Conan: Above all force, there is truth!

"Ms. Ikenami, having only a 30-year-old photo as a clue is really... Do you really have no other clues?"

"Yes, that's right. Since you can't think of any other solutions for the time being, I suggest you take advantage of 'their' power."

Upon hearing this, Uncle Mori was taken aback: "Them? Who are you talking about?"

Ms. Ikenami smiled and held out her palm, pointing to Tatsuno: "Of course it's this Takeda Tatsuno, and that famous high school detective Kudo Shinichi~"

After saying that, she looked at Longye's face and smiled.

"To be honest, I'd heard a bit about them before; they're frequenting the Mouri Detective Agency. But it seems that Shinichi Kudo isn't here."

Upon hearing this, the three of them, including Ryūno, were fine, but Conan, who was standing to the side, was clearly startled.

Now is not the time to ponder the suspicious points about the woman in front of us.

Although it's unclear where she learned that "Shinichi Kudo" frequently appeared here.

But once these rumors spread, they will surely reach Gin's ears one day.

When that time comes, they will definitely come here to conduct an investigation.

If they discover anything, then I and everyone around me will be in danger.

There's no way around it... I'll have to be more restrained with my reasoning in the future!

"Auntie, since the Mr. Shibata you're looking for won a kendo trophy in junior high school, there's no reason for him to give up kendo after that, right? Maybe he participated in some kendo competitions when he grew up~"

As soon as Ryūno spoke, Uncle Mōri nodded: "That's right! What this kid said makes sense."

Ms. Ikenami also looked at Ryūno standing to the side and smiled at him.

After thinking for a while, Uncle Mori walked to his desk and made a phone call.

"What? Mr. Shibata Shiro participated in the Shizuoka Grand Prix's social division?! Okay, thank you!"

After hearing the information from the other end of the phone, Uncle Mori picked up a pen and quickly jotted something down on the newspaper next to him.

Seeing this, Xiaolan stood up happily: "Dad, could it be that you've already found it?"

"That's right! Mr. Shibata seems to frequently participate in kendo competitions in the Shizuoka area; he's quite famous for it!"

He's currently working as a physical education teacher at Jinggang High School. I've already gotten his address!

After saying that, Uncle Mori put his hands on his hips and laughed loudly, seemingly trying to attract Ms. Shizubo's attention.

But at this moment, Ms. Jingbo's gaze was fixed on Longye, who was standing to the side.

This is Takeda Tatsuno. He is indeed very handsome and seems to be quite intelligent as well.

This child seems to have a very good personality and is very easygoing.

Why is there always a hint of fear... no... awe in Heiji's words when he mentions him?

……

Soon after, the group arrived at the apartment building where Mr. Shibata lived.

After ringing the doorbell several times, there was still no response from inside.

Seeing this, everyone turned to leave.

But before they had taken more than a few steps, a man with a receding hairline walked toward them.

"Do you need to see Mr. Shibata? If so, please tell me quickly. He's coming over to my house to play mahjong later!"

After speaking, the man walked straight past Ryuno and the others, and went to the front of the Shibata house, preparing to knock on the door.

Uncle Mori immediately reminded him, "Um, it seems he's already gone out."

The man waved his hand and said firmly, "Going out? Absolutely not~ He's never had that habit."

After saying that, the man pressed the doorknob.

Looking at the open door, the man smiled and said, "See? I was right. The door wasn't locked, which means he must be home."

The group followed the man into his home.

As soon as they entered the room, the sound of the television reached everyone's ears.

Seeing that the TV was still on, the man was even more certain of his theory—Mr. Shibata must be home.

As the group continued deeper into the area, the restaurant came into view.

Looking at the half-eaten but still unwashed food on the table, Uncle Mori couldn't help but complain about Mr. Shibata's bad habits.

It's one thing to leave the TV on, but to not even clear the dining table or close the door, and just sleep in the room is simply unbelievable!

After hearing Uncle Mori's complaint, Conan narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself, "Isn't that how you are too? Every time you drink, you just lie down on the table and fall asleep without a care in the world."

Forget about the TV and the door. If I didn't clean your house every time, the office would have been a garbage dump long ago! How dare you say such things?!

Just then, a warning voice came from behind them: "Who are you people! How dare you trespass into someone's home?! If you don't leave, I'm calling the police!"

Hearing the sound, everyone looked towards the doorway.

A woman wearing glasses and carrying a sports bag walked towards the crowd with a serious expression.

Just as Uncle Mori was about to explain, shouts came from the inner room.

"Mr. Shibata! Mr. Shibata! What's wrong with you?!"

Upon hearing the shout, Uncle Mori and Conan immediately rushed into the inner room.

At that moment, Mr. Shibata, whom they were looking for, was lying flat on the ground, his face covered in blood.

He was still clutching a photograph in his hand.

Chapter 145 Please believe me, I am a professional.

Shortly after

Police arrived at the scene.

Officer Sango Yokomizo, with hair as red as coral, walked towards the group.

"So, this is how it happened, right? When you, Mr. Mori, came to visit Mr. Shibata, you found no one answering the door, and then..."

After reconstructing the actions of everyone before the body was discovered, Inspector Yokomizo looked at the "Mediterranean" man standing to the side.

"Mr. Yoshikawa Takezo, when was the last time you saw the deceased?"

"Yesterday... no, that's not right, around 3 a.m. this morning. We played mahjong all night, and it didn't end until after 3 a.m. After that, I don't remember anything!"

Upon hearing this, Yokomizo Sango looked at Mr. Shibata's wife.

"Ms. Kyoko, is this what happened? What are your plans for today?"

"Yes, that's right. My husband came home around 3 a.m. I got up early this morning, made breakfast for him, and then went golfing with my friends."

"What time did you leave home?"

"Around five o'clock, that's the time I arranged with my friend. She drove to pick me up at five o'clock."

After hearing the two men's testimonies, Officer Yokomizo had his subordinates conduct an investigation, and the content of what the two men said was basically true.

After listening to his subordinate's account, Officer Yokomizo lowered his head and began to think.

Since there was a half-eaten breakfast on the table, along with newspapers that would be delivered around 6 a.m., it means the man must have died sometime after 6 a.m. this morning.

From this perspective, we can at least rule out the woman as a suspect; she would not have had the opportunity to commit murder.

Immediately afterwards, Officer Yokomizo turned his attention to Ms. Ikenami standing to the side.

Since she's not Detective Mouri's wife, she's also a suspect!

He immediately stepped forward and inquired about Ms. Ikebab's purpose in hiring Detective Mori to come here.

After learning that she was after a photograph, Mr. Yoshikawa, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly spoke up.

“I remember Mr. Shibata received a strange phone call the day before yesterday.”

"A strange phone call?"

“That’s right, Shibata was also there at the time.”

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Ms. Kyoko.

"Indeed, after my husband received the call, he found the book on the bookshelf. Then she picked it up and quickly flipped through the pages. Finally, she laughed and said things like, 'Found it, found it.'"

The two men's testimonies left Inspector Yokomizo deep in thought.

Thinking about it that way, the phone call that came at that time also seems a bit suspicious.

Just as he was about to have his subordinates investigate the phone records from the previous days, Conan's childlike voice rang out: "Whose photo is this uncle holding?"

Upon hearing Conan's words, everyone immediately looked at the deceased, who was indeed holding a photograph in his hand.

Officer Yokomizo and Uncle Mori immediately stepped forward to examine the photo.

After the photo was unfolded, a girl appeared in their eyes.

Uncle Mori immediately looked at Ms. Ikenami in surprise, and stammered, "This...this could be..."

Noticing Uncle Mori's gaze, Ms. Ikenami nodded.

"Yes, this is the photo I wanted."

Upon hearing this, Officer Yokomizo immediately revealed a confident smile and looked at the forensic doctor beside him.

"Has the time of death been estimated?"

"Based on my estimation, the deceased was probably murdered within the ten or so hours between early yesterday morning and this morning."

After listening to the forensic doctor's words, Officer Yokomizo turned to look at Ms. Ikebab.

"I already know, the murderer is Ms. Ikenami! You have no room for defense."

You called here beforehand to confirm the location of the photo. You came here this morning specifically to retrieve it.

But for some reason, you seemed to have an argument with Mr. Shibata because of the photograph. In a fit of rage, you killed him with a wooden sword.

After you left, Mr. Shibata used his last strength to climb to the bookshelf and grasped the death certificate that identified the murderer!

After listening to Inspector Yokomizo's reasoning, Ms. Ikenami did not offer any explanation, but her eyes revealed a hint of helplessness and confusion as she looked at Inspector Yokomizo.

Is this the police force in Shizuoka Prefecture? Their level of competence is just...

Seeing that the woman in front of him remained calm, Officer Yokomizo prepared to press his advantage.