With a perfectly executed side kick, the iron door burst open. A wave of hot air rushed straight toward him.
Before Ritsu could even make out what was happening inside, he felt a large mass hurtling toward him. Completely caught off guard, he was tackled flat onto the ground.
Congratulations! Genta Kojima has successfully used Human Cannonball Attack to knock genius detective Onizawa off his feet!
"Onizawa-nii!"
"Genta, what the heck are you doing?!"
Even Genta hadn't expected his tackle to be that powerful. Scratching his onigiri-shaped head, he wondered aloud,
"Huh? Am I really that strong?"
Ritsu climbed to his feet in a rather undignified manner.
'I was supposed to look cool coming in to rescue everyone... How did it end like this?'
Helplessly narrowing his eyes, he looked Genta up and down.
"Genta... how much do you weigh?"
Genta counted on his fingers before answering,
"Hmm... without dinner, I should be about 58 kg. After dinner, probably around 60!"
'Why are you so proud of that?! Putting on 2 kilos from a single dinner is terrifying for a first-grade elementary school student!'
Ritsu suddenly felt that, as a grown man, he was somehow losing to an elementary schooler.
'Should I start eating more...?'
Haibara glanced at her watch and kindly reminded everyone,
"There are only fifteen minutes left before the concert starts. Even at top speed, it'll take at least another thirty minutes to get there."
"Before I acted, I already sent a text message to Mouri-san asking her to contact the MPD and have officers dispatched."
"Hm?"
Conan blinked in confusion.
'Why did Sensei text Ran?'
Before he could ask, the sound of approaching police sirens interrupted him. Hayasaka looked over everyone, relieved to find them completely unharmed.
"Honestly... you kids were way too reckless!"
She sighed.
"Give me your parents' phone numbers. I'm going to—"
"Officer, please don't blame them."
Minami stepped in.
"If it weren't for these children, Shiina and I probably wouldn't have lived to see tomorrow."
Shiina smiled as well.
"They already know what they did was dangerous, so... Officer, could you please keep this from their parents?"
"...Sigh, alright."
Hayasaka let out a helpless sigh. She didn't particularly want to play the role of the strict adult scolding children. Instead, she pointed toward her patrol car.
"Come on. I'll take the two members of TWO-MIX to the Budokan first, then I'll drive the rest of you home."
Minami suddenly smiled.
"Officer, could you take all of us to the Budokan instead? We'd like to thank these children, and Officer Onizawa as well. I'd like to show them backstage."
"Huh?"
Ritsu instantly wore a blank expression.
"I'm going too?"
He had never imagined receiving such an unexpected perk. Truthfully, he wanted to decline.
Shiina casually threw an arm around Ritsu's shoulders as though they were old friends.
"I heard from the kids that you only discovered the case because you came to watch our concert. So don't be shy if you're a fan. After the concert, I'll even give you a hundred autographs if you want!"
"...Ah... thank you."
Ritsu smiled awkwardly.
There was no way to explain himself. He had no choice but to become a TWO-MIX fan.
Then, his phone vibrated. Seeing that the caller was Vodka, he declined the call and opened his inbox instead.
There were over twenty unread emails from him.
'He's actually this worried about me?'
[Augier: I'm fine. Your idols got kidnapped, and I just rescued them. Relax and wait for the concert to start.]
Only a few seconds later, a reply arrived.
Reading it, Ritsu couldn't help smiling helplessly.
[Vodka: You got caught up in another case again? You're not hurt, are you? Do you need me to come pick you up? Forget the concert. Let's just go back.]
Ritsu quickly typed another reply.
[Augier: Relax and enjoy the show. I'll try to get some signed photos for you backstage. Don't get too emotional. Gotta go, I need to drive now.]
It was always like this.
Whenever Ritsu might be in danger, Vodka was always the first to worry about him.
Ritsu let out a quiet sigh.
'Which side do I really belong to now?'
The people he could entrust his back to without hesitation were probably the Organization members. Seven years together had gradually changed how he viewed the Organization.
But that didn't mean he forgave what they had done.
In the end, he would still stand on the opposite side.
"Onizawa, what are you standing around for?"
Hayasaka leaned her head out of the patrol car.
"If you don't follow me during rush hour, you'll never make it to the Budokan as fast as I can. Or are you planning to stand Akemi up again?"
"Coming."
At times like this, there was no point dwelling on such complicated thoughts. He would just let things unfold naturally.
For now, he still needed the Organization's strength. Otherwise, he had no chance of confronting the man who had vanished without a trace.
Ritsu climbed into his beloved Bugatti, the one registered under Onizawa's identity. He was secretly glad he had driven this car today.
Following the police escort, they reached the Budokan without any delays. If reporters happened to be waiting outside the venue, tomorrow morning's headlines would probably read,
—TWO-MIX Arrives in Police Car—Suspected Involvement in Criminal Case!
As soon as everyone entered backstage, they could already hear the audience voicing their dissatisfaction.
After waiting nearly half an hour beyond the scheduled start time, their impatience was only natural.
"Takayama! Nagano! This is bad!"
A staff member rushed over in panic.
"Our drummer just fell and fractured his right arm! He can't play the drum kit with only one hand!"
"Huh?"
Shiina looked toward Minami.
"Mina-chan, how about I perform alone on keyboard? We can just mix the prerecorded drum track into the backing music. That should work, right?"
"But wouldn't that hurt the performance?"
Minami frowned.
"The fans were looking forward to seeing us perform with Nakajima-kun."
Listening to the discussion, as well as the increasingly impatient voices from the audience outside, Ritsu pursed his lips. After hesitating for a few seconds, he finally spoke.
"Do you have the sheet music?"
"Huh? Onizawa-san, you play the drums?"
"Yeah, I've learned a little."
During his time in Zurich, Ritsu had studied quite a few musical instruments whenever he had free time.
The goal had been to perfect one of his identities. The drum kit was simply one of the instruments he knew.
To put it simply, he possessed enough musical ability to form a one-man band.
The staff member quickly handed him the sheet music. The suspicion in his eyes gradually transformed into the look of someone staring at a savior.
He looked only moments away from dropping to his knees in a perfect dogeza, followed by ritual seppuku to apologize for ever doubting Ritsu.
"Onizawa-nii, I didn't know you could play the drums!"
"Yeah! That's so cool!"
"Can you teach me too, Onizawa-nii?"
"But... Onizawa-nii, don't you think those clothes don't really fit the occasion?"
The staff member carefully looked Onizawa up and down. The more he looked, the more he felt it was a waste that this man wasn't in show business.
He waved over one of the stylists.
"Come on! Get Onizawa-san a proper outfit!"
"...Huh?"
Ritsu's eyes instantly turned blank again. He looked completely lost.
'Wait... Why are all these stylists staring at me with glowing green eyes? They're not seriously planning to change my clothes for me, are they?!'
"Wait! Just give me the clothes! I'll change by myself!"
Someone let out a disappointed sigh, then another. Soon the room was filled with regretful sighs.
One stylist even bashfully covered their face and muttered,
"Aww... what a shame. I was hoping to get a look at Onizawa-san's body~~"
With his exceptionally sharp hearing, Ritsu caught every word.
He shivered violently.
As a result, he changed clothes at lightning speed, terrified that someone might suddenly pull back the dressing-room curtain halfway through.