Stay away from Conan.

Faced with Matsumoto Kiyonaga's question, Amuro Tooru remained silent for a moment before slowly saying:
"Although this operation ultimately failed to achieve its goal, it was not entirely without gains..."

As he said this, Amuro Tooru paused, then began to explain seriously—

"At least, through this incident, it can be basically confirmed that—"

"The high school detective Shinichi Kudo and the detective Takato Akechi both likely knew something about that organization."

"Um……"

After giving a brief response, Matsumoto Kiyotaka's eyebrows twitched slightly, and a thoughtful glint flashed in his eyes.

"The logic behind Akechi Kakuichi's actions cannot be fully determined yet, but it is no coincidence that Shinichi Kudo appeared on the Tokyo Tower. According to the Metropolitan Police Department's internal report, he should have grasped the core clues of the case earlier than anyone else, and based on the logic that he deliberately did not contact the police or acted alone, his purpose may be the same as ours: to obtain that list."

After a moment's thought, Amuro Tooru continued, "..."

"As for Akechi Takato, he provided the police with the killer's logic for disposing of the body before the incident, and he also noticed the abnormality of 'Manager Matsumoto' in advance. He secretly arranged the subsequent rescue, and then led the fake manager to the Tokyo Tower at a crucial moment..."

"Although his actions seem plausible on the surface, the result makes it seem as if he deliberately lured the fake supervisor to that location. I wonder if he had a plan or if it was to cooperate with Shinichi Kudo..."

Matsumoto Kiyonaga listened without immediately responding, but carefully considered Amuro Tooru's analysis before speaking:

So, your judgment is—

Matsumoto Kiyonaga spoke in a calm tone and with a solemn expression:
"Have those two already made contact with the organization?"

"At least, Shinichi Kudo must have done it."

Amuro Tooru nodded:
"As for Mingzhi Gaoyuan... his situation is complicated. I can only say that, intuitively, I feel he should know."

Upon hearing this answer, Matsumoto Kiyonaga remained silent, tapping his fingers lightly twice on the bedsheet, as if deep in thought.
"Shinichi Kudo..."

He murmured the name, then looked up:

"That child has been elusive ever since he 'disappeared' and 'reappeared.' Judging from this, there must be something else going on behind his frequent disappearances."

"It's very likely that he's evading the organization's tracking."

Matsumoto Kiyonaga made this judgment, but then his expression turned serious, and he stared directly at Amuro Tooru:
"But zero!"

You should know this—

"A detective is, after all, just a detective."

Amuro Tooru was slightly taken aback, but then he understood the unspoken meaning behind Matsumoto Kiyonaga's words.

"They are civilians, not police officers, much less public security officers."

Matsumoto Kiyotaka's voice wasn't loud, but every word was firm and resonant:
"Regardless of how much they know about that organization, and whatever role they play in this game—"

"Protecting their safety is our responsibility, not the other way around, to make them take the risks for us."

Amuro Tooru did not refute, but simply listened quietly.

"so--"

Matsumoto Kiyonaga paused, his tone becoming even more serious:

"We must never reveal the truth about this incident to them. We must not let them know what we have done behind the scenes, and we must not make any rash contact with them."

"what do you mean……"

Amuro Tooru's brows furrowed slightly.

"Maintain the status quo."

Matsumoto Kiyonaga said it with absolute certainty:

"Keep everything at the level of 'detectives assisting the police in solving a case.' Don't complicate things or drag them into a deeper vortex. They're already in dangerous enough situations; we can't make things worse."

Amuro Tooru was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded:
"I understand."

"besides--"

Matsumoto Kiyonaga suddenly changed the subject, his tone softening somewhat:
"My 'early retirement' this time is just a formality." Amuro Tooru raised his head, a knowing glint in his eyes.

"Officially, I will use this incident as an opportunity and citing health reasons to step down from my position as the Metropolitan Police Department's superintendent."

"But actually... you should know what this means."

Amuro Tooru nodded slightly, his meaning clear without a word.

So, the conversation seemed to have come to an end, but Amuro Tooru didn't immediately get up to leave. He remained silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke:
"There's one more thing... the FBI."

Matsumoto Kiyonaga's eyes narrowed slightly:
What happened to the FBI?

"Intelligence from the organization. The FBI showed up in this incident, the timing is too coincidental. And the crash of that armed helicopter should also be their doing."

Upon hearing this, Matsumoto Kiyotaka's brows furrowed deeply.

“FBI…”

He muttered to himself, his tone carrying a complex meaning:

"Those guys operate within Japan, but they've never proactively contacted our officials..."

"There is no doubt that they are after the organization."

Amuro Tooru explained:

"But the question is, how did they obtain the intelligence? None of the clues we have so far mention the involvement of the FBI. The police were completely unaware of it. The few people left at the East Tower site kept their mouths shut and did not reveal anything about the FBI. They were obviously instructed to do so."

"The FBI's appearance in this whole thing was too abrupt."

After hearing this, Matsumoto Kiyonaga couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

"You mean, there might be another, bigger scheme involved in this whole thing?"

"Matsumoto Kiyonaga inquired."

"Uncertain."

Amuro Tooru shook his head, completely unsure whether to confirm this claim, but—

But one thing is certain—

"Following this incident, the organization's hostility toward the FBI will certainly increase dramatically."

Upon hearing this, Matsumoto Kiyonaga stopped what he was doing, raised his head, and looked deep into his eyes:

"In that case, these FBI agents have been operating in Japan for so long, they should have some skills by now, right?"

His voice was calm, yet it carried a chilling undertone:
"Let them go. As long as they don't endanger civilians, we just need to watch and wait for the right moment to act."

Thus, Amuro Tooru understood the situation by looking at Matsumoto Kiyonaga's expression.

"Then I'll take my leave now."

At this point, Amuro Tooru stood up, bowed slightly, and turned to leave, leaving only Matsumoto Kiyonaga, the stern-faced old policeman, with a sense of impending doom and helplessness...

……

Meanwhile, in an underground parking lot somewhere in Tokyo, a black Porsche 356A was quietly parked in an inconspicuous corner.

Inside the car, Gin sat in the passenger seat, a cigarette between his fingers and his phone in the other, listening to a message coming from the other end of the line.

Vodka, sitting in the driver's seat, barely dared to breathe, because he had already noticed—

Gin's expression was even more somber than usual.

This time, the series of actions triggered by Ireland almost resulted in their own demise in a crashed helicopter. Such a failure of the operation deserves an explanation.

Therefore, Vodka is well aware of his current situation and the problems he may face next.

And because of this, the phone call Gin received was of extraordinary importance... (End of Chapter)