The Phantom Thief of Heart! But Conan.

Chapter 896 Detective Koshien Opening

"……I do not know what you're talking about."

After a moment of surprise, Hoshikawa Teru turned his head and refused to make eye contact with Hattori Heiji.

Tang Ze will soon complete the exchange with him, and before the exchange, we shouldn't create too many surprises, which will add uncertainty to Tang Ze.

"That's right, when we met at the entrance of the cafe two days ago." Hattori Heiji scratched his chin twice and said awkwardly, "What I said was not quite appropriate. You can't choose your origin, and standing with the organization is not your own choice. When I said that, I was transferring my emotions to you."

"I don't think you have anything to apologize for." Xingchuan Hui shook his head slightly. "Although your expression sounds a bit too direct, isn't everything you said true?"

If it weren't for the existence of Tang Ze, there is a high probability that Hoshikawa Teru would have really grown up to be the person that Hattori Heiji despised, so he was not angry about the other party's offense.

Of course, this assumption is meaningless. If Tang Ze had not been there, he would have been burned to ashes in the flames of the organization's liquidation along with the death of his most hated father.

"But, I took it for granted." Hattori Heiji recalled his remarks at that time and scratched his head, "After all, you are not your father. There are some things that you cannot control. To be able to achieve this point today, you must have made a lot of efforts."

When saying this, Hattori Heiji was thinking of what happened to Karasawa. Thinking about how he had to keep a low profile because of the case, and comparing it with the booming popularity of Goro Akechi, he couldn't help but feel unfair for Karasawa.

People who have done no wrong are forced to live with their heads down because of the perpetrators, while the children of the perpetrators stand under the spotlight and become glamorous. He never liked this kind of ironic disparity, and naturally, he disliked Goro Akechi even more.

But put yourself in their shoes. If Goro Akechi, who was forced to be associated with the organization since birth, does not work hard to climb up and prove his own worth, then one can imagine the fate he will face. The organization is not a merciful relief agency. After accepting children like him, if they cannot extract enough value from them, then they will not spend a penny to feed a child.

Hattori Heiji said that as if he was saying lightly, why don't you just die instead of committing a crime?

If you think about it, it's a bit like "why not eat meat?"

Hoshikawa Teru glanced at him, and because he was still under many people's gaze and could not destroy Goro Akechi's image, he suppressed the urge to sneer.

He smiled gently, "You suddenly said something very positive, Hattori-kun. How come, because of the case two days ago, you were also deeply moved by the abbot's words? You are indeed a detective who is good at learning and reflecting."

There was a strong sense of sarcasm in these words, but Hattori Heiji nodded seriously, as if he didn't hear anything.

"Yes, his words did make me reflect. Words are like knives. Just because what you want to do is right, you can't ignore the harm caused in the process. Our duty is to find the truth, and we can't elevate ourselves to an unattainable place. If detectives don't calibrate this string at all times, it's impossible to predict what kind of harm they will cause to others. The outside world will even take our identities into consideration and assume that our actions are legitimate. This is not good."

Hoshikawa Teru turned his head and looked at Hattori Heiji helplessly. Receiving a frank and clear look from the other party, he had to press his forehead.

His helplessness was not because of Hattori Heiji's overly frank expression, but because of the laughter coming from the headphones.

In order not to affect Tang Ze's subsequent performance, when Hattori Heiji said the second sentence, he had to open the communication and synchronize the other party's words to Tang Ze.

What Hattori Heiji said was very nice. If he was really the Kumail who fell into the abyss because of his unfortunate birth, he might be moved by such brilliant words of Hattori Heiji.

However, the focus of his life and the direction of his future had already shifted to the Phantom Thieves and Tang Ze, so at most he would just praise the beautiful words and know clearly how much favor he could gain from Tang Ze.

Seeing that he remained silent, Hattori Heiji thought that his expression had touched the other party. He finally conveyed his previous guilt, so he breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed his posture.

"Of course, if I find evidence, I will still send you to the procuratorate. Don't worry, you are not yet an adult, and you have family factors. The prosecutors and the court will take these into consideration and will not impose an excessive sentence."

Hoshikawa Teru glanced at Hattori Heiji who started to laugh heartlessly: "...Are you serious? Are you trying to persuade someone who knows clearly about Karasawa's situation and has even participated in it to believe in the judiciary?"

"Uh……"

Hattori Heiji was speechless. Not far away, Tang Ze wiped away the tears from his eyes, straightened up, and finally patted the shoulder of the person standing next to him: "How is it, not bad? I told you, it can't be Hattori."

Koshimizu Nanatsuki glanced at the white-haired friend he had just met and said, "That makes some sense, but I still want to confirm it myself before I say anything."

The invitation list itself was drawn up by Nanatsuki Koshimizu based on the "suspect" list, and it is impossible for Karasawa, who knew the whole story of the case from the beginning, not to know the name of the real murderer.

Not long after they contacted each other, he told her the other party's biggest confusion, about who was the person who almost killed her friend.

After listening to his explanation, Nanatsuki Koshimizu was quite convinced, but still insisted on holding the variety show. It seemed that she wanted to confirm the list with her own eyes before she felt at ease.

He was somewhat ungrateful, but as a detective, it was understandable for him to be more skeptical. Tang Ze expressed his understanding and respect.

Anyway, she is the planner and she has the final say. It was also the same when Tang Ze acted as the Avengers' close consultant in the past. He would give his own plans, and whether the person would choose or follow them depended on his thoughts. He never forced them.

"But what's going on with that?" Pointing at Hoshikawa Teru in front of the TV station building from a distance, Nanatsuki Koshimizu frowned strangely, "You, clearly..."

"We are the 'Phantom Thieves', so it makes sense for me to have a few logistics personnel who can disguise themselves and appear in other places on my behalf to facilitate some escape techniques, right?" Tang Ze lied without changing his expression.

Nanatsuki Koshimizu, like Kyosuke Haga, can feel the potential of the other party's mask user, but after all, he has not yet reached the point where he really wants to give up his current life and completely abandon his social identity to hide in the dark.

Therefore, Tang Ze expected that the arrangement for her would be similar to that for Yuga Kyosuke. As a non-staff member of the Phantom Thieves, she would continue to be active in society and provide them with assistance when necessary.

Faced with this situation, Tang Ze will try his best to hide his true identity to avoid any complications.

To describe it in a more cold way, the trajectories of the Phantom Thieves members are controllable, and there is no need to worry about the impact of identity leakage on Tang Ze's current life, but those who leave the scope of the Phantom Thieves are not so controllable.

Unless he only dealt with the other party once, and there was no way to leak secrets, Tang Ze would still tend to be reserved. Koshimizu Nanatsuki nodded, reluctantly accepting his explanation.

Although it feels a bit strange, but for a thief, being too normal would be a bit abnormal.

She took out her sunglasses and put them on her nose, then raised her head: "Let's go, it's time to start my plan. Thank you for your guidance, Kaito-kun."

----

"You came here so early just to see the other opponents..." Sitting in the dressing room waiting, Conan yawned, "You are strangely serious."

"Of course. Knowing yourself and your enemy will ensure victory in every battle. I always want to see what the other invited guests look like first." Hattori Heiji puffed out his chest, "Except for you, the famous detective from the East, I haven't seen any other powerful high school detectives."

"Hey, hey, keep your voice down." Conan, whose identity was exposed, looked around hurriedly.

This is a TV station after all. Who knows if the production crew will install hidden cameras in the dressing room to create some show effects...

"Don't worry, this issue has been addressed in the contract. The dressing room is a private area and the TV station won't film it." Hattori Heiji patted Conan's back.

"Even things like this are written in..." Conan pursed his lips and looked at the tightly closed dressing room door.

Should we say that this is a negotiation worthy of an adult? Mr. Amuro may really be very smart in this regard, just as Karasawa said.

After Toru Amuro arrived, he brought Hattori Heiji and Goro Akechi to the program crew. They were then led to familiarize themselves with the simple process, such as where the filming would take place and where they should look. Then they were sent to the dressing room to wait for the next arrangement.

Theoretically, due to the closed filming, family members such as Mouri Kogoro were not allowed to come in. Apart from Amuro Toru, who was half the agent, only Conan was brought in by Hattori Heiji as agreed in advance.

And the person that Toru Amuro is actually responsible for is definitely Goro Akechi. Naturally, he won't have time to take care of the two of them until he finishes his work there, so the two of them can only wait here.

"But didn't Mingzhi give you a list and information? Why is it that the content he gave you is not detailed enough, so that you feel you need to investigate further on your own?"

"How can it be the same? Besides, aren't we going to have to deal with Mizunashi Rena this time? We can't be careless with this method." Hattori Heiji said, rolling up his sleeves, looking very imposing. "Just like a doctor cannot trust the examinations of other hospitals, and must redo the treatment to ensure the effectiveness of the treatment, how can a detective trust the investigation results of other detectives? Armchair detective is not my style."

"What a strange metaphor..." Conan's mouth twitched, but when he heard the name of Mizunashi Rena, he no longer objected to Hattori Heiji's statement.

This variety show, from its original purpose to the roles of all parties participating in the show, is not as simple as it seems.

Out of caution, we should be careful...

"Tuk-tuk-tuk."

The two were chatting when there was a knock on the dressing room door.

After receiving their invitation to come in, two people who looked equally young walked in one after another.

"Is this the dressing room for 'Detective Koshien'?" The boy who led the way in asked first, and after a sharp glance at Hattori Heiji's face, he raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Oh, isn't this Hattori Heiji? Wow, it seems that what the production team said about the 'luxurious guest lineup' was not all an excuse."

"Indeed, compared to Hattori Heiji's fame, I seem to be far behind." Koshimizu Nanatsuki, who walked in behind him, took off the headphones on his head and hung them around his neck. He looked at Hattori Heiji and became a little uncertain. "But speaking of which, do people with your skin color also need to put on makeup before appearing on camera?"

"Hey..." Hattori Heiji instantly revealed his half-moon eyes.

"So, are you the other contestants in this variety show?" Conan looked at the two people's faces curiously.

Not to mention that they looked familiar, he had a feeling that even if the two of them told him their names, he might not know who they were.

It's not that he looks down on people of his age. It's mainly because as a detective, he is basically active at the scenes of various criminal cases. He almost never accepts ordinary commissions from the civil society unless the case is novel enough. Generally speaking, he is a detective who acts out of interest and is even more out of touch with reality than Hattori Heiji.

The detectives that Kudo Shinichi has known and interacted with are basically those who are above 20 or even middle-aged. A large number of them are those he, as the son of Kudo Yusaku, met when his father was collecting materials or giving assistance and suggestions to other people to solve cases. As for high school detectives of the same age, he is not too interested in them as long as they are not like Hattori Heiji, who has an A face and can compete with him and prove his ability.

"To think there's such a young child here. Are you also a member of the detective team?" Nanatsuki Koshimizu bent down and looked at the short child through his sunglasses. "Well, how should I put it? He doesn't look like a child at all. He looks like a detective at first glance."

"Well, he is, sort of, my assistant." Glancing at Conan, Hattori Heiji spoke with some embarrassment, lowering his voice involuntarily.

Everyone else participated in the competition independently, but he was the only one who brought an external Kudo Shinichi with him. It felt like two against one, which seemed really unfair.

The boy who led in saw that Nanatsuki Koshimizu seemed to be paying all her attention to Conan, squatting down to tease the elementary school student. He curled his lips in disdain and quickly moved his eyes away from Conan.

He looked around the empty dressing room and said with a sigh, "I didn't see Goro Akechi or Shinichi Kudo. I thought that the 'Great Detective of the East' would undoubtedly be one of them. What a pity! Without their participation, I feel that this show would lose a lot of its luster."

"Oh, you're talking about Goro Akechi. He is indeed here." Hattori Heiji pointed to the wall with his thumb. "But he has his own dressing room. He has already gone there now. He won't stay with us."

Unlike these purely amateur guests, Goro Akechi has a long-term program in Nichimi...

Tsk, the more you talk, the more it sounds like you have connections.