Chapter 172: Tokyo Bay Warehouse 4-04
He rushed into the room.
The room was somewhat messy, with empty cans scattered on the floor, and the small decorative items that had been placed by the door were knocked over everywhere.
"Dead." Natsukawa went forward to check Matsubara Issui's breathing—the man slumped over the TV stand—and found that he wasn't breathing.
He had one hand on the TV stand and the other hidden against his chest. Looking at the floor, blood was pooled everywhere.
He glanced down and saw a bloody gunshot wound in the man's chest.
The blood on the floor was still wet, and the tragedy seemed to have happened not long ago.
Natsukawa turned to look at Conan, who was examining Matsumoto Yoshimitsu's body.
Conan's face was also pale.
The two shook their heads at the same time.
"Are they both... dead?" Takagi held his gun with both hands, wary of his surroundings. There was still one robber unaccounted for, who might be hiding somewhere in the room. He had to stay vigilant at all times.
"He died from a gunshot wound," Natsukawa said. "Miyano Akemi should have left by now. Officer Takagi, you don't need to keep your gun raised."
Natsukawa was worried that Takagi might accidentally discharge the weapon, which would be genuinely dangerous.
Conan carefully observed Matsumoto Yoshimitsu's condition and said, "His eyes are bloodshot, his lips are purple, there's an almond scent from his mouth, and his fingernails are also slightly purple. This person was definitely poisoned—it was cyanide poisoning, and the toxin should have come from the drink in his hand."
Matsumoto Yoshimitsu was holding a slightly crushed can of beverage that was dripping liquid.
"Matsubara Issui shouldn't have been dead for long, at most fifteen minutes. The body hasn't stiffened yet, and the blood on the ground is still somewhat fresh."
Conan didn't doubt Natsukawa's analysis at all. After all, Uncle Natsukawa seemed to know a little about everything.
"Matsumoto Yoshimitsu too—the two of them should have died within a few minutes of each other."
Speaking of which, if they died just fifteen minutes ago...
Conan suddenly remembered that when the three of them got off the elevator, another elevator had just reached the 26th floor and was descending.
According to the timing, the person who went downstairs was very likely Miyano Akemi!
Thinking of this, Conan's heart pounded, and he bolted out of the room like lightning.
"Hey! Conan, where are you going?" Takagi shouted, glancing at Natsukawa and then looking at the departing Conan, somewhat torn.
Who should he team up with to earn recognition?
No, it's definitely Conan!
Not for the credit, but mainly because Conan is an elementary school student and needs police protection.
"Officer Takagi, I'll stay here and secure the scene. Go downstairs and inform Inspector Megure, and also keep an eye on Conan—he must have discovered something."
Takagi nodded and left. This arrangement suited him perfectly, and he wasn't worried about Natsukawa tampering with the scene.
Not only did Natsukawa have absolutely no connection to the robbers, but Inspector Megure's trust in him was proof enough.
Natsukawa was trustworthy!!!
After Takagi and Conan left, Natsukawa took out his phone and called Frank.
"Find Miyano Akemi's location for me."
To prevent any accidents or uncontrollable situations, Natsukawa had secretly placed tracking devices in Miyano Akemi's frequently worn earrings and clothing linings.
Now they came in handy.
Natsukawa was very meticulous—he had even secretly placed a tracking device on Conan's back.
Constantly gathering intelligence was a spy's standard practice.
If he weren't worried about the safety risks of installing a tracking device on Gin, he would definitely have done the same to him.
"Understood." Frank nodded in agreement and started typing.
Frank was quite busy. Besides running his intelligence business on the dark web, he also had to arrange for someone to deliver the letter to Kazami Yuya, and even the Suzuki family was under his surveillance. With the added monitoring and tracking tasks, it was understandable that he was a bit overwhelmed by the workload alone, and it was normal for him to be slower than usual. Natsukawa didn't rush him.
Two minutes later, Frank's voice came through the phone.
"I checked her movements, and it seems she's still at the Beika International Hotel."
"Wait."
Frank was silent for more than ten seconds, then said, "She's started moving, but we still can't tell where she's heading. She's going west."
Natsukawa walked to the window, opened it, and looked down. He saw Miyano Akemi get into a taxi and drive away.
Not long after, Conan also appeared at the hotel entrance.
Natsukawa looked away, checked the time, and said, "It's about time. We can deliver the letter to the Public Security Bureau now."
"Understood. Yuri will definitely receive your letter within half an hour at most." Frank was very confident about this.
Natsukawa nodded and continued, "Also, keep tracking Miyano Akemi's location and note where she stays the longest."
After ending the call, Natsukawa glanced around the room again, hesitated for a moment, and dialed another number.
This time, it was to Miyano Akemi.
"Hello, how's the situation?" Natsukawa pretended not to know that Matsubara Issui and Matsumoto Yoshimitsu were dead, asking in a very calm tone.
"We're already at the Beika International Hotel. When is the exchange?"
Miyano Akemi was much more anxious than Natsukawa.
After all, she still had a younger sister to save.
As for killing the two peripheral members, she didn't mention it.
No, to be precise, it was three. However, she hadn't personally killed Miyaji Takao. She had used the lure of one billion yen to easily persuade Matsubara Issui and Matsumoto Yoshimitsu to kill Miyaji Takao.
These people were desperate for money—turning them against each other was no challenge at all.
After that, she conspired with Matsubara Issui to give Matsumoto Yoshimitsu a drink laced with cyanide.
Immediately afterward, taking advantage of Matsubara Issui's moment of inattention, she shot him dead.
The one billion yen was her only bargaining chip to blackmail Gin into releasing her sister—she couldn't allow the other three to be involved.
Therefore, eliminating them was the best solution.
These three pieces of social scum were peripheral members of the Black Organization who had committed countless crimes. Killing them didn't bother her conscience at all.
Moreover, when Tequila had instructed them to kill the armored car accomplice, she had already sensed something was wrong.
It seemed the Organization didn't intend to let her and her sister go.
However, she still harbored a sliver of hope and was willing to try again if given the chance.
"An exchange?" Natsukawa drawled, pondering a suitable time for the transaction.
As for the location, Gin had already decided on a spot, and Natsukawa didn't intend to find a new one.
"What? You're not planning on following through with the deal?" Miyano Akemi's voice was slightly hurried, her previously soft tone suddenly becoming a bit louder.
"No, since you're so eager to see your sister, let's set the transaction time for 6:30 PM, at warehouse 4-04 in Tokyo Bay."
"Understood." Having confirmed the time, Miyano Akemi quickly hung up.
She was still in the taxi, and her strange words had already attracted the driver's attention.
Ten minutes later, Inspector Megure arrived at the room.
"Natsukawa-san, you guys were too impulsive! What if the robbers hadn't turned on each other? Wouldn't you and Conan have been in great danger!"
Inspector Megure complained. He almost would have smacked Takagi on the head when he heard his report.
Takagi probably considered this as well, which was why he contacted him by phone instead.
"Huh, where's Takagi?" Inspector Megure looked around the room and found that only Natsukawa was there—neither Conan nor Takagi were present.
"Conan seems to have discovered the whereabouts of the last robber, and Officer Takagi went after him. I'm here to secure the scene."
Although he said he was securing the scene, Natsukawa had actually examined both victims thoroughly, destroying any evidence on their bodies that could be linked to the Organization.
Although he felt somewhat guilty for betraying Officer Takagi's trust, Natsukawa could only rationalize it as: "The bigger picture is what matters."
Besides, even if the Metropolitan Police Department obtained information about the Black Organization, there wasn't much they could do—they would ultimately have to hand it over to the Public Security Bureau anyway.
The Metropolitan Police Department likely had moles within the Black Organization, and they might even have their information intercepted by these spies. At that point, the "Tequila" persona would inevitably be labeled as compromised in Gin's eyes.
"Damn it! That brat Conan! I should have sent him home earlier.
What could a kid possibly discover? This is utterly ridiculous.
Officer Takagi is really something, actually believing a kid's words. I'll definitely give Conan a good talking-to when we get back!"
Kogoro Mouri was furious. If Natsukawa hadn't stopped him, Conan would have been sent home by noon.
Since the scene had already been dealt with, Natsukawa saw no need to stay any longer. He said he was going to find Conan and Takagi and left the hotel.
Inspector Megure had no objections. Although Kogoro Mouri didn't have high hopes for Conan, Inspector Megure still held a sliver of expectation for the boy. After all, Conan had a sharp eye and often helped Kogoro Mouri's deductions with subtle observations.
Maybe he really had discovered something.
"Officer Takagi, Miyano Akemi seems to have stopped!!!"
At an intersection in Beika Town, a driver waiting at the traffic light glanced back at the two odd passengers—one big and one small.
Who was the police officer here? This Officer Takagi had been completely following this kid's lead the whole way, and it was the kid who was directing where to go. If this was for arresting a criminal, it was far too amateurish.
Sure enough, there was a reason why Beika Town had so many cases. With police like this, criminals would laugh themselves silly.
"It's good that Conan has a tracking device." Takagi's expression was somewhat unnatural. "But who gave you this thing? A kid carrying a tracking device is pretty unbelievable."
Did Kogoro Mouri equip Conan with this?
Conan, not wanting to explain, casually blamed Natsukawa: "Uncle Natsukawa gave it to me beforehand."
"Natsukawa-san? But he—"
Before Takagi could finish speaking, Conan hurriedly got out of the car. It seemed that Miyano Akemi had gotten out here.
"Beika Grand Hotel!"
Conan looked up at the sign of the building in front of him, a metaphorical question mark appearing above his head.
Could this be the transaction location agreed upon by the Black Organization and Miyano Akemi?
But if that's the case, there was no need to change cars at Beika Bridge!
"How are we going to search this place?" Takagi, after paying the fare, stared blankly at the Beika Grand Hotel, which was no smaller than the Beika International Hotel.
Conan gritted his teeth and scanned his surroundings, his brain working at lightning speed.
This shouldn't be the transaction location. It's more likely that Miyano Akemi is here to do something specific. What exactly is she doing at the Beika Grand Hotel?
This was the place she had originally planned to go. Did she leave some kind of backup plan here?
"That taxi!"
The sharp-eyed Takagi suddenly spotted a taxi approaching from ahead and waved it down.
This was the taxi they had been following before—he remembered the license plate number clearly.
The taxi slowly pulled up in front of the two, and the window rolled down.
"Where are you two heading?"
Conan peered into the back seat and asked anxiously, "Uncle, where did the lady who just got in your car go?"
"Why are you asking?"
Conan forced out tears, pretending to be a lost little boy. "That's my big sister. She forgot to take me with her when she got in the car at the Beika International Hotel."
The driver thought: This is a bit far-fetched. That lady had so many bags and luggage—how could she forget her own brother? That's ridiculous.
However, the driver chose to believe him. Some mysterious force told him that a child wouldn't lie.
"That's your sister? She just asked me to take her to the parking lot of the Beika Grand Hotel. To be honest, your sister has a lot of luggage, but she really shouldn't forget her brother just because she has so much stuff.
Here, get in. I'll take you there."
The driver was quite helpful, which suited Conan's wishes perfectly.
After the two got into the car, the driver gave Takagi a strange look and asked, "Sir, who are you?"
"This is my sister's boyfriend. They just had a fight, so she left me with Takagi-nii and ran off."
The driver thought: Oh, I see. I knew it. How could a sister forget her younger brother? Turns out she has a boyfriend.
But it seems the girl had a fight with her boyfriend. Judging from his expression, he's pretty clueless—definitely the type who doesn't understand women.
It's understandable that someone like that would upset his girlfriend.
The taxi made a U-turn at the hotel entrance and headed back toward the parking lot.
"Oh, I see. By the way, kiddo, did you and your sister plan to go to Tokyo Bay today? But why did you choose the warehouse district? That place is full of containers—what's so fun about it?"
The driver chatted casually on the way to the parking lot.
"Tokyo Bay, warehouse district?" Conan and Takagi exchanged glances.
"Yeah, I heard your sister was going there to do some kind of transaction—probably to buy something, right?"
The driver didn't take Miyano Akemi's earlier words too seriously, assuming she was going to Tokyo Bay to shop for something.
Indeed, some people liked to shop in Tokyo Bay, especially for seafood. Some fishing boats returning to port sold fresh, inexpensive fish, and food enthusiasts who valued freshness would choose to buy fresh seafood directly from the docks.
"Y-yes. But my sister didn't tell me exactly where it is. Did you hear the exact location, driver-san?"
"Well..."
The driver suddenly felt something was off and glanced at the two people in the back through the rearview mirror.
After thinking about it, he decided it made sense—kids, after all, couldn't be up to anything suspicious.
"It seems to be Warehouse Number Four in Section Four, but I don't remember there being a seafood shop there. Your sister wasn't scammed, was she? Some merchants sell seafood that's been sitting around for days to unsuspecting tourists. You'd better be careful and not buy dead fish."
"Thank you, Uncle, I understand~" Conan secretly memorized the address and said nothing more.
Soon, the taxi entered the underground parking lot.
"I remember she got off here. Are you guys going to check into the Beika Grand Hotel? Why don't you go up and ask the front desk? Maybe she's already checked in."
Conan thought for a moment and felt that what the driver said made sense.
Miyano Akemi was carrying one billion yen—she definitely needed a room.
Just as he was about to get out of the car, a red sedan drove past them.
"Hey, isn't that your sister?" The driver had sharp eyes and spotted Miyano Akemi through the car window.
"Driver, hurry up and follow her!" Takagi's eyes gleamed, as if he could already see the scene of getting promoted and receiving a raise.
"On it!"
Conan didn't stop him.
Perhaps he was wrong—Miyano Akemi was here to change vehicles, not to hide the stolen money.
And the fact that she was driving away in such a hurry might mean she was preparing to make the exchange.
That guy called Tequila should show up, right?
He wondered if Gin would appear too.
He was more concerned about Gin than Tequila.
Just thinking about that man made his head throb with phantom pain.
(End of Chapter)
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