Detective Conan: The Ultimate Growth Space

This was absolutely an accident; he really didn't forget on purpose.

Zhiyong arrived at the room door.

Hearing Mikami Takeo say from inside, "Let me make this clear from the start: if you don't listen to me, I can't guarantee that you'll all be able to leave here safely."

"Are you threatening me? But I'm not buying it," Kogoro Mouri said angrily.

Zhiyong walked in and said with a light laugh, "Village Chief Sanshang, we are now in a cooperative relationship. You want the gold, and we want the commission fee. That's all."

"I'll say it again: if you don't find the gold, don't even think about leaving safely," Mikami Takeo said angrily.

"Village Chief Mikami, I'm just reminding you that behind every famous detective, he doesn't fight alone."

"So what? This is my territory, and I call the shots," Mikami Takeo said arrogantly.

“Since we dared to come, how could we have come unprepared? And those university professors disappeared on the island, yet you suppressed the matter. Have you considered the consequences? I have already reported this to the Metropolitan Police Department, and they will send officers tomorrow. Have you thought about your explanation?”

"Are you trying to threaten me?"

"That's not a threat. If you anger a detective, especially a famous one, he can do something silently and without leaving any trace. That's what a threat is."

When Mikami Takeo saw Tomoyuki's gaze, he shuddered and forced a dry laugh, saying, "I was just joking, don't take it seriously, don't take it seriously."

This Mikami Takeo is all bark and no bite.

Although he was ruthless enough, he still couldn't bring himself to kill.

Zhiyong said seriously, "I still want to remind Village Chief Mikami that today's events are definitely caused by someone's concerns about Uncle Mori. Since the fire didn't kill him, they will probably take action again tonight. So, if you don't want any murders to happen and affect Shikishima's reputation, you should increase the village's patrols."

Upon hearing this, Takeo Mikami quickly smiled apologetically and left.

As soon as the village chief, Takeo Mikami, left, Goro Kinoshita entered.

He said apologetically, "I'm so sorry, village chief. I've been a bit too eager for quick results lately in order to develop the village. Please rest assured, I will arrange a boat to take you away tomorrow."

"I'm not leaving now. I'm determined to get to the bottom of this." Kogoro Mouri's stubborn streak kicked in.

"Mr. Mori, please don't say that. If you stay on the island, you might be in danger," Kinoshita Goro said hurriedly.

"If I just leave like this, how can I still be called the world-renowned detective?" Kogoro Mouri sneered.

When Kinoshita Goro realized he couldn't persuade Kogoro Mouri, he stopped trying.

After Kinoshita Goro left, Conan followed him out.

……

Chapter 68 Mori Becomes a Suspect

Zhiyong said, "What happened today is very strange, and there was also Kinoshita Goro just now. He didn't seem to want Uncle to continue on the island."

“Yes, the people on the island are very strange. By the way, where were you just now?” Kogoro Mouri asked, frowning.

“I did a quick survey around here. I feel there are a few people acting strangely. One is the lighthouse keeper, Hamada Koji. I heard from the locals that he came to work on this island not long after the Ryujin shipwreck,” Zhiyong replied.

Kogoro Mouri asked doubtfully, "Could it be that he knows about the Ryujin-go and that's why he came here to look for its whereabouts?"

Zhiyong nodded and said, "That's possible. There's also Uehara Yasuo from the Dongdu Travel Agency who came with us. I noticed that he seems to know Hamada Koji."

"If that's the case, then it's quite possible," Kogoro Mouri pondered.

"The gasoline on that balloon must have been put there by Hamada Koji. I saw him leave through the back door of the stage today. I also saw Mr. Hamada and Mr. Uehara arguing. Mr. Uehara even called Mr. Hamada 'Aoki.' I was thinking that maybe Hamada Koji is a fake name."

Conan returned from outside and overheard their conversation.

“Then there’s no doubt about it. Both of them are very suspicious. Perhaps we can find out where the gold is from them,” Kogoro Mouri said with a smile.

"And Mr. Kinoshita who just went out, he seemed too enthusiastic, and he didn't want Uncle to stay on the island. He was in such a hurry for Uncle to leave, probably because he was afraid that Uncle had found that batch of gold. He might also be secretly trying to get his hands on that gold," Zhiyong added.

"Mr. Kinoshita? It seems unlikely." Kogoro Mouri wasn't too sure either.

"Mr. Kinoshita seems very enthusiastic, is there anything wrong with that?" Ran asked.

"For strangers like us, such enthusiasm is bound to arouse suspicion. If it were just professional courtesy, it would be understandable, but that's clearly not the case. What he's doing is practically going against the village chief, isn't that strange?" Zhiyong shook his head and said.

Conan also felt that Chiyo's words made sense, and now he has begun to be wary of Kinoshita Goro.

Zhiyong then reminded everyone, "Tonight, everyone must be on high alert. We didn't kill Uncle Mori this afternoon, but someone might come to kill him tonight."

Xiaolan nodded.

But right after dinner, Conan, that master of courting death, disappeared again.

I couldn't find it at the hotel.

Zhiyong then said to Xiaolan, "Xiaolan, you protect Uncle Mori. I'm going to find Conan. The people on this island are very unfriendly, so you have to be careful."

"Alright then, be careful too," Xiaolan replied.

Conan is very curious about what's happening on Shikijima.

He found Hamada Koji particularly suspicious.

He believes that it was Hamada Koji who placed the gasoline fire inside the colored ball.

With questions in mind, Conan wanted to find out the answers.

After dinner, taking advantage of Xiaolan and the others not paying attention, he left the hotel and went to the lighthouse.

Sometimes I think about it.

Actually, if Shinichi Kudo hadn't become Conan...

He might actually be killed during the investigation.

He became Conan.

Because he is a child, most people will not be very wary of him.

This also provided Conan with an environment for investigation.

Zhiyong knew that Conan must have gone to the lighthouse, so he left the hotel and went straight to the lighthouse.

At the lighthouse, Zhiyong found Conan.

Conan saw Zhiyong and asked curiously, "What are you doing here?"

Zhiyong saw him and gave him a hard knock on the head, saying, "What do you think? You want to die, so why did you bring people here? Don't you know how dangerous it is? If Hamada is really what we suspect, aren't you just dragging others down with you?"

"I didn't bring her with me; she came by herself," Conan said, sounding a little aggrieved.

Zhiyong tapped him on the head again and said, "What, are you feeling wronged? Who told you to come out and run around so late? Do you know how dangerous that is?"

Mikami Rin watched from the side, but said with great dissatisfaction, "You can't bully my Conan."

Zhiyong looked at the little girl and laughed loudly, "Alright, alright, I won't bully Conan anymore."

As he spoke, he patted Conan's head and said, "Young man, you did a good job. You have the potential to be a gigolo. Look how much your girlfriend protects you. You'd better treat her well in the future."

Conan rolled his dead fish eyes and turned his head to the side with a displeased expression.

Zhiyong patted Conan's head again and said, "Alright, Hamada isn't here. Maybe Hamada didn't kill Uncle Mori during the day, but he'll attack him again tonight. Let's hurry back."

When Zhiyong and Conan returned to the hotel, they learned that someone had attacked Kogoro Mouri.

However, Kogoro Mouri was prepared, so he was unharmed and had already chased after the man.

Then they heard the sound of a bell.

"This is the harbor bell. It's only rung when something important happens," Mikami Rin explained to the group.

Upon hearing this, Zhiyong hurriedly headed in that direction.

When they arrived at the port, a large number of villagers had already gathered there.

"There's a misunderstanding! I really didn't kill anyone!" Kogoro Mori shouted.

At that moment, Takeo Mikami also arrived and asked, "What happened?"

“It was Detective Mori; he killed the lighthouse keeper, Hamada,” a resident replied.

Takeo Mikami said loudly, "Mr. Mori, although you are a famous detective, I cannot let you off the hook because you killed someone."

Kogoro Mori hurriedly said, "No, I was sleeping when someone attacked me in the dark. Then I chased him here, and then someone knocked me unconscious from behind. When I woke up, this is what happened."

The police on the island said, "Perhaps you accidentally killed Mr. Hamada during your fight."

Kogoro Mori loudly protested, "But I really didn't kill him!"

"Isn't the armor Mr. Hamada is wearing the same one that's in the naval archives? Why is he dressed like a naval officer? Is it the navy's doing?" Kinoshita Goro asked suspiciously.

Zhiyong had already examined the body; it was indeed Hamada Koji.

He collected his ghost, walked to the corpse, and examined it carefully.

He walked over to Mikami Takeo and said, "If it was Uncle who killed him, it would have been no more than half an hour ago. But Hamada's blood has already congealed. He's been dead for several hours. How could it be Uncle Mori who killed him?"

The police on the island examined the body and said, "Mr. Hamada has indeed been dead for several hours. However, that's not necessarily true; it's not that Mr. Mori killed him."

Zhiyong shook his head and said, "Take a closer look at Hamada. There are marks on his wrists where he was strangled, and he has many shallow bruises on his body. This is clearly someone interrogating him. It also proves that the person who attacked Uncle Mori in the hotel was not Hamada at all."

……

Chapter 69 Waiting for tomorrow when everything will be over

The policeman lifted Hamada's clothes, examined the wounds on his body, and said, "There are indeed marks on his wrists where he was strangled, and he has many small injuries. But if it wasn't Hamada who attacked him just now, who else could it be?"

"Of course it's the guy who killed Hamada. He killed Hamada, then changed into a navy uniform and lured Uncle here so that Uncle would take the blame. Uncle Mori is a famous detective, and he was afraid that Uncle would find out the location of the gold," Zhiyong said with a smile.

"So, who is this person, and why did he treat Hamada like this?" a villager asked.

Zhiyong sighed and said, "Because Hamada is related to the Dragon God. It's possible that Hamada was on the Dragon God back then. Maybe he knew where the gold was hidden, or maybe he was the one who hid the gold on the Dragon God back then."

"This... how did you know?" Takeo Mikami asked, somewhat puzzled.

“There’s a telescope from the Dragon God on top of the lighthouse tower. He’s been here for so long, and you haven’t even noticed,” Zhiyong said calmly.

"When Hamada came to the island, it was not long after the Ryujin incident."

"Yes, maybe he came for the gold."

"I knew he wasn't a good person from the start."

The villagers who were listening to Zhiyong's words began to discuss among themselves.