Chapter 94:
[one]
Good Friends World.
Recently, Matsuda Jinpei and others were recommended a PPT-style anime series by Morofushi Sora'aki. Morofushi Sora'aki is used to reading comic, so it's normal for him to watch anime.
So, they unsuspectingly opened an animation that had not yet been broadcast in their time.
The old-fashioned, impoverished style of the painting was very much in line with their current era, so the other four people didn't realize it at all.
Until they finished watching the first episode.
The name of this anime series is "Back Street Girls".
The story revolves around three gangsters who, under the orders of their boss, who declared, "I'm not a devil either," are forced to undergo gender reassignment surgery and become idols.
All eyes were on Morofushi Hiromitsu.
"A gangster..."
"transsexual..."
"So, you want to become an idol in the future, Hiromitsu?"
The smile on Morofushi Hiromitsu's face had frozen.
[two]
"So, will this kind of thing become common in the future?" Hagiwara Kenji asked curiously.
Morofushi Sora'aki recalled the opinion of the person he knew who was most knowledgeable about medicine (Miyano Shiho) on gender reassignment surgery.
He nodded and said, "In the future, transgender people will indeed be very common, and everyone will be able to accept it."
Morofushi Hiromitsu: "..."
Morofushi Hiromitsu said, "I... absolutely, will not get involved in the underworld. Absolutely."
Morofushi Sora'aki commented, "It's okay, you look good even after the gender reassignment. Just like my brother."
Morofushi Hiromitsu's smile faltered: "Sorry, I might be a bit more traditional than your brother?"
Morofushi Sora'aki suddenly realized: "Is this what makes this other world different?"
Having only ever seen the counterparts of familiar people from another world, Morofushi Sora'aki is now genuinely curious about what he will be like in that other world.
And Little Stone, as expected, fulfilled his wish this time as well.
[three]
A world cannot allow two identical people to exist; at the very least, one must undergo gender reassignment surgery.
When Hiromitsu was brought to the Good Friends World, it was Hiromitsu who underwent gender reassignment surgery. Therefore, when they went to other worlds, it must have been Morofushi Sora'aki who underwent gender reassignment surgery.
Morofushi Sora'aki is still a minor. Even though he's eighteen, the age when he can get married, he's still a minor. His already immature features won't become more mature after the gender swap.
High school girl Nozaki Umeko is online again. Morofushi Sora'aki touches his hair, pondering, "Should I wear bunny ears like Umeko?"
When Nozaki Umetarou adopts a female mindset, his only disguise is wearing rabbit ears on his head.
Just as Morofushi Sora'aki was deep in thought, he...she heard the sound of something falling to the ground.
Morofushi Sora'aki looked toward the source of the voice in confusion, and then saw a familiar face: blond hair, dark skin, and a baby face that had hardly changed since high school—it was Rei-nii.
But that expression... does Rei-nii recognize me?
Morofushi Sora'aki heard the other person hesitate before speaking, "...Akira?"
Akira is the Romanized name for 空亮 (Sora'aki). Sora'aki hesitated for a moment, after all, Rei-nii had never called him that so affectionately before.
"Hmm? Rei-nii, are you calling me?" A familiar yet unfamiliar voice, tinged with laughter, came from not far away. Passing over Furuya Rei's figure, a face that Morofushi Sora'aki could see in the mirror almost every day appeared in front of him.
He just looked more mature, and had a smile on his face that was somewhat unfamiliar to Morofushi Sora'aki.
Morofushi Sora'aki: "..."
"Oh?" The black-haired, blue-eyed youth's eyes lit up. "Is it a lost kitten?"
Morofushi Sora'aki confirmed: Yes, it's me.
So why wasn't this another case of someone stealing fish?
[four]
To make it easier to distinguish the two Morofushi 空亮 (Sora'aki/Akira) on the scene, the one who became the girl Morofushi Sora'aki was referred to as Morofushi Umeko.
However, given that Morofushi Umeko is the main character, it would be strange to completely give the name to another version of herself, so let's add a special mark to the other person's name as well.
"This narration is a little distracting," commented [Morofushi 空亮].
"It's alright, it's not much different from the narration in a stage play." Morofushi Umeko tilted her head: "Hello, nice to meet you."
"Ah—so we're still in the self-introduction phase?" [Morofushi 空亮] smiled, his eyes crinkling. "I'm Morofushi Akira (空亮). I have two older brothers and two younger brothers. My parents love each other dearly. What about you?"
"If it weren't for my brother's leaky superpowers, your life would probably be quite interesting, wouldn't it?"
"Although I don't quite understand what 'leaking superpower' means..." Morofushi Umeko thought for a moment, "My name is Nozaki Umeko, nice to meet you."
"Nozaki?" [Morofushi Akira] raised an eyebrow, asking a question that should have been asked from the beginning: "Excuse me, are you male or female?"
"Umeko is Umeko." said Morofushi Umeko seriously.
Furuya Rei: ...Can you two please pay attention to me for once?
[Morofushi Akira] glanced at Furuya Rei standing to the side and said in surprise, "Huh? Amuro-san, you're still here."
Morofushi Umeko immediately recalled her past experiences and blurted out, "Amuro Touko-san?"
Furuya Rei: ...huh? Touko??
[Morofushi Akira]: "So, Amuro-san, aren't you going back yet? Azusa-san is going to cry."
Furuya Rei, who had come out to shop, picked up the supermarket bag again and invited with a smile, "If you don't mind, you two are welcome to visit Poirot."
That said, why were you two able to accept it so quickly?
[five]
Morofushi Umeko was surprised that she could still show such a wide range of expressions, while Morofushi Akira was not surprised by the situation of his other self.
To give a brief introduction, [Morofushi Akira] is 22 years old this year, and is currently still in a loop of being 22 years old, for who knows how many years.
Because he has a younger brother with superpowers who is facing a volcanic eruption that could destroy Japan. In order to avert this disaster, his beloved brother has to rewind time every year.
This provides a very reasonable explanation for the time setting of Detective Conan.
While in junior high school, he was connected to a forum system that links to the real world, and he has now successfully resurrected his brother, who was supposed to be dead.
Morofushi Umeko stated, "I also have a system, but it's a wish-granting system."
Morofushi Umeko casually changed the name of her system.
[Morofushi Akira] propped his chin on his hand and sighed, "There's someone who's probably very envious of you."
The two exchanged information, and [Morofushi Akira] could tell at a glance that he was practically a blank slate in this other world.
No matter what color you dye it, it will leave a corresponding mark.
But the paper is still the same piece of paper; it's just that outsiders' evaluations and opinions will change as a result.
"I'm very interested in sniper rifles, but my brother says I can't do that. And if I do something bad, Mom will be sad." said Morofushi Umeko.
Morofushi Akira, who also cares deeply about his mother's feelings, understands perfectly: "That's right, Mom will cry."
The two finally found a rare point of common ground and began to appreciate each other.
"If Mom cries, it's like the end of the world, right? Even a superpowered person would find it a difficult situation." commented [Morofushi Akira].
"So we can't let her be sad." After saying this, Morofushi Umeko suddenly asked a question: "How old are you this year?"
Because Furuya Rei's face makes it impossible to guess his age, and coincidentally, Morofushi Sora'aki/Akira is also a member of the baby-faced group, and Morofushi Akira usually dresses in a youthful style, apart from his temperament making him look like an adult, even Morofushi Umeko herself can't tell exactly how old he is.
"22 years old, currently working part-time at the Metropolitan Police Department." [Morofushi Akira] said, resting his chin on his hand, "A member of the Explosive-Disposal Unit."
At this point, [Morofushi Akira] suddenly paused, then looked sharply at Morofushi Umeko: "By the way, you're still a high school student, right?"
Morofushi Umeko nodded.
[Morofushi Akira] looked Morofushi Umeko up and down again, a gentle smile on his face that sent chills down one's spine: "Umeko, there's an interesting game, want to play together?"
[Morofushi Akira] can also reveal another aspect of his own perverse tastes.
Morofushi Umeko decisively replied, "Yes!"
[Morofushi Akira] snapped his fingers: "Okay, let's go to the Metropolitan Police Department! To see my 'best friend'!"
[six]
Today was not Morofushi Akira's workday, so his colleagues were somewhat surprised when he appeared at the Metropolitan Police Department.
[Morofushi Akira] asked, "Where is Matsuda?"
"Matsuda? He's on a field assignment, he should be back soon." a colleague replied. "Do you need to see him, Morofushi?"
[Morofushi Akira] replied with a smile, "Yes, I want to give him a surprise. When he comes back, I'll tell him, thank you for your help."
It's no secret that Morofushi Akira and Matsuda Jinpei dislike each other within the bureau, and seeing Morofushi Akira's attitude, everyone's gossip instincts kicked in.
Just then, they noticed a girl wearing a hat standing at the door, with a small tag indicating she was a guest.
After finishing his conversation with his colleague, [Morofushi Akira] naturally walked out of the office and said softly to the girl waiting outside, "Shall we go to the meeting room?"
The slender girl, who was considerably shorter than Morofushi Akira, nodded. Because her face was hidden by her hat, only her chin could be seen.
When Matsuda Jinpei returned, covered in sweat, his colleagues called out to him, saying that Morofushi was looking for him. The curly-haired officer immediately had a bad feeling.
But after thinking it over, Matsuda Jinpei went to the reception room anyway, and there he saw a very familiar face.
Matsuda Jinpei: "..."
Upon seeing him, [Morofushi Akira] wore a malicious smile and said in a monotone voice, "Matsuda, so this is my underage sister whom you abandoned—"
Matsuda Jinpei: "...Hey! Where did you get this little sister from this time?"
Morofushi Umeko, who had already taken off her hat, blinked and looked around. It is currently known that [Morofushi Akira] can gender-swap, and the one who was abandoned is definitely not the Morofushi Umeko who just arrived in this world, and [Morofushi Akira] just said that he was his best friend.
At that moment, Morofushi Umeko seemed to understand something and asked, "Is this your relationship with Jinpei-chan?"
This time, it wasn't just Matsuda Jinpei who was speechless. [Morofushi Akira] suddenly turned around like a little seal, his face showing a disgusted expression: "...Jinpei-chan?"