Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

Chapter 217 Tear Your Masks Apart

"How could I possibly be Phantom Thief Kid?"

"I'm just an ordinary high school student."

Kaito's face was stiff.

He faced Hakuba Saguru directly, but his eyes darted away.

He tried his best to act like an ordinary high school student and avoid getting involved with that notorious thief.

But Hakuba Saguru seemed to have already confirmed his identity.

Are you still going to hide it?

Kaito's face twitched.

Then, quite naturally, he said to Hakuba Saguru, "How did you get involved with me, Kaito Kid?"

"Kaito Kid was active before, back when I was just a kid."

“Kaito Kid might not be a single person,” Hakuba Saguru said.

Hakuba Saguru said, "His acting is impeccable. But it's meaningless. I'm not making an accusation, but stating a fact I've already confirmed."

He snapped his pocket watch shut.

"From the first day you transferred here, that overly familiar aura about you caught my attention. Then came countless coincidences, your extraordinary mastery of magic, and... your subconscious little gestures."

Kaito's smile remained unchanged, but his hands, which were in his pockets, clenched slightly.

"Oh? For example?"

Hakuba Saguru said, "For example, your habitual gesture of adjusting your cuffs is exactly the same as Kid's when adjusting his poker gun."

For example, when you hear Aoko Nakamori mention 'Kid,' a fleeting smile, not of disgust but of helplessness, flashes in your eyes.

the most important is……"

He paused for a moment, then presented the decisive evidence.

"It seems that Kaito Kid is also one of Shoichi's subordinates."

Kaito's smile gradually faded.

How did you discover this?
Kaito said, "Kaito Kid is Shoichi's subordinate? That's quite a novel idea."

“It’s nothing new.” Hakuba Saguru looked at Kaito expressionlessly.

Do you think that no one else has any suspicions about what Phantom Thief Kid has done?

How could a phantom thief with no one to support him possibly create such a big spectacle in Japan, even managing to bring out armed helicopters?

How could they possibly outsmart the Metropolitan Police Department?

It's not that the Metropolitan Police Department is incompetent.

Rather, it's because Phantom Thief Kid has a powerful background, and someone tipped him off, telling him about the Metropolitan Police Department's movements.

Furthermore, there have been several recent actions by Phantom Thief Kid.

All of these greatly contributed to Zheng Yi's career.

He's gone so far as to directly promote Zhengyi.

It's not that we're all stupid and can't see it.

It's just that no one wants to expose it; no one dares to make things difficult for Zheng Yi.

And this isn't necessarily a bad thing.

A phantom thief who only knew how to waste police resources has become a celebrity who only knows how to promote Zheng Yi.

This is clearly a positive change.

Although the evidence is insufficient, it makes sense from a reasoning perspective.

“Although I’ve suspected you for a long time, Zheng Yi has always been in front of you and hasn’t paid much attention to you,” Hakuba Saguru said.

He has calmed down for a while now.

They finally found a master thief right next to them.

Kaito sighed, wanting to continue playing the fool, but felt it was unnecessary.

The truth has been uncovered, so it's no longer appropriate to keep up the act.

It's better to just be honest.

And so, with the composure of Phantom Thief Kid, he said:
"So? Are you planning to hand me over to the police right now, Mr. Detective?"

He shrugged. "Where's the evidence? You can't convict an ordinary high school student based on just your word."

If you can convict someone based on just one sentence.

That guy went to the prison for further studies early in the morning.

Seeing Hakuba Saguru's angry eyes, Kaito's heart skipped a beat.

He silently withdrew his hands. Why did his actions resemble Zheng Yi's when he acted like a scoundrel?

He originally wanted to explain things properly to Hakuba Saguru, but suddenly the image of Shoichi appeared in his mind.

Then, I unconsciously did the same thing.

One who stays near vermilion gets stained red.

Kaito felt like he had become the very thing he used to hate the most.

"Hakuba Saguru, that's not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?"

Hakuba Saguru questioned Kaito, "As expected of Shoichi's good subordinate, your actions and expressions are exactly the same when you're being questioned!"

"I……"

Kaito had a lot of unspeakable suffering.

In any case, he absolutely cannot admit to being the Phantom Thief Kid.

He's pushing too much blame onto Kaito Kid, fearing that if his identity is exposed, he'll become a permanent tenant of the prison.

Anyway, I never betrayed you.

Hakuba asked, "So, are you working for Zheng Yi? Or are you Kaito Kid?"

After asking that question, Hakuba Saguru stared at Kaito without blinking.

Kaito tried to shake his head, but he just couldn't move it.

"Ah."

Hakuba's lips curled into a smile that was neither a smile nor a frown.

He looked at Kaito, unsure whether Kaito was feeling confident or something else.

His gaze became challenging.

"Sending you straight to prison would be too boring. What I want is a fair duel under the moonlight."

I want to personally expose your disguise on your most confident stage, after you've performed your most dazzling magic trick, and make you admit defeat wholeheartedly.

Upon hearing this, Kaito said softly, "So, you want to play a gentleman's game with me?"

Hakuba Saguru shook his head.

How dare you, a notorious thief who aids and abets evil, call yourself a gentleman?
Hakuba Saguru turned and walked towards the rooftop entrance, casting a provocative glance back at the viewer.

Kaito said helplessly, "If you want to get rid of my disguise, your pocket watch and deduction alone might not be enough."

He didn't want his identity as Phantom Thief Kid to be exposed.

Hakuba Saguru calmly replied, "We'll wait and see. Also, please give my regards to Grandpa Terai."

This statement startled Kaito; he hadn't expected that Hakuba had even found out about his assistant.

During this period, Hakuba Saguru did not investigate Zheng Yi.

So they were investigating me.

After saying that, Hakuba Saguru left the park.

After leaving, Hakuba Saguru took out his pocket watch and glanced at the hands.

"I will tear the mask inside."

Both Kaito Kid and Shoichi wear masks, and he will tear them all off one by one.

It's too difficult to tear off Zhengyi's mask.

Let's tear Kaito Kid's clothes apart first.

After losing sight of Hakuba Saguru, Kaito helplessly scratched his scalp, making a mess of his hair.

Kaito felt utterly hopeless, knowing he was about to be investigated by Hakuba Saguru.

He acknowledged Hakuba Saguru's abilities.

But it's impossible to expose his identity as Phantom Thief Kid.

However, he didn't want to fight against Hakuba Saguru.

Isn't this just confirming his status as a lackey of the Zhengyi sect?

While my mind was in complete turmoil, I received a text message on my phone.

[Bank card received...]

Kaito really doesn't want this money anymore.

He thought it was too hot to handle.

(End of this chapter)