Conan: I'm Really Not the Manipulator

Jack Waltz was stunned on the spot. He didn't even care how the other party knew about it. He asked quickly: "It wasn't him who did it? But the Japanese police..."

"They are currently investigating the wrong direction." The other party said, "You don't have to pay attention to them. If they want to provide you with protection, you don't have to accept it, but don't oppose it fiercely. Just keep them hanging."

Jack Waltz pondered over these words and felt that he understood them.

There is definitely something behind this series of attacks, and Hunter's revenge may just be a cover to fool outsiders.

Think about it, if the Americans came to Japan to investigate a case, it would be good enough if they were willing to inform the Japanese police. How could they possibly tell them all the information in detail?

Especially since this time it involves the embassy and the US military, what if a huge scandal breaks out?

Jack Waltz asked cautiously, "So where is Hunter now?"

The other party laughed lightly. With this laugh, he no longer looked like the white-haired and majestic commander, but rather had a bit more of the liveliness of a young man.

"He's going to die soon. Don't worry about it."

Jack Waltz thought that this was a plan to arrange Hunter's "commit suicide", so he quickly shut up and stopped asking questions. He didn't ask how the other party knew about it or what they were going to do with him until the other party hung up the phone.

He thought that they would not pursue the matter further since the person involved was going to die anyway. Instead of exposing that it was a slander, it would be better to let the other party die with such a stigma.

The front-page news took up half of the page. Jack Waltz read it quickly, ten lines at a glance. When he read halfway, he frowned.

Why sniping?

After all, this is Japan, not the United States, and the main force in investigating the case is the Japanese police. If you want someone to "commit suicide", the method should be closer to real suicide, such as shooting with a pistol against the temple, or hanging with a rope. Long-range sniping will inevitably be considered homicide.

Could it be that... the matter has not been resolved yet?

As soon as this thought flashed through his mind, Jack Waltz suddenly heard a commotion below. He had a bad premonition and stood up subconsciously.

"Crash!!"

Windows shattered.

A bullet broke the window glass, passed through the back of the chair, and hit Jack Waltz's back as he stood up - if he had not stood up just now, it would have shot through his head!

Jack Waltz's expression was frozen, and his body fell to the ground. He felt that he had been hit in the spine.

……

On another tall building a few hundred meters away, a sniper with short black hair watched his target fall to the ground.

Through the clear lens of the sniper scope, he saw the target's body twitching slightly. He let out a low "tsk" and wanted to shoot again.

But just then——

"boom!"

"!!?"

His palm felt numb and a bullet hit the gun in his hand. The sniper scope was completely penetrated by the bullet and the gun slipped out of his hand and slid to the side.

At the same time, the door to the rooftop behind him was kicked open, and countless policemen rushed in. They quickly surrounded him with guns and shields.

"Don't move!"

They pointed guns at him but did not shoot immediately. Instead, they shouted orders and told him not to act rashly.

The sniper looked at them, slowly stood up from the ground and raised his hands.

He said calmly, "I surrender."

……

On a tall building farther away, Akai Shuichi, who was shot, did not stand up, but continued to observe the arrested person through a sniper scope.

He saw that the corners of the other person's mouth seemed to turn up.

Chapter 317: The Tainted Hero (Part )

"Sorry, I'm a step late."

Zhu Fu Jingguang stood in the shadow of a building. He avoided all the surveillance cameras around him and listened carefully to the words coming from the other end of the communication headset.

The voice of Akai Shuichi on the other side was as calm as ever. At the same time, his junior Jiang Teng Da Zang was standing not far away, communicating with the special police team responsible for the arrest.

The operation over there seemed to be going smoothly. The younger generation showed a happy expression and turned to tell him about the situation over there.

"Senior, the person up there is Yoshino!"

Zhu Fu Jingguang nodded, and soon he received the news that Waltz was not dead and there was a high probability that he could be saved as long as he was sent to the hospital quickly. He finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Sure enough it was him.

……

At the meeting on Saturday.

"Hunter himself doesn't understand Japanese and has never been to Japan before. If he acts here, he might ask these three people for help..."

The blonde female agent had a serious expression as she revealed the identities of the three people one by one. They were Hunter's former instructor, the friend who saved his life, and the commander on the battlefield at that time.

When she mentioned the last person, she also looked at Aoyagi Akimichi. Zhu Fushigami knew the meaning of her eyes, but at this time he had a more important question to ask.

"Excuse me, Agent Stellin, can you please let me see Hunter's inspection report?" He looked at the paper on the whiteboard and raised his hand to signal.

Judy took the report without hesitation and handed it to the left side of the long table. The information was passed several times and soon reached Zhu Fu Jingguang's hands.

Matsuda Jinluo, who was standing next to him, took a curious glance at it, saw the professional English terms on it, and then silently looked away.

Zhu Fu Jingguang picked up the report and flipped through a few pages. The more he read, the tighter his brows furrowed. The others didn't say anything, they just stared at him.

He suddenly asked, "Didn't you do an MRI?"

Magnetic resonance imaging is one of the commonly used examination methods in modern times. Judy shook her head and said, "No, we also asked his attending physician at the time. He said that the operation was not completely successful and there were bullet fragments left in the brain."

Since there is metal in the body, such an examination is naturally not possible. Zhu Fu Jingguang asked again: "Where exactly are the fragments left?"

The human body is very complex. Sometimes a small accident can cost a person's life. But sometimes, even if a person is on the verge of death after a catastrophic disaster, he or she may escape from the clutches of death and then slowly recover as a strong person.

"I don't know." Akai Shuichi replied, "The operation was performed in a temporary hospital on the battlefield, and the operation records are all kept by the military."

The United States has a system of separation of powers, with various departments having overlapping powers. Often, even their own citizens cannot figure it out. Zhu Fujingguang asked, "This case is so serious, and you are unable to review it?"

"You misunderstood." This time it was Aoyagi Hikari who spoke up. "The hospital was not well managed at the time, and some of the injured's information was entered incorrectly. The wrong files have been saved until now, and it will take time to sort them out."

Zhu Fujingguang thought about the efficiency of his own organization at times and felt a little empathetic: "How long will it take?"

"Based on their efficiency, a detailed report will be sent back tomorrow...evening." Judy gave a more accurate time.

Their conversation was extremely smooth, and Takagi Shigeru listened to it all the way through in a daze. It was only at this point that he found an opportunity to interrupt them: "Sorry, um... Officer Morobushi, why are you asking this?"

Zhu Fujingguang looked at the ordinary criminal policeman whose eavesdropping device he had removed, and explained in a kind tone: "He is a sniper. If he has been shot in the head, it may affect his accuracy."

He has a say in the sniper's physical condition.

Shuichi Akai, who also had a say, confirmed and added: "So Hunter is only the first suspect based on the motive. He may not have the ability to commit the crime."

"This means..." Megure Jusan also realized it.

"He may be an unlucky scapegoat, and in a few days, we will find his body after committing suicide," said Aoyagi. "It is also possible that he is the criminal, but he has an accomplice who assisted him."

……

Time goes back to yesterday.

"What did you find out at the hospital?"

It was raining heavily outside the window, and the lights were turned on early in the room. The group gathered around the table again to summarize and discuss the various news they had received today.

Listening to Akai Shuichi's question, Aoyagi Akimitsu, whose hair was not yet dry, answered: "Conan said that he was on the Suzuki Tower that day and saw Hunter on the observation deck."

Matsuda Jinpei raised his eyebrows: "Is he sure? In the eyes of many people, foreigners look similar."

"That kid is very smart." Megure Jusan's words were as sure as to what he said. "And he also said that he felt Hunter seemed to glare at them. At that time, he and Xiaolan were standing not far from the Waltz couple and Fujinami Hiroaki."

His tone was not very sure when he said the following words. After all, no matter how smart Edogawa Conan was, he was just a child. You can listen to the testimony of a child, but you cannot believe it 100%.

Miwako Sato frowned and thought, and at this moment, she glanced at the expression of Takagi Wataru beside her.

"What's wrong with you?" She looked at his thoughtful expression and wrinkled collar and asked in a low voice, "Did the person who was interrogating you today do anything to you?"

Gao Mushi came back to his senses and said quickly: "No, no, Mr. Yoshino was just a little emotional, it's not a matter of violence. It's just..."

As if recalling something, his brows gradually furrowed: "...It's just that I think his attitude towards Hunter is a bit...strange."

After he finished speaking, he looked up and found that the people around him and across from him were all looking at him. His body trembled and his expression became stiff. “This is all my personal feeling. Don’t take it too seriously. It would be bad if it delays the investigation.”

"You are a criminal police officer, so you may subconsciously pay attention to some details that others don't notice - what exactly is strange?" asked Aoyagi Binguang.

Takagi looked at the frivolous but polite FBI agent and said, "I feel like Mr. Yoshino seems to respect Hunter very much."

He scratched his head and began to describe the feeling as best he could.

"It's the respect that the younger generation has for the older generation. They will take the initiative to learn from each other's every move... When I first joined the company and was guided by my seniors to familiarize myself with the work, I was similar to him, but he was more obvious than me."

"You mean that Date senior." Sato Miwako recalled the situation at that time, "He is indeed a very reliable and respectable person. It's a pity that he was transferred out of town last year, otherwise he would definitely attend today's meeting."

Jinpei Matsuda coughed for no apparent reason.

"Matsuda, are you cold?" Sato Miwako turned her head and asked in confusion.

"fine."

In response to the difference in address, Matsuda Jinpei coughed again and continued the previous topic. He looked at Otto who was traveling with Takagi Wataru: "What do you think?"

Otto shook his head slowly. "I think they are similarly suspected. Hunter has coached many people in the past, and those people really respected him and regarded him as a hero... But when he was reported by Waltz, not many people stood up to speak for him."

He looked down at the dog tag on his wrist and added in a low voice: "...That's how I am."

The entire conference room fell silent for a moment.

Judy sighed silently. She thought about the contact she would make after returning and brought the topic back to the topic.

"In addition to Hunter's surgical report, the FBI headquarters is also investigating the specific travel records of him and related personnel in the past few years, and the results will be out soon."

Matsuda Jinpei recalled what she said yesterday: "Soon? Can it be out tonight?"

Judy's expression froze, and she laughed dryly: "Hunter lived in the countryside at the time, and there were not many surveillance cameras around. It would be a bit troublesome to investigate, but they will deal with it as soon as possible..."

Then, it was “as soon as possible” until this morning.

……