The unscrupulous detective in Conan

Chapter 1292 It was just a deal with my aunt.

The client was naturally Fujino, and the poor designer was, of course, the old lady Vermouth.

Of course, these are just proper metaphors; the descriptions are just a bit strange, but they're not strange at all.

This is how Fujino summarized the old lady's tactics, and that's roughly the gist of it.

However, Fujino didn't really want to get involved in the messy affairs of the brewery, the CIA, and the FBI.

In his view, no matter how much this group of people fought, it was essentially none of his business. Even if they beat human heads into dog heads and turned into dog-headed people, it would have nothing to do with him.

As long as you don't spill blood on him, so he has to do the laundry, that's all that matters.

Thinking this, Fujino crossed his arms and said, "A bunch of FBI agents arrested a CIA agent, and then a criminal organization came to rescue him. To put it bluntly, it's just a fight between a criminal organization and a bunch of spies, a dog-eat-dog situation. Why should an outsider like me get involved?"

"Who's going to fight if they don't pay them?"

"Are you expecting us to work ourselves to the bone without paying a single penny, or to work for your organization?"

"You're making a fool of yourself..."

"An irrelevant person..." Upon hearing this, Vermouth pouted and said in a helpless, coquettish tone, "You, an irrelevant person, know more than those of us who are involved!"

"So, please stop using that tone. Pretending to be young won't make you younger." Fujino looked at her speechlessly, almost spitting out the soup he had just drunk.

Auntie Vermouth, she's the mature type of older woman.

Suddenly adopting that little girl's demeanor creates a somewhat unsettling contrast.

I can only say that he truly deserves to be called an actor; his acting skills are top-notch.

Fujino strongly suspected that the old lady was deliberately messing with him.

After taking a deep breath to calm himself, he said in a deep voice, "I have to investigate things thoroughly in Tokyo, my turf. So, what exactly do you want me to participate in your plan for..."

As he spoke, a hint of suspicion crossed his face: "You wouldn't be thinking of recruiting me into your organization as some kind of undercover agent, would you?"

Vermouth didn't seem to care about Fujino's teasing; she was probably used to it by now.

Her slender, fair hands supported her chin, her eyes filled with the thought that he was dreaming:
"how is this possible?"

"Joining an organization isn't that easy."

"Hard to say."

Fujino's eyelids drooped slightly as he thought of the countless counterfeit liquors from all over the world that had infiltrated the winery, which served as an international spy training center.

That statement is somewhat unreliable.

It's estimated that his credit rating in Japan is even lower than that of the "King of the Northeast"...

And given that the distillery is located there, what about joining it?
Just like that telecom fraud park in northern Myanmar, let alone whether you get paid for working, you'd be lucky if you weren't conscripted and sent to medical departments as experimental subjects, right?
Vermouth looked rather helpless at Fujino's attitude.

She picked up her sparkling water, took a small sip, and then unleashed her final weapon, saying in a deep voice, "Then I'll entrust Mr. Jin to you, okay?"

Upon hearing this, Fujino pondered for a moment, then looked helpless and reluctant, sighed at Vermouth, and replied, "In principle, I would not do such a thing, but since you have said so, I will give you, my aunt, some face."

"Let me tell you, it's only because of you that I wouldn't agree to this with anyone else."

As he spoke, a shrewd businessman's smile appeared on his face. He took out a calculator from his pocket, tapped it for a while, and finally gave a price with a smile: "After the discount for acquaintances, the price is ten million yen."

"..." Vermouth fell silent upon hearing this, feeling that these words were somewhat inhuman.

So after the discount it's exactly ten million, right? I suspect you didn't even offer a discount!
So, you were just making excuses and saying you weren't being polite to me, but now you're agreeing to pay up right away, right?
You're trying to give me face? I think you're the one who only cares about money.
If I had known I would have paid, I would have just handed over my money...

She was speechless for a moment, feeling that the child in front of her was somewhat obsessed with money.

However, after narrowing her eyes, she felt that something was amiss, and muttered to herself, "This kid, is he up to something again?"

"Has my plan been seen through again?"

She was filled with doubt, but what could she say?
The person was the one who suggested the invitation, and since they accepted, what else can you say?

Who told me I was the one being manipulated...?

Vermouth felt quite helpless. Now, recalling her past memories, she realized that she had always been the passive party from the very beginning.

Not only was his identity exposed as soon as they met, but he was also tricked and fooled, and then completely trapped and a cooperative relationship was established.

Vermouth felt that this Fujino was definitely not simple, but so far, she still hadn't figured out his background.

In her view, what Fujino is showing now has exceeded her expectations.

Who has an 18-year-old kid who spends all his time cosplaying and going out in the street with a knife to attack people?
Besides her ruthless nature, what bothered Vermouth the most was the oppressive feeling of the other party being omniscient and omnipotent, as if everything about her was under their control.

However, she did not intend to delve into it further.

Everyone has their own secrets, and she has her own secrets too. Secrets are something that adults rely on for survival.

Moreover, in the end, it's just a transaction.

Regardless of the circumstances, she could profit from it all.

Reaching into her bag, she pulled out her credit card and handed it over: "I remember you have a POS machine, right?"

"A sincere offer of ten million yen."

Fujino swiped the card, looked at the old lady, and his smile remained unchanged.

After swiping the card, the POS machine was put away, and ten million yen was deposited into the account.

He paused, then handed over the credit card while speaking in a teasing tone, "But speaking of which, you're not planning to trick me this time, are you?"

"?"

Vermouth silently typed a question mark, then put away her credit card: "What does this mean?"

Fujino then said in a serious tone: "For example, they might use my help as an excuse to set up a trap, ambushing me with three or five hundred axemen, who would hack me to death as soon as I entered the hospital."

"..." Vermouth fell silent for a moment at this outrageous guess, her eyebrows twitching again, before she explained softly, "You're overthinking it. We're just a little short-handed."

"Not enough manpower?" Fujino asked, somewhat puzzled. "Is your brewery facing a severe shortage of talent?"

The old lady shook her head slightly and sighed: "This time, we're dealing with a man named Shuichi Akai, as you should know."

"Dealing with that man isn't something any Tom, Dick, or Harry can do."

Fujino crossed her arms and retorted, "So you're just using me as a mercenary, huh?"

Vermouth smiled slightly: "Oh dear, I did pay a commission fee, so strictly speaking, it should be called hiring a detective."

"No wonder she's from the auntie generation, her tricks are so dirty." Fujino couldn't help but complain.

Vermouth, however, maintained her smile, her face full of the doting expression of an elder aunt to a junior: "To be precise, she is my senior aunt and junior nephew."

"..."

Fujino gave a deadpan look and glanced at Vermouth, who was smiling radiantly. He regretted saying that he had learned magic from Kaito Kuroba.

He was suddenly relegated to a lower generation than this old lady.

But speaking of which, this matter with Auntie can't be resolved, right?
Do you think you're Little Dragon Girl?
...The two of them sat in the restaurant for a while, enjoying the remaining dishes and chatting leisurely about all sorts of things, including their plans.

By the time we finished eating, it was almost nine o'clock.

The two parted ways at the hotel entrance, and Fujino got into his car and drove home.

"Given the current situation, my advantages are no longer relevant."

"The old lady is right. Only by watching the plan being implemented with our own eyes can we avoid some unexpected things from happening."

"So in the current situation, even if I've read the script, it's useless..."

"It seems we need to wait and see."

"Besides, this older woman seems to have her own ulterior motives..."

In the car, Fujino was driving, secretly thinking about what he had just talked about with the old lady.

I had already thought of this when I heard Vermouth explain the operation plan, or rather, when Bourbon was involved.

That is, the plot has changed.

In Fujino's memory, if the original route had been followed, Gin should have brought vodka, along with Cohen, Chianti, and Vermouth.

Now, Gin and Vodka can no longer participate in this operation, and the current situation of Chianti and Cohen is also unclear.

As a result, Bourbon and Vermouth were matched together. The older woman acted as the commander-in-chief, while Bourbon acted as the jungler. They planned to team up and run to Beika Central Hospital to rescue people right under the noses of the FBI headquarters.

The current plotline is not exactly different from what I remember, but it's basically unrelated.

So even if the old lady doesn't invite him, he'll definitely go for a stroll near Beika Central Hospital.

However, since the topic has been brought up, we need to play hard to get in order to conceal our true intentions.

The most important thing was the purpose of this older woman inviting me to participate in the plan.

Fujino had no idea what kind of tricks this confidante was up to this time...

However, it probably won't go too far.

He and Vermouth are now bound together as a community of shared interests, and their relationship seems to be maintained quite well.

Although this little boat might capsize in the future, it won't capsize now. With Conan and Ai Haibara as the connecting link, this little boat of friendship is still very stable and won't end up like the old Song family in a dramatic situation.

However, compared to what Vermouth was thinking, Fujino was more looking forward to what would happen if Bourbon and Shuichi Akai faced off.

"I bet they'll both get beaten so badly their own mothers won't recognize them," Fujino guessed, shaking his head slightly, feeling a bit helpless.

Normally, Amuro Tooru would have to wait a long time before meeting Akai Shuichi, but due to the butterfly effect, the current storyline has changed.

If Amuro Tooru is involved in this operation, he'll definitely run into Akai Shuichi sooner or later.

Fujino estimated that the two of them would start fighting as soon as they met, a fight to the death.

To be honest, these two people are quite eccentric.

Shuichi Akai is related to the Miyano family; by blood, he is Shiho Miyano's cousin, who is also Ai Haibara's cousin.

Well, in a sense, he's still my brother-in-law.

As for Amuro Tooru's original name, Furuya Rei, he had some interaction with the previous generation of the Miyano family, Ai's mother, a long time ago.

They're all acquaintances with some connection to them, so normally things should go well if you have connections...

However, most spies are not entirely normal.

These two are obviously abnormal.

The reason is probably that when both of them were undercover at the brewery, Furuya Rei, also known as Amuro Tooru, was undercover with a police academy classmate named Morofushi Hiromitsu. Then, Morofushi Hiromitsu's identity as a member of the Japanese Public Security Bureau was discovered by Akai Shuichi.

Ultimately, due to a series of bizarre misunderstandings, Morofushi Hiromitsu committed suicide, and Amuro Tooru from then on regarded Akai Shuichi as his lifelong enemy.

Therefore, for Amuro Tooru now, Shuichi Akai and the like are people he can kill as soon as possible.

Thinking about this, Fujino was quite curious: "Amuro Tooru should know Miyano Akemi, so why didn't he react at all when Miyano Akemi was in trouble?"

Fujino didn't quite understand, but thinking about it, maybe it was because Aoyama had made a mistake?

Come to think of it, Amuro Tooru's character should have only appeared later in the story.

After Akemi Miyano's death in the early episodes, she could only live on in the constantly supplemented memories.

…………

The next day was a normal school day.

Hondo Eisuke didn't get any information from the family where he was staying.

Fujino had anticipated this outcome. Regardless of whether it was true or not, even if it really was the CIA, he probably wouldn't have revealed it.

After all, this kid's father is already dead.

Then comes the weekend.

Early in the morning, Fujino began packing his luggage, planning to drive his Sea Lion to pick up the little ones for a camping trip.

Fujino, carrying his luggage, was about to take Ai Haibara out.

"Wait a moment!"

Akemi took a small black jacket and draped it over Ai Haibara's shoulders, saying, "It's been a bit chilly lately. You're wearing so little; don't catch a cold."

Ai Haibara tugged at the hem of her jacket, pulling it closer to her body: "Akami-neechan, you should also keep warm."

Mingmei scratched her head and laughed, "I don't even go out! Besides, how could I possibly catch a cold with my health!"

Ai Haibara chuckled softly upon hearing this, a knowing smile playing on her lips: "Then we'll be going!"

Fujino turned around and greeted them, "We're leaving, Akemi-nee."

"Okay!" Akemi nodded and waved to the two of them. "Have a safe trip!"

Watching the two drive away, Akemi breathed a sigh of relief, then turned around and saw the Nana sisters coming downstairs.

"Sister Mingmei."

"Your relationship is still as good as ever."

"Yes, it's really enviable."

The Nana sisters chimed in with their own comments, while Akemi gave an awkward smile and said, "What's there to envy? We're all family."

"Akemi-neechan is so kind~"

"Alright, alright, let's get to work. It's a bit cold today, so prepare some extra hot drinks!"

Upon hearing this, Mingmei blushed slightly, then clapped her hands and awkwardly pushed the Nana sisters towards Snow King Ice City to begin her day's work.

(End of this chapter)