Conan: Chief of Rice Flower's Science Points

Chapter 373 Gravity is nothing more than that!

Beikacho, a two-story apartment building next to the construction site of Toryo Explosives Company.

Gen and Yamada unexpectedly encounter Fuji.

"Huh? What are you doing here?"

"Why are you here?"

Both spoke almost simultaneously.

Yuanxian immediately said, "Isn't this Ms. Teng, the patrol officer? Why aren't you taking care of the child yet?"

"This is a highly valued task, Minister Fujii, you must cherish it!" Yamada chimed in from the side.

“The guy who volunteered to help the chief move has no right to say these things… and this isn’t a mission! I’m not even on duty right now!” Teng said irritably.

Immediately, Fuji stopped wasting words and asked directly, "You guys aren't here to see Kaneko Koji either, are you?"

"Huh? How do you know this person?" Yuan was taken aback.

“It seems it really is… The serial arsonist burned the bicycle in front of his house the day before yesterday. Luckily, he discovered it in time. However… considering that the serial arsonist used ‘smoke bombs’ before, it’s impossible for him to start a fire in a place that is really easy to cause a fire.” Teng did not hide his suspicion.

"What? He was also involved in the previous arson case?" Gen and Yamada exchanged a glance as they spoke.

"And you?" Teng asked directly.

At this point, Yuan didn't keep them in suspense any longer and said, "The director asked us to investigate Ando Saki's case before... After interviewing some of her old neighbors, we learned that Ando Saki's ex-husband, who was also the father of Ando Satoko, who disappeared and died, was this Mr. Kaneko."

rattan:……

Teng then fell silent.

What was originally just a matter of illogical behavior, now with the addition of "motive," seems far from a coincidence!

“He is not only Saki Ando’s ex-husband, but also…”

……

Okutama Town, at the foot of a cliff not far from Shiramaru.

At this moment, Uncle Kaneko was holding Manami hostage while keeping an eye on his phone—there was still a slight signal here.

Even more extreme than his ex-wife Saki Ando, ​​Kaneko has given Takada a deadline: if he doesn't see the news from the press conference, he will definitely kill Manami. There is a box of explosives around them, with a detonation device.

As soon as Jinzi presses the remote control, both of them will be blown into the sky!
Just then, before the press conference news was even released, Jinzi heard the sound of an engine, and a black sedan drove up in the distance.

However, there was no road here, so Yasuda had to pull Conan out of the car and walk over with him.

However, just as he approached...

Kaneko pressed the remote control, and an explosion occurred about ten meters in front of Yasuda, covering him in sand and dust. Conan took the opportunity to break free.

Conan lured Yasuda away and brought him here, firstly to stop him from killing Ando Saki, and secondly to rescue Manami who had been kidnapped.

Previously, Conan learned about a case from twenty years ago from old newspapers stored in Saki Ando's car, and combined this with the news of the port explosion that morning, he deduced the truth.

Although there was no evidence, Conan deduced from this that Kaneko had brought Manami here.

"Stop! Don't come any closer!" Jinzi shouted.

He didn't strangle Manami like a typical kidnapper...

There were bombs everywhere, and everyone was prepared to die together. It was impossible for anyone other than Shiraishi to escape, let alone a child.

“You… release Ms. Manami, and Mr. Takada will give you a large sum of money,” Yasuda said coldly.

“Who wants your filthy money! That guy Koichiro Takada… If I don’t see him admit his crimes in the media before six o’clock, I’ll kill him!” Kaneko shouted.

"Calm down, Ms. Manami is innocent..." Yasuda advised.

"Innocent? Isn't my daughter innocent too?" Jinzi became even angrier, and then said, "Don't worry, after I kill her, I'll commit suicide to atone for my sins... No, we'll die together!"

"Your daughter?" Yasuda frowned upon hearing this.

All he ever knew was that Saki Ando was a single mother.

"That's right, and...and...Damn it! You all deserve to die!" For some reason, Jinzi suddenly became furious and was about to press the remote control.

……

Rice flower town.

Yamada then explained to Fuji, "He was not only Ando Saki's ex-husband, but... after our investigation, we learned that it seems there were signs of him and Ando Saki getting back together before Ando Satoko's murder. It seems that on that day, Ando Saki was going to introduce him to her biological daughter for the first time, which is why Satoko waited for so long in the park that day..."

After that, Ando Saki was overwhelmed with grief, and since the police failed to arrest the real culprit, she inevitably harbored resentment. She and Kaneko were unable to get back together, and she just drifted along in a daze.

"Damn it! They deserved to be blown up!" Teng said angrily.

“Teng…” Yuan made a shushing gesture in a low voice, then looked around nervously.

It's one thing for ordinary people to say such things, but Teng is a police officer after all, and it would have a bad influence if these words got out.

Yuan immediately knocked on Jinzi's door, but as expected, no one was home...

……

Okutama Town.

Seeing that Kinko suddenly became furious, Conan was also anxious—he had been wondering where Kinko had come from.

At first, the female kidnapper puzzled him.

Kidnappers rarely operate as lone wolves...

They didn't even have any accomplices?
However, upon arriving at the warehouse, the middle-aged man also arrived. From their argument, Conan understood the whole story—at first, Ando Saki seemed unwilling to involve Kaneko anymore, but Kaneko used the excuse of "wanting to do one last thing for her and her daughter" to take Manami away, telling Ando not to interfere anymore…

Perhaps because there was an "unexpected little boy" present, Ando agreed, but instead of "quitting his job," he began to keep an eye on Conan!

Before there's any news about the gold, Ando certainly can't let Conan leave.

……

boom--

Just as Jinzi was getting angry and about to press the remote to detonate, a loud bang rang out behind him, almost causing him to press the remote directly!
Of course, this loud noise was not an explosion...

Moreover, before the sound even occurred, Conan and Yasuda were staring blankly upwards at what was above them.

This is the place where Satoko fell to her death twenty years ago. Of course, there are cliffs above, and it was evening, when the mountain fog was thick. All I could see was...

A huge black shadow "fell" from the sky!

When they saw it clearly, Conan and Yasuda's eyes widened in shock—it was Shiraishi Kuro who had "fallen" down from above...

Indeed, in the urban legends of Beika, Chief Beika can not only climb up to the 18th floor with his bare hands, but he can even jump off the 18th floor. However... shouldn't this just be a legend?

Hearing the thud, then another "bang," Jinzi quickly turned around and saw a giant-like voice, which then half-squatted and stood firmly in the pit...

How could mere gravitational acceleration possibly harm my well-trained meniscus!

Bai Shi's legs felt a little numb, so he slowly stood up.

Although the movements seemed slow, they were surprisingly imposing.

Shiraishi was indeed careless...

Shiraishi didn't actually jump directly down; she used "magic" to slow her descent, but...

The fog wasn't that thick, and when he noticed "eyes" looking up from below, there was still some distance between them. So Shiraishi immediately dispelled the magic and "fell" to the ground in accordance with the acceleration due to gravity for the final leg of his journey!
The height wasn't much higher than the previous warehouse, only five or six stories high, but the soil underneath was more solid than Bai Shi had imagined!
fine……

Shiraishi's leg muscles became much stronger after using the abnormal drug.

However, if it gets any higher, it becomes a bit troublesome...

Then they would see that Shiraishi not only jumped down from the height, but also landed on his left hand first and did a one-handed somersault!

For their values, this is a very troublesome thing, not much better than seeing "white stones falling like feathers".

"Looks like we made it in time... Mr. Kaneko." Shiraishi made a grand entrance and spoke directly.

Woohoo——

Just then, a startled Manami quickly ran behind Shiraishi...

"You are... Chief Mika? Don't come any closer!" Kaneko immediately gripped the remote control tightly, then, remembering the explosives she had planted nearby, she calmed down and said, "If I detonate it... at this distance, you'll die too! I... don't want to kill you, you can leave! But leave her behind!"

Generally speaking, once the hostages are behind the police officers, they are safe.

However, this is not a normal situation. The surrounding area is a "minefield." In Kaneko's opinion, it doesn't matter who Manami hides behind within this range. As long as it's detonated, she will still die... "I won't die, and I can even protect little Manami... But calm down. If this continues, you'll be the only one who gets blown up," Shiraishi said calmly.

Gold:? ? ?
Jinzi felt he was talking nonsense—you want to use your body to provoke emulsion explosives? This isn't a modified firework, I'm a professional!

But thinking about how Shiraishi looked when it fell from above, I couldn't quite say for sure.

"Is this your daughter's grave? Are you really going to do this here?" Shiraishi asked, looking at the tombstone beside him.

Of course, this is just a monument; the cemetery is not here.

However, this did not affect the fact that Jinzi's expression wavered upon hearing this.

Seeing this, Conan quickly added, "That's right, Uncle. What Sister Satoko would want to see is definitely not you avenging her like this."

Shiraishi then shook his head with a strange expression and said, "No, no, no, if it's really about revenge, I'd be very happy if it were at my grave... um."

Conan and Yasuda looked anxiously at Shiraishi upon hearing this—couldn't they just stop making things worse?

"But can this really be considered revenge? Takada protected Takayuki Ejiri, so he killed his granddaughter... But is it possible that Takada didn't actually care that much about his granddaughter? Like even now, he hasn't held a press conference, or even formally reported it to the police." Shiraishi said calmly at this moment.

Sure enough, Jinzi was greatly shaken after hearing this, but his expression turned ferocious—if this didn't work, what else could he do?
Takayuki Ejiri has already been killed by his explosion, but...

Others must also pay the price!
“I think it’s a reasonable approach to end his political life, since that’s definitely something he cares about,” Shiraishi suddenly said.

Upon hearing this, Jinzi looked over in surprise.

“Officer Shiraishi! You…” Yasuda looked at Shiraishi anxiously.

Shiraishi turned to look at Yasuda and said, "Mr. Yasuda, regarding your attack on Ms. Ando, ​​I am now formally arresting you. I just don't have time to handcuff you right now. I hope you won't become a fugitive... and don't talk about self-defense. I have already surveyed the scene, and there is no such possibility. Besides, there is this little detective who can testify."

"I..." Yasuda wasn't thinking about his own affairs right now, but rather what Shiraishi had just said.

However, Shiraishi ignored him and turned to Kaneko, saying, "Believe me, Mr. Kaneko, I've seen too many similar cases... If you die here, you'll just be a thug or a criminal who committed suicide out of guilt. On the contrary, if you live, that's what will give Takada and Ejiri a headache."

"This..." Jinzi was beginning to believe what Baishi had said.

After all, Shiraishi's reputation speaks for itself—besides being physically strong, Shiraishi's knees are even stronger!
He certainly didn't trust the other officers, but Kaneko wouldn't believe that Shiraishi would do dirty work for Ejiri and Takada either.

"Alright, I'll help you take the first step. If all goes well, we might see results tonight." Shiraishi said, taking out his phone and starting to make a call.

"Hello, Mr. Takada... Um, the signal here isn't very good... But you can hear me, right? Don't worry, Manami has been rescued..."

Upon hearing Shiraishi say "she's been saved," Kaneko instinctively wanted to retort—"The detonator is still with me, how can you call that a rescue?"

However, out of trust in Shiraishi, Kaneko did not immediately refute him.

"That's wonderful! As expected of you... Superintendent Shiraishi truly lives up to his reputation. Don't worry, I will definitely recommend you to Minister Takamori!" Takada said excitedly on the phone.

To say he doesn't care about his granddaughter isn't entirely true; it's just that he cares more about his own political life.

Just now, after his initial excitement, Takada quickly calmed down and asked, "By the way, Inspector Shiraishi, have you seen Yasuda? I wonder where he went..."

It's clear that Takada is trying to shift the blame, since Yasuda's mission wasn't just to save people, but also to "silence" them.

Shiraishi even suspects that the reason Takada dares to think he can shift the blame is probably because... Yasuda is actually a "suicide squad member"!
It's quite possible that if everything goes smoothly, Yasuda might not go back to Manami after killing the kidnappers, but instead find a place to "end" his life.

“Yasuda, he’s been arrested by me for attempted murder,” Shiraishi said directly.

Yasuda:......

For fear of provoking the kidnappers, Yasuda didn't specifically emphasize—you haven't caught me yet!
Takada remained silent for a while on the other end of the phone, then said in a deep voice, "Attempted murder... Could there be some misunderstanding?"

"As I understand it, it's definitely an attempted murder, but since Manami was kidnapped, let's leave it to the prosecutor's office to decide... But right now, Mr. Takada, I'm at the grave of a child named Satoko Ando. You haven't forgotten that name, have you?" Shiraishi said, walking leisurely to the gravestone as if no one else was there.

"What are you trying to say? The case is simply that my granddaughter was kidnapped! That's all!" Takada said angrily.

"You'd better calm down, Mr. Takada." This was the first time Shiraishi had ever advised the hostage's family to calm down in front of a kidnapper who was holding a remote control for a bomb.

"What do you want..." Takada asked in a low voice.

“I want three things,” Shiraishi said directly.

Upon hearing this, Takada thought Shiraishi was really going to make demands, and said happily, "Go ahead and say it! Your current Director Hakuba also received some help from me when he was young..."

"That is... fairness, fairness, and it's fucking fairness!" Shiraishi, abandoning his previous amiable demeanor, roared at him.

Takada was momentarily silenced and unable to say anything.

“Listen up, Koichiro Takada. I don’t know if it was you who approached Shuichi Ejiri back then for your own future, or if Shuichi Ejiri was worried about his son and approached you, the power-hungry deputy director. But… I’ll go ask Ejiri about this now. You two can explain it to the public yourselves!” Shiraishi said directly.

"Wait, wait...Ejiri won't either...Hello? Hello?" Takada was furious when he realized that Shiraishi had already hung up the phone.

Shiraishi wasn't an anti-aircraft gun either, and immediately dialed Ejiri's number again—a number that the department had found beforehand.

"Hello, is this Chief Shiraishi?" Ejiri's voice was a bit older, but more composed than Takada's.

He also knew that the number belonged to Shiraishi.

“Mr. Ejiri, the signal is bad here, so I’ll get straight to the point,” Shiraishi said directly.

Jiangjiri didn't mind the young man's rudeness and calmly said, "Go ahead."

Yes, one who is without desires is invincible.

Twenty years ago, Ejiri was willing to do things with great risk for her good-for-nothing son.

However, over the years, Takayuki Ejiri had long since disappointed and driven him to despair...

Even though Takayuki Ejiri died, it didn't have a significant impact on Shuichi Ejiri.

only……

Now the blow is here!

"I've decided to reopen the investigation into Satoko Ando's disappearance," Shiraishi said directly.

Upon hearing this, Ejiri paused for a moment, then immediately reacted and said, "What, Ando Satoshi..."

"Pretending to be stupid now is useless. I will compare the old wounds on the back of your son's hand with the old wounds on his body, and why he was suddenly forced by you to return to his hometown and attend boarding school twenty years ago," Shiraishi said more calmly than him.

"Is what you're saying evidence?" Jiangjiri asked, growing impatient.

He wasn't sure if the teeth mark could actually be identified—probably not, right? That child had been dead for twenty years, and the scar on his son's body was also twenty years old…

In reality, it's impossible to tell the difference!

Because the scars were so old and had undergone scar removal treatment, Shiraishi was not immediately certain during the autopsy that they were teeth marks from a human child.

but……

That's not important!
“Mr. Ejiri, I personally believe that this was a case of Deputy Director Takada offering his services voluntarily. However… I have also warned Takada that if he holds a press conference first, I don’t know what he might say that would be even more distorted. Therefore, I personally hope that you will hold the press conference first,” Shiraishi said matter-of-factly.

Ejiri:……

Jiangjiri suddenly felt a tightness in her chest!
He knew all too well what kind of person Takada was...

When he went to see Takada back then, he actually just wanted to "make some arrangements" and had already decided to have his son turn himself in—at that time, Takayuki Ejiri was still a minor, and the murder was only an accident...

Ejiri simply wanted the police to take care of her, and ideally, to downplay the nature of the case, at least to minimize its impact on her political future.

But Takada immediately reassured him that he could take his son back without worry...

In fact, Ejiri has regretted it over the years.

It wasn't because I was thinking about the victim or her family.

Instead, he discovered that his son was ruined!
What he regrets is that if Takada hadn't protected him so thoroughly back then, would there still be hope if he could have been reformed?

Of course, this is all hindsight. At the time, Ejiri was both worried about her son and reluctant to give up her political future, so she accepted Takada's flattery.

After that, whether willingly or unwillingly, they were forced to help Takada climb the ranks...

"Oh, of course, maybe you can contact each other privately and reach an agreement to keep quiet. Maybe then I won't be able to find out? Heh..." Shiraishi said, letting out a cold laugh.

If Ando and Kaneko said something like that, those two big shots wouldn't take it to heart at all—who held the press conference first? Go ahead and report it, I'll admit defeat if you can expose anything!

However, since it was Shiraishi who spoke, they had no choice but to take it to heart...

And once the situation devolves into worrying that "Shiraishi really found something out," then, just as Shiraishi said, the one who holds the press conference first still has room to shift the blame!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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(End of this chapter)