Conan: I'm Really Not Tokyo Ghost Story

Seeing that Vodka seemed too tired to even have an appetite, Gin stood up and said, "Go get a takeout bag. Rye hasn't had dinner yet, and we can't put off work."

"Yes……"

Vodka had barely responded when he sensed something was wrong.

"Has Rye returned from Kyoto?"

"Yes, I just received a text message asking me to prepare dinner."

"Oh……"

Vodka nodded thoughtfully, then hurried to the counter, asked for a takeout bag, and ordered some more relatively expensive items.

Half an hour later.

Sano, who had just received dinner from Vodka, raised an eyebrow in slight surprise.

"What's going on? Did you have such a nice dinner?"

As soon as Sano said this, Gin immediately raised an eyebrow: "You call this good?"

...Even the best hamburger joint's food, when placed in the hands of Gin, who has been to countless different five-star hotels throughout his career...

Naturally, it can only be junk food.

It's simply a matter of how quickly the food is served and whether you can eat your fill.

Therefore, Gin's words were both sarcastic and a genuine question from the bottom of his heart... He's always paid Sano a generous salary, and he's been more generous and frequent in reimbursing him than anyone else, so why is Sano acting like this...?

Hmm, looks like a poor, unsophisticated person who's never seen the world?

This makes it sound like your organization is some kind of black-hearted factory that only makes people work but doesn't provide food or drink. What, have I mistreated you?

"It's considered good for me."

Sano didn't seem to care about being looked down upon and started eating on his own.

The driver was rubbing his hands together, like a fly rubbing his hands.

Gin glanced at it and could only say helplessly, "I didn't originally order this much for you. Vodka paid for it out of his own pocket and bought some extra good stuff for you."

"Ok?"

Sano looked at the vodka.

Vodka nodded and bowed: "Hehe, don't be shy, eat, eat as much as you want. If you're not full or if there's anything else you want to eat, just let me know and I'll go buy it!"

"..."

Sano stared at the vodka with some suspicion, then looked at the hamburger in his hand after a few seconds: "It doesn't seem to be poisoned... Did you spit in it?"

"Hey, what are you saying!"

Vodka glared at him: "Do you think I'm that kind of person?!"

"No, but there's no smoke without fire... Brother Jia, tell me honestly, is there something you want me to help you with, or have you done something wrong?"

Sano wasn't joking.

Although this wasn't the first or second time that Vodka had been courting him.

But that usually only happens when there's a problem.

In normal interactions, who would bother to please someone for no reason?

"No way..."

Vodka muttered something for a moment, then hesitated for a long time before forcing a smile and saying, "Well, Rye, actually, my brother and I saw your child while we were having dinner just now... But don't worry, we didn't do anything. We just happened to see her being bullied, so we stepped in to help. But because she's so young, she seemed to think we were the bad guys..."

...What do you mean, "us"?

Gin's gaze toward vodka now held a hint of something strange.

As for getting things done, although the workload was small and not much, it was all Gin who did the work, okay?

What did vodka do?

It's just watching from the sidelines... although there seems to be no need for Vodka to do anything else besides watching.

But another explanation is that it's used to portray someone as a bad person.

What does this have to do with Gin?

Gin, of course, knew that he didn't look like a good person.

But in this matter, I didn't do anything wrong, did I?

Furthermore, how did Vodka know that the child mistook them for bad guys...? Was it all just wishful thinking? And even if they were mistaken for bad guys...?

so what?

Gin, somewhat unable to comprehend vodka's thought process, chose to continue listening.

After hearing the gist of the story, Sano asked, "And then?"

"And then, that was it."

Vodka started rubbing his hands together like a fly again: "I was worried about scaring her, so I bought some snacks to try and calm her down, but... it seems like I scared her even more. She ran away and said I was a kidnapper or something."

As he spoke, Vodka took out the snacks he had bought earlier and handed them to Sano.

"..."

So, this guy did *that* kind of thing back then?

Gin looked away speechlessly, rubbing his temples... He had to appease that kid before trying to please Sano, but unfortunately...

Trying to please others failed, and I was even disliked more. How embarrassing!

It's practically a stain on the organization.

No wonder I didn't dare tell myself the truth before, and even said I went to the toilet to poop.

While Vodka was filled with embarrassment and tension, and Gin was suppressing the urge to clean up the stain on the organization, Sano still couldn't quite understand the other's thought process... But as the saying goes, it's a fool not to take advantage of a good deal.

"I know, sigh, it's not a big deal, why are you so nervous?"

Sano took the bag of vodka and continued eating: "Later I... tsk, let's forget about explaining. Just keep our distance from each other in the future."

"Okay okay."

Vodka breathed a sigh of relief and finally started the car to get down to business.

On the way, Gin casually asked, "I saw on the official website that the case of Genji Hotaru in Kyoto seems to have been closed. Why isn't your name mentioned?"

"My name?"

Sano feigned doubt.

"Why should my name be on it? I'm not one of Genji Hotaru's people."

"...I'm asking you why you didn't participate in the investigation and solving of this case."

Faced with Sano's idiotic answer, Gin could only expand on his own question.

But Sano's "why" once again completely stunned Gin.

"No, you're a detective. Shouldn't a detective be investigating cases?"

"Ha, so according to you, as a detective, shouldn't I arrest you two and take you back? Oh, and myself, should I turn myself in?"

Sano's answer was as idiotic as ever, leaving Gin completely bewildered.

"No, the key point is that you need the reputation of being a detective, don't you?"

"Yeah, but so what? Do I need this case?"

Sano took a big gulp of his cola through the straw: "I'm going to Kyoto for tourism. I can't be bothered with this stupid case. Besides, what I should be focusing on is the more important gains, right?"

Gin, who initially found the beginning of the sentence absurd, became more convinced after hearing the last sentence.

I immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

...At least it's not as bad as being a salted fish.

"So what did you gain?"

"Lord Gin, I think I don't need to say anything more to you about the fake black-clad thing. As for the white-clad one, have you ever heard of him?"

Sano took off his stuffy passerby hat and asked with a smile.

Gin's eyes remained unmoved: "I've heard about it, but it's just a minor skirmish. I'm more interested in what you mean by saying the black-clad figure is a fake."

...I've heard about it.

The information from the black-clad man took so long to arrive, but the information from the white-clad man arrived so quickly. I can understand why.

Compared to the FBI, does the organization put more effort into the Japanese Public Security Bureau?

"Are you kidding, Lord Gin? I don't believe you don't know what that means. Since you've already become interested in this thing, how can you not make a move against Calvados, who's entangled with the black cat?"

Sano laughed and said, "You should have known this already. The so-called Black Organization is actually a misunderstanding. He just couldn't be bothered to explain."

"It's no use explaining now; no one will believe it."

Gin smiled and said, "And the point isn't whether he did it or not, but what others think... Well, that's not important anymore. Anyway, by now, everyone has basically figured things out. The only attempt to test the waters ended in failure, so anything we do now is just a matter of vying for a title."

"Oh ho, surprisingly open-minded. I thought that even after his organization changed its name, Gin-sama was still nostalgic for the old name."

Sano curled the corners of his mouth into a smile.

"However, you're wrong about one thing just now. The one in white is quite capable."

"Oh?"

Gin looked intrigued. "How so?"

"I met two people at Sanno-ji Temple in Kyoto."

Sano paused, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "One of them calls himself Kurosawa Gin, and the other Kurosawa Blade."

"..."

The air inside the car fell silent for a brief moment.

Even Vodka, who was only eavesdropping while driving, couldn't help but turn around and exclaim, "Hey!??" "Big brother, you've gained two more brothers?"

...Vodka's intention was, of course, just a subconscious吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical commentary).