinations, and after spending some time with him, Miyano Shiho determined that he had schizophrenia.
Now it seems to be more serious.
"Don't be afraid," she said skillfully, "you've already escaped. No one will catch you back. For the time being, just stay in the mountains... I'll find a chance to bring you food. By the way, where did you get that chicken you were pinching just now?"
It doesn't look wild.
"It's the chicken at home," he said. "I'll take it back."
"Didn't they say everyone in the house had left?" Huiyuan Ai was puzzled. "Where did the chicken come from?"
Kiichiro Numabuchi blinked and looked at her innocently, as if he didn't understand what she was saying.
.
…
Lin Xi's cell phone rang.
She answered the phone calmly: "Hello?"
“…”
“…Okay, I understand.”
"Is there anything wrong, Sister Lin?" Conan looked up and asked her.
"Xiao Ai and the others ran into Kiichiro Numabuchi." Lin Xi said, his expression unchanged, "Xiao Ai and Kiichiro Numabuchi left together."
"Ah??!" Conan was shocked, "What happened! How could Huibara——"
"They are both together now. Teacher Judy, Mr. Morimoto, and Dr. Aida are already searching for them in the forest."
"But, this..." Conan instinctively felt that something was wrong. Sister Lin's reaction was too calm. "Numabuchi Kiichiro is very dangerous. If Huibara stays with him, she will definitely be in danger..."
"Yeah." Lin Xi even smiled when she heard the word dangerous. "So we have to find them as soon as possible. Xiao Ke, do you think I will find her and Kiichiro Numabuchi first, or Dr. Arata and the others?"
"Mount Zhinu is too big. I think we should call the police again, Sister Lin." Conan said solemnly, "We need to let the police know that Kiichiro Numabuchi is holding a hostage. It would be best if we could send in a helicopter... I'm afraid we won't be able to find him so quickly if we just track him down in the mountains on our own."
This time Lin Xi did not resist. He rubbed his temples and explained the situation to the police again.
After calling the police, Lin Xi put away his phone and snapped open his black umbrella, holding it over his head to block out the sun. "You have to believe in the abilities of these three, Xiao Ke. Tracking wild animals in the forest is difficult for ordinary people, but for hunters, it's part of their lives."
"Besides, Xiao Ai..." Lin Xi paused, "I'm more interested in Numabuchi Kiichiro's past."
"I think we should leave the pursuit to others. How about we go to Kiichirō Numabuchi's hometown first?"
"After discovering that a man named 'Numabuchi Kiichirō' had died four years prior, the police conducted a special investigation in the man's registered residence, Origaeyama Village in Gunma Prefecture. They ultimately confirmed that this Numabuchi Kiichirō was indeed the 'Numabuchi Kiichirō.' Many people in Origaeyama Village recognized the man in the photo provided by the police."
"The police found it very strange. Kiichiro Numabuchi was clearly not dead, so why did the household registration information show that he had passed away? They asked the villagers, and the villagers said that Kiichiro Numabuchi's funeral was indeed held four years ago, and most of the villagers attended."
"It turns out that Kiichiro Numabuchi's family is quite 'prominent' in Orihime Village. They're considered a large family with strict upbringing and are very respectable—and wealthy. Other people in the village also respect the Numabuchi family."
"But in such a family, a fool actually appeared. This is something the Numabuchi family cannot accept."
"That's right, Kiichiro Numabuchi had an intellectual disability. After the Numabuchi family discovered this, they kept him secluded, effectively putting him under house arrest. Four years ago, the Numabuchi family suddenly announced his death—Kiichiro Numabuchi had fallen ill and passed away."
"After something like this, the police will definitely question the Numabuchi family. However, strangely, the Numabuchi family disappeared three months ago. Their large livestock was left unattended and on the verge of starvation, so the villagers gathered together and held a meeting to take their chickens, cows, and sheep home to raise them themselves."
"The police found nothing at the Numabuchi residence. They felt the case was suspicious, wondering how the man could have disappeared just before they visited. But after a thorough investigation, they found nothing, so they gave up."
"Xiao Ke, what do you think?"
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