"Dad, Conan, look! It's Heiji's turn!" Ran called out.
"Damn it, that brat is stealing all my business."
Kogoro Mouri sulked, his arms crossed.
[Does Ran really need to be that excited about Hattori? Damn it.]
Conan also had his arms crossed, annoyed.
[But... I'll know the truth soon enough.]
A light flashed on his glasses. His suspicion of Heiji hadn't faded. It was a detective's intuition.
"Conan, Conan, are you there?"
The Detective Badge on the table crackled.
"I'm here," Conan sighed, picking it up.
"Big Brother Heiji is on TV again! Are you watching?" Ayumi asked.
"I'm watching! I'm watching!" Mitsuhiko's voice came through.
"I'm watching too, while eating eel rice," Genta added.
"I'm watching."
Conan was exasperated. These kids are always talking about Hattori.
"Is Ai watching, too?" Ayumi asked.
Conan's eyes narrowed.
The badge was silent.
"Ai?" Ayumi asked again.
"Yes. I'm here."
After a moment, Ai's cool voice replied.
"Ai, you answered! Are you watching Big Brother Heiji?" Ayumi asked.
"..." Ai's voice remained calm.
"Ai, you've been waiting all night. It's finally Heiji's turn. You must be happy, right?"
Professor Agasa's voice came over the badge.
After a brief pause, the other kids started laughing.
"Professor, your blood pressure is high. No more sweets for you."
Ai's cold voice came through the badge, and then she was gone.
"Ai stopped talking."
"But she was definitely watching."
"She must be shy."
[Heh. That Haibara...]
Conan chuckled, but his face turned serious. I've asked her several times, but she won't tell me her relationship with Hattori. Damn it.
Jirokichi Suzuki was also annoyed.
After that first reporter, everyone started asking Heiji questions.
It was the first time the Suzuki Consultant had been ignored at his own press conference.
"Mr. Hattori, last time, your deductions caused Kaitou Kid and the Night Baron to fail. How did you feel?"
"How did I feel?" Heiji smiled. "In my eyes, there's no such thing as a perfect crime. Every crime leaves clues. My job is to find them and solve the case."
The reporters loved this.
"Does that mean no case in the world is too difficult for you?"
A reporter asked, clearly trying to trap him.
"Damn it! Which newspaper is that? They're banned from all future Suzuki events!" Sonoko seethed.
"Don't worry. Heiji will make him regret that," Kazuha said, watching the screen confidently.
"That reporter is an idiot," Ai suddenly said, cold as ice.
Conan and the others were stunned.
Heiji smiled and picked up a pencil from the table. "Sir, what is this?"
"It's a pencil."
The reporter answered, though he was confused.
"Do you know what kind of pencil it is?"
"The text is too small, I can't see."
Heiji tossed the pencil to the reporter. "Can you see it now?"
"Yes, it's a 2B model," the reporter said.
"Then the pencil is yours. Next question."
Heiji ignored him.
"Mr. Hattori, you didn't answer my question!" the reporter shouted.
"I did answer. The pencil is the answer."
Everyone was confused.
[A pencil is the answer?]
Not just the people at the conference, but everyone watching was confused.
"Mr. Hattori, is this a riddle?" another reporter asked excitedly.
Heiji paused, then smiled. "If you want to think of it as a game, be my guest."
The atmosphere in the room immediately lightened.
"What does a pencil mean?" Sonoko was baffled.
"I don't know, but Heiji must have a reason," Kazuha said.
[The pencil isn't the key... it's the "2B". But what does that mean?]
Conan pinched his chin, thinking.
"Tch. It doesn't mean anything. That Hattori brat is just making things up to get attention. I know that trick," Kogoro said.
"But Dad, why would Heiji need attention? He doesn't run a detective agency like you," Ran asked.
"Well... he's just showing off!" Kogoro stammered.
[Heh. The uncle is being dumb again.]
Conan sighed.
At Professor Agasa's house.
"Ai, do you know what Heiji means?" the Professor asked.
Ai was deep in thought. She shook her head. "No."
"That damn guy, playing mysterious again," Kaito Kuroba grumbled, equally stumped.
"Dad, is that high schooler Heiji Hattori?" Aoko Nakamori asked.
"Yeah. The rumor at the MPD is that he's the 'Thief-Killer'," Inspector Nakamori said.
"Really?" Aoko watched the TV, curious.
Everyone watching the broadcast was trying to figure it out.
"Mr. Hattori, can you give us a hint?"
That one pencil had stumped everyone.
Heiji glanced at the reporter. "I'm just a fan of Japanese wordplay."
[Wordplay?]
One reporter's eyes lit up. "Mr. Hattori, the pencil is a '2B'... are you implying the 'B' stands for 'Baka' (idiot)?"
"He's a 'Baka'?"
Everyone was even more confused.
Heiji was surprised someone understood. He could only nod.
"I'm a 'Baka'?" the reporter who asked the question said, baffled.
"If the shoe fits..."
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