"Is this the place?"
Yukiko followed Yusaku as the two stood in front of a small detached house.
It was only one street away from the intersection where the incident happened. At most, a five-minute walk.
Yusaku peered through the gap in the door. Seeing the Land Rover parked in the small courtyard, he said, "That's the car that hit you."
"I originally thought they would take Shinichi far away to hide, but they did the opposite. They pulled the 'hiding in plain sight' trick and kept him nearby."
Yusaku sounded frustrated. This result had clearly caught him off guard.
Yukiko asked anxiously, "What do we do now? The other party is part of an international crime Organization. If we just rush in, we won't be able to save Shinichi. We might even end up in danger ourselves."
But Yusaku had no good ideas either. He was just a mystery novelist, not some 007 agent. Facing this kind of situation, he was equally helpless.
He gritted his teeth. "You should leave. I'll go in and check. If... and I mean if I don't come back, you need to leave Japan immediately."
"Don't go back to America either. Find somewhere no one knows you. With your disguise skills, you should be able to shake them off. They're not an official agency, after all. Their reach is limited."
Unexpectedly, Yukiko shook her head. "Who could live like that? I'm already a target too. Even if I run, where can I go?"
"I'm going with you. Actually, I suspect we're already being watched."
She looked around, feeling as though countless eyes were locked onto her.
Yusaku was silent. He understood how hard it would be for her to survive alone in hiding. He sighed. "Then it is what it is."
What a troublesome son.
The scariest thing about having children isn't them being disobedient or rebellious. It's when they make decisions that bring disaster. Gambling, drugs, crime... any of these can drag an entire family down.
But who would have thought Shinichi would go even further? He had directly put the lives of his entire family on the line.
"You didn't tell Agasa what happened here, did you?"
Yusaku asked again.
"No. This is our family's problem. We can't drag him into this."
Yukiko shook her head.
Only then did Yusaku feel relieved. He didn't want an old man like Agasa to be pulled into such life-threatening danger.
They had no plan. Or rather, there was nothing to plan. Their only hope was that the house was empty, and they could take Shinichi and go.
But even if they succeeded, they would still have to face the Organization's pursuit.
...
After seeing Haibara off, Toru returned to the operating room where Conan was tied.
Conan, gagged, struggled and groaned. His furious eyes locked onto Toru.
Toru ignored his glare, slowly taking out a laptop and setting it down in front of him. "I'm going to show you a live performance."
Conan was confused. He looked at the screen and, in the next moment, his eyes widened, and another muffled cry escaped.
The screen displayed several camera feeds. One showed Yusaku and Yukiko.
They were sneaking around outside the house, then climbing over the fence.
Watching all of this, Toru took out a pistol with a silencer and smiled. "How does it feel, Kudo Shinichi?"
Though Conan couldn't speak, Toru could easily guess what he was thinking. Fear. Helplessness. Pain. Anger. Regret.
The house had several hidden cameras. Yusaku and Yukiko's every move was under the watch of both Toru and Conan.
They watched as the couple entered the house and searched room by room, looking for their son.
The house wasn't large. Toru had rented it just for this performance.
Soon, Yusaku and Yukiko arrived at the operating room.
Yusaku carefully tried to crack the door open, but before he touched it, it creaked open by itself, making him flinch.
The scene inside unfolded before them.
Some surgical tools, basic and cheap. A room that had clearly been sterilized.
On the cold white operating table, Conan was tied up, completely unable to move.
A syringe remained stuck in his arm, injecting anti-inflammatory drugs. On a nearby shelf, several bloodstained tools sat ominously.
Anyone would immediately understand that a surgery had just taken place, and the subject was none other than Conan.
"Shinichi!"
Seeing her son, Yukiko panicked. Her voice trembled, and she dared not move recklessly.
Because standing beside the operating table was a man in black, wearing a black top hat, spinning a silenced pistol in his hand.
"Welcome, Mr. Kudo. And Ms. Yukiko."
Toru didn't even look up. He toyed with the gun and spoke with a smile.
Yusaku tried to stay composed. "What does your Organization want?"
"You want money, right? You can take all our assets. Just please, let Shinichi go."
Toru laughed. "All your assets? Mr. Kudo, your entire fortune is about sixty-seven million dollars. That includes stocks, property, and other assets."
"You really think that's worth more than an experimental subject like Kudo Shinichi?"
Yusaku's pupils shrank.
He had only just had his accountant tally that number not long ago. Even he barely remembered the figure himself.
For this man to recite it so precisely showed how thoroughly the Organization had investigated them.
The sense of despair deepened.
"The Organization has already decided. Kudo Shinichi will be transferred to the research institute. He likely won't have freedom ever again."
"As for the two of you, you're no longer needed. The order is to eliminate you."
"To be honest, I don't like this decision. I think you still have some value. But rules are rules. I have to carry it out."
"If you want someone to blame, blame your son. He just had to play detective. And now, he's dragged the whole family down."
Toru stood, raising his pistol as he approached Yusaku step by step.
On the operating table, Conan broke into real sobs.
If he could go back in time, he would never have followed those two men in black at the amusement park.
No, if he could start over, he'd rather never become a detective than watch his parents die in front of him.
Yusaku stared at Toru's approaching figure, his body trembling, sweat pouring from his forehead.
Should he risk it?
The man was close. He might still have a chance.
Yusaku had trained before. Though he'd slacked off in recent years and put on some weight, he was still far better than the average person.
He made up his mind quickly.
Success or not, he had to try. If he didn't, they'd all die here.
Just as Toru's pistol neared his forehead, Yusaku's eyes turned fierce. He shot out his hand, grabbing Toru's wrist, trying to deflect the gun.
At the same time, he threw a powerful groin kick.
In desperate situations, targeting a man's vital points is the most effective strategy.
It worked.
Yusaku's hand wrapped around Toru's wrist. His face lit up with a flash of hope.
But then he froze.
Though he had grabbed the wrist, it didn't budge. The silencer was still pressed firmly to his forehead.
It was over.
Despair washed over Yusaku.
The strength gap was overwhelming. He couldn't even move the man's arm.
As for his kick, Toru had casually shifted his leg, blocking it with ease.
Toru looked down at the faint footprint on his pants. He frowned, then lifted his leg and patted it clean.
"You dirtied my freshly washed clothes."
The line was absurd, almost comical, but no one was laughing.
"That was brutal, Mr. Kudo. You were trying to make sure I never have kids."
The moment he finished, Toru's right foot shot up like a whip, landing squarely on Yusaku's vital point.
"Ughhhhh———!!"
Yusaku let out a shriek that resembled a dying chicken. The pain of being hit there... only those who've experienced it can understand.
Especially from a kick like Toru's.
Yusaku's eyes rolled back. He collapsed to his knees, clutching between his legs with both hands, gasping.
His legs trembled violently. He felt a dampness in his hands.
Shattered. Definitely shattered.
That was the only thought in his mind.
"You were the one who made the move first. I just gave you the same treatment."
Toru shook his head.
This was a warning to the Kudo family.
The real Black Organization would never be as merciful. If they had found Shinichi, they would have already wiped out the entire family.
Kudo Shinichi really did take after his father. Both were arrogant. Neither took a criminal organization seriously.
Even after shrinking, he continued to do as he pleased, never once considering the danger.
And his father, Yusaku, believed he could control everything.
This time, Toru had acquired blood and bone marrow samples from Conan. The APTX4869 research could continue.
And this also served as a warning to Shinichi.
If he didn't learn his lesson, it wouldn't just be himself who paid the price.
Whether or not he truly understood that... only time would tell.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)