108: Chapter 108: Conan: Pitiful, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Weak, and Helpless

Inside the restroom aboard the Queen Selizabeth.

"The one that woman is wearing on her chest... that must be the real Black Star, right?"

Kuroba Kaito, still wearing the Suzuki Shiro mask, sat on the toilet lid inside the stall, deep in thought.

After some rudimentary deduction and detailed investigation,

he had confirmed that the Black Star worn by Suzuki Tomoko was indeed the genuine article.

The next step was simply to acquire it.

Knock knock knock!

Suddenly, a knock sounded from outside the stall door. "Anyone in there?"

"Ahem."

Kaito cleared his throat, mimicking Suzuki Shiro's voice. "Occupied."

Though the voice outside sounded vaguely familiar, he didn't dwell on it.

The price for not dwelling on it was a loud BANG as the stall door was kicked clean off its hinges.

Revealed in the doorway was a young man in a black suit, frozen mid-flying kick.

"So, you're the one called Kaito Kid, huh?"

Saying this, Fujino calmly pulled a meter-long frozen fish from behind his back.

Gazing at the disturbingly familiar frozen fish, Kuroba Kaito's lip twitched uncontrollably.

Good grief, how did I run into this guy AGAIN?!

This damned Frozen Fish Detective!

Speaking of which, how does this guy even know I hate fish?

Could it be...

"Ahem."

Thinking quickly, Kaito cleared his throat again, maintaining his poker face.

He continued to imitate Suzuki Shiro's voice smoothly. "Fujino-kun, what are you talking about? Where is Kaito Kid...? Have you already spotted him?"

"Already spotted him."

A slight smile played on Fujino's lips as he raised the frozen fish and swung it viciously down towards Kaito.

Crap!

Watching the rapidly approaching frozen fish, Kaito cursed inwardly. He instantly produced a flashbang from seemingly nowhere and threw it down.

Poof!

With a sharp crack, the entire stall was enveloped in blinding light.

Amidst the intense glare, Kaito, having somehow donned sunglasses,

maintained his Suzuki Shiro disguise while nimbly climbing onto the stall partition, intending to escape over the top.

But just as he was about to vault over, his body froze mid-motion.

Kuroba Kaito: "?"

He glanced back in confusion, only to see the detective's hand clamped firmly around his lower leg.

He struggled, trying to wrench free, but couldn't break the grip.

The force exerted by those seemingly ordinary hands was like a vise.

Fujino held Kaito's leg firmly, silently raised the frozen fish high, and brought it crashing down towards the lower part of the stall.

CRASH!

With a shattering sound, the toilet bowl was smashed to pieces by the frozen fish.

The moment the toilet broke, thick, acrid smoke began billowing out rapidly.

Within seconds, the entire restroom was filled with dense smoke.

Fujino burst out of the restroom, coughing through the smoke.

He looked down. All he held in his hand now was a pair of trousers.

"Shedding his skin like a cicada?¹"

Fujino frowned, looking at the trousers in his hand.

He quickly scanned the surroundings. Kuroba Kaito was nowhere to be seen.

Besides the smoke drifting out from the restroom, the corridor was empty.

"He escaped?"

Fujino clicked his tongue.

This was somewhat expected.

Kuroba Kaito, that kid, operated on a level that bordered on cheating reality.

Catching him easily would have been the real surprise.

Still, that 'Golden ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Cicada Sheds Its Skin' trick was quite impressive.

"But how does he hide so many flashbangs and smoke bombs on his person?"

Fujino glanced back at the smoke-filled restroom. "Could it be... he has a pocket dimension too?"

"Fujino! What happened here?!"

Just then, a child's voice called out.

Fujino turned to see Conan rushing towards him.

"I just encountered Kaito Kid, but he managed to get away..."

Fujino paused, then asked, "Conan-kun, why are you here?"

"Sonoko-neechan just spoke with Ayako-neechan on the phone! Chairman Suzuki never boarded this ship! The person giving the speech earlier was Kaito Kid in disguise!"

As he spoke, Conan suddenly stopped, noticing the trousers in Fujino's hand.

Trousers?

They look like Chairman Suzuki's trousers.

Why is Fujino holding Chairman Suzuki's trousers?

Could it be...?

At this thought, Conan's eyes narrowed suspiciously at Fujino.

He crouched slightly, preparing to activate his Power-Enhancing Kick Shoes.

Fujino: "..."

Seeing Conan's suspicion, Fujino took a deep breath and delivered a swift punch to the Death God elementary schooler's head.

Thwack!

The punch landed squarely on the back of Conan's head.

Conan instantly saw stars, feeling dizzy.

He spun around twice like Tom Cat hit by an anvil before recovering.

That feeling of being hit on the back of the head by a dump truck...

It's definitely Fujino!

Nobody else could deliver a blow quite like that!

Realizing this, Conan looked at Fujino with even greater resentment.

If it wasn't him, just say so! Why hit me?

Having confirmed Fujino wasn't Kaito Kid, Conan asked puzzledly, "Fujino, how did you figure out Kaito Kid was disguised as Chairman Suzuki?"

"If Sonoko-neechan hadn't called Ayako-neechan, I wouldn't have known Kaito Kid was disguised as Chairman Suzuki either." Fujino replied with perfect seriousness, "Detective's intuition."

"Huh?"

Conan stared blankly at Fujino's deadpan expression ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠as he spouted nonsense.

If you don't want to say, just say so! Why always fob him off with 'intuition'?

If detective's intuition was real, wouldn't he, Kudo Shinichi, the Sherlock Holmes of the Heisei Era, possess it?

Thinking this, the resentment in his eyes deepened.

He looked exactly like a sulking housewife.

"Just kidding."

Seeing Conan's resentful look, Fujino chuckled softly and explained, "Although Kaito Kid can perfectly mimic someone's appearance, emotions and speech patterns are things he can't fake."

"Emotions and speech patterns?"

Conan clearly didn't understand this answer.

Seeing Conan's clueless look, Fujino decided a practical demonstration was in order.

He reached out, grabbed Conan's cheeks, and began kneading them vigorously.

Conan, desperate to learn the secret to seeing through Kaito Kid's disguises, didn't dare resist.

He could only wear an expression of utter resignation, letting Fujino manhandle his face...

Pitiful, weak, and helpless.

In the corridor near the restroom.

"Damn it, how did that guy see through my disguise?"

Kuroba Kaito, now disguised as a waiter carrying a tray, walked down the corridor.

Recalling the terrifying encounter moments ago, his heart still pounded uneasily.

"Excuse me, sir, have you seen a child wearing glasses?"

Suddenly, a sweet female voice came from behind.

Kaito turned and saw Mouri Ran in her red evening gown.

He recognized this girl. She was a crucial part of his plan to steal the Black Star...

He had intended to find a way to lure her out, but encountering her directly like this... it saved him a lot of effort...

Thinking this, Kaito smiled charmingly and replied, "A young boy in a blue suit, perhaps?"

"Yes, that's him."

Ran nodded, worry etched onto her face.

"Please come with me."

1. Golden Cicada Sheds Its Skin - a Chinese idiom for escaping stealthily