Anime, but the Phantom Thieves of Heart

"Idiot! It would have been better if I had let Brother Narukami down there so I could have dragged you up!"

"Then you stay at the bottom!"

"No! I want to see the 'Phantom Thief Sister' first!!"

"Then I don't want it!!"

Looking at Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei who had just climbed up the cliff and were about to fight, Josuke Higashikata felt like he was just a fool.

After all, the Phantom Thieves need 'gunmen' and 'hackers' but they shouldn't need 'comedians', right?

Thinking of this, Josuke Higashikata no longer hid himself.

"Cough cough~"

As he walked out from behind the tree, he coughed lightly to remind her.

Lan Ke and Kudo Shinichi immediately "discovered" Josuke Higashikata.

Lan Ke looked "shocked", while Kudo Shinichi was a little "surprised", but Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei were so busy arguing with each other that they didn't notice Higashikata Josuke's light cough at all.

Seeing this, Higashikata Josuke had to cough louder.

Fortunately, this time Kitahara Iori finally reacted. With a look of shock on his face, he released the thumb that was originally in Imamura Kohei's mouth.

At first, Kohei Imamura was a little surprised, but he followed the other person's gaze and looked to the side, and then he saw Josuke Higashikata in casual clothes.

Although Higashikata Josuke was wearing casual clothes at the time, he didn't expect that the two of them, who were discovered at the beginning of their "infiltration", would make almost the same choice at the same time.

"It was this guy who suggested coming here secretly!"

"This guy is the mastermind!"

After they finished speaking, both of them were stunned for a moment, and then stared at each other at the same time.

"You bastard! We came here because you said you wanted to see 'The Phantom Thief's sister in a sailor uniform and plaid skirt,' okay?"

"You bastard! Didn't I come here with you because you wanted to see the tights of 'Phantom Thief Onee'?!"

Seeing Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei almost fighting again, Higashikata Josuke felt a headache...

Chapter 31: Suspect +1.

Although Lan Ke had no intention of hiding herself completely when she first followed Kudo Shinichi.

After all, the reason why he is usually so elusive is purely due to the special features of the "different-dimensional navigation" and the help of Shirou Emiya.

Now their 'infiltration' seems clever, but in fact once the police start a large-scale investigation, they will be easily discovered, not to mention the two 'burdens'.

But Lan Ke didn't expect that Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei were better than Lan Ke had imagined.

The two men's comedic talents almost made Higashikata Josuke unable to hold back.

Although the suspicion of several people has not been completely cleared, after looking at Kudo Shinichi who climbed up last, Josuke Higashikata suddenly changed the words that were about to come out of his mouth.

"Does Mr. Kujo know you're here?"

"?"

Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei, who were blaming each other, looked confused and seemed to have no idea what was going on, but Lan Ke showed an "embarrassed" expression.

"do not know……"

After hearing Lan Ke's answer, Higashikata Josuke sighed helplessly.

"I knew it... Anyway, the police are investigating the case now. I'll take your statements later. For now, just follow me."

At this moment, Josuke Higashikata seemed to have really detoured a few people for Jotaro Kujo's sake, and there was no sign of him doubting Jotaro Kujo just now.

After saying that, Josuke Higashikata walked straight towards the factory, as if he had really let the four people go.

"Is Professor Kujo's face so useful?"

"It's a pity that Professor Kujo doesn't teach us, otherwise I would definitely choose his class..."

Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei whispered something, and Kudo Shinichi just scratched his head when he heard it. He felt that they were so unlucky. They worked so hard to drive the boat, dive, and climb cliffs, but they were sent to the hands of that "cow dung-headed police officer". They would definitely complain about it later, after all, the other party was not as easy to talk to as Inspector Megure.

Only Lan Ke felt something was wrong. After all, in his impression, Josuke Higashikata was not so easy to talk to.

However, as the saying goes, "Stay constant in the face of change", Lan Ke still followed them obediently.

Josuke Higashikata didn't waste any words. He called 'Kagami', his newly transferred subordinate, to find a reason to lure Yasiro Hideto out of the office, and then he took Lan Ke and the others straight to the office. However, when he took them away, he was particularly careful and deliberately took a detour.

Looking at the four people behind him who were either whispering to each other, looking around curiously, or thinking with their heads down, no one showed any abnormality, so Josuke Higashikata nodded secretly.

It was obvious that he wanted to use this method to test whether anyone present had previously understood the terrain here.

Unfortunately, the only one with the problem really hasn't studied the map here.

In this way, the group wandered around for a long time until Josuke Higashikata received news from his subordinates and then took Lan Ke and the others to the office of Yasiro Hideto.

Although he had seen the other party's "hall" before, it was Lan Ke's first time entering the other party's office. He couldn't help but look around, and then showed a somewhat surprised expression.

After all, the other party had given Lan Ke the impression of being extremely arrogant, and the "palace" was even more vulgar. A small island controlled by pirates, on which the other party's hidden treasure was buried, was so "classic" that it made Lan Ke lose interest.

I didn't expect that the other party's office was arranged so neatly.

Desk, office chair, file rack, blueprint...

The office, without any unnecessary decorations, gives people the feeling that the owner is a person who is extremely strict with himself.

I just don’t know whether this is just a disguise of the other party, or whether the other party has completely fallen?

Lan Ke looked around curiously, while Kudo Shinichi immediately locked his eyes on the "Notice Letter" on the wall.

Although the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts" have only been out for over a month, Kudo Shinichi has gradually figured out some of the patterns of the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts", such as the greater the crime committed by the target of their heart the larger the scale of their activities. This time they only posted a notice in the target's office and didn't even publicly issue a "preview letter" to make it known to the public.

"It seems the target this time is rather ordinary?"

While thinking about him, I looked at the opened 'preview letter' beside me.

[A pirate consumed by greed, an eighth generation British captain.

The gold coins you collect are stained with blood and curses.

We've found your treasure's hiding place.

We will make it public tomorrow...】

"Pirates consumed by greed? Gold coins stained with blood and curses? Is this Pirates of the Caribbean?"

Although Kitahara Iori preferred the 'Phantom Thief's Tights' to the 'Preview Letter', since he was free anyway, he instinctively looked at the preview letter next to Kudo Shinichi.

It’s a pity that he couldn’t understand anything at all. He just felt that the words written in the preview letter were a mess.

However, Kudo Shinichi pinched his chin and fell into thought.

Although the police have never publicly commented on the "Notice Letter from the Phantom Thieves of Hearts" until now, he has his own opinion on the notice letter as he has been involved in it more than once.

In his opinion, the 'Phantom Thieves of Hearts' were relatively reliable. At least every time they sent out a notice, it almost matched the criminal's 'self-narration'.

Sawakoshi committed the most outrageous crime in Neon history due to his 'O' desire; the Roswaal family, jealous of the lifespan of ordinary people, embraced the 'O' cult' and held blood sacrifices; and Arasaka Saburo, driven by his greed for money and power, attempted to transfer his 'memories' into his son's body...

So when faced with the "pre-notice letter", instead of doubting it, he was more concerned about what the "pre-notice letter" actually said.

Gold coins stained with blood and curses?

It did sound like something from a movie, but he thought it should refer to 'money'.

As for the "treasure" hidden by the other party, Kudo Shinichi felt that it should refer to the reason for the other party's crime.

It's a pity that there is no hint about where the 'treasure' is hidden.

This made Kudo Shinichi, who was eager to "interact" with the Phantom Thief, feel a little disappointed.

However, just as a few people were looking at the preview letter and Josuke Higashikata was observing them from behind, the cell phone on his waist suddenly rang.

"Hmm? A screenwriter wants to interview me? What's his name? Kusaka Kansei? Contact the TV station to verify..."

Josuke Higashikata's first reaction was to refuse. After all, he still had to catch the "Phantom Thief" next, so he would rather avoid unnecessary complications. However, he didn't expect that his phone would ring again just a few minutes later.

"Hmm? Yashiro Hideto accepted the other party's interview?"

A big question mark appeared in Josuke Higashikata's head.

Didn’t that guy look scared to death before?

Why are you still willing to be interviewed at this time...

Chapter 32: Disaster Film Screenwriter

Yashiro Hideto's decision was incomprehensible to Josuke Higashikata, so he decided to go and confirm it himself.

However, he did not forget his suspicion, so he simply called "Kagami" and asked him to keep an eye on Lan Ke and others.

It's not that Kagami is the only one under his command, but because the police officers he brought are basically members of the "Investigation Division 1", who are all familiar with Kudo Shinichi, so just in case, he chose Kagami, the "newcomer" who had just been promoted from the police station.

"Don't run around for now, I'll come back to take your statements after I'm done with my business."

"no problem!"

Even Kudo Shinichi behaved quite well at this time.

Higashikata Josuke seemed to believe a few people, but from an angle that only he and Kagami could see, he winked at the other party. Seeing this, Kagami seemed calm, but in fact, she also gave a look in return that said "leave it to me".

Seeing that his subordinates understood, Higashikata Josuke also walked straight towards the direction of Yashiro Hideto.

"President Yashiro, regarding the interview... do you have any plans?"

Although Higashikata Josuke used a question, his tone was quite strong.

It was obvious that he was very unhappy with the situation that increased the workload and uncertainty for his own people, and Yashiro Hideto's expression became quite ugly, but he did not get angry in the end. After all, he had inquired about the other party when Josuke Higashikata led the team here.

This concerns his own safety, so he can't help but confirm it.

Although he is not yet the 'eighth-generation master', as the president of the shipyard and the default next-generation heir, he has also come into contact with people from other companies and conglomerates, such as Zeyuezhi and the Arasaka Group.

He felt a strong sense of insecurity when he thought about how people with higher status than him ended up falling victim to the Phantom Thieves of Hearts.

So he chose to call the police as soon as possible.

He was quite unhappy when he saw Josuke Higashikata at that time. After all, Josuke Higashikata was still a little young, and his arrogant hairstyle made him extremely unhappy. However, after asking his friends in the police about Josuke Higashikata's "record", he decisively backed down.

After all, the other party is famous within the police for being "not afraid of offending people". His identity is not enough to suppress Josuke Higashikata, and he can only obey him if he expects the other party to help him.

However, facing Higashikata Josuke's questioning, he did not choose to obey. After all—

"Writer Kusaka is a renowned screenwriter who's produced hit TV series. Given his social status, he certainly wouldn't be associated with a petty thief like the 'Phantom Thieves of Hearts'! I heard they're planning a TV series about ships. This time, I interviewed him because of my expertise, and he said he's willing to use 'Ship Built by Yashiro Shipyard' as the name for the ship that primarily takes place in the series..."

Seeing the fanaticism in Yashiro Hideto's eyes, Higashikata Josuke fell silent, as if he was wondering whether he should agree.

But in fact, what he was thinking was that what was written in the 'preliminary letter' seemed to be more accurate than he had imagined.

Josuke Higashikata doesn't know why the other party was targeted by the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts". It can't be really because he is against Jotaro Kujo, right?

But what is certain is that if his opponent really wants to fight against one of the 'Seven Deadly Sins', it must be 'Greed'.

However, after thinking about it, he decided to agree.

The first reason is that although Yashiro Hideto obeyed the police's orders because he was rather timid, after all, as the person who called the police, the police had no power to enforce the law against him. If he insisted on doing something, they would not be able to stop him, which would affect the subsequent cooperation.

The second reason is that Josuke Higashikata feels that they must take the initiative in the face of the elusive 'Phantom Thieves of Hearts'. The previous 'Roswaal Case' also proved that they are not without the opportunity to 'take the initiative'.

It would be best if Kusaka Kansei is not a member of the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts" and nothing can be done as if it happened. If the other party happens to be a member of the "Phantom Thieves of Hearts"... then you can also try to "catch the turtle in the jar".

Thinking this way, Josuke Higashikata finally chose to support Yashiro Hideto's choice, but said that he needed to be "protected" by himself.

The extremely surprised Yashiro Eito naturally wouldn't refuse. While sighing, "Officer Dongfang isn't as difficult to talk to as the rumors say," he secretly wondered if he could use him to connect with other people...

However, Josuke Higashikata didn't care about that and directly urged the other party to meet the "Kusaka screenwriter". Finally, he met the other party in the reception room of the "Yashiro Shipyard" - a young and handsome man with short dark golden hair and glasses.

It’s just that the other party’s reaction was a little strange.

"I'm sorry to interrupt the police at this time, but the investors are pressing for a deal this time, and I like the script this time more, so I'm interrupting now..."

Not only was the other party not angry at the police who were monitoring him in the meeting room, he even apologized to him and explained the reason as soon as he saw him.

But Higashikata Josuke felt as if something was strange... although he couldn't figure out why for a moment.

He had no choice but to nod and stand behind Yashiro Hideto and continue observing him.

However, the other party seemed to be indifferent and nodded at Josuke Higashikata before continuing to chat with Eito Yashiro.

According to the other party, his new script is based on the theme of 'disaster at sea'.