Conan: I'm really not the mastermind behind the scenes

A silence.

As Morofushi Kagemitsu looked at Aoyagi Akimitsu, his thoughts finally returned to his own body.

Do you need support?

Shuichi Akai, sitting opposite him, asked again, his tone very calm.

"Being not."

Aoyagi Akimitsu glanced at Morofushi Kagemitsu, then reopened his umbrella. "A passing Japanese policeman overheard our conversation and may have misunderstood. He's calmed down now."

Morofushi Kagemitsu stood before him, his throat felt blocked, and he couldn't utter a sound for a moment.

His mind went blank.

what happened to him?
Words like "bomb," "cause panic," and "escape" would certainly raise the alarm of any police officer, but he wouldn't act so impulsively, without taking any weapons or calling for any support, like a greenhorn who had just entered the police academy, chasing after them bare-handed.

and……

Morofushi Kagemitsu's gaze couldn't help but fall on Aoyagi Akimitsu's puzzled yet slightly wary expression.

Who did he just mistake for the FBI agent in front of him?

...Aniset?

But this misunderstanding is absurd. He had witnessed disguise when he was an undercover agent in the organization. While it was possible to perfectly impersonate another person in appearance, changing one's physique was not so easy.

Short people can be augmented, and thin people can gain weight and build up with fillers, but the reverse is very difficult.

Even when Anisette wore high heels, she was a little shorter than him, while Aoyagi Akimitsu was about the same height as him;

Anisette was a slender woman with a smooth neck, while Aoyagi Akimitsu was a man with a strong build and a prominent Adam's apple.
Anisette had squeezed his hand and put her arm around his, so he knew that her fingers were long and delicate, as cold as snakes, and that her... her embrace was soft, unlike the flat plain of the man before him.

Why would he mistake someone who looks completely different from him?

Is it because of the sound? Or because of...?

“I always feel like you’re thinking something offensive.”

Aoyagi Binguang looked Morofushi Kagemitsu up and down.

His words were overheard by Shuichi Akai, who was still on the phone. The FBI agent, far away in Shibuya, asked in confusion, "Aoyagi?"

“I’m not talking about you, I’m talking about Zhu Fu… You should know him, right? He’s right next to me. He just misunderstood me, and he’s still looking at me strangely.”

Aoyagi Akimitsu sighed.

"I should have called you from inside the car. Now my car is smashed, and I don't know if it can be repaired."

Zhu Fu Jingguang: "..."

Shuichi Akai: "...Morofushi doesn't seem like that kind of person. Did you make that commotion just now?"

The phone call was slightly punctuated, and Morofushi Hiromitsu, who was standing very close, not only heard Akai Shuichi's words but also heard a fourth person's voice immediately following them:
"What Morofushi? What do you mean 'not that kind of person'? Akai, who are you talking to?"

It's Jiang Guling's voice.

Morofushi Kagemitsu: "…………"

One phone call, two cell phones, four people listening.

He cautiously glanced at Aoyagi Akimitsu's expression, and their eyes met. Aoyagi Akimitsu put down his phone and readily pressed the speakerphone button.

“…Zero, it’s me.” Morofushi Kagemitsu spoke up. “I’m at Beika. I just ran into Mr. Aoyagi at the park and there was a little misunderstanding. And you, what are you doing with Akai?”

There was some static on the other end, and I didn't know what was going on. The next second, Rei Furuya's voice came through clearly.

"I met him by chance in Shibuya, and we were discussing some things."

Rei Furuya, knowing that Akihiro Aoyagi, an outsider, was listening, didn't elaborate. "Halfway through the conversation, we discovered a bomb in the street. It was planted by Pramia, an international bomber the FBI had been pursuing. Most of it has already been defused. So don't worry, Hiro, we'll take care of this trouble soon," he reassured him.

“So that’s how it is…” Morofushi Kagemitsu was somewhat embarrassed.

He had heard Rei Furuya mention Pramia and knew that Akimitsu Aoyagi had come to Japan three years ago to hunt her down.

So the FBI was actually helping them. The information about Pramie and the bombs she made was probably sent specifically from the FBI, and he mistook her for someone from the organization...

Perhaps out of consideration for the presence of others, the two exchanged a few more words before quickly hanging up.

Morofushi Kagemitsu watched as Aoyagi Akimitsu put his phone in his pocket and tried to start a new conversation: "You didn't bring your hawk?"

“I lent it to Akai yesterday,” Aoyagi Akimitsu said. “Besides, I don’t usually bring it to Beika. It’s very sensitive to criminals and gets especially excited here.”

Morofushi Kagemitsu had never raised a hawk before and could not give a reasonable evaluation of this strange behavior, so he had no choice but to bypass it again.

He turned to the direction the tree had fallen, bowed his head, and sincerely apologized: "I'm sorry, Mr. Aoyagi, this was all a misunderstanding on my part. I will make it up to you."

"Need not."

Aoyagi Akimitsu declined: "Someone just happened to be giving me a new car. Besides, it was my own fault this time. I attacked without seeing who it was. Luckily, I didn't actually kick you."

Thinking about the force with which the tree was kicked in half, and then thinking about the heavy metal door that was forcibly removed when they last met, Morofushi Kagemitsu didn't want to dwell on that outcome.

He simply frowned: "But the primary responsibility ultimately lies with me..."

Aoyagi Akimitsu thought for a moment: "If you really feel bad about it, then you can make it up to me in some other way... By the way, are you free later?"

Zhu Fujingguang: “……?”

……

Ten minutes later, at the Mihana Art Museum.

"Xiaolan, why do you look so worried today?"

After passing a beautiful painting, Sonoko Suzuki noticed that her best friend was distracted and touched her arm with some concern.

Ran Mouri snapped out of her daze: "I'm fine. I was just wondering how Dad did at the firm today."

She rarely lied, so Sonoko Suzuki didn't suspect anything and muttered, "What else could that old man be doing? He's probably just watching horse racing and drinking beer on TV."

Ran Mouri forced a smile, and seeing that her friend's attention quickly shifted to the other paintings on display, she didn't press her for more information and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although her father said that dangerous matters should be left to the police and that they shouldn't interfere, she was still worried about Kadoya.

How is he?

Why would he do such a thing?

And Conan, he ran out immediately after the police officer left. Did he go with him to investigate? Where is he now?

Ran Mouri really wanted to call and ask, but she was worried about Sonoko, who knew nothing about it, being nearby. She remembered clearly that the policeman had reminded them before leaving not to let more people know about it.

Amidst her anxieties, Ran Mouri had no time to pay attention to her surroundings.

Suddenly, Sonoko Suzuki tugged at her arm again.

"Xiao Lan, look over there—isn't that Mr. Qing Liu standing there?"

Sonoko Suzuki sounded excited. Ran Mouri paused for a moment, then turned to look and saw a familiar figure at the entrance.

“It is indeed Mr. Aoyagi.” She paused, noticing the person beside him, “The person next to him is…”

She saw the police officer who had come to the office that morning, questioning her with a polite yet unyielding tone, walk in alongside Aoyagi Akimitsu. (End of Chapter)