I'm in Conan, I'm not a gangster

Chapter 664 Conan Crawles Through the Dog Hole (1st Update)
The black minivan drove smoothly on the highway leading to the outskirts of Tokyo, the scenery outside the window gradually changing from the bustling city to sparse woodland.

Inside the car, the tense atmosphere eased slightly, and everyone removed their bandit masks.

Sato Miwako took a few deep breaths, trying to suppress the shock from the interrogation and handling of the old house, and attempted to refocus her attention on the mission itself.

Then, her professional competence as a criminal investigator made her realize a serious problem that had been overlooked.

She sat bolt upright, her expression changing slightly, and hurriedly said, "Oh no! We overlooked something! Furuya suddenly disappeared, didn't return to his post on time, and didn't give any explanation... This could immediately attract the attention of the criminal organization's superiors! What if they notice something amiss..."

These words were like cold water poured into a hot oil pan, instantly making the atmosphere in the car tense again!
Yumi Miyamoto's expression instantly turned serious, and she added, "Yes! If they become more cautious because of this, strengthen the security at the nursing home, or even set up an ambush to trap us... then we'll be in big trouble!"

Xiao Lan frowned with worry: "If we can't carry out the infiltration and reconnaissance as planned, the difficulty and danger of the operation will increase significantly..." She subconsciously clenched her fist.

Sonoko Suzuki, however, maintained her fearless, pampered demeanor, waving her hand dismissively and saying with a touch of banditry, "Oh! What does it matter?"

"At worst, we won't infiltrate! We'll just fight our way in! We have Emi, Ran, and Officer Sato! What's there to be afraid of!"

Hearing such a reckless plan, Miike Naeko, who was driving, was so frightened that her hand trembled and the car veered slightly out of its lane. She quickly gripped the steering wheel and hesitantly objected in a low voice, "Ms. Sonoko... this... this is very dangerous, isn't it?"

"The other side might have a gun... I think... we should think of a safer, more reliable method..."

A buzz of discussion immediately broke out inside the car, but no one could come up with a foolproof solution.
In the end, everyone's eyes turned to Shiraishi E, who was sitting in the passenger seat with her eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to what was going on.

Shiraishi E didn't answer directly, not even opening her eyes. Instead, she turned her head slightly and lazily spoke towards the back seat: "What do you think, Conan?"

Conan's spirits lifted when he was suddenly called out!
He knew that this was Shiraishi E giving him a chance to prove himself, so that these guys wouldn't always look down on him because he was young.

He pushed up his glasses, a wise white light flashing across the lenses, then tugged at the voice-changing collar around his neck, and said in a childish yet confident tone:

"It's simple. Just use Furuya's voice to call his direct supervisor and ask for leave...that'll do, won't it?"

He paused, looked at the somewhat stunned crowd, and explained further, "Don't forget, that guy's phone is in Shiraishi-nii's hands right now!"

“Using his phone, imitating his voice, and claiming a family member is suddenly ill or has had an accident, it’s perfectly reasonable to ask for a day or even two or three days off. This will buy us enough time!”

Upon hearing this, Ran, Sonoko, Miwako Sato, and the others suddenly realized the truth and understood!

Yumi Miyamoto clapped her hands excitedly, her face full of admiration, and looked intently at E Shiraishi: "So that's how it is!! Shiraishi-kun, you took his phone before, so you thought of this all along? You're so farsighted! You're amazing!"

She automatically imagined Shiraishi E's "deeply thoughtful" perspective.

Ran and Sonoko immediately followed suit, showering her with praise as if afraid of falling behind: "Yes, yes! Ei, you've thought of everything!"

Upon hearing this, Shiraishi E merely smiled, a subtle, almost imperceptible curve appearing at the corner of her lips, without uttering a word.

Can he say that he simply picked up the phone to check what other information was on it, without thinking that far ahead? Obviously not.

Since Miyamoto Yumi had already come up with a reason for him, he nodded and said casually, "Yes, that's right."

Then, he took out the old man's cell phone from his pocket and handed it to Conan in the back seat.

Conan took the phone, found that the screen had been deactivated, and then slightly adjusted the voice changer to a tone close to that of Furuya.

He took a deep breath and dialed the number marked "team leader" in his contacts.

The call was quickly connected, and Conan immediately said in a tearful voice filled with anxiety and sorrow, "Hello... is this the team leader? It's me, Furuya... I'm so sorry... I suddenly received a call from my hometown saying that my mother has suddenly fallen seriously ill and has been admitted to the emergency room."

"I...I have to go back immediately...Regarding work...Could you please help me coordinate a few days of emergency leave?...Please!...Thank you! Thank you, team leader!"

His performance was so lifelike; the panic and pleading in his tone sounded incredibly real.

The other party seemed to offer him a few words of comfort before readily granting him leave.

Conan hung up the phone, let out a long sigh of relief, and smiled triumphantly: "Done! This way, we can at least buy ourselves some time for our operation tonight!"

This prompted Sato Miwako to exclaim, "Well done, Conan! You're so clever!" She felt even more that this elementary school student was no ordinary person.

Ran and Sonoko both smiled and praised him, saying, "Conan, you're amazing!" and "That kid's actually quite reliable in crucial moments!"

Sonoko, in particular, added with a grin, her characteristic teasing tone: "No wonder E brought you here, you're not entirely useless after all!"

Conan outwardly pushed up his glasses smugly, but inwardly he thought, "Hmph, you guys are just too dense!"

This little incident was resolved perfectly, and the atmosphere inside the car became relaxed again.

Meanwhile, the vehicle was already approaching the sinister nursing home hidden beneath its tranquil facade.

Miike Naeko carefully parked the black van in the shade of a grove of trees about 500 meters away from the target nursing home and turned off the engine.

The group checked their equipment again, nodded to each other, put their bandit masks back on, and got out of the car silently like ghosts.

Under the cover of darkness and the trees, the group cautiously approached the nursing home shrouded in silence.

The closer you get, the more you can feel how unusual this place is.

The nursing home's main gate was a heavy electronic iron gate, tightly closed. A guard post stood at the entrance, where a vigilant security guard sat, frequently scanning the area outside.

Even more noticeable is the presence of multiple high-definition surveillance cameras installed above and around the main gate, providing comprehensive coverage of the entire entrance area.

Sato Miwako, Ran, and the others all turned their gazes to Shiraishi E, their eyes filled with inquiry and reliance, clearly having subconsciously regarded him as the temporary commander of this operation.

In his heart, Shiraishi E felt that this kind of infiltration and reconnaissance was a bit troublesome. According to his style, he would just rush in, fight anyone he encountered, and break down any doors he encountered. This would be the most efficient way. Thinking too much about tactics would be a waste of brain cells.

But right now, leading such a "female army" plus a primary school student, we still need to be a little strategic.

It's okay to act recklessly, since there are various cheat codes to back you up.

You can be reckless as you like, and even if you get shot, it won't be a big deal.

But others are in a different situation. If they get hit by a bullet, they will either die or be seriously injured, and they might even lose their lives.

After a moment's thought, Shiraishi Ei succinctly said, "We can't get in through the main gate, and forcing our way in will alert the enemy. Let's go around to the side and see if there are any other loopholes or blind spots in the surveillance."

This prudent suggestion was unanimously agreed upon.

The group immediately crouched down and, using the bushes and shadows outside the wall, began to move silently around the nursing home's perimeter.

However, the situation is not optimistic.

The criminals were clearly extremely cautious; they installed surveillance cameras at regular intervals along the walls of the nursing home, creating an almost invisible electronic perimeter that kept people from getting too close.

Just when everyone felt at a loss and the atmosphere was somewhat dull, Shiraishi E, who had been sharply scanning the wall, suddenly stopped and signaled for everyone to take cover.

He pointed to a barely noticeable shadowy spot at the base of the wall ahead and whispered, "Look there, there's a hole. Maybe we can use it."

Following his directions, everyone looked closely. Xiao Lan squinted and examined it, then said with some disappointment, "It looks like... a dog hole? But it's too small! We can't possibly crawl in."

The opening was indeed narrow, barely wide enough for a very small person to pass through.

Yumi Miyamoto glanced at the opening, then looked down at her impressive breasts, and immediately shook her head, her tone tinged with a hint of regret: "Yeah, yeah, this hole is too small. I... my breasts are too big, they'll definitely get stuck! I definitely can't get through!"

Sonoko, standing nearby, unconsciously chimed in, puffing out her chest, "Mine too...it gets stuck..."

Miwako Sato, listening from the side, was exasperated and snapped in a low voice, "Alright, alright! What time is it? Still showing off your figures? It's inappropriate!!"

As she spoke, her gaze involuntarily drifted toward the only person with a "suitable" physique present—Conan.

“However…” Sato Miwako changed her tone, looking at Conan and saying, “If it were Conan, crawling through this hole would seem… just right?”

Shiraishi Eya looked at Conan, whose expression instantly turned sour, a playful smile playing on her lips. She patted Conan's head and said, "That's right. Conan, now it's your turn to shine!"

He gave detailed instructions: "You're short and agile, so you should be able to avoid the surveillance cameras at that angle and crawl through this hole."

"Once inside, try to adjust the angle of the perimeter wall cameras to create a temporary blind spot for us. That way, we can climb over the wall and get in."

Conan's face scrunched up, and he looked quite unwell.

To think that Shinichi Kudo, the famous high school detective, would be reduced to crawling through dog holes!
If Hattori knew about this, he'd laugh his head off!
But... with so many people watching, and this seems to be the only feasible way to infiltrate without alerting the other side.

For a moment, he couldn't think of a better idea.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Conan finally had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree in a resigned tone: "...Okay...alright! I understand! I'll go check it out right now!!"

He pulled down his mask, took a deep breath, and like a nimble kitten, crawled quickly toward the dark dog hole.

The small figure quickly disappeared into the shadows at the cave entrance.

The rest of the group held their breath, anxiously awaiting the signal from inside.

(End of this chapter)