"Why are you looking at me with those eyes?" Tsuneo shot a sideways glance at the elementary schooler as he turned around to take a stack of bills out of the cabinet.
He didn't have much to do this afternoon, so he planned to go wander around the department store.
"Hey, where did you go to exercise this morning?" Conan had reason to suspect that the guy had run up the stairs and accidentally jogged right into the room of a certain manager on the third floor.
"We are adults; it's perfectly normal to want to do certain things, unlike you," Tsuneo sized him up from head to toe.
This guy pretending to be an elementary schooler...
"I can't be bothered to talk to you..." The famous detective turned his head away, glancing at the repairman's trouser pocket.
That letter mailed from Osaka earlier looked quite thick. It was probably photos or something similar—sent by Hattori?
But who sent that very eerie envelope?
No, wait, it probably wasn't mailed. After all, the white envelope didn't have a stamp or an address on it.
"You want to see?" Tsuneo knew exactly what this dog-headed detective was thinking just by looking at his eyes.
"No." Conan sat cross-legged in front of the TV, absentmindedly pressing buttons on the remote control.
"If you don't want to struggle anymore, just say so." Tsuneo didn't hide it from him; he opened the letter from Osaka.
They were photos taken together last time in Osaka.
It was clear that the brat Hattori really didn't want to write a letter. Aside from a few photos, there was just a slip of paper with a greeting inside the envelope.
"Say what?" Conan rested his chin on his hand, asking gloomily.
Right now, she was only suspicious, so his life was still intact. But if the truth were really revealed...
The famous detective thought of certain nosebleed-inducing scenarios and felt like he might drop dead on the spot.
Moreover, given Ran's personality, she would definitely wade into these muddy waters with him. If something really happened, they would probably have to live a life of hiding their names and identities.
"Just say that you are the illegitimate child of Kudo Yusaku and that chubby lady, Edogawa Fumiyo, and then find someone to play Kudo Shinichi." Tsuneo was very pleased with himself for coming up with such a great idea.
Conan scratched his dog head, his eyes lighting up.
That's right! If Edogawa Conan and Kudo Shinichi appeared at the same time, wouldn't that solve it?
As for the first part—the illegitimate child identity—that was entirely unnecessary!
"How about it? I can make a phone call and ask your mom and dad to come back and put on a show of the legal wife beating up the mistress." Tsuneo really wanted to see that.
"No, finding someone to disguise themselves as me will be enough." Conan glared at the repairman.
There's nobody who loves watching drama unfold as much as you do!
"I actually have a pretty good actor over here. The kind who doesn't even need makeup." Tsuneo looked at the strange letter in his hand.
If talking about playing Kudo Shinichi, this person was the most suitable...
"No way. You and that guy actually correspond via mail?" Conan felt it was absurd.
He could naturally guess who the repairman was talking about.
Kaitou Kid!
That guy had even impersonated him to help him out of a jam during the Suzuki family's Easter Egg incident.
"You've seen his face too. Take off the top hat, and he really does look exactly like you," Tsuneo said, planning to contact Kaito later.
"Who wants to look like that guy!" Conan huffed.
"Maybe he's Yusaku's illegitimate child." Tsuneo's face was perfectly calm.
The topic of illegitimate children wasn't going to pass today.
"Forget it. As long as there are no flaws, I'll leave this matter to you." Conan rubbed his temples.
Talking to this person really made his trigeminal nerve hurt.
But when it came to disguise techniques, Kaitou Kid was indeed the best choice.
He heard there were some signs of progress regarding the antidote from Haibara's side, but it was still in the experimental stage, so this was the only way.
"Perfect timing. I have an invitation to a magic show right here." Tsuneo opened the envelope and smiled.
"I guess that guy is going to steal some gem again," Conan remarked.
"No, this time it's a very proper magic show..."
Evening.
At Agasa Professor's house.
"What? Let Kid play Shinichi?!" The Professor almost sprayed out his rice.
That idea was truly bold...
"There's no other way. This guy is just too prone to suspicion." Tsuneo glanced at Conan.
Wandering around crime scenes everywhere—it was impossible not to be noticed.
"Will that thief agree to something like this?" Ai looked over, holding her rice bowl.
"He probably won't refuse." The repairman smiled.
Who would complain about having too many favors owed to them?
"Being cautious is the right thing to do," Akemi nodded and said.
The Organization was dangerous, so naturally, one should hide as far away as possible.
The famous detective remained silent, perhaps mentally drafting script lines in his head.
"Hello," Tsuneo picked up his phone, which had been vibrating for a while.
"Hello, is this Mr. Tsuneo? This is Araide Tomoaki." On the other end of the line was a young man's voice.
"Is something the matter?" Tsuneo put down his chopsticks.
"There's a bit of a situation at the clinic, and I might need your help." The situation on Dr. Araide's end sounded a bit chaotic; there seemed to be a nurse speaking in the background.
"I'll probably head over in about twenty or thirty minutes," Tsuneo said, continuing to eat.
"Please come as soon as possible. I'll turn off the water valve in the meantime."
They exchanged a few more words before Tsuneo hung up and continued chowing down.
"Is it the Araide Clinic?" Conan looked at the repairman.
This guy's eyesight and hearing always became exceptionally good when it came to these things.
"Likely a problem with the water pipes." Tsuneo nodded.
Fixing things was probably a pretext; finding an opportunity to make contact with him was the truth.
Although they hadn't met for a while, the current Dr. Araide should already be a fake. Otherwise, that Jodie-sensei wouldn't have needed to go out of her way to become a teacher at Teitan High School.
Thinking about this, a smile suddenly appeared on the repairman's face.
Finally, it was his turn to put on an act!
Nearly an hour later.
The red pickup truck slowly pulled to a stop in front of the Araide Clinic.
Tsuneo took a deep breath, plastered a sunny, warm smile on his face, shouldered his tool bag, and walked into the clinic.
"Dr. Araide, long time no see!" Tsuneo pushed open the office door, smiling as he greeted the young man wearing glasses behind the desk.
Take a look—how is this smile of mine, tempered by a thousand trials?
Vermouth!
"Mr. Tsuneo, you're finally here. A patient was just complaining to me..." Dr. Araide looked at the repairman helplessly.
He had said twenty or thirty minutes, but in the end, he had waited nearly an hour for him to arrive.
"I was busy eating. You could have just found another repairman nearby," Tsuneo said with a smile.
Why don't you tell me why you didn't find someone else and insisted on waiting for me?
"I had already booked you..." Dr. Araide stood up from his chair and walked out of the office to lead Tsuneo to the repair site.
This repairman... seemed a bit different from what was expected...
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