The unscrupulous detective in Conan

Chapter 1379 Professional Mentor, Online Guidance

"Chief Inspector Whitehorse..."

Upon seeing his superior greet him, Fujino returned the greeting: "What can I do for you?"

"nothing."

Old Ma smiled, his plump face showing a slightly kind expression: "I just came to ask if you had any ideas since you were here too."

"As for my thoughts..."

Fujino glanced at the head of the Metropolitan Police Department in front of him and decided to play it safe: "Our Metropolitan Police Department has not yet conducted an investigation, and the information is incomplete. I only came here after hearing the news. As for the ideas for handling the case, I estimate that the headquarters has already thought of them."

Old Ma simply nodded, then said, "Is that so? Without any intelligence, there's nowhere to search..."

Turning his head, he patted Fujino on the shoulder again, smiling, "How about this, you go home and rest tonight, and I'll have someone let you know if we find any new information tomorrow."

"After all, you are a technical talent. It's not a good idea to waste time here. Sharpening your axe won't delay your work."

"This case is extremely serious; one wrong move and it could have a huge social impact..."

"clear."

Hearing Fujino's reply, he paused for a moment, then continued, "By the way, speaking of which, Kaito Kid is about to make another move. My son is in Tokyo right now. Do you have time to take him to see the scene? He's been incredibly excited about it ever since he heard about it."

"Is that so?"

Fujino smiled and said, "Then I'll talk to him about how to deal with this situation tomorrow morning."

Upon hearing this, Old Ma didn't say much, just waved his hand, turned around and left: "Alright, those people upstairs are in a panic right now, I'll go deal with them first..."

“You young people have your own things to do. Leave troublesome things like this to us old folks.”

As Fujino watched Old Ma's departing figure, he understood that those words were meant to dissuade him from getting involved in the case.

If letting himself go back to rest was simply out of concern for his subordinates, then his subsequent request for Xiao Ma to distract him made that clear.

Your supervisor comes over and tells you to get some rest, saying they'll let you know if there's anything else tomorrow morning. Then they mention their son is interested in other cases and ask you to come and take a look.

Clearly, there is a conflict.

Fujino realized that Old Ma was concerned about him.

After all, cases like this are like landmines; there's no reward for handling them well, and it's a thankless task if you mess them up.

Old Ma's words have revealed a lot.

The Japanese high-ranking officials are definitely trying to find those terrorists to take the blame this time.

If we can't find the terrorists...

That means the Metropolitan Police Department is not handling the case well.

We'll clean up the research institute and your Metropolitan Police Department together.

Fujino readily accepted, since he hadn't intended to get involved in the investigation in the first place.

If they wanted to arrest them, they would have done so when they watched terrorists bomb the lab.

Why wait until now?
His main goal was to see those old men panic.

…………

“Last night, that group released a statement claiming to be Red Siamese Cat, saying they stole the killer virus from the research institute and that they would take action within seven days.”

When Fujino woke up the next morning, Hiroki updated the previous night's briefing: "The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating and seems to have found some clues, but they still have no leads."

"The research institute said that the destroyed laboratory did not spread the virus. The high temperature of the explosion destroyed all the viruses stored in the research facility, just as we expected."

"The Suzuki Zaibatsu has announced their airship cruise plan, along with Kaito Kid's challenge, which Kaito Kid has already responded to..."

Hiroki added one more thing at the end: "Besides that, it seems there's another group investigating the virus, and also the matter of the red Siamese cat."

"who?"

"I'm not sure yet, but they attacked the IP address of that group claiming to be Red Siamese Cats via cyberattack, though they were unsuccessful..."

"After all, when they posted it, they were using the coffee shop's network, and the phone they used to send the email was stolen from somewhere."

"All right……"

Fujino was speechless for a moment.

Indeed, the best way to avoid being tracked is still to use a coffee shop without surveillance cameras and a disposable mobile phone.

The only way to find it will probably be through physical means.

But after thinking about it, Fujino felt a little strange: "But, you shouldn't have told me about something like this, right?"

“Indeed, that person isn’t the key; the key is the organization behind them.” Hiroki responded, then explained, “That person was simultaneously involved in two hacker organizations, one called DedSec and the other Initiates.”

"The purpose of these two hacker organizations is to expose the illegal activities of the government and technology companies, while the purpose of Origin is to expose the truth about the Templars and the Assassins. The classmate of Hiroki that I mentioned to you before, Fujino-kun, is one of the higher-ranking people in the Origin organization."

Fujino frowned upon hearing this: "This matter has something to do with them?"

Hiroki calmly explained, "I hacked into that person's server, but in the end, the trail went cold."

"Can your leads be broken?"

Fujino paused for a moment upon hearing this.

He knew Hiroki well; as long as there was a telephone line, there was basically no place he couldn't get into.

Hiroki said helplessly, "They used a bunch of abandoned small satellites to build a network independent of the internet. I was just about to go in and take a look when they shut down their server and cut off the relay link. I can't get in without authorization."

"If we keep secretly watching him, we might find an opportunity to sneak in and take a look later."

Fujino thought for a moment: "Then you won't be discovered by them, will you?"

“Of course not.” Hiroki’s tone was full of confidence: “Although they are considered top-notch hackers, they are ultimately just at the level of human-computer interaction.”

"I am a ghost wandering the internet."

"If the internet is a vast ocean, then I have long since merged into that ocean."

"Let alone discovering me, it's difficult for them to even notice my presence."

"That's good."

Fujino responded, believing Hiroki's words.

To be honest, sometimes he felt that Hiroki was a bit too overpowered.

If it weren't for the fact that current technology isn't quite up to par, he would be afraid that Hiroki might one day directly trigger a major crisis in the smart machine world, or like Bartholomew in 2077, create a virus that paralyzes the entire internet.

Fujino thought for a moment, then said, "Keep an eye on the coffee shop where that group used to send emails. Notify me if there are any suspicious people there."

"clear."

Fujino had just finished talking to Hiroki when a phone call came in.

It was Hondo Eisuke calling.

After that incident at the hospital, he didn't communicate much with Hondo Eisuke.

If he had completed the organization's mission the day before yesterday, he should have received a recommendation from the FBI for a witness protection program or something similar yesterday...

The reason they called today must be about this.

As soon as the call connected, Fujino heard a voice on the other end: "Brother Fujino, listen to me, my older sister..."

Hondo Eisuke said almost everything that he already knew.

Most importantly, it is indeed the FBI's witness protection program.

Fujino pondered for a moment before speaking in a gentle tone, "This is a decision you must make yourself, because no one can bear the consequences of this choice..."

"But I don't know what to do..." Hondo Eisuke said in a low voice, sounding very confused.

Fujino pondered for a moment, then decided to give the kid a lesson in worldview, offering a classic pep talk: "Brother, I think you should mature and make your own choices."

"Your own choice?" Faced with Hondo Eisuke's doubt, Fujino simply said calmly, "Asking others to make choices when you are ignorant is for your own benefit."

"However, when you need guidance from others to make decisions that shape your life and affect your future, it's tantamount to giving up your rights, the corresponding responsibilities, and your own life..."

"When facing decisions about the future, you need to learn to make those decisions yourself."

"No one can stand by your side forever; the only one who can stay with you forever is yourself."

"When you drift away from the people you depend on, do you expect others to make the decisions for you?"

"Learn to make choices when you have no one to rely on..."

"Whether you succeed or fail, it's all experience, and it's the best teacher in life."

Fujino's words were incredibly effective; Hondo Eisuke listened, his expression froze, and his eyes suddenly reddened.

Thinking about it, his older brother, a complete stranger, had helped him so much from the beginning until now, and had even been patiently guiding him. He felt his feelings for this older brother growing stronger.

After a brief silence, he nodded firmly and said, "I understand, brother. I know what to do!"

"Go ahead, your brother will always be there for you."

As Hondou Eisuke listened to the last words from the other end of the phone, a warm feeling filled his heart, and he felt as if he had someone to rely on.

Judy, who was standing next to him and responsible for communicating with him about the FBI's witness protection program, was a little confused by what she saw.

Why does this child have such a strong emotional fluctuation when making a phone call?

Shuichi Akai frowned, feeling that this inspirational quote was slightly toxic...

But look at the child's reaction.

Well, what is poison to one is sweet rain to another.

This detective is definitely something in this area.

He managed to fool the kid with just a few words.

…………

Meanwhile, at the Snow King Ice City downstairs from the Fujino family's house.

Ai Haibara sat in a chair, looking at Conan sitting opposite her, and frowned: "You mean, Fujino Makoto disguised himself as a doctor and went to the hospital to help Hondo Eisuke find his sister?"

"You also came into contact with those FBI agents?"

"That's about it," Conan said helplessly. "The FBI almost mistook him for someone from the organization and monitored him for a while."

"Is that so?"

Ai Haibara nodded, understanding some things in her heart.

No wonder Fujino never came home before...

So that's what happened—he went to the hospital to lie low.

That's fine.

"Here you go, Conan-kun." Akemi carried a plate and placed two bottles of lemonade on the table. "And here's your lemon tea."

"Thank you, Mingmei!"

Conan picked up the lemon tea that Miyano Akemi handed him and greeted her with a childlike expression.

Then, his expression returned to calm as he watched Miyano Akemi's retreating figure, lost in thought.

Sitting across from him, Ai Haibara crossed her legs and looked at him speechlessly: "So, can you please stop making that face all the time?"

"A child should always act like a child..."

“Yes, yes, kids should act like kids.” Ai Haibara crossed her arms. “It’s like you, an elementary school student, are cooperating with the FBI or something.”

"I've laid the groundwork thoroughly, okay...?"

Conan muttered a speechless comment, while Ai Haibara pressed on, "So, why do you keep staring at Akemi-nee?"

"Just remembered some things."

Conan responded and looked at Akemi's back, which vaguely overlapped with Miyano Akemi's.

Although Fujino Akemi was Miyano Akemi at this time, in everyone's eyes, they were two very different people.

This also made Conan recall the past.

Fujino Akemi and Miyano Akemi are both Akemi, and they even look somewhat alike.

Could it be that Fujino used some means to save Miyano Akemi?

After thinking about it for a while, he felt that such a thing was unlikely.

He witnessed Miyano Akemi die with his own eyes...

Then, he changed the subject: "Let's not talk about that. Now that Rena Mizunashi has been sent back to the organization, if we can follow the clues to find the mastermind behind it all, maybe we can wipe out that group of people this time!"

"You think too much."

Ai Haibara glanced at him. "The organization's size can't be destroyed in a day or two. Even if the BOSS is captured, there will probably be a lot of executives taking over the organization."

“You’re being a bit too pessimistic.” Conan took a sip of lemon juice. “No matter what, this is a victory.”

"Good, good, we won."

Haibara sighed, "But the FBI actually trusts a kid like you."

"I really don't know what Shuichi Akai, whom you mentioned, is thinking."

As she spoke, she glanced at Conan and said, "To be honest, I really want to see what kind of person he is."

"Huh? You want to see him?"

Conan's expression suddenly turned strange upon hearing this. "Why do you want to see him?"

Ai Haibara narrowed her eyes and glanced at him: "To actually seriously consider your plan, and then actually choose to believe it, and finally carry it out..."

"This is beyond just being carefree."

"Well..."

Looking at Conan's expression, Ai Haibara sensed that the kid was hiding something from her.

It looks like it should be Shuichi Akai...

Why are you hiding this from me?

So she said calmly, "What's wrong? Is there something you can't say?"

"Oh, this..."

"Could it be that you two have some kind of secret?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

Ai Haibara frowned, a look of disgust on her face, and leaned back: "That guy isn't a pedophile, is he?"

"Hey!"

Conan looked at Ai Haibara, who was making wild guesses and even trying to provoke him, and felt a sense of helplessness.